NOTES.

I.

1. Mort. Past participle of the irregular verb mourir, to die. See Otto's French Grammar, Part I., p. 186, § 49.

2. Accoururent. Third person plural preterit of the irregular verb accourir, to run, from courir. See Grammar, p. 184, § 41.

3. Qui faisait retentir de ses cris les montagnes et les forêts. Who made the mountains and forests ring with her cries. Faisait is the third person singular imperfect of faire See Grammar, p. 180, § 27.

4. Après lui avoir fait leurs compliments. — After paying their respects to her; or, more literally, after having made, &c. After a preposition the infinitive is used in French, where in English a present participle, is found. See Grammar, p. 341, § 7. Notice that après is followed by the compound not the simple infinitive. Fait is the past part. of faire. 5. Lionceau.-Lion's cub, whelp.

6. Tant de fiers animaux.·

--

So many proud animals. Adverbs of quantity must be followed by de. See Grammar, p. 42, § 2.

7. Disait-il. Third person singular, imperfect tense, of dire, to say Dis and dit, which occur several times below, are the second and third person singular, of the preterit, of the same verb. See Grammar, p. 172, § 7.

8. Je saurai bien. I shall know very well how to. Saurai is the future tense of savoir, to know. See Grammar, p. 191, § 62.

9. En attendant. In the mean while; literally, in or while waiting. 10. Je veux. Present tense of vouloir, to wish. See Grammar, p. 191, § 64.

11. Je prétends être. - I claim the right to be Pretendre, from the Latin præ-tendere, to stretch out before, has retained in French its two significations, to lay claim rightfully or wrongfully to any thing. Hence, when referring to a person's words, prétendre may mean simply to assert, to declare, or, with an idea of blame, to pretend, since in either case the speaker claims what he says to be a fact.

12. Je soutiens. - Present tense of soutenir, to maintain, from tenir, to hold. See Grammar, p. 187, § 52.

13. Qu'on m'avait fait une injustice, quand on me préféra le lion. - That injustice was done me when the lion was preferred to me. On, formerly spelt hom, and later om, is from the Latin homo, and hence the same word etymologically as homme, man. This is why it is always singular, being used in the sense of man in general, one, people. It may sometimes be translated by we, you, they, but often by the passive, as in the present

Iase.

14. Tout autant que. 15. Peut.

p. 190, § 61.

Quite as much as, just as well as.

The present tense of pouvoir, to be able. See Grammar

16. Fin. - Shrewd

17. Léger à la course.— Swift in running; literally, light in the race. 18. Je puis m'en vanter aussi. — I can boast of it too. For the use of en, see Grammar, p. 258, § 1. Puis is the present of pouvoir.

19. Tu ne lui ressembles

que. You only resemble him. Ne before the verb and que after it mean only, but.

20. Tais-toi, maudit causeur.-Hush, wretched chatterer. Tais-toi is the imperative singular of taire. See Grammar, p. 178, § 23. Maudit, literally cursed, from maudire.

21. Sans entendre ce que tu dis. - Without understanding what you say. What, meaning the thing which, is expressed by ce qui or ce que; literally, that which. Entendre, here translated to understand, also means to hear, to intend, to expect.

22. Qui veulent.-Present of vouloir, to wish. See Grammar, p. 191, § 64.

II.

1. The first campaign in Italy had closed, but Napoleon remained only a few days at Milan; and, on the 20th of May, 1796, before departing to advance towards the Adige, he raised still higher the courage of his soldiers by a new proclamation.

2. Vous vous êtes précipités. — You have rushed. The compound of the present; literally, you have precipitated yourselves. Reflective verbs are conjugated with être, not with avoir. See Grammar, p. 138.

3. Milan est à vous. — Milan belongs to you, or is yours.

4. Dans toute la Lombardie. - Throughout the whole of Lombardy. See Grammar, p. 76, § 2.

5. Doivent.-Present of devoir, to owe, p. 189, § 54.

6. Le Tésin. Also spelled Tessin, the Ticino.

7. N'ont pu.

Have not been able. Pu is the past part. of pouvoir, p. 190, § 61. For the omission of pas, see Grammar, p. 291, § 5.

8. Communes. Since the Revolution, France has been divided into départements; these are subdivided into arrondissements, which are again subdivided into cantons; and these are in turn divided into communes, each under a maire, so that commune corresponds pretty nearly to town or township.

9. Mais ne vous reste-t-il donc plus rien à faire? —But does there remain then nothing more for you to do?

10. Su. The past part. of savoir, to know how, p. 191, § 62.

11. Capoue.-Allusion to the stay of Hannibal at Capua, which enervated his army and caused its ruin.

12. Vois. Present of voir, to see, p. 192, § 65.

13. Pris.

The past part. of prendre, to take, p. 180, § 29. 14. Y placer. To place there. For the use of y, see Grammar, p. 259,

$3.

15. Elles feront époque dans la postérité. — They will form an era in future Feront is the future of faire, p. 180, § 27.

years.

16. Qu'il a faits. Which it has made. Faits agrees with the direct object See Grammar, p. 363, § 3.

17. Dans vos foyers. To your own homes; literally, firesides.

III.

1. A faim. Is hungry. See Grammar, p. 51.

2. J'ai six ans.-I am six years old. See Grammar, p. 68, § 6.

3. Hier, c'était fête au village. — Yesterday was a holiday in our village. 4. Gourmande. - Dainty.

5. N'allez pas croire que j'ignore. Do not think that I am ignorant; literally, do not go and believe. This use of the verb aller as an auxiliary is much more common than the similar use of to go in English. To think, used in its vague sense of to be of the opinion, is rendered in French not by penser, but by croire. Penser, through the Latin, is closely connected with peser, to weigh, and means to think, in the sense of to weigh in the mind, to consider the just relation of ideas.

6. Je vais rire et chanter. I will laugh and sing. Vais is the present of aller, to go. This idiomatic future is explained in the Grammar on p. 203. 7. L'on.-L'on is often used instead of on after any word ending in a vowel sound as well as after et, ou, si, &c. See Grammar, p. 129.

8. Eloigne-toi. Go off. The verb éloigner, to remove, is from the adverb of place, loin, far.

IV.

1. Les hommes doivent s'aider. - Men ought to help each other. For this use of the article, see Grammar, p. 219, § 4. S'aider is a reflective verb, but is here used reciprocally (to help each other), not pronominally (to help themselves).

2. Meurt.-Present of mourir, p. 186, § 49. 3. Tant que vous serez désunis.

As long as you are disunited. For this use of the future, see Grammar, p. 321. 4. Qu'y a-t-il de plus faibie?· de, see Grammar, 228, § 2.

What is more feeble? For the use of

5. Quand paraît l'oiseau de proie.is the present of paraître, p. 178, § 24.

When a bird of prey appears. Paraît

6. S'assied. Present of s'asseoir, p. 192, § 66.

7. Car nos frères c'est nous, et nous c'est nos frères. - For we and our brothers are one and the same.

8. Et ce sont ceux-là. - And those are the ones; literally, it is those. For the use of ce sont, in the plural, see Grammar, p. 111, § 3.

9. Dieu savait qu'il en serait ainsi. - God knew that it would be thus. En, though not translated, is only an apparent expletive; it means about it, with regard to this thing, or in this respect.

10. Fussent. Might be. Subjunctive after afin que. See Graminar p. 333.

V.

1. L'homme que se disputent l'histoire des sciences et l'histoire des empires. The man for whom scientific and political history contend.

2. Assez longtemps. - Long enough.

3. A en propayer la conquête. To propagate their triumph. For this use of en, see Grammar, p. 241, § 9. 4. Dompter la foudre et les tyrans. An allusion to the line often applied to Franklin in his lifetime: "Eripuit cælo fulmen sceptrumque tyrannis.'

VI.

1. Ducis. - A tragic poet, born 1733, died 1816. He lived poor and independent, and took no part in the great political events of his time, but abandoned himself completely to his passion for poetry and for the stage. He is principally known for his translations, or, rather, weak imitations, of Shakespeare.

2. Constamment. 3. Se rétablit. ·

Was re-established. A reflective verb will often be best

translated by using the passive voice in English.

4. N'en avait nulle envie. - - Did not desire it in the least; literally, had no desire for it, that is, for being made a senator. Nulle is more emphatic than pas de or point de would be.

5. Qui osât. Who dared. The subjunctive is often thus used in relative clauses, which do not contain a positive definite assertion.

7. N'obtiennent. · - Notice that this and the following verbs are in the present tense. This change, in the midst of a narration, from past to present time, is very common, and gives vivacity to the style.

8. Va.-Present of aller, p. 194, § 69.

9. Qu'on n'attrape guère. Which is seldom caught.

10. Je me suis fait.-I have become.

VII.

1. Quand la bise fut venue.· - When winter came. Bise, literally, north wind, is poetically used for winter. Venir is conjugated with être, not avoir. See Grammar, p. 135, § 4. Hence in fut venue, literally, had come, the pat part. agrees in gender and number with the subject bise. See Gramm. p. 363, § 2.

.

2. Elle la rier far ine.

ally, to cry an e.

She went to complain of her poverty; liter

3 Avanta. -Lafore harvest. Oût, or more properly août, usually means the m th of August.

4. Foi d'animal. - Imitated from such phrases as foi de gentilhomme, upon the honor of a gentleman.

5. Nuit et jour, à tout venant. — Day and night, to all who came; liter ally, to every comer. See Grammar, p. 76, § 2.

6. Ne vous déplaise. — Qu'il ne vous en déplaise (may it not displease you), ur, elliptically, ne vous déplaise, is used familiarly as a kind of excuse. It may be translated, according to circumstances, if you please, by your leave, &c.

VIII.

1. Et n'en diffère guère que. —And differs but little from it except. Guère formerly signified much, but is now used only with the negation, and hence means not much, but little.

2. Font.-Present of faire, to make, to cause, p. 180, § 27.

3. Surt.-Present of sortir, to go out, p. 184, § 40.

4. A vivre. - Its food.

5. Elle ne s'en écarte guère.·

its hole.

6. Y rentre. - Re-enters it.

It does not go far away from it; i.e., from

For the use of y, see Grammar, p. 259.

7. Va.-Present of aller, to go, p. 194, § 69.

8. De maisons en maisons. From house to house, from one house to another. Generally written with both nouns in the singular, de maison en

maison.

9. A moins qu'elle n'y soit forcée. — Unless it is forced to do so; or, more literally, forced to it, i.e., to go from house to house. For the use of ne and the subjunctive after à moins que, see Grammar, p. 292, § 13, and p. 333.

10. Fait.-Present of faire.

11. Moins de dégâts. - Less damage, less havoc.

12. Les mœurs plus douces.-Gentler, quieter ways.

13. Comment aimer en effet. — In fact how can we love. For this use of the infinitive after comment, see Grammar, p. 339, § 4. 14. Qui nous dressent des embûches. Who lay snares for us. Dresser des embûches is, literally, to lay an ambush, to set a trap.

15. Auxquels. From whom. To escape from is échapper à, hence the use of à in the compound word auxquels.

16. On la détruit à milliers. People destroy them by thousands, or they are destroyed by thousands. La here, as in the two preceding clauses, refers to souris, taken in a general sense and meaning the whole species of mice; hence it is singular. In English the plural seems preferable in this particular clause.

17. Ils ont l'air vif. They look lively or bright. For this idiomatic use of avoir, see Grammar, p. 52.

18. Il y en a de blanches sur tout le corps.-There are some of them white all over their body. For this use of de, see Grammar, p. 228.

19. On prétend. It is asserted. See I., note 11.

20. Actuellement. - At present, now. This adverb always refers to time, and never means actually, really. But the adjective actuel means the same as the English actual, and also refers to time, meaning present, for the time being.

So muel

21. Viennent.-Present of venir, to come, p. 187, § 51. 22. Ce qu'il y a de vrai, c'est qu'il paraît que ce petit animal suit. at least is true; this little animal appears to follow. Literally, what there