Germinal — Chapter 10 in French
By Émile Zola
Lorsque Maheu rentra, après avoir laissé Étienne chez Rasseneur, il trouva Catherine, Zacharie et Jeanlin attablés, qui achevaient leur soupe. WHEN Maheu came in after having left Étienne at Rasseneur's, he found Catherine, Zacharie, and Jeanlin seated at the table finishing their soup. Au retour de la fosse, on avait si faim, qu’on mangeait dans ses vêtements humides, avant même de se débarbouiller ; et personne ne s’attendait, la table restait mise du matin au soir, toujours il y en avait un là, avalant sa portion, au hasard des exigences du travail. On returning from the pit they were always so hungry that they ate in their damp clothes, without even cleaning themselves; and no one was waited for, the table was laid from morning to night; there was always someone there swallowing his portion, according to the chances of work.
Dès la porte, Maheu aperçut les provisions. As he entered the door Maheu saw the provisions. Il ne dit rien, mais son visage inquiet s’éclaira. He said nothing, but his uneasy face lighted up. Toute la matinée, le vide du buffet, la maison sans café et sans beurre, l’avait tracassé, lui était revenue en élancements douloureux, pendant qu’il tapait à la veine, suffoqué au fond de la taille. All the morning the emptiness of the cupboard, the thought of the house without coffee and without butter, had been troubling him; the recollection came to him painfully while he was hammering at the seam, stifled at the bottom of the cutting. Comment la femme aurait-elle fait ? et qu’allait-on devenir, si elle était rentrée les mains vides ? What would his wife do, and what would become of them if she were to return with empty hands? Puis, voilà qu’il y avait de tout. And now, here was everything! Elle lui conterait ça plus tard. She would tell him about it later on. Il riait d’aise. He laughed with satisfaction.
Déjà Catherine et Jeanlin s’étaient levés, prenant leur café debout ; tandis que Zacharie, mal rempli par sa soupe, se coupait une large tartine de pain, qu’il couvrait de beurre. Catherine and Jeanlin had risen, and were taking their coffee standing; while Zacharie, not filled with the soup, cut himself a large slice of bread and covered it with butter. Il voyait bien le fromage de cochon sur une assiette ; mais il n’y touchait pas, la viande était pour le père, quand il n’y en avait que pour un. Although he saw the chitterlings on a plate he did not touch them, for meat was for the father, when there was only enough for one. Tous venaient de faire descendre leur soupe d’une grande lampée d’eau fraîche, la bonne boisson claire des fins de quinzaine. All of them had washed down their soup with a big bumper of fresh water, the good, clear drink of the fortnight's end.
— Je n’ai pas de bière, dit la Maheude, lorsque le père se fut attablé à son tour. "I have no beer," said Maheude, when the father had seated himself in his turn. J’ai voulu garder un peu d’argent… Mais, si tu en désires, la petite peut courir en prendre une pinte. "I wanted to keep a little money. But if you would like some the little one can go and fetch a pint."