Stories from The Jungle Book / Книга Джунглей. Редьярд Киплинг
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вшись в лесу, находит приют у семьи волков. В джунглях он заводит дружбу с медведем Балу и пантерой Багирой, а также вступает в противостояние с коварным тигром Шерханом.
«Рикки-тикки-тави» – история отважного мангуста, ставшего настоящим другом и защитником для семьи англичан.
Mowgli the man-cub
1
It was late afternoon. Father Wolf awoke from his sleep, yawned and stretched his legs. He pushed out his claws and looked at them. They were sharp and clean. It was time to go hunting for food. Mother Wolf sat watching her four cubs playing and rumbling around her.
Suddenly, her ears stood up and she stretched her neck. She could hear the leaves of a bush rustling.
She asked Father Wolf, “What is there?”
Father Wolf went to the mouth of the cave and looked out. From between the leaves, he could see a naked baby boy crawling towards the cave, laughing and shaking his curly head.
“Why, it’s a man-cub!” he exclaimed.
“A man-cub? Bring him here. I have never seen a man-cub before,” said Mother Wolf.
Father Wolf gently picked up the child by the neck with his teeth. This was the way he carried his own cubs. He put the child in front of her. There were no teeth marks on the child’s neck. The child did not struggle. He allowed Father Wolf to carry him. He was not afraid.
“He has no hair! He is naked!” exclaimed Mother Wolf. “Look at him. He is not afraid! He is pushing my cubs away to get my milk!”
Suddenly they heard Shere Khan’s growl outside the cave.
“What do you want?” asked Father Wolf.
“The man-cub,” Shere Khan answered. “I saw him crawl this way.”
“Go away. He is ours.”
“He is mine. Give him to me.”
Mother Wolf sprang up.
“The man-cub is mine. He will live with us,” she said. “He shall not be killed. One day he will hunt and kill you.”
Shere Khan knew she would not give him the man-cub, and the cave was too small for him to get into and take the cub away.
He turned to go, but growled before he went saying, “He will be mine one day.”
Mother Wolf looked at the child fondly.
“I’ll name him Mowgli. He is such a happy man-cub. Look at him playing with our cubs!”
Mowgli crawled up to her and lay down at her side. Mother Wolf smiled and put her paw over him.
2
It was the night of the full moon, when the wolf pack met at the Council Rock. Akela, the leader of the pack, sat on the Rock and watched the wolves bring their young cubs for inspection. This was the Law. The older wolves were required to see each new cub, before it became a member of the pack.
Mother Wolf also brought her four cubs and Mowgli for inspection. She was filled with anxiety. What would the pack say when they saw the man-cub? Would they allow him into the pack?
Akela said, “Look at the cubs carefully, O wolves.”
The cubs were brought to the centre. One by one the older wolves came, sniffed each one, looked carefully and then returned to their places.
“Look well, O wolves,” repeated Akela.
Father Wolf pushed Mowgli into the centre. Mother Wolf was very worried as she looked on. Mowgli was laughing and rolling the stones he had found. He was too busy playing to be afraid.
A growl came from behind a rock. It was Shere Khan.
“The cub is mine,” he growled. “You are wolves. What will you do with a man-cub?”
A young wolf asked, “Why do we have a man-cub here? He is not one of us.”
“I know,” said Akela, “but if two of the pack speak for him, he may stay.”
Father and Mother Wolf looked around and waited. They were not allowed to speak for him. No one spoke.
Suddenly they heard a grunt. It was Baloo, the brown bear. He was the teacher of the wolf cubs. He taught them the Laws of the Jungle.
He said, “I speak for the man-cub. Let him be one of the pack. I shall teach him.”
“But we need one more,” said Akela.
A soft voice purred. “I come as a friend, Akela.” It was Bagheera, the black panther. “I speak for the man-cub. Let him stay, and I will give you a fat bull that I have just killed.”
“A fat bull, did you say?” asked the pack. They were always hungry. “Of course the man-cub can stay!”
Shere Khan was very angry. He gave a loud roar and returned to his lair.
3
Mowgli spent a wonderful time among the wolves for ten whole summers. He loved Father and Mother Wolf. They in turn loved him as one of their cubs. Mother Wolf was very kind to him. She would often say, “I love him more than any son of mine.”
Their cubs were his brothers and they all played together. Mowgli was really very happy.
Father Wolf taught him many things about the jungle, its sounds and dangers.
Mowgli roamed the jungle. He ate when he was hungry, slept when sleepy, and swam in the jungle pool when he felt hot, or when he wanted to wash himself.
Baloo taught him the Laws of the Jungle and the Hunting Verse: “Feet that make no noise, eyes that can see in the dark, ears that can hear the winds, and sharp white teeth, all these are the marks of our brothers.”
Baloo also taught him the Wood and Water Laws: how to tell when a branch was rotten or strong before climbing it, how to speak politely to bees if he came upon a hive, and how to warn the water snakes before he dived into pools and rivers.
Mowgli was also taught the calls of all the creatures living in the jungle. These would be of use to him when he was in danger and had to seek their help.
Mowgli often felt tired of learning so many things. Baloo made him repeat everything. Sometimes, Mowgli would not listen to him. Then Baloo would cuff him.
Bagheera frequently sat on the branch of a tree and watched Baloo and Mowgli. He loved the man-cub and called him Little Brother. So did Baloo.
One day, when Baloo had cuffed him, Mowgli ran off and hid behind a tree. He was very angry. Bagheera said to Baloo, “Why do you cuff him so much? He is very young.”
“Not too young to get killed,” replied Baloo. “A cuff from me is better than that, is it not?”
“A soft cuff, yes, but just now you cuffed him straight over that rock! You will kill him some day.”
“It was a hard cuff, was it?” asked Baloo. He loved Mowgli. Had he really hurt him?
“Mowgli,” he called gently, “come and show Bagheera all the wonderful things you have learnt.”
Mowgli was never angry for long, and he loved to show off. He came out from behind the tree and asked, “What do you want to hear?”
“Say the word for the Hunting People, the Bears.”
“We be of one blood, you and I,” said Mowgli in the correct bear talk.
“And for the Birds?”
Mowgli let out a kite’s whistle.
“And now for the Snake People.”
The answer was a perfect hiss. Mowgli