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CHAPTER V. — ASKELON VILLA, GATH.
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Number, 28, Epsilon Terrace, Bayswater, was one of the very smallest houses that a person with any pretensions1 to move in that Society which habitually2 spells itself with a capital initial could ever possibly have dreamt of condescending3 to inhabit. Indeed, if Dame4 Eleanor, relict of the late Sir Owen Le Breton, Knight5, had consulted merely the length of her purse and the interests of her personal comfort, she would doubtless have found for the same rental7 a far more convenient and roomy cottage in Upper Clapton or Stoke Newington. But Lady Le Breton was a thoroughly8 and conscientiously9 religious woman, who in all things consulted first and foremost the esoteric interests of her ingrained creed10. It was a prime article of this cherished social faith that nobody with any shadow of personal self-respect could endure to live under any other postal11 letter than W. or S.W. Better not to be at all than to drag out a miserable12 existence in the painful obscurity of N. or S.E. Happily for people situated13 like Lady Le Breton, the metropolitan14 house-contractor (it would be gross flattery to describe him as a builder) has divined, with his usual practical sagacity, the necessity for supplying this felt want for eligible15 family residences at once comparatively cheap and relatively16 fashionable. By driving little culs-de-sac and re-entrant alleys17 at the back of his larger rows of shoddy mansions19, he is enabled to run up a smaller terrace, or crescent, or place, as the case may be, composed of tiny shallow cottages with the narrowest possible frontage, and the tallest possible elevation20, which will yet entitle their occupiers to feel themselves within the sacred pale of social salvation21, in the blest security of the mystic W. Narrowest, shallowest, and tallest of these marginal Society residences is the little block of blank-faced, stucco-fronted, porticoed rabbit-hutches, which blazons22 itself forth23 in the Court Guide under the imposing24 designation of Epsilon Terrace, Bayswater.

The interior of No. 28 in this eminently25 respectable back alley18 was quite of a piece, it must be confessed, with the vacant Philistinism of its naked exterior26. ‘Mother has really an immense amount of taste,’ Herbert Le Breton used to say, blandly27, ‘and all of it of the most atrocious description; she picked it up, I believe, when my poor father was quartered at Lahore, a station absolutely fatal to the aesthetic28 faculties29; and she will never get rid of it again as long as she lives.’ Indeed, when once Lady Le Breton got anything whatsoever30 into her head, it was not easy for anybody else to get it out again; you might much more readily expect to draw one of her double teeth than to eliminate one of her pet opinions. Not that she was a stupid or a near-sighted woman—the mother of clever sons never is—but she was a perfectly31 immovable rock of social and political orthodoxy. The three Le Breton boys—for there was a third at home—would gladly have reformed the terrors of that awful drawing-room if they had dared; but they knew it was as much as their places were worth, Herbert said, to attempt a remonstrance32, and they wisely left it alone, and said nothing.

Of course the house was not vulgarly furnished, at least in the conventional sense of the word; Lady Le Breton was far too rigid33 in her social orthodoxy to have admitted into her rooms anything that savoured of what she considered bad form, according to her lights. It was only vulgar with the underlying34 vulgarity of mere6 tasteless fashionable uniformity. There was nothing in it that any well-bred footman could object to; nothing that anybody with one grain of genuine originality35 could possibly tolerate. The little occasional chairs and tables set casually36 about the room were of the strictest négligé Belgravian type, a sort of studied protest against the formal stiffness of the ordinary unused middle-class drawing-room. The portrait of the late Sir Owen in the wee library, presented by his brother-officers, was painted by that distinguished37 R. A., Sir Francis Thomson, a light of the middle of this century; and an excellent work of art it was too, in its own solemn academic kind. The dining-room, tiny as it was, possessed38 that inevitable39 Canaletti without which no gentleman’s dining-room in England is ever considered to be complete. Everything spoke40 at once the stereotyped41 Society style of a dozen years ago (before Mr. Morris had reformed the outer aspect of the West End), entirely42 free from anything so startling or indecorous as a gleam of spontaneity in the possessor’s mind. To be sure, it was very far indeed from the centre round-table and brilliant-flowered-table-cover style of the utter unregenerate Philistine43 household; but it was further still from the simple natural taste and graceful44 fancy of Edie Oswald’s cosy45 little back parlour behind the village grocer’s shop at Calcombe-Pomeroy.

The portrait and the Canaletti were relics46 of Lady Le Breton’s best days, when Sir Owen was alive, and the boys were still in their first babyhood. Sir Owen was an Indian officer of the old school, a simple-minded, gentle, brave man, very religious after his own fashion, and an excellent soldier, with the true Anglo-Indian faculty47 for administration and organisation48. It was partly from him, no doubt, that the boys inherited their marked intelligence; and it was wholly from him, beyond any doubt at all, that Ernest and his younger brother Ronald inherited their moral or religious sincerity—for that was an element in which poor formally orthodox Lady Le Breton was wholly deficient49. The good General had been brought up in the strictest doctrines50 of the Clapham sect51; he had gone to India young, as a cadet from Haileybury; and he had applied52 his intellect all his life long rather to the arduous53 task of extending ‘the blessings54 of British rule’ to Sikhs and Ghoorkas, than to those abstract ethical55 or theological questions which agitated56 the souls of a later generation. If a new district had to be assimilated in settlement to the established model of the British raj, if a tribe of hill-savages had to be conciliated by gentler means than rifles or bayonets, if a difficult bit of diplomatic duty had to be performed on the debateable frontiers, Sir Owen Le Breton was always the person chosen to undertake it. An earnest, honest, God-fearing man he remained to the end, impressed by a profound sense of duty as he understood it, and a firm conviction that his true business in life consisted in serving his Queen and country, and in bringing more and more of the native populations within the pale of the Company’s empire, and the future evangelisation that was ultimately to follow. But during the great upheaval57 of the Mutiny, he fell at the head of his own unrevolted regiment58 in one of the hottest battles of that terrible time, and my Lady Le Breton found herself left alone with three young children, on little more than the scanty59 pension of a general officer’s widow on the late Company’s establishment.

Happily, enough remained to bring up the boys, with the aid of their terminable annuities60 (which fell in on their attaining61 their majority), in decent respect for the feelings and demands of exacting62 Society; and as the two elder were decidedly clever boys, they managed to get scholarships at Oxford64, which enabled them to tide over the dangerous intermediate period as far as their degree. Herbert then stepped at once into a fellowship and sundry65 other good things of like sort; and Ernest was even now trying to follow in his brother’s steps, in this particular. Only the youngest boy, Ronald, still remained quite unprovided for. Ronald was a tall, pale, gentle, weakly, enthusiastic young fellow of nineteen, with so marked a predisposition to lung disease that it had not been thought well to let him run the chance of over-reading himself; and so he had to be content with remaining at home in the uncongenial atmosphere of Epsilon Terrace, instead of joining his two elder brothers at the university. Uncongenial, because Ronald alone followed Sir Owen in the religious half of his nature, and found the ‘worldliness’ and conventionality of his unflinching mother a serious bar to his enjoyment67 of home society.

‘Ronald,’ said my lady, at the breakfast-table on the very morning of Arthur Berkeley’s little luncheon68 party, ‘here’s a letter for you from Mackenzie and Anderson. No doubt your Aunt Sarah’s will has been recovered and proved at last, and I hope it’ll turn out satisfactory, as we wish it.’

‘For my part, I really almost hope it won’t, mother,’ said Ronald, turning it over; ‘for I don’t want to be compelled to profit by Ernest’s excessive generosity69. He’s too good to me, just because he thinks me the weaker vessel70; but though we must bear one another’s burdens, you know, we should each bear his own cross as well, shouldn’t we, mother?’

‘Well, it can’t be much in any case,’ said his mother, a little testily71, ‘whoever gets it. Open the envelope at once, my boy, and don’t stand looking at it like a goose in that abstracted way.’

‘Oh, mother, she was my father’s only sister, and I’m not in such a hurry to find out how she has disposed of her mere perishing worldly goods,’ answered Ronald, gravely. ‘It seems to me a terrible thing that before poor dear good Aunt Sarah is cold in her grave almost, we should be speculating and conjecturing72 as to what she has done with her poor little trifle of earthly riches.’

‘It’s always usual to read the will immediately after the funeral,’ said Lady Le Breton, firmly, to whom the ordinary usage of society formed an absolutely unanswerable argument; ‘and how you, Ronald, who haven’t even the common decency73 to wear a bit of crape around your arm for her—a thing that Ernest himself, with all his nonsensical theories, consents to do—can talk in that absurd way about what’s quite right and proper to be done, I for my part, really can’t imagine.’

‘Ah, but you know, mother, I object to wearing crape on the ground that it isn’t allowable for us to sorrow as them that have no hope: and I’m sure I’m paying no disrespect to dear Aunt Sarah’s memory in this matter, for she was always the first herself, you remember, to wish that I should follow the dictates74 of my own conscience.’

‘I remember she always upheld you in acts of opposition75 to your own mother, Ronald,’ Lady Le Breton said coldly, ‘and I suppose you’re going to do honour to her religious precepts76 now by not opening that letter when your mother tells you to do so. In MY Bible, sir, I find a place for the Fourth Commandment.’

Ronald looked at her gently and unreprovingly; but though a quiet smile played involuntarily around the corners of his mouth, he resisted the natural inclination77 to correct her mistake, and to suggest blandly that she probably alluded78 to the fifth. He knew he must turn his left cheek also—a Christian79 virtue80 which he had abundant opportunities of practising in that household; and he felt that to score off his mother for such a verbal mistake as the one she had just made would not be in keeping with the spirit of the commandment to which, no doubt, she meant to refer him. So without another word he opened the envelope and glanced rapidly at the contents of the letter it enclosed.

‘They’ve found the second will,’ he said, after a moment, with a rather husky voice, ‘and they’re taking steps to get it confirmed, whatever that may be.’

‘Broad Scotch81 for getting probate, I believe,’ said Lady Le Breton, in a slight tone of irony82; for to her mind any departure from the laws or language she was herself accustomed to use, assumed at once the guise83 of a rank and offensive provincialism. ‘Your poor Aunt WOULD go and marry a Scotchman, and he a Scotch business man too; so of course we must expect to put up with all kinds of ridiculous technicalities and Edinburgh jargon84 accordingly. All law’s bad enough in the way of odd words, but commend me to Scotch law for utter and meaningless incomprehensibility. Well, and what does the second will say, Ronald?’

‘There, mother,’ cried Ronald, flinging the letter down hurriedly with a burst of tears. ‘Read it yourself, if you will, for I can’t. Poor dear Aunt Sarah, and dear, good unselfish Ernest! It makes me cry even to think of them.’

Lady Le Breton took the paper up from the table without a word and read it carefully through. ‘I am very glad to hear it,’ she said, ‘very glad indeed to hear it. “And in order to guard against any misinterpretation of my reasons for making this disposition66 of my property,” your Aunt says, “I wish to put it on record that I had previously85 drawn86 up another will, bequeathing my effects to be divided between my two nephews Ernest and Ronald Le Breton equally; that I communicated the contents of that will”—a horrid87 Scotticism—“to my nephew Ernest; and that at his express desire I have now revoked88 it, and drawn up this present testament89, leaving the share intended for him to his brother Ronald.” Why, she never even mentions dear Herbert!’

‘She knew that Herbert had provided for himself,’ Ronald answered, raising his head from his hands, ‘while Ernest and I were unprovided for. But Ernest said he could fight the world for himself, while I couldn’t; and that unearned wealth ought only to be accepted in trust for those who were incapacitated by nature or misfortune from earning their own bread. I don’t always quite agree with all Ernest’s theories any more than you do, but we must both admit that at least he always conscientiously acts up to them himself, mother, mustn’t we?’

‘It’s a very extraordinary thing,’ Lady Le Breton went on, ‘that Aunt Sarah invariably encouraged both you boys in all your absurdities90 and Quixotisms. She was Quixotic herself at heart, that’s the truth of it, just like your poor dear father. I remember once, when we were quartered at Meean Meer in the Punjaub, poor dear Sir Owen nearly got into disgrace with the colonel—he was only a sub. in those days—because he wanted to go trying to convert his syces, which was a most imprudent thing to do, and directly opposed to the Company’s orders. Aunt Sarah was just the same. Herbert’s the only one of you three who has never given me one moment’s anxiety, and of course poor Herbert must be passed over in absolute silence. However, I’m very glad she’s left the money to you, Ronald, as you need it the most, and Mackenzie and Anderson say it’ll come to about a hundred and sixty a year.’

‘One can do a great deal of good with that much money,’ said Ronald meditatively91. ‘I mean, after arranging with you, mother, for the expenses of my maintenance at home, which of course I shall do, as soon as the pension ceases, and after meeting one’s own necessary expenditure92 in the way of clothing and so forth. It’s more than any one Christian man ought to spend upon himself, I’m sure.’

‘It’s not at all too much for a young man in your position in society, Ronald; but there—I know you’ll want to spend half of it on indiscriminate charity. However, there’ll be time enough to talk about that when you’ve actually got it, thank goodness.’

Ronald murmured a few words softly to himself, of which Lady Le Breton only caught the last echo—‘laid them down at the apostles’ feet; and distribution was made unto every man according as he had need.’

‘Just like Ernest’s communistic notions,’ she murmured in return, half audibly. ‘I do declare, between them both, a plain woman hardly knows whether she’s standing93 on her head or on her heels. I live in daily fear that one or other of them will be taken up by the police, for being implicated94 in some dynamite95 plot or other, to blow up the Queen or destroy the Houses of Parliament.’ Ronald smiled again, gently, but answered nothing. ‘There’s another letter for you there, though, with the Exmoor coronet upon it. Why don’t you open it? I hope it’s an invitation for you to go down and stop at Dunbude for a week or two. Nothing on earth would do you so much good as to get away for a while from your ranters and canters, and mix occasionally in a little decent and rational society.’

Ronald took up the second letter with a sigh. He feared as much himself, and had doleful visions of a painful fortnight to be spent in a big country house, where the conversation would be all concerning the slaughter96 of pheasants and the torture of foxes, which his soul loathed97 to listen to. ‘It’s from Lady Hilda,’ he said, glancing through it, ‘and it ISN’T an invitation after all.’ He could hardly keep down a faint tone of gratification as he discovered this reprieve98. ‘Here’s what she says:—

‘"DEAR MR. LE BRETON,—Mamma wishes me to write and tell you that Lynmouth’s tutor, Mr. Walsh, is going to leave us at Christmas, and she thinks it just possible that one of your two brothers at Oxford might like to come down to Dunbude and give us their kind aid in taking charge of Lynmouth. He’s a dreadful pickle99, as you know; but we are very anxious to get somebody to look after him in whom mamma can have perfect confidence. We don’t know your brothers’ addresses or we would have written to them direct about it. Perhaps you will kindly100 let them hear this suggestion; and if they think the matter worth while, we might afterwards arrange details as to business and so forth. With kind regards to Lady Le Breton, believe me,

‘"Yours very sincerely,
‘"HILDA TREGELLIS.”’

‘My dear Ronald,’ said Lady Le Breton, much more warmly than before, ‘this is really quite providential. Are they at Dunbude now?’

‘No, mother. She writes from Wilton Place. They’re up in town for Lord Exmoor’s gout, I know. I heard they were on Sunday.’

‘Then I shall go and see Lady Exmoor this very morning about it. It’s exactly the right place for Ernest. A little good society will get rid of all his nonsensical notions in a month or two. He’s lived too exclusively among his radical101 set at Oxford. And then it’ll be such a capital thing for him to be in the house continually with Hilda; she’s a girl of such excellent tone. I fancy—I’m not quite sure, but I fancy—that Ernest has a decided63 taste for the company of people, and even of young girls, who are not in Society. He’s so fond of that young man Oswald, who Herbert tells me is positively102 the son of a grocer—yes, I’m sure he said a grocer!—and it seems, from what Herbert writes me, that this Oswald has brought a sister of his up this term from behind the counter, on purpose to set her cap at Ernest. Now you boys have, unfortunately, no sisters, and therefore you haven’t seen as much of girls of a good stamp—not daily and domestically I mean—as is desirable for you, from the point of view of Society. But if Ernest can only be induced to take this tutorship at the Exmoors’, he’ll have an opportunity of meeting daily with a really nice girl, like Hilda; and though of course it isn’t likely that Hilda would take a fancy to her brother’s tutor—the Exmoors are such VERY conservative people in matters of rank and wealth and family and so forth—quite un-Christianly so, I consider—yet it can’t fail to improve Ernest’s tone a great deal, and raise his standard of female society generally. It’s really a very distressing103 thought to me, Ronald, that all my boys, except dear Herbert, should show such a marked preference for low and vulgar companionship. It seems to me, you both positively prefer as far as possible the society of your natural inferiors. There’s Ernest must go and take up with the friendship of that snuffy old German Socialist104 glass-cutter; while you are always running after your Plymouth Brethren and your Bible Christians105, and your other ignorant fanatical people, instead of going with me respectably to St. Alphege’s to hear the dear Archdeacon! It’s very discouraging to a mother, really, very discouraging.’

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1 pretensions 9f7f7ffa120fac56a99a9be28790514a     
自称( pretension的名词复数 ); 自命不凡; 要求; 权力
参考例句:
  • The play mocks the pretensions of the new middle class. 这出戏讽刺了新中产阶级的装模作样。
  • The city has unrealistic pretensions to world-class status. 这个城市不切实际地标榜自己为国际都市。
2 habitually 4rKzgk     
ad.习惯地,通常地
参考例句:
  • The pain of the disease caused him habitually to furrow his brow. 病痛使他习惯性地紧皱眉头。
  • Habitually obedient to John, I came up to his chair. 我已经习惯于服从约翰,我来到他的椅子跟前。
3 condescending avxzvU     
adj.谦逊的,故意屈尊的
参考例句:
  • He has a condescending attitude towards women. 他对女性总是居高临下。
  • He tends to adopt a condescending manner when talking to young women. 和年轻女子说话时,他喜欢摆出一副高高在上的姿态。
4 dame dvGzR0     
n.女士
参考例句:
  • The dame tell of her experience as a wife and mother.这位年长妇女讲了她作妻子和母亲的经验。
  • If you stick around,you'll have to marry that dame.如果再逗留多一会,你就要跟那个夫人结婚。
5 knight W2Hxk     
n.骑士,武士;爵士
参考例句:
  • He was made an honourary knight.他被授予荣誉爵士称号。
  • A knight rode on his richly caparisoned steed.一个骑士骑在装饰华丽的马上。
6 mere rC1xE     
adj.纯粹的;仅仅,只不过
参考例句:
  • That is a mere repetition of what you said before.那不过是重复了你以前讲的话。
  • It's a mere waste of time waiting any longer.再等下去纯粹是浪费时间。
7 rental cBezh     
n.租赁,出租,出租业
参考例句:
  • The yearly rental of her house is 2400 yuan.她这房子年租金是2400元。
  • We can organise car rental from Chicago O'Hare Airport.我们可以安排提供从芝加哥奥黑尔机场出发的租车服务。
8 thoroughly sgmz0J     
adv.完全地,彻底地,十足地
参考例句:
  • The soil must be thoroughly turned over before planting.一定要先把土地深翻一遍再下种。
  • The soldiers have been thoroughly instructed in the care of their weapons.士兵们都系统地接受过保护武器的训练。
9 conscientiously 3vBzrQ     
adv.凭良心地;认真地,负责尽职地;老老实实
参考例句:
  • He kept silent,eating just as conscientiously but as though everything tasted alike. 他一声不吭,闷头吃着,仿佛桌上的饭菜都一个味儿。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • She discharged all the responsibilities of a minister conscientiously. 她自觉地履行部长的一切职责。 来自《简明英汉词典》
10 creed uoxzL     
n.信条;信念,纲领
参考例句:
  • They offended against every article of his creed.他们触犯了他的每一条戒律。
  • Our creed has always been that business is business.我们的信条一直是公私分明。
11 postal EP0xt     
adj.邮政的,邮局的
参考例句:
  • A postal network now covers the whole country.邮路遍及全国。
  • Remember to use postal code.勿忘使用邮政编码。
12 miserable g18yk     
adj.悲惨的,痛苦的;可怜的,糟糕的
参考例句:
  • It was miserable of you to make fun of him.你取笑他,这是可耻的。
  • Her past life was miserable.她过去的生活很苦。
13 situated JiYzBH     
adj.坐落在...的,处于某种境地的
参考例句:
  • The village is situated at the margin of a forest.村子位于森林的边缘。
  • She is awkwardly situated.她的处境困难。
14 metropolitan mCyxZ     
adj.大城市的,大都会的
参考例句:
  • Metropolitan buildings become taller than ever.大城市的建筑变得比以前更高。
  • Metropolitan residents are used to fast rhythm.大都市的居民习惯于快节奏。
15 eligible Cq6xL     
adj.有条件被选中的;(尤指婚姻等)合适(意)的
参考例句:
  • He is an eligible young man.他是一个合格的年轻人。
  • Helen married an eligible bachelor.海伦嫁给了一个中意的单身汉。
16 relatively bkqzS3     
adv.比较...地,相对地
参考例句:
  • The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
  • The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。
17 alleys ed7f32602655381e85de6beb51238b46     
胡同,小巷( alley的名词复数 ); 小径
参考例句:
  • I followed him through a maze of narrow alleys. 我紧随他穿过一条条迂迴曲折的窄巷。
  • The children lead me through the maze of alleys to the edge of the city. 孩子们领我穿过迷宫一般的街巷,来到城边。
18 alley Cx2zK     
n.小巷,胡同;小径,小路
参考例句:
  • We live in the same alley.我们住在同一条小巷里。
  • The blind alley ended in a brick wall.这条死胡同的尽头是砖墙。
19 mansions 55c599f36b2c0a2058258d6f2310fd20     
n.宅第,公馆,大厦( mansion的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • Fifth Avenue was boarded up where the rich had deserted their mansions. 第五大道上的富翁们已经出去避暑,空出的宅第都已锁好了门窗,钉上了木板。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
  • Oh, the mansions, the lights, the perfume, the loaded boudoirs and tables! 啊,那些高楼大厦、华灯、香水、藏金收银的闺房还有摆满山珍海味的餐桌! 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
20 elevation bqsxH     
n.高度;海拔;高地;上升;提高
参考例句:
  • The house is at an elevation of 2,000 metres.那幢房子位于海拔两千米的高处。
  • His elevation to the position of General Manager was announced yesterday.昨天宣布他晋升总经理职位。
21 salvation nC2zC     
n.(尤指基督)救世,超度,拯救,解困
参考例句:
  • Salvation lay in political reform.解救办法在于政治改革。
  • Christians hope and pray for salvation.基督教徒希望并祈祷灵魂得救。
22 blazons abb21845d4a43e02ee0b00a279fefbdc     
v.广布( blazon的第三人称单数 );宣布;夸示;装饰
参考例句:
23 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。
24 imposing 8q9zcB     
adj.使人难忘的,壮丽的,堂皇的,雄伟的
参考例句:
  • The fortress is an imposing building.这座城堡是一座宏伟的建筑。
  • He has lost his imposing appearance.他已失去堂堂仪表。
25 eminently c442c1e3a4b0ad4160feece6feb0aabf     
adv.突出地;显著地;不寻常地
参考例句:
  • She seems eminently suitable for the job. 她看来非常适合这个工作。
  • It was an eminently respectable boarding school. 这是所非常好的寄宿学校。 来自《简明英汉词典》
26 exterior LlYyr     
adj.外部的,外在的;表面的
参考例句:
  • The seed has a hard exterior covering.这种子外壳很硬。
  • We are painting the exterior wall of the house.我们正在给房子的外墙涂漆。
27 blandly f411bffb7a3b98af8224e543d5078eb9     
adv.温和地,殷勤地
参考例句:
  • There is a class of men in Bristol monstrously prejudiced against Blandly. 布里斯托尔有那么一帮人为此恨透了布兰德利。 来自英汉文学 - 金银岛
  • \"Maybe you could get something in the stage line?\" he blandly suggested. “也许你能在戏剧这一行里找些事做,\"他和蔼地提议道。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
28 aesthetic px8zm     
adj.美学的,审美的,有美感
参考例句:
  • My aesthetic standards are quite different from his.我的审美标准与他的大不相同。
  • The professor advanced a new aesthetic theory.那位教授提出了新的美学理论。
29 faculties 066198190456ba4e2b0a2bda2034dfc5     
n.能力( faculty的名词复数 );全体教职员;技巧;院
参考例句:
  • Although he's ninety, his mental faculties remain unimpaired. 他虽年届九旬,但头脑仍然清晰。
  • All your faculties have come into play in your work. 在你的工作中,你的全部才能已起到了作用。 来自《简明英汉词典》
30 whatsoever Beqz8i     
adv.(用于否定句中以加强语气)任何;pron.无论什么
参考例句:
  • There's no reason whatsoever to turn down this suggestion.没有任何理由拒绝这个建议。
  • All things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you,do ye even so to them.你想别人对你怎样,你就怎样对人。
31 perfectly 8Mzxb     
adv.完美地,无可非议地,彻底地
参考例句:
  • The witnesses were each perfectly certain of what they said.证人们个个对自己所说的话十分肯定。
  • Everything that we're doing is all perfectly above board.我们做的每件事情都是光明正大的。
32 remonstrance bVex0     
n抗议,抱怨
参考例句:
  • She had abandoned all attempts at remonstrance with Thomas.她已经放弃了一切劝戒托马斯的尝试。
  • Mrs. Peniston was at the moment inaccessible to remonstrance.目前彭尼斯顿太太没功夫听她告状。
33 rigid jDPyf     
adj.严格的,死板的;刚硬的,僵硬的
参考例句:
  • She became as rigid as adamant.她变得如顽石般的固执。
  • The examination was so rigid that nearly all aspirants were ruled out.考试很严,几乎所有的考生都被淘汰了。
34 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。
35 originality JJJxm     
n.创造力,独创性;新颖
参考例句:
  • The name of the game in pop music is originality.流行音乐的本质是独创性。
  • He displayed an originality amounting almost to genius.他显示出近乎天才的创造性。
36 casually UwBzvw     
adv.漠不关心地,无动于衷地,不负责任地
参考例句:
  • She remarked casually that she was changing her job.她当时漫不经心地说要换工作。
  • I casually mentioned that I might be interested in working abroad.我不经意地提到我可能会对出国工作感兴趣。
37 distinguished wu9z3v     
adj.卓越的,杰出的,著名的
参考例句:
  • Elephants are distinguished from other animals by their long noses.大象以其长长的鼻子显示出与其他动物的不同。
  • A banquet was given in honor of the distinguished guests.宴会是为了向贵宾们致敬而举行的。
38 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。
39 inevitable 5xcyq     
adj.不可避免的,必然发生的
参考例句:
  • Mary was wearing her inevitable large hat.玛丽戴着她总是戴的那顶大帽子。
  • The defeat had inevitable consequences for British policy.战败对英国政策不可避免地产生了影响。
40 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。
41 stereotyped Dhqz9v     
adj.(指形象、思想、人物等)模式化的
参考例句:
  • There is a sameness about all these tales. They're so stereotyped -- all about talented scholars and lovely ladies. 这些书就是一套子,左不过是些才子佳人,最没趣儿。
  • He is the stereotyped monster of the horror films and the adventure books, and an obvious (though not perhaps strictly scientific) link with our ancestral past. 它们是恐怖电影和惊险小说中的老一套的怪物,并且与我们的祖先有着明显的(虽然可能没有科学的)联系。
42 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。
43 philistine 1A2yG     
n.庸俗的人;adj.市侩的,庸俗的
参考例句:
  • I believe he seriously thinks me an awful Philistine.我相信,他真的认为我是个不可救药的庸人。
  • Do you know what a philistine is,jim?吉姆,知道什么是庸俗吗?
44 graceful deHza     
adj.优美的,优雅的;得体的
参考例句:
  • His movements on the parallel bars were very graceful.他的双杠动作可帅了!
  • The ballet dancer is so graceful.芭蕾舞演员的姿态是如此的优美。
45 cosy dvnzc5     
adj.温暖而舒适的,安逸的
参考例句:
  • We spent a cosy evening chatting by the fire.我们在炉火旁聊天度过了一个舒适的晚上。
  • It was so warm and cosy in bed that Simon didn't want to get out.床上温暖而又舒适,西蒙简直不想下床了。
46 relics UkMzSr     
[pl.]n.遗物,遗迹,遗产;遗体,尸骸
参考例句:
  • The area is a treasure house of archaeological relics. 这个地区是古文物遗迹的宝库。
  • Xi'an is an ancient city full of treasures and saintly relics. 西安是一个有很多宝藏和神圣的遗物的古老城市。
47 faculty HhkzK     
n.才能;学院,系;(学院或系的)全体教学人员
参考例句:
  • He has a great faculty for learning foreign languages.他有学习外语的天赋。
  • He has the faculty of saying the right thing at the right time.他有在恰当的时候说恰当的话的才智。
48 organisation organisation     
n.组织,安排,团体,有机休
参考例句:
  • The method of his organisation work is worth commending.他的组织工作的方法值得称道。
  • His application for membership of the organisation was rejected.他想要加入该组织的申请遭到了拒绝。
49 deficient Cmszv     
adj.不足的,不充份的,有缺陷的
参考例句:
  • The crops are suffering from deficient rain.庄稼因雨量不足而遭受损害。
  • I always have been deficient in selfconfidence and decision.我向来缺乏自信和果断。
50 doctrines 640cf8a59933d263237ff3d9e5a0f12e     
n.教条( doctrine的名词复数 );教义;学说;(政府政策的)正式声明
参考例句:
  • To modern eyes, such doctrines appear harsh, even cruel. 从现代的角度看,这样的教义显得苛刻,甚至残酷。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • His doctrines have seduced many into error. 他的学说把许多人诱入歧途。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
51 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。
52 applied Tz2zXA     
adj.应用的;v.应用,适用
参考例句:
  • She plans to take a course in applied linguistics.她打算学习应用语言学课程。
  • This cream is best applied to the face at night.这种乳霜最好晚上擦脸用。
53 arduous 5vxzd     
adj.艰苦的,费力的,陡峭的
参考例句:
  • We must have patience in doing arduous work.我们做艰苦的工作要有耐性。
  • The task was more arduous than he had calculated.这项任务比他所估计的要艰巨得多。
54 blessings 52a399b218b9208cade790a26255db6b     
n.(上帝的)祝福( blessing的名词复数 );好事;福分;因祸得福
参考例句:
  • Afflictions are sometimes blessings in disguise. 塞翁失马,焉知非福。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • We don't rely on blessings from Heaven. 我们不靠老天保佑。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
55 ethical diIz4     
adj.伦理的,道德的,合乎道德的
参考例句:
  • It is necessary to get the youth to have a high ethical concept.必须使青年具有高度的道德观念。
  • 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。
56 agitated dzgzc2     
adj.被鼓动的,不安的
参考例句:
  • His answers were all mixed up,so agitated was he.他是那样心神不定,回答全乱了。
  • She was agitated because her train was an hour late.她乘坐的火车晚点一个小时,她十分焦虑。
57 upheaval Tp6y1     
n.胀起,(地壳)的隆起;剧变,动乱
参考例句:
  • It was faced with the greatest social upheaval since World War Ⅱ.它面临第二次世界大战以来最大的社会动乱。
  • The country has been thrown into an upheaval.这个国家已经陷入动乱之中。
58 regiment JATzZ     
n.团,多数,管理;v.组织,编成团,统制
参考例句:
  • As he hated army life,he decide to desert his regiment.因为他嫌恶军队生活,所以他决心背弃自己所在的那个团。
  • They reformed a division into a regiment.他们将一个师整编成为一个团。
59 scanty ZDPzx     
adj.缺乏的,仅有的,节省的,狭小的,不够的
参考例句:
  • There is scanty evidence to support their accusations.他们的指控证据不足。
  • The rainfall was rather scanty this month.这个月的雨量不足。
60 annuities 334adc1039d91740ffab60ad8c097f64     
n.养老金;年金( annuity的名词复数 );(每年的)养老金;年金保险;年金保险投资
参考例句:
  • Many companies in this country grant their old employees annuities after they retire. 这个国家的许多公司在老年雇员退休后发给他们养老年金。 来自辞典例句
  • Can I interest you in one of our Easter Annuities or IRA accounts? 您对我们的复活节年金保险或者个人退休金帐户有兴趣吗? 来自电影对白
61 attaining da8a99bbb342bc514279651bdbe731cc     
(通常经过努力)实现( attain的现在分词 ); 达到; 获得; 达到(某年龄、水平、状况)
参考例句:
  • Jim is halfway to attaining his pilot's licence. 吉姆就快要拿到飞行员执照了。
  • By that time she was attaining to fifty. 那时她已快到五十岁了。
62 exacting VtKz7e     
adj.苛求的,要求严格的
参考例句:
  • He must remember the letters and symbols with exacting precision.他必须以严格的精度记住每个字母和符号。
  • The public has been more exacting in its demands as time has passed.随着时间的推移,公众的要求更趋严格。
63 decided lvqzZd     
adj.决定了的,坚决的;明显的,明确的
参考例句:
  • This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
  • There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。
64 Oxford Wmmz0a     
n.牛津(英国城市)
参考例句:
  • At present he has become a Professor of Chemistry at Oxford.他现在已是牛津大学的化学教授了。
  • This is where the road to Oxford joins the road to London.这是去牛津的路与去伦敦的路的汇合处。
65 sundry CswwL     
adj.各式各样的,种种的
参考例句:
  • This cream can be used to treat sundry minor injuries.这种药膏可用来治各种轻伤。
  • We can see the rich man on sundry occasions.我们能在各种场合见到那个富豪。
66 disposition GljzO     
n.性情,性格;意向,倾向;排列,部署
参考例句:
  • He has made a good disposition of his property.他已对财产作了妥善处理。
  • He has a cheerful disposition.他性情开朗。
67 enjoyment opaxV     
n.乐趣;享有;享用
参考例句:
  • Your company adds to the enjoyment of our visit. 有您的陪同,我们这次访问更加愉快了。
  • After each joke the old man cackled his enjoyment.每逢讲完一个笑话,这老人就呵呵笑着表示他的高兴。
68 luncheon V8az4     
n.午宴,午餐,便宴
参考例句:
  • We have luncheon at twelve o'clock.我们十二点钟用午餐。
  • I have a luncheon engagement.我午饭有约。
69 generosity Jf8zS     
n.大度,慷慨,慷慨的行为
参考例句:
  • We should match their generosity with our own.我们应该像他们一样慷慨大方。
  • We adore them for their generosity.我们钦佩他们的慷慨。
70 vessel 4L1zi     
n.船舶;容器,器皿;管,导管,血管
参考例句:
  • The vessel is fully loaded with cargo for Shanghai.这艘船满载货物驶往上海。
  • You should put the water into a vessel.你应该把水装入容器中。
71 testily df69641c1059630ead7b670d16775645     
adv. 易怒地, 暴躁地
参考例句:
  • He reacted testily to reports that he'd opposed military involvement. 有报道称他反对军队参与,对此他很是恼火。 来自柯林斯例句
72 conjecturing 73c4f568cfcd4d0ebd6059325594d75e     
v. & n. 推测,臆测
参考例句:
  • This may be true or partly true; we are all conjecturing here. 这可能属实或者部分属实,我们都是在这儿揣测。
  • Deborah sagacity in conjecturing which of the two girls was likely to have the best place. 狄波拉用尽心机去猜哪一个女儿会得顶好的席位。
73 decency Jxzxs     
n.体面,得体,合宜,正派,庄重
参考例句:
  • His sense of decency and fair play made him refuse the offer.他的正直感和公平竞争意识使他拒绝了这一提议。
  • Your behaviour is an affront to public decency.你的行为有伤风化。
74 dictates d2524bb575c815758f62583cd796af09     
n.命令,规定,要求( dictate的名词复数 )v.大声讲或读( dictate的第三人称单数 );口授;支配;摆布
参考例句:
  • Convention dictates that a minister should resign in such a situation. 依照常规部长在这种情况下应该辞职。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • He always follows the dictates of common sense. 他总是按常识行事。 来自《简明英汉词典》
75 opposition eIUxU     
n.反对,敌对
参考例句:
  • The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
  • The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。
76 precepts 6abcb2dd9eca38cb6dd99c51d37ea461     
n.规诫,戒律,箴言( precept的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • They accept the Prophet's precepts but reject some of his strictures. 他们接受先知的教训,但拒绝他的种种约束。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
  • The legal philosopher's concern is to ascertain the true nature of all the precepts and norms. 法哲学家的兴趣在于探寻所有规范和准则的性质。 来自辞典例句
77 inclination Gkwyj     
n.倾斜;点头;弯腰;斜坡;倾度;倾向;爱好
参考例句:
  • She greeted us with a slight inclination of the head.她微微点头向我们致意。
  • I did not feel the slightest inclination to hurry.我没有丝毫着急的意思。
78 alluded 69f7a8b0f2e374aaf5d0965af46948e7     
提及,暗指( allude的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • In your remarks you alluded to a certain sinister design. 在你的谈话中,你提到了某个阴谋。
  • She also alluded to her rival's past marital troubles. 她还影射了对手过去的婚姻问题。
79 Christian KVByl     
adj.基督教徒的;n.基督教徒
参考例句:
  • They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
  • His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。
80 virtue BpqyH     
n.德行,美德;贞操;优点;功效,效力
参考例句:
  • He was considered to be a paragon of virtue.他被认为是品德尽善尽美的典范。
  • You need to decorate your mind with virtue.你应该用德行美化心灵。
81 scotch ZZ3x8     
n.伤口,刻痕;苏格兰威士忌酒;v.粉碎,消灭,阻止;adj.苏格兰(人)的
参考例句:
  • Facts will eventually scotch these rumours.这种谣言在事实面前将不攻自破。
  • Italy was full of fine views and virtually empty of Scotch whiskey.意大利多的是美景,真正缺的是苏格兰威士忌。
82 irony P4WyZ     
n.反语,冷嘲;具有讽刺意味的事,嘲弄
参考例句:
  • She said to him with slight irony.她略带嘲讽地对他说。
  • In her voice we could sense a certain tinge of irony.从她的声音里我们可以感到某种讥讽的意味。
83 guise JeizL     
n.外表,伪装的姿态
参考例句:
  • They got into the school in the guise of inspectors.他们假装成视察员进了学校。
  • The thief came into the house under the guise of a repairman.那小偷扮成个修理匠进了屋子。
84 jargon I3sxk     
n.术语,行话
参考例句:
  • They will not hear critics with their horrible jargon.他们不愿意听到评论家们那些可怕的行话。
  • It is important not to be overawed by the mathematical jargon.要紧的是不要被数学的术语所吓倒.
85 previously bkzzzC     
adv.以前,先前(地)
参考例句:
  • The bicycle tyre blew out at a previously damaged point.自行车胎在以前损坏过的地方又爆开了。
  • Let me digress for a moment and explain what had happened previously.让我岔开一会儿,解释原先发生了什么。
86 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。
87 horrid arozZj     
adj.可怕的;令人惊恐的;恐怖的;极讨厌的
参考例句:
  • I'm not going to the horrid dinner party.我不打算去参加这次讨厌的宴会。
  • The medicine is horrid and she couldn't get it down.这种药很难吃,她咽不下去。
88 revoked 80b785d265b6419ab99251d8f4340a1d     
adj.[法]取消的v.撤销,取消,废除( revoke的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • It may be revoked if the check is later dishonoured. 以后如支票被拒绝支付,结算可以撤销。 来自辞典例句
  • A will is revoked expressly. 遗嘱可以通过明示推翻。 来自辞典例句
89 testament yyEzf     
n.遗嘱;证明
参考例句:
  • This is his last will and testament.这是他的遗愿和遗嘱。
  • It is a testament to the power of political mythology.这说明,编造政治神话可以产生多大的威力。
90 absurdities df766e7f956019fcf6a19cc2525cadfb     
n.极端无理性( absurdity的名词复数 );荒谬;谬论;荒谬的行为
参考例句:
  • She has a sharp eye for social absurdities, and compassion for the victims of social change. 她独具慧眼,能够看到社会上荒唐的事情,对于社会变革的受害者寄以同情。 来自辞典例句
  • The absurdities he uttered at the dinner party landed his wife in an awkward situation. 他在宴会上讲的荒唐话使他太太陷入窘境。 来自辞典例句
91 meditatively 1840c96c2541871bf074763dc24f786a     
adv.冥想地
参考例句:
  • The old man looked meditatively at the darts board. 老头儿沉思不语,看着那投镖板。 来自英汉文学
  • "Well,'said the foreman, scratching his ear meditatively, "we do need a stitcher. “这--"工头沉思地搔了搔耳朵。 "我们确实需要一个缝纫工。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
92 expenditure XPbzM     
n.(时间、劳力、金钱等)支出;使用,消耗
参考例句:
  • The entry of all expenditure is necessary.有必要把一切开支入账。
  • The monthly expenditure of our family is four hundred dollars altogether.我们一家的开销每月共计四百元。
93 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。
94 implicated 8443a53107b44913ed0a3f12cadfa423     
adj.密切关联的;牵涉其中的
参考例句:
  • These groups are very strongly implicated in the violence. 这些组织与这起暴力事件有着极大的关联。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • Having the stolen goods in his possession implicated him in the robbery. 因藏有赃物使他涉有偷盗的嫌疑。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
95 dynamite rrPxB     
n./vt.(用)炸药(爆破)
参考例句:
  • The workmen detonated the dynamite.工人们把炸药引爆了。
  • The philosopher was still political dynamite.那位哲学家仍旧是政治上的爆炸性人物。
96 slaughter 8Tpz1     
n.屠杀,屠宰;vt.屠杀,宰杀
参考例句:
  • I couldn't stand to watch them slaughter the cattle.我不忍看他们宰牛。
  • Wholesale slaughter was carried out in the name of progress.大规模的屠杀在维护进步的名义下进行。
97 loathed dbdbbc9cf5c853a4f358a2cd10c12ff2     
v.憎恨,厌恶( loathe的过去式和过去分词 );极不喜欢
参考例句:
  • Baker loathed going to this red-haired young pup for supplies. 面包师傅不喜欢去这个红头发的自负的傻小子那里拿原料。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • Therefore, above all things else, he loathed his miserable self! 因此,他厌恶不幸的自我尤胜其它! 来自英汉文学 - 红字
98 reprieve kBtzb     
n.暂缓执行(死刑);v.缓期执行;给…带来缓解
参考例句:
  • He was saved from the gallows by a lastminute reprieve.最后一刻的缓刑令把他从绞架上解救了下来。
  • The railway line, due for closure, has been granted a six-month reprieve.本应停运的铁路线获准多运行6 个月。
99 pickle mSszf     
n.腌汁,泡菜;v.腌,泡
参考例句:
  • Mother used to pickle onions.妈妈过去常腌制洋葱。
  • Meat can be preserved in pickle.肉可以保存在卤水里。
100 kindly tpUzhQ     
adj.和蔼的,温和的,爽快的;adv.温和地,亲切地
参考例句:
  • Her neighbours spoke of her as kindly and hospitable.她的邻居都说她和蔼可亲、热情好客。
  • A shadow passed over the kindly face of the old woman.一道阴影掠过老太太慈祥的面孔。
101 radical hA8zu     
n.激进份子,原子团,根号;adj.根本的,激进的,彻底的
参考例句:
  • The patient got a radical cure in the hospital.病人在医院得到了根治。
  • She is radical in her demands.她的要求十分偏激。
102 positively vPTxw     
adv.明确地,断然,坚决地;实在,确实
参考例句:
  • She was positively glowing with happiness.她满脸幸福。
  • The weather was positively poisonous.这天气着实讨厌。
103 distressing cuTz30     
a.使人痛苦的
参考例句:
  • All who saw the distressing scene revolted against it. 所有看到这种悲惨景象的人都对此感到难过。
  • It is distressing to see food being wasted like this. 这样浪费粮食令人痛心。
104 socialist jwcws     
n.社会主义者;adj.社会主义的
参考例句:
  • China is a socialist country,and a developing country as well.中国是一个社会主义国家,也是一个发展中国家。
  • His father was an ardent socialist.他父亲是一个热情的社会主义者。
105 Christians 28e6e30f94480962cc721493f76ca6c6     
n.基督教徒( Christian的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • Christians of all denominations attended the conference. 基督教所有教派的人都出席了这次会议。
  • His novel about Jesus caused a furore among Christians. 他关于耶稣的小说激起了基督教徒的公愤。


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