GIR. U4. Additional texts p.1

Дата публикации: Sep 26, 2016 5:50:38 PM

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GIR. U4. Liberty Hall by Ring Lardner. p.1

GIR. U4. Liberty Hall by Ring Lardner. p.2

ONE COAT OF WHITE (After H. A. Smith)

Mr. and Mrs. Gregg met M. Lautisse on the Queen Elizabeth coming back from their first trip to Europe. By a curious chance they learned that M. Lautisse was a well-known artist who had suddenly retired at fifty-three to a villa on the Riviera and lived alone there except for his servants, and never saw anyone. He hadn't painted anything for many a year and was heard to say he would never touch another brush as long as he lived.

M. Lautisse was going to America incognito and asked the Greggs to keep his name a secret. He took to the young couple and accepted their invitation to spend a weekend in their home in the country.

Lautisse arrived on the noon train Saturday and I met him at the station. We had promised him that we wouldn't have any people in and that we would respect his desire to remain incognito and that we wouldn't try to talk to him about art.

Driving out from the station, I asked him if he wanted to do anything in particular, like playing croquet or going for a swim or a walk in the woods, and he said he just wanted to sit and relax.

So we sat around all afternoon, and Lautisse looked at a baseball game on television for about five minutes, and couldn't understand it, and I took him down to the basement and showed him the oil burner (I sold oil burners), and he couldn't understand that either. Mostly we just sat and talked.

I was up at seven-thirty the next morning and when I was having breakfast I remembered a job I had to do. Our garden fence needed a coat of paint. I got out a bucket half full of white paint, and a brush and an old kitchen chair. I was sitting on the chair, stirring, when I heard footsteps and there stood Lautisse.

"Had breakfast?" I asked, and he said Madame was fixing it. I said I had been getting ready to paint the garden fence but now that he was up, I'd postpone it. He protested - I should go on with it. I took up the brush, but he seized it from my hand and said, "First, I'll show you!"

I'm no Tom Sawyer - I wasn't looking for anybody to paint that fence. It was my pride and joy, for I had built it with my own hands. I let him finish two sides of the post and then I interrupted.

"I'll take it from there," I said, reaching for the brush.

"No, no, no!" he cried out, just like a little child. He had finished half a dozen pickets when Betsy yelled from the kitchen door that his breakfast was ready.

"No, no!" he said, with an impatient wave of the brush. "No breakfast. I will paint the fence."

I argued with him but he wouldn't even look up from his work; so I went into the house and told Betsy. "You know very well how I feel about that fence, and ... that man came out there and practically wrested the brush away from me ..."

Betsy laughed at me. "Let him paint it!" she said. "He's having a good time."

I went back to the Sunday papers but every now and then I'd get up and go out and watch him for a couple of minutes. He spent three hours at it and finished the fence, all four sections of it. You should have seen him when he walked around the house to the terrace where I was sitting - he had white paint all over him. And he was beaming.

"I finish her!" he exclaimed. He was as happy as a kid with a new rocket ship, and all my resentment faded. He escorted me back to the garden to examine his handiwork.

He had me stand off at a distance and look, and then move up closer and inspect the pickets.

He went back to town on the 9.03 that evening and at the station shook my hand and said I was a fine fellow and that he hadn't enjoyed himself so much in years and that he wanted Betsy and me to come to New York and have dinner with him some night.

We didn't hear anything from him or about him for ten days, and then the story broke in the New York papers. Some correspondent on the Riviera had got wind of Lautisse's secret trip to New York and cabled the New York office, and somehow they found out. He denied his identity at first, but then he confessed all and gave them an interview. Along towards the end of the story was a paragraph saying:

Since his arrival M. Lautisse has spent all his time in New York City, except for a weekend at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Hervey Gregg in North Westchester. He met the Greggs on the ship coming over.

The day after the story appeared a reporter and photographer from one of the papers arrived at our house while I was off selling my oil burners, and Betsy did the honours. They wanted to know every single detail - every move the great man had made, every word he had uttered, and Betsy told them of course about the garden fence. They took pictures of it, and more pictures of the paint buckets, and the brush, and the next morning the paper had quite a story, done in a humorous vein, and the Headline said:

LAUTISSE PAINTS AGAIN

It gave us a sort of funny feeling, all this publicity, but we didn't have much time to think about it. Early on the same day that story appeared, an excitable little man arrived in a chaufeur-driven limousine. He leaped out of the car, rushed up to me, grabbed me by the shoulders and began shouting:

"Where is it? Where is the fence?" I knocked his hand down and demanded to know who he was, but he kept yelling things like: "Has anybody else been here?" and "Show me the fence!" Finally he said he was Mr. Vegaro from the Millard Galleries, and he wanted to see the fence Lautisse had painted.

He stood before that picket fence clasping and unclasping his hands, and crying out: "Magnificent!" and "Superb!" and things like that. Then all of a sudden he quieted down, and said: "Mr. Gregg, I would like to buy your fence, I will give you five hundred dollars cash for it."

He had no more than got the words out when another car came roaring up the driveway and out jumped two men. They came at us with a rush, waving their arms wildly, screaming "Stop! Stop!"

All three men now surrounded me, shouting and gesticulating. So now I did a little yelling of my own. They calmed down, and it turned out that the second two men were from the Weddicome Galleries and they, too, wanted my garden fence, because it had been painted by the great Lautisse.

"You people," I said, "are either drunk or crazy - maybe both."

All three of them looked at me as if I were the one who was drunk or crazy. Didn't I realize that Lautisse had not had a paint brush in his hands for twelve long years? That Lautisse had sworn he would never paint again? That a single painting by Lautisse was worth as much as a quarter of a million dollars?

"Look, gentlemen," I said, "I'm a business man, an oil burner man. I don't know anything about painting. I mean painting pictures. But I do know a thing or two about painting a fence. A mule could have held a paint brush in his teeth and done almost as good a job on that fence as Lautisse did."

"A thousand dollars for the fence!" said one of the Weddicome men.

"Twelve hundred!" said little Mr. Vegaro.

"Fifteen hundred!" cried the Weddicome man.

"Hold it!" I yelled. "I'm beginning to think you're serious. How on earth are you going to get fifteen hundred out of that fence?"

"Good lord, man!" exclaimed the second fellow from the Weddicome, "don't you realize that your garden fence is a genuine Lautisse?"

I stared at them in amazement.

incognito adjective BrE /ˌɪnkɒɡˈniːtəʊ/ ; NAmE /ˌɪnkɑːɡˈniːtoʊ/ - preventing other people from finding out who you are

an incognito visit

take to phrasal verb

take to something[no passive]

1. to go away to a place, especially to escape from danger

The rebels took to the hills.

2, to begin to do something as a habit

take to doing something I've taken to waking up very early.

3. to develop an ability for something

She took to tennis as if she'd been playing all her life.

take to somebody | take to something - [no passive] to start liking somebody/something

I took to my new boss immediately.

He hasn't taken to his new school.

take to

отправиться

повернуть

пристраститься к чему-л. (make a habit of)

быстро привязаться к кому-л.

быть способным к чему-л.

croquet noun BrE /ˈkrəʊkeɪ/ ; NAmE /kroʊˈkeɪ/ [uncountable] - a game played on grass in which players use wooden hammers (called mallets ) to knock wooden balls through a series of hoops (= curved wires)

An oil burner or oil furnace is a heating device which burns heating oil, diesel fuel or other similar fuels

to fix

food/drink

6. (especially North American English) to provide or prepare something, especially food

fix somebody something Can I fix you a drink?

fix something for somebody Can I fix a drink for you?

fix something I'll fix supper.

a post

wood/metal

7. [countable] (often in compounds) a piece of wood or metal that is set in the ground in a vertical position, especially to support something or to mark a point

corner posts (= that mark the corners of a sports field)

The team’s ‘net’ was a piece of string tied to two posts.

see also bedpost, gatepost, lamp post, signpost

picket noun BrE /ˈpɪkɪt/ ; NAmE /ˈpɪkɪt/

1. a person or group of people who stand outside the entrance to a building in order to protest about something, especially in order to stop people from entering a factory, etc. during a strike; an occasion at which this happens

Five pickets were arrested by police.

I was on picket duty at the time.

a mass picket of the factory

2. a soldier or group of soldiers guarding a military base

3. a pointed piece of wood that is fixed in the ground, especially as part of a fence

a picket fence

look up (from something) - to raise your eyes when you are looking down at something

She looked up from her book as I entered the room.

wrest verb BrE /rest/ ; NAmE /rest/

wrest something from somebody | wrest something from something(formal)

1. to take something such as power or control from somebody/something with great effort

They attempted to wrest control of the town from government forces.

2. to take something from somebody that they do not want to give, suddenly or violently

synonym wrench

He wrested the gun from my grasp.

resentment noun BrE /rɪˈzentmənt/ ; NAmE /rɪˈzentmənt/ [uncountable, singular] - a feeling of anger or unhappiness about something that you think is unfair

to feel/harbour/bear resentment towards/against somebody

She could not conceal the deep resentment she felt at the way she had been treated.

негодование, возмущение; чувство обиды

handiwork noun BrE /ˈhændiwɜːk/ ; NAmE /ˈhændiwɜːrk/ [uncountable]

1. work that you do, or something that you have made, especially using your artistic skill

We admired her exquisite handiwork.

2. a thing done by a particular person or group, especially something bad

This looks like the handiwork of an arsonist.

get wind of something and catch wind of something - Fig. to learn of something; to hear about something, to learn about something secret

The police got wind of the illegal drug deal.

John caught wind of the gossip being spread about him.

As soon as we got wind of the concert, I ordered tickets.

to be off - уезжать, уходить

do the honours - to perform a social duty or ceremony, such as pouring drinks, making a speech, etc.

Would you do the honours and draw the winning ticket?

vein noun BrE /veɪn/ ; NAmE /veɪn/

1. [countable] any of the tubes that carry blood from all parts of the body towards the heart

the jugular vein

The nurse was having trouble finding a vein in his arm.

compare artery

2. [countable] any of the very thin tubes that form the frame of a leaf or an insect’s wing

3. [countable] a narrow strip of a different colour in some types of stone, wood and cheese

4. [countable] a thin layer of minerals or metal contained in rock

synonym seam

a vein of gold

5. [singular] vein (of something) an amount of a particular quality or feature in something

They had tapped a rich vein of information in his secretary.

There was a vein of proverbial wisdom in what he said.

6. [singular, uncountable] a particular style or manner

A number of other people commented in a similar vein.

‘And that's not all,’ he continued in angry vein.

Other speakers tackled the same problem in a lighter vein.

chauffeur noun BrE /ˈʃəʊfə(r)/ ; NAmE /ʃoʊˈfɜːr/ - a person whose job is to drive a car, especially for somebody rich or important

clasp verb BrE /klɑːsp/ ; NAmE /klæsp/

1. clasp something to hold something tightly in your hand

He leaned forward, his hands clasped tightly together.

They clasped hands (= held each other's hands).

I stood there, clasping the door handle.

2. clasp somebody/something to hold somebody/something tightly with your arms around them

She clasped the children in her arms.

He clasped her to him.

She clasped her arms tightly around him.

3. clasp something (+ adv./prep.) to fasten something with a clasp

She clasped the bracelet around her wrist.

get out фраз. гл. - произнести, вымолвить (с трудом)

gesticulate verb BrE /dʒeˈstɪkjuleɪt/ ; NAmE /dʒeˈstɪkjuleɪt/ [intransitive] - to move your hands and arms about in order to attract attention or make somebody understand what you are saying

He gesticulated wildly at the clock.

She was shouting and gesticulating from the other side of the road.

mule noun BrE /mjuːl/ ; NAmE /mjuːl/

1. an animal that has a horse and a donkey as parents, used especially for carrying loads

He's as stubborn as a mule.

a man on a mule

2. (slang) a person who is paid to take drugs illegally from one country to another

The authorities believe these men are important figures in the drug trade, not merely mules.

3. a slipper (= a soft shoe for wearing indoors) that is open around the heel

WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE?

Claire, mother's American sister-in-law, came to stay, with them for a fortnight. Dick asked his mother: "Mummy, doesn't Aunt Claire like it here? She said she had a flat somewhere on the way from London." "Don't worry, Dick," said father, "Aunt Claire meant that her friend's car had a puncture. In America they call it a flat. Don't forget, that in the USA they speak American English, not British. Didn't you notice that Aunt Claire pronounced many words in a different way?"

Dick: Yes, I've noticed she pronounced the "r's" quite distinctly, and says "can't" [kænt].

The next Tuesday Claire took her nephew and niece to London. When she asked the children the nearest way to the "railroad depot", they couldn't tell her. She found out by herself that in England tickets were sold at the "booking-office", but not at the "ticket-window".

"We must ask a red-cap which track to go to," she said. Joan whispered to her brother, "Dick, what's a red-cap?" Dick: I think Aunt Claire means a porter.

When the porter said, "Go to platform two for your train" - Claire guessed that the English used "platform" when they wanted to know where the train would be.

When they came to London, she said, "Wait a moment, kids. I'd like to drop into that post-office. I won't be long. Wait for me on the sidewalk at the entrance to the subway."

The children were left puzzled.

Joan: Dick, where do we have to wait? There is no subway here, it's a quiet street. And what is a "sidewalk"?

Dick: I think a "sidewalk" is the pavement. But I don't see any "subway anywhere.

So they stayed where they were in front of the post-office till Claire came back. Having found out why they had not moved, she explained that in America the "subway" was the underground electric train. Walking along the streets, the children learned that shops were "stores" in the States, and the English pram was a "baby carriage" and a lorry - a "truck". When they reached a huge building, a department store, Claire asked an attendant "Where is the elevator?"

He answered immediately, "The lift is right across the hall; ma'am."

On the fourth floor Claire said "О. К., you can stay in the toy department. I've got to buy suspenders for my husband. You know, straps that hold up trousers. He thinks English suspenders will last longer than American ones."

Dick: I see, you mean braces. We say suspenders when we mean the things that hold up stockings.

Claire: And we call those "garters".

Joan: But a garter goes round the leg, just above the knee, at least our garters do ...

In the evening, back at home, Dick showed off his new American words:

"You know, Daddy, Aunt Claire says "gas" for petrol, and "bill" for a note, and ..."

Claire: And I guess I've learned something from the children.

*M. stand for Monsieur [ma'sja:] - the form of address used when speaking .to a.Frenchman, corresponds to Mr, (Mister), The abbreviation is pronounced in full.

fortnight noun BrE /ˈfɔːtnaɪt/ ; NAmE /ˈfɔːrtnaɪt/ [usually singular](British English) - two weeks

a fortnight’s holiday

a fortnight ago

in a fortnight’s time

He's had three accidents in the past fortnight.

We hope to leave in the next fortnight.

We’ve spent the last fortnight in Spain.

flat

tyre

14 not containing enough air, usually because of a hole

puncture noun BrE /ˈpʌŋktʃə(r)/ ; NAmE /ˈpʌŋktʃər/

1. (British English) a small hole in a tyre made by a sharp point

I had a puncture on the way and arrived late.

The tyre had a slow puncture and had to be pumped up every day.