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CHAPTER I BETHESDA
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A DULL patter of sheep’s hurrying feet came from behind a small knoll1 that jutted2 into the track along the mountain. The level plateau was wide and smooth below the towering slopes, and the threads of water crossing it at intervals3 had laid the underlying4 rock bare. As the sound neared, a travelling flock came round the knoll, herded5 thickly together and running before a man on horseback like clouds scudding6 before a gale7. Forty pairs of light-coloured eyes, with their clear black bar of pupil, stared limpidly8 into space, and the backs of the flock bobbed and heaved as the      [Pg 10]hundred and sixty little cloven hoofs9 set their mark on the earthy places over which they passed.

Heber Moorhouse, pressing hard on their heels, shouted now and again, swinging the rope’s end he carried and leaning far out of his saddle as he drove the stragglers in. The rough-coated, weedy-looking pony10 under him cantered on, stubborn in face and obedient in limb to the rider’s hand and balance. ‘Black Heber’ could bring in his sheep as easily without his dog as with him.

It was nothing in his colouring that had earned him the title by which some spoke11 of him, for his hair was of the same indefinite shade as that of many of his neighbours, and his eyes were rather light than dark. But they had a fire, on occasion, that suggested dark things even to the ardent12 and sober Baptist community to which he belonged. Though he was a young man he looked older than his years [Pg 11]by reason of his gauntness and his thin beard. He had sole charge of the flock on a fair-sized sheep farm, and was counted by his employer a responsible, if inconveniently13 independent, fellow. He was a convinced chapel14-goer, rather bigoted15 and with qualities which made certain wildnesses in him doubly marked by contrast.

He looked wild enough this afternoon, with his battered16, wide-brimmed hat and the arm which swung the rope-end showing sharply against the sky. He was a figure which by no stretch of imagination could be supposed to belong to the valley lying below his feet, rich, chequered, and green; its soft luxuriance pertained17 to another world from that which had given birth to this crude son of action.

The afternoon was wearing on and he was anxious to get the crowd in front of him to its destination in a pen farther along the plateau; when the sheep were off his hands there would be other matters [Pg 12]calling him, and his mind was running on far before the flock.

Meanwhile, as he rode on the mountain turf, a little concourse of people waited about among the trees at the head of the dingle farther on. Where a primitive18 cart-road plunged19 through a grove20 of alders22, a two-storied house, scarcely more pretentious23 than a cottage, stood back from it, facing the passer-by and parted from him by a wide yard. An obliterated24 signboard, high on the rough-cast wall, showed that the building had formerly25 been a house of entertainment, while it offered no clue to the device it had once borne, nor suggested the name, “Bethesda,” by which it was now known. What gave the place significance was the stream of water which crossed the road on its downward course and dived in among the trees, falling from level to level, and disappearing in the thicket26 of hazels and undergrowth.

Opposite to the house, but on the farther [Pg 13]side of the way, a paved channel was cut from the stream to a square pool the sides of which were walled by slabs28 of stone. From this another channel led to the edge of the high ground, but at the present moment it was blocked by a single slab27, the removal of which would drain the basin dry. The inlet from the main flow was controlled in like manner, and now both these sluices29 were closed and more than three feet of water lay in the pool, dark, and spotted30 with islands of bursting bubbles. A couple of two-wheeled vehicles rested on their shafts31 in the yard, while the beasts belonging to them, tethered upon the grass, got all they could out of their situation.

As Heber emerged from the outhouse in which he had tied up his pony to approach the pool, two persons were standing32 apart from the rest, with their backs turned to him, and he went towards a thick place, from which he could see them without [Pg 14]being noticed. The woman was a young, slight creature, soft-eyed, and with a swift gentleness of movement unlike that of the working class to which she belonged. Her clear skin flushed when her companion spoke to her as she stood by him holding a hymn33-book and nervously34 turning its leaves. She had a sensitive mouth and when she looked down her lashes35 rested in a broad fringe upon her cheek.

The other was a human being of a very different type, a man of ruddy complexion36, with white teeth showing in a pleasant smile when he spoke; he was well dressed and had the assured bearing of one who expects well of the world. Moorhouse watched the pair from where he stood in the background of alder21 stems. It was easy now to see why he was called ‘Black Heber.’

As more people arrived at the spot the girl seemed to shrink closer to the man beside her; and when three women went [Pg 15]off alone towards the house, she gave her book into his hand and prepared to follow them.

“It’s time now,” she said tremulously. “I must go. You’ll follow soon, Charles.”

“I suppose you must have your way, Catherine,” he said.

He looked after her as she disappeared and the door of the old inn closed behind her. Then a dark-coated man held up his hand for silence and the whole assembly went down upon its knees; Heber, too, knelt in his brake of alder. The dark-coated man began to pray aloud.

The prayer had continued a little time when Charles, who was looking eagerly towards the house from under the hand with which he had covered his face, saw the four women emerge again and come across the yard.

They approached slowly, one behind the other, a grey-headed woman first; and there was something in the solemn demeanour [Pg 16]of each that sent Charles Saunders’s mind back to the woodcuts of martyrdoms and executions he had seen as a boy in his school history-books. This half-barbarous scene was heightening the barrier which his slightly superior station had raised between himself and Catherine Dennis, though he was to be married to her in a week, and though he believed it to have fallen altogether. He frowned as the prayer ceased and he took his hands from his eyes. So far as he was anything, he was a Baptist by force of parentage and tradition, though the doctrine37 of total immersion38 appealed neither to him nor to his family. Nevertheless, he had promised her that he would embrace it practically, and he glanced at the small knot of men who awaited their turn to be baptized and with whom he was to present himself when the women came up from the pool.

The quiet figures stood modestly in a row behind the minister, Catherine and the [Pg 17]grey-haired woman together; the girl’s colour was mounting and fading again in her face. She looked over for a moment at her affianced husband, and he could see the exaltation that burned in her eyes, suggesting to him more than ever the idea of martyrdom. That sexless exaltation divided her from him too. He shifted from foot to foot and a smouldering anger was in him. It grew as he noticed that, though the other three wore boots and stockings, she had slipped her feet into a pair of shoes only and her bare ankles could be seen under her stuff petticoat. Heber’s eyes, which looked dark indeed, were set on her, and, as Saunders suddenly perceived him among the trees, the anger kindled39 in him like a flame.

He knew little of the man, scarcely more than that he was Catherine’s old lover, and that the two had parted because of some trivial disagreement; but he had once drawn40 from her the admission that she had [Pg 18]been afraid of Black Heber. Saunders, who worked for a well-to-do cattle-breeding uncle, whom he was eventually to succeed in business, was made of a different stuff from the tall shepherd whose ways were in the hill; and though the two men belonged to the same sect41 they did not go to the same chapel, for Saunders worshipped in Llangarth, where he and his relation lived and drove their trade. Heber’s looks suggested a rebellion against all with which the other held, and the independence that clothed him as a garment irked the richer man; for he had a mortifying42 certainty that if the other envied him at all, it was on Catherine’s account alone. There was annoyance43 in the thought that Heber Moorhouse would not have exchanged his sheep and his life of exertion44 and hardship—the cold winter snow and starlight of the mountain, its burning, shadeless summer heats—for the advantages which had placed himself high in the consideration [Pg 19]of Catherine’s few friends. Catherine was an orphan45 and her lot in life that of a maidservant at a humble46 farm. She had caught Charles’s affections in spite of every prejudice he possessed47 and the fact spoke well for the strength of his feelings.

The minister was beginning the opening line of a hymn. His voice was not strong, but the first sharp note pierced the silence of the trees and threw the murmur48 of falling water into the background. The sound gathered volume as one and then another of the congregation struck in. Saunders alone was silent; he had a rich voice which agreed with his generous type of looks and he was fond of using it; but he stood dumb in his place as verse after verse rose and fell. It seemed to him as if everything—voices, prayers, the very trees and the air of the early autumn afternoon—was conspiring49 to make a show of the girl who was his own and who was set [Pg 20]in front of these scores of eyes, conspicuous50, with her bare ankles.

As the last words of the hymn died out the minister stepped down into the water. It swirled51 round his middle, for he was a small man, and lapped against the stone sides of the pool; and the oddness of his appearance as he stood, fully52 dressed, in the confined space, with only the upper half of him visible, brought a smile to the lips of a few present to whom the sight was strange.

Catherine was the last of the four to descend53 into the pool, and she paused before entering it to help her grey-headed predecessor54 up the slope of the bank. The old woman was bewildered from the shock of the immersion, and her teeth chattered55 as the girl supported her for a moment before her companions led her away to the house. The minister looked after the retreating women with some concern. Every eye was upon Catherine, who had drawn the shawl she wore more tightly about her and stood [Pg 21]waiting for the support of her pastor’s hand. For a minute her heart quailed56 at the coming chill and her lips trembled; then she put forward one white ankle and found herself clinging to the man’s sleeve, and up to her waist in the pool. Her grasp loosened as she felt her feet and she joined her hands together while he lifted his voice, calling on God to look down on this woman, His servant, who stood forth57 to be baptized before the little congregation of the faithful. She did not unclasp her hands as he put one arm round her while he gently forced her backwards58 with the other; her eyes were closed as the water rose about her throat and over her forehead. Just as she disappeared completely under the surface the minister put his foot on a loose stone on the floor of the paved place and slipped. He regained59 his balance in a moment, but as Catherine felt his support waver, panic took her, and she made a convulsive effort to rise. The water [Pg 22]gripped at her shawl and the sudden weight almost dragged her down.

She had fastened the heavy covering securely, but it broke loose and floated, half submerged, on the pool. She stood up, pale and terrified, in her white shift and thick petticoat. The linen60 clung, dripping, to her shoulders and bosom61, outlining every curve of her body, and her loosened hair fell in a coil to her elbows. The minister drew the shawl from the water and wrapped it about her.

Saunders had come a few paces nearer, and as she regained the bank the girl could see, even through the streams pouring from her hair, his look of steady rage. She hurried quickly into the house: the tears were mingling62 with the colder drops that washed her cheeks. She sank down on a chair, in the room where the other women were putting on their dry clothes, and sobbed63. One of them came to her and began to unfasten her wet shift. A [Pg 23]dry one lay in a corner, with her stockings and the rest of her garments; she sobbed on, heeding64 no one, for her thoughts were with the angry man outside. She was very timid and she had looked forward to this day as to a day of happiness.

At the brink65 of the pool the men who were awaiting baptism were taking off their coats and boots and Saunders stood back again as he saw them making their preparations. The wrath66 which the sight of Catherine’s bare ankles and her thinly veiled body had raised turned every instinct in revolt against the rite67 he had witnessed. His foolish promise to share in it had been given in the glamour68 of some tender moment and he felt it would be impossible to redeem69 it. The whole thing disgusted him; he took his religion and its forms more as a matter of course than as a matter of conviction; and baptism by immersion struck him now as an absurdity70 for a man—a positive indecency for a woman. As [Pg 24]he saw the minister looking towards him he turned away, and went, in a tumult71 of revulsion, in among the trees. He would have no part with these people.

He felt a wide difference between himself and these men and women of the hillside; and he would take care that his wife should have no more to do with them. She had no relations, fortunately, to beset72 her with their influence.

He strode over the channel which was the outlet73 of the pool, his head down, his angry look fixed74 on the ground. He would have turned his back upon Bethesda, there and then, had he not told Catherine that he would walk home with her to the farmhouse75 at which she served. He knew that most of the congregation was aware of his intention to be baptized to-day, and he could not endure the well-meaning glances of inquiry76 that followed him. He hated every creature in it.

[Pg 25]

He reached a large alder whose divided stems rose from a wet place, dark with that touch of the unhallowed which is the charm of alder trees; Heber was leaning against the trunk amid the thick brush of leaves. He was so appropriate a figure to his surroundings that an imaginative person might have been startled. Saunders, who had for the time being forgotten his existence, stopped. He was not imaginative, but Heber—or, rather, the religious aspect of him—stood in his mind for everything he was rebelling against now; for at this moment Charles felt ready to become an infidel. The other aspect of Heber—the one which had been uppermost while he watched the woman he loved from the alder brake—only struck him as the man spoke.

“I thought ye were to go down to the water alongside o’ her,” he said. “I would ha’ done better for her than that.”

There was savage77 contempt in his voice.

[Pg 26]

“You!” exclaimed the other, catching78 his breath; “you, indeed!”

“Yes, I.”

“Ah! you scoundrel!” cried Saunders suddenly, “you black scoundrel, hiding there among the trees with your eyes on another man’s girl!”

“She won’t be yours long,” replied Heber.

“No, that she won’t!” shouted Saunders, “not if she’s going to keep up wi’ you folks on the hill! not if she’s to make a show of herself and a shame! not if she’s to go a different way to heaven from me that’s to be her husband! What’ll take me there’ll take her too, and she shall know it!”

His voice was so loud that many of the congregation were turning in his direction. By this time the minister had come up from the water and was speaking to the newly baptized persons who were standing about him. Catherine and the three [Pg 27]women waited afar off in the yard of the inn.

Charles controlled himself and his voice dropped. He went off to the house, skirting the limits of the crowd.

“I must be going home now,” said the girl nervously, as he joined her.

He made no reply, merely starting off down the road and bidding her come quickly. The people beside the pool had begun to talk and laugh, now that the business that had brought them together was over, and the sound of their loosened tongues made him hurry out of earshot. When they had gone a little way he turned upon Catherine. The fact that she had made no mention of his broken promise showed her to be entirely79 conscious of his mood.

“You’re angry with me,” she said as he was about to speak.

“Why did you come out i’ the face of all the people without your stockings and without your gown? What took you that [Pg 28]you couldn’t be decent and modest like the other women? There were you in your smock for all these gaping80 fellows to see—good-for-nothing rascals81 like that Black Heber sneaking82 there among the trees—damn him! I have no mind for my wife to be a sight for the like of him!”

Catherine looked up at him with an agonised face.

“I was ashamed of you—that’s what I was,” continued he, “and I’ll have no more of it! I tell you to be done with all these common folk that can’t get baptized without making a parade and a show of themselves. I wonder that an honest old grandmother like the woman beside you should let you go out of the house like that.”

“But my shawl came off,” protested Catherine, who was now crying bitterly; “the water pulled it away from me.”

“And where was your gown that should have kept you decent?”

“I’ve only got one,” sobbed the girl, [Pg 29]“an’ I was afraid to spoil it; I’ve been pinching an’ saving to buy my wedding dress, and there’s only this one to my back. Mrs. Job lent me her shawl that I mightn’t spoil what I’ve got.”

Charles hardly knew what to say. In his heart he really acquitted83 Catherine of the immodest behaviour with which he had charged her, but his humour demanded an outlet. What really wrung84 his withers85 was his smarting sense of the gulf86 between himself and the community from which he was taking a wife. His origin was no higher than that of the people whose voices he could still hear as they chatted round the precincts of Bethesda, but his uncle’s business had led him into a more sophisticated class, and he had identified himself passionately87 with it. In this access of contempt and wrath he had been stung into positive fury by the meeting with Heber Moorhouse; for he was a jealous man, and the thought that the girl he loved had [Pg 30]been the promised wife of such an one as Black Heber was more than he could bear. It had almost made him hate Catherine.

They walked on in silence. She turned her face from him and wept on; and Saunders’s sense of justice was beginning to be touched—as the sense of justice in the weak so often is—not by the actual rights of the matter, but by his own sentiments. He grew a little less furious. By the time they neared their destination he put out his hand and drew her closer to him.

“There, there,” he said, speaking more gently, “we’ll say no more about it. You’ll have more than one gown, I’ll go bail88, when we’re man an’ wife.”

Catherine Dennis’s existence had been dependent upon the will of others ever since she could remember and no thought of rebellion against her lover’s unreasonableness89 came to her. A so-called aunt had brought her up and at her death she had gone into service; she had never had [Pg 31]any choice in her course of life until ‘Black Heber’ had found his way into it. Even the quarrel which parted them had been the work of a third person, and Catherine had suffered and wept in secret and been barely consoled by those who never ceased telling her that he was a wild fellow and that she was well rid of him.

Only one person had taken a different line, and that was Mrs. Job Williams who lived near Pencoed Chapel, on the lower slope of the Black Mountain.

“Mrs. Job,” as she was called by her neighbours, was a sharp-featured, middle-aged90 matron, whose absolute ascendency over her husband had made him almost a negligible quantity with his acquaintance. Her own personality was so marked, and the impression she made upon the minds of her neighbours so keen, that it was considered a lucky thing for Catherine Dennis, tossed about, as she was, to have found anchorage in ‘Mrs. Job’s’ goodwill91. Her [Pg 32]mission was to keep the little Baptist Chapel of Pencoed in order, and she lived in a cottage beside the green track connecting that place with the more frequented ways along the hill. She was a fervent92 Baptist and it was owing to her that Catherine had been brought into the community. Only her feeling of responsibility for the girl’s soul had prevented her from turning her angular back upon her when Heber arrived one evening at her door, and she discovered that the two had parted; she had wrestled93 sorely with herself in her determination to keep friendly with Catherine, and that responsibility was probably the one thing that could have enabled her to do so. The girl was impressionable and excitable; she was determined94 that it should not be her fault if the lamb she had brought into the fold wandered back into the Church. She it was who had influenced Catherine to persuade Saunders to be rebaptized in Bethesda pool. Mrs. Job’s heart was hot [Pg 33]within her, for she liked the shepherd more than she did most people. She had no child and the lonely visions that came to her of the son she might have borne wore the face of Black Heber.

And now Catherine’s wedding was only a few days off. It was to take place at an early hour in the morning and she was to sleep at Mrs. Job’s house on the preceding night. But though her prospects95 were so good and though she was leaving a life of hard work for one of comparative ease; though Charles’s wrath had cooled during their long walk, she stood at the gate of the farm looking after him with a downcast heart. She had expected to be so happy, but it had been a day of tears. He had not said a word about his broken promise, and she had not found courage to speak of it.

点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 knoll X3nyd     
n.小山,小丘
参考例句:
  • Silver had terrible hard work getting up the knoll.对于希尔弗来说,爬上那小山丘真不是件容易事。
  • He crawled up a small knoll and surveyed the prospect.他慢腾腾地登上一个小丘,看了看周围的地形。
2 jutted 24c546c23e927de0beca5ea56f7fb23f     
v.(使)突出( jut的过去式和过去分词 );伸出;(从…)突出;高出
参考例句:
  • A row of small windows jutted out from the roof. 有一排小窗户从房顶上突出来。
  • His jaw jutted stubbornly forward; he would not be denied. 他固执地扬起下巴,一副不肯罢休的样子。 来自《简明英汉词典》
3 intervals f46c9d8b430e8c86dea610ec56b7cbef     
n.[军事]间隔( interval的名词复数 );间隔时间;[数学]区间;(戏剧、电影或音乐会的)幕间休息
参考例句:
  • The forecast said there would be sunny intervals and showers. 预报间晴,有阵雨。
  • Meetings take place at fortnightly intervals. 每两周开一次会。
4 underlying 5fyz8c     
adj.在下面的,含蓄的,潜在的
参考例句:
  • The underlying theme of the novel is very serious.小说隐含的主题是十分严肃的。
  • This word has its underlying meaning.这个单词有它潜在的含义。
5 herded a8990e20e0204b4b90e89c841c5d57bf     
群集,纠结( herd的过去式和过去分词 ); 放牧; (使)向…移动
参考例句:
  • He herded up his goats. 他把山羊赶拢在一起。
  • They herded into the corner. 他们往角落里聚集。
6 scudding ae56c992b738e4f4a25852d1f96fe4e8     
n.刮面v.(尤指船、舰或云彩)笔直、高速而平稳地移动( scud的现在分词 )
参考例句:
  • Clouds were scudding across the sky. 云飞越天空。 来自辞典例句
  • China Advertising Photo Market-Like a Rising Wind and Scudding Clouds. 中国广告图片市场:风起云涌。 来自互联网
7 gale Xf3zD     
n.大风,强风,一阵闹声(尤指笑声等)
参考例句:
  • We got our roof blown off in the gale last night.昨夜的大风把我们的房顶给掀掉了。
  • According to the weather forecast,there will be a gale tomorrow.据气象台预报,明天有大风。
8 limpidly de494a19359ed4488e0a01c5f0d3ae66     
adv.清澈地,透明地
参考例句:
  • Eliminate skin filth, no tight feeling after using, skin and muscle limpidly delicate white. 清除表面污垢,用后无紧绷感,肌肤透彻嫩白。 来自互联网
9 hoofs ffcc3c14b1369cfeb4617ce36882c891     
n.(兽的)蹄,马蹄( hoof的名词复数 )v.(兽的)蹄,马蹄( hoof的第三人称单数 )
参考例句:
  • The stamp of the horse's hoofs on the wooden floor was loud. 马蹄踏在木头地板上的声音很响。 来自辞典例句
  • The noise of hoofs called him back to the other window. 马蹄声把他又唤回那扇窗子口。 来自辞典例句
10 pony Au5yJ     
adj.小型的;n.小马
参考例句:
  • His father gave him a pony as a Christmas present.他父亲给了他一匹小马驹作为圣诞礼物。
  • They made him pony up the money he owed.他们逼他还债。
11 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。
12 ardent yvjzd     
adj.热情的,热烈的,强烈的,烈性的
参考例句:
  • He's an ardent supporter of the local football team.他是本地足球队的热情支持者。
  • Ardent expectations were held by his parents for his college career.他父母对他的大学学习抱着殷切的期望。
13 inconveniently lqdz8n     
ad.不方便地
参考例句:
  • Hardware encrypting resists decryption intensely, but it use inconveniently for user. 硬件加密方法有较强的抗解密性,但用户使用不方便。
  • Even implementing the interest-deferral scheme for homeowners has proved inconveniently tricky. 甚至是对房主实行的推迟利息的方案,结果证明也是极不方便的。
14 chapel UXNzg     
n.小教堂,殡仪馆
参考例句:
  • The nimble hero,skipped into a chapel that stood near.敏捷的英雄跳进近旁的一座小教堂里。
  • She was on the peak that Sunday afternoon when she played in chapel.那个星期天的下午,她在小教堂的演出,可以说是登峰造极。
15 bigoted EQByV     
adj.固执己见的,心胸狭窄的
参考例句:
  • He is so bigoted that it is impossible to argue with him.他固执得不可理喻。
  • I'll concede you are not as bigoted as some.我承认你不象有些人那么顽固。
16 battered NyezEM     
adj.磨损的;v.连续猛击;磨损
参考例句:
  • He drove up in a battered old car.他开着一辆又老又破的旧车。
  • The world was brutally battered but it survived.这个世界遭受了惨重的创伤,但它还是生存下来了。
17 pertained 3a58c38201126d5168f1ac24aec98c19     
关于( pertain的过去式和过去分词 ); 有关; 存在; 适用
参考例句:
  • These are the privileges that pertained only to the wealthier class. 这些是属于富有阶级独享的特权。
  • And did you feel it, in your heart, it pertained to everything? 而你是否感受到,在你心里,它如何和谐于万物?
18 primitive vSwz0     
adj.原始的;简单的;n.原(始)人,原始事物
参考例句:
  • It is a primitive instinct to flee a place of danger.逃离危险的地方是一种原始本能。
  • His book describes the march of the civilization of a primitive society.他的著作描述了一个原始社会的开化过程。
19 plunged 06a599a54b33c9d941718dccc7739582     
v.颠簸( plunge的过去式和过去分词 );暴跌;骤降;突降
参考例句:
  • The train derailed and plunged into the river. 火车脱轨栽进了河里。
  • She lost her balance and plunged 100 feet to her death. 她没有站稳,从100英尺的高处跌下摔死了。
20 grove v5wyy     
n.林子,小树林,园林
参考例句:
  • On top of the hill was a grove of tall trees.山顶上一片高大的树林。
  • The scent of lemons filled the grove.柠檬香味充满了小树林。
21 alder QzNz7q     
n.赤杨树
参考例句:
  • He gave john some alder bark.他给了约翰一些桤木树皮。
  • Several coppice plantations have been seeded with poplar,willow,and alder.好几个灌木林场都种上了白杨、柳树和赤杨。
22 alders 2fc5019012aa8aa07a18a3db0aa55c4b     
n.桤木( alder的名词复数 )
参考例句:
23 pretentious lSrz3     
adj.自命不凡的,自负的,炫耀的
参考例句:
  • He is a talented but pretentious writer.他是一个有才华但自命不凡的作家。
  • Speaking well of yourself would only make you appear conceited and pretentious.自夸只会使你显得自负和虚伪。
24 obliterated 5b21c854b61847047948152f774a0c94     
v.除去( obliterate的过去式和过去分词 );涂去;擦掉;彻底破坏或毁灭
参考例句:
  • The building was completely obliterated by the bomb. 炸弹把那座建筑物彻底摧毁了。
  • He began to drink, drank himself to intoxication, till he slept obliterated. 他一直喝,喝到他快要迷糊地睡着了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
25 formerly ni3x9     
adv.从前,以前
参考例句:
  • We now enjoy these comforts of which formerly we had only heard.我们现在享受到了过去只是听说过的那些舒适条件。
  • This boat was formerly used on the rivers of China.这船从前航行在中国内河里。
26 thicket So0wm     
n.灌木丛,树林
参考例句:
  • A thicket makes good cover for animals to hide in.丛林是动物的良好隐蔽处。
  • We were now at the margin of the thicket.我们现在已经来到了丛林的边缘。
27 slab BTKz3     
n.平板,厚的切片;v.切成厚板,以平板盖上
参考例句:
  • This heavy slab of oak now stood between the bomb and Hitler.这时笨重的橡木厚板就横在炸弹和希特勒之间了。
  • The monument consists of two vertical pillars supporting a horizontal slab.这座纪念碑由两根垂直的柱体构成,它们共同支撑着一块平板。
28 slabs df40a4b047507aa67c09fd288db230ac     
n.厚板,平板,厚片( slab的名词复数 );厚胶片
参考例句:
  • The patio was made of stone slabs. 这天井是用石板铺砌而成的。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • The slabs of standing stone point roughly toward the invisible notch. 这些矗立的石块,大致指向那个看不见的缺口。 来自辞典例句
29 sluices 58a52839aaba80bf032ce8b48e5e5993     
n.水闸( sluice的名词复数 );(用水闸控制的)水;有闸人工水道;漂洗处v.冲洗( sluice的第三人称单数 );(指水)喷涌而出;漂净;给…安装水闸
参考例句:
  • Excess water will drain through sluices into the sea. 过剩的水将会通过水闸排放到海里去。 来自英语晨读30分(高二)
  • The sluices had already been opened, and with every day the floods were spreading. 水闸已经打开,洪水逐日奔流。 来自辞典例句
30 spotted 7FEyj     
adj.有斑点的,斑纹的,弄污了的
参考例句:
  • The milkman selected the spotted cows,from among a herd of two hundred.牛奶商从一群200头牛中选出有斑点的牛。
  • Sam's shop stocks short spotted socks.山姆的商店屯积了有斑点的短袜。
31 shafts 8a8cb796b94a20edda1c592a21399c6b     
n.轴( shaft的名词复数 );(箭、高尔夫球棒等的)杆;通风井;一阵(疼痛、害怕等)
参考例句:
  • He deliberately jerked the shafts to rock him a bit. 他故意的上下颠动车把,摇这个老猴子几下。 来自汉英文学 - 骆驼祥子
  • Shafts were sunk, with tunnels dug laterally. 竖井已经打下,并且挖有横向矿道。 来自辞典例句
32 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。
33 hymn m4Wyw     
n.赞美诗,圣歌,颂歌
参考例句:
  • They sang a hymn of praise to God.他们唱着圣歌,赞美上帝。
  • The choir has sung only two verses of the last hymn.合唱团只唱了最后一首赞美诗的两个段落。
34 nervously tn6zFp     
adv.神情激动地,不安地
参考例句:
  • He bit his lip nervously,trying not to cry.他紧张地咬着唇,努力忍着不哭出来。
  • He paced nervously up and down on the platform.他在站台上情绪不安地走来走去。
35 lashes e2e13f8d3a7c0021226bb2f94d6a15ec     
n.鞭挞( lash的名词复数 );鞭子;突然猛烈的一击;急速挥动v.鞭打( lash的第三人称单数 );煽动;紧系;怒斥
参考例句:
  • Mother always lashes out food for the children's party. 孩子们聚会时,母亲总是给他们许多吃的。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • Never walk behind a horse in case it lashes out. 绝对不要跟在马后面,以防它突然猛踢。 来自《简明英汉词典》
36 complexion IOsz4     
n.肤色;情况,局面;气质,性格
参考例句:
  • Red does not suit with her complexion.红色与她的肤色不协调。
  • Her resignation puts a different complexion on things.她一辞职局面就全变了。
37 doctrine Pkszt     
n.教义;主义;学说
参考例句:
  • He was impelled to proclaim his doctrine.他不得不宣扬他的教义。
  • The council met to consider changes to doctrine.宗教议会开会考虑更改教义。
38 immersion baIxf     
n.沉浸;专心
参考例句:
  • The dirt on the bottom of the bath didn't encourage total immersion.浴缸底有污垢,不宜全身浸泡于其中。
  • The wood had become swollen from prolonged immersion.因长时间浸泡,木头发胀了。
39 kindled d35b7382b991feaaaa3e8ddbbcca9c46     
(使某物)燃烧,着火( kindle的过去式和过去分词 ); 激起(感情等); 发亮,放光
参考例句:
  • We watched as the fire slowly kindled. 我们看着火慢慢地燃烧起来。
  • The teacher's praise kindled a spark of hope inside her. 老师的赞扬激起了她内心的希望。
40 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。
41 sect 1ZkxK     
n.派别,宗教,学派,派系
参考例句:
  • When he was sixteen he joined a religious sect.他16岁的时候加入了一个宗教教派。
  • Each religious sect in the town had its own church.该城每一个宗教教派都有自己的教堂。
42 mortifying b4c9d41e6df2931de61ad9c0703750cd     
adj.抑制的,苦修的v.使受辱( mortify的现在分词 );伤害(人的感情);克制;抑制(肉体、情感等)
参考例句:
  • I've said I did not love her, and rather relished mortifying her vanity now and then. 我已经说过我不爱她,而且时时以伤害她的虚荣心为乐。 来自辞典例句
  • It was mortifying to know he had heard every word. 知道他听到了每一句话后真是尴尬。 来自互联网
43 annoyance Bw4zE     
n.恼怒,生气,烦恼
参考例句:
  • Why do you always take your annoyance out on me?为什么你不高兴时总是对我出气?
  • I felt annoyance at being teased.我恼恨别人取笑我。
44 exertion F7Fyi     
n.尽力,努力
参考例句:
  • We were sweating profusely from the exertion of moving the furniture.我们搬动家具大费气力,累得大汗淋漓。
  • She was hot and breathless from the exertion of cycling uphill.由于用力骑车爬坡,她浑身发热。
45 orphan QJExg     
n.孤儿;adj.无父母的
参考例句:
  • He brought up the orphan and passed onto him his knowledge of medicine.他把一个孤儿养大,并且把自己的医术传给了他。
  • The orphan had been reared in a convent by some good sisters.这个孤儿在一所修道院里被几个好心的修女带大。
46 humble ddjzU     
adj.谦卑的,恭顺的;地位低下的;v.降低,贬低
参考例句:
  • In my humble opinion,he will win the election.依我拙见,他将在选举中获胜。
  • Defeat and failure make people humble.挫折与失败会使人谦卑。
47 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。
48 murmur EjtyD     
n.低语,低声的怨言;v.低语,低声而言
参考例句:
  • They paid the extra taxes without a murmur.他们毫无怨言地交了附加税。
  • There was a low murmur of conversation in the hall.大厅里有窃窃私语声。
49 conspiring 6ea0abd4b4aba2784a9aa29dd5b24fa0     
密谋( conspire的现在分词 ); 搞阴谋; (事件等)巧合; 共同导致
参考例句:
  • They were accused of conspiring against the king. 他们被指控阴谋反对国王。
  • John Brown and his associates were tried for conspiring to overthrow the slave states. 约翰·布朗和他的合伙者们由于密谋推翻实行奴隶制度的美国各州而被审讯。
50 conspicuous spszE     
adj.明眼的,惹人注目的;炫耀的,摆阔气的
参考例句:
  • It is conspicuous that smoking is harmful to health.很明显,抽烟对健康有害。
  • Its colouring makes it highly conspicuous.它的色彩使它非常惹人注目。
51 swirled eb40fca2632f9acaecc78417fd6adc53     
v.旋转,打旋( swirl的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • The waves swirled and eddied around the rocks. 波浪翻滚着在岩石周围打旋。
  • The water swirled down the drain. 水打着旋流进了下水道。
52 fully Gfuzd     
adv.完全地,全部地,彻底地;充分地
参考例句:
  • The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气,然后全部呼出。
  • They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。
53 descend descend     
vt./vi.传下来,下来,下降
参考例句:
  • I hope the grace of God would descend on me.我期望上帝的恩惠。
  • We're not going to descend to such methods.我们不会沦落到使用这种手段。
54 predecessor qP9x0     
n.前辈,前任
参考例句:
  • It will share the fate of its predecessor.它将遭受与前者同样的命运。
  • The new ambassador is more mature than his predecessor.新大使比他的前任更成熟一些。
55 chattered 0230d885b9f6d176177681b6eaf4b86f     
(人)喋喋不休( chatter的过去式 ); 唠叨; (牙齿)打战; (机器)震颤
参考例句:
  • They chattered away happily for a while. 他们高兴地闲扯了一会儿。
  • We chattered like two teenagers. 我们聊着天,像两个十多岁的孩子。
56 quailed 6b883b0b92140de4bde03901043d6acd     
害怕,发抖,畏缩( quail的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • I quailed at the danger. 我一遇到危险,心里就发毛。
  • His heart quailed before the enormous pyramidal shape. 面对这金字塔般的庞然大物,他的心不由得一阵畏缩。 来自英汉文学
57 forth Hzdz2     
adv.向前;向外,往外
参考例句:
  • The wind moved the trees gently back and forth.风吹得树轻轻地来回摇晃。
  • He gave forth a series of works in rapid succession.他很快连续发表了一系列的作品。
58 backwards BP9ya     
adv.往回地,向原处,倒,相反,前后倒置地
参考例句:
  • He turned on the light and began to pace backwards and forwards.他打开电灯并开始走来走去。
  • All the girls fell over backwards to get the party ready.姑娘们迫不及待地为聚会做准备。
59 regained 51ada49e953b830c8bd8fddd6bcd03aa     
复得( regain的过去式和过去分词 ); 赢回; 重回; 复至某地
参考例句:
  • The majority of the people in the world have regained their liberty. 世界上大多数人已重获自由。
  • She hesitated briefly but quickly regained her poise. 她犹豫片刻,但很快恢复了镇静。
60 linen W3LyK     
n.亚麻布,亚麻线,亚麻制品;adj.亚麻布制的,亚麻的
参考例句:
  • The worker is starching the linen.这名工人正在给亚麻布上浆。
  • Fine linen and cotton fabrics were known as well as wool.精细的亚麻织品和棉织品像羊毛一样闻名遐迩。
61 bosom Lt9zW     
n.胸,胸部;胸怀;内心;adj.亲密的
参考例句:
  • She drew a little book from her bosom.她从怀里取出一本小册子。
  • A dark jealousy stirred in his bosom.他内心生出一阵恶毒的嫉妒。
62 mingling b387131b4ffa62204a89fca1610062f3     
adj.混合的
参考例句:
  • There was a spring of bitterness mingling with that fountain of sweets. 在这个甜蜜的源泉中间,已经掺和进苦涩的山水了。
  • The mingling of inconsequence belongs to us all. 这场矛盾混和物是我们大家所共有的。
63 sobbed 4a153e2bbe39eef90bf6a4beb2dba759     
哭泣,啜泣( sob的过去式和过去分词 ); 哭诉,呜咽地说
参考例句:
  • She sobbed out the story of her son's death. 她哭诉着她儿子的死。
  • She sobbed out the sad story of her son's death. 她哽咽着诉说她儿子死去的悲惨经过。
64 heeding e57191803bfd489e6afea326171fe444     
v.听某人的劝告,听从( heed的现在分词 )
参考例句:
  • This come of heeding people who say one thing and mean another! 有些人嘴里一回事,心里又是一回事,今天这个下场都是听信了这种人的话的结果。 来自辞典例句
  • Her dwarfish spouse still smoked his cigar and drank his rum without heeding her. 她那矮老公还在吸他的雪茄,喝他的蔗酒,睬也不睬她。 来自辞典例句
65 brink OWazM     
n.(悬崖、河流等的)边缘,边沿
参考例句:
  • The tree grew on the brink of the cliff.那棵树生长在峭壁的边缘。
  • The two countries were poised on the brink of war.这两个国家处于交战的边缘。
66 wrath nVNzv     
n.愤怒,愤慨,暴怒
参考例句:
  • His silence marked his wrath. 他的沉默表明了他的愤怒。
  • The wrath of the people is now aroused. 人们被激怒了。
67 rite yCmzq     
n.典礼,惯例,习俗
参考例句:
  • This festival descends from a religious rite.这个节日起源于宗教仪式。
  • Most traditional societies have transition rites at puberty.大多数传统社会都为青春期的孩子举行成人礼。
68 glamour Keizv     
n.魔力,魅力;vt.迷住
参考例句:
  • Foreign travel has lost its glamour for her.到国外旅行对她已失去吸引力了。
  • The moonlight cast a glamour over the scene.月光给景色增添了魅力。
69 redeem zCbyH     
v.买回,赎回,挽回,恢复,履行(诺言等)
参考例句:
  • He had no way to redeem his furniture out of pawn.他无法赎回典当的家具。
  • The eyes redeem the face from ugliness.这双眼睛弥补了他其貌不扬之缺陷。
70 absurdity dIQyU     
n.荒谬,愚蠢;谬论
参考例句:
  • The proposal borders upon the absurdity.这提议近乎荒谬。
  • The absurdity of the situation made everyone laugh.情况的荒谬可笑使每个人都笑了。
71 tumult LKrzm     
n.喧哗;激动,混乱;吵闹
参考例句:
  • The tumult in the streets awakened everyone in the house.街上的喧哗吵醒了屋子里的每一个人。
  • His voice disappeared under growing tumult.他的声音消失在越来越响的喧哗声中。
72 beset SWYzq     
v.镶嵌;困扰,包围
参考例句:
  • She wanted to enjoy her retirement without being beset by financial worries.她想享受退休生活而不必为金钱担忧。
  • The plan was beset with difficulties from the beginning.这项计划自开始就困难重重。
73 outlet ZJFxG     
n.出口/路;销路;批发商店;通风口;发泄
参考例句:
  • The outlet of a water pipe was blocked.水管的出水口堵住了。
  • Running is a good outlet for his energy.跑步是他发泄过剩精力的好方法。
74 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。
75 farmhouse kt1zIk     
n.农场住宅(尤指主要住房)
参考例句:
  • We fell for the farmhouse as soon as we saw it.我们对那所农舍一见倾心。
  • We put up for the night at a farmhouse.我们在一间农舍投宿了一夜。
76 inquiry nbgzF     
n.打听,询问,调查,查问
参考例句:
  • Many parents have been pressing for an inquiry into the problem.许多家长迫切要求调查这个问题。
  • The field of inquiry has narrowed down to five persons.调查的范围已经缩小到只剩5个人了。
77 savage ECxzR     
adj.野蛮的;凶恶的,残暴的;n.未开化的人
参考例句:
  • The poor man received a savage beating from the thugs.那可怜的人遭到暴徒的痛打。
  • He has a savage temper.他脾气粗暴。
78 catching cwVztY     
adj.易传染的,有魅力的,迷人的,接住
参考例句:
  • There are those who think eczema is catching.有人就是认为湿疹会传染。
  • Enthusiasm is very catching.热情非常富有感染力。
79 entirely entirely     
ad.全部地,完整地;完全地,彻底地
参考例句:
  • The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
  • His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。
80 gaping gaping     
adj.口的;张口的;敞口的;多洞穴的v.目瞪口呆地凝视( gape的现在分词 );张开,张大
参考例句:
  • Ahead of them was a gaping abyss. 他们前面是一个巨大的深渊。
  • The antelope could not escape the crocodile's gaping jaws. 那只羚羊无法从鱷鱼张开的大口中逃脱。 来自《简明英汉词典》
81 rascals 5ab37438604a153e085caf5811049ebb     
流氓( rascal的名词复数 ); 无赖; (开玩笑说法)淘气的人(尤指小孩); 恶作剧的人
参考例句:
  • "Oh, but I like rascals. "唔,不过我喜欢流氓。
  • "They're all second-raters, black sheep, rascals. "他们都是二流人物,是流氓,是恶棍。
82 sneaking iibzMu     
a.秘密的,不公开的
参考例句:
  • She had always had a sneaking affection for him. 以前她一直暗暗倾心于他。
  • She ducked the interviewers by sneaking out the back door. 她从后门偷偷溜走,躲开采访者。
83 acquitted c33644484a0fb8e16df9d1c2cd057cb0     
宣判…无罪( acquit的过去式和过去分词 ); 使(自己)作出某种表现
参考例句:
  • The jury acquitted him of murder. 陪审团裁决他谋杀罪不成立。
  • Five months ago she was acquitted on a shoplifting charge. 五个月前她被宣判未犯入店行窃罪。
84 wrung b11606a7aab3e4f9eebce4222a9397b1     
绞( wring的过去式和过去分词 ); 握紧(尤指别人的手); 把(湿衣服)拧干; 绞掉(水)
参考例句:
  • He has wrung the words from their true meaning. 他曲解这些字的真正意义。
  • He wrung my hand warmly. 他热情地紧握我的手。
85 withers e30bf7b384bb09fe0dc96663bb9cde0b     
马肩隆
参考例句:
  • The girl's pitiful history would wring one's withers. 这女孩子的经历令人心碎。
  • "I will be there to show you," and so Mr. Withers withdrew. “我会等在那里,领你去看房间的,"威瑟斯先生这样说着,退了出去。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
86 gulf 1e0xp     
n.海湾;深渊,鸿沟;分歧,隔阂
参考例句:
  • The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
  • There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。
87 passionately YmDzQ4     
ad.热烈地,激烈地
参考例句:
  • She could hate as passionately as she could love. 她能恨得咬牙切齿,也能爱得一往情深。
  • He was passionately addicted to pop music. 他酷爱流行音乐。
88 bail Aupz4     
v.舀(水),保释;n.保证金,保释,保释人
参考例句:
  • One of the prisoner's friends offered to bail him out.犯人的一个朋友答应保释他出来。
  • She has been granted conditional bail.她被准予有条件保释。
89 unreasonableness aaf24ac6951e9ffb6e469abb174697de     
无理性; 横逆
参考例句:
  • Figure out the unreasonableness and extend the recommendation of improvement. 对发现的不合理性,提供改进建议。
  • I'd ignore every one of them now, embrace every quirk or unreasonableness to have him back. 现在,对这些事情,我情愿都视而不见,情愿接受他的每一个借口或由着他不讲道理,只要他能回来。
90 middle-aged UopzSS     
adj.中年的
参考例句:
  • I noticed two middle-aged passengers.我注意到两个中年乘客。
  • The new skin balm was welcome by middle-aged women.这种新护肤香膏受到了中年妇女的欢迎。
91 goodwill 4fuxm     
n.善意,亲善,信誉,声誉
参考例句:
  • His heart is full of goodwill to all men.他心里对所有人都充满着爱心。
  • We paid £10,000 for the shop,and £2000 for its goodwill.我们用一万英镑买下了这家商店,两千英镑买下了它的信誉。
92 fervent SlByg     
adj.热的,热烈的,热情的
参考例句:
  • It was a debate which aroused fervent ethical arguments.那是一场引发强烈的伦理道德争论的辩论。
  • Austria was among the most fervent supporters of adolf hitler.奥地利是阿道夫希特勒最狂热的支持者之一。
93 wrestled c9ba15a0ecfd0f23f9150f9c8be3b994     
v.(与某人)搏斗( wrestle的过去式和过去分词 );扭成一团;扭打;(与…)摔跤
参考例句:
  • As a boy he had boxed and wrestled. 他小的时候又是打拳又是摔跤。
  • Armed guards wrestled with the intruder. 武装警卫和闯入者扭打起来。 来自《简明英汉词典》
94 determined duszmP     
adj.坚定的;有决心的
参考例句:
  • I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
  • He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。
95 prospects fkVzpY     
n.希望,前途(恒为复数)
参考例句:
  • There is a mood of pessimism in the company about future job prospects. 公司中有一种对工作前景悲观的情绪。
  • They are less sanguine about the company's long-term prospects. 他们对公司的远景不那么乐观。


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