variously musical,1 than that of an earlier age; 2 but more lucid, more easy, and better fitted for controversy and narrative. In these changes it is impossible not to recognise the influence of French precept and of French example.-(LORD MACAULAY, History of England).

JOHN BULL.

JOHN BULL, to all appearance, is a plain, downright, matter-of-fact fellow, with much less of poetry about him than rich prose. There is little of romance in his nature, but a vast deal of strong natural feeling. He excels in humour more than in3 wit; is jolly rather than gay; melancholy rather than morose; can easily be moved to a sudden tear, or surprised into a broad laugh; but he loathes sentiment, and has no turn for 10 light pleasantry. Hell is a boon companion,12 if you allow him to have 13 his humour, and to talk about himself;14 and he will stand by a friend in a quarrel, with life and purse, however soundly he may be cudgelled.

means, literally, 'to give an agreeable turn to;' but contourné more commonly means, when speaking of a phrase, or of style in general, 'forced,' 'unnatural;' here, however, the word artistement, in the context, is sufficient to remove any ambiguity.

1 moins variée dans son harmonie (or, quant au nombre).

2 qu'elle ne (page 30, note 1) l'était jadis. The word jadis is growing obsolete, except in poetry and in elevated style: in familiar style we use autrefois, as, 'I was very strong formerly, j'étais très fort autrefois.

3 Construct so:-'It is impossible not to recognise in these changes.'

4 Selon toutes les apparences,

6 romance,' romanesque; ture,' caractère, here.

7 beaucoup de naturel et de force. 8 Il a plus de gaieté que.

9 il n'est ni difficile de l'émouvoir (de le toucher de l'attendrir) jusqu'aux larmes, ni rare de l'entendre partir tout-à-coup d'un éclat de rire; or, more freely and concisely, on le voit rire et pleurer avec une égale facilité.

10 n'entend rien à la; or, n'a pas la moindre idée d'une.

11 See page 72, note 13.
12 un fort bon vivant.
13 de se livrer à.
14 de lui.

In this last respect, to tell the truth, he has a propensity to be somewhat too ready. He is a busy-minded1 personage, who thinks not merely for 2 himself and family, but for all the country round; and is most generously disposed to be everybody's champion. He is continually volunteering his services to settle his neighbour's affairs; and takes it in great dudgeon if they engage in any matter of consequence without asking his advice; though he seldom engages in any friendly office of the kind without finishing by getting into a squabble with all parties, and then railing bitterly at their ingratitude. He unluckily 5 took lessons in his youth in the noble science of defence, and having accomplished himself in the use of his limbs and his weapons, and become a perfect master at boxing and cudgel-play, he has had a troublesome life of it ever since.10 He cannot hear 11 of a quarrel between the most distant of his neighbours, but he 12 begins incontinently to fumble with the head of13 his cudgel, and consider whether his interest or honour does not require that he should meddle in the broil. Indeed, he has extended his relations of pride and policy so completely over the whole country, that no event can take place, without infringing 14 some of his finely-spun 15 rights and dignities. Couched 16 in his little domain, with 17 these filaments stretching forth in every direction, he is like some choleric, bottle-bellied old spider,18 who has woven his web over a whole 19 chamber, so that a fly cannot buzz, nor a breeze

1 affairé.

3 et s'offense.

4

2 d.

par se mettre mal. 5 Use here the indefinite preterite, he has taken;' speaking of a deceased person, however, we should use, in French, as in English, the definite preterite.

6 See page 3, note 18.

7 défense de soi-même; or, défense personnelle.

8 to accomplish oneself,' se perfectionner: translate by, and as he has accomplished,' &c.

9 et qu'il s'est rendu tout à fait familier l'art de boxer et de jouer

9

blow, without startling his repose, and causing him to tally forth wrathfully from his den.1

Though really a good-hearted, good-tempered old fellow at bottom, yet he is singularly fond of being in the midst of contention. It is one of his peculiarities, however, that he only relishes the beginning of an affray; he always goes into a fight with alacrity, but comes out of it grumbling, even when victorious; and though no one fights with more obstinacy to carry a contested point, yet, 4 when the battle is over,5 and he comes to the reconciliation, he is so much taken up with the 7 mere shaking of hands, that he is apt to let his antagonist pocket all that they have been quarrelling about. It is not, there

en

1 et la faire sortir furieuse du repaire où elle se tient cachée.-la faire sortir.' The verbs faire and laisser, when followed immediately by an infinitive, take the accusative (as here, la) if that following infinitive has itself no régime direct (i. e., no accusative, or object); but they take the dative, instead, if the following infinitive has a régime direct, and also if it is accompanied by the pronoun (though this pronoun is considered by grammarians as an indirect regimen). Ex. I make them write, je les (accusat.) fais écrire ; and I make them write an exercise,' je leur (dative) fais écrire un thème: I make my brother read,' je fais lire mon frère (accus.); and, I make my brother read a book,' je fais lire un livre à mon frère (dat.); I have made him write some,' je lui (dat.) en a fait écrire: I did let him depart,' je le (accus.) laissai partir; and, I let him eat whatever he chose,' je lui (dat.) ai laissé manger tout ce qu'il a voulu: I did let your sister depart,' j'ai laissé partir votre seur (accus.); and, I let your sister eat whatever she chose, j'ai laissé manger à votre sœur (dat.) tout ce qu'elle a voulu; he is like the dog in the manger,' [pro

verbial expression] il est comme le chien du jardinier, qui ne mange point de choux, et n'en laisse point manger aux autres (dat., with en). This peculiarity is also observable with other verbs. The above is an important point, and one especially difficult for English students, which accounts for my thus insisting upon it. See the LA FONTAINE, p. 158, n. 7, p. 58, n. 2, and p 93, n. 4.

2 Quoique fort bon enfant au fond.

3 See page 29, note 12, and page 41, note 17.

4 yet,' after 'although,' is one of those redundancies with which the English language abounds; leave it out in the translation. est finie.

5

6. et que l'on en vient; see page 59, note 6. 7 ému au.

8 qu'il laisse son adversaire mettre dans sa poche l'objet de la querelle. See above, note 1. Here we use the accusative (son adversaire), and not the dative, although mettre has a régime direct, but it must be observed that mettre does

not follow immediately the verb laisser; this separation of the two verbs often happens with regard to laisser, and other verbs as well (but never with faire), through the exigency of construction.

1

fore, fighting that he ought so much to be on his guard against, as making friends. It is difficult to cudgel him out of a farthing but put him in a good humour, and you may bargain him out of all the money in his pocket. He is like a stout ship, which will weather the roughest storm uninjured, but roll its masts overboard in the succeeding calm.6—(WASHINGTON IRVING, Sketch-book.)

A PRACTICAL USEFUL HINT.7

(4 chapter, in which the author himself makes his appearance on the stage.)8

THOUGH Mr. Allworthy was not, of himself, hasty9 to see things in a disadvantageous light, 10 yet was 11 this affection of his sister, Mrs. Blifil, to Tom, and the preference which she too visibly gave him to 12 her own son, of the utmost disadvantage to that youth.13

For such was the compassion which inhabited Mr. Allworthy's mind, that nothing but the steel14 of justice could ever subdue it. To be unfortunate, in any respect, was sufficient, 15 if there was no demerit to counterpoise it, to turn the scale of that good man's pity, and to engage his friendship and his benefaction.

When, therefore, he plainly saw Master16 Blifil was absolutely detested (for that he was)17 by his own mother, he

began, on that account only, to look with an eye of compassion upon him ; and, what the effects of compassion are in good and benevolent minds, I need not here explain to most of my readers.

4

Henceforward, he saw every appearance of virtue in the youth through the magnifying end, and viewed all his faults with the glass inverted, so that they became scarce perceptible. And this perhaps the amiable temper of pity may make commendable; but the next step, the weakness of human nature alone must excuse ;7 for he no sooner perceived that preference which Mrs. Blifil gave to Tom, than that poor youth (however innocent) began to sink in his affections as he rose in hers. 10 This, it is true, would of itself alone never have been able to eradicate Jones from his bosom; but it was greatly injurious to him, and prepared Mr. Allworthy's mind for those impressions which afterwards produced the mighty events that will be contained hereafter in 11 this history; and to which, 12 it must be confessed, the unfortunate lad,13 by his own wantonness, wildness, and want of caution, too much contributed, 14

In recording some instances of these, we shall, if rightly understood, 15 afford a very useful lesson to those well-disposed youths who shall hereafter be our readers; for they may here find, that goodness of heart, and openness of temper, though these may give them great comfort within, 6 Translate, 'make it commendable.'

1 à le prendre en compassion (en pitié). We likewise say, prendre en haine, en affection, en grippe, en horreur, &c. We also use regarder quelqu'un en pitié (or, d'un ail-avec un œil-avec des yeuxde pitié), in the above sense, that is, in the sense of 'to have compassion upon one.'

2 Construct, what are,' &c. 3 Translate as if the English were, explain it.'

4 A dater de ce moment, il vit par le gros bout de la lorgnette les moindres apparences de vertu dans son neveu, et la retourna pour regarder ses défauts.

5 cette partialité.

...

7 Construct, but the weakness the next step.'-'the next step,' ce qui s'ensuivit.

8 tout innocent qu'il était. The English ellipsis is not allowed in French.

9 autant que.-'affections,' sing. in French, here.

10 celle de sa sœur.
11 dans la suite de.
12 See page 9, note 6
13 Simply, l'infortuné.

14 Construct, 'but too much contributed, it must be confessed, by his,' &c.-'wildness,' ses écarts. 15 See page 29, note 12.