Fortunately, Malka was too conscious of her charms to dream of jealousy.
Michael smacked her soundly on the mouth with his lips and said: "Well, mother!" He called her mother, not because he had any children, but because she had, and it seemed a pity to multiply domestic nomenclature.
"Well, my little one," said Malka, hugging him fondly.

"Have you made a good journey this time ?" "No, trade is so dull.

People won't put their hands in their pockets.
And here ?" "People won't take their hands out of their pockets, lazy dogs! Everybody is striking,--Jews with them.

Unheard-of things! The bootmakers, the capmakers, the furriers! And now they say the tailors are going to strike; more fools, too, when the trade is so slack.

What with one thing and another (let me put your cravat straight, my little love), it's just the people who can't afford to buy new clothes that are hard up, so that they can't afford to buy second-hand clothes either.