Very difficult or very alarming.

“What did I tell you?” said Gandalf laughing. “Mr. Baggins has more about

him than you guess.” He gave Bilbo a queer look from under his bushy

eyebrows, as he said this, and the hobbit wondered if he guessed at the part of

his tale that he had left out.

Then he had questions of his own to ask, for if Gandalf had explained it all

by now to the dwarves, Bilbo had not heard it. He wanted to know how the

wizard had turned up again, and where they had all got to now. The wizard,

to tell the truth, never minded explaining his cleverness more than once, so

now he had told Bilbo that both he and Elrond had been well aware of the

presence of evil goblins in that part of the mountains. But their main gate

used to come out on a different pass, one more easy to travel by, so that they

often caught people benighted near their gates. Evidently people had given up

going that way, and the goblins must have opened their new entrance at the

top of the pass the dwarves had taken, quite recently, because it had been

found quite safe up to now.

“I must see (я должен посмотреть) if I can’t find a more or less decent giant

(смогу ли я найти более или менее порядочного великана) to block it up again

(чтобы снова завалить его; to block — преграждать, блокировать),” said

Gandalf, “or soon there will be no getting over the mountains at all (или вскоре

вообще не пройдешь через горы).”

As soon as Gandalf had heard Bilbo’s yell (как только Гэндальф услышал

вопль Бильбо) he realized what had happened (он понял, что произошло). In the

flash which killed the goblins that were grabbing him (вспышкой убив гоблинов,

которые вцепились в него) he had nipped inside the crack (он протиснулся в

расщелину), just as it snapped to (как раз тогда, когда она захлопывалась). He

followed after the drivers and prisoners (он следовал за надсмотрщиками и

пленниками) right to the edge of the great hall (прямо до начала: «края»

огромного зала), and there he sat down (и там он присел) and worked up the best

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magic (и сотворил самое лучшее волшебство; to work up — обрабатывать,

разжигать) he could in the shadows (которое смог во тьме).

“A very ticklish business, it was (это было очень рискованное дело; ticklish —

деликатный, щекотливый; to tickle — щекотать),” he said. “Touch and go (все

висело на волоске; to touch — касаться, трогать)!” But, of course (но,

конечно же), Gandalf had made a special study (Гэндальф специально изучал)

of bewitchments with fire and lights (колдовство с огнем и светом) (even the

hobbit had never forgotten the magic fireworks (даже хоббит никогда не смог

забыть те волшебные фейерверки) at Old Took’s midsummer-eve parties (на

праздниках у Старого Тука, в канун летнего солнцестояния), as you remember

(как вы помните). The rest we all know (оставшееся мы все знаем) — except

that Gandalf knew all about the back-door (за исключением того, что Гэндальф

знал все о задней двери), as the goblins called the lower gate (как гоблины

называли нижние ворота), where Bilbo lost his buttons (где Бильбо потерял

свои пуговицы). As a matter of fact (на самом-то деле) it was well known to

anybody (о ней было хорошо известно любому) who was acquainted with this

part of the mountains (кто был знаком с этим районом гор); but it took a wizard

(но нужен был волшебник) to keep his head in the tunnels (чтобы сохранить

голову = не потерять голову в /этих/ туннелях) and guide them in the right

direction (и направлять их по правильному пути: «направлению»).

decent ['di:s(q)nt] ticklish ['tIklIS] bewitchment [bI'wItSmqnt]

“I must see if I can’t find a more or less decent giant to block it up again,”

said Gandalf, “or soon there will be no getting over the mountains at all.”

As soon as Gandalf had heard Bilbo’s yell he realized what had happened.