A la bonne heure. — See note

6. Mon père a manqué de se tuer. — My father almost killed himself, came near killing himself. Compare the familiar English expression, just missed.

7. Les éperons n'y sont pour rien. — The spurs had nothing to do with it.

8. Comment donc ! — Assuredly ! The words express surprise that it should be considered necessary to ask such a question.

9. Bouilly (1763-1790). — He wrote several plays and also moral taies for young people.

10. Par exemple ! — Certainly not ! Par exemple, when used as an exclamation, expresses wonder, surprise, and generally a dissent or déniai of a previous assertion ; hence it is, in many cases, exactly the opposite of à la bonne heure, seen a few pages back, which expression generally dénotes the satisfaction or approbation of speaker, his assent to what has just been said or done. Both of thèse phrases are gallicisms, difficult to render into idiomatic English. Par exemple may often be translated by Well ! Indeed ! What an idea ! How can you say — or how can you think of such a thing ? How can you ? Of course not ! &c. Well and good, which is generally given as the meaning of h la bonne heure, in many cases gives an awkward turn to the English sentence, and often does not at ail renfler the force of the French, which must be translated, according to the context, by some such exclamation as, Good ! That's right ! I am glad of that ! &c.

11. Car ma .femme a beau dire, ca ne tient pas a mes éperons! — Eor in spite of what my wife says, it was not on account of my spurs.

12. De me mettre a vos ordres. — To dévote my services to you.

13. Le récit de Théramène. — An allusion to the long récital by Théramène, who recounts the death of Hypolite in Kacine's Phèdre.

14. Est-il bête, cet animal-la ! — Isn't that créature stupid !

15. Je ne lui en veux pas a ce garçon. — I bear the fellow no grudge. See XXX., 5. Madame Perrichon's 'indignant exclamation, il ne manquerait plus que ça ! may be freely translated, that would cap the climax. Mais je lui trouve un petit air pincé, in the next speech, means but I think he has an affected way.

16. Que j'entendrais parler de lui. — That I should -hear from him.