Page 103. —1. {103-1} arrégleselas, manage it. Note again the fem.
personalpronoun, with the force of an indefinite pronoun.
Page 104. —1. {104-1} ¿Si nos irán, I wonder whether they are going.
2. {104-2} nos doblan ... medio, they will close us up entirely ( like ajack-knife).
Page 105. —1. {105-1} ¿Qué va á = ¿qué va á apostar usted?
2. {105-2} Buena ... hacen, we are badly in need of them ( the rains).
Page 106. —1. {106-1} hasta ... noche, until night was well advanced.
2. {106-2} ¡Qué lástima de fuego en ella, what a pity that fire does not strikeit.
3. {106-3} ha llovido; in Spanish the present perfect is sometimes used insteadof the preterite to express an act that occurred recently.
4. {106-4} Con un ... dar porque, we might be happy to-day, if. This is avulgar paraphrase of the expression: darse con un canto en los pechos.
Page 107. —1. {107-1} por lo ... nosotros, for having acted so kindly towardsus.
2. {107-2} si al ... quisiera, if heaven had been left to do as it pleased.
3. {107-3} que llueva ... llover, that it might rain or fail to rain.
4. {107-4} habrá quien, can there be any one who. Here, as often, quien includes its antecedent.
Page 108. —1. {108-1} The irony of this mock-heroic proclamation and of thelines that follow is characteristic of Trueba's later and riper work.
2. {108-2} cuanto ... parte, my part, or all that was in my power.
3. {108-3} si Dios tenia que; this may be translated freely, as much as itcould.
Page 109. —1. {109-1} una; cf. hacer una con = 'to play a trick on.' Here unahas the force of an indefinite pronoun; cf. 19, note 3.
Page 110. —1. {110-1} el que, the fact that. Here the def. art. introduces asubordinate clause. Cf. also page 16, note 4.
2. {110-2} See page ix of the Introduction.
Page 111. —1. {111-1} echaba; note here the use of the imp. ind. for the cond.in a condition contrary to fact.
2. {111-2} de, if.
3. {111-3} Trueba takes this opportunity to offer good advice to buddingauthors.
4. {111-4} esto ó ... allá, this or that or the other.
Page 114. —1. {114-1} For the life and works of Narciso Campillo, see page xiiiof the Introduction. The text of Vino y frailes is taken from Unadocena de cuentos, por D.
Narciso Campillo, Madrid, 1878.
2. {114-2} grave y lentamente = gravemente y lentamente.
3. {114-3} admirábase; note how frequently Campillo places the personalpronoun-object after an indicative verb. This usage is not uncommon, butit is generally considered incorrect except when the verb comes first ina sentence or clause.
Page 115. —1. {115-1} aplaste and perdone; subjunctive with force of imperative.
2. {115-2} hubiese, whether there was.
Page 116. —1. {116-1} Padre había, there was a father or two. Note theindefinite use of Padre.
Page 117. —1. {117-1} en cuyo dia; the 24th of June is consecrated to St. John.
Page 120. —1. {120-1} resaltaba causante ... vino ... , it resulted that the ...wine was the cause...
2. {120-2} ¿Habría nadie, had anyone.
Page 121. —1. {121-1} caiga ... caiga, let him die who will (lit., let himfall who may fall).
2. {121-2} á poco más se ve, a little more and he would have been.
Page 125. —1. {125-1} mas ... encargo, but he was not so simple-minded that hedid not recognize how arduous and annoying was the commission.
Page 128. —1. {128-1} estruja; cf. 21, note 1.
2. {128-2} —¡En mi vida me ha sucedido otra! Here otra is an indefinite pronoun:translate,— never before in my life has such a thing happened to me.Cf. page 90, note 3; cf. also page 109, note 1.
3. {128-3} Yo se los iría sacando ... por muy agarrados que estuvieran, Ishould drive them out ..., however firmly they held on to him.
Page 129. —1. {129-1} tendría; cf. 2, note 3.
2. {129-2} Más ... amenazando (lit, a lifted hat obtains more than do sixthreatening swords), humility will accomplish more than arrogance.
3. {129-3} no tan calvo que se le vean los sesos, do not overdo it. What isthe literal meaning?
4. {129-4} y sí, but is.
Page 130. —1. {130-1}—Alabado y bendito sea ( Dios por siempre), a greetingused among the friars.
2. {130-2} como que, acted as if.
Page 131. —1. {131-1} ¡Dos mil ... usted! the devil take you!
Page 132. —1. {132-1} For the life and works of Larra, see page ix of the Introduction.
The text of El castellano viejo is taken from the Obras completas de D. Mariano José de Larra (Fígaro), Barcelona, 1886.
2. {132-2} á que ... el negarse, to refuse which...
3. {132-3} di con quien ... las doblaba, I had with some who wereturning them ...
Page 133. —1. {133-1} no se ... tintero, will not leave anything undone (lit., will leave no [ ink] in the inkstand).
2. {133-2} el pan ... vino, I call a spade a spade.
Page 134. —1. {134-1} Vete á paseo (an expression of contempt at what has justbeen said), come now!
2. {134-2} á la española; in the larger Spanish towns it is now customary todine at 7
or 8; but it was formerly the custom to dine much earlier, asis still done in the country.
3. {134-3} de lo lindo; note here a partitive expression similar to that whichis so common in French. Transl., something fine.
4. {134-4} un día malo ... cualquiera lo pasa = cualquiera pasa un día malo.
5. {134-5} Vile = le vi.
6. {134-6} In southern Europe, where much damage is done by hail, a black cloudis greatly feared.
7. {134-7} cuarenta mil reales de renta; how many pesetas, and how manyAmerican dollars, is this? The salaries of government employes in Spainare popularly reckoned in reales. It should be borne in mind that a peseta would probably buy as much in Spain when this story waswritten, as a dollar will buy to-day in the United States.
Page 135. —1. {135-1} plantarle ... alba, to give a piece of his mind toLucifer himself.
2. {135-2} se le espeta ... cara, he says so to his face.
3. {135-3} cumplo, I fulfill; miento, I lie.
Page 136. —1. {136-1} Note this popular saying which would imply that, althougha Spaniard should live up to an agreement made with another Spaniard, heneed not do
so with a Frenchman.
Page 137. —1. {137-1} Cf. page 15, note 1.
2. {137-2} se le ... palabra, they should understand a word she said.
3. {137-3} estamos ... comer, we who are to dine are here.
4. {137-4} Fígaro, the pen-name of Mariano José de Larra, author of Elcastellano viejo.
Page 138. —1. {138-1} If the text is correct, this is a curious case ofagreement, or rather of disagreement, of adjective and noun. ApparentlyLarra had in mind, not gentes, but Braulio and his wife. Cf. thesomewhat similar use of gens in French.
2. {138-2} This repetition of entre is unusual, but it makes clear the meaningof the sentence.
Page 139. —1. {139-1} que Dios maldiga, which is an abomination, or curseit.
Page 143. —1. {143-1} Cerrar, an infinitive with the force of an imperative.
Page 145. —1. {145-1} For the life and works of Bécquer, see page viii of the Introduction. The text of El beso is taken from the Obras deGustavo A. Bécquer, Tomo Segundo, Madrid, 1907.
2. {145-2} una parte ... siglo. The French armies entered the Spanish peninsulain 1807, and were finally expelled by the combined Spanish, English andPortuguese forces in 1814. To this day the Spaniards are fond of tellingin song and story the brave exploits of their forefathers who foughtagainst Napoleon's men. The French devastated parts of the country, butthey also brought with them many new ideas that
helped to awaken Spainfrom its torpor. This war is known in England as the
"Peninsular War",and in Spain as the " Guerra de la Independencia" (War ofIndependence).
3. {145-3} The alcázar (Arabic for the castle) stands on the highest ground inToledo.
Originally a citadel, it was converted into a palace whichserved as a royal residence.
It was enlarged and embellished by CharlesV.
4. {145-4} la Puerta del Sol, a handsome gateway in the Moorish style, built inthe 12th century.
5. {145-5} Zocodover, a small three-cornered plaza in the northeastern quartersof Toledo. It is the focus of the city's life. The name Zocodover is ofMoorish-Arabic origin. In Tangier, Morocco, there are a small socco('market') and a large socco.
Page 146. —1. {146-1} cuanto más, much less.
2. {146-2} San Juan de los Reyes, a convent founded in 1476 by the
"CatholicKings", Ferdinand and Isabella, and dedicated to their patron saint,John the Baptist. It was much damaged by the French in 1808.
Page 148. —1. {148-1} las antes losas sepulcrales = las losas, antes losassepulcrales.
2. {148-2} rey José; Joseph Bonaparte, the brother of Napoleon, whom the lattermade king of Spain in June, 1808. Madrid was his capital.
Page 149. —1. {149-1} de todo tenían menos de, were anything but.
2. {149-2} ciudad de los Césares. Toledo was an important strategic point andtrading center during the Roman domination of Spain, but it was not thecapital city of the land.
Page 151. —1. {151-1} llegar y besar el santo, to meet promptly with success.The expression probably has its origin in the fact that at the time of apilgrimage to a holy shrine one must usually wait a considerable whilebefore being able to kiss the image of the saint, and fortunate is hewho arrives and kisses without delay.
Page 152. —1. {152-1} trece, a slight discrepancy; according to the statement atthe beginning of the story there were fourteen.
Page 154. —1. {154-1} ya no vivo, I shall have no peace.
Page 158. —1. {158-1} Elvira de Castañeda was doubtless the lady's maiden name,which in Spain a woman retains after marriage, and to which she
joins,connected by de, her husband's name.
Page 160. —1. {160-1} el emperador, Napoleon Bonaparte.
Page 161. —1. {161-1} 5.º = quinto, the Fifth Regiment.
2. {161-2} Los guerreros ... pusieron = dicen que los guerreros del claustropusieron.
Page 163. —1. {163-1} For the life and works of Pereda, see page xi, of the Introduction. The text of La leva is taken from the Obras completasde D. José M.
de Pereda, Tomo V, Escenas Montañesas, Madrid, 1901. Laleva consists of several more or less detached incidents. Some of theseincidents, in whole or in part, have been selected for this volume, theselections amounting in all to two-thirds of the entire story. For thecomplete story, the reader is referred to Escenas Montañesas.
Laleva is a realistic description of the life of the fisher-folk ofSantander in Northern Spain, and of the distress caused amongst thesepoor people by compulsory service in
the Spanish navy.
It is written partly in dialect; but the dialect, for the most part, isnot local, as most of the expressions occur in the speech of the lowerclasses wherever Spanish is spoken.
2. {163-2} que no hay ... resista, that is irresistible.
Page 165. —1. {165-1} poeta ... Mancha; Pereda believes that only an inhabitantof the interior provinces of Castile or la Mancha would be likely toidealize in poetic language the rough life of a seaman or a fisherman.
Page 166. —1. {166-1} ¿Qué se te pudre? what ails you?
2. {166-2} Salú = salud. Both final d and intervocalic d are often droppedby the common people throughout the entire Spanish-speaking world. Cf. usté ( usted), quitao ( quitado), arrastrao ( arrastrado), na( nada), too ( todo), lao ( lado), salío ( salido), sentío( sentido), etc.
3. {166-3} Note the common use of the augmentative suffix, -on, -ona, inthis story: ingratona (from ingrata); chismosona (from chismosa), borrachona (from borracha), viciosona (from viciosa), flojón (from flojo), etc. These augmentatives are here also depreciatives.
Page 167. —1. {167-1} el mi hijo = mi hijo or el hijo mío. Thus one may hear un mi amigo for un amigo mío, etc. The use of a possessive adjectivebefore its noun, and preceded by another modifier, was once common, butit is now archaic or poetic.
2. {167-2} angelucos; note this use of the diminutive ending -uco in theMontaña.
Note also san Pedruco (from Pedro). These diminutives hereexpress affection.
3. {167-3} que poner,