simplicity [sIm'plIsItI], pursuit [pq'sju:t], ultimate ['AltImIt]

Mme. Colbert regarded Mrs. Harris standing there in all her cheap clothing, and she looked right through them and saw only the gallant woman and sister beneath. She reflected upon the simplicity and the courage that had led her thither in pursuit of a dream, the wholly feminine yearning for an out-of-reach bit of finery, the touching desire, once in her drab cheerless life, to possess the ultimate in a creation. And she felt that somehow Mrs. Harris was quite the most important and worth-while person in the gathering there of chattering females waiting to view the collection that day.

"No (нет)," she said to Mrs. Harris. "Not on the staircase (не на лестнице). I will not have it (я не примирюсь с этим/я этого не допущу). Come (пойдемте). I have a seat for you inside (у меня есть место для вас внутри)."

She threaded Mrs. Harris through the throng (она провела миссис Харрис сквозь толпу; thread — нить; пробираться, to thread — проскальзывать, проникать /куда-л., подобно нитке, вдеваемой в игольное ушко/; прокладывать путь), holding her by the hand (держа ее под руку), and took her into the main salon (и привела ее в главный салон), where all but two of the gold chairs in the double rows were occupied (где все, кроме двух, золоченые стулья в два ряда были заняты). Mme. Colbert always kept one or two seats in reserve (мадам Кольбер всегда держала одно или два места в резерве) for the possible unexpected arrival of some VIP (для = на случай возможного неожиданного приезда какой-либо очень важной персоны; VIP — very important person) or a favored customer bringing a friend (или друга, которого мог привести какой-нибудь привилегированный клиент).

threaded ['TredId], double [dAbl], favored ['feIvqd]

"No," she said to Mrs. Harris. "Not on the staircase. I will not have it. Come. I have a seat for you inside."

She threaded Mrs. Harris through the throng, holding her by the hand, and took her into the main salon, where all but two of the gold chairs in the double rows were occupied. Mme. Colbert always kept one or two seats in reserve for the possible unexpected arrival of some VIP or a favored customer bringing a friend.

She towed Mrs. Harris across the floor (она протащила за собой миссис Харрис через зал; floor — пол; павильон/зал; tow — бечева; буксирный канат, трос; to tow — тянуть /баржу/ на бечеве) and seated her on a vacant chair in the front row (и усадила ее на свободный стул в переднем ряду). "There (вот)," said Mme. Colbert. "You will be able to see everything from here (вы сможете увидеть все отсюда). Have you your invitation (у вас есть ваше приглашение)? Here is a little pencil (вот небольшой карандаш). When the models enter (когда манекенщицы будут входить), the girl at the door will call out the name and number of the dress (девушка у двери будет объявлять название и номер платья) — in English (по-английски). Write down the numbers of the ones you like the best (запишите номера тех, которые вам понравятся больше всего), and I will see you afterwards (а я увижусь с вами потом; to see — видеть; встречать/ся/)".

vacant ['veIkqnt], invitation ["InvI'teISqn], afterwards ['Q:ftqwqdz]

She towed Mrs. Harris across the floor and seated her on a vacant chair in the front row.