The Legend of the Bell Rock
This is a story of two brothers; one look to religion, the other took to the sea. One became a monk» then a prior and ultimately an abbot. The other, n sailor, a sea captain and eventually a notorious pirate! For he was as wicked as his brother was good.
Although each was aware of the other's occupation, they had little personal contact The Abbot prayed often for the sea robber, Who. in turn defined his brother's chosen calling and took every opportunity to ridicule and embarrass him,
The Abbot was incumbent at the Abbey of Aberbrothock, some twenty miles to the north east of Dundee, Now just a ruin, the Abbey is located in the centre of the small coastal town that bears its more modem name of Arbroath,
Because of the abbey's proximity to the North Sea, the Abbot had become increasingly concerned about the number of ships that were being wrecked upon a small rocky sandstone island just beyond the Firth of Tlay. Inchcape; for that is the island's name, was particularly dangerous owing to its rising, even at low tide, no more than a few metres above the surface of the sea. And at high tide and in storms was virtually submerged and invisible. "What could be done", wondered the Abbot, "to protect shipping and the lives of the sailors who were constantly at risk when leaving and entering the firth?"
He called for a meeting between ship owners and leading citizens of Perth and Dundee, many of whom were directly affected by the loss of shipping and valuable cargo. After some lengthy discussion«it was decided that a large bell be fixed onto the rock. The ringing of the bell in the wind would alert the crewmen aboard the vessels of the dangers lying ahead.
Collections were made and in three months they had sufficient funds with which to purchase a great bronze bell from a bell foundry in Amsterdam. Workers were sent out to the rock to build a strong gantry on to which the bell would be hung.
At last all was ready and on a particularly bright and sunny day, a flotilla of small boats set out to attach the bell to its housing. The provosts of both Dundee and Perth were in attendance, as was the Abbot and other leading clergymen as the floating procession made its way towards the rock.
In a short time the bell was in place; hymns were sung, prayers were said and the bell was blessed. The boats returned to Aberbrothock where a banquet had been prepared to celebrate the success of the mission, h was not long before the deep ringing tones of the bell in the distance told those on land that it was indeed doing its job. The Abbot gave thanks for God's guidance. Many disasters would be averted and more importantly, lives would be saved. Inchcape was soon to become known to mariners, far and wide as “The Bell Rock”.
Meanwhile, far away in the warm climate of the Mediterranean, the younger brother was robbing and pillaging ships and towns along the Barbary Coast of North Africa. The news of his brother's praiseworthy work he greeted with scorn and disdain. He laughingly claimed that he put the fear of God into more people in a month than the worthy Abbot would in his lifetime! Nevertheless, he was irritated that the humble priest was receiving more recognition than was his own notoriety. He planned to do something about it.
Six weeks later, the pirate ship, loaded with booty headed for Scotland, where there were rich and unscrupulous merchants who would pay handsomely for the gold, silver and jewels plundered from the Barbary Coast.
As the ship approached the firth, the bell could be clearly heard. Even though the sea was calm, the gentle breeze was enough to cause the clapper to strike the inside of the bronze casing. The captain gave orders for a boat to be lowered and with six of his crew, he rowed to the rock. Once there, it took less than ten minutes to unhook the bell and roll it into the sea! It sank silently, disappearing below the waves.
The captain gazed at the spot and said almost to himself, "The next visitors to Inchcape won't be blessing the Abbot!" His crewmen looked uneasily at one another, each aware of the dreadful act to which they had been party. They returned to the ship and sailed on to Dundee where the captain completed his unlawful business dealings.
Two days later, he was ready to set sail again, back to the Barbary Coast. This time the sea had a heavier swell, as they sailed out of the firth, heading for the North Sea. The wind became a gale and it began to rain. The crew was nervous and mostly silent. Although they were rough and ready buccaneers, they were also superstitious. They each felt acutely aware that a dreadful price would have to be paid for the wickedness of their captain's actions. They were right to be afraid.
As the storm grew in strength, visibility was reduced to nil and control of the vessel became impossible. Suddenly, with a grinding crunch, the ship came to a shuddering stop and immediately lurched onto its side. They had hit the rock! There had been no warning bell; for had it not been rolled into the sea two days earlier? Water poured over the ship as it began to break up. The crewmen screamed in terror as they fell into the waves. In a short time, there was nothing left of the ship or its crew, save one lone survivor.
He had a strange tale to tell. He said that he saw the captain disappear into the sea and at that very moment he swore that he had heard the ringing of a bell; as though the Devil himself was bidding the captain, "Welcome!"
The bell was never replaced and it was not until more modern times that a lighthouse was built on the rock. The Inchcape Lighthouse, or as it is more famously known, “The Bell Rock Lighthouse” has protected shipping ever since.
But even today, sailors will tell you that when the sea in the Firth of Tay is rough, there are times that they can hear the ringing of a deep-toned bell. And when they look into the sky, they see a ghostly sailing ship with one solitary figure pacing the deck!
Ex. I. Answer the following questions:
1. Where was a small rocky island?
2. Why was the island dangerous?
3. When was the island invisible?
4. What were shipowners affected by?
5. Why was it decided to fix a bell onto the rock?
6. What structure would the bell be hung to?
7. When is the sea rough?
8. Why is reduced visibility dangerous?
9. What happened to the pirate ship after it had hit the rock?
10. What was a lighthouse built on the rock for?
Ex. II. Translate the following sentences into English:
1. Один брат стал монахом, а другой - моряком.
2. Суда разбивались о маленький скалистый остров.
3. Звон колокола будет предупреждать членов экипажа на борту судов об опасности.
4. У них было достаточно средств, чтобы приобрести огромный бронзовый колокол в Амстердаме.
5. Пиратское судно, груженное добычей, держало курс на Шотландию, где богатые и беспринципные купцы щедро заплатят за золото, серебро и драгоценности.
6. Члены экипажа тревожно смотрели друг на друга, осознавая ужасный поступок, к которому они были причастны.
7. На сей раз на море была сильная зыбь, когда они вышли из лимана, держа курс на Северное море.
8. Когда шторм стал сильнее, видимость понизилась до нулевой, и управлять судном стало невозможным.
Вариант
Test paper
I. Give the equivalents of the following expressions:
Море спокойно; прокладывать курс судна на морской карте; готовиться к отправлению судна; в ближайшем будущем; перевозить различные виды грузов; быть вне опасности.
II. Translate the following sentences into English:
1.Что ты собираешься сегодня делать? - Я собираюсь пойти в бассейн.
2.Судно вышло из Ливерпуля 16 сентября.
3.Мы должны определить местонахождение этого судна.
4.Где вы были вчера в 10 утра? - Я был в лаборатории, изучал навигационное
оборудование.
5.Вы будете брать пеленги во время вахты?
6.Его послали в машинное отделение 5 минут назад.
7.Мы знали, что врач сделал всё возможное, чтобы спасти матроса.
8.Если бы люди не начали спасать нашу планету несколько лет назад, она была бы опасно загрязнена.
III. Read and translate the text in writing:
The Coast Guard was always a "can-do" outfit, but even these boats were to much to do anything with..................
In the early months after Pearl Harbor, the armed forces were mired in deep troubles. Finding the necessary ships for the rapidly expanding Navy, Coast Guard, and Army was one of the foremost difficulties--anything that floated was pressed into service. Fishing boats, yachts, old relics out of the bone yard... anything!
Returning from patrol one day in 1942, there, moored at the Coast Guard Base in Ketchikan, were three strange vessels. There was a curious resemblance to a craft I had once seen in an old magazine. Then it dawned on me... they were whale-killer boats. Somewhere, in some brackish backwater channel cemetery, the Coast Guard had found these relics of days gone by.
They were named CADDO, CORDOVA, and KODIAK, about 100 feet in length, and their prominent feature being the raised foc'sle head on which the harpoon cannon had been mounted. A catwalk ran from there over the well-deck and aft to the wheelhouse. As whale killers, these ships were manned with a crew of four. The Mate would steer the ship at the direction of the Master right up to the whale, then the Mate would run forward and man the cannon while the Master grabbed the wheel. The harpoon drove deep into the whale, carrying an explosive charge that removed any doubts as to the whale's survival. So much for animal rights.
IV. Answer the following questions (in details):
1. What troubles were the armed forces mired in?
2. What strange vessels were moored at the Coastguard Base?
3. What was their prominent feature?
4. How did they hunt whales?
