Heath's Modern Language Series: Spanish Short Stories Part 32

=Page 121.=--1.{121-1} =caiga ... caiga=, _let him die who will_ (lit., _let him fall who may fall_).

2.{121-2} =a poco mas 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 he did not recognize how arduous and annoying was the commission_.

=Page 128.=--1.{128-1} =estruja=; cf. page 21, note 1.

2.{128-2} --=En mi vida me ha sucedido otra!= Here =otra= is an indefinite p.r.o.noun: 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 iria sacando ... por muy agarrados que estuvieran=, _I should drive them out ..., however firmly they held on to him_.

=Page 129.=--1.{129-1} =tendria=; cf. page 2, note 3.

2.{129-2} =Mas ... amenazando= (lit, _a lifted hat obtains more than do six threatening swords_), _humility will accomplish more than arrogance_.

3.{129-3} =no tan calvo que se le vean los sesos=, _do not overdo it_.

What is the literal meaning?

4.{129-4} =y si=, _but is_.

=Page 130.=--1.{130-1}=--Alabado y bendito sea= (_Dios por siempre_), a greeting used 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 Jose de Larra (Figaro), Barcelona, 1886_.

2.{132-2} =a que ... el nega.r.s.e=, _to refuse which..._

3.{132-3} =di con quien ... las doblaba=, _I had with some who were turning 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 a paseo= (an expression of contempt at what has just been said), _come now!_

2.{134-2} =a la espanola=; in the larger Spanish towns it is now customary to dine at 7 or 8; but it was formerly the custom to dine much earlier, as is still done in the country.

3.{134-3} =de lo lindo=; note here a part.i.tive expression similar to that which is so common in French. Transl., _something fine_.

4.{134-4} =un dia malo ... cualquiera lo pasa= = _cualquiera pasa un dia malo_.

5.{134-5} =Vile= = _le vi_.

6.{134-6} In southern Europe, where much damage is done by hail, a black cloud is greatly feared.

7.{134-7} =cuarenta mil reales de renta=; how many _pesetas_, and how many American dollars, is this? The salaries of government employes in Spain are popularly reckoned in _reales_. It should be borne in mind that a _peseta_ would probably buy as much in Spain when this story was written, 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 to Lucifer himself_.

2.{135-2} =se le espeta ... cara=, _he says so to his face_.

3.{135-3} =c.u.mplo=, _I fulfill_; =miento=, _I lie_.

=Page 136.=--1.{136-1} Note this popular saying which would imply that, although a Spaniard should live up to an agreement made with another Spaniard, he need 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} =Figaro=, the pen-name of Mariano Jose de Larra, author of _El castellano viejo_.

=Page 138.=--1.{138-1} If the text is correct, this is a curious case of agreement, or rather of disagreement, of adjective and noun.

Apparently Larra had in mind, not =gentes=, but Braulio and his wife.

Cf. the somewhat similar use of _gens_ in French.

2.{138-2} This repet.i.tion of =entre= is unusual, but it makes clear the meaning of the sentence.

=Page 139.=--1.{139-1} =que Dios maldiga=, _which is an abomination_, or _curse it_.

=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 Becquer, see page viii of the _Introduction_. The text of _El beso_ is taken from the _Obras de Gustavo A. Becquer, Tomo Segundo, Madrid, 1907_.

2.{145-2} =una parte ... siglo=. The French armies entered the Spanish peninsula in 1807, and were finally expelled by the combined Spanish, English and Portuguese forces in 1814. To this day the Spaniards are fond of telling in song and story the brave exploits of their forefathers who fought against Napoleon's men. The French devastated parts of the country, but they also brought with them many new ideas that helped to awaken Spain from its torpor. This war is known in England as the "Peninsular War", and in Spain as the "_Guerra de la Independencia_" (War of Independence).

3.{145-3} The =alcazar= (Arabic for _the castle_) stands on the highest ground in Toledo. Originally a citadel, it was converted into a palace which served as a royal residence. It was enlarged and embellished by Charles V.

4.{145-4} =la Puerta del Sol=, a handsome gateway in the Moorish style, built in the 12th century.

5.{145-5} =Zocodover=, a small three-cornered plaza in the northeastern quarters of Toledo. It is the focus of the city's life. The name =Zocodover= is of Moorish-Arabic origin. In Tangier, Morocco, there are a small _socco_ ('market') and a large _socco_.

=Page 146.=--1.{146-1} =cuanto mas=, _much less_.

2.{146-2} =San Juan de los Reyes=, a convent founded in 1476 by the "Catholic Kings", 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 losas sepulcrales_.

2.{148-2} =rey Jose=; Joseph Bonaparte, the brother of Napoleon, whom the latter made king of Spain in June, 1808. Madrid was his capital.

=Page 149.=--1.{149-1} =de todo tenian menos de=, _were anything but_.

2.{149-2} =ciudad de los Cesares=. Toledo was an important strategic point and trading center during the Roman domination of Spain, but it was not the capital city of the land.