the Ringing cedars of Russia Vladimir Megre English translation by John Woodsworth

MAMMOTH DAN

Slightly limping there was at the end of a caravan a huge mammoth Dan. Article and force it was similar to the father - the leader of mammoths.

When he was still absolutely young mammoth, the boulder which fell from the mountain injured to it a leg. People ropes tied to a leg of an animal of a stick that the bone correctly grew together. To Dan many days alone were necessary to lie. Then touching friendship of a mammoth, three-year-old Anasta and a kitten whom the girl brought with herself began.

Little Anasta often visited lying with the tied-up leg of a mammoth, brought it delicacies, tenderly talked to him. Put to it sideways a kitten whom learned to drive away from the mammoth of annoyance small insects and flies lying on a grass.

But the main thing - she talked to them, learned as adults teach the children.

Having seated a kitten on a mammoth, Anasta got up before them, pointed by a small finger to the sky, turned the eye up and pronounced the words "sky", "clouds", "sun", then kneeled, ironed hands a grass, saying tenderly "a green grass", "the floret smells".

The mammoth and kitten attentively watched actions of the girl, and in several days during which she regularly repeated the occupations, there was a surprising event. When Anasta pronounced the words "sky", "clouds", a baby mammoth, and behind him and a kitten eyes to the sky directed. At the word "grass" - have a look at a grass. And at the words "the floret smells", the kitten suddenly jumped off on the earth and began to sniff at a floret as it was done by the girl.

Anasta continued the studies with animals and when the mammoth recovered. The girl was pleasant to report to the canine friends about value of each new word told her by adults. And the young mammoth and a kitten liked attention to them the kind girl. They as the disciplined pupils, came at noon to Anasta's flower bed. At this time there usually there was also a girl, and conducted with the pets the next lesson. If for its any reason was not, four-footed pupils for hours waited for the friend and the teacher or moved off in its searches.

When Anasta was six years old, the mammoth Is given, too grown up, externally was practically made even to adults, but his behavior noticeably differed from behavior of other mammoths.

Anasta's great-grandfather and the chief of family, Wood, the first noticed that a mammoth Dan understands the human speech. This conclusion was preceded by the next event.

Wood sat under the shade of a shady tree and spun from rods a basket for berries. Anasta often communicated with the great-grandfather, liked to listen to his stories, to penetrate into all affairs, and this time she was near. The talkative great-granddaughter quickly, with enthusiasm told about the reasons concerning gathering berries and demanded that the basket was beautiful then berries, in it collected, will be tasty.

Here Wood noticed that the mammoth standing in ten steps from them Dan attentively looks at Anasta and listens to her speech as if he understands word meaning, sense of the speech of the great-granddaughter. "Has to be, it likes intonations of a voice of the girl, the energy proceeding from it" - Wood thought. Having noticed that in a trough where rods for weaving of a basket became wet, water reaches a limit, Wood asked Anasta to bring a little water from the next spring. But, always obedient and diligent, the great-granddaughter did not hurry to satisfy Wood's request. She only turned towards a mammoth and quickly told him: "It is given, bring waters from a spring" - and indifferently continued the inspired story about berries and a basket.

The mammoth was slowly developed and sedately made a step - another towards a spring. Then Anasta said one more phrase: "Fast, It is given". And the huge mammoth ran.

Wood understood that he Is given, unlike other mammoths, not just executes certain commands, and understands the person much more, than other animals - he understands word meaning and even moreover, understands sense of the whole offers.

The mammoth brought a little water in a trunk and according to instructions of the girl let out her in a trough with rods.

- Thanks - Anasta praised a mammoth and added: - Do not forget to water our flower bed in the evening. For now to the wood go, have dinner, you see, I am busy. - The mammoth nodded in reply to the girl and went to the wood.

"Where a limit of opportunities of fauna in service to the person? - Wood thought. - To what degree of people can operate it? Here, people thought up a wheel, all began to admire an idea, to look for different options of its application, and already thought up and much more perfect, than a wheel - live creatures - we ceased to study absolutely. Whether our sort well arrives? What can lead ignorance of opportunities and mission of all variety of the wildlife surrounding the person to?"

So Wood reflected, and at heart at him from these thoughts it was disturbing.

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