Harrigan — Page 1
"That fellow with the red hair," said the police captain as he pointed.
«Quel tizio dai capelli rossi,» disse il capitano della polizia mentre indicava.
"I'll watch him," the sergeant answered.
«Lo terrò d'occhio,» rispose il sergente.
The captain had raided two opium dens the day before, and the pride of accomplishment puffed his chest.
Il capitano aveva fatto irruzione in due fumerie d'oppio il giorno prima, e l'orgoglio per l'impresa gli gonfiava il petto.
He would have given advice to the sheriff of Oahu that evening.
Quella sera avrebbe dato consigli persino allo sceriffo di Oahu.
He went on: "I can pick some men out of the crowd by the way they walk, and others by their eyes.
Continuò: «Riesco a individuare alcuni uomini nella folla dal modo in cui camminano, e altri dai loro occhi.
That fellow has it written all over him."
Quel tizio ce l'ha scritto in faccia.»
The red-headed man came nearer through the crowd.
L'uomo dai capelli rossi si avvicinò attraversando la folla.
Because of the warmth, he had stuffed his soft hat into a back pocket, and now the light from a window shone steadily on his hair and made a fire of it, a danger signal.
A causa del caldo, aveva infilato il cappello morbido in una tasca posteriore, e ora la luce di una finestra brillava costantemente sui suoi capelli trasformandoli in un fuoco, un segnale di pericolo.
He encountered the searching glances of the two officers and answered with cold, measuring eyes, like the gaze of a prize fighter who waits for a blow.
Incontrò gli sguardi scrutatori dei due agenti e rispose con occhi freddi e calcolatori, come lo sguardo di un pugile che aspetta un colpo.
The sergeant turned to his superior with a grunt.
Il sergente si voltò verso il suo superiore con un grugnito.
"You're right," he nodded.
«Hai ragione,» annuì.
"Trail him," said the captain, "and take a man with you.
«Seguilo,» disse il capitano, «e porta un uomo con te.
If that fellow gets into trouble, you may need help."
Se quel tizio si mette nei guai, potresti aver bisogno di aiuto.»
He stepped into his automobile and the sergeant beckoned to a nearby policeman.
Salì sulla sua automobile e il sergente fece cenno a un poliziotto nelle vicinanze.
"Akana," he said, "we have a man-sized job tonight.
«Akana,» disse, «stanotte abbiamo un lavoro di quelli tosti.
Are you feeling fit?"
Ti senti in forma?»
The Kanaka smiled without enthusiasm.
Il Canaco sorrise senza entusiasmo.
"The man of the red hair?"
«L'uomo dai capelli rossi?»
The sergeant nodded, and Akana tightened his belt.
Il sergente annuì, e Akana si strinse la cintura.
He had eaten fish baked in ti leaves that evening.
Quella sera aveva mangiato pesce cotto nelle foglie di ti.
He suggested: "Morley has little to do.
Suggerì: «Morley ha poco da fare.
Vocabulary
- Quel
- That; demonstrative adjective indicating proximity or context.
- tizio
- Guy; fellow; informal term for an unspecified male person.
- dai
- Come on; interjection urging action or expressing exasperation.
- capelli
- Hair; plural noun referring to strands on head.
- rossi
- Red; adjective describing red color, plural masculine form.
- disse
- Said; past tense of dire, indicating spoken words.
- il
- The; masculine singular definite article in Italian.
- capitano
- Captain; military or naval rank and leadership position.
- della
- Of the; feminine singular contraction of di and la.
- polizia
- Police; law enforcement organization and its members collectively.
- mentre
- While; conjunction indicating simultaneous or contrasting actions.
- indicava
- Indicated; past tense of indicare, pointing or showing something.
- Lo
- Him; masculine singular direct object pronoun.
- terrò
- I will keep; future tense of tenere, maintaining or holding.
- occhio
- Eye; organ of vision and expression of attention.
- rispose
- Responded; past tense of rispondere, giving answer or reply.
- sergente
- Sergeant; military rank below officer in hierarchy.
- Il
- The; masculine singular definite article in Italian.
- aveva
- Had; past tense of avere, indicating possession or action.
- fatto
- Done; past participle of fare, accomplished or executed.
- irruzione
- Raid; sudden forceful entry or intrusion into location.
- in
- In; preposition indicating location, time, or manner.
- due
- Two; cardinal number representing the quantity of pair.
- oppio
- Opium; narcotic drug derived from poppy plant.
- giorno
- Day; twenty-four hour period or daytime hours.
- prima
- Before; earlier in time or preceding in sequence.
- orgoglio
- Pride; feeling of satisfaction in accomplishment or status.
- per
- For; preposition indicating purpose, reason, or duration.
- impresa
- Enterprise; undertaking or business venture, often daring.
- gli
- Him; masculine singular indirect object or dative pronoun.
- gonfiava
- Swelled; past tense of gonfiare, expanding or puffing.
- petto
- Chest; front part of torso between neck and abdomen.
- Quella
- That; feminine singular demonstrative adjective or pronoun.
- sera
- Evening; period between afternoon and night time.
- avrebbe
- Would have; conditional form of avere expressing hypothetical.
- dato
- Given; past participle of dare, providing or offering.
- consigli
- Advice; plural of consiglio, recommendations or guidance.
- persino
- Even; adverb emphasizing something surprising or unexpected.
- allo
- To the; contraction of a and lo prepositions.
- sceriffo
- Sheriff; law enforcement officer in American jurisdiction.
- di
- Of; preposition indicating possession, origin, or composition.
- Continuò
- Continued; past tense of continuare, proceeding without interruption.
- Riesco
- I manage; present tense of riuscire, succeeding in action.
- individuare
- Identify; to recognize or pinpoint specific person or thing.
- alcuni
- Some; indefinite adjective or pronoun for unspecified quantity.
- uomini
- Men; plural of uomo, adult male human beings.
- nella
- In the; feminine singular contraction of in and la.
- folla
- Crowd; large group of people gathered together.
- dal
- From the; contraction of da and il prepositions.
- modo
- Way; manner or method of doing something specific.
- cui
- Which; relative pronoun introducing dependent clause or phrase.
- camminano
- Walk; present tense of camminare, moving on foot.
- altri
- Others; plural masculine form referring to other persons.
- loro
- Their; possessive adjective or pronoun for third persons.
- occhi
- Eyes; plural of occhio, organs of vision.
- ce
- There; locative adverb or existential marker particle.
- ha
- Has; present tense of avere, third person singular.
- scritto
- Written; past participle of scrivere, marked with letters.
- faccia
- Face; front of head or surface of object.
- uomo
- Man; adult male human being or mankind generally.
- si
- Oneself; reflexive pronoun or modal particle indicating action.
- avvicinò
- Approached; past tense of avvicinare, coming near to.
- attraversando
- Crossing; present participle of attraversare, moving across.
- la
- The; feminine singular definite article in Italian.
- causa
- Cause; reason, motive, or source of effect.
- caldo
- Heat; high temperature or warm weather condition.
- infilato
- Stuffed; past participle of infilare, putting something into.
- cappello
- Hat; head covering garment worn for style.
- morbido
- Soft; adjective describing smooth or gentle texture.
- una
- A; feminine singular indefinite article in Italian.
- tasca
- Pocket; small pouch sewn into clothing for storage.
- posteriore
- Back; rear or hind part of something.
- ora
- Now; at present time or the current moment.
- luce
- Light; electromagnetic radiation visible to human eye.
- finestra
- Window; opening in wall allowing light and air.
- brillava
- Shone; past tense of brillare, emitting bright light.
- costantemente
- Constantly; adverb meaning continuously or without interruption always.
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