sous-off" : short for sous-officier

,, 25. l'habitude du ' perroquet ' : the habit of drinking absinthe. Perroquet, used for absinthe, is soldiers' slang.

,, 26. le cerveau is the organ, la cervelle the substance, called ' brain. ' Etymologically they are both the saine, viz. corresponding to Lat. cerebellum, diminutive of cerebrum.

62. 1. boulevard de Grenelle : cf. note, p. 60 1. 17 and map.

9. conservant le pincement de la taille et la carrure des épaules, ' preserving the shape of a narrow waist and broad shoulders, as they did ' ; pincer, ' to pinch ' ; la carrure, ' breadth of back. '

,, 10. on ne sait quel aspect presque humain : lit. ' one does not know what look almost human,' meaning ' one knows it, but it would be difficult to express it exactly,' hence ' some look or other about them, which reminded one of a living being. '

,, 14. moignon: the stump of a tree that has been eut down, or of a limb that has been amputated ; refers hère to his amputated arm.

,, 15. officier d'Afrique : not an ofhcer vvho was a native of Africa. Cf. note, p. 60 1. 13.

la jupe à cent plis, lit. ' the skirt vvith a hundred folds,' refers to the peculiar dress of the zouaves (cf. note, p. 60 1. 13), who wear very wide trousers which almost look like skirts. Say ' with their wide pleated trousers. '

., 17. à la houzarde, 'in the hussar fashion,' i.e. 'as on the hussar uniforms, you know.' The spelling houzard seems unusual ; the ordinary spelling is hussard, and sometimes houssard or housard.

,, 23. c'est du premier zouaves: i.e. du premier régiment des zouaves.

63. 13. comment a-t-elle pu s'échouer là? 'how in the world can

it hâve landed there ? ' S'échouer, ' to strand,' ' run aground.' ,, 14. Melegrnano : formerly Marignano, 12 miles south-east of

Milan. In June 1859 a French force under Baraguay

d'Hilliers routed hère the Austrian rearguard under

Benedek.

,, 15. les corbeaux, lit. 'ravens,' refers hère to the dark forms of

doubtful character that appear at night on the battlefield.

64. 3. à l'autre : this is a popular and not exactly polite way of

speaking of a third person, e.g. Où est l autre? Regardez

io6 Contes Choisis

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cet autre ! Hère it is elliptical for le nom qui appartient à r autre.

64. 6. il n'avait pas volé son surnom, ' he had not stolen his

nickname,' i.e. he bore this nicknamc not without a reason.

,, 7. sifflent douze petits verres : siffler, lit. ' whistle,' in popular language ' to drink,' ' pour down ' ; un petit verre, ' a liqueur glass, ' ' a glass of brandy. '

9. à la quatrième du second, ' in the fourth company of the 2nd battalion. '

,, il. chapardeur: soldiers' slang for maraudeur, 'marauder.'

aimant les batteries, ' being fond of fighting.'

,, 15. que le particulier n'était pas commode, ' that he was not an easy customer to deal with.'

, , 17. dépôt : the place where the recruits are drilled ; say 'barracks. '

,, 18. toucha la prime et tira une bordée de trois jours, ' received his earnest and went on the booze for three days. ' La frime de rengagement was the money paid to a French soldier on re-enlisting which made the contract complète.

, , 24. des tringlos : military slang for artillerymen ; say ' gunners. '

,, 26. on lui flanqua quinze jours de bloc: flanquer, ' to flank,' fam. ' to give,' ' shy ' ; bloc, in soldiers' slang ' guardroom. '

, , 27. et on lui retira ses galons, ' and degraded him. '

65. 4. faire le coup de feu, ' to take up the musket,' ' to fight.'

en Kabylie : a mountainous district to the east of Algiers.

,, 7. sorti de l'école : one who had been educated as an officer, a former gentleman cadet, as contras ted with one who has risen from the ranks.

,, 10. huit jours . . de police : confinement to the barracks for a week.

,, 13. la fantasia: Arab military sports, in which horsemen career about discharging their muskets.

, , 28. déclare la guerre aux Autrichiens : cf. note, p. 60 L 4.