5 THE FIRST WEEK GOES BY

5 THE FIRST WEEK GOES BY
DARRELL soon began to settle down. She learnt the names not only of the girls in her form at NorthTower, but of every girl there, from the head-girl Pamela, down to Mary-Lou, the youngest but one inthe first form. Darrell herself was the youngest girl in North Tower, she found, but she felt that Mary-Lou was very much younger
Mary-Lou was a scared mouse of a girl. She was fright?ened of mice, beetles¹, thunderstorms, noisesat night, the dark, and a hundred other things. Poor Mary-Lou. no wonder she had big scared eyes.
Darrell, not easily scared of anything.
laughed when she saw poor Mary-Lou rush to the other side of the dormy because she saw an earwigon the floor.
There were ten girls in the first-form dormy at North Tower. Katherine, the quiet head-girl. Alicia,the talkative unruly-tongued monkey. The three new girls, Darrell, Gwendoline, and Sally. Mary-Lou, with her big scared eyes, always ready to shy back like a nervous horse, at anything unexpected.
Then there was clever Irene, a marvel² at maths, and music, usually top of the form—but oh, howstupid in the ordinary things of life. If anyone lost her book it was Irene. If anyone went to the wrongclassroom at the wrong time it was Irene. It was said that once she had gone to the art- room, thinkingthat a painting lesson was to be taken there, and had actually sat there for half-an-hour, apparentlywaiting for Miss Linnie to come. What she thought had happened to the rest of the class, no oneknew.
'But how could you sit there all that time and not even wonder why nobody came!' said Katherine, inamazement. 'What were you thinking of, Irene?'
'I was just thinking of a maths, problem that Potty set us, that's all,' said Irene, her eyes shiningthrough her big glasses. "It was rather an interesting one, and there were two or three ways of gettingit right. You see...'
'Oh, spare us maths, out of school!' groaned⁴ Alicia. 'Irene, I think you're bats!'
But Irene wasn't. She was a most intelligent girl, who, because her mind was always so deeply atwork at something, seemed to forget the smaller, everyday things of life. She had a sense of fun too,and when she was really tickled⁵ she came out with a tremendous explosive giggle⁶ that startled theclass and made Miss Potts jump. It was Micia's delight to provoke this explosion sometimes, andupset the class.
The other three girls in the form were Jean, a jolly, shrewd girl from Scotland, very able at handlingmoney for various school societies and charities; Emily, a quiet studious girl, clever with her needle,and one of Mam'zelle's favourites because of this; and Violet, a shy. colourless child, very much leftout of things because she never seemed to take any interest in them. Half the form never even noticedwhether Violet was with them or not.
That made up the ten girls. Darrell felt that she had known them lor years after she had lived withthem only a few- days. She knew the way Irene's stockings always fell down in wrinkles. She knewthe way Jean spoke⁷, clipped and sharp, in her Scots accent. She knew that Mam'zelle disliked Jeanbecause Jean was scornful of Mam'zelle's enthusiasms and emotions. Jean herself never went intoecstasies about anything.
Darrell knew Gwendoline's sighs and moans over everything, and Mary-Lou's scared exclamations⁸ offear at any insect or reptile⁹. She liked Katherine's low, firm voice, and air of being able to cope withanything. She knew a great deal about Alicia, but then, so did everyone, for Alicia poured outeverything that came into her head, she chattered¹⁰ about her brothers, her mother and father, her dogs,her work, her play, her knitting, her opinion of everything and everybody under the sun.
Alicia had no time at all for airs and graces, pretences¹¹, sighs, moans or affectations. She was asdownright as Darrell, but not so kind. She was scornful and biting when it pleased her, so that girlslike Gwendoline hated her, and those like scared Mary-Lou feared her. Darrell liked her immensely.
'She's so lively,' she thought to herself. 'Nobody could be dull with Alicia. 1 wish 1 was as interestingas she is. Everyone listens when Alicia speaks, even when she says something unkind. But nobodypays much attention when 1 want to say something. I do really like Alicia, and I wish she hadn't gotBetty for a friend. She's just the one I would have chosen.'
It took Darrell longer to know the first-formers who came from the other Towers. She saw them inclass, but not in the common room or dormies, for the first-formers of the other lowers had their ownrooms, of course, in their own Towers. Still it was enough to know her own Tower girls for a start.
Darrell thought.
She didn't know very much about the older girls in her Tower, for she didn't even meet them in theclassroom. She saw them at Prayers in the morning, sometimes during the singing-lesson, when Mr.
Young took more than one class at a time, and sometimes on the tennis-courts and in the swimming-pool.
She heard a few things about some of them, of course. Marilyn, sixth-former, was captain of thegames, and most of the girls liked her immensely. 'She's fair and really takes a lot of trouble to coacheven the first-formers,' said Alicia. "She's as good as old Remmington, the games-mistress, any- day.
She won't bother with the duds, but Marilyn does.'
Everyone appeared to look up to Pamela, the head-girl, too. She was clever, and rather literary. It wassaid that she was already writing a book. This impressed the first-formers very much. It was hardenough to write a decent composition, let alone a book.
No one seemed to like two girls called Doris and Fanny. 'Too spiteful for words.' said Alicia, w ho ofcourse, could always give an opinion immediately about anyone or any?thing from WinstonChurchill down to the little boy belonging to the Tower House cook. 'They're frightfully pi.'
'What do you mean pi?' said Gwendoline, who hadn't apparently³ heard that word before.
'Golly—what an ignoramus you are!' said Alicia. 'Pi means pious¹². Religious in the wrong way.
Thinking they're wonderful and nobody else is. Trying to stop people's pleasure. They're a sickeningpair. Always on the prowl and on the snoop. Once, when 1 slipped across the Court in the night tojoin Betty Hill, in West Tower for a midnight feast, Doris saw me out of the window, and lay in waitfor me to come back. Beast.'
'Did she catch you?' asked Mary-Lou, her eyes wide with alarm.
'Course she didn't! You don't think I'd let myself be caught by the Pi Sisters, do you?' said Alicia,scornfully. '1 spotted¹³ her when 1 came back, and shut her in the boot- cupboard.'
Irene gave one of her loud explosive giggles¹⁴ and made them all jump. 'I'd never think of the thingsyou think of, Alicia!' she said. 'No wonder the Pi Sisters glare at you in Prayers each morning. I betthey'll watch out for you to do something you shouldn't, and tell on you.'
'And 1 bet I'll get the better of them!' said Alicia, grimly. 'If they try any tricks on me, I'll try a few onthem!"
'Oh, do, do,' begged Darrell, who had a great weakness for jokes and tricks. She didn't always dare todo them herself, but she was always ready to back up any one else who did.
Darrell soon got to know all the different classrooms too. She knew the art-room, with its clear northlight. She hadn't yet had a lesson in the lab. or laboratory, which looked a bit frightening. She lovedthe great gym. with all its apparatus¹⁵ of swings, ropes, vaulting-horses and mattresses¹⁶. She was goodat gym. So was Alicia, who could climb like a monkey, and was as strong as a horse. Mary-Lou, ofcourse, was too scared to do anything unless she was made to.
It was fun, the way all the girls slept in the Towers, and had their lessons in the other parts of thegreat building.
Darrell knew where the teachers lived now in the building facing south, except those who, like MissPotts, and Mam zelle, lived in with the girls, to keep an eye on them. She began to wonder how shecould have felt so lost and over?awed¹⁷ when she first arrived. She didn't feel a bit like a new girl now.
One of the things that Darrell liked best of all was the big swimming-pool down by the sea. This hadbeen hollowed out of a stretch of rocks, so that it had a nice rocky, uneven¹⁸ bottom. Seaweed grew atthe sides, and sometimes the rocky bed of the pool felt a iittle slimy. But the sea swept into the bignatural pool each day, filled it, and made lovely waves all across it. It was a sheer delight to bathethere.
The coast itself was too dangerous for bathing. The tides were so strong, and no giri was allowed toswim in the open sea. But anyone was safe in the pool. One end was quite deep, and here there werediving-boards and a chute, and a fine spring-board for running dives.
Mary-Lou and Gwendoline were terrified of the pool, Mary-Lou because she was afraid of water,anyhow, and Gwendoline because she hated the first cold plunge¹⁹. Alicia's eyes always gleamed whenshe spied the shivering Gwen?doline, and the poor girl so often had an unexpected push into thewater that she soon began to step in hurriedly whenever she saw Alicia or Betty coming near.
The first week went very slowly. There was a lot to learn and know, things were so new and exciting.
Darrell loved every minute, and soon got into the way of things. She was naturally quick andresponsive, and the girls soon accepted her and liked her.
But they neither accepted nor liked poor Gwendoline, and as for Sally Hope, after trying in vain todraw her out a little, and get her to talk of her family and home, the girls let her live in her shell, andnot come out of it at all.
'First week gone!' announced Alicia, some days later. 'The first week always crawls. After that thedays lly, and it's half-term in no time, and when that's gone we're looking forward to the hols. You'vesoon settled in, haven't you, Darrell?'
'Oh, mv.' said Darrell. 'I love it. If every term is as nice as this, 1 shall be thrilled!'
'Ah, you wait,' said Alicia. 'Everything's always all right at first -but when you've had a wigging²⁰ ortwo from Mam'zelle, and been dosed by Matron, and kept in by Potty, and slated²¹ by MissRemmington, and ticked off by one of the older girls and...!'
'Oh stop!' cried Darrell. 'Nothing like that will happen, Alicia. Don't try and frighten me!'
But Alicia was right, of course. Things were not going to be quite so smooth and easy as Darrellthought!

1 beetles   

n.甲虫( beetle的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Beetles bury pellets of dung and lay their eggs within them. 甲壳虫把粪粒埋起来，然后在里面产卵。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• This kind of beetles have hard shell. 这类甲虫有坚硬的外壳。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

2 marvel   

vi.(at)惊叹vt.感到惊异；n.令人惊异的事

参考例句：

• The robot is a marvel of modern engineering.机器人是现代工程技术的奇迹。
• The operation was a marvel of medical skill.这次手术是医术上的一个奇迹。

3 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

4 groaned   

v.呻吟( groan的过去式和过去分词 )；发牢骚；抱怨；受苦

参考例句：

• He groaned in anguish. 他痛苦地呻吟。
• The cart groaned under the weight of the piano. 大车在钢琴的重压下嘎吱作响。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 tickled   

（使）发痒( tickle的过去式和过去分词 )； （使）愉快，逗乐

参考例句：

• We were tickled pink to see our friends on television. 在电视中看到我们的一些朋友，我们高兴极了。
• I tickled the baby's feet and made her laugh. 我胳肢孩子的脚，使她发笑。

6 giggle   

n.痴笑，咯咯地笑；v.咯咯地笑着说

参考例句：

• Both girls began to giggle.两个女孩都咯咯地笑了起来。
• All that giggle and whisper is too much for me.我受不了那些咯咯的笑声和交头接耳的样子。

7 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

8 exclamations   

n.呼喊( exclamation的名词复数 )；感叹；感叹语；感叹词

参考例句：

• The visitors broke into exclamations of wonder when they saw the magnificent Great Wall. 看到雄伟的长城，游客们惊叹不已。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• After the will has been read out, angry exclamations aroused. 遗嘱宣读完之后，激起一片愤怒的喊声。 来自辞典例句

9 reptile   

n.爬行动物；两栖动物

参考例句：

• The frog is not a true reptile.青蛙并非真正的爬行动物。
• So you should not be surprised to see someone keep a reptile as a pet.所以，你不必惊奇有人养了一只爬行动物作为宠物。

10 chattered   

（人）喋喋不休( chatter的过去式 )； 唠叨； （牙齿）打战； （机器）震颤

参考例句：

• They chattered away happily for a while. 他们高兴地闲扯了一会儿。
• We chattered like two teenagers. 我们聊着天，像两个十多岁的孩子。

11 pretences   

n.假装( pretence的名词复数 )；作假；自命；自称

参考例句：

• You've brought your old friends out here under false pretences. 你用虚假的名义把你的那些狐朋狗党带到这里来。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
• There are no pretences about him. 他一点不虚伪。 来自辞典例句

12 pious   

adj.虔诚的；道貌岸然的

参考例句：

• Alexander is a pious follower of the faith.亚历山大是个虔诚的信徒。
• Her mother was a pious Christian.她母亲是一个虔诚的基督教徒。

13 spotted   

adj.有斑点的，斑纹的，弄污了的

参考例句：

• The milkman selected the spotted cows,from among a herd of two hundred.牛奶商从一群200头牛中选出有斑点的牛。
• Sam's shop stocks short spotted socks.山姆的商店屯积了有斑点的短袜。

14 giggles   

n.咯咯的笑( giggle的名词复数 )；傻笑；玩笑；the giggles 止不住的格格笑v.咯咯地笑( giggle的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Her nervous giggles annoyed me. 她神经质的傻笑把我惹火了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I had to rush to the loo to avoid an attack of hysterical giggles. 我不得不冲向卫生间，以免遭到别人的疯狂嘲笑。 来自辞典例句

15 apparatus   

n.装置，器械；器具，设备

参考例句：

• The school's audio apparatus includes films and records.学校的视听设备包括放映机和录音机。
• They had a very refined apparatus.他们有一套非常精良的设备。

16 mattresses   

褥垫，床垫( mattress的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The straw mattresses are airing there. 草垫子正在那里晾着。
• The researchers tested more than 20 mattresses of various materials. 研究人员试验了二十多个不同材料的床垫。

17 awed   

adj.充满敬畏的，表示敬畏的v.使敬畏，使惊惧( awe的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The audience was awed into silence by her stunning performance. 观众席上鸦雀无声，人们对他出色的表演感到惊叹。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I was awed by the huge gorilla. 那只大猩猩使我惊惧。 来自《简明英汉词典》

18 uneven   

adj.不平坦的，不规则的，不均匀的

参考例句：

• The sidewalk is very uneven—be careful where you walk.这人行道凹凸不平—走路时请小心。
• The country was noted for its uneven distribution of land resources.这个国家以土地资源分布不均匀出名。

19 plunge   

v.跳入，(使)投入，(使)陷入；猛冲

参考例句：

• Test pool's water temperature before you plunge in.在你跳入之前你应该测试水温。
• That would plunge them in the broil of the two countries.那将会使他们陷入这两国的争斗之中。

20 wigging   

n.责备，骂，叱责

参考例句：

• He got a wigging for being out late last night. 他昨晚因回来太迟而被骂了一顿。 来自互联网

21 slated   

用石板瓦盖( slate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Yuki is working up an in-home phonics program slated for Thursdays, and I'm drilling her on English conversation at dinnertime. Yuki每周四还有一次家庭语音课。我在晚餐时训练她的英语口语。
• Bromfield was slated to become U.S. Secretary of Agriculture. 布罗姆菲尔德被提名为美国农业部长。