“Full many a miserable1 year hath passed:
She knows him as one dead, or worse than dead:
And many a change her varied2 life hath known;
But her heart none.”
MATURIN.
Since her interview with the angler, which was interrupted by the appearance of Fanshawe, Ellen Langton’s hitherto calm and peaceful mind had been in a state of insufferable doubt and dismay. She was imperatively3 called upon — at least, she so conceived — to break through the rules which nature and education impose upon her sex, to quit the protection of those whose desire for her welfare was true and strong, and to trust herself, for what purpose she scarcely knew, to a stranger, from whom the instinctive4 purity of her mind would involuntarily have shrunk, under whatever circumstances she had met him. The letter which she had received from the hands of the angler had seemed to her inexperience to prove beyond a doubt that the bearer was the friend of her father, and authorized5 by him, if her duty and affection were stronger than her fears, to guide her to his retreat. The letter spoke6 vaguely7 of losses and misfortunes, and of a necessity for concealment8 on her father’s part, and secrecy9 on hers; and, to the credit of Ellen’s not very romantic understanding, it must be acknowledged that the mystery of the plot had nearly prevented its success. She did not, indeed, doubt that the letter was from her father’s hand; for every line and stroke, and even many of its phrases, were familiar to her. Her apprehension11 was, that his misfortunes, of what nature soever they were, had affected12 his intellect, and that, under such an influence, he had commanded her to take a step which nothing less than such a command could justify13. Ellen did not, however, remain long in this opinion; for when she reperused the letter, and considered the firm, regular characters, and the style,— calm and cold, even in requesting such a sacrifice,— she felt that there was nothing like insanity15 here. In fine, she came gradually to the belief that there were strong reasons, though incomprehensible by her, for the secrecy that her father had enjoined16.
Having arrived at this conviction, her decision lay plain before her. Her affection for Mr. Langton was not, indeed,— nor was it possible,— so strong as that she would have felt for a parent who had watched over her from her infancy17. Neither was the conception she had unavoidably formed of his character such as to promise that in him she would find an equivalent for all she must sacrifice. On the contrary, her gentle nature and loving heart, which otherwise would have rejoiced in a new object of affection, now shrank with something like dread18 from the idea of meeting her father, — stately, cold, and stern as she could not but imagine him. A sense of duty was therefore Ellen’s only support in resolving to tread the dark path that lay before her.
Had there been any person of her own sex in whom Ellen felt confidence, there is little doubt that she would so far have disobeyed her father’s letter as to communicate its contents, and take counsel as to her proceedings19. But Mrs. Melmoth was the only female — excepting, indeed, the maid-servant — to whom it was possible to make the communication; and, though Ellen at first thought of such a step, her timidity, and her knowledge of the lady’s character, did not permit her to venture upon it. She next reviewed her acquaintances of the other sex; and Dr. Melmoth first presented himself, as in every respect but one, an unexceptionable confidant. But the single exception was equivalent to many. The maiden21, with the highest opinion of the doctor’s learning and talents, had sufficient penetration22 to know, that, in the ways of the world, she was herself the better skilled of the two. For a moment she thought of Edward Walcott; but he was light and wild, and, which her delicacy23 made an insurmountable objection, there was an untold24 love between them. Her thoughts finally centred on Fanshawe. In his judgment25, young and inexperienced though he was, she would have placed a firm trust; and his zeal26, from whatever cause it arose, she could not doubt.
If, in the short time allowed her for reflection, an opportunity had occurred for consulting him, she would, in all probability, have taken advantage of it. But the terms on which they had parted the preceding evening had afforded him no reason to hope for her confidence; and he felt that there were others who had a better right to it than himself. He did not, therefore, throw himself in her way; and poor Ellen was consequently left without an adviser27.
The determination that resulted from her own unassisted wisdom has been seen. When discovered by Dr. Melmoth at Hugh Crombie’s inn, she was wholly prepared for flight, and, but for the intervention28 of the storm, would, ere then, have been far away.
The firmness of resolve that had impelled29 a timid maiden upon such a step was not likely to be broken by one defeat; and Ellen, accordingly, confident that the stranger would make a second attempt, determined30 that no effort on her part should be wanting to its success. On reaching her chamber31, therefore, instead of retiring to rest (of which, from her sleepless32 thoughts of the preceding night, she stood greatly in need), she sat watching for the abatement33 of the storm. Her meditations34 were now calmer than at any time since her first meeting with the angler. She felt as if her fate was decided35. The stain had fallen upon her reputation: she was no longer the same pure being in the opinion of those whose approbation36 she most valued.
One obstacle to her flight — and, to a woman’s mind, a most powerful one — had thus been removed. Dark and intricate as was the way, it was easier now to proceed than to pause; and her desperate and forlorn situation gave her a strength which hitherto she had not felt.
At every cessation in the torrent37 of rain that beat against the house, Ellen flew to the window, expecting to see the stranger form beneath it. But the clouds would again thicken, and the storm recommence with its former violence; and she began to fear that the approach of morning would compel her to meet the now dreaded38 face of Dr. Melmoth. At length, however, a strong and steady wind, supplying the place of the fitful gusts39 of the preceding part of the night, broke and scattered41 the clouds from the broad expanse of the sky. The moon, commencing her late voyage not long before the sun, was now visible, setting forth42 like a lonely ship from the dark line of the horizon, and touching43 at many a little silver cloud the islands of that aerial deep. Ellen felt that now the time was come; and, with a calmness wonderful to herself, she prepared for her final departure.
She had not long to wait ere she saw, between the vacancies44 of the trees, the angler advancing along the shady avenue that led to the principal entrance of Dr. Melmoth’s dwelling45. He had no need to summon her either by word or signal; for she had descended47, emerged from the door, and stood before him, while he was yet at some distance from the house.
“You have watched well,” he observed in a low, strange tone. “As saith the Scripture48, ‘Many daughters have done virtuously49; but thou excellest them all.’”
He took her arm; and they hastened down the avenue. Then, leaving Hugh Crombie’s inn on their right, they found its master in a spot so shaded that the moonbeams could not enlighten it. He held by the bridle50 two horses, one of which the angler assisted Ellen to mount. Then, turning to the landlord he pressed a purse into his hand; but Hugh drew back, and it fell to the ground.
“No! this would not have tempted51 me; nor will it reward me,” he said. “If you have gold to spare, there are some that need it more than I.”
“I understand you, mine host. I shall take thought for them; and enough will remain for you and me,” replied his comrade. “I have seen the day when such a purse would not have slipped between your fingers. Well, be it so. And now, Hugh, my old friend, a shake of your hand; for we are seeing our last of each other.”
“Pray Heaven it be so! though I wish you no ill,” said the landlord, giving his hand.
He then seemed about to approach Ellen, who had been unable to distinguish the words of this brief conversation; but his comrade prevented him. “There is no time to lose,” he observed. “The moon is growing pale already, and we should have been many a mile beyond the valley ere this.” He mounted as he spoke; and, guiding Ellen’s rein52 till they reached the road, they dashed away.
It was now that she felt herself completely in his power; and with that consciousness there came a sudden change of feeling, and an altered view of her conduct. A thousand reasons forced themselves upon her mind, seeming to prove that she had been deceived; while the motives53, so powerful with her but a moment before, had either vanished from her memory or lost all their efficacy. Her companion, who gazed searchingly into her face, where the moonlight, coming down between the pines, allowed him to read its expression, probably discerned somewhat of the state of her thoughts.
“Do you repent54 so soon?” he inquired. “We have a weary way before us. Faint not ere we have well entered upon it.”
“I have left dear friends behind me, and am going I know not whither,” replied Ellen, tremblingly.
“You have a faithful guide,” he observed, turning away his head, and speaking in the tone of one who endeavors to smother55 a laugh.
Ellen had no heart to continue the conversation; and they rode on in silence, and through a wild and gloomy scene. The wind roared heavily through the forest, and the trees shed their raindrops upon the travellers. The road, at all times rough, was now broken into deep gullies, through which streams went murmuring down to mingle57 with the river. The pale moonlight combined with the gray of the morning to give a ghastly and unsubstantial appearance to every object.
The difficulties of the road had been so much increased by the storm, that the purple eastern clouds gave notice of the near approach of the sun just as the travellers reached the little lonesome cottage which Ellen remembered to have visited several months before. On arriving opposite to it, her companion checked his horse, and gazed with a wild earnestness at the wretched habitation. Then, stifling58 a groan59 that would not altogether be repressed, he was about to pass on; but at that moment the cottage-door opened, and a woman, whose sour, unpleasant countenance60 Ellen recognized, came hastily forth. She seemed not to heed61 the travellers; but the angler, his voice thrilling and quivering with indescribable emotion, addressed her.
“Woman, whither do you go?” he inquired.
She started, but, after a momentary62 pause, replied, “There is one within at the point of death. She struggles fearfully; and I cannot endure to watch alone by her bedside. If you are Christians63, come in with me.”
Ellen’s companion leaped hastily from his horse, assisted her also to dismount, and followed the woman into the cottage, having first thrown the bridles64 of the horses carelessly over the branch of a tree. Ellen trembled at the awful scene she would be compelled to witness; but, when death was so near at hand, it was more terrible to stand alone in the dim morning light than even to watch the parting of soul and body. She therefore entered the cottage.
Her guide, his face muffled65 in his cloak, had taken his stand at a Distance from the death-bed, in a part of the room which neither the increasing daylight nor the dim rays of a solitary66 lamp had yet enlightened. At Ellen’s entrance, the dying woman lay still, and apparently67 calm, except that a plaintive68, half-articulate sound occasionally wandered through her lips.
“Hush69! For mercy’s sake, silence!” whispered the other woman to the strangers. “There is good hope now that she will die a peaceable death; but, if she is disturbed, the boldest of us will not dare to stand by her bedside.”
The whisper by which her sister endeavored to preserve quiet perhaps reached the ears of the dying female; for she now raised herself in bed, slowly, but with a strength superior to what her situation promised. Her face was ghastly and wild, from long illness, approaching death, and disturbed intellect; and a disembodied spirit could scarcely be a more fearful object than one whose soul was just struggling forth. Her sister, approaching with the soft and stealing step appropriate to the chamber of sickness and death, attempted to replace the covering around her, and to compose her again upon the pillow. “Lie down and sleep, sister,” she said; “and, when the day breaks, I will waken you. Methinks your breath comes freer already. A little more slumber70, and tomorrow you will be well.”
“My illness is gone: I am well,” said the dying-woman, gasping71 for breath. “I wander where the fresh breeze comes sweetly over my face; but a close and stifled72 air has choked my lungs.”
“Yet a little while, and you will no longer draw your breath in pain,” observed her sister, again replacing the bedclothes, which she continued to throw off.
“My husband is with me,” murmured the widow. “He walks by my side, and speaks to me as in old times; but his words come faintly on my ear. Cheer me and comfort me, my husband; for there is a terror in those dim, motionless eyes, and in that shadowy voice.”
As she spoke thus, she seemed to gaze upon some object that stood by her bedside; and the eyes of those who witnessed this scene could not but follow the direction of hers. They observed that the dying woman’s own shadow was marked upon the wall, receiving a tremulous motion from the fitful rays of the lamp, and from her own convulsive efforts. “My husband stands gazing on me,” she said again; “but my son,— where is he? And, as I ask, the father turns away his face. Where is our son? For his sake, I have longed to come to this land of rest. For him I have sorrowed many years. Will he not comfort me now?”
At these words the stranger made a few hasty steps towards the bed; but, ere he reached it, he conquered the impulse that drew him thither73, and, shrouding74 his face more deeply in his cloak, returned to his former position. The dying woman, in the mean time, had thrown herself back upon the bed; and her sobbing76 and wailing77, imaginary as was their cause, were inexpressibly affecting.
“Take me back to earth,” she said; “for its griefs have followed me hither.”
The stranger advanced, and, seizing the lamp, knelt down by the bedside, throwing the light full upon his pale and convulsed features.
“Mother, here is your son!” he exclaimed.
At that unforgotten voice, the darkness burst away at once from her soul. She arose in bed, her eyes and her whole countenance beaming with joy, and threw her arms about his neck. A multitude of words seemed struggling for utterance78; but they gave place to a low moaning sound, and then to the silence of death. The one moment of happiness, that recompensed years of sorrow, had been her last. Her son laid the lifeless form upon the pillow, and gazed with fixed79 eyes on his mother’s face.
As he looked, the expression of enthusiastic joy that parting life had left upon the features faded gradually away; and the countenance, though no longer wild, assumed the sadness which it had worn through a long course of grief and pain. On beholding80 this natural consequence of death, the thought, perhaps, occurred to him, that her soul, no longer dependent on the imperfect means of intercourse81 possessed82 by mortals, had communed with his own, and become acquainted with all its guilt83 and misery84. He started from the bedside, and covered his face with his hands, as if to hide it from those dead eyes.
Such a scene as has been described could not but have a powerful effect upon any one who retained aught of humanity; and the grief of the son, whose natural feelings had been blunted, but not destroyed, by an evil life, was much more violent than his outward demeanor85 would have expressed. But his deep repentance86 for the misery he had brought upon his parent did not produce in him a resolution to do wrong no more. The sudden consciousness of accumulated guilt made him desperate. He felt as if no one had thenceforth a claim to justice or compassion87 at his hands, when his neglect and cruelty had poisoned his mother’s life, and hastened her death.
Thus it was that the Devil wrought88 with him to his own destruction, reversing the salutary effect which his mother would have died exultingly89 to produce upon his mind. He now turned to Ellen Langton with a demeanor singularly calm and composed.
“We must resume our journey,” he said, in his usual tone of voice. “The sun is on the point of rising, though but little light finds its way into this hovel.”
Ellen’s previous suspicions as to the character of her companion had now become certainty so far as to convince her that she was in the power of a lawless and guilty man; though what fate he intended for her she was unable to conjecture90. An open opposition91 to his will, however, could not be ventured upon; especially as she discovered, on looking round the apartment, that, with the exception of the corpse92, they were alone.
“Will you not attend your mother’s funeral?” she asked, trembling, and conscious that he would discover her fears.
“The dead must bury their dead,” he replied. “I have brought my mother to her grave,— and what can a son do more? This purse, however, will serve to lay her in the earth, and leave something for the old hag. Whither is she gone?” interrupted he, casting a glance round the room in search of the old woman. “Nay, then, we must speedily to horse. I know her of old.”
Thus saying, he threw the purse upon the table, and, without trusting himself to look again towards the dead, conducted Ellen out of the cottage. The first rays of the sun at that moment gilded93 the tallest trees of the forest.
On looking towards the spot were the horses had stood, Ellen thought that Providence94, in answer to her prayers, had taken care for her deliverance. They were no longer there,— a circumstance easily accounted for by the haste with which the bridles had been thrown over the branch of the tree. Her companion, however, imputed95 it to another cause.
“The hag! She would sell her own flesh and blood by weight and measure,” he muttered to himself. “This is some plot of hers, I know well.”
He put his hand to his forehead for a moment’s space, seeming to reflect on the course most advisable to be pursued. Ellen, perhaps unwisely, interposed.
“Would it not be well to return?” she asked, timidly. “There is now no hope of escaping; but I might yet reach home undiscovered.”
“Return!” repeated her guide, with a look and smile from which she turned away her face. “Have you forgotten your father and his misfortunes? No, no, sweet Ellen: it is too late for such thoughts as these.”
He took her hand, and led her towards the forest, in the rear of the cottage. She would fain have resisted; but they were all alone, and the attempt must have been both fruitless and dangerous. She therefore trod with him a path so devious96, so faintly traced, and so overgrown with bushes and young trees, that only a most accurate acquaintance in his early days could have enabled her guide to retain it. To him, however, it seemed so perfectly97 familiar, that he was not once compelled to pause, though the numerous windings98 soon deprived Ellen of all knowledge of the situation of the cottage. They descended a steep hill, and, proceeding20 parallel to the river,— as Ellen judged by its rushing sound,— at length found themselves at what proved to be the termination of their walk.
Ellen now recollected99 a remark of Edward Walcott’s respecting the wild and rude scenery through which the river here kept its way; and, in less agitating100 circumstances, her pleasure and admiration101 would have been great. They stood beneath a precipice102, so high that the loftiest pine-tops (and many of them seemed to soar to heaven) scarcely surmounted103 it. This line of rock has a considerable extent, at unequal heights, and with many interruptions, along the course of the river; and it seems probable that, at some former period, it was the boundary of the waters, though they are now confined within far less ambitious limits. The inferior portion of the crag, beneath which Ellen and her guide were standing10, varies so far from the perpendicular104 as not to be inaccessible105 by a careful footstep. But only one person has been known to attempt the ascent106 of the superior half, and only one the descent; yet, steep as is the height, trees and bushes of various kinds have clung to the rock, wherever their roots could gain the slightest hold; thus seeming to prefer the scanty107 and difficult nourishment108 of the cliff to a more luxurious109 life in the rich interval110 that extends from its base to the river. But, whether or no these hardy111 vegetables have voluntarily chosen their rude resting-place, the cliff is indebted to them for much of the beauty that tempers its sublimity112. When the eye is pained and wearied by the bold nakedness of the rock, it rests with pleasure on the cheerful foliage113 of the birch, or upon the darker green of the funereal114 pine. Just at the termination of the accessible portion of the crag, these trees are so numerous, and their foliage so dense115, that they completely shroud75 from view a considerable excavation116, formed, probably, hundreds of years since, by the fall of a portion of the rock. The detached fragment still lies at a little distance from the base, gray and moss-grown, but corresponding, in its general outline, to the cavity from which it was rent.
But the most singular and beautiful object in all this scene is a tiny fount of crystal water, that gushes117 forth from the high, smooth forehead of the cliff. Its perpendicular descent is of many feet; after which it finds its way, with a sweet diminutive119 murmur56, to the level ground.
It is not easy to conceive whence the barren rock procures120 even the small supply of water that is necessary to the existence of this stream; it is as unaccountable as the gush118 of gentle feeling which sometimes proceeds from the hardest heart: but there it continues to flow and fall, undiminished and unincreased. The stream is so slender, that the gentlest breeze suffices to disturb its descent, and to scatter40 its pure sweet waters over the face of the cliff. But in that deep forest there is seldom a breath of wind; so that, plashing continually upon one spot, the fount has worn its own little channel of white sand, by which it finds its way to the river. Alas121 that the Naiades have lost their old authority! for what a deity122 of tiny loveliness must once have presided here!
Ellen’s companion paused not to gaze either upon the loveliness or the sublimity of this scene, but, assisting her where it was requisite123, began the steep and difficult ascent of the lower part of the cliff. The maiden’s ingenuity124 in vain endeavored to assign reasons for this movement; but when they reached the tuft of trees, which, as has been noticed, grew at the ultimate point where mortal footstep might safely tread, she perceived through their thick branches the recess125 in the rock. Here they entered; and her guide pointed126 to a mossy seat, in the formation of which, to judge from its regularity127, art had probably a share.
“Here you may remain in safety,” he observed, “till I obtain the means of proceeding. In this spot you need fear no intruder; but it will be dangerous to venture beyond its bounds.”
The meaning glance that accompanied these words intimated to poor Ellen, that, in warning her against danger, he alluded128 to the vengeance129 with which he would visit any attempt to escape. To leave her thus alone, trusting to the influence of such a threat, was a bold, yet a necessary and by no means a hopeless measure. On Ellen it produced the desired effect; and she sat in the cave as motionless, for a time, as if she had herself been a part of the rock. In other circumstances this shady recess would have been a delightful130 retreat during the sultry warmth of a summer’s day. The dewy coolness of the rock kept the air always fresh and the sunbeams never thrust themselves so as to dissipate the mellow131 twilight132 through the green trees with which the chamber was curtained. Ellen’s sleeplessness133 and agitation134 for many preceding hours had perhaps deadened her feelings; for she now felt a sort of indifference135 creeping upon her, an inability to realize the evils of her situation, at the same time that she was perfectly aware of them all. This torpor136 of mind increased, till her eyelids137 began to grow heavy and the cave and trees to swim before her sight. In a few moments more she would probably have been in dreamless slumber; but, rousing herself by a strong effort, she looked round the narrow limits of the cave in search of objects to excite her worn-out mind.
She now perceived, wherever the smooth rock afforded place for them, the initials, or the full-length names of former visitants of the cave. What wanderer on mountain-tops or in deep solitudes138 has not felt the influence of these records of humanity, telling him, when such a conviction is soothing140 to his heart, that he is not alone in the world? It was singular, that, when her own mysterious situation had almost lost its power to engage her thoughts, Ellen perused14 these barren memorials with a certain degree of interest. She went on repeating them aloud, and starting at the sound of her own voice, till at length, as one name passed through her lips, she paused, and then, leaning her forehead against the letters, burst into tears. It was the name of Edward Walcott; and it struck upon her heart, arousing her to a full sense of her present misfortunes and dangers, and, more painful still, of her past happiness. Her tears had, however, a soothing, and at the same time a strengthening effect upon her mind; for, when their gush was over, she raised her head, and began to meditate141 on the means of escape. She wondered at the species of fascination142 that had kept her, as if chained to the rock, so long, when there was, in reality, nothing to bar her pathway. She determined, late as it was, to attempt her own deliverance, and for that purpose began slowly and cautiously to emerge from the cave.
Peeping out from among the trees, she looked and listened with most painful anxiety to discover if any living thing were in that seeming solitude139, or if any sound disturbed the heavy stillness. But she saw only Nature in her wildest forms, and heard only the plash and murmur (almost inaudible, because continual) of the little waterfall, and the quick, short throbbing143 of her own heart, against which she pressed her hand as if to hush it. Gathering144 courage, therefore, she began to descend46; and, starting often at the loose stones that even her light footstep displaced and sent rattling145 down, she at length reached the base of the crag in safety. She then made a few steps in the direction, as nearly as she could judge, by which she arrived at the spot, but paused, with a sudden revulsion of the blood to her heart, as her guide emerged from behind a projecting part of the rock. He approached her deliberately146, an ironical147 smile writhing148 his features into a most disagreeable expression; while in his eyes there was something that seemed a wild, fierce joy. By a species of sophistry149, of which oppressors often make use, he had brought himself to believe that he was now the injured one, and that Ellen, by her distrust of him, had fairly subjected herself to whatever evil it consisted with his will and power to inflict150 upon her. Her only restraining influence over him, the consciousness, in his own mind, that he possessed her confidence, was now done away. Ellen, as well as her enemy, felt that this was the case. She knew not what to dread; but she was well aware that danger was at hand, and that, in the deep wilderness151, there was none to help her, except that Being with whose inscrutable purposes it might consist to allow the wicked to triumph for a season, and the innocent to be brought low.
“Are you so soon weary of this quiet retreat?” demanded her guide, continuing to wear the same sneering152 smile. “Or has your anxiety for your father induced you to set forth alone in quest of the afflicted153 old man?”
“Oh, if I were but with him!” exclaimed Ellen. “But this place is lonely and fearful; and I cannot endure to remain here.”
“Lonely, is it, sweet Ellen?” he rejoined; “am I not with you? Yes, it is lonely,— lonely as guilt could wish. Cry aloud, Ellen, and spare not. Shriek154, and see if there be any among these rocks and woods to hearken to you!”
“There is, there is One,” exclaimed Ellen, shuddering155, and affrighted at the fearful meaning of his countenance. “He is here! He is there!” And she pointed to heaven.
“It may be so, dearest,” he replied. “But if there be an Ear that hears, and an Eye that sees all the evil of the earth, yet the Arm is slow to avenge156. Else why do I stand before you a living man?”
“His vengeance may be delayed for a time, but not forever,” she answered, gathering a desperate courage from the extremity157 of her fear.
“You say true, lovely Ellen; and I have done enough, erenow, to insure its heaviest weight. There is a pass, when evil deeds can add nothing to guilt, nor good ones take anything from it.”
“Think of your mother,— of her sorrow through life, and perhaps even after death,” Ellen began to say. But, as she spoke these words, the expression of his face was changed, becoming suddenly so dark and fiend-like, that she clasped her hands, and fell on her knees before him.
“I have thought of my mother,” he replied, speaking very low, and putting his face close to hers. “I remember the neglect, the wrong, the lingering and miserable death, that she received at my hands. By what claim can either man or woman henceforth expect mercy from me? If God will help you, be it so; but by those words you have turned my heart to stone.”
At this period of their conversation, when Ellen’s peril158 seemed most imminent159, the attention of both was attracted by a fragment of rock, which, falling from the summit of the crag, struck very near them. Ellen started from her knees, and, with her false guide, gazed eagerly upward,— he in the fear of interruption, she in the hope of deliverance.
收听单词发音 |
1
miserable
|
|
| adj.悲惨的，痛苦的；可怜的，糟糕的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
2
varied
|
|
| adj.多样的，多变化的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
3
imperatively
|
|
| adv.命令式地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
4
instinctive
|
|
| adj.(出于)本能的；直觉的；(出于)天性的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
5
authorized
|
|
| a.委任的，许可的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
6
spoke
|
|
| 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 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
7
vaguely
|
|
| adv.含糊地，暖昧地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
8
concealment
|
|
| n.隐藏, 掩盖，隐瞒 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
9
secrecy
|
|
| n.秘密，保密，隐蔽 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
10
standing
|
|
| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
11
apprehension
|
|
| n.理解，领悟；逮捕，拘捕；忧虑 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
12
affected
|
|
| adj.不自然的，假装的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
13
justify
|
|
| vt.证明…正当(或有理)，为…辩护 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
14
perused
|
|
| v.读（某篇文字）( peruse的过去式和过去分词 )；（尤指）细阅；审阅；匆匆读或心不在焉地浏览（某篇文字） | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
15
insanity
|
|
| n.疯狂，精神错乱；极端的愚蠢，荒唐 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
16
enjoined
|
|
| v.命令( enjoin的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
17
infancy
|
|
| n.婴儿期；幼年期；初期 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
18
dread
|
|
| vt.担忧，忧虑；惧怕，不敢；n.担忧，畏惧 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
19
proceedings
|
|
| n.进程，过程，议程；诉讼(程序)；公报 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
20
proceeding
|
|
| n.行动，进行，(pl.)会议录，学报 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
21
maiden
|
|
| n.少女，处女；adj.未婚的，纯洁的，无经验的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
22
penetration
|
|
| n.穿透，穿人，渗透 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
23
delicacy
|
|
| n.精致，细微，微妙，精良；美味，佳肴 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
24
untold
|
|
| adj.数不清的，无数的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
25
judgment
|
|
| n.审判；判断力，识别力，看法，意见 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
26
zeal
|
|
| n.热心，热情，热忱 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
27
adviser
|
|
| n.劝告者，顾问 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
28
intervention
|
|
| n.介入，干涉，干预 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
29
impelled
|
|
| v.推动、推进或敦促某人做某事( impel的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
30
determined
|
|
| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
31
chamber
|
|
| n.房间，寝室；会议厅；议院；会所 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
32
sleepless
|
|
| adj.不睡眠的，睡不著的，不休息的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
33
abatement
|
|
| n.减(免)税，打折扣，冲销 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
34
meditations
|
|
| 默想( meditation的名词复数 )； 默念； 沉思； 冥想 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
35
decided
|
|
| adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
36
approbation
|
|
| n.称赞；认可 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
37
torrent
|
|
| n.激流，洪流；爆发，(话语等的)连发 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
38
dreaded
|
|
| adj.令人畏惧的；害怕的v.害怕，恐惧，担心( dread的过去式和过去分词) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
39
gusts
|
|
| 一阵强风( gust的名词复数 )； （怒、笑等的）爆发； （感情的）迸发； 发作 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
40
scatter
|
|
| vt.撒，驱散，散开；散布/播；vi.分散，消散 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
41
scattered
|
|
| adj.分散的，稀疏的；散步的；疏疏落落的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
42
forth
|
|
| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
43
touching
|
|
| adj.动人的，使人感伤的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
44
vacancies
|
|
| n.空房间( vacancy的名词复数 )；空虚；空白；空缺 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
45
dwelling
|
|
| n.住宅，住所，寓所 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
46
descend
|
|
| vt./vi.传下来，下来，下降 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
47
descended
|
|
| a.为...后裔的，出身于...的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
48
scripture
|
|
| n.经文，圣书，手稿；Scripture:(常用复数)《圣经》，《圣经》中的一段 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
49
virtuously
|
|
| 合乎道德地，善良地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
50
bridle
|
|
| n.笼头，束缚；vt.抑制，约束；动怒 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
51
tempted
|
|
| v.怂恿（某人）干不正当的事；冒…的险（tempt的过去分词） | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
52
rein
|
|
| n.疆绳，统治，支配；vt.以僵绳控制，统治 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
53
motives
|
|
| n.动机，目的( motive的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
54
repent
|
|
| v.悔悟，悔改，忏悔，后悔 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
55
smother
|
|
| vt./vi.使窒息；抑制；闷死；n.浓烟；窒息 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
56
murmur
|
|
| n.低语，低声的怨言；v.低语，低声而言 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
57
mingle
|
|
| vt.使混合，使相混；vi.混合起来；相交往 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
58
stifling
|
|
| a.令人窒息的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
59
groan
|
|
| vi./n.呻吟，抱怨；(发出)呻吟般的声音 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
60
countenance
|
|
| n.脸色，面容；面部表情；vt.支持，赞同 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
61
heed
|
|
| v.注意，留意；n.注意，留心 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
62
momentary
|
|
| adj.片刻的，瞬息的；短暂的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
63
Christians
|
|
| n.基督教徒( Christian的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
64
bridles
|
|
| 约束( bridle的名词复数 )； 限动器； 马笼头； 系带 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
65
muffled
|
|
| adj.（声音）被隔的；听不太清的；（衣服）裹严的；蒙住的v.压抑，捂住( muffle的过去式和过去分词 )；用厚厚的衣帽包着（自己） | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
66
solitary
|
|
| adj.孤独的，独立的，荒凉的；n.隐士 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
67
apparently
|
|
| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
68
plaintive
|
|
| adj.可怜的，伤心的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
69
hush
|
|
| int.嘘，别出声；n.沉默，静寂；v.使安静 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
70
slumber
|
|
| n.睡眠，沉睡状态 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
71
gasping
|
|
| adj. 气喘的, 痉挛的 动词gasp的现在分词 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
72
stifled
|
|
| （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： |
|
|
|
|
73
thither
|
|
| adv.向那里；adj.在那边的，对岸的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
74
shrouding
|
|
| n.覆盖v.隐瞒( shroud的现在分词 )；保密 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
75
shroud
|
|
| n.裹尸布，寿衣；罩，幕；vt.覆盖，隐藏 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
76
sobbing
|
|
| <主方>Ⅰ adj.湿透的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
77
wailing
|
|
| v.哭叫，哀号( wail的现在分词 )；沱 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
78
utterance
|
|
| n.用言语表达，话语，言语 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
79
fixed
|
|
| adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
80
beholding
|
|
| v.看，注视( behold的现在分词 )；瞧；看呀；（叙述中用于引出某人意外的出现）哎哟 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
81
intercourse
|
|
| n.性交；交流，交往，交际 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
82
possessed
|
|
| adj.疯狂的；拥有的，占有的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
83
guilt
|
|
| n.犯罪；内疚；过失，罪责 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
84
misery
|
|
| n.痛苦，苦恼，苦难；悲惨的境遇，贫苦 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
85
demeanor
|
|
| n.行为；风度 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
86
repentance
|
|
| n.懊悔 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
87
compassion
|
|
| n.同情，怜悯 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
88
wrought
|
|
| v.引起；以…原料制作；运转；adj.制造的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
89
exultingly
|
|
| 兴高采烈地，得意地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
90
conjecture
|
|
| n./v.推测，猜测 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
91
opposition
|
|
| n.反对，敌对 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
92
corpse
|
|
| n.尸体，死尸 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
93
gilded
|
|
| a.镀金的，富有的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
94
providence
|
|
| n.深谋远虑，天道，天意；远见；节约；上帝 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
95
imputed
|
|
| v.把（错误等）归咎于( impute的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
96
devious
|
|
| adj.不坦率的，狡猾的；迂回的，曲折的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
97
perfectly
|
|
| adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
98
windings
|
|
| （道路、河流等）蜿蜒的，弯曲的( winding的名词复数 )； 缠绕( wind的现在分词 )； 卷绕； 转动（把手） | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
99
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 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
100
agitating
|
|
| 搅动( agitate的现在分词 )； 激怒； 使焦虑不安； （尤指为法律、社会状况的改变而）激烈争论 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
101
admiration
|
|
| n.钦佩，赞美，羡慕 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
102
precipice
|
|
| n.悬崖，危急的处境 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
103
surmounted
|
|
| 战胜( surmount的过去式和过去分词 )； 克服（困难）； 居于…之上； 在…顶上 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
104
perpendicular
|
|
| adj.垂直的，直立的；n.垂直线，垂直的位置 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
105
inaccessible
|
|
| adj.达不到的，难接近的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
106
ascent
|
|
| n.(声望或地位)提高；上升，升高；登高 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
107
scanty
|
|
| adj.缺乏的，仅有的，节省的，狭小的，不够的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
108
nourishment
|
|
| n.食物，营养品；营养情况 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
109
luxurious
|
|
| adj.精美而昂贵的；豪华的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
110
interval
|
|
| n.间隔，间距；幕间休息，中场休息 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
111
hardy
|
|
| adj.勇敢的，果断的，吃苦的；耐寒的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
112
sublimity
|
|
| 崇高，庄严，气质高尚 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
113
foliage
|
|
| n.叶子，树叶，簇叶 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
114
funereal
|
|
| adj.悲哀的；送葬的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
115
dense
|
|
| a.密集的，稠密的，浓密的；密度大的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
116
excavation
|
|
| n.挖掘，发掘；被挖掘之地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
117
gushes
|
|
| n.涌出，迸发( gush的名词复数 )v.喷，涌( gush的第三人称单数 )；滔滔不绝地说话 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
118
gush
|
|
| v.喷，涌；滔滔不绝(说话)；n.喷，涌流；迸发 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
119
diminutive
|
|
| adj.小巧可爱的，小的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
120
procures
|
|
| v.（努力）取得， （设法）获得( procure的第三人称单数 )；拉皮条 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
121
alas
|
|
| int.唉(表示悲伤、忧愁、恐惧等) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
122
deity
|
|
| n.神，神性；被奉若神明的人(或物) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
123
requisite
|
|
| adj.需要的，必不可少的；n.必需品 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
124
ingenuity
|
|
| n.别出心裁；善于发明创造 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
125
recess
|
|
| n.短期休息，壁凹（墙上装架子，柜子等凹处） | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
126
pointed
|
|
| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
127
regularity
|
|
| n.规律性，规则性；匀称，整齐 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
128
alluded
|
|
| 提及，暗指( allude的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
129
vengeance
|
|
| n.报复，报仇，复仇 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
130
delightful
|
|
| adj.令人高兴的，使人快乐的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
131
mellow
|
|
| adj.柔和的；熟透的；v.变柔和；(使)成熟 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
132
twilight
|
|
| n.暮光，黄昏；暮年，晚期，衰落时期 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
133
sleeplessness
|
|
| n.失眠，警觉 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
134
agitation
|
|
| n.搅动；搅拌；鼓动，煽动 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
135
indifference
|
|
| n.不感兴趣，不关心，冷淡，不在乎 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
136
torpor
|
|
| n.迟钝；麻木；（动物的）冬眠 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
137
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 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
138
solitudes
|
|
| n.独居( solitude的名词复数 )；孤独；荒僻的地方；人迹罕至的地方 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
139
solitude
|
|
| n. 孤独; 独居,荒僻之地,幽静的地方 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
140
soothing
|
|
| adj.慰藉的；使人宽心的；镇静的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
141
meditate
|
|
| v.想，考虑，（尤指宗教上的）沉思，冥想 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
142
fascination
|
|
| n.令人着迷的事物，魅力，迷恋 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
143
throbbing
|
|
| a. 跳动的,悸动的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
144
gathering
|
|
| n.集会，聚会，聚集 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
145
rattling
|
|
| adj. 格格作响的, 活泼的, 很好的 adv. 极其, 很, 非常 动词rattle的现在分词 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
146
deliberately
|
|
| adv.审慎地；蓄意地；故意地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
147
ironical
|
|
| adj.讽刺的，冷嘲的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
148
writhing
|
|
| （因极度痛苦而）扭动或翻滚( writhe的现在分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
149
sophistry
|
|
| n.诡辩 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
150
inflict
|
|
| vt.(on)把…强加给，使遭受，使承担 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
151
wilderness
|
|
| n.杳无人烟的一片陆地、水等，荒漠 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
152
sneering
|
|
| 嘲笑的，轻蔑的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
153
afflicted
|
|
| 使受痛苦，折磨( afflict的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
154
shriek
|
|
| v./n.尖叫，叫喊 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
155
shuddering
|
|
| v.战栗( shudder的现在分词 )；发抖；（机器、车辆等）突然震动；颤动 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
156
avenge
|
|
| v.为...复仇，为...报仇 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
157
extremity
|
|
| n.末端，尽头；尽力；终极；极度 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
158
peril
|
|
| n.(严重的)危险；危险的事物 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
159
imminent
|
|
| adj.即将发生的，临近的，逼近的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
| 欢迎访问英文小说网 |