CHAPTER XXI

　　Our camels were trudging¹ to a slow but steady measure on toward thenorth. We were making twenty-five to thirty miles a day as weapproached a small monastery² that lay to the left of our route. Itwas in the form of a square of large buildings surrounded by a highfence of thick poles. Each side had an opening in the middleleading to the four entrances of the temple in the center of thesquare. The temple was built with the red lacquered columns andthe Chinese style roofs and dominated the surrounding low dwellingsof the Lamas. On the opposite side of the road lay what appearedto be a Chinese fortress³ but which was in reality a tradingcompound or dugun, which the Chinese always build in the form of afortress with double walls a few feet apart, within which theyplace their houses and shops and usually have twenty or thirtytraders fully⁴ armed for any emergency. In case of need theseduguns can be used as blockhouses and are capable of withstandinglong sieges. Between the dugun and the monastery and nearer to theroad I made out the camp of some nomads⁵. Their horses and cattlewere nowhere to be seen. Evidently the Mongols had stopped herefor some time and had left their cattle in the mountains. Overseveral yurtas waved multi-colored triangular⁶ flags, a sign of thepresence of disease. Near some yurtas high poles were stuck intothe ground with Mongol caps at their tops, which indicated that thehost of the yurta had died. The packs of dogs wandering over theplain showed that the dead bodies lay somewhere near, either in theravines or along the banks of the river.

As we approached the camp, we heard from a distance the franticbeating of drums, the mournful sounds of the flute⁷ and shrill⁸, madshouting. Our Mongol went forward to investigate for us andreported that several Mongolian families had come here to themonastery to seek aid from the Hutuktu Jahansti who was famed forhis miracles of healing. The people were stricken with leprosy andblack smallpox⁹ and had come from long distances only to find thatthe Hutuktu was not at the monastery but had gone to the LivingBuddha in Urga. Consequently they had been forced to invite thewitch doctors. The people were dying one after another. Just theday before they had cast on the plain the twenty-seventh man.

Meanwhile, as we talked, the witch doctor came out of one of theyurtas. He was an old man with a cataract¹¹ on one eye and with aface deeply scarred by smallpox. He was dressed in tatters withvarious colored bits of cloth hanging down from his waist. Hecarried a drum and a flute. We could see froth on his blue lipsand madness in his eyes. Suddenly he began to whirl round anddance with a thousand prancings of his long legs and writhings ofhis arms and shoulders, still beating the drum and playing theflute or crying and raging at intervals¹², ever accelerating hismovements until at last with pallid¹³ face and bloodshot eyes he fellon the snow, where he continued to writhe¹⁴ and give out hisincoherent cries. In this manner the doctor treated his patients,frightening with his madness the bad devils that carry disease.

Another witch doctor gave his patients dirty, muddy water, which Ilearned was the water from the bath of the very person of theLiving Buddha¹⁰ who had washed in it his "divine" body born from thesacred flower of the lotus.

"Om! Om!" both witches continuously screamed.

While the doctors fought with the devils, the ill people were leftto themselves. They lay in high fever under the heaps ofsheepskins and overcoats, were delirious¹⁵, raved¹⁶ and threwthemselves about. By the braziers squatted¹⁷ adults and children whowere still well, indifferently chatting, drinking tea and smoking.

In all the yurtas I saw the diseased and the dead and such miseryand physical horrors as cannot be described.

And I thought: "Oh, Great Jenghiz Khan! Why did you with yourkeen understanding of the whole situation of Asia and Europe, youwho devoted¹⁹ all your life to the glory of the name of the Mongols,why did you not give to your own people, who preserve their oldmorality, honesty and peaceful customs, the enlightenment thatwould have saved them from such death? Your bones in the mausoleumat Karakorum being destroyed by the centuries that pass over themmust cry out against the rapid disappearance²⁰ of your formerly²¹ greatpeople, who were feared by half the civilized²² world!"Such thoughts filled my brain when I saw this camp of the deadtomorrow and when I heard the groans²³, shoutings and raving²⁴ of dyingmen, women and children. Somewhere in the distance the dogs werehowling mournfully, and monotonously²⁵ the drum of the tired witchrolled.

"Forward!" I could not witness longer this dark horror, which Ihad no means or force to eradicate²⁶. We quickly passed on from theominous place. Nor could we shake the thought that some horribleinvisible spirit was following us from this scene of terror. "Thedevils of disease?" "The pictures of horror and misery¹⁸?" "Thesouls of men who have been sacrificed on the altar of darkness ofMongolia?" An inexplicable²⁷ fear penetrated²⁸ into our consciousnessfrom whose grasp we could not release ourselves. Only when we hadturned from the road, passed over a timbered ridge²⁹ into a bowl inthe mountains from which we could see neither Jahantsi Kure, thedugun nor the squirming grave of dying Mongols could we breathefreely again.

Presently we discovered a large lake. It was Tisingol. Near theshore stood a large Russian house, the telegraph station betweenKosogol and Uliassutai.

1 trudging   

vt.& vi.跋涉，吃力地走（trudge的现在分词形式）

参考例句：

• There was a stream of refugees trudging up the valley towards the border. 一队难民步履艰难地爬上山谷向着边境走去。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Two mules well laden with packs were trudging along. 两头骡子驮着沉重的背包，吃力地往前走。 来自辞典例句

2 monastery   

n.修道院，僧院，寺院

参考例句：

• They found an icon in the monastery.他们在修道院中发现了一个圣像。
• She was appointed the superior of the monastery two years ago.两年前她被任命为这个修道院的院长。

3 fortress   

n.堡垒，防御工事

参考例句：

• They made an attempt on a fortress.他们试图夺取这一要塞。
• The soldier scaled the wall of the fortress by turret.士兵通过塔车攀登上了要塞的城墙。

4 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

5 nomads   

n.游牧部落的一员( nomad的名词复数 )；流浪者；游牧生活；流浪生活

参考例句：

• For ten years she dwelled among the nomads of North America. 她在北美游牧民中生活了十年。
• Nomads have inhabited this region for thousands of years. 游牧民族在这地区居住已有数千年了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 triangular   

adj.三角（形）的，三者间的

参考例句：

• It's more or less triangular plot of land.这块地略成三角形。
• One particular triangular relationship became the model of Simone's first novel.一段特殊的三角关系成了西蒙娜第一本小说的原型。

7 flute   

n.长笛；v.吹笛

参考例句：

• He took out his flute, and blew at it.他拿出笛子吹了起来。
• There is an extensive repertoire of music written for the flute.有很多供长笛演奏的曲目。

8 shrill   

adj.尖声的；刺耳的；v尖叫

参考例句：

• Whistles began to shrill outside the barn.哨声开始在谷仓外面尖叫。
• The shrill ringing of a bell broke up the card game on the cutter.刺耳的铃声打散了小汽艇的牌局。

9 smallpox   

n.天花

参考例句：

• In 1742 he suffered a fatal attack of smallpox.1742年，他染上了致命的天花。
• Were you vaccinated against smallpox as a child?你小时候打过天花疫苗吗？

10 Buddha   

n.佛；佛像；佛陀

参考例句：

• Several women knelt down before the statue of Buddha and prayed.几个妇女跪在佛像前祈祷。
• He has kept the figure of Buddha for luck.为了图吉利他一直保存着这尊佛像。

11 cataract   

n.大瀑布，奔流，洪水，白内障

参考例句：

• He is an elderly gentleman who had had a cataract operation.他是一位曾经动过白内障手术的老人。
• The way is blocked by the tall cataract.高悬的大瀑布挡住了去路。

12 intervals   

n.[军事]间隔( interval的名词复数 )；间隔时间；[数学]区间；（戏剧、电影或音乐会的）幕间休息

参考例句：

• The forecast said there would be sunny intervals and showers. 预报间晴，有阵雨。
• Meetings take place at fortnightly intervals. 每两周开一次会。

13 pallid   

adj.苍白的，呆板的

参考例句：

• The moon drifted from behind the clouds and exposed the pallid face.月亮从云朵后面钻出来，照着尸体那张苍白的脸。
• His dry pallid face often looked gaunt.他那张干瘪苍白的脸常常显得憔悴。

14 writhe   

vt.挣扎，痛苦地扭曲；vi.扭曲，翻腾，受苦；n.翻腾，苦恼

参考例句：

• They surely writhe under this pressure.他们肯定对这种压力感到苦恼。
• Her words made him writhe with shame.她的话使他惭愧地感到浑身不自在。

15 delirious   

adj.不省人事的，神智昏迷的

参考例句：

• He was delirious,murmuring about that matter.他精神恍惚，低声叨念着那件事。
• She knew that he had become delirious,and tried to pacify him.她知道他已经神志昏迷起来了，极力想使他镇静下来。

16 raved   

v.胡言乱语( rave的过去式和过去分词 )；愤怒地说；咆哮；痴心地说

参考例句：

• Andrew raved all night in his fever. 安德鲁发烧时整夜地说胡话。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• They raved about her beauty. 他们过分称赞她的美。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

17 squatted   

v.像动物一样蹲下( squat的过去式和过去分词 )；非法擅自占用（土地或房屋）；为获得其所有权；而占用某片公共用地。

参考例句：

• He squatted down beside the footprints and examined them closely. 他蹲在脚印旁仔细地观察。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He squatted in the grass discussing with someone. 他蹲在草地上与一个人谈话。 来自《简明英汉词典》

18 misery   

n.痛苦，苦恼，苦难；悲惨的境遇，贫苦

参考例句：

• Business depression usually causes misery among the working class.商业不景气常使工薪阶层受苦。
• He has rescued me from the mire of misery.他把我从苦海里救了出来。

19 devoted   

adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的

参考例句：

• He devoted his life to the educational cause of the motherland.他为祖国的教育事业贡献了一生。
• We devoted a lengthy and full discussion to this topic.我们对这个题目进行了长时间的充分讨论。

20 disappearance   

n.消失，消散，失踪

参考例句：

• He was hard put to it to explain her disappearance.他难以说明她为什么不见了。
• Her disappearance gave rise to the wildest rumours.她失踪一事引起了各种流言蜚语。

21 formerly   

adv.从前，以前

参考例句：

• We now enjoy these comforts of which formerly we had only heard.我们现在享受到了过去只是听说过的那些舒适条件。
• This boat was formerly used on the rivers of China.这船从前航行在中国内河里。

22 civilized   

a.有教养的，文雅的

参考例句：

• Racism is abhorrent to a civilized society. 文明社会憎恶种族主义。
• rising crime in our so-called civilized societies 在我们所谓文明社会中日益增多的犯罪行为

23 groans   

n.呻吟，叹息( groan的名词复数 )；呻吟般的声音v.呻吟( groan的第三人称单数 )；发牢骚；抱怨；受苦

参考例句：

• There were loud groans when he started to sing. 他刚开始歌唱时有人发出了很大的嘘声。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• It was a weird old house, full of creaks and groans. 这是所神秘而可怕的旧宅，到处嘎吱嘎吱作响。 来自《简明英汉词典》

24 raving   

adj.说胡话的；疯狂的，怒吼的；非常漂亮的；令人醉心[痴心]的v.胡言乱语(rave的现在分词)n.胡话；疯话adv.胡言乱语地；疯狂地

参考例句：

• The man's a raving lunatic. 那个男子是个语无伦次的疯子。
• When I told her I'd crashed her car, she went stark raving bonkers. 我告诉她我把她的车撞坏了时，她暴跳如雷。

25 monotonously   

adv.单调地，无变化地

参考例句：

• The lecturer phrased monotonously. 这位讲师用词单调。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The maid, still in tears, sniffed monotonously. 侍女还在哭，发出单调的抽泣声。 来自辞典例句

26 eradicate   

v.根除，消灭，杜绝

参考例句：

• These insects are very difficult to eradicate.这些昆虫很难根除。
• They are already battling to eradicate illnesses such as malaria and tetanus.他们已经在努力消灭疟疾、破伤风等疾病。

27 inexplicable   

adj.无法解释的，难理解的

参考例句：

• It is now inexplicable how that development was misinterpreted.当时对这一事态发展的错误理解究竟是怎么产生的，现在已经无法说清楚了。
• There are many things which are inexplicable by science.有很多事科学还无法解释。

28 penetrated   

adj. 击穿的，鞭辟入里的 动词penetrate的过去式和过去分词形式

参考例句：

• The knife had penetrated his chest. 刀子刺入了他的胸膛。
• They penetrated into territory where no man had ever gone before. 他们已进入先前没人去过的地区。

29 ridge   

n.山脊；鼻梁；分水岭

参考例句：

• We clambered up the hillside to the ridge above.我们沿着山坡费力地爬上了山脊。
• The infantry were advancing to attack the ridge.步兵部队正在向前挺进攻打山脊。