3 страница. Anna hearing his step, ran to the foot of the stairs to meet him

Anna... hearing his step, ran to the foot of the stairs to meet him. (Eliot) — Анна..., услышав его шаги, побежала вниз по лестнице встретить его.

Arriving there the visitor found everything that should be found at old manors. (Coppard) — Приехав туда, гость нашел все то, что обычно находят в старых поместьях. Entering her room that evening, Elf ride found a packet for herself on the dressing-table. (Hardy) — Войдя вечером в свою комнату, Элфрид нашла на туалетном столе свер­ток.

Seizing ink and writing paper, she began to write... (Galswor­thy) — Схватив чернила и бумагу, она начала писать. Turning slowly she went to her room. (Eliot) — Медленно по­вернувшись, она пошла в свою комнату.

If the action expressed by Participle 1 Indefinite Active is simul­taneous with the action expressed by the finite verb, the conjunction when or while is often used.

... it was possible for Urquhart, when making his toilet, to survey with pride an original willow pattern tea service. (Cronin) — Эк-харт мог, пока он одевался, с гордостью любоваться чайным сервизом с настоящим китайским рисунком. While waiting for the water to boil, he held his face over the stove. (London) — Дожидаясь, когда закипит вода, он накло­нился над печкой.

 

Note. Participle I Indefinite of the verb to be is not used as an adverbial modifier of time. Clauses of the type 'Когда он был ребенком', 'Когда он был в Ленинграде', may be translated When a boy, When he was a boy, When in Leningrad, When he was in Leningrad.

 

(b) of cause.

Being of a more slender figure than Mr. Jarndyce, and having a richer complexion, Mr. Skimpole looked younger. (Dickens) — Так как мистер Скимпоул был стройнее мистера Джарндайса и так как цвет лица у него был лучше, он выгля­дел моложе.

Having been a little in that line myself, I understood it (Shaw) — Так как я сам раньше некоторое время работал в этой области, я понимал это.

(c) of manner and attendant circumstances. In this function Parti-
ciple I Indefinite is mostly used.

She balanced herself on the curbstone and began to walk care­fully, setting heel to toe, heel to toe, and counting her steps.

(Heym) (ADVERBIAL MODIFIER OF MANNER) — Она встала на край тротуара и осторожно пошла вперед, переступая с пятки на кончики пальцев и считая свои шаги. Gwendolen was silent, again looking at her hands. (Elliot) (AD­VERBIAL MODIFIER OF ATTENDANT CIRCUMSTANCES) — Гвен-долен молчала, разглядывая свои руки.

It is not always easy to discriminate between an adverbial modifier of manner and an adverbial modifier of attendant circumstances.

He has been in three revolutions fighting on the barricades.

(Shaw) — Он принимал участие в трех революциях, сражаясь на баррикадах.

(d) of comparison. In this function Participle I is introduced by the
conjunction as if or as though.

This was said as if thinking aloud. (Gaskell) — Это было ска­зано так, как будто он думал вслух.

... he was still on his guard, as though waiting for a further question from me. (Du Maurier) — Он все еще был насторо­же, словно ожидая, что я задам ему еще один вопрос.

3. Participle I as a predicative.

In this function Participle I is used but seldom; it is usually rendered in Russian by an adjective.

The effect of her words was terrifying. — Впечатление, произ­веденное ее словами, было страшно. The whole damned day had been humiliating. (Priestley) — Весь этот ужасный день был унизительным.

4. Participle I as part of a complex object.

I saw that young man and his wife talking to you on the stairs.

(Galsworthy) — Я видел, как этот молодой человек и его жена разговаривали с вами на лестнице.

5. Participle I as part of a compound verbal predicate.

Presently other footsteps were heard crossing the room below. (Hardy) — Вскоре они услышали, что через комнату внизу прошел еще кто-то.

(For detailed treatment of Participle I as part of a complex object and part of a compound verbal predicate see § 10, 11.)

 

6. Participial phrase as parenthesis.

Here we always find a participial phrase; a single participle is not used in this function.

Generally speaking, I don't like boys. (Dickens) — Вообще говоря, я не люблю мальчиков.

Judging by appearances, Mr. Bowmore looked like a man prematurely wasted and worn by the cares of a troubled life. (Collins) — Судя по внешности, мистер Баумор был человек преждевременно состарившийся и измученный тяготами жизни.

 

§ 8. The functions of Participle II in the sentence. 1. Participle II as an attribute.

When used as an attribute Participle II of transitive verbs cor­responds to the Russian страдательное причастие or действительное причастие of some verbs ending in -ся, e. g. a broken chair (сломан­ный стул), a broken cup (разбитая чашка), a newspaper published in Moscow (газета, издаваемая в Москве), the problem discussed at the meeting (вопрос, обсуждавшийся на собрании).

Participle II, as well as Participle I, can be used in pre-position (without any accompanying words) and in post-position (with one or more accompanying words).

He answered through the locked door. (Wells) — Он ответил сквозь закрытую дверь.

They turned into the large conservatory beautifully lit up with Chinese lamps. (Eliot) — Они свернули в большую оранжерею, красиво освещенную китайскими фонариками.

Participle II of intransitive verbs which denote passing into a new state, corresponds to the Russian действительное причастие or to an adjective. However, only in a few cases Participle II of an intransi­tive verb may be used attributively, mostly Participle II of the verbs to fade, to wither, to retire, to fall, to vanish, e. g. faded leaves (увядшие листья), a withered flower (засохший цветок), a retired colonel (от­ставной полковник), a fallen star (упавшая звезда), the vanished jewels (пропавшие драгоценности).

An attribute expressed by Participle II maybe detached; in this case j_t often has an additional meaning of an adverbial modifier:

The housekeeper had come out of her room, attracted by the violent ringing of the bell. (Conan Doyle) — Экономка вышла из своей комнаты, привлеченная неистовым звоном коло­кольчика.

Accompanied by his father and Steger, he (Cowperwood) as­cended to his new room. (Dreiser) — Сопровождаемый отцом и Стеджером (в сопровождении отца и Стеджера), он поднялся в свою новую комнату.

Crushed at first by his imprisonment, he had soon found a dull relief in it. (Dickens) — Поначалу сломленный своим пре­быванием в тюрьме, он вскоре нашел в этом какое-то тупое облегчение.

2. Participle II as an adverbial modifier.

In this function Participle II is preceded by the conjunctions when, while, if, as if, as though, though, etc. It is generally rendered in Russian by an adverbial clause.

Participle II can be an adverbial modifier:

(a) of time.

When questioned Annie had implied vaguely... that she was anxious about her brother-in-law. (Cronin) — Когда Энни стали расспрашивать, она дала понять..., что беспокоится о своем шурине.

(b) of condition.

It was a dreadful thing that he now proposed, a breach of the law which, if discovered, would bring them into the police court. (Cronin) — To, что он предлагал, было ужасно: это было нарушение закона, и если бы оно открылось, их отдали бы под суд.

(c) of comparison.

As if torn with inner conflict and indecision, he cried. (Gals­worthy) — Он плакал, словно его мучили внутренняя борьба и сомнения.

Mr. Kantwise... shook his head as though lost in wonder and admiration. (Trollope) — Мистер Кэнтуайз... покачал головой, словно переполненный чувством удивления и восхищения.

(d) of concession.

... her spirit, though crushed, was not broken. (A. Bronte)-^ Хотя она и была подавлена, она не была сломлена.

3. Participle II as a predicative. In spite of himself, Val was impressed. (Galsworthy) — На Вэла это произвело впечатление, помимо его воли. The inner gate was locked, and the lodge closed. (Dickens) - Внутренние ворота были заперты, и помещение привратника закрыто. 4. Participle II as part of a complex object. She has found me unaltered; but I have found her changed. (Collins) — Она нашла, что я ничуть не переменился, а я на­шел, что она изменилась. (For detailed treatment of Participle 11 as part of a complex object see§ 10.) § 9. Predicative constructions with the participle. In Modern English we find the following predicative constructions with the participle: (1) the Objective Participial Construction; (2) the Subjective Participial Construction; (3) the Nominative Absolute Participial Construction; (4) the Prepositional Absolute Participial Construction. § 10. The Objective Participial Construction. The Objective Participial Construction is a construction in which the participle is in predicate relation to a noun in the common case or a pronoun in the objective case. In the next berth she could hear her stepmother breathing heavily. (Hardy) — Ей было слышно, как на соседней койке тяжело дышит ее мачеха.

 

Note. Other grammarians' view of the analysis of such word groups as when questioned..., if discovered..., as if torn..., though crashed... is dif­ferent. They consider such word-groups to be elliptical clauses and not participial phrases.

The participle breathing is in predicate relation to the noun step­mother, which denotes the doer of the action expressed by the parti­ciple.

In the Objective Participial Construction Participle I Indefinite Active or Participle II is used. In the sentence this construction has the function of a complex object. It usually corresponds to a subordinate object clause in Russian.

The Objective Participial Construction may be found:

(a) after verbs denoting sense perception, such as to see, to hear, to
feel, to find, etc.

Then he looked out of the window and saw clouds gathering.

(Dreiser) — Потом он выглянул из окна и увидел, что соби­раются тучи.

I heard my wife coming... (Сопап Doyle) She could feel her hands trembling exceedingly. (Hardy) She found him waiting for her at her journey's end... (Dick­ens)

I saw the pony harnessed myself. (Collins)

The dog heard his name pronounced through the open door.

(Collins)

He felt himself clutched by the collar... (Hardy)

You will probably find your sister grown, Bella. (Dickens)

(b) after some verbs of mental activity, such as to consider, to un-
derstand.

I consider myself engaged to Herr Klesmer. (Eliot) — Я считаю себя помолвленной с господином Клесмером.

(c) after verbs denoting wish, such as to want, to wish, to desire. In
this case only Participle II is used.

The governor wants it done quick. (Bennett) — Отец хочет, чтобы это было сделано быстро.

(d) after the verbs to have and to get; after these verbs only Parti-
ciple II is used.

In this ease the Objective Participial Construction shows that the action expressed by the participle is performed at the request of the Person denoted by the subject of the sentence. Thus / had the piano tuned means 4 made someone tune the piano'.

I had my coat altered. — Я переделала пальто (т. е. поручила кому-то переделать его).

Не... had several bottles of wine brought... (Dreiser) — Ему., принесли несколько бутылок вина.

You can get your clothes made in Europe. (Dreiser) — Вы можете заказать себе платья в Европе.

In interrogative and negative sentences the auxiliary verb to do is used:

Why don't you have your hair waved? (Du Maurier) — Почему вы не завьетесь (не сделаете завивку)?

Occasionally the meaning of the construction is different: it may show that the person denoted by the subject of the sentence experiences the action expressed by the participle.

The wounded man had his leg amputated. — Раненому ам­путировали ногу.

 

§11. The Subjective Participial Construction.

The Subjective Participial Construction is a construction in which the participle (mostly Participle I) is in predicate relation to a noun in the common case or a pronoun in the nominative case, which is the subject of the sentence.

In rendering this construction in Russian a complex sentence is generally used; the principal clause is of the type which in Russian syntax is called 'indefinite personal' (неопределенно-личное пред­ложение).

The peculiarity of this construction is that it does not serve as one part of the sentence: one of its component parts has the function of the subject, the other forms part of a compound verbal predicate.

They were heard talking together... (Collins) This construction is chiefly used after verbs of sense perception.

The horse was seen descending the hill. (Hardy) — Видно

было, как лошадь спускалась с холма.

Then Bathsheba's footsteps were heard crossing the room

(Hardy) — Было слышно, как Батшеба прошла через ком­нату.

§12. The Nominative Absolute Participial Construction.

The Nominative Absolute Participial Construction is a construc­tion in which the participle stands in predicate relation to a noun in the common case or a pronoun in the nominative case; the noun or pronoun is not the subject of the sentence.

The door and window of the vacant room being open, we

looked in. (Dickens) — Так как дверь и окно пустой комнаты были открыты, мы заглянули в нее.

In the Nominative Absolute Participial Construction Participle I (in all its forms) or Participle II is used. This construction is generally rendered in Russian by means of an adverbial clause. It is used in the function of an adverbial modifier. It can be an adverbial modifier:

(a) of time.

The lamp having been lit, Mrs. Macallan produced her son's letter. (Collins) — Когда зажгли лампу, миссис Макаллан до­стала письмо от сына.

This duty completed, he had three months' leave. (Hardy) — Когда эта работа была закончена, он получил трехмесячный отпуск.

(b) of cause.

It being now pretty late, we took our candles and went upstairs. (Dickens) — Так как было довольно поздно, мы взяли свечи и пошли наверх.

A knock had come to the door, and there being nobody else to answer it, Clare went out. (Hardy) — Послышался стук в дверь, и, так как больше некому было открыть, Клэр вышел. We were walking by ourselves for an hour, George having remained behind in the hotel to write a letter to his aunt. (Jerome) — Мы гуляли одни в течение часа, так как Джордж остался в отеле, чтобы написать письмо своей тетке.

(c) of attendant circumstances. In this function the Nominative
Absolute Participial Construction is mostly placed at the end of the
sentence. In rendering it in Russian a coordinate clause or деепричас-
тный оборот is used.

He turned and went, wc, as before, following him. (Jerome) -Он повернулся и вышел; как и прежде, мы последовали за ним.

One morning he stood in front of the tank, his nose almost pressed to the glass. (Dreiser) — Однажды утром он стоял перед витриной, почти прижавшись носом к стеклу.

(d) of condition. In this function the Nominative Absolute Parti­cipial Construction occurs but seldom and is almost exclusively used with the participles permitting and failing.

Weather (time, circumstances) permitting, we shall start tomorrow. — Если погода (время, обстоятельства) позволит, мы поедем завтра.

Conciliation failing, force remains; but force failing, no further hope of conciliation is left.¹ — Если не удается достигнуть примирения, приходится применить силу; но если сила не помогает, не остается никакой надежды на примирение.

The Nominative Absolute Participial Construction very often oc­curs in fiction and scientific literature; the use of this construction in colloquial English is rare.

 

§ 13. The Prepositional Absolute Participial Construction.

The Absolute Participial Construction may be introduced by the preposition with and is then called the Prepositional Absolute Participial Construction. It is in most cases used in the function of an adverbial modifier of attendant circumstances.

This construction is rendered in Russian by a coordinate clause or деепричастный оборот.

They were walking on again, with Hugh calmly drawing at his pipe. (Lindsay) — Они снова шли вперед; Хью спокойно по­куривал свою трубку.

The daughter sat quite silent and still, with her eyes fixed on the ground. (Dickens) — Дочь сидела молча и неподвижно, опустив глаза в землю.

 

§ 14. Absolute constructions without a participle.

1 The example is borrowed from A Modern English Grammar by O. Jes-persen.

There are two types of absolute constructions in which we find no participle. The second element of the construction is an adjective, a prepositional phrase, or an adverb.

1. The Nominative Absolute Construction. It is used in the function
₀f an adverbial modifier of time or attendant circumstances. In the
function of an adverbial modifier of time this construction is rendered
in Russian by an adverbial clause.

Breakfast over, he went to his counting house. (Ch. Bronte) — Когда кончили завтракать, он пошел в свою контору.

In the function of an adverbial modifier of attendant circumstances the Nominative Absolute Construction is rendered either by a coordi­nate clause, деепричастный оборот, or a noun (pronoun) with the preposition c.

Manston went homeward alone, his heart full of strange emo­tion. (Hardy) — Мэнстон отправился домой один; душа его была переполнена странными чувствами. There he stood, his face to the south-east... his cap in his hand. (Hardy) — Он стоял, повернувшись к юго-востоку... с шапкой в руке.

Mind the difference between the meaning of the following con­structions: The lesson (concert, lecture) over... and The lesson (concert, lecture) being over... The lesson over has a temporal meaning, whereas the lesson being over has as a rule a causal meaning.

2. The Prepositional Absolute Construction. It is mostly used in the
function of an adverbial modifier of attendant circumstances. In render-
ing this construction in Russian a coordinate clause or деепричастный
оборот is used.

I found him ready, and waiting for me, with his stick in his

hand. (Collins) — Он был готов и ждал меня; в руке у него была палка.

Sikes, with Oliver's hand still in his, softly approached the low porch, and raised the latch. (Dickens) — Сайке, все еще не выпуская руку Оливера из своей, подошел потихоньку к невысокому крыльцу и поднял щеколду.

 

§15. The Nominative Absolute Participial Construction and the Nominative Absolute Construction are separated from the rest of the sentence by a comma or a semicolon.

Grandcourt... rose and strolled out on the lawn, all the dogs following him. (Eliot)

Mr. Tulklnghorn comes and goes pretty often; there being estate business to do. (Dickens)

Then he started out, bag and overcoat in hand, to get his cup

of coffee. (Maltz)

Prepositional Absolute Constructions are usually separated from the rest of the sentence by a comma.

It was a balmy, radiant day, with the trees and grass shin­ing exceedingly green after the rain of the night before.

(Dreiser)

He was there, writing busily at a distant table, with his back towards the door. (Eliot)

§ 16. The gerund developed from the verbal noun, which in course of time became verbalized preserving at the same time its nominal character. The gerund is formed by adding the suffix -ing to the stem of the verb, and coincides in form with Participle I. § 17. The double nature of the gerund. As a natural result of its origin and development the gerund has nominal and verbal properties. The nominal characteristics of the gerund are as follows: 1. The gerund can perform the function of subject, object and predicative. They say smoking leads to meditation. (Collins) (SUBJECT) I like making people happy. (Shaw) (OBJECT) The duty of all progressive mankind is fighting for peace (PREDICATIVE) 2. The gerund can be preceded by a preposition. I am very, very tired of rowing. (Hemingway) 3. Like a noun the gerund can be modified by a noun in the pos- sessive case or by a possessive pronoun.

 

The Gerund

"I wonder at Jolyon's allowing this engagement,"he said to Aunt Ann. (Galsworthy) — «Меня удивляет, что Джо/ион допустил эту помолвку», — сказал он тетушке Энн. Is there any objection to my seeing her? (Galsworthy) — Кто-нибудь возражает против того, чтобы я повидался с ней?

The verbal characteristics of the gerund are the same as those of the participle:

1. The gerund of transitive verbs can take a direct object.

I had now made a good progress in understanding and speak­ing their language. (Swift)

2. The gerund can be modified by an adverb.

She burst out crying bitterly. (Hardy)

3. The gerund has tense distinctions; the gerund of transitive verbs
has also voice distinctions. The forms of the gerund in Modern English
are as follows:

 

	Active	Passive
Indefinite	writing	being wrtten
Perfect	having written	having been written

There is no gerund in the Russian language and the English gerund is rendered in Russian in different ways:

(a) by a noun.

Dancing had not begun yet... (Mansfield) — Танцы еще не начались.

(b) by an infinitive.

She had tea with Cipriano before leaving. (Lawrence) — Перед тем как уйти, она выпила чаю с Чиприано. It is no good hiding our heads under our wings. (Galsworthy) -Бесполезно прятать голову под крыло.

(c) by деепричастие.

And without waiting for her answer ne turned aid left us. (Du Maurier) — И, не дожидаясь ее ответа, он повернулся и вышел.

On seeing Bella he stopped, beckoned her to him, and drew her arm through his. (Dickens) — Увидев Беллу, он остановился подозвал ее к себе и взял под руку.

(d) by a subordinate clause.

Не regretted now having come. (Galsworthy) — Теперь он со­жалел, что пришел.

It should be observed that though the active forms of the gerund may be rendered in different ways, the passive forms are nearly always rendered by a clause.

As she contemplated the wide windows and imposing signs, she became conscious of being gazed upon. (Dreiser) — Когда она рассматривала широкие витрины и внушительные вывески, она почувствовала, что на нее смотрят. After having been informed of the conference in my lady's room... he immediately decided on waiting to hear the news from Frizinghall. (Collins) — После того, как ему сообщили о со­вещании в комнате миледи..., он сразу решил подождать, чтобы узнать новости из Фризингхолла.

 

§ 18. The tense distinctions of the gerund.

The tense distinctions of the gerund, like those of the participle, are not absolute but relative.

1. The Indefinite Gerund Active and Passive denotes an action
simultaneous with the action expressed by the finite verb; depending
on the tense form of the finite verb it may refer to the present, past, or
future.

He can swim for any number of hours without tiring. (Hichens) -Он может плыть много часов подряд, не уставая. She walked on without turning her head. (Hardy) — Она шла не поворачивая головы.

Gwendolen will not rest without having the world at her feet-(Eliot) — Гвендолен не успокоится, пока весь мир не будет у ее ног.

No one could pass in or out without being seen. (Dick­ens) — Никто не мог ни войти, ни выйти так, чтобы его не видели.

2. The Perfect Gerund denotes an action prior to that of the finite
verb.

She denies having spoken with him. — Она отрицает, что го­ворила с ним.

Не was ashamed of having shown even the slightest irritation. (Bennett) — Ему было стыдно, что он проявил раздражение, хотя и очень слабое.

She really had been crying... out of anger at having been driven so hard. (Heym) — Она действительно плакала... возмущенная тем, что с ней так жестоко поступили.

However, a prior action is not always expressed by a Perfect Gerund; in some cases we find an Indefinite Gerund. This occurs after the verbs to remember, to excuse, to forgive, to thank and after the prepositions on (upon), after and without.

I don't remember hearing the legend before. (Hardy) — Я не

помню, чтобы я когда-нибудь слышала эту легенду.

You must excuse my not answering you before. (Collins) —

Вы должны извинить меня за то, что я не ответил вам

раньше.

I thank you for restraining me just now. (Ch. Bronte) — Я благодарен вам за то, что вы сейчас помогли мне сдер­жаться.

On leaving the house we directed our steps to the nearest shade. (Collins) — Выйдя из дома, мы направились в тень. After walking about ten yards, he found the hat among the leaves. (Hardy) — Пройдя ярдов десять, он нашел свою шляпу в кустах.

She passes through and disappears in the pantry without noticing the young lady. (Shaw) — Она проходит и исчезает в буфетной, не заметив молодую девушку.

The Perfect Gerund may also be used after the above mentioned verbs and prepositions.

He did not remember having been in that room. (Galsworthy) — Он не помнил, чтобы когда-нибудь был в этой комнате. After having denied herself to everybody, Miss Rachel, to our astonishment, walked into the midst of us of her own accord. (Collins) — После того как мисс Рэчел отказалась видеть кого бы то ни было, она, к нашему удивлению, вышла к нам по своему собственному желанию.

They parted at Cohen's door without having spoken to each other again. (Eliot) — Они расстались у двери дома Коэна, не сказав друг другу ни слова.

§ 19. The voice distinctions of the gerund.

The gerund of transitive verbs has special forms for the active and the passive voice.

He liked neither reading aloud nor being read aloud to (Maugham) — Он не любил ни читать вслух, ни слушать чте­ние.

It is to be observed that after the verbs to want, to need, to deserve, to require and the adjective worth the gerund is used in the active form, though it is passive in meaning.

"The slums want attending to, no doubt," he said. (Galsworthy) -«Без сомнения, трущобами надо заняться», — сказал он. Не realized that his room needed painting. — Он понял, что его комнату надо покрасить.

The child deserves praising. — Ребенок заслуживает того, чтобы его похвалили.

They were not worth saving. (Heym) — Их не стоило спасать.

 

§ 20. Predicative constructions with the gerund.

Like all the verbals the gerund can form predicative constructions, i. e. constructions in which the verbal element expressed by the gerund is in predicate relation to the nominal element expressed by a noun or pronoun (see § 2).

I don't like your going off without any money. (Maltz) — Мне не нравится, что вы уходите без денег.

Here the gerund going off is in predicate relation to the pronoun your, which denotes the doer of the action expressed by the gerund.

The nominal element of the construction can be expressed in dif­ferent ways.

I. If it denotes a living being it may be expressed:

 

(a) by a noun in the genitive case or by a possessive pronoun.

His further consideration of the point was prevented by Richard's coming back to us in an excited state. (Dickens) — Его дальней­шие размышления были прерваны тем, что вернулся РичарА в чрезвычайно возбужденном состоянии. Do you mind ту smoking? (Hardy) — Вы ничего не имеете против того, чтобы я курил?

(b) by a noun in the common case.

I have a distinct recollection of Lady Chiltern always getting the good conduct prize! (Wilde) — Я отлично помню, что леди Чиль-терн всегда получала награды за примерное поведение.

0 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Note. Thus in Modern English there are two parallel constructions

Occasionally examples are found where the nominal element of the construction is expressed by a pronoun in the objective case. I hope you will forgive me disturbing you. (Du Maurier) — Наде­юсь, вы простите меня за то, что я вас побеспокоил. There are cases when the nominal element of the construction, though denoting a living being, cannot be expressed by a noun in the possessive case, but only by a noun in the common case, namely when it consists of two or more nouns or when it is a noun modified by an attribute in post-position. I object to Mary and Jane going out on such a windy day. He felt no uneasiness now in the thought of the brother and sister being alone together. (Eliot) — Его теперь не смущала мысль 0 том, что брат и сестра остались вдвоем. Did you ever hear of a man of sense rejecting such an of­fer? — Слышали ли вы когда-нибудь, чтобы разумный человек отказался от такого предложения? 2. If the nominal element of the construction denotes a lifeless thing, it is expressed by a noun in the common case (such nouns, as a rule, are not used in the genitive case) or by a possessive pronoun. 1 said something about my dock being slow. (Du Maurier) — Я сказала, что мои часы отстают. ... Peggotty spoke of... my room, and of its being ready for me. (Dickens) —... Пеготти говорила., о моей комнате и о том, что она уже приготовлена для меня.

of the type: Fancy David's courting Emily! and Fancy David courting Emily/These two constructions may be used indifferently, but sometimes there is a slight difference in meaning: in the first example the action (the verbal element of the construction) is emphasized, whereas in the second the doer of the action (the nominal element of the construction) is emphasized.