Английский детектив. Джон Бакен. Тридцать девять ступеней / John Buchan. The Thirty-Nine Steps - стр. 13

), who always wanted to get down to the roots of things (которому всегда хотелось добраться до сути вещей; root – корень; база, основа). He got a little further down than he wanted (он зашел немного дальше, чем он сам того хотел).

I am giving you what he told me as well as I could make it out (я сообщаю: «даю» вам то, что он рассказал мне, так, как я /сам/ смог разобрать). Away behind all the Governments and the armies there was a big subterranean movement going on (далеко позади всех правительств и армий разворачивалось большое тайное движение; subterranean – подземный; секретный, тайный, скрытый; to go on – продолжать путь; продолжаться, развиваться /о действии, процессе, состоянии/), engineered by very dangerous people (организованное очень опасными людьми; to engineer – создавать, сооружать; подстраивать, организовывать /путем происков, махинаций/).

 He had played about with politics, he told me, at first for the interest of them, and then because he couldn’t help himself. I read him as a sharp, restless fellow, who always wanted to get down to the roots of things. He got a little further down than he wanted.

I am giving you what he told me as well as I could make it out. Away behind all the Governments and the armies there was a big subterranean movement going on, engineered by very dangerous people.

He had come on it by accident (он вышел на него случайно: «по случаю»; accident – несчастный случай, катастрофа; случай, случайность); it fascinated him (оно увлекло его); he went further, and then he got caught (он пошел дальше, а затем попался; to catch). I gathered that most of the people in it were the sort of educated anarchists that make revolutions (я пришел к выводу, что большинство людей в нем = в этом движении были кем-то вроде тех образованных анархистов, которые устраивают: «делают» революции), but that beside them there were financiers who were playing for money (но что кроме них были и финансисты, которые играли ради денег). A clever man can make big profits on a falling market (умный делец: «человек» может сделать большие барыши: «крупные прибыли» на падающем рынке), and it suited the book of both classes to set Europe by the ears (и это совпадало с планами обоих классов – поссорить Европу; to suit smb.’s books – совпадать с чьими-л. планами, подходить кому-л.; by the ears – в ссоре: «за уши»).

 He had come on it by accident; it fascinated him; he went further, and then he got caught. I gathered that most of the people in it were the sort of educated anarchists that make revolutions, but that beside them there were financiers who were playing for money. A clever man can make big profits on a falling market, and it suited the book of both classes to set Europe by the ears.