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IV. — HIS MOTHER'S SON
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“Full?” repeated Emma McChesney (and if it weren't for the compositor there'd be an exclamation1 point after that question mark).

“Sorry, Mrs. McChesney,” said the clerk, and he actually looked it, “but there's absolutely nothing stirring. We're full up. The Benevolent2 Brotherhood3 of Bisons is holding its regular annual state convention here. We're putting up cots in the hall.”

Emma McChesney's keen blue eyes glanced up from their inspection4 of the little bunch of mail which had just been handed her. “Well, pick out a hall with a southern exposure and set up a cot or so for me,” she said, agreeably; “because I've come to stay. After selling Featherloom Petticoats on the road for ten years I don't see myself trailing up and down this town looking for a place to lay my head. I've learned this one large, immovable truth, and that is, that a hotel clerk is a hotel clerk. It makes no difference whether he is stuck back of a marble pillar and hidden by a gold vase full of thirty-six-inch American Beauty roses at the Knickerbocker, or setting the late fall fashions for men in Galesburg, Illinois.”

By one small degree was the perfect poise5 of the peerless personage behind the register jarred. But by only one. He was a hotel night clerk.

“It won't do you any good to get sore, Mrs. McChesney,” he began, suavely6. “Now a man would—”

“But I'm not a man,” interrupted Emma McChesney. “I'm only doing a man's work and earning a man's salary and demanding to be treated with as much consideration as you'd show a man.”

The personage busied himself mightily7 with a pen, and a blotter, and sundry8 papers, as is the manner of personages when annoyed. “I'd like to accommodate you; I'd like to do it.”

“Cheer up,” said Emma McChesney, “you're going to. I don't mind a little discomfort9. Though I want to mention in passing that if there are any lady Bisons present you needn't bank on doubling me up with them. I've had one experience of that kind. It was in Albia, Iowa. I'd sleep in the kitchen range before I'd go through another.”

Up went the erstwhile falling poise. “You're badly mistaken, madam. I'm a member of this order myself, and a finer lot of fellows it has never been my pleasure to know.”

“Yes, I know,” drawled Emma McChesney. “Do you know, the thing that gets me is the inconsistency of it. Along come a lot of boobs who never use a hotel the year around except to loaf in the lobby, and wear out the leather chairs, and use up the matches and toothpicks and get the baseball returns, and immediately you turn away a traveling man who uses a three-dollar-a-day room, with a sample room downstairs for his stuff, who tips every porter and bell-boy in the place, asks for no favors, and who, if you give him a half-way decent cup of coffee for breakfast, will fall in love with the place and boom it all over the country. Half of your Benevolent Bisons are here on the European plan, with a view to patronizing the free-lunch counters or being asked to take dinner at the home of some local Bison whose wife has been cooking up on pies, and chicken salad and veal10 roast for the last week.”

{Illustration: “'Son!' echoed the clerk, staring"}

Emma McChesney leaned over the desk a little, and lowered her voice to the tone of confidence. “Now, I'm not in the habit of making a nuisance of myself like this. I don't get so chatty as a rule, and I know that I could jump over to Monmouth and get first-class accommodations there. But just this once I've a good reason for wanting to make you and myself a little miserable11. Y'see, my son is traveling with me this trip.”

“Son!” echoed the clerk, staring.

“Thanks. That's what they all do. After a while I'll begin to believe that there must be something hauntingly beautiful and girlish about me or every one wouldn't petrify12 when I announce that I've a six-foot son attached to my apron-strings. He looks twenty-one, but he's seventeen. He thinks the world's rotten because he can't grow one of those fuzzy little mustaches that the men are cultivating to match their hats. He's down at the depot13 now, straightening out our baggage. Now I want to say this before he gets here. He's been out with me just four days. Those four days have been a revelation, an eye-opener, and a series of rude jolts14. He used to think that his mother's job consisted of traveling in Pullmans, eating delicate viands15 turned out by the hotel chefs, and strewing16 Featherloom Petticoats along the path. I gave him plenty of money, and he got into the habit of looking lightly upon anything more trifling17 than a five-dollar bill. He's changing his mind by great leaps. I'm prepared to spend the night in the coal cellar if you'll just fix him up—not too comfortably. It'll be a great lesson for him. There he is now. Just coming in. Fuzzy coat and hat and English stick. Hist! As they say on the stage.”

The boy crossed the crowded lobby. There was a little worried, annoyed frown between his eyes. He laid a protecting hand on his mother's arm. Emma McChesney was conscious of a little thrill of pride as she realized that he did not have to look up to meet her gaze.

“Look here, Mother, they tell me there's some sort of a convention here, and the town's packed. That's what all those banners and things were for. I hope they've got something decent for us here. I came up with a man who said he didn't think there was a hole left to sleep in.”

“You don't say!” exclaimed Emma McChesney, and turned to the clerk. “This is my son, Jock McChesney—Mr. Sims. Is this true?”

“Glad to know you, sir,” said Mr. Sims. “Why, yes, I'm afraid we are pretty well filled up, but seeing it's you maybe we can do something for you.”

He ruminated18, tapping his teeth with a pen-holder, and eying the pair before him with a maddening blankness of gaze. Finally:

“I'll do my best, but you can't expect much. I guess I can squeeze another cot into eighty-seven for the young man. There's—let's see now—who's in eighty-seven? Well, there's two Bisons in the double bed, and one in the single, and Fat Ed Meyers in the cot and—”

Emma McChesney stiffened19 into acute attention. “Meyers?” she interrupted. “Do you mean Ed Meyers of the Strauss Sans-silk Skirt Company?”

“That's so. You two are in the same line, aren't you? He's a great little piano player, Ed is. Ever hear him play?”

“When did he get in?”

“Oh, he just came in fifteen minutes ago on the Ashland division. He's in at supper.”

“Oh,” said Emma McChesney. The two letters breathed relief.

But relief had no place in the voice, or on the countenance20 of Jock McChesney. He bristled21 with belligerence22. “This cattle-car style of sleeping don't make a hit. I haven't had a decent night's rest for three nights. I never could sleep on a sleeper23. Can't you fix us up better than that?”

“Best I can do.”

“But where's mother going? I see you advertise three 'large and commodious24 steam-heated sample rooms in connection.' I suppose mother's due to sleep on one of the tables there.”

“Jock,” Emma McChesney reproved him, “Mr. Sims is doing us a great favor. There isn't another hotel in town that would—”

“You're right, there isn't,” agreed Mr. Sims. “I guess the young man is new to this traveling game. As I said, I'd like to accommodate you, but—Let's see now. Tell you what I'll do. If I can get the housekeeper25 to go over and sleep in the maids' quarters just for to-night, you can use her room. There you are! Of course, it's over the kitchen, and there may be some little noise early in the morning—”

Emma McChesney raised a protesting hand. “Don't mention it. Just lead me thither26. I'm so tired I could sleep in an excursion special that was switching at Pittsburgh. Jock, me child, we're in luck. That's twice in the same place. The first time was when we were inspired to eat our supper on the diner instead of waiting until we reached here to take the leftovers27 from the Bisons' grazing. I hope that housekeeper hasn't a picture of her departed husband dangling28, life-size, on the wall at the foot of the bed. But they always have. Good-night, son. Don't let the Bisons bite you. I'll be up at seven.”

But it was just 6:30 A.M. when Emma McChesney turned the little bend in the stairway that led to the office. The scrub-woman was still in possession. The cigar-counter girl had not yet made her appearance. There was about the place a general air of the night before. All but the night clerk. He was as spruce and trim, and alert and smooth-shaven as only a night clerk can be after a night's vigil.

“'Morning!” Emma McChesney called to him. She wore blue serge, and a smart fall hat. The late autumn morning was not crisper and sunnier than she.

“Good-morning, Mrs. McChesney,” returned Mr. Sims, sonorously29. “Have a good night's sleep? I hope the kitchen noises didn't wake you.”

Emma McChesney paused with her hand on the door. “Kitchen? Oh, no. I could sleep through a vaudeville30 china-juggling act. But—-what an extraordinarily31 unpleasant-looking man that housekeeper's husband must have been.”

That November morning boasted all those qualities which November-morning writers are so prone32 to bestow33 upon the month. But the words wine, and sparkle, and sting, and glow, and snap do not seem to cover it. Emma McChesney stood on the bottom step, looking up and down Main Street and breathing in great draughts34 of that unadjectivable air. Her complexion35 stood the test of the merciless, astringent36 morning and came up triumphantly37 and healthily firm and pink and smooth. The town was still asleep. She started to walk briskly down the bare and ugly Main Street of the little town. In her big, generous heart, and her keen, alert mind, there were many sensations and myriad38 thoughts, but varied39 and diverse as they were they all led back to the boy up there in the stuffy40, over-crowded hotel room—the boy who was learning his lesson.

Half an hour later she reentered the hotel, her cheeks glowing. Jock was not yet down. So she ordered and ate her wise and cautious breakfast of fruit and cereal and toast and coffee, skimming over her morning paper as she ate. At 7:30 she was back in the lobby, newspaper in hand. The Bisons were already astir. She seated herself in a deep chair in a quiet corner, her eyes glancing up over the top of her paper toward the stairway. At eight o'clock Jock McChesney came down.

There was nothing of jauntiness41 about him. His eyelids42 were red. His face had the doughy43 look of one whose sleep has been brief and feverish44. As he came toward his mother you noticed a stain on his coat, and a sunburst of wrinkles across one leg of his modish45 brown trousers.

“Good-morning, son!” said Emma McChesney. “Was it as bad as that?”

Jock McChesney's long fingers curled into a fist.

“Say,” he began, his tone venomous, “do you know what those—those—those—”

“Say it!” commanded Emma McChesney. “I'm only your mother. If you keep that in your system your breakfast will curdle46 in your stomach.”

Jock McChesney said it. I know no phrase better fitted to describe his tone than that old favorite of the erotic novelties. It was vibrant47 with passion. It breathed bitterness. It sizzled with savagery48. It—Oh, alliteration49 is useless.

“Well,” said Emma McChesney, encouragingly, “go on.”

{Illustration: “'Well!' gulped50 Jock, 'those two double-bedded, bloomin' blasted Bisons—'"}

“Well!” gulped Jock McChesney, and glared; “those two double-bedded, bloomin', blasted Bisons came in at twelve, and the single one about fifteen minutes later. They didn't surprise me. There was a herd51 of about ninety-three of 'em in the hall, all saying good-night to each other, and planning where they'd meet in the morning, and the time, and place and probable weather conditions. For that matter, there were droves of 'em pounding up and down the halls all night. I never saw such restless cattle. If you'll tell me what makes more noise in the middle of the night than the metal disk of a hotel key banging and clanging up against a door, I'd like to know what it is. My three Bisons were all dolled up with fool ribbons and badges and striped paper canes52. When they switched on the light I gave a crack imitation of a tired working man trying to get a little sleep. I breathed regularly and heavily, with an occasional moaning snore. But if those two hippopotamus53 Bisons had been alone on their native plains they couldn't have cared less. They bellowed54, and pawed the earth, and threw their shoes around, and yawned, and stretched and discussed their plans for the next day, and reviewed all their doings of that day. Then one of them said something about turning in, and I was so happy I forgot to snore. Just then another key clanged at the door, in walked a fat man in a brown suit and a brown derby, and stuff was off.”

“That,” said Emma McChesney, “would be Ed Meyers, of the Strauss Sans-silk Skirt Company.”

“None other than our hero.” Jock's tone had an added acidity55. “It took those four about two minutes to get acquainted. In three minutes they had told their real names, and it turned out that Meyers belonged to an organization that was a second cousin of the Bisons. In five minutes they had got together a deck and a pile of chips and were shirt-sleeving it around a game of pinochle. I would doze56 off to the slap of cards, and the click of chips, and wake up when the bell-boy came in with another round, which he did every six minutes. When I got up this morning I found that Fat Ed Meyers had been sitting on the chair over which I trustingly had draped my trousers. This sunburst of wrinkles is where he mostly sat. This spot on my coat is where a Bison drank his beer.”

Emma McChesney folded her paper and rose, smiling. “It is sort of trying, I suppose, if you're not used to it.”

“Used to it!” shouted the outraged57 Jock. “Used to it! Do you mean to tell me there's nothing unusual about—”

“Not a thing. Oh, of course you don't strike a bunch of Bisons every day. But it happens a good many times. The world is full of Ancient Orders and they're everlastingly58 getting together and drawing up resolutions and electing officers. Don't you think you'd better go in to breakfast before the Bisons begin to forage59? I've had mine.”

The gloom which had overspread Jock McChesney's face lifted a little. The hungry boy in him was uppermost. “That's so. I'm going to have some wheat cakes, and steak, and eggs, and coffee, and fruit, and toast, and rolls.”

“Why slight the fish?” inquired his mother. Then, as he turned toward the dining-room, “I've two letters to get out. Then I'm going down the street to see a customer. I'll be up at the Sulzberg-Stein department store at nine sharp. There's no use trying to see old Sulzberg before ten, but I'll be there, anyway, and so will Ed Meyers, or I'm no skirt salesman. I want you to meet me there. It will do you good to watch how the overripe orders just drop, ker-plunk, into my lap.”

Maybe you know Sulzberg & Stein's big store? No? That's because you've always lived in the city. Old Sulzberg sends his buyers to the New York market twice a year, and they need two floor managers on the main floor now. The money those people spend for red and green decorations at Christmas time, and apple-blossoms and pink crepe paper shades in the spring, must be something awful. Young Stein goes to Chicago to have his clothes made, and old Sulzberg likes to keep the traveling men waiting in the little ante-room outside his private office.

Jock McChesney finished his huge breakfast, strolled over to Sulzberg & Stein's, and inquired his way to the office only to find that his mother was not yet there. There were three men in the little waiting-room. One of them was Fat Ed Meyers. His huge bulk overflowed60 the spindle-legged chair on which he sat. His brown derby was in his hands. His eyes were on the closed door at the other side of the room. So were the eyes of the other two travelers. Jock took a vacant seat next to Fat Ed Meyers so that he might, in his mind's eye, pick out a particularly choice spot upon which his hard young fist might land—if only he had the chance. Breaking up a man's sleep like that, the great big overgrown mutt!

“What's your line?” said Ed Meyers, suddenly turning toward Jock.

Prompted by some imp—“Skirts,” answered Jock. “Ladies' petticoats.” (“As if men ever wore 'em!” he giggled61 inwardly.)

Ed Meyers shifted around in his chair so that he might better stare at this new foe62 in the field. His little red mouth was open ludicrously.

“Who're you out for?” he demanded next.

There was a look of Emma McChesney on Jock's face. “Why—er—the union Underskirt and Hosiery Company of Chicago. New concern.”

“Must be,” ruminated Ed Meyers. “I never heard of 'em, and I know 'em all. You're starting in young, ain't you, kid! Well, it'll never hurt you. You'll learn something new every day. Now me, I—”

In breezed Emma McChesney. Her quick glance rested immediately upon Meyers and the boy. And in that moment some instinct prompted Jock McChesney to shake his head, ever so slightly, and assume a blankness of expression. And Emma McChesney, with that shrewdness which had made her one of the best salesmen on the road, saw, and miraculously63 understood.

“How do, Mrs. McChesney,” grinned Fat Ed Meyers. “You see I beat you to it.”

“So I see,” smiled Emma, cheerfully. “I was delayed. Just sold a nice little bill to Watkins down the Street.” She seated herself across the way, and kept her eyes on that closed door.

“Say, kid,” Meyers began, in the husky whisper of the fat man, “I'm going to put you wise to something, seeing you're new to this game. See that lady over there?” He nodded discreetly64 in Emma McChesney's direction.

“Pretty, isn't she?” said Jock, appreciatively.

“Know who she is?”

“Well—I—she does look familiar but—”

“Oh, come now, quit your bluffing65. If you'd ever met that dame66 you'd remember it. Her name's McChesney—Emma McChesney, and she sells T. A. Buck's Featherloom Petticoats. I'll give her her dues; she's the best little salesman on the road. I'll bet that girl could sell a ruffled67, accordion-plaited underskirt to a fat woman who was trying to reduce. She's got the darndest way with her. And at that she's straight, too.”

If Ed Meyers had not been gazing so intently into his hat, trying at the same time to look cherubically benign68 he might have seen a quick and painful scarlet69 sweep the face of the boy, coupled with a certain tense look of the muscles around the jaw70.

“Well, now, look here,” he went on, still in a whisper. “We're both skirt men, you and me. Everything's fair in this game. Maybe you don't know it, but when there's a bunch of the boys waiting around to see the head of the store like this, and there happens to be a lady traveler in the crowd, why, it's considered kind of a professional courtesy to let the lady have the first look-in. See? It ain't so often that three people in the same line get together like this. She knows it, and she's sitting on the edge of her chair, waiting to bolt when that door opens, even if she does act like she was hanging on the words of that lady clerk there. The minute it does open a crack she'll jump up and give me a fleeting71, grateful smile, and sail in and cop a fat order away from the old man and his skirt buyer. I'm wise. Say, he may be an oyster72, but he knows a pretty woman when he sees one. By the time she's through with him he'll have enough petticoats on hand to last him from now until Turkey goes suffrage73. Get me?”

“I get you,” answered Jock.

“I say, this is business, and good manners be hanged. When a woman breaks into a man's game like this, let her take her chances like a man. Ain't that straight?”

“You've said something,” agreed Jock.

“Now, look here, kid. When that door opens I get up. See? And shoot straight for the old man's office. See? Like a duck. See? Say, I may be fat, kid, but I'm what they call light on my feet, and when I see an order getting away from me I can be so fleet that I have Diana looking like old Weston doing a stretch of muddy country road in a coast to coast hike. See? Now you help me out on this and I'll see that you don't suffer for it. I'll stick in a good word for you, believe me. You take the word of an old stager like me and you won't go far—”

The door opened. Simultaneously74 three figures sprang into action. Jock had the seat nearest the door. With marvelous clumsiness he managed to place himself in Ed Meyers' path, then reddened, began an apology, stepped on both of Ed's feet, jabbed his elbow into his stomach, and dropped his hat. A second later the door of old Sulzberg's private office closed upon Emma McChesney's smart, erect75, confident figure.

Now, Ed Meyers' hands were peculiar76 hands for a fat man. They were tapering77, slender, delicate, blue-veined, temperamental hands. At this moment, despite his purpling face, and his staring eyes, they were the most noticeable thing about him. His fingers clawed the empty air, quivering, vibrant, as though poised78 to clutch at Jock's throat.

Then words came. They spluttered from his lips. They popped like corn kernels79 in the heat of his wrath80; they tripped over each other; they exploded.

“You darned kid, you!” he began, with fascinating fluency81. “You thousand-legged, double-jointed, ox-footed truck horse. Come on out of here and I'll lick the shine off your shoes, you blue-eyed babe, you! What did you get up for, huh? What did you think this was going to be—a flag drill?”

With a whoop82 of pure joy Jock McChesney turned and fled.

They dined together at one o'clock, Emma McChesney and her son Jock. Suddenly Jock stopped eating. His eyes were on the door. “There's that fathead now,” he said, excitedly. “The nerve of him! He's coming over here.”

Ed Meyers was waddling83 toward them with the quick light step of the fat man. His pink, full-jowled face was glowing. His eyes were bright as a boy's. He stopped at their table and paused for one dramatic moment.

“So, me beauty, you two were in cahoots, huh? That's the second low-down deal you've handed me. I haven't forgotten that trick you turned with Nussbaum at DeKalb. Never mind, little girl. I'll get back at you yet.”

He nodded a contemptuous head in Jock's direction. “Carrying a packer?”

{Illustration: “'Come on out of here, and I'll lick the shine off your shoes, you blue-eyed babe, you!'”}

Emma McChesney wiped her fingers daintily on her napkin, crushed it on the table, and leaned back in her chair. “Men,” she observed, wonderingly, “are the cussedest creatures. This chap occupied the same room with you last night and you don't even know his name. Funny! If two strange women had found themselves occupying the same room for a night they wouldn't have got to the kimono and back hair stage before they would not only have known each other's name, but they'd have tried on each other's hats, swapped84 corset cover patterns, found mutual85 friends living in Dayton, Ohio, taught each other a new Irish crochet86 stitch, showed their family photographs, told how their married sister's little girl nearly died with swollen87 glands88, and divided off the mirror into two sections to paste their newly washed handkerchiefs on. Don't tell me men have a genius for friendship.”

“Well, who is he?” insisted Ed Meyers. “He told me everything but his name this morning. I wish I had throttled89 him with a bunch of Bisons' badges last night.”

“His name,” smiled Emma McChesney, “is Jock McChesney. He's my one and only son, and he's put through his first little business deal this morning just to show his mother that he can be a help to his folks if he wants to. Now, Ed Meyers, if you're going to have apoplexy don't you go and have it around this table. My boy is only on his second piece of pie, and I won't have his appetite spoiled.”

点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 exclamation onBxZ     
n.感叹号,惊呼,惊叹词
参考例句:
  • He could not restrain an exclamation of approval.他禁不住喝一声采。
  • The author used three exclamation marks at the end of the last sentence to wake up the readers.作者在文章的最后一句连用了三个惊叹号,以引起读者的注意。
2 benevolent Wtfzx     
adj.仁慈的,乐善好施的
参考例句:
  • His benevolent nature prevented him from refusing any beggar who accosted him.他乐善好施的本性使他不会拒绝走上前向他行乞的任何一个乞丐。
  • He was a benevolent old man and he wouldn't hurt a fly.他是一个仁慈的老人,连只苍蝇都不愿伤害。
3 brotherhood 1xfz3o     
n.兄弟般的关系,手中情谊
参考例句:
  • They broke up the brotherhood.他们断绝了兄弟关系。
  • They live and work together in complete equality and brotherhood.他们完全平等和兄弟般地在一起生活和工作。
4 inspection y6TxG     
n.检查,审查,检阅
参考例句:
  • On random inspection the meat was found to be bad.经抽查,发现肉变质了。
  • The soldiers lined up for their daily inspection by their officers.士兵们列队接受军官的日常检阅。
5 poise ySTz9     
vt./vi. 平衡,保持平衡;n.泰然自若,自信
参考例句:
  • She hesitated briefly but quickly regained her poise.她犹豫片刻,但很快恢复了镇静。
  • Ballet classes are important for poise and grace.芭蕾课对培养优雅的姿仪非常重要。
6 suavely bf927b238f6b3c8e93107a4fece9a398     
参考例句:
  • He is suavely charming and all the ladies love him. 他温文尔雅,女士们都喜欢他。 来自互联网
  • Jiro: (Suavely) What do you think? What do you feel I'm like right now? 大东﹕(耍帅)你认为呢﹖我现在给你的感觉如何﹖。 来自互联网
7 mightily ZoXzT6     
ad.强烈地;非常地
参考例句:
  • He hit the peg mightily on the top with a mallet. 他用木槌猛敲木栓顶。
  • This seemed mightily to relieve him. 干完这件事后,他似乎轻松了许多。
8 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。
9 discomfort cuvxN     
n.不舒服,不安,难过,困难,不方便
参考例句:
  • One has to bear a little discomfort while travelling.旅行中总要忍受一点不便。
  • She turned red with discomfort when the teacher spoke.老师讲话时她不好意思地红着脸。
10 veal 5HQy0     
n.小牛肉
参考例句:
  • She sauteed veal and peppers,preparing a mixed salad while the pan simmered.她先做的一道菜是青椒煎小牛肉,趁着锅还在火上偎着的机会,又做了一道拼盘。
  • Marinate the veal in white wine for two hours.把小牛肉用白葡萄酒浸泡两小时。
11 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。
12 petrify judyc     
vt.使发呆;使…变成化石
参考例句:
  • A political deadlock may petrify economic initiatives.政治僵局可能会使经济发展停滞。
  • Slogans petrify our thinking.口号僵化了我们的思想。
13 depot Rwax2     
n.仓库,储藏处;公共汽车站;火车站
参考例句:
  • The depot is only a few blocks from here.公共汽车站离这儿只有几个街区。
  • They leased the building as a depot.他们租用这栋大楼作仓库。
14 jolts 6b399bc85f7ace4b27412ec2740f286e     
(使)摇动, (使)震惊( jolt的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • He found that out when he got a few terrific jolts, but he wouldn't give up. 被狠狠地撞回来几次后,他发觉了这一点,但他决不因此罢休。
  • Some power bars are loaded with carbohydrates or caffeine for quick jolts. 有些能量条中包含大量的碳水化合物和咖啡因,以达到快速提神的效果。
15 viands viands     
n.食品,食物
参考例句:
  • Greek slaves supplied them with exquisite viands at the slightest nod.只要他们轻轻点点头希腊奴隶就会供奉给他们精美的食品。
  • The family sat down to table,and a frugal meal of cold viands was deposited beforethem.一家老少,都围着桌子坐下,几样简单的冷食,摆在他们面前。
16 strewing 01f9d1086ce8e4d5524caafc4bf860cb     
v.撒在…上( strew的现在分词 );散落于;点缀;撒满
参考例句:
  • What a mess! Look at the pajamas strewing on the bed. 真是乱七八糟!看看睡衣乱放在床上。 来自英汉 - 翻译样例 - 口语
17 trifling SJwzX     
adj.微不足道的;没什么价值的
参考例句:
  • They quarreled over a trifling matter.他们为这种微不足道的事情争吵。
  • So far Europe has no doubt, gained a real conveniency,though surely a very trifling one.直到现在为止,欧洲无疑地已经获得了实在的便利,不过那确是一种微不足道的便利。
18 ruminated d258d9ebf77d222f0216ae185d5a965a     
v.沉思( ruminate的过去式和过去分词 );反复考虑;反刍;倒嚼
参考例句:
  • In the article she ruminated about what recreations she would have. 她在文章里认真考虑了她应做些什么消遣活动。 来自辞典例句
  • He ruminated on his defenses before he should accost her father. 他在与她父亲搭话前,仔细地考虑着他的防范措施。 来自辞典例句
19 stiffened de9de455736b69d3f33bb134bba74f63     
加强的
参考例句:
  • He leaned towards her and she stiffened at this invasion of her personal space. 他向她俯过身去,这种侵犯她个人空间的举动让她绷紧了身子。
  • She stiffened with fear. 她吓呆了。
20 countenance iztxc     
n.脸色,面容;面部表情;vt.支持,赞同
参考例句:
  • At the sight of this photograph he changed his countenance.他一看见这张照片脸色就变了。
  • I made a fierce countenance as if I would eat him alive.我脸色恶狠狠地,仿佛要把他活生生地吞下去。
21 bristled bristled     
adj. 直立的,多刺毛的 动词bristle的过去式和过去分词
参考例句:
  • They bristled at his denigrating description of their activities. 听到他在污蔑他们的活动,他们都怒发冲冠。
  • All of us bristled at the lawyer's speech insulting our forefathers. 听到那个律师在讲演中污蔑我们的祖先,大家都气得怒发冲冠。
22 belligerence BuXzZ     
n.交战,好战性,斗争性
参考例句:
  • He could be accused of passion,but never belligerence.可以说他很冲动,但不能说他爱挑事。
  • He was almost back to his belligerent mood of twelve months ago.他故态复萌,几乎又像一年前那样咄咄逼人了。
23 sleeper gETyT     
n.睡眠者,卧车,卧铺
参考例句:
  • I usually go up to London on the sleeper. 我一般都乘卧车去伦敦。
  • But first he explained that he was a very heavy sleeper. 但首先他解释说自己睡觉很沉。
24 commodious aXCyr     
adj.宽敞的;使用方便的
参考例句:
  • It was a commodious and a diverting life.这是一种自由自在,令人赏心悦目的生活。
  • Their habitation was not merely respectable and commodious,but even dignified and imposing.他们的居所既宽敞舒适又尊严气派。
25 housekeeper 6q2zxl     
n.管理家务的主妇,女管家
参考例句:
  • A spotless stove told us that his mother is a diligent housekeeper.炉子清洁无瑕就表明他母亲是个勤劳的主妇。
  • She is an economical housekeeper and feeds her family cheaply.她节约持家,一家人吃得很省。
26 thither cgRz1o     
adv.向那里;adj.在那边的,对岸的
参考例句:
  • He wandered hither and thither looking for a playmate.他逛来逛去找玩伴。
  • He tramped hither and thither.他到处流浪。
27 leftovers AprzGJ     
n.剩余物,残留物,剩菜
参考例句:
  • He can do miracles with a few kitchen leftovers.他能用厨房里几样剩饭做出一顿美餐。
  • She made supper from leftovers she had thrown together.她用吃剩的食物拼凑成一顿晚饭。
28 dangling 4930128e58930768b1c1c75026ebc649     
悬吊着( dangle的现在分词 ); 摆动不定; 用某事物诱惑…; 吊胃口
参考例句:
  • The tooth hung dangling by the bedpost, now. 结果,那颗牙就晃来晃去吊在床柱上了。
  • The children sat on the high wall,their legs dangling. 孩子们坐在一堵高墙上,摇晃着他们的双腿。
29 sonorously 666421583f3c320a14ae8a6dffb80b42     
adv.圆润低沉地;感人地;堂皇地;朗朗地
参考例句:
  • He pronounced sonorously as he shook the wet branch. 他一边摇动着湿树枝,一边用洪亮的声音说着。 来自辞典例句
  • The congregation consisted chiefly of a few young folk, who snored sonorously. 教堂里的会众主要是些打盹睡觉并且鼾声如雷的年轻人。 来自互联网
30 vaudeville Oizw4     
n.歌舞杂耍表演
参考例句:
  • The standard length of a vaudeville act was 12 minutes.一个杂耍节目的标准长度是12分钟。
  • The mayor talk like a vaudeville comedian in his public address.在公共演讲中,这位市长讲起话来像个歌舞杂耍演员。
31 extraordinarily Vlwxw     
adv.格外地;极端地
参考例句:
  • She is an extraordinarily beautiful girl.她是个美丽非凡的姑娘。
  • The sea was extraordinarily calm that morning.那天清晨,大海出奇地宁静。
32 prone 50bzu     
adj.(to)易于…的,很可能…的;俯卧的
参考例句:
  • Some people are prone to jump to hasty conclusions.有些人往往作出轻率的结论。
  • He is prone to lose his temper when people disagree with him.人家一不同意他的意见,他就发脾气。
33 bestow 9t3zo     
v.把…赠与,把…授予;花费
参考例句:
  • He wished to bestow great honors upon the hero.他希望将那些伟大的荣誉授予这位英雄。
  • What great inspiration wiII you bestow on me?你有什么伟大的灵感能馈赠给我?
34 draughts 154c3dda2291d52a1622995b252b5ac8     
n. <英>国际跳棋
参考例句:
  • Seal (up) the window to prevent draughts. 把窗户封起来以防风。
  • I will play at draughts with him. 我跟他下一盘棋吧!
35 complexion IOsz4     
n.肤色;情况,局面;气质,性格
参考例句:
  • Red does not suit with her complexion.红色与她的肤色不协调。
  • Her resignation puts a different complexion on things.她一辞职局面就全变了。
36 astringent re2yN     
adj.止血的,收缩的,涩的;n.收缩剂,止血剂
参考例句:
  • It has an astringent effect.这个有止血的作用。
  • Green persimmons are strongly astringent.绿柿子非常涩。
37 triumphantly 9fhzuv     
ad.得意洋洋地;得胜地;成功地
参考例句:
  • The lion was roaring triumphantly. 狮子正在发出胜利的吼叫。
  • Robert was looking at me triumphantly. 罗伯特正得意扬扬地看着我。
38 myriad M67zU     
adj.无数的;n.无数,极大数量
参考例句:
  • They offered no solution for all our myriad problems.对于我们数不清的问题他们束手无策。
  • I had three weeks to make a myriad of arrangements.我花了三个星期做大量准备工作。
39 varied giIw9     
adj.多样的,多变化的
参考例句:
  • The forms of art are many and varied.艺术的形式是多种多样的。
  • The hotel has a varied programme of nightly entertainment.宾馆有各种晚间娱乐活动。
40 stuffy BtZw0     
adj.不透气的,闷热的
参考例句:
  • It's really hot and stuffy in here.这里实在太热太闷了。
  • It was so stuffy in the tent that we could sense the air was heavy with moisture.帐篷里很闷热,我们感到空气都是潮的。
41 jauntiness 1b7bbd56010700d72eaeb7221beae436     
n.心满意足;洋洋得意;高兴;活泼
参考例句:
42 eyelids 86ece0ca18a95664f58bda5de252f4e7     
n.眼睑( eyelid的名词复数 );眼睛也不眨一下;不露声色;面不改色
参考例句:
  • She was so tired, her eyelids were beginning to droop. 她太疲倦了,眼睑开始往下垂。
  • Her eyelids drooped as if she were on the verge of sleep. 她眼睑低垂好像快要睡着的样子。 来自《简明英汉词典》
43 doughy 1bc0d4a747600c566fb998ee973667b0     
adj.面团的,苍白的,半熟的;软弱无力
参考例句:
  • The cake fell; it's a doughy mess. 蛋糕掉在地上,粘糊糊的一团。 来自互联网
  • Soon the mixture was doughy. 很快,混合物成了面团状。 来自互联网
44 feverish gzsye     
adj.发烧的,狂热的,兴奋的
参考例句:
  • He is too feverish to rest.他兴奋得安静不下来。
  • They worked with feverish haste to finish the job.为了完成此事他们以狂热的速度工作着。
45 modish iEIxl     
adj.流行的,时髦的
参考例句:
  • She is always crazy at modish things.她疯狂热爱流行物品。
  • Rhoda's willowy figure,modish straw hat,and fuchsia gloves and shoes surprised Janice.罗达的苗条身材,时髦的草帽,紫红色的手套和鞋使杰妮丝有些惊讶。
46 curdle LYOzM     
v.使凝结,变稠
参考例句:
  • The sauce should not boil or the egg yolk will curdle.调味汁不能煮沸,不然蛋黄会凝结的。
  • The sight made my blood curdle.那景象使我不寒而栗。
47 vibrant CL5zc     
adj.震颤的,响亮的,充满活力的,精力充沛的,(色彩)鲜明的
参考例句:
  • He always uses vibrant colours in his paintings. 他在画中总是使用鲜明的色彩。
  • She gave a vibrant performance in the leading role in the school play.她在学校表演中生气盎然地扮演了主角。
48 savagery pCozS     
n.野性
参考例句:
  • The police were shocked by the savagery of the attacks.警察对这些惨无人道的袭击感到震惊。
  • They threw away their advantage by their savagery to the black population.他们因为野蛮对待黑人居民而丧失了自己的有利地位。
49 alliteration ioJy7     
n.(诗歌的)头韵
参考例句:
  • We chose alliteration on the theory a little vulgarity enhances memory.在理论上我们选择有点儿粗俗的头韵来帮助记忆。
  • It'seems to me that in prose alliteration should be used only for a special reason.依我看,在散文里,头韵只能在一定的场合使用。
50 gulped 4873fe497201edc23bc8dcb50aa6eb2c     
v.狼吞虎咽地吃,吞咽( gulp的过去式和过去分词 );大口地吸(气);哽住
参考例句:
  • He gulped down the rest of his tea and went out. 他把剩下的茶一饮而尽便出去了。
  • She gulped nervously, as if the question bothered her. 她紧张地咽了一下,似乎那问题把她难住了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
51 herd Pd8zb     
n.兽群,牧群;vt.使集中,把…赶在一起
参考例句:
  • She drove the herd of cattle through the wilderness.她赶着牛群穿过荒野。
  • He had no opinions of his own but simply follow the herd.他从无主见,只是人云亦云。
52 canes a2da92fd77f2794d6465515bd108dd08     
n.(某些植物,如竹或甘蔗的)茎( cane的名词复数 );(用于制作家具等的)竹竿;竹杖
参考例句:
  • Sugar canes eat sweet. 甘蔗吃起来很甜。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • I saw several sugar canes, but wild, and for cultivation, imperfect. 我还看到一些甘蔗,因为是野生的,未经人工栽培,所以不太好吃。 来自英汉 - 翻译样例 - 文学
53 hippopotamus 3dhz1     
n.河马
参考例句:
  • The children enjoyed watching the hippopotamus wallowing in the mud.孩子们真喜观看河马在泥中打滚。
  • A hippopotamus surfs the waves off the coast of Gabon.一头河马在加蓬的海岸附近冲浪。
54 bellowed fa9ba2065b18298fa17a6311db3246fc     
v.发出吼叫声,咆哮(尤指因痛苦)( bellow的过去式和过去分词 );(愤怒地)说出(某事),大叫
参考例句:
  • They bellowed at her to stop. 他们吼叫着让她停下。
  • He bellowed with pain when the tooth was pulled out. 当牙齿被拔掉时,他痛得大叫。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
55 acidity rJyya     
n.酸度,酸性
参考例句:
  • This plant prefers alkaline soil,though it will readily tolerate some acidity.这种植物在酸性土壤中也能生存,但硷性土壤更加适宜。
  • Gastric acidity would not prevent the organism from passing into the gut.胃的酸度不能防止细菌进入肠道。
56 doze IsoxV     
v.打瞌睡;n.打盹,假寐
参考例句:
  • He likes to have a doze after lunch.他喜欢午饭后打个盹。
  • While the adults doze,the young play.大人们在打瞌睡,而孩子们在玩耍。
57 outraged VmHz8n     
a.震惊的,义愤填膺的
参考例句:
  • Members of Parliament were outraged by the news of the assassination. 议会议员们被这暗杀的消息激怒了。
  • He was outraged by their behavior. 他们的行为使他感到愤慨。
58 everlastingly e11726de37cbaab344011cfed8ecef15     
永久地,持久地
参考例句:
  • Why didn't he hold the Yankees instead of everlastingly retreating? 他为什么不将北军挡住,反而节节败退呢?
  • "I'm tired of everlastingly being unnatural and never doing anything I want to do. "我再也忍受不了这样无休止地的勉强自己,永远不能赁自己高兴做事。
59 forage QgyzP     
n.(牛马的)饲料,粮草;v.搜寻,翻寻
参考例句:
  • They were forced to forage for clothing and fuel.他们不得不去寻找衣服和燃料。
  • Now the nutritive value of the forage is reduced.此时牧草的营养价值也下降了。
60 overflowed 4cc5ae8d4154672c8a8539b5a1f1842f     
溢出的
参考例句:
  • Plates overflowed with party food. 聚会上的食物碟满盘盈。
  • A great throng packed out the theater and overflowed into the corridors. 一大群人坐满剧院并且还有人涌到了走廊上。 来自《简明英汉词典》
61 giggled 72ecd6e6dbf913b285d28ec3ba1edb12     
v.咯咯地笑( giggle的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • The girls giggled at the joke. 女孩子们让这笑话逗得咯咯笑。
  • The children giggled hysterically. 孩子们歇斯底里地傻笑。 来自《简明英汉词典》
62 foe ygczK     
n.敌人,仇敌
参考例句:
  • He knew that Karl could be an implacable foe.他明白卡尔可能会成为他的死敌。
  • A friend is a friend;a foe is a foe;one must be clearly distinguished from the other.敌是敌,友是友,必须分清界限。
63 miraculously unQzzE     
ad.奇迹般地
参考例句:
  • He had been miraculously saved from almost certain death. 他奇迹般地从死亡线上获救。
  • A schoolboy miraculously survived a 25 000-volt electric shock. 一名男学生在遭受2.5 万伏的电击后奇迹般地活了下来。
64 discreetly nuwz8C     
ad.(言行)审慎地,慎重地
参考例句:
  • He had only known the perennial widow, the discreetly expensive Frenchwoman. 他只知道她是个永远那么年轻的寡妇,一个很会讲排场的法国女人。
  • Sensing that Lilian wanted to be alone with Celia, Andrew discreetly disappeared. 安德鲁觉得莉莲想同西莉亚单独谈些什么,有意避开了。
65 bluffing bluffing     
n. 威吓,唬人 动词bluff的现在分词形式
参考例句:
  • I don't think he'll shoot—I think he's just bluffing. 我认为他不会开枪—我想他不过是在吓唬人。
  • He says he'll win the race, but he's only bluffing. 他说他会赢得这场比赛,事实上只是在吹牛。
66 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。
67 ruffled e4a3deb720feef0786be7d86b0004e86     
adj. 有褶饰边的, 起皱的 动词ruffle的过去式和过去分词
参考例句:
  • She ruffled his hair affectionately. 她情意绵绵地拨弄着他的头发。
  • All this talk of a strike has clearly ruffled the management's feathers. 所有这些关于罢工的闲言碎语显然让管理层很不高兴。
68 benign 2t2zw     
adj.善良的,慈祥的;良性的,无危险的
参考例句:
  • The benign weather brought North America a bumper crop.温和的气候给北美带来大丰收。
  • Martha is a benign old lady.玛莎是个仁慈的老妇人。
69 scarlet zD8zv     
n.深红色,绯红色,红衣;adj.绯红色的
参考例句:
  • The scarlet leaves of the maples contrast well with the dark green of the pines.深红的枫叶和暗绿的松树形成了明显的对比。
  • The glowing clouds are growing slowly pale,scarlet,bright red,and then light red.天空的霞光渐渐地淡下去了,深红的颜色变成了绯红,绯红又变为浅红。
70 jaw 5xgy9     
n.颚,颌,说教,流言蜚语;v.喋喋不休,教训
参考例句:
  • He delivered a right hook to his opponent's jaw.他给了对方下巴一记右钩拳。
  • A strong square jaw is a sign of firm character.强健的方下巴是刚毅性格的标志。
71 fleeting k7zyS     
adj.短暂的,飞逝的
参考例句:
  • The girls caught only a fleeting glimpse of the driver.女孩们只匆匆瞥了一眼司机。
  • Knowing the life fleeting,she set herself to enjoy if as best as she could.她知道这种日子转瞬即逝,于是让自已尽情地享受。
72 oyster w44z6     
n.牡蛎;沉默寡言的人
参考例句:
  • I enjoy eating oyster; it's really delicious.我喜欢吃牡蛎,它味道真美。
  • I find I fairly like eating when he finally persuades me to taste the oyster.当他最后说服我尝尝牡蛎时,我发现我相当喜欢吃。
73 suffrage NhpyX     
n.投票,选举权,参政权
参考例句:
  • The question of woman suffrage sets them at variance.妇女参政的问题使他们发生争执。
  • The voters gave their suffrage to him.投票人都投票选他。
74 simultaneously 4iBz1o     
adv.同时发生地,同时进行地
参考例句:
  • The radar beam can track a number of targets almost simultaneously.雷达波几乎可以同时追着多个目标。
  • The Windows allow a computer user to execute multiple programs simultaneously.Windows允许计算机用户同时运行多个程序。
75 erect 4iLzm     
n./v.树立,建立,使竖立;adj.直立的,垂直的
参考例句:
  • She held her head erect and her back straight.她昂着头,把背挺得笔直。
  • Soldiers are trained to stand erect.士兵们训练站得笔直。
76 peculiar cinyo     
adj.古怪的,异常的;特殊的,特有的
参考例句:
  • He walks in a peculiar fashion.他走路的样子很奇特。
  • He looked at me with a very peculiar expression.他用一种很奇怪的表情看着我。
77 tapering pq5wC     
adj.尖端细的
参考例句:
  • Interest in the scandal seems to be tapering off. 人们对那件丑闻的兴趣似乎越来越小了。
  • Nonproductive expenditures keep tapering down. 非生产性开支一直在下降。
78 poised SlhzBU     
a.摆好姿势不动的
参考例句:
  • The hawk poised in mid-air ready to swoop. 老鹰在半空中盘旋,准备俯冲。
  • Tina was tense, her hand poised over the telephone. 蒂娜心情紧张,手悬在电话机上。
79 kernels d01b84fda507090bbbb626ee421da586     
谷粒( kernel的名词复数 ); 仁; 核; 要点
参考例句:
  • These stones contain kernels. 这些核中有仁。
  • Resolving kernels and standard errors can also be computed for each block. 还可以计算每个块体的分辨核和标准误差。
80 wrath nVNzv     
n.愤怒,愤慨,暴怒
参考例句:
  • His silence marked his wrath. 他的沉默表明了他的愤怒。
  • The wrath of the people is now aroused. 人们被激怒了。
81 fluency ajCxF     
n.流畅,雄辩,善辩
参考例句:
  • More practice will make you speak with greater fluency.多练习就可以使你的口语更流利。
  • Some young children achieve great fluency in their reading.一些孩子小小年纪阅读已经非常流畅。
82 whoop qIhys     
n.大叫,呐喊,喘息声;v.叫喊,喘息
参考例句:
  • He gave a whoop of joy when he saw his new bicycle.他看到自己的新自行车时,高兴得叫了起来。
  • Everybody is planning to whoop it up this weekend.大家都打算在这个周末好好欢闹一番。
83 waddling 56319712a61da49c78fdf94b47927106     
v.(像鸭子一样)摇摇摆摆地走( waddle的现在分词 )
参考例句:
  • Rhinoceros Give me a break, were been waddling every day. 犀牛甲:饶了我吧,我们晃了一整天了都。 来自互联网
  • A short plump woman came waddling along the pavement. 有个矮胖女子一摇一摆地沿人行道走来。 来自互联网
84 swapped 3982604ac592befc46570aef4e827102     
交换(工作)( swap的过去式和过去分词 ); 用…替换,把…换成,掉换(过来)
参考例句:
  • I liked her coat and she liked mine, so we swapped. 我喜欢她的外套,她喜欢我的外套,于是我们就交换了。
  • At half-time the manager swapped some of the players around. 经理在半场时把几名队员换下了场。
85 mutual eFOxC     
adj.相互的,彼此的;共同的,共有的
参考例句:
  • We must pull together for mutual interest.我们必须为相互的利益而通力合作。
  • Mutual interests tied us together.相互的利害关系把我们联系在一起。
86 crochet qzExU     
n.钩针织物;v.用钩针编制
参考例句:
  • That's a black crochet waistcoat.那是一件用钩针编织的黑色马甲。
  • She offered to teach me to crochet rugs.她提出要教我钩织小地毯。
87 swollen DrcwL     
adj.肿大的,水涨的;v.使变大,肿胀
参考例句:
  • Her legs had got swollen from standing up all day.因为整天站着,她的双腿已经肿了。
  • A mosquito had bitten her and her arm had swollen up.蚊子叮了她,她的手臂肿起来了。
88 glands 82573e247a54d4ca7619fbc1a5141d80     
n.腺( gland的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • a snake's poison glands 蛇的毒腺
  • the sebaceous glands in the skin 皮脂腺
89 throttled 1be2c244a7b85bf921df7bf52074492b     
v.扼杀( throttle的过去式和过去分词 );勒死;使窒息;压制
参考例句:
  • He throttled the guard with his bare hands. 他徒手掐死了卫兵。
  • The pilot got very low before he throttled back. 飞行员减速之前下降得很低。 来自《简明英汉词典》


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