CHAPTER XIV.

Some Account of the two Persons who came in Chains.

I omit this chapter, as it is quite unnecessary for the story, and an absurd relation concerning the two prisoners who came in the English ship with Maurice. The woman, who is called Rosamund, is a very abandoned and wicked person; and at last, in consequence of the excessive infamy¹ of her conduct, she has been sentenced to banishment², and ordered to be set on shore on a desert island, in company with Clodio, a man, whose crimes do not appear to be of a nature that would have brought him to punishment in the present day. "I have," says he, "a certain satirical spirit, and a backbiting³ one, a ready pen, and a free tongue, I delight in malicious⁴ wit, and for a bon mot, would sacrifice, not only one friend, but a hundred. Prisons could never silence my tongue, nor exile move me; threats could not intimidate⁵, nor punishment mend me."

He thought being chained in company with Rosamund, the worst part of his sentence, and declared that death would have been preferable; whilst she, on her side, assures him, that she would have thrown herself into the sea to escape from him, had she not been deterred⁶ by the reflection, that she must have carried him into the other world with her, which would greatly increase her punishment there. "Far better," said she, "had it pleased the king to take away my life in my own country, than to make me expiate⁷ my crimes by the wounds thy tongue inflicts⁸ at every step, and from which not even angels or saints are safe."

1 infamy   

n.声名狼藉，出丑，恶行

参考例句：

• They may grant you power,honour,and riches but afflict you with servitude,infamy,and poverty.他们可以给你权力、荣誉和财富，但却用奴役、耻辱和贫穷来折磨你。
• Traitors are held in infamy.叛徒为人所不齿。

2 banishment   

n.放逐，驱逐

参考例句：

• Qu Yuan suffered banishment as the victim of a court intrigue. 屈原成为朝廷中钩心斗角的牺牲品，因而遭到放逐。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• He was sent into banishment. 他被流放。 来自辞典例句

3 backbiting   

背后诽谤

参考例句：

• You should refrain your tongue from backbiting. 你不要背后诽谤人。
• Refrain your tongue from backbiting. 不要在背后中伤人家。

4 malicious   

adj.有恶意的，心怀恶意的

参考例句：

• You ought to kick back at such malicious slander. 你应当反击这种恶毒的污蔑。
• Their talk was slightly malicious.他们的谈话有点儿心怀不轨。

5 intimidate   

vt.恐吓，威胁

参考例句：

• You think you can intimidate people into doing what you want?你以为你可以威胁别人做任何事？
• The first strike capacity is intended mainly to intimidate adversary.第一次攻击的武力主要是用来吓阻敌方的。

6 deterred   

v.阻止，制止( deter的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• I told him I wasn't interested, but he wasn't deterred. 我已告诉他我不感兴趣，可他却不罢休。
• Jeremy was not deterred by this criticism. 杰里米没有因这一批评而却步。 来自辞典例句

7 expiate   

v.抵补，赎罪

参考例句：

• He tried to expiate his crimes by giving money to the church.他以捐款给教会来赎罪。
• It seemed that Alice was expiating her father's sins with her charity work.似乎艾丽斯正在通过自己的慈善工作来弥补父亲的罪过。

8 inflicts   

把…强加给，使承受，遭受( inflict的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Bullfrog 50 Inflicts poison when your enemy damages you at short range. 牛娃50对近距离攻击你的敌人造成毒伤。
• The U.S. always inflicts its concept of human nature on other nations. 美国总是把自己的人权观念强加于别国。