Chapter 1

An old avaricious English gentleman had three sons, of whom one was a good-natured but light-minded fellow. Whenever (S. 18, N. 6) he fell into any trouble, he excused himself on the ground that he was seeing life. His prodigality, however, annoyed his father so much, that he resolved to disinherit (S. 1, N. 2) him. His friends interceded in his favour, but their efforts were in vain.

When the old gentleman felt his end approaching, he called his sons together, and said to them: “I leave to my son John my whole estate, and desire him to be frugal.” John, in a sorrowful tone, as is usual on such occasions, prayed heaven to prolong his father’s life, and give him health to enjoy the gift himself.

+Das Vermächtnis.+

+Engländer.+

Say ‘the one’.

to fall into trouble, +in Verlegenheit geraten+.

on the ground, +damit+.

+daß er das Leben kennen lerne.+ Comp. App. §§ 28 and 30.

+verdrießen+. See S. 5, N. 2.

+sehr.+

to intercede in a person’s favour, +zu gunsten einer Person sprechen+. He interceded in my favour, +er sprach zu meinen gunsten+. Supply the adverb +zwar+ (it is true) after the verb.

+Herr+; to feel one’s end approaching, +sein Ende heran´nahen fühlen+.

together, +zu sich+.

‘to leave’, here = to bequeath.

+Besitzung+, f.

The construction of =the Infinitive with an Accusative=, so frequently employed in English as an imitation of the Latin and Greek, =is unknown in German=. Such constructions must be rendered by a subordinate clause introduced by the conjunction ~+daß+~; as—

I know him to be an industrious man.

+Ich weiß, daß er ein fleißiger Mann ist+.

See also App. § 34, and say ‘and wish that he may be frugal (+sparsam+)’.

This passage requires the following construction: ‘As (+wie+) it is usual (+üblich+) on (+bei+) such occasions, John (App. § 15) implored heaven in (+mit+) a sorrowful tone to prolong’, etc. The noun +Himmel+ is always used with the article.

+Vermächtnis+.

Section 58.

THE BEQUEST.