Lectio tricesima octava

In tramīne (conclūditur)

On the train (conclusion)

Vīsne hispānicam1, Domne?

Do you want a cigarette, sir?

Grātiās tibi! Fūmāriolum2 jam implēvī3. Habēsne ignem4?

Thank you! I have already filled [my] pipe. Do you have [a light] (fire)?

Nōlīte fūmum facere, inquit domna cum cane parvulō, fūmī mē taedet5.

Don’t[pl.] [smoke] (want to make smoke), says the lady with the tiny dog, [smoke disturbs me] (of-smoke me it-disgusts).

Doleō, optima domna, sed hoc est loculāmentum fumātōrium, ergō nōbīs tabācō fruī6 licet, respondet domnus, fūmāriolum tranquillē accendēns7.

I’m sorry, [dear] (excellent) lady, but this is a smoking compartment, therefore it is allowed for us to [smoke] (enjoy with-tobacco), responds the gentleman, tranquilly lighting [his] pipe.

Impudēns es lēnō8! Haec verba prōferēns9 domna fūmāriolūm arripit idque per fenestram prōjicit10.

You are an impudent panderer! [With] (bringing forth) these words, the lady takes hold of the pipe and throws it out (through) the window.

Mālō tacēre quid sīs, optima domna! Haec verba prōferēns domnus canem parvulum arripit11, eumque per fenestram prōjicit...

I prefer [not to say] (to be silent) what you are, dear lady! With these words, the gentleman takes hold of the tiny dog, and throws it out the window…

Silentium sepulcrāle sequitur... audītur tandem frēnōrum strepitus. Trāmen in statiōne quādam cōnsistit.

A sepulchral silence follows… finally the noise of the brakes is heard. The train comes to a stop at a station.

Tunc, rēs mīrābilis, in crepīdine statiōnis appāret canis parvulus anhēlāns12 atque dentibus13 tenēns ... quid enim tenēre possit?

Then, wondrous thing, on the platform of the station appears the tiny dog, panting and holding [in] (with) its teeth … what indeed could it be holding?

Hem... fūmāriolum, responderim!

Hmmm… the pipe, I would answer! (perfect subj.)

Minimē! Errāvistī! Dentibus tenet ... partem glaciēī quae in thermopōliō lēctiōnis trīcēsimae sextae dēerat!

Not at all! You have made a mistake! In its teeth it holds … the block of ice which was missing [from] (in) the canteen of lesson thirty-six(th)!

Notes

  1. Hispanicus, -a, -um, Spanish, whence hispanica, cigarette (the Spanish one). Tabacum, -i, n., tobacco; tabaceus, -a, -um, of tobacco. In the exercise: volumen, -inis, n., a rolling, whence volumen tabaceum, cigar.

  2. Fumariolum, -i, n., place from which smoke escapes, little furnace.

  3. Impleo, -es, -ere, -evi, -etum, to fill.

  4. Ignis, -is, m., fire. Think of igneous, ignite, ignition, etc.

  5. Me taedet, me paenitet are impersonal verbs; literally, it disgusts me of…, it sorrows me of… The real subject (here me) is in the accusative while the object is in the genitive. Example paenitet Johannem culpae suae: John repents of his offense.

  6. Fruor, -eris, -i, fructus sum + abl. = to profit from, to enjoy.

  7. Accendens, present participle of accendo, -is, -ere, accendi, accensum, to set fire to, to light.

  8. Leno, lenonis, m., slave-dealer, pimp, not a very commendable profession, one suspects.

  9. Profero, -fers, -ferre, -tuli, -latum, irregular like fero, bring forth, advance, mention.

  10. Projicio, -is, -ere, -jeci, -jectum = pro + jacio, throw out, throw away. Pro, in front of, or instead of.

  11. Arripio, -is, -ere, arripui, arreptum = ad + rapio, -is, -ere, rapui, raptum, to take hold of. You will note that rapio, to carry off, does not have exactly the same principal parts as arripio. Often derived verbs depart somewhat from the original, generally for reasons of ease of pronunciation.

  12. Anhelare, to pant.

  13. Dens, dentis, m., tooth; notice that this word is masculine (unlike its French equivalent la dent). Dens serrae, sawtooth (literally or as a geometric shape).

N.B.— The purely accidental coincidence between Bis Bini, (-ae, -a) and the abbreviation BB is due to the fact that B is the 2nd letter of the Roman alphabet.

Unknown words are going to slip more and more often into our exercises. Today they are particularly numerous:

Capsa, box, whose diminutive capsula, little box, you can also note; natalicius, -a, -um, relating to birth; volumen, see N. 1; acta diurna, literally things done (past participle of ago) during the day (daily); and hence the reporting of them, i.e., formerly chronicle and now newspapers. Chartula, -ae, little card. Septemtrio, -onis, m., the north; flare, to blow; quorsus? in what direction? But you have already seen cursualis in Lesson 22, as well as bis, adv., twice and bini, -ae, -a, in twos, in lesson 6.

Exercitatio

Quis (tabācea) volūmina cupit? Mihi est capsa vīgintī quīnque volūminum quam āvia nātāliciō diē meō mihi dōnō dedit.

Who wishes for cigars? I have a box of twenty-five cigars that my grandmother gave me as a gift on my birthday.

Hispānicās mālō. Tabacum ipse in papȳrō involvō.

I prefer cigarettes. I roll the tobacco in paper myself.

Possumne tabacum in statiōnis thermopōliō emere?

Can I buy tobacco in the station(‘s) canteen?

Ita, domne, sed adest quoque taberna in crepīdine, ubi vēndunt tabacum, ācta diurna, chartulāsque cursuālēs.

Yes, sir, but there is also a shop on the platform, where they sell tobacco, newspapers, and postcards.

Hae chartulae mihi placent: duās emam.

I like these cards: I’ll buy two.

Oportet scrībam mātrī, frātrīque meō.

[I must write] (it is necessary I should write) to [my] mother, and to my brother.

Tertiaque emenda est. Certum facere dēbēmus Jacobum amīcum dē adventū nostrō.

And [I must buy] a third (is to-be-bought). We should [inform] (make more-certain) our friend James about our arrival.

Problēma. — Locomotrix typī quī BB dīcitur, quia bis bīnōs axēs habet, orientem petit. Ventus ā septemtriōne flat. Quōrsum it fūmus?

Problem.— A locomotive of the type (which is) called BB, because it has twice two axles, is makinf for the west. The wind blows from the north. In what direction does the smoke go?

Respōnsum. — Nūllus est fūmus quia locomotrīcēs BB electricae sunt.

Answer.—There is no smoke because BB locomotives are electric.