For nearly a minute Stevenson thus stood and looked at them in silence. I observed that, after the first glance at him, the two boys stared round the hut and hung their heads without looking at him again. Not so Peel. As his eyes met the superintendent's I noticed that they became fixed12. The pupils, before dilated13, suddenly contracted; the lids, previously14 wide open, half closed, and a spasm15 seemed to pass over him. His head sank lower in the folds of his rug, but never for an instant did he remove his glance from Stevenson's face. He saw something there which made him suspect that his villainy was known, and that he had run into a trap; and the second danger counteracted16 the panic caused by the first.
'Bobby Peel,' said Stevenson, 'where gun belongin' to white fellow you kill?'
At this question the two youngest absolutely grovelled17 in the ashes, and seemed to give themselves up for lost. Peel did not answer, but drew his cloak over his head, and gathered himself together beneath it, as if he had resigned himself to his fate.
'Give me the rope, doctor,' said the superintendent, turning his face towards me.
It was but for a moment that he did so, but that moment was enough for the wary18 and agile19 black, who from beneath his covering had still watched every movement. Dropping his cloak, with one bound he sprang from his heels and shot himself forward against his antagonist, who was about five or six feet from him. His hands, held out at full length, caught the superintendent in the chest, and sent him reeling the whole length of the hut, until he came crash against the table, which was covered with dishes and plates, and fell heavily in the corner. Not hesitating an instant, the now naked black rushed to the door. I stepped back outside and raised the gun, but he paid no attention to my threat and order to stop, and slipped out and made off.
'Shoot him, doctor!' roared Stevenson in a towering rage, and for some time I had him covered, but somehow I could not pull the trigger; I felt a repugnance20, guilty as he might be, at the thought of being his executioner.
I still had the gun pointed21 at the fugitive22, who was fast disappearing in the gloom, when a shout arose from the superintendent, who had just risen from the ground in time to seize Pothook, who had decided23—five seconds too late, however—upon following Peel's example. I barred the door, and the two were ordered to resume their places on each side of the fire.
'We have got these two fellows safe enough, doctor. Do you know they have been killing24 white men all about the run? Why did you not shoot Peel? I told you to fire.'
'But have they been killing white men?' I asked.
'Plenty. I heard of it to-day over at the Wakool—Peel, Pothook, little Toby, and Jumboy.'
In a low tone, as if for me, but taking care the two boys should hear us, we discussed what we should do.
The two hoys listened to us in silent terror. They knew, unhappily, only too well, from past experience, how little valued black lives were by the majority of the white men. With no provocation25 whatever, and in the mere26 wantonness of the power to slay27, they had often been slaughtered29 by the settlers. But now, conscious that they were privy30 to many murders of the whites, and that a justification31 for their death existed,—kind and just as they knew Stevenson to be in general,—they believed that their hour was come. Their fear grew every moment stronger while we talked, and, as they thought, took counsel together how best to dispose of them. The end of it was that, only too anxious to save their own lives, they made a clean breast of it. Pothook had overheard Peel describe his doings to Jimmy—one of the head-station blacks. There were three or four others principally concerned, whose names were given. They waylaid32 their victims, sometimes spearing them from behind trees; at others accosting33, and, after throwing them off their guard, striking them down unawares. Altogether Pothook knew of five or six thus killed. The bird-skin collector had met Peel when the latter was apparently34 alone, and had spoken to him. The two were walking along together, when the black made a sudden snatch at the gun the man carried, but he failed to obtain it, and took to his heels. Unfortunately, the white man, instead of letting the fellow go, and keeping his gun charged, fired the only barrel he had loaded at him as he ran away, wounding him slightly in the shoulder and arm. The other barrel was empty, he having shortly before discharged the shot it contained at a bird; and this Peel and his companions, who were lurking36 near, well knew. In an instant he was surrounded, and a volley of spears thrown at him, and he fell, pierced through and through.
Cupidity37 and revenge were the motives38 for these murders. Almost every man killed had a supply of tobacco; many had tea and sugar; and all had blankets. To them such spoil was of great value; but revenge, and the improbability of being found out, were doubtless inducements, for the class of men who wander about the interior from station to station are known to none: going nowhere in particular, but looking for employment as shepherds or hut-keepers, and heading in the direction of the districts where they are informed it can be obtained. Merely making this the pretext40 for lounging from one out-station to another, until shearing-time came on, they could earn money enough to indulge in their usual debauchery at that season, and were often marked as victims. Such men might disappear from the earth in numbers, and never be missed.
The lads seemed to have told all they knew, but Stevenson, to try them, pretended they had not done so.
''Pose you no tell what all about black fellow do,—eberyting,—mine hang you! You tell all.'
Thus urged, they informed us of the slaughter28 of another cow, killed the previous day (a thing we were as yet ignorant of). This was a great crime to any settler, and Stevenson threatened them severely41 if they kept anything back which they knew about destruction of sheep or cattle on the run; and they then confessed to several misdemeanours of that kind, though on a small scale, during the time he had been on the station.
In his anxiety to save himself, and tell 'eberyting what all about black fellow do,' Pothook confessed every piece of petty roguery his tribe had been guilty of for a long time past. It was now that we learned that, on two occasions when the slip panel of the paddock had been left down, and the horses all escaped into the bush—by the carelessness of some passing traveller, as we supposed—it was one of the blacks who had played the trick, and who had been rewarded with two sticks of tobacco for speedily finding and bringing them back. Percussion42 caps had been stolen, tobacco lying about the hut purloined43, and even charges of powder taken from the flasks44 when our backs were turned. But, above all, it was a black fellow's dog which had killed the cat, which, on account of the snakes infesting45 the neighbourhood of the huts, the superintendent had taken such trouble and pains to procure46, riding forty miles with it in a basket strapped47 behind him, and the unaccountable loss of which had much surprised and vexed48 him, for it had disappeared the day after its arrival.
'Whose dingo killed my cat, Pothook?' asked the superintendent.
Pothook rolled his eye towards young Toby, who hung his head with a guilty look.
'So, you scoundrel! that was the way the Colonel went, was it? And you pretended to hunt for it so diligently49 that I gave you your dinner and a stick of tobacco. If ever I see you or your dog after this within a mile of the head station, I'll take the stock-whip and make it a caution to the pair of you. What did you do with the body? Where put um pussy50?'
No answer from the criminal; but Pothook, anxious to curry51 favour at everybody else's expense, informed us, 'Him yeat um.'
'Ate him?'
'Yes; him tink that one very good, white fellov 'possum.'
And Pothook furthermore let out that, under a somewhat similar delusion52 respecting a bottle of cold-drawn castor oil, from which he had one day seen young Harris draw the cork53 and swallow a glass, said little Toby had, at a moment when the hut was empty, slipped in, and, seizing the bottle as it stood on the shelf, hastily gulped54 down a goodly portion, under the impression that it was something of an intoxicating55 nature.
I observed that Pothook, in his narrative56 of delinquencies, did not mention any of his own exploits. This excessive modesty57 seemed quite misplaced to his companion, whose evil deeds he was bringing to light; and, plucking up a spirit, Toby junior retorted,—
'Mitta Tiffyson' (I may here observe that the superintendent's name was a great trial for most of the blacks. Almost every one of them had a method of his own of surmounting58 the difficulty. Some called him 'Mr. Stiffison,' others went further, and called him 'Stiffunson;' but plain 'Stiffuns,' with a splutter at the end, was the favourite pronunciation. I have, however, heard him called 'Stubbomson'),—'Mitta Tiffyson,' said young Toby eagerly, looking up at the superintendent, and pointing at Pothook as he spoke35, 'this one marn (take) um fiz-fiz belongin' to flour.'
'Fiz-fiz for flour!' I said; 'what is that?'
'Oh, he means yeast59!' said Stevenson.
'Yes, yist,' said little Toby; 'porter belongin' to bread. Pothook steal um that one.'
'Since you have been here,' said Stevenson to me, 'we have had yeast bread instead of damper. Mrs. Laidlaw got some from the publican's wife across the river. I remember her telling me that she had most unaccountably lost a quart bottle of it; she thought somebody had emptied it out in mistake. So Pothook take it, Toby?'
'Yes; him drink it all. Greedy fellow that one! no gib me any. Him tink it very good porter,' added the black, with a grin at the recollection. And upon further inquiry60 it was elicited61 that, having observed the woman place it on the table on her return home, and concluding it to be porter, Pothook had abstracted it, for he had often longed to taste that liquor. It would have been better for him if had shared the responsibility, as Toby junior proposed, and given him half, for the result was more than he could well bear.
Finding that the two had no more to tell, the superintendent informed them that their lives were spared for the present, but if they attempted to leave the hut they would be shot down. And in this Stevenson was quite in earnest, for after such a confession62 it was his duty to convey immediate63 information to the commander of the Border Black Police, the 'Black Troopers,' who were travelling down the river, and who, he had heard, would arrive at a station twenty miles off that evening. He resolved to start at once, and endeavour to return with them at daybreak, before the blacks, who might think themselves perfectly safe for that night, would suspect their vicinity and take to the scrub.
'It will be useless my starting to fetch the police if either of those two fellows escape out of your sight; and they are slippery as eels7. Do you think you will be able to keep them safely?' said Stevenson to us.
I was very tired, and so was Harris; and the idea of sitting up all night was not pleasant. However, there was no help for it, and we promised to watch alternately during his absence. 'Where do you expect to find the troopers?' I asked; 'and how will you get to them?' I said.
'That is the question,' replied the superintendent. 'Lieutenant64 Walters, I heard, was to reach the Junction65, twenty miles up on this side of the river, at sunset to-day; but the blacks are camped not far from the road I must go by, as it is too dark to travel through the bush. I must therefore cross the river here and go up by the other side, and then swim the river again—not a pleasant prospect66 truly. If I attempt to cross on horseback here, at the punt, the blacks there will instantly suspect the truth; so swim it I must, somewhere in our neighbourhood. Nice, isn't it?'
Finally it was decided that he should cross just below the island, carrying his clothes in a bundle, wrapped in a waterproof67 coat and placed in a bucket, which he held as he swam. He would then walk to the inn, taking care to approach it from behind, so that the blacks there, who, warned by Harris, had left their fires and were squatted68 in the verandah, should not hear him. A hundred yards behind the inn was the hut where the punt-man lived. He was to be roused and sent to the house, to tell the innkeeper to quietly saddle his mare69, which was kept stabled at night, and bring her to Stevenson, while the man engaged the blacks in talk in the front of the house.
We watched until he had safely swam across and ascended71 the bank on the other side, and then returned to the hut. As we passed by the kitchen we looked in. Laidlaw, the hut-keeper, was sitting by the fire, and, to do him justice, seemed heartily72 ashamed of himself, for he did not turn his head as we appeared. His wife had made up a sleeping-place for the poor child whose parents had been so suddenly cut off. The poor thing was overcome by drowsiness73, and every now and then would sink into sleep, from which, however, it would almost instantly spring up, screaming out violently that the blacks were coming to kill it, and clinging in the utmost terror to the woman's gown. It had found its way to the bodies of its mother and father behind the hut, and in its endeavours to arouse and awaken74 them had got covered with blood, which the woman was washing off as we entered, her tears falling plentifully75 the while; for she was much attached to the two lubras—who helped her in such household work as peeling potatoes, washing dishes, and bringing water, and the like, while their husbands caught fish or (before I came) shot wildfowl with the superintendent's fowling-piece. She was therefore much shocked at what had occurred, and was, moreover, heartily ashamed of her husband's pusillanimity77.
We re-entered our hut, thinking that our adventures for that night at least were over—but I was mistaken.
It had been agreed that Harris and I should start an hour before daybreak and ride to a spot fixed upon, there to await the arrival of the superintendent with the troopers; and, having arranged that each of us should take a watch, I threw myself on one of the beds, and slept till two o'clock, when Harris woke me, and I took his place.
For some time I sat by the fire, musing78 over the different events which had occurred, and in imagination following the superintendent in his night ride up the river. It was about eleven o'clock when he started; and, allowing him an hour to reach the inn and get mounted, he would then have a straight gallop79 across a large bend of the river for about fifteen miles. He would then have to tether his horse and again swim the stream, as there were no other means of crossing at that spot, and walk a mile through the bush to the station where the troopers were. Allowing him till three o'clock to do this, he would have time to start with them on their errand, and be at the rendezvous80 fixed on before daybreak, always supposing no accident delayed him. Bobby Peel, we knew, would head for Winyong directly; but both he and the other murderers would certainly calculate upon having at least twenty-four hours undisturbed wherein to escape, during which they would be comparatively safe from the white man's vengeance81.
I put some fresh logs on the fire, for the nights were now becoming very cold. The two blacks were lying sprawling82 by its side on the earthen floor of the hut; while Harris lay just above them on the bed next the chimney. The blaze from the burning wood and the light from the lamp fell strongly on the three sleepers83, fully76 revealing their faces and figures, and I could not help being struck by the different aspect of the physiognomies before me, illustrations as they were of the highest and almost the lowest types of the animal man. For some time my mind wandered in a maze84 of theories as to the origin of types—effects of climate, food, and other modifying agencies in influencing the development of the genus homo, until all at once I became conscious that my ethnological speculations85 were rapidly coveying me into the land of dreams; so, jumping up to shake off the drowsiness creeping over me (for I had been shooting all day in the reed-beds), I slung86 the kettle, to make myself a pot of tea, and then went outside to look at the night.
The heavens were overcast87 with dense88 masses of clouds, and a light breeze blew from the southward, the damp feel of which indicated that the long-expected winter rains would not much longer be withheld89 from the parched-up country. After pacing up and down in front of the hut for some time, I turned to re-enter it, when all at once I heard one of the horses in the paddock neigh. Under ordinary circumstances this of itself would have signified nothing; but we were obliged to be constantly on the alert against the horse thieves, who often cleared out all the animals on several stations in a single night, and swept away with them over the borders and into the neighbouring colonies by routes known only to themselves, and where pursuit was in general utterly90 vain. As we had several valuable horses in our lot, I listened for some time, and, after giving a look at my charge, and ascertaining91 that both still slept soundly, I walked down to where they were grazing.
The paddock extended for nearly a mile up and down the river, and our huts were situated92 inside its fence and about in the centre. I found most of the animals a few hundred yards off, grazing quietly enough; but as I stood near one of them again neighed, and upon putting my ear to the ground I thought I heard a distant sound, which seemed to come from across the river. I went down to the bank and again listened. Sometimes it would die away, but presently it arose more strongly, until I plainly made it out to be the rushing gallop of either horses or cattle, my bush experience being then too slight to enable me to distinguish which. I concluded it must be the latter, as the sounds came from the island, which was some miles in length, being a broad, rolling plain, everywhere surrounded by deep water, and occupied exclusively by cattle, which, as they could not escape, had no one to look after them. It was not possible that any horsemen could be there by accident; for even our own stockman had to swim his horse over when Stevenson wished to muster93 the herd39. Perhaps (I thought) the blacks who had made that night's murderous onslaught were still there, and the cattle on the island had been startled by them; for cattle have the greatest aversion to blacks, scenting94 them at a great distance and fleeing from their vicinity. Sometimes they will rush at the natives, charging them with great fury. Poor Leichardt relates, in the account of his most wonderful journey from Brisbane to Port Essington, that, having killed and eaten all their cattle but one, a bullock named Redman, to which they had become much attached for his patience and docility95, the party was reduced to the very verge96 of starvation. For weeks they lived on boiled hide alone, and a very scanty97 allowance of that. Still, none could endure the thought of killing the faithful Redman, who had travelled with them for fifteen months through the wilderness98, led by a rope passed through a ring in his nose. And the party did succeed in taking the animal into their destination, though at the cost of great suffering to themselves. In the last month or two of their journey, the explorers fell in with numerous tribes of blacks, who treated the white men with great kindness. Some of these tribes numbered five or six hundred souls. Whenever Redman, however, caught sight of them, it was with the utmost difficulty that he could be restrained. He would break away from his leader and charge the blacks with the utmost fury. 'Had the natives been hostile,' says Leichardt, 'Redman would have protected us and routed them all. I have seen three hundred men flee from his rush, for they were terribly afraid of him.'
All at once the sounds ceased, and for some minutes I heard nothing; but as my eye wandered over the river banks, suddenly I caught sight of objects moving on the island, and a short inspection99 convinced me that they were horses, and I fancied that they were mounted. I crouched100 down, to avoid being seen, but of that there was not much fear, as the shade of the rising ground behind me effectually concealed101 me. It was now darker than in the earlier part of the night, and the river was a hundred yards across, so that it was only when they passed along the summit of the bank and against the lighter102 background of the sky that I could distinguish them. They stopped opposite where I was, and at the only spot for many miles (except at the punt) where animals could descend103 and ascend70 to and from the water, the banks of the Murray being exceedingly precipitous. By this I felt convinced they were horse-stealers, and men, moreover, well acquainted with the locality, for they could not have passed down the river behind the inn, because the scrub, impenetrable at night, approached so close to the house that it would necessitate104 their passing within earshot. Higher up the river they could not cross without getting involved in a network of ana branches, impossible to ford105 in the dark. They were therefore obliged to cross at our paddock, and doubtless had the felonious intention of picking up our horses on their way.
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1
abject
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| adj.极可怜的，卑屈的 | |
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dread
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| vt.担忧，忧虑；惧怕，不敢；n.担忧，畏惧 | |
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3
chattered
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| （人）喋喋不休( chatter的过去式 )； 唠叨； （牙齿）打战； （机器）震颤 | |
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aboriginal
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| adj.（指动植物）土生的，原产地的，土著的 | |
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5
perfectly
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| adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地 | |
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6
squatting
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| v.像动物一样蹲下( squat的现在分词 )；非法擅自占用（土地或房屋）；为获得其所有权；而占用某片公共用地。 | |
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7
eels
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| abbr. 电子发射器定位系统（=electronic emitter location system） | |
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superintendent
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| n.监督人，主管，总监；(英国)警务长 | |
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antagonist
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| n.敌人，对抗者，对手 | |
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crouching
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| v.屈膝，蹲伏( crouch的现在分词 ) | |
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12
fixed
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| adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的 | |
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13
dilated
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| adj.加宽的，扩大的v.（使某物）扩大，膨胀，张大( dilate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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14
previously
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| adv.以前，先前（地） | |
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spasm
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| n.痉挛，抽搐；一阵发作 | |
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counteracted
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| 对抗，抵消( counteract的过去式 ) | |
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grovelled
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| v.卑躬屈节，奴颜婢膝( grovel的过去式和过去分词 )；趴 | |
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18
wary
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| adj.谨慎的，机警的，小心的 | |
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agile
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| adj.敏捷的，灵活的 | |
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repugnance
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| n.嫌恶 | |
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pointed
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| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
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fugitive
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| adj.逃亡的，易逝的；n.逃犯，逃亡者 | |
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decided
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| adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的 | |
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killing
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| n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财 | |
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provocation
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| n.激怒，刺激，挑拨，挑衅的事物，激怒的原因 | |
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mere
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| adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过 | |
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slay
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| v.杀死，宰杀，杀戮 | |
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slaughter
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| n.屠杀，屠宰；vt.屠杀，宰杀 | |
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slaughtered
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| v.屠杀，杀戮，屠宰( slaughter的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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privy
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| adj.私用的；隐密的 | |
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31
justification
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| n.正当的理由；辩解的理由 | |
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waylaid
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| v.拦截，拦路( waylay的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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33
accosting
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| v.走过去跟…讲话( accost的现在分词 )；跟…搭讪；（乞丐等）上前向…乞讨；（妓女等）勾搭 | |
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apparently
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| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
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spoke
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| 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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lurking
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| 潜在 | |
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cupidity
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| n.贪心，贪财 | |
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motives
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| n.动机，目的( motive的名词复数 ) | |
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herd
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| n.兽群，牧群；vt.使集中，把…赶在一起 | |
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pretext
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| n.借口，托词 | |
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41
severely
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| adv.严格地；严厉地；非常恶劣地 | |
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42
percussion
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| n.打击乐器；冲突，撞击；震动，音响 | |
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43
purloined
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| v.偷窃( purloin的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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44
flasks
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| n.瓶，长颈瓶， 烧瓶( flask的名词复数 ) | |
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45
infesting
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| v.害虫、野兽大批出没于( infest的现在分词 )；遍布于 | |
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46
procure
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| vt.获得，取得，促成；vi.拉皮条 | |
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47
strapped
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| adj.用皮带捆住的，用皮带装饰的；身无分文的；缺钱；手头紧v.用皮带捆扎(strap的过去式和过去分词)；用皮带抽打；包扎；给…打绷带 | |
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48
vexed
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| adj.争论不休的；（指问题等）棘手的；争论不休的问题；烦恼的v.使烦恼( vex的过去式和过去分词 )；使苦恼；使生气；详细讨论 | |
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49
diligently
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| ad.industriously;carefully | |
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50
pussy
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| n.(儿语)小猫，猫咪 | |
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51
curry
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| n.咖哩粉，咖哩饭菜；v.用咖哩粉调味，用马栉梳，制革 | |
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52
delusion
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| n.谬见，欺骗，幻觉，迷惑 | |
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53
cork
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| n.软木，软木塞 | |
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54
gulped
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| v.狼吞虎咽地吃，吞咽( gulp的过去式和过去分词 )；大口地吸（气）；哽住 | |
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55
intoxicating
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| a. 醉人的,使人兴奋的 | |
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56
narrative
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| n.叙述，故事；adj.叙事的，故事体的 | |
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57
modesty
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| n.谦逊，虚心，端庄，稳重，羞怯，朴素 | |
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58
surmounting
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| 战胜( surmount的现在分词 )； 克服（困难）； 居于…之上； 在…顶上 | |
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59
yeast
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| n.酵母；酵母片；泡沫；v.发酵；起泡沫 | |
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60
inquiry
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| n.打听，询问，调查，查问 | |
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elicited
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| 引出，探出( elicit的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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confession
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| n.自白，供认，承认 | |
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63
immediate
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| adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的 | |
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lieutenant
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| n.陆军中尉，海军上尉；代理官员，副职官员 | |
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junction
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| n.连接，接合；交叉点，接合处，枢纽站 | |
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prospect
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| n.前景，前途；景色，视野 | |
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67
waterproof
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| n.防水材料；adj.防水的；v.使...能防水 | |
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68
squatted
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| v.像动物一样蹲下( squat的过去式和过去分词 )；非法擅自占用（土地或房屋）；为获得其所有权；而占用某片公共用地。 | |
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mare
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| n.母马，母驴 | |
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70
ascend
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| vi.渐渐上升，升高；vt.攀登，登上 | |
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71
ascended
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| v.上升，攀登( ascend的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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72
heartily
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| adv.衷心地，诚恳地，十分，很 | |
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73
drowsiness
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| n.睡意；嗜睡 | |
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74
awaken
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| vi.醒，觉醒；vt.唤醒，使觉醒，唤起，激起 | |
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plentifully
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| adv. 许多地，丰饶地 | |
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76
fully
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| adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地 | |
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77
pusillanimity
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| n.无气力，胆怯 | |
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musing
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| n. 沉思，冥想 adj. 沉思的, 冥想的 动词muse的现在分词形式 | |
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79
gallop
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| v./n.(马或骑马等)飞奔；飞速发展 | |
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rendezvous
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| n.约会，约会地点，汇合点；vi.汇合，集合；vt.使汇合，使在汇合地点相遇 | |
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81
vengeance
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| n.报复，报仇，复仇 | |
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82
sprawling
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| adj.蔓生的，不规则地伸展的v.伸开四肢坐[躺]( sprawl的现在分词 )；蔓延；杂乱无序地拓展；四肢伸展坐着（或躺着） | |
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83
sleepers
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| n.卧铺（通常以复数形式出现）；卧车( sleeper的名词复数 )；轨枕；睡觉（呈某种状态）的人；小耳环 | |
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84
maze
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| n.迷宫，八阵图，混乱，迷惑 | |
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85
speculations
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| n.投机买卖( speculation的名词复数 )；思考；投机活动；推断 | |
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86
slung
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| 抛( sling的过去式和过去分词 )； 吊挂； 遣送； 押往 | |
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87
overcast
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| adj.阴天的，阴暗的，愁闷的；v.遮盖，（使）变暗，包边缝；n.覆盖，阴天 | |
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88
dense
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| a.密集的，稠密的，浓密的；密度大的 | |
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89
withheld
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| withhold过去式及过去分词 | |
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90
utterly
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| adv.完全地，绝对地 | |
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91
ascertaining
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| v.弄清，确定，查明( ascertain的现在分词 ) | |
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92
situated
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| adj.坐落在...的，处于某种境地的 | |
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93
muster
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| v.集合，收集，鼓起，激起；n.集合，检阅，集合人员，点名册 | |
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94
scenting
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| vt.闻到（scent的现在分词形式） | |
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95
docility
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| n.容易教，易驾驶，驯服 | |
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96
verge
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| n.边，边缘；v.接近，濒临 | |
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97
scanty
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| adj.缺乏的，仅有的，节省的，狭小的，不够的 | |
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98
wilderness
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| n.杳无人烟的一片陆地、水等，荒漠 | |
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99
inspection
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| n.检查，审查，检阅 | |
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100
crouched
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| v.屈膝，蹲伏( crouch的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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101
concealed
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| a.隐藏的，隐蔽的 | |
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102
lighter
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| n.打火机，点火器；驳船；v.用驳船运送；light的比较级 | |
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103
descend
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| vt./vi.传下来，下来，下降 | |
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104
necessitate
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| v.使成为必要，需要 | |
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105
Ford
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| n.浅滩，水浅可涉处；v.涉水，涉过 | |
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