“Where got you those?” he asked.
“In New York, ere I left.”
“Hem! There is naught2 amiss with the cloth, and indeed the sombre colour is the mode, but the cut is strange to our eyes.”
“I only know that I wish that I had my fringed hunting tunic3 and leggings on once more.”
“This hat, now. We do not wear our brims flat like that. See if I cannot mend it.” He took the beaver4, and looping up one side of the brim, he fastened it with a golden brooch taken from his own shirt front. “There is a martial5 cock,” said he, laughing, “and would do credit to the King’s Own Musketeers. The black broad-cloth and silk hose will pass, but why have you not a sword at your side?”
“I carry a gun when I ride out.”
“Mon Dieu, you will be laid by the heels as a bandit!”
“I have a knife, too.”
“Worse and worse! Well, we must dispense7 with the sword, and with the gun too, I pray! Let me retie your cravat. So! Now if you are in the mood for a ten-mile gallop8, I am at your service.”
They were indeed a singular contrast as they walked their horses together through the narrow and crowded causeways of the Parisian streets. De Catinat, who was the older by five years, with his delicate small-featured face, his sharply trimmed moustache, his small but well-set and dainty figure, and his brilliant dress, looked the very type of the great nation to which he belonged.
His companion, however, large-limbed and strong, turning his bold and yet thoughtful face from side to side, and eagerly taking in all the strange, new life amidst which he found himself, was also a type, unfinished, it is true, but bidding fair to be the higher of the two. His close yellow hair, blue eyes, and heavy build showed that it was the blood of his father, rather than that of his mother, which ran in his veins10; and even the sombre coat and swordless belt, if less pleasing to the eye, were true badges of a race which found its fiercest battles and its most glorious victories in bending nature to its will upon the seas and in the waste places of the earth.
“What is yonder great building?” he asked, as they emerged into a broader square.
“It is the Louvre, one of the palaces of the king.”
“And is he there?”
“Nay; he lives at Versailles.”
“What! Fancy that a man should have two such houses!”
“Two! He has many more—St. Germain, Marly, Fontainebleau, Clugny.”
“But to what end? A man can but live at one at a time.”
“Nay; he can now come or go as the fancy takes him.”
“It is a wondrous11 building. I have seen the Seminary of St. Sulpice at Montreal, and thought that it was the greatest of all houses, and yet what is it beside this?”
“You have been to Montreal, then? You remember the fort?”
“Yes, and the Hotel Dieu, and the wooden houses in a row, and eastward12 the great mill with the wall; but what do you know of Montreal?”
“I have soldiered there, and at Quebec, too. Why, my friend, you are not the only man of the woods in Paris, for I give you my word that I have worn the caribou13 mocassins, the leather jacket, and the fur cap with the eagle feather for six months at a stretch, and I care not how soon I do it again,”
Amos Green’s eyes shone with delight at finding that his companion and he had so much in common, and he plunged14 into a series of questions which lasted until they had crossed the river and reached the south-westerly gate of the city. By the moat and walls long lines of men were busy at their drill.
“Who are those, then?” he asked, gazing at them with curiosity.
“They are some of the king’s soldiers.”
“But why so many of them? Do they await some enemy?”
“Nay; we are at peace with all the world. Worse luck!”
“At peace. Why then all these men?”
“That they may be ready.”
The young man shook his head in bewilderment. “They might be as ready in their own homes surely. In our country every man has his musket6 in his chimney corner, and is ready enough, yet he does not waste his time when all is at peace.”
“Our king is very great, and he has many enemies.”
“And who made the enemies?”
“Why, the king, to be sure.”
“Then would it not be better to be without him?”
The guardsman shrugged15 his epaulettes in despair. “We shall both wind up in the Bastille or Vincennes at this rate,” said he. “You must know that it is in serving the country that he has made these enemies. It is but five years since he made a peace at Nimeguen, by which he tore away sixteen fortresses16 from the Spanish Lowlands. Then, also, he had laid his hands upon Strassburg and upon Luxembourg, and has chastised17 the Genoans, so that there are many who would fall upon him if they thought that he was weak.”
“And why has he done all this?”
“Because he is a great king, and for the glory of France.”
The stranger pondered over this answer for some time as they rode on between the high, thin poplars, which threw bars across the sunlit road.
“There was a great man in Schenectady once,” said he at last. “They are simple folk up yonder, and they all had great trust in each other. But after this man came among them they began to miss—one a beaver-skin and one a bag of ginseng, and one a belt of wampum, until at last old Pete Hendricks lost his chestnut18 three-year-old. Then there was a search and a fuss until they found all that had been lost in the stable of the new-comer, so we took him, I and some others, and we hung him up on a tree, without ever thinking what a great man he had been.”
De Catinat shot an angry glance at his companion. “Your parable19, my friend, is scarce polite,” said he. “If you and I are to travel in peace you must keep a closer guard upon your tongue.”
“I would not give you offence, and it may be that I am wrong,” answered the American, “but I speak as the matter seems to me, and it is the right of a free man to do that.”
De Catinat’s frown relaxed as the other turned his earnest blue eyes upon him. “By my soul, where would the court be if every man did that?” said he. “But what in the name of heaven is amiss now?”
His companion had hurled20 himself off his horse, and was stooping low over the ground, with his eyes bent21 upon the dust. Then, with quick, noiseless steps, he zigzagged22 along the road, ran swiftly across a grassy23 bank, and stood peering at the gap of a fence, with his nostrils24 dilated25, his eyes shining, and his whole face aglow26 with eagerness.
“The fellow’s brain is gone,” muttered De Catinat, as he caught at the bridle27 of the riderless horse. “The sight of Paris has shaken his wits. What in the name of the devil ails28 you, that you should stand glaring there?”
“A deer has passed,” whispered the other, pointing down at the grass. “Its trail lies along there and into the wood. It could not have been long ago, and there is no slur29 to the track, so that it was not going fast. Had we but fetched my gun, we might have followed it, and brought the old man back a side of venison.”
“For God’s sake get on your horse again!” cried De Catinat distractedly. “I fear that some evil will come upon you ere I get you safe to the Rue9 St. Martin again!”
“And what is wrong now?” asked Amos Green, swinging himself into the saddle.
“Why, man, these woods are the king’s preserves and you speak as coolly of slaying30 his deer as though you were on the shores of Michigan!”
“Preserves! They are tame deer!” An expression of deep disgust passed over his face, and spurring his horse, he galloped31 onwards at such a pace that De Catinat, after vainly endeavouring to keep up, had to shriek32 to him to stop.
“It is not usual in this country to ride so madly along the roads,” he panted.
“It is a very strange country,” cried the stranger, in perplexity. “Maybe it would be easier for me to remember what is allowed. It was but this morning that I took my gun to shoot a pigeon that was flying over the roofs in yonder street, and old Pierre caught my arm with a face as though it were the minister that I was aiming at. And then there is that old man—why, they will not even let him say his prayers.”
De Catinat laughed. “You will come to know our ways soon,” said he. “This is a crowded land, and if all men rode and shot as they listed, much harm would come from it. But let us talk rather of your own country. You have lived much in the woods from what you tell me.”
“I was but ten when first I journeyed with my uncle to Sault la Marie, where the three great lakes meet, to trade with the Chippewas and the tribes of the west.”
“I know not what La Salle or De Frontenac would have said to that. The trade in those parts belongs to France.”
“We were taken prisoners, and so it was that I came to see Montreal and afterwards Quebec. In the end we were sent back because they did not know what they could do with us.”
“It was a good journey for a first.”
“And ever since I have been trading—first, on the Kennebec with the Abenaquis, in the great forests of Maine, and with the Micmac fish-eaters over the Penobscot. Then later with the Iroquois, as far west as the country of the Senecas. At Albany and Schenectady we stored our pelts33, and so on to New York, where my father shipped them over the sea.”
“But he could ill spare you surely?”
“Very ill. But as he was rich, he thought it best that I should learn some things that are not to be found in the woods. And so he sent me in the Golden Rod, under the care of Ephraim Savage34.”
“Who is also of New York?”
“Nay; he is the first man that ever was born at Boston.”
“I cannot remember the names of all these villages.”
“And yet there may come a day when their names shall be as well known as that of Paris.”
De Catinat laughed heartily35. “The woods may have given you much, but not the gift of prophecy, my friend. Well, my heart is often over the water even as yours is, and I would ask nothing better than to see the palisades of Point Levi again, even if all the Five Nations were raving36 upon the other side of them. But now, if you will look there in the gap of the trees, you will see the king’s new palace.”
The two young men pulled up their horses, and looked down at the wide-spreading building in all the beauty of its dazzling whiteness, and at the lovely grounds, dotted with fountain and with statue, and barred with hedge and with walk, stretching away to the dense37 woods which clustered round them. It amused De Catinat to watch the swift play of wonder and admiration38 which flashed over his companion’s features.
“Well, what do you think of it?” he asked at last.
“I think that God’s best work is in America, and man’s in Europe.”
“Ay, and in all Europe there is no such palace as that, even as there is no such king as he who dwells within it.”
“Can I see him, think you?”
“Who, the king? No, no; I fear that you are scarce made for a court.”
“Nay, I should show him all honour.”
“How, then? What greeting would you give him?”
“I would shake him respectfully by the hand, and ask as to his health and that of his family.”
“On my word, I think that such a greeting might please him more than the bent knee and the rounded back, and yet, I think, my son of the woods, that it were best not to lead you into paths where you would be lost, as would any of the courtiers if you dropped them in the gorge39 of the Saguenay. But hola! what comes here? It looks like one of the carriages of the court.”
A white cloud of dust, which had rolled towards them down the road, was now so near that the glint of gilding40 and the red coat of the coachman could be seen breaking out through it. As the two cavaliers reined41 their horses aside to leave the roadway clear, the coach rumbled42 heavily past them, drawn43 by two dapple grays, and the Horsemen caught a glimpse, as it passed, of a beautiful but haughty44 face which looked out at them. An instant afterwards a sharp cry had caused the driver to pull up his horses, and a white hand beckoned45 to them through the carriage window.
“It is Madame de Montespan, the proudest woman in France,” whispered De Catinat. “She would speak with us, so do as I do.”
He touched his horse with the spur, gave a gambade which took him across to the carriage, and then, sweeping46 off his hat, he bowed to his horse’s neck; a salute47 in which he was imitated, though in a somewhat ungainly fashion, by his companion.
“Ha, captain!” said the lady, with no very pleasant face, “we meet again.”
“Fortune has ever been good to me, madame.”
“It was not so this morning.”
“You say truly. It gave me a hateful duty to perform.”
“And you performed it in a hateful fashion.”
“Nay, madame, what could I do more?”
The lady sneered48, and her beautiful face turned as bitter as it could upon occasion.
“You thought that I had no more power with the king. You thought that my day was past. No doubt it seemed to you that you might reap favour with the new by being the first to cast a slight upon the old.”
“But, madame—”
“You may spare your protestations. I am one who judges by deeds and not by words. Did you, then, think that my charm had so faded, that any beauty which I ever have had is so withered49?”
“Nay, madame, I were blind to think that.”
“Blind as a noontide owl,” said Amos Green with emphasis.
Madame de Montespan arched her eyebrows50 and glanced at her singular admirer. “Your friend at least speaks that which he really feels,” said she. “At four o’clock today we shall see whether others are of the same mind; and if they are, then it may be ill for those who mistook what was but a passing shadow for a lasting51 cloud.” She cast another vindictive52 glance at the young guardsman, and rattled53 on once more upon her way.
“Come on!” cried De Catinat curtly54, for his companion was staring open-mouthed after the carriage. “Have you never seen a woman before?”
“Never such a one as that.”
“Never one with so railing a tongue, I dare swear,” said De Catinat.
“Never one with so lovely a face. And yet there is a lovely face at the Rue St. Martin also.”
“You seem to have a nice taste in beauty, for all your woodland training.”
“Yes, for I have been cut away from women so much that when I stand before one I feel that she is something tender and sweet and holy.”
“You may find dames55 at the court who are both tender and sweet, but you will look long, my friend, before you find the holy one. This one would ruin me if she can, and only because I have done what it was my duty to do. To keep oneself in this court is like coming down the La Chine Rapids where there is a rock to right, and a rock to left, and another perchance in front, and if you so much as graze one, where are you and your birch canoe? But our rocks are women, and in our canoe we bear all our worldly fortunes. Now here is another who would sway me over to her side, and indeed I think it may prove to be the better side too.”
They had passed through the gateway56 of the palace, and the broad sweeping drive lay in front of them, dotted with carriages and horsemen. On the gravel57 walks were many gaily58 dressed ladies, who strolled among the flower-beds or watched the fountains with the sunlight glinting upon their high water sprays. One of these, who had kept her eyes turned upon the gate, came hastening forward the instant that De Catinat appeared. It was Mademoiselle Nanon, the confidante of Madame de Maintenon.
“I am so pleased to see you, captain,” she cried, “and I have waited so patiently. Madame would speak with you. The king comes to her at three, and we have but twenty minutes. I heard that you had gone to Paris, and so I stationed myself here. Madame has something which she would ask you.”
“Then I will come at once. Ah, De Brissac, it is well met!”
A tall, burly officer was passing in the same uniform which De Catinat wore. He turned at once, and came smiling towards his comrade.
“Ah, Amory, you have covered a league or two from the dust on your coat!”
“We are fresh from Paris. But I am called on business. This is my friend, Monsieur Amos Green. I leave him in your hands, for he is a stranger from America, and would fain see all that you can show. He stays with me at my quarters. And my horse, too, De Brissac. You can give it to the groom59.”
Throwing the bridle to his brother officer, and pressing the hand of Amos Green, De Catinat sprang from his horse, and followed at the top of his speed in the direction which the young lady had already taken.
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1
cravat
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| n.领巾，领结；v.使穿有领结的服装，使结领结 | |
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naught
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| n.无，零 [=nought] | |
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tunic
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| n.束腰外衣 | |
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beaver
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| n.海狸，河狸 | |
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martial
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| adj.战争的，军事的，尚武的，威武的 | |
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musket
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| n.滑膛枪 | |
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dispense
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| vt.分配，分发；配(药)，发(药)；实施 | |
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gallop
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| v./n.(马或骑马等)飞奔；飞速发展 | |
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rue
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| n.懊悔，芸香，后悔；v.后悔，悲伤，懊悔 | |
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veins
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| n.纹理；矿脉( vein的名词复数 )；静脉；叶脉；纹理 | |
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wondrous
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| adj.令人惊奇的，奇妙的；adv.惊人地；异乎寻常地；令人惊叹地 | |
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eastward
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| adv.向东；adj.向东的；n.东方，东部 | |
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caribou
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| n.北美驯鹿 | |
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14
plunged
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| v.颠簸( plunge的过去式和过去分词 )；暴跌；骤降；突降 | |
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15
shrugged
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| vt.耸肩（shrug的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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fortresses
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| 堡垒，要塞( fortress的名词复数 ) | |
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17
chastised
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| v.严惩（某人）（尤指责打）( chastise的过去式 ) | |
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chestnut
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| n.栗树，栗子 | |
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parable
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| n.寓言，比喻 | |
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hurled
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| v.猛投，用力掷( hurl的过去式和过去分词 )；大声叫骂 | |
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21
bent
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| n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的 | |
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zigzagged
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| adj.呈之字形移动的v.弯弯曲曲地走路，曲折地前进( zigzag的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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grassy
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| adj.盖满草的；长满草的 | |
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nostrils
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| 鼻孔( nostril的名词复数 ) | |
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dilated
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| adj.加宽的，扩大的v.（使某物）扩大，膨胀，张大( dilate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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aglow
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| adj.发亮的；发红的；adv.发亮地 | |
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bridle
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| n.笼头，束缚；vt.抑制，约束；动怒 | |
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ails
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| v.生病( ail的第三人称单数 )；感到不舒服；处境困难；境况不佳 | |
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slur
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| v.含糊地说；诋毁；连唱；n.诋毁；含糊的发音 | |
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30
slaying
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| 杀戮。 | |
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31
galloped
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| （使马）飞奔，奔驰( gallop的过去式和过去分词 )； 快速做[说]某事 | |
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shriek
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| v./n.尖叫，叫喊 | |
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pelts
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| n. 皮毛，投掷, 疾行 vt. 剥去皮毛，（连续）投掷 vi. 猛击，大步走 | |
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savage
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| adj.野蛮的；凶恶的，残暴的；n.未开化的人 | |
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heartily
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| adv.衷心地，诚恳地，十分，很 | |
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raving
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| 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 | |
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37
dense
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| a.密集的，稠密的，浓密的；密度大的 | |
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38
admiration
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| n.钦佩，赞美，羡慕 | |
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39
gorge
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| n.咽喉，胃，暴食，山峡；v.塞饱，狼吞虎咽地吃 | |
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40
gilding
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| n.贴金箔，镀金 | |
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41
reined
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| 勒缰绳使（马）停步( rein的过去式和过去分词 )； 驾驭； 严格控制； 加强管理 | |
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42
rumbled
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| 发出隆隆声，发出辘辘声( rumble的过去式和过去分词 )； 轰鸣着缓慢行进； 发现…的真相； 看穿（阴谋） | |
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43
drawn
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| v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的 | |
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44
haughty
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| adj.傲慢的，高傲的 | |
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45
beckoned
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| v.（用头或手的动作）示意，召唤( beckon的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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46
sweeping
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| adj.范围广大的，一扫无遗的 | |
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47
salute
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| vi.行礼，致意，问候，放礼炮；vt.向…致意，迎接，赞扬；n.招呼，敬礼，礼炮 | |
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48
sneered
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| 讥笑，冷笑( sneer的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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49
withered
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| adj. 枯萎的，干瘪的，（人身体的部分器官）因病萎缩的或未发育良好的 动词wither的过去式和过去分词形式 | |
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50
eyebrows
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| 眉毛( eyebrow的名词复数 ) | |
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51
lasting
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| adj.永久的，永恒的；vbl.持续，维持 | |
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52
vindictive
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| adj.有报仇心的，怀恨的，惩罚的 | |
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53
rattled
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| 慌乱的，恼火的 | |
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54
curtly
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| adv.简短地 | |
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55
dames
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| n.（在英国）夫人（一种封号），夫人（爵士妻子的称号）( dame的名词复数 )；女人 | |
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56
gateway
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| n.大门口，出入口，途径，方法 | |
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57
gravel
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| n.砂跞；砂砾层；结石 | |
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58
gaily
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| adv.欢乐地，高兴地 | |
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59
groom
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| vt.给（马、狗等）梳毛，照料，使...整洁 | |
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