A Room with a View | Progressive Translation Books for Italian A1 Learners

A Room with a View | Progressive Translation Books for Italian A1 Learners

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ChapterITheBertolini
“TheSignora
aveva
had
nobusinesstodoit,”
disse
said
MissBartlett,“nobusinessatall.
She
promesso
promised
ussouthroomswithaviewclosetogether,insteadof
cui
which
herearenorthrooms,
guardando
looking
intoacourtyard,anda
lungo
long
wayapart.
Oh,Lucy!”
“And
un
a
Cockney,besides!”
saidLucy,
che
who
hadbeenfurthersaddenedbytheSignora’sunexpectedaccent.
“It
potrebbe
might
beLondon.”
Shelookedat
le
the
tworowsofEnglishpeople
che
who
weresittingatthetable;
attherowofwhitebottlesofwater
e
and
redbottlesofwine
che
that
ranbetweentheEnglishpeople;
at
il
the
portraitsofthelateQueen
e
and
thelatePoetLaureate
che
that
hungbehindtheEnglish
popolo
people
,heavilyframed;
atthenoticeoftheEnglishchurch(Rev.
CuthbertEager,M.A.
Oxon.),
che
that
wastheonlyotherdecorationofthewall.
“Charlotte,don’tyoufeel,too,
che
that
wemightbeinLondon?
Icanhardly
credere
believe
thatallkindsofotherthingsarejust
fuori
outside
.
Isupposeitisone’sbeingsotired.”
“Thismeathassurelybeen
usata
used
forsoup,”saidMissBartlett,layingdownherfork.
“Iwantsoto
vedere
see
theArno.
TheroomstheSignora
promesso
promised
usinherletterwouldhavelookedovertheArno.
TheSignora
aveva
had
nobusinesstodoitatall.
Oh,itisashame!”
“Anynook
fa
does
forme,”MissBartlettcontinued;
“butitdoesseem
difficile
hard
thatyoushouldn’thave
una
a
view.”
Lucyfeltthatshehadbeenselfish.
“Charlotte,youmustn’tspoilme:
ofcourse,you
devi
must
lookovertheArno,too.
I
detto
meant
that.
Thefirstvacantroomin
la
the
front—”
“Youmusthaveit,”
disse
said
MissBartlett,partofwhosetravellingexpenseswere
pagate
paid
byLucy’smother—apieceofgenerosityto
cui
which
shemademanyatactfulallusion.
“No,no.You
devi
must
haveit.”
“Iinsistonit.
Your
madre
mother
wouldneverforgiveme,Lucy.”
“Shewouldneverforgiveme.”
Theladies’voicesgrewanimated,and—ifthesad
verità
truth
beowned—alittlepeevish.
Theyweretired,
e
and
undertheguiseofunselfishnesstheywrangled.
Alcuni
Some
oftheirneighboursinterchangedglances,
e
and
oneofthem—oneoftheill-bred
persone
people
whomonedoesmeetabroad—leantforwardoverthetable
e
and
actuallyintrudedintotheirargument.
He
detto
said:
.
“Ihaveaview,I
ho
have
aview.”
MissBartlettwasstartled.
Generallyatapensionpeople
guardava
looked
themoverfora
giorno
day
ortwobeforespeaking,
e
and
oftendidnotfindout
che
that
theywould“do”tillthey
avrebbero
had
gone.
Sheknewthattheintruderwasill-bred,evenbeforesheglancedathim.
Hewasanold
uomo
man
,ofheavybuild,withafair,shaven
faccia
face
andlargeeyes.
Therewas
qualcosa
something
childishinthoseeyes,
anche se
though
itwasnotthechildishnessofsenility.
What
esattamente
exactly
itwasMissBartlettdidnot
fermò
stop
toconsider,forherglancepassedontohisclothes.
Thesedidnotattracther.
Hewas
probabilmente
probably
tryingtobecomeacquaintedwiththem
prima
before
theygotintotheswim.
Sosheassumed
un
a
dazedexpressionwhenhe
parlato
spoke
toher,andthen
detto
said
:
“Aview?
Oh,aview!
Howdelightfulaviewis!”
“Thisismyson,”
disse
said
theoldman;
“hisname’sGeorge.
He
ha
has
aviewtoo.”
“Ah,”
disse
said
MissBartlett,repressingLucy,
che
who
wasabouttospeak.
“WhatImean,”hecontinued,“is
che
that
youcanhaveourrooms,
e
and
we’llhaveyours.
We’llchange.”
The
migliore
better
classoftouristwasshockedat
questo
this
,andsympathizedwiththenew-comers.
Signorina
Miss
Bartlett,inreply,openedhermouthaslittleas
possibile
possible
,andsaid“Thankyouverymuchindeed;
thatis
fuori
out
ofthequestion.”
“Why?”
disse
said
theoldman,with
entrambi
both
fistsonthetable.
“Becauseitisquite
fuori
out
ofthequestion,thankyou.”
“You
vedi
see
,wedon’tliketotake—”
beganLucy.
Hercousinagainrepressed
suo
her
.
“Butwhy?”
hepersisted.
“Womenlike
guardare
looking
ataview;
mendon’t.”
E
And
hethumpedwithhisfists
come
like
anaughtychild,and
girato
turned
tohisson,saying,“George,persuadethem!”
“It’ssoobviousthey
dovrebbero
should
havetherooms,”saidthe
figlio
son
.
“There’snothingelsetosay.”
Hedidnot
guardava
look
attheladiesashe
parlava
spoke
,buthisvoicewasperplexed
e
and
sorrowful.
Lucy,too,wasperplexed;
ma
but
shesawthattheywereinforwhatisknownas“quiteascene,”
e
and
shehadanoddfeeling
che
that
whenevertheseill-bredtourists
parlato
spoke
thecontestwidenedanddeepenedtillit
trattava
dealt
,notwithroomsandviews,
ma
but
with—well,withsomethingquite
diverso
different
,whoseexistenceshehadnotrealized
prima
before
.
Nowtheoldmanattacked
Signorina
Miss
Bartlettalmostviolently:
Why
dovrebbe
should
shenotchange?
What
possibile
possible
objectionhadshe?
They
sarebbero
would
clearoutinhalfanhour.
Signorina
Miss
Bartlett,thoughskilledin
la
the
delicaciesofconversation,waspowerlessin
la
the
presenceofbrutality.
Itwasimpossibletosnubany
uno
one
sogross.
Herfacereddened
di
with
displeasure.
Shelookedaroundasmuchasto
dire
say
,“Areyoualllikethis?”
E
And
twolittleoldladies,
che
who
weresittingfurtherupthetable,withshawls
appesi
hanging
overthebacksofthechairs,
guardarono
looked
back,clearlyindicating“Wearenot;
wearegenteel.”
“Eatyour
cena
dinner
,dear,”shesaidtoLucy,
e
and
begantotoyagainwith
la
the
meatthatshehad
volta
once
censured.
Lucymumbledthatthoseseemedveryodd
persone
people
opposite.
“Eatyourdinner,
cara
dear
.
Thispensionisafailure.
Domani
To-morrow
wewillmakeachange.”
Hardly
aveva
had
sheannouncedthisfelldecision
quando
when
shereversedit.
Thecurtainsatthe
fine
end
oftheroomparted,
e
and
revealedaclergyman,stout
ma
but
attractive,whohurriedforwardto
prendere
take
hisplaceatthetable,cheerfullyapologizingforhislateness.
Lucy,
che
who
hadnotyetacquireddecency,atoncerosetoherfeet,exclaiming:
“Oh,oh!
Why,it’sMr.Beebe!
Oh,
quanto
how
perfectlylovely!
Oh,Charlotte,we
dobbiamo
must
stopnow,howeverbad
le
the
roomsare.
Oh!”
MissBartlett
detto
said
,withmorerestraint:.
“Howdoyoudo,Mr.Beebe?
Iexpect
che
that
youhaveforgottenus:
Signorina
Miss
BartlettandMissHoneychurch,whowereatTunbridgeWells
quando
when
youhelpedtheVicarofSt.Peter’sthatverycoldEaster.”
Theclergyman,
che
who
hadtheairof
uno
one
onaholiday,didnotremembertheladies
abbastanza
quite
asclearlyastheyremembered
lui
him
.
Buthecameforwardpleasantly
abbastanza
enough
andacceptedthechairinto
cui
which
hewasbeckonedbyLucy.
“Iamsogladto
vedere
see
you,”saidthegirl,
che
who
wasinastateofspiritualstarvation,
e
and
wouldhavebeengladto
vedere
see
thewaiterifhercousinhadpermittedit.
“Justfancy
quanto
how
smalltheworldis.
SummerStreet,too,
rende
makes
itsospeciallyfunny.”
“MissHoneychurchlivesintheparishofSummerStreet,”
disse
said
MissBartlett,fillingupthegap,“andshe
successo
happened
totellmeinthe
corso
course
ofconversationthatyou
ha
have
justacceptedtheliving—”.
“Yes,Iheardfrommothersolast
settimana
week
.
Shedidn’tknowthatI
sapeva
knew
youatTunbridgeWells;
ma
but
Iwrotebackatonce,
e
and
Isaid:
‘Mr.
Beebeis—’”.
“Quiteright,”
disse
said
theclergyman.
“Imoveinto
il
the
RectoryatSummerStreet
prossimo
next
June.
Iamluckytobeappointedtosuch
un
a
charmingneighbourhood.”
“Oh,howgladIam!
Il
The
nameofourhouseisWindyCorner.”
Mr.Beebebowed.
“Thereis
madre
mother
andmegenerally,andmy
fratello
brother
,thoughit’snotoftenwegethimtoch——
La
The
churchisratherfaroff,Imean.”
“Lucy,dearest,
lascia
let
Mr.Beebeeathisdinner.”
“Iam
mangiando
eating
it,thankyou,andenjoyingit.”
Hepreferredto
parlare
talk
toLucy,whoseplayinghe
ricordava
remembered
,ratherthantoMissBartlett,who
probabilmente
probably
rememberedhissermons.
He
chiese
asked
thegirlwhethersheknewFlorence
bene
well
,andwasinformedatsomelength
che
that
shehadneverbeenthere
prima
before
.
Itisdelightfultoadvise
un
a
newcomer,andhewas
primo
first
inthefield.
“Don’tneglectthecountryround,”hisadviceconcluded.
“The
primo
first
fineafternoondriveuptoFiesole,
e
and
roundbySettignano,or
qualcosa
something
ofthatsort.”
“No!”
cried
una
a
voicefromthetopofthetable.
“Mr.
Beebe,youarewrong.
The
primo
first
fineafternoonyourladies
devono
must
gotoPrato.”
“That
signora
lady
lookssoclever,”whispered
Signorina
Miss
Bartletttohercousin.
“Weareinluck.”
E
And
,indeed,aperfecttorrentofinformationburston
loro
them
.
Peopletoldthemwhatto
vedere
see
,whentoseeit,howto
fermare
stop
theelectrictrams,howtogetridofthebeggars,howmuchto
dare
give
foravellumblotter,howmuchthe
posto
place
wouldgrowuponthem.
La
The
PensionBertolinihaddecided,
quasi
almost
enthusiastically,thattheywould
fatto
do
.
Whicheverwaytheylooked,kindladiessmiled
e
and
shoutedatthem.
Andabove
tutto
all
rosethevoiceof
la
the
cleverlady,crying:
“Prato!
They
devono
must
gotoPrato.
That
posto
place
istoosweetlysqualidforwords.
Iloveit;
Irevelinshakingoff
i
the
trammelsofrespectability,asyouknow.”
Il
The
youngmannamedGeorgeglancedat
il
the
cleverlady,andthen
tornato
returned
moodilytohisplate.
Obviouslyhe
e
and
hisfatherdidnot
fatto
do
.
Lucy,inthemidstofhersuccess,
trovato
found
timetowishthey
facessero
did
.
Itgavehernoextrapleasure
che
that
anyoneshouldbe
lasciato
left
inthecold;
and
quando
when
sherosetogo,sheturned
indietro
back
andgavethetwooutsiders
un
a
nervouslittlebow.
The
padre
father
didnotseeit;
the
figlio
son
acknowledgedit,notbyanotherbow,
ma
but
byraisinghiseyebrows
e
and
smiling;
heseemedtobesmilingacross
qualcosa
something
.
Shehastenedafterhercousin,who
ha
had
alreadydisappearedthroughthecurtains—curtainswhichsmote
uno
one
intheface,andseemedheavywith
più
more
thancloth.
BeyondthemstoodtheunreliableSignora,bowinggood-eveningtoherguests,
e
and
supportedby’Enery,herlittleboy,
e
and
Victorier,herdaughter.
It
fatto
made
acuriouslittlescene,
questo
this
attemptoftheCockneytoconveythegrace
e
and
genialityoftheSouth.
E
And
evenmorecuriouswas
il
the
drawing-room,whichattemptedtorival
il
the
solidcomfortofaBloomsburyboarding-house.
Wasthis
davvero
really
Italy?
MissBartlettwas
già
already
seatedonatightlystuffedarm-chair,
che
which
hadthecolourandthecontoursofatomato.
ShewastalkingtoMr.Beebe,
e
and
asshespoke,herlongnarrow
testa
head
drovebackwardsandforwards,slowly,regularly,asthoughsheweredemolishingsomeinvisibleobstacle.
“Wearemostgratefultoyou,”shewas
diceva
saying
.
“Thefirsteveningmeanssomuch.
Quando
When
youarrivedwewereinfor
un
a
peculiarlymauvaisquartd’heure.”
Heexpressedhisregret.
“Doyou,byany
caso
chance
,knowthenameof
un
an
oldmanwhosatoppositeusatdinner?”
“Emerson.”
“Ishe
un
a
friendofyours?”
“Wearefriendly—asoneisinpensions.”
“ThenIwill
dirò
say
nomore.”
Hepressedherveryslightly,
e
and
shesaidmore.
“Iam,asitwere,”sheconcluded,“thechaperonofmy
giovane
young
cousin,Lucy,andit
sarebbe
would
beaseriousthing
se
if
Iputherunderanobligationto
persone
people
ofwhomweknow
nulla
nothing
.
Hismannerwassomewhatunfortunate.
IhopeIactedfor
il
the
best.”
“Youactedverynaturally,”
detto
said
he.
Heseemedthoughtful,
e
and
afterafewmomentsadded:
“Allthesame,Idon’tthinkmuchharmwould
avrebbe
have
comeofaccepting.”
“Noharm,ofcourse.
Ma
But
wecouldnotbe
sotto
under
anobligation.”
“Heisrather
un
a
peculiarman.”
Againhehesitated,
e
and
thensaidgently:
“I
penso
think
hewouldnottakeadvantageofyouracceptance,norexpectyouto
mostrassi
show
gratitude.
Hehasthemerit—ifitisone—of
dire
saying
exactlywhathemeans.
He
ha
has
roomshedoesnotvalue,
e
and
hethinksyouwouldvaluethem.
He
non
no
morethoughtofputtingyou
sotto
under
anobligationthanhe
pensato
thought
ofbeingpolite.
Itissodifficult—at
almeno
least
,Ifinditdifficult—to
capire
understand
peoplewhospeakthetruth.”
Lucywaspleased,
e
and
said:
“Iwashoping
che
that
hewasnice;
Idoso
sempre
always
hopethatpeoplewillbenice.”
“I
penso
think
heis;
niceandtiresome.
Idifferfromhimon
quasi
almost
everypointofanyimportance,
e
and
so,Iexpect—Imay
dire
say
Ihope—youwilldiffer.
Ma
But
hisisatypeonedisagreeswithrather
che
than
deplores.
Whenhefirst
venuto
came
herehenotunnaturally
messo
put
people’sbacksup.
Hehas
non
no
tactandnomanners—Idon’tmeanby
che
that
thathehasbadmanners—andhewillnot
manterrà
keep
hisopinionstohimself.
WenearlycomplainedabouthimtoourdepressingSignora,
ma
but
Iamgladto
dire
say
wethoughtbetterofit.”
“AmItoconclude,”
disse
said
MissBartlett,“thatheis
un
a
Socialist?”
Mr.
Beebeaccepted
la
the
convenientword,notwithout
un
a
slighttwitchingofthelips.
“Andpresumablyhe
ha
has
broughtuphissontobe
un
a
Socialist,too?”
“IhardlyknowGeorge,forhehasn’t
imparato
learnt
totalkyet.