31. ¡Digo, digo! I declare!
[50.]—9. ¡Así fuese mañana! would that it were to-morrow.
27. Posada del Peine, a hotel in the calle de Postas in Madrid, patronized extensively by Spaniards from the country to whom it represents all that is best in urban luxury and refinement. The Madrileños themselves poke fun at the hotel as a third-rate hostelry and a gathering-place for provincials.
[51.]—2. ¡No faltaba más! the very idea!; see also line 21, where it means why, of course.
[52.]—1. ¡Es que son guapas! they really are good-looking.
11. Por, referring to.
28. ¡Miren la de las convicciones arraigadas! just see the woman with the deep-rooted convictions! Pura is referring sarcastically to Casta's remark on page 47, lines 4 and 5, where she declares her contempt for man.
[53.]—7. se está; se is untranslatable; see note 4, 16.
10. Á ver, niñas, corriendo, decid..., come now, girls, hurry and tell.
13. almorzado; the almuerzo, frequently confused with our breakfast or first meal of the day, is a substantial meal eaten near midday. The Spanish breakfast is the desayuno, a light meal taken early, and consisting usually of coffee or chocolate and bread.