Als redet'er im Kaffeehaus, Herr Ohm! ich muss euch frei gestehen, Ha! nähme man doch meinen Plan Das Wohl des Ganzen dauernd gründen! Allein, Herr Ohm, ihr gebt nicht Acht! Mag seyn, versetzt der Greis, und lächelt: Drum bessre, Vetter, ohne Säumen. (Du siehst, das Laub fällt von den Bäumen!) Noch vor des Winters Ankunft aus: Nimm Moos, und stopf'es in die Ritze Der Wand-den morschen Dachstuhl stütze, Dann magst du, wenn es schneit und friert, Leb'wohl, mein Kind! erst heile nur A beaver, wan with age, but still cheerful, active, rich in knowledge and experience, well acquainted with all building concerns, a patriot, who chiefly had the welfare of the community in view, went one day to see his nephew. The latter was a merry youngster, seldom to be met with at home; day by day he busily roamed through the country, to bring the news he heard into rapid circulation. The old clever beaver found the nephew's dwelling open, and went in to examine its economy. He every where discovered nothing but the most wretched decay; the roof, the walls, were full of crevices, dirt and destruction reigned round about, and the store-rooms were all empty. The old one knitted his brow at this horrible mismanagement, and was going to turn back, when the master of the house arrived. Scarcely were the first salutations over, when the young forward beaver readily displayed his wisdom, as if he had been speaking at a coffee-house :-Dear uncle, I must freely confess to you that I have long been vexed to see king lion, contrary to right and equity, lavishing his favours exclusively upon one race of animals, and partially bestowing honours and powers with a liberal hand upon jackals only; they hold the first rank in the empire; they wantonly spend what we acquired with clever toil, whilst we are starving. Ah! if they only would adopt my plan of a reform in the state! then would all those distinctions-the work of superannuated prejudice-break down. First of all should all classes be upon a perfect equality. Of what use is a divan of proud bashaws? May not the prince take the advice of his people in war and peace? I'll lay any thing that contentions, strife, hatred, and jealousy, would disappear, and the con. cord of all the members of the community would securely ground the welfare of the whole! I have thought of every thing;-but, dear uncle, you do not attend! It may be, replied the old beaver smiling, that the draught which so rudely blows upon me here, is the cause, my friend, that I cannot understand a word; repair, therefore, your house without delay, with prudent foresight, (you see the leaves fall from the trees) before the winter approaches; take some moss and cram it into the crevices of the wall-prop up the rafters of the roof before a tempest blows it down, and when snow and frost comes, you may sit comfortably dry and warm at home. Farewell, my lad! only cure first your own open wounds, and we will then talk of healing the sores of the state! 830. In allen Baugeschäften, in all building concerns. We had Geschäft, sec. 467, and we have here, a few lines lower down, geschäftig, adj. busy, occupied. We may tack the word Geschäfte to any noun which points out what business, or what concern it is. We say Amtsgeschäfte, official business. Wechselgeschäfte, bill transactions, a banking concern. 831. Ein Patriot, subs. masc. a patriot. This appellation is borrowed from the French; the real German word is Vaterland's freund. 832. Ein lust'ger Fant, a contraction for ein lustiger Funt, a merry youngster. Ein Fant, subs. masc. a youth, is generally used sneeringly. In Lower Saxony, where it T denotes a labourer, a farmer's man, ein Knecht, it is pronounced Fent. In some parts of Germany it signifies a pawn (un pion), at chess, and is probably derived from the Italian fante, a boy, a foot-soldier, the knave at cards. 833. Zu Hause selten anzutreffen, seldom to be met with at home, is again an instance of the infinitive active in German instead of the infinitive passive in English, sec. 682. Antreffen, irr. sep. comp. verb, to meet with a person. Ich treffe an, ich traf an, ich habe angetroffen. See begegnen, sec. 754. It also denotes to find, in the sense of hitting upon accidentally. 66 834. Tag für Tag, day for day, instead of the English day by day." Und ging den Haushalt zu besehen hinein, and went in to look at, to examine the management of his house, its economy. hineingehen, sep. irr. neut. compound verb, to go in, to walk in. Ich gehe hinein, ich ging hinein, ich bin hineingegangen. Hinein denotes motion from the spot where you are towards another, sec. 366. Hence the answer from within, when you knock at the door of a room in Germany, always is herein! Der Haushalt, subs. masc. or, die Haushaltung, subs. fem. house-keeping, economy, the management of household affairs. Eine eigene Haushaltung haben, to keep house, to be a housekeeper. Both words are derived from Haus halten, to keep house, to be an economical good housekeeper, to understand economy. The German proverb says: "Mit vielem hält man Haus Mit wenigem kömmt man aus." 835. Voller Spalten, full of crevices. Die Spalte, subs. fem. or der Spalt, subs. masc. a split, cleft, crevice; a crack, a slit, and with printers a column, a slip. 836. Ob diesem Greul, over this horrible mismanagement. Ob here is not the conjunction "whether," sec. 740, but the prep. ob, over, about, which governs the dative. Luther translates Psalm xxxviii. 20, " because I follow the thing that good is," darum dass ich ob dem Guten halte. Sometimes ob is on account of, and in that sense it may also govern the genitive. Luther translates the general Epistle of Jude, ver. 3, " that ye should earnestly contend for the faith," dass ihr ob dem Glauben kampfet. And sometimes during, and beyond; as, Oesterreich ob der Ens, Austria beyond the river Ens. Der Greul, s, subs. masc. or better, der Gräuel, abomination, horror, abhorrence. Some say Grauel. 837. Der Hauspatron, the master of the house. Patron, subs. masc. is borrowed from the French. The German word is der Gönner, der Beschützer. It is chiefly used of a church-patron, ein Kirchenpatron; and of the owner of a ship, ein Schiffspatron. 838. So kramt der junge kecke Biber, als redet' er im Kaffeehaus Flugs seine Weisheit also aus. Here is an instance of the inconvenience of our separable compound verbs, when the particle is at too great a distance: the last word of the three lines, aus, belongs to the second of the first line, Knamt. Auskramen is a reg. sep. act. comp. verb, to display, to shew off, to set forth. Ich krame aus, ich kramte aus, ich habe ausgekramt. Seine Gelehrsamkeit auskramen, to make a shew of one's learning. But when it is a neuter verb, aus denotes a ceasing, a giving over, and auskramen then is, to cease to deal in, to give over searching, to have done dealing in. We have lower down, 1. the sep. annehmen, to accept, to adopt, separated thus: Nähme man doch meinen Plan zu einer Staatsverbessrung an. 2. The sep. verb einstürzen, to break down, separated in the same way: Dann stürzten all' die Scheidewände, das werk verjahrten Wahnes, ein. Ein in einstürzen, denotes as in einfallen, sec. 639, a total change from the preceding situation, a destruction. And, towards the end of the fable, we have, 3, the separable particle aus at the distance of four lines from its verb ausbessern, to mend, to repair. 839. Aus in ausbessern is exactly the Latin ex in “emendare," just as we had ausrufen, "exclamare," sec. 491. 840. Flugs, adv. rapidly, swiftly, is derived from der Flug, the flight, and is used only in a lively familiar narrative. Wernicke says: "Kaum macht er seine Feder nass 841. Herr Ohm, sir uncle, dear uncle. Der Ohm, or der Oheim, the uncle, the father or the mother's brother; but at Bremen they also call a first cousin Oehm and Oehme. 842. Verdreusst es mich, it vexes me, is the antiquated form of es verdriesst mich, sec. 601. The verb in use in common life is the irregular neuter verb, verdriessen, to displease, to vex, ich verdriesser, ich verdross, ich habe verdrossen; but it is mostly used as an impersonal, as here. Luther translates Genesis, xxvii. 46, "I am weary of my life," mich verdreusst zu Leben; it may also be elegantly construed with the genitive, mich verdreusst meines Lebens, exactly the Latin "tædet vita." 843. Darben, reg. neut. verb, with haben, to want, to be in great need, to be deprived of the necessaries of life, to starve. Luther translates St. Luke, xv. 14, " He began to be in want," er fing an zu darben. 844. Our practical observations are grounded upon the Ring, an allegory of Lessing, in his play called Nathan the Wise, (Nathan der Weise.) Vor grauen Jahren lebt'ein Mann in Osten Den Ring von seinen Söhnen dem vermachte Des Rings, das Haupt, der Fürst des Hauses werde. |