Imaginez un peu ! — Just imagine

16. Il fit le riche. — He played the rich man ; that is, put on the airs, assumed the tone, of a rich man. Faire un personnage is to play a part, on the stage, or in real life ; hence, by extension, to prétend to be, to act as if one were this or that.

17. Priant fort qu'on en eût grand soin, qu'on la mît. — Begging them earnestly to take great care of it, to put it.

18. Une soupente élevée de sept a huit pieds. — A loft raised seven or eight feet ; literally, between seven and eight feet. Sept ou huit would be good French, but would mean either just seven or just eight. Thus seven or eight persons, sept ou huit personnes; but seventy or eighty persons, de soixante-dix a quatre-vingt personnes.