f _fit_.

14.--1. R... Merimee uses both this form of abbreviation
and the form which occurs on p. 1, l .9 (cf. also p. 17, l. 26).
16.--7. de n'avoir pas. _Pas_ is usually placed before the
infinitive.

18.--12. depit... des pires. Merimee tries to reproduce a
Russian pun by means of a play on these words. He gives the following
note: "Il y a, dans le russe un jeu de mots impossible a traduire:
sdelatsa pianitseiou _s'goria_, t. c. samym _gorkim_ pia-nitseiou."

20.--24. il y a bien quatre ans que je n'ai touche. Note
that while _pas_ is omitted in this phrase it is used below (p. 21, l.
27) in _voila cinq ans que je n'en ai pas eu_; compare also: _il y a
cinq ans que je me mariai_ (p. 22, l. 18), where there is no negative
idea.

21.--10. prendre son verre d'eau-de-vie avant la soupe.
Merimee gives the following note: "C'est l'usage en Russie de prendre de
l'eau-de-vie un peu avant le diner."

22.--6. serait-ce vous. The conditional here expresses
uncertainty; it should be rendered in English by "cldquo;could" not by "wldquo;would."

24.--14. reviens-nous. Note the use of the indirect object
(instead of _a nous_) with a verb of motion.

GUY DE MAUPASSANT

Miromesnil (Seine-Superieure), 1850-Paris, 1893

De Maupassant was a godson and disciple of Flaubert, thus his name is
closely connected with the Naturalistic School, which goes back to
_Madame Bovary_, Flaubert's masterpiece. The leading writers of this
school are: Flaubert, the de Goncourt brothers, Daudet (only in portions
of his work), Zola and Maupassant. Maupassant is known as a writer of
short stories and as a novelist. His work is at times pessimistic and
morbid, in this respect he represents the worst side of the Naturalists;
he had, however, a remarkable power of observation and the "sldquo;saving gift
of irony," and was a master of style, the chief characteristics of which
are strength and simplicity. In the artistic composition of the short
story he is probably unsurpassed. Important works: _Des Vers_ (1880),
_Une Vie_ (1883), _Bel Ami_ (1885), _Mont Oriol_ (1881), _Pierre et
Jean_ (1888), _Fort comme la Mort_ (1889), and especially several
collections of _Contes_.

Edition: Havard, 9 vols.; Ollendorff, 8 vols.

LA MAIN

27.--20. qu'entourent partout de hautes montagnes. Note
the inversion in the relative clause.

28. ce terrible prejuge corse. Compare Merimee's _Colomba_.

28.--10. on pretendit que c'etait. _Pretendre_, "tldquo;to
m