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CHAPTER XVI.—FELICIA VICTRIX.
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What you have learned about me,” Katherine had written to Raine, “I was to have told you last night. I had written to you a long letter, but I was too weak to send it. I resolved to tell it to your own ears. But it was impossible for me to speak to you last night for I was suffering too much.

“My story is a simple one. Married to a man many years my senior—treated with a mild gravity which my girlish wilfulness1 took for harshness—a great many tears—a great longing2 for the tenderness that never came—a gay, buoyant nature meeting mine, changing, it seemed, my twilight3 into sunshine—and then—what you know.

“Do not judge me harshly, Raine. But forget me. Forget that I came and troubled your life. Even were my name free from blemish4, I am not good enough to be your wife. Forget me, and take to your heart one who will make you happier than I could have done—one younger, sweeter, purer. And she loves you. Let her win you.

“I have suffered much to be able to write this. It is a farewell. To meet you would be too great pain for us both. This morning, as you know, I saw Mr. Hockmaster, and I have promised to marry him. Fate rules these things for us. To the day of my death I shall pray for your happiness.—K.S.”

Raine’s face grew hard as he read the letter. A man quickly wearies of successive emotions. His self-pride asserts itself and makes him rebel against falling into weaknesses of feeling. He had been angry at allowing himself to be drawn5 towards Felicia, and a natural reaction of loyalty6 to Katherine had followed. Now this was checked by her calm, unimpassioned words and the astounding7 intelligence of her engagement to Hockmaster. He was completely staggered. To his dismay, he became conscious of an awful void in his life. It seemed to be filled with purposeless shadows. He set his teeth and wrapped his strong man’s pride about him. The thought of himself as John a’ Dreams was a lash8 to his spirit. He crumpled9 up the paper in his hands and strode to and fro in his room.

She was to marry Hockmaster. It was incredible, preposterous10, except on one hypothesis—the recrudescence of the old passion that had swept aside the social barriers for this man’s sake. It was the most galling11 thought of all, it racked him, drew him down to a lower plane of feeling, blinded his clear insight into delicate things. Perhaps if a man did not sink lower than himself on some occasions, he could not rise higher than himself on others.

He drew a chair to the open French window. The room, being on the top storey, had no balcony, but a wrought-iron balustrade fixed12 on the outside of the jambs. He leant his arms over it and looked into the familiar street. He hated it. Geneva was intolerable. As soon as his father was able to travel, he would shake the dust of it from off his feet. A bantering13 letter had come, that morning from his cousin, Mrs. Monteith, at Oxford14. A phrase or two passed through his mind. Was he going to bring back two brides or half a one?

“How damned vulgar women can be at times!” he exclaimed angrily, and he rose with impatience15 from his chair, as if to drive Mrs. Monteith from his thoughts.

He unrolled Katherine’s crumpled letter and read it through again. Then he thrust it into his pocket and decided16 to go and sit with his father.

But, before he could reach the door, a knock was heard. He opened it, and to his surprise found Felicia.

“You—is my father—?”

“No. I want to speak to you. Can I?”

“Do you mind coming in? It is not very untidy.”

He held the door for her to pass in, then he closed it and came up to her enquiringly. Felicia stood in the middle of the room, with her hands behind her back, a favourite attitude. Her dark cheeks were flushed and her sensitive lips were parted, quivering slightly.

“It’s about Katherine!” she burst out suddenly. “Please let me talk, or I shall not be able to say what I want to. Since last night—when you kissed me—I have thought I might come to you—as your sister might—and because I care for you like that, I feel I can tell you. I have just been with Katherine. She is going away this afternoon.”

“At once?” asked Raine, startled at the apparent rapidity of events.

“Yes. Are you sending her away?”

“I? Oh no.”

“But why must she go, Raine? Tell me; need she go?”

“Katherine is mistress of her own actions.”

“Then you don’t care?”

She looked at him earnestly, with moist eyes. There was a note of passion in her voice, to which Raine, sympathetic, found himself responding.

“What is the use of my caring, since she is going of her own accord without a word from me?”

“But a word from you would make her stay.”

“What do you know about all this?” he asked abruptly17.

“I know that you have broken her heart,” said Felicia. “Oh! knowing her—and loving her—it is hard not to forgive.”

“There is no question of forgiveness,” replied Raine. “Did she tell you I would not forgive her?”

“No. A woman does not need to be told these things—she knows them and feels them. Must a woman always, always, always suffer? Why can’t a man be great and noble sometimes—like Christ who forgave?”

“But, my dear child, you are talking wildly,” cried Raine earnestly. “God knows there is nothing to forgive. I knew long ago a shadow had been cast over her life—and I loved her. A strange freak of destiny brought the man here—last night, accidentally, he told me the details—and I loved her. I have not seen her. It is not I who drive her away. Read that, and you can see it is not I.”

He thrust the letter into her hand, and watched her as she read. Four-and-twenty hours ago, he would as soon have thought of crying his heart’s secrets aloud in the public streets, as of delivering them into the keeping of this young girl. But now it seemed natural. Her exalted18 mood had infected him, lifted him on to an unconventional plane.

The blood rushed to her cheeks as she read the lines in which reference was made to herself. When she had finished, she looked at him with a strange light in her eyes.

“And you are satisfied with this?” she said quickly.

“I am dumfounded by it. She has promised to marry this man.”

“And can’t you see why? Isn’t it as clear to you as the noonday?”

“The old love is stronger, I suppose.”

“Raine!” cried the girl, in ringing reproach. “How dare you say that, think it even? Can’t you see the agony that letter has cost her? To me it is quivering in every line. Why did you let that man go to her instead of yourself? Oh, heavens! if I were a man, and such a thing had happened regarding the woman I loved, I should have lain outside her door all night to guard her—I should have seen her, if hell-fire had been between us. But you let her suffer. You put your pride above your love, like a man—you were silent. You let her hear from this man that you knew—you left her to grapple with her shame alone.”

Felicia walked about the room like a young lioness. The words came in a flood. In the championing of her sister-woman she lost sense of conventional restrictions19. Raine was no longer Raine, but the typefication of a sex against which she was battling for her own.

“Can’t you read into it all?” she continued. “Can’t you see the degradation20 she seemed to have fallen into in your eyes? But you only think of yourself—of your pride—of the bloom brushed off from your ideal. Never a thought for her—of the god hurled21 from her heaven. She would marry this man to cut herself adrift from you, to get out of your life without further troubling it—to ease your conscience, lest it should ever prick22 you for having left her. She is marrying him because her heart is broken—who else but a noble, high-souled woman could have written this letter? I better than she! Oh, Raine—if you have a spark of love for her left—go and throw yourself at her knees, before it is too late.”

Her voice broke towards the end. The strain was telling on her. She sank for rest upon the chair by the window, and laid her burning cheek against the iron balustrade. Raine came to her side.

“You can thrash me a little more, if you like.”

But the familiar, kindly23 tone suddenly awoke Felicia to the sense of their relations. She hung her head, confused.

“Forgive me,” she said. “I ought not to have spoken like that to you—I lost control over myself. You mustn’t think of what I have said.”

“I’ll think of it all through my life, Felicia,” said Raine.

A silence fell upon them. The girl was shaken and weary. Raine was confronting a new hope, that made his heart beat.

“Raine,” she said, after a while.

He did not reply. She looked up, and saw him staring into the street.

“By God!” he cried, suddenly, and before Felicia could realize what he was doing, he had seized his hat from the table and had rushed from tbe room, leaving tbe door open.

Felicia leant over tbe balustrade, and looked down. Katherine was there, near the corner, in the act of giving over her dressing-bag to a lad in a blue blouse, who had offered his services. Felicia watched until she saw Raine emerge beneath the archway, stride like a man possessed25 after Katherine, catch her up, and lay bis hand upon her arm, as she turned a startled face towards him. Then tbe tears came into her eyes, and she left tbe window and went down to her own room, where she locked herself in and cried miserably26. Such is tbe apparently27 inconsequent way of women.

“Katherine,” said Raine, when he came up with her. She stopped, and looked at him speechlessly.

“I have just caught you in time,” he said, with masculine brusqueness. “We must talk together. Come into the Gardens.”

“I can’t,” she replied, hurriedly. “My train—”

“You can miss your train. Where are you going?”

“Lausanne,” she answered, weakly, with lowered eyes.

“There are quantities of trains. Come.” He drew her arm gently. She obeyed, powerless to resist. He found a seat away from the promenade28. An old peasant was dozing29 at one end, and a mongrel was stretched at his feet. They were practically alone. The old man in his time had seen many English and innumerable pairs of lovers. Neither interested him. He did not even deign30 to turn a lustreless31 eye in their direction. The boy with the dressing-bag had meekly32 followed them, and stood by, politely, cap in hand. Did madame want him to wait with the bag?

“No,” replied Raine, pulling a franc from his pocket. “Take it to the concierge33 at the Pension Boccard.”

Katherine half rose, agitated34.

“No, no. I must go to Lausanne. You mustn’t keep me.”

But the boy had dashed off, clutching his franc-piece. Raine bent35 down till the ends of his moustache nearly brushed her veil.

“I will keep you, Katherine, until you tell me-you love me no longer.”

“Don’t torture me,” she said, piteously. “That is why I tried to avoid meeting—to spare us both. I knew your generosity36.”

“My generosity,” echoed Raine, with effective interruption. “My longing, my needs, the happiness of my life! If you care for me, it is not torturing you to tell you I love you—I can’t live a man’s life without you. When I first read your letter, it crushed the soul out of me. I did not understand; afterwards I did. Some day you shall learn how. I love you, Katherine, need you, yearn37 for you.”

His passion grew as he looked at her, watching the faint colour come and go on the face beneath the veil. She seemed too fragile and delicate for the rude buffetings of the world. An immense wave of emotion swept through him. It was his indefeasible right to protect her, cherish her, hold her in his arms, close to him.

And Katherine was trembling, every chord in her vibrated. She could not speak. She flashed on him a quick, sidelong, feminine glance, and met his eyes fixed upon her. They were blue and strong, half-fierce, half-tender. The man’s will and longing were in them. She shrank, and yet she looked again, loving him for their intensity38. Raine spoke24 on as he had never known it had been in his power to speak. The old peasant dozed39, regardless of their presence or of that of a little dusty child who squatted40 down by him to play with the dog. Through the trees and shrubs41 in front could be seen glimpses of white dresses, scraps42 of the passers-by on the path along the quay43. But this quiet, somewhat unkempt corner remained undisturbed.

“I can’t, I can’t,” said Katherine, at last.

“I have pledged myself—I can’t go back.”

“I will settle that matter,” he replied, with a half smile. “Leave it to me. Men understand one another. You are mine, Katherine, my darling, mine, my wife—if you love me.”

The tenderness of his voice thrilled through her. She raised her eyes to his, this time to be held there.

“Love you!”

He read her lips rather than heard them.

“And nothing again shall part us? You will marry me, Katherine?”

All the woman in her cried “yes,” but it also held her back.

“Will you love me in after years as now, Raine? Will you never come to think that this shame that has come to me was deserved? Think of it, dear, in your clear, honest way. You will never come to feel that you have given all your wealth for what, like most men, you should have trodden under foot? Your life’s happiness—mine—depend upon your answering it from your heart of hearts, dear. Judge me now for ever and ever.”

“As God hears me,” said Raine, with the love in his voice. “To me you are ever the purest and the noblest and tenderest of women. You love me with a woman’s love and I with a man’s; and we will love soul to soul, dear, till we die. Our love, dear, is as sacred to me as the ghost I buried in it a few weeks ago. All this will be like a troubled dream—all the past, darling, in both our lives as shadows. Thank God!”

He put his arms suddenly round her, drew her to him, and kissed her. For both of them the world stood still, and the commonplace gardens were Eden, and the old peasant nodded his weatherbeaten head, and the mongrel and the dusty child looked on unastonished, like the beasts when the first apple was eaten.

Raine went, an hour or so after, to the H?tel National and found Hockmaster outside, cultivating a dinner appetite with sherry and bitters. He jumped up when he perceived his visitor, and came towards him.

“Hello, Chetwynd! This is real friendly of you. Come and sit down—join me.”

Raine accepted the seat, but declined the sherry.

“Do you mind my asking you a very intimate question?” asked Raine.

“As many as you like,” said Hockmaster, with na?ve effusion. “I have given you a sort of right to be familiar. Of course, whether I answer it is a matter for my discretion44.”

“Precisely. But I hope you will. Are your feelings very deeply engaged in this affair with Mrs. Stapleton?”

“Sir,” said Hockmaster. “I’ve repaired a wrong that has set at rest a damned uneasy conscience.”

“From which I gather you have obeyed your conscience rather than your heart,” said Raine.

“I am going to be married,” replied Hockmaster, between the first puffs45 of a cigar he was lighting46. “Perhaps you may not know that. So I guess I’d better fall back upon discretion. It is best in affairs between man and wife.”

“Yes, but suppose it was broken off?”

“What? My marriage?”

He stretched himself out in a comfortable attitude, his hands behind his head, and regarded Raine placidly47.

“What sort of interest can the concerns of a worm like me have for you?”

“Every interest in the world,” replied Raine, flushing. “If it’s merely a question of conscience on your part, I have no scruple48 in asking you to release Mrs. Stapleton from her engagement.”

“Did she send you?”

“Yes.”

“Tell you any reason?”

Hockmaster’s tone irritated Rainé. He rose quickly, thrusting his straw hat to the back of his head, and stood over the recumbent American, with his hands on his hips49.

“Yes, she did. Mrs. Stapleton is going to marry me.”

The words brought the other to his feet with a force that nearly upset the small table in front of him.

“God alive, man!” he cried, realizing the whole situation in a rush. “Why on earth didn’t you tell me before?”

The two men looked into one another’s eyes. It was Raine who was first disconcerted. The intense distress50 of the other was too genuine for him not to feel touched.

“You’re the first man for years,” said Hockmaster, “that I have felt drawn to in friendship; and I have been powerfully drawn to you. I would have cut off my head sooner than said or done anything to pain you Why didn’t you stop me this morning?”

“I tried to dissuade51 you.”

Hockmaster threw away his extinct cigar, and put his hands in his pockets dejectedly.

“Yes, you did so; and I went on running knives into you. Why didn’t you pitch me into the lake last night? I wish to God you’d do it now.”

“We will forget all that,” said Raine, kindly.

“You may, but I shan’t. And she—for heaven’s sake, ask her to forgive me. I was trying to do my best. You believe that, don’t you?”

“With all my heart,” said Raine.

“And I’ll tell you, Chetwynd,” continued Hockmaster, with a truer ring of feeling in his voice than Raine had ever perceived, “I meant to be a good man to her, to put down my cloak over every puddle52 in life for her to walk upon, to make her just as happy as I could. But I guess I’ve been a blamed fool. I’ve been a blamed fool all my life. First thing I remember was running away from school to live in the woods. At first it was glorious. Then it rained all night, and I crawled back next morning sick and miserable53, and was put to bed for a month. I reckon I’ll go home. My White Lead Company’s going to burst like all the other bubbles. I heard this morning. An hour ago I thought, ‘Anyway, I’ve found a good friend and a wife in Europe.’ Wow that’s gone. But she’ll be happy. You’re worth twenty million of me. You won’t see me again. I suppose I’m the sorriest man standing54 on the earth at the present moment; but you won’t think worse of me than I am, will you?”

He looked sideways at Raine, in his odd, appealing way.

“Upon my soul,” cried Raine, in an outburst of generous feeling, grasping him by the shoulder, “I don’t know whether you are not one of the most lovable men I have ever met!”

Raine walked back to the pension with love in his heart towards all mankind. God was in his heaven. All was right with the world.

He found Katherine and Felicia in the salon55 waiting for dinner, in company with Mme. Popea and Frau Schultz. Mme. Popea cried out on seeing him,—“Another happy one! What has made you all look so beatified?”

“The eternal beauty of humanity,” returned Raine, with a smile.

“And you have caught the plague of epigrams,” said Frau Schultz. “I asked Miss Graves why she had such a colour, and she said, ‘because the world seemed wider to-day.’ It’s a new language.”

“It is the turn of madame,” said Mme. Popea, in her vivacious56 way.

Katherine laughed.

“This is not a parlour game, you know. But perhaps it is because I am going to dine.” Raine’s heart leapt at the little touch of gaiety. His eyes showed her his gladness. A stream of the other guests entered. She took advantage of the sudden filling of the salon to draw him to her side. A glance asked a tremulous question. He reassured57 her with a whisper, and they went out on to the balcony.

“I have told my father,” said Raine. “He will love you, dear.”

She pressed his arm for answer. There was a long silence, which Raine, half divining her mood, would not break. At last he said, lover-wise,—

“Tell me your thoughts, beloved.”

“I was thinking that I have lived thirty-one years, and I have never known till now what even freedom from care was. I seemed blinded by the light, like the prisoners let out from the Bastille. There is something awful in such happiness.”

“It shall be with you to the end,” said Raine.

“I know it,” she replied.

Then, after a pause,—

“I have told Felicia. Do you mind?”

“We owe her a great debt,” said Raine. “She came to me this afternoon, after leaving you.”

The blood rose in Katherine’s cheeks, and she looked up timidly into his face.

“I think I shall bring her here to you. You will know what to say to her.”

She disappeared for a moment by the open window, and then returned with Felicia, whom she left with Raine. He came forward, and took both her hands in his.

“How can I ever repay you?”

“You have done too much for me already,” said Felicia.

There was a little combat of generous words.

The dinner-gong sounded the end of the talk.

“And the Pension Boccard,” he said; “you will have some pleasant memories of it?”

“Ah, yes. I owe too much to it.”

“How?” asked Raine.

“You may think it an odd thing to say, but it seems to have changed me from a girl into a woman.”

“Does that bring you happiness?”

“I don’t know,” replied Felicia, musingly58.

And then, after a pause,—

“I think so.”

The End

点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 wilfulness 922df0f2716e8273f9323afc2b0c72af     
任性;倔强
参考例句:
  • I refuse to stand by and see the company allowed to run aground because of one woman's wilfulness. 我不会袖手旁观,眼看公司因为一个女人的一意孤行而触礁。 来自柯林斯例句
2 longing 98bzd     
n.(for)渴望
参考例句:
  • Hearing the tune again sent waves of longing through her.再次听到那首曲子使她胸中充满了渴望。
  • His heart burned with longing for revenge.他心中燃烧着急欲复仇的怒火。
3 twilight gKizf     
n.暮光,黄昏;暮年,晚期,衰落时期
参考例句:
  • Twilight merged into darkness.夕阳的光辉融于黑暗中。
  • Twilight was sweet with the smell of lilac and freshly turned earth.薄暮充满紫丁香和新翻耕的泥土的香味。
4 blemish Qtuz5     
v.损害;玷污;瑕疵,缺点
参考例句:
  • The slightest blemish can reduce market value.只要有一点最小的损害都会降低市场价值。
  • He wasn't about to blemish that pristine record.他本不想去玷污那清白的过去。
5 drawn MuXzIi     
v.拖,拉,拔出;adj.憔悴的,紧张的
参考例句:
  • All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
  • Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。
6 loyalty gA9xu     
n.忠诚,忠心
参考例句:
  • She told him the truth from a sense of loyalty.她告诉他真相是出于忠诚。
  • His loyalty to his friends was never in doubt.他对朋友的一片忠心从来没受到怀疑。
7 astounding QyKzns     
adj.使人震惊的vt.使震惊,使大吃一惊astound的现在分词)
参考例句:
  • There was an astounding 20% increase in sales. 销售量惊人地增加了20%。
  • The Chairman's remarks were so astounding that the audience listened to him with bated breath. 主席说的话令人吃惊,所以听众都屏息听他说。 来自《简明英汉词典》
8 lash a2oxR     
v.系牢;鞭打;猛烈抨击;n.鞭打;眼睫毛
参考例句:
  • He received a lash of her hand on his cheek.他突然被她打了一记耳光。
  • With a lash of its tail the tiger leaped at her.老虎把尾巴一甩朝她扑过来。
9 crumpled crumpled     
adj. 弯扭的, 变皱的 动词crumple的过去式和过去分词形式
参考例句:
  • She crumpled the letter up into a ball and threw it on the fire. 她把那封信揉成一团扔进了火里。
  • She flattened out the crumpled letter on the desk. 她在写字台上把皱巴巴的信展平。
10 preposterous e1Tz2     
adj.荒谬的,可笑的
参考例句:
  • The whole idea was preposterous.整个想法都荒唐透顶。
  • It would be preposterous to shovel coal with a teaspoon.用茶匙铲煤是荒谬的。
11 galling galling     
adj.难堪的,使烦恼的,使焦躁的
参考例句:
  • It was galling to have to apologize to a man she hated. 令人恼火的是得向她憎恶的男人道歉。
  • The insolence in the fellow's eye was galling. 这家伙的傲慢目光令人恼怒。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
12 fixed JsKzzj     
adj.固定的,不变的,准备好的;(计算机)固定的
参考例句:
  • Have you two fixed on a date for the wedding yet?你们俩选定婚期了吗?
  • Once the aim is fixed,we should not change it arbitrarily.目标一旦确定,我们就不应该随意改变。
13 bantering Iycz20     
adj.嘲弄的v.开玩笑,说笑,逗乐( banter的现在分词 );(善意地)取笑,逗弄
参考例句:
  • There was a friendly, bantering tone in his voice. 他的声音里流露着友好诙谐的语调。
  • The students enjoyed their teacher's bantering them about their mistakes. 同学们对老师用风趣的方式讲解他们的错误很感兴趣。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
14 Oxford Wmmz0a     
n.牛津(英国城市)
参考例句:
  • At present he has become a Professor of Chemistry at Oxford.他现在已是牛津大学的化学教授了。
  • This is where the road to Oxford joins the road to London.这是去牛津的路与去伦敦的路的汇合处。
15 impatience OaOxC     
n.不耐烦,急躁
参考例句:
  • He expressed impatience at the slow rate of progress.进展缓慢,他显得不耐烦。
  • He gave a stamp of impatience.他不耐烦地跺脚。
16 decided lvqzZd     
adj.决定了的,坚决的;明显的,明确的
参考例句:
  • This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
  • There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。
17 abruptly iINyJ     
adv.突然地,出其不意地
参考例句:
  • He gestured abruptly for Virginia to get in the car.他粗鲁地示意弗吉尼亚上车。
  • I was abruptly notified that a half-hour speech was expected of me.我突然被通知要讲半个小时的话。
18 exalted ztiz6f     
adj.(地位等)高的,崇高的;尊贵的,高尚的
参考例句:
  • Their loveliness and holiness in accordance with their exalted station.他们的美丽和圣洁也与他们的崇高地位相称。
  • He received respect because he was a person of exalted rank.他因为是个地位崇高的人而受到尊敬。
19 restrictions 81e12dac658cfd4c590486dd6f7523cf     
约束( restriction的名词复数 ); 管制; 制约因素; 带限制性的条件(或规则)
参考例句:
  • I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
  • a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制
20 degradation QxKxL     
n.降级;低落;退化;陵削;降解;衰变
参考例句:
  • There are serious problems of land degradation in some arid zones.在一些干旱地带存在严重的土地退化问题。
  • Gambling is always coupled with degradation.赌博总是与堕落相联系。
21 hurled 16e3a6ba35b6465e1376a4335ae25cd2     
v.猛投,用力掷( hurl的过去式和过去分词 );大声叫骂
参考例句:
  • He hurled a brick through the window. 他往窗户里扔了块砖。
  • The strong wind hurled down bits of the roof. 大风把屋顶的瓦片刮了下来。 来自《简明英汉词典》
22 prick QQyxb     
v.刺伤,刺痛,刺孔;n.刺伤,刺痛
参考例句:
  • He felt a sharp prick when he stepped on an upturned nail.当他踩在一个尖朝上的钉子上时,他感到剧烈的疼痛。
  • He burst the balloon with a prick of the pin.他用针一戳,气球就爆了。
23 kindly tpUzhQ     
adj.和蔼的,温和的,爽快的;adv.温和地,亲切地
参考例句:
  • Her neighbours spoke of her as kindly and hospitable.她的邻居都说她和蔼可亲、热情好客。
  • A shadow passed over the kindly face of the old woman.一道阴影掠过老太太慈祥的面孔。
24 spoke XryyC     
n.(车轮的)辐条;轮辐;破坏某人的计划;阻挠某人的行动 v.讲,谈(speak的过去式);说;演说;从某种观点来说
参考例句:
  • They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
  • The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。
25 possessed xuyyQ     
adj.疯狂的;拥有的,占有的
参考例句:
  • He flew out of the room like a man possessed.他像着了魔似地猛然冲出房门。
  • He behaved like someone possessed.他行为举止像是魔怔了。
26 miserably zDtxL     
adv.痛苦地;悲惨地;糟糕地;极度地
参考例句:
  • The little girl was wailing miserably. 那小女孩难过得号啕大哭。
  • It was drizzling, and miserably cold and damp. 外面下着毛毛细雨,天气又冷又湿,令人难受。 来自《简明英汉词典》
27 apparently tMmyQ     
adv.显然地;表面上,似乎
参考例句:
  • An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽,豁然开朗。
  • He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。
28 promenade z0Wzy     
n./v.散步
参考例句:
  • People came out in smarter clothes to promenade along the front.人们穿上更加时髦漂亮的衣服,沿着海滨散步。
  • We took a promenade along the canal after Sunday dinner.星期天晚饭后我们沿着运河散步。
29 dozing dozing     
v.打瞌睡,假寐 n.瞌睡
参考例句:
  • The economy shows no signs of faltering. 经济没有衰退的迹象。
  • He never falters in his determination. 他的决心从不动摇。
30 deign 6mLzp     
v. 屈尊, 惠允 ( 做某事)
参考例句:
  • He doesn't deign to talk to unimportant people like me. 他不肯屈尊和像我这样不重要的人说话。
  • I would not deign to comment on such behaviour. 这种行为不屑我置评。
31 lustreless cc5e530d299be9641ab842b66a66b363     
adj.无光泽的,无光彩的,平淡乏味的
参考例句:
  • The early autumn was lustreless and slack. 初秋的日子是黯淡、萧条的。 来自辞典例句
  • The day was cool and rather lustreless; the first note of autumn had been struck. 这天天气阴凉,光线暗淡,秋色已开始来临。 来自辞典例句
32 meekly meekly     
adv.温顺地,逆来顺受地
参考例句:
  • He stood aside meekly when the new policy was proposed. 当有人提出新政策时,他唯唯诺诺地站 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • He meekly accepted the rebuke. 他顺从地接受了批评。 来自《简明英汉词典》
33 concierge gppzr     
n.管理员;门房
参考例句:
  • This time the concierge was surprised to the point of bewilderment.这时候看门人惊奇到了困惑不解的地步。
  • As I went into the dining-room the concierge brought me a police bulletin to fill out.我走进餐厅的时候,看门人拿来一张警察局发的表格要我填。
34 agitated dzgzc2     
adj.被鼓动的,不安的
参考例句:
  • His answers were all mixed up,so agitated was he.他是那样心神不定,回答全乱了。
  • She was agitated because her train was an hour late.她乘坐的火车晚点一个小时,她十分焦虑。
35 bent QQ8yD     
n.爱好,癖好;adj.弯的;决心的,一心的
参考例句:
  • He was fully bent upon the project.他一心扑在这项计划上。
  • We bent over backward to help them.我们尽了最大努力帮助他们。
36 generosity Jf8zS     
n.大度,慷慨,慷慨的行为
参考例句:
  • We should match their generosity with our own.我们应该像他们一样慷慨大方。
  • We adore them for their generosity.我们钦佩他们的慷慨。
37 yearn nMjzN     
v.想念;怀念;渴望
参考例句:
  • We yearn to surrender our entire being.我们渴望着放纵我们整个的生命。
  • Many people living in big cities yearn for an idyllic country life.现在的很多都市人向往那种田园化的生活。
38 intensity 45Ixd     
n.强烈,剧烈;强度;烈度
参考例句:
  • I didn't realize the intensity of people's feelings on this issue.我没有意识到这一问题能引起群情激奋。
  • The strike is growing in intensity.罢工日益加剧。
39 dozed 30eca1f1e3c038208b79924c30b35bfc     
v.打盹儿,打瞌睡( doze的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • He boozed till daylight and dozed into the afternoon. 他喝了个通霄,昏沉沉地一直睡到下午。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
  • I dozed off during the soporific music. 我听到这催人入睡的音乐,便不知不觉打起盹儿来了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
40 squatted 45deb990f8c5186c854d710c535327b0     
v.像动物一样蹲下( squat的过去式和过去分词 );非法擅自占用(土地或房屋);为获得其所有权;而占用某片公共用地。
参考例句:
  • He squatted down beside the footprints and examined them closely. 他蹲在脚印旁仔细地观察。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • He squatted in the grass discussing with someone. 他蹲在草地上与一个人谈话。 来自《简明英汉词典》
41 shrubs b480276f8eea44e011d42320b17c3619     
灌木( shrub的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • The gardener spent a complete morning in trimming those two shrubs. 园丁花了整个上午的时间修剪那两处灌木林。
  • These shrubs will need more light to produce flowering shoots. 这些灌木需要更多的光照才能抽出开花的新枝。
42 scraps 737e4017931b7285cdd1fa3eb9dd77a3     
油渣
参考例句:
  • Don't litter up the floor with scraps of paper. 不要在地板上乱扔纸屑。
  • A patchwork quilt is a good way of using up scraps of material. 做杂拼花布棉被是利用零碎布料的好办法。
43 quay uClyc     
n.码头,靠岸处
参考例句:
  • There are all kinds of ships in a quay.码头停泊各式各样的船。
  • The side of the boat hit the quay with a grinding jar.船舷撞到码头发出刺耳的声音。
44 discretion FZQzm     
n.谨慎;随意处理
参考例句:
  • You must show discretion in choosing your friend.你择友时必须慎重。
  • Please use your best discretion to handle the matter.请慎重处理此事。
45 puffs cb3699ccb6e175dfc305ea6255d392d6     
n.吸( puff的名词复数 );(烟斗或香烟的)一吸;一缕(烟、蒸汽等);(呼吸或风的)呼v.使喷出( puff的第三人称单数 );喷着汽(或烟)移动;吹嘘;吹捧
参考例句:
  • We sat exchanging puffs from that wild pipe of his. 我们坐在那里,轮番抽着他那支野里野气的烟斗。 来自辞典例句
  • Puffs of steam and smoke came from the engine. 一股股蒸汽和烟雾从那火车头里冒出来。 来自辞典例句
46 lighting CpszPL     
n.照明,光线的明暗,舞台灯光
参考例句:
  • The gas lamp gradually lost ground to electric lighting.煤气灯逐渐为电灯所代替。
  • The lighting in that restaurant is soft and romantic.那个餐馆照明柔和而且浪漫。
47 placidly c0c28951cb36e0d70b9b64b1d177906e     
adv.平稳地,平静地
参考例句:
  • Hurstwood stood placidly by, while the car rolled back into the yard. 当车子开回场地时,赫斯渥沉着地站在一边。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
  • The water chestnut floated placidly there, where it would grow. 那棵菱角就又安安稳稳浮在水面上生长去了。 来自汉英文学 - 中国现代小说
48 scruple eDOz7     
n./v.顾忌,迟疑
参考例句:
  • It'seemed to her now that she could marry him without the remnant of a scruple.她觉得现在她可以跟他成婚而不需要有任何顾忌。
  • He makes no scruple to tell a lie.他说起谎来无所顾忌。
49 hips f8c80f9a170ee6ab52ed1e87054f32d4     
abbr.high impact polystyrene 高冲击强度聚苯乙烯,耐冲性聚苯乙烯n.臀部( hip的名词复数 );[建筑学]屋脊;臀围(尺寸);臀部…的
参考例句:
  • She stood with her hands on her hips. 她双手叉腰站着。
  • They wiggled their hips to the sound of pop music. 他们随着流行音乐的声音摇晃着臀部。 来自《简明英汉词典》
50 distress 3llzX     
n.苦恼,痛苦,不舒适;不幸;vt.使悲痛
参考例句:
  • Nothing could alleviate his distress.什么都不能减轻他的痛苦。
  • Please don't distress yourself.请你不要忧愁了。
51 dissuade ksPxy     
v.劝阻,阻止
参考例句:
  • You'd better dissuade him from doing that.你最好劝阻他别那样干。
  • I tried to dissuade her from investing her money in stocks and shares.我曾设法劝她不要投资于股票交易。
52 puddle otNy9     
n.(雨)水坑,泥潭
参考例句:
  • The boy hopped the mud puddle and ran down the walk.这个男孩跳过泥坑,沿着人行道跑了。
  • She tripped over and landed in a puddle.她绊了一下,跌在水坑里。
53 miserable g18yk     
adj.悲惨的,痛苦的;可怜的,糟糕的
参考例句:
  • It was miserable of you to make fun of him.你取笑他,这是可耻的。
  • Her past life was miserable.她过去的生活很苦。
54 standing 2hCzgo     
n.持续,地位;adj.永久的,不动的,直立的,不流动的
参考例句:
  • After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
  • They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。
55 salon VjTz2Z     
n.[法]沙龙;客厅;营业性的高级服务室
参考例句:
  • Do you go to the hairdresser or beauty salon more than twice a week?你每周去美容院或美容沙龙多过两次吗?
  • You can hear a lot of dirt at a salon.你在沙龙上会听到很多流言蜚语。
56 vivacious Dp7yI     
adj.活泼的,快活的
参考例句:
  • She is an artless,vivacious girl.她是一个天真活泼的女孩。
  • The picture has a vivacious artistic conception.这幅画气韵生动。
57 reassured ff7466d942d18e727fb4d5473e62a235     
adj.使消除疑虑的;使放心的v.再保证,恢复信心( reassure的过去式和过去分词)
参考例句:
  • The captain's confidence during the storm reassured the passengers. 在风暴中船长的信念使旅客们恢复了信心。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
  • The doctor reassured the old lady. 医生叫那位老妇人放心。 来自《简明英汉词典》
58 musingly ddec53b7ea68b079ee6cb62ac6c95bf9     
adv.沉思地,冥想地
参考例句:


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