1. the small screen — the screen of the television set

2. in the line of duty — while performing their duty

3. to bring to justice — to try a criminal and punish him (Russ. Привлечь к суду)

4. forty-fives — automatic guns

5. ingenue (Fr.)— an actress playing the part of a young girl {Russ. инженю)

6. arm — the arm of the chair

7. was around — was at home

8. neatly extracted — carefully taken out

9. television commercials — television programs adver­tising various goods

10. the bulge of his shoulder holster unmistakable under — the leather case of his pistol could be seen swelling under (to bulge — выдаваться, выпячиваться)

11. pretty (colloq.) — rather

12. that comedian of a history teacher — Peter's history teacher was a man who liked to talk in a funny way to make the pupils laugh (Russ. Шутник, комик). The construction comedian of (noun + of) is often used as an attribute. Ñîòð. villain of a boy — негодный мальчишка, toy of a flat — не квартира, а игрушка, etc.

13. at recess — during the interval between lessons (Russ. во время перемены)

14. started horsing around with It — began running about with it

15. faced Blaisdell — stood bravely against Blaisdell with­out showing any fear (Ñîòð. to face the enemy; to face dan­ger, death, disgrace, etc.; Russ. Смело встретить, смотреть в лицо без страха)

16. to show up — to appear

17. sure (colloq.) — surely

18. let a hard one go (Am. colloq.) — Russ. Как размахнулся (как дал ему)

19. right off — at once

20. so boy! — an exclamation of admiration, surprise, etc.

21. was excused from writing — was allowed not to write

22. hung around him — kept close to him, followed him wherever he went

23. soda — soda-water (Russ. Газированная вода)

24. to make up to him — to make themselves pleasant to him

25. O.K. (colloq.) — all right; (here) good

26. suspect— a person suspected of a crime, believed to be guilty

27. apiece — each

28. F.B.I, (abbrev.) — Federal Bureau of Investigation (within the framework of US Department of Justice — Russ. ÔÁÐ — Федеральное бюро расследований), a permanent investigating force created in 1908, first named Bureau of Investigation, known by its present name since July 1935. Apart from investigating crimes, F.B.I, performs the functions of political police, persecuting persons politically undesirable, such as communists, people opposed to the Government policy and the like. F.B.I, includes, among other divisions, the Identification Division containing in its files over 120 000 000 fingerprint records and coordinates the activity of various agencies responsible for US national secu­rity.

29. could safely turn — could ask for help and be sure to get it

30. you couldn't depend on people breaking their bones — you couldn't expect that people would break their bones, you couldn't count on it

31. to do pushups (sport) — отжиматься

32. to keep at it — to go on doing it, to persist (Russ. Упорно заниматься этим)

33. to feint to one side with your eyes before the crucial moment — to look aside so as to deceive your opponent be­fore the critical moment

34. no matter what the odds — whatever the chances in your favour

35. to show his mother — to challenge his mother, to prove he was not afraid of her

36. channel — (here) телевизионная программа (канал)

37. it was a cinch (Am. colloq.) —surely, there was no doubt about it

38. Cape Cod — a sandy peninsula in Massachusetts

39. foyer — a hall (Russ. передняя)

40. over the air — over the radio or the television (Russ. В эфире)

41. apartment— flat (Brit.)

42. were in their midthirties — were about thirty five or thirty six years old

43. put a lot of money on her back — spent very much money on her clothes, wore expensive clothes

44. kind of fat — plump, rather stout

45. beauty parlor (Am.) — a place where a woman may have her face massaged, her hair waved, etc.

46. My! — an exclamation of surprise

47. elevator (Am.) — lift (Brit.)

48. You've got to — You must

49. living room — a room for general use during the day

50. Magnesia— a white powder used as a medicine for stomach trouble

51. to start in with his mother (colloq.) — to begin to talk with his mother (Russ. Начинать, заводить)

52. ambiguous — not clear, because there is a possibility of more than one interpretation

53. prowl cars — police cars specially equipped with short­wave radio telephone connection with the headquarters

54. a ... woman in slacks airing a boxer — a ... woman in wide, loose-fitting trousers taking a boxer for a walk (box­er — a short-haired dog of a German breed, Russ. боксер)

55. Venetian blinds — жалюзи "

56. swallow — believe something which is untrue

Exercises

Exercise I. Practise the pronunciation of the following a) words and b) word-combinations:

9. gangster, murderer, serious, ingenue, appendicitis, dial, vaguely, comedian, recess, suspect, obscurely, dan­gerous, disarm, crucial, technique, tangerine, refrigerator, linoleum, channel, mustache, cushion, foyer, perfume, pa­trol, pince-nez, bullet, counterspy, incomprehensible

Exercise II. Drills, a) Read and repeat; b) Use the structures in sentences of your own:

I. 1. He was the last to be chosen in games.

1. He was the first to hear the scream.

2. She was the second to leave the apartment.

3. Peter was the first to get up on Sunday.

II. 1. She looked as though (as if) she liad just come from the beauty parlour.

10. She screamed as if he had threatened to shoot her.

11. He ate grapes, seeds and all, as though he had made up his mind to oppose his mother. .

1. He turned very pale, as if he had suddenly fallen ill.

1. 1. He was excused from writing on the blackboard.

   20. She was excused from attending lectures.

   21. He was excused from going on the excursion.

   22. They were excused from writing the test.

2. 1. He kept listening for shots.

   20. She kept complaining about the light in the living room.

   21. He kept thinking of what he had seen.

   22. He kept looking up at the windows of the apartment.

3. 1. She must have said that fifty times by now.

   20. He must have threatened her with a pistol.

   21. She must have cried for help.

   22. She must have hammered on the front door.

   23. She must have been frightened to death.

   24. He must have lost his reason.

Exercise III. Replace the words In Italics by equivalents from the

text:

1. The killer was tried and punished. 2. All the Peters were kind of friends because of the history teacher. 3. Every time the teacher said Blaisdell needn't write on the blackboard Pe­ter was very pleased. 4. Peter the Great's parents gave him all the money he wanted to make themselves pleasant to him. 5. She always spoke in a soft voice as though she was just going to laugh. 6. Mr. Chalmers wasn't wearing his glasses, and the little hair he had was mussed all over his head. 7. The vestibule looked just as it always did. 8. He knew he ought to get upstairs quickly with a suitable reason (explanation) for being out.

Exercise IV. Find in the text English equivalents for the following and use them in sentences of your own:

А)включить телевизор; смотреть телевизор; передавали довольно хорошую программу; переводить на другую программу (вертеть регулятор); рекламные передачи; была одна и та же передача по всем программам (каналам); выключить телевизор; оставить свет

2. вопить; сломать руку; рука на перевязи; освободить от чего-либо; не сгибать колени; быть бесстрашным; просто ради практики; вопрос техники; револьвер; пуля; целиться (в); угрожать; застрелить; отравить

B) лифт; лифтер; квартира; входная дверь; штора; жа­люзи; захлопнуть окно; распахнуть дверь; жилой дом, где сдаются квартиры

Exercise V. Ask twenty questions about the text.

Exercise VI. Construct 8 statements that are not true to fact and ask the students to correct them. (See p. 147 Ex. VIII)

Exercise VII. Answer the following questions using words and ex­pressions from the text:

1. What was happening on the screen Peter was watching? 2. How did Peter behave in his mother's absence? Why did he behave the way he did? 3. Why had Peter the Great become Peter's friend? 4. What sort of man was Peter going to be when he grew up? How did he practise being fearless? 5. What sounds did Peter hear in the middle of a pushup? What two voices could he clearly distinguish? 6. What sort of couple lived next door to Peter's flat? In what way were the Chalmers different that night from what they usually looked? 7. What was Peter's intention when he opened the door? 8. Why did Peter fail to be fearless? 9. What happened In the morning? 10. Why did Peter turn the set off after turning it on automat­ically? 11. What did he begin to understand after his night's experience?

Exercise VIII. A. Retell the story according to the following plan:

1. Peter watches the television programs.

2. The incident that helped Peter to win Peter the Great's admiration.

3. Peter trains himself to be strong and fearless.

4. Peter's neighbours, Mr. and Mrs. Chalmers.

5. A scream from the vestibule. Peter falls to show him­self fearless.

6. Peter tries to find out what has happened in the Chal­mers' apartment.

7. Peter meets the Chalmers in the doorway. The effect it has on his mind.

B. Retell the following episodes from the story using the given words and expressions:

a) Describe television programs:

to kill each other; to be shot; thrown off the roof; slowly poisoned; to be brought to justice; private detective; death by the knife; spy; two guns apiece; the FBI men; to leave corpses behind; television commercials; educational programs; co­medians; all over the dial; to fiddle with the dial; on all the channels; to turn on (off) the set; to broadcast; there was a program on; scenes of threat and violence on the television set