'Blessed girl! you always bring a ray of light just at the darkest moment,' returned Lavinia, with a sigh of relief, while Matilda looked over a barricade1 of sketch2-books bristling3 with paint-brushes, and added anxiously,—
[Pg 93]
'If you could suggest how I am to work this miracle, you will be a public benefactor4.'
'Behold5 the amendment6 I propose,' began Amanda, perching herself on one of the arks. 'We have decided7 to travel slowly and comfortably through France to Switzerland, stopping where we like, and staying as long as we please at any place we fancy, being as free as air, and having all the world before us where to choose, as it were.'
'The route you have laid out is a charming one, and I don't see how you can improve it,' said Lavinia, who, though she was supposed to be the matron, guide, and protector of the younger girls, was in reality nothing but a dummy8, used for Mrs. Grundy's sake, and let the girls do just as they pleased, only claiming the right to groan9 and moan as much as she[Pg 94] liked when neuralgia, her familiar demon10, claimed her for its own.
'One improvement remains11 to be made. Are these trunks a burden, a vexation of spirit, a curse?' demanded Amanda, tapping one with her carefully cherished finger-tips.
'Then let us get rid of them, and set out with no luggage but a few necessaries in a shawl-strap.'
'We will! we will!' returned the chorus.
'Shall we burn up our rubbish, or give it away?' asked Lavinia, who liked energetic measures, and was ready to cast her garments to the four winds of heaven, to save herself from the agonies of packing.
'I shall never give up my pictures, nor my[Pg 95] boots!' cried Matilda, gathering16 her idols17 to her breast in a promiscuous18 heap.
'Be calm and listen,' returned the scintillator. 'Pack away all but the merest necessaries, and we will send the trunk by express to Lyons. Then with our travelling-bags and bundles, we can follow at our leisure.'
''Tis well! 'tis well!' replied the chorus, and they all returned to their packing, which was performed in the most characteristic manner.
Amanda never seemed to have any clothes, yet was always well and appropriately dressed; so it did not take her long to lay a few garments, a book or two, a box of Roman-coin lockets, scarabæ brooches, and cinque-cento rings, likewise a swell19 hat and habit, into her vast trunk; then lock and label it in the most business-like and thorough manner.
Matilda found much difficulty in reconciling[Pg 96] paint-pots and silk gowns, blue hats and statuary, French boots and Yankee notions. But order was at length produced from chaos20, and the young lady refreshed her weary soul by painting large red M's all over the trunk to mark it for her own.
Miss Lavinia packed and repacked four or five times, forgetting needfuls, which, of course, were always at the very bottom. At the fifth plunge21 into the depths her patience gave out, and with a vow22 to be a slave no longer to her treacherous23 memory, she tumbled every thing in, performed a solemn jig24 on the lid till it locked, then pasted large, but illegible25 placards in every available spot, and rested from her labours with every nerve in a throbbing26 condition.
Shawl-straps of the largest, strongest sort were next procured27, and the three bundles made up with much discussion and merriment.
[Pg 97]
Into Amanda's went a volume of Shakspeare of great size and weight, but as indispensable as a tooth-brush to its owner; toilette-articles tied up in a handkerchief, a few necessary garments, and much paper,—for Amanda was inspired with poetic28 fire at unexpected moments, also had five hundred bosom29 friends, in answering whose epistolary gushings much stationery30 was consumed. A pistol, a massive crust of bread, and an oval box containing all the dainty appliances for the culture, preservation31, and ornamentation of the finger-nails, made up her store.
Matilda's bundle consisted of sketch-books, a trifle of haberdashery, a curling-stick that was always tumbling out at inopportune moments, yards of blue ribbon, and a camp-stool strapped32 outside in company with a Japanese umbrella, a gift from the stout33 doctor, destined34 to be cursed[Pg 98] in many languages by the unhappy beings into whose backs, eyes, and stomachs it was poked35 before its wanderings ended.
Lavinia confined herself to a choice collection of bottles and pill-boxes, fur boots, a grey cloud, and several French novels,—the solace36 of wakeful nights. A scarlet37 army blanket, with U. S. in big black letters on it, enveloped38 her travelling medicine-chest, and lent a cheerful air to the sombre spinster, whose black attire39 and hoarse40 voice made the sobriquet41 of Raven42 most appropriate.
With these imposing43 bundles in one hand, little pouches45 slung46 over the shoulder, plain travelling-suits, subdued47 hats, and resolute48 but benign49 countenances51, our three errant damsels set forth52 one bright June day, to wander through France at their own sweet will. Not a fear assailed53 them; for all men were civil, all[Pg 99] women friendly, and the world wore its sunniest aspect. Not a doubt perplexed54 them; for the gifted Amanda spoke55 many tongues, understood all sorts of money, could grapple successfully with Murray and Bradshaw, and never got into the wrong corporation when she traced a route with unerring accuracy through the mysteries of an Indicator56. No lord and master, in the shape of brother, spouse58, or courier, ordered their outgoings and incomings; but liberty the most entire was theirs, and they enjoyed it heartily59. Wisely and well too; for, though off the grand route, they behaved themselves in public as decorously as if the eyes of all prim60 Boston were upon them, and proved by their triumphant61 success, that the unprotected might go where they liked, if they conducted themselves with the courtesy and discretion62 of gentlewomen.
How pleasant were the early sail down the[Pg 100] Ranee from Dinan to St. Malo, the comfortable breakfast in the flowery little court of Hôtel Franklin, and the stroll afterward63 about the quaint64 old town, looking at the churches, buying fruit, and stoutly65 resisting the temptations of antique jewelry66 displayed in the dingy67 shops! Lavinia never forgave herself, however, for not securing a remarkable68 watch, and Amanda sighed months afterward for a Breton collar and cross of charming antiquity69 and ugliness.
Matilda boldly planted her camp-stool, unfurled her umbrella, and, undaunted by the crowd of round-capped, blue-bloused, wooden-shoed children about her, began to draw the church.
'I intend to study architecture, and to sketch all the cathedrals we see,' said the ardent70 art-student, struggling manfully with the unruly umbrella, the unsavoury odours from the gutter,[Pg 101] and the garrulous71 crowd leaning over her shoulder, peering under her hat-brim, and examining all her belongings72 with a confiding75 freedom rather embarrassing.
'Do you know what impertinent things these little scamps are saying to you?' asked Amanda, pausing in a lecture on surface drainage which she was delivering to Lavinia, who was vainly struggling to cram76 a fat wine bottle, a cabbage leaf of strawberries, and some remarkable cakes into the lunch-basket.
'No: I don't; and that is the advantage of not knowing any language but my own,' complacently77 replied Matilda, who considered all study but that of art as time wasted, and made her small store of French answer admirably by talking very loud and fast, and saying, 'Oui, oui, oui,' on all occasions with much gesticulation, and bows and smiles of great suavity78 and sweetness.
[Pg 102]
'Clear out this rabble79, or come back to the hotel and wait for the bus. We shall have the whole town round us soon, and I can't stand it,' said Amanda, who had no romantic admiration80 for the Great Unwashed.
'You think I can't do it? Voilà!' and, rising suddenly to an unexpected height, Matilda waved the umbrella like a bâton, cried 'Allez!' in a stern voice, and the children fled like chaff81 before the wind.
'You see how little is needed, so don't vex13 me with learning your old verbs any more!' and Matilda closed her book with an air of calm satisfaction.
'Come home and rest. It is so warm here I am fairly melted,' prayed Lavinia, who had been longing74 for summer, and of course was not suited when she got it.
'Now, do remember one thing: don't let us[Pg 103] be gregarious82. We never know who we may pick up if we talk to people; and stray acquaintances are sad bores sometimes. Granny is such a cross old dear she won't say a word to any one if she can help it; but you, Mat, can't be trusted if we meet any one who talks English. So be on your guard, or the peace of this party is lost,' said Amanda, impressively.
'We are not likely to meet any but natives in this wilderness83; so don't excite yourself, Mandy, dear,' replied Matilda, who, being of a social turn and an attractive presence, was continually making friends, to the great annoyance84 of her more prudent85 comrades.
In the flowery courtyard sat the group that one meets everywhere on the Continent,—even in the wilds of Brittany. The father and mother stout, tired, and rather subdued by the[Pg 104] newness of things; the son, Young America personified, loud, important, and inquisitive86; the daughter, pretty, affected87, and over-dressed; all on the lookout88 for adventures and titles, fellow-countrymen to impress, and foreigners eager to get the better of them.
Seeing the peril89 from afar, Amanda buried herself in Murray, to read up the tomb of Chateaubriand, the tides, population, and any other useful bit of history; for Amanda was a thrifty90 soul, and
'Gathered honey all the day
From every opening flower.'
Lavinia, finding the court damp, shrouded91 herself in the grey cloud, put her feet on the red bundle, and fortified92 herself with a Turner's pill.
But Matilda, guileless girl, roamed to and fro, patted the horses at the gate, picked flowers that[Pg 105] no French hand would have dared to touch, and studied the effect of light and shade on the red head of the garçon, who gazed sentimentally93 at 'the blonde "Mees,"' as he artlessly watered the wine for dinner.
The Americans had their eye upon her, and felt that, though the others might be forbidding English women, this one could be made to talk. So they pounced94 upon their prey95, to the dismay of her mates, and proceeded to ask fifty questions to the minute. Poor Mat, glad to hear the sound of her native tongue, fell into the snare96, and grew more confiding every moment.
'She is telling the family history,' whispered Lavinia, in a tone of despair.
'Now they are asking where we came from,' added Amanda, casting down her book in agony.
[Pg 106]
'Call to her,' groaned Amanda, as they heard their treasured secret betrayed, and the enemy clamouring for further information about this charming trip.
'Matilda, bring me my shawl,' commanded the Dowager.
'Come and see if you don't think we had better go direct to Tours,' said the wary98 Amanda, hoping to put the enemy off the track.
The victim came, and vials of wrath99 were poured upon her head in one unceasing flow till the omnibus started, and the ladies were appeased100 by finding that the enemy did not follow.
'Promise that you won't talk to any but natives, or I decline to lead this expedition,' said Amanda firmly.
[Pg 107]
'The language of the eye remains to me, and I am a proficient105 in that, ma'am,' said Mat, roused by these efforts to deny her the right of free speech.
'You are welcome to it, dear;' and Amanda departed to buy tickets and despatch106 the trunks, with secret misgivings107 that they would never be found again.
'Now we are fairly started, with no more weighing of luggage, fussing over checks, or packing of traps to afflict108 us. What a heavenly sense of freedom it gives one, to have nothing but an independent shawl-strap!' said Matilda, as they settled themselves in a vacant car, and stowed away the bundles.
What a jolly day that was, to be sure![Pg 108] Whether it was the air, the good coffee, or the liberty, certain it is that three merrier maids never travelled from St. Malo to Le Mans on a summer's day. Even the Raven forgot her woes110, and became so exhilarated that she smashed her bromide bottle out of the window, declaring herself cured, and tried to sing 'Hail Columbia,' in a voice like an asthmatic bagpipe111.
Mat amused herself and her comrades by picking up the different articles that kept tumbling down on her head from her badly built bundle; while Amanda scintillated113 to such an extent that the others laughed themselves into hysterics, and lay exhausted114, prone115 upon the seats.
They ate, drank, sung, gossiped, slept, read, and revelled116, till another passenger got in, when propriety117 clothed them as with a garment, and[Pg 109] the mirthful damsels became three studious statues.
The new-comer was a little priest; so rosy118 and young that they called him the 'Reverend Boy.' He seemed rather dismayed at first; but, finding the ladies silent and demure119, he took heart, and read diligently120 in a dingy little prayer-book, stealing shy glances now and then from under his broad-brimmed hat at Amanda's white hands, or Matilda's yellow locks, as if these vanities of the flesh had not quite lost their charms for him. By and by he fell asleep, and leaned in his corner, making quite a pretty picture; for the ugly hat was off, his boyish face as placid121 as a child's, his buckled122 shoes and neat black-stockinged legs stretched comfortably out, his plump hands folded over the dingy book, and the little bands lay peacefully on his breast.
[Pg 110]
He was quite at their mercy now; so the three women looked as much as they liked, wondering if the poor dear boy was satisfied with the life he had chosen, and getting tenderly pitiful over the losses he might learn to regret when it was too late. His dreams seemed to be pleasant ones, however; for once he laughed a blithe123, boyish laugh, good to hear; and when he woke, he rubbed his blue eyes and stared about, smiling like a newly roused baby.
He got out all too soon, was joined by several other clerical youths, and disappeared with much touching124 of big beavers125, and wafting126 of cassocks.
Innocent, reverend little boy! I wonder what became of him, and hope his sleep is as quiet now as then,—his awakening127 as happy as it seemed that summer day.
[Pg 111]
Six o'clock saw our damsels at Le Mans; and, after dinner, a sunset walk took them to the grand old cathedral, where they wandered till moonrise. Pure Gothic of the twelfth century, rich in stained glass, carved screens, tombs of kings and queens, dim little chapels129, where devout130 souls told their beads131 before shadowy pictures of saints and martyrs132, while over all the wonderful arches seemed to soar, one above the other, light and graceful133 as the natural curves of drooping134 branches, or the rise and fall of some great fountain.
'We shall not see anything finer than this, I'm sure. It's a perfect revelation to me,' said Matilda, in a calm rapture135 at the beauty all about her.
'This is a pious136-feeling church, and I could say my prayers here with all my soul; for it seems as if the religion of centuries had got[Pg 112] built into it,' added Lavinia, thinking of the ugly imitations at home.
'You will both turn Catholic before we get through,' prophesied137 Amanda, retiring to study the tomb of Berengaria, Cœur de Lion's wife.
The square before the hotel was gay with a market, many soldiers lounging about, and flocks of people eating ices before the cafés. The ladies enjoyed it from the balcony, and then slumbered139 peacefully in a great room with three alcoves140, much muslin drapery, and a bowl and pitcher141 like a good-sized cup and saucer.
Another look at the cathedral in the early morning, and then away to Tours, which place they found a big, clean, handsome city, all astir for the Fête-Dieu.
'We will stay over Sunday and see it,' was the general vote as the trio headed for the great church, and, catching142 sight of it, they subsided[Pg 113] into a seat by the fountain opposite, and sat looking silently at the magnificent pile.
How strangely impressive and eloquent144 it was! The evening red touched its grey towers with a mellow145 light, like sunshine on a venerable head. Lower down, flights of rooks circled round the fretted146 niches147, quaint windows, and grotesque148 gargoyles149, while the great steps below swarmed150 with priests and soldiers, gay strangers and black-robed nuns151, children and beggars.
For an hour our pilgrims sat and studied the wonderful façade, or walked round the outside, examining the rich carvings152 that covered every inch of the walls. Twilight153 fell before they had thought of entering, and feeling that they had seen enough for that night, they went thoughtfully home to dream of solemn shadows and saintly faces, for the cathedral haunted them still.
[Pg 114]
Next day was spent in viewing Charlemagne's Tower, and seeing the grand procession in honour of the day. The streets were hung with garlands, gay tapestries154 and banners, strewn with fresh boughs155, and lined with people in festival array. As the procession passed, women ran out and scattered156 rose-leaves before it, and one young mother set her blooming baby on a heap of greenery in the middle of the street, leaving it there, that the Holy Ghost under its canopy157 might pass over it. A pretty sight, the rosy little creature smiling in the sunshine as it sat playing with its own blue shoes, while the golden pageant158 went by; the chanting priests stepping carefully, and looking down with sudden benignity159 in their tired faces as the holy shadow fell on the bright head, making baby blessed, and saved for ever in its pious mother's eyes.
A great band played finely, scarlet soldiers[Pg 115] followed, then the banners of patron saints were borne by children. Saint Agnes and her lamb led a troop of pretty little girls carrying tall white lilies, filling the air with their sweetness. Mary, Our Mother, was followed by many orphans160 with black ribbons crossed over the young hearts that had lost so much. Saint Martin led the charity boys in purple suits of just the colour of the mantle161 he was dividing with the beggar on the banner. A pleasant emblem162 of the charitable cloak that covers so many.
Priests in full splendour paced solemnly along with censers swinging, candles flickering163, sweet-voiced boys singing, and hundreds kneeling as they passed. Most impressive figures, unless one caught a glimpse of something comically human to disturb the effect of the heavenly pageant. Lavinia had an eye for the ludicrous[Pg 116] and though she dropped a tear over the orphans, and with difficulty resisted a strong desire to catch and kiss the pretty baby, she scandalized her neighbours by laughing outright164 the next minute. A particularly portly, pious-looking priest, who was marching with superb dignity, and chanting like a devout bumble-bee, suddenly mislaid his temper, and injured the effect by boxing a charity boy's ears with his gilded165 missal, and then capped the climax166 by taking a pinch of snuff with a sonorous167 satisfaction that convulsed the heretic.
The afternoon was spent in the church, wandering to and fro, each alone to study and enjoy in her own way. Matilda lost her head entirely168, and had silent raptures169 over the old pictures. Amanda said her prayers, looked up her dates, and imparted her facts in a proper and decorous manner, while Lavinia went up[Pg 117] and down, finding for herself little pictures not painted by hands, and reading histories more interesting to her than those of saints and martyrs.
In one dim chapel128, with a single candle lighting170 up the divine sorrow of the Mater Dolorosa, knelt a woman in deep black, weeping and praying all alone. In another flowery nook dedicated171 to the Infant Jesus, a peasant girl was telling her beads over the baby asleep in her lap; her sunburnt face refined and beautiful by the tenderness of mother-love. In a third chapel a pale, wasted old man sat propped172 in a chair, while his rosy old wife prayed heartily to St. Gratien, the patron saint of the church, for the recovery of her John Anderson. And most striking of all was a dark, handsome young man, well-dressed and elegant, who was waiting at the door of a confessional with some great[Pg 118] trouble in his face, as he muttered and crossed himself, while his haggard eyes were fixed173 on the benignant figure of St. Francis, as if asking himself if it were possible for him also to put away the pleasant sins and follies174 of the world, and lead a life like that which embalms175 the memory of that good man.
'If we don't go away to-morrow we never shall, for this church will bewitch us, and make it impossible to leave,' said Amanda, when at length they tore themselves away.
'I give up trying to sketch cathedrals. It can't be done, and seems impious to try,' said Matilda, quite exhausted by something deeper than pleasure.
'I think the "Reminiscences of a Rook" would make a capital story. They are long-lived birds, and could tell tales of the past that would entirely eclipse our modern rubbish,' said[Pg 119] Lavinia, taking a last look at the solemn towers, and the shadowy birds that had haunted them for ages.
The ladies agreed to be off early in the morning, that they might reach Amboise in time for the eleven o'clock breakfast. Amanda was to pay the bill, and to make certain enquiries at the office; Mat to fly out and do a trifle of shopping; while Lavinia packed up the bundles and mounted guard over them. They separated, but in half-an-hour all met again, not in their room according to agreement, but before the cathedral, which all had decided not to revisit on any account.
Matilda was there first, and as each of the others came stealing round the corner, she greeted them with a laugh, in which all joined after the first surprise was over.
'I told you it would bewitch us,' said[Pg 120] Amanda; and then all took a farewell look, which lasted so long that they had to rush back to the hotel in most unseemly haste.
'Now to fresh châteaux and churches new,' sang Lavinia, as they rolled away on the fourth stage of their summer journey. A very short stage it was, and soon they were in an entirely new scene, for Amboise was a little, old-time village on the banks of the Loire, looking as if it had been asleep for a hundred years. The Lion d'Or was a quaint place, so like the inns described in French novels, that one kept expecting to see some of Dumas' heroes come dashing up, all boots, plumes177, and pistols, with a love-letter for some court beauty in the castle on the hill beyond.
Queer galleries and stairs led up outside the house to the rooms above. The salle-à-manger was across a court, and every dish came from a[Pg 121] kitchen round the corner. The garçon, a beaming, ubiquitous creature, trotted178 perpetually, diving down steps, darting179 into dark corners, or skipping up ladders, producing needfuls from most unexpected places. The bread came from the stable, soup from the cellar, coffee out of a meal-chest, and napkins from the housetop, apparently180, for Adolphe went up among the weather-cocks to get them.
'No one knows us, no one can speak a word of English, and if we happen to die here it will never be known. How romantic and nice it is!' exclaimed Mat, in good spirits, for the people treated the ladies as if they were duchesses in disguise, and the young women liked it.
'I'm not so sure that the romance is all it looks. We should be in a sweet quandary182 if anything happened to our sheet-anchor here. Just remember, in any danger, save Amanda[Pg 122] first, then she will save us. But if she is lost, all is lost,' replied Lavinia, darkly, for she always took tragical184 views of life when her bones ached.
Up the hill they went after breakfast; and balm was found for the old lady's woes in the sight of many Angora cats, of great size and beauty. White as snow, with tails like plumes, and mild, yellow eyes, were these charmers. At every window sat one; on every door-step sprawled185 a bunch of down; and frequently the eye of the tabby-loving spinster was gladdened by the touching spectacle of a blonde mamma in the bosom of her young family.
'If I could only carry it, I'd have one of those dears, no matter what it cost!' cried Lavinia, more captivated by a live cat than by all the dead Huguenots that Catherine de Medicis[Pg 123] hung over the castle walls on a certain memorable186 occasion.
'Well, you can't, so come on and improve your mind with some good, useful history,' said Amanda, leading them forward. 'You must remember that Charles VII. was born here in 1470—that Anne of Brittany married him for her first husband, and that he bumped his head against a low door in the garden here above, as he was running through to play bowls with his Anne, and it killed him.'
'Which? the bump or the bowls?' asked Mat, who liked to have things clearly stated.
'Don't be frivolous187, child. Here Margaret of Anjou and her son were reconciled to Warwick. Abd-el Kader and his family were kept prisoners here, and in the garden is a tomb with a crescent on it; likewise a "pleached walk," and a winding189 drive inside the great tower, up[Pg 124] which lords and ladies used to ride straight into the hall,' continued the sage190 Amanda, who yearned191 to enlighten the darkness of her careless friends.
A brisk old woman did the honours of the castle, showing them mouldy chapels, sepulchral192 halls, rickety stairs, grubby cells, and pitch-dark passages, till even the romantic Matilda was glad to see the light of day, and repose194 in the pleasant gardens while removing the cobwebs from her countenance50 and the dust from her raiment.
A lovely view gladdened their eyes as they stood on the balcony whence the amiable195 Catherine surveyed the walls hung thick, and the river choked up with the dead. Below, the broad Loire rolled slowly by between its green banks. Little boys, in the costume of Cupid, were riding great horses in to bathe after the[Pg 125] day's work. The grey roofs of the town nestled to the hillside, and far away stretched the summer landscape, full of vague suggestions of new scenes and pleasures to the pilgrims.
'We start for Chenonceaux at seven in the morning; so, ladies, I beg that you will be ready punctually,' was the command issued by Amanda, as they went to their rooms, after a festive196 dinner of what Lavinia called 'earth-worms and cacti197,' not being fond of stewed198 brains, baked eels199, or thistles and pigweed chopped up in oil.
Such a droll201 night as the wanderers spent! No locks on the doors and no bells. Stairs leading straight up the gallery from the courtyard, carts going and coming, soft footsteps stealing up and down, whispers that sounded suspicious (though they were only orders to kill chickens and pick salad for the morrow), and a[Pg 126] ghostly whistle that disturbed Lavinia so much, she at last draped herself in the green coverlet, and went boldly forth upon the balcony to see what it meant.
She intended to demand silence in French that would strike terror to the soul of the bravest native. But when she saw that poor, dear, hard-worked garçon blacking boots by the light of the moon, her heart melted with pity; and, resolving to give him an extra fee, she silently retired202 to her stone-floored bower203, and fell asleep in a stuffy204 little bed, whose orange curtains filled her dreams with volcanic205 eruptions206 and conflagrations207 of the most lurid208 description.
At seven, an open carriage with a stout pair of horses and a sleepy driver rolled out of the court-yard of the Lion d'Or. Within it sat three ladies, who gazed at one another with[Pg 127] cheerful countenances, and surveyed the world with an air of bland209 content, beautiful to behold.
'I am fairly faint with happiness,' sighed Matilda, as they drove through fields scarlet with poppies, starred with daisies, or yellow with buttercups, while birds piped gaily210, and trees wore their early green.
'You did not eat any breakfast. That accounts for it. Have a crust, do,' said Amanda, who seldom stirred without a good, sweet crust or two; for they were easy to carry, wholesome211 to chew, and always ready at a moment's notice.
'Let us save our "entusymusy" till we get to the château, and enjoy this lovely drive in a peaceful manner,' said Lavinia, still a little sleepy after her adventures in the glimpses of the moon.
[Pg 128]
So, for an hour or two, they rolled along the smooth road, luxuriating in the summer sights and sounds about them; the wayside cottages, with women working in the gardens; villages clustered round some tiny, picturesque212 church; windmills whirling on the distant hill-tops; vineyards full of peasants tying up the young vines, or trudging213 by with baskets on their backs, heaped with green cuttings for the goats at home. Old men, breaking stone by the roadside, touched their red caps to the pilgrims, jolly boys shouted at them from the cherry trees, and little children peeped from behind the rose-bushes blooming everywhere.
Soon, glimpses of the winding Cher began to appear, then an avenue of stately trees, and then, standing214 directly in the river, rose the lovely château built for Diane de Poictiers by her royal lover. Leaving the carriage at the[Pg 129] lodge215, our sight-seers crossed the moat, and, led by a wooden-faced girl with a lisp, entered the famous pleasure-house, which its present owner (a pensive216 man in black velvet217, who played fitfully on a French-horn in a pepper-pot tower) is carefully restoring to its former splendour.
The great picture-gallery was the chief attraction; and beginning with Diane herself—a tall, simpering baggage, with a bow, hounds, crescent, and a blue sash for drapery—they were led through a rapid review of all sorts of worthies218 and unworthies, relics219 and rubbish, without end. Portraits are always interesting. Even Lavinia, who 'had no soul for Art,' as Mat said, looked with real pleasure at a bass-relief of Agnes of Sorel, and pictures of Montaigne, Rabelais, Ninon d'Enclos, Madame de Sévigné, and miniatures of La Fayette and Ben Franklin. The latter gentleman looked[Pg 130] rather out of place in such society; but, perhaps, his good old face preached the Dianes and Ninons a silent sermon. His plain suit certainly was a relief to the eye, wearied with periwigged sages193 and bejewelled sinners.
Here was the little theatre where Rousseau's plays were acted. Here were the gilded chairs in which kings had sat, swords heroes had held, books philosophers had pored over, mirrors that had reflected famous beauties, and painted walls that had looked down on royal revels221 long ago.
The old kitchen had a fireplace big enough for a dozen cooks to have spoiled gallons of broth57 in, queer pots and pans, and a handy little window, out of which they could fish at any moment, for the river ran below.
The chapel, chambers222, balconies, and terraces were all being repaired; for, thanks to George[Pg 131] Sand's grandmother, who owned the place in the time of the Revolution, it was spared out of respect to her, and is still a charming relic220 of the past.
The ladies went down the mossy steps, leading from the gallery to the further shore, and, lying under the oaks, whiled away the noon-time by re-peopling the spot with the shapes that used to inhabit it. A very happy hour it was, dreaming there by the little river, with the scent188 of new-mown hay in the fresh wind, and before them the airy towers and gables of the old château rising from the stream like a vision of departed splendour, love, and romance.
Having seen every thing, and bought photographs ad libitum of the wooden-faced lisper, who cheated awfully224, the pilgrims drove away, satiated with relics, royalty225, and 'regardez.'
Another night in the stony226-hearted, [Pg 132]orange-coloured rooms, with the sleepless227 garçon sweeping228 and murmuring outside like a Banshee, while the hens roosted sociably229 in the gallery, the horses seemed to be champing directly under the bed, and the dead Huguenots bumping down upon the roof from the castle-walls. Another curious meal wafted230 from the bowels231 of the earth and cooled by all the airs that blow,—then the shawl-straps were girded anew, the carriage (a half-grown omnibus with the jaundice) mounted, the farewell bows and adieux received, and forth rumbled232 the duchesses en route for Blois.
'My heart is rent at leaving that lovely château,' said Mat, as they crossed the bridge.
'I mourn the earth-worms, the cacti, and the tireless "gossoon,"' added Amanda, who appreciated French cookery and had enjoyed confidences with Adolphe.
[Pg 133]
'The cats, the cats, the cats! I could die happy if I had one,' murmured Lavinia; and with these laments233 they left the town behind them.
Any thing hotter than Blois, with its half dried-up river, dusty boulevards, and baked streets, can hardly be imagined. But these indomitable women 'did' the church and the castle without flinching234. The former was pronounced a failure, but the latter was entirely satisfactory. The Emperor was having it restored in the most splendid manner. The interior seemed rather fresh and gay when contrasted with the time-worn exterior235, but the stamped leathern hangings, tiled floors, emblazoned beams, and carved fireplaces were quite correct. Dragons and crowns, porcupines236 and salamanders, monograms237 and flowers, shone[Pg 134] everywhere in a maze238 of scarlet and gold, brown and silver, purple and white.
Here the historical Amanda revelled, and quenched239 the meek102 old guide with a burst of information which caused him to stare humbly240 at 'the mad English.'
'Regardez, my dears, the chamber223 and oratory241 of Catherine de Medicis, who here plotted the death of the Duc de Guise181. This is the cabinet of her son, Henri III., where he gave the daggers242 to the gentlemen who were to rid him of his enemy, the hero of the barricades244. This is the Salle des Gardes, where Guise was leaning on the chimney-piece when summoned to the king. This is the little room at the entrance of which he was set upon in the act of lifting the drapery, and stabbed with forty wounds.'
'Oh! how horrid245!' gasped246 Matilda, staring[Pg 135] about as if she saw the sanguinary gentlemen approaching.
'This is the hall where the body lay for two hours, covered with a cloak and a cross of straw on the breast,' cut in Amanda, as the guide opened his mouth. 'Here the king came to look upon the corpse248 of the once mighty249 Henri le Balafré, and spurned250 it with his foot, saying, I shall not translate it for you, Mat,—"Je ne le croyais pas aussi grand" and then ordered it to be burnt, and the ashes cast into the river. Remember the date, I implore251 you, December 23, 1588.'
As Amanda paused for breath the little man took the word, and rattled252 off a jumble253 of facts and fictions about the window from which Marie[Pg 136] de Medicis lowered herself when imprisoned254 here by her dutiful son, Louis XIII.
'I wish the entire lot had been tossed out after her, for I do think kings and queens are a set of rascals,' cried Mat, scandalized by the royal iniquities255 to which she had been listening, till the hair stood erect256 upon her innocent head.
The Salle des États was being prepared for the trial of the men who had lately attempted the Emperor's life, and a most theatrical257 display of justice was to be presented to the public. The richly carved stair-case, with Francis the First's salamanders squirming up and down it, was a relic worth seeing; but the parched258 pilgrims found the little pots of clotted259 cream quite as interesting, and much more refreshing260, when they were served up at lunch (the pots, not the pilgrims), each covered with a fresh vine-leaf,[Pg 137] and delicately flavoured with butter-cups and clover.
Amanda won the favour of the stately garçon by praising them warmly, and he kept bringing in fresh relays, and urging her to eat a third, a fourth, with a persuasive261 dignity hard to resist.
'But yes, Mademoiselle, one more, for nowhere else can crême de St. Gervais be achieved. They are desired, ardently262 desired, in Paris; but, alas263! it is impossible to convey them so far, such is their exquisite264 delicacy265.'
How many the appreciative266 ladies consumed, the muse112 saith not; but the susceptible267 heart of the great garçon was deeply touched, and it was with difficulty that they finally escaped from his attentions.
On being presented with a cast-off camp-stool, and a pair of old boots to dispose of, he instantly appropriated them as graceful [Pg 138]souvenirs, and clasping his hands, declared with effusion that he would seat his infant upon the so-useful stool, and offer the charming boots to Madame my wife, who would weep for joy at this touching tableau268.
With this melodramatic valedictory269, he suffered the guests to depart, and the last they saw of him, he was still waving a dirty napkin as he stood at the gate, big, bland, and devoted270 to the end, though the drops stood thick upon his manly271 brow, and the sun glared fiercely on his uncovered head.
'I shall write an article on garçons when I get home,' said Lavinia, who was always planning great works and never executing them. 'We have known such a nice variety, and all have been so good to us that we owe them a tribute. You remember the dear, tow-headed one at Morlaix, who insisted on handing us[Pg 139] dishes of snails272, and papers of pins with which to pick out the repulsive273 delicacy?'
'Yes, and the gloomy one with black linen274 sleeves who glowered275 at us, sighed gustily276 in our ears, and anointed us with gravy277 as he waited at table,' added Amanda.
'Don't forget the dark one with languid, Spanish eyes and curly hair, on the boat going down the Rance. How picturesque and polite he was, to be sure, as he kept picking up our beer-bottles when they rolled about the deck!' put in Mat, who had the dark youth safely in her sketch-book, with eyes as big and black as blots278.
'The solemn one at Tours, who squirted seltzer-water out of window at the beggars, without a smile, was very funny. So was the little one with grubby hands, who tottered[Pg 140] under the big dishes, but insisted on carrying the heaviest.'
'The fast-trotter at Amboise won my heart, he was so supernaturally lively, and so full of hurried amiability279. A very dear garçon indeed.'
'Be sure you remember the superb being at Brest, whose eyes threatened to fall out of his head at exciting moments. Also, Flabot's chubby280 boy who adored Mat, and languished281 at her, over the onions, like a Cupid in a blue blouse.'
Orleans was a prim, tidy town, and after taking a look at the fine statue of the Maid, and laughing at some funny little soldiers drumming wildly in the Place, our travellers went on to Bourges.
[Pg 141]
'This, now, is a nice, dingy old place, and we will take our walks abroad directly, for it looks like rain, and we must make the most of our time and money,' said Amanda;
Forth they went, as soon as dinner was over, and found the waters all abroad also; for every man was playing away with a hose, every woman scrubbing her door-steps, and the children gaily playing leap-frog in the puddles286.
'Nasty, damp place!' croaked the Raven, obscuring her disgusted countenance behind the inevitable287 grey cloud, and gathering her garments about her, as they hopped200 painfully over the wet stones, for sidewalks there were none.
'I find it refreshing after the dust and heat. Please detach Mat from that shop window, and[Pg 142] come on, or we shall see nothing before dark,' replied the ever amiable Amanda.
Matilda would glue herself to every jeweller's window, and remain fascinated by the richness there displayed, till led away by force. On this occasion, however, her mania288 led to good results; for, at the ninth window, as her keepers were about to drag her away, a ring of peculiar289 antiquity caught their eyes simultaneously290, and, to Mat's amazement291, both plunged292 into the little shop, clamouring to see it. A pale emerald, surrounded by diamond chippings set in silver, with a wide gold band cut in a leafy pattern, composed this gem293 of price.
'A Francis First ring, sold by a noble but impoverished294 family, and only a hundred francs, Madame,' said the man, politely anxious to cheat the fair foreigners out of four times its value.
[Pg 143]
'Can't afford it,' and Lavinia retired. But the shrewd Amanda, with inimitable shrugs295 and pensive sighs, regretted that it was so costly296. 'A sweet ring; but, alas! forty francs is all I have to give.'
The man was desolated297 to think that eighty francs was the lowest he was permitted to receive. Would Madame call again, and perhaps it might be arranged?
Ah, no! Madame is forced to depart early, to return no more.
Mon Dieu! how afflicting298! In that case, sixty would be possible for so rare a relic.
Madame is abîmé, but it is not to be. Forty is the utmost; therefore Merci, and Bonjour.
'Hold! Where shall it be sent?' cries the man, giving in, but not confessing it, with awkward frankness.
A thousand thanks! Madame will pay for it[Pg 144] at once; and laying down the money, she sweetly bows herself away, with the ring upon her finger.
'What a people!' ejaculated Lavinia, who always felt like a fly in a cobweb when she attempted to deal with the French, in her blunt, confiding way.
'It is great fun,' answered Amanda, flashing her ring with satisfaction after the skirmish. 'Will Madame kindly299 direct me to the house of Jacques Cœur?' she added, addressing an old woman clattering300 by in sabots.
'Allez toujours à droit en vous appuyant sur la gauche301,' replied the native, beaming and bowing till the streamers of her cap waved in the wind.
They followed these directions, but failed to find the place, and applied302 to another old woman eating soup on her door-step.
[Pg 145]
'Suivez le chemin droit en tombant à gauche' was the reply, with a wave of the spoon to all the points of the compass.
'Great heavens, what a language!' cried Lavinia, who had been vainly endeavouring to 'support' herself, as she 'fell' in every direction over and into the full gutters303.
The house was found at last, an ancient, mysterious place, with a very curious window, carved to look as if the shutters304 were half open, and from behind one peeped a man's head, from the other a woman's, both so life-like that it quite startled the strangers. Murray informed the observers that these servants are supposed to be looking anxiously for their master's return, Jacques having suddenly disappeared, after lending much money to the king, who took that mediæval way of paying his debts.
Service was being held in the church, and the [Pg 146]ladies went in to rest and listen, for the music was fine. Much red and white drapery gave the sanctuary305 the appearance of a gay drawing-room, and the profane306 Lavinia compared the officiating clergy307 to a set of red furniture. The biggest priest was the sofa, four deacons the arm-chairs, and three little boys the foot-stools, all upholstered in crimson308 silk, and neatly309 covered with lace tidies.
As if to rebuke310 her frivolity311, a lovely fresh voice from the hidden choir312 suddenly soared up like a lark313, singing so wonderfully that a great stillness fell on the listeners, and while it lasted the tawdry church and its mummery were quite forgotten, as the ear led the heart up that ladder of sweet sounds to heaven. Even when the others joined in, one could still hear that child-voice soaring and singing far above the rest, as[Pg 147] if some little angel were playing with the echoes among the arches of the roof.
A proud native informed the strangers that it was a poor boy whose exquisite voice was the pride of the town, and would in time make his fortune. As the choir-boys came racing314 down stairs after service, pulling off their dingy robes as they ran, Lavinia tried to pick out the little angel, but gave it up in despair, for a more uninteresting set of bullet-headed, copper-coloured sprigs she never saw.
Rain drove the wanderers back to the hotel, and there they made a night of it. Ordering a fire in the largest of the three stuffy little cells which they occupied, they set about being comfortable, for it had turned chilly315, and a furious wind disported316 itself in and out through numberless crevices317. Lavinia was inspired to mull some wine, and brewed318 a mild jorum that[Pg 148] cheered, but did not inebriate319. Amanda produced her Shakspeare, and read aloud while the simmering and sipping320 went on. Matilda sketched321 the noble commander as she lay upon the sofa, with her Egyptian profile in fine relief, and her aristocratic red slippers323 gracefully324 visible. A large grey cat of a social turn joined the party, and added much to the domesticity of the scene by sitting on the hearth325 in a cosy326 bunch and purring blissfully.
'Now it is your turn to propose something for the general amusement, Mandy,' said Mat, when the beakers were drained dry and the Montagues and Capulets comfortably buried.
'Let us attend to the culture of our nails,' replied Amanda, producing her polissoir, powder, and knife.
Three cups of tepid327 water were produced, and the company sat eagerly soaking their finger[Pg 149] tips for a time, after which much pruning328 and polishing went on, to the great bewilderment of Puss, who poked her own paws into the cups, as if trying to test the advantages of this remarkable American custom.
'What would our blessed mother say if she saw us now?' said Mat, proudly examining ten pointed329 pink nails at the tips of her long fingers.
'People told us we should get demoralised if we came abroad, and this is the first step on the downward road,' returned Lavinia, shaking her head over her own backslidings.
'No: it's the second step. We ate calves330' brains for dinner, and what I'm sure were frogs' legs with mushrooms. You know we vowed331 we wouldn't touch their horrid messes, but I really begin to like them,' confessed Mat, who had pronounced every dish at dinner 'De-licious!'
[Pg 150]
'Ha! I will write a poem!' cried Amanda, and leaping from the sofa she grasped her pen, flung open her portfolio332, and in a few brief moments produced these inspired stanzas333.
THE DOWNWARD ROAD.
And earnest, high endeavour,
Come sailing to the land of France,
To escape the winter weather.
When first they reached that vicious shore
They scorned the native ways,
Refused to eat the native grub,
Or ride in native shays.
'Oh, for the puddings of our home!
Oh, for some simple food!
How can you think them good?'
Thus to Amanda did they say,
An uncomplaining maid,
Who ate in peace and answered not
Until one day they said—
Against all nature's laws?
How can you eat your nails in points,
Until they look like claws?'
[Pg 151]
Then patiently Amanda said,
'My loves, just wait a while,
The time will come you will not think
A month has passed, and now we see
That prophecy fulfilled;
The ardour of those carping maids
Is most completely chilled.
Matilda was the first to fall,
In awful dishes one by one
She dipped her timid spoon.
She promised for one little week
To let her nails grow long,
But added in a saving clause
She thought it very wrong.
Thus did she take the fatal plunge,
Did compromise with sin,
Then all was lost; from that day forth
French ways were sure to win.
Lavinia followed in her train,
And ran the self-same road,
Ate sweet-bread first, then chopped-up brains,
That once we fancied good!'
And now in all their leisure hours
One resource never fails,
[Pg 152]
Morning and noon and night they sit
And polish up their nails.
Then if in one short fatal month
A change like this appears,
Oh, what will be the next result
When they have stayed for years?
Tremendous applause greeted this masterly effort, and other poems were produced with the rapidity of genius by Amanda and Lavinia, each writing the alternate verse, à la Beaumont and Fletcher, which gave a peculiar charm to these effusions.
When Matilda was called upon for a festive suggestion, she promptly344 replied, with a graceful yawn:—
'Let's go to bed.'
The meeting, therefore, broke up, and the younger ladies retired to their cells in good order. But the Raven, excited by the jocund345 hour, continued to rustle346 and patter about the[Pg 153] warm room in a state of inexpressible hilarity347, most exasperating348 to the others, who desired to sleep. Not content with upsetting the fire-irons occasionally, singing to the cat, and slamming the furniture about, this restless bird kept appearing first at one cell door with a conundrum349, then at the other with a joke, or insisted on telling funny stories in her den12, till the exhausted victims implored350 her to take an opium351 pill and subside143 before they became furious. She obeyed, and after a few relapses into wandering and joking, finally slumbered.
Then occurred the one thrilling adventure of this happy journey. In the darkest hour before dawn Mat awoke, heard a suspicious noise in the middle room, and asked if Lavinia was on the rampage again. No reply, and, listening, a low, rasping, rustling352 sound was heard.
'Thieves, of course. Our watches and purses[Pg 154] are on the table, and Lavinia has probably forgotten to lock the door. I must attend to this.' And up rose the dauntless Matilda, who feared neither man nor ghost.
Grasping her dagger243, hitherto used as a paper cutter, but always eager to be steeped in the gore353 of brigands354, robbers, or beasts of prey, she crept to the door and peeped in. The pale glow of the fire showed her a dark figure crouching355 in the opposite door-way. The click of a pistol caught her ear, but dodging356 quickly, the heroic girl cried sternly from the shelter of Lavinia's bed-curtain,—
'Come out, or I'll fire!'
'Mio Dio! is it only you?' answered a familiar voice, as Amanda, shrouded in a waterproof357, sprang up and lit a match.
'What are you prowling about for?' demanded Mat.
[Pg 155]
'To blow your brains out, apparently,' answered Mandy, lowering her arms. 'Why are you abroad?'
'I heard a noise.'
'So did I.'
'Let's see what it is,' and lighting a candle, the fair Amazons looked boldly about the shadowy room.
Lavinia lay wrapt in slumber138, with only the end of her sarcastic360 nose visible beyond the misty361 cloud that enveloped her venerable countenance. The outer door was fast, and the shutters closed. No booted feet appeared below the curtains, no living eyes rolled awfully in the portrait of the salmon-coloured saint upon the wall. Yet the rustling and rasping went on, and with one impulse the defenders362 of[Pg 156] sleeping innocence363 made for the table in the corner.
There was the midnight robber at his fell work!—the big cat peacefully gnawing364 the cold chicken, and knocking about the treasured crusts dragged from the luncheon-basket carefully packed for an early start.
'Wake and behold the ruin your pet has made!'
'We might be murdered or carried off a dozen times over without her knowing it. Here's a nice duenna!'
And the indignant ladies shook, pinched, and shouted till the hapless sleeper365 opened one eye, and wrathfully demanded what the matter was.
They told her with eloquent brevity, but instead of praising their prowess, and thanking them with fervour, the ungrateful woman shut[Pg 157] her eye again, merely saying with drowsy366 irascibility,—
'You told me to go to sleep, and I went; next time fight it out among yourselves, but don't wake me.'
'Throw the cat out of window and go to bed, Mat,' and Amanda uncocked her pistol with the resignation of one who had learned not to expect gratitude367 in this world.
'Touch a hair of that dear creature and I'll raise the house!' cried Lavinia, roused at once.
Puss, who had viewed the fray368 sitting bolt upright on the table, now settled the vexed369 question by skipping into Lavinia's arms, feeling with the instinct of her race that her surest refuge was there. Mat retired in silent disgust, and the Raven fell asleep soothed370 by the grateful purring of her furry371 friend.
[Pg 158]
'Last night's experiences have given me a longing for adventures,' said Mat, as they journeyed on next morning.
'Let us read our papers, and wait for time to send us something in the way of a lark,' and Amanda obscured herself in a grove373 of damp newspapers.
Lavinia also took one and read bits aloud to Mat, who was mending her gloves, bright yellow, four-buttoned, and very dirty.
'Translate as you go along—I do so hate that gabble,' begged Mat, who would not improve her mind.
So Lavinia gave her a free translation which convulsed Amanda behind her paper. Coming to this passage, 'Plusieurs faits graves sont arrivés,' the reader rendered it, 'Several made[Pg 159] graves have arrived,' adding, 'Dear me, what singular customs the French have, to be sure!' A little farther on she read, 'Un portrait de feu Monsieur mon père,' adding, 'A fire portrait means a poker374 sketch, I suppose.'
Here a smothered375 giggle376 from Amanda caused the old lady to say 'Bless you!' thinking the dear girl had sneezed.
'I must have some blue cotton to mend my dress with. Remind me to get some at Moulins. By the way, how do you ask for it in French?' said Mat, surveying a rent in her skirts.
'Oh, just go in and say, "Avez-vous le fils bleu?"' replied Lavinia, with a superior air.
'A blue son! My precious granny, what will you say next?' murmured Amanda, faint with suppressed laughter.
[Pg 160]
'What are you muttering about?' asked Granny, sharply.
'Trying to recall those fine lines in "Wilhelm Meister;" don't you remember? "Wer nie sein Brod mit Thränen ass,"' replied Amanda, polite even at the last gasp247.
'I read my Goethe in decent English, and don't know anything about training asses,' returned Lavinia, severely377.
That was too much! Amanda cast her paper down, and had her laugh out, as the only means of saving herself from suffocation378. The others gazed upon her in blank amazement, till she found breath enough to enlighten them, when such peals379 of merriment arose, that the guard popped his head in to see if he had not unwittingly shipped a load of lunatics.
'That was splendid! But now we must sober[Pg 161] down, for a gorgeous being is about to get in,' said Amanda, as they stopped at a station.
The gorgeous being entered, and found three demure ladies rapt in newspapers. They apparently saw nothing but the words before them; yet every one of them knew that the handsome young man had bowed in the most superior manner; also, that he was dressed in brown velvet, long gaiters, buttoned to the knee, a ravishing blue tie, buff gloves, and pouch44 and powder-horn slung over his shoulder. Also, that a servant with two dogs and a gun had touched his hat and said, 'Oui, monsieur le comte,' as he shut the door.
A slight thrill pervaded381 the statues as this fact was made known, and each began to wonder how the elegant aristocrat322 would behave. To say that he stared, feebly expresses the fixity of his noble gaze, as it rested in turn upon[Pg 162] the three faces opposite. When satisfied, he also produced a paper and began to read. But Matilda caught a big, black eye peering over the sheet more than once, as she peered over the top of her own.
'I can swear that I don't,' said Lavinia, with an irrepressible smile, as she remembered the 'blue son.'
'The language of the eye is not forbidden me, and I can't sit baking under a newspaper all the way,' returned Matilda, whose blond curls had evidently met with the great creature's approval.
A slight pucker383 about the Comte's lips caused a thrill of horror to pervade380 the ladies, as Amanda murmured under her breath,—
'He may understand English!'
[Pg 163]
'Wish he did. I really pine for a little attention. It gives such a relish384 to life,' said Matilda, thinking regretfully of the devoted beings left behind.
The prudent Amanda and the stern Lavinia steeled their hearts, and iced their countenances to the comely385 gentleman. But the social Matilda could not refrain from responding to his polite advances, with a modest 'Merci, Monsieur,' as he drew the curtain for her, a smile when he picked up the unruly curling-stick, and her best bow as he offered his paper with a soft glance of the black eyes.
In vain Amanda tried to appal386 her with awful frowns; in vain Lavinia trod warningly upon her foot: she paid no heed387, and left them[Pg 164] no hope but the saving remembrance that she couldn't talk French.
'If the man don't get out soon, I'll tie her up in my shawl, and tell him she is mad,' resolved Lavinia, whose spinster soul was always scandalised at the faintest approach to a flirtation388.
'If the man does speak English, Mat will have it all her own way,' thought Amanda, remembering the vow imposed upon the reckless girl.
Alas, alas for the anxious twain! The man did not get out soon, the man did speak English, and in ten minutes Matilda was off, like a colt without a halter. The anguish282 of her keepers added zest389 to the fun, and finding that the gentleman evidently thought her the lady of the party (owing to the yellow gloves, smartest hat, and irreproachable390 boots), and the others in sober gray and black, were maid and[Pg 165] duenna, this reprehensible391 girl kept up the joke, put on airs, and enjoyed that flirtatious392 hour to her heart's content.
As if to punish the others for their distrust, and to reward Mat's interest in him, M. le Comte devoted himself to Mademoiselle, telling her about his hunting, his estate, and finished by inviting393 her and her party to call and view his château, if they ever paused at the town, which had the honour of being his summer residence. Mat responded to all these courtesies with confiding sweetness, and when at length he was desolated at being obliged to tear himself away, she
'Gave sigh for sigh,'
as he retired with a superb bow, a gallant394 'Bon voyage, mesdames,' and a wicked twinkle of the black eyes as they rested on the faces of the frozen ladies.
[Pg 166]
'I got rather the best of the joke in that little affair: didn't I?' said Mat, gayly, as the brown velvet Adonis vanished.
'You are a disgrace to your party and your nation,' sternly responded Amanda.
Lavinia spoke not, but shook her little sister till the hat flew off her head, and she had only breath enough left to declare with unquenched ardour that she would do it again the very next chance she got.
Lectures, laughter, and longings73 for 'my Comte' beguiled395 the remainder of the way, and Moulang (as Mat pronounced Moulins) was reached after a pleasant trip through a green country, picturesque with the white cattle of Berri. There was not much to see, but the town was so quaint and quiet, that Amanda was seized with one of her remarkable projects.
'Let us find a little house somewhere and[Pg 167] stay a week or two. I fain would rest and ruminate396 among the white cows for a while; have a little washing done, and slowly prepare to emerge into the world again. Lyons is our next point, and there we must bid adieu to freedom and shawl-straps.'
'Very well, dear,' responded Lavinia, with resignation, having learned that the best way to curb397 these aberrations398 of genius was to give in, and let circumstances prove their impracticability.
So Amanda inquired of the landlady399 if such a rustic400 cot could be found. Whereupon the dingy little woman clasped her dingy little hands, and declared that she had exactly the charming retreat desired. Truly yes, and she would at once make her toilette, order out the carriage, and display this lovely villa176 to the dear ladies.
[Pg 168]
With many misgivings the three squeezed themselves into a square clothes-basket on wheels, drawn401 by an immense, bony, white horse, driven by a striped boy, and adorned402 by Madame, in a towering bonnet403, laden404 with amazing fruit, flowers, and vegetables. Lavinia counted three tomatoes, a bunch of grapes, poppies and pansies, wheat ears and blackberry-vines, a red, red rose, and one small lettuce405, with glass dewdrops and green grubs lavishly406 sprinkled over it. A truly superb chapeau and a memorable one.
Away they trundled through stony streets, dusty roads, waste grounds, marshy408 meadows, and tumbled-down pleasure-gardens, till the clothes-basket turned down a lane, and the bony horse stopped at length before a door in a high red wall.
'Behold!' cried madame, leading them with[Pg 169] much clanking of keys, into a cabbage-garden. A small tool-house stood among the garden-stuff, with brick floors, very dirty windows, and the atmosphere of a tomb. Bags of seed, wheel-barrows, onions, and dust cumbered the ground. Empty bottles stood on the old table, cigar ends lay thick upon the hearth, and a trifle of gay crockery adorned the mantel-piece.
'See, then, here is a salon409, so cool, so calm. Above is a room with beds, and around the garden where the ladies can sit all day. A maid can achieve the breakfast here, and my carriage can come for them to dine at the hotel. Is it not charmingly arranged?
'Settle it as you like, dear, only I'm afraid I couldn't stay very long on account of the dampness,' observed Lavinia, cheerfully, as she[Pg 170] put a hoe-handle under her feet and wiped the blue mould from a three-legged chair.
'It won't do, so I'll tell her you are an invalid411 and very particular,' said Amanda, with another inspiration, as she led the landlady forth to break the blow tenderly.
'My neuralgia is useful if it isn't ornamental412; and what a comfort that is!' said Lavinia, as she lightly threw a large cockroach413 out of window, dodged414 a wasp415, and crushed a fat spider.
And so it was in many ways. If the party wanted a car to themselves, Granny was ordered to lie down and groan dismally416, which caused other travellers to shun417 the poor invalid. If rooms did not suit, suffering Madame must have sun or perish. Late lunches, easy carriages, extra blankets, every sort of comfort was for her, whether she wanted them or not.
[Pg 171]
'Shall I be sick or well?' was always the first question when an invitation came, for 'my sister's delicate health' was the standing excuse when parties palled418, or best gowns were not get-at-able.
While Amanda conferred with the hostess among the cabbages, Mat discovered that the picturesque white cattle in the field close by were extremely fierce and unsocial; that there was no house in sight, and the venerable horse and shay would never sustain many trips to and fro to dinner at the hotel. Lavinia poked about the house, and soon satisfied herself that it abounded419 in every species of what Fanny Kemble calls 'entomological inconvenience,' and an atmosphere admirably calculated to introduce cholera420 to the inhabitants of Moulins.
'It is all settled; let us return,' said Amanda, appearing at last with an air of triumph, having[Pg 172] appeased the old lady by eating green currants, and admiring an earwiggy arbour, commanding a fine view of a marsh407 where frogs were piping and cool mists rising as the sun set.
The chickens were tough at dinner, the wine bitter, the bread sour, but no one reproached Amanda as the cause of this change. And when the hostess bowed them out, next day, without a smile, they drove away, conscious only of deep gratitude that they were saved from leaving their bones to moulder421 among the cabbages of Moulins.
'Now we return to civilisation422, good clothes, and Christian423 food,' said Lavinia, as they surveyed their fine rooms at the Grand Hotel, Lyons.
'Likewise letters and luggage,' added Amanda, as the maid brought in a bundle of letters, and two porters came bumping up with the trunks.
[Pg 173]
'Well, I've enjoyed the trip immensely, though nothing very remarkable has happened,' said Mat, diving into her private ark with satisfaction.
'I should like to wander in the wilderness for years, if I could hear from my family at intervals,' said Lavinia, briskly breaking open the plump, travel-worn letters.
'Then you consider our trip a success?' asked Amanda, pausing in the act of removing the dust from her noble countenance.
'A perfect success! We have done what we planned, had no mishaps424, seen and enjoyed much, quarrelled not at all, laughed a great deal, and been altogether festive, thanks to you. I shall hang my shawl-strap on the castle wall as a trophy425 of the prowess of my Amanda, and the success of the last Declaration of American Independence,' replied Lavinia.
[Pg 174]
'I, also,' said Mat, opening her bundle for the one hundreth and last time.
'You do me proud; I humbly thank you,' and with a superb curtsy the commander-in-chief modestly retired behind the towel.
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1
barricade
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| n.路障，栅栏，障碍；vt.设路障挡住 | |
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2
sketch
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| n.草图；梗概；素描；v.素描；概述 | |
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bristling
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| a.竖立的 | |
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4
benefactor
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| n. 恩人，行善的人，捐助人 | |
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5
behold
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| v.看，注视，看到 | |
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6
amendment
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| n.改正，修正，改善，修正案 | |
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7
decided
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| adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的 | |
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8
dummy
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| n.假的东西；(哄婴儿的)橡皮奶头 | |
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9
groan
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| vi./n.呻吟，抱怨；(发出)呻吟般的声音 | |
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10
demon
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| n.魔鬼，恶魔 | |
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11
remains
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| n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹 | |
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12
den
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| n.兽穴；秘密地方；安静的小房间，私室 | |
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13
vex
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| vt.使烦恼，使苦恼 | |
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14
groaned
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| v.呻吟( groan的过去式和过去分词 )；发牢骚；抱怨；受苦 | |
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15
abhorrence
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| n.憎恶；可憎恶的事 | |
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16
gathering
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| n.集会，聚会，聚集 | |
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17
idols
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| 偶像( idol的名词复数 )； 受崇拜的人或物； 受到热爱和崇拜的人或物； 神像 | |
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18
promiscuous
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| adj.杂乱的，随便的 | |
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19
swell
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| vi.膨胀，肿胀；增长，增强 | |
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20
chaos
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| n.混乱，无秩序 | |
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21
plunge
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| v.跳入，(使)投入，(使)陷入；猛冲 | |
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22
vow
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| n.誓(言)，誓约；v.起誓，立誓 | |
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23
treacherous
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| adj.不可靠的，有暗藏的危险的；adj.背叛的，背信弃义的 | |
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24
jig
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| n.快步舞（曲）；v.上下晃动；用夹具辅助加工；蹦蹦跳跳 | |
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25
illegible
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| adj.难以辨认的，字迹模糊的 | |
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26
throbbing
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| a. 跳动的,悸动的 | |
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27
procured
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| v.（努力）取得， （设法）获得( procure的过去式和过去分词 )；拉皮条 | |
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28
poetic
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| adj.富有诗意的，有诗人气质的，善于抒情的 | |
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29
bosom
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| n.胸，胸部；胸怀；内心；adj.亲密的 | |
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30
stationery
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| n.文具；(配套的)信笺信封 | |
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31
preservation
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| n.保护，维护，保存，保留，保持 | |
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32
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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34
destined
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| adj.命中注定的；(for)以…为目的地的 | |
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35
poked
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| v.伸出( poke的过去式和过去分词 )；戳出；拨弄；与（某人）性交 | |
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36
solace
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| n.安慰；v.使快乐；vt.安慰(物)，缓和 | |
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37
scarlet
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| n.深红色，绯红色，红衣；adj.绯红色的 | |
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38
enveloped
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| v.包围，笼罩，包住( envelop的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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39
attire
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| v.穿衣，装扮[同]array；n.衣着；盛装 | |
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40
hoarse
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| adj.嘶哑的，沙哑的 | |
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41
sobriquet
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| n.绰号 | |
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42
raven
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| n.渡鸟，乌鸦；adj.乌亮的 | |
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43
imposing
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| adj.使人难忘的，壮丽的，堂皇的，雄伟的 | |
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44
pouch
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| n.小袋，小包，囊状袋；vt.装...入袋中，用袋运输；vi.用袋送信件 | |
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45
pouches
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| n.（放在衣袋里或连在腰带上的）小袋( pouch的名词复数 )；（袋鼠等的）育儿袋；邮袋；（某些动物贮存食物的）颊袋 | |
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46
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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47
subdued
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| adj. 屈服的，柔和的，减弱的 动词subdue的过去式和过去分词 | |
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48
resolute
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| adj.坚决的，果敢的 | |
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49
benign
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| adj.善良的，慈祥的；良性的，无危险的 | |
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50
countenance
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| n.脸色，面容；面部表情；vt.支持，赞同 | |
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51
countenances
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| n.面容( countenance的名词复数 )；表情；镇静；道义支持 | |
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52
forth
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| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
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53
assailed
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| v.攻击( assail的过去式和过去分词 )；困扰；质问；毅然应对 | |
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54
perplexed
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| adj.不知所措的 | |
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55
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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56
indicator
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| n.指标；指示物，指示者；指示器 | |
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57
broth
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| n.原(汁)汤(鱼汤、肉汤、菜汤等) | |
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58
spouse
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| n.配偶(指夫或妻) | |
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59
heartily
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| adv.衷心地，诚恳地，十分，很 | |
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60
prim
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| adj.拘泥形式的，一本正经的；n.循规蹈矩，整洁；adv.循规蹈矩地，整洁地 | |
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61
triumphant
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| adj.胜利的，成功的；狂欢的，喜悦的 | |
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62
discretion
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| n.谨慎；随意处理 | |
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63
afterward
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| adv.后来；以后 | |
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64
quaint
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| adj.古雅的，离奇有趣的，奇怪的 | |
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65
stoutly
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| adv.牢固地，粗壮的 | |
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66
jewelry
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| n.（jewllery）（总称）珠宝 | |
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67
dingy
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| adj.昏暗的，肮脏的 | |
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68
remarkable
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| adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的 | |
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69
antiquity
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| n.古老；高龄；古物，古迹 | |
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70
ardent
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| adj.热情的，热烈的，强烈的，烈性的 | |
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71
garrulous
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| adj.唠叨的，多话的 | |
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72
belongings
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| n.私人物品，私人财物 | |
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73
longings
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| 渴望，盼望( longing的名词复数 ) | |
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74
longing
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| n.（for）渴望 | |
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75
confiding
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| adj.相信人的，易于相信的v.吐露（秘密，心事等）( confide的现在分词 )；（向某人）吐露（隐私、秘密等） | |
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76
cram
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| v.填塞，塞满，临时抱佛脚，为考试而学习 | |
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77
complacently
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| adv. 满足地, 自满地, 沾沾自喜地 | |
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78
suavity
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| n.温和；殷勤 | |
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79
rabble
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| n.乌合之众，暴民；下等人 | |
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80
admiration
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| n.钦佩，赞美，羡慕 | |
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81
chaff
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| v.取笑，嘲笑；n.谷壳 | |
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82
gregarious
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| adj.群居的，喜好群居的 | |
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83
wilderness
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| n.杳无人烟的一片陆地、水等，荒漠 | |
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84
annoyance
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| n.恼怒，生气，烦恼 | |
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85
prudent
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| adj.谨慎的，有远见的，精打细算的 | |
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86
inquisitive
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| adj.求知欲强的，好奇的，好寻根究底的 | |
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87
affected
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| adj.不自然的，假装的 | |
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88
lookout
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| n.注意，前途，瞭望台 | |
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89
peril
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| n.(严重的)危险；危险的事物 | |
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90
thrifty
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| adj.节俭的；兴旺的；健壮的 | |
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91
shrouded
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| v.隐瞒( shroud的过去式和过去分词 )；保密 | |
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92
fortified
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| adj. 加强的 | |
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93
sentimentally
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| adv.富情感地 | |
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94
pounced
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| v.突然袭击( pounce的过去式和过去分词 )；猛扑；一眼看出；抓住机会（进行抨击） | |
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95
prey
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| n.被掠食者，牺牲者，掠食；v.捕食，掠夺，折磨 | |
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96
snare
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| n.陷阱，诱惑，圈套；（去除息肉或者肿瘤的）勒除器；响弦，小军鼓；vt.以陷阱捕获，诱惑 | |
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97
wink
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| n.眨眼，使眼色，瞬间；v.眨眼，使眼色，闪烁 | |
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98
wary
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| adj.谨慎的，机警的，小心的 | |
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99
wrath
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| n.愤怒，愤慨，暴怒 | |
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100
appeased
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| 安抚，抚慰( appease的过去式和过去分词 )； 绥靖（满足另一国的要求以避免战争） | |
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101
penitent
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| adj.后悔的；n.后悔者；忏悔者 | |
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102
meek
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| adj.温顺的，逆来顺受的 | |
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103
meekness
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| n.温顺，柔和 | |
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104
croaked
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| v.呱呱地叫( croak的过去式和过去分词 )；用粗的声音说 | |
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105
proficient
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| adj.熟练的，精通的；n.能手，专家 | |
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106
despatch
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| n./v.(dispatch)派遣；发送；n.急件；新闻报道 | |
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107
misgivings
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| n.疑虑，担忧，害怕；疑虑，担心，恐惧( misgiving的名词复数 )；疑惧 | |
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108
afflict
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| vt.使身体或精神受痛苦，折磨 | |
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109
woe
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| n.悲哀，苦痛，不幸，困难；int.用来表达悲伤或惊慌 | |
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110
woes
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| 困境( woe的名词复数 )； 悲伤； 我好苦哇； 某人就要倒霉 | |
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111
bagpipe
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| n.风笛 | |
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112
muse
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| n.缪斯（希腊神话中的女神），创作灵感 | |
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113
scintillated
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| v.（言谈举止中）焕发才智( scintillate的过去式和过去分词 )；谈笑洒脱；闪耀；闪烁 | |
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114
exhausted
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| adj.极其疲惫的，精疲力尽的 | |
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115
prone
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| adj.(to)易于…的，很可能…的；俯卧的 | |
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116
revelled
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| v.作乐( revel的过去式和过去分词 )；狂欢；着迷；陶醉 | |
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117
propriety
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| n.正当行为；正当；适当 | |
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118
rosy
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| adj.美好的，乐观的，玫瑰色的 | |
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119
demure
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| adj.严肃的；端庄的 | |
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120
diligently
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| ad.industriously;carefully | |
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121
placid
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| adj.安静的，平和的 | |
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122
buckled
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| a. 有带扣的 | |
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123
blithe
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| adj.快乐的，无忧无虑的 | |
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124
touching
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| adj.动人的，使人感伤的 | |
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125
beavers
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| 海狸( beaver的名词复数 )； 海狸皮毛； 棕灰色； 拼命工作的人 | |
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126
wafting
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| v.吹送，飘送，（使）浮动( waft的现在分词 ) | |
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127
awakening
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| n.觉醒，醒悟 adj.觉醒中的；唤醒的 | |
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128
chapel
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| n.小教堂，殡仪馆 | |
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129
chapels
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| n.小教堂， （医院、监狱等的）附属礼拜堂( chapel的名词复数 )；（在小教堂和附属礼拜堂举行的）礼拜仪式 | |
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130
devout
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| adj.虔诚的，虔敬的，衷心的 (n.devoutness) | |
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131
beads
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| n.（空心）小珠子( bead的名词复数 )；水珠；珠子项链 | |
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132
martyrs
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| n.martyr的复数形式；烈士( martyr的名词复数 )；殉道者；殉教者；乞怜者（向人诉苦以博取同情） | |
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133
graceful
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| adj.优美的，优雅的；得体的 | |
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134
drooping
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| adj. 下垂的，无力的 动词droop的现在分词 | |
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135
rapture
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| n.狂喜；全神贯注；着迷；v.使狂喜 | |
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136
pious
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| adj.虔诚的；道貌岸然的 | |
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137
prophesied
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| v.预告，预言( prophesy的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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138
slumber
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| n.睡眠，沉睡状态 | |
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139
slumbered
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| 微睡，睡眠（slumber的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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140
alcoves
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| n.凹室( alcove的名词复数 )；（花园）凉亭；僻静处；壁龛 | |
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141
pitcher
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| n.(有嘴和柄的)大水罐；(棒球)投手 | |
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142
catching
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| adj.易传染的，有魅力的，迷人的，接住 | |
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143
subside
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| vi.平静，平息；下沉，塌陷，沉降 | |
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144
eloquent
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| adj.雄辩的，口才流利的；明白显示出的 | |
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145
mellow
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| adj.柔和的；熟透的；v.变柔和；(使)成熟 | |
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146
fretted
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| 焦躁的，附有弦马的，腐蚀的 | |
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147
niches
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| 壁龛( niche的名词复数 )； 合适的位置[工作等]； （产品的）商机； 生态位（一个生物所占据的生境的最小单位） | |
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148
grotesque
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| adj.怪诞的，丑陋的；n.怪诞的图案，怪人（物） | |
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149
gargoyles
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| n.怪兽状滴水嘴( gargoyle的名词复数 ) | |
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150
swarmed
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| 密集( swarm的过去式和过去分词 )； 云集； 成群地移动； 蜜蜂或其他飞行昆虫成群地飞来飞去 | |
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151
nuns
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| n.（通常指基督教的）修女， （佛教的）尼姑( nun的名词复数 ) | |
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152
carvings
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| n.雕刻( carving的名词复数 )；雕刻术；雕刻品；雕刻物 | |
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153
twilight
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| n.暮光，黄昏；暮年，晚期，衰落时期 | |
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154
tapestries
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| n.挂毯( tapestry的名词复数 )；绣帷，织锦v.用挂毯（或绣帷）装饰( tapestry的第三人称单数 ) | |
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155
boughs
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| 大树枝( bough的名词复数 ) | |
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156
scattered
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| adj.分散的，稀疏的；散步的；疏疏落落的 | |
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157
canopy
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| n.天篷，遮篷 | |
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158
pageant
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| n.壮观的游行；露天历史剧 | |
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159
benignity
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| n.仁慈 | |
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160
orphans
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| 孤儿( orphan的名词复数 ) | |
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161
mantle
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| n.斗篷，覆罩之物，罩子；v.罩住，覆盖，脸红 | |
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162
emblem
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| n.象征，标志；徽章 | |
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163
flickering
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| adj.闪烁的，摇曳的，一闪一闪的 | |
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164
outright
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| adv.坦率地；彻底地；立即；adj.无疑的；彻底的 | |
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165
gilded
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| a.镀金的，富有的 | |
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166
climax
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| n.顶点；高潮；v.(使)达到顶点 | |
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167
sonorous
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| adj.响亮的，回响的；adv.圆润低沉地；感人地；n.感人，堂皇 | |
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168
entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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169
raptures
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| 极度欢喜( rapture的名词复数 ) | |
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170
lighting
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| n.照明，光线的明暗，舞台灯光 | |
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171
dedicated
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| adj.一心一意的；献身的；热诚的 | |
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172
propped
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| 支撑，支持，维持( prop的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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173
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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174
follies
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| 罪恶，时事讽刺剧； 愚蠢，蠢笨，愚蠢的行为、思想或做法( folly的名词复数 ) | |
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175
embalms
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| n.保存（尸体）不腐( embalm的名词复数 )；使不被遗忘；使充满香气v.保存（尸体）不腐( embalm的第三人称单数 )；使不被遗忘；使充满香气 | |
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176
villa
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| n.别墅，城郊小屋 | |
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177
plumes
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| 羽毛( plume的名词复数 )； 羽毛饰； 羽毛状物； 升上空中的羽状物 | |
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178
trotted
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| 小跑，急走( trot的过去分词 )； 匆匆忙忙地走 | |
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179
darting
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| v.投掷，投射( dart的现在分词 )；向前冲，飞奔 | |
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180
apparently
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| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
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181
guise
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| n.外表，伪装的姿态 | |
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182
quandary
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| n.困惑，进迟两难之境 | |
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183
tragic
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| adj.悲剧的，悲剧性的，悲惨的 | |
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184
tragical
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| adj. 悲剧的, 悲剧性的 | |
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185
sprawled
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| v.伸开四肢坐[躺]( sprawl的过去式和过去分词)；蔓延；杂乱无序地拓展；四肢伸展坐着（或躺着） | |
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186
memorable
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| adj.值得回忆的，难忘的，特别的，显著的 | |
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187
frivolous
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| adj.轻薄的；轻率的 | |
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188
scent
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| n.气味，香味，香水，线索，嗅觉；v.嗅，发觉 | |
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189
winding
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| n.绕，缠，绕组，线圈 | |
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190
sage
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| n.圣人，哲人；adj.贤明的，明智的 | |
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191
yearned
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| 渴望，切盼，向往( yearn的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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192
sepulchral
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| adj.坟墓的，阴深的 | |
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193
sages
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| n.圣人( sage的名词复数 )；智者；哲人；鼠尾草（可用作调料） | |
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194
repose
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| v.(使)休息；n.安息 | |
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195
amiable
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| adj.和蔼可亲的，友善的，亲切的 | |
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196
festive
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| adj.欢宴的，节日的 | |
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197
cacti
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| n.（复）仙人掌 | |
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198
stewed
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| adj.焦虑不安的，烂醉的v.炖( stew的过去式和过去分词 )；煨；思考；担忧 | |
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199
eels
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| abbr. 电子发射器定位系统（=electronic emitter location system） | |
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200
hopped
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| 跳上[下]( hop的过去式和过去分词 )； 单足蹦跳； 齐足（或双足）跳行； 摘葎草花 | |
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201
droll
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| adj.古怪的，好笑的 | |
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202
retired
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| adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的 | |
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203
bower
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| n.凉亭，树荫下凉快之处；闺房；v.荫蔽 | |
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204
stuffy
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| adj.不透气的，闷热的 | |
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205
volcanic
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| adj.火山的；象火山的；由火山引起的 | |
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206
eruptions
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| n.喷发，爆发( eruption的名词复数 ) | |
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207
conflagrations
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| n.大火（灾）( conflagration的名词复数 ) | |
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208
lurid
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| adj.可怕的；血红的；苍白的 | |
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209
bland
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| adj.淡而无味的，温和的，无刺激性的 | |
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210
gaily
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| adv.欢乐地，高兴地 | |
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211
wholesome
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| adj.适合；卫生的；有益健康的；显示身心健康的 | |
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212
picturesque
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| adj.美丽如画的，（语言）生动的，绘声绘色的 | |
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213
trudging
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| vt.& vi.跋涉，吃力地走（trudge的现在分词形式） | |
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214
standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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215
lodge
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| v.临时住宿，寄宿，寄存，容纳；n.传达室，小旅馆 | |
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216
pensive
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| a.沉思的,哀思的,忧沉的 | |
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217
velvet
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| n.丝绒，天鹅绒；adj.丝绒制的，柔软的 | |
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218
worthies
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| 应得某事物( worthy的名词复数 )； 值得做某事； 可尊敬的； 有（某人或事物）的典型特征 | |
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219
relics
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| [pl.］n.遗物，遗迹，遗产；遗体，尸骸 | |
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220
relic
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| n.神圣的遗物，遗迹，纪念物 | |
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221
revels
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| n.作乐( revel的名词复数 )；狂欢；着迷；陶醉v.作乐( revel的第三人称单数 )；狂欢；着迷；陶醉 | |
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222
chambers
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| n.房间( chamber的名词复数 )；（议会的）议院；卧室；会议厅 | |
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223
chamber
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| n.房间，寝室；会议厅；议院；会所 | |
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224
awfully
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| adv.可怕地，非常地，极端地 | |
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225
royalty
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| n.皇家，皇族 | |
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226
stony
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| adj.石头的，多石头的，冷酷的，无情的 | |
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227
sleepless
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| adj.不睡眠的，睡不著的，不休息的 | |
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228
sweeping
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| adj.范围广大的，一扫无遗的 | |
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229
sociably
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| adv.成群地 | |
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230
wafted
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| v.吹送，飘送，（使）浮动( waft的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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231
bowels
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| n.肠，内脏，内部；肠( bowel的名词复数 )；内部，最深处 | |
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232
rumbled
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| 发出隆隆声，发出辘辘声( rumble的过去式和过去分词 )； 轰鸣着缓慢行进； 发现…的真相； 看穿（阴谋） | |
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233
laments
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| n.悲恸，哀歌，挽歌( lament的名词复数 )v.（为…）哀悼，痛哭，悲伤( lament的第三人称单数 ) | |
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234
flinching
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| v.（因危险和痛苦）退缩，畏惧( flinch的现在分词 ) | |
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235
exterior
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| adj.外部的，外在的；表面的 | |
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236
porcupines
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| n.豪猪，箭猪( porcupine的名词复数 ) | |
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237
monograms
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| n.字母组合( monogram的名词复数 ) | |
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238
maze
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| n.迷宫，八阵图，混乱，迷惑 | |
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239
quenched
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| 解（渴）( quench的过去式和过去分词 )； 终止（某事物）； （用水）扑灭（火焰等）； 将（热物体）放入水中急速冷却 | |
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240
humbly
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| adv. 恭顺地，谦卑地 | |
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241
oratory
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| n.演讲术；词藻华丽的言辞 | |
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242
daggers
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| 匕首，短剑( dagger的名词复数 ) | |
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243
dagger
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| n.匕首，短剑，剑号 | |
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244
barricades
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| 路障，障碍物( barricade的名词复数 ) | |
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245
horrid
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| adj.可怕的；令人惊恐的；恐怖的；极讨厌的 | |
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246
gasped
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| v.喘气( gasp的过去式和过去分词 )；喘息；倒抽气；很想要 | |
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247
gasp
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| n.喘息，气喘；v.喘息；气吁吁他说 | |
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248
corpse
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| n.尸体，死尸 | |
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249
mighty
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| adj.强有力的；巨大的 | |
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250
spurned
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| v.一脚踢开，拒绝接受( spurn的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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251
implore
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| vt.乞求，恳求，哀求 | |
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252
rattled
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| 慌乱的，恼火的 | |
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253
jumble
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| vt.使混乱，混杂；n.混乱；杂乱的一堆 | |
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254
imprisoned
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| 下狱，监禁( imprison的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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255
iniquities
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| n.邪恶( iniquity的名词复数 )；极不公正 | |
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256
erect
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| n./v.树立，建立，使竖立；adj.直立的，垂直的 | |
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257
theatrical
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| adj.剧场的，演戏的；做戏似的，做作的 | |
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258
parched
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| adj.焦干的；极渴的；v.（使）焦干 | |
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259
clotted
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| adj.凝结的v.凝固( clot的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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260
refreshing
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| adj.使精神振作的，使人清爽的，使人喜欢的 | |
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261
persuasive
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| adj.有说服力的，能说得使人相信的 | |
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262
ardently
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| adv.热心地，热烈地 | |
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263
alas
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| int.唉(表示悲伤、忧愁、恐惧等) | |
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264
exquisite
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| adj.精美的；敏锐的；剧烈的，感觉强烈的 | |
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265
delicacy
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| n.精致，细微，微妙，精良；美味，佳肴 | |
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266
appreciative
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| adj.有鉴赏力的，有眼力的；感激的 | |
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267
susceptible
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| adj.过敏的，敏感的；易动感情的，易受感动的 | |
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268
tableau
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| n.画面，活人画（舞台上活人扮的静态画面） | |
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269
valedictory
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| adj.告别的；n.告别演说 | |
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270
devoted
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| adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的 | |
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271
manly
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| adj.有男子气概的；adv.男子般地，果断地 | |
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272
snails
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| n.蜗牛；迟钝的人；蜗牛( snail的名词复数 ) | |
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273
repulsive
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| adj.排斥的，使人反感的 | |
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274
linen
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| n.亚麻布，亚麻线，亚麻制品；adj.亚麻布制的，亚麻的 | |
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275
glowered
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| v.怒视( glower的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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276
gustily
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| adv.暴风地，狂风地 | |
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277
gravy
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| n.肉汁；轻易得来的钱，外快 | |
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278
blots
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| 污渍( blot的名词复数 )； 墨水渍； 错事； 污点 | |
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279
amiability
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| n.和蔼可亲的，亲切的，友善的 | |
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280
chubby
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| adj.丰满的，圆胖的 | |
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281
languished
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| 长期受苦( languish的过去式和过去分词 )； 受折磨； 变得（越来越）衰弱； 因渴望而变得憔悴或闷闷不乐 | |
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282
anguish
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| n.(尤指心灵上的)极度痛苦，烦恼 | |
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283
copious
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| adj.丰富的，大量的 | |
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284
bent
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| n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的 | |
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285
frugal
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| adj.节俭的，节约的，少量的，微量的 | |
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286
puddles
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| n.水坑， （尤指道路上的）雨水坑( puddle的名词复数 ) | |
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287
inevitable
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| adj.不可避免的，必然发生的 | |
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288
mania
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| n.疯狂；躁狂症，狂热，癖好 | |
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289
peculiar
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| adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的，特有的 | |
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290
simultaneously
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| adv.同时发生地，同时进行地 | |
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291
amazement
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| n.惊奇，惊讶 | |
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292
plunged
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| v.颠簸( plunge的过去式和过去分词 )；暴跌；骤降；突降 | |
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293
gem
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| n.宝石，珠宝；受爱戴的人 [同]jewel | |
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294
impoverished
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| adj.穷困的，无力的，用尽了的v.使（某人）贫穷( impoverish的过去式和过去分词 )；使（某物）贫瘠或恶化 | |
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295
shrugs
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| n.耸肩（以表示冷淡，怀疑等）( shrug的名词复数 ) | |
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296
costly
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| adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的 | |
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297
desolated
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| adj.荒凉的，荒废的 | |
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298
afflicting
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| 痛苦的 | |
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299
kindly
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| adj.和蔼的，温和的，爽快的；adv.温和地，亲切地 | |
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300
clattering
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| 发出咔哒声（clatter的现在分词形式） | |
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301
gauche
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| adj.笨拙的，粗鲁的 | |
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302
applied
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| adj.应用的；v.应用，适用 | |
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303
gutters
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| （路边）排水沟( gutter的名词复数 )； 阴沟； （屋顶的）天沟； 贫贱的境地 | |
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304
shutters
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| 百叶窗( shutter的名词复数 )； （照相机的）快门 | |
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305
sanctuary
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| n.圣所，圣堂，寺庙；禁猎区，保护区 | |
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306
profane
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| adj.亵神的，亵渎的；vt.亵渎，玷污 | |
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307
clergy
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| n.[总称]牧师，神职人员 | |
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308
crimson
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| n./adj.深(绯)红色(的)；vi.脸变绯红色 | |
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309
neatly
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| adv.整洁地，干净地，灵巧地，熟练地 | |
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310
rebuke
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| v.指责，非难，斥责 [反]praise | |
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311
frivolity
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| n.轻松的乐事，兴高采烈；轻浮的举止 | |
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312
choir
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| n.唱诗班，唱诗班的席位，合唱团，舞蹈团；v.合唱 | |
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313
lark
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| n.云雀，百灵鸟；n.嬉戏，玩笑；vi.嬉戏 | |
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314
racing
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| n.竞赛，赛马；adj.竞赛用的，赛马用的 | |
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315
chilly
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| adj.凉快的，寒冷的 | |
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316
disported
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| v.嬉戏，玩乐，自娱( disport的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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317
crevices
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| n.（尤指岩石的）裂缝，缺口( crevice的名词复数 ) | |
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318
brewed
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| 调制( brew的过去式和过去分词 )； 酝酿； 沏（茶）； 煮（咖啡） | |
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319
inebriate
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| v.使醉 | |
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320
sipping
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| v.小口喝，呷，抿( sip的现在分词 ) | |
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321
sketched
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| v.草拟（sketch的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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322
aristocrat
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| n.贵族，有贵族气派的人，上层人物 | |
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323
slippers
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| n. 拖鞋 | |
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324
gracefully
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| ad.大大方方地；优美地 | |
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325
hearth
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| n.壁炉炉床，壁炉地面 | |
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326
cosy
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| adj.温暖而舒适的，安逸的 | |
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327
tepid
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| adj.微温的，温热的，不太热心的 | |
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328
pruning
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| n.修枝，剪枝，修剪v.修剪（树木等）( prune的现在分词 )；精简某事物，除去某事物多余的部分 | |
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329
pointed
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| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
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330
calves
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| n.(calf的复数)笨拙的男子，腓；腿肚子( calf的名词复数 )；牛犊；腓；小腿肚v.生小牛( calve的第三人称单数 )；（冰川）崩解；生（小牛等），产（犊）；使（冰川）崩解 | |
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331
vowed
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| 起誓，发誓（vow的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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332
portfolio
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| n.公事包；文件夹；大臣及部长职位 | |
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333
stanzas
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| 节，段( stanza的名词复数 ) | |
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334
mien
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| n.风采；态度 | |
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335
greasy
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| adj. 多脂的，油脂的 | |
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336
vile
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| adj.卑鄙的，可耻的，邪恶的；坏透的 | |
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337
victuals
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| n.食物；食品 | |
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338
lured
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| 吸引，引诱（lure的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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339
toad
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| n.蟾蜍，癞蛤蟆 | |
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340
cuisine
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| n.烹调，烹饪法 | |
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341
luscious
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| adj.美味的；芬芳的；肉感的，引与性欲的 | |
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342
brutal
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| adj.残忍的，野蛮的，不讲理的 | |
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343
joints
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| 接头( joint的名词复数 )； 关节； 公共场所（尤指价格低廉的饮食和娱乐场所） （非正式）； 一块烤肉 （英式英语） | |
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344
promptly
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| adv.及时地，敏捷地 | |
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345
jocund
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| adj.快乐的，高兴的 | |
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346
rustle
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| v.沙沙作响；偷盗(牛、马等)；n.沙沙声声 | |
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347
hilarity
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| n.欢乐；热闹 | |
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348
exasperating
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| adj. 激怒的 动词exasperate的现在分词形式 | |
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349
conundrum
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| n.谜语；难题 | |
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350
implored
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| 恳求或乞求（某人）( implore的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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351
opium
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| n.鸦片；adj.鸦片的 | |
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352
rustling
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| n. 瑟瑟声，沙沙声 adj. 发沙沙声的 | |
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353
gore
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| n.凝血，血污；v.（动物）用角撞伤，用牙刺破；缝以补裆；顶 | |
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354
brigands
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| n.土匪，强盗( brigand的名词复数 ) | |
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355
crouching
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| v.屈膝，蹲伏( crouch的现在分词 ) | |
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356
dodging
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| n.避开，闪过，音调改变v.闪躲( dodge的现在分词 )；回避 | |
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357
waterproof
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| n.防水材料；adj.防水的；v.使...能防水 | |
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358
sheathed
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| adj.雕塑像下半身包在鞘中的；覆盖的；铠装的；装鞘了的v.将（刀、剑等）插入鞘( sheathe的过去式和过去分词 )；包，覆盖 | |
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359
balked
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| v.畏缩不前，犹豫( balk的过去式和过去分词 )；（指马）不肯跑 | |
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360
sarcastic
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| adj.讥讽的，讽刺的，嘲弄的 | |
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361
misty
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| adj.雾蒙蒙的，有雾的 | |
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362
defenders
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| n.防御者( defender的名词复数 )；守卫者；保护者；辩护者 | |
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363
innocence
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| n.无罪；天真；无害 | |
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364
gnawing
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| a.痛苦的，折磨人的 | |
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365
sleeper
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| n.睡眠者，卧车，卧铺 | |
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366
drowsy
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| adj.昏昏欲睡的，令人发困的 | |
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367
gratitude
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| adj.感激，感谢 | |
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368
fray
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| v.争吵；打斗；磨损，磨破；n.吵架；打斗 | |
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369
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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370
soothed
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| v.安慰( soothe的过去式和过去分词 )；抚慰；使舒服；减轻痛苦 | |
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371
furry
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| adj.毛皮的；似毛皮的；毛皮制的 | |
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372
growled
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| v.（动物）发狺狺声， （雷）作隆隆声( growl的过去式和过去分词 )；低声咆哮着说 | |
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373
grove
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| n.林子，小树林，园林 | |
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374
poker
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| n.扑克；vt.烙制 | |
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375
smothered
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| （使）窒息， （使）透不过气( smother的过去式和过去分词 )； 覆盖； 忍住； 抑制 | |
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376
giggle
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| n.痴笑，咯咯地笑；v.咯咯地笑着说 | |
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377
severely
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| adv.严格地；严厉地；非常恶劣地 | |
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378
suffocation
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| n.窒息 | |
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379
peals
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| n.（声音大而持续或重复的）洪亮的响声( peal的名词复数 )；隆隆声；洪亮的钟声；钟乐v.（使）（钟等）鸣响，（雷等）发出隆隆声( peal的第三人称单数 ) | |
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380
pervade
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| v.弥漫，遍及，充满，渗透，漫延 | |
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381
pervaded
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| v.遍及，弥漫( pervade的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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382
discreet
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| adj.(言行)谨慎的；慎重的；有判断力的 | |
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383
pucker
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| v.撅起，使起皱；n.（衣服上的）皱纹，褶子 | |
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384
relish
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| n.滋味，享受，爱好，调味品；vt.加调味料，享受，品味；vi.有滋味 | |
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385
comely
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| adj.漂亮的，合宜的 | |
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386
appal
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| vt.使胆寒，使惊骇 | |
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387
heed
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| v.注意，留意；n.注意，留心 | |
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388
flirtation
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| n.调情，调戏，挑逗 | |
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389
zest
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| n.乐趣；滋味，风味；兴趣 | |
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390
irreproachable
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| adj.不可指责的，无过失的 | |
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391
reprehensible
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| adj.该受责备的 | |
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392
flirtatious
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| adj.爱调情的，调情的，卖俏的 | |
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393
inviting
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| adj.诱人的，引人注目的 | |
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394
gallant
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| adj.英勇的，豪侠的；(向女人)献殷勤的 | |
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395
beguiled
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| v.欺骗( beguile的过去式和过去分词 )；使陶醉；使高兴；消磨（时间等） | |
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396
ruminate
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| v.反刍；沉思 | |
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397
curb
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| n.场外证券市场，场外交易；vt.制止，抑制 | |
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398
aberrations
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| n.偏差( aberration的名词复数 )；差错；脱离常规；心理失常 | |
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399
landlady
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| n.女房东，女地主 | |
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400
rustic
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| adj.乡村的，有乡村特色的；n.乡下人，乡巴佬 | |
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401
drawn
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| v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的 | |
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402
adorned
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| [计]被修饰的 | |
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403
bonnet
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| n.无边女帽；童帽 | |
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404
laden
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| adj.装满了的；充满了的；负了重担的；苦恼的 | |
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405
lettuce
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| n.莴苣；生菜 | |
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406
lavishly
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| adv.慷慨地，大方地 | |
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407
marsh
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| n.沼泽，湿地 | |
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408
marshy
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| adj.沼泽的 | |
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409
salon
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| n.[法]沙龙；客厅；营业性的高级服务室 | |
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410
prospect
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| n.前景，前途；景色，视野 | |
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411
invalid
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| n.病人，伤残人；adj.有病的，伤残的；无效的 | |
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412
ornamental
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| adj.装饰的；作装饰用的；n.装饰品；观赏植物 | |
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413
cockroach
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| n.蟑螂 | |
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414
dodged
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| v.闪躲( dodge的过去式和过去分词 )；回避 | |
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415
wasp
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| n.黄蜂，蚂蜂 | |
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416
dismally
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| adv.阴暗地，沉闷地 | |
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417
shun
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| vt.避开，回避，避免 | |
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418
palled
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| v.（因过多或过久而）生厌，感到乏味，厌烦( pall的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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419
abounded
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| v.大量存在，充满，富于( abound的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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420
cholera
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| n.霍乱 | |
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421
moulder
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| v.腐朽，崩碎 | |
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422
civilisation
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| n.文明，文化，开化，教化 | |
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423
Christian
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| adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒 | |
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424
mishaps
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| n.轻微的事故，小的意外( mishap的名词复数 ) | |
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425
trophy
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| n.优胜旗，奖品，奖杯，战胜品，纪念品 | |
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