LES DOUANIERS.
THE|CUSTOMS OFFICERS
DIE ZOLLER.
FUNCIONARIOS DE ADUANAS.
THE CUSTOMS OFFICERS.
LES DOUANIERS
THE|CUSTOMS OFFICERS
THE CUSTOMS OFFICERS
Le bateau l'Émilie, de Porto-Vecchio, à bord duquel j'ai fait ce lugubre voyage aux îles Lavezzi, était une vieille embarcation de la douane, à demi pontée, où l'on n'avait pour s'abriter du vent, des lames, de la pluie, qu'un petit rouf goudronné, à peine assez large pour tenir une table et deux couchettes.
The|boat|the Émilie|from|||on|board|of which|I have|made|this|gloomy|journey|to the|islands|Lavezzi|it was|a|old|vessel|of|the|customs|half|half|decked|where|one|we had|to|to shelter|from the|wind|of the|waves|of|the|rain|than a|small|cabin|tarred|to|barely|enough|wide|to|hold|a|table|and|two|berths
The boat l'Émilie, from Porto-Vecchio, on which I made this gloomy journey to the Lavezzi Islands, was an old customs vessel, half-decked, where we had only a small tarred cabin to shelter us from the wind, the waves, and the rain, barely wide enough to hold a table and two bunks.
Aussi il fallait voir nos matelots par le gros temps.
So|it|it was necessary|to see|our|sailors|in|the|rough|weather
So it was quite a sight to see our sailors in rough weather.
Les figures ruisselaient, les vareuses trempées fumaient comme du linge à l'étuve, et en plein hiver les malheureux passaient ainsi des journées entières, même des nuits, accroupis sur leurs bancs mouillés, à grelotter dans cette humidité malsaine ; car on ne pouvait pas allumer de feu à bord, et la rive était souvent difficile à atteindre… Eh bien, pas un de ces hommes ne se plaignait.
The|figures|they were dripping|the|jackets|soaked|they were smoking|like|some|laundry|in|the steam room|and|in|full|winter|the|unfortunate|they spent|thus|some|days|entire|even|some|nights|crouched|on|their|benches|wet|in|to shiver|in|this|humidity|unhealthy|because|one|not|we could|not|to light|any|fire|on|board|and|the|shore|it was|often|difficult|to|reach|Well|indeed|not|one|of|these|men|not|themselves|he complained
The figures were dripping, the soaked jackets were steaming like laundry in a drying room, and in the middle of winter, the unfortunate ones spent entire days, even nights, crouched on their wet benches, shivering in this unhealthy humidity; for they could not light a fire on board, and the shore was often difficult to reach... Well, not one of these men complained.
Par les temps les plus rudes, je leur ai toujours vu la même placidité, la même bonne humeur.
In|the|times|the|most|harsh|I|their|I have|always|seen|the|same|placidity|the|same|good|mood
In the harshest times, I always saw the same placidity, the same good humor in them.
Et pourtant quelle triste vie que celle de ces matelots douaniers !
And|yet|what|sad|life|that|that|of|these|sailors|customs
And yet, what a sad life it is for these customs sailors!
Presque tous mariés, ayant femme et enfants à terre, ils restent des mois dehors, à louvoyer sur ces côtes si dangereuses.
Almost|all|married|having|wife|and|children|on|land|they|they remain|some|months|outside|to|to sail|on|these|coasts|so|dangerous
Almost all married, with wives and children on land, they remain outside for months, tacking along these dangerous coasts.
Pour se nourrir, ils n'ont guère que du pain moisi et des oignons sauvages.
To|themselves|to feed|they|they have|hardly|only|some|bread|moldy|and|some|onions|wild
To feed themselves, they hardly have anything but moldy bread and wild onions.
Jamais de vin, jamais de viande, parce que la viande et le vin coûtent cher et qu'ils ne gagnent que cinq cents francs par an !
Never|any|wine|never|any|meat|because|that|the|meat|and|the|wine|they cost|expensive|and|that they|not|they earn|only|five|hundred|francs|per|year
Never wine, never meat, because meat and wine are expensive and they only earn five hundred francs a year!
Cinq cents francs par an !
Five|hundred|francs|per|year
Five hundred francs a year!
vous pensez si la hutte doit être noire là-bas à la marine, et si les enfants doivent aller pieds nus !… N'importe !
you|you think|if|the|hut|it must|to be|black|||at|the|navy|and|if|the|children|they must|to go|feet|bare|No matter
You can imagine how dark the hut must be over there at the navy, and how the children must go barefoot!… Whatever!
Tous ces gens-là paraissent contents.
All those people seem happy.
Il y avait à l'arrière, devant le rouf, un grand baquet plein d'eau de pluie où l'équipage venait boire, et je me rappelle que, la dernière gorgée finie, chacun de ces pauvres diables secouait son gobelet avec un « Ah !… » de satisfaction, une expression de bien-être à la fois comique et attendrissante.
||||||||||||||||||||||||||gulp|||||||||||||||||||||||||touching
There was at the back, in front of the deckhouse, a large tub full of rainwater where the crew came to drink, and I remember that, after finishing the last sip, each of those poor devils would shake their cup with a "Ah!…" of satisfaction, an expression of well-being that was both comical and touching.
Le plus gai, le plus satisfait de tous, était un petit Bonifacien hâlé et trapu qu'on appelait Palombo.
||||||||||||tanned|||||
The happiest, the most satisfied of all, was a small, tanned, stocky Bonifacian they called Palombo.
Celui-là ne faisait que chanter, même dans les plus gros temps.
That one just kept singing, even in the roughest weather.
Quand la lame devenait lourde, quand le ciel assombri et bas se remplissait de grésil, et qu'on était là tous, le nez en l'air, la main sur l'écoute, à guetter le coup de vent qui allait venir, alors, dans le grand silence et l'anxiété du bord, la voix tranquille de Palombo commençait :
When|the|blade|it was becoming|heavy|when|the|sky|darkened|and|low|itself|it was filling|with|sleet|and|that we|we were|there|all|the|nose|in|the air|the|hand|on|the listening|to|to watch|the|gust|of|wind|which|it was going to|to come|then|in|the|great|silence|and|the anxiety|of the|shore|the|voice|calm|of|Palombo|it was starting
When the blade became heavy, when the dark and low sky filled with sleet, and we were all there, noses in the air, hands on the listening device, waiting for the gust of wind that was about to come, then, in the great silence and anxiety of the shore, Palombo's calm voice would begin:
Non, monseigneur, C'est trop d'honneur.
No|my lord|It's|too|of honor
No, my lord, that is too much honor.
Lisette est sa…age, Reste au villa…age… Et la rafale avait beau souffler, faire gémir les agrès, secouer et inonder la barque, la chanson du douanier allait son train, balancée comme une mouette à la pointe des vagues.
Lisette|she is|her|age|Stay|in the|||And|the|gust|it had|even though|to blow|to make|to creak|the|rigging|to shake|and|to flood|the|boat|the|song|of the|customs officer|it was going|its|course|swaying|like|a|seagull|at|the|tip|of the|waves
Lisette is her…age, Stay in the villa…age… And no matter how hard the gust blew, making the rigging moan, shaking and flooding the boat, the customs officer's song continued its course, swaying like a seagull at the tip of the waves.
Quelquefois le vent accompagnait trop fort, on n'entendait plus les paroles ; mais, entre chaque coup de mer, dans le ruissellement de l'eau qui s'égouttait, le petit refrain revenait toujours :
Sometimes|the|wind|it was accompanying|too|strong|we|we couldn't hear|anymore|the|words|but|between|each|wave|of|sea|in|the|trickling|of|the water|which|it was dripping|the|little|refrain|it was coming back|always
Sometimes the wind accompanied too strongly, we could no longer hear the words; but, between each wave, in the trickling of the water that drained, the little refrain always returned:
Lisette est sa…age, Reste au villa…age… Un jour, pourtant, qu'il ventait et pleuvait très fort, je ne l'entendis pas.
Lisette|is|her|village|Stay|in the|||One|day|however|that it|it was blowing|and|it was raining|very|hard|I|not|I heard it|not
Lisette is her...village, Stay in the villa... One day, however, when it was very windy and raining hard, I did not hear her.
C'était si extraordinaire, que je sortis la tête du rouf :
It was|so|extraordinary|that|I|I stuck out|the|head|of the|roof
It was so extraordinary that I stuck my head out of the roof:
— Eh !
Hey
— Hey!
Palombo, on ne chante donc plus ?
Palombo|we|not|we sing|then|anymore
Palombo, are we not singing anymore?
Palombo ne répondit pas.
Palombo|not|he replied|not
Palombo did not respond.
Il était immobile, couché sous son banc.
He|he was|motionless|lying|under|his|bench
He was motionless, lying under his bench.
Je m'approchai de lui.
I|I approached|of|him
I approached him.
Ses dents claquaient ; tout son corps tremblait de fièvre.
His|teeth|they were chattering|all|his|body|it was trembling|from|fever
His teeth were chattering; his whole body was shaking with fever.
— Il a une pountoura, me dirent ses camarades tristement.
He|he has|a|pountoura|to me|they said|his|comrades|sadly
'Hij heeft een pountoura,' vertelden zijn kameraden me droevig.
— He has a pountoura, his friends told me sadly.
Ce qu'ils appellent pountoura, c'est un point de côté, une pleurésie.
This|that they|they call|pountoura|it's|a|point|of|side|a|pleurisy
What they call pountoura is a stitch in the side, a pleurisy.
Ce grand ciel plombé, cette barque ruisselante, ce pauvre fiévreux roulé dans un vieux manteau de caoutchouc qui luisait sous la pluie comme une peau de phoque, je n'ai jamais rien vu de plus lugubre.
This|big|sky|leaden|this|boat|dripping|that|poor|feverish|rolled|in|a|old|coat|of|rubber|which|it was shining|under|the|rain|like|a|skin|of|seal|I|I have|ever|anything|seen|of|more|gloomy
This great leaden sky, this dripping boat, this poor feverish man rolled in an old rubber coat that shone under the rain like a seal's skin, I have never seen anything more gloomy.
Bientôt le froid, le vent, la secousse des vagues, aggravèrent son mal.
Soon|the|cold|the|wind|the|jolt|of the|waves|they worsened|his|illness
Soon the cold, the wind, the jolt of the waves worsened his condition.
Le délire le prit ; il fallut aborder.
The|delirium|it|it took|it|it was necessary|to land
The delirium took hold of him; we had to approach.
Après beaucoup de temps et d'efforts, nous entrâmes vers le soir dans un petit port aride et silencieux, qu'animait seulement le vol circulaire de quelques gouailles.
After|much|of|time|and|efforts|we|we entered|towards|the|evening|in|a|small|port|barren|and|silent|which it animated|only|the|flight|circular|of|some|gulls
After a long time and much effort, we entered in the evening a small arid and silent port, animated only by the circular flight of a few seagulls.
Tout autour de la plage montaient de hautes roches escarpées, des maquis inextricables d'arbustes verts, d'un vert sombre, sans saison.
All|around|of|the|beach|they rose|of|high|rocks|steep|some|maquis|inextricable|of shrubs|green|of a|green|dark|without|season
All around the beach rose high steep rocks, inextricable thickets of green shrubs, a dark green, without season.
En bas, au bord de l'eau, une petite maison blanche à volets gris : c'était le poste de la douane.
In|down|at the|edge|of|the water|a|small|house|white|with|shutters|gray|it was|the|station|of|the|customs
Down by the water's edge, a small white house with gray shutters: it was the customs post.
Au milieu de ce désert, cette bâtisse de l'État, numérotée comme une casquette d'uniforme, avait quelque chose de sinistre.
In|middle|of|this|desert|this|building|of|the State|numbered|like|a|cap|of uniform|it had|something|thing|of|sinister
In the middle of this desert, this state building, numbered like a uniform cap, had something sinister about it.
C'est là qu'on descendit le malheureux Palombo.
It is|there|that we|we brought down|the|unfortunate|Palombo
It was there that we brought down the unfortunate Palombo.
Triste asile pour un malade !
Sad|asylum|for|a|sick person
A sad refuge for a sick person!
Nous trouvâmes le douanier en train de manger au coin du feu avec sa femme et ses enfants.
We|we found|the|customs officer|while|in the process|of|eating|by the|corner|of the|fire|with|his|wife|and|his|children
We found the customs officer eating by the fire with his wife and children.
Tout ce monde-là vous avait des mines hâves, jaunes, des yeux agrandis, cerclés de fièvre.
All|this|||you|it had|some|faces|haggard|yellow|some|eyes|enlarged|ringed|with|fever
All these people had haggard, yellow faces, enlarged eyes, ringed with fever.
La mère, jeune encore, un nourrisson sur les bras, grelottait en nous parlant.
The|mother|young|still|a|infant|on|the|arms|she was shivering|while|us|speaking
The mother, still young, with an infant in her arms, was shivering as she spoke to us.
— C'est un poste terrible, me dit tout bas l'inspecteur.
It's|a|post|terrible|to me|he said|all|quietly|the inspector
— This is a terrible post, the inspector said to me in a low voice.
Nous sommes obligés de renouveler nos douaniers tous les deux ans.
We|we are|obliged|to|to renew|our|customs officers|all|the|two|years
We are forced to renew our customs officers every two years.
La fièvre de marais les mange…
The|fever|of|marshes|them|it eats
The marsh fever is consuming them...
Il s'agissait cependant de se procurer un médecin.
It|it was a matter of|however|to|oneself|to obtain|a|doctor
However, it was a matter of getting a doctor.
Il n'y en avait pas avant Sartène, c'est-à-dire à six ou huit lieues de là.
It|there|in|it had|not|before|Sartène||at|||six|or|eight|leagues|of|there
There was none before Sartène, that is to say, six or eight leagues away.
Comment faire ?
How|to do
What to do?
Nos matelots n'en pouvaient plus ; c'était trop loin pour envoyer un des enfants.
Our|sailors|not|they could|anymore|it was|too|far|to|to send|a|some|children
Our sailors could take it no longer; it was too far to send one of the children.
Alors la femme, se penchant dehors, appelant :
So|the|woman|herself|leaning|outside|calling
So the woman, leaning out, called:
— Cecco !… Cecco !
Cecco|
— Cecco!… Cecco!
Et nous vîmes entrer un grand gars bien découplé, vrai type de braconnier ou de banditto, avec son bonnet de laine brune et son pelone en poils de chèvre.
And|we|we saw|to enter|a|big|guy|well|built|true|type|of|poacher|or|of|bandit|with|his|cap|of|wool|brown|and|his|coat|made of|hairs|of|goat
And we saw a tall, well-built guy enter, a true type of poacher or bandit, with his brown wool hat and his goat hair pelone.
En débarquant je l'avais déjà remarqué, assis devant la porte, sa pipe rouge aux dents, un fusil entre les jambes ; mais, je ne sais pourquoi, il s'était enfui à notre approche.
In|landing|I|I had it|already|noticed|sitting|in front of|the|door|his|pipe|red|in|teeth|a|rifle|between|the|legs|but|I|not|I know|why|he|he had|fled|at|our|approach
Upon arriving, I had already noticed him, sitting in front of the door, his red pipe between his teeth, a rifle between his legs; but, I don't know why, he had fled at our approach.
Peut-être croyait-il que nous avions des gendarmes avec nous.
||||that|we|we had|some|police officers|with|us
Perhaps he thought we had police officers with us.
Quand il entra, la douanière rougit un peu.
When|he|he entered|the|customs officer|she blushed|a|little
When he entered, the customs officer blushed a little.
— C'est mon cousin… nous dit-elle.
It's|my|cousin|to us||
— He's my cousin... she told us.
Pas de danger que celui-là se perde dans le maquis.
No|of|danger|that|||himself|lose|in|the|scrubland
No danger of that one getting lost in the underbrush.
Puis elle lui parla tout bas, en montrant le malade.
Then|she|to him|she spoke|all|low|while|showing|the|sick person
Then she spoke to him in a low voice, pointing to the sick man.
L'homme s'inclina sans répondre, sortit, siffla son chien, et le voilà parti, le fusil sur l'épaule, sautant de roche en roche avec ses longues jambes.
The man|he bowed|without|answering|he went out|he whistled|his|dog|and|him|there he is|left|the|rifle|on|the shoulder|jumping|from|rock|to|rock|with|his|long|legs
The man bowed without answering, went out, whistled for his dog, and off he went, rifle on his shoulder, jumping from rock to rock with his long legs.
Pendant ce temps-là, les enfants, que la présence de l'inspecteur semblait terrifier, finissaient vite leur dîner de châtaignes et de brucio (fromage blanc).
During|this|||the|children|that|the|presence|of|the inspector|it seemed|to terrify|they finished|quickly|their|dinner|of|chestnuts|and|of|brucio|cheese|white
Meanwhile, the children, who seemed terrified by the presence of the inspector, quickly finished their dinner of chestnuts and brucio (fresh cheese).
Et toujours de l'eau, rien que de l'eau sur la table !
And|always|of|the water|nothing|but|of|the water|on|the|table
And always water, nothing but water on the table!
Pourtant, c'eût été bien bon, un coup de vin, pour ces petits.
However|it would have been|been|quite|good|a|glass|of|wine|for|these|little ones
Yet, it would have been nice, a glass of wine, for these little ones.
Ah !
Ah
Ah!
misère !
misery
misery!
Enfin la mère monta les coucher ; le père, allumant son falot, alla inspecter la côte, et nous restâmes au coin du feu à veiller notre malade qui s'agitait sur son grabat, comme s'il était encore en pleine mer, secoué par les lames.
Finally|the|mother|she went up|the|to bed|the|father|lighting|his|lantern|he went|to inspect|the|coast|and|we|we stayed|at the|corner|of the|fire|to|to watch|our|sick person|who|he was agitated|on|his|straw bed|as|if he|he was|still|in|full|sea|shaken|by|the|waves
Finally, the mother went to put them to bed; the father, lighting his lantern, went to inspect the coast, and we stayed by the fire watching over our sick one who was tossing on his bed, as if he were still at sea, shaken by the waves.
Pour calmer un peu sa pountoura, nous faisions chauffer des galets, des briques qu'on lui posait sur le côté.
To|to calm|a|little|his|fever|we|we were heating|to heat|some|pebbles|some|bricks|that we|to him|we placed|on|the|side
To calm his fever a bit, we heated stones and bricks that we placed on his side.
Une ou deux fois, quand je m'approchai de son lit, le malheureux me reconnut, et, pour me remercier, me tendit péniblement la main, une grosse main râpeuse et brûlante comme une de ces briques sorties du feu…
One|or|two|times|when|I|I approached|of|his|bed|the|unfortunate man|to me|he recognized|and|to|to me|to thank|to me|he extended|painfully|the|hand|a|big|hand|rough|and|burning|like|a|of|those|bricks|taken out|from the|fire
Once or twice, when I approached his bed, the unfortunate man recognized me, and to thank me, he painfully extended his hand to me, a large, rough, burning hand like one of those bricks taken from the fire…
Triste veillée !
Sad|vigil
Sad vigil!
Au dehors, le mauvais temps avait repris avec la tombée du jour, et c'était un fracas, un roulement, un jaillissement d'écume, la bataille des roches et de l'eau.
In|outside|the|bad|weather|it had|resumed|with|the|fall|of the|day|and|it was|a|crash|a|rumble|a|bursting|of foam|the|battle|of the|rocks|and|of|the water
Outside, the bad weather had returned with the fall of night, and there was a crash, a rumble, a burst of foam, the battle of rocks and water.
De temps en temps, le coup de vent du large parvenait à se glisser dans la baie et enveloppait notre maison.
From|time|in|time|the|gust|of|wind|from the|open sea|it managed|to|itself|to slip|in|the|bay|and|it enveloped|our|house
From time to time, the gust of wind from the sea managed to slip into the bay and enveloped our house.
On le sentait à la montée subite de la flamme qui éclairait tout à coup les visages mornes des matelots, groupés autour de la cheminée et regardant le feu avec cette placidité d'expression que donne l'habitude des grandes étendues et des horizons pareils.
We|it|we felt|at|the|rise|sudden|of|the|flame|which|it illuminated|all|at|once|the|faces|gloomy|of the|sailors|grouped|around|of|the|fireplace|and|looking|the|fire|with|that|placidity|of expression|that|it gives|the habit|of|vast|expanses|and|of|horizons|like
You could feel it in the sudden rise of the flame that suddenly illuminated the gloomy faces of the sailors, gathered around the fireplace and looking at the fire with that placid expression that comes from the habit of vast expanses and similar horizons.
Parfois aussi, Palombo se plaignait doucement.
Sometimes|also|Palombo|himself|he complained|softly
Sometimes, Palombo would also complain softly.
Alors tous les yeux se tournaient vers le coin obscur où le pauvre camarade était en train de mourir, loin des siens, sans secours ; les poitrines se gonflaient et l'on entendait de gros soupirs.
So|all|the|eyes|themselves|they were turning|towards|the|corner|dark|where|the|poor|comrade|he was|in|the process|of|to die|far|from|his own|without|help|the|chests|themselves|they were swelling|and|we|we heard|some|big|sighs
Then all eyes turned to the dark corner where the poor comrade was dying, far from his own, without help; chests were swelling and loud sighs could be heard.
C'est tout ce qu'arrachait à ces ouvriers de la mer, patients et doux, le sentiment de leur propre infortune.
It's|all|that|that it was tearing away|from|these|workers|of|the|sea|patient|and|gentle|the|feeling|of|their|own|misfortune
That was all that the feeling of their own misfortune could extract from these patient and gentle sea workers.
Pas de révoltes, pas de grèves.
No|of|revolts|no|of|strikes
No revolts, no strikes.
Un soupir, et rien de plus !… Si, pourtant, je me trompe.
A|sigh|and|nothing|of|more|If|however|I|myself|I am mistaken
A sigh, and nothing more!… If, however, I am mistaken.
En passant devant moi pour jeter une bourrée au feu, un d'eux me dit tout bas d'une voix navrée :
In|passing|in front of|me|to|to throw|a|bundle|in the|fire|one|of them|to me|he says|all|low|in a|voice|sorry
As one of them passed by me to throw a bundle into the fire, he said to me softly in a sorrowful voice:
— Voyez-vous, monsieur… on a quelquefois beaucoup du tourment dans notre métier !…
||sir|we|we have|sometimes|a lot of|of the|torment|in|our|profession
— You see, sir… sometimes we have a lot of torment in our profession!…
ai_request(all=40 err=2.50%) translation(all=78 err=0.00%) cwt(all=1295 err=8.80%)
en:AufDIxMS
openai.2025-02-07
PAR_TRANS:gpt-4o-mini=4.63 PAR_CWT:AufDIxMS=35.58
