It was on February 22d—Washington’s birthday—that the Mexican advance made its appearance, rolling before it clouds of dust. It had suffered dreadfully on the road from San Luis from cold and want of supplies; but, allowing for these sources of loss, the army led by Santa Anna cannot have numbered less than twenty thousand men, including four thousand cavalry15 and twenty pieces of artillery; and the sufferings of the march made the soldiers all the more eager for the battle. Disappointed in not finding Taylor at Agua Nueva, as he had expected, Santa Anna proclaimed that he had fled, and ordered the cavalry in pursuit. The Mexicans had already had one experience of Taylor’s flights—a second was at hand. When the lancers reached the Angostura, they found the pass guarded by Washington’s battery of eight pieces, and very properly halted. The correspondence, since so famous, between the two generals then took place; and on receipt of Taylor’s laconic16 letter Santa Anna commenced the attack.
The advantage of position was all on the side of the United States army. The pass itself was so narrow that Washington’s battery could guard it against almost any force; impassable gullies and ravines flanked it on the west, and on the east the mountains gradually rose to a height of some two thousand feet. The only spot on which a regular battle could be fought was a plateau on the east of the pass, which stretched from the precipitous mountain-slope nearly to the road, terminating on that side in several ridges17 and ravines. This plateau gained, the pass might have been turned; and accordingly Santa Anna’s first thought was to master it. A strong body of light infantry19 was despatched, in the afternoon of the 22d, to climb the mountain-side which commanded the plateau; but the moment the man?uvre was perceived a party of200 Taylor’s riflemen ascended20 the opposite ridge18 to keep them in check. The Mexicans opened fire, and the Kentuckians replied; and thus, as each body strove to overtop the other, both ridges were soon covered with smoke. Foiled in his object, Santa Anna awaited the morning to commence operations in earnest; and Taylor, fearing an attack on Saltillo, set out to complete the defences of that point during the night.
At two o’clock in the morning the American pickets21 were driven in, and at break of day the Mexican light infantry, on the ridge above the plateau, led by General Ampudia, commenced charging down into the ravine which separated them from the Kentuckians. They had received reinforcements during the night, and were at least eight to one. Fortunately, General Wool had anticipated the movement, and Lieutenant22 O’Brien was ready at the foot of the hill with a piece of cannon23. A very few discharges, well-aimed, sent the Mexicans back to cover. Then the main army advanced; two columns, under Pacheco and Lombardini, supported by lancers and a twelve-pounder battery in the rear, marching directly toward the plateau, and a third moving against the pass. Wool had disposed the army almost in a line across the plateau from the pass to the mountain: Washington’s battery being on the right, and O’Brien’s on the left wing, the infantry and a squadron of dragoons in the centre, and the volunteer cavalry inclined slightly to the rear on the right and left. About nine in the morning Pacheco’s column debouched from a ravine and began to form coolly on a ridge of the plateau. General Lane hastened forward, skirting the mountains with the Second Indiana volunteers and O’Brien’s battery, to meet them. At two hundred yards O’Brien opened with terrific effect; the close columns of the Mexicans were ploughed by his shot. But the reply was steady and almost equally effective. Raked on the left by the twelve-pounder battery, and assailed24 by a storm of bullets from the masses rising out of the ravine, the volunteers fell201 thickly round their colors, and, after some minutes, the Indiana volunteers could stand it no longer, and fled in spite of Lane’s efforts to rally them.134 O’Brien was left almost alone with his guns. He fired one last discharge, then, hastily limbering up, followed the flying infantry over the plateau.
It was an almost fatal movement; for, Lombardini gaining the southern edge of the plateau at that moment, the two Mexican columns united, and the lancers, who swarmed25 on the flanks, galloped26 down on the volunteers. To add to the danger, the Indiana regiment27 in its flight became entangled28 with the Arkansas volunteers, who caught the panic and fled likewise. Their loss in a fight where the enemy was over four to one was severely29 felt. However, nothing daunted30, the Second Illinois, under Colonel Bissell, received the Mexican fire, and returned it as fast as the men could load. The dragoons, who could do no service in such a conflict, were sent to the rear; but a couple of guns, under Trench31 and Thomas, were brought to bear, and every shot cut like a knife through the Mexican columns. Still, it was impossible for such a handful of men to check an army of thousands: the enemy poured down the plateau, and, passing between the mountain and the Illinoisans, turned our left and poured in a flank as well as a front fire. Eighty men having fallen in twenty minutes, Colonel Bissell gave the word of command to face to the rear, and the gallant32 regiment, as cool as if on drill, faced about, marched deliberately33 a few yards toward the ravine—Churchill walking his horse before them—then turned and resumed firing.
Meanwhile the lancers were driving the Indiana and Arkansas volunteers off the plateau, and cutting off the riflemen in the mountain from the main army. These, perceiving the danger, and trusting that the lancers would202 be checked by the Arkansas and Kentucky cavalry, toward which they were approaching, abandoned their position and came running down the mountain-side, with a view of cutting their way back to the batteries. But the mounted volunteers made but a brief stand against the impetuous charge of the lancers, and Ampudia’s light infantry no sooner saw the riflemen move than they followed close on their heels, firing as they went. The slaughter34 of our poor fellows was dreadful; the Texans were annihilated35. In one confused mass, riflemen and volunteer cavalry, Arkansans and Kentuckians were driven back by the advancing columns of the enemy, and little was wanted to complete the rout36. Vainly did the officers try to rally the fugitives37. No sooner had a handful of men been persuaded to halt and turn than a volley from the Mexicans scattered38 them. Thus fell Captain Lincoln—a chivalrous39 spirit, who was struck to the earth by two balls in the act of cheering on a small party of Kentuckians to hold their ground.
BATTLE OF BUENA VISTA
(From a print of the time)
At this perilous40 moment the rattle41 of musketry was drowned by a tremendous roar pf cannon in the direction of the pass. The Mexicans under Villamil had approached within range, and Captain Washington, who had sworn to hold the pass against any odds43, was keeping his word. The gunners had been wild with ardor44 and suspense45 all morning; they were now gratified, and, though three guns had been taken from the battery, they poured such a murderous fire upon Villamil’s column as it approached through the narrow pass that, after wavering a moment, it scattered, and most of the men sought refuge in the ravines. The moment they broke the Second Illinoisans, who had been stationed at the pass, eagerly followed their colonel, Hardin, to the plateau, to share the dangers of their comrades. Almost as soon McKee’s Kentuckians and Bragg’s battery came plunging46 through the gullies on the west of the pass and joined them; while Sherman’s guns were speedily brought up from the rear. Thus the First Illinoisans203 were saved, and grape and canister mowed47 down the Mexican masses at the foot of the mountain.
Still, the light infantry under Ampudia were pressing on by the left to the rear of Wool’s position. In half an hour the pass might have been turned. Most providentially at that moment Taylor arrived with Davis’ Mississippi riflemen and May’s dragoons. The former barely stopped an instant for the men to fill their canteens, then hastened to the field. Boiling with rage, Davis called on the Indiana volunteers to form “behind that wall,” pointing to his men, and advance against their enemy. Their colonel, Bowles, the tears streaming down his face, finding all his appeals fruitless, seized a musket42 and joined the Mississippians as a private. Time could not be lost; Ampudia was close upon them; Davis formed and advanced with steady tread against a body more than five times his strength. A rain of balls poured upon the Mississippians, but no man pulled a trigger till sure of his mark. Then those deadly rifles blazed and stunned48 the Mexican advance. A ravine separated them from the enemy; Davis gave the word, and, with a cheer, down they rushed and up the other side; then forming hastily, with one awful volley they shattered the Mexican head and drove them back to cover.
But the cavalry had crept round the mountain and were descending49 on the hacienda. They were Torrejon’s brigade, splendid fellows, mostly lancers, and brimful of fight. Opposed to them were Yell’s Arkansas and Marshall’s Kentucky mounted volunteers—less than half their number. Hopelessly these brave fellows stood, firing their carbines as the foe approached; but the last man was still taking aim when the lancers were upon them like a whirlwind. The brave Yell was dashed to the earth a corpse50, and Lieutenant Vaughan fell from his horse, pierced by twenty-four wounds. Huddled51 together in a confused mass, Mexicans and Americans dashed side by side toward the hacienda, engaged in a death-struggle as they galloped204 onward52, and enveloped53 in a cloud of dust. One tall Mexican was seen, mounted upon a powerful horse, spearing every one that came within reach, in the drunkenness of battle; while here and there a Kentuckian, with native coolness, loaded as he rode, and brought down man after man. In less time than it takes to read these lines the horses’ hoofs54 were rattling55 over the streets, shrieks56 and shouts heralding57 their approach. Amid the din4, the crack of rifles from the roofs of the houses told that the little garrison58 were holding their own. Through and through the hacienda the Mexicans swept, disengaging themselves from the volunteers just in time to escape a charge from May’s dragoons, which came clattering59 down the ravine to the rescue. Reynolds followed with two pieces of flying artillery, and Torrejon himself, badly wounded and minus several of his best men, was glad to escape to the mountains.
Meanwhile Major Dix had snatched the colors of the Second Indiana volunteers from the hands of their bearer, and bitterly swore that, with God’s help, that standard should not be disgraced that day. “He would bear it alone,” he said, “into the thick of the fight.” Roused by his words, a few men rallied around him and joined the Mississippi rifles on the plateau. The gallant Third Indiana were there, and Sherman had brought up a howitzer. Enraged60 at the failure of the attack on the hacienda, a fresh body of lancers now charged these troops, advancing in close column, knee to knee, and lance in rest. In breathless haste the volunteers were thrown across the narrow ridge, in two lines, meeting at an angle near the centre. Not a whisper broke the silence as the Mexicans approached, and the intrepid61 bearing of men whom nothing could have saved from destruction if the charge had been vigorous appalled62 the lancers. Within eighty yards of the lines they actually halted. At that instant the rifles were raised: a second—an awful second—elapsed. Then “Fire!” and a blaze ran round the angle. The205 Mexican column was destroyed. Horses and men writhed63 on the plain. The rear rank stood for a moment, but a single discharge from the howitzer scattered them too, and they fell back. For the first time during the day fortune seemed to favor the Americans. Hemmed64 in on two sides, and driven to the base of the mountain, five thousand Mexicans, horse and foot, with Ampudia’s division, were being slaughtered65 by nine guns, which never slackened fire. Their fate was certain; when a flag of truce66 from Santa Anna induced Taylor to silence his batteries. It was only a ruse67. Santa Anna asked, “What does General Taylor want?” Before the answer reached him, the Mexicans had made good their escape to the rear.
Notwithstanding the parley68, one Mexican battery continued its fire upon our troops. This was the eighteen and twenty-four pounder battery of the battalion69 of San Patricio, composed of Irishmen, deserters from our ranks, and commanded by an Irishman named Riley. Harassed70 by this fire, and perceiving the enemy’s treachery, Taylor sent the Illinoisans and Kentuckians, with three pieces of artillery, in pursuit of Ampudia. They hurried forward along the heads of the ravines; but to their horror, as they neared the southern edge of the plateau, an overwhelming force of over ten thousand men, comprising the whole of Santa Anna’s reserve, emerged from below and deployed71 before their firing. To resist was madness. The volunteers discharged their pieces and rushed precipitately72 into the nearest gorge73. Its sides were steep, and many rolled headlong to the bottom. Others were massacred by a shower of bullets poured from Mexicans who clustered on both ridges above. In the midst of the carnage, Hardin, McKee, and many other brave officers fell, vainly trying to seek an exit for their troops. At the mouth of the ravine a squadron of lancers were ready to cut off their escape. Down the sides poured the Mexican infantry, slaughtering74 the wounded with the bayonet and driving the helpless mass before them.206 Above, pale as death, with compressed lips, O’Brien and Thomas stood to their deserted75 pieces. Once before that morning the Mexican shot had left the former alone at his gun; for the second time the fortune of the day seemed to depend on his single exertions76. If he could hold the enemy at bay for a few minutes, there would be time for other batteries to come up. Ball after ball tore ragged77 gaps through the advancing host. After each discharge O’Brien fell back just far enough to load and fire again, praying in an agony that help might come. He was wounded himself; all his men were killed or wounded; but he never flinched78 before the surging wave of Mexicans until the clack of whips and the rattle of wheels were heard behind him. Then—for he knew it was Bragg urging onward his jaded79 horses—the brave fellow aimed one deadly volley of canister and abandoned his piece. The next moment Bragg unlimbered and opened a telling fire. Sherman followed, and, Davis and Lane coming up at a run, the crack of rifles was heard away to the extreme left. On the right, the well-known roar of Washington’s guns startled the foe. It was the death-warrant of the lancers, who were penning our volunteers in the ravine. Out came the remnant, leaving crowds of dead, and not one man wounded, in the horrid80 trap, and hastily scaled the side of the plateau. Taylor was there, coolly picking the balls out of his dress, and Wool rode wildly backward and forward, urging on the rear ranks. But it was needless. At Bragg’s third discharge the whole body of the Mexicans broke and dashed pell-mell into the ravine whence they had come.
This was the last of the battle. Davis and Bragg followed the enemy a short distance; but the San Patricio battery still commanded the southern edge of the plateau, and the troops were so fagged that they could hardly walk. Night was coming on, and the firing ceased. The men lay down where they stood; and a few, overcome by fatigue81, slept side by side with the dead and the wounded.207 It was a dark, gloomy night, and a bitter wind swept from the mountain. Not far in the distance the wolf’s howl broke dismally82 on the ear, and the vultures flapped their wings overhead. Nothing was known of the Mexican army; no one could say what the morrow might bring forth83. With anxious eye the officers looked for the dawn.
It came at last; and to their inexpressible delight the first streaks84 of light in the eastern sky revealed a deserted camp. The Mexicans had fled. An army of over twenty thousand men, comprising the flower of the Mexican troops, had been beaten by forty-six hundred Americans, over four thousand of whom were raw volunteers. Such a cheer as rose from the pass of Angostura on that February morning never before or since re-echoed through the dark gorges85 of the Sierra Madre.
点击收听单词发音
1 armistice | |
n.休战,停战协定 | |
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2 hostilities | |
n.战争;敌意(hostility的复数);敌对状态;战事 | |
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3 mustered | |
v.集合,召集,集结(尤指部队)( muster的过去式和过去分词 );(自他人处)搜集某事物;聚集;激发 | |
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4 din | |
n.喧闹声,嘈杂声 | |
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5 defensive | |
adj.防御的;防卫的;防守的 | |
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6 evacuated | |
撤退者的 | |
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7 frustrated | |
adj.挫败的,失意的,泄气的v.使不成功( frustrate的过去式和过去分词 );挫败;使受挫折;令人沮丧 | |
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8 artillery | |
n.(军)火炮,大炮;炮兵(部队) | |
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9 invaders | |
入侵者,侵略者,侵入物( invader的名词复数 ) | |
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10 concealed | |
a.隐藏的,隐蔽的 | |
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11 determined | |
adj.坚定的;有决心的 | |
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12 foe | |
n.敌人,仇敌 | |
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13 defile | |
v.弄污,弄脏;n.(山间)小道 | |
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14 vista | |
n.远景,深景,展望,回想 | |
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15 cavalry | |
n.骑兵;轻装甲部队 | |
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16 laconic | |
adj.简洁的;精练的 | |
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17 ridges | |
n.脊( ridge的名词复数 );山脊;脊状突起;大气层的)高压脊 | |
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18 ridge | |
n.山脊;鼻梁;分水岭 | |
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19 infantry | |
n.[总称]步兵(部队) | |
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20 ascended | |
v.上升,攀登( ascend的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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21 pickets | |
罢工纠察员( picket的名词复数 ) | |
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22 lieutenant | |
n.陆军中尉,海军上尉;代理官员,副职官员 | |
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23 cannon | |
n.大炮,火炮;飞机上的机关炮 | |
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24 assailed | |
v.攻击( assail的过去式和过去分词 );困扰;质问;毅然应对 | |
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25 swarmed | |
密集( swarm的过去式和过去分词 ); 云集; 成群地移动; 蜜蜂或其他飞行昆虫成群地飞来飞去 | |
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26 galloped | |
(使马)飞奔,奔驰( gallop的过去式和过去分词 ); 快速做[说]某事 | |
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27 regiment | |
n.团,多数,管理;v.组织,编成团,统制 | |
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28 entangled | |
adj.卷入的;陷入的;被缠住的;缠在一起的v.使某人(某物/自己)缠绕,纠缠于(某物中),使某人(自己)陷入(困难或复杂的环境中)( entangle的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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29 severely | |
adv.严格地;严厉地;非常恶劣地 | |
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30 daunted | |
使(某人)气馁,威吓( daunt的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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31 trench | |
n./v.(挖)沟,(挖)战壕 | |
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32 gallant | |
adj.英勇的,豪侠的;(向女人)献殷勤的 | |
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33 deliberately | |
adv.审慎地;蓄意地;故意地 | |
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34 slaughter | |
n.屠杀,屠宰;vt.屠杀,宰杀 | |
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35 annihilated | |
v.(彻底)消灭( annihilate的过去式和过去分词 );使无效;废止;彻底击溃 | |
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36 rout | |
n.溃退,溃败;v.击溃,打垮 | |
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37 fugitives | |
n.亡命者,逃命者( fugitive的名词复数 ) | |
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38 scattered | |
adj.分散的,稀疏的;散步的;疏疏落落的 | |
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39 chivalrous | |
adj.武士精神的;对女人彬彬有礼的 | |
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40 perilous | |
adj.危险的,冒险的 | |
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41 rattle | |
v.飞奔,碰响;激怒;n.碰撞声;拨浪鼓 | |
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42 musket | |
n.滑膛枪 | |
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43 odds | |
n.让步,机率,可能性,比率;胜败优劣之别 | |
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44 ardor | |
n.热情,狂热 | |
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45 suspense | |
n.(对可能发生的事)紧张感,担心,挂虑 | |
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46 plunging | |
adj.跳进的,突进的v.颠簸( plunge的现在分词 );暴跌;骤降;突降 | |
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47 mowed | |
v.刈,割( mow的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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48 stunned | |
adj. 震惊的,惊讶的 动词stun的过去式和过去分词 | |
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49 descending | |
n. 下行 adj. 下降的 | |
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50 corpse | |
n.尸体,死尸 | |
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51 huddled | |
挤在一起(huddle的过去式与过去分词形式) | |
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52 onward | |
adj.向前的,前进的;adv.向前,前进,在先 | |
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53 enveloped | |
v.包围,笼罩,包住( envelop的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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54 hoofs | |
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 ) | |
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55 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 | |
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56 shrieks | |
n.尖叫声( shriek的名词复数 )v.尖叫( shriek的第三人称单数 ) | |
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57 heralding | |
v.预示( herald的现在分词 );宣布(好或重要) | |
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58 garrison | |
n.卫戍部队;驻地,卫戍区;vt.派(兵)驻防 | |
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59 clattering | |
发出咔哒声(clatter的现在分词形式) | |
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60 enraged | |
使暴怒( enrage的过去式和过去分词 ); 歜; 激愤 | |
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61 intrepid | |
adj.无畏的,刚毅的 | |
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62 appalled | |
v.使惊骇,使充满恐惧( appall的过去式和过去分词)adj.惊骇的;丧胆的 | |
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63 writhed | |
(因极度痛苦而)扭动或翻滚( writhe的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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64 hemmed | |
缝…的褶边( hem的过去式和过去分词 ); 包围 | |
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65 slaughtered | |
v.屠杀,杀戮,屠宰( slaughter的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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66 truce | |
n.休战,(争执,烦恼等的)缓和;v.以停战结束 | |
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67 ruse | |
n.诡计,计策;诡计 | |
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68 parley | |
n.谈判 | |
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69 battalion | |
n.营;部队;大队(的人) | |
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70 harassed | |
adj. 疲倦的,厌烦的 动词harass的过去式和过去分词 | |
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71 deployed | |
(尤指军事行动)使展开( deploy的过去式和过去分词 ); 施展; 部署; 有效地利用 | |
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72 precipitately | |
adv.猛进地 | |
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73 gorge | |
n.咽喉,胃,暴食,山峡;v.塞饱,狼吞虎咽地吃 | |
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74 slaughtering | |
v.屠杀,杀戮,屠宰( slaughter的现在分词 ) | |
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75 deserted | |
adj.荒芜的,荒废的,无人的,被遗弃的 | |
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76 exertions | |
n.努力( exertion的名词复数 );费力;(能力、权力等的)运用;行使 | |
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77 ragged | |
adj.衣衫褴褛的,粗糙的,刺耳的 | |
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78 flinched | |
v.(因危险和痛苦)退缩,畏惧( flinch的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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79 jaded | |
adj.精疲力竭的;厌倦的;(因过饱或过多而)腻烦的;迟钝的 | |
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80 horrid | |
adj.可怕的;令人惊恐的;恐怖的;极讨厌的 | |
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81 fatigue | |
n.疲劳,劳累 | |
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82 dismally | |
adv.阴暗地,沉闷地 | |
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83 forth | |
adv.向前;向外,往外 | |
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84 streaks | |
n.(与周围有所不同的)条纹( streak的名词复数 );(通常指不好的)特征(倾向);(不断经历成功或失败的)一段时期v.快速移动( streak的第三人称单数 );使布满条纹 | |
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85 gorges | |
n.山峡,峡谷( gorge的名词复数 );咽喉v.(用食物把自己)塞饱,填饱( gorge的第三人称单数 );作呕 | |
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