Analytical reading-Part 29

Carl Sandburg

From Lincoln Speaks at Gettysburg

I

n many a country cottage over the land, a tall old clock in a quiet corner told time in a ticktock deliberation. Whether the orchard branches hung with pink-spray blossoms or icicles of sleet, whether the outside news was seedtime or harvest, rain or drought, births or deaths, the swing of the pendulum was right and left in a ticktock deliberation.

                The face and dial of the clock had known the eyes of a boy who listened to its ticktock and learned to read its minute and hour hands. And the boy had seen years measured off by the swinging pendulum, and grown to man size, and gone away. And the people in the cottage knew that the clock would stand there and the boy never again come into the room and look at the clock with query, “What is the time?”

                In a row of graves the unidentified boy would sleep long in the dedicated final resting place at Gettysburg. Why he had gone away and why he would never come back had roots in some mystery of flags and drums, of national fate in which individuals sink as in deep sea of men swallowed and vanished in a man-made storm of smoke and fire.

                The mystery deepened and moved with ancient music and inviolable consolation because a solemn Man of Authority had stood at the graves of the unidentified and spoken the words. “We cannot consecrate—we cannot hallow— this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it far above our power to add or detract... From these honoured dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion.”

                To the backward and forward pendulum swing of a tall old clock in a quiet corner they might read those cadenced words while outside the windows the first flurry of snow blew across the orchard and down over the meadow, the beginning of winter in a gun-metal gloaming to be later arched with a star-flung sky.

Notes and comments:

Normally “tall” is used for animate and “high” for inanimate objects. But notable exceptions are:

a tall tree

a tall ship

a tall building

a tall clock

a tall column

tall stories, etc.

or, any substantive that needs either be personified in a degree or have its shape stressed as being both high and slender.

think:

to reflect upon-размишлявам, разсъждавам

to cogitate-обмислям, размишлявам (upon, over)

to brood-седя умислен, размислям (on, over)

to contemplate-размишлявам върху, обмислям

to cerebrate-обмислям

to muse-унасям се в мисли, размишлявам (on, upon, over)

to ponder-обмислям, размишлявам (on, upon, over)

to lucubrate-работя напрегнато умствена работа (особено нощем)

to ruminate-размишлявам, мисля върху, обмислям

to speculate about-отдавам се на размисъл, обмислям

to mull-амер. мисля върху, обмислям без резултат

to deliberate upon-обмислям, мисля

to perpend—остар. размишлявам

to meditate—размишлявам, размислям се, замислям се, обмислям (on, upon)

a deliberate action-преднамерено действие

to act something with deliberation—действам внимателно/предпазливо

to speak with deliberation—говоря обмислено/внимателно

a dial/face of a clock-циферблат

to dial a number-набирам телефонен номер

a dial-board (panel)-инструментално табло

a switchboard-командно табло

a control-board-пулт за управление

for five days in succession-for five days in a row-for five days in a series-for the fifth consecutive day-for the fifth day running-for five days running-for five days in a sequence-for five days on end-for five days long = вече пет дни…/в продължение на пет дни…

to dedicate a soldiers’ cemetery-освещавам военно гробище

to dedicate a book to somebody-посвещавам книга на някого

a dedicated labour-самоотвержен труд

a devoted service-самоотвержена служба

to dedicate oneself to a cause-to commit oneself to a cause = посвещавам се на кауза

to devote one’s time to something-посвещавам времето си на нещо

man-made-artificial

to consecrate-to hallow = освещавам, утвърждавам (традиция и пр.) (but to desecrate)

to consecrate one’s life to a cause—посвещавам живота си на някое дело

to suspend-окачвам

to suspend a constitution—суспендирам конституцията

a suspension bridge-висящ мост

to depend (on/upon)-завися от

independence-независимост

to impend-заплашвам, “вися над”

pendulum-махало

suspenders-тиранти