The venerable Father Ephraim sat in his easy chair, not only hoary16 headed and infirm with age, but worn down by a lingering disease, which, it was evident, would very soon transfer his patriarchal staff to other hands. At his footstool stood a man and woman, both clad in the Shaker garb17.
“My brethren,” said Father Ephraim to the surrounding elders, feebly exerting himself to utter these few words, “here are the son and daughter to whom I would commit the trust of which Providence18 is about to lighten my weary shoulders. Read their faces, I pray you, and say whether the inward movement of the spirit hath guided my choice aright.”
Accordingly, each elder looked at the two candidates with a most scrutinizing19 gaze. The man, whose name was Adam Colburn, had a face sunburnt with labor20 in the fields, yet intelligent, thoughtful, and traced with cares enough for a whole lifetime, though he had barely reached middle age. There was something severe in his aspect, and a rigidity21 throughout his person, characteristics that caused him generally to be taken for a school-master, which vocation22, in fact, he had formerly23 exercised for several years. The woman, Martha Pierson, was somewhat above thirty, thin and pale, as a Shaker sister almost invariably is, and not entirely24 free from that corpse25-like appearance which the garb of the sisterhood is so well calculated to impart.
“This pair are still in the summer of their years,” observed the elder from Harvard, a shrewd old man. “I would like better to see the hoar-frost of autumn on their heads. Methinks, also, they will be exposed to peculiar15 temptations, on account of the carnal desires which have heretofore subsisted26 between them.”
“Nay, brother,” said the elder from Canterbury, “the hoar-frost and the black-frost hath done its work on Brother Adam and Sister Martha, even as we sometimes discern its traces in our cornfields, while they are yet green. And why should we question the wisdom of our venerable Father’s purpose although this pair, in their early youth, have loved one another as the world’s people love? Are there not many brethren and sisters among us, who have lived long together in wedlock27, yet, adopting our faith, find their hearts purified from all but spiritual affection?”
Whether or no the early loves of Adam and Martha had rendered it inexpedient that they should now preside together over a Shaker village, it was certainly most singular that such should be the final result of many warm and tender hopes. Children of neighboring families, their affection was older even than their school-days; it seemed an innate28 principle, interfused among all their sentiments and feelings, and not so much a distinct remembrance, as connected with their whole volume of remembrances. But, just as they reached a proper age for their union, misfortunes had fallen heavily on both, and made it necessary that they should resort to personal labor for a bare subsistence. Even under these circumstances, Martha Pierson would probably have consented to unite her fate with Adam Colburn’s, and, secure of the bliss of mutual29 love, would patiently have awaited the less important gifts of fortune. But Adam, being of a calm and cautious character, was loath30 to relinquish31 the advantages which a single man possesses for raising himself in the world. Year after year, therefore, their marriage had been deferred32. Adam Colburn had followed many vocations33, had travelled far, and seen much of the world and of life. Martha had earned her bread sometimes as a seamstress, sometimes as help to a farmer’s wife, sometimes as school-mistress of the village children, sometimes as a nurse or watcher of the sick, thus acquiring a varied34 experience, the ultimate use of which she little anticipated. But nothing had gone prosperously with either of the lovers; at no subsequent moment would matrimony have been so prudent35 a measure as when they had first parted, in the opening bloom of life, to seek a better fortune. Still they had held fast their mutual faith. Martha might have been the wife of a man who sat among the senators of his native state, and Adam could have won the hand, as he had unintentionally won the heart, of a rich and comely36 widow. But neither of them desired good fortune save to share it with the other.
At length that calm despair which occurs only in a strong and somewhat stubborn character, and yields to no second spring of hope, settled down on the spirit of Adam Colburn. He sought an interview with Martha, and proposed that they should join the Society of Shakers. The converts of this sect are oftener driven within its hospitable37 gates by worldly misfortune than drawn38 thither39 by fanaticism40 and are received without inquisition as to their motives41. Martha, faithful still, had placed her hand in that of her lover, and accompanied him to the Shaker village. Here the natural capacity of each, cultivated and strengthened by the difficulties of their previous lives, had soon gained them an important rank in the Society, whose members are generally below the ordinary standard of intelligence. Their faith and feelings had, in some degree, become assimilated to those of their fellow-worshippers. Adam Colburn gradually acquired reputation, not only in the management of the temporal affairs of the Society, but as a clear and efficient preacher of their doctrines42. Martha was not less distinguished43 in the duties proper to her sex. Finally, when the infirmities of Father Ephraim had admonished44 him to seek a successor in his patriarchal office, he thought of Adam and Martha, and proposed to renew, in their persons, the primitive45 form of Shaker government, as established by Mother Ann. They were to be the Father and Mother of the village. The simple ceremony, which would constitute them such, was now to be performed.
“Son Adam, and daughter Martha,” said the venerable Father Ephraim, fixing his aged46 eyes piercingly upon them, “if ye can conscientiously47 undertake this charge, speak, that the brethren may not doubt of your fitness.”
“Father,” replied Adam, speaking with the calmness of his character, “I came to your village a disappointed man, weary of the world, worn out with continual trouble, seeking only a security against evil fortune, as I had no hope of good. Even my wishes of worldly success were almost dead within me. I came hither as a man might come to a tomb, willing to lie down in its gloom and coldness, for the sake of its peace and quiet. There was but one earthly affection in my breast, and it had grown calmer since my youth; so that I was satisfied to bring Martha to be my sister, in our new abode48. We are brother and sister; nor would I have it otherwise. And in this peaceful village I have found all that I hoped for — all that I desire. I will strive, with my best strength, for the spiritual and temporal good of our community. My conscience is not doubtful in this matter. I am ready to receive the trust.”
“Thou hast spoken well, son Adam,” said the Father. “God will bless thee in the office which I am about to resign.”
“But our sister!” observed the elder from Harvard, “hath she not likewise a gift to declare her sentiments?”
Martha started, and moved her lips, as if she would have made a formal reply to this appeal. But, had she attempted it, perhaps the old recollections, the long-repressed feelings of childhood, youth, and womanhood, might have gushed50 from her heart, in words that it would have been profanation51 to utter there.
“Adam has spoken,” said she hurriedly; “his sentiments are likewise mine.”
But while speaking these few words, Martha grew so pale that she looked fitter to be laid in her coffin52 than to stand in the presence of Father Ephraim and the elders; she shuddered53, also, as if there were something awful or horrible in her situation and destiny. It required, indeed, a more than feminine strength of nerve, to sustain the fixed54 observance of men so exalted55 and famous throughout the sect as these were. They had overcome their natural sympathy with human frailties56 and affections. One, when he joined the Society, had brought with him his wife and children, but never, from that hour, had spoken a fond word to the former, or taken his best-loved child upon his knee. Another, whose family refused to follow him, had been enabled — such was his gift of holy fortitude57 — to leave them to the mercy of the world. The youngest of the elders, a man of about fifty, had been bred from infancy58 in a Shaker village, and was said never to have clasped a woman’s hand in his own, and to have no conception of a closer tie than the cold fraternal one of the sect. Old Father Ephraim was the most awful character of all. In his youth he had been a dissolute libertine59, but was converted by Mother Ann herself, and had partaken of the wild fanaticism of the early Shakers. Tradition whispered, at the firesides of the village, that Mother Ann had been compelled to sear his heart of flesh with a red-hot iron before it could be purified from earthly passions.
However that might be, poor Martha had a woman’s heart, and a tender one, and it quailed60 within her, as she looked round at those strange old men, and from them to the calm features of Adam Colburn. But perceiving that the elders eyed her doubtfully, she gasped61 for breath, and again spoke49.
“With what strength is left me by my many troubles,” said she, “I am ready to undertake this charge, and to do my best in it.”
“My children, join your hands,” said Father Ephraim.
They did so. The elders stood up around, and the Father feebly raised himself to a more erect62 position, but continued sitting in his great chair.
“I have bidden you to join your hands,” said he, “not in earthly affection, for ye have cast off its chains forever; but as brother and sister in spiritual love, and helpers of one another in your allotted63 task. Teach unto others the faith which ye have received. Open wide your gates — I deliver you the keys thereof — open them wide to all who will give up the iniquities64 of the world, and come hither to lead lives of purity and peace. Receive the weary ones, who have known the vanity of earth — receive the little children, that they may never learn that miserable65 lesson. And a blessing66 be upon your labors67; so that the time may hasten on, when the mission of Mother Ann shall have wrought68 its full effect — when children shall no more be born and die, and the last survivor69 of mortal race, some old and weary man like me, shall see the sun go down, nevermore to rise on a world of sin and sorrow!”
The aged Father sank back exhausted70, and the surrounding elders deemed, with good reason, that the hour was come when the new heads of the village must enter on their patriarchal duties. In their attention to Father Ephraim, their eyes were turned from Martha Pierson, who grew paler and paler, unnoticed even by Adam Colburn. He, indeed, had withdrawn71 his hand from hers, and folded his arms with a sense of satisfied ambition. But paler and paler grew Martha by his side, till, like a corpse in its burial clothes, she sank down at the feet of her early lover; for, after many trials firmly borne, her heart could endure the weight of its desolate72 agony no longer.
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1
chamber
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| n.房间，寝室；会议厅；议院；会所 | |
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sect
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| n.派别，宗教，学派，派系 | |
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3
Fertilized
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| v.施肥( fertilize的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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4
rugged
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| adj.高低不平的，粗糙的，粗壮的，强健的 | |
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5
systematic
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| adj.有系统的，有计划的，有方法的 | |
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6
homely
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| adj.家常的，简朴的；不漂亮的 | |
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7
quaffed
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| v.痛饮( quaff的过去式和过去分词 )；畅饮；大口大口将…喝干；一饮而尽 | |
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8
alienate
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| vt.使疏远，离间；转让(财产等) | |
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9
enthusiast
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| n.热心人，热衷者 | |
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10
onward
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| adj.向前的，前进的；adv.向前，前进，在先 | |
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11
bliss
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| n.狂喜，福佑，天赐的福 | |
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12
courteously
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| adv.有礼貌地，亲切地 | |
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13
concurrence
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| n.同意；并发 | |
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14
eminent
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| adj.显赫的，杰出的，有名的，优良的 | |
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15
peculiar
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| adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的，特有的 | |
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16
hoary
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| adj.古老的；鬓发斑白的 | |
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17
garb
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| n.服装，装束 | |
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18
providence
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| n.深谋远虑，天道，天意；远见；节约；上帝 | |
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19
scrutinizing
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| v.仔细检查，详审( scrutinize的现在分词 ) | |
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20
labor
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| n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦 | |
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21
rigidity
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| adj.钢性，坚硬 | |
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22
vocation
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| n.职业，行业 | |
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23
formerly
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| adv.从前，以前 | |
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24
entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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25
corpse
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| n.尸体，死尸 | |
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26
subsisted
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| v.（靠很少的钱或食物）维持生活，生存下去( subsist的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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27
wedlock
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| n.婚姻，已婚状态 | |
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28
innate
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| adj.天生的，固有的，天赋的 | |
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29
mutual
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| adj.相互的，彼此的；共同的，共有的 | |
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30
loath
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| adj.不愿意的；勉强的 | |
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31
relinquish
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| v.放弃，撤回，让与，放手 | |
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32
deferred
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| adj.延期的，缓召的v.拖延，延缓，推迟( defer的过去式和过去分词 )；服从某人的意愿，遵从 | |
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33
vocations
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| n.（认为特别适合自己的）职业( vocation的名词复数 )；使命；神召；（认为某种工作或生活方式特别适合自己的）信心 | |
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34
varied
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| adj.多样的，多变化的 | |
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35
prudent
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| adj.谨慎的，有远见的，精打细算的 | |
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36
comely
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| adj.漂亮的，合宜的 | |
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37
hospitable
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| adj.好客的；宽容的；有利的，适宜的 | |
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38
drawn
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| v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的 | |
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39
thither
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| adv.向那里；adj.在那边的，对岸的 | |
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40
fanaticism
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| n.狂热，盲信 | |
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41
motives
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| n.动机，目的( motive的名词复数 ) | |
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42
doctrines
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| n.教条( doctrine的名词复数 )；教义；学说；（政府政策的）正式声明 | |
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43
distinguished
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| adj.卓越的，杰出的，著名的 | |
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44
admonished
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| v.劝告( admonish的过去式和过去分词 )；训诫；（温和地）责备；轻责 | |
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45
primitive
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| adj.原始的；简单的；n.原(始)人，原始事物 | |
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46
aged
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| adj.年老的，陈年的 | |
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47
conscientiously
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| adv.凭良心地；认真地，负责尽职地；老老实实 | |
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48
abode
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| n.住处，住所 | |
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49
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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50
gushed
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| v.喷，涌( gush的过去式和过去分词 )；滔滔不绝地说话 | |
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51
profanation
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| n.亵渎 | |
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52
coffin
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| n.棺材，灵柩 | |
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53
shuddered
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| v.战栗( shudder的过去式和过去分词 )；发抖；（机器、车辆等）突然震动；颤动 | |
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54
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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55
exalted
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| adj.(地位等)高的，崇高的；尊贵的，高尚的 | |
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56
frailties
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| n.脆弱( frailty的名词复数 )；虚弱；（性格或行为上的）弱点；缺点 | |
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57
fortitude
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| n.坚忍不拔；刚毅 | |
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58
infancy
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| n.婴儿期；幼年期；初期 | |
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59
libertine
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| n.淫荡者；adj.放荡的，自由思想的 | |
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60
quailed
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| 害怕，发抖，畏缩( quail的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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61
gasped
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| v.喘气( gasp的过去式和过去分词 )；喘息；倒抽气；很想要 | |
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62
erect
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| n./v.树立，建立，使竖立；adj.直立的，垂直的 | |
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63
allotted
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| 分配，拨给，摊派( allot的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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64
iniquities
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| n.邪恶( iniquity的名词复数 )；极不公正 | |
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65
miserable
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| adj.悲惨的，痛苦的；可怜的，糟糕的 | |
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66
blessing
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| n.祈神赐福；祷告；祝福，祝愿 | |
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67
labors
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| v.努力争取(for)( labor的第三人称单数 )；苦干；详细分析；（指引擎）缓慢而困难地运转 | |
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68
wrought
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| v.引起；以…原料制作；运转；adj.制造的 | |
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69
survivor
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| n.生存者，残存者，幸存者 | |
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70
exhausted
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| adj.极其疲惫的，精疲力尽的 | |
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71
withdrawn
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| vt.收回；使退出；vi.撤退，退出 | |
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72
desolate
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| adj.荒凉的，荒芜的；孤独的，凄凉的；v.使荒芜，使孤寂 | |
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