June was the month chosen, since in the region of the St. Vrain that is the rainiest part of the year. After thoroughly6 exploring the ground[Pg 268] I concluded to go down the river a few miles and make headquarters in a new sawmill. There I spent delightful7 days in gathering8 information concerning tree-growth and in making biographical studies of several veteran logs, as the saw ripped open and revealed their life-scrolls.
One morning I was awakened9 by the pelting10 and thumping11 of large, widely scattered12 raindrops on the roof of the mill. Tree stories were forgotten, and I rushed outdoors. The sky was filled with the structureless gloom of storm-cloud, and the heavy, calm air suggested rain. "We'll get a wetting such as you read of, to-day!" declared the sawmill foreman, as I made haste to start for the wilds.
I plunged13 into the woods and went eagerly up the dim, steep mountain trail which kept close company with the river St. Vrain. Any doubts concerning the strength of the storm were quickly washed away. My dry-weather clothes were swiftly soaked, but with notebook safe under my hat, I hastened to gain the "forks" as soon as possible, enjoying the gen[Pg 269]eral downpour and the softened14 noise that it made through the woods. I had often been out in rains on the Rockies, but this one was wetting the earth with less effort than any I had ever experienced. For half an hour no air stirred; then, while crossing a small irregular opening in the woods, I was caught in a storm-centre of wrangling15 winds and waters, and now and then their weight would almost knock me over, until, like a sapling, I bowed, streaming, in the storm. The air was full of "water-dust," and, once across the open, I made haste to hug a tree, hoping to find a breath of air that was not saturated16 to strangulation.
Neither bird nor beast had been seen, nor did I expect to come upon any, unless by chance my movements drove one from its refuge; but while I sat on a sodden17 log, reveling in elemental moods and sounds, a water-ouzel came flying along. He alighted on a boulder18 which the on-sweeping stream at my feet seemed determined19 to drown or dislodge, and, making his usual courtesies, he began to sing. His melody is penetrating20; but so sustained was the combined[Pg 270] roar of the stream and the storm that there came to me only a few notes of his energetic nesting-time song. His expressive21 attitudes and gestures were so harmoniously22 united with these, however, that I could not help feeling that he was singing with all his might to the water, the woods, and me.
Keeping close to the stream, I continued my climb. My ear now caught the feeble note of a robin23, who was making discouraged and disconsolate24 efforts at song, and it seemed to issue from a throat clogged25 with wet cotton. Plainly the world was not beautiful to him, and the attempt at music was made to kill time or cheer himself up.
The robin and the ouzel,—how I love them both, and yet how utterly26 unlike they are! The former usually chooses so poor a building-site, anchors its nest so carelessly, or builds so clumsily, that the precious contents are often spilled or the nest discovered by some enemy. His mental make-up is such that he is prone27 to predict the worst possible outcome of any new situation. The ouzel, on the other hand, is sweet[Pg 271] and serene28. He builds his nest upon a rock and tucks it where search and sharp eyes may not find it. He appears indifferent to the comings and goings of beast or man, enjoys all weathers, seems entranced with life, and may sing every day of the year.
Up in the lower margin29 of the Engelmann spruce forest the wind now ceased and the clouds began to conserve30 their waters. The territory which I was about to explore is on the eastern summit slopes of the Rockies, between the altitudes of ninety-five hundred and twelve thousand feet. Most of these slopes were steep, and much of the soil had a basis of disintegrated31 granite32. The forested and the treeless slopes had approximately equal areas, and were much alike in regard to soil, inclination33, and altitude, while the verdure of both areas before the forest fire had been almost identical. The St. Vrain is formed by two branches flowing northeasterly and southeasterly, the former draining the treeless area and the latter the forested one. Below the junction34, the united waters sweep away through the woods, but at it, and a short dis[Pg 272]tance above, the fire had destroyed every living thing.
AMONG THE CLOUDS AMONG THE CLOUDS
Continental35 Divide, near Long's Peak
At the forks I found many things of interest. The branch with dark waters from the barren slopes was already swollen36 to many times its normal volume and was thick with sediment37 from the fire-scarred region. The stream with white waters from the forest had risen just a trifle, and there was only a slight stain visible. These noticeable changes were produced by an hour of rain. I dipped several canfuls from the deforested drainage fork, and after each had stood half a minute the water was poured off. The average quantity of sediment remaining was one fifth of a canful, while the white water from the forested slope deposited only a thin layer on the bottom of the can. It was evident that the forest was absorbing and delaying the water clinging to its soil and sediment. In fact, both streams carried so much suggestive and alluring38 news concerning storm effects on the slopes above that I determined to hasten on in order to climb over and watch them while they were dashed and drenched39 with rain.
[Pg 273]
Planning to return and give more attention to the waters of both branches at this place, I started to inspect first the forested sides. The lower of these slopes were tilted40 with a twenty to twenty-five per cent grade, and covered with a primeval Engelmann spruce forest of tall, crowding trees, the age of which, as I had learned during previous visits, was only a few years less than two centuries.
The forest floor was covered with a thick carpet of litter,—one which the years had woven out of the wreckage41 of limbs and leaves. This, though loosely, coarsely woven, has a firm feeling when trodden during dry weather. To-day however, the forest floor seemed recently upholstered. It is absorbent; hence the water had filled the interstices and given elasticity42. I cleared away some of this litter and found that it had an average depth of fifteen inches. The upper third lay loosely, but below it the weave was more compact and much finer than that on or near the surface. I judged that two inches of rain had fallen and had soaked to an average depth of eight inches. It was interesting to[Pg 274] watch the water ooze43 from the broken walls of this litter, or humus, on the upper sides of the holes which I dug down into it. One of these was close to a bare, tilted slope of granite. As I stood watching the water slowly dripping from the broken humus and rapidly racing44 down the rocks, the thought came to me that, with the same difference in speed, the run-off from the deforested land might be breaking through the levees at New Orleans before the water from these woods escaped and got down as far as the sawmill.
The forest might well proclaim: "As long as I stand, my countless45 roots shall clutch and clasp the soil like eagles' claws and hold it on these slopes. I shall add to this soil by annually46 creating more. I shall heave it with my growing roots, loosen and cover it with litter rugs, and maintain a porous47, sievelike surface that will catch the rain and so delay and distribute these waters that at the foot of my slope perennial48 springs will ever flow quietly toward the sea. Destroy me, and on stormy days the waters may wash away the unanchored soil as they run[Pg 275] unresisted down the slopes, to form a black, destructive flood in the home-dotted valley below."
The summit of the forested slope was comparatively smooth where I gained it, and contained a few small, ragged49-edged, grassy50 spaces among its spruces and firs. The wind was blowing and the low clouds pressed, hurried along the ground, whirled through the grassy places, and were driven and dragged swiftly among the trees. I was in the lower margin of cloud, and it was like a wet, gray night. Nothing could be seen clearly, even at a few feet, and every breath I took was like swallowing a saturated sponge.
These conditions did not last long, for a wind-surge completely rent the clouds and gave me a glimpse of the blue, sun-filled sky. I hurried along the ascending51 trend of the ridge52, hoping to get above the clouds, but they kept rising, and after I had traveled half a mile or more I gave it up. Presently I was impressed with the height of an exceptionally tall spruce that stood in the centre of a group of its companions. At[Pg 276] once I decided53 to climb it and have a look over the country and cloud from its swaying top.
When half way up, the swift manner in which the tree was tracing seismographic lines through the air awakened my interest in the trunk that was holding me. Was it sound or not? At the foot appearances gave it good standing54. The exercising action of ordinary winds probably toughens the wood fibres of young trees, but this one was no longer young, and the wind was high. I held an ear against the trunk and heard a humming whisper which told only of soundness. A blow with broad side of my belt axe55 told me that it rang true and would stand the storm and myself.
The sound brought a spectator from a spruce with broken top that stood almost within touching56 distance of me. In this tree was a squirrel home, and my axe had brought the owner from his hole. What an angry, comic midget he was, this Frémont squirrel! With fierce whiskers and a rattling57, choppy, jerky chatter58, he came out on a dead limb that pointed59 toward me, and made a rush as though to annihilate60 me or to[Pg 277] cause me to take hurried flight; but as I held on he found himself more "up in the air" than I was. He stopped short, shut off his chatter, and held himself at close range facing me, a picture of furious study. This scene occurred in a brief period that was undisturbed by either wind or rain. We had a good look at each other. He was every inch alive, but for a second or two both his place and expression were fixed61. He sat with eyes full of telling wonder and with face that showed intense curiosity. A dash of wind and rain ended our interview, for after his explosive introduction neither of us had uttered a sound. He fled into his hole, and from this a moment later thrust forth62 his head; but presently he subsided63 and withdrew. As I began to climb again, I heard muffled64 expletives from within his tree that sounded plainly like "Fool, fool, fool!"
The wind had tried hard to dislodge me, but, seated on the small limbs and astride the slender top, I held on. The tree shook and danced; splendidly we charged, circled, looped, and angled; such wild, exhilarating joy I have not elsewhere experienced. At all times I could feel in[Pg 278] the trunk a subdued65 quiver or vibration66, and I half believe that a tree's greatest joys are the dances it takes with the winds.
Conditions changed while I rocked there; the clouds rose, the wind calmed, and the rain ceased to fall. Thunder occasionally rumbled67, but I was completely unprepared for the blinding flash and explosive crash of the bolt that came. The violent concussion68, the wave of air which spread from it like an enormous, invisible breaker, almost knocked me over. A tall fir that stood within fifty feet of me was struck, the top whirled off, and the trunk split in rails to the ground. I quickly went back to earth, for I was eager to see the full effect of the lightning's stroke on that tall, slender evergreen69 cone70. With one wild, mighty71 stroke, in a second or less, the century-old tree tower was wrecked72.
Leaving this centenarian, I climbed up the incline a few hundred feet higher and started out through the woods to the deforested side. Though it was the last week in June, it was not long before I was hampered73 with snow. Ragged patches, about six feet deep, covered more than[Pg 279] half of the forest floor. This was melting rapidly and was "rotten" from the rain, so that I quickly gave up the difficult task of fording it and made an abrupt74 descent until below the snow-line, where I again headed for the fire-cleared slopes.
As I was leaving the wood, the storm seemed to begin all over again. The rain at first fell steadily75, but soon slackened, and the lower cloud-margins began to drift through the woods. Just before reaching the barrens I paused to breathe in a place where the trees were well spaced, and found myself facing a large one with deeply furrowed76 bark and limbs plentifully77 covered with short, fat, blunt needles. I was at first puzzled to know what kind it was, but at last I recognized it as a Douglas fir or "Oregon pine." I had never before seen this species at so great an altitude,—approximately ten thousand feet. It was a long distance from home, but it stood so contentedly78 in the quiet rain that I half expected to hear it remark, "The traditions of my family are mostly associated with gray, growing days of this kind."[Pg 280]
Out on the barren slopes the few widely scattered, fire-killed, fire-preserved trees with broken arms stood partly concealed79 and lonely in the mists. After zigzagging80 for a time over the ruins, I concluded to go at once to the uppermost side and thence down to the forks. But the rain was again falling, and the clouds were so low and heavy that the standing skeleton trees could not be seen unless one was within touching distance. There was no wind or lightning, only a warm, steady rain. It was, in fact, so comfortable that I sat down to enjoy it until a slackening should enable me better to see the things I most wanted to observe.
There was no snow about, and three weeks before at the same place I had found only one small drift which was shielded and half-covered with shelving rock. The dry Western air is insatiable and absorbs enormous quantities of water, and, as the Indians say, "eats snow." The snowless area about me was on a similar slope and at about the same altitude as the snow-filled woods, so the forest is evidently an effective check upon the ravenous81 winds.[Pg 281]
Now the rain almost ceased, and I began to descend82. The upper gentle slopes were completely covered with a filmy sheet of clear water which separated into tattered83 torrents84 and took on color. These united and grew in size as they progressed from the top, and each was separated from its companions by ridges86 that widened and gulches88 that deepened as down the sides they went. The waters carried most of the eroded89 material away, but here and there, where they crossed a comparatively level stretch, small deposits of gravel90 were made or sandbars and deltas91 formed.
Occasionally I saw miniature landslides92, and, hoping for a larger one to move, I hurried downward. Knowing that the soil is often deep at the foot of crags on account of contributions from above, together with the protection from erosion which the cliffs gave, I endeavored to find such a place. While searching, I had occasion to jump from a lower ledge4 on a cliff to the deposit below. The distance to the slope and its real pitch were minimized by the mists. After shooting through the air for at least thrice the supposed distance[Pg 282] to the slope, I struck heavily and loosened several rods of a landslide93. I tumbled off the back of it, but not before its rock points had made some impressions.
I sought safety and a place of lookout94 on a crag, and picked bits of granite gravel from my anatomy95. Presently I heard a muffled creaking, and looked up to see a gigantic landslide starting. At first it moved slowly, seemed to hesitate, then slid faster, with its stone-filled front edge here and there doubling and rolling under; finally the entire mass broke into yawning, ragged fissures96 as it shot forward and plunged over a cliff. Waiting until most of the straggling, detached riffraff had followed, I hastened to examine the place just evacuated97. In getting down I disturbed a ground-hog from his rock point, and found that he was in the same attitude and position I had seen him holding just before the slide started, so that the exhibition had merely caused him to move his eyes a little.
In the cracks and crevices98 of the glaciated rock-slope from which this mass had slid, there[Pg 283] were broken, half-decayed roots and numerous marks which showed where other roots had held. It seems probable that if the grove99 which sustained them had not been destroyed by fire, they in turn would have anchored and held securely the portion of land which had just slipped away.
I went over the lower slopes of the burned area and had a look at numerous new-made gullies, and near the forks I measured a large one. It was more than a hundred feet long, two to four feet wide, and, over the greater part of its length, more than four feet deep. It was eroded by the late downpour, and its misplaced material, after being deposited by the waters, would of itself almost call for an increase of the river and harbor appropriations100.
Late in the afternoon, with the storm breaking, I stopped and watched the largest torrent85 from the devastated101 region pour over a cliff. This waterfall more nearly represented a liquefied landslide, for it was burdened with sediment and spoils. As it rushed wildly over, it carried enormous quantities of dirt, gravel, and[Pg 284] other earthy wreckage, and some of the stones were as large as a man's hat. Now and then there was a slackening, but these momentary102 subsidences were followed by explosive outpourings with which mingled104 large pieces of charred105 or half-decayed wood, sometimes closely pursued by a small boulder or some rock-fragments. Surely, these deforested slopes were heavy contributors to the millions of tons of undesirable106 matter that annually went in to fill the channel and vex107 the current of the Mississippi!
These demonstrations108 brought to mind a remark of an army engineer to the effect that the "Western forest fires had resulted in filling the Missouri River channel full of dissolved Rocky Mountains." The action of the water on this single burned area suggested that ten thousand other fireswept heights must be rapidly diminishing. At all events, it is evident that, unless this erosion is stopped, boats before long will hardly find room to enter the Mississippi. It now became easier to account for the mud-filled channel of the great river, and also for the in[Pg 285]numerable bars that display their broad backs above its shallow, sluggish109 water. Every smooth or fluted110 fill in this great stream tells of a ragged gulch87 or a roughened, soilless place somewhere on a slope at one of its sources.
What a mingling111 of matter makes up the mud of the Mississippi,—a soil mixture from twenty States, the blended richness of ten thousand slopes! Coming up the "Father of Waters," and noting its obstructions112 of sediment and sand, its embarrassment113 of misplaced material, its dumps and deposits of soil,—monumental ruins of wasted resources,—one may say, "Here lies the lineal descendant of Pike's Peak; here the greater part of an Ohio hill"; or, "A flood took this from a terraced cotton-field, and this from a farm in sunny Tennessee." A mud flat itself might remark, "The thoughtless lumberman who caused my downfall is now in Congress urging river improvement"; and the shallow waters at the big bend could add, "Our once deep channel was filled with soil from a fire-scourged mountain. The minister whose vacation fire caused this ruin is now a militant[Pg 286] missionary114 among the heathen of Cherry Blossom land."
FULL STREAMS FULL STREAMS
Wondering if the ouzel's boulder had been rolled away, or if the deep hole above it, where the mill men caught trout115, had been filled with wash, I decided to go at once and see, and then return for a final look about the forks. Yes, the boulder was missing, apparently116 buried, for the hole was earth-filled and the trout gone. So it was evident that forests were helpful even to the fish in the streams. I took off my hat to the trees and started back to the junction. On the way I resolved to tell the men in the mill that a tree is the most useful thing that grows, and that floods may be checked by forests.
The storm was over and the clouds were retreating. On a fallen log that lay across the main stream I lingered and watched the dark and white waters mingle103. The white stream was slowly rising, while the dark one was rapidly falling. In a few days the one from the barren slopes would be hardly alive, while the other from among the trees would be singing a song full of strength as it swept on toward the sea.
The forest-born stream is the useful and beautiful one. It has a steady flow of clear water, and fishermen cheerfully come to its green, mossy banks. The buildings along its course are safe from floods, and are steadily served with the power of its reliable flow; its channel is free from mud and full of water; it allows the busy boats of commerce freely to come and go; in countless ways it serves the activities of man. It never causes damage, and always enriches and gladdens the valley through which it flows on to the sea.
A song roused me from my revery. The sky was almost clear, and the long, ragged shadows of the nearest peaks streamed far toward the east. Not a breath of air stirred. Far away a hermit117 thrush was singing, while a thousand spruces stood and listened. In the midst of this a solitaire on the top of a pine tree burst out in marvelous melody.
点击
收听单词发音
收听单词发音 |
1
promising
|
|
| adj.有希望的，有前途的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
2
watershed
|
|
| n.转折点，分水岭，分界线 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
3
ledges
|
|
| n.（墙壁，悬崖等）突出的狭长部分( ledge的名词复数 )；（平窄的）壁架；横档；（尤指）窗台 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
4
ledge
|
|
| n.壁架，架状突出物；岩架，岩礁 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
5
varied
|
|
| adj.多样的，多变化的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
6
thoroughly
|
|
| adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
7
delightful
|
|
| adj.令人高兴的，使人快乐的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
8
gathering
|
|
| n.集会，聚会，聚集 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
9
awakened
|
|
| v.（使）醒( awaken的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）觉醒；弄醒；（使）意识到 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
10
pelting
|
|
| 微不足道的，无价值的，盛怒的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
11
thumping
|
|
| adj.重大的，巨大的；重击的；尺码大的；极好的adv.极端地；非常地v.重击(thump的现在分词)；狠打；怦怦地跳；全力支持 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
12
scattered
|
|
| adj.分散的，稀疏的；散步的；疏疏落落的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
13
plunged
|
|
| v.颠簸( plunge的过去式和过去分词 )；暴跌；骤降；突降 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
14
softened
|
|
| （使）变软( soften的过去式和过去分词 )； 缓解打击； 缓和； 安慰 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
15
wrangling
|
|
| v.争吵，争论，口角( wrangle的现在分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
16
saturated
|
|
| a.饱和的，充满的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
17
sodden
|
|
| adj.浑身湿透的；v.使浸透；使呆头呆脑 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
18
boulder
|
|
| n.巨砾；卵石，圆石 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
19
determined
|
|
| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
20
penetrating
|
|
| adj.（声音）响亮的，尖锐的adj.（气味）刺激的adj.（思想）敏锐的，有洞察力的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
21
expressive
|
|
| adj.表现的，表达…的，富于表情的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
22
harmoniously
|
|
| 和谐地，调和地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
23
robin
|
|
| n.知更鸟，红襟鸟 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
24
disconsolate
|
|
| adj.忧郁的，不快的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
25
clogged
|
|
| （使）阻碍( clog的过去式和过去分词 )； 淤滞 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
26
utterly
|
|
| adv.完全地，绝对地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
27
prone
|
|
| adj.(to)易于…的，很可能…的；俯卧的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
28
serene
|
|
| adj. 安详的，宁静的，平静的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
29
margin
|
|
| n.页边空白；差额；余地，余裕；边，边缘 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
30
conserve
|
|
| vt.保存，保护，节约，节省，守恒，不灭 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
31
disintegrated
|
|
| v.（使）破裂[分裂，粉碎]，（使）崩溃( disintegrate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
32
granite
|
|
| adj.花岗岩，花岗石 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
33
inclination
|
|
| n.倾斜；点头；弯腰；斜坡；倾度；倾向；爱好 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
34
junction
|
|
| n.连接，接合；交叉点，接合处，枢纽站 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
35
continental
|
|
| adj.大陆的，大陆性的，欧洲大陆的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
36
swollen
|
|
| adj.肿大的，水涨的；v.使变大，肿胀 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
37
sediment
|
|
| n.沉淀，沉渣，沉积(物) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
38
alluring
|
|
| adj.吸引人的，迷人的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
39
drenched
|
|
| adj.湿透的；充满的v.使湿透( drench的过去式和过去分词 )；在某人（某物）上大量使用（某液体） | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
40
tilted
|
|
| v. 倾斜的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
41
wreckage
|
|
| n.（失事飞机等的）残骸，破坏，毁坏 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
42
elasticity
|
|
| n.弹性，伸缩力 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
43
ooze
|
|
| n.软泥，渗出物；vi.渗出，泄漏；vt.慢慢渗出，流露 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
44
racing
|
|
| n.竞赛，赛马；adj.竞赛用的，赛马用的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
45
countless
|
|
| adj.无数的，多得不计其数的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
46
annually
|
|
| adv.一年一次，每年 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
47
porous
|
|
| adj.可渗透的，多孔的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
48
perennial
|
|
| adj.终年的；长久的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
49
ragged
|
|
| adj.衣衫褴褛的，粗糙的，刺耳的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
50
grassy
|
|
| adj.盖满草的；长满草的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
51
ascending
|
|
| adj.上升的，向上的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
52
ridge
|
|
| n.山脊；鼻梁；分水岭 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
53
decided
|
|
| adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
54
standing
|
|
| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
55
axe
|
|
| n.斧子；v.用斧头砍，削减 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
56
touching
|
|
| adj.动人的，使人感伤的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
57
rattling
|
|
| adj. 格格作响的, 活泼的, 很好的 adv. 极其, 很, 非常 动词rattle的现在分词 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
58
chatter
|
|
| vi.／n.喋喋不休；短促尖叫；(牙齿)打战 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
59
pointed
|
|
| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
60
annihilate
|
|
| v.使无效；毁灭；取消 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
61
fixed
|
|
| adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
62
forth
|
|
| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
63
subsided
|
|
| v.（土地）下陷（因在地下采矿）( subside的过去式和过去分词 )；减弱；下降至较低或正常水平；一下子坐在椅子等上 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
64
muffled
|
|
| adj.（声音）被隔的；听不太清的；（衣服）裹严的；蒙住的v.压抑，捂住( muffle的过去式和过去分词 )；用厚厚的衣帽包着（自己） | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
65
subdued
|
|
| adj. 屈服的，柔和的，减弱的 动词subdue的过去式和过去分词 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
66
vibration
|
|
| n.颤动，振动；摆动 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
67
rumbled
|
|
| 发出隆隆声，发出辘辘声( rumble的过去式和过去分词 )； 轰鸣着缓慢行进； 发现…的真相； 看穿（阴谋） | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
68
concussion
|
|
| n.脑震荡；震动 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
69
evergreen
|
|
| n.常青树；adj.四季常青的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
70
cone
|
|
| n.圆锥体，圆锥形东西，球果 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
71
mighty
|
|
| adj.强有力的；巨大的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
72
wrecked
|
|
| adj.失事的，遇难的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
73
hampered
|
|
| 妨碍，束缚，限制( hamper的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
74
abrupt
|
|
| adj.突然的，意外的；唐突的，鲁莽的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
75
steadily
|
|
| adv.稳定地；不变地；持续地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
76
furrowed
|
|
| v.犁田，开沟( furrow的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
77
plentifully
|
|
| adv. 许多地，丰饶地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
78
contentedly
|
|
| adv.心满意足地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
79
concealed
|
|
| a.隐藏的，隐蔽的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
80
zigzagging
|
|
| v.弯弯曲曲地走路，曲折地前进( zigzag的现在分词 )；盘陀 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
81
ravenous
|
|
| adj.极饿的，贪婪的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
82
descend
|
|
| vt./vi.传下来，下来，下降 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
83
tattered
|
|
| adj.破旧的，衣衫破的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
84
torrents
|
|
| n.倾注；奔流( torrent的名词复数 )；急流；爆发；连续不断 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
85
torrent
|
|
| n.激流，洪流；爆发，(话语等的)连发 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
86
ridges
|
|
| n.脊( ridge的名词复数 )；山脊；脊状突起；大气层的)高压脊 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
87
gulch
|
|
| n.深谷，峡谷 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
88
gulches
|
|
| n.峡谷( gulch的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
|
89
eroded
|
|
| adj. 被侵蚀的，有蚀痕的 动词erode的过去式和过去分词形式 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
90
gravel
|
|
| n.砂跞；砂砾层；结石 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
91
deltas
|
|
| 希腊字母表中第四个字母( delta的名词复数 )； （河口的）三角洲 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
92
landslides
|
|
| 山崩( landslide的名词复数 )； （山坡、悬崖等的）崩塌； 滑坡； （竞选中）一方选票占压倒性多数 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
93
landslide
|
|
| n.(竞选中)压倒多数的选票；一面倒的胜利 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
94
lookout
|
|
| n.注意，前途，瞭望台 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
95
anatomy
|
|
| n.解剖学，解剖；功能，结构，组织 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
96
fissures
|
|
| n.狭长裂缝或裂隙( fissure的名词复数 )；裂伤；分歧；分裂v.裂开( fissure的第三人称单数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
97
evacuated
|
|
| 撤退者的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
98
crevices
|
|
| n.（尤指岩石的）裂缝，缺口( crevice的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
99
grove
|
|
| n.林子，小树林，园林 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
100
appropriations
|
|
| n.挪用（appropriation的复数形式） | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
101
devastated
|
|
| v.彻底破坏( devastate的过去式和过去分词)；摧毁；毁灭；在感情上（精神上、财务上等）压垮adj.毁坏的；极为震惊的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
102
momentary
|
|
| adj.片刻的，瞬息的；短暂的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
103
mingle
|
|
| vt.使混合，使相混；vi.混合起来；相交往 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
104
mingled
|
|
| 混合，混入( mingle的过去式和过去分词 )； 混进，与…交往[联系] | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
105
charred
|
|
| v.把…烧成炭( char的过去式)；烧焦 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
106
undesirable
|
|
| adj.不受欢迎的，不良的，不合意的，讨厌的；n.不受欢迎的人，不良分子 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
107
vex
|
|
| vt.使烦恼，使苦恼 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
108
demonstrations
|
|
| 证明( demonstration的名词复数 )； 表明； 表达； 游行示威 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
109
sluggish
|
|
| adj.懒惰的，迟钝的，无精打采的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
110
fluted
|
|
| a.有凹槽的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
111
mingling
|
|
| adj.混合的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
112
obstructions
|
|
| n.障碍物( obstruction的名词复数 )；阻碍物；阻碍；阻挠 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
113
embarrassment
|
|
| n.尴尬；使人为难的人(事物)；障碍；窘迫 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
114
missionary
|
|
| adj.教会的，传教(士)的；n.传教士 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
115
trout
|
|
| n.鳟鱼；鲑鱼(属) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
116
apparently
|
|
| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
117
hermit
|
|
| n.隐士，修道者；隐居 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
| 欢迎访问英文小说网 |