Tas de gamins, ' You young rascals

Page 8.

3. quatre fers. This cannot be literally translated, as English has no expression exactly corresponding to the French proverb ne pas valoir les quatre fers ^ *not to be worth a fig,' lit. *not to be worth the four shoes of a horse,' that is, not to be worth as much as old iron. Perhaps the nearest rendering would be ' whose little finger is worth more than ail of you together.' To speak of a dog's little finger in English is no more odd than to speak in French of his 'horse shoes.'

4. Un geste... appuyer, *as this threat was reinforced by an energetic gesture.'

I4. n... monde, ' No doubt he had heard people say,' 19. Dieu sait... besoin, *and need enough of it he had,' lit. 'the Lord knows that he wanted it.' In French the word Dieti is used on many occasions where the corresponding English would be quite out of

place. Sometimes Lord or Heaven may be used to represent ît, but generally speaking English avoids such phrases altogether.

33. faisant... cuisse, *patting his thigh with his hand by way of invitation.'

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I. Allons «...connaissance, * Well, corne along, old fellow, and let's make friends a bit.'

12. qu'il n'a mangé, *since lie bas eaten,' ///. 'a long time in which he bas not eaten.'

14. oflFrir... seulement, 'invite you to snpper,' ///. 'to sup.' * But bave you, I wonder, so mucb as luncbed ? '

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4. mais si tu crois, ' but don't suppose...' ///. ' But if you tbink...' wbere the bypotbetical form of the unfinished sentence suggests tbe mental addition *you are much mistaken.'

5. loge... blanchisse, 'give you lodging, board, and washing,' tbe tbree items usually included in a comprehensive payment by tbe inmate of a 'boarding-bouse.' In English ' to lodge ' and 'to board ' a persoh are regularly used in the sensé of ' provide lodging or board for,' but tbe use of 'wash' instead of *wasb ihe clothes of is diîlinctly colloquial.

7. Bonsoir la compagnie, ' Goodbye, my friend.' In French tbe abstract noun can be used wbere English prefers the concrète ; thus at a restaurant, a Frenchman will call Holà Vadinitiistrationy wbere an Englishman says, 'Waiter, bi !'

8. cierge. In Roman Catholic countries it is customary to offer a taper to the Virgin or to a saint as a ihankoflering after an escape from danger. At seaside places the churches of Notre Dame de Grâce, or Notre Dame du Bon Secours, are fdled with such commeniorative thankofferings from sailors safely returned.

19. large comme, 'as wideas.' The loose trousers or 'breeches' of Ihe Gauls were objects of comment to their Floman conquerors, who themselves did not wcar such garnients.

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4. chargé... phare, * keeper in charge of tbe small lighthouse.'

15. c'est... diable, Mbe créature is fidelity itself.' The French

phrase eji diable, like the old-fashioned English expression ' deucedly,* lias corne to mean no more than ' extremely.'