26. Pues que no te lo parezca; tenlo por seguro. Mejor. Éstos caen en seguida, there is no thinking at all in the matter, it is an absolute fact. So much the better (that he is stupid), for these (stupid men) fall into the trap right off.
[54.]—3. arrimo... sardina, see voc. under arrimar.
16. Matalavieja, i.e., mata-la-vieja; Procopio implies facetiously that the Claudio will "kill (i.e., help him get rid of) the old maid"; that is, he will take one of the daughters off his (Procopio's) hands.
[55.]—5. ¡ni que las llevaras á cuestas! trans. freely, not even though you were actually carrying them on your back could you make such a fuss about it.
7. ¡... cuándo nos veremos en otra! i.e., when we'll get another chance (to marry them); otra is the indefinite feminine pronoun.
12. por su casa, through his family estate.
19. comiéndose; distinguish from the reflexive construction of intransitive verbs (note 4, 16). Here se is indirect object, or dative of advantage, and conveys the idea of "eating up."
[56.]—7. ¡Vamos, que estoy animadete! the fact is, I'm feeling a bit lively.
31. Está usted en su casa, a play on the literal and figurative meaning of the expression. In Spanish you courteously inform your guest, to make him feel at home, that he is in his own house. Claudio, fresh from the country, overworks the expression. He wants to make Procopio feel "at home," which is not difficult under the circumstances.
[57.]—9. cuando pasé por Toro; if the student will bear in mind that toro means "bull" and that Toro is a town in the province of Zamora; that pasar por means "to pass through" and "to pass as," he will be able to enjoy this seventh-rate pun.