Who think good wine needs neither bush nor preface
To make it welcome. If you doubt my word,
Fill the quart-cup, and see if I will choke on’t.
OLD PLAY.
There was a serious gravity of expression in the disclamation with which Major Bridgenorth replied to the thanks tendered to him by Lady Peveril, for the supply of provisions which had reached her Castle so opportunely1. He seemed first not to be aware what she alluded4 to; and, when she explained the circumstance, he protested so seriously that he had no share in the benefit conferred, that Lady Peveril was compelled to believe him, the rather that, being a man of plain downright character, affecting no refined delicacy5 of sentiment, and practising almost a quaker-like sincerity6 of expression, it would have been much contrary to his general character to have made such a disavowal, unless it were founded in truth.
“My present visit to you, madam,” said he, “had indeed some reference to the festivity of tomorrow.” Lady Peveril listened, but as her visitor seemed to find some difficulty in expressing himself, she was compelled to ask an explanation. “Madam,” said the Major, “you are not perhaps entirely8 ignorant that the more tender-conscienced among us have scruples9 at certain practices, so general amongst your people at times of rejoicing, that you may be said to insist upon them as articles of faith, or at least greatly to resent their omission10.”
“I trust, Master Bridgenorth,” said the Lady Peveril, not fully11 comprehending the drift of his discourse12, “that we shall, as your entertainers, carefully avoid all allusions13 or reproaches founded on past misunderstanding.”
“We would expect no less, madam, from your candour and courtesy,” said Bridgenorth; “but I perceive you do not fully understand me. To be plain, then, I allude3 to the fashion of drinking healths, and pledging each other in draughts14 of strong liquor, which most among us consider as a superfluous15 and sinful provoking of each other to debauchery, and the excessive use of strong drink; and which, besides, if derived16, as learned divines have supposed, from the custom of the blinded Pagans, who made libations and invoked17 idols18 when they drank, may be justly said to have something in it heathenish, and allied19 to demon-worship.”
The lady had already hastily considered all the topics which were likely to introduce discord20 into the proposed festivity; but this very ridiculous, yet fatal discrepancy21, betwixt the manners of the parties on convivial22 occasions, had entirely escaped her. She endeavoured to soothe23 the objecting party, whose brows were knit like one who had fixed24 an opinion by which he was determined25 to abide26.
“I grant,” she said, “my good neighbour, that this custom is at least idle, and may be prejudicial if it leads to excess in the use of liquor, which is apt enough to take place without such conversation. But I think, when it hath not this consequence, it is a thing indifferent, affords a unanimous mode of expressing our good wishes to our friends, and our loyal duty to our sovereign; and, without meaning to put any force upon the inclination28 of those who believe otherwise, I cannot see how I can deny my guests and friends the privilege of drinking a health to the King, or to my husband, after the old English fashion.”
“My lady,” said the Major, “if the age of fashion were to command it, Popery is one of the oldest English fashions that I have heard of; but it is our happiness that we are not benighted29 like our fathers, and therefore we must act according to the light that is in us, and not after their darkness. I had myself the honour to attend the Lord-Keeper Whitelocke, when, at the table of the Chamberlain of the kingdom of Sweden, he did positively30 refuse to pledge the health of his Queen, Christina, thereby31 giving great offence, and putting in peril32 the whole purpose of that voyage; which it is not to be thought so wise a man would have done, but that he held such compliance33 a thing not merely indifferent, but rather sinful and damnable.”
“With all respect to Whitelocke,” said the Lady Peveril, “I continue of my own opinion, though, Heaven knows, I am no friend to riot or wassail. I would fain accommodate myself to your scruples, and will discourage all other pledges; but surely those of the King and of Peveril of the Peak may be permitted?”
“I dare not,” answered Bridgenorth, “lay even the ninety-ninth part of a grain of incense36 upon an altar erected37 to Satan.”
“How, sir!” said the lady; “do you bring Satan into comparison with our master King Charles, and with my noble lord and husband?”
“Pardon me, madam,” answered Bridgenorth, “I have no such thoughts — indeed they would ill become me. I do wish the King’s health and Sir Geoffrey’s devoutly38, and I will pray for both. But I see not what good it should do their health if I should prejudice my own by quaffing39 pledges out of quart flagons.”
“Since we cannot agree upon this matter,” said Lady Peveril, “we must find some resource by which to offend those of neither party. Suppose you winked40 at our friends drinking these pledges, and we should connive41 at your sitting still?”
But neither would this composition satisfy Bridgenorth, who was of opinion, as he expressed himself, that it would be holding a candle to Beelzebub. In fact, his temper, naturally stubborn, was at present rendered much more so by a previous conference with his preacher, who, though a very good man in the main, was particularly and illiberally42 tenacious43 of the petty distinctions which his sect44 adopted; and while he thought with considerable apprehension45 on the accession of power which Popery, Prelacy, and Peveril of the Peak, were like to acquire by the late Revolution, became naturally anxious to put his flock on their guard, and prevent their being kidnapped by the wolf. He disliked extremely that Major Bridgenorth, indisputably the head of the Presbyterian interest in that neighbourhood, should have given his only daughter to be, as he termed it, nursed by a Canaanitish woman; and he told him plainly that he liked not this going to feast in the high places with the uncircumcised in heart, and looked on the whole conviviality46 only as a making-merry in the house of Tirzah.
Upon receiving this rebuke47 from his pastor48, Bridgenorth began to suspect he might have been partly wrong in the readiness which, in his first ardour of gratitude49, he had shown to enter into intimate intercourse50 with the Castle of Martindale; but he was too proud to avow7 this to the preacher, and it was not till after a considerable debate betwixt them, that it was mutually agreed their presence at the entertainment should depend upon the condition, that no healths or pledges should be given in their presence. Bridgenorth, therefore, as the delegate and representative of his party, was bound to stand firm against all entreaty51, and the lady became greatly embarrassed. She now regretted sincerely that her well-intended invitation had ever been given, for she foresaw that its rejection52 was to awaken53 all former subjects of quarrel, and perhaps to lead to new violences amongst people who had not many years since been engaged in civil war. To yield up the disputed point to the Presbyterians, would have been to offend the Cavalier party, and Sir Geoffrey in particular, in the most mortal degree; for they made it as firm a point of honour to give healths, and compel others to pledge them, as the Puritans made it a deep article of religion to refuse both. At length the lady changed the discourse, introduced that of Major Bridgenorth’s child, caused it to be sent for, and put into his arms. The mother’s stratagem54 took effect; for, though the parliamentary major stood firm, the father, as in the case of the Governor of Tilbury, was softened55, and he agreed that his friends should accept a compromise. This was, that the major himself, the reverend divine, and such of their friends as held strict Puritan tenets, should form a separate party in the Large Parlour, while the Hall should be occupied by the jovial56 Cavaliers; and that each party should regulate their potations after their own conscience, or after their own fashion.
Major Bridgenorth himself seemed greatly relieved after this important matter had been settled. He had held it matter of conscience to be stubborn in maintaining his own opinion, but was heartily57 glad when he escaped from the apparently58 inevitable59 necessity of affronting60 Lady Peveril by the refusal of her invitation. He remained longer than usual, and spoke61 and smiled more than was his custom. His first care on his return was to announce to the clergyman and his congregation the compromise which he had made, and this not as a matter for deliberation, but one upon which he had already resolved; and such was his authority among them, that though the preacher longed to pronounce a separation of the parties, and to exclaim —“To your tents, O Israel!” he did not see the chance of being seconded by so many, as would make it worth while to disturb the unanimous acquiescence63 in their delegate’s proposal.
Nevertheless, each party being put upon the alert by the consequences of Major Bridgenorth’s embassy, so many points of doubt and delicate discussion were started in succession, that the Lady Peveril, the only person, perhaps, who was desirous of achieving an effectual reconciliation64 between them, incurred65, in reward for her good intentions, the censure66 of both factions67, and had much reason to regret her well-meant project of bringing the Capulets and Montagues of Derbyshire together on the same occasion of public festivity.
As it was now settled that the guests were to form two different parties, it became not only a subject of dispute betwixt themselves, which should be first admitted within the Castle of Martindale, but matter of serious apprehension to Lady Peveril and Major Bridgenorth, lest, if they were to approach by the same avenue and entrance, a quarrel might take place betwixt them, and proceed to extremities68, even before they reached the place of entertainment. The lady believed she had discovered an admirable expedient69 for preventing the possibility of such interference, by directing that the Cavaliers should be admitted by the principal entrance, while the Roundheads should enter the Castle through a great breach70 which had been made in the course of the siege, and across which there had been made a sort of by-path to drive the cattle down to their pasture in the wood. By this contrivance the Lady Peveril imagined she had altogether avoided the various risks which might occur from two such parties encountering each other, and disputing for precedence. Several other circumstances of less importance were adjusted at the same time, and apparently so much to the satisfaction of the Presbyterian teacher, that, in a long lecture on the subject of the Marriage Garment, he was at the pains to explain to his hearers, that outward apparel was not alone meant by that scriptural expression, but also a suitable frame of mind for enjoyment71 of peaceful festivity; and therefore he exhorted72 the brethren, that whatever might be the errors of the poor blinded malignants, with whom they were in some sort to eat and drink upon the morrow they ought not on this occasion to show any evil will against them, lest they should therein become troublers of the peace of Israel.
Honest Doctor Dummerar, the elected Episcopal Vicar of Martindale cum Moultrassie, preached to the Cavaliers on the same subject. He had served the cure before the breaking out of the rebellion, and was in high favour with Sir Geoffrey, not merely on account of his sound orthodoxy and deep learning, but his exquisite73 skill in playing at bowls, and his facetious75 conversation over a pipe and tankard of October. For these latter accomplishments76, the Doctor had the honour to be recorded by old Century White amongst the roll of lewd77, incompetent78, profligate79 clergymen of the Church of England, whom he denounced to God and man, on account chiefly of the heinous80 sin of playing at games of skill and chance, and of occasionally joining in the social meetings of their parishioners. When the King’s party began to lose ground, Doctor Dummerar left his vicarage, and, betaking himself to the camp, showed upon several occasions, when acting81 as chaplain to Sir Geoffrey Peveril’s regiment82, that his portly bodily presence included a stout83 and masculine heart. When all was lost, and he himself, with most other loyal divines, was deprived of his living, he made such shift as he could; now lurking84 in the garrets of old friends in the University, who shared with him, and such as him, the slender means of livelihood85 which the evil times had left them; and now lying hid in the houses of the oppressed and sequestered86 gentry87, who respected at once his character and sufferings. When the Restoration took place, Doctor Dummerar emerged from some one of his hiding-places, and hied him to Martindale Castle, to enjoy the triumph inseparable from this happy change.
His appearance at the Castle in his full clerical dress, and the warm reception which he received from the neighbouring gentry, added not a little to the alarm which was gradually extending itself through the party which were so lately the uppermost. It is true, Doctor Dummerar framed (honest worthy89 man) no extravagant90 views of elevation91 or preferment; but the probability of his being replaced in the living, from which he had been expelled under very flimsy pretences92, inferred a severe blow to the Presbyterian divine, who could not be considered otherwise than as an intruder. The interest of the two preachers, therefore, as well as the sentiments of their flocks, were at direct variance93; and here was another fatal objection in the way of Lady Peveril’s scheme of a general and comprehensive healing ordinance94.
Nevertheless, as we have already hinted, Doctor Dummerar behaved as handsomely upon the occasion as the Presbyterian incumbent95 had done. It is true, that in a sermon which he preached in the Castle hall to several of the most distinguished96 Cavalier families, besides a world of boys from the village, who went to see the novel circumstance of a parson in a cassock and surplice, he went at great length into the foulness97 of the various crimes committed by the rebellious98 party during the late evil times, and greatly magnified the merciful and peaceful nature of the honourable99 Lady of the Manor100, who condescended101 to look upon, or receive into her house in the way of friendship and hospitality, men holding the principles which had led to the murder of the King — the slaying102 and despoiling103 his loyal subjects — and the plundering104 and breaking down of the Church of God. But then he wiped all this handsomely up again, with the observation, that since it was the will of their gracious and newly-restored Sovereign, and the pleasure of the worshipful Lady Peveril, that this contumacious105 and rebellious race should be, for a time, forborne by their faithful subjects, it would be highly proper that all the loyal liegemen should, for the present, eschew106 subjects of dissension or quarrel with these sons of Shimei; which lesson of patience he enforced by the comfortable assurance, that they could not long abstain107 from their old rebellious practices; in which case, the Royalists would stand exculpated108 before God and man, in extirpating109 them from the face of the earth.
The close observers of the remarkable110 passages of the times from which we draw the events of our history, have left it upon record, that these two several sermons, much contrary, doubtless, to the intention of the worthy divines by whom they were delivered, had a greater effect in exasperating111, than in composing, the disputes betwixt the two factions. Under such evil auspices112, and with corresponding forebodings on the mind of Lady Peveril, the day of festivity at length arrived.
By different routes, and forming each a sort of procession, as if the adherents114 of each party were desirous of exhibiting its strength and numbers, the two several factions approached Martindale Castle; and so distinct did they appear in dress, aspect, and manners, that it seemed as if the revellers of a bridal party, and the sad attendants upon a funeral solemnity, were moving towards the same point from different quarters.
The puritanical115 party was by far the fewer in numbers, for which two excellent reasons might be given. In the first place, they had enjoyed power for several years, and, of course, became unpopular among the common people, never at any time attached to those, who, being in the immediate116 possession of authority, are often obliged to employ it in controlling their humours. Besides, the country people of England had, and still have, an animated117 attachment118 to field sports, and a natural unrestrained joviality119 of disposition120, which rendered them impatient under the severe discipline of the fanatical preachers; while they were not less naturally discontented with the military despotism of Cromwell’s Major-Generals. Secondly121, the people were fickle122 as usual, and the return of the King had novelty in it, and was therefore popular. The side of the Puritans was also deserted123 at this period by a numerous class of more thinking and prudential persons, who never forsook125 them till they became unfortunate. These sagacious personages were called in that age the Waiters upon Providence126, and deemed it a high delinquency towards Heaven if they afforded countenance127 to any cause longer than it was favoured by fortune.
But, though thus forsaken128 by the fickle and the selfish, a solemn enthusiasm, a stern and determined depth of principle, a confidence in the sincerity of their own motives129, and the manly130 English pride which inclined them to cling to their former opinions, like the traveller in the fable131 to his cloak, the more strongly that the tempest blew around them, detained in the ranks of the Puritans many, who, if no longer formidable from numbers, were still so from their character. They consisted chiefly of the middling gentry, with others whom industry or successful speculations132 in commerce or in mining had raised into eminence133 — the persons who feel most umbrage134 from the overshadowing aristocracy, and are usually the most vehement135 in defence of what they hold to be their rights. Their dress was in general studiously simple and unostentatious, or only remarkable by the contradictory136 affectation of extreme simplicity137 or carelessness. The dark colour of their cloaks, varying from absolute black to what was called sad-coloured — their steeple-crowned hats, with their broad shadowy brims — their long swords, suspended by a simple strap138 around the loins, without shoulder-belt, sword-knot, plate, buckles139, or any of the other decorations with which the Cavaliers loved to adorn140 their trusty rapiers — the shortness of their hair, which made their ears appear of disproportioned size — above all, the stern and gloomy gravity of their looks, announced their belonging to that class of enthusiasts141, who, resolute142 and undismayed, had cast down the former fabric143 of government, and who now regarded with somewhat more than suspicion, that which had been so unexpectedly substituted in its stead. There was gloom in their countenances144; but it was not that of dejection, far less of despair. They looked like veterans after a defeat, which may have checked their career and wounded their pride, but has left their courage undiminished.
The melancholy145, now become habitual146, which overcast147 Major Bridgenorth’s countenance, well qualified148 him to act as the chief of the group who now advanced from the village. When they reached the point by which they were first to turn aside into the wood which surrounded the Castle, they felt a momentary149 impression of degradation151, as if they were yielding the high road to their old and oft-defeated enemies the Cavaliers. When they began to ascend152 the winding153 path, which had been the daily passage of the cattle, the opening of the wooded glade154 gave them a view of the Castle ditch, half choked with the rubbish of the breach, and of the breach itself, which was made at the angle of a large square flanking-tower, one-half of which had been battered155 into ruins, while the other fragment remained in a state strangely shattered and precarious156, and seemed to be tottering157 above the huge aperture158 in the wall. A stern still smile was exchanged among the Puritans, as the sight reminded them of the victories of former days. Holdfast Clegg, a millwright of Derby, who had been himself active at the siege, pointed159 to the breach, and said, with a grim smile to Mr. Solsgrace, “I little thought, that when my own hand helped to level the cannon160 which Oliver pointed against yon tower, we should have been obliged to climb like foxes up the very walls which we won by our bow and by our spear. Methought these malignants had then enough of shutting their gates and making high their horn against us.”
“Be patient, my brother,” said Solsgrace; “be patient, and let not thy soul be disquieted161. We enter not this high place dishonourably, seeing we ascend by the gate which the Lord opened to the godly.”
The words of the pastor were like a spark to gunpowder162. The countenances of the mournful retinue163 suddenly expanded, and, accepting what had fallen from him as an omen150 and a light from heaven how they were to interpret their present situation, they uplifted, with one consent, one of the triumphant164 songs in which the Israelites celebrated165 the victories which had been vouchsafed166 to them over the heathen inhabitants of the Promised Land:—
“Let God arise, and then His foes167
Shall turn themselves to flight,
His enemies for fear shall run,
And scatter168 out of sight;
And as wax melts before the fire,
And wind blows smoke away,
So in the presence of the Lord,
The wicked shall decay.
God’s army twenty thousand is,
Of angels bright and strong,
The Lord also in Sinai
Is present them among.
Thou didst, O Lord, ascend on high,
And captive led’st them all,
Who, in times past, Thy chosen flock
In bondage169 did enthral.”
These sounds of devotional triumph reached the joyous170 band of the Cavaliers, who, decked in whatever pomp their repeated misfortunes and impoverishment172 had left them, were moving towards the same point, though by a different road, and were filling the principal avenue to the Castle, with tiptoe mirth and revelry. The two parties were strongly contrasted; for, during that period of civil dissension, the manners of the different factions distinguished them as completely as separate uniforms might have done. If the Puritan was affectedly173 plain in his dress, and ridiculously precise in his manners, the Cavalier often carried his love of ornament174 into tawdry finery, and his contempt of hypocrisy175 into licentious176 profligacy177. Gay gallant178 fellows, young and old, thronged179 together towards the ancient Castle, with general and joyous manifestation180 of those spirits, which, as they had been buoyant enough to support their owners during the worst of times, as they termed Oliver’s usurpation181, were now so inflated182 as to transport them nearly beyond the reach of sober reason. Feathers waved, lace glittered, spears jingled183, steeds caracoled; and here and there a petronel, or pistol, was fired off by some one, who found his own natural talents for making a noise inadequate184 to the dignity of the occasion. Boys — for, as we said before, the rabble185 were with the uppermost party, as usual — halloo’d and whooped186, “Down with the Rump,” and “Fie upon Oliver!” Musical instruments, of as many different fashions as were then in use, played all at once, and without any regard to each other’s tune2; and the glee of the occasion, while it reconciled the pride of the high-born of the party to fraternise with the general rout113, derived an additional zest187 from the conscious triumph, that their exultation188 was heard by their neighbours, the crestfallen189 Roundheads.
When the loud and sonorous190 swell191 of the psalm192-tune, multiplied by all the echoes of the cliffs and ruinous halls, came full upon their ear, as if to warn them how little they were to reckon upon the depression of their adversaries193, at first it was answered with a scornful laugh, raised to as much height as the scoffers’ lungs would permit, in order that it might carry to the psalmodists the contempt of their auditors194; but this was a forced exertion195 of party spleen. There is something in melancholy feelings more natural to an imperfect and suffering state than in those of gaiety, and when they are brought into collision, the former seldom fail to triumph. If a funeral-train and wedding-procession were to meet unexpectedly, it will readily be allowed that the mirth of the last would be speedily merged88 in the gloom of the others. But the Cavaliers, moreover, had sympathies of a different kind. The psalm-tune, which now came rolling on their ear, had been heard too often, and upon too many occasions had preceded victory gained over the malignants, to permit them, even in their triumph, to hear it without emotion. There was a sort of pause, of which the party themselves seemed rather ashamed, until the silence was broken by the stout old knight196, Sir Jasper Cranbourne, whose gallantry was so universally acknowledged, that he could afford, if we may use such an expression, to confess emotions, which men whose courage was in any respect liable to suspicion, would have thought it imprudent to acknowledge.
“Adad,” said the old Knight, “may I never taste claret again, if that is not the very tune with which the prick-eared villains197 began their onset198 at Wiggan Lane, where they trowled us down like so many ninepins! Faith, neighbours, to say truth, and shame the devil, I did not like the sound of it above half.”
“If I thought the round-headed rogues199 did it in scorn of us,” said Dick Wildblood of the Dale, “I would cudgel their psalmody out of their peasantly throats with this very truncheon;” a motion which, being seconded by old Roger Raine, the drunken tapster of the Peveril Arms in the village, might have brought on a general battle, but that Sir Jasper forbade the feud200.
“We’ll have no ranting201, Dick,” said the old Knight to the young Franklin; “adad, man, we’ll have none, for three reasons: first, because it would be ungentle to Lady Peveril; then, because it is against the King’s peace; and, lastly, Dick, because if we did set on the psalm-singing knaves202, thou mightest come by the worst, my boy, as has chanced to thee before.”
“Who, I! Sir Jasper?” answered Dick —“I come by the worst! — I’ll be d — d if it ever happened but in that accursed lane, where we had no more flank, front, or rear, than if we had been so many herrings in a barrel.”
“That was the reason, I fancy,” answered Sir Jasper, “that you, to mend the matter, scrambled203 into the hedge, and stuck there, horse and man, till I beat thee through it with my leading-staff; and then, instead of charging to the front, you went right-about, and away as fast as your feet would carry you.”
This reminiscence produced a laugh at Dick’s expense, who was known, or at least suspected, to have more tongue in his head than mettle204 in his bosom205. And this sort of rallying on the part of the Knight having fortunately abated206 the resentment207 which had begun to awaken in the breasts of the royalist cavalcade208, farther cause for offence was removed, by the sudden ceasing of the sounds which they had been disposed to interpret into those of premeditated insult.
This was owing to the arrival of the Puritans at the bottom of the large and wide breach, which had been formerly209 made in the wall of the Castle by their victorious210 cannon. The sight of its gaping211 heaps of rubbish, and disjointed masses of building, up which slowly winded a narrow and steep path, such as is made amongst ancient ruins by the rare passage of those who occasionally visit them, was calculated, when contrasted with the grey and solid massiveness of the towers and curtains which yet stood uninjured, to remind them of their victory over the stronghold of their enemies, and how they had bound nobles and princes with fetters212 of iron.
But feelings more suitable to the purpose of their visit to Martindale Castle, were awakened213 in the bosoms214 even of these stern sectaries, when the Lady of the Castle, still in the very prime of beauty and of womanhood, appeared at the top of the breach with her principal female attendants, to receive her guests with the honour and courtesy becoming her invitation. She had laid aside the black dress which had been her sole attire215 for several years, and was arrayed with a splendour not unbecoming her high descent and quality. Jewels, indeed, she had none; but her long and dark hair was surmounted216 with a chaplet made of oak leaves, interspersed217 with lilies; the former being the emblem218 of the King’s preservation219 in the Royal Oak, and the latter of his happy Restoration. What rendered her presence still more interesting to those who looked on her, was the presence of the two children whom she held in either hand; one of whom was well known to them all to be the child of their leader, Major Bridgenorth, who had been restored to life and health by the almost maternal220 care of the Lady Peveril.
If even the inferior persons of the party felt the healing influence of her presence, thus accompanied, poor Bridgenorth was almost overwhelmed with it. The strictness of his cast and manners permitted him not to sink on his knee, and kiss the hand which held his little orphan221; but the deepness of his obeisance222 — the faltering223 tremor224 of his voice — and the glistening225 of his eye, showed a grateful respect for the lady whom he addressed, deeper and more reverential than could have been expressed even by Persian prostration226. A few courteous227 and mild words, expressive228 of the pleasure she found in once more seeing her neighbours as her friends — a few kind inquiries229, addressed to the principal individuals among her guests, concerning their families and connections, completed her triumph over angry thoughts and dangerous recollections, and disposed men’s bosoms to sympathise with the purposes of the meeting.
Even Solsgrace himself, although imagining himself bound by his office and duty to watch over and counteract230 the wiles231 of the “Amalekitish woman,” did not escape the sympathetic infection; being so much struck with the marks of peace and good-will exhibited by Lady Peveril, that he immediately raised the psalm —
“O what a happy thing it is,
And joyful232, for to see
Brethren to dwell together in
Friendship and unity233!”
Accepting this salutation as a mark of courtesy repaid, the Lady Peveril marshalled in person this party of her guests to the apartment, where ample good cheer was provided for them; and had even the patience to remain while Master Nehemiah Solsgrace pronounced a benediction234 of portentous235 length, as an introduction to the banquet. Her presence was in some measure a restraint on the worthy divine, whose prolusion lasted the longer, and was the more intricate and embarrassed, that he felt himself debarred from rounding it off by his usual alliterative petition for deliverance from Popery, Prelacy, and Peveril of the Peak, which had become so habitual to him, that, after various attempts to conclude with some other form of words, he found himself at last obliged to pronounce the first words of his usual formula aloud, and mutter the rest in such a manner as not to be intelligible236 even by those who stood nearest to him.
The minister’s silence was followed by all the various sounds which announce the onset of a hungry company on a well-furnished table; and at the same time gave the lady an opportunity to leave the apartment, and look to the accommodation of her other company. She felt, indeed, that it was high time to do so; and that the royalist guests might be disposed to misapprehend, or even to resent, the prior attentions which she had thought it prudent124 to offer to the Puritans.
These apprehensions237 were not altogether ill-founded. It was in vain that the steward238 had displayed the royal standard, with its proud motto of Tandem239 Triumphans, on one of the great towers which flanked the main entrance of the Castle; while, from the other, floated the banner of Peveril of the Peak, under which many of those who now approached had fought during all the vicissitudes240 of civil war. It was in vain he repeated his clamorous241 “Welcome, noble Cavaliers! welcome, generous gentlemen!” There was a slight murmur242 amongst them, that their welcome ought to have come from the mouth of the Colonel’s lady — not from that of a menial. Sir Jasper Cranbourne, who had sense as well as spirit and courage, and who was aware of his fair cousin’s motives, having been indeed consulted by her upon all the arrangements which she had adopted, saw matters were in such a state that no time ought to be lost in conducting the guests to the banqueting apartment, where a fortunate diversion from all these topics of rising discontent might be made, at the expense of the good cheer of all sorts, which the lady’s care had so liberally provided.
The stratagem of the old soldier succeeded in its utmost extent. He assumed the great oaken-chair usually occupied by the steward at his audits243; and Dr. Dummerar having pronounced a brief Latin benediction (which was not the less esteemed244 by the hearers that none of them understood it), Sir Jasper exhorted the company to wet their appetites to the dinner by a brimming cup to his Majesty’s health, filled as high and as deep as their goblets245 would permit. In a moment all was bustle246, with the clank of wine-cups and of flagons. In another moment the guests were on their feet like so many statues, all hushed as death, but with eyes glancing with expectation, and hands outstretched, which displayed their loyal brimmers. The voice of Sir Jasper, clear, sonorous, and emphatic247, as the sound of his war-trumpet, announced the health of the restored Monarch248, hastily echoed back by the assemblage, impatient to render it due homage249. Another brief pause was filled by the draining of their cups, and the mustering250 breath to join in a shout so loud, that not only the rafters of the old hall trembled while they echoed it back, but the garlands of oaken boughs251 and flowers with which they were decorated, waved wildly, and rustled252 as if agitated253 by a sudden whirlwind. This rite254 observed, the company proceeded to assail35 the good cheer with which the table groaned255, animated as they were to the attack both by mirth and melody, for they were attended by all the minstrels of the district, who, like the Episcopal clergy62, had been put to silence during the reign27 of the self-entitled saints of the Commonwealth256. The social occupation of good eating and drinking, the exchange of pledges betwixt old neighbours who had been fellow-soldiers in the moment of resistance — fellow-sufferers in the time of depression and subjugation257, and were now partners in the same general subject of congratulation, soon wiped from their memory the trifling258 cause of complaint, which in the minds of some had darkened the festivity of the day; so that when the Lady Peveril walked into the hall, accompanied as before with the children and her female attendants, she was welcomed with the acclamations due to the mistress of the banquet and of the Castle — the dame259 of the noble Knight, who had led most of them to battle with an undaunted and persevering260 valour, which was worthy of better success.
Her address to them was brief and matronly, yet spoken with so much feeling as found its way to every bosom. She apologised for the lateness of her personal welcome, by reminding them that there were then present in Martindale Castle that day, persons whom recent happy events had converted from enemies into friends, but on whom the latter character was so recently imposed, that she dared not neglect with them any point of ceremonial. But those whom she now addressed, were the best, the dearest the most faithful friends of her husband’s house, to whom and to their valour Peveril had not only owed those successes, which had given them and him fame during the late unhappy times, but to whose courage she in particular had owed the preservation of their leader’s life, even when it could not avert261 defeat. A word or two of heartfelt authority, completed all which she had boldness to add, and, bowing gracefully262 round her, she lifted a cup to her lips as if to welcome her guests.
There still remained, and especially amongst the old Cavaliers of the period, some glimmering263 of that spirit which inspired Froissart, when he declares that a knight hath double courage at need, when animated by the looks and words of a beautiful and virtuous264 woman. It was not until the reign which was commencing at the moment we are treating of, that the unbounded licence of the age, introducing a general course of profligacy, degraded the female sex into mere34 servants of pleasure, and, in so doing, deprived society of that noble tone of feeling towards the sex, which, considered as a spur to “raise the clear spirit,” is superior to every other impulse, save those of religion and of patriotism265. The beams of the ancient hall of Martindale Castle instantly rang with a shout louder and shriller than that at which they had so lately trembled, and the names of the Knight of the Peak and his lady were proclaimed amid waving of caps and hats, and universal wishes for their health and happiness.
Under these auspices the Lady Peveril glided266 from the hall, and left free space for the revelry of the evening.
That of the Cavaliers may be easily conceived, since it had the usual accompaniments of singing, jesting, quaffing of healths, and playing of tunes171, which have in almost every age and quarter of the world been the accompaniments of festive267 cheer. The enjoyments268 of the Puritans were of a different and less noisy character. They neither sung, jested, heard music, nor drank healths; and yet they seemed not the less, in their own phrase, to enjoy the creature-comforts, which the frailty269 of humanity rendered grateful to their outward man. Old Whitaker even protested, that, though much the smaller party in point of numbers, they discussed nearly as much sack and claret as his own more jovial associates. But those who considered the steward’s prejudices, were inclined to think, that, in order to produce such a result, he must have thrown in his own by-drinkings — no inconsiderable item — to the sum total of the Presbyterian potations.
Without adopting such a partial and scandalous report, we shall only say, that on this occasion, as on most others, the rareness of indulgence promoted the sense of enjoyment, and that those who made abstinence, or at least moderation, a point of religious principle, enjoyed their social meeting the better that such opportunities rarely presented themselves. If they did not actually drink each other’s healths, they at least showed, by looking and nodding to each other as they raised their glasses, that they all were sharing the same festive gratification of the appetite, and felt it enhanced, because it was at the same time enjoyed by their friends and neighbours. Religion, as it was the principal topic of their thoughts, became also the chief subject of their conversation, and as they sat together in small separate knots, they discussed doctrinal and metaphysical points of belief, balanced the merits of various preachers, compared the creeds270 of contending sects271, and fortified272 by scriptural quotations273 those which they favoured. Some contests arose in the course of these debates, which might have proceeded farther than was seemly, but for the cautious interference of Major Bridgenorth. He suppressed also, in the very bud, a dispute betwixt Gaffer Hodgeson of Charnelycot and the Reverend Mr. Solsgrace, upon the tender subject of lay-preaching and lay-ministering; nor did he think it altogether prudent or decent to indulge the wishes of some of the warmer enthusiasts of the party, who felt disposed to make the rest partakers of their gifts in extemporaneous274 prayer and exposition. These were absurdities275 that belonged to the time, which, however, the Major had sense enough to perceive were unfitted, whether the offspring of hypocrisy or enthusiasm, for the present time and place.
The Major was also instrumental in breaking up the party at an early and decorous hour, so that they left the Castle long before their rivals, the Cavaliers, had reached the springtide of their merriment; an arrangement which afforded the greatest satisfaction to the lady, who dreaded276 the consequences which might not improbably have taken place, had both parties met at the same period and point of retreat.
It was near midnight ere the greater part of the Cavaliers, meaning such as were able to effect their departure without assistance, withdrew to the village of Martindale Moultrassie, with the benefit of the broad moon to prevent the chance of accidents. Their shouts, and the burden of their roaring chorus of —
“The King shall enjoy his own again!”
were heard with no small pleasure by the lady, heartily glad that the riot of the day was over without the occurrence of any unpleasing accident. The rejoicing was not, however, entirely ended; for the elevated Cavaliers, finding some of the villagers still on foot around a bonfire on the street, struck merrily in with them — sent to Roger Raine of the Peveril Arms, the loyal publican whom we have already mentioned, for two tubs of merry stingo (as it was termed), and lent their own powerful assistance at the dusting it off to the health of the King and the loyal General Monk277. Their shouts for a long time disturbed, and even alarmed, the little village; but no enthusiasm is able to withstand for ever the natural consequences of late hours, and potations pottle-deep. The tumult278 of the exulting279 Royalists at last sunk into silence, and the moon and the owl74 were left in undisturbed sovereignty over the old tower of the village church, which, rising white above a circle of knotty280 oaks, was tenanted by the bird, and silvered by the planet.
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1
opportunely
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| adv.恰好地，适时地 | |
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2
tune
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| n.调子；和谐，协调；v.调音，调节，调整 | |
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3
allude
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| v.提及，暗指 | |
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alluded
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| 提及，暗指( allude的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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delicacy
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| n.精致，细微，微妙，精良；美味，佳肴 | |
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sincerity
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| n.真诚，诚意；真实 | |
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7
avow
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| v.承认，公开宣称 | |
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8
entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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9
scruples
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| n.良心上的不安( scruple的名词复数 )；顾虑，顾忌v.感到于心不安，有顾忌( scruple的第三人称单数 ) | |
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omission
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| n.省略，删节；遗漏或省略的事物，冗长 | |
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fully
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| adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地 | |
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12
discourse
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| n.论文，演说；谈话；话语；vi.讲述，著述 | |
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13
allusions
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| 暗指，间接提到( allusion的名词复数 ) | |
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14
draughts
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| n. <英>国际跳棋 | |
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15
superfluous
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| adj.过多的，过剩的，多余的 | |
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16
derived
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| vi.起源；由来；衍生；导出v.得到( derive的过去式和过去分词 )；（从…中）得到获得；源于；（从…中）提取 | |
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17
invoked
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| v.援引( invoke的过去式和过去分词 )；行使（权利等）；祈求救助；恳求 | |
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18
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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19
allied
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| adj.协约国的；同盟国的 | |
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discord
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| n.不和，意见不合，争论，（音乐）不和谐 | |
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21
discrepancy
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| n.不同；不符；差异；矛盾 | |
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22
convivial
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| adj.狂欢的，欢乐的 | |
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23
soothe
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| v.安慰；使平静；使减轻；缓和；奉承 | |
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24
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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25
determined
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| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
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26
abide
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| vi.遵守；坚持；vt.忍受 | |
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27
reign
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| n.统治时期，统治，支配，盛行；v.占优势 | |
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28
inclination
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| n.倾斜；点头；弯腰；斜坡；倾度；倾向；爱好 | |
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29
benighted
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| adj.蒙昧的 | |
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30
positively
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| adv.明确地，断然，坚决地；实在，确实 | |
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31
thereby
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| adv.因此，从而 | |
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32
peril
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| n.(严重的)危险；危险的事物 | |
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33
compliance
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| n.顺从；服从；附和；屈从 | |
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34
mere
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| adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过 | |
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35
assail
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| v.猛烈攻击，抨击，痛斥 | |
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36
incense
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| v.激怒；n.香，焚香时的烟，香气 | |
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37
ERECTED
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| adj. 直立的，竖立的，笔直的 vt. 使 ... 直立，建立 | |
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38
devoutly
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| adv.虔诚地，虔敬地，衷心地 | |
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39
quaffing
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| v.痛饮( quaff的现在分词 )；畅饮；大口大口将…喝干；一饮而尽 | |
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40
winked
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| v.使眼色( wink的过去式和过去分词 )；递眼色（表示友好或高兴等）；（指光）闪烁；闪亮 | |
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41
connive
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| v.纵容；密谋 | |
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42
illiberally
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| adv.吝啬地，小气地 | |
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43
tenacious
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| adj.顽强的，固执的，记忆力强的，粘的 | |
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44
sect
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| n.派别，宗教，学派，派系 | |
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45
apprehension
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| n.理解，领悟；逮捕，拘捕；忧虑 | |
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46
conviviality
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| n.欢宴，高兴，欢乐 | |
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47
rebuke
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| v.指责，非难，斥责 [反]praise | |
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48
pastor
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| n.牧师，牧人 | |
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49
gratitude
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| adj.感激，感谢 | |
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50
intercourse
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| n.性交；交流，交往，交际 | |
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51
entreaty
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| n.恳求，哀求 | |
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52
rejection
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| n.拒绝，被拒，抛弃，被弃 | |
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53
awaken
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| vi.醒，觉醒；vt.唤醒，使觉醒，唤起，激起 | |
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54
stratagem
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| n.诡计，计谋 | |
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55
softened
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| （使）变软( soften的过去式和过去分词 )； 缓解打击； 缓和； 安慰 | |
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56
jovial
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| adj.快乐的，好交际的 | |
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57
heartily
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| adv.衷心地，诚恳地，十分，很 | |
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58
apparently
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| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
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59
inevitable
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| adj.不可避免的，必然发生的 | |
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60
affronting
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| v.勇敢地面对( affront的现在分词 )；相遇 | |
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61
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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62
clergy
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| n.[总称]牧师，神职人员 | |
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63
acquiescence
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| n.默许；顺从 | |
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64
reconciliation
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| n.和解，和谐，一致 | |
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65
incurred
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| [医]招致的，遭受的； incur的过去式 | |
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66
censure
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| v./n.责备；非难；责难 | |
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67
factions
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| 组织中的小派别，派系( faction的名词复数 ) | |
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68
extremities
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| n.端点( extremity的名词复数 )；尽头；手和足；极窘迫的境地 | |
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69
expedient
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| adj.有用的，有利的；n.紧急的办法，权宜之计 | |
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70
breach
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| n.违反，不履行；破裂；vt.冲破，攻破 | |
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71
enjoyment
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| n.乐趣；享有；享用 | |
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72
exhorted
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| v.劝告，劝说( exhort的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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73
exquisite
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| adj.精美的；敏锐的；剧烈的，感觉强烈的 | |
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74
owl
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| n.猫头鹰，枭 | |
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75
facetious
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| adj.轻浮的，好开玩笑的 | |
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76
accomplishments
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| n.造诣；完成( accomplishment的名词复数 )；技能；成绩；成就 | |
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77
lewd
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| adj.淫荡的 | |
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78
incompetent
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| adj.无能力的，不能胜任的 | |
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79
profligate
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| adj.行为不检的；n.放荡的人，浪子，肆意挥霍者 | |
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80
heinous
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| adj.可憎的，十恶不赦的 | |
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81
acting
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| n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的 | |
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82
regiment
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| n.团，多数，管理；v.组织，编成团，统制 | |
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84
lurking
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| 潜在 | |
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85
livelihood
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| n.生计，谋生之道 | |
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86
sequestered
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| adj.扣押的；隐退的；幽静的；偏僻的v.使隔绝，使隔离( sequester的过去式和过去分词 )；扣押 | |
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87
gentry
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| n.绅士阶级，上层阶级 | |
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88
merged
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| （使）混合( merge的过去式和过去分词 )； 相融； 融入； 渐渐消失在某物中 | |
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89
worthy
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| adj.(of)值得的，配得上的；有价值的 | |
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90
extravagant
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| adj.奢侈的；过分的；(言行等)放肆的 | |
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91
elevation
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| n.高度；海拔；高地；上升；提高 | |
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92
pretences
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| n.假装( pretence的名词复数 )；作假；自命；自称 | |
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93
variance
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| n.矛盾，不同 | |
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94
ordinance
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| n.法令；条令；条例 | |
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95
incumbent
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| adj.成为责任的，有义务的；现任的，在职的 | |
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96
distinguished
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| adj.卓越的，杰出的，著名的 | |
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97
foulness
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| n. 纠缠, 卑鄙 | |
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98
rebellious
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| adj.造反的，反抗的，难控制的 | |
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99
honourable
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| adj.可敬的；荣誉的，光荣的 | |
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100
manor
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| n.庄园，领地 | |
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101
condescended
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| 屈尊，俯就( condescend的过去式和过去分词 )； 故意表示和蔼可亲 | |
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102
slaying
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| 杀戮。 | |
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103
despoiling
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| v.掠夺，抢劫( despoil的现在分词 ) | |
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104
plundering
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| 掠夺，抢劫( plunder的现在分词 ) | |
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105
contumacious
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| adj.拒不服从的，违抗的 | |
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106
eschew
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| v.避开，戒绝 | |
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107
abstain
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| v.自制，戒绝，弃权，避免 | |
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108
exculpated
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| v.开脱，使无罪( exculpate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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109
extirpating
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| v.消灭，灭绝( extirpate的现在分词 )；根除 | |
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110
remarkable
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| adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的 | |
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111
exasperating
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| adj. 激怒的 动词exasperate的现在分词形式 | |
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112
auspices
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| n.资助，赞助 | |
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113
rout
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| n.溃退，溃败；v.击溃，打垮 | |
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114
adherents
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| n.支持者，拥护者( adherent的名词复数 )；党羽；徒子徒孙 | |
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115
puritanical
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| adj.极端拘谨的；道德严格的 | |
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116
immediate
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| adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的 | |
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117
animated
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| adj.生气勃勃的，活跃的，愉快的 | |
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118
attachment
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| n.附属物，附件；依恋；依附 | |
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119
joviality
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| n.快活 | |
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120
disposition
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| n.性情，性格；意向，倾向；排列，部署 | |
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121
secondly
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| adv.第二，其次 | |
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122
fickle
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| adj.(爱情或友谊上)易变的，不坚定的 | |
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123
deserted
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| adj.荒芜的，荒废的，无人的，被遗弃的 | |
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124
prudent
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| adj.谨慎的，有远见的，精打细算的 | |
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125
forsook
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| forsake的过去式 | |
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126
providence
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| n.深谋远虑，天道，天意；远见；节约；上帝 | |
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127
countenance
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| n.脸色，面容；面部表情；vt.支持，赞同 | |
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128
Forsaken
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| adj. 被遗忘的, 被抛弃的 动词forsake的过去分词 | |
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129
motives
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| n.动机，目的( motive的名词复数 ) | |
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130
manly
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| adj.有男子气概的；adv.男子般地，果断地 | |
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131
fable
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| n.寓言；童话；神话 | |
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132
speculations
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| n.投机买卖( speculation的名词复数 )；思考；投机活动；推断 | |
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133
eminence
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| n.卓越，显赫；高地，高处；名家 | |
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134
umbrage
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| n.不快；树荫 | |
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135
vehement
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| adj.感情强烈的；热烈的；(人)有强烈感情的 | |
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136
contradictory
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| adj.反驳的，反对的，抗辩的；n.正反对，矛盾对立 | |
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137
simplicity
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| n.简单，简易；朴素；直率，单纯 | |
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138
strap
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| n.皮带，带子；v.用带扣住，束牢；用绷带包扎 | |
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139
buckles
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| 搭扣，扣环( buckle的名词复数 ) | |
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140
adorn
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| vt.使美化，装饰 | |
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141
enthusiasts
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| n.热心人，热衷者( enthusiast的名词复数 ) | |
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142
resolute
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| adj.坚决的，果敢的 | |
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143
fabric
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| n.织物，织品，布；构造，结构，组织 | |
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144
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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145
melancholy
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| n.忧郁，愁思；adj.令人感伤（沮丧）的，忧郁的 | |
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146
habitual
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|
| adj.习惯性的；通常的，惯常的 | |
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147
overcast
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|
| adj.阴天的，阴暗的，愁闷的；v.遮盖，（使）变暗，包边缝；n.覆盖，阴天 | |
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148
qualified
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| adj.合格的，有资格的，胜任的，有限制的 | |
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149
momentary
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|
| adj.片刻的，瞬息的；短暂的 | |
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150
omen
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| n.征兆，预兆；vt.预示 | |
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151
degradation
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|
| n.降级；低落；退化；陵削；降解；衰变 | |
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152
ascend
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|
| vi.渐渐上升，升高；vt.攀登，登上 | |
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153
winding
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| n.绕，缠，绕组，线圈 | |
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154
glade
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| n.林间空地，一片表面有草的沼泽低地 | |
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155
battered
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|
| adj.磨损的；v.连续猛击；磨损 | |
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156
precarious
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| adj.不安定的，靠不住的；根据不足的 | |
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157
tottering
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|
| adj.蹒跚的，动摇的v.走得或动得不稳( totter的现在分词 )；踉跄；蹒跚；摇摇欲坠 | |
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158
aperture
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|
| n.孔，隙，窄的缺口 | |
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159
pointed
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|
| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
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160
cannon
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|
| n.大炮，火炮；飞机上的机关炮 | |
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161
disquieted
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| v.使不安，使忧虑，使烦恼( disquiet的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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162
gunpowder
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| n.火药 | |
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163
retinue
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| n.侍从；随员 | |
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164
triumphant
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|
| adj.胜利的，成功的；狂欢的，喜悦的 | |
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165
celebrated
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|
| adj.有名的，声誉卓著的 | |
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166
vouchsafed
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| v.给予，赐予( vouchsafe的过去式和过去分词 )；允诺 | |
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167
foes
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| 敌人，仇敌( foe的名词复数 ) | |
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168
scatter
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|
| vt.撒，驱散，散开；散布/播；vi.分散，消散 | |
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169
bondage
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| n.奴役，束缚 | |
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170
joyous
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| adj.充满快乐的；令人高兴的 | |
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171
tunes
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| n.曲调，曲子( tune的名词复数 )v.调音( tune的第三人称单数 )；调整；（给收音机、电视等）调谐；使协调 | |
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172
impoverishment
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|
| n.贫穷，穷困；贫化 | |
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173
affectedly
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174
ornament
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| v.装饰，美化；n.装饰，装饰物 | |
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175
hypocrisy
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|
| n.伪善，虚伪 | |
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176
licentious
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|
| adj.放纵的，淫乱的 | |
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177
profligacy
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|
| n.放荡，不检点，肆意挥霍 | |
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178
gallant
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|
| adj.英勇的，豪侠的；(向女人)献殷勤的 | |
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179
thronged
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|
| v.成群，挤满( throng的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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180
manifestation
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| n.表现形式；表明；现象 | |
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181
usurpation
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| n.篡位；霸占 | |
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182
inflated
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|
| adj.（价格）飞涨的；（通货）膨胀的；言过其实的；充了气的v.使充气（于轮胎、气球等）( inflate的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）膨胀；（使）通货膨胀；物价上涨 | |
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183
jingled
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| 喝醉的 | |
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184
inadequate
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|
| adj.(for,to)不充足的，不适当的 | |
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185
rabble
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| n.乌合之众，暴民；下等人 | |
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186
whooped
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| 叫喊( whoop的过去式和过去分词 )； 高声说； 唤起 | |
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187
zest
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| n.乐趣；滋味，风味；兴趣 | |
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188
exultation
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| n.狂喜，得意 | |
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189
crestfallen
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| adj. 挫败的，失望的，沮丧的 | |
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190
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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191
swell
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| vi.膨胀，肿胀；增长，增强 | |
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192
psalm
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| n.赞美诗，圣诗 | |
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193
adversaries
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|
| n.对手，敌手( adversary的名词复数 ) | |
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194
auditors
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| n.审计员，稽核员( auditor的名词复数 )；（大学课程的）旁听生 | |
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195
exertion
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| n.尽力，努力 | |
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196
knight
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| n.骑士，武士；爵士 | |
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197
villains
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| n.恶棍( villain的名词复数 )；罪犯；（小说、戏剧等中的）反面人物；淘气鬼 | |
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198
onset
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| n.进攻，袭击，开始，突然开始 | |
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199
rogues
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| n.流氓( rogue的名词复数 )；无赖；调皮捣蛋的人；离群的野兽 | |
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200
feud
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| n.长期不和；世仇；v.长期争斗；世代结仇 | |
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201
ranting
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| v.夸夸其谈( rant的现在分词 )；大叫大嚷地以…说教；气愤地)大叫大嚷；不停地大声抱怨 | |
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202
knaves
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| n.恶棍，无赖( knave的名词复数 )；（纸牌中的）杰克 | |
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203
scrambled
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| v.快速爬行( scramble的过去式和过去分词 )；攀登；争夺；（军事飞机）紧急起飞 | |
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204
mettle
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| n.勇气，精神 | |
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205
bosom
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| n.胸，胸部；胸怀；内心；adj.亲密的 | |
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206
abated
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|
| 减少( abate的过去式和过去分词 )； 减去； 降价； 撤消（诉讼） | |
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207
resentment
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| n.怨愤，忿恨 | |
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208
cavalcade
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| n.车队等的行列 | |
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209
formerly
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| adv.从前，以前 | |
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210
victorious
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| adj.胜利的，得胜的 | |
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211
gaping
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| adj.口的；张口的；敞口的；多洞穴的v.目瞪口呆地凝视( gape的现在分词 )；张开，张大 | |
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212
fetters
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| n.脚镣( fetter的名词复数 )；束缚v.给…上脚镣，束缚( fetter的第三人称单数 ) | |
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213
awakened
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| v.（使）醒( awaken的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）觉醒；弄醒；（使）意识到 | |
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214
bosoms
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| 胸部( bosom的名词复数 )； 胸怀； 女衣胸部（或胸襟）； 和爱护自己的人在一起的情形 | |
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215
attire
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| v.穿衣，装扮[同]array；n.衣着；盛装 | |
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216
surmounted
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| 战胜( surmount的过去式和过去分词 )； 克服（困难）； 居于…之上； 在…顶上 | |
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217
interspersed
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| adj.[医]散开的；点缀的v.intersperse的过去式和过去分词 | |
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218
emblem
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| n.象征，标志；徽章 | |
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219
preservation
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| n.保护，维护，保存，保留，保持 | |
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maternal
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| adj.母亲的，母亲般的，母系的，母方的 | |
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orphan
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| n.孤儿；adj.无父母的 | |
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obeisance
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| n.鞠躬，敬礼 | |
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faltering
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| 犹豫的，支吾的，蹒跚的 | |
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tremor
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| n.震动，颤动，战栗，兴奋，地震 | |
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glistening
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| adj.闪耀的，反光的v.湿物闪耀，闪亮( glisten的现在分词 ) | |
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prostration
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| n. 平伏, 跪倒, 疲劳 | |
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courteous
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| adj.彬彬有礼的，客气的 | |
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expressive
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| adj.表现的，表达…的，富于表情的 | |
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inquiries
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| n.调查( inquiry的名词复数 )；疑问；探究；打听 | |
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counteract
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| vt.对…起反作用，对抗，抵消 | |
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231
wiles
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| n.（旨在欺骗或吸引人的）诡计，花招；欺骗，欺诈( wile的名词复数 ) | |
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joyful
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| adj.欢乐的，令人欢欣的 | |
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unity
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| n.团结，联合，统一；和睦，协调 | |
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benediction
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| n.祝福；恩赐 | |
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portentous
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| adj.不祥的，可怕的，装腔作势的 | |
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intelligible
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| adj.可理解的，明白易懂的，清楚的 | |
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apprehensions
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| 疑惧 | |
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steward
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| n.乘务员，服务员；看管人；膳食管理员 | |
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tandem
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| n.同时发生；配合；adv.一个跟着一个地；纵排地；adj.（两匹马）前后纵列的 | |
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vicissitudes
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| n.变迁，世事变化；变迁兴衰( vicissitude的名词复数 )；盛衰兴废 | |
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clamorous
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| adj.吵闹的，喧哗的 | |
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murmur
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| n.低语，低声的怨言；v.低语，低声而言 | |
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243
audits
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| n.审计，查账( audit的名词复数 )v.审计，查账( audit的第三人称单数 ) | |
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esteemed
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| adj.受人尊敬的v.尊敬( esteem的过去式和过去分词 )；敬重；认为；以为 | |
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goblets
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| n.高脚酒杯( goblet的名词复数 ) | |
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bustle
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| v.喧扰地忙乱，匆忙，奔忙；n.忙碌；喧闹 | |
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emphatic
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| adj.强调的，着重的；无可置疑的，明显的 | |
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monarch
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| n.帝王，君主，最高统治者 | |
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homage
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| n.尊敬，敬意，崇敬 | |
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mustering
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| v.集合，召集，集结（尤指部队）( muster的现在分词 )；（自他人处）搜集某事物；聚集；激发 | |
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boughs
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| 大树枝( bough的名词复数 ) | |
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rustled
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| v.发出沙沙的声音( rustle的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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agitated
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| adj.被鼓动的，不安的 | |
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rite
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| n.典礼，惯例，习俗 | |
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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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commonwealth
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| n.共和国，联邦，共同体 | |
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subjugation
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| n.镇压，平息，征服 | |
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trifling
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| adj.微不足道的；没什么价值的 | |
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dame
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| n.女士 | |
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persevering
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| a.坚忍不拔的 | |
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avert
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| v.防止，避免；转移(目光、注意力等) | |
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gracefully
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| ad.大大方方地；优美地 | |
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glimmering
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| n.微光，隐约的一瞥adj.薄弱地发光的v.发闪光，发微光( glimmer的现在分词 ) | |
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virtuous
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| adj.有品德的，善良的，贞洁的，有效力的 | |
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patriotism
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| n.爱国精神，爱国心，爱国主义 | |
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glided
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| v.滑动( glide的过去式和过去分词 )；掠过；（鸟或飞机 ） 滑翔 | |
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festive
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| adj.欢宴的，节日的 | |
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enjoyments
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| 愉快( enjoyment的名词复数 )； 令人愉快的事物； 享有； 享受 | |
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frailty
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| n.脆弱；意志薄弱 | |
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creeds
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| （尤指宗教）信条，教条( creed的名词复数 ) | |
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sects
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| n.宗派，教派( sect的名词复数 ) | |
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fortified
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| adj. 加强的 | |
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273
quotations
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| n.引用( quotation的名词复数 )；[商业]行情（报告）；（货物或股票的）市价；时价 | |
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extemporaneous
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| adj.即席的，一时的 | |
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absurdities
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| n.极端无理性( absurdity的名词复数 )；荒谬；谬论；荒谬的行为 | |
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dreaded
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| adj.令人畏惧的；害怕的v.害怕，恐惧，担心( dread的过去式和过去分词) | |
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277
monk
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| n.和尚，僧侣，修道士 | |
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278
tumult
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| n.喧哗；激动，混乱；吵闹 | |
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279
exulting
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| vi. 欢欣鼓舞，狂喜 | |
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280
knotty
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| adj.有结的，多节的，多瘤的，棘手的 | |
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