[11.3] de pronto, all at once, suddenly.
[11.4] que en poco estuvo no saltase otra vez al agua, that he came near jumping into the water again. The conjunction que is here omitted before no saltase. Generally speaking, it is permissible to omit this introductory que between two contiguous verbs, the second of which is subordinate to the first, especially if the dependent verb be subjunctive. Cases in which the omission is relatively frequent are: 1) when the second clause begins with no, as above, or after a verb of fearing; 2) after a verb of mental activity, as espero me escribas; 3) after an impersonal verb or verb-phrase, as no es fácil lo consiga.
[11.5] En obra de, In about, in a matter of.
[11.6] aguza las uñas que asombra, puts his best foot foremost, does wonders, lit. "sharpens his nails [so] that he astonishes."
Page 12.—
[12.1] cambiar, tack.
[12.2] en cuanto, as soon as.
[12.3] quedaría. Quedar, ir, andar, etc., are used as substitutes for estar, yet each retains its own particular connotation.
[12.4] perdonaba. Imperfect with force of conditional. The effect is to make the statement more graphic.
[12.5] los cuartos, the cash.