ACTE III, SCÈNE V
1: de garde: see acte I, scène I, note 7.
2: si ce… indiscret: if I am not in the way.
3: Ah: Oh, is it?—Allons: Very well then. He does not care to invite Majorin to a homely dish of stewed veal, so pretends to have understood him to decline.
4: (montre) à répétition: a repeating watch, i.e. one that strikes the hour, quarters, and even minutes, when a spring is pressed.
5: cravate: the high «choker» worn by the elderly half a century ago consisted of several folds of silk wrapped round the collar, and in it many small things might readily be concealed.
6: un mouvement: he shook his head while saying no, and in so doing pressed the spring.
7: méchant gabelou: nasty shark. Gabelou (from the old salt-tax, la gabelle) is now only used as the special insult to custom-house officers.—entendre parler de: to hear from.