И. А. Курбасова Е. И. Силантьева

12. Переведите абз. 9 текста А, обращая внимание на глагольные формы с суффиксом -ing.

13. Переведите текст письменно со словарем (18 мин.).
From the History of Russian Railways
(1) That vast Siberia is so rich in natural resources always causes surprise among the people from Europe and the USA.

(2) Early in the 20th century Siberia attracted the attention of the American magnate Edward Harriman. He wanted the tsarist government to grant him a concession for the construction of a railway that was to begin in Alaska, go through a tunnel to Chukotka, then to Kolyma, Yakutia and Trans-Baikal.

(3) Such a railway would, of course, have been very valuable for Russia but for Harriman's condition. If the line had been built Harriman would have had in his full possession a twelve-kilometre strip of land on either side of the line for a period of 90 years. With the characteristic American energy Harriman would have liked a real bite¹ out of Siberian pie!

(4) Taking into consideration the length of the line (about 6,000 km) it becomes obvious that, had the tsarist govern­ment agreed, Harriman would have got a "strip" larger than the whole of Greece.

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