sixième; supply classe
3. café au lait is a common French breakfast dish. It consista of coffee and hot milk into which bread is broken and the whole eaten with a spoon.
4. écu de cinq francs, five franc pièce, The écu as a coin is no longer in use.
Pagre 4. — I. Lhomond (1724-1794) is best known as the author of "Z>^ viris illustribus Romae *\ and **Epitome historiae sacrae *', both of which are still in use in French schools. — Bumouf (i 775-1844) was the author of a Greek Grammar, published in 1814.
2. L'inspecteur d'académie. Note, in the first place, that "académie" in France does not mean a school, but is applied to the 16 school districts into which France is divided. At the head of each "académie" is a "recteur" who is assisted by an "inspecteur" for each "département". The duties of thèse "inspecteurs" is somewhat similar to those of a County Superintendent.
3. département. France is divided into 86 " departments " which are sub-divided into ^*' arrondissements^ y thèse into ** cantons** and thèse into ** communes'% of which there are over 36,000.
Page 5« — I. tunique. The discipline in French schools is largely military and the pupils wear uniforms. The "tuniçue" Is a frock coat with f ull skirts. The younger pupils now wear a doublebreasted jacket and the older ones a double^breasted frock coat but differing somewhat from the old "tuniçue", The "Â/pi" was a military cap with straight visor and has been replaced by an ordinary cap of blue cloth.
Page 6* — I. Cerbère, Cerhrus, the three-headed dog guarding the entrance to Hades ; often applied fîguratively to a strict watchman.
2. C'est à peine si. je remarquai, / scarcely noticed, It might hâve been je remarquai à peine.
p. 6-14] NOTES l6l
3. l'ami. The article is used in familiar address, hère implying the superiority of the speaker.
Page 7. — I. blouse. The "blouse** is generally wom only by country people or common laborers.
Page 8. — I. se laissait aller, went sofar as,
2. Je ne laissai pourtant pas que d'en être; laissai is best left untranslated in this phrase, which is a rather common one ; translate, Iwas, kowever.
Page 9« — I. mandarin is a Chinese officiai. The term is used hère sarcaitically on account of the young man's self -important air.
Page 10. — I. petits; see page i, note i.
Page !!• — I. doge de Gènes. "Doge" was the title of the chief magistrate of the Republics of Venice and Genoa. In 1684, the G«noese having offended Louis XIV by aiding his enemies, the Doge was ordered to appear in person and apologize, in spite of the law of the city f orbidding the chief magistrate to leave its territory. On being asked what was the most singular thing he had seen at Versailles, he replied : " To sec myself there."
2. bayer aux corneilles, to stand gaping ; Ut. to gape at the crows.
Page 12. — I. andouilles, greenhom^ "lohsier**; lit. sausage.
Page 18. — I. appuyer le pas, to treadfirmly (in order to keep step more easily). In the house this practice was forbidden on account of the noise.
2. maître d'études may be translated study-hall master, but this officiai was required to be with the pupils day and night. The "maîtres d^ études" usually do no teaching and are generally young bacheliers who expect to become teachers.
3. amphithéâtre. French school-rooms are often constructed with seats sloping upwards from the teacher's desk.
4. chaire means rather the platform on which the teacher's desk is placed than the chair on which he sits.
Page 14« — I. un créole, properly speaking, is the child of European parents bom in the colonies. One would infer from the description of Tanguy that he was part negro as was the famous
Alexander Dumas» whose father was a "créoU*\ a native o£ San Domingo.
2. Chartres, a city about 55 miles southwest of Paris. The choice of this particular name is without significance.
Pagr® 16« — I. thème latin, a translation into Latin; a translation from Latin into French would be une version latine. — solr in the next Une means afternoon.
Page 11. — I. la figure classique, the customary figure ^ presumably a circle, as with us.
