Cranford — Page 9
The whole town knew and kindly regarded Miss Betsy Barker's Alderney; therefore great was the sympathy and regret when, in an unguarded moment, the poor cow tumbled into a lime-pit.
Toute la ville connaissait et considérait avec bienveillance l'Alderney de Miss Betsy Barker ; aussi grande fut la sympathie et la consternation quand, dans un moment d'inattention, la pauvre vache tomba dans une fosse à chaux.
She moaned so loudly that she was soon heard and rescued; but meanwhile the poor beast had lost most of her hair, and came out looking naked, cold, and miserable, in a bare skin.
Elle mugit si fort qu'elle fut bientôt entendue et secourue ; mais entre-temps la pauvre bête avait perdu la plus grande partie de son poil, et elle en sortit l'air nue, transie et misérable, avec une peau toute dénudée.
Everybody pitied the animal, though a few could not restrain their smiles at her droll appearance.
Tout le monde plaignait l'animal, bien que quelques-uns ne pussent retenir leurs sourires devant son aspect cocasse.
Miss Betsy Barker absolutely cried with sorrow and dismay; and it was said she thought of trying a bath of oil.
Miss Betsy Barker pleura à chaudes larmes de chagrin et de désarroi ; et l'on dit qu'elle songea à essayer un bain d'huile.
This remedy, perhaps, was recommended by some one of the number whose advice she asked; but the proposal, if ever it was made, was knocked on the head by Captain Brown's decided "Get her a flannel waistcoat and flannel drawers, ma'am, if you wish to keep her alive.
Ce remède fut peut-être recommandé par l'une des personnes dont elle sollicita l'avis ; mais la proposition, si tant est qu'elle ait jamais été faite, fut rejetée catégoriquement par le capitaine Brown : « Procurez-lui un gilet de flanelle et des caleçons de flanelle, madame, si vous souhaitez la garder en vie.
But my advice is, kill the poor creature at once."
Mais mon conseil est d'abattre la pauvre bête sur-le-champ. »
Miss Betsy Barker dried her eyes, and thanked the Captain heartily; she set to work, and by-and-by all the town turned out to see the Alderney meekly going to her pasture, clad in dark grey flannel.
Miss Betsy Barker essuya ses larmes et remercia chaleureusement le capitaine ; elle se mit à l'ouvrage, et bientôt toute la ville sortit pour voir l'Alderney se rendre docilement à son pâturage, vêtue de flanelle gris foncé.
I have watched her myself many a time.
Je l'ai moi-même observée bien des fois.
Do you ever see cows dressed in grey flannel in London?
Voit-on jamais des vaches habillées de flanelle grise à Londres ?
[Picture: Meekly going to her pasture]
[Illustration : Se rendant docilement à son pâturage]
Captain Brown had taken a small house on the outskirts of the town, where he lived with his two daughters.
Le capitaine Brown avait loué une petite maison à la périphérie de la ville, où il vivait avec ses deux filles.
Vocabulary
- Toute
- toot — All, every, or the whole of something
- ville
- veel — A town or city
- connaissait
- koh-neh-seh — Knew or was acquainted with someone or something
- considérait
- kohn-see-deh-reh — Regarded or considered someone or something
- bienveillance
- byahn-veh-yahns — Kindness, goodwill, or benevolence toward others
- aussi
- oh-see — Also, too, or as a result, therefore
- grande
- grahnd — Great, large, or big (feminine form)
- fut
- foo — Was (third person singular simple past of être)
- sympathie
- sam-pah-tee — Sympathy or warm feeling toward someone
- consternation
- kohn-stehr-nah-syohn — A feeling of anxiety, dismay, or shock
- moment
- moh-mahn — A moment or brief period of time
- inattention
- ee-nah-tahn-syohn — Lack of attention or carelessness
- pauvre
- pohvr — Poor, unfortunate, or pitiful
- vache
- vash — A cow (female bovine animal)
- tomba
- tohm-bah — Fell (third person singular simple past of tomber)
- fosse
- fohs — A pit or ditch dug in the ground
- chaux
- shoh — Lime (calcium oxide used in construction)
- mugit
- moo-zhee — Mooed or bellowed (past tense of mugir)
- fort
- fohr — Loudly, strongly; loud or strong
- bientôt
- byahn-toh — Soon, shortly, before long
- entendue
- ahn-tahn-doo — Heard (past participle of entendre, feminine)
- secourue
- suh-koo-roo — Rescued or helped (past participle, feminine)
- entre-temps
- ahn-truh-tahn — In the meantime, meanwhile
- bête
- bet — Animal, beast; also stupid (adjective)
- perdu
- pehr-doo — Lost (past participle of perdre)
- partie
- par-tee — Part, portion, or section of something
- poil
- pwahl — Hair, fur, or coat of an animal
- sortit
- sohr-tee — Came out, exited (simple past of sortir)
- air
- ehr — Air, look, appearance, manner
- nue
- noo — Naked, bare (feminine adjective)
- transie
- trahn-zee — Chilled to the bone, frozen (feminine adjective)
- misérable
- mee-zeh-rahbl — Miserable, wretched, or pitiful
- peau
- poh — Skin or hide of a person or animal
- toute
- toot — All, entirely, completely (feminine adjective)
- dénudée
- deh-noo-deh — Stripped bare, uncovered (feminine past participle)
- monde
- mohnd — World; tout le monde means everyone
- plaignait
- pleh-nyeh — Pitied or felt sorry for (imperfect of plaindre)
- animal
- ah-nee-mahl — An animal or creature
- quelques-uns
- kel-kuh-zuhn — Some, a few (of them)
- pussent
- poos-ahnt — Could (imperfect subjunctive of pouvoir)
- retenir
- ruh-tuh-neer — To hold back, restrain, or retain
- sourires
- soo-reer — Smiles (plural noun from sourire)
- devant
- duh-vahn — In front of, before (preposition)
- aspect
- as-pek — Aspect, appearance, or look of something
- cocasse
- koh-kahs — Comical, funny, or absurdly amusing
- pleura
- pluh-rah — Wept, cried (third person singular simple past)
- chaudes
- shohd — Hot, warm (feminine plural adjective)
- larmes
- larm — Tears (drops of water from eyes when crying)
- chagrin
- shah-grahn — Grief, sorrow, or deep sadness
- désarroi
- deh-zah-rwah — Confusion, disarray, or helpless distress
- songea
- sohn-zhah — Thought of, considered (simple past of songer)
- essayer
- eh-seh-yeh — To try or attempt something
- bain
- bahn — Bath or a soaking treatment
- huile
- weel — Oil (liquid fat from plants or animals)
- remède
- ruh-med — Remedy, cure, or treatment for a condition
- peut-être
- puh-tetr — Perhaps, maybe (adverb of uncertainty)
- recommandé
- ruh-koh-mahn-deh — Recommended or advised (past participle)
- personnes
- pehr-sohn — People, persons (plural noun)
- dont
- dohn — Whose, of which, from which (relative pronoun)
- sollicita
- soh-lee-see-tah — Solicited, sought, requested (simple past)
- avis
- ah-vee — Opinion, advice, or notice
- proposition
- proh-poh-zee-syohn — Proposal or suggestion put forward
- tant
- tahn — So much, so many, as long as
- ait
- eh — Has (present subjunctive of avoir)
- jamais
- zhah-meh — Never, ever (negative or emphatic adverb)
- été
- eh-teh — Been (past participle of être); also summer
- faite
- fet — Made, done (feminine past participle of faire)
- rejetée
- ruh-zhuh-teh — Rejected or dismissed (feminine past participle)
- catégoriquement
- kah-teh-goh-reek-mahn — Categorically, absolutely, without any doubt
- capitaine
- kah-pee-ten — Captain (military or naval rank)
- Procurez-lui
- proh-koo-reh lwee — Get for her, provide her with something
- gilet
- zhee-leh — A vest or waistcoat worn on the torso
- flanelle
- flah-nel — Flannel (soft woven fabric, usually wool)
- caleçons
- kal-sohn — Underpants, drawers, or long underwear (plural)
- madame
- mah-dam — Madam, Mrs. (polite title for a woman)
- souhaitez
- soo-eh-teh — Wish, desire (second person plural present)
- garder
- gar-deh — To keep, maintain, or guard something
- vie
- vee — Life or lifetime
- conseil
- kohn-say — Advice, counsel, or a piece of guidance
- abattre
- ah-bahtr — To slaughter, knock down, or put down (animal)
- sur-le-champ
- soor-luh-shahn — Immediately, right away, on the spot
- essuya
- eh-swee-yah — Wiped (third person singular simple past of essuyer)
- remercia
- ruh-mehr-syah — Thanked (third person singular simple past)
- chaleureusement
- sha-luhr-uhz-mahn — Warmly, heartily, in a warm manner
- mit
- mee — Put, set (third person singular simple past of mettre)
- ouvrage
- oo-vrahzh — Work, task, or a piece of work
- voir
- vwahr — To see or to look at
- rendre
- rahn-dr — To render, return, make, or give back
- docilement
- doh-seel-mahn — Docilely, obediently, in a submissive manner
- pâturage
- pah-too-rahzh — Pasture or grazing land for animals
- vêtue
- veh-too — Dressed, clothed (feminine past participle of vêtir)
- gris
- gree — Gray (masculine adjective describing color)
- foncé
- fohn-seh — Dark (shade of a color), deep-colored
- moi-même
- mwah-mem — Myself (emphatic first person reflexive pronoun)
- observée
- ohb-sehr-veh — Observed, watched (feminine past participle)
- fois
- fwah — Time, instance (as in une fois = once)
- Voit-on
- vwah-tohn — Does one see, can one see (inverted question)
- vaches
- vash — Cows (plural of vache)
- habillées
- ah-bee-yeh — Dressed, clothed (feminine plural past participle)
- grise
- greez — Gray (feminine adjective describing color)
- rendant
- rahn-dahn — Going, making one's way (present participle of rendre)
- loué
- loo-eh — Rented, hired, praised (past participle of louer)
- petite
- puh-teet — Small, little (feminine adjective)
- maison
- meh-zohn — House or home
- périphérie
- peh-ree-feh-ree — Outskirts or periphery of a town or city
- vivait
- vee-veh — Lived, was living (imperfect of vivre)
- filles
- feey — Girls or daughters (plural noun)
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