よみうち英語Read the classics by typingNotes Scene 15: Two Hundred a Year
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Notes on this scene
The assistant assures Wilson that his hair makes him eligible for a place in the Red-Headed League. The work is said to be light and worth roughly two hundred pounds a year. Since the pawnbroking business has struggled, Wilson eagerly leans forward and asks Spaulding to explain every detail.
Japanese in this scene
- のに
- のに means “although; even though.” It places an actual result against what the preceding fact would normally make the listener expect.
- ほど
- ほど expresses degree or an approximate extent: “to the point that; as much as; about.” The comparison in the sentence determines its natural English rendering.
- は
- は marks the topic of a sentence and can also set up a contrast with another item.
- が
- が marks the grammatical subject or newly focused information. It can also link clauses with a mild contrast.
Background
- Two hundred pounds a year
- A clerk might earn about one hundred pounds a year. Two hundred pounds could support a comfortable middle-class life, making the supposed part-time post remarkably attractive.
Full text: original English and Japanese translation
"'Have you never heard of the League of the Red-headed Men?' he asked with his eyes open.
「『赤毛組合のことを聞いたことがないんですか？』と彼は目を丸くして聞きました。
"'Never.'
「『ないね』
"'Why, I wonder at that, for you are eligible yourself for one of the vacancies.'
「『へえ、そいつは意外ですね、ウィルソンさんご自身だって、その空きのひとつに応募できる資格があるのに』
"'And what are they worth?' I asked.
「『で、それはいくらになるんだい？』と私は聞きました。
"'Oh, merely a couple of hundred a year, but the work is slight, and it need not interfere very much with one's other occupations.'
「『なに、年にたった二百ポンドほどですがね、仕事は軽いもので、ほかの仕事の邪魔にもたいしてならないんですよ』
"Well, you can easily think that that made me prick up my ears, for the business has not been over good for some years, and an extra couple of hundred would have been very handy.
「いやもう、それを聞いて私が耳をぴんと立てたのはお察しのとおりでして、なにしろここ何年か商売があまり芳しくなかったものですから、余分に二百ポンドも入れば大助かりだったんです。
"'Tell me all about it,' said I.
「『そいつをすっかり話してくれ』と私は言いました。