tant... affolé, *so frantic was he

27. d'un chacun, *of every one.' The use of the indefinite article with chacun^ common in old French and surviving in Molière, is now obsolète.

29. l'ai confié, ' entrusted him,' /' stands for le, i.e. the dog.

30. la lâcher, *to let it go,' la refers to corde, string, the only féminine noun in the sentence.

avait... reins, 'It was no u.se for the fellow to put out the full strength of his loins,' ///. ' to support himself from his loins,' that is, to plant his legs firmly and pull from the waist against the dog. See Vocabulary for meaning of arc-bouter.

32. 11... main, 'he always had his hands full.' Note that plein is indéclinable in such expressions as this : avoir plein la bouche^ ' to hâve the mouth full.'

Page 66.

4. raide... balle, * quick as a shot.* 6. si fermes que, * so firmly that.'

17. Gascogne. The Golfe de Gascogne, *Gulf of Gascony,' is what we call the Bay of Biscay, from the name of the Spanish province on the south. The eastem shore of the Bay is the former province and duchy of Gascony, of which Bordeaux was the chief town.