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CHAPTER XI THE VICTORIA AND ALBERT RAILWAY
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 My journey is at an end, the tale is told, and the reader who has followed so faithfully and so far has a right to ask what message I bring back. It can be stated in three words. Concentrate upon Uganda!
 
Over the greater part of the north-east quarter of Africa, British influence or authority in one form or another is supreme2. But when I turn my mind over all those vast expanses, excluding only Egypt, there is no region which offers prospects3 to compare in hopefulness with those of the Protectorate of Uganda. The Soudan is far greater in extent and importance, and Great Britain is at no charge in respect to it. But the Soudan is clearly inferior in fertility. The East African Protectorate possesses not only enormous coast-lands of great value, but noble plateaux where the air is as cool as an English spring. But 210 we already spend on East Africa—and upon the needs of its expensive white settlers—more than the whole revenue of Uganda; and yet the promise is not so bright. Northern Somaliland is a desert of rocks and thorn bushes peopled by rifle-armed fanatics4, on which we spend nearly half as much as the whole annual grant-in-aid of Uganda. And between Somaliland and Uganda there is this contrast presented in its crudest form—a barren land with dangerous inhabitants; and a fruitful land with a docile5 people. What is least worth having, is most difficult to hold: what is most worth having, is easiest.
 
The union under scientific direction in Uganda (and I include in this popular name Usoga, Unyoro, Toro and Ankole, etc.) of unequalled fertility with a population of high intelligence and social quality, in a region of extraordinary waterways, must, unless some grievous error or neglect should intervene, result in remarkable6 economic developments. Already more than half the traffic which passes down the railway to Mombasa comes from beyond the lake. Yet scarcely any money has ever been spent on Uganda. No European roads exist, no railways have been built, no 211 waterfalls are harnessed, no public works of any serious description have been undertaken. A poor little grant-in-aid has barely supported the day-to-day cost of European administration, and practically nothing in cash or credit has been available for the development of the country. But it is alive by itself. It is vital; and in my view, in spite of its insects and its diseases, it ought in the course of time to become the most prosperous of all our East and Central African possessions, and perhaps the financial driving wheel of all this part of the world. It is far from my desire to disparage7 the East African Protectorate, or to suggest diminution8 of activity or support. Both Protectorates are necessary to each other and should advance together; but in view of their relative positions, and looking at the situation as it is to-day, my counsel plainly is—"Concentrate upon Uganda!" Nowhere else in Africa will a little money go so far. Nowhere else will the results be more brilliant, more substantial or more rapidly realized.
 
Cotton alone should make the fortune of Uganda. All the best qualities of cotton can be grown in the highest perfection, a hundred thousand intelligent landowners occupying 212 twenty thousand square miles of suitable soil are eager to engage in the cultivation9. An industrious10 and organized population offers the necessary labour. Merely at the request of the Government cotton has been planted experimentally on a considerable scale throughout Uganda. The figures of production—though of course they are only the first beginnings—show a surprising expansion. Great care is required, and steps have already been taken to secure that the quality of cotton exported from Uganda is not deteriorated12 or its reputation prejudiced by hasty or untutored action, that only the seeds which yield the best results should be distributed, and that no indiscriminate mixture should be permitted. The Government must control the culture. Experts must watch the ginneries and educate the native cultivator. Roads must be made to enable the crop to be marketed. The scientific organization of the cotton-growing resources of Uganda has now been definitely undertaken. A special grant of £10,000 a year will in future be devoted13 to this purpose, and the whole process will be supervised by European officers in close touch through the Colonial Office with the highest Manchester 213 authorities and the British Cotton-Growing Association. In the opinion of the ablest observers the next five years will see a very remarkable development in cotton production, even though the means available to foster it continue to be slender.
 
But cotton is only one of those tropical products for which the demand of civilized14 industry is almost insatiable, and which can nowhere in the world be grown more cheaply, more easily, more perfectly15 than between the waters of the two great lakes. Rubber, fibre, cinnamon, cocoa, coffee, sugar may all be cultivated upon the greatest scale; virgin16 forests of rare and valuable timber await the axe17; and even though mineral wealth may perhaps never lend its hectic18 glory to Uganda, the economic foundations of its prosperity will stand securely upon a rich and varied19 agriculture. A settler's country it can never be. Whatever may be the destinies of the East African Highlands, the shores of the great lakes will never be the permanent residence of a white race. It is a planter's land, where the labours of the native population may be organized and directed by superior intelligence and external capital. For my own part I rejoice that the 214 physical conditions of the country are such as to prevent the growth in the heart of happy Uganda of a petty white community, with the harsh and selfish ideas which mark the jealous contact of races and the exploitation of the weaker. Let it remain a "planter's land." Let the planters, instead of being the agents of excited syndicates with minds absorbed in the profits of shareholders20 thousands of miles away, be either Europeans of substance and character who have given proofs of their knowledge of natives and their ability to deal skilfully21 and justly with them, or better still—say I—let them be the disinterested22 officers of the Government, directing the development of the country neither in their own, nor any other pecuniary23 interest, but for the general good of its people and of the Empire of which it forms a part.
 
But if the immediate24 inflexion of British policy in Eastern Africa should be, without prejudice, but with precedence of other provinces, to accelerate the economic and social development of Uganda, what are the first steps to take? I might have much to say of Forestry25 and Agriculture; of an extended system of technical education similar to that 215 given at the Gordon College at Khartoum, here perhaps in part to be achieved through grants in aid of the existing missionary26 schools; of road-making, indispensable to progress, of motor-transport, and of water-power. But let me make my message brief and unclouded, and as before expressed in three words, "Build a Railway."
 
The clusters of colonial possessions which have been acquired on the east and west coasts of Africa, so rapidly and with so little cost or bloodshed, will unquestionably prove an invaluable27, if not indeed a necessary feature of the British Empire. From these vast plantations28 will be drawn29 the raw materials of many of our most important industries; to them will flow a continuous and broadening train of British products; and in them the peculiar30 gifts for administration and high civic31 virtues32 of our race may find a healthy and an honourable33 scope. Some of these great estates, like Southern Nigeria on the west coast, are already so prosperous as not only to be self-supporting, but able to assist with credit and subvention the progress of neighbours less far advanced. Others are still a charge upon our estimates. We are annually34 put to the expense of grants-in-aid more or less considerable for Northern 216 Somaliland, the East African Protectorate, Nyassaland and Uganda. Heavy upon the finance of all the East Coast hangs the capital charge of the Uganda Railway. In no way will these charges be eased or removed except by the rise of one or more of the territories concerned to economic buoyancy, or by the growth of railway traffic down the Uganda trunk consequent upon development. Under present conditions the progress made from year to year is steady and encouraging. The charges upon the Colonial Estimates diminish regularly every year. Every year the administration of the different Governments increases in elaboration, in efficiency and consequently in cost. The extra charge is met ever more fully1 by the returning yield of a grateful soil. Except for the chances of war, rebellion, pestilence35, and famine which brood over the infancy36 of tropical protectorates, but which may be averted37 or controlled, it would be easy to calculate a date—not too remote—by which all contribution from the British tax-payer would be unnecessary. The movement of events is encouraging; but there is one method by which it can be made far more sure and far more swift, by which all adverse38 chances are 217 minimized, and all existing resources stimulated39 and multiplied—railways.
 
I would go so far as to say that it is only wasting time and money to try to govern, or still more develop, a great African possession without a railway. There can be no security, progress, or prosperity without at least one central line of rapid communication driven through the heart of the country. Where, as in Northern Somaliland, the land itself is utterly40 valueless, a mere11 desert of rocks and scrub, or where the military dangers are excessive and utterly disproportioned to any results that can ever be reaped—withdrawal and concentration are the true policy. But if for any reason it be decided41 to remain and to administer, a railway becomes the prime of absolute necessities. Till then all civilized government is extravagant42 and precarious43, and all profitable commerce practically impossible. These considerations have lately led a British Government to sanction the extensive railways, nearly 600 miles long, now being rapidly constructed in Northern and Southern Nigeria; and the same arguments apply, though in my view with increased force, to the Uganda Protectorate. 218
 
It is not usually realized that the Uganda railway does not pass through Uganda. It is the railway to Uganda and not of Uganda. It stops short of the land from which it takes its name, and falls exhausted44 by its exertions45 and vicissitudes46, content feverishly47 to lap the waters of the Victoria Nyanza. Uganda is reached, but not traversed by steam communication in any form. Yet the extension of the railway from the western shores of the Victoria to the Albert Nyanza would not only carry it through much of the most valuable and fertile country within its radius48, but as I shall show could far more than double its effective scope.
 
It may be accepted as an axiom that in the present state of development in these African protectorates, it is scarcely ever, and indeed I think never, worth while to build railways in competition with waterways. Railways should in new countries be in supplement of, and not in substitution for, lakes and navigable rivers. No doubt direct through-routes of railway, where bulk is not broken and all delays and changings are avoided, show an imposing49 advantage in comparison with a mere alternation of water stages and railway links. There could be no doubt which was the better if only 219 you leave out the question of cost. But it is just this question of cost which cannot be left out, which clamorously dominates the proposition from the beginning. For first-class countries may afford first-class railways and trains de luxe, but second-class countries must be less ambitious, and young new jungle-born countries are satisfied, or ought to be, if they get any railway at all. The differences between the best railway in the world and the worst, are no doubt impressive; but they become utterly insignificant50 when contrasted with the difference between the worst railway in the world and no railway at all. For observe, the comparison is not with perfect lines of European communication, nor with anything like them, nor even with a waggon51 on a turnpike road. It is with a jogging, grunting52, panting, failing line of tottering53 coolies, men reduced to beasts of burden, that the new pioneer line must be compared—that is to say, with the most painful, most degrading, slowest and feeblest method of transportation which has ever disgraced the world. And compared with that, any line of steam-communication, however primitive54, however light, however interrupted, is heaven. 220
 
I am endeavouring to guide the reader to a positive proposal of a modest and practical character, I mean the construction of a new railway which might be called "The Victoria and Albert Railway," although it would virtually be an extension of the existing Uganda line. This railway should traverse the country between the great lakes, and join together these two noble reservoirs with all their respective river connections. The distance is not great. Two hundred and fifty miles would exceed the largest computation; and perhaps a line of one hundred and fifty miles would suffice. If the cost of this railway were estimated, as I am informed is reasonable, at a maximum figure of £5,000 a mile, the total sum involved would be between £1,250,000 and £750,000.
 
The supreme advantage of making a railway debouch55 upon a great lake, is that every point on the lake shore is instantly put in almost equal communication with railhead. Steamers coast round on circular tours, and whatsoever56 trade or traffic may offer along the whole circumference57, is carried swiftly to the railway. Lakes are in fact the catchment areas of trade, and it is by tapping and uniting them that the 221 economic life of Central Africa can be most easily and swiftly stimulated.
 
Two routes present themselves with various competing advantages by which the Victoria and Albert Railway may proceed. The first, the most obvious, most desirable and most expensive, is straight across the Highlands of Toro, through the best of the cotton country, from a point on the Victoria Lake in the neighbourhood of Entebbe, to where the Semliki river runs into the southern end of Lake Albert. The second would practically follow the footsteps recorded in these pages. It does not offer a direct line. It does not pass during the whole of its length through cultivated and inhabited country. It does not reach the Albert Lake at the most convenient end. But it is far cheaper than the other. It is only 135 miles long instead of nearly 250. It connects not only the two great lakes, but also Lake Chioga with all its channels and tributaries58, in one system of unbroken steam communication.
 
Briefly59 this latter project would consist of two links of railway: the first about sixty miles long from Jinja (or Ripon Falls) to Kakindu, the first point where the Victoria Nile 222 becomes navigable: the second about seventy-five miles long from the neighbourhood of Mruli to the Nile below the Murchison Falls and near its mouth on the Albert. By these two sections of railway, together only 135 miles in length, a wonderful extent of waterways would be commanded; to wit: 1. Thirty miles of the Victoria Nile navigable from Kakindu to Lake Chioga. 2. Lake Chioga itself, with its long arms and gulfs stretching deeply into the whole of the fertile regions to the south-west of Mount Elgon, and affording a perimeter60 of navigable coastline accessible by steamers, of certainly not less than 250 miles. 3. All that reach of the Victoria Nile navigable from Lake Chioga to Foweira when the rapids ending in the Murchison Falls begin again—70 miles. 4. Thirty miles from below the falls to the Albert Lake. 5. The whole of the Albert Lake shores—250 miles. 6. The Semliki river navigable (once a sandbar has been passed) for sixty miles. 7. The glorious open reach of the White Nile from the Albert Lake to Nimule—120 miles. Thus by the construction of only 135 miles of railroad, swift modern communication would be established over a total range of 800 miles: or for an addition of one-fifth to its length 223 and one-eighth to its cost the effective radius of the Uganda railway would be more than doubled. Such railway propositions are few and far between.
 
I do not prejudge the choice of these two routes. Both are now being carefully surveyed. The advantages of the longer and more ambitious line across Toro are perhaps superior. But the cost is also nearly twice as great; and cost is a vital factor—not merely to the government called upon to find money, but still more to the commercial soundness of an enterprise which is permanently61 crippled, if its original capital charges are allowed notably62 to exceed what the estimated earnings63 would sustain. The question is one which will require severe and patient examination, the nicest balancings between competitive advantages, the smoothest compromises between the practical and the ideal.
 
But let us now look forward to a time—not, I trust, remote—when by one route or the other the distance between the Victoria and Albert Lakes has been spanned by a railway, and when the Mountains of the Moon are scarcely four days' journey from Mombasa. The British Government will then be possessed64 of the 224 shortest route to the Eastern Congo. The Uganda railway will be able to offer rates for merchandise and railway material with which no other line that can ever be constructed will ever be able to compete. The whole of that already considerable, though as yet stifled65 trade, which feebly trickles66 back half across Africa by Boma to the Atlantic, which is looking desperately67 for an outlet68 to the northward69, which percolates70 in driblets through Uganda to-day, will flow swiftly and abundantly to the benefit of all parties concerned down the Uganda trunk, raising that line with steady impulse from the status of a political railway towards the level of a sound commercial enterprise. In no other way will the British tax-payer recover his capital. The advantages are great and the expense moderate. Larger considerations may postpone71, and the imperative72 need of the fullest surveys will in any case delay construction; but I cannot doubt that the Victoria and Albert railway is now the most important project awaiting action in the whole of that group of Protectorates which Sir Frederick Lugard used proudly to call "our East African Empire."
 
But let us proceed one step further in the 225 development of the communications of north-east Africa. When an extension of the Uganda railway has reached the Albert Nyanza, only one link will be missing to connect the whole of the rail and waterway system of East Africa and Uganda with the enormous system of railways and riverways of Egypt and the Soudan, to connect the Uganda with the Desert railway, to join the navigation of the great lakes to the navigation of the Blue and White Niles. Only one link will be missing, and that a very short one; the distance of 110 miles from Nimule to Gondokoro, where the Nile is interrupted by cataracts73. Of the commercial utility of such a link in itself I have nothing to say; but as a means of marrying two gigantic systems of steam communication, it will some day possess a high importance; and thereafter over the whole of the north-east quarter of the African continent under the influence or authority of the British Crown, comprising a total mileage74 by rail and river of perhaps 20,000 miles, uninterrupted steam communication will prevail.
 
The adventurous75 and the imaginative may peer out beyond these compact and practicable steps into a more remote and speculative76 region. 226 Perhaps by the time that the junction77 between the Uganda and Soudan rail and water systems has been effected, the Rhodes Cape78 to Cairo railway will have reached the southern end of Lake Tanganyika: and then only one comparatively short hiatus will bar a complete transcontinental line, if not wholly of railroad, at least of steam traffic and of comfortable and speedy travel.
 
Then, perhaps it will be time to make another journey; but as the reader, who will no doubt take care to secure a first-class tourist ticket, will no longer require my services as guide, I shall take this opportunity of making him my bow.

The End

点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 fully Gfuzd     
adv.完全地,全部地,彻底地;充分地
参考例句:
  • The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气,然后全部呼出。
  • They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。
2 supreme PHqzc     
adj.极度的,最重要的;至高的,最高的
参考例句:
  • It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
  • He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。
3 prospects fkVzpY     
n.希望,前途(恒为复数)
参考例句:
  • There is a mood of pessimism in the company about future job prospects. 公司中有一种对工作前景悲观的情绪。
  • They are less sanguine about the company's long-term prospects. 他们对公司的远景不那么乐观。
4 fanatics b39691a04ddffdf6b4b620155fcc8d78     
狂热者,入迷者( fanatic的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • The heathen temple was torn down by a crowd of religions fanatics. 异教徒的神殿被一群宗教狂热分子拆除了。
  • Placing nukes in the hands of baby-faced fanatics? 把核弹交给一些宗教狂热者手里?
5 docile s8lyp     
adj.驯服的,易控制的,容易教的
参考例句:
  • Circus monkeys are trained to be very docile and obedient.马戏团的猴子训练得服服贴贴的。
  • He is a docile and well-behaved child.他是个温顺且彬彬有礼的孩子。
6 remarkable 8Vbx6     
adj.显著的,异常的,非凡的,值得注意的
参考例句:
  • She has made remarkable headway in her writing skills.她在写作技巧方面有了长足进步。
  • These cars are remarkable for the quietness of their engines.这些汽车因发动机没有噪音而不同凡响。
7 disparage nldzJ     
v.贬抑,轻蔑
参考例句:
  • Your behaviour will disparage the whole family.你的行为将使全家丢脸。
  • Never disparage yourself or minimize your strength or power.不要贬低你自己或降低你的力量或能力。
8 diminution 2l9zc     
n.减少;变小
参考例句:
  • They hope for a small diminution in taxes.他们希望捐税能稍有减少。
  • He experienced no diminution of his physical strength.他并未感觉体力衰落。
9 cultivation cnfzl     
n.耕作,培养,栽培(法),养成
参考例句:
  • The cultivation in good taste is our main objective.培养高雅情趣是我们的主要目标。
  • The land is not fertile enough to repay cultivation.这块土地不够肥沃,不值得耕种。
10 industrious a7Axr     
adj.勤劳的,刻苦的,奋发的
参考例句:
  • If the tiller is industrious,the farmland is productive.人勤地不懒。
  • She was an industrious and willing worker.她是个勤劳肯干的员工。
11 mere rC1xE     
adj.纯粹的;仅仅,只不过
参考例句:
  • That is a mere repetition of what you said before.那不过是重复了你以前讲的话。
  • It's a mere waste of time waiting any longer.再等下去纯粹是浪费时间。
12 deteriorated a4fe98b02a18d2ca4fe500863af93815     
恶化,变坏( deteriorate的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • Her health deteriorated rapidly, and she died shortly afterwards. 她的健康状况急剧恶化,不久便去世了。
  • His condition steadily deteriorated. 他的病情恶化,日甚一日。
13 devoted xu9zka     
adj.忠诚的,忠实的,热心的,献身于...的
参考例句:
  • He devoted his life to the educational cause of the motherland.他为祖国的教育事业贡献了一生。
  • We devoted a lengthy and full discussion to this topic.我们对这个题目进行了长时间的充分讨论。
14 civilized UwRzDg     
a.有教养的,文雅的
参考例句:
  • Racism is abhorrent to a civilized society. 文明社会憎恶种族主义。
  • rising crime in our so-called civilized societies 在我们所谓文明社会中日益增多的犯罪行为
15 perfectly 8Mzxb     
adv.完美地,无可非议地,彻底地
参考例句:
  • The witnesses were each perfectly certain of what they said.证人们个个对自己所说的话十分肯定。
  • Everything that we're doing is all perfectly above board.我们做的每件事情都是光明正大的。
16 virgin phPwj     
n.处女,未婚女子;adj.未经使用的;未经开发的
参考例句:
  • Have you ever been to a virgin forest?你去过原始森林吗?
  • There are vast expanses of virgin land in the remote regions.在边远地区有大片大片未开垦的土地。
17 axe 2oVyI     
n.斧子;v.用斧头砍,削减
参考例句:
  • Be careful with that sharp axe.那把斧子很锋利,你要当心。
  • The edge of this axe has turned.这把斧子卷了刃了。
18 hectic jdZzk     
adj.肺病的;消耗热的;发热的;闹哄哄的
参考例句:
  • I spent a very hectic Sunday.我度过了一个忙乱的星期天。
  • The two days we spent there were enjoyable but hectic.我们在那里度过的两天愉快但闹哄哄的。
19 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。
20 shareholders 7d3b0484233cf39bc3f4e3ebf97e69fe     
n.股东( shareholder的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • The meeting was attended by 90% of shareholders. 90%的股东出席了会议。
  • the company's fiduciary duty to its shareholders 公司对股东负有的受托责任
21 skilfully 5a560b70e7a5ad739d1e69a929fed271     
adv. (美skillfully)熟练地
参考例句:
  • Hall skilfully weaves the historical research into a gripping narrative. 霍尔巧妙地把历史研究揉进了扣人心弦的故事叙述。
  • Enthusiasm alone won't do. You've got to work skilfully. 不能光靠傻劲儿,得找窍门。
22 disinterested vu4z6s     
adj.不关心的,不感兴趣的
参考例句:
  • He is impartial and disinterested.他公正无私。
  • He's always on the make,I have never known him do a disinterested action.他这个人一贯都是唯利是图,我从来不知道他有什么无私的行动。
23 pecuniary Vixyo     
adj.金钱的;金钱上的
参考例句:
  • She denies obtaining a pecuniary advantage by deception.她否认通过欺骗手段获得经济利益。
  • She is so independent that she refused all pecuniary aid.她很独立,所以拒绝一切金钱上的资助。
24 immediate aapxh     
adj.立即的;直接的,最接近的;紧靠的
参考例句:
  • His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
  • We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。
25 forestry 8iBxk     
n.森林学;林业
参考例句:
  • At present, the Chinese forestry is being at a significant transforming period. 当前, 我国的林业正处于一个重大的转折时期。
  • Anhua is one of the key forestry counties in Hunan province. 安化县是湖南省重点林区县之一。
26 missionary ID8xX     
adj.教会的,传教(士)的;n.传教士
参考例句:
  • She taught in a missionary school for a couple of years.她在一所教会学校教了两年书。
  • I hope every member understands the value of missionary work. 我希望教友都了解传教工作的价值。
27 invaluable s4qxe     
adj.无价的,非常宝贵的,极为贵重的
参考例句:
  • A computer would have been invaluable for this job.一台计算机对这个工作的作用会是无法估计的。
  • This information was invaluable to him.这个消息对他来说是非常宝贵的。
28 plantations ee6ea2c72cc24bed200cd75cf6fbf861     
n.种植园,大农场( plantation的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • Soon great plantations, supported by slave labor, made some families very wealthy. 不久之后出现了依靠奴隶劳动的大庄园,使一些家庭成了富豪。 来自英汉非文学 - 政府文件
  • Winterborne's contract was completed, and the plantations were deserted. 维恩特波恩的合同完成后,那片林地变得荒废了。 来自辞典例句
29 drawn MuXzIi     
v.拖,拉,拔出;adj.憔悴的,紧张的
参考例句:
  • All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
  • Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。
30 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。
31 civic Fqczn     
adj.城市的,都市的,市民的,公民的
参考例句:
  • I feel it is my civic duty to vote.我认为投票选举是我作为公民的义务。
  • The civic leaders helped to forward the project.市政府领导者协助促进工程的进展。
32 virtues cd5228c842b227ac02d36dd986c5cd53     
美德( virtue的名词复数 ); 德行; 优点; 长处
参考例句:
  • Doctors often extol the virtues of eating less fat. 医生常常宣扬少吃脂肪的好处。
  • She delivered a homily on the virtues of family life. 她进行了一场家庭生活美德方面的说教。
33 honourable honourable     
adj.可敬的;荣誉的,光荣的
参考例句:
  • I don't think I am worthy of such an honourable title.这样的光荣称号,我可担当不起。
  • I hope to find an honourable way of settling difficulties.我希望设法找到一个体面的办法以摆脱困境。
34 annually VzYzNO     
adv.一年一次,每年
参考例句:
  • Many migratory birds visit this lake annually.许多候鸟每年到这个湖上作短期逗留。
  • They celebrate their wedding anniversary annually.他们每年庆祝一番结婚纪念日。
35 pestilence YlGzsG     
n.瘟疫
参考例句:
  • They were crazed by the famine and pestilence of that bitter winter.他们因那年严冬的饥饿与瘟疫而折磨得发狂。
  • A pestilence was raging in that area. 瘟疫正在那一地区流行。
36 infancy F4Ey0     
n.婴儿期;幼年期;初期
参考例句:
  • He came to England in his infancy.他幼年时期来到英国。
  • Their research is only in its infancy.他们的研究处于初级阶段。
37 averted 35a87fab0bbc43636fcac41969ed458a     
防止,避免( avert的过去式和过去分词 ); 转移
参考例句:
  • A disaster was narrowly averted. 及时防止了一场灾难。
  • Thanks to her skilful handling of the affair, the problem was averted. 多亏她对事情处理得巧妙,才避免了麻烦。
38 adverse 5xBzs     
adj.不利的;有害的;敌对的,不友好的
参考例句:
  • He is adverse to going abroad.他反对出国。
  • The improper use of medicine could lead to severe adverse reactions.用药不当会产生严重的不良反应。
39 stimulated Rhrz78     
a.刺激的
参考例句:
  • The exhibition has stimulated interest in her work. 展览增进了人们对她作品的兴趣。
  • The award has stimulated her into working still harder. 奖金促使她更加努力地工作。
40 utterly ZfpzM1     
adv.完全地,绝对地
参考例句:
  • Utterly devoted to the people,he gave his life in saving his patients.他忠于人民,把毕生精力用于挽救患者的生命。
  • I was utterly ravished by the way she smiled.她的微笑使我完全陶醉了。
41 decided lvqzZd     
adj.决定了的,坚决的;明显的,明确的
参考例句:
  • This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
  • There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。
42 extravagant M7zya     
adj.奢侈的;过分的;(言行等)放肆的
参考例句:
  • They tried to please him with fulsome compliments and extravagant gifts.他们想用溢美之词和奢华的礼品来取悦他。
  • He is extravagant in behaviour.他行为放肆。
43 precarious Lu5yV     
adj.不安定的,靠不住的;根据不足的
参考例句:
  • Our financial situation had become precarious.我们的财务状况已变得不稳定了。
  • He earned a precarious living as an artist.作为一个艺术家,他过得是朝不保夕的生活。
44 exhausted 7taz4r     
adj.极其疲惫的,精疲力尽的
参考例句:
  • It was a long haul home and we arrived exhausted.搬运回家的这段路程特别长,到家时我们已筋疲力尽。
  • Jenny was exhausted by the hustle of city life.珍妮被城市生活的忙乱弄得筋疲力尽。
45 exertions 2d5ee45020125fc19527a78af5191726     
n.努力( exertion的名词复数 );费力;(能力、权力等的)运用;行使
参考例句:
  • As long as they lived, exertions would not be necessary to her. 只要他们活着,是不需要她吃苦的。 来自辞典例句
  • She failed to unlock the safe in spite of all her exertions. 她虽然费尽力气,仍未能将那保险箱的锁打开。 来自辞典例句
46 vicissitudes KeFzyd     
n.变迁,世事变化;变迁兴衰( vicissitude的名词复数 );盛衰兴废
参考例句:
  • He experienced several great social vicissitudes in his life. 他一生中经历了几次大的社会变迁。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • A man used to vicissitudes is not easily dejected. 饱经沧桑,不易沮丧。 来自《简明英汉词典》
47 feverishly 5ac95dc6539beaf41c678cd0fa6f89c7     
adv. 兴奋地
参考例句:
  • Feverishly he collected his data. 他拼命收集资料。
  • The company is having to cast around feverishly for ways to cut its costs. 公司迫切须要想出各种降低成本的办法。
48 radius LTKxp     
n.半径,半径范围;有效航程,范围,界限
参考例句:
  • He has visited every shop within a radius of two miles.周围两英里以内的店铺他都去过。
  • We are measuring the radius of the circle.我们正在测量圆的半径。
49 imposing 8q9zcB     
adj.使人难忘的,壮丽的,堂皇的,雄伟的
参考例句:
  • The fortress is an imposing building.这座城堡是一座宏伟的建筑。
  • He has lost his imposing appearance.他已失去堂堂仪表。
50 insignificant k6Mx1     
adj.无关紧要的,可忽略的,无意义的
参考例句:
  • In winter the effect was found to be insignificant.在冬季,这种作用是不明显的。
  • This problem was insignificant compared to others she faced.这一问题与她面临的其他问题比较起来算不得什么。
51 waggon waggon     
n.运货马车,运货车;敞篷车箱
参考例句:
  • The enemy attacked our waggon train.敌人袭击了我们的运货马车队。
  • Someone jumped out from the foremost waggon and cried aloud.有人从最前面的一辆大车里跳下来,大声叫嚷。
52 grunting ae2709ef2cd9ee22f906b0a6a6886465     
咕哝的,呼噜的
参考例句:
  • He pulled harder on the rope, grunting with the effort. 他边用力边哼声,使出更大的力气拉绳子。
  • Pigs were grunting and squealing in the yard. 猪在院子里哼哼地叫个不停。
53 tottering 20cd29f0c6d8ba08c840e6520eeb3fac     
adj.蹒跚的,动摇的v.走得或动得不稳( totter的现在分词 );踉跄;蹒跚;摇摇欲坠
参考例句:
  • the tottering walls of the castle 古城堡摇摇欲坠的墙壁
  • With power and to spare we must pursue the tottering foe. 宜将剩勇追穷寇。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
54 primitive vSwz0     
adj.原始的;简单的;n.原(始)人,原始事物
参考例句:
  • It is a primitive instinct to flee a place of danger.逃离危险的地方是一种原始本能。
  • His book describes the march of the civilization of a primitive society.他的著作描述了一个原始社会的开化过程。
55 debouch 4y2xZ     
v.流出,进入
参考例句:
  • The regiments debouched from the valley.这个团从山谷中走了出来。
  • The stream debouches into the estuary.这条河流入河口湾。
56 whatsoever Beqz8i     
adv.(用于否定句中以加强语气)任何;pron.无论什么
参考例句:
  • There's no reason whatsoever to turn down this suggestion.没有任何理由拒绝这个建议。
  • All things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you,do ye even so to them.你想别人对你怎样,你就怎样对人。
57 circumference HOszh     
n.圆周,周长,圆周线
参考例句:
  • It's a mile round the circumference of the field.运动场周长一英里。
  • The diameter and the circumference of a circle correlate.圆的直径与圆周有相互关系。
58 tributaries b4e105caf2ca2e0705dc8dc3ed061602     
n. 支流
参考例句:
  • In such areas small tributaries or gullies will not show. 在这些地区,小的支流和冲沟显示不出来。
  • These tributaries are subsequent streams which erode strike valley. 这些支流系即为蚀出走向谷的次生河。
59 briefly 9Styo     
adv.简单地,简短地
参考例句:
  • I want to touch briefly on another aspect of the problem.我想简单地谈一下这个问题的另一方面。
  • He was kidnapped and briefly detained by a terrorist group.他被一个恐怖组织绑架并短暂拘禁。
60 perimeter vSxzj     
n.周边,周长,周界
参考例句:
  • The river marks the eastern perimeter of our land.这条河标示我们的土地东面的边界。
  • Drinks in hands,they wandered around the perimeter of the ball field.他们手里拿着饮料在球场周围漫不经心地遛跶。
61 permanently KluzuU     
adv.永恒地,永久地,固定不变地
参考例句:
  • The accident left him permanently scarred.那次事故给他留下了永久的伤疤。
  • The ship is now permanently moored on the Thames in London.该船现在永久地停泊在伦敦泰晤士河边。
62 notably 1HEx9     
adv.值得注意地,显著地,尤其地,特别地
参考例句:
  • Many students were absent,notably the monitor.许多学生缺席,特别是连班长也没来。
  • A notably short,silver-haired man,he plays basketball with his staff several times a week.他个子明显较为矮小,一头银发,每周都会和他的员工一起打几次篮球。
63 earnings rrWxJ     
n.工资收人;利润,利益,所得
参考例句:
  • That old man lives on the earnings of his daughter.那个老人靠他女儿的收入维持生活。
  • Last year there was a 20% decrease in his earnings.去年他的收入减少了20%。
64 possessed xuyyQ     
adj.疯狂的;拥有的,占有的
参考例句:
  • He flew out of the room like a man possessed.他像着了魔似地猛然冲出房门。
  • He behaved like someone possessed.他行为举止像是魔怔了。
65 stifled 20d6c5b702a525920b7425fe94ea26a5     
(使)窒息, (使)窒闷( stifle的过去式和过去分词 ); 镇压,遏制; 堵
参考例句:
  • The gas stifled them. 煤气使他们窒息。
  • The rebellion was stifled. 叛乱被镇压了。
66 trickles 90ffecf5836b69570298d5fc11cddea9     
n.细流( trickle的名词复数 );稀稀疏疏缓慢来往的东西v.滴( trickle的第三人称单数 );淌;使)慢慢走;缓慢移动
参考例句:
  • Trickles of sweat rained down my head and neck. 我颈上头上的汗珠,更同盛雨似的,一颗一颗的钻出来了。 来自汉英文学 - 中国现代小说
  • Water trickles through an underground grotto. 水沿着地下岩洞流淌。 来自辞典例句
67 desperately cu7znp     
adv.极度渴望地,绝望地,孤注一掷地
参考例句:
  • He was desperately seeking a way to see her again.他正拼命想办法再见她一面。
  • He longed desperately to be back at home.他非常渴望回家。
68 outlet ZJFxG     
n.出口/路;销路;批发商店;通风口;发泄
参考例句:
  • The outlet of a water pipe was blocked.水管的出水口堵住了。
  • Running is a good outlet for his energy.跑步是他发泄过剩精力的好方法。
69 northward YHexe     
adv.向北;n.北方的地区
参考例句:
  • He pointed his boat northward.他将船驶向北方。
  • I would have a chance to head northward quickly.我就很快有机会去北方了。
70 percolates 065f65ad813a5a81fffacc5597f35c8f     
v.滤( percolate的第三人称单数 );渗透;(思想等)渗透;渗入
参考例句:
  • At a low flow rate, fluid merely percolates through the void spaces between stationary particles. 当流速低的时候,流体只是穿过静止的颗粒之间的空隙。 来自辞典例句
  • Water percolates through sand. 水由沙中滤过。 来自互联网
71 postpone rP0xq     
v.延期,推迟
参考例句:
  • I shall postpone making a decision till I learn full particulars.在未获悉详情之前我得从缓作出决定。
  • She decided to postpone the converastion for that evening.她决定当天晚上把谈话搁一搁。
72 imperative BcdzC     
n.命令,需要;规则;祈使语气;adj.强制的;紧急的
参考例句:
  • He always speaks in an imperative tone of voice.他老是用命令的口吻讲话。
  • The events of the past few days make it imperative for her to act.过去这几天发生的事迫使她不得不立即行动。
73 cataracts a219fc2c9b1a7afeeb9c811d4d48060a     
n.大瀑布( cataract的名词复数 );白内障
参考例句:
  • The rotor cataracts water over the top of the machines. 回转轮将水从机器顶上注入。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
  • Cataracts of rain flooded the streets. 倾盆大雨弄得街道淹水。 来自辞典例句
74 mileage doOzUs     
n.里程,英里数;好处,利润
参考例句:
  • He doesn't think there's any mileage in that type of advertising.他认为做那种广告毫无效益。
  • What mileage has your car done?你的汽车跑了多少英里?
75 adventurous LKryn     
adj.爱冒险的;惊心动魄的,惊险的,刺激的 
参考例句:
  • I was filled with envy at their adventurous lifestyle.我很羨慕他们敢于冒险的生活方式。
  • He was predestined to lead an adventurous life.他注定要过冒险的生活。
76 speculative uvjwd     
adj.思索性的,暝想性的,推理的
参考例句:
  • Much of our information is speculative.我们的许多信息是带推测性的。
  • The report is highly speculative and should be ignored.那个报道推测的成分很大,不应理会。
77 junction N34xH     
n.连接,接合;交叉点,接合处,枢纽站
参考例句:
  • There's a bridge at the junction of the two rivers.两河的汇合处有座桥。
  • You must give way when you come to this junction.你到了这个路口必须让路。
78 cape ITEy6     
n.海角,岬;披肩,短披风
参考例句:
  • I long for a trip to the Cape of Good Hope.我渴望到好望角去旅行。
  • She was wearing a cape over her dress.她在外套上披着一件披肩。


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