I.

An old avaricious English gentleman[2] had three sons, of whom one[3] was a good-natured but light-minded fellow. Whenever (S. 18, N. 6) he fell[4] into any trouble, he excused himself on[5] the ground that[6] he was seeing life. His prodigality, however, annoyed[7] his father so much[8], that he resolved to disinherit (S. 1, N. 2) him. His friends interceded[9] in his favour, but their efforts were in vain.

When the old gentleman[10] felt his end approaching, he called his sons together[11], and said to them: “I leave[12] to my son John my whole estate[13], and desire him[14] to be frugal.” John[15], 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[16] himself.

[1] +Das Vermächtnis.+

[2] +Engländer.+

[3] Say ‘the one’.

[4] to fall into trouble, +in Verlegenheit geraten+.

[5] on the ground, +damit+.

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

[7] +verdrießen+. See S. 5, N. 2.

[8] +sehr.+

[9] 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.

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

[11] together, +zu sich+.

[12] ‘to leave’, here = to bequeath.

[13] +Besitzung+, f.

[14] 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+)’.

[15] 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.

[16] +Vermächtnis+.

_Section 58._

THE BEQUEST.