THE COFFEE SLIPS XXIX

 

Whene’er I fragrant¹ coffee drink

I on the generous Frenchman think,

Whose noble perseverance² bore

The tree to Martinico’s shore.

While yet her colony was new,

Her island products but a few,

Two shoots from off a coffee-tree

He carried with him o’er the sea.

Each little tender coffee-slip

He waters daily in the ship;

And as he tends his embryo³ trees

Feels he is raising ’midst the seas

Coffee groves⁴, whose ample shade

Shall screen the dark Creolian maid.

But soon, alas⁵! his darling pleasure

In watching this his precious treasure,

 

Is like to fade; for water fails

On board the ship in which he sails.

Now all the reservoirs are shut,

The crew on short allowance put;

So small a drop is each man’s share

Few leavings you may think there are

To water these poor coffee plants!

But he supplies their gasping⁶ wants;

Ev’n from his own dry parched⁷ lips

He spares it for his coffee-slips.

Water he gives his nurslings first

Ere he allays⁸ his own deep thirst;

Lest if he first the water sip⁹

He bear too far his eager lip.

He sees them droop¹⁰ for want of more;

Yet when they reach the destined¹¹ shore,

With pride the heroic gardener sees

A living sap still in his trees.

The islanders his praise resound¹²!

Coffee plantations¹³ rise around;

And Martinico loads her ships

With produce from those dear-saved slips.B

1 fragrant   

adj.芬香的，馥郁的，愉快的

参考例句：

• The Fragrant Hills are exceptionally beautiful in late autumn.深秋的香山格外美丽。
• The air was fragrant with lavender.空气中弥漫薰衣草香。

2 perseverance   

n.坚持不懈，不屈不挠

参考例句：

• It may take some perseverance to find the right people.要找到合适的人也许需要有点锲而不舍的精神。
• Perseverance leads to success.有恒心就能胜利。

3 embryo   

n.胚胎，萌芽的事物

参考例句：

• They are engaging in an embryo research.他们正在进行一项胚胎研究。
• The project was barely in embryo.该计划只是个雏形。

4 groves   

树丛，小树林( grove的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The early sun shone serenely on embrowned groves and still green fields. 朝阳宁静地照耀着已经发黄的树丛和还是一片绿色的田地。
• The trees grew more and more in groves and dotted with old yews. 那里的树木越来越多地长成了一簇簇的小丛林，还点缀着几棵老紫杉树。

5 alas   

int.唉(表示悲伤、忧愁、恐惧等)

参考例句：

• Alas!The window is broken!哎呀！窗子破了！
• Alas,the truth is less romantic.然而，真理很少带有浪漫色彩。

6 gasping   

adj. 气喘的, 痉挛的 动词gasp的现在分词

参考例句：

• He was gasping for breath. 他在喘气。
• "Did you need a drink?""Yes, I'm gasping!” “你要喝点什么吗？”“我巴不得能喝点！”

7 parched   

adj.焦干的；极渴的；v.（使）焦干

参考例句：

• Hot winds parched the crops.热风使庄稼干透了。
• The land in this region is rather dry and parched.这片土地十分干燥。

8 allays   

v.减轻，缓和( allay的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• This leads to better leak integrity and allays contamination concerns. 这导致了更好的泄露完整性，减少了对污染的担心。 来自互联网
• And from a security standpoint the act raises as many fears as allays. 而从安全角度来说，该法案消除恐惧的同时也增加了担忧。 来自互联网

9 sip   

v.小口地喝，抿，呷；n.一小口的量

参考例句：

• She took a sip of the cocktail.她啜饮一口鸡尾酒。
• Elizabeth took a sip of the hot coffee.伊丽莎白呷了一口热咖啡。

10 droop   

v.低垂，下垂；凋萎，萎靡

参考例句：

• The heavy snow made the branches droop.大雪使树枝垂下来。
• Don't let your spirits droop.不要萎靡不振。

11 destined   

adj.命中注定的；(for)以…为目的地的

参考例句：

• It was destined that they would marry.他们结婚是缘分。
• The shipment is destined for America.这批货物将运往美国。

12 resound   

v.回响

参考例句：

• A roar of approval resounded through the Ukrainian parliament.一片赞成声在乌克兰议会中回响。
• The soldiers' boots resounded in the street.士兵的军靴踏在地面上的声音在大街上回响。

13 plantations   

n.种植园，大农场( plantation的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Soon great plantations, supported by slave labor, made some families very wealthy. 不久之后出现了依靠奴隶劳动的大庄园，使一些家庭成了富豪。 来自英汉非文学 - 政府文件
• Winterborne's contract was completed, and the plantations were deserted. 维恩特波恩的合同完成后，那片林地变得荒废了。 来自辞典例句