Sir Thomas Underwood, whom I, and I hope my readers also, will have to know very intimately, was one of those who are not able to make themselves known intimately to any. I am speaking now of a man of sixty, and I am speaking also of one who had never yet made a close friend,—who had never by unconscious and slow degrees of affection fallen into that kind of intimacy9 with another man which justifies10 and renders necessary mutual11 freedom of intercourse12 in all the affairs of life. And yet he was possessed13 of warm affections, was by no means misanthropic14 in his nature, and would, in truth, have given much to be able to be free and jocund15 as are other men. He lacked the power that way, rather than the will. To himself it seemed to be a weakness in him rather than a strength that he should always be silent, always guarded, always secret and dark. He had lamented17 it as an acknowledged infirmity;—as a man grieves that he should be short-sighted, or dull of hearing; but at the age of sixty he had taken no efficient steps towards curing himself of the evil, and had now abandoned all idea of any such cure.
Whether he had been, upon the whole, fortunate or unfortunate in life shall be left to the reader's judgment18. But he certainly had not been happy. He had suffered cruel disappointments; and a disappointment will crush the spirit worse than a realised calamity19. There is no actual misfortune in not being Lord Mayor of London;—but when a man has set his heart upon the place, has worked himself into a position within a few feet of the Mansion20 House, has become alderman with the mayoralty before him in immediate21 rotation22, he will suffer more at being passed over by the liverymen than if he had lost half his fortune. Now Sir Thomas Underwood had become Solicitor-General in his profession, but had never risen to the higher rank or more assured emoluments23 of other legal offices.
We will not quite trace our Meleager back to his egg, but we will explain that he was the only son of a barrister of moderate means, who put him to the Bar, and who died leaving little or nothing behind him. The young barrister had an only sister, who married an officer in the army, and who had passed all her latter life in distant countries to which her husband had been called by the necessity of living on the income which his profession gave him. As a Chancery barrister, Mr. Underwood,—our Sir Thomas,—had done well, living on the income he made, marrying at thirty-five, going into Parliament at forty-five, becoming Solicitor-General at fifty,—and ceasing to hold that much-desired office four months after his appointment. Such cessation, however, arising from political causes, is no disappointment to a man. It will doubtless be the case that a man so placed will regret the weakness of his party, which has been unable to keep the good things of Government in its hands; but he will recognise without remorse24 or sorrow the fact that the Ministry25 to which he has attached himself must cease to be a Ministry;—and there will be nothing in his displacement26 to gall27 his pride, or to create that inner feeling of almost insupportable mortification28 which comes from the conviction of personal failure. Sir Thomas Underwood had been Solicitor-General for a few months under a Conservative Prime Minister; and when the Conservative Minister went out of office, Sir Thomas Underwood followed him with no feeling of regret that caused him unhappiness. But when afterwards the same party came back to power, and he, having lost his election at the borough29 which he had represented, was passed over without a word of sympathy or even of assumed regret from the Minister, then he was wounded. It was true, he knew, that a man, to be Solicitor-General, should have a seat in Parliament. The highest legal offices in the country are not to be attained30 by any amount of professional excellence31, unless the candidate shall have added to such excellence the power of supporting a Ministry and a party in the House of Commons. Sir Thomas Underwood thoroughly32 understood this;—but he knew also that there are various ways in which a lame16 dog may be helped over a stile,—if only the lame dog be popular among dogs. For another ex-Solicitor-General a seat would have been found,—or some delay would have been granted,—or at least there would have been a consultation33, with a suggestion that something should be tried. But in this case a man four years his junior in age, whom he despised, and who, as he was informed, had obtained his place in Parliament by gross bribery34, was put into the office without a word of apology to him. Then he was unhappy, and acknowledged to himself that his spirit was crushed.
But he acknowledged to himself at the same time that he was one doomed35 by his nature to such crushing of the spirit if he came out of the hole of his solitude36, and endeavoured to carry on the open fight of life among his fellow-men. He knew that he was one doomed to that disappointment, the bitterest of all, which comes from failure when the prize has been all but reached. It is much to have become Solicitor-General, and that he had achieved;—but it is worse than nothing to have been Solicitor-General for four months, and then to find that all the world around one regards one as having failed, and as being, therefore, fit for the shelf. Such were Sir Thomas Underwood's feelings as he sat alone in his chambers37 during those days in which the new administration was formed,—in which days he was neither consulted nor visited, nor communicated with either by message or by letter. But all this,—this formation of a Ministry, in which the late Solicitor-General was not invited to take a part,—occurred seven years before the commencement of our story.
During those years in which our lawyer sat in Parliament as Mr. Underwood,—at which time he was working hard also as a Chancery barrister, and was, perhaps, nearer to his fellow-men than he had ever been before, or was ever destined38 to be afterwards,—he resided, as regarded himself almost nominally39, at a small but pretty villa40, which he had taken for his wife's sake at Fulham. It was close upon the river, and had well-arranged, though not extensive, shrubbery walks, and a little lawn, and a tiny conservatory41, and a charming opening down to the Thames. Mrs. Underwood had found herself unable to live in Half-moon Street; and Mr. Underwood, not unwillingly42, had removed his household gods to this retreat. At that time his household gods consisted of a wife and two daughters;—but the wife had died before the time came at which she could have taken on herself the name of Lady Underwood. The villa at Fulham was still kept, and there lived the two girls, and there also Sir Thomas, had he been interrogated43 on the subject, would have declared that he also was domiciled. But if a man lives at the place in which he most often sleeps, Sir Thomas in truth lived at his chambers at Southampton Buildings. When he moved those household gods of his to the villa, it was necessary, because of his duties in Parliament, that he should have some place in town wherein he might lay his head, and therefore, I fear not unwillingly, he took to laying his head very frequently in the little bedroom which was attached to his chambers.
It is not necessary that we should go back to any feelings which might have operated upon him during his wife's lifetime, or during the period of his parliamentary career. His wife was now dead, and he no longer held a seat in Parliament. He had, indeed, all but abandoned his practice at the Bar, never putting himself forward for the ordinary business of a Chancery barrister. But, nevertheless, he spent the largest half of his life in his chambers, breakfasting there, reading there, writing there, and sleeping there. He did not altogether desert the lodge44 at Fulham, and the two girls who lived there. He would not even admit to them, or allow them to assert that he had not his home with them. Sometimes for two nights together, and sometimes for three, he would be at the villa,—never remaining there, however, during the day. But on Sundays it may almost be said that he was never at home. And hence arose the feeling that of all, this went the nearest to create discord45 between the father and the daughters. Sir Thomas was always in Southampton Buildings on Sundays. Did Sir Thomas go to church? The Miss Underwoods did go to church very regularly, and thought much of the propriety46 and necessity of such Sunday exercises. They could remember that in their younger days their father always had been there with them. They could remember, indeed, that he, with something of sternness, would require from them punctuality and exactness in this duty. Now and again,—perhaps four times in the year,—he would go to the Rolls Chapel47. So much they could learn, But they believed that beyond that his Sundays were kept holy by no attendance at divine service. And it may be said at once that they believed aright.
Sir Thomas's chambers in Southampton Buildings, though they were dull and dingy48 of aspect from the outside, and were reached by a staircase which may be designated as lugubrious,—so much did its dark and dismantled49 condition tend to melancholy,—were in themselves large and commodious50. His bedroom was small, but he had two spacious51 sitting-rooms, one of which was fitted up as a library, and the other as a dining-room. Over and beyond these there was a clerk's room;—for Sir Thomas, though he had given up the greater part of his business, had not given up his clerk; and here the old man, the clerk, passed his entire time, from half-past eight in the morning till ten at night, waiting upon his employer in various capacities with a sedulous52 personal attention to which he had probably not intended to devote himself when he first took upon himself the duties of clerk to a practising Chancery barrister. But Joseph Stemm and Sir Thomas were not unlike in character, and had grown old together with too equal a step to admit of separation and of new alliance. Stemm had but one friend in the world, and Sir Thomas was that friend. I have already said that Sir Thomas had no friend;—but perhaps he felt more of that true intimacy, which friendship produces, with Stemm than with any other human being.
Sir Thomas was a tall thin man, who stooped considerably,—though not from any effect of years, with a face which would perhaps have been almost mean had it not been rescued from that evil condition by the assurance of intelligence and strength which is always conveyed by a certain class of ugliness. He had a nose something like the great Lord Brougham's,—thin, long, and projecting at the point. He had quick grey eyes, and a good forehead;—but the component53 parts of his countenance54 were irregular and roughly put together. His chin was long, as was also his upper lip;—so that it may be taken as a fact that he was an ugly man. He was hale, however, and strong, and was still so good a walker that he thought nothing of making his way down to the villa on foot of an evening, after dining at his club.
It was his custom to dine at his club,—that highly respectable and most comfortable club situated55 at the corner of Suffolk Street, Pall56 Mall;—the senior of the two which are devoted57 to the well-being58 of scions59 of our great Universities. There Sir Thomas dined, perhaps four nights in the week, for ten months in the year. And it was said of him in the club that he had never been known to dine in company with another member of the club. His very manner as he sat at his solitary60 meal,—always with a pint61 of port on the table,—was as well known as the figure of the old king on horseback outside in the street, and was as unlike the ordinary manner of men as is that unlike the ordinary figures of kings. He had always a book in his hand,—not a club book, nor a novel from Mudie's, nor a magazine, but some ancient and hard-bound volume from his own library, which he had brought in his pocket, and to which his undivided attention would be given. The eating of his dinner, which always consisted of the joint62 of the day and of nothing else, did not take him more than five minutes;—but he would sip63 his port wine slowly, would have a cup of tea which he would also drink very slowly,—and would then pocket his book, pay his bill, and would go. It was rarely the case that he spoke64 to any one in the club. He would bow to a man here and there,—and if addressed would answer; but of conversation at his club he knew nothing, and hardly ever went into any room but that in which his dinner was served to him.
In conversing65 about him men would express a wonder how such a one had ever risen to high office,—how, indeed, he could have thriven at his profession. But in such matters we are, all of us, too apt to form confident opinions on apparent causes which are near the surface, but which, as guides to character, are fallacious. Perhaps in all London there was no better lawyer, in his branch of law, than Sir Thomas Underwood. He had worked with great diligence; and though he was shy to a degree quite unintelligible66 to men in general in the ordinary intercourse of life, he had no feeling of diffidence when upon his legs in Court or in the House of Commons. With the Lord Chancellor67's wife or daughters he could not exchange five words with comfort to himself,—nor with his lordship himself in a drawing-room; but in Court the Lord Chancellor was no more to him than another lawyer whom he believed to be not so good a lawyer as himself. No man had ever succeeded in browbeating68 him when panoplied69 in his wig70 and gown; nor had words ever been wanting to him when so arrayed. It had been suggested to him by an attorney who knew him in that way in which attorneys ought to know barristers, that he should stand for a certain borough;—and he had stood and had been returned. Thrice he had been returned for the same town; but at last, when it was discovered that he would never dine with the leading townsmen, or call on their wives in London, or assist them in their little private views, the strength of his extreme respectability was broken down,—and he was rejected. In the meantime he was found to be of value by the party to which he had attached himself. It was discovered that he was not only a sound lawyer, but a man of great erudition, who had studied the experience of history as well as the wants of the present age. He was one who would disgrace no Government,—and he was invited to accept the office of Solicitor-General by a Minister who had never seen him out of the House of Commons. "He is as good a lawyer as there is in England," said the Lord Chancellor. "He always speaks with uncommon71 clearness," said the Chancellor of the Exchequer72. "I never saw him talking with a human being," said the Secretary to the Treasury73, deprecating the appointment. "He will soon get over that complaint with your assistance," said the Minister, laughing. So Mr. Underwood became Solicitor-General and Sir Thomas;—and he so did his work that no doubt he would have returned to his office had he been in Parliament when his party returned to power. But he had made no friend, he had not learned to talk even to the Secretary of the Treasury;—and when the party came back to power he was passed over without remorse, and almost without a regret.
He never resumed the active bustle74 of his profession after that disappointment. His wife was then dead, and for nearly a twelvemonth he went about, declaring to attorneys and others that his professional life was done. He did take again to a certain class of work when he came back to the old chambers in Southampton Buildings; but he was seen in Court only rarely, and it was understood that he wished it to be supposed that he had retired75. He had ever been a moderate man in his mode of living, and had put together a sum of money sufficient for moderate wants. He possessed some twelve or fourteen hundred a year independent of anything that he might now earn; and, as he had never been a man greedy of money, so was he now more indifferent to it than in his earlier days. It is a mistake, I think, to suppose that men become greedy as they grow old. The avaricious76 man will show his avarice77 as he gets into years, because avarice is a passion compatible with old age,—and will become more avaricious as his other passions fall off from him. And so will it be with the man that is open-handed. Mr. Underwood, when struggling at the Bar, had fought as hard as any of his compeers for comfort and independence;—but money, as money, had never been dear to him;—and now he was so trained a philosopher that he disregarded it altogether, except so far as it enabled him to maintain his independence.
On a certain Friday evening in June, as he sat at dinner at his club, instead of applying himself to his book, which according to his custom he had taken from his pocket, he there read a letter, which as soon as read he would restore to the envelope, and would take it out again after a few moments of thought. At last, when the cup of tea was done and the bill was paid, he put away letter and book together and walked to the door of his club. When there he stood and considered what next should he do that evening. It was now past eight o'clock, and how should he use the four, five, or perhaps six hours which remained to him before he should go to bed? The temptation to which he was liable prompted him to return to his solitude in Southampton Buildings. Should he do so, he would sleep till ten in his chair,—then he would read, and drink more tea, or perhaps write, till one; and after that he would prowl about the purlieus of Chancery Lane, the Temple, and Lincoln's Inn, till two or even three o'clock in the morning;—looking up at the old dingy windows, and holding, by aid of those powers which imagination gave him, long intercourse with men among whom a certain weakness in his physical organisation78 did not enable him to live in the flesh. Well the policemen knew him as he roamed about, and much they speculated as to his roamings. But in these night wanderings he addressed no word to any one; nor did any one ever address a word to him. Yet the world, perhaps, was more alive to him then than at any other period in the twenty-four hours.
But on the present occasion the temptation was resisted. He had not been at home during the whole week, and knew well that he ought to give his daughters the countenance of his presence. Whether that feeling alone would have been sufficient to withdraw him from the charms of Chancery Lane and send him down to the villa may be doubted; but there was that in the letter which he had perused79 so carefully which he knew must be communicated to his girls. His niece, Mary Bonner, was now an orphan80, and would arrive in England from Jamaica in about a fortnight. Her mother had been Sir Thomas's sister, and had been at this time dead about three years. General Bonner, the father, had now died, and the girl was left an orphan, almost penniless, and with no near friend unless the Underwoods would befriend her. News of the General's death had reached Sir Thomas before;—and he had already made inquiry81 as to the fate of his niece through her late father's agents. Of the General's means he had known absolutely nothing,—believing, however, that they were confined to his pay as an officer. Now he was told that the girl would be at Southampton in a fortnight, and that she was utterly82 destitute83. He declared to himself as he stood on the steps of the club that he would go home and consult his daughters;—but his mind was in fact made up as to his niece's fate long before he got home,—before he turned out of Pall Mall into St. James's Park. He would sometimes talk to himself of consulting his daughters; but in truth he very rarely consulted any human being as to what he would do or leave undone84. If he went straight, he went straight without other human light than such as was given to him by his own intellect, his own heart, and his own conscience. It took him about an hour and a half to reach his home, but of that time four-fifths were occupied, not in resolving what he would do in this emergency, but in deep grumblings and regrets that there should be such a thing to be done at all. All new cares were grievous to him. Nay;—old cares were grievous, but new cares were terrible. Though he was bold in deciding, he was very timid in looking forward as to the results of that decision. Of course the orphan girl must be taken into his house;—and of course he must take upon himself the duty of a father in regard to her.
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1 specially | |
adv.特定地;特殊地;明确地 | |
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2 bosom | |
n.胸,胸部;胸怀;内心;adj.亲密的 | |
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3 gushes | |
n.涌出,迸发( gush的名词复数 )v.喷,涌( gush的第三人称单数 );滔滔不绝地说话 | |
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4 wary | |
adj.谨慎的,机警的,小心的 | |
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5 belongings | |
n.私人物品,私人财物 | |
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6 gushing | |
adj.迸出的;涌出的;喷出的;过分热情的v.喷,涌( gush的现在分词 );滔滔不绝地说话 | |
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7 reticent | |
adj.沉默寡言的;言不如意的 | |
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8 solely | |
adv.仅仅,唯一地 | |
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9 intimacy | |
n.熟悉,亲密,密切关系,亲昵的言行 | |
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10 justifies | |
证明…有理( justify的第三人称单数 ); 为…辩护; 对…作出解释; 为…辩解(或辩护) | |
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11 mutual | |
adj.相互的,彼此的;共同的,共有的 | |
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12 intercourse | |
n.性交;交流,交往,交际 | |
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13 possessed | |
adj.疯狂的;拥有的,占有的 | |
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14 misanthropic | |
adj.厌恶人类的,憎恶(或蔑视)世人的;愤世嫉俗 | |
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15 jocund | |
adj.快乐的,高兴的 | |
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16 lame | |
adj.跛的,(辩解、论据等)无说服力的 | |
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17 lamented | |
adj.被哀悼的,令人遗憾的v.(为…)哀悼,痛哭,悲伤( lament的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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18 judgment | |
n.审判;判断力,识别力,看法,意见 | |
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19 calamity | |
n.灾害,祸患,不幸事件 | |
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20 mansion | |
n.大厦,大楼;宅第 | |
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21 immediate | |
adj.立即的;直接的,最接近的;紧靠的 | |
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22 rotation | |
n.旋转;循环,轮流 | |
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23 emoluments | |
n.报酬,薪水( emolument的名词复数 ) | |
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24 remorse | |
n.痛恨,悔恨,自责 | |
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25 ministry | |
n.(政府的)部;牧师 | |
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26 displacement | |
n.移置,取代,位移,排水量 | |
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27 gall | |
v.使烦恼,使焦躁,难堪;n.磨难 | |
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28 mortification | |
n.耻辱,屈辱 | |
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29 borough | |
n.享有自治权的市镇;(英)自治市镇 | |
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30 attained | |
(通常经过努力)实现( attain的过去式和过去分词 ); 达到; 获得; 达到(某年龄、水平、状况) | |
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31 excellence | |
n.优秀,杰出,(pl.)优点,美德 | |
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32 thoroughly | |
adv.完全地,彻底地,十足地 | |
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33 consultation | |
n.咨询;商量;商议;会议 | |
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34 bribery | |
n.贿络行为,行贿,受贿 | |
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35 doomed | |
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36 solitude | |
n. 孤独; 独居,荒僻之地,幽静的地方 | |
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37 chambers | |
n.房间( chamber的名词复数 );(议会的)议院;卧室;会议厅 | |
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38 destined | |
adj.命中注定的;(for)以…为目的地的 | |
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39 nominally | |
在名义上,表面地; 应名儿 | |
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40 villa | |
n.别墅,城郊小屋 | |
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41 conservatory | |
n.温室,音乐学院;adj.保存性的,有保存力的 | |
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42 unwillingly | |
adv.不情愿地 | |
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43 interrogated | |
v.询问( interrogate的过去式和过去分词 );审问;(在计算机或其他机器上)查询 | |
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44 lodge | |
v.临时住宿,寄宿,寄存,容纳;n.传达室,小旅馆 | |
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45 discord | |
n.不和,意见不合,争论,(音乐)不和谐 | |
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46 propriety | |
n.正当行为;正当;适当 | |
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47 chapel | |
n.小教堂,殡仪馆 | |
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48 dingy | |
adj.昏暗的,肮脏的 | |
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49 dismantled | |
拆开( dismantle的过去式和过去分词 ); 拆卸; 废除; 取消 | |
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50 commodious | |
adj.宽敞的;使用方便的 | |
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51 spacious | |
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52 sedulous | |
adj.勤勉的,努力的 | |
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53 component | |
n.组成部分,成分,元件;adj.组成的,合成的 | |
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54 countenance | |
n.脸色,面容;面部表情;vt.支持,赞同 | |
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55 situated | |
adj.坐落在...的,处于某种境地的 | |
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56 pall | |
v.覆盖,使平淡无味;n.柩衣,棺罩;棺材;帷幕 | |
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57 devoted | |
adj.忠诚的,忠实的,热心的,献身于...的 | |
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58 well-being | |
n.安康,安乐,幸福 | |
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59 scions | |
n.接穗,幼枝( scion的名词复数 );(尤指富家)子孙 | |
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60 solitary | |
adj.孤独的,独立的,荒凉的;n.隐士 | |
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61 pint | |
n.品脱 | |
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62 joint | |
adj.联合的,共同的;n.关节,接合处;v.连接,贴合 | |
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63 sip | |
v.小口地喝,抿,呷;n.一小口的量 | |
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64 spoke | |
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 | |
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65 conversing | |
v.交谈,谈话( converse的现在分词 ) | |
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66 unintelligible | |
adj.无法了解的,难解的,莫明其妙的 | |
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67 chancellor | |
n.(英)大臣;法官;(德、奥)总理;大学校长 | |
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68 browbeating | |
v.(以言辞或表情)威逼,恫吓( browbeat的现在分词 ) | |
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69 panoplied | |
adj.全套披甲的,装饰漂亮的 | |
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70 wig | |
n.假发 | |
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71 uncommon | |
adj.罕见的,非凡的,不平常的 | |
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72 exchequer | |
n.财政部;国库 | |
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73 treasury | |
n.宝库;国库,金库;文库 | |
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74 bustle | |
v.喧扰地忙乱,匆忙,奔忙;n.忙碌;喧闹 | |
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75 retired | |
adj.隐退的,退休的,退役的 | |
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76 avaricious | |
adj.贪婪的,贪心的 | |
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77 avarice | |
n.贪婪;贪心 | |
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78 organisation | |
n.组织,安排,团体,有机休 | |
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79 perused | |
v.读(某篇文字)( peruse的过去式和过去分词 );(尤指)细阅;审阅;匆匆读或心不在焉地浏览(某篇文字) | |
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80 orphan | |
n.孤儿;adj.无父母的 | |
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81 inquiry | |
n.打听,询问,调查,查问 | |
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82 utterly | |
adv.完全地,绝对地 | |
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83 destitute | |
adj.缺乏的;穷困的 | |
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84 undone | |
a.未做完的,未完成的 | |
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