"My father bade me yesterday," she said at last, "ask you in future to wear the dress of our people. Not that you will be the less an object of attention and wonder, but that in retaining a distinction which depends entirely35 on your own choice, you will seem intentionally36 to prefer your own habits to ours."
"I comply of course," I observed. "Naturally the dress of every country is best suited to its own conditions. Yet I should have thought that a preference for my own world, even were it wholly irrational37, might seem at least natural and pardonable."
"People don't," she answered simply, "like any sign of individual fancy or opinion. They don't like any one to show that he thinks them wrong even on a matter of taste."
"I fear, then, carissima, that I must be content with unpopularity. I may wear the costume of your people; but their thought, their conduct, their inner and outer life, as your father reports them, and as thus far I have seen them, are to me so unnatural38, that the more I resemble them externally the more my unlikeness in all else is likely to attract notice. I am sorry for this, because women are by nature prone39 to judge even their nearest and dearest by the standard of fashion, and to exact from men almost as close a conformity40 to that standard as they themselves display. I fear you will have to forgive many heresies41 in my conduct as well as in my thoughts."
"You cannot suppose," she answered earnestly—she seemed incapable42 of apprehending43 irony44 or jest,—"that I should wish you more like others than you are. Whatever may happen hereafter, I shall always feel myself the happiest of women in having belonged to one who cares for something beside himself, and holds even life cheaper than love." "I hope so, carissima. But in that matter there was scarcely more of love than of choice. What I did for you I must have done no less for Zevle [her sister]. If I had feared death as much as the Regent does, I could not have returned alive and alone. My venture into infinite space involved possibilities of horror more appalling45 than the mere46 terrors of death. You asked of me as my one bridal gift leave to share its perils47. How unworthy of you should I be, if I did not hold the possession of Eveena, even for the two years of her promise, well worth dying for!"
The moral gulf48 between the two worlds is wider than the material. Utterly49 unselfish and trustful, Eveena was almost pained to be reminded that the service she so extravagantly50 overprized was rendered to her sex rather than herself; while yet more deeply gratified, though still half incredulous, by the commonplace that preferred love to life. I had yet to learn, however, that Eveena's nature was as utterly strange in her own world as the ideas in which she was educated would seem in mine.
I left her for a few minutes to dress for the first time in the costume which Esmo's care had provided. The single under-vestment of softest hide, closely fitting from neck to knees, is of all garments the best adapted to preserve natural warmth under the rapid and extreme changes of the external atmosphere. The outer garb51 consisted of blouse and trousers, woven of a fabric in which a fine warp52 of metallic53 lustre54 was crossed by a strong silken weft, giving the effect of a diapered scarlet55 and silver; both fastened by the belt, a broad green strap56 of some species of leather, clasped with gold. Masculine dress is seldom brilliant, as is that of the women, but convenient and comfortable beyond any other, and generally handsome and elegant. The one part of the costume which I could never approve is the sandal, which leaves the feet exposed to dust and cold. Rejoining my bride, I said—
"I have had no opportunity of seeing much of this country, and I fancy from what I have seen of feminine seclusion57 that an excursion would be as much a holiday treat to you as to myself. If your father will lend us his carriage, would you like to accompany me to one or two places Kevima has described not far from this, and which I am anxious to visit?"
She bent58 her head, but did not answer; and fancying that the proposal was not agreeable to her, I added—
"If you prefer to spend our little remaining time here with your mother and sister, I will ask your brother to accompany me, though I am selfishly unwilling59 to part with you to-day."
She looked up for a moment with an air of pain and perplexity, and as she turned away I saw the tears gather in her eyes.
"What is the matter?" I asked, surprised and puzzled as one on Earth who tries to please a woman by offering her her own way, and finds that, so offered, it is the last thing she cares to have. It did not occur to me that, even in trifles, a Martial wife never dreams that her taste or wish can signify, or be consulted where her lord has a preference of his own. To invite instead of commanding her companionship was unusual; to withdraw the expression of my own wish, and bid her decide for herself, was in Eveena's eyes to mark formally and deliberately60 that I did not care for her society.
"What have I done," she faltered61, "to be so punished? I have not, save the day before yesterday, left the house this year; and you offer me the greatest of pleasures only to snatch it away the next moment."
"Nay62, Eveena!" I answered. "If I had not told you, you must know that I cannot but wish for your company; but by your silence I fancied you disliked my proposal, yet did not like to decline it."
The expression of surprise and perplexity in her face, though half pathetic, seemed so comical that I with difficulty suppressed a laugh, because for her it was evidently no laughing matter. After giving her time, as I thought, to recover herself, I said—
"Well, I suppose we may now join them at the morning meal?"
Something was still wrong, the clue to which I gathered by observing her shy glance at her head-dress and veil.
"Must you wear those?" I asked—a question which gave her some such imperfect clue to my thoughts as I had found to hers.
"How foolish of me," she said, smiling, "to forget how little you can know of our customs! Of course I must wear my veil and sleeves; but to-day you must put on the veil, as you removed it last night."
The awkwardness with which I performed this duty had its effect in amusing and cheering her; and the look of happiness and trust had come back to her countenance63 before the veil concealed65 it.
I made my request to Esmo, who answered, with some amusement—
"Every house like ours has from six to a dozen larger or lighter66 carriages. Of course they cost nothing save the original purchase. They last for half a lifetime, and are not costly67 at the outset. But I have news for you which, I venture to think, will be as little agreeable to you as to ourselves. Your journey must begin tomorrow, and this, therefore, is the only opportunity you will have for such an excursion as you propose."
"Then," I said, "will Eveena still wish to share it?"
Even her mother's face seemed to ask what in the world that could matter; but a movement of the daughter's veiled head reminded me that I was blundering; and pressing her little hand as she lay beside me, I took her compliance68 for granted.
The morning mist had given place to hot bright sunshine when we started. At first our road lay between enclosures like that which surrounded Esmo's dwelling69.
Presently the lines were broken here and there by such fields as I had seen in descending70 from Asnyca; some filled with crops of human food, some with artificial pastures, in which Unicorns71 or other creatures were feeding. I saw also more than one field wherein the carvee were weeding or gathering72 fruit, piling their burdens in either case as soon as their beaks73 were full into bags or baskets. Pointing out to Eveena the striking difference of colour between the cultivated fields and gardens and the woods or natural meadows on the mountain sides, I learned from her that this distinction is everywhere perceptible in Mars. Natural objects, plants or animals, rocks and soil, are for the most part of dimmer, fainter, or darker tints74 than on Earth; probably owing to the much less intense light of the Sun; partly, perhaps, to that absorption of the blue rays by the atmosphere, which diminishes, I suppose, even that light which actually reaches the planet. But uncultivated ground, except on the mountains above the ordinary range of crops or pastures, scarcely exists in the belt of Equatorial continents; the turf itself, like the herbage or fruit shrubs76 in the fields, is artificial, consisting of plants developed through long ages into forms utterly unlike the native original by the skill and ingenuity77 of man. Even the great fruit trees have undergone material change, not only in the size, flavour, and appearance of the fruits themselves, which have been the immediate78 object of care, but, probably through some natural correlation79 between, the different organs, in the form and colour of the foliage80, the arrangement of the branches, and the growth of the trunk, all of which are much more regular, and, so to speak, more perfect, than is the case either here or on Earth with those left to the control of Nature and locality, or the effects of the natural competition, which is in its way perhaps as keen among plants and animals as among men. Martialists have the same delight in bright colours as Orientals, with far greater taste in selection and combination; and the favourite hues81 not only of their flowers, tame birds, fishes, and quadrupeds, but of plants in whose cultivation82 utility has been the primary object, contrast signally, as I have said, with the dull tints of the undomesticated flora84 and fauna85, of which comparatively scanty86 remnants were visible here and there in this rich country.
Presently we came within sight of the river, over which was a single bridge, formed by what might be called a tube of metal built into strong walls on either bank. In fact, however, the sides were of open work, and only the roof and floor were solid. The river at this, its narrowest point, was perhaps a furlong in breadth, and it was not without instinctive87 uneasiness that I trusted to the security of a single piece of metal spanning, without even the strength afforded by the form of the arch, so great a space.
The first object we were to visit lay at some distance down the stream. As we approached the point, we passed a place where the river widened considerably88. The main channel in the centre was kept clear and deep to afford an uninterrupted course for navigation; but on either side were rocks that broke the river into pools and shallows, such as here, no less than on Earth, form the favourite haunts or spawning89 places of the fish. In some of the lesser90 pools birds larger than the stork91, bearing under the throat an expansible bag like that of the pelican92, were seeking for prey93. They were watched and directed by a master on the shore, and carried to a square tank, fixed94 on a wheeled frame not unlike that of the ordinary carriage, which accompanied him, each fish they took. I observed that the latter were carefully seized, with the least possible violence or injury, placed by a jerk head-downmost in the throat-bag, which, though when empty it was scarcely perceptible, would contain prey of very considerable size and weight, and as carefully disgorged into the tank. In one of the most extensive pools, too deep for these birds, a couple of men had spread a sort of net, not unlike those used on Earth, but formed of twisted metal threads with very narrow meshes95, enclosing the whole pool, a space of perhaps some 400 square yards. In the centre of this an electric lamp was let down into the water, some feet below the surface. The fish crowded towards it, and a sudden shock of electricity transmitted through the meshes of the net, as well as from the wires of the lamp circuit, stunned96 for a few minutes all life within the enclosure. The fish then floated on the surface, the net was drawn97 together, and they were collected and sorted; some which, as I afterwards learned, were required for breeding, being carefully and separately preserved in a smaller tank, those fit for food cast into the larger one, those too small for the one purpose and not needed for the other being thrown back into the water. I noted98, however, that many fish apparently99 valuable were among those thus rejected. I spoke100 to one of the fishermen, who, regarding me with great surprise and curiosity, at last answered briefly101 that a stringent102 law forbids the catching103 of spawning fish except for breeding purposes. Those, therefore, for which the season was close-time were invariably spared.
In sea-fishing a much larger net, sometimes enclosing more than 10,000 square yards, is employed. This fishing is conducted chiefly at night, the electric lamp being then much more effective in attracting the prey, and lowered only a few inches below the surface. Many large destructive creatures, unfit for food, generally of a nature intermediate between fish and reptiles104, haunt the seas. It is held unwise to exterminate105 them, since they do their part in keeping down an immense variety of smaller creatures, noxious106 for one reason or another, and also in clearing the water from carrion107 and masses of seaweed which might otherwise taint108 the air of the sea-coasts, especially near the mouths of large tropical rivers. But these sea-monsters devour109 enormous quantities of fish, and the hunters appointed to deal with them are instructed to limit their numbers to the minimum required. Their average increase is to be destroyed each year. If at any time it appear that, for whatever cause, the total number left alive is falling off, the chief of this service suspends it partially111 or wholly at his discretion112.
We now came to the entrance of a vast enclosure bordering on the river, the greatest fish-breeding establishment on this continent, or indeed in this world. One of its managers courteously113 showed me over it. It is not necessary minutely to describe its arrangements, from the spawning ponds and the hatching tanks—the latter contained in a huge building, whose temperature is preserved with the utmost care at the rate found best suited to the ova—to the multitude of streams, ponds, and lakes in which the different kinds of fish are kept during the several stages of their existence. The task of the breeders is much facilitated by the fact that the seas of Mars are not, like ours, salt; and though sea and river fish are almost as distinct as on Earth, each kind having its own habitat, whose conditions are carefully reproduced in the breeding or feeding reservoirs, the same kind of water suits all alike. It is necessary, however, to keep the fishes of tropical seas and streams in water of a very different temperature from that suited to others brought from arctic or sub-arctic climates; and this, like every other point affecting the natural peculiarities and habits of the fish, is attended to with minute and accurate care. The skill and science brought to bear on the task of breeding accomplish this and much more difficult operations with marvellous ease and certainty.
On one of the buildings I observed one of the most remarkable114, largest, and most complete timepieces I had yet seen; and I had on this occasion an opportunity of examining it closely. The dial was oblong, enclosed in a case of clear transparent crystal, somewhat resembling in form the open portion of a mercurial115 barometer116. At the top were three circles of different colours, divided by twelve equidistant lines radiating from the centres and subdivided117 again and again by the same number. Exactly at the uppermost point of each was a golden indicator118. One of these circles marked the temperature, graduated from the lowest to the highest degree ever known in that latitude119. Another indicated the direction of the wind, while the depth of colour in the circle itself, graduated in a manner carefully explained to me, but my notes of which are lost, showed the exact force of the atmospheric120 current. The third served the purpose of a barometer. A coloured band immediately below indicated by the variations of tint75 the character of the coming weather. This band stretched right across the face; below it were figures indicating the day of the year. The central portion of the face was occupied by a larger circle, half-green and half-black; the former portion representing the colour of the daylight sky, the latter emblematic121 of night. On this circle the Sun and the planets were represented by figures whose movement showed exactly the actual place of each in the celestial122 sphere. The two Moons were also figured, their phases and position at each moment being accurately123 presented to the eye. Around this circle was a narrow band divided into strips of different length of various colours, each representing one of the peculiar14 divisions of the Martial day; that point which came under the golden indicator showing the zyda and the exact moment of the zyda, while the movement of the inner circle fixed with equal accuracy the period of day or night. Below were other circles from which the observer could learn the amount of moisture in the atmosphere, the intensity124 of the sunlight, and the electric tension at the moment. Each of the six smaller circles registered on a moving ribbon the indications of every successive moment, these ribbons when unrolled forming a perfect record of temperature, atmospheric pressure, wind, and so forth125, in the form of a curve—a register kept for more than 8000 Martial years.
Four times during the revolution of the great circle each large clock emits for a couple of minutes a species of chime, the nature of which my ignorance of music renders me unable to describe:—viz., when the line dividing the green and black semicircles is horizontal at noon and midnight, and an hour before, at average sunrise and sunset, it becomes perpendicular126. The individual character of the several chimes, tunes127, or peals128, whatever they should be called, is so distinct that even I appreciated it. Further, as the first point of the coloured strip distinguishing each several zyda reaches the golden indicator, a single slightly prolonged sound—I fancy what is known on Earth as a single chord—is emitted. Of these again each is peculiar, so that no one with an ear for music can doubt what is the period of the day announced. The sound is never, even in the immediate vicinity of the clock, unpleasantly loud; while it penetrates129 to an amazing distance. It would be perfectly easy, if needful, to regulate all clocks by mechanical control through the electric network extended all over the face of the planet; but the perfect accuracy of each individual timepiece renders any such check needless. In those latitudes131 where day and night during the greater part of the year are not even approximately equal, the black and green semicircles are so enlarged or diminished by mechanical means, that the hour of the day or night is represented as accurately as on the Equator itself.
The examination of this establishment occupied us for two or three hours, and when we remounted our carriage it seemed to me only reasonable that Eveena should be weary both in mind and body. I proposed, therefore, to return at once, but against this she earnestly protested.
"Well," I said, "we will finish our excursion, then. Only remember that whenever you do feel tired you must tell me at once. I do not know what exertion132 you can bear, and of course it would be most inconsiderate to measure your endurance by my own."
She promised, and we drove on for another hour in the direction of a range of hills to the north-eastward. The lower and nearer portion of this range might he 400 feet above the general level of the plain; beyond, the highest peaks rose to perhaps 1500 feet, the average summit being about half that height. Where our road brought us to the foot of the first slope, large groves133 of the calmyra, whose fruit contains a sort of floury pulp134 like roasted potato, were planted on ground belonging to the State, and tenanted by young men belonging to that minority which, as Esmo had told me not being fortunate enough to find private employment, is thus provided for. Encountering one of these, he pointed110 out to us the narrow road which, winding135 up the slope, afforded means of bringing down in waggons136 during the two harvest seasons, each of which lasts for about fifty days, the fruit of these groves, which furnishes a principal article of food. The trees do not reach to a higher level than about 400 feet; and above this we had to ascend137 on foot by a path winding through meadows, which I at first supposed to be natural. Eveena, however, quickly undeceived me, pointing out the prevalence of certain plants peculiar to the cultivated pastures we had seen in the plain. These were so predominant as to leave no reasonable doubt that they had been originally sown by the hand of man, though the irregularity of their arrangement, and the encroachment138 of one species upon the ground of another, enabled my companion to prove to me with equal clearness that since its first planting the pasture had been entirely neglected. It was, she thought, worth planting once for all with the most nutritious139 herbage, but not worth the labour of subsequent close cultivation. Any lady belonging to a civilised people, and accustomed to a country life, upon Earth might easily have perceived all that Eveena discovered; but considering how seldom the latter had left her home, how few opportunities she had to see anything of practical agriculture, the quickness of her perception and the correctness of her inferences not a little surprised me. The path we pursued led directly to the object of our visit. The waters of the higher hills were collected in a vast tank excavated140 in an extensive plateau at the mid-level. At the summit of the first ascent141 we met and were escorted by one of the officials entrusted142 with the charge of these works, which supply water of extraordinary purity to a population of perhaps a quarter of a million, inhabiting a district of some 10,000 square miles in extent. The tank was about sixty feet in depth, and perhaps a mile in length, with half that breadth. Its sides and bottom-were lined with the usual concrete. Our guide informed me that in many cases tanks were covered with the crystal employed for doors and windows; but in the-pure air of these hills such a precaution was thought unnecessary, as it would have been exceedingly costly. The water itself was of wonderful purity, so clear that the smallest object at the bottom was visible where the Sun, still high in the heavens, shone directly upon the surface. But this purity would by no means satisfy the standard of Martial sanitary143 science. In the first place, it is passed into a second division of the tank, where it is subjected to some violent electric action till every kind of organic germ it may contain is supposed to be completely destroyed. It is then passed through several covered channels and mechanically or chemically cleansed144 from every kind of inorganic145 impurity146, and finally oxygenated or aerated147 with air which has undergone a yet more elaborate purification. At every stage in this process, a phial of water is taken out and examined in a dark chamber by means of a beam of light emanating148 from a powerful electric lamp and concentrated by a huge crystal lens. If this beam detect any perceptible dust or matter capable of scattering150 the light, the water is pronounced impure151 and passed through further processes. Only when the contents of the bottle remain absolutely dark, in the midst of an atmosphere whose floating dust renders the beam visible on either side, so that the phial, while perfectly transparent to the light, nevertheless interrupts the beam with a block of absolute darkness, is it considered fit for human consumption. It is then distributed through pipes of concrete, into which no air can possibly enter, to cisterns152 equally, air-tight in every house. The water in these is periodically examined by officers from the waterworks, who ascertain153 that it has contracted no impurity either in the course of its passage through hundreds of miles of piping or in the cisterns themselves. The Martialists consider that to this careful purification of their water they owe in great measure their exemption154 from the epidemic155 diseases which were formerly156 not infrequent. They maintain that all such diseases are caused by organic self-multiplying germs, and laugh to scorn the doctrine157 of spontaneous generation, either of disease, or of even such low organic life as can propagate it. I suggested that the atmosphere itself must, if their theory were true, convey the microscopic158 seeds of disease even more freely and universally than the water.
"Doubtless," replied our guide, "it would scatter149 them more widely; but it does not enable them to penetrate130 and germinate159 in the body half so easily as when conveyed by water. You must be aware that the lining160 of the upper air-passages arrests most of the impurities161 contained in the inhaled162 air before it comes into contact with the blood in the lungs themselves. Moreover, the extirpation163 of one disease after another, the careful isolation164 of all infectious cases, and the destruction of every article that could preserve or convey the poisonous germs, has in the course of ages enabled us utterly to destroy them."
This did not seem to me consistent with the confession165 that disorders166 of one kind or another still not infrequently decimate their highly-bred domestic animals, however the human race itself may have been secured against contagion167. I did not, however, feel competent to argue the question with one who had evidently studied physiology168 much more deeply than myself; and had mastered the records of an experience infinitely169 longer, guided by knowledge far more accurate, than is possessed170 by the most accomplished171 of Terrestrial physiologists172.
The examination of these works of course occupied us for a long time, and obliged us to traverse several miles of ground. More than once I had suggested to Eveena that we should leave our work unfinished, and on every opportunity had insisted that she should rest. I had been too keenly interested in the latter part of the explanation given me, to detect the fatigue173 she anxiously sought to conceal64; but when we left the works, I was more annoyed than surprised to find that the walk down-hill to our carriage was too much for her. The vexation I felt with myself gave, after the manner of men, some sharpness to the tone of my remonstrance174 with her.
"I bade you, and you promised, to tell me as soon as you felt tired; and you have let me almost tire you to death! Your obedience175, however strict in theory, reminds me in practice of that promised by women on Earth in their marriage-vow—and never paid or remembered afterwards."
She did not answer; and finding that her strength was utterly exhausted176, I carried her down the remainder of the hill and placed her in the carriage. During our return neither of us spoke. Ascribing her silence to habit or fatigue, perhaps to displeasure, and busied in recalling what I had seen and heard, I did not care to "make conversation," as I certainly should have done had I guessed what impression my taciturnity made on my companion's mind. I was heartily177 glad for her sake when we regained178 the gate of her father's garden. Committing the carriage to the charge of an amba, I half led, half carried Eveena along the avenue, overhung with the grand conical bells—gold, crimson179, scarlet, green, white, or striped or variegated180 with some or all these colours—of the glorious leveloo, the Martial convolvulus. Its light clinging stems and foliage hid the astyra's arched branches overhead, and formed a screen on either side. From its bells flew at our approach a whole flock of the tiny and beautiful caree, which take the chief part in rendering181 to the flora of Mars such services as the flowers of Earth receive from bees and butterflies. They feed on the nectar, farina, syrup182, and other secretions183, sweet or bitter, in which the artificial flowers of Mars are peculiarly abundant, and make their nests in the calyx or among the petals184. These lovely little birds—about the size of a hornet, but perfect birds in miniature, with wings as large as those of the largest Levantine papilio, and feathery down equally fine and soft—are perhaps the most shy and timid of all creatures familiar with the presence of Martial humanity. The varied colours of their plumage, combined and intermingled in marvellously minute patterns, are all of those subdued185 or dead tints agreeable to the taste of Japanese artists, and perhaps to no other. They signally contrast the vivid and splendid colouring of objects created or developed by human genius and patience, from the exquisite6 decorations and jewel-like masses of domestic and public architecture to the magnificent flowers and fruit produced, by the labour of countless186 generations, from originals so dissimilar that only the records of past ages can trace or the searching comparisons of science recognise them. I am told that the present race of flower-birds themselves are a sort of indirect creation of art. They certainly vary in size, shape, and colour according to the flower each exclusively frequents; and those which haunt the cultivated bells of the leveloo present an amazing contrast to the far tinier and far less beautiful caree which have not yet abandoned the wildflowers for those of the garden. Above two hundred varieties distinguished187 by ornithologists frequent only the domesticated83 flowers.
The flight of this swarm188 of various beauty recalled the conversation of last night; and breaking off unobserved a long fine tendril of the leveloo, I said lightly—
"Flower-birds are not so well-trained as esvee, bambina."
Never forgetting a word of mine, and never failing to catch with quick intelligence the sense of the most epigrammatic or delicate metaphor189, Eveena started and looked up, as if stung by a serious reproach. Fancying that overpowering fatigue had so shaken her nerves, I would not allow her to speak. But I did not understand how much she had been distressed191, till in her own chamber, cloak and veil thrown aside, she stood beside my seat, her sleeveless arms folded behind her, drooping like a lily beaten down by a thunderstorm. Then she murmured sadly—
"I did not think of offending. But you are quite right; disobedience should never pass."
"Certainly not," I replied, with a smile she did not see. Taking both the little hands in my left, I laid the tendril on her soft white shoulders, but so gently that in her real distress190 she did not feel the touch. "You see I can keep my word; but never let me tire you again. My flower-bird cannot take wing if she anger me in earnest."
"Are you not angered now?" she asked, glancing up in utter surprise.
My eyes, or the sight of the leveloo, answered her; and a sweet bright smile broke through her look of frightened, penitent192 submission193, as she snatched the tendril and snapped it in my hand.
"Cruel!" she said, with a pretty assumption of ill-usage, "to visit a first fault with the whip."
"You are hard to please, bambina! I knew no better. Seriously, until I can measure your strength more truly, never again let me feel that in inviting194 your company I have turned my pleasure into your pain."
"No, indeed," she urged, once more in earnest. "Girls so seldom pass the gate, and men never walk where a carriage will go, or I should not have been so stupid. But if I had blistered195 my feet, and the leveloo had been a nut-vine, the fruit was worth the scratches."
"What do you know, my child, either of blisters196 or stripes?"
"You will teach me——No, you know I don't mean that! But you will take me with you sometimes till I learn better! If you are going to leave me at home in future "——
"My child, can you not trust me to take you for my own pleasure?"
The silvery tone of her low sweet laugh was truly perfectly musical.
"Forgive me," she said, nestling in the cushions at my knee, and seeking with upturned eyes, like a child better assured of pardon than of full reconciliation197, to read my face, "it is very naughty to laugh, and very ungrateful, when you speak to please me; but is it real kindness to say what I should be very silly to believe?"
"You will believe whatever I tell you, child. If you wish to anger a man, even with you, tell him that he is lying."
"I do nothing but misbehave," she said, in earnest despondency.
"I——" But I sealed her lips effectually for the moment.
"Why did you not speak as we came home?"
"You were tired, and I was thinking over all I had seen. Besides, who talks air?" [makes conversation].
"You always talk when you are pleased. The lip-sting (scolding) and silence frightened me so, you nearly heard me crying."
"Crying for fear? You did well to break the leveloo!… And so you think I must be tired of my bride, before the colours have gone round on the dial?"
"Not tired of her. You will like a little longer to find her in the cushions when you are vexed198 or idle; but you don't want her where her ignorance wearies and her weakness hampers199 you."
"Are you an esve, to be caged at home, and played with for lack of better employment? We shall never understand each other, child."
"What more can I be? But don't say we shall never understand each other," she pleaded earnestly. "It took time and trouble to make my pet understand and obey each word and sign. Zevle gave hers more slaps and fewer sweets, and it learned sooner. But, like me, you want your esve to be happy, not only to fly straight and play prettily200. She will try hard to learn if you will teach her, and not be so afraid of hurting her, as if she expected sweets from both hands. It is easy for you to see through her empty head: do not give her up till she has had time to look a little way into your eyes."
"Eveena," I answered, almost as much pained as touched by the unaffected humility201 which had so accepted and carried out my ironical202 comparison, "one simple magnet-key would unlock the breast whose secrets seem so puzzling; but it has hardly a name in your tongue, and cannot yet be in your hands."
"Ah, yes!" she said softly, "you gave it me; do you think I have lost it in two nights? But the esve cannot be loved as she loves her master. I could half understand the prodigal203 heart that would buy a girl's life with yours, and all that is bound up in yours. No other man would have done it—in our world," she added, answering my gesture of dissent204; "but they say that the terrible kargynda will stand by his dying mate till he is shot down. You bought my heart, my love, all I am, when you bought my life, and never asked the cost." She continued almost in a whisper, her rose-suffused cheeks and moist eyes hidden from my sight as the lips murmured their loving words into my ear,—"Though the nestling never looked from under the wing, do you think she knows not what to expect when she is bought from the nest? She dares not struggle in the hand that snatches her; much more did she deserve to be rated and rapped for fluttering in that which saved her life. Bought twice over, caged by right as by might—was her thought midnight to your eyes, when she wondered at the look that watched her so quietly, the hand that would not try to touch lest it should scare her, the patience that soothed205 and coaxed206 her to perch207 on the outstretched finger, like a flower-bird tamed at last? Do you think that name, given her by lips which softened even their words of fondness for her ear, did not go to her heart straight as the esve flies home, or that it could ever be forgotten? There is a chant young girls are fond of, which tells more than I can say."
Her tones fell so low that I should have lost them, had her lips not actually touched my ear while she chanted the strange words in the sweetest notes of her sweet voice:—
"Never yet hath single sun
Seen a flower-bird tamed and won;
Sun and stars shall quit the sky
Ere a bird so tamed shall fly.
"Never human lips have kissed
Flower-bird tamed 'twixt mist and mist;
Bird so tamed from tamer's heart
Night of death shall hardly part."
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收听单词发音 |
1
martial
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| adj.战争的，军事的，尚武的，威武的 | |
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draught
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| n.拉，牵引，拖；一网（饮，吸，阵)；顿服药量，通风；v.起草，设计 | |
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3
narcotic
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| n.麻醉药，镇静剂；adj.麻醉的，催眠的 | |
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chamber
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| n.房间，寝室；会议厅；议院；会所 | |
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5
beheld
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| v.看，注视( behold的过去式和过去分词 )；瞧；看呀；（叙述中用于引出某人意外的出现）哎哟 | |
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exquisite
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| adj.精美的；敏锐的；剧烈的，感觉强烈的 | |
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exquisitely
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| adv.精致地；强烈地；剧烈地；异常地 | |
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transparent
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| adj.明显的，无疑的；透明的 | |
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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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complexion
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| n.肤色；情况，局面；气质，性格 | |
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nurtured
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| 养育( nurture的过去式和过去分词 )； 培育； 滋长； 助长 | |
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12
drooping
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| adj. 下垂的，无力的 动词droop的现在分词 | |
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13
rosy
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| adj.美好的，乐观的，玫瑰色的 | |
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peculiar
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| adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的，特有的 | |
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peculiarities
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| n. 特质, 特性, 怪癖, 古怪 | |
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perfectly
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| adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地 | |
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toil
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| vi.辛劳工作，艰难地行动；n.苦工，难事 | |
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deforming
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| 使变形，使残废，丑化( deform的现在分词 ) | |
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cramping
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| 图像压缩 | |
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20
tinge
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| vt.(较淡)着色于，染色；使带有…气息；n.淡淡色彩，些微的气息 | |
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21
translucent
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| adj.半透明的；透明的 | |
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22
varied
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| adj.多样的，多变化的 | |
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23
lustrous
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| adj.有光泽的；光辉的 | |
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24
texture
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| n.(织物)质地；(材料)构造；结构；肌理 | |
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25
fabric
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| n.织物，织品，布；构造，结构，组织 | |
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hem
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| n.贴边，镶边；vt.缝贴边；(in)包围，限制 | |
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simplicity
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| n.简单，简易；朴素；直率，单纯 | |
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28
artistic
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| adj.艺术(家)的，美术(家)的；善于艺术创作的 | |
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29
maidens
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| 处女( maiden的名词复数 )； 少女； 未婚女子； （板球运动）未得分的一轮投球 | |
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30
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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31
touching
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| adj.动人的，使人感伤的 | |
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32
suffused
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| v.（指颜色、水气等）弥漫于，布满( suffuse的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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33
admiration
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| n.钦佩，赞美，羡慕 | |
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34
deficient
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| adj.不足的，不充份的，有缺陷的 | |
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35
entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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intentionally
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| ad.故意地，有意地 | |
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irrational
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| adj.无理性的，失去理性的 | |
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38
unnatural
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| adj.不自然的；反常的 | |
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39
prone
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| adj.(to)易于…的，很可能…的；俯卧的 | |
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40
conformity
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| n.一致，遵从，顺从 | |
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41
heresies
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| n.异端邪说，异教( heresy的名词复数 ) | |
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42
incapable
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| adj.无能力的，不能做某事的 | |
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43
apprehending
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| 逮捕，拘押( apprehend的现在分词 )； 理解 | |
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44
irony
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| n.反语，冷嘲；具有讽刺意味的事，嘲弄 | |
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45
appalling
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| adj.骇人听闻的，令人震惊的，可怕的 | |
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46
mere
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| adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过 | |
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47
perils
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| 极大危险( peril的名词复数 )； 危险的事（或环境） | |
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48
gulf
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| n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂 | |
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49
utterly
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| adv.完全地，绝对地 | |
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50
extravagantly
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| adv.挥霍无度地 | |
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51
garb
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| n.服装，装束 | |
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52
warp
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| vt.弄歪，使翘曲，使不正常，歪曲，使有偏见 | |
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53
metallic
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| adj.金属的；金属制的；含金属的；产金属的；像金属的 | |
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54
lustre
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| n.光亮，光泽；荣誉 | |
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55
scarlet
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| n.深红色，绯红色，红衣；adj.绯红色的 | |
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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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57
seclusion
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| n.隐遁，隔离 | |
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58
bent
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| n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的 | |
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59
unwilling
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| adj.不情愿的 | |
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60
deliberately
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| adv.审慎地；蓄意地；故意地 | |
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61
faltered
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| （嗓音）颤抖( falter的过去式和过去分词 )； 支吾其词； 蹒跚； 摇晃 | |
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62
nay
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| adv.不；n.反对票，投反对票者 | |
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63
countenance
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| n.脸色，面容；面部表情；vt.支持，赞同 | |
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64
conceal
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| v.隐藏，隐瞒，隐蔽 | |
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concealed
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| a.隐藏的，隐蔽的 | |
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66
lighter
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| n.打火机，点火器；驳船；v.用驳船运送；light的比较级 | |
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costly
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| adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的 | |
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68
compliance
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| n.顺从；服从；附和；屈从 | |
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dwelling
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| n.住宅，住所，寓所 | |
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descending
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| n. 下行 adj. 下降的 | |
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71
unicorns
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| n.（传说中身体似马的）独角兽( unicorn的名词复数 )；一角鲸；独角兽标记 | |
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72
gathering
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| n.集会，聚会，聚集 | |
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73
beaks
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| n.鸟嘴( beak的名词复数 )；鹰钩嘴；尖鼻子；掌权者 | |
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74
tints
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| 色彩( tint的名词复数 )； 带白的颜色； （淡色）染发剂； 痕迹 | |
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75
tint
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| n.淡色，浅色；染发剂；vt.着以淡淡的颜色 | |
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76
shrubs
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| 灌木( shrub的名词复数 ) | |
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ingenuity
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| n.别出心裁；善于发明创造 | |
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78
immediate
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| adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的 | |
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correlation
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| n.相互关系，相关，关连 | |
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80
foliage
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| n.叶子，树叶，簇叶 | |
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81
hues
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| 色彩( hue的名词复数 )； 色调； 信仰； 观点 | |
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82
cultivation
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| n.耕作，培养，栽培（法），养成 | |
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83
domesticated
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| adj.喜欢家庭生活的；（指动物）被驯养了的v.驯化( domesticate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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84
flora
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| n.(某一地区的)植物群 | |
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85
fauna
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| n.(一个地区或时代的)所有动物，动物区系 | |
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86
scanty
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| adj.缺乏的，仅有的，节省的，狭小的，不够的 | |
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instinctive
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| adj.(出于)本能的；直觉的；(出于)天性的 | |
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considerably
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| adv.极大地；相当大地；在很大程度上 | |
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spawning
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| 产卵 | |
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lesser
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| adj.次要的，较小的；adv.较小地，较少地 | |
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stork
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| n.鹳 | |
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pelican
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| n.鹈鹕，伽蓝鸟 | |
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prey
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| n.被掠食者，牺牲者，掠食；v.捕食，掠夺，折磨 | |
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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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meshes
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| 网孔( mesh的名词复数 )； 网状物； 陷阱； 困境 | |
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stunned
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| adj. 震惊的，惊讶的 动词stun的过去式和过去分词 | |
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drawn
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| v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的 | |
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noted
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| adj.著名的，知名的 | |
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apparently
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| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
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100
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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briefly
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| adv.简单地，简短地 | |
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stringent
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| adj.严厉的；令人信服的；银根紧的 | |
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catching
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| adj.易传染的，有魅力的，迷人的，接住 | |
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reptiles
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| n.爬行动物，爬虫( reptile的名词复数 ) | |
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exterminate
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| v.扑灭，消灭，根绝 | |
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noxious
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| adj.有害的，有毒的；使道德败坏的，讨厌的 | |
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carrion
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| n.腐肉 | |
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108
taint
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| n.污点；感染；腐坏；v.使感染；污染 | |
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devour
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| v.吞没；贪婪地注视或谛听，贪读；使着迷 | |
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110
pointed
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| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
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partially
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| adv.部分地，从某些方面讲 | |
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discretion
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| n.谨慎；随意处理 | |
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courteously
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| adv.有礼貌地，亲切地 | |
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remarkable
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| adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的 | |
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mercurial
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| adj.善变的，活泼的 | |
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barometer
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| n.气压表，睛雨表，反应指标 | |
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subdivided
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| 再分，细分( subdivide的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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indicator
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| n.指标；指示物，指示者；指示器 | |
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119
latitude
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| n.纬度，行动或言论的自由(范围)，(pl.)地区 | |
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120
atmospheric
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| adj.大气的，空气的；大气层的；大气所引起的 | |
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121
emblematic
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| adj.象征的，可当标志的；象征性 | |
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122
celestial
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| adj.天体的；天上的 | |
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123
accurately
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| adv.准确地，精确地 | |
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intensity
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| n.强烈，剧烈；强度；烈度 | |
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125
forth
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| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
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126
perpendicular
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| adj.垂直的，直立的；n.垂直线，垂直的位置 | |
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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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128
peals
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| n.（声音大而持续或重复的）洪亮的响声( peal的名词复数 )；隆隆声；洪亮的钟声；钟乐v.（使）（钟等）鸣响，（雷等）发出隆隆声( peal的第三人称单数 ) | |
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129
penetrates
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| v.穿过( penetrate的第三人称单数 )；刺入；了解；渗透 | |
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130
penetrate
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| v.透(渗)入；刺入，刺穿；洞察，了解 | |
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131
latitudes
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| 纬度 | |
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132
exertion
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| n.尽力，努力 | |
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133
groves
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| 树丛，小树林( grove的名词复数 ) | |
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134
pulp
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| n.果肉，纸浆；v.化成纸浆，除去...果肉，制成纸浆 | |
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135
winding
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| n.绕，缠，绕组，线圈 | |
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136
waggons
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| 四轮的运货马车( waggon的名词复数 )； 铁路货车； 小手推车 | |
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137
ascend
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| vi.渐渐上升，升高；vt.攀登，登上 | |
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138
encroachment
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| n.侵入，蚕食 | |
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139
nutritious
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| adj.有营养的，营养价值高的 | |
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140
excavated
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| v.挖掘( excavate的过去式和过去分词 )；开凿；挖出；发掘 | |
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141
ascent
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| n.(声望或地位)提高；上升，升高；登高 | |
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142
entrusted
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| v.委托，托付( entrust的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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143
sanitary
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| adj.卫生方面的，卫生的，清洁的，卫生的 | |
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144
cleansed
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| 弄干净，清洗( cleanse的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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145
inorganic
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| adj.无生物的；无机的 | |
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146
impurity
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| n.不洁，不纯，杂质 | |
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147
aerated
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| v.使暴露于空气中，使充满气体( aerate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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148
emanating
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| v.从…处传出，传出( emanate的现在分词 )；产生，表现，显示 | |
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149
scatter
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| vt.撒，驱散，散开；散布/播；vi.分散，消散 | |
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150
scattering
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| n.[物]散射；散乱，分散；在媒介质中的散播adj.散乱的；分散在不同范围的；广泛扩散的；（选票）数量分散的v.散射(scatter的ing形式)；散布；驱散 | |
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151
impure
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| adj.不纯净的，不洁的；不道德的，下流的 | |
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152
cisterns
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| n.蓄水池，储水箱( cistern的名词复数 )；地下储水池 | |
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153
ascertain
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| vt.发现，确定，查明，弄清 | |
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154
exemption
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| n.豁免，免税额，免除 | |
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155
epidemic
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| n.流行病；盛行；adj.流行性的，流传极广的 | |
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156
formerly
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| adv.从前，以前 | |
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157
doctrine
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| n.教义；主义；学说 | |
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158
microscopic
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| adj.微小的，细微的，极小的，显微的 | |
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159
germinate
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| v.发芽；发生；发展 | |
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lining
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| n.衬里，衬料 | |
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161
impurities
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| 不纯( impurity的名词复数 )； 不洁； 淫秽； 杂质 | |
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162
inhaled
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| v.吸入( inhale的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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163
extirpation
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| n.消灭，根除，毁灭；摘除 | |
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isolation
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| n.隔离，孤立，分解，分离 | |
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confession
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| n.自白，供认，承认 | |
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166
disorders
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| n.混乱( disorder的名词复数 )；凌乱；骚乱；（身心、机能）失调 | |
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167
contagion
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| n.(通过接触的疾病)传染；蔓延 | |
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168
physiology
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| n.生理学，生理机能 | |
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169
infinitely
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| adv.无限地，无穷地 | |
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170
possessed
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| adj.疯狂的；拥有的，占有的 | |
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171
accomplished
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| adj.有才艺的；有造诣的；达到了的 | |
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172
physiologists
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| n.生理学者( physiologist的名词复数 )；生理学( physiology的名词复数 )；生理机能 | |
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173
fatigue
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| n.疲劳，劳累 | |
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174
remonstrance
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| n抗议，抱怨 | |
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175
obedience
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| n.服从，顺从 | |
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176
exhausted
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| adj.极其疲惫的，精疲力尽的 | |
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177
heartily
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| adv.衷心地，诚恳地，十分，很 | |
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178
regained
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| 复得( regain的过去式和过去分词 )； 赢回； 重回； 复至某地 | |
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179
crimson
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| n./adj.深(绯)红色(的)；vi.脸变绯红色 | |
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180
variegated
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| adj.斑驳的，杂色的 | |
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181
rendering
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| n.表现，描写 | |
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182
syrup
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| n.糖浆，糖水 | |
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183
secretions
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| n.分泌（物）( secretion的名词复数 ) | |
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184
petals
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| n.花瓣( petal的名词复数 ) | |
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185
subdued
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| adj. 屈服的，柔和的，减弱的 动词subdue的过去式和过去分词 | |
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186
countless
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| adj.无数的，多得不计其数的 | |
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187
distinguished
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| adj.卓越的，杰出的，著名的 | |
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188
swarm
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| n.(昆虫)等一大群；vi.成群飞舞；蜂拥而入 | |
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189
metaphor
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| n.隐喻，暗喻 | |
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190
distress
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| n.苦恼，痛苦，不舒适；不幸；vt.使悲痛 | |
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191
distressed
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| 痛苦的 | |
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192
penitent
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| adj.后悔的；n.后悔者；忏悔者 | |
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193
submission
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| n.服从，投降；温顺，谦虚；提出 | |
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194
inviting
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| adj.诱人的，引人注目的 | |
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195
blistered
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| adj.水疮状的，泡状的v.（使）起水泡( blister的过去式和过去分词 )；（使表皮等）涨破，爆裂 | |
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196
blisters
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| n.水疱( blister的名词复数 )；水肿；气泡 | |
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197
reconciliation
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| n.和解，和谐，一致 | |
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198
vexed
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| adj.争论不休的；（指问题等）棘手的；争论不休的问题；烦恼的v.使烦恼( vex的过去式和过去分词 )；使苦恼；使生气；详细讨论 | |
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199
hampers
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| 妨碍，束缚，限制( hamper的第三人称单数 ) | |
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200
prettily
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| adv.优美地；可爱地 | |
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201
humility
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| n.谦逊，谦恭 | |
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202
ironical
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| adj.讽刺的，冷嘲的 | |
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203
prodigal
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| adj.浪费的，挥霍的，放荡的 | |
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204
dissent
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| n./v.不同意，持异议 | |
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205
soothed
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| v.安慰( soothe的过去式和过去分词 )；抚慰；使舒服；减轻痛苦 | |
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206
coaxed
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| v.哄，用好话劝说( coax的过去式和过去分词 )；巧言骗取；哄劝，劝诱 | |
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perch
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| n.栖木，高位，杆；v.栖息，就位，位于 | |
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