Part 53

The following most curious instance of a change of instinct is mentioned by Darwin. The bees carried over to Barbadoes and the Western Isles ceased to lay up any honey after the first year, as they found it not useful to them. They found the weather so fine, and the materials for making honey so plentiful, that they quitted their grave, prudent, and mercantile character, became exceedingly profligate and debauched, ate up their capital, resolved to work no more, and amused themselves by flying about the sugar-houses and stinging the blacks. The fact is, that, by putting animals in different situations, you may change, and even reverse, any of their original propensities. Spallanzani brought up an eagle upon bread and milk, and fed a dove on raw beef.—REV. S. SMITH.

+Über den tierischen Instinkt.+

This clause requires a different rendering; let us say ‘Darwin gives the following most (+höchst+) curious example of a change of the animal instinct’. The last noun requires the def. art., as explained in S. 3, N. 2.

to carry over, +hinü´berbringen+. The Perfect Participle qualifies the noun ‘bees’. According to S. 7, N. 3, the words ‘carried — Isles’ may be rendered either by the attributive construction or by forming of them a relative clause. I venture to propose the use of the attributive construction as the more elegant of the two modes of rendering, and more especially in order to avoid a repetition of subordinate clauses.

When the preposition ‘=to=’, in connection with a verb denoting motion, stands before the names of countries, towns, islands, etc., it must be rendered by ‘+=nach=+’.

Here follow the words ‘after — year’, to lay up honey, +einen Vorrat von Honig an´sammeln+.

See S. 41, N. 6; it = this; not useful, +nicht mehr von Nutzen+.

materials — plentiful, +Materialien zur Honigbereitung in solchem Überflusse vorhanden+.

+auf´geben.+

prudent = cautious.

+merkantilisch.+

+unmäßig.+

to eat up, +auf´zehren+.

+und sich daran ergötzten.+ For rendering the passage ‘by — blacks’ see S. 1, N. 3. To fly about, +umschwär´men+, v. tr.

The — is, +Es ist eine ausgemachte Thatsache.+

Here follows the subject ‘you’ (comp. S. 66, N. 15), which translate by the impers. pron. +man+.

by — animals, +durch Versetzung der Tiere+, i.e. by a removal of the animals. In = into; different = other.

Here follows the object and its attributes, ‘their original (+angeboren+) propensities (+Trieb+, m.)’.

may = can; reverse, +in entgegengesetzte Richtungen leiten+.

+~Lazaro Spallanzani~, berühmter italienischer Anatom und Naturforscher, geb. 1729, † 1799.+

to bring up, +groß ziehen+.

+bei.+

+mit.+

Section 73.

PETER THE GREAT AND THE MONK.

Peter the Great ordered many foreign books to be translated into the Russian language, and among others “Puffendorf’s Introduction to the Knowledge of the States of Europe.” A monk, to whom the translation of this book was committed, presented it some time after to the Emperor. The monarch examined the translation; at a certain chapter, however, he suddenly changed countenance, turned indignantly to the monk, and said: “Fool, what did I order thee to do? Is this a translation?” He then referred to the original and showed the poor monk a paragraph in which the author had spoken with great asperity of the Russians, but which had not been translated. “Go,” resumed the monarch, “and instantly carry out what I have bidden thee to do. It is not to (S. 19, N. 7) flatter my subjects that I have ordered this book to be translated, but (S. 6, N. 10) to instruct and reform them!”—ANONYMOUS.

Use the auxiliary verb of mood ‘+=lassen=+’ as a translation of ‘=to order=’, ‘=to command=’, and ‘=to cause=’, when these verbs are connected with the auxiliary ‘=to be=’ and the Past Participle of another verb; as—

The emperor ordered the ringleaders to be shot.