horror - l'horreur, horreur, effroi, dégout, aversion
heights - les hauteurs, hauteur, taille
The idea that the extraordinary narrative which has been called the Joyce-Armstrong Fragment is an elaborate practical joke evolved by some unknown person, cursed by a perverted and sinister sense of humour, has now been abandoned by all who have examined the matter.
extraordinary - extraordinaire
narrative - narratif, récit
fragment - fragment, fragmenter
elaborate - élaborer, approfondir
practical joke - Une blague
evolved - évolué, évoluer, progresser, élaborer
unknown - inconnu, inconnue
cursed - maudis, maudite, maudites, maudits, maudit, (curs) maudis
perverted - pervers, déviant
sinister - sinistre
sense - sens, acception, sentir
humour - l'humour, humour, humeur, disposition, amadouer
abandoned - abandonnée, abandonner
examined - examinés, examiner
matter - matiere, matiere, affaire, question, cause, substance
The most macabre and imaginative of plotters would hesitate before linking his morbid fancies with the unquestioned and tragic facts which reinforce the statement. Though the assertions contained in it are amazing and even monstrous, it is none the less forcing itself upon the general intelligence that they are true, and that we must readjust our ideas to the new situation.
macabre - macabre, morbide, gothique, thanatophile
imaginative - imaginatif
hesitate - hésiter
linking - l'établissement d'un lien, maillon, chaînon
morbid - morbide, checkmacabre, checkmalsain, checkpathologique
fancies - des fantaisies, envie, caprice
unquestioned - incontesté
tragic - tragique
reinforce - renforcer
though - mais, néanmoins, cependant, malgré, bien que
assertions - affirmations, assertion, qualifier
contained - contenu, contenir
monstrous - monstrueux
none - aucun, ne nulle
forcing - le forçage, force
itself - elle-meme, se, soi-meme
upon - sur, a
general - général, communal, en chef, universal, d'ensemble
intelligence - l'intelligence, intelligence, renseignements
readjust - rééquilibrer, rajuster, réadapter, réajuster
This world of ours appears to be separated by a slight and precarious margin of safety from a most singular and unexpected danger.
Appears - apparaît, apparaître, paraître, sembler
be separated - etre séparés
Slight - insignifiant, léger
precarious - précaire
margin - marge
safety - la sécurité, sécurité, sureté
singular - singulier
unexpected - inattendu
danger - danger, péril
I will endeavour in this narrative, which reproduces the original document in its necessarily somewhat fragmentary form, to lay before the reader the whole of the facts up to date, prefacing my statement by saying that, if there be any who doubt the narrative of Joyce-Armstrong, there can be no question at all as to the facts concerning Lieutenant Myrtle, R. N., and Mr.
endeavour - l'effort, peiner
reproduces - se reproduit, reproduire, se reproduire
original document - le document original
necessarily - nécessairement
somewhat - en quelque sorte, assez, quelque peu
lay - laique, pondre, pose
prefacing - le préambule, préface, préfacer
doubt - des doutes, douter, doute
concerning - concernant, inquiétude, souci, soin, préoccupation
lieutenant - lieutenant
Myrtle - myrte
Mr - monsieur
Hay Connor, who undoubtedly met their end in the manner described.
Hay - foin
Undoubtedly - sans doute
manner - maniere, maniere, façon, mode
The Joyce-Armstrong Fragment was found in the field which is called Lower Haycock, lying one mile to the westward of the village of Withyham, upon the Kent and Sussex border.
field - champ, campo, terrain, corps, rubrique, attraper
lower - plus bas, abaisser, en privé, rabattre, baissent
Haycock - Haycock
lying - gisant, sis, mentant, (lie) gisant
border - frontiere, frontiere, bord, bordure, délimiter, border
It was on the 15th September last that an agricultural labourer, James Flynn, in the employment of Mathew Dodd, farmer, of the Chauntry Farm, Withyham, perceived a briar pipe lying near the footpath which skirts the hedge in Lower Haycock. A few paces farther on he picked up a pair of broken binocular glasses.
Last - derniere, dernier, durer, dernierere, durez, passé, durent
agricultural labourer - travailleur agricole
James - james, Jacques
employment - l'emploi, emploi, travail
perceived - perçue, percevoir
briar - bruyere
pipe - cornemuse, conduit, tuyau, barre verticale, tube, pipe
footpath - sentier, trottoir
hedge - couverture, haie
paces - des allures, pas
picked - choisi, pioche, passe-partout, choix, écran, prendre, cueillir
Finally, among some nettles in the ditch, he caught sight of a flat, canvas-backed book, which proved to be a note-book with detachable leaves, some of which had come loose and were fluttering along the base of the hedge. These he collected, but some, including the first, were never recovered, and leave a deplorable hiatus in this all-important statement.
finally - enfin, définitivement
among - parmi
nettles - des orties, ortie, piquer, irriter, vexer
ditch - fossé
caught - pris, prise, touche, loquet, loqueteau, verrou, hic, couille
sight - vue, quelque chose a voir, truc a voir, mire, viseur
canvas - toile, canevas
proved - prouvé, prouver
detachable - détachable
loose - en vrac, ample, desserré
fluttering - flottement, faséyer, voleter, voltiger, battement
along - le long de, accompagné, rench: t-needed r
base - base, baser, basent, socle, basez, Assise, basons
collected - collectés, (se) rassembler
recovered - récupéré, recouvrer (la santé)
deplorable - déplorable
hiatus - hiatus, lacune, discordance
The note-book was taken by the labourer to his master, who in turn showed it to Dr. J. H. Atherton, of Hartfield. This gentleman at once recognized the need for an expert examination, and the manuscript was forwarded to the Aero Club in London, where it now lies.
Labourer - ouvrier
Master - maître, patron, maîtriser, maitre, maîtrisent
gentleman - gentilhomme, monsieur, messieurs
recognized - reconnu, reconnaître
expert - expert
examination - l'examen, examen
manuscript - manuscrit
forwarded - transmis, en avant
lies - mensonges, mensonge
The first two pages of the manuscript are missing. There is also one torn away at the end of the narrative, though none of these affect the general coherence of the story. It is conjectured that the missing opening is concerned with the record of Mr.
torn away - arraché
affect - affecter, affectez, influer, concernent, affectons
coherence - cohérence
conjectured - conjecturé, conjecture, conjecturer
concerned - préoccupé, inquiétude, souci, soin, préoccupation
record - record, enregistrent, enregistrez, enregistrons
Joyce-Armstrong's qualifications as an aeronaut, which can be gathered from other sources and are admitted to be unsurpassed among the air-pilots of England.
qualifications - les qualifications, qualification
aeronaut - aéronaute
gathered - rassemblés, rassembler, ramasser, recueillir
sources - sources, source
admitted - admis, admettre, avouer, reconnaître
unsurpassed - inégalée
pilots - pilotes, pilote, programme pilote
For many years he has been looked upon as among the most daring and the most intellectual of flying men, a combination which has enabled him to both invent and test several new devices, including the common gyroscopic attachment which is known by his name.
daring - audacieux, courageux, checktéméraire, checkhardi
intellectual - intellectuel, intellectuelle, intello
combination - combinaison, sélection, association, groupement, side-car
enabled - activée, autoriser, permettre, activer
invent - inventer
several - plusieurs
devices - des appareils, appareil, dispositif, stratageme, ruse, manouvre
gyroscopic - gyroscopique
attachment - l'attachement, attachement, dépendance, piece jointe, saisie
The main body of the manuscript is written neatly in ink, but the last few lines are in pencil and are so ragged as to be hardly legible-exactly, in fact, as they might be expected to appear if they were scribbled off hurriedly from the seat of a moving aeroplane.
main body - le corps principal
neatly - proprement, élégamment
ink - encre
ragged - dépenaillé, loqueteuxse, (rag) dépenaillé
hardly - a peine, dur, durement, guere, a peine
legible - lisible
exactly - exactement
expected - attendue, attendre, s'attendre a
appear - apparaître, sembler
scribbled - griffonné, griffonner
hurriedly - en toute hâte, a la hâte, a la sauvette, a la va-vite
seat - siege, place, siege, assise, séant, fond
aeroplane - avion, aéroplane
There are, it may be added, several stains, both on the last page and on the outside cover which have been pronounced by the Home Office experts to be blood-probably human and certainly mammalian.
be added - etre ajouté
stains - taches, tache, souillure, colorant, tacher, entacher, colorer
cover - une couverture
pronounced - prononcée, déclarer, prononcer, déclamer, lire
Home Office - Bureau a domicile
experts - des experts, expert
human - humain
Certainly - certainement, surement, sans nul doute, sans aucun doute
mammalian - mammiferes, mammalien
The fact that something closely resembling the organism of malaria was discovered in this blood, and that Joyce-Armstrong is known to have suffered from intermittent fever, is a remarkable example of the new weapons which modern science has placed in the hands of our detectives.
closely - de pres, étroitement, pres
resembling - ressemblant, ressembler
organism - organisme
malaria - le paludisme, paludisme, malaria
discovered - découvert, découvrir
suffered - souffert, souffrir, souffrir de, pâtir de, endurer
intermittent - intermittent
fever - de la fievre, fievre
remarkable - remarquable
weapons - des armes, arme
Detectives - détectives, détective, détectivef, enqueteur, enqueteuse
And now a word as to the personality of the author of this epoch-making statement. Joyce-Armstrong, according to the few friends who really knew something of the man, was a poet and a dreamer, as well as a mechanic and an inventor. He was a man of considerable wealth, much of which he had spent in the pursuit of his aeronautical hobby.
personality - personnalité
author - auteur, auteure, autrice, écrire, créer
epoch - époque, ere, période, singularité, évenement
according - selon, entente, accorder
poet - poete, poete
dreamer - reveur, reveur, reveuse
mechanic - mécanicien, mécanicienne
inventor - inventeur, inventrice
considerable - considérable
wealth - la richesse, richesse, profusion, abondance, checkfortune
pursuit - poursuite
aeronautical - aéronautique
He had four private aeroplanes in his hangars near Devizes, and is said to have made no fewer than one hundred and seventy ascents in the course of last year. He was a retiring man with dark moods, in which he would avoid the society of his fellows.
private - personnel, personnelle, privé, privée
aeroplanes - des avions, avion, aéroplane
hangars - hangars, hangar
retiring - a la retraite, prendre sa retraite
moods - d'humeur, humeur
avoid - éviter, fuir
Society - la société, société
fellows - des camarades, homme, type
Captain Dangerfield, who knew him better than anyone, says that there were times when his eccentricity threatened to develop into something more serious. His habit of carrying a shot-gun with him in his aeroplane was one manifestation of it.
captain - capitaine, capitaine de vaisseau, agir en capitaine, piloter
eccentricity - l'excentricité, excentricité
threatened - menacé, menacer
develop - se développer, créer
serious - sérieux
habit - habitude, configuration
shot-gun - (shot-gun) Un fusil a pompe
manifestation - manifestation
Another was the morbid effect which the fall of Lieutenant Myrtle had upon his mind. Myrtle, who was attempting the height record, fell from an altitude of something over thirty thousand feet. Horrible to narrate, his head was entirely obliterated, though his body and limbs preserved their configuration.
effect - effet, effets, effectuer
mind - l'esprit, esprit, raison, intelligence, mémoire
attempting - tenter, essayer, tentative, attentat
height - hauteur, taille
altitude - l'altitude, altitude, hauteur
horrible - horrible, affreux, épouvantable
narrate - raconter, narrer, rapporter, relater
entirely - entierement, entierement, entierement (1)
obliterated - anéantie, annihiler, effacer
limbs - membres, membre
preserved - préservée, confiture, conserve, réserve naturelle
configuration - configuration
At every gathering of airmen, Joyce-Armstrong, according to Dangerfield, would ask, with an enigmatic smile: "And where, pray, is Myrtle's head?"
gathering - rassemblement, cueillant, amassant, ramassage
enigmatic - énigmatique
smile - sourire
Pray - prier, prions, priez, prient
On another occasion after dinner, at the mess of the flying school on Salisbury Plain, he started a debate as to what will be the most permanent danger which airmen will have to encounter.
Occasion - occasion
mess - le désordre, purée, fouillis, bouillie
flying school - l'école de pilotage
plain - simple, unie, net, plaine
debate - débat, discussion, débattre
most permanent - le plus permanent
encounter - rencontre
Having listened to successive opinions as to air-pockets, faulty construction, and over-banking, he ended by shrugging his shoulders and refusing to put forward his own views, though he gave the impression that they differed from any advanced by his companions.
successive - successifs
pockets - poches, poche, empocher, de poche
faulty - défectueux
construction - construction
shrugging - hausser les épaules, haussement d'épaules
refusing - refusant, refuser de
forward - avant, acheminent, acheminer, avanten, acheminons
views - vues, vue, q
impression - impression
differed - différaient, différer (de)
advanced - avancé, élever, avancer, avancée, progression, progres
Companions - compagnons, compagnon, compagne
It is worth remarking that after his own complete disappearance it was found that his private affairs were arranged with a precision which may show that he had a strong premonition of disaster. With these essential explanations I will now give the narrative exactly as it stands, beginning at page three of the blood-soaked note-book:
worth - valeur
remarking - remarque
disappearance - disparition
affairs - affaires, aventure, liaison
arranged - arrangé, arranger, organiser
precision - précision
premonition - prémonition
disaster - désastre, catastrophe
essential - indispensable, essentiel, fondamental
explanations - des explications, explication
soaked - trempé, tremper, faire tremper, immerger, éponger
"Nevertheless, when I dined at Rheims with Coselli and Gustav Raymond I found that neither of them was aware of any particular danger in the higher layers of the atmosphere. I did not actually say what was in my thoughts, but I got so near to it that if they had any corresponding idea they could not have failed to express it.
nevertheless - néanmoins, toutefois, pourtant, malgré tout
dined - dîné, vacarme
neither - ni l'un ni l'autre, aucun des deux, ni X ni Y, non plus
aware - conscient, attentif, vigilant, en éveil, en alerte
particular - particulier
atmosphere - atmosphere, atmosphere, ambience, ambiance
actually - en fait
thoughts - réflexions, idée, pensée
corresponding - correspondant, correspondre (...a qqchose)
failed - a échoué, échouer (a)
express - express, exprimons, exprimez, exprimer, expriment
But then they are two empty, vainglorious fellows with no thought beyond seeing their silly names in the newspaper. It is interesting to note that neither of them had ever been much beyond the twenty-thousand-foot level. Of course, men have been higher than this both in balloons and in the ascent of mountains.
empty - vide, vider, cadavre
vainglorious - vaniteux
beyond - au-dela, au-dela, par-dela
silly - stupide, sot, insensé, idiot, bete
level - plat, a ras, au meme niveau, constant, niveau, profondeur
balloons - ballons, ballon, ballon de baudruche
It must be well above that point that the aeroplane enters the danger zone-always presuming that my premonitions are correct.
enters - entre, entrer, rench: -neededr, taper, saisir
zone - zone
presuming - présumer, supposer
premonitions - des prémonitions, prémonition
"Aeroplaning has been with us now for more than twenty years, and one might well ask: Why should this peril be only revealing itself in our day? The answer is obvious. In the old days of weak engines, when a hundred horse-power Gnome or Green was considered ample for every need, the flights were very restricted.
peril - péril, risque
obvious - évidentes, évident
weak - faible, débile
engines - moteurs, moteur
power - pouvoir, puissance, électricité, courant, alimenter
gnome - gnome
considered - envisagée, considérer, examiner, réfléchir, songer
ample - ample
restricted - restreint, restreindre, limiter
Now that three hundred horse-power is the rule rather than the exception, visits to the upper layers have become easier and more common. Some of us can remember how, in our youth, Garros made a world-wide reputation by attaining nineteen thousand feet, and it was considered a remarkable achievement to fly over the Alps.
exception - exception
youth - la jeunesse, jeunesse, jeune, jeune homme, les jeunes
wide - large
reputation - réputation, renommée (more slang)
attaining - atteindre
achievement - de la réussite, réalisation, accomplissement, haut fait
fly over - survoler
Alps - les alpes, Alpes, (alp) les alpes
Our standard now has been immeasurably raised, and there are twenty high flights for one in former years. Many of them have been undertaken with impunity. The thirty-thousand-foot level has been reached time after time with no discomfort beyond cold and asthma. What does this prove? A visitor might descend upon this planet a thousand times and never see a tiger.
Standard - standard, étalon, étendard
immeasurably - de maniere incommensurable
raised - soulevée, (sou)lever
former - ancien, ancienne, ci devant
undertaken - entrepris, entreprendre
impunity - l'impunité, impunité
reached - atteint, arriver/parvenir a
discomfort - malaise, inconfort
asthma - l'asthme, asthme
Prove - prouver, éprouvent, éprouvons, éprouvez, prouvent
descend - descendre
planet - planete, planete
tiger - tigre, tigresse
Yet tigers exist, and if he chanced to come down into a jungle he might be devoured. There are jungles of the upper air, and there are worse things than tigers which inhabit them. I believe in time they will map these jungles accurately out. Even at the present moment I could name two of them. One of them lies over the Pau-Biarritz district of France.
tigers - tigres, tigre/tigresse
exist - existent, exister
chanced - hasardeux, hasard
devoured - dévorée, dévorer
jungles - jungles, jungle, foret vierge, foret tropicale
inhabit - habiter
accurately - avec précision
district - district, checkrégion
France - la france, France
Another is just over my head as I write here in my house in Wiltshire. I rather think there is a third in the Homburg-Wiesbaden district.
third - troisieme, troisieme, trois, tiers, tierce
Homburg - Hombourg
"It was the disappearance of the airmen that first set me thinking. Of course, everyone said that they had fallen into the sea, but that did not satisfy me at all. First, there was Verrier in France; his machine was found near Bayonne, but they never got his body. There was the case of Baxter also, who vanished, though his engine and some of the iron fixings were found in a wood in Leicestershire.
set - set, Seth
satisfy - satisfaire
Bayonne - Bayonne
case - cas, affaire, fouille, étui, chose
vanished - disparue, disparaître, s'évanouir, s'annuler
engine - moteur
iron - le fer, fer, repasser
wood - du bois, (de) bois
Leicestershire - Leicestershire
In that case, Dr. Middleton, of Amesbury, who was watching the flight with a telescope, declares that just before the clouds obscured the view he saw the machine, which was at an enormous height, suddenly rise perpendicularly upwards in a succession of jerks in a manner that he would have thought to be impossible. That was the last seen of Baxter.
telescope - télescope, lunette
declares - déclare, expliquer, déclarer
clouds - nuages, s'obscurcir
obscured - obscurci, obscur, sibyllin, obscurcir
view - vue, vision, regard, point de vue, opinion, regarder
enormous - énorme
suddenly - soudain, soudainement, tout d'un coup
rise - hausse, remonte, élévation, débout, surcroît
perpendicularly - perpendiculairement
succession - succession
jerks - des abrutis, secousse
impossible - impossible, insupportable
There was a correspondence in the papers, but it never led to anything. There were several other similar cases, and then there was the death of Hay Connor. What a cackle there was about an unsolved mystery of the air, and what columns in the halfpenny papers, and yet how little was ever done to get to the bottom of the business! He came down in a tremendous vol-plane from an unknown height.
correspondence - correspondance, chronique
led - dirigé, DEL, LED, (lead) dirigé
cases - cas
Death - mort, déces, camarde, la mort, l'arcane sans nom
cackle - caquet, ricanement, gloussement, caqueter
unsolved - non résolue
mystery - mystere, mystere
columns - colonnes, colonne, colonne (1, 2, 3)
halfpenny - un demi-penny, demienny
bottom - fond, bas, dessous, arriere-train, cul
tremendous - formidable
vol - vol
an unknown - un inconnu
He never got off his machine and died in his pilot's seat. Died of what? 'Heart disease,'said the doctors. Rubbish! Hay Connor's heart was as sound as mine is. What did Venables say? Venables was the only man who was at his side when he died. He said that he was shivering and looked like a man who had been badly scared.
pilot - pilote, programme pilote
heart - cour
disease - maladie, mal
rubbish - des déchets, absurdités, inepties, décombres, pourri
mine - la mienne, mienne, miniere
side - côté, parti, flanc
shivering - des frissons, (shiver) des frissons
badly - mal, mauvaisement
scared - effrayé, (scar)
'Died of fright,'said Venables, but could not imagine what he was frightened about. Only said one word to Venables, which sounded like 'Monstrous.'They could make nothing of that at the inquest. But I could make something of it. Monsters! That was the last word of poor Harry Hay Connor. And he DID die of fright, just as Venables thought.
frightened - effrayé, effrayer, redouter, terrifier
inquest - enquete (criminelle)
monsters - des monstres, monstre, bete, monstrueux
Harry - Harry
"And then there was Myrtle's head. Do you really believe-does anybody really believe-that a man's head could be driven clean into his body by the force of a fall? Well, perhaps it may be possible, but I, for one, have never believed that it was so with Myrtle. And the grease upon his clothes-'all slimy with grease,'said somebody at the inquest. Queer that nobody got thinking after that!
Anybody - quelqu'un, n’importe qui (1), checkn’importe qui (2
force - force, forcez, contrainte, forçons, contraindre, forcent
Perhaps - peut-etre, peut-etre, possiblement
grease - graisse, graisser, graisser la patte, corrompre, lubrifier
slimy - visqueux, visqueuse, gluant, gluante
queer - pédé, étrange, bizarre
I did-but, then, I had been thinking for a good long time. I've made three ascents-how Dangerfield used to chaff me about my shot-gun-but I've never been high enough. Now, with this new, light Paul Veroner machine and its one hundred and seventy-five Robur, I should easily touch the thirty thousand tomorrow. I'll have a shot at the record. Maybe I shall have a shot at something else as well.
chaff - des paillettes, balle, bale
shot - tir, tirai, tiré, tirâmes, tirerent, tira
gun - pistolet, as, rigolo, fusil
Paul - paul
easily - facilement
touch - toucher, émouvoir, contact
shall - doit, rench: 'shall' followed by the infinitive is translated using the future tense'
Of course, it's dangerous. If a fellow wants to avoid danger he had best Keep out of flying altogether and subside finally into flannel slippers and a dressing-gown. But I'll visit the air-jungle tomorrow-and if there's anything there I shall know it. If I return, I'll find myself a bit of a celebrity.
fellow - un camarade, ensemble, mâle
Keep out - écarter
altogether - tout a fait, completement, en meme temps, quoi qu'il en soit
subside - s'atténuer, tomber, calmer
flannel - flanelle
slippers - des pantoufles, chausson, pantoufle
dressing-gown - (dressing-gown) robe de chambre
jungle - jungle, foret vierge, foret tropicale
myself - moi-meme, me, m'
bit - bit, mordis, mordit, mordîmes, mordirent, (bite), mordre
celebrity - célébrité, people
If I don't this note-book may explain what I am trying to do, and how I lost my life in doing it. But no drivel about accidents or mysteries, if YOU please.
drivel - du radotage
accidents - accidents, accident
mysteries - mysteres, mystere
"I chose my Paul Veroner monoplane for the job. There's nothing like a monoplane when real work is to be done. Beaumont found that out in very early days. For one thing it doesn't mind damp, and the weather looks as if we should be in the clouds all the time. It's a bonny little model and answers my hand like a tender-mouthed horse.
damp - humide, moite, mouillé, humidité, grisou, amortir
bonny - bonny
tender - l'appel d'offres, doux, adjudication, affectieux
The engine is a ten-cylinder rotary Robur working up to one hundred and seventy-five. It has all the modern improvements-enclosed fuselage, high-curved landing skids, brakes, gyroscopic steadiers, and three speeds, worked by an alteration of the angle of the planes upon the Venetian-blind principle. I took a shot-gun with me and a dozen cartridges filled with buck-shot.
cylinder - cylindre, bonbonne, cylindre phonographique, barillet
rotary - rotatif
improvements - des améliorations, amélioration
fuselage - fuselage
curved - courbé, courbe, courbes, courber
skids - des dérapages, déraper
brakes - freins, freiner
speeds - vitesses, vitesse
alteration - modification, altération, altérer
venetian - vénitien, Vénitienne
blind - aveugle, mal-voyant, mal-voyante, store, blind, aveugler
principle - principe
dozen - douzaine, dizaine
cartridges - cartouches, cartouche
Buck - buck, mâle
You should have seen the face of Perkins, my old mechanic, when I directed him to put them in. I was dressed like an Arctic explorer, with two jerseys under my overalls, thick socks inside my padded boots, a storm-cap with flaps, and my talc goggles. It was stifling outside the hangars, but I was going for the summit of the Himalayas, and had to dress for the part.
directed - dirigée, direct, mettre en scene, ordonner
Arctic - l'arctique, arctique
explorer - explorateur, exploratrice, sonde
jerseys - maillots, jersey, tricot, maillot
overalls - salopette, global, total, en général, blouse, combinaison
thick - épais, gros, dense, opaque, incompréhensible, lourd
socks - chaussettes
inside - a l'intérieur, intérieur, dedans, au-dedans, la-dedans
padded - rembourré, coussinet
storm - tempete, orage
cap - cap, bonnet, calotte, casquette, toque, képi
flaps - les volets, pan
talc - talc, talquer
stifling - étouffant, (stifle)
summit - sommet, apogée
Perkins knew there was something on and implored me to take him with me. Perhaps I should if I were using the biplane, but a monoplane is a one-man show-if you want to get the last foot of life out of it. Of course, I took an oxygen bag; the man who goes for the altitude record without one will either be frozen or smothered-or both.
biplane - biplan
oxygen - l'oxygene, oxygene
either - chaque, non plus, ou, soit
frozen - gelé, geler
smothered - étouffé, étouffer
"I had a good look at the planes, the rudder-bar, and the elevating lever before I got in. Everything was in order so far as I could see. Then I switched on my engine and found that she was running sweetly. When they let her go she rose almost at once upon the lowest speed.
rudder - le gouvernail, gouvernail
bar - bar, barrent, barrons, barrer, barrez, tringle
elevating - l'élévation, élever, augmenter
lever - levier, lever
switched on - allumée
sweetly - avec douceur, doucement
rose - Rose, (rise)
almost - presque, quasiment
lowest - le plus bas, bas
Speed - la vitesse, galoper, vitesse
I circled my home field once or twice just to warm her up, and then with a wave to Perkins and the others, I flattened out my planes and put her on her highest. She skimmed like a swallow down wind for eight or ten miles until I turned her nose up a little and she began to climb in a great spiral for the cloud-bank above me.
circled - encerclée, cercle, disque, yeux cernés-p, cerne
wave to - faire signe
flattened - aplatie, aplatir
skimmed - écrémé, dépasser doucement, effleurer, frôler, raser, faire
swallow - avaler, avalons, empiffrer, hirondelle, avalez
wind - vent, emmailloter, détortiller, langer, enrouler
spiral - spirale, hélice, spiraler
cloud - nuage, s'obscurcir
It's all-important to rise slowly and adapt yourself to the pressure as you go.
slowly - lentement
adapt - adapter, s'adapter, adapté
pressure - pression
"It was a close, warm day for an English September, and there was the hush and heaviness of impending rain. Now and then there came sudden puffs of wind from the south-west-one of them so gusty and unexpected that it caught me napping and turned me half-round for an instant.
Hush - chut !, silence
heaviness - lourdeur
sudden - soudain, soudaine, subit
puffs - bouffées, souffle, bouffée
gusty - grose
napping - la sieste, sieste, petit somme
round - ronde, cyclo, arrondissent, arrondis, arrondir
instant - instantanée, moment
I remember the time when gusts and whirls and air-pockets used to be things of danger-before we learned to put an overmastering power into our engines. Just as I reached the cloud-banks, with the altimeter marking three thousand, down came the rain. My word, how it poured! It drummed upon my wings and lashed against my face, blurring my glasses so that I could hardly see.
gusts - des rafales, rafale
whirls - tourbillons, tourbillonner
altimeter - altimetre, altimetre
marking - le marquage, marquant, repere, (mark), Marc
poured - versé, verser, se déverser
drummed - tambouriné, tambour
wings - des ailes, aile, ailier
lashed - fouetté, cil
against - contre, face a, pour
blurring - flou, estomper, brouiller, s'estomper, tache, salissure
I got down on to a low speed, for it was painful to travel against it. As I got higher it became hail, and I had to turn tail to it. One of my cylinders was out of action-a dirty plug, I should imagine, but still I was rising steadily with plenty of power. After a bit the trouble passed, whatever it was, and I heard the full, deep-throated purr-the ten singing as one.
low - faible, inférieure
painful - douloureux, laborieux
hail - grele
turn tail - tourner la queue
cylinders - cylindres, cylindre
plug - fiche, bouchon, boucher, fermer, bourrer, faire la pub
steadily - régulierement
plenty - l'abondance, abondance
trouble - des problemes, peine, mal, probleme, emmerde, checksouci
passed - passé, passer (devant), dépasser
whatever - quoi qu'il en soit, quel que soit, n'importe quel
deep - profond, épais, grave, foncé, foncée, profondeurs
throated - gorgée, gorge, goulot
purr - ronronner, ronron, ronronnement
That's where the beauty of our modern silencers comes in. We can at last control our engines by ear. How they squeal and squeak and sob when they are in trouble! All those cries for help were wasted in the old days, when every sound was swallowed up by the monstrous racket of the machine.
beauty - la beauté, beauté
silencers - des silencieux, silencieux
control - contrôler, maîtrise, contrôle, commandes
by ear - a l'oreille
squeal - grincement, crissement, crier, hurler, crisser, dénoncer
squeak - grincement, crissement, craquement, craquer, crisser
sob - sanglot, fdp
those - ceux-ci, ces, celles-la, ceux-la
cries for help - des appels a l'aide
wasted - gaspillé, gaspiller
swallowed up - englouti
racket - racket, vacarme
If only the early aviators could come back to see the beauty and perfection of the mechanism which have been bought at the cost of their lives!
aviators - aviateurs, aviateur, aviatrice
perfection - la perfection, perfection
mechanism - mécanisme
"About nine-thirty I was nearing the clouds. Down below me, all blurred and shadowed with rain, lay the vast expanse of Salisbury Plain. Half a dozen flying machines were doing hackwork at the thousand-foot level, looking like little black swallows against the green background. I dare say they were wondering what I was doing up in cloud-land.
blurred - floue, estomper, brouiller, s'estomper, flou, tache, salissure
shadowed - ombragée, ombre, prendre en filature, t+filer
vast - vaste
flying machines - des machines volantes
hackwork - travail de bricoleur
swallows - hirondelles, avaler
background - arriere-plan, trame, fond
dare - oser, aventurer
wondering - se demander, (wonder), merveille, conjecturer
doing up - fais debout
Suddenly a grey curtain drew across beneath me and the wet folds of vapours were swirling round my face. It was clammily cold and miserable. But I was above the hail-storm, and that was something gained. The cloud was as dark and thick as a London fog. In my anxiety to get clear, I cocked her nose up until the automatic alarm-bell rang, and I actually began to slide backwards.
curtain - rideau
beneath - dessous
wet - humide, mouillé, mouiller, se mouiller
folds - plis, plier
vapours - des vapeurs, vapeur
swirling - tourbillonnant, tourbillonner, tourbillon, remous-p
clammily - gluant
miserable - misérable
hail - grele, charretée, greler
Gained - gagné, gagner
Fog - le brouillard, masquer, brume, brouillard
anxiety - l'anxiété, anxiété, inquiétude, angoisse
clear - clair, transparent, libre, dégagé, sans ambiguité, s'éclaircir
cocked - armé, oiseau mâle, coq
automatic - automatique, semi-automatique
alarm-bell - (alarm-bell) Un signal d'alarme
actually - en fait, effectivement
slide - glisser, déraper, toboggan, glissoire, glissement
backwards - a l'envers, arriéré, en arriere, a reculons
My sopped and dripping wings had made me heavier than I thought, but presently I was in lighter cloud, and soon had cleared the first layer. There was a second-opal-coloured and fleecy-at a great height above my head, a white, unbroken ceiling above, and a dark, unbroken floor below, with the monoplane labouring upwards upon a vast spiral between them. It is deadly lonely in these cloud-spaces.
dripping - goutte a goutte, dégoulinade
heavier - plus lourd, lourd
cleared - autorisé, clair, transparent, libre, dégagé
layer - couche, (lay) couche
opal - opale
fleecy - molletonné
unbroken - ininterrompue
ceiling - plafond, (ceil) plafond
labouring - le travail, effort, travail, labeur, besogne, travailleurs-p
deadly - mortelle, mortel, fatal, létal
lonely - solitaire, seul, désert, abandonné
Once a great flight of some small water-birds went past me, flying very fast to the westwards. The quick whir of their wings and their musical cry were cheery to my ear. I fancy that they were teal, but I am a wretched zoologist. Now that we humans have become birds we must really learn to know our brethren by sight.
whir - whir
musical - musical, musicale, musicien, musicienne, comédie musicale
cry - pleurer, crier, hurler, gueuler, pleur, cri
cheery - heureuse
fancy - fantaisie, imaginer, songer
teal - sarcelle, bleu sarcelle, bleu canard
wretched - misérable
zoologist - zoologiste, zoologue
humans - humains, humain
brethren - freres
by sight - a vue
"The wind down beneath me whirled and swayed the broad cloud-plain. Once a great eddy formed in it, a whirlpool of vapour, and through it, as down a funnel, I caught sight of the distant world. A large white biplane was passing at a vast depth beneath me. I fancy it was the morning mail service betwixt Bristol and London. Then the drift swirled inwards again and the great solitude was unbroken.
whirled - tourbillonné, tourbillonner
swayed - balancés, autorité, poids, influence, prépondérance, balancer
broad - large
eddy - eddy, tourbillon
whirlpool - whirlpool, tourbillon
vapour - vapeur, fumées
funnel - entonnoir
distant - distante, distant, lointain, éloigné
passing - en passant, passager, éminent, rapide, extremement
depth - profondeur, épaisseur
mail - courrier, postal
service - service, messe
betwixt - entre les deux, entre
Bristol - bristol
drift - dérive, dériver, errer, dévier
swirled - tourbillonné, tourbillonner, tourbillon, remous-p
inwards - vers l'intérieur, intérieur
solitude - la solitude, solitude
"Just after ten I touched the lower edge of the upper cloud-stratum. It consisted of fine diaphanous vapour drifting swiftly from the westwards. The wind had been steadily rising all this time and it was now blowing a sharp breeze-twenty-eight an hour by my gauge. Already it was very cold, though my altimeter only marked nine thousand.
touched - touché, toucher, émouvoir, contact
edge - bord, côté, arete, carre
stratum - couche, strate, stratum, classe
consisted - consisté, consister (en)
diaphanous - diaphane
drifting - a la dérive, dérive, dériver, errer, dévier
blowing - souffler, coup
sharp - pointu, affilé, coupant, affuté, tranchant
breeze - brise
gauge - jauge, gabarit, étalon, mesurer, estimer, jauger
marked - marqué, Marc
The engines were working beautifully, and we went droning steadily upwards.
beautifully - magnifique
droning - bourdonnement, faux-bourdon
The cloud-bank was thicker than I had expected, but at last it thinned out into a golden mist before me, and then in an instant I had shot out from it, and there was an unclouded sky and a brilliant sun above my head-all blue and gold above, all shining silver below, one vast, glimmering plain as far as my eyes could reach.
thicker - plus épais, épais, gros, dense
mist - brouillard, brume
sky - ciel, nue
brilliant - brillante, brillant, perle
gold - l'or, or
shining - brillant, briller, éclairer
silver - l'argent, argent
glimmering - scintillant, (glimmer), lueur, émettre une lueur
reach - atteindre, parviens, allonge, parvenir, préhension
It was a quarter past ten o'clock, and the barograph needle pointed to twelve thousand eight hundred. Up I went and up, my ears concentrated upon the deep purring of my motor, my eyes busy always with the watch, the revolution indicator, the petrol lever, and the oil pump. No wonder aviators are said to be a fearless race. With so many things to think of there is no time to trouble about oneself.
barograph - barographe
needle - aiguille, saphir, coudre, taquiner, monter
concentrated - concentré, concentrer
purring - ronronner, (pur) ronronner
motor - moteur
revolution - révolution, coup d'état, tour
indicator - indicateur, aiguille, clignotant, signofile
petrol - l'essence, essence
oil pump - la pompe a huile
wonder - merveille, se demander, conjecturer
fearless - sans peur, courageux, brave, intrépide
race - course, race
oneself - soi-meme, soi-meme
About this time I noted how unreliable is the compass when above a certain height from earth. At fifteen thousand feet mine was pointing east and a point south. The sun and the wind gave me my true bearings.
unreliable - pas fiable, non-fiable
compass - boussole, compas
Certain - certain, quelconque
earth - terre, terrier, relier a la terre, tmettre a la terre, enterrer
"I had hoped to reach an eternal stillness in these high altitudes, but with every thousand feet of ascent the gale grew stronger. My machine groaned and trembled in every joint and rivet as she faced it, and swept away like a sheet of paper when I banked her on the turn, skimming down wind at a greater pace, perhaps, than ever mortal man has moved.
eternal - éternelle, éternel
stillness - l'immobilité, calme, immobilité
altitudes - altitudes, altitude, hauteur
gale - coup de vent, tempete
groaned - gémi, râle, râlement, gémissement, grognement, grondement
trembled - tremblait, trembler, vibrer, tremblement, vibration
joint - conjoint, commun, articulation, rotule, jointure, assemblage
Rivet - rivet, riveter
swept away - balayé
sheet - feuille, plaque, écoute
skimming - écrémage, écrémant, (skim), dépasser doucement, effleurer
pace - rythme, pas
mortal - mortel, mortelle
Yet I had always to turn again and tack up in the wind's eye, for it was not merely a height record that I was after. By all my calculations it was above little Wiltshire that my air-jungle lay, and all my labour might be lost if I struck the outer layers at some farther point.
tack - tack, punaise
merely - simplement, uniquement, seulement
calculations - calculs, calcul
labour - le travail, effort, travail, labeur, besogne, travailleurs
be lost - etre perdue
struck - frappé, biffer, rayer, barrer, frapper, battre
"When I reached the nineteen-thousand-foot level, which was about midday, the wind was so severe that I looked with some anxiety to the stays of my wings, expecting momentarily to see them snap or slacken. I even cast loose the parachute behind me, and fastened its hook into the ring of my leathern belt, so as to be ready for the worst.
midday - midi, (de) midi
severe - sévere, grave, sévere
momentarily - momentanément
snap - snap, claquer, claquement de doigts, photographie, photo
cast - casting, jeter, diriger, lancer, additionner, sommer, muer
parachute - parachute, rench: t-needed r
fastened - fixé, attacher, fixer
hook into - se brancher
ring - anneau, cerne, ring, tinter
leathern - leathern
belt - ceinture, courroie, région
Now was the time when a bit of scamped work by the mechanic is paid for by the life of the aeronaut. But she held together bravely. Every cord and strut was humming and vibrating like so many harp-strings, but it was glorious to see how, for all the beating and the buffeting, she was still the conqueror of Nature and the mistress of the sky.
held together - Tenir ensemble
bravely - courageusement, bravement
cord - corde, cordon
strut - jambe de force, se pavaner
humming - fredonner, (hum), bourdonner, fourmiller
vibrating - vibrant, vibrer
harp - harpe
strings - cordes, corde, suite, série, chaîne de caracteres
glorious - glorieux, splendide
beating - battre, battage, battement, (beat) battre
Conqueror - conquérant, conquérante
nature - nature
Mistress - madame, maîtresse, amante
There is surely something divine in man himself that he should rise so superior to the limitations which Creation seemed to impose-rise, too, by such unselfish, heroic devotion as this air-conquest has shown. Talk of human degeneration! When has such a story as this been written in the annals of our race?
surely - surement, surement, assurément
divine - divine, divin
superior - supérieur
limitations - limitations, limitation
creation - création
seemed - semblait, sembler, paraître, avoir l'air
impose - imposer
such - tel, tellement, ainsi
unselfish - désintéressé
heroic - héroique, héroique
devotion - la dévotion, dévouement, dévotion
conquest - conquete, conquete
degeneration - dégénérescence, dégénération
"These were the thoughts in my head as I climbed that monstrous, inclined plane with the wind sometimes beating in my face and sometimes whistling behind my ears, while the cloud-land beneath me fell away to such a distance that the folds and hummocks of silver had all smoothed out into one flat, shining plain. But suddenly I had a horrible and unprecedented experience.
whistling - siffler, (whistle), sifflet, sifflement, sifflements
distance - distance, éloigner, checks'éloigner
smoothed - lissé, lisse, doux, facile, sophistiqué, naturel, souple
shining - brillant, tibia
unprecedented - sans précédent
Experience - expérience, éprouver, vivre
I have known before what it is to be in what our neighbours have called a tourbillon, but never on such a scale as this. That huge, sweeping river of wind of which I have spoken had, as it appears, whirlpools within it which were as monstrous as itself. Without a moment's warning I was dragged suddenly into the heart of one.
tourbillon - tourbillon
scale - échelle, escaladez, escalader, escaladent, gravir, bareme
huge - énorme
sweeping - balayage, a l'emporteiece, radical, complet
whirlpools - tourbillons, tourbillon
within - a l'intérieur, dedans, avant, d'ici
warning - l'avertissement, avertissement, attention, (warn), avertir
dragged - traîné, tirer, entraîner
I spun round for a minute or two with such velocity that I almost lost my senses, and then fell suddenly, left wing foremost, down the vacuum funnel in the centre. I dropped like a stone, and lost nearly a thousand feet. It was only my belt that kept me in my seat, and the shock and breathlessness left me hanging half-insensible over the side of the fuselage.
spun round - tourner en rond
velocity - la vélocité, vecteur vitesse, vélocité, fréquence
senses - sens, acception, sentir
Wing - aile, ailier, improviser
foremost - avant tout
vacuum - vide, vacuum, passer l'aspirateur
dropped - a déposé, goutte
stone - pierre, roche, caillou, roc
nearly - presque
shock - choc, choquons, offusquer, choquez, choquer, secouer
breathlessness - l'essoufflement, essoufflement, haletement
hanging - suspension, (hang) suspension
insensible - insensible
But I am always capable of a supreme effort-it is my one great merit as an aviator. I was conscious that the descent was slower. The whirlpool was a cone rather than a funnel, and I had come to the apex. With a terrific wrench, throwing my weight all to one side, I levelled my planes and brought her head away from the wind. In an instant I had shot out of the eddies and was skimming down the sky.
capable - capable
supreme - supreme, supreme
effort - l'effort, effort
merit - mérite, mériter
aviator - aviateur, aviatrice
conscious - conscient
descent - descente, origine, ascendance
cone - surface conique, cône, pomme de pin, pive
apex - apex, sommet, apogée
terrific - formidable, fantastique
wrench - clé a molette, déménager, clef, clé
throwing - jetant, (throw) jetant
weight - poids, lest, graisse, alourdir, lester, appesantir
levelled - nivelé, plat, a ras, au meme niveau, constant, niveau
eddies - tourbillons, tourbillon
Then, shaken but victorious, I turned her nose up and began once more my steady grind on the upward spiral. I took a large sweep to avoid the danger-spot of the whirlpool, and soon I was safely above it. Just after one o'clock I was twenty-one thousand feet above the sea-level. To my great joy I had topped the gale, and with every hundred feet of ascent the air grew stiller.
shaken - secoué, secouer, agiter
victorious - victorieux
steady - stable, lisse, régulier
grind - broyage, crisser, moudre
upward - a la hausse
sweep - balayer, balayage
spot - spot, tache, bouton, peu, endroit, zone, détecter, trouver
safely - prudemment, en toute sécurité
sea-level - (sea-level) le niveau de la mer
joy - joie
topped - étetée, dessus, sommet, couvercle, hune, premiere demi-manche
On the other hand, it was very cold, and I was conscious of that peculiar nausea which goes with rarefaction of the air. For the first time I unscrewed the mouth of my oxygen bag and took an occasional whiff of the glorious gas. I could feel it running like a cordial through my veins, and I was exhilarated almost to the point of drunkenness.
peculiar - particulier, extraordinaire, bizarre, curieux
nausea - des nausées, nausée, dégout
rarefaction - raréfaction, dilution
unscrewed - dévissé, dévisser
occasional - occasionnel
whiff - whiff, souffle, bouffée, effluve
cordial - cordial, sirop
veins - veines, veine
drunkenness - l'ivresse, ébriété, ivresse
I shouted and sang as I soared upwards into the cold, still outer world.
shouted - crié, cri
soared - s'est envolée, planer, monter, s'élever
"It is very clear to me that the insensibility which came upon Glaisher, and in a lesser degree upon Coxwell, when, in 1862, they ascended in a balloon to the height of thirty thousand feet, was due to the extreme speed with which a perpendicular ascent is made.
insensibility - l'insensibilité
lesser - moins (de), inférieur (a)
degree - diplôme, degré, ordre
ascended - ascensionné, monter
balloon - ballon, ballon de baudruche, ballon en baudruche
due - due, du
extreme - extreme, extreme, excessif, excessive
perpendicular - perpendiculaire, fil a plomb
Doing it at an easy gradient and accustoming oneself to the lessened barometric pressure by slow degrees, there are no such dreadful symptoms. At the same great height I found that even without my oxygen inhaler I could breathe without undue distress. It was bitterly cold, however, and my thermometer was at zero, Fahrenheit.
gradient - pente, gradient, dégradé
accustoming - l'accoutumance, accoutumer
lessened - diminuée, amoindrir, atténuer, diminuer, réduire
barometric - barométrique
degrees - degrés, diplôme, degré, ordre
dreadful - épouvantable, redoutable, affreux, terrible
symptoms - des symptômes, symptôme
inhaler - inhalateur
breathe - respirer, inspirer, expirer, reprendre son souffle
distress - la détresse, détresse
bitterly - amerement, amerement
thermometer - thermometre, thermometre
Fahrenheit - Fahrenheit
At one-thirty I was nearly seven miles above the surface of the earth, and still ascending steadily. I found, however, that the rarefied air was giving markedly less support to my planes, and that my angle of ascent had to be considerably lowered in consequence. It was already clear that even with my light weight and strong engine-power there was a point in front of me where I should be held.
surface - surface, faire surface
ascending - ascendante, monter
markedly - de façon marquée, nettement
support - soutien, soutenez, appuyez, appuyons, appuyent, soutiens
Considerably - considérablement, largement
lowered - abaissé, (s')assombrir
consequence - conséquence
held - détenus, (main)tenir
To make matters worse, one of my sparking-plugs was in trouble again and there was intermittent misfiring in the engine. My heart was heavy with the fear of failure.
matters - questions, matiere, affaire, question, cause
sparking - des étincelles, étincelle
plugs - bouchons, fiche, bouchon, boucher, fermer, bourrer
misfiring - des ratés, s'enrayer, caler
heavy - lourd, emporté
fear - peur, angoisse, craignent, crainte, crains, craignons
failure - l'échec, échec, daube, flop, panne
"It was about that time that I had a most extraordinary experience. Something whizzed past me in a trail of smoke and exploded with a loud, hissing sound, sending forth a cloud of steam. For the instant I could not imagine what had happened.
whizzed - sifflé, passer en sifflant
trail of smoke - une traînée de fumée
exploded - explosé, exploser, détoner, sauter
loud - bruyante, fort
forth - avant, en avant
steam - de la vapeur
Then I remembered that the earth is for ever being bombarded by meteor stones, and would be hardly inhabitable were they not in nearly every case turned to vapour in the outer layers of the atmosphere. Here is a new danger for the high-altitude man, for two others passed me when I was nearing the forty-thousand-foot mark.
for ever - pour toujours
bombarded - bombardé, bombarder
meteor - météorite, météore
stones - des pierres, pierre, t+roche, t+caillou, t+roc
inhabitable - habitable
mark - marque, Marc
I cannot doubt that at the edge of the earth's envelope the risk would be a very real one.
envelope - enveloppe
Risk - risque
"My barograph needle marked forty-one thousand three hundred when I became aware that I could go no farther. Physically, the strain was not as yet greater than I could bear but my machine had reached its limit. The attenuated air gave no firm support to the wings, and the least tilt developed into side-slip, while she seemed sluggish on her controls.
physically - physiquement
strain - souche, accablement
as yet - a ce jour
bear - ours, endurer, naîs, produire, souffrir, subir
limit - limite, circonscrivez, limitons, circonscrivons, limitez
firm - ferme, social, robuste, maison de commerce, solide
tilt - tilisation, basculer, rendement maximum, pencher
developed - développé, se développer, développer
slip - glisser, fiche, lapsus, patiner
sluggish - léthargique, poussif, faiblard, rétamé
controls - des contrôles, contrôler, maîtrise, contrôle, commandes-p
Possibly, had the engine been at its best, another thousand feet might have been within our capacity, but it was still misfiring, and two out of the ten cylinders appeared to be out of action. If I had not already reached the zone for which I was searching then I should never see it upon this journey. But was it not possible that I had attained it?
Possibly - peut-etre, possiblement, peut-etre
capacity - capacité
appeared - est apparu, apparaître, paraître, sembler
searching - a la recherche, recherche, chercher, fouiller
attained - atteint, atteindre
Soaring in circles like a monstrous hawk upon the forty-thousand-foot level I let the monoplane guide herself, and with my Mannheim glass I made a careful observation of my surroundings. The heavens were perfectly clear; there was no indication of those dangers which I had imagined.
soaring - l'envol, (soar), planer, monter, s'élever, grimper en fleche
circles - cercles, cercle, disque, yeux cernés-p, cerne
hawk - faucon, autour
Guide - guide, conduire, guider, guident, diriger, guidez, mener
careful - prudent, soigneux, attentif
observation - observation, remarque
heavens - les cieux, ciel, paradis, au-dela, cieux-p
perfectly - parfaitement
indication - indication
dangers - dangers, danger, péril, qualifier
"I have said that I was soaring in circles. It struck me suddenly that I would do well to take a wider sweep and open up a new airtract. If the hunter entered an earth-jungle he would drive through it if he wished to find his game. My reasoning had led me to believe that the air-jungle which I had imagined lay somewhere over Wiltshire. This should be to the south and west of me.
wider - plus large, large
Hunter - hunter, chasseur, chien de chasse, cheval de chasse, chercheur
entered - a pénétré, entrer, rench: -neededr, taper, saisir
wished - souhaité, souhait, souhaiter, espérer
somewhere - quelque part
I took my bearings from the sun, for the compass was hopeless and no trace of earth was to be seen-nothing but the distant, silver cloud-plain. However, I got my direction as best I might and kept her head straight to the mark.
hopeless - sans espoir, désespéré
trace - trace, projection horizontale, décalquer
direction - direction
straight - droit, rectiligne, comme il faut, pur, pure, hétéro, tout droit
I reckoned that my petrol supply would not last for more than another hour or so, but I could afford to use it to the last drop, since a single magnificent vol-plane could at any time take me to the earth.
reckoned - a calculé, considérer
supply - l'approvisionnement, livraison, fournir, pourvoir, provision
afford - se permettre, offrir
drop - chute, goutte, tomber
Since - depuis lors, depuis, depuis que, puisque, vu que
single - seul, célibataire f, célibataire, simple
magnificent - magnifique
"Suddenly I was aware of something new. The air in front of me had lost its crystal clearness. It was full of long, ragged wisps of something which I can only compare to very fine cigarette smoke. It hung about in wreaths and coils, turning and twisting slowly in the sunlight.
crystal - cristal, de cristal, en cristal
clearness - clarté
wisps - des feux follets, brin, fétu, touffe
cigarette smoke - la fumée de cigarette
hung about - traîner
wreaths - couronnes, couronne, guirlande, tortil
Coils - bobines, enrouler
twisting - torsion, (twist), twist, entortiller, tordre
sunlight - la lumiere du soleil, lumiere du soleil
As the monoplane shot through it, I was aware of a faint taste of oil upon my lips, and there was a greasy scum upon the woodwork of the machine. Some infinitely fine organic matter appeared to be suspended in the atmosphere. There was no life there. It was inchoate and diffuse, extending for many square acres and then fringing off into the void. No, it was not life.
shot through - tiré a travers
faint - évanouissement, s'évanouir, défailles, défaillez, défaillir
taste - gout, gout, saveur, avant-gout, gouter, avoir un gout
oil - huile
lips - levres, levre
scum - racaille, écume, couche, mousse, crasse, ordure
woodwork - le travail du bois, charpenterie, checkmenuiserie
infinitely - a l'infini
organic - organique, bio, biologique
suspended - suspendue, suspendre
inchoate - inchoatif, embryonnaire
diffuse - diffuse, répandre, répandez, répandent, répandons, répands
extending - s'étendant, étendre, prolonger
square - carré, équerre, place, case, carreau, rench: perpendiculaire a
acres - acres, acre
fringing - des franges, frange, périphérie, radicaux
void - vide, vacuum
But might it not be the remains of life? Above all, might it not be the food of life, of monstrous life, even as the humble grease of the ocean is the food for the mighty whale? The thought was in my mind when my eyes looked upwards and I saw the most wonderful vision that ever man has seen. Can I hope to convey it to you even as I saw it myself last Thursday?
remains - reste, rester, demeurer
humble - humble
Ocean - l'océan, océan
mighty - puissant
whale - baleine
most wonderful - le plus merveilleux
vision - vision, vue, aspiration, apparition
convey - transmettre, transporter, véhiculer, communiquer
"Conceive a jelly-fish such as sails in our summer seas, bell-shaped and of enormous size-far larger, I should judge, than the dome of St. Paul's. It was of a light pink colour veined with a delicate green, but the whole huge fabric so tenuous that it was but a fairy outline against the dark blue sky. It pulsated with a delicate and regular rhythm.
conceive - concevoir, tomber enceinte
jelly - gelée
sails - voiles, voile
bell - cloche, sonnette
shaped - en forme, forme
size - taille, ampleur, pointure
judge - juge, juger
dome - dôme
veined - veiné, veine
delicate - délicate, délicat, délicat (1, 2)
fabric - structure, tissu, textile
tenuous - ténu
fairy - fée, tapette, folle
outline - les grandes lignes, contour, silhouette, esquisse, aperçu
dark blue - bleu foncé
regular - réguliere, régulier, habitué, habituée, habitués, habituées
rhythm - rythme
From it there depended two long, drooping, green tentacles, which swayed slowly backwards and forwards. This gorgeous vision passed gently with noiseless dignity over my head, as light and fragile as a soap-bubble, and drifted upon its stately way.
depended - dépendait, dépendre, pendre
drooping - en train de tomber, tomber, s'affaisser, bec
tentacles - des tentacules, tentacule, pieuvre
forwards - pour l'avancement, en avant
gorgeous - magnifique
noiseless - sans bruit, silencieux
dignity - dignité, forme, rang
fragile - fragile
soap-bubble - (soap-bubble) bulle de savon
drifted - a la dérive, dérive, dériver, errer, dévier
stately - majestueux, imposant
"I had half-turned my monoplane, that I might look after this beautiful creature, when, in a moment, I found myself amidst a perfect fleet of them, of all sizes, but none so large as the first. Some were quite small, but the majority about as big as an average balloon, and with much the same curvature at the top.
look after - s'occuper
creature - créature, etre
amidst - au milieu
Fleet - la flotte, flotte
sizes - tailles, taille, dimension(s)
majority - majorité
average - moyenne
curvature - la courbure, courbure
top - haut, dessus, sommet, couvercle, hune, premiere demi-manche
There was in them a delicacy of texture and colouring which reminded me of the finest Venetian glass. Pale shades of pink and green were the prevailing tints, but all had a lovely iridescence where the sun shimmered through their dainty forms.
delicacy - délicatesse, gourmandise
texture - texture
reminded - rappelée, rappeler
pale - pâle, hâve
shades - nuances, alose
prevailing - prévalant, dominer, prévaloir, l'emporter, prédominer
tints - teintes, nuance, teinte
lovely - charmant, beau, cher, irritant, amene, délicieux
iridescence - iridescence
shimmered - chatoyante, miroiter
dainty - délicate, délicat, mignon
Some hundreds of them drifted past me, a wonderful fairy squadron of strange unknown argosies of the sky-creatures whose forms and substance were so attuned to these pure heights that one could not conceive anything so delicate within actual sight or sound of earth.
squadron - escadron, escadre
strange - étrange, anormal, inconnu, étranger
creatures - créatures, créature, etre
whose - a qui, de qui, dont, duquel (de + lequel), duquel
substance - substance, fond, biens
attuned - en phase, accorder
pure - pure, pur, pudique
actual - réel, effectif, checkeffectif, checkprésent
"But soon my attention was drawn to a new phenomenon-the serpents of the outer air. These were long, thin, fantastic coils of vapour-like material, which turned and twisted with great speed, flying round and round at such a pace that the eyes could hardly follow them.
attention - attention, attentions, garde a vous
phenomenon - phénomene, phénomene
serpents - des serpents, serpent
outer air - l'air extérieur
material - matériel, matériau, matiere, étoffe, tissu
twisted - tordu, twist, torsion, entortiller, tordre
flying round - Voler autour
Some of these ghost-like creatures were twenty or thirty feet long, but it was difficult to tell their girth, for their outline was so hazy that it seemed to fade away into the air around them. These air-snakes were of a very light grey or smoke colour, with some darker lines within, which gave the impression of a definite organism.
ghost - fantôme, spectre, esprit, revenant
girth - la circonférence, circonférence, maille
hazy - brumeux, flou, trouble, vague
fade away - s'éteindre
smoke - la fumée, fumons, griller, fumer, fument, fumée, fumez
definite - définitif
One of them whisked past my very face, and I was conscious of a cold, clammy contact, but their composition was so unsubstantial that I could not connect them with any thought of physical danger, any more than the beautiful bell-like creatures which had preceded them. There was no more solidity in their frames than in the floating spume from a broken wave.
whisked - au fouet, aller a toute allure, emmener immédiatement
clammy - moite
contact - contact, lentille, connaissance, toucher, contacter
composition - composition, ouvre
unsubstantial - non substantielle
connect - se connecter, accoupler, connecter, brancher
physical - physique, physiologique, visite médicale, check-up
preceded - précédé, précéder
solidity - solidité
frames - cadres, encadrer, cadre, armature, ossature
floating - flottant, (float), flotter, flotteur, taloche, char
spume - spume
wave - vague, brandir, onde, flottge
"But a more terrible experience was in store for me. Floating downwards from a great height there came a purplish patch of vapour, small as I saw it first, but rapidly enlarging as it approached me, until it appeared to be hundreds of square feet in size.
more terrible - plus terrible
in store - en magasin
purplish - violâtre, violacé
patch - patch, rapiécer
rapidly - rapidement
enlarging - l'élargissement, agrandir, élargir, accroître
approached - approché, (s')approcher (de)
Though fashioned of some transparent, jelly-like substance, it was none the less of much more definite outline and solid consistence than anything which I had seen before.
fashioned - a la mode, mode, vogue, façon, façonner
solid - solide, massif, plein, continu
consistence - consistance, cohérence
There were more traces, too, of a physical organization, especially two vast, shadowy, circular plates upon either side, which may have been eyes, and a perfectly solid white projection between them which was as curved and cruel as the beak of a vulture.
traces - des traces, trace
organization - l'organisation, organisation
especially - spécialement, particulierement, surtout, en particulier
shadowy - ombrageux, sombre
circular - circulaire, rond
plates - plaques, assiette
projection - saillie, projection
cruel - cruel
beak - bec
vulture - vautour, carencro, charognard
"The whole aspect of this monster was formidable and threatening, and it kept changing its colour from a very light mauve to a dark, angry purple so thick that it cast a shadow as it drifted between my monoplane and the sun.
aspect - aspect, rench: t-needed r
monster - monstre, bete, monstrueux
formidable - formidable
threatening - menaçante, menaçant, (threaten), menacer
mauve - mauve
shadow - l'ombre, ombre, prendre en filature, filer
On the upper curve of its huge body there were three great projections which I can only describe as enormous bubbles, and I was convinced as I looked at them that they were charged with some extremely light gas which served to buoy up the misshapen and semi-solid mass in the rarefied air.
curve - courbe, courbes, courber
projections - des projections, saillie, projection
bubbles - bulles, bulle, trou, vent, ambiance, bouillonner
Convinced - convaincu, convaincre, persuader
charged - chargé, frais-p, charge, chef d’accusation, chef d’inculpation
extremely - extremement, extremement, vachement
served - servi, service, servir, signifier, purger
buoy - bouée, flotteur, balise, surnager
semi - semi
mass - masse, foule, amas
The creature moved swiftly along, keeping pace easily with the monoplane, and for twenty miles or more it formed my horrible escort, hovering over me like a bird of prey which is waiting to pounce. Its method of progression-done so swiftly that it was not easy to follow-was to throw out a long, glutinous streamer in front of it, which in turn seemed to draw forward the rest of the writhing body.
escort - escorte, escorter
hovering - en vol stationnaire, éventiller, faire du sur-place, hésiter
bird of prey - un oiseau de proie
pounce - bondir
method - méthode, modalité
progression - progression
throw out - jeter
glutinous - glutineux
streamer - streamer, fanion
rest - se reposer, reposent, reposez, reposons, se, reposer, débris
So elastic and gelatinous was it that never for two successive minutes was it the same shape, and yet each change made it more threatening and loathsome than the last.
elastic - élastique
gelatinous - gélatineux
shape - forme
more threatening - plus menaçante
loathsome - détestable, odieux, dégoutant
"I knew that it meant mischief. Every purple flush of its hideous body told me so. The vague, goggling eyes which were turned always upon me were cold and merciless in their viscid hatred. I dipped the nose of my monoplane downwards to escape it.
mischief - méfaits, espieglerie, betise, polissonnerie, méfait
flush - la chasse d'eau, vidanger, rougeur
hideous - hideux, strident, atroce, répugnant
vague - vague
merciless - sans pitié
viscid - visqueux
hatred - la haine, haine
dipped - trempé, tremper
escape - échapper, s'échapper, éviter, échapper (a quelqu'un), évasion
As I did so, as quick as a flash there shot out a long tentacle from this mass of floating blubber, and it fell as light and sinuous as a whip-lash across the front of my machine. There was a loud hiss as it lay for a moment across the hot engine, and it whisked itself into the air again, while the huge, flat body drew itself together as if in sudden pain.
flash - flash, clignoter
tentacle - tentacule, pieuvre
blubber - de la graisse, lard, lard de mammifere marin, chialer
sinuous - sinueux
whip - fouet, whip, fouetter, flageller, défaire, battre
hiss - sifflement, siffler
pain - douleur, mal, diuleur
I dipped to a vol-pique, but again a tentacle fell over the monoplane and was shorn off by the propeller as easily as it might have cut through a smoke wreath. A long, gliding, sticky, serpent-like coil came from behind and caught me round the waist, dragging me out of the fuselage.
pique - pique, dépit
Shorn - tondus, (shear), couper, tondre, cisailler, cisailles, cisaille
propeller - hélice
cut through - couper a travers
wreath - couronne, guirlande, tortil
gliding - le vol a voile, vol a voile, (glide), glisser, planer
sticky - collant, gluant
serpent - serpent
coil - bobine, spirale
waist - taille, ceinture
dragging - traînant, tirer, entraîner
I tore at it, my fingers sinking into the smooth, glue-like surface, and for an instant I disengaged myself, but only to be caught round the boot by another coil, which gave me a jerk that tilted me almost on to my back.
tore - a la déchirure
fingers - doigts, pointer, tripoter, doigter
sinking - en train de couler, naufrage, (sink), couler, s'enfoncer
smooth - lisse, doux, facile, sophistiqué, naturel, souple, régulier
glue - colle, coller
disengaged - désengagé, désengager
be caught - etre attrapé
jerk - con, par secousse, soubresaut
tilted - incliné, pencher
"As I fell over I blazed off both barrels of my gun, though, indeed, it was like attacking an elephant with a pea-shooter to imagine that any human weapon could cripple that mighty bulk. And yet I aimed better than I knew, for, with a loud report, one of the great blisters upon the creature's back exploded with the puncture of the buck-shot.
blazed - brulé, feu, embrasement
barrels - tonneaux, tonneau, barrique, baril, canon, barillet, embariller
indeed - certainement, vraiment, en effet, bien sur, certes
attacking - attaquant, attaque, attaquer, apostropher
pea - pois
Shooter - tireur, tireuse, flingue, jeu de fusillade
weapon - arme
cripple - estropié, infirme, estropier, bridé
bulk - en vrac, grosseur, gros, ensemble, vrac
aimed - visé, viser, pointer
blisters - des ampoules, ampoule, cloque, boursouflure, phlyctene
puncture - crevaison, piqure, perforation, perforer
It was very clear that my conjecture was right, and that these vast, clear bladders were distended with some lifting gas, for in an instant the huge, cloud-like body turned sideways, writhing desperately to find its balance, while the white beak snapped and gaped in horrible fury.
conjecture - conjecture, conjecturer
bladders - vessies, vésicule, vessie, cubi
distended - distendu, distendre
lifting - de levage, soulever
desperately - désespérément
balance - l'équilibre, contrepoids, équilibre, solde, balancier, apurer
snapped - cassé, claquer, claquement de doigts, photographie, photo
gaped - béante, espace, vide, trou
But already I had shot away on the steepest glide that I dared to attempt, my engine still full on, the flying propeller and the force of gravity shooting me downwards like an aerolite. Far behind me I saw a dull, purplish smudge growing swiftly smaller and merging into the blue sky behind it. I was safe out of the deadly jungle of the outer air.
steepest - le plus raide, escarpé, raide
glide - glisser, planer
dared - osé, oser
attempt - tenter, essayer, tentative, attentat
force of gravity - la force de gravité
shooting - le tir, tir, fusillade, (shoot) le tir
aerolite - aérolite, aérolithe
dull - émoussé, ennuyeux, barbant, mat, terne, sot, obtus
smudge - salissure, salir, souillure
merging - fusionner, (merge), amalgamer
safe - sur, en sécurité, o longer in danger, sans danger, sur, sauf
"Once out of danger I throttled my engine, for nothing tears a machine to pieces quicker than running on full power from a height. It was a glorious, spiral vol-plane from nearly eight miles of altitude-first, to the level of the silver cloud-bank, then to that of the storm-cloud beneath it, and finally, in beating rain, to the surface of the earth.
out of danger - hors de danger
throttled - étranglé, accélérateur, arrivée de gaz
Tears - des larmes, larme
full power - a pleine puissance
I saw the Bristol Channel beneath me as I broke from the clouds, but, having still some petrol in my tank, I got twenty miles inland before I found myself stranded in a field half a mile from the village of Ashcombe.
Channel - canal, tube, tuyau
tank - réservoir, tank, cuirass, char
stranded - en panne, etre échoué
There I got three tins of petrol from a passing motor-car, and at ten minutes past six that evening I alighted gently in my own home meadow at Devizes, after such a journey as no mortal upon earth has ever yet taken and lived to tell the tale. I have seen the beauty and I have seen the horror of the heights-and greater beauty or greater horror than that is not within the ken of man.
tins - boîtes de conserve, étain, conserve, boîte de conserve, moule
motor-car - (motor-car) voiture
alighted - descendus, descendre (de)
meadow - prairie, pré
ken - ken
Tale - conte, récit
"And now it is my plan to go once again before I give my results to the world. My reason for this is that I must surely have something to show by way of proof before I lay such a tale before my fellow-men. It is true that others will soon follow and will confirm what I have said, and yet I should wish to carry conviction from the first.
Proof - la preuve, preuve, épreuve
fellow-men - (fellow-men) camarades
confirm - confirmer
wish - souhait, souhaiter, espérer
Those lovely iridescent bubbles of the air should not be hard to capture. They drift slowly upon their way, and the swift monoplane could intercept their leisurely course. It is likely enough that they would dissolve in the heavier layers of the atmosphere, and that some small heap of amorphous jelly might be all that I should bring to earth with me.
iridescent - iridescent
capture - capture, prisonnier, saisir, capturer, enregistrer, prendre
swift - rapide, martinet, dévidoir
intercept - intercepter
leisurely - tranquillement
Likely - probable
dissolve - se dissoudre, dissoudre, checkrompre, checkannuler
heap - tas, pile, monceau
amorphous - amorphe
And yet something there would surely be by which I could substantiate my story. Yes, I will go, even if I run a risk by doing so. These purple horrors would not seem to be numerous. It is probable that I shall not see one. If I do I shall dive at once. At the worst there is always the shot-gun and my knowledge of ..."
horrors - des horreurs, horreur, effroi, dégout, aversion
Seem - sembler, paraître, avoir l'air
numerous - nombreux
probable - probable
dive - plongée, plongeons, plongez, plonge, plongent, plonger
my knowledge - mes connaissances
Here a page of the manuscript is unfortunately missing. On the next page is written, in large, straggling writing:
unfortunately - malheureusement, malencontreusement
straggling - en retard, (straggle) en retard
"Forty-three thousand feet. I shall never see earth again. They are beneath me, three of them. God help me; it is a dreadful death to die!"
God - dieu, idolâtrer, déifier
Such in its entirety is the Joyce-Armstrong Statement. Of the man nothing has since been seen. Pieces of his shattered monoplane have been picked up in the preserves of Mr. Budd-Lushington upon the borders of Kent and Sussex, within a few miles of the spot where the note-book was discovered.
entirety - l'intégralité, entiereté
shattered - brisé, fracasser, réduire en miettes, mettre en pieces, briser
preserves - conserves, confiture, conserve, réserve naturelle
borders - frontieres, frontiere, bord, bordure, délimiter, border
If the unfortunate aviator's theory is correct that this air-jungle, as he called it, existed only over the south-west of England, then it would seem that he had fled from it at the full speed of his monoplane, but had been overtaken and devoured by these horrible creatures at some spot in the outer atmosphere above the place where the grim relics were found.
unfortunate - malheureux, infortuné, malencontreux
theory - théorie
existed - a existé, exister
fled - fui, s'enfuir, prendre la fuite, fuir, échapper
overtaken - dépassé, dépasser, doubler, surprendre
grim - sinistre
relics - des reliques, reliquat, relique
The picture of that monoplane skimming down the sky, with the nameless terrors flying as swiftly beneath it and cutting it off always from the earth while they gradually closed in upon their victim, is one upon which a man who valued his sanity would prefer not to dwell.
nameless - sans nom, innomé
terrors - terreurs, terreur, effroi, terrorisme
gradually - progressivement
victim - victime
valued - valorisée, valeur
sanity - la santé mentale, santé mentale
dwell - s'attarder, résider, s'appesantir sur
There are many, as I am aware, who still jeer at the facts which I have here set down, but even they must admit that Joyce-Armstrong has disappeared, and I would commend to them his own words: "This note-book may explain what I am trying to do, and how I lost my life in doing it. But no drivel about accidents or mysteries, if YOU please."
jeer - jeer, huer
set down - mettre en place
admit - admettre, avouer, reconnaître
disappeared - a disparu, disparaître
commend - féliciter, recommander
