-
Главная
-
- Книги
-
- Авторы
-
- Колин Маккалоу
-
- Поющие в терновнике
-
- Стр. 78/535
Для того чтобы воспользоваться озвучкой предложений, необходимо
Войти или зарегистрироваться
Озвучка предложений доступна при наличии PRO-доступа
Купить PRO-доступ
The
shearers
would
bring
their
own
cook
with
them
and
buy
their
food
from
the
station
store
,
but
those
vast
amounts
of
food
had
to
be
found
;
the
ramshackle
barracks
with
kitchen
and
primitive
bathroom
attached
had
to
be
scoured
,
cleaned
and
equipped
with
mattresses
and
blankets
.
Not
all
stations
were
as
generous
as
Drogheda
was
to
its
shearers
,
but
Drogheda
prided
itself
on
its
hospitality
,
and
its
reputation
as
a
"
bloody
good
shed
.
"
For
this
was
the
one
activity
in
which
Mary
Carson
participated
,
so
she
did
n't
stint
her
purse
.
Not
only
was
it
one
of
the
biggest
sheds
in
New
South
Wales
,
but
it
required
the
very
best
men
to
be
had
,
men
of
the
Jackie
Howe
caliber
;
over
three
hundred
thousand
sheep
would
be
shorn
there
before
the
shearers
loaded
their
swags
into
the
contractor
's
old
Ford
truck
and
disappeared
down
the
track
to
their
next
shed
.
Frank
had
not
been
home
for
two
weeks
.
With
old
Beerbarrel
Pete
the
stockman
,
a
team
of
dogs
,
two
stock
horses
and
a
light
sulky
attached
to
an
unwilling
nag
to
hold
their
modest
needs
,
they
had
set
out
for
the
far
western
paddocks
to
bring
the
sheep
in
,
working
them
closer
and
closer
,
culling
and
sorting
.
It
was
slow
,
tedious
work
,
not
to
be
compared
with
that
wild
muster
before
the
floods
.
Each
paddock
had
its
own
stock-yards
,
in
which
some
of
the
grading
and
marking
would
be
done
and
the
mobs
held
until
it
was
their
turn
to
come
in
.
The
shearing
shed
yards
accommodated
only
ten
thousand
sheep
at
a
time
,
so
life
would
n't
be
easy
while
the
shearers
were
there
;
it
would
be
a
constant
flurry
of
exchanging
mobs
,
unshorn
for
shorn
.
When
Frank
stepped
into
his
mother
's
kitchen
she
was
standing
beside
the
sink
at
a
never-ending
job
,
peeling
potatoes
.
"
Mum
,
I
'm
home
!
"
he
said
,
joy
in
his
voice
.
As
she
swung
around
her
belly
showed
,
and
his
two
weeks
away
lent
his
eyes
added
perception
.
"
Oh
,
God
!
"
he
said
.
Her
eyes
lost
their
pleasure
in
seeing
him
,
her
face
flooded
with
scarlet
shame
;
she
spread
her
hands
over
her
ballooning
apron
as
if
they
could
hide
what
her
clothes
could
not
.
Frank
was
shaking
.
"
The
dirty
old
goat
!
"
"
Frank
,
I
ca
n't
let
you
say
things
like
that
.
You
're
a
man
now
,
you
ought
to
understand
.
This
is
no
different
from
the
way
you
came
into
the
world
yourself
,
and
it
deserves
the
same
respect
.
It
is
n't
dirty
.
When
you
insult
Daddy
,
you
insult
me
.
"
