Now Padulla, was but a little island, tributary2 to a neighboring king; its population embracing some hundreds of thousands of leaves, and flowers, and butterflies, yet only two solitary3 mortals; one, famous as a venerable antiquarian: a collector of objects of Mardian vertu; a cognoscenti, and dilettante4 in things old and marvelous; and for that reason, very choice of himself.
He went by the exclamatory cognomen5 of "Oh-Oh;" a name bestowed6 upon him, by reason of the delighted interjections, with which he welcomed all accessions to his museum.
Now, it was to obtain a glimpse of this very museum, that Media was anxious to touch at Padulla.
Landing, and passing through a grove7, we were accosted8 by Oh-Oh himself; who, having heard the shouts of our paddlers, had sallied forth9, staff in hand.
The old man was a sight to see; especially his nose; a remarkable10 one. And all Mardi over, a remarkable nose is a prominent feature: an ever obvious passport to distinction. For, after all, this gaining a name, is but the individualizing of a man; as well achieved by an extraordinary nose, as by an extraordinary epic11. Far better, indeed; for you may pass poets without knowing them. Even a hero, is no hero without his sword; nor Beelzebub himself a lion, minus that lasso-tail of his, wherewith he catches his prey12. Whereas, he who is famous through his nose, it is impossible to overlook. He is a celebrity13 without toiling14 for a name. Snugly15 ensconced behind his proboscis16, he revels17 in its shadow, receiving tributes of attention wherever he goes.
Not to enter at large upon the topography of Oh-Oh's nasal organ, all must be content with this; that it was of a singular magnitude, and boldly aspiring18 at the end; an exclamation19 point in the face of the wearer, forever wondering at the visible universe. The eyes of Oh-Oh were like the creature's that the Jew abhors20: placed slanting21 in his head, and converging22 their rays toward the mouth; which was no Mouth, but a gash23.
I mean not to be harsh, or unpleasant upon thee, Oh-Oh; but I must paint thee as thou wert.
The rest of his person was crooked24, and dwarfed25, and surmounted26 by a hump, that sat on his back like a burden. And a weary load is a hump, Heaven knows, only to be cast off in the grave.
Thus old, and antiquated27, and gable-ended, was the tabernacle of Oh- Oh's soul. But his person was housed in as curious a structure. Built of old boughs28 of trees blown down in the groves29, and covered over with unruly thatching, it seemed, without, some ostrich30 nest. But within, so intricate, and grotesque31, its brown alleys32 and cells, that the interior of no walnut33 was more labyrinthine34.
And here, strewn about, all dusty and disordered, were the precious antiques, and curios, and obsoletes35, which to Oh-Oh were dear as the apple of his eye, or the memory of departed days.
The old man was exceedingly importunate36, in directing attention to his relics37; concerning each of which, he had an endless story to tell. Time would fail; nay38, patience, to repeat his legends. So, in order, here follow the most prominent of his rarities:—
The identical Canoe, in which, ages back, the god Unja came from
the bottom of the sea.
A stone Flower-pot, containing in the original soil, Unja's last
(One foot-print unaccountably reversed).
(Somewhat twisted).
(Made from the finger-bones of Kravi the Cunning).
hypogrifs; by study of which a reputed prophet, was said to have
obtained his inspiration.
(Slightly redolent of vineyards).
The complete Skeleton of an immense Tiger-shark; the bones of a
Pearl-shell-diver's leg inside.
(Picked off the reef at low tide).
An inscrutable, shapeless block of a mottled-hued, smoke-dried
wood.
(Three unaccountable holes drilled through the middle).
A sort of ecclesiastical Fasces, being the bony blades of nine sword-
with cords of human hair.
(Now obsolete).
The mystic Fan with which Unja fanned himself when in trouble.
(Woven from the leaves of the Water-Lily).
A Tripod of a Stork's Leg, supporting a nautilus shell, containing
the fragments of a bird's egg; into which, was said to have
(Unfortunately crushed in by atmospheric47 pressure).
who thus died on a battle-field.
(Impossible to sunder).
foot, and decorated with three sharp claws, naturally pertaining51
to it.
(Originally the property of a notorious old Tooth-per-Tooth).
silky fibres of the finer sea-weed.
Cook Storm-petrel
(Oh-Oh was particularly curious concerning Mermaids).
Chiropedist, who flourished his tools before the flood.
(Owing to the excessive unevenness57 of the surface in those
times, the diluvians were peculiarly liable to pedal
afflictions).
The back Tooth, that Zozo the Enthusiast58, in token of grief,
recklessly knocked out at the decease of a friend.
These wonders inspected, Oh-Oh conducted us to an arbor60, to show us the famous telescope, by help of which, he said he had discovered an ant-hill in the moon. It rested in the crotch of a Bread-fruit tree; and was a prodigiously61 long and hollow trunk of a Palm; a scale from a sea-kraken its lens.
Then returning to his cabinet, he pointed62 to a bamboo microscope, which had wonderfully assisted him in his entomological pursuits.
"By this instrument, my masters," said he, "I have satisfied myself, that in the eye of a dragon-fly there are precisely63 twelve thousand five hundred and forty-one triangular64 lenses; and in the leg of a flea65, scores on scores of distinct muscles. Now, my masters, how far think you a flea may leap at one spring? Why, two hundred times its own length; I have often measured their leaps, with a small measure I. — use for scientific purposes."
"Truly, Oh-Oh," said Babbalanja, "your discoveries must ere long result in something grand; since you furnish such invaluable66 data for theorists. Pray, attend, my lord Media. If, at one spring, a flea leaps two hundred times its own length, then, with the like proportion of muscles in his calves67, a bandit might pounce68 upon the unwary traveler from a quarter of a mile off. Is it not so, Oh-Oh?"
"Indeed, but it is, my masters. And one of the greatest consolations69 I. — draw from these studies, is the ever-strengthening conviction of the beneficent wisdom that framed our Mardi. For did men possess thighs70 in proportion to fleas71, verily, the wicked would grievously leap about, and curvet in the isles72."
"But Oh-Oh," said Babbalanja, "what other discoveries have you made? Hast yet put a usurer under your lens, to find his conscience? or a libertine73, to find his heart? Hast yet brought your microscope to bear upon a downy peach, or a rosy74 cheek?"
"I have," said Oh-Oh, mournfully; "and from the moment I so did, I. — have had no heart to eat a peach, or salute75 a cheek."
"Then dash your lens!" cried Media.
"Well said, my lord. For all the eyes we get beyond our own, but minister to infelicity. The microscope disgusts us with our Mardi; and the telescope sets us longing76 for some other world."
点击收听单词发音
1 prows | |
n.船首( prow的名词复数 ) | |
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2 tributary | |
n.支流;纳贡国;adj.附庸的;辅助的;支流的 | |
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3 solitary | |
adj.孤独的,独立的,荒凉的;n.隐士 | |
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4 dilettante | |
n.半瓶醋,业余爱好者 | |
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5 cognomen | |
n.姓;绰号 | |
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6 bestowed | |
赠给,授予( bestow的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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7 grove | |
n.林子,小树林,园林 | |
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8 accosted | |
v.走过去跟…讲话( accost的过去式和过去分词 );跟…搭讪;(乞丐等)上前向…乞讨;(妓女等)勾搭 | |
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9 forth | |
adv.向前;向外,往外 | |
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10 remarkable | |
adj.显著的,异常的,非凡的,值得注意的 | |
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11 epic | |
n.史诗,叙事诗;adj.史诗般的,壮丽的 | |
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12 prey | |
n.被掠食者,牺牲者,掠食;v.捕食,掠夺,折磨 | |
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13 celebrity | |
n.名人,名流;著名,名声,名望 | |
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14 toiling | |
长时间或辛苦地工作( toil的现在分词 ); 艰难缓慢地移动,跋涉 | |
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15 snugly | |
adv.紧贴地;贴身地;暖和舒适地;安适地 | |
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16 proboscis | |
n.(象的)长鼻 | |
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17 revels | |
n.作乐( revel的名词复数 );狂欢;着迷;陶醉v.作乐( revel的第三人称单数 );狂欢;着迷;陶醉 | |
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18 aspiring | |
adj.有志气的;有抱负的;高耸的v.渴望;追求 | |
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19 exclamation | |
n.感叹号,惊呼,惊叹词 | |
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20 abhors | |
v.憎恶( abhor的第三人称单数 );(厌恶地)回避;拒绝;淘汰 | |
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21 slanting | |
倾斜的,歪斜的 | |
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22 converging | |
adj.收敛[缩]的,会聚的,趋同的v.(线条、运动的物体等)会于一点( converge的现在分词 );(趋于)相似或相同;人或车辆汇集;聚集 | |
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23 gash | |
v.深切,划开;n.(深长的)切(伤)口;裂缝 | |
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24 crooked | |
adj.弯曲的;不诚实的,狡猾的,不正当的 | |
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25 dwarfed | |
vt.(使)显得矮小(dwarf的过去式与过去分词形式) | |
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26 surmounted | |
战胜( surmount的过去式和过去分词 ); 克服(困难); 居于…之上; 在…顶上 | |
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27 antiquated | |
adj.陈旧的,过时的 | |
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28 boughs | |
大树枝( bough的名词复数 ) | |
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29 groves | |
树丛,小树林( grove的名词复数 ) | |
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30 ostrich | |
n.鸵鸟 | |
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31 grotesque | |
adj.怪诞的,丑陋的;n.怪诞的图案,怪人(物) | |
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32 alleys | |
胡同,小巷( alley的名词复数 ); 小径 | |
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33 walnut | |
n.胡桃,胡桃木,胡桃色,茶色 | |
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34 labyrinthine | |
adj.如迷宫的;复杂的 | |
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35 obsoletes | |
v.已不用的,已废弃的,过时的( obsolete的第三人称单数 ) | |
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36 importunate | |
adj.强求的;纠缠不休的 | |
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37 relics | |
[pl.]n.遗物,遗迹,遗产;遗体,尸骸 | |
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38 nay | |
adv.不;n.反对票,投反对票者 | |
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39 ponderous | |
adj.沉重的,笨重的,(文章)冗长的 | |
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40 embarked | |
乘船( embark的过去式和过去分词 ); 装载; 从事 | |
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41 orator | |
n.演说者,演讲者,雄辩家 | |
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42 quaint | |
adj.古雅的,离奇有趣的,奇怪的 | |
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43 gourd | |
n.葫芦 | |
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44 jaws | |
n.口部;嘴 | |
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45 tasseled | |
v.抽穗, (玉米)长穗须( tassel的过去式和过去分词 );使抽穗, (为了使作物茁壮生长)摘去穗状雄花;用流苏装饰 | |
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46 decanted | |
v.将(酒等)自瓶中倒入另一容器( decant的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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47 atmospheric | |
adj.大气的,空气的;大气层的;大气所引起的 | |
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48 embalmed | |
adj.用防腐药物保存(尸体)的v.保存(尸体)不腐( embalm的过去式和过去分词 );使不被遗忘;使充满香气 | |
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49 warriors | |
武士,勇士,战士( warrior的名词复数 ) | |
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50 pouch | |
n.小袋,小包,囊状袋;vt.装...入袋中,用袋运输;vi.用袋送信件 | |
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51 pertaining | |
与…有关系的,附属…的,为…固有的(to) | |
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52 tangled | |
adj. 纠缠的,紊乱的 动词tangle的过去式和过去分词 | |
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53 fins | |
[医]散热片;鱼鳍;飞边;鸭掌 | |
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54 crest | |
n.顶点;饰章;羽冠;vt.达到顶点;vi.形成浪尖 | |
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55 implements | |
n.工具( implement的名词复数 );家具;手段;[法律]履行(契约等)v.实现( implement的第三人称单数 );执行;贯彻;使生效 | |
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56 eminent | |
adj.显赫的,杰出的,有名的,优良的 | |
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57 unevenness | |
n. 不平坦,不平衡,不匀性 | |
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58 enthusiast | |
n.热心人,热衷者 | |
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59 stump | |
n.残株,烟蒂,讲演台;v.砍断,蹒跚而走 | |
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60 arbor | |
n.凉亭;树木 | |
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61 prodigiously | |
adv.异常地,惊人地,巨大地 | |
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62 pointed | |
adj.尖的,直截了当的 | |
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63 precisely | |
adv.恰好,正好,精确地,细致地 | |
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64 triangular | |
adj.三角(形)的,三者间的 | |
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65 flea | |
n.跳蚤 | |
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66 invaluable | |
adj.无价的,非常宝贵的,极为贵重的 | |
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67 calves | |
n.(calf的复数)笨拙的男子,腓;腿肚子( calf的名词复数 );牛犊;腓;小腿肚v.生小牛( calve的第三人称单数 );(冰川)崩解;生(小牛等),产(犊);使(冰川)崩解 | |
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68 pounce | |
n.猛扑;v.猛扑,突然袭击,欣然同意 | |
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69 consolations | |
n.安慰,慰问( consolation的名词复数 );起安慰作用的人(或事物) | |
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70 thighs | |
n.股,大腿( thigh的名词复数 );食用的鸡(等的)腿 | |
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71 fleas | |
n.跳蚤( flea的名词复数 );爱财如命;没好气地(拒绝某人的要求) | |
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72 isles | |
岛( isle的名词复数 ) | |
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73 libertine | |
n.淫荡者;adj.放荡的,自由思想的 | |
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74 rosy | |
adj.美好的,乐观的,玫瑰色的 | |
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75 salute | |
vi.行礼,致意,问候,放礼炮;vt.向…致意,迎接,赞扬;n.招呼,敬礼,礼炮 | |
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76 longing | |
n.(for)渴望 | |
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