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THE CUSTOMS OF THE COUNTRY
When you have a large collection of animals to transport from one end of the world to the other you cannot, as a lot of people seem to think, just hoist them aboard the nearest ship and set off with a gay wave of your hand. There is slightly more to it than this. Your first problem is to find a shipping company who will agree to carry animals. Most shipping people, when you mention the words "animal cargo" to them grow pale, and get vivid mental pictures of the Captain being eviscerated on the bridge by a jaguar, the First Officer being slowly crushed in the coils of some enormous snake, while the passengers are pursued from one end of the ship to the other by a host of repulsive and deadly beasts of various species. Shipping people, on the whole, seem to be under the impression you want to travel on one of their ships for the sole purpose of releasing all the creatures, which you have spent six hard months collecting. Once, however, you have surmounted this psychological hurdle, there are still many problems. There are consultations with the Chief Steward as to how much refrigerator space you can have for your meat, fish and eggs, without starving the passengers in consequence; the Chief Officer and the Bosun * have to be consulted on where and how your cages are to be stacked, and how they are to be secured for rough weather, and how many ship's tarpaulins you can borrow. Then you pay a formal call on the Captain and, generally over a gin, you tell him (almost with tears in your eyes) you will be so little trouble aboard that he won't even notice you are there a statement which neither he nor you believe. But, most important of all, you generally have to have your collection ready for embarkation a good ten days or so before
the ship is scheduled to leave, for a number of things may happen in some ports that will put the sailing date forward, or, more irritatingly, backward, and you have to be on the spot to receive your orders. The end of a trip is, then, the most harrowing, frustrating, tiring and frightening part. When people ask me about the "dangers" of my trips I am always tempted to say that the "dangers" of the forest pale into insignificance * as compared with the dangers of being stranded in a remote part of the world with a collection of a hundred and fifty animals to feed, and your money running out. However, we had now, it seemed, surmounted all these obstacles. A ship had been procured, consultations with the people on board had been satisfactory, food for the animals had been ordered, and everything appeared to be running smoothly. It was at this precise juncture that Juanita, the baby peccary, decided to liven up life for us by catching pneumonia. The animals, as I have said, were now in a huge shed in the Museum grounds, which had no heating. While this did not appear to worry any of the other animals unduly (although it was the beginning of the Argentine winter and getting progressively colder) Juanita decided to be different. Without so much as a preliminary cough to warn us, Juanita succumbed. In the morning she was full of beans,* and devoured her food avidly; in the evening, when we went to cover the animals for the night, she looked decidedly queer. She was, for one thing, leaning against the side of her box as if for support, her eyes half-closed, her breathing rapid and rattling in her throat. Hastily I opened the door of the cage and called her. She made a tremendous effort, stood upright shakily, tottered out of the cage and collapsed in my arms. It was in the best cinematic tradition, but rather frightening. As I held her I could hear her breath wheezing and bubbling in her tiny chest, and her body lay in my arms limp and cold. In order to husband * our rapidly decreasing money supplies two friends in Buenos Aires had rallied round and allowed Sophie and me to stay in their respective flats, in order to save on hotel bills. So, while Sophie was ensconced in the flat of Blondie Maitland-Harriot, I was occupying a camp-bed in the flat of one David
Jones. At the moment when I discovered Juanita's condition David was with me. As I wrapped her up in my coat I did some rapid thinking. The animal had to have warmth, and plenty of it. But I knew we could not provide it in that great tin bam, even if we lit a bonfire like the Great Fire of London. * Blondie already had a sick parrot of mine meditatively chewing the wallpaper off the bathroom in her flat, and I felt it was really carrying friendship too far to ask if I could introduce a peccary as well into her beautifully appointed * flat. David had now returned at the double * from the Land-Rover whence he had gone to get a blanket to wrap the pig in. In one hand he was clasping a half-bottle of brandy. "This any good?" he inquired, as I swaddled Juanita in the blanket. "Yes, wonderful. Look, heat a drop of milk on the spirit stove and mix a teaspoonful of brandy with it, will you?" While David did this, Juanita, almost invisible in her cocoon of blanket and coat, coughed alarmingly. Eventually, the brandy and milk were ready, and I managed to get two spoonfuls down her throat, though it was a hard job, for she was almost unconscious. "Anything else we can do," said David hopefully, for, like me, he had grown tremendously fond of the little pig. "Yes, she's got to have a whacking great shot * of penicillin and much warmth and fresh air as she can get." I looked at him hopefully. "Let's take her back to the flat," said David, as I had hoped he would. We wasted no more time. The Land-Rover sped through the rain-glistening streets at a dangerous pace, and how we arrived at the flat intact was a miracle. While I hurried upstairs with Juanita, David rushed round to Blondie's flat, for there Sophie had our medicine chest with the penicillin and the hypodermic syringes. I laid the by now completely unconscious Juanita on David's sofa, and although the flat was warm with the central heating, I turned on the electric fire as well, and then opened all the windows that would not create draughts. David was back in an incredibly short space
of time, and rapidly we boiled the hypodermic and then I gave Juanita the biggest dose of penicillin I dared. It was, almost, kill or cure, * for I had never used penicillin on a peccary before, and for all I knew * they might he allergic to it. * Then, for an hour, we sat and watched her. At the end of that time I persuaded myself that her breathing was a little easier, but she was still unconscious and I knew she was a very long way from recovery. "Look," said David, when I had listened to Juanita's chest for the fourteen-hundredth time, "are we doing any good, just sitting here looking at her?" "No," I said reluctantly, "I don't think we'll really see any change for about three or four hours, if then. She's right out * at the moment, but I think the brandy has a certain amount to do with that." "Well," said David practically, "let's go and get something to eat at Olly's. I don't know about you, but I'm hungry. We needn't be more that three-quarters of an hour." "O. K.," I said reluctantly, "I suppose you're right". So, having made sure that Juanita was comfortable and that the electric fire could not set fire to her blankets, we drove down to Olly's Music Bar in 25 de Mayo, which is a street that runs along what used to be the old waterfront of Buenos Aires. It is a street lined with tiny clubs, some of which have the most delightful names like "My Desire", "The Blue Moon Hall of Beauties", and, perhaps slightly more mysteriously, "Joe's Terrific * Display". It was not the sort of street a respectable man would be seen in, but I had long ceased to worry about respectability. With my various friends we had visited most of these tiny, dark, smoky bars, and drunk drinks of minute size and colossal price, and watched the female "hostesses" * at their age-old work. But, of all the bars,| the one we liked best was Olly's Music Bar, and we always made this our port of call. * There were many reasons for liking Olly's. Firstly, was the walnut-wrinkled Olly himself and his lovely wife. Secondly, Olly not only gave you fair measure in your glass, but frequently stood you a drink * himself. Thirdly, his bar was well-lit, so that you could actually see your companions; in the other bars you would have had to be a bat or an owl to observe clearly. Fourthly, his hostesses were not al-
lowed to irritate you by constantly suggesting you bought them drinks, and fifthly, there was a brother and sister with a guitar who sang and played delightfully. Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, I have seen the hostesses at Olly's, when their night's work was done, kiss Olly and his wife goodnight as tenderly as if they had been the girls' parents. So David and I made our way down the stairs into Olly's and were greeted with delight by Olly and his wife. The reason for our depression being explained the whole bar was full of commiseration; Olly stood us both a large vodka, and the hostesses gathered round us to tell us they were sure Juanita would get well, and generally tried to cheer us up. But, as we stood there eating hot sausages and sandwiches and consuming vodka, not even the gay carnavalitos * the brother and sister played and sang specially for us could cure my depression. I felt sure that Juanita was going to die, and I had grown absurdly fond of the little creature. Eventually, when we had eaten and drunk, we said goodbye and climbed the steps that led to the road. "Come tomorrow and tell us how the animal is," called Olly. "Si, si" said the hostesses, like a Greek chorus, "come tomorrow and tell us how the pobrecita * is." By the time we had got back to David's flat I was convinced that we should find Juanita dead. When we went into the living-room I gazed at the pile of blankets on the sofa, and had to force myself to go and look. I lifted one corner of the blanket gently and a twinkling dark eye gazed up at me lovingly, while a pink plunger-shaped nose wiffled, and a faint, very faint, grunt of pleasure came from the invalid. "Good God, she's better," said David incredulously. "A bit," I said cautiously. "She's not out of danger yet, but I think there's a bit of hope." As if to second this Juanita gave another grunt. In order to make sure that Juanita did not kick off her blanket during the night and make her condition worse I took her to bed with me on the sofa. She lay very quietly across my chest and slept deeply. Though her breathing was still wheezy it had lost that awful rasping sound which you could hear with each breath she
took to begin with. I was awoken the following morning by a cold, rubbery nose being pushed into my eye, and hearing Juanita's wheezy grunts of greeting, I unwrapped her and saw she was a different animal. Her eyes were bright, her temperature was normal, her breathing was still wheezy, but much more even, and, best of all, she even stood up for a brief, wobbly moment. Prom then she never looked back. * She got better by leaps and bounds, * but the better she felt the worse patient she made. As soon as she could walk without falling over every two steps, she insisted on spending the day trotting about the room, and was most indignant because I made her wear a small blanket, safety-pinned under her chin, like a cloak. She ate like a horse, and we showered delicacies on her. But it was during the nights that I found her particularly trying. She thought this business of sleeping with me a terrific idea, and, flattering though this was, I did not agree. We seemed to have different ideas about the purposes for which one went to bed. I went in order to sleep, while Juanita thought it was the best time of the day for a glorious romp. A baby peccary's tusks and hooves are extremely sharp, and their noses are hard, rubbery and moist, and to have all these three weapons applied to one's anatomy when one is trying to drift off into a peaceful sleep is trying, to put it mildly. Sometimes she would do a sort of porcine * tango with her sharp hooves along my stomach and chest, and at other times she would simply chase her tail round and round, until I began to fell like the unfortunate victim in The Pit and the Pendulum * She would occasionally break off her little dance in order to come and stick her wet nose into my eye, to see how I was enjoying it. At other times she would become obsessed with the idea that I had, concealed about my person somewhere, a rare delicacy. It may have been truffles for all know, but whatever it was she would make a thorough search with nose, tusks and hooves, grunting shrilly and peevishly when she couldn't find anything. Round about three a. m. she would sink into a deep, untroubled sleep. Then, at five-thirty, she would take a quick gallop up and down my body to make sure I woke up in good shape. This lasted for four soul-scaring nights, until I felt she was sufficiently recovered, and then I
banished her to a box at night, to her intense and vocal indignation. I had only just pulled Juanita round * in time, for no sooner was she better that we got a message to say that the ship was ready to leave. I would have hated to have undertaken a voyage with Juanita as sick as she had been, for I am sure she would have died. So, on the appointed day, our two lorry-loads of equipment and animal-cages rolled down to the dock, followed by the Land-Rover, and then began the prolonged and exhausting business of hoisting the animals on board, and arranging the cages in their places on the hatch. This is always a nerve-racking time, for as the great nets, piled high with cages, soar into the air, you are always convinced that a rope is going to break and deposit your precious animals either into the sea or else in a mangled heap on the dockside. But, by the evening, the last cage was safely aboard, and the last piece of equipment stowed away in the hold, and we could relax. All our friends were there to see us off, and, if in one or two people's eyes was a semi-repressed expression of relief, who was to blame them, for I had made martyrs of them all in one way or another. However, we were all exhausted but relaxed, ploughing our way through a series of bottles I had had the foresight to order in my cabin. Everything was on board, everything was safe, and now all we had to do was to have a farewell drink, for in an hour the ship was sailing. Just as I was replenishing everyone's glass for the fifth toast, a little man in Customs uniform appeared in the cabin doorway, rustling a sheaf of papers. I gazed at him fondly, without any premonition of danger. "Señor Durrell?" he asked politely. "Señor Garcia?" I inquired. "Si," he said, flushing with pleasure that I should know his name, "I am Señor Garcia of the Aduana.." It was Marie who scented danger. "Is anything wrong?" she asked. "Si, si, señorita, the señor's papers are all in order, but they have not been signed by a despachante." * "What on earth's a despachante?" I asked.
"It is sort of man," said Marie worriedly, and turned back to the little Customs man, "But is this essential, senior?" "Si, señorita" he said gravely, "without the despachante's signature we cannot let the animals be taken. They will have to be unloaded." I felt as though someone had removed my entire stomach in one piece, for we had about three-quarters of an hour. "But is there no despachante here who will sign it?" asked Marie. "Señorita, it is late, they have all gone home," said Señor Garcia. This is, of course, the sort of situation, which takes about twenty years off your life. I could imagine the shipping company's reaction if we now went to them and told them that, instead of gaily casting off for England in an hour's time, they would be delayed five hours or so while they unloaded all my animals from the hatch, and, what was worse, all my equipment and the Land-Rover which were deep in the bowels of the ship. But by now my friends, unfortunate creatures, were used to crises like this, and they immediately burst into activity. Mercedes, Josefina, Rafael and David went to argue with the Chief of Customs on duty, while Willie Anderson, another friend of ours, went off with Marie to the private home of a despachante he knew. This was on the outskirts of Buenos Aires, so they would have to drive like the devil to get back in time. The happy farewell party burst like a bomb and our friends all fled in different directions. Sophie and I could only wait and hope, while I mentally rehearsed how I would phrase the news to the Captain, without being seriously maimed, if we had to unload everything. Presently the party who had been arguing with the Chief of Customs returned despondently. "No use," said David, "he's adamant. No signature, no departure." We had twenty minutes to go. * At that moment we heard a car screech to a halt on the docks outside. We piled out on to the deck, and there, coming up the gangway, smiling triumphantly, were Marie and Willie, waving the necessary documents, all
beautifully signed by what must be the finest, noblest despachante in the business. So, with ten minutes to go we all had a drink. I even gave Señor Garcia one. Then the steward poked his head in to say that we would be casting off in a moment, and we trooped on to the deck. We said our goodbyes, and our tribe of friends made their way down on to the quay. Ropes were cast off, and slowly the gap between the ship and the dock widened, so that we could see the shuddering reflection of the quay lights in the dark waters. Presently the ship gained speed, and soon our friends were lost to sight, and all we could see was the great heap of multicoloured lights that was Buenos Aries. As we turned away from the rail and made our way to our cabins, I remembered Darwin's words, written a century before. When speaking of the travelling naturalist he said: "He will discover how many truly kind-hearted people there are with whom he had never before had, or ever again will have, any further communication, who yet are ready to offer him most disinterested assistance."
STOP PRESS *
For those that are interested here is an up-to-date account of the creatures we brought back. Claudius the tapir, whom I could once lift up in my arms at the risk of a rupture is now the size of a pony, and eagerly awaiting a bride when we can afford one. Mathias and Martha, the coatimundis, have settled down to domestic bliss and have produced two sets of children. Martha, at the time of writing, is again in an interesting condition. Juan and Juanita, the peccaries, also had two sets of babies, and are expecting a third. Luna, the puma, the ocelot and the Geoffroy's cat are all flourishing, getting fatter with each passing day. Blanco, the Tucuman Amazon, still says "Hijo de puta", but very softly now. All the other birds, beasts and reptiles are equally well, and many showing signs of wanting to breed. Which leaves me with only one thing to say and thus, I hope, stop people writing to ask me: my zoo is a private one, but it is open to the public every day of the year except Christmas Day. So come and see us.
NOTES
TO PAGE 5 The title contains a pun, since the chanter deals with the customs of the country in two senses of the word: (1) the way things are done by most people in a given country, its usual practices; (2) the department of the government service that collects import duties, i.e. taxes paid to the government on imported goods (Sp. aduana). The pronoun she is sometimes used with the names of countries and towns. jacaranda tree a South American tree with hard brown wood (called rose-wood from its fragrance and widely used in cabinet-making) palo borracho {Sp.) - borracho tree, another species of South American trees a suicidal streak an inclination to suicide Land-Rover - make of car; a car able to move across the fields or country, not following roads, a cross-country car
TO PAGE 6 feminine pulchritude female beauty; using long bookish words of Latin and Greek origin, the author makes this phrase sound ironically pompous the Argentine (or the Argentines) - another name for Argentina, now slightly archaic and therefore sounding more dignified
a cross between the Parthenon and the Reichstag resembling at once the Parthenon, a world-famous, temple of Athena (on the Acropolis at Athens), and the building of the Reichstag (i.e. the former German legislative assembly) in Berlin in the bowels here within, in the innermost part The verb weave (Past Ind. wove) is here used figuratively, implying that the movement of the car resembled a shuttle carrying the weft-thread across between threads of warp, in the process of weaving.
TO PAGE 7 to the best of my knowledge as far as I know warming to my work here getting more and more angry and excited de hand Josefina's pronunciation of the hand (she asked the author to thrust his arm out of the window, giving a warning that she was going to turn). Josefina's knowledge of English is far from, perfect; the author occasionally reproduces some peculiarities of her pronunciation and her chaotic order of words. These deviations from the rules of grammar in the speech of non-English characters (Dicky de Sola, Luna, Coco and others) are easy to recognize and need not be specially commented upon. screeched to a shuddering halt suddenly stopped or halted with a screech animal! (Sp.) you beast! (Note that in the Spanish language exclamation and interrogation marks always appear not only at the end, but also at the beginning of a sentence or phrase, in inverted form.) to meet our Maker (i.e. God) a euphemistic paraphrase for to die
TO PAGE 8 amidships in the middle (of the ship), a naval term hero used figuratively blurry Josefina's pronunciation of bloody (a vulgar equivalent of damned); the words shock the author as being highly unsuitable for female conversation Anglo-Saxon expletives here strong language (oaths in English are mostly of Anglo-Saxon origin) his... eau-de-cologne-encrusted brow a solemn allusion to Seiior Garcia's habit of lavishly using eau-de-cologne
TO PAGE 9 Dante Dante Alighieri (12651321), the author of the great Italian poem Divine Comedy , its first part being Inferno (Hell)
the numbing effect here the paralyzing effect tapir a hoofed hog-like mammal of tropical America and the Malayan peninsula; tapirs have flexible snouts; feed on plants gone wrong here a bit disproportionate, somewhat unusual in appearance as far as elephants go The author makes ironical use of a military cliché.
TO PAGE 10 Jacquie the author's wife (short for Jacqueline) Claudius ['klo:djos] one of the Roman emperors (4154 A. D.) en route [a:n 'ru:t] (Fr.) on the way Great Dane a large short-haired dog of a breed of massive size and great strength French window a glazed folding door that serves as a door and a window, opening on to a garden or balcony
TO PAGE 11 dinosaur ['dainaso:] an extinct gigantic reptile what with the Aduana and this bloody tapir... This emphatic construction is used when enumerating the various causes of one's distress, embarrassment and the like. the Queen Mary one of the biggest Atlantic liners
TO PAGE 12 to put one's mind to something to direct one's thoughts towards it, to set one's mind on doing something simpatico (Sp.) nice, pleasant
TO PAGE 13 fur seal a warm-blooded, fish-eating animal, found chiefly in cold regions; fur seal is hunted for its valuable fur. elephant seal a species of seal, so called on account of the shape of the male's nose which resembles an elephant's trunk, and also on account of its elephantine size (the male measures as much as 5.5 m in length and weighs up to 3.5 tons); now almost entirely destroyed .
TO PAGE 15 to warm to somebody to begin liking somebody hotter by and by to win somebody over to make somebody take a liking to you, feel friendly towards you to decide somebody - to cause somebody to come to a decision
TO PAGE 16 Darwin, Charles Robert (18091882) the great English naturalist, founder of the theory of evolution. In 183136 he made a voyage round the world on board the Beagle. The results of his observations of animals and plants, made during the voyage, were described in the naturalist's journal, The Voyage of H. M. S. Beagle. H. M. S. His (Her) Majesty's Ship, a ship of the British navy covey here a group, a party (the word is generally used to designate a family of partridges)
TO PAGE 17 deer-stalker hat (or cap) a cloth cap with a peak before and behind and two ear-flaps; it is often called a deer-stalker for short prenatal posture the position of an unborn baby in the mother's womb Tres Arroyos ['tres e'roies] (Sp.) Three Streams the Pampa (or Pampas) the extensive treeless plains of South America
TO PAGE 18 eucalyptus tree a tree of the myrtle family; most of the trees of this genus are important timber trees, and some secrete resinous gums (e. g. the Australian gum-tree) like leprous limbs like the arms and legs of people affected with leprosy, a chronic infectious disease characterized by a thickening and ulceration of the skin estancia (Sp.) farm, estate carunculated covered with caruncles, small hard outgrowths electric-blue a steely blue color oven-bird [Avnba:d] the popular name of various South American birds which build dome-shaped oven-like nests blank-faced here inexpressive, lacking individuality
TO PAGE 19 tattoo [ta'tu:] a continuous tapping or knocking Hola! (Sp.) Hullo! sanitary arrangements a polite way of speaking about a lavatory stone measure of weight used in Great Britain (6.34 kg); the plural form is unchanged Chelsea a district of London on the north bank of the Thames, with many gardens, including the London Botanic Garden buenas noches (Sp.) good evening
TO PAGE 20 Hablo con la patrona? (Sp.) Am I speaking to the hostess? Si, si, señor... que quiores? (Sp.) Yes, sir, what is it you need? she puffed and undulated her way down to the kitchen puffing and undulating, she made her way to the kitchen (note this construction, often resorted to by the author when describing different sorts of movement) monochromatic Martian landscape the author evidently has in mind standard descriptions of the planet Mars encountered in science-fiction books country here ground TO PAGE 21 nodded off fell suddenly asleep Scotch = Scotch whisky TO PAGE 22 dust-devil a mass of dust whirling rapidly round and round in cylindrical or funnel shape TO PAGE 23 I ever dream = that I ever dreamed of (i.e. imagined). In the next remark the same verb is used in a different meaning: 'to see in sleep'. introduction here a letter of introduction, one that introduces a person to friends or acquaintances of the writer in a... reptilian manner like a serpent or a lizard
TO PAGE 24 to make out with something (colloq.) to get along, be satisfied with something
TO PAGE 25 crow's feet wrinkles at the outer corner of the eye to sum up somebody to form a final opinion or judgment of somebody Si, si, como no? (Sp.) Yes, yes, why not? forlorn here sad lilting (said of a melody) -- swinging or flowing rhythmically joie de vivre ['3wa de 'vi;vre] (Fr.) - joy of life
TO PAGE 26 cacophonous unmelodious T. B. ['ti:'bi:] short for tuberculosis in a body all together, as one man moth-eaten-looking old and decrepit, looking like an old rag eaten by clothes-moth When speaking of airplanes, the English sometimes use the pronoun she, as in the case of ships. wind-sock a canvas cylinder or cone flying from a masthead to show the direction of wind
TO PAGE 27 came into their own here got down to business the plane bumped and shuddered to a halt bumping and shuddering, the plane came to a halt (cf. note to p. 7) their equine charges the ponies in their charge, the ponies they had been holding back (Durrell is fond of Latin adjectives of this type as opposed to the simple-sounding English nouns: compare horse and equine, cat and feline, pig and porcine) banshee according to Irish and Scotch beliefs, a spirit whose wail gives warning of death in a house
TO PAGE 28 Trafalgar Square lions the four bronze figures of lions, which lie with their heads thrown back, and fore paws stretched out, decorating the corners of the quadrangular base of the Nelson column in Trafalgar Square, London
TO PAGE 29 magenta a brilliant crimson color scrunched our way made our way noisily grinding the gravel under the wheels of the car (cf. note to p. 20) to switchback to follow a zigzag route in a mountainous region peon ['pi:on] in Mexico and Spanish South America, a laborer, especially one working to pay off a debt bombachas (Sp,) wide trousers
TO PAGE 30 asado (Sp.) a sheep roasted whole
TO PAGE 31 manana (Sp.) tomorrow
TO PAGE 32 headwaiter chief waiter at a restaurant, generally wearing a black suit and a snow-white shirt-front; the author compares penguins to head waiters because of their coloring, and also because of their peculiar shuffling gait biscuit-colored of the characteristic light-brown colour of biscuit, i.e. porcelain after the first firing and before being glazed or painted guanaco [gwar'neikou] a wild llama ['la:ma] of the Andes with reddish-brown wool
TO PAGE 33 finger here the breadth of a finger (about an inch), a measure generally used when pouring drinks ahora los pinguinos (Sp.) presently (you shall see) the penguins to pock-mark to make numerous marks or scars like those left by smallpox; to dot pigmy (or pygmy) any person, animal or plant abnormally undersized, a dwarf fallen arches flat feet, feet not normally arched, with the arch weakened; a professional disease with waiters
TO PAGE 34 debutante I'debjuta:nt] a girl making her first appearance in society, especially (in England) a girl presented to the king and queen at court outsize too big for one wattle a fold of loose flesh hanging from the neck of some birds, i.e. turkeys nerve self-control, courage
TO PAGE 35 jig-saw puzzle a picture pasted on board and cut in irregular pieces with a jig-saw; one has to fit the pieces together so as to make the picture (common children's game) to negotiate here to get over, to surmount (often said about fences and other obstacles) tummy a nursery and colloquial word for stomach, belly to get the worst of the climb over - to have done with the most difficult part of the climb
TO PAGE 37 to throw one off balance to make one lose one's balance
all-in wrestling match a general struggle to run the gauntlet as a punishment, to run between two lines of men who strike the victim as he passes to regurgitate to bring (partly-digested food) from the stomach back to the mouth; to get one to do something to make one do it
TO PAGE 38 in no uncertain fashion without hesitation or doubt, in a determined, resolute manner from stem to stern from the front to the back part of a ship, throughout the whole length of the ship; here throughout the whole length of the bird's body (another instance of a naval term used ironically; cf. amidships on p. 8) minute [mai'nju:t] very small pandemonium ['paendi'mounjem] a scene of great disorder and confusion (as in a place inhabited by all the demons) digestive reverie ['reveri] a quiet, thoughtful state during the process of digestion
TO PAGE 39 Vacanttum probably Vacant-tum (my), empty belly (the word looks amusingly like a biological term of Latin origin) the product of an unhappy home-life a cliché of modern sociological writings, here used ironically
TO PAGE 40 melee ['melei] (Fr.) a confused fight air-pocket a seeming vacuum in the air causing the aircraft to drop some distance; it produces a very unpleasant sensation of sinking stomach nifty (U. S. slang) here quick, nimble to qualify for to give a right to
TO PAGE 41 a diaphanous garment a transparent one, one through which the contours of the body are clearly seen mammary development (cf. below chest expansion) ironical paraphrases for size of the bust a companion piece the second of a pair, a thing that matches or complements another (here the author means a picture whose subject would match that of the one he discusses) to be out to do something (colloq.) to seek, to aim at doing something, taking great pains with it
much of a muchness (colloq.) very nearly the same mate (Sp.) an aromatic beverage prepared in South America from the leaves of the Paraguay tea plant via by way of, through, as in "from Exeter to York via London"; here used jocularly
TO PAGE 42 breath-taking so striking as to take one's breath away, make one breathless with astonishment and admiration boleadoras (Sp.) a form of weapon used by the Paraguay Indians, the Patagonians, and others in South America. It consists of a rope or thong with balls of stone or metal attached to it. When used, it is swung round the head by one end and then hurled at an animal so as to entangle its limbs.
TO PAGE 43 passing here disappearance
TO PAGE 44 Margate the favorite seaside resort of London holiday-makers left-overs (Amer.) remains esto, una (Sp.) here's one
TO PAGE 45 to pull somebody's leg to make fun of somebody to get one's own back on somebody to take one's revenge
TO PAGE 46 armadillo [ ama'dilou] a burrowing animal of South America, with a body encased in bony armour, and a habit of rolling itself up into a ball when in danger castanetted their beaks made a sound like a pair of castanets with their beaks thumb-smudges of cloud the author compares the clouds visible here and there in the sky with smudges of paint left on a canvas by a careless painter's thumb
TO PAGE 47 to shrug something off to dismiss it with a shrug of the shoulders
TO PAGE 49 back-breaking potholes holes in a road fit to break one's back when driving over them had played me false - had failed me, had deceived me
what I took to be the male of the herd the animal I took for the male guanaco (a guanaco herd consists of a male, several females and some baby guanacos) a pair of ... lorgnettes (Fr.) a pair of eye-glasses usually held by a long handle; when using them, a person generally has to tilt back his or her head
TO PAGE 50 terrier a breed of dog, usually of small size anthropomorphic here partly human, partly animal; the word is generally used when describing human-like traits or actions of animals, not vice versa, as in this case biscuit brown see note to p. 32 rather a lark (colloq.) very funny
TO PAGE 51 rocker a curved piece of wood on which a rocking-horse (children's toy) is mounted discretion is the better part of valour a saying which means that it is unwise to take unnecessary risks bichos (Sp.) animals
TO PAGE 52 maternity ward a ward in a hospital where women are taken Care of during and after childbirth elefanteria (Sp.) a place favoured by elephant seals
TO PAGE 53 I shivered my way into a half-sleep shivering, I tried to sleep, but succeeded in falling only into a half-sleep my cocoon of semi-warmth my covering which protected me against the cold but did not give real warmth
TO PAGE 54 a nerve- and spine-shattering experience an experience that racked your nerves and could easily break your back (note the literal and figurative meanings of shatter, which come into play simultaneously) creaming waves waves with white froth resembling whipped cream
TO PAGE 55 moving plate = moving picture: the word plate is here used in the sense of 'a thin sheet of metal upon which pictures are engraved, and from which impressions are taken', 'an impression printed from such a plate and used as an illustration in a book'
the fat was scalloped into folds the author means that the fur seals' necks were adorned with scallops of fat, i.e. with a series of pleats or folds resembling the edge of a scallop-shell, sometimes used as ornament on the hem of a dress beery face a puffy face, betraying the effects of beer-drinking Humpty Dumpty the hero of a nursery rhyme, a person with a short round figure, shaped like an egg. Lewis Carroll chose him for one of the characters of his book Through the Looking-glass (sequel to Alice in Wonderland). The world-famous illustrations for Carroll's books were made by John Tenniel (1820 1914). In his picture of Humpty Dumpty seated on top of a wall, the artist brought out, in a most expressive manner, the conceit and arrogance with which Carroll endowed this personage. frogman an underwater swimmer equipped with long rubber shoes like a frog's hind feet Balinese dancers (of the Bali Island, one of the islands lying east of Java) are famous for the grace and elegance of their performance. rumba (Sp.) a Cuban Negro dance; a ballroom dance imitative of this folk dance russet reddish-brown
TO PAGE 56 was a constant state of nerves (colloq.) was in a permanent state of anxiety Presbyterian a member of the Presbyterian church. Presbyterians formed the right wine of the Puritans, the English variety of Calvinists who preached love of virtue, pure living, and self-restraint. was a wife short missed one of his wives
TO PAGE 57 dropsical-looking looking swollen as if they had dropsy, a disease in which watery fluids collect in the tissues of the body to feint in box, to sham an attack to deceive the opponent by diverting his attention
TO PAGE 58 one's elders and betters persons deserving respect because of their age, experience and social standing star-gazing being in an absent-minded and dreamy state, like a person studying the stars (from the noun star-gazer 'one studying the stars to foretell the future')
TO PAGE 59 balloon animals toy animals made of rubber balloons filled with air crèche (Fr.) a public nursery where children are looked after while their mothers are at work to dump (colloq.) to deposit without ceremony, to let fall in a mass or a heap (usually applied to rubbish or coal)
TO PAGE 60 The author means that he had plenty of character and determination, which amply compensated his small size. to lollop off to walk off in a clumsy manner Note the author's tendency to replace one of the words in a stock phrase, thus producing a humorous effect (cf. "as fast as his legs would carry him").
TO PAGE 62 cummerbund (Anglo-Indian) a waist sash rumbaed towards it moved towards it as if dancing the rumba siesta [si'esta] (Sp.) a short sleep taken at midday or in the afternoon, especially in hot countries ploughed his way through them forced his way, moving with difficulty among them, like a plough turning up earth anatomy the author's usual ironical synonym for body life-giving nourishment a humourous paraphrase for milk matching the high-flown verb to imbibe (synonym for drink)
TO PAGE 63 a free drink a drink for nothing, at someone else's expense to negotiate see note to p. 35; here this verb acquires an ironical ring, since Oswald has to overcome a living obstacle in one's depth in water not too deep to touch bottom (ant. out of one's depth) pekinese (or pekingese) ['pi:ki'ni:z] a small Chinese dog with short legs and a pug nose
TO PAGE 64 none of them seemed any the worse evidently none of-them suffered from the ill effects of their swimming lesson would hump themselves down would move down, proceeding with the help of humping their backs (cf. the description of the elephant seals manner of movement on p. 78) Elizabethan ruff - a kind of collar worn in the 16th century, during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. It was made of white
material, stiffly starched and standing up in folds touching each other.
TO PAGE 65 maypole a high pole decorated with ribbons, flowers, etc., set up in the open for dancing round on May day, the first of May, celebrated in England as a spring festival belly-splitting charge the leap taken by the old bull in charging the young one, which ended in his hurting his belly (note the author's device of alluding ironically to current idiomatic expressions, here to side-splitting laughter or ear-splitting noise)
TO PAGE 67 bulbous shaped like a bulb, an enlarged, spherical termination of stem in certain plants, such as the onion, tulip or lily
TO PAGE 68 cul-de-sac ['kulde'saek] (Fr.) a passage or street with an opening at one end only, from which there is no escape tinamu (or tinamou) [ti'na:mu:] a South American bird resembling a quail (a game bird of America, Europe, Asia and Africa, also called partridge)
TO PAGE 70 Darwin's rhea a South American three-toed ostrich
TO PAGE 71 school crocodile a long line of schoolchildren walking by twos to pace, v. t. to set the pace for another rider or runner in a race bonnet the hood protecting the engine of a motor-car
TO PAGE 73 windfall an unexpected piece of good fortune (literally, something blown down by the wind, especially fruit) - sea-front (or water-front) a street or a part of town facing the sea; Bournemouth a popular English seaside resort Tierra del Fuego (Sp.) "Land of Fire", a group of islands separated from the south end of South America by the Strait of Magellan. Its farthest point is Cape Horn.
TO PAGE 74 The verb to fret is used here in its special, architectural meaning: 'to decorate with pattern carved in relief.' The author means that the stones were irregular in shape, but irregular artistically. with a jaundiced eye here suspiciously, with some irritation (from the noun jaundice, a disease accompanied by yellow-
ness of the skin and of the whites of the eyes; figuratively, a stale of mind in which one is spiteful, irritable or suspicious)
TO PAGE 75 to make the best of a disaster to try and got along as best one can, in spite of a disastrous state of things trippers (from trip 'a short journey') people on an excursion; the word is often used contemptuously (e. g. "at week-ends the beach is crowded with noisy trippers") abandon, n. careless freedom Turkish bath here a building where Turkish baths are taken. A Turkish bath is a hot air or steam bath followed by soaping, washing, rubbing, kneading, massaging, etc. Added to the dropsy and the quiet concentration of chess players, the atmosphere of a Turkish bath helps to convey the impression of complete inactivity and sleepiness.
TO PAGE 76 the Leaning Tower of Pisa ['pi:ze] one of the famous sights in Italy: the white marble bell-tower, 178 feet in height, which leans 14 feet off the perpendicular the Acropolis the citadel of Athens, Greece, situated on a hill about 250 feet high and richly adorned with architecture and sculpture (especially in the 5th century B. C.)
TO PAGE 77 barrage balloon one of a series of balloons used to form a barrier against enemy planes stop-watch a watch with a hand that can be stopped or started by pressing a knob on the rim; a stop-watch is used for timing a race, etc. rather him than me I wouldn't do it; let him, if he likes
TO PAGE 78 there was quite a colour variation there was a considerable variation in color (note the current colloquial construction with quite a) algae (sing. alga) the Latin name of a large group of lowly organized plants, including the seaweeds and similar weeds found in stagnant or slow-flowing fresh water to take to the air to go suddenly up into the air to show oneself to advantage to allow to see one at one's best, in such a way as to bring out one's strong points
TO PAGE 79 the animation of a group of opium smokers no animation at all (opium smoking has the effect of reducing the smokers to a state of insensibility); cf. the Turkish bath simile on p, 75
concertina -a musical instrument with hollows, resembling a small accordion morale the mental state or condition of a body of men, especially of an army; the word is generally used in the meaning of 'high morale', i.e. courageous, determined conduct despite danger and privations gargantuan enormous, gigantic (from the name of Gargantua, a giant in Rabelais book Gargantua and Pantagruel) the final straw - the last straw, the final circumstance that makes the situation unbearable (the allusion is to the proverb ("lt is the last straw that breaks the camel's back")
TO PAGE 80 maggots the larvae of a cheese-fly (or cheese-mite), a small mite infesting cheese twilit, a. dimly illuminated, as by twilight
TO PAGE 81 to rev up to cause the engine to run quickly when first starting (the word was first used as a colloquial abbreviation of revolve) Jujuy [d3u:'d3ai] the northernmost province of Argentina, with a capital of the same name
TO PAGE 82 Sophie the author's secretary to minister unto (or to) to give aid or service; to look after to make tracks for a certain place (colloq.) to go directly towards it precious (colloq.) very (cf. pretty in a similar use) lassoo ['laesu:] variant of lasso, a long noosed rope of un-tanned hide for catching cattle, etc.
TO PAGE 83 pernicious anaemia lack of blood, unhealthy paleness . This introduction of a medical term into an elaborate paraphrase describing the faint electric light is highly typical of Durrells verbal humour: he likes to spice his descriptions with scientific-sounding words. buenas noches (Sp.) good evening she twitched and mumbled her way into sleep she twitched and mumbled until she fell asleep; she fell asleep twitching and mumbling
all twenty stone of her the whole of her enormous person (the author estimates the woman's weight at about 20 stone, or 127 kg: see also note to p. 19) Here we find an interplay of the two meanings of the verb crown: the hat actually crowned the woman's head, and the expression to crown this means 'to give a finishing touch to the whole'. this breath-taking horticultural achievement a reference to the woman's hat decorated with an abundance of artificial fruits and flowers at a saucy angle at an angle that gave her a smart, stylish and slightly impertinent look a lavaflow of chins a great number of chins resembling a stream of lava flowing from a volcano
TO PAGE 84 buenos dias (Sp.) good day, good morning to hoick out to lift or hoist, especially rapidly or with a jerk to let her sex down to fail in upholding the glory of her sex to qualify here to modify a statement, to make it less absolute (the word is generally used when speaking about a severe or unpleasant remark) short of jumping out of the window except jumping out of the window terrific (colloq.) most wonderful, thrilling
TO PAGE 85 magnum ['maegnam] a bottle containing two quarts of wine (2.25 liters) tarmac here a part of airfield covered with tarmac (short for tar-macadam, a layer of broken stone mixed with tar, used as road-surface) old world old-fashioned hydrangea a bush with large clusters of white, blue and pink flowers praying mantis an insect of a kind that holds its forelegs in a position suggesting hands folded in prayer
TO PAGE 86 a coffee = a cup of coffee
TO PAGE 87 medialunas {Sp.) small cakes of half-moon shape mudguard a metal cover for the wheel of a motor-car, to stop mud as it flies up
media hora (Sp.) - literally, the middle hour, i.e. a break for rest in the middle of the day molar a molar tooth, a double tooth with a wide surface Herculean task a task requiring the strength of Hercules, like one of the Twelve Tasks (or Twelve Labors) of the famous hero of Greek mythology on the last leg in the final stage by and large on the whole
TO PAGE 88 Durrell compares the country covered with cacti (pi. of cactus) to a typical surrealist landscape (e. g. one by Salvador Dali, Spanish painter, leader of surrealist school), where you can see all sorts of strange, distorted plants, gigantic cacti among them.
TO PAGE 89 largesse (archaic) a generous gift bestowed by a great person foyer ['foiei] here hall protégée (Fr.) a woman who is under the care of another person en route (Fr.) on the way; here during the trip to look somebody up (colloq.) to pay an informal visit to somebody, to call on somebody The author means that the woman, her son and the rest of the family were all so stout that, standing side by side, they looked like the front of a huge building made of fat.
TO PAGE 90 that lay cupped in a half-moon of mountains that lay surrounded by a semi-circular range of mountains, as if in a cup TO PAGE 91 viridescence greenishness, the adjective viridescent being a bookish synonym for green parakeet ['paereki:t] a long-tailed bird of the parrot family, of small size and slender form sloe-coloured the color of the sloe, small, blue-black, plumlike fruit of blackthorn bloom the grayish powdery coating on various fruits, as the plum, grape, etc. and on some leaves; this word, applied as it is to sloe-colored human eyes, is highly appropriate here nave the part of a church from the inner door to the choir; it rises higher than the aisles flanking it and is often separated from them by an arcade riot here abundance, profusion, great quantity
TO PAGE 92 gin-and-tonic the usual mixture of gin (a strong alcoholic drink made from grain) with some tonic, i.e. stimulating beverage (e. g. Coca-Cola) the usual run the usual collection
TO PAGE 93 Que lindo... que bicho mas lindo! (Sp.) How beautiful... what a beautiful animal! humming-birds a group of very small, brightly colored birds with a long, slender bill and narrow wings that vibrate rapidly and make a humming sound in flight
TO PAGE 94 station-wagon a motor-car with folding or removable rear seats and a back end that opens for easy loading of the luggage, etc.
TO PAGE 95 exuding good-will and personality trying his best to look friendly but stern (the noun personality here is used in a combined meaning of 'personal charm' and 'strength of character')
TO PAGE 96 a red-fronted Tucuman Amazon a red-breasted parrot of central and South America acquisitive greedy, betraying the wish to acquire the parrot
TO PAGE 97 to play one's trump card to make use of one's best weapon (or argument) for gaining one's end Como te va, Blanco? (Sp.) How are you, Blanco? Madre de Dios (Sp.) Mother of God, the Virgin Mary hijo de puta (Sp.) son of a whore
TO PAGE 98 Como te va, como te va, que tal? (Sp.) How are you, how are you, how are you getting on?
TO PAGE 99 estupido, muy estupido (Sp.) stupid, very stupid to run to earth to hunt down, to find by search guan [gwa:.n] (Sp.) - a large game-bird of Central and South America onomatopoeic imitative in sound (in linguistics the term is used to indicate a word formed in approximate imitation of some sound, e. g. tinkle, buzz, etc.)
to go here to assume Lorito - the common Spanish name for a parrot, the same as Polly in English
TO PAGE 100 gringo (Sp.) a foreigner, especially an Englishman or an American: a term current in South America coral snake a small, poisonous snake with coral-red yellow and black bands around its body, found in the south-eastern United States and in subtropical America Old School tie a necktie with a special pattern worn by former pupils of some particular English public school. The habit of wearing this kind of tie is to the author an indication of an excessive respect for one's social position, a sort of snobbery which he finds (together with the tie itself) revolting: see also p. 165. a dewy-eyed expression a very innocent and gentle one (dewy is a poetical word for eyes wet with tears) Geoffroy's cat a variety of wild cat discovered by Estienne-Louis Geoffroy (17251810), a famous French zoologist seraphic angelic
TO PAGE 101 to leave somebody to his own devices to allow him to do as he likes tyro ['taierou] a beginner, an inexperienced person
TO PAGE 102 gato (Sp,) a cat chico gato montes (Sp.) a small mountain cat conundrum puzzling question or problem; a mystery with fourteen Martians in tow followed by fourteen imaginary inhabitants of the planet Mars loco (Sp.) mad, crazy
TO PAGE 103 tabby the common type of domestic cat, grey with dark stripes (the name is usually applied to a female cat)
TO PAGE 104 takes the edge off his potential viciousness makes him less vicious. Literally, the expression means 'to make blunt': e. g. to take the edge off a knife; but it is also widely used figuratively, meaning 'to make less sharp or keen : e. g. to take the edge off an argument.
Lifemanship the art of living, of coexistence (a word coined by analogy with penmanship 'the art of, or skill in, writing')
TO PAGE 106 outboard engine (or motor) a small internal-combustion engine with a propeller, fastened to the stern of a small boat and producing a loud noise debauched (from debauch, v.) dissipated, given to intemperance (as excessive eating or drinking)
TO PAGE 107 by virtue of your grasshopper-like activities owing to the way you keep rushing from one place to another (again Durrell chooses an elaborate, scientific-sounding mode of expression, with by virtue of and activities) frond the usual name for a palm leaf (or that of a fern)
TO PAGE 108 you could do worse than go and investigate you might just as well go and investigate the time off here a leave of absence to get into one's stride literally, to begin walking with long and measured steps; figuratively, to be carried away in some process (e. g. of talking)
TO PAGE 109 semi-inebriated half-drunk, half-intoxicated (a bookish word) to sport - here to wear or exhibit, especially in great quantities Durrell means that the wagon-driver's moustache was allowed to grow without any hindrance, as plants are in a nature reserve. blancmange (Pr.) a sweet jelly-like dessert made of a starchy substance and milk, sugar and almond mucha agua (Sp.) much water
TO PAGE 110 in next to no time very quickly, almost instantly to play a fish to let a fish tire itself out while hooked by tugging at the line que pasa? (Sp.) what has happened? nafta no hay (Sp.) there's no fuel
TO PAGE 111 our nether regions the lower part of our bodies (nether jocular for lower, under, as in nether garments) in his shirt-tails without trousers, in his shirt only (this humorous expression is a cross between the two idiomatic phrases:
in one's shirt-sleeves 'without a coat' and in one's tails 'in full dress, in a dress-coat') to roar into life to come to life with a roar (an engine roars when being started up) water hazard here an obstacle in the form of a river (the term comes from golf, where the word hazard means 'any obstruction in playing a stroke, including bunkers, traps, ponds, roadways, etc') apron here a shield made of some hard material and placed below a dam or across a river-bed to protect it from damage by water purchase here a mechanical advantage, a fast hold
TO PAGE 112 to nose here to push or move with the nose or front forward to stall of an engine, to stop working (from overload, etc.)
TO PAGE 113 Fairy Godmother a good fairy from fairy tales, who appears quite unexpectedly at the very moment she is badly wanted and helps her god-child out of trouble (e. g. in the tale of Cinderella). Being a fairy she can appear in different disguise, hence the authors description ("heavily disguised..."). took in our predicament in a glance understood at once our awkward situation (in a glance = at a glance) An ironical reference to the Duke of Wellington's (1769 1852) military preparations before the battle of Waterloo (1815), where his army defeated Napoleon
TO PAGE 114 to quarter here to pass over an area of ground in every direction in search of game (the word is usually applied to hunting-dogs) bibulous addi Date: 2015-12-11; view: 577
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