Because the human nervous system can stand only a certain amount of abuse battalions2 can be kept in the line only a certain length of time, which depends upon the activity upon that front, upon the exposure of the lines to the enemy, and so the extra nervous strain, or sometimes upon the urgency of advance or retreat. A relief may be very welcome, or very unwelcome, depending upon the same things, but also to a certain extent upon the quality of the dugouts in the lines, and the kind of accommodation outside. For, strange to say, the dugouts in the lines may be preferable, even with their added danger, because, on arriving at your rest station, your battalion may find, instead of the good billets they hoped for, a few forlorn-looking one-inch board huts, with only one-half the required accommodation, the temperature below freezing, and no stoves; or you may find only tents; or you may find virgin3 forest in which you are to build your own camp, while the rain comes down with monotonous4 persistence5.
It is midnight in the late winter, and the adjutant, Major P——, and I are just leaving H.Q. dugout on our way to reserve billets. The trenches6 are very dark, the light from the stars overhead not reaching to their depths. We throw down a glare from a flashlight, and a Tommy's voice angrily cries:
"'Ave a 'eart there, myte; d'ye think ye're the only man in the army? Douse8 the glim." So we douse it, and decide that the best way to keep peace in the army is to pick our way along. Gradually our eyes become accustomed to the dark, and instinctively9 our feet keep on the trench7 mats as we twist and turn along the trenches. An occasional flare10 or star shell from the front lines aids us for a moment, but plunges11 us into deeper darkness afterwards. Our feet slip on the semi-frozen mud of the mats, over our heads in both directions shells sing at intervals12, and we hear the pounding of the guns and bursting shells before and behind us. In the quieter moments we can hear a quarter of a mile away the rattle13 of transport wagons14 on the hard road as they bring their nightly loads of ammunition15 and food to the dump where we are going and where we expect to find our horses.
We arrive at the dump, and here one might think he was in the midst of a large city market just before the dawn. Limbers, general service wagons, pack mules16 and men make a jumble17 of hurrying, scurrying18 workers. No lights dare be shown for fear of drawing the shells of the Germans, who have the range of this dump and have been shelling it during the day. Someone tells us our horses are just around a bend in the road, and we make our way there, and find the grooms19 holding the animals, which have become cold and restive20 with waiting.
Mounting, we start on a five mile ride along a hard stone road, dodging21 and picking our way among transport wagons and foot soldiers all along it. The road is bordered with trees which look like phantoms22 in the sighing night breeze. The stars are twinkling brightly and peacefully; to our left the big guns flash and roar and their shells sing overhead, and on the other side flares23 are being thrown up by the battalions in the line. The north star is well up to our right, so we are riding due west.
We approach a corner where we turn a little northward24. Flashing from the window of a small house on the corner is a light that should not be there. The adjutant who is a strict disciplinarian draws up his horse opposite the sentry25 and proceeds to "strafe" him for negligence26. (How many new words during the next few years will be the result of the war!) We take the road to the right and a couple of miles in advance we see the dim shadows of those ancient and architecturally beautiful towers on the hill of Mont St. Eloy. The Huns have for some days been trying to complete their ruin, recently destroying a corner.
At 2 a.m. we arrive at wooden huts just behind the towers. Our Colonel, who had preceded us, with that fine thoughtfulness that characterized him, had arranged that a battalion in some adjoining huts supply us with tea and toast—a banquet after our cold night ride. By 3 a.m. we are sleeping fast on the floor in our Wolseley kits27, as we are to rise at 6 a.m., for by 7 a.m. the battalion is to be on the march to a wood four miles back. As the camp we are in was shelled yesterday by the Germans, causing thirty casualties, we had better get out of range while we can.
At the appointed hour we are all up, our kits are rolled and piled on a transport by our batmen, and a hurried breakfast of bacon, bread and tea partaken of. I see a few sick and send a couple to the field ambulance, the battalion marches away, the camp is inspected to see that all is spick and span,—for each battalion must always leave a clean camp behind it—and we are on the road to map location W 17 c 4 9, the only description we have of our new home.
As we start we pass the bodies of five dead mules, victims of yesterday's shelling. The roads are crowded with soldiers, horses, and motor transports of all sorts. It is a bright cool day—Sunday by the way—and a picturesque28 scene meets the eye. In addition to the busy, hurrying roadway traffic, the fields show life of varying forms and pictures of interest to a seeing eye. On one side in a field stands a battalion forming three sides of a square. The fourth side is filled by the regimental band playing, "Lead, Kindly29 Light," the padre standing30 beside them. It is an open air church service. As far as the eye can see are military huts, tents, drilling soldiers, and piles of ammunition, but in the distance, overtopping all, is the spire31 of a church, dumbly supplicating32 us to send our thoughts upward to the Prince of Peace, as everything on earth seems to tell us to give our minds to the Gods of War. And sailing high above the church steeple are two military aeroplanes, like guardian33 angels ready to protect their loved ones. Beyond them in the dim distance hangs the lazy, sausage-shaped form of an observation balloon. Above the earth, on the earth, and under the earth, one sees war, war, war!
Here and there one passes white limestone34 farmhouses35 of France with red tiled roofs, the buildings forming a square about the court. The latter is filled to overflowing36 with its ever-present pile of manure37, at one side of which always stands the well, raised, it is true, a little above the manure dump, but built of brick and mortar38 through which in many cases permeate39 the fluids from this cesspool in the center. A medical friend of mine once told me that the peasant farmer objects to chloride of lime being put on the manure, as it gives a disagreeable taste to the water!
Then as far as the eye can see the fields that are not employed for military purposes are tilled and cultivated. How it is done is something very difficult to understand, for one never sees anybody working in them except an aged40 man and woman, or a young child. Those in the prime of youthful manhood are all fighting for their adored country, la belle41 France. On the corner of one of these cultivated areas stands one of those small, stone shrines42 so common in France. This one was erected43, so it said in carved letters, in 1816, "to the honor of his beloved child, Eugenie de Lattre, by her father."
The date unconsciously carries one back to the great Napoleon. If he could rise from his magnificent tomb in the Invalides and look about him in the midst of a war which dwarfs44 his famous battles into insignificance45, what would his thoughts be? No longer would he see his famous guard on prancing46 steeds and with flowing plumes47 charging bristling48 British squares, as they did in his last great fight at Waterloo. He would find them in somber49, semi-invisible garb50, standing shoulder to shoulder with their one-time hated enemies, the latter clad in plain khaki, both facing the same foe51, the Prussian, whom he had once humbled52 by marching into Berlin, but who had later helped the British defeat him at Waterloo. And many he would see groveling in the earth in trenches, dugouts, and tunnels, like so many earthworms. Some few he would discover who, with the French love of the spectacular, are sailing thousands of feet in the air, or leagues under the surface of the sea.
We pass through a village, Camblain L'Abbé, where we go into the town major's to inquire about water supplies for our men. The town major, a Canadian of fifty, reminds one of us of an old friend of the same name in Chicago, one of the many Canadians who has made good—very good—in the United States. It is a brother!
So, it is being continually shown that this war has made the world an even smaller place than it was before. Our information obtained, we move on to our new camp, a virgin forest one-half mile above Camblain L'Abbé, where there is no sign of tent, hut, or dwelling53 of any kind. But the men are already lolling happily on the bare ground, ignoring the pounding of our guns a few miles north and inhaling54 with anticipatory55 pleasure the fragrant56 odors of stew57, steaming in the Battalion field cookers just below the brow of the hill.
The busy work of turning an open forest into a camp to be occupied by one thousand men for a week or more is already in progress. The tents have not arrived, but brigade has promised to get them along shortly. Plans are being made as to where each company is to be, where orderly room will be most convenient, what is the best position for the H.Q. and the other officers, where the cook houses, cookers, water carts, latrines, refuse dumps, canteen, batmen's quarters, medical inspection58 tent, shoemaker, tailor, transport department, and the hundred and one other departments and sections are to be located.
You see, it is not as easy as it sounds to take a thousand men and encamp them in a proper manner. Gradually the chaos59 is subdued60, and as tents and half-built huts come they are quickly placed in their proper positions. While it is all in progress one is likely to stumble over the Colonel who has stolen half an hour from his busy work to sit on the ground and eat some bully61 beef, biscuits and chocolate, and who insists on everyone else doing the same; or to bump into the corpulent form of the R.S.M.—regimental sergeant62 major—who is everywhere, directing everything, in the way that only a R.S.M. can do, though his crossest word is usually grumbled63 through a smiling ruddy face, for his heart is proportionate to his large size.
The day advances, night is coming on, and the tents have arrived only in sufficient numbers to cover one-third of the officers and men. Fortunately the sun still shines, though the March air is getting colder. A sleep in the open air promises to require extra blankets which do not exist in the camp. However, everyone smiles, and there is at least a gradually, though slowly, increasing amount of cover for the men of the battalion. Some of the men, wiser perhaps through previous like predicaments, are choosing the sheltered side of a small hill, and are digging shelters for themselves over which they are putting coverings of boughs64. As it turns out they are wise, for in the end only sufficient coverings come for two-thirds of the battalion, and consequently, a few officers and quite a few men sleep in the open with only a blanket and their overcoats for covering. And Nature, the deceitful jade65, who had smiled kindly upon us all day and promised us a dry, though cold, night, about midnight and for two days succeeding poured torrents66 of rain down upon us.
The sick parade grew larger and the ground became lakes of mud. The cook-houses—so-called—which were only fires built in hollows, had their fires so drowned that we all ate primitive67 diet as well as lived most closely to nature. Everyone, as usual, had his consolation68 in laughing at the discomforts69 of the others, till order came out of chaos in the days that followed.
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1
battalion
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| n.营；部队；大队(的人) | |
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battalions
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| n.（陆军的）一营（大约有一千兵士）( battalion的名词复数 )；协同作战的部队；军队；（组织在一起工作的）队伍 | |
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virgin
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| n.处女，未婚女子；adj.未经使用的；未经开发的 | |
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monotonous
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| adj.单调的，一成不变的，使人厌倦的 | |
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persistence
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| n.坚持，持续，存留 | |
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trenches
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| 深沟，地沟( trench的名词复数 )； 战壕 | |
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trench
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| n./v.(挖)沟，(挖)战壕 | |
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8
douse
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| v.把…浸入水中，用水泼；n.泼洒 | |
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instinctively
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| adv.本能地 | |
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flare
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| v.闪耀，闪烁；n.潮红；突发 | |
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plunges
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| n.跳进，投入vt.使投入，使插入，使陷入vi.投入，跳进，陷入v.颠簸( plunge的第三人称单数 )；暴跌；骤降；突降 | |
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intervals
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| n.[军事]间隔( interval的名词复数 )；间隔时间；[数学]区间；（戏剧、电影或音乐会的）幕间休息 | |
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rattle
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| v.飞奔，碰响；激怒；n.碰撞声；拨浪鼓 | |
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14
wagons
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| n.四轮的运货马车( wagon的名词复数 )；铁路货车；小手推车 | |
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ammunition
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| n.军火，弹药 | |
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mules
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| 骡( mule的名词复数 )； 拖鞋； 顽固的人； 越境运毒者 | |
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jumble
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| vt.使混乱，混杂；n.混乱；杂乱的一堆 | |
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scurrying
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| v.急匆匆地走( scurry的现在分词 ) | |
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grooms
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| n.新郎( groom的名词复数 )；马夫v.照料或梳洗（马等）( groom的第三人称单数 )；使做好准备；训练；（给动物）擦洗 | |
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restive
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| adj.不安宁的，不安静的 | |
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dodging
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| n.避开，闪过，音调改变v.闪躲( dodge的现在分词 )；回避 | |
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phantoms
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| n.鬼怪，幽灵( phantom的名词复数 ) | |
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flares
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| n.喇叭裤v.（使）闪耀( flare的第三人称单数 )；（使）（船舷）外倾；（使）鼻孔张大；（使）（衣裙、酒杯等）呈喇叭形展开 | |
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northward
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| adv.向北；n.北方的地区 | |
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sentry
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| n.哨兵，警卫 | |
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negligence
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| n.疏忽，玩忽，粗心大意 | |
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kits
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| 衣物和装备( kit的名词复数 )； 成套用品； 配套元件 | |
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picturesque
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| adj.美丽如画的，（语言）生动的，绘声绘色的 | |
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kindly
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| adj.和蔼的，温和的，爽快的；adv.温和地，亲切地 | |
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standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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spire
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| n.(教堂)尖顶，尖塔，高点 | |
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32
supplicating
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| v.祈求，哀求，恳求( supplicate的现在分词 ) | |
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guardian
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| n.监护人；守卫者，保护者 | |
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limestone
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| n.石灰石 | |
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farmhouses
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| n.农舍，农场的主要住房( farmhouse的名词复数 ) | |
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36
overflowing
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| n. 溢出物,溢流 adj. 充沛的，充满的 动词overflow的现在分词形式 | |
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37
manure
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| n.粪，肥，肥粒；vt.施肥 | |
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38
mortar
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| n.灰浆，灰泥；迫击炮；v.把…用灰浆涂接合 | |
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39
permeate
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| v.弥漫，遍布，散布；渗入，渗透 | |
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aged
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| adj.年老的，陈年的 | |
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41
belle
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| n.靓女 | |
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42
shrines
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| 圣地，圣坛，神圣场所( shrine的名词复数 ) | |
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43
ERECTED
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| adj. 直立的，竖立的，笔直的 vt. 使 ... 直立，建立 | |
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44
dwarfs
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| n.侏儒，矮子（dwarf的复数形式）vt.（使）显得矮小（dwarf的第三人称单数形式） | |
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45
insignificance
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| n.不重要；无价值；无意义 | |
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46
prancing
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| v.（马）腾跃( prance的现在分词 ) | |
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47
plumes
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| 羽毛( plume的名词复数 )； 羽毛饰； 羽毛状物； 升上空中的羽状物 | |
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48
bristling
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| a.竖立的 | |
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49
somber
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| adj.昏暗的，阴天的，阴森的，忧郁的 | |
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50
garb
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| n.服装，装束 | |
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51
foe
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| n.敌人，仇敌 | |
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52
humbled
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| adj. 卑下的，谦逊的，粗陋的 vt. 使 ... 卑下，贬低 | |
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53
dwelling
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| n.住宅，住所，寓所 | |
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54
inhaling
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| v.吸入( inhale的现在分词 ) | |
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anticipatory
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| adj.预想的，预期的 | |
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fragrant
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| adj.芬香的，馥郁的，愉快的 | |
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57
stew
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| n.炖汤，焖，烦恼；v.炖汤，焖，忧虑 | |
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inspection
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| n.检查，审查，检阅 | |
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chaos
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| n.混乱，无秩序 | |
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subdued
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| adj. 屈服的，柔和的，减弱的 动词subdue的过去式和过去分词 | |
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bully
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| n.恃强欺弱者，小流氓；vt.威胁，欺侮 | |
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sergeant
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| n.警官，中士 | |
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63
grumbled
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| 抱怨( grumble的过去式和过去分词 )； 发牢骚； 咕哝； 发哼声 | |
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64
boughs
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| 大树枝( bough的名词复数 ) | |
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jade
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| n.玉石；碧玉；翡翠 | |
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66
torrents
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| n.倾注；奔流( torrent的名词复数 )；急流；爆发；连续不断 | |
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67
primitive
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| adj.原始的；简单的；n.原(始)人，原始事物 | |
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consolation
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| n.安慰，慰问 | |
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discomforts
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| n.不舒适( discomfort的名词复数 )；不愉快，苦恼 | |
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