'Do,' said Harriet. 'I'll come in a moment.'
She let them go and turned to Peter, who stood motionless, staring down at the table. Oh, my God! she thought, startled by his face, he's a middle-aged man — the half of life gone — he mustn't —
'Peter, my poor dear! And we came here for a quiet honeymoon!'
He turned at her touch and laughed ruefully.
'Damn!' he said. 'And damn! Back to the old grind. Rigor mortis and who-saw-him-last, blood-prints, finger-prints, footprints, information received and it-is-my-dooty-to-warn-you. Quelle scie, mon dieu, quelle scie!'
A young man in a blue uniform put his head in at the door.
'Now then,' said Police-constable Sellon, 'wot's all this?'
24 January 2010
10 January 2010
from Der Rosenkavalier, Act Three (Hugo von Hofmannsthal)
Marschallin:
Hab' mir's gelobt, ihn lieb zu haben in der richtigen Weis',
daß ich selbst sein Lieb' zu einer andern
noch lieb hab! Hab' mir freilich nicht gedacht,
daß es so bald mir auferlegt sollt' werden!
(seufzend)
Es sind die mehreren Dinge auf der Welt,
so daß sie ein's nicht glauben tät',
wenn man sie möcht' erzählen hör'n.
Alleinig wer's erlebt, der glaubt daran und weiß nicht wie -
Da steht der Bub' und da steh' ich, und mit dem fremden Mädel dort
wird er so glücklich sein, als wie halt Männer
das Glücklichsein versteh'n.
(I chose to love him in the right way,
so that I would love even his love for another!
I truly didn't believe
that I would have to bear it so soon!
(sighing)
Most things in this world
are unbelievable
when you hear about them.
But when they happen to you, you believe them, and don't know why -
There stands the boy and here I stand, and with that strange girl
he will be as happy as any man
knows how to be.)
Hab' mir's gelobt, ihn lieb zu haben in der richtigen Weis',
daß ich selbst sein Lieb' zu einer andern
noch lieb hab! Hab' mir freilich nicht gedacht,
daß es so bald mir auferlegt sollt' werden!
(seufzend)
Es sind die mehreren Dinge auf der Welt,
so daß sie ein's nicht glauben tät',
wenn man sie möcht' erzählen hör'n.
Alleinig wer's erlebt, der glaubt daran und weiß nicht wie -
Da steht der Bub' und da steh' ich, und mit dem fremden Mädel dort
wird er so glücklich sein, als wie halt Männer
das Glücklichsein versteh'n.
(I chose to love him in the right way,
so that I would love even his love for another!
I truly didn't believe
that I would have to bear it so soon!
(sighing)
Most things in this world
are unbelievable
when you hear about them.
But when they happen to you, you believe them, and don't know why -
There stands the boy and here I stand, and with that strange girl
he will be as happy as any man
knows how to be.)
07 January 2010
List of Illustrations from The Great Book of True Stories (London 1936)
IN BOUNDED THE LIONS by Dudley Cowes Frontispiece
AFTER AN INTIMATE MINUTE WITH HIM I GOT THE DAGGER by H. G. Fairbairn 23
ON THE FILTHY FLOOR OF THE CAVE SAT HALF A DOZEN ENORMOUS RATS by Clark Fay 41
THERE HE STOOD SILENT AND SOLITARY by Norman Keen 73
THE BARREL MOVED OVER THEM, PRESENTING ITS BLACK THREATFUL MOUTH by R. Cleaver 101
MY FATHER WAS SWINGING CRAZILY IN MID-AIR by E. B. Thurstan 133
I SAW THE STREET SPLIT OPEN by J. Nicolle 207
I HEARD THE WILD CRIES AND SAW THEIR DARK GLEAMING BODIES by Jack Faulkes 245
THE SIAMESE WAS IN THE TOILS OF A QUICKSAND by T. Grainger Jeffrey 289
HE WAS FIVE YARDS AWAY by S. Tresilian 313
THE ABLE SEAMAN MADE A FLYING LEAP by Norman Hepple 331
HE STAGGERED OUT OF THE KNEE-DEEP SAND WITH HIS FIND by Edward Osmond 369
WE JAMMED ON OUR BRAKES IN HORROR by Clive Uptton 387
HE GLARED AT ME WITH BLOODSHOT EYES by Alfred Sindall 493
THE PRESSURE OF THE GUN WAS NOTICEABLY STRONGER by J. Greenup 539
IT IS EASY TO IMAGINE HOW UNPLEASANT THE TUNNEL WAS by Norman Howard 565
HER HAND CLUTCHED AT MINE by Cyril Holloway 661
AFTER AN INTIMATE MINUTE WITH HIM I GOT THE DAGGER by H. G. Fairbairn 23
ON THE FILTHY FLOOR OF THE CAVE SAT HALF A DOZEN ENORMOUS RATS by Clark Fay 41
THERE HE STOOD SILENT AND SOLITARY by Norman Keen 73
THE BARREL MOVED OVER THEM, PRESENTING ITS BLACK THREATFUL MOUTH by R. Cleaver 101
MY FATHER WAS SWINGING CRAZILY IN MID-AIR by E. B. Thurstan 133
I SAW THE STREET SPLIT OPEN by J. Nicolle 207
I HEARD THE WILD CRIES AND SAW THEIR DARK GLEAMING BODIES by Jack Faulkes 245
THE SIAMESE WAS IN THE TOILS OF A QUICKSAND by T. Grainger Jeffrey 289
HE WAS FIVE YARDS AWAY by S. Tresilian 313
THE ABLE SEAMAN MADE A FLYING LEAP by Norman Hepple 331
HE STAGGERED OUT OF THE KNEE-DEEP SAND WITH HIS FIND by Edward Osmond 369
WE JAMMED ON OUR BRAKES IN HORROR by Clive Uptton 387
HE GLARED AT ME WITH BLOODSHOT EYES by Alfred Sindall 493
THE PRESSURE OF THE GUN WAS NOTICEABLY STRONGER by J. Greenup 539
IT IS EASY TO IMAGINE HOW UNPLEASANT THE TUNNEL WAS by Norman Howard 565
HER HAND CLUTCHED AT MINE by Cyril Holloway 661
from Winter Holiday, chapter XI, Cragfast Sheep (Arthur Ransome)
He remembered then that, after the sheep was lowered, one of the others would have to go all the way back and down into the gully to untie it before they could let him have the rope for the return journey. All that time he would have to sit on the ledge there, with his back against the face of the rock, and wait, and wait, and not look down at his feet. Well, those buzzards were still there.
And then, suddenly, he was startled by a shout from Roger, out of sight above him.
'Here come the dogs!'
And away to the left, far below him, he saw the sledge party coming up the gully, and knew that they had seen him.
John would be there to undo the sheep. It was too late now to try again, but he did wish he had been able to manage a rather more seamanlike knot.
And then, suddenly, he was startled by a shout from Roger, out of sight above him.
'Here come the dogs!'
And away to the left, far below him, he saw the sledge party coming up the gully, and knew that they had seen him.
John would be there to undo the sheep. It was too late now to try again, but he did wish he had been able to manage a rather more seamanlike knot.
from The Invention of Love, Act Two (Tom Stoppard)
Housman (watching the runners) What do I want?
Chamberlain Nothing which you'd call indecent, though I don't see what's wrong with it myself. You want to be brothers-in-arms, to have him to yourself ... to be shipwrecked together, (to) perform valiant deeds to earn his admiration, to save him from certain death, to die for him - to die in his arms, like a Spartan, kissed once on the lips ... or just run his errands in the meanwhile. You want him to know what cannot be spoken, and to make the perfect reply, in the same language. (Pause. Still without inflection) He's going to win it. (Finally he warms into excitement as the race passes in front of them.) By God, he is! Come on, Jackson! Up the Patent Office! ... He's won it!
Chamberlain Nothing which you'd call indecent, though I don't see what's wrong with it myself. You want to be brothers-in-arms, to have him to yourself ... to be shipwrecked together, (to) perform valiant deeds to earn his admiration, to save him from certain death, to die for him - to die in his arms, like a Spartan, kissed once on the lips ... or just run his errands in the meanwhile. You want him to know what cannot be spoken, and to make the perfect reply, in the same language. (Pause. Still without inflection) He's going to win it. (Finally he warms into excitement as the race passes in front of them.) By God, he is! Come on, Jackson! Up the Patent Office! ... He's won it!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)