He very naturally concluded, that it would be most agreeable to us to have the circumstance of kissing the slipper11 dispensed12 with. Having had some conversation, therefore, with his Holiness, in his own apartment, while we remained in another room, previous to our introduction; he[50] afterwards returned, and informed us, that the Pontiff, indulgent to the prejudices of the British nation, did not insist on that part of the ceremonial; and therefore a very low bow, on our being presented, was all that would be required of us.
A bow! cried the D—— of H——; I should not have given myself any trouble about the matter, had I suspected that all was to end in a bow. I look on kissing the toe as the only amusing circumstance of the whole; if that is to be omitted, I will not be introduced at all. For if the most ludicrous part is left out, who would wait for the rest of a farce13?
This was a thunderstroke to our negociator, who expected thanks, at least, for the honourable14 terms he had obtained; but who, on the contrary, found himself in the same disagreeable predicament with other negociators, who have met with abuse and[51] reproach from their countrymen, on account of treaties for which they expected universal applause.
The D—— of H—— knew nothing of the treaty which our introducer had just concluded; otherwise he would certainly have prevented the negociation. As I perceived, however, that our ambassador was mortified15 with the thoughts that all his labour should prove abortive16, I said, that, although he had prevailed with his Holiness to wave that part of the ceremonial, which his Grace thought so entertaining, yet it would unquestionably be still more agreeable to him that the whole should be performed to its utmost extent: this new arrangement, therefore, needed not be an obstruction17 to our being presented.
The countenance18 of our Conductor brightened up at this proposal. He immediately[52] ushered20 us into the presence of the Supreme21 Pontiff. We all bowed to the ground; the supplest22 of the company had the happiness to touch the sacred slipper with their lips, and the least agile23 were within a few inches of that honour. As this was more than had been bargained for, his Holiness seemed agreeably surprised; raised the D—— with a smiling countenance, and conversed24 with him in an obliging manner, asking the common questions, How long he had been in Italy? Whether he found Rome agreeable? When he intended to set out for Naples?—He said something of the same kind to each of the company; and, after about a quarter of an hour or twenty minutes, we took our leave.
Next day, his Holiness sent his compliments to the D——, with a present of two medals, one of gold, and the other of silver; on both of which the head[53] of the Pontiff is very accurately25 engraved26.
The manner in which the generality of sovereign princes pass their time, is as far from being amusing or agreeable, as one can possibly imagine. Slaves to the tiresome27 routine of etiquette28; martyrs29 to the oppressive fatigue30 of pomp; constrained31 to walk every levee-day around the same dull circle, to gratify the vanity of fifty or a hundred people, by whispering a something or a nothing into the ears of each; obliged to wear a smiling countenance, even when the heart is oppressed with sadness; besieged32 by the craving33 faces of those, who are more displeased34 at what is withheld35, than grateful for the favours they have received; surrounded, as he constantly is, by adepts36 in the art of simulation, all professing37 the highest possible regard; how shall the puzzled monarch38 distinguish real from assumed attachment39?[54] and what a risk does he run, of placing his confidence where he ought to have directed his indignation! And, to all these inconveniencies, when we add this, that he is precluded40 from those delightful41 sensations which spring from disinterested42 friendship, sweet equality, and the gay, careless enjoyments43 of social life, we must acknowledge, that all that is brilliant in the condition of a sovereign, is not sufficient to compensate44 for such restraints, such dangers, and such deprivations45.
So far indeed are we from considering that envied condition as enviable, that great part of mankind are more apt to think it insupportable; and are surprised to find, that those unhappy men, whom fate has condemned46 to suffer the pains of royalty47 for life, are able to wait with patience for the natural period of their days. For, strange as it may appear, history does not furnish us with an instance, not even[55] in Great Britain itself, of a king, who hanged, or drowned, or put himself to death in any other violent manner, from mere t?dium, as other mortals, disgusted with life, are apt to do. I was at a loss to account for such an extraordinary fact, till I recollected48 that, however void of resources and activity the minds of monarchs49 may be, they are seldom allowed to rest in repose50. The storms to which people in their lofty situation are exposed, occasion such agitations51 as prevent the stagnating52 slime of t?dium from gathering53 on their minds. That kings do not commit suicide, therefore, affords only a very slender presumption54 of the happiness of their condition: although it is a strong proof, that all the hurricanes of life are not so insupportable to the human mind, as that insipid55, fearless, hopeless calm, which envelopes men who are devoid56 of mental enjoyments, and whose senses are palled57 with satiety58. If there is any truth in the above representation of the regal[56] condition, would not you imagine that of all others it would be the most shunned59? Would not you imagine that every human being would shrink from it, as from certain misery60; and that at least every wise man would say, with the Poet,
I envy none their pageantry and show,
Not only every wise man, but every foolish man, will adopt the sentiment, and act accordingly; provided his rank in life removes him from the possibility of ever attaining63 the objects in question. For what is situated64 beyond the sphere of our hopes, very seldom excites our desires; but bring the powerful magnets a little nearer, and they attract the human passions with a force which reason and philosophy cannot controul. Placed within their reach, the wise and the foolish grasp with equal eagerness at crowns and sceptres, in spite of all the thorns with which they are surrounded. Their alluring65 magic seems to have the[57] power of changing the very characters and natures of men. In pursuit of them, the indolent have been excited to the most active exertions66, the voluptuous67 have renounced68 their darling pleasures; and even those who have long walked in the direct road of integrity, have deviated69 into all the crooked70 paths of villany and fraud.
There are passions, whose indulgence is so exceedingly flattering to the natural vanity of men, that they will gratify them, though persuaded that the gratification will be attended by disappointment and misery. The love of power and sovereignty is of this class. It has been a general belief, ever since the kingly office was established among men, that cares and anxiety were the constant attendants of royalty. Yet this general conviction never made a single person decline an opportunity of embarking71 on this sea of troubles. Every new adventurer flatters[58] himself that he shall be guided by some happy star undiscovered by former navigators; and those who, after trial, have relinquished72 the voyage—Charles, Christina, Amadeus, and others—when they had quitted the helm, and were safely arrived in port, are said to have languished73, all the rest of their lives, for that situation which their own experience taught them was fraught74 with misery.
Henry the Fourth of England did not arrive at the throne by the natural and direct road. Shakespear puts the following Address to Sleep, into the mouth of this monarch:
——O Sleep! O gentle Sleep!
Nature’s soft nurse, how have I frighted thee,
And steep my senses in forgetfulness?
Why rather, Sleep, liest thou in smoky cribs,
Upon uneasy pallets stretching thee,
[59]
And lull’d with sounds of sweetest melody?
A watch-case, or a common ’larum bell?
Wilt thou, upon the high and giddy mast,
Seal up the ship-boy’s eyes, and rock his brains
In cradle of the rude imperious surge;
And in the visitation of the winds,——
Who take the ruffian billows by the top,
With deaf’ning clamours in the slipp’ry shrouds,——
Canst thou, O partial Sleep! give thy repose
To the wet sea-boy in an hour so rude;
And, in the calmest and most stillest night,
With all appliances and means to boot,
Deny it to a King?——
However eager and impatient this Prince may have formerly84 been to obtain the[60] crown, you would conclude that he was quite cloyed85 by possession at the time he made this speech; and therefore, at first sight, you would not expect that he should afterwards display any excessive attachment to what gives him so much uneasiness. But Shakespear, who knew the secret wishes, perverse86 desires, and strange inconsistencies of the human heart, better than man ever knew them, makes this very Henry so tenaciously87 fond of that which he himself considered as the cause of all his inquietude, that he cannot bear to have the crown one moment out of his sight, but orders it to be placed on his pillow when he lies on his death-bed.
Of all diadems88, the Tiara, in my opinion, has the fewest charms; and nothing can afford a stronger proof of the strength and perseverance89 of man’s passion for sovereign power, than our knowledge, that even this ecclesiastical crown is sought after[61] with as much eagerness, perhaps with more, than any other crown in the world, although the candidates are generally in the decline of life, and all of a profession which avows90 the most perfect contempt of worldly grandeur91. This appears the more wonderful when we reflect, that, over and above those sources of weariness and vexation, which the Pope has in common with other sovereigns, he has some which are peculiar92 to himself.—The tiresome religious functions which he must perform, the ungenial solitude93 of his meals, the exclusion94 of the company and conversation of women, restriction95 from the tenderest and most delightful connexions in life, from the endearments96 of a parent, and the open acknowledgment of his own children; his mind oppressed with the gloomy reflection, that the man for whom he has the least regard, perhaps his greatest enemy, may be his immediate19 successor; to which is added, the pain of seeing his[62] influence, both spiritual and temporal, declining every day; and the mortification97 of knowing, that all his ancient lofty pretensions98 are laughed at by one half of the Roman Catholics, all the Protestants, and totally disregarded by the rest of mankind. I know of nothing which can be put in the other scale to balance all those peculiar disadvantages which his Holiness labours under, unless it is the singular felicity which he lawfully99 may, and no doubt does enjoy, in the contemplation of his own infallibility.
点击收听单词发音
1 seduced | |
诱奸( seduce的过去式和过去分词 ); 勾引; 诱使堕落; 使入迷 | |
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2 idol | |
n.偶像,红人,宠儿 | |
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3 mere | |
adj.纯粹的;仅仅,只不过 | |
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4 hypocrisy | |
n.伪善,虚伪 | |
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5 drawn | |
v.拖,拉,拔出;adj.憔悴的,紧张的 | |
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6 venial | |
adj.可宽恕的;轻微的 | |
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7 transgression | |
n.违背;犯规;罪过 | |
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8 jack | |
n.插座,千斤顶,男人;v.抬起,提醒,扛举;n.(Jake)杰克 | |
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9 auspices | |
n.资助,赞助 | |
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10 ecclesiastic | |
n.教士,基督教会;adj.神职者的,牧师的,教会的 | |
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11 slipper | |
n.拖鞋 | |
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12 dispensed | |
v.分配( dispense的过去式和过去分词 );施与;配(药) | |
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13 farce | |
n.闹剧,笑剧,滑稽戏;胡闹 | |
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14 honourable | |
adj.可敬的;荣誉的,光荣的 | |
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15 mortified | |
v.使受辱( mortify的过去式和过去分词 );伤害(人的感情);克制;抑制(肉体、情感等) | |
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16 abortive | |
adj.不成功的,发育不全的 | |
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17 obstruction | |
n.阻塞,堵塞;障碍物 | |
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18 countenance | |
n.脸色,面容;面部表情;vt.支持,赞同 | |
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19 immediate | |
adj.立即的;直接的,最接近的;紧靠的 | |
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20 ushered | |
v.引,领,陪同( usher的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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21 supreme | |
adj.极度的,最重要的;至高的,最高的 | |
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22 supplest | |
(身体)柔软的( supple的最高级 ); 灵活的; 易弯曲的; 柔韧的 | |
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23 agile | |
adj.敏捷的,灵活的 | |
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24 conversed | |
v.交谈,谈话( converse的过去式 ) | |
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25 accurately | |
adv.准确地,精确地 | |
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26 engraved | |
v.在(硬物)上雕刻(字,画等)( engrave的过去式和过去分词 );将某事物深深印在(记忆或头脑中) | |
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27 tiresome | |
adj.令人疲劳的,令人厌倦的 | |
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28 etiquette | |
n.礼仪,礼节;规矩 | |
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29 martyrs | |
n.martyr的复数形式;烈士( martyr的名词复数 );殉道者;殉教者;乞怜者(向人诉苦以博取同情) | |
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30 fatigue | |
n.疲劳,劳累 | |
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31 constrained | |
adj.束缚的,节制的 | |
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32 besieged | |
包围,围困,围攻( besiege的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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33 craving | |
n.渴望,热望 | |
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34 displeased | |
a.不快的 | |
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35 withheld | |
withhold过去式及过去分词 | |
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36 adepts | |
n.专家,能手( adept的名词复数 ) | |
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37 professing | |
声称( profess的现在分词 ); 宣称; 公开表明; 信奉 | |
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38 monarch | |
n.帝王,君主,最高统治者 | |
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39 attachment | |
n.附属物,附件;依恋;依附 | |
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40 precluded | |
v.阻止( preclude的过去式和过去分词 );排除;妨碍;使…行不通 | |
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41 delightful | |
adj.令人高兴的,使人快乐的 | |
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42 disinterested | |
adj.不关心的,不感兴趣的 | |
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43 enjoyments | |
愉快( enjoyment的名词复数 ); 令人愉快的事物; 享有; 享受 | |
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44 compensate | |
vt.补偿,赔偿;酬报 vi.弥补;补偿;抵消 | |
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45 deprivations | |
剥夺( deprivation的名词复数 ); 被夺去; 缺乏; 匮乏 | |
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46 condemned | |
adj. 被责难的, 被宣告有罪的 动词condemn的过去式和过去分词 | |
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47 royalty | |
n.皇家,皇族 | |
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48 recollected | |
adj.冷静的;镇定的;被回忆起的;沉思默想的v.记起,想起( recollect的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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49 monarchs | |
君主,帝王( monarch的名词复数 ) | |
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50 repose | |
v.(使)休息;n.安息 | |
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51 agitations | |
(液体等的)摇动( agitation的名词复数 ); 鼓动; 激烈争论; (情绪等的)纷乱 | |
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52 stagnating | |
v.停滞,不流动,不发展( stagnate的现在分词 ) | |
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53 gathering | |
n.集会,聚会,聚集 | |
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54 presumption | |
n.推测,可能性,冒昧,放肆,[法律]推定 | |
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55 insipid | |
adj.无味的,枯燥乏味的,单调的 | |
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56 devoid | |
adj.全无的,缺乏的 | |
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57 palled | |
v.(因过多或过久而)生厌,感到乏味,厌烦( pall的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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58 satiety | |
n.饱和;(市场的)充分供应 | |
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59 shunned | |
v.避开,回避,避免( shun的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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60 misery | |
n.痛苦,苦恼,苦难;悲惨的境遇,贫苦 | |
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61 gilding | |
n.贴金箔,镀金 | |
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62 woe | |
n.悲哀,苦痛,不幸,困难;int.用来表达悲伤或惊慌 | |
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63 attaining | |
(通常经过努力)实现( attain的现在分词 ); 达到; 获得; 达到(某年龄、水平、状况) | |
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64 situated | |
adj.坐落在...的,处于某种境地的 | |
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65 alluring | |
adj.吸引人的,迷人的 | |
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66 exertions | |
n.努力( exertion的名词复数 );费力;(能力、权力等的)运用;行使 | |
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67 voluptuous | |
adj.肉欲的,骄奢淫逸的 | |
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68 renounced | |
v.声明放弃( renounce的过去式和过去分词 );宣布放弃;宣布与…决裂;宣布摒弃 | |
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69 deviated | |
v.偏离,越轨( deviate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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70 crooked | |
adj.弯曲的;不诚实的,狡猾的,不正当的 | |
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71 embarking | |
乘船( embark的现在分词 ); 装载; 从事 | |
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72 relinquished | |
交出,让给( relinquish的过去式和过去分词 ); 放弃 | |
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73 languished | |
长期受苦( languish的过去式和过去分词 ); 受折磨; 变得(越来越)衰弱; 因渴望而变得憔悴或闷闷不乐 | |
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74 fraught | |
adj.充满…的,伴有(危险等)的;忧虑的 | |
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75 wilt | |
v.(使)植物凋谢或枯萎;(指人)疲倦,衰弱 | |
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76 eyelids | |
n.眼睑( eyelid的名词复数 );眼睛也不眨一下;不露声色;面不改色 | |
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77 slumber | |
n.睡眠,沉睡状态 | |
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78 chambers | |
n.房间( chamber的名词复数 );(议会的)议院;卧室;会议厅 | |
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79 canopies | |
(宝座或床等上面的)华盖( canopy的名词复数 ); (飞行器上的)座舱罩; 任何悬于上空的覆盖物; 森林中天棚似的树荫 | |
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80 costly | |
adj.昂贵的,价值高的,豪华的 | |
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81 vile | |
adj.卑鄙的,可耻的,邪恶的;坏透的 | |
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82 loathsome | |
adj.讨厌的,令人厌恶的 | |
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83 monstrous | |
adj.巨大的;恐怖的;可耻的,丢脸的 | |
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84 formerly | |
adv.从前,以前 | |
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85 cloyed | |
v.发腻,倒胃口( cloy的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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86 perverse | |
adj.刚愎的;坚持错误的,行为反常的 | |
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87 tenaciously | |
坚持地 | |
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88 diadems | |
n.王冠,王权,带状头饰( diadem的名词复数 ) | |
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89 perseverance | |
n.坚持不懈,不屈不挠 | |
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90 avows | |
v.公开声明,承认( avow的第三人称单数 ) | |
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91 grandeur | |
n.伟大,崇高,宏伟,庄严,豪华 | |
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92 peculiar | |
adj.古怪的,异常的;特殊的,特有的 | |
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93 solitude | |
n. 孤独; 独居,荒僻之地,幽静的地方 | |
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94 exclusion | |
n.拒绝,排除,排斥,远足,远途旅行 | |
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95 restriction | |
n.限制,约束 | |
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96 endearments | |
n.表示爱慕的话语,亲热的表示( endearment的名词复数 ) | |
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97 mortification | |
n.耻辱,屈辱 | |
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98 pretensions | |
自称( pretension的名词复数 ); 自命不凡; 要求; 权力 | |
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99 lawfully | |
adv.守法地,合法地;合理地 | |
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