had many happy hours planning something nice for him |had had – это не опечатка. Это опять же had и третья форма глагола have, которые значат, что на тот момент у нее было много счастья с Джимом|. Something nearly good enough. Something almost worth the honor of belonging to Jim |стоящее той чести|.
There was a looking-glass between the windows of the room. Perhaps you have seen the kind of looking-glass that is placed in $8 furnished rooms. It was very narrow. A person could see only a little of himself at a time |за раз|. However, if he was very thin and moved very quickly, he might be able to get a good view of himself. Della, being |будучи| quite thin, had mastered this art.
Suddenly she turned from the window and stood before the glass. Her eyes were shining brightly, but her face had lost its color. Quickly she pulled down her hair and let it fall to its complete length.
The James Dillingham Youngs |обычный для английского языка способ назвать семью по имени мужчины. Главное здесь – это поставить впереди артикль the, и фамилию во множественном числе| were very proud of two things which they owned. One thing was Jim’s gold watch. It had once belonged to his father. And, long ago, it had belonged to his father’s father. The other thing was Della’s hair.
If a queen had lived in the rooms near theirs, Della would have washed and dried her hair where the queen could see it |если б сама королева жила.., Делла бы мыла и сушила.., но это вряд ли осуществимо. Самый сложный вид условного предложения: если бы раньше было так, то теперь бы все было так. После if должно быть had и третья форма глагола, во второй части предложения: would или модальный глагол, потом have и третья форма глагола|. Della knew her hair was more beautiful than any queen’s jewels and gifts.
If a king had lived in the same house, with all his riches |со всеми его богатствами|, Jim would have looked at his watch every time they met. Jim knew that no king had anything so valuable.
So now Della’s beautiful hair fell about her, shining like a falling stream of brown water. It reached below her knee. It almost made itself into a dress for her |волосы у нее были такие густые и длинные, что окутывали ее как платье|.
And then she put it up on her head again, nervously and quickly. Once she stopped for a moment and stood still |замерла| while a tear or two ran down her face.
She put on her old brown coat. She put on her old brown hat. With the bright light still in her eyes, she moved quickly out the door and down to the street.
Where she stopped, the sign said: “Mrs. Sofronie. Hair Articles of all Kinds.”
Up to the second floor Della ran, and stopped to get her breath |…взбежала…перевести дух|.
Mrs. Sofronie, large, too white, cold-eyed, looked at her.
“Will you buy my hair?” asked Della.
“I buy hair,” said Mrs. Sofronie. “Take your hat off and let me look at it.”
Down fell the brown waterfall |О. Генри часто пользуется приемом инверсии – переставляет слова в предложении, так что оно получается не вполне стандартным для английского языка. Down fell the brown waterfall – это инверсия. Обычное предложение выглядело бы “the brown waterfall fell down”|.
“Twenty dollars,” said Mrs. Sofronie, lifting the hair to feel its weight.
“Give it to me quick,” said Della.
Oh, and the next two hours seemed to fly. She was going from one shop to another, to find a gift for Jim.
She found it at last |наконец-то|. It surely had been made for Jim and no one else |было сделано для Джима. И прошедший Perfect и пассив слились воедино|. There was no other like it in any of the shops, and she had looked in every shop in the city |конструкция had и третья форма глагола. Смысл этого в том, что Делла что-то делала до какого-то момента или на какой-то момент: она посмотрела во всех магазинах на тот момент|.
It was a gold watch chain, very simply made. Its value was in its rich and pure material. Because it was so plain and simple, you knew that it was very valuable. All good things are like this.
It was good enough for The Watch.
As soon as she saw it, she knew that Jim must have it. It was like him |это ему подходило. Буквально – это было его|. Quietness and value—Jim and the chain both had quietness and value. She paid twenty-one dollars for it. And she hurried home with the chain and eighty-seven cents.
With that chain on his watch, Jim could look at his watch and learn the time anywhere he might be. Though the watch was so fine, it had never had a fine chain |ранее никогда не было|. He sometimes took it out and looked at it only when no one could see him do it.
When Della arrived home, her mind quieted a little |она успокоилась|. She began to think more reasonably. She started to try to cover |скрыть| the sad marks of what she had done |что она делала до того момента – плакала|. Love and large-hearted giving |”большесердечное давание”, если буквально, но лучше просто “доброта”|, when added together, can leave deep marks. It is never easy to cover these marks, dear friends—never easy.
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