Letters from home! What a burst of sudden emotion—what a riot of conflicting feelings, of dread2 and joy,—expectation and anxiety—what a flood of old memories—what stirring up of almost forgotten associations these three words create in the hearts of those who dwell in distant regions of this earth, far, far away from kith and kin3, from friends and acquaintances, from the much-loved scenes of childhood, and from home! Letters from home! How gratefully the sound falls upon ears that have been long unaccustomed to sounds and things connected with home, and so long accustomed to wild, savage5 sounds, that these have at length lost their novelty, and become everyday and commonplace, while the first have gradually grown strange and unwonted. For many long months home and all connected with it have become a dream of other days, and savage-land a present reality. The mind has by degrees become absorbed by surrounding objects—objects so utterly6 unassociated with or unsuggestive of any other land, that it involuntarily ceases to think of the scenes of childhood with the same feelings that it once did. As time rolls on, home assumes a misty7, undefined character, as if it were not only distant in reality, but were also slowly retreating farther and farther away—growing gradually faint and dream-like, though not less dear, to the mental view.
“Letters from home!” shouted Mr Wilson, and the doctor, and the skipper, simultaneously8, as the sportsmen, after dashing through the wild storm, at last reached the fort, and stumbled tumultuously into Bachelors’ Hall.
“What!—Where!—How!—You don’t mean it!” they exclaimed, coming to a sudden stand, like three pillars of snow-clad astonishment9.
“Ay,” replied the doctor, who affected10 to be quite cool upon all occasions, and rather cooler than usual if the occasion was more than ordinarily exciting—“ay, we do mean it. Old Rogan has got the packet, and is even now disembowelling it.”
“More than that,” interrupted the skipper, who sat smoking as usual by the stove, with his hands in his breeches pockets—“more than that, I saw him dissecting11 into the very marrow12 of the thing; so if we don’t storm the old admiral in his cabin, he’ll go to sleep over these prosy yarns13 that the governor-in-chief writes to him, and we’ll have to whistle for our letters till midnight.”
The skipper’s remark was interrupted by the opening of the outer door and the entrance of the butler. “Mr Rogan wishes to see you, sir,” said that worthy14 to the accountant.
“I’ll be with him in a minute,” he replied, as he threw off his capote and proceeded to unwind himself as quickly as his multitudinous haps15 would permit.
By this time Harry Somerville and Hamilton were busily occupied in a similar manner, while a running fire of question and answer, jesting remark and bantering16 reply, was kept up between the young men, from their various apartments and the hall. The doctor was cool, as usual, and impudent17. He had a habit of walking up and down while he smoked, and was thus enabled to look in upon the inmates18 of the several sleeping-rooms, and make his remarks in a quiet, sarcastic19 manner, the galling20 effect of which was heightened by his habit of pausing at the end of every two or three words, to emit a few puffs21 of smoke. Having exhausted22 a good deal of small talk in this way, and having, moreover, finished his pipe, the doctor went to the stove to refill and relight.
“What a deal of trouble you do take to make yourself comfortable!” said he to the skipper, who sat with his chair tilted23 on its hind24 legs, and a pillow at his back.
“No harm in that, doctor,” replied the skipper, with a smile.
“No harm, certainly, but it looks uncommonly25 lazy-like.”
“What does?”
“Why, putting a pillow at your back, to be sure.”
The doctor was a full-fleshed, muscular man, and owing to this fact it mattered little to him whether his chair happened to be an easy one or not. As the skipper sometimes remarked, he carried padding always about with him; he was, therefore, a little apt to sneer26 at the attempts of his brethren to render the ill-shaped, wooden-bottomed chairs, with which the hall was ornamented27, bearable.
“Well, doctor,” said the skipper, “I cannot see how you make me out lazy. Surely it is not an evidence of laziness my endeavouring to render these instruments of torture less tormenting28? Seeking to be comfortable, if it does not inconvenience any one else, is not laziness. Why, what is comfort?” The skipper began to wax philosophical29 at this point, and took the pipe from his mouth as he gravely propounded30 the momentous31 question. “What is comfort? If I go out to camp in the woods, and after turning in find a sharp stump32 sticking into my ribs33 on one side, and a pine root driving in the small of my back on the other side, is that comfort? Certainly not. And if I get up, seize a hatchet34, level the stump, cut away the root, and spread pine brush over the place, am I to be called lazy for doing so? Or if I sit down on a chair, and on trying to lean back to rest myself find that the stupid lubber who made it has so constructed it that four small hard points alone touch my person—two being at the hip-joints and two at the shoulder-blades; and if to relieve such physical agony I jump up and clap a pillow at my back, am I to be called lazy for doing that?”
“What a glorious entry that would make in the log!” said the doctor, in a low tone, soliloquisingly, as if he made the remark merely for his own satisfaction, while he tapped the ashes out of his pipe.
The skipper looked as if he meditated35 a sharp reply; but his intentions, whatever they might have been, were interrupted by the opening of the door, and the entrance of the accountant, bearing under his arm a packet of letters.
A general rush was made upon him, and in a few minutes a dead silence reigned36 in the hall, broken only at intervals37 by an exclamation38 of surprise or pathos39, as the inmates, in the retirement40 of their separate apartments, perused42 letters from friends in the interior of the country and friends at home: letters that were old—some of them bearing dates many months back—and travel-stained, but new and fresh and cheering, nevertheless, to their owners, as the clear, bright sun in winter or the verdant43 leaves in spring.
Harry Somerville’s letters were numerous and long. He had several from friends in Red River, besides one or two from other parts of the Indian country, and one—it was very thick and heavy—that bore the post-marks of Britain. It was late that night ere the last candle was extinguished in the hall, and it was late, too, before Harry Somerville ceased to peruse41 and re-peruse the long letter from home, and found time or inclination44 to devote to his other correspondents.
Among the rest was a letter from his old friend and companion, Charley Kennedy, which ran as follows:—
My Dear Harry,—It really seems more than an age since I saw you. Your last epistle, written in the perturbation of mind consequent upon being doomed45 to spend another winter at York Fort, reached me only a few days ago, and filled me with pleasant recollections of other days. Oh! man, how much I wish that you were with me in this beautiful country! You are aware that I have been what they call “roughing it” since you and I parted on the shores of Lake Winnipeg; but, my dear fellow, the idea that most people have of what that phrase means is a very erroneous one indeed. “Roughing it” I certainly have been, inasmuch as I have been living on rough fare, associating with rough men, and sleeping on rough beds under the starry47 sky; but I assure you that all this is not half so rough upon the constitution as what they call leading an easy life, which is simply a life that makes a poor fellow stagnate48, body and spirit, till the one comes to be unable to digest its food, and the other incompetent49 to jump at so much as half an idea. Anything but an easy life, to my mind. Ah! there’s nothing like roughing it, Harry, my boy. Why, I am thriving on it—growing like a young walrus50, eating like a Canadian voyageur, and sleeping like a top! This is a splendid country for sport, and as our bourgeois51 (the gentleman in charge of an establishment is always designated the bourgeois) has taken it into his head that I am a good hand at making friends with the Indians, he has sent me out on several expeditions, and afforded me some famous opportunities of seeing life among the redskins. There is a talk just now of establishing a new outpost in this district, so if I succeed in persuading the governor to let me accompany the party, I shall have something interesting to write about in my next letter. By the way, I wrote to you a month ago, by two Indians who said they were going to the missionary52 station at Norway House. Did you ever get it? There is a hunter here just now who goes by the name of Jacques Caradoc. He is a first-rater—can do anything, in a wild way, that lies within the power of mortal man, and is an inexhaustible anecdote53-teller, in a quiet way. He and I have been out buffalo54-hunting two or three times, and it would have done your heart good, Harry, my dear boy, to have seen us scouring55 over the prairie together on two big-boned Indian horses—regular trained buffalo-runners, that didn’t need the spur to urge, nor the rein56 to guide them, when once they caught sight of the black cattle, and kept a sharp look-out for badger-holes, just as if they had been reasonable creatures. The first time I went out I had several rather ugly falls, owing to my inexperience. The fact is, that if a man has never run buffaloes57 before, he’s sure to get one or two upsets, no matter how good a horseman he may be. And that monster Jacques, although he’s the best fellow I ever met with for a hunting companion, always took occasion to grin at my mishaps58, and gravely to read me a lecture to the effect that they were all owing to my own clumsiness or stupidity; which, you will acknowledge, was not calculated to restore my equanimity59.
The very first run we had cost me the entire skin of my nose, and converted that feature into a superb Roman for the next three weeks. It happened thus. Jacques and I were riding over the prairie in search of buffaloes. The place was interspersed60 with sundry61 knolls62 covered with trees, slips and belts of woodland, with ponds scattered63 among them, and open sweeps of the plain here and there; altogether a delightful64 country to ride through. It was a clear early morning, so that our horses were fresh and full of spirit. They knew, as well as we ourselves did, what we were out for, and it was no easy matter to restrain them. The one I rode was a great long-legged beast, as like as possible to that abominable65 kangaroo that nearly killed me at Red River; as for Jacques, he was mounted on a first-rate charger. I don’t know how it is, but somehow or other everything about Jacques, or belonging to him, or in the remotest degree connected with him, is always first-rate! He generally owns a first-rate horse, and if he happens by any unlucky chance to be compelled to mount a bad one, it immediately becomes another animal. He seems to infuse some of his own wonderful spirit into it! Well, as Jacques and I curvetted along, skirting the low bushes at the edge of a wood, out burst a whole herd66 of buffaloes. Bang went Jacques’s gun, almost before I had winked67 to make sure that I saw rightly, and down fell the fattest of them all, while the rest tossed up their tails, heels, and heads in one grand whirl of indignant amazement68, and scoured69 away like the wind. In a moment our horses were at full stretch after them, on their own account entirely70, and without any reference to us. When I recovered my self-possession a little, I threw forward my gun and fired; but owing to my endeavouring to hold the reins71 at the same time, I nearly blew off one of my horse’s ears, and only knocked up the dust about six yards ahead of us! Of course Jacques could not let this pass unnoticed. He was sitting quietly loading his gun, as cool as a cucumber, while his horse was dashing forward at full stretch, with the reins hanging loosely on his neck.
“Ah, Mister Charles,” said he, with the least possible grin on his leathern visage, “that was not well done. You should never hold the reins when you fire, nor try to put the gun to your shoulder. It an’t needful. The beast’ll look arter itself, if it’s a riglar buffalo-runner; any ways, holdin’ the reins is of no manner of use. I once know’d a gentleman that came out here to see the buffalo-huntin’. He was a good enough shot in his way, an’ a first-rate rider. But he was full o’ queer notions: he would load his gun with the ramrod in the riglar way, instead o’ doin’ as we do, tumblin’ in a drop powder, spittin’ a ball out your mouth down the muzzle72, and hittin’ the stock on the pommel of the saddle to send it home. And he had them miserable73 things—the somethin’ ’cussion-caps, and used to fiddle74 away with them while we were knockin’ over the cattle in all directions. Moreover, he had a notion that it was altogether wrong to let go his reins even for a moment, and so, what between the ramrod and the ’cussion-caps and the reins, he was worse than the greenest clerk that ever came to the country. He gave it up in despair at last, after lamin’ two horses, and finished off by runnin’ after a big bull, that turned on him all of a suddent, crammed75 its head and horns into the side of his horse, and sent the poor fellow head over heels on the green grass. He wasn’t much the worse for it, but his fine double-barrelled gun was twisted into a shape that would almost have puzzled an Injin to tell what it was.” Well, Harry, all the time that Jacques was telling me this we were gaining on the buffaloes, and at last we got quite close to them, and as luck would have it, the very thing that happened to the amateur sportsman happened to me. I went madly after a big bull in spite of Jacques’s remonstrances76, and just as I got alongside of him up went his tail (a sure sign that his anger was roused), and round he came, head to the front, stiff as a rock; my poor charger’s chest went right between his horns, and, as a matter of course, I continued the race upon nothing, head first, for a distance of about thirty yards, and brought up on the bridge of my nose. My poor dear father used to say I was a bull-headed rascal77, and, upon my word, I believe he was more literally78 correct than he imagined; for although I fell with a fearful crash, head first, on the hard plain, I rose up immediately, and in a few minutes was able to resume the chase again. My horse was equally fortunate, for although thus brought to a sudden stand while at full gallop79, he wheeled about, gave a contemptuous flourish with his heels, and cantered after Jacques, who soon caught him again. My head bothered me a good deal for some time after this accident, and swelled80 up till my eyes became almost undistinguishable; but a few weeks put me all right again. And who do you think this man Jacques is? You’d never guess. He’s the trapper whom Redfeather told us of long ago, and whose wife was killed by the Indians. He and Redfeather have met, and are very fond of each other. How often in the midst of these wild excursions have my thoughts wandered to you, Harry! The fellows I meet with here are all kind-hearted, merry companions, but none like yourself. I sometimes say to Jacques, when we become communicative to each other beside the camp-fire, that my earthly felicity would be perfect if I had Harry Somerville here; and then I think of Kate, my sweet, loving sister Kate, and feel that, even although I had you with me, there would still be something wanting to make things perfect. Talking of Kate, by the way, I have received a letter from her, the first sheet of which, as it speaks of mutual81 Red River friends, I herewith enclose. Pray keep it safe, and return per first opportunity. We’ve loads of furs here and plenty of deer-stalking, not to mention galloping82 on horseback on the plains in summer and dog-sledging in winter. Alas83! my poor friend, I fear that it is rather selfish in me to write so feelingly about my agreeable circumstances, when I know you are slowly dragging out your existence at that melancholy84 place York Fort; but believe me, I sympathise with you, and I hope earnestly that you will soon be appointed to more genial85 scenes. I have much, very much, to tell you yet, but am compelled to reserve it for a future epistle, as the packet which is to convey this is on the point of being closed.
Adieu, my dear Harry, and wherever you may happen to pitch your tent, always bear in kindly86 remembrance your old friend, Charles Kennedy.
The letter was finished, but Harry did not cease to hold intercourse87 with his friend. With his head resting on his two hands and his elbows on the table, he sat long, silently gazing on the signature, while his mind revelled88 in the past, the present, and the future. He bounded over the wilderness89 that lay between him and the beautiful plains of the Saskatchewan. He seized Charley round the neck, and hugged and wrestled90 with him as in days of yore. He mounted an imaginary charger, and swept across the plains along with him; listened to anecdotes91 innumerable from Jacques, attacked thousands of buffaloes, singled out scores of wild bulls, pitched over horses’ heads and alighted precisely92 on the bridge of his nose, always in close proximity93 to his old friend. Gradually his mind returned to its prison-house, and his eye fell on Kate’s letter, which he picked up and began to read.—It ran thus:—
My Dear, Dear, Darling Charley,—I cannot tell you how much my heart has yearned94 to see you, or hear from you, for many long, long months past. Your last delightful letter, which I treasure up as the most precious object I possess, has indeed explained to me how utterly impossible it was to have written a day sooner than you did; but that does not comfort me a bit, or make those weary packets more rapid and frequent in their movements, or the time that passes between the periods of hearing from you less dreary95 and anxious. God bless and protect you, my darling, in the midst of all the dangers that surround you. But I did not intend to begin this letter by murmuring, so pray forgive me, and I shall try to atone96 for it by giving you a minute account of everybody here about whom you are interested. Our beloved father and mother, I am thankful to say, are quite well. Papa has taken more than ever to smoking since you went away. He is seldom out of the summer-house in the garden now, where I very frequently go, and spend hours together in reading to and talking with him. He very often speaks of you, and I am certain that he misses you far more than we expected, although I think he cannot miss you nearly so much as I do. For some weeks past, indeed ever since we got your last letter, papa was engaged all the forenoon in some mysterious work, for he used to lock himself up in the summer-house—a thing he never did before. One day I went there at my usual time, and instead of having to wait till he should unlock the door, I found it already open, and entered the room, which was so full of smoke that I could hardly see. I found papa writing at a small table, and the moment he heard my footstep he jumped up with a fierce frown and shouted, “Who’s there?” in that terrible voice that he used to speak in long ago when angry with his men, but which he has almost quite given up for some time past. He never speaks to me, as you know very well, but in the kindest tones, so you may imagine what a dreadful fright I got for a moment; but it was only for a moment, because the instant he saw that it was me his dear face changed, and he folded me in his arms, saying, “Ah, Kate, forgive me, my darling! I did not know it was you, and I thought I had locked the door, and was angry at being so unceremoniously interrupted.” He then told me he was just finishing a letter of advice to you, and going up to the table, pushed the papers hurriedly into a drawer. As he did so I guessed what had been his mysterious occupation, for he seemed to have covered quires of paper with the closest writing. Ah, Charley, you’re a lucky fellow to be able to extort97 such long letters from our dear father. You know how difficult he finds it to write even the shortest note, and you remember his old favourite expression, “I would rather skin a wild buffalo bull alive than write a long letter.” He deserves long ones in return, Charley; but I need not urge you on that score—you are an excellent correspondent. Mamma is able to go out every day now for a drive in the prairie. She was confined to the house for nearly three weeks last month, with some sort of illness that the doctor did not seem to understand, and at one time I was much frightened, and very, very anxious about her, she became so weak. It would have made your heart glad to have seen the tender way in which papa nursed her through the illness. I had fancied that he was the very last man in the world to make a sick-nurse, so bold and quick in his movements, and with such a loud, gruff voice—for it is gruff, although very sweet at the same time. But the moment he began to tend mamma he spoke98 more softly even than dear Mr Addison does, and he began to walk about the house on tiptoe, and persevered99 so long in this latter that all his moccasins began to be worn out at the toes, while the heels remained quite strong. I begged of him often not to take so much trouble, as I was naturally the proper nurse for mamma; but he wouldn’t hear of it, and insisted on carrying breakfast, dinner, and tea to her, besides giving her all her medicine. He was for ever making mistakes, however, much to his own sorrow, the darling man; and I had to watch him pretty closely, for more than once he has been on the point of giving mamma a glass of laudanum in mistake for a glass of port wine. I was a good deal frightened for him at first, as, before he became accustomed to the work, he tumbled over the chairs and tripped on the carpets while carrying trays with dinners and breakfasts, till I thought he would really injure himself at last; and then he was so terribly angry with himself at making such a noise and breaking the dishes—I think he has broken nearly an entire dinner and tea set of crockery. Poor George, the cook, has suffered most from these mishaps—for you know that dear papa cannot get angry without letting a little of it out upon somebody; and whenever he broke a dish or let a tray fall, he used to rush into the kitchen, shake his fist in George’s face, and ask him, in a fierce voice, what he meant by it. But he always got better in a few seconds, and finished off by telling him never to mind, that he was a good servant on the whole, and he wouldn’t say any more about it just now, but he had better look sharp out and not do it again. I must say, in praise of George, that on such occasions he looked very sorry indeed, and said he hoped that he would always do his best to give him satisfaction. This was only proper in him, for he ought to be very thankful that our father restrains his anger so much; for you know he was rather violent once, and you’ve no idea, Charley, how great a restraint he now lays on himself. He seems to me quite like a lamb, and I am beginning to feel somehow as if we had been mistaken, and that he never was a passionate100 man at all. I think it is partly owing to dear Mr Addison, who visits us very frequently now, and papa and he are often shut up together for many hours in the smoking-house. I was sure that papa would soon come to like him, for his religion is so free from everything like severity or affected solemnity. The cook, and Rosa, and my dog that you named Twist, are all quite well. The last has grown into a very large and beautiful animal, something like the stag-hound in the picture-book we used to study together long ago. He is exceedingly fond of me, and I feel him to be quite a protector. The cocks and hens, the cow and the old mare101, are also in perfect health; so now, having told you a good deal about ourselves, I will give you a short account of the doings in the colony.
First of all, your old friend Mr Kipples is still alive and well, and so are all our old companions in the school. One or two of the latter have left, and young Naysmith has joined the Company’s service. Betty Peters comes very often to see us, and she always asks for you with great earnestness. I think you have stolen the old woman’s heart, Charley, for she speaks of you with great affection. Old Mr Seaforth is still as vigorous as ever, dashing about the settlement on a high-mettled steed, just as if he were one of the youngest men in the colony. He nearly poisoned himself, poor man, a month ago, by taking a dose of some kind of medicine by mistake. I did not hear what it was, but I am told that the treatment was rather severe. Fortunately the doctor happened to be at home when he was sent for, else our old friend would, I fear, have died. As it was, the doctor cured him with great difficulty. He first gave him an emetic102, then put mustard blisters103 to the soles of his feet, and afterwards lifted him into one of his own carts, without springs, in which he drove him for a long time over all the ploughed fields in the neighbourhood. If this is not an exaggerated account, Mr Seaforth is certainly made of sterner stuff than most men. I was told a funny anecdote of him a few days ago, which I am sure you have never heard, otherwise you would have told it to me, for there used to be no secrets between us, Charley—alas! I have no one to confide104 in or advise with now that you are gone. You have often heard of the great flood; not Noah’s one, but the flood that nearly swept away our settlement and did so much damage before you and I were born. Well, you recollect46 that people used to tell of the way in which the river rose after the breaking up of the ice, and how it soon overflowed105 all the low points, sweeping106 off everything in its course. Old Mr Seaforth’s house stood at that time on the little point, just beyond the curve of the river, at the foot of which our own house stands, and as the river continued to rise, Mr Seaforth went about actively107 securing his property. At first he only thought of his boat and canoes, which, with the help of his son Peter and a Canadian, who happened at the time to be employed about the place, he dragged up and secured to an iron staple108 in the side of his house. Soon however, he found that the danger was greater than at first he imagined. The point became completely covered with water, which brought down great numbers of half-drowned and quite-drowned cattle, pigs, and poultry109, and stranded110 them at the garden fence, so that in a short time poor Mr Seaforth could scarcely move about his overcrowded domains111. On seeing this, he drove his own cattle to the highest land in his neighbourhood, and hastened back to the house, intending to carry as much of the furniture as possible to the same place. But during his short absence the river had risen so rapidly that he was obliged to give up all thoughts of this, and think only of securing a few of his valuables. The bit of land round his dwelling112 was so thickly covered with the poor cows, sheep, and other animals, that he could scarcely make his way to the house, and you may fancy his consternation113 on reaching it to find that the water was more than knee-deep round the walls, while a few of the cows and a whole herd of pigs had burst open the door (no doubt accidentally) and coolly entered the dining-room, where they stood with drooping114 heads, very wet, and apparently115 very miserable. The Canadian was busy at the back of the house, loading the boat and canoe with everything he could lay hands on, and was not aware of the foreign invasion in front. Mr Seaforth cared little for this, however, and began to collect all the things he held most valuable, and threw them to the man, who stowed them away in the boat. Peter had been left in charge of the cattle, so they had to work hard. While thus employed the water continued to rise with fearful rapidity, and rushed against the house like a mill-race, so that it soon became evident that the whole would ere long be swept away. Just as they finished loading the boat and canoes, the staple which held them gave way; in a moment they were swept into the middle of the river, and carried out of sight. The Canadian was in the boat at the time the staple broke, so that Mr Seaforth was now left in a dwelling that bid fair to emulate116 Noah’s ark in an hour or two, without a chance of escape, and with no better company than five black oxen in the dining-room, besides three sheep that were now scarcely able to keep their heads above water, and three little pigs that were already drowned. The poor old man did his best to push out the intruders, but only succeeded in ejecting two sheep and an ox. All the others positively117 refused to go, so he was fain to let them stay. By shutting the outer door he succeeded in keeping out a great deal of water. Then he waded118 into the parlour, where he found some more little pigs, floating about and quite dead. Two, however, more adventurous119 than their comrades, had saved their lives by mounting first on a chair and then upon the table, where they were comfortably seated, gazing languidly at their mother, a very heavy fat sow, which sat, with what seemed an expression of settled despair, on the sofa. In a fit of wrath120, Mr Seaforth seized the young pigs and tossed them out of the window; whereupon the old one jumped down, and half walking, half swimming, made her way to her companions in the dining-room. The old gentleman now ascended121 to the garret, where from a small window he looked out upon the scene of devastation122. His chief anxiety was about the foundation of the house, which, being made of a wooden framework, like almost all the others in the colony, would certainly float if the water rose much higher. His fears were better founded than the house. As he looked up the river, which had by this time overflowed all its banks and was spreading over the plains, he saw a fresh burst of water coming down, which, when it dashed against his dwelling, forced it about two yards from its foundation. Suddenly he remembered that there were a large anchor and chain in the kitchen, both of which he had brought there one day, to serve as a sort of anvil123 when he wanted to do some blacksmith work. Hastening down, he fastened one end of the chain to the sofa, and cast the anchor out of the window. A few minutes afterwards another rush of water struck the building, which yielded to pressure, and swung slowly down until the anchor arrested its further progress. This was only for a few seconds, however. The chain was a slight one. It snapped, and the house swept majestically124 down the stream, while its terrified occupants cowered125 within it.
For two days nothing was heard of old Mr Seaforth. Indeed, the settlers had too much to do in saving themselves and their families to think of others; and it was not until the third day that people began to inquire about him. His son Peter had taken a canoe and made diligent126 search in all directions, but although he found the house sticking on a shallow point, neither his father nor the cat was on or in it. At last he was brought to the island, on which nearly half the colony had collected, by an Indian who had passed the house and brought him away in his canoe, along with the old cat. Is he not a wonderful man, to have come through so much in his old age? and he is still so active and hearty127! Mr Swan of the mill is dead. He died of fever last week. Poor old Mr Cordon128 is also gone. His end was very sad. About a month ago he ordered his horse and rode off, intending to visit Fort Garry. At the turn of the road, just above Grant’s House, the horse suddenly swerved129, and its rider was thrown to the ground. He did not live more than half an hour after it. Alas! how very sad to see a man, after escaping all the countless130 dangers of a long life in the woods (and his, you know, was a very adventurous one), thus cut violently down in his old age! O Charley, how little we know what is before us! How needful to have our peace made with God through Jesus Christ, so that we may be ready at any moment when our Father calls us away! There are many events of great interest that have occurred here since you left. You will be glad to hear that Jane Patterson is married to our excellent friend Mr Cameron, who has taken up a store near to us, and intends to run a boat to York Fort next summer. There has been another marriage here which will cause you astonishment at least, if not pleasure. Old Mr Peters has married Marie Peltier! What could have possessed131 her to take such a husband! I cannot understand it. Just think of her, Charley, a girl of eighteen, with a husband of seventy-five!
At this point the writing, which was very close and very small, terminated. Harry laid it down with a deep sigh, wishing much that Charley had thought it advisable to send him the second sheet also. As wishes and regrets on this point were equally unavailing, he endeavoured to continue it in imagination, and was soon as deeply absorbed in following Kate through the well-remembered scenes of Red River as he had been, a short time before, in roaming with her brother over the wide prairies of the Saskatchewan. The increasing cold, however, soon warned him that the night was far spent. He rose and went to the stove; but the fire had gone out, and the almost irresistible132 frost of these regions was already cooling everything in Bachelors’ Hall down to the freezing-point. All his companions had put out their candles, and were busy, doubtless, dreaming of the friends whose letters had struck and reawakened the long-dormant chords that used to echo to the tones and scenes of other days. With a slight shiver, Harry returned to his apartment, and kneeled to thank God for protecting and preserving his absent friends, and especially for sending him “good news from a far land.” The letter with the British post-marks on it was placed under his pillow. It occupied his waking and sleeping thoughts that night, and it was the first thing he thought of and re-read on the following morning, and for many mornings afterwards. Only those can fully4 estimate the value of such letters who live in distant lands, where letters are few—very, very few—and far between.
点击收听单词发音
1 harry | |
vt.掠夺,蹂躏,使苦恼 | |
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2 dread | |
vt.担忧,忧虑;惧怕,不敢;n.担忧,畏惧 | |
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3 kin | |
n.家族,亲属,血缘关系;adj.亲属关系的,同类的 | |
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4 fully | |
adv.完全地,全部地,彻底地;充分地 | |
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5 savage | |
adj.野蛮的;凶恶的,残暴的;n.未开化的人 | |
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6 utterly | |
adv.完全地,绝对地 | |
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7 misty | |
adj.雾蒙蒙的,有雾的 | |
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8 simultaneously | |
adv.同时发生地,同时进行地 | |
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9 astonishment | |
n.惊奇,惊异 | |
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10 affected | |
adj.不自然的,假装的 | |
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11 dissecting | |
v.解剖(动物等)( dissect的现在分词 );仔细分析或研究 | |
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12 marrow | |
n.骨髓;精华;活力 | |
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13 yarns | |
n.纱( yarn的名词复数 );纱线;奇闻漫谈;旅行轶事 | |
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14 worthy | |
adj.(of)值得的,配得上的;有价值的 | |
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15 haps | |
n.粗厚毛披巾;偶然,机会,运气( hap的名词复数 ) | |
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16 bantering | |
adj.嘲弄的v.开玩笑,说笑,逗乐( banter的现在分词 );(善意地)取笑,逗弄 | |
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17 impudent | |
adj.鲁莽的,卑鄙的,厚颜无耻的 | |
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18 inmates | |
n.囚犯( inmate的名词复数 ) | |
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19 sarcastic | |
adj.讥讽的,讽刺的,嘲弄的 | |
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20 galling | |
adj.难堪的,使烦恼的,使焦躁的 | |
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21 puffs | |
n.吸( puff的名词复数 );(烟斗或香烟的)一吸;一缕(烟、蒸汽等);(呼吸或风的)呼v.使喷出( puff的第三人称单数 );喷着汽(或烟)移动;吹嘘;吹捧 | |
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22 exhausted | |
adj.极其疲惫的,精疲力尽的 | |
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23 tilted | |
v. 倾斜的 | |
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24 hind | |
adj.后面的,后部的 | |
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25 uncommonly | |
adv. 稀罕(极,非常) | |
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26 sneer | |
v.轻蔑;嘲笑;n.嘲笑,讥讽的言语 | |
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27 ornamented | |
adj.花式字体的v.装饰,点缀,美化( ornament的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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28 tormenting | |
使痛苦的,使苦恼的 | |
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29 philosophical | |
adj.哲学家的,哲学上的,达观的 | |
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30 propounded | |
v.提出(问题、计划等)供考虑[讨论],提议( propound的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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31 momentous | |
adj.重要的,重大的 | |
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32 stump | |
n.残株,烟蒂,讲演台;v.砍断,蹒跚而走 | |
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33 ribs | |
n.肋骨( rib的名词复数 );(船或屋顶等的)肋拱;肋骨状的东西;(织物的)凸条花纹 | |
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34 hatchet | |
n.短柄小斧;v.扼杀 | |
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35 meditated | |
深思,沉思,冥想( meditate的过去式和过去分词 ); 内心策划,考虑 | |
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36 reigned | |
vi.当政,统治(reign的过去式形式) | |
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37 intervals | |
n.[军事]间隔( interval的名词复数 );间隔时间;[数学]区间;(戏剧、电影或音乐会的)幕间休息 | |
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38 exclamation | |
n.感叹号,惊呼,惊叹词 | |
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39 pathos | |
n.哀婉,悲怆 | |
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40 retirement | |
n.退休,退职 | |
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41 peruse | |
v.细读,精读 | |
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42 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) | |
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43 verdant | |
adj.翠绿的,青翠的,生疏的,不老练的 | |
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44 inclination | |
n.倾斜;点头;弯腰;斜坡;倾度;倾向;爱好 | |
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45 doomed | |
命定的 | |
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46 recollect | |
v.回忆,想起,记起,忆起,记得 | |
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47 starry | |
adj.星光照耀的, 闪亮的 | |
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48 stagnate | |
v.停止 | |
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49 incompetent | |
adj.无能力的,不能胜任的 | |
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50 walrus | |
n.海象 | |
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51 bourgeois | |
adj./n.追求物质享受的(人);中产阶级分子 | |
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52 missionary | |
adj.教会的,传教(士)的;n.传教士 | |
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53 anecdote | |
n.轶事,趣闻,短故事 | |
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54 buffalo | |
n.(北美)野牛;(亚洲)水牛 | |
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55 scouring | |
擦[洗]净,冲刷,洗涤 | |
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56 rein | |
n.疆绳,统治,支配;vt.以僵绳控制,统治 | |
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57 buffaloes | |
n.水牛(分非洲水牛和亚洲水牛两种)( buffalo的名词复数 );(南非或北美的)野牛;威胁;恐吓 | |
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58 mishaps | |
n.轻微的事故,小的意外( mishap的名词复数 ) | |
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59 equanimity | |
n.沉着,镇定 | |
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60 interspersed | |
adj.[医]散开的;点缀的v.intersperse的过去式和过去分词 | |
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61 sundry | |
adj.各式各样的,种种的 | |
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62 knolls | |
n.小圆丘,小土墩( knoll的名词复数 ) | |
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63 scattered | |
adj.分散的,稀疏的;散步的;疏疏落落的 | |
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64 delightful | |
adj.令人高兴的,使人快乐的 | |
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65 abominable | |
adj.可厌的,令人憎恶的 | |
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66 herd | |
n.兽群,牧群;vt.使集中,把…赶在一起 | |
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67 winked | |
v.使眼色( wink的过去式和过去分词 );递眼色(表示友好或高兴等);(指光)闪烁;闪亮 | |
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68 amazement | |
n.惊奇,惊讶 | |
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69 scoured | |
走遍(某地)搜寻(人或物)( scour的过去式和过去分词 ); (用力)刷; 擦净; 擦亮 | |
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70 entirely | |
ad.全部地,完整地;完全地,彻底地 | |
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71 reins | |
感情,激情; 缰( rein的名词复数 ); 控制手段; 掌管; (成人带着幼儿走路以防其走失时用的)保护带 | |
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72 muzzle | |
n.鼻口部;口套;枪(炮)口;vt.使缄默 | |
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73 miserable | |
adj.悲惨的,痛苦的;可怜的,糟糕的 | |
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74 fiddle | |
n.小提琴;vi.拉提琴;不停拨弄,乱动 | |
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75 crammed | |
adj.塞满的,挤满的;大口地吃;快速贪婪地吃v.把…塞满;填入;临时抱佛脚( cram的过去式) | |
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76 remonstrances | |
n.抱怨,抗议( remonstrance的名词复数 ) | |
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77 rascal | |
n.流氓;不诚实的人 | |
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78 literally | |
adv.照字面意义,逐字地;确实 | |
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79 gallop | |
v./n.(马或骑马等)飞奔;飞速发展 | |
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80 swelled | |
增强( swell的过去式和过去分词 ); 肿胀; (使)凸出; 充满(激情) | |
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81 mutual | |
adj.相互的,彼此的;共同的,共有的 | |
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82 galloping | |
adj. 飞驰的, 急性的 动词gallop的现在分词形式 | |
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83 alas | |
int.唉(表示悲伤、忧愁、恐惧等) | |
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84 melancholy | |
n.忧郁,愁思;adj.令人感伤(沮丧)的,忧郁的 | |
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85 genial | |
adj.亲切的,和蔼的,愉快的,脾气好的 | |
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86 kindly | |
adj.和蔼的,温和的,爽快的;adv.温和地,亲切地 | |
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87 intercourse | |
n.性交;交流,交往,交际 | |
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88 revelled | |
v.作乐( revel的过去式和过去分词 );狂欢;着迷;陶醉 | |
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89 wilderness | |
n.杳无人烟的一片陆地、水等,荒漠 | |
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90 wrestled | |
v.(与某人)搏斗( wrestle的过去式和过去分词 );扭成一团;扭打;(与…)摔跤 | |
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91 anecdotes | |
n.掌故,趣闻,轶事( anecdote的名词复数 ) | |
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92 precisely | |
adv.恰好,正好,精确地,细致地 | |
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93 proximity | |
n.接近,邻近 | |
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94 yearned | |
渴望,切盼,向往( yearn的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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95 dreary | |
adj.令人沮丧的,沉闷的,单调乏味的 | |
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96 atone | |
v.赎罪,补偿 | |
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97 extort | |
v.勒索,敲诈,强要 | |
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98 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 | |
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99 persevered | |
v.坚忍,坚持( persevere的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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100 passionate | |
adj.热情的,热烈的,激昂的,易动情的,易怒的,性情暴躁的 | |
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101 mare | |
n.母马,母驴 | |
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102 emetic | |
n.催吐剂;adj.催吐的 | |
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103 blisters | |
n.水疱( blister的名词复数 );水肿;气泡 | |
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104 confide | |
v.向某人吐露秘密 | |
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105 overflowed | |
溢出的 | |
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106 sweeping | |
adj.范围广大的,一扫无遗的 | |
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107 actively | |
adv.积极地,勤奋地 | |
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108 staple | |
n.主要产物,常用品,主要要素,原料,订书钉,钩环;adj.主要的,重要的;vt.分类 | |
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109 poultry | |
n.家禽,禽肉 | |
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110 stranded | |
a.搁浅的,进退两难的 | |
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111 domains | |
n.范围( domain的名词复数 );领域;版图;地产 | |
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112 dwelling | |
n.住宅,住所,寓所 | |
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113 consternation | |
n.大为吃惊,惊骇 | |
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114 drooping | |
adj. 下垂的,无力的 动词droop的现在分词 | |
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115 apparently | |
adv.显然地;表面上,似乎 | |
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116 emulate | |
v.努力赶上或超越,与…竞争;效仿 | |
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117 positively | |
adv.明确地,断然,坚决地;实在,确实 | |
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118 waded | |
(从水、泥等)蹚,走过,跋( wade的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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119 adventurous | |
adj.爱冒险的;惊心动魄的,惊险的,刺激的 | |
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120 wrath | |
n.愤怒,愤慨,暴怒 | |
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121 ascended | |
v.上升,攀登( ascend的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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122 devastation | |
n.毁坏;荒废;极度震惊或悲伤 | |
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123 anvil | |
n.铁钻 | |
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124 majestically | |
雄伟地; 庄重地; 威严地; 崇高地 | |
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125 cowered | |
v.畏缩,抖缩( cower的过去式 ) | |
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126 diligent | |
adj.勤勉的,勤奋的 | |
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127 hearty | |
adj.热情友好的;衷心的;尽情的,纵情的 | |
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128 cordon | |
n.警戒线,哨兵线 | |
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129 swerved | |
v.(使)改变方向,改变目的( swerve的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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130 countless | |
adj.无数的,多得不计其数的 | |
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131 possessed | |
adj.疯狂的;拥有的,占有的 | |
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132 irresistible | |
adj.非常诱人的,无法拒绝的,无法抗拒的 | |
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