CHAPTER VII THE EXPLOITERS AND THE EXPLOITED

The rails rose through the rocks to the oil derricks and the oil derricks rose to the sky. Dagny stood on the bridge, looking up at the crest¹ of the hill where the sun hit a spot of metal on the top of the highest rigging.  It looked like a white torch lighted over the snow on the ridges³ of Wyatt Oil. By spring, she thought, the track would meet the line growing toward it from Cheyenne. She let her eyes follow the green-blue rails that started from the derricks, came down, went across the bridge and past her. She turned her head to follow them through the miles of clear air, as they went on in great curves hung on the sides of the mountains, far to the end of the new track, where a locomotive crane, like an arm of naked bones and nerves, moved tensely against the sky.  A tractor went past her, loaded with green-blue bolts. The sound of drills came as a steady shudder⁶ from far below, where men swung on metal cables, cutting the straight stone drop of the canyon⁷ wall to reinforce the abutments of the bridge. Down the track, she could see men working, their arms stiff with the tension of their muscles as they gripped the handles of electric tie tampers⁸.  "Muscles, Miss Taggart," Ben Nealy, the contractor⁹, had said to her, "muscles-that's all it takes to build anything in the world."  No contractor equal to McNamara seemed to exist anywhere. She had taken the best she could find. No engineer on the Taggart staff could be trusted to supervise the job; all of them were skeptical¹¹ about the new metal. "Frankly¹², Miss Taggart," her chief engineer had said, "since it is an experiment that nobody has ever attempted before, I do not think it's fair that it should be my responsibility." 'It's mine," she had answered. He was a man in his forties, who still preserved the breezy manner of the college from which he had graduated. Once, Taggart Transcontinental had had a chief engineer, a silent, gray-haired, self educated man, who could not be matched on any railroad. He had resigned, five years ago.  She glanced down over the bridge. She was standing¹³ on a slender beam of steel above a gorge¹⁴ that had cracked the mountains to a depth of fifteen hundred feet. Far at the bottom, she could distinguish the dim outlines of a dry river bed, of piled boulders¹⁵, of trees contorted by centuries. She wondered whether boulders, tree trunks and muscles could ever bridge that canyon. She wondered why she found herself thinking suddenly that cave-dwellers had lived naked on the bottom of that canyon for ages.  She looked up at the Wyatt oil fields. The track broke into sidings among the wells. She saw the small disks of switches dotted against the snow. They were metal switches, of the kind that were scattered¹⁶ in thousands, unnoticed, throughout the country-but these were sparkling in the sun and the sparks were greenish-blue. What they meant to her was hour upon hour of speaking quietly, evenly, patiently, trying to hit the center less target that was the person of Mr. Mowen, president of the Amalgamated¹⁷ Switch and Signal Company, Inc., of Connecticut. "But, Miss Taggart, my dear Miss Taggart! My company has served your company for generations, why, your grandfather was the first customer of my grandfather, so you cannot doubt our eagerness to do anything you ask, but-did you say switches made of Rearden Metal?"  "Yes."  "But, Miss Taggart! Consider what it would mean, having to work with that metal. Do you know that the stuff won't melt under less than four thousand degrees? . . . Great? Well, maybe that's great for motor manufacturers, but what I'm thinking of is that it means a new type of furnace, a new process entirely¹⁸, men to be trained, schedules upset, work rules shot, everything balled up and then God only knows whether it will come out right or not! . . . How do you know, Miss Taggart? How can you know, when it's never been done before? . . . Well, I can't say that that metal is good and I can't say that it isn't. . . . Well, no, I can't tell whether it's a product of genius, as you say, or just another fraud as a great many people are saying, Miss Taggart, a great many. . . . Well, no, I can't say that it does matter one way or the other, because who am I to take a chance on a job of this kind?"  She had doubled the price of her order. Rearden had sent two metallurgists to train Mowen's men, to teach, to show, to explain every step of the process, and had paid the salaries of Mowen's men while they were being trained.  She looked at the spikes¹⁹ in the rail at her feet. They meant the night when she had heard that Summit Casting of Illinois, the only company willing to make spikes of Rearden Metal, had gone bankrupt, with half of her order undelivered. She had flown to Chicago, that night, she had got three lawyers, a judge and a state legislator out of bed, she had bribed²¹ two of them and threatened the others, she had obtained a paper that was an emergency permit of a legality no one would ever be able to untangle, she had had the padlocked doors of the Summit Casting plant unlocked and a random²², half-dressed crew working at the smelters before the windows had turned gray with daylight. The crews had remained at work, under a Taggart engineer and a Rearden metallurgist. The rebuilding of the Rio Norte Line was not held up.  She listened to the sound of the drills. The work had been held up once, when the drilling for the bridge abutments was stepped. "I couldn't help it, Miss Taggart," Ben Nealy had said, offended. "You know how fast drill heads wear out. I had them on order, but Incorporated Tool ran into a little trouble, they couldn't help it either, Associated Steel was delayed in delivering the steel to them, so there's nothing we can do but wait. It's no use getting upset, Miss Taggart, I'm doing my best."  "I've hired you to do a job, not to do your best-whatever that is."  "That's a funny thing to say. That's an unpopular attitude, Miss Taggart, mighty²³ unpopular."  "Forget Incorporated Tool. Forget the steel. Order the doll heads made of Rearden Metal."  "Not me. I've had enough trouble with the damn stuff in that rail of yours. I'm not going to mess up my own equipment."  "A drill head of Rearden Metal will outlast²⁴ three of steel."  "Maybe."  "I said order them made."  "Who's going to pay for it?"  "I am."  "Who's going to find somebody to make them?"  She had telephoned Rearden. He had found an abandoned tool plant, long since out of business. Within an hour, he had purchased it from the relatives of its last owner. Within a day, the plant had been reopened. Within a week, drill heads of Rearden Metal lad been delivered to the bridge in Colorado.  She looked at the bridge. It represented a problem badly solved, but she had had to accept it. The bridge, twelve hundred feet of steel across the black gap, was built in the days of Nat Taggart's son. It was long past the stage of safety; it had been patched with stringers of steel, then of iron, then of wood; it was barely worth the patching.  She had thought of a new bridge of Rearden Metal. She had asked her chief engineer to submit a design and an estimate of the cost.  The design he had submitted was the scheme of a steel bridge badly scaled down to the greater strength of the new metal; the cost made the project impossible to consider.  "I beg your pardon, Miss Taggart," he had said, offended. "I don't know what you mean when you say that I haven't made use of the metal. This design is an adaptation of the best bridges on record. What else did you expect?"  "A new method of construction."  "What do you mean, a new method?"  "I mean that when men got structural²⁵ steel, they did not use it to build steel copies of wooden bridges." She had added wearily, "Get me an estimate on what we'll need to make our old bridge last for another five years."  "Yes, Miss Taggart," he had said cheerfully. "If we reinforce it with steel-"  "We'll reinforce it with Rearden Metal."  "Yes, Miss Taggart," he had said coldly.  She looked at the snow-covered mountains. Her job had seemed hard at times, in New York. She had stopped for blank moments in the middle of her office, paralyzed by despair at the rigidity²⁶ of time which she could not stretch any further-on a day when urgent appointments had succeeded one another, when she had discussed worn Diesels²⁷, rotting freight cars, failing signal systems, falling revenues, while thinking of the latest emergency on the Rio Norte construction; when she had talked, with the vision of two streaks²⁸ of green-blue metal cutting across her mind; when she had interrupted the discussions, realizing suddenly why a certain news item had disturbed her, and seized the telephone receiver to call long-distance, to call her contractor, to say, "Where do you get the food from, for your men? . . . I thought so. Well, Barton and Jones of Denver went bankrupt yesterday. Better find another supplier at once, if you don't want to have a famine on your hands." She had been building the line from her desk in New York. It had seemed hard. But now she was looking at the track. It was growing. It would be done on time.  She heard sharp, hurried footsteps, and turned. A man was coming up the track. He was tall and young, his head of black hair was hatless in the cold wind, he wore a workman's leather jacket, but he did not look like a workman, there was too imperious an assurance in the way he walked. She could not recognize the face until he came closer. It was Ellis Wyatt. She had not seen him since that one interview in her office.  He approached, stopped, looked at her and smiled.  "Hello, Dagny," he said.  In a single shock of emotion, she knew everything the two words were intended to tell her. It was forgiveness, understanding, acknowledgment. It was a salute²⁹.  She laughed, like a child, in happiness that things should be as right as that.  "Hello," she said, extending her hand.  His hand held hers an instant longer than a greeting required. It was their signature under a score settled and understood.  "Tell Nealy to put up new snow fences for a mile and a half on Granada Pass," he said. "The old ones are rotted. They won't stand through another storm. Send him a rotary³⁰ plow³¹. What he's got is a piece of junk that wouldn't sweep a back yard. The big snows are coming any day now."  She considered him for a moment. "How often have you been doing this?" she asked, "What?"  "Coming to watch the work."  "Every now and then. When I have the time. Why?"  "Were you here the night when they had the rock slide?"  "Yes."  "I was surprised how quickly and well they cleared the track, when I got the reports about it. It made me think that Nealy was a better man than I had thought."  "He isn't."  "Was it you who organized the system of moving his day's supplies down to the line?"  "Sure. His men used to spend half their time hunting for things.  Tell him to watch his water tanks. They'll freeze on him one of these nights. See if you can get him a new ditcher. I don't like the looks of the one he's got. Check on his wiring system."  She looked at him for a moment. "Thanks, Ellis," she said.  He smiled and walked on. She watched him as he walked across the bridge, as he started up the long rise toward his derricks.  "He thinks he owns the place, doesn't he?"  She turned, startled. Ben Nealy had approached her; his thumb was pointing at Ellis Wyatt.  "What place?"  "The railroad, Miss Taggart. Your railroad. Or the whole world maybe. That's what he thinks."  Ben Nealy was a bulky man with a soft, sullen³² face. His eyes were stubborn and blank. In die bluish light of the snow, his skin had the tinge³³ of butter.  "What does he keep hanging around here for?" he said. "As if nobody knew their business but him. The snooty show-off. Who does he think he is?"  "God damn you," said Dagny evenly, not raising her voice.  Nealy could never know what had made her say it. But some part of him, in some way of his own, knew it: the shocking thing to her was that he was not shocked. He said nothing.  "Let's go to your quarters," she said wearily, pointing to an old railway coach on a spur in the distance. "Have somebody there to take notes."  "Now about those crossties, Miss Taggart," he said hastily as they started. "Mr. Coleman of your office okayed them. He didn't say anything about too much bark. I don't see why you think they're-"  "I said you're going to replace them."  When she came out of the coach, exhausted³⁴ by two hours of effort to be patient, to instruct, to explain-she saw an automobile³⁵ parked on the torn dirt road below, a black two-seater, sparkling and new. A new car was an astonishing sight anywhere; one did not see them often.  She glanced around and gasped³⁷ at the sight of the tall figure standing at the foot of the bridge. It was Hank Rearden; she had not expected to find him in Colorado. He seemed absorbed in calculations, pencil and notebook in hand. His clothes attracted attention, like his car and for the same reason; he wore a simple trenchcoat and a hat with a slanting³⁸ brim, but they were of such good quality, so flagrantly expensive that they appeared ostentatious among the seedy garments of the crowds everywhere, the more ostentatious because worn so naturally.  She noticed suddenly that she was running toward him; she had lost all trace of exhaustion³⁹. Then she remembered that she had not seen him since the party. She stopped.  He saw her, he waved to her in a gesture of pleased, astonished greeting, and he walked forward to meet her. He was smiling.  "Hello," he said. "Your first trip to the job?"  "My fifth, in three months."  "I didn't know you were here. Nobody told me."  "I thought you'd break down some day."  "Break down?"  "Enough to come and see this. There's your Metal. How do you like it?"  He glanced around. "If you ever decide to quit the railroad business, let me know."  "You'd give me a job?"  "Any time."  She looked at him for a moment. "You're only half-kidding, Hank. I think you'd like it-having me ask you for a job. Having me for an employee instead of a customer. Giving me orders to obey."  "Yes. I would."  She said, her face hard, "Don't quit the steel business, I won't promise you a job on the railroad."  He laughed. "Don't try it."  "What?"  "To win any battle when I set the terms."  She did not answer. She was struck by what the words made her feel; it was not an emotion, but a physical sensation of pleasure, which she could not name or understand.  "Incidentally," he said, "this is not my first trip. I was here yesterday."  "You were? Why?"  "Oh, I came to Colorado on some business of my own, so I thought I'd take a look at this."  "What are you after?"  "Why do you assume that I'm after anything?"  "You wouldn't waste time coming here just to look. Not twice."  He laughed. "True." He pointed⁴⁰ at the bridge. "I'm after that."  "What about it?"  "It's ready for the scrap⁴¹ heap."  "Do you suppose that I don't know it?"  "I saw the specifications⁴² of your order for Rearden Metal members for that bridge. You're wasting your money. The difference between what you're planning to spend on a makeshift that will last a couple of years, and the cost of a new Rearden Metal bridge, is comparatively so little that I don't see why you want to bother preserving this museum piece."  "I've thought of a new Rearden Metal bridge, I've had my engineers give me an estimate."  "What did they tell you?"  "Two million dollars."  "Good God!"  "What would you say?"  "Eight hundred thousand."  She looked at him. She knew that he never spoke⁴³ idly. She asked, trying to sound calm, "How?"  "Like this."  He showed her his notebook. She saw the disjoined notations⁴⁴ he had made, a great many figures, a few rough sketches⁴⁵. She understood his scheme before he had finished explaining it. She did not notice that they had sat down, that they were sitting on a pile of frozen lumber⁴⁶, that her legs were pressed to the rough planks⁴⁷ and she could feel the cold through her thin stockings. They were bent⁴⁹ together over a few scraps⁵⁰ of paper which could make it possible for thousands of tons of freight to cross a cut of empty space. His voice sounded sharp and clear, while he explained thrusts, pulls, loads, wind pressures. The bridge was to be a single twelve-hundred-foot truss span. He had devised a new type of truss. It had never been made before and could not be made except with members that had the strength and the lightness of Rearden Metal.  "Hank," she asked, "did you invent this in two days?"  "Hell, no. I 'invented' it long before I had Rearden Metal. I figured it out while making steel for bridges. I wanted a metal with which one would be able to do this, among other things. I came here just to see your particular problem for myself."  He chuckled⁵², when he saw the slow movement of her hand across her eyes and the line of bitterness in the set of her mouth, as if she were trying to wipe out the things against which she had fought such an exhausting, cheerless battle.  "This is only a rough scheme," he said, "but I believe you see what can be done?"  "I can't tell you all that I see, Hank."  "Don't bother. I know it."  "You're saving Taggart Transcontinental for the second time."  "You used to be a better psychologist than that."  "What do you mean?"  "Why should I give a damn about saving Taggart Transcontinental?  Don't you know that I want to have a bridge of Rearden Metal to show the country?"  "Yes, Hank. I know it."  "There are too many people yelping⁵³ that rails of Rearden Metal are unsafe. So I thought I'd give them something real to yelp⁵⁴ about. Let them see a bridge of Rearden Metal."  She looked at him and laughed aloud in simple delight.  "Now what's that?" he asked.  "Hank, I don't know anyone, not anyone in the world, who'd think of such an answer to people, in such circumstances-except you."  "What about you? Would you want to make the answer with me and face the same screaming?"  "You knew I would."  "Yes. I knew it."  He glanced at her, his eyes narrowed; he did not laugh as she had, but the glance was an equivalent.  She remembered suddenly their last meeting, at the party. The memory seemed incredible. Their ease with each other-the strange, light-headed feeling, which included the knowledge that it was the only sense of ease either of them found anywhere-made the thought of hostility⁵⁵ impossible. Yet she knew that the party had taken place; he acted as if it had not.  They walked to the edge of the canyon. Together, they looked at the dark drop, at the rise of rock beyond it, at the sun high on the derricks of Wyatt Oil. She stood, her feet apart on the frozen stones, braced⁵⁶ firmly against the wind. She could feel, without touching⁵⁷ it, the line of his chest behind her shoulder. The wind beat her coat against his legs.  "Hank, do you think we can build it in time? There are only six months left."  "Sure. It will take less time and labor⁵⁸ than any other type of bridge.  Let me have my engineers work out the basic scheme and submit it to you. No obligation on your part. Just take a look at it and see for yourself whether you'll be able to afford it. You will. Then you can let your college boys work out the details."  "What about the Metal?"  "I'll get the Metal rolled if I have to throw every other order out of the mills."  "You'll get it rolled on so short a notice?"  "Have I ever held you up on an order?"  "No. But the way things are going nowadays, you might not be able to help it."  "Who do you think you're talking to-Orren Boyle?"  She laughed. "All right. Let me have the drawings as soon as possible. I'll take a look and let you know within forty-eight hours. As to my college boys, they-" She stopped, frowning. "Hank, why is it so hard to find good men for any job nowadays?"  "I don't know . . ."  He looked at the lines of the mountains cut across the sky. A thin jet of smoke was rising from a distant valley.  "Have you seen the new towns of Colorado and the factories?" he asked.  "Yes."  "It's great, isn't it?-to see the kind of men they've gathered here from every corner of the country. All of them young, all of them starting on a shoestring⁶⁰ and moving mountains."  "What mountain have you decided⁶¹ to move?"  "Why?"  "What are you doing in Colorado?"  He smiled. "Looking at a mining property."  "What sort?"  "Copper⁶²."  "Good God, don't you have enough to do?"  "I know it's a complicated job. But the supply of copper is becoming completely unreliable. There doesn't seem to be a single first-rate company left in the business in this country-and I don't want to deal with d'Anconia Copper. I don't trust that playboy."  "I don't blame you," she said, looking away.  "So if there's no competent person left to do it, I'll have to mine my own copper, as I mine my own iron ore. I can't take any chances on being held up by all those failures and shortages. I need a great deal of copper for Rearden Metal."  "Have you bought the mine?"  "Not yet. There are a few problems to solve. Getting the men, the equipment, the transportation."  "Oh . . . !" She chuckled. "Going to speak to me about building a branch line?"  "Might. There's no limit to what's possible in this state. Do you know that they have every kind of natural resource here, waiting, untouched? And the way their factories are growing! I feel ten years younger when I come here."  "I don't." She was looking east, past the mountains. "I think of the contrast, all over the rest of the Taggart system. There's less to carry, less tonnage produced each year. It's as if . . . Hank, what's wrong with the country?"  "I don't know."  "I keep thinking of what they told us in school about the sun losing energy, growing colder each year. I remember wondering, then, what it would be like in the last days of the world. I think it would be . . . like this. Growing colder and things stopping."  "I never believed that story. I thought by the time the sun was exhausted, men would find a substitute."  "You did? Funny. I thought that, too."  He pointed at the column of smoke. "There's your new sunrise. It's going to feed the rest."  "If it's not stopped."  "Do you think it can be stopped?"  She looked at the rail under her feet. "No," she said.  He smiled. He looked down at the rail, then let his eyes move along the track, up the sides of the mountains, to the distant crane. She saw two things, as if, for a moment, the two stood alone in her field of vision: the lines of his profile and the green-blue cord coiling through space.  "We've done it, haven't we?" he said.  In payment for every effort, for every sleepless⁶³ night, for every silent thrust against despair, this moment was all she wanted. "Yes. We have."  She looked away, noticed an old crane on a siding, and thought that its cables were worn and would need replacing: This was the great clarity of being beyond emotion, after the reward of having felt everything one could feel. Their achievement, she thought, and one moment of acknowledging it, of possessing it together-what greater intimacy⁶⁴ could one share? Now she was free for the simplest, most commonplace concerns of the moment, because nothing could be meaningless within her sight.  She wondered what made her certain that he felt as she did. He turned abruptly⁶⁶ and started toward his car. She followed. They did not look at each other.  "I'm due to leave for the East in an hour," he said.  She pointed at the car. "Where did you get that?"  "Here. It's a Hammond. Hammond of Colorado-they're the only people who're still making a good car. I just bought it, on this trip."  "Wonderful job."  "Yes, isn't it?"  "Going to drive it back to New York?"  "No. Tm having it shipped. I flew my plane down here."  "Oh, you did? I drove down from Cheyenne-I had to see the line -but I'm anxious to get home as fast as possible. Would you take me along? Can I fly back with you?"  He did not answer at once. She noticed the empty moment of a pause. "I'm sorry," he said; she wondered whether she imagined the note of abruptness⁶⁷ in his voice. "I'm not flying back to New York. I'm going to Minnesota."  "Oh well, then I'll try to get on an air liner, if I can find one today."  She watched his car vanish down the winding⁶⁸ road. She drove to the airport an hour later. The place was a small field at the bottom of a break in the desolate⁶⁹ chain of mountains. There were patches of snow on the hard, pitted earth. The pole of a beacon⁷⁰ stood at one side, trailing wires to the ground; the other poles had been knocked down by a storm.  A lonely attendant came to meet her. "No, Miss Taggart," he said regretfully, "no planes till day after tomorrow. There's only one transcontinental liner every two days, you know, and the one that was due today has been grounded, down in Arizona. Engine trouble, as usual." He added, "It's a pity you didn't get here a bit sooner. Mr. Rearden took off for New York, in his private plane, just a little while ago."  "He wasn't flying to New York, was be?"  "Why, yes. He said so."  "Are you sure?"  "He said he had an appointment there tonight."  She looked at the sky to the east, blankly, without moving. She had no clue to any reason, nothing to give her a foothold, nothing with which to weigh this or fight it or understand.  "Damn these streets!" said James Taggart. "We're going to be late."  Dagny glanced ahead, past the back of the chauffeur⁷¹. Through the circle made by a windshield wiper on the sleet⁷²-streaked glass, she saw black, worn, glistening⁷³ car tops strung in a motionless line. Far ahead, the smear⁷⁴ of a red lantern, low over the ground, marked a street excavation⁷⁵.  "There's something wrong on every other street," said Taggart irritably⁷⁶. "Why doesn't somebody fix them?"  She leaned back against the seat, tightening⁷⁷ the collar of her wrap.  She felt exhausted at the end of a day she had started at her desk, in her office, at seven A.M.; a day she had broken off, uncompleted, to rush home and dress, because she had promised Jim to speak at the dinner of the New York Business Council "They want us to give them a talk about Rearden Metal," he had said. "You can do it so much better than I. It's very important that we present a good case. There's such a controversy⁷⁸ about Rearden Metal."  Sitting beside him in his car, she regretted that she had agreed. She looked at the streets of New York and thought of the race between metal and time, between the rails of the Rio Norte Line and the passing days. She felt as if her nerves were being pulled tight by the stillness of the car, by the guilt⁷⁹ of wasting an evening when she could not afford to waste an hour.  "With all those attacks on Rearden that one hears everywhere," said Taggart, "he might need a few friends."  She glanced at him incredulously. "You mean you want to stand by him?"  He did not answer at once; he asked, his voice bleak⁸⁰, "That report of the special committee of the National Council of Metal Industries-what do you think of it?"  "You know what I think of it."  "They said Rearden Metal is a threat to public safety. They said its chemical composition is unsound, it's brittle⁸¹, it's decomposing⁸² molecularly⁸³, and it will crack suddenly, without warning . . ." He stopped, as if begging for an answer. She did not answer. He asked anxiously, "You haven't changed your mind about it, have you?"  "About what?"  "About that metal."  "No, Jim, I have not changed my mind."  "They're experts, though . . . the men on that committee. . . . Top experts . . . Chief metallurgists for the biggest corporations, with a string of degrees from universities all over the country . . ." He said it unhappily, as if he were begging her to make him doubt these men and their verdict.  She watched him, puzzled; this was not like him.  The car jerked forward. It moved slowly through a gap in a plank⁴⁸ barrier, past the hole of a broken water main. She saw the new pipe stacked by the excavation; the pipe bore a trademark⁸⁵: Stockton Foundry, Colorado. She looked away; she wished she were not reminded of Colorado.  "I can't understand it . . ." said Taggart miserably⁸⁶. "The top experts of the National Council of Metal Industries . . ."  "Who's the president of the National Council of Metal Industries, Jim? Orren Boyle, isn't it?"  Taggart did not turn to her, but his jaw⁸⁷ snapped open. "If that fat slob thinks he can-" he started, but stopped and did not finish.  She looked up at a street lamp on the corner. It was a globe of glass filled with light. It hung, secure from storm, lighting⁸⁸ boarded windows and cracked sidewalks, as their only guardian⁸⁹. At the end of the street, across the river, against the glow of a factory, she saw the thin tracing of a power station. A truck went by, hiding her view. It was the kind of truck that fed the power station-a tank truck, its bright new paint impervious⁹⁰ to sleet, green with white letters: Wyatt Oil, Colorado.  "Dagny, have you heard about that discussion at the structural steel workers' union meeting in Detroit?"  "No. What discussion?"  "It was in all the newspapers. They debated whether their members should or should not be permitted to work with Rearden Metal.  They didn't reach a decision, but that was enough for the contractor who was going to take a chance on Rearden Metal. He cancelled his order, but fast! . . . What if . . . what if everybody decides against it?"  "Let them."  A dot of light was rising in a straight line to the top of an invisible tower. It was the elevator of a great hotel. The car went past the building's alley⁵⁹. Men were moving a heavy, crated⁹² piece of equipment from a truck into the basement. She saw the name on the crate⁹¹: Nielsen Motors, Colorado.  "I don't like that resolution passed by the convention of the grade school teachers of New Mexico," said Taggart.  "What resolution?"  "They resolved that it was their opinion that children should not be permitted to ride on the new Rio Norte Line of Taggart Transcontinental when it's completed, because it is unsafe. . . . They said it specifically, the new line of Taggart Transcontinental. It was in all the newspapers. It's terrible publicity⁹³ for us. . . . Dagny, what do you think we should do to answer them?"  "Run the first train on the new Rio Norte Line."  He remained silent for a long time. He looked strangely dejected.  She could not understand it: he did not gloat, he did not use the opinions of his favorite authorities against her, he seemed to be pleading for reassurance⁹⁴.  A car flashed past them; she had a moment's glimpse of power-a smooth, confident motion and a shining body. She knew the make of the car: Hammond, Colorado.  "Dagny, are we . . . are we going to have that line built . . . on time?"  It was strange to hear a note of plain emotion in his voice, the uncomplicated sound of animal fear.  "God help this city, if we don't!" she answered.  The car turned a corner. Above the black roofs of the city, she saw the page of the calendar, hit by the white glare of a spotlight⁹⁵. It said: January 29.  "Dan Conway is a bastard⁹⁶!"  The words broke out suddenly, as if he could not hold them any longer.  She looked at him, bewildered. "Why?"  "He refused to sell us the Colorado track of the Phoenix-Durango."  "You didn't-" She had to stop. She started again, keeping her voice flat in order not to scream. "You haven't approached him about it?"  "Of course I have!"  "You didn't expect him . . . to sell it . . . to you?"  "Why not?" His hysterically⁹⁷ belligerent⁹⁸ manner was back, "I offered him more than anybody else did. We wouldn't have had the expense of tearing it up and carting it off, we could have used it as is. And it would have been wonderful publicity for us-that we're giving up the Rearden Metal track in deference⁹⁹ to public opinion. It would have been worth every penny of it in good will! But the son of a bitch refused. He's actually declared that not a foot of rail would be sold to Taggart Transcontinental. He's selling it piecemeal¹⁰⁰ to any stray comer, to one-horse railroads in Arkansas or North Dakota, selling it at a loss, way under what I offered him, the bastard! Doesn't even want to take a profit! And you should see those vultures flocking to him! They know they'd never have a chance to get rail anywhere else!"  She sat, her head bowed. She could not bear to look at him.  "I think it's contrary to the intent of the Anti-dog-cat-dog Rule," he said angrily. "I think it was the intent and purpose of the National Alliance of Railroads to protect the essential systems, not the jerkwaters of North Dakota. But I can't get the Alliance to vote on it now, because they're all down there, outbidding one another for that rail!"  She said slowly, as if she wished it were possible to wear gloves to handle the words, "I see why you want me to defend Rearden Metal."  "I don't know what you're-"  "Shut up, Jim," she said quietly.  He remained silent for a moment. Then he drew his head back and drawled defiantly¹⁰¹, "You'd better do a good job of defending Rearden Metal, because Bertram Scudder can get pretty sarcastic¹⁰²."  "Bertram Scudder?"  "He's going to be one of the speakers tonight."  "One of the . . . You didn't tell me there were to be other speakers."  "Well . . . I . . . What difference does that make? You're not afraid of him, are you?"  "The New York Business Council . . . and you invite Bertram Scudder?"  "Why not? Don't you think it's smart? He doesn't have any hard feelings toward businessmen, not really. He's accepted the invitation.  We want to be broad-minded and hear all sides and maybe win him over. . . . Well, what are you staring at? You'll be able to beat him, won't you?"  ". . . to beat him?"  "On the air. It's going to be a radio broadcast. You're going to debate with him the question: 'Is Rearden Metal a lethal¹⁰³ product of greed?' "  She leaned forward. She pulled open the glass partition of the front seat, ordering, "Stop the car!"  She did not hear what Taggart was saying. She noticed dimly that his voice rose to screams: "They're waiting! . . . Five hundred people at the dinner, and a national hook-up! . . . You can't do this to me!"  He seized her arm, screaming, "But why?"  "You goddamn fool, do you think I consider their question debatable?"  The car stopped, she leaped out and ran.  The first tiling she noticed after a while, was her slippers¹⁰⁵. She was walking slowly, normally, and it was strange to feel iced stone under the thin soles of black satin sandals. She pushed her hair back, off her forehead, and felt drops of sleet melting on her palm.  She was quiet now; the blinding anger was gone; she felt nothing but a gray weariness. Her head ached a little, she realized that she was hungry and remembered that she was to have had dinner at the Business Council. She walked on. She did not want to eat. She thought she would get a cup of coffee somewhere, then take a cab home.  She glanced around her. There were no cabs in sight. She did not know the neighborhood. It did not seem to be a good one. She saw an empty stretch of space across the street, an abandoned park encircled by a jagged line that began as distant skyscrapers¹⁰⁶ and came down to factory chimneys; she saw a few lights in the windows of dilapidated houses, a few small, grimy shops closed for the night, and the fog of the East River two blocks away.  She started back toward the center of the city. The black shape of a ruin rose before her. It had been an office building, long ago; she saw the sky through the naked steel skeleton and the angular remnants of the bricks that had crumbled¹⁰⁷. In the shadow of the ruin, like a blade of grass fighting to live at the roots of a dead giant, there stood a small diner. Its windows were a bright band of glass and light. She went in.  There was a clean counter inside, with a shining strip of chromium at the edges. There was a bright metal boiler¹⁰⁸ and the odor of coffee. A few derelicts sat at the counter, a husky, elderly man stood behind it, the sleeves of his clean white shirt rolled at the elbows. The warm air made her realize, in simple gratitude¹⁰⁹, that she had been cold. She pulled her black velvet¹¹⁰ cape¹¹¹ tight about her and sat down at the counter.  "A cup of coffee, please," she said.  The men looked at her without curiosity. They did not seem astonished to see a woman in evening clothes enter a slum diner; nothing astonished anyone, these days. The owner turned impassively to fill her order; there was, in his stolid¹¹² indifference¹¹³, the kind of mercifulness that asks no questions.  She could not tell whether the four at the counter were beggars or working men; neither clothes nor manner showed the difference, these days. The owner placed a mug of coffee before her. She closed both hands about it, finding enjoyment¹¹⁴ in its warmth.  She glanced around her and thought, in habitual¹¹⁵ professional calculation, how wonderful it was that one could buy so much for a dime¹¹⁶.  Her eyes moved from the stainless¹¹⁷ steel cylinder¹¹⁸ of the coffee boiler to the cast-iron griddle, to the glass shelves, to the enameled¹¹⁹ sink, to the chromium blades of a mixer. The owner was making toast. She found pleasure in watching the ingenuity¹²⁰ of an open belt that moved slowly, carrying slices of bread past glowing electric coils. Then she saw the name stamped on the toaster: Marsh¹²¹, Colorado.  Her head fell down on her arm on the counter.  "It's no use, lady," said the old bum¹²² beside her.  She had to raise her head. She had to smile in amusement, at him and at herself.  "It isn't?" she asked.  "No. Forget it. You're only fooling yourself."  "About what?"  "About anything being worth a damn. It's dust, lady, all of it, dust and blood. Don't believe the dreams they pump you full of, and you won't get hurt."  "What dreams?"  "The stories they tell you when you're young-about the human spirit. There isn't any human spirit. Man is just a low-grade animal, without intellect, without soul, without virtues¹²³ or moral values. An animal with only two capacities: to eat and to reproduce."  His gaunt face, with staring eyes and shrunken features that had been delicate, still retained a trace of distinction. He looked like the hulk of an evangelist or a professor of esthetics who had spent years in contemplation in obscure museums. She wondered what had destroyed him, what error on the way could bring a man to this.  "You go through life looking for beauty, for greatness, for some sublime¹²⁵ achievement," he said. "And what do you find? A lot of trick machinery¹²⁶ for making upholstered cars or inner-spring mattresses¹²⁷."  "What's wrong with inner-spring mattresses?" said a man who looked like a truck driver. "Don't mind him, lady. He likes to hear himself talk. He don't mean no harm."  "Man's only talent is an ignoble¹²⁸ cunning for satisfying the needs of his body," said the old bum. "No intelligence is required for that. Don't believe the stories about man's mind, his spirit, his ideals, his sense of unlimited¹²⁹ ambition."  "I don't," said a young boy who sat at the end of the counter. He wore a coat ripped across one shoulder; his square-shaped mouth seemed formed by the bitterness of a lifetime.  "Spirit?" said the old bum. "There's no spirit involved in manufacturing or in sex. Yet these are man's only concerns. Matter-that's all men know or care about. As witness our great industries-the only accomplishment¹³⁰ of our alleged¹³¹ civilization-built by vulgar materialists with the aims, the interests and the moral sense of hogs¹³². It doesn't take any morality to turn out a ten-ton truck on an assembly line."  "What is morality?" she asked.  "Judgment¹³³ to distinguish right and wrong, vision to see the truth, courage to act upon it, dedication¹³⁴ to that which is good, integrity to stand by the good at any price. But where does one find it?"  The young boy made a sound that was half-chuckle⁵¹, half-sneer¹³⁵: "Who is John Galt?"  She drank the coffee, concerned with nothing but the pleasure of feeling as if the hot liquid were reviving the arteries¹³⁶ of her body.  "I can tell you," said a small, shriveled tramp who wore a cap pulled low over his eyes. "I know."  Nobody heard him or paid any attention. The young boy was watching Dagny with a kind of fierce, purposeless intensity¹³⁷.  "You're not afraid," he said to her suddenly, without explanation, a fiat¹³⁸ statement in a brusque, lifeless voice that had a note of wonder.  She looked at him. "No," she said, "I'm not."  "I know who is John Galt," said the tramp. "It's a secret, but I know it."  "Who?" she asked without interest.  "An explorer," said the tramp. "The greatest explorer that ever lived. The man who found the fountain of youth."  "Give me another cup. Black," said the old bum, pushing his cup across the counter.  "John Galt spent years looking for it. He crossed oceans, and he crossed deserts, and he went down into forgotten mines, miles under the earth. But he found it on the top of a mountain. It took him ten years to climb that mountain. It broke every bone in his body, it tore the skin off his hands, it made him lose his home, his name, his love.  But he climbed it. He found the fountain of youth, which he wanted to bring down to men. Only he never came back."  "Why didn't he?" she asked.  "Because he found that it couldn't be brought down."  The man who sat in front of Rearden's desk had vague features and a manner devoid¹³⁹ of all emphasis, so that one could form no specific image of his face nor detect the driving motive⁵ of his person. His only mark of distinction seemed to be a bulbous nose, a bit too large for the rest of him; his manner was meek¹⁴⁰, but it conveyed a preposterous¹⁴¹ hint, the hint of a threat deliberately¹⁴² kept furtive¹⁴³, yet intended to be recognized. Rearden could not understand the purpose of his visit. He was Dr. Potter, who held some undefined position with the State Science Institute.  "What do you want?" Rearden asked for the third time.  "It is the social aspect that I am asking you to consider, Mr. Rearden," the man said softly, "I urge you to take note of the age we're living in. Our economy is not ready for it."  "For what?"  "Our economy is in a state of extremely precarious¹⁴⁴ equilibrium¹⁴⁵. We all have to pool our efforts to save it from collapse¹⁴⁶."  "Well, what is it you want me to do?"  "These are the considerations which I was asked to call to your attention. I am from the State Science Institute, Mr. Rearden."  "You've said so before. But what did you wish to see me about?"  "The State Science Institute does not hold a favorable opinion of Rearden Metal."  "You've said that, too."  "Isn't that a factor which you must take into consideration?"  "No."  The light was growing dim in the broad windows of the office. The days were short. Rearden saw the irregular shadow of the nose on the man's cheek, and the pale eyes watching him; the glance was vague, but its direction purposeful.  "The State Science Institute represents the best brains of the country, Mr. Rearden."  "So I'm told."  "Surely you do not want to pit your own judgment against theirs?"  "I do."  The man looked at Rearden as if pleading for help, as if Rearden had broken an unwritten code which demanded that he should have understood long ago. Rearden offered no help.  "Is this all you wanted to know?" he asked.  "It's only a question of time, Mr. Rearden," the man said placatingly¹⁴⁷. "Just a temporary delay. Just to give our economy a chance to get stabilized¹⁴⁸. If you'd only wait for a couple of years-"  Rearden chuckled, gaily¹⁴⁹, contemptuously. "So that's what you're after? Want me to take Rearden Metal off the market? Why?"  "Only for a few years, Mr. Rearden. Only until-"  "Look," said Rearden. "Now I'll ask you a question: did your scientists decide that Rearden Metal is not what I claim it is?"  "We have not committed ourselves as to that."  "Did they decide it's no good?"  "It is the social impact of a product that must be considered. We are thinking in terms of the country as a whole, we are concerned with the public welfare and the terrible crisis of the present moment, which-"  "Is Rearden Metal good or not?"  "If we view the picture from the angle of the alarming growth of unemployment, which at present-"  "Is Rearden Metal good?"  "At a time of desperate steel shortage, we cannot afford to permit the expansion of a steel company which produces too much, because it might throw out of business the companies which produce too little, thus creating an unbalanced economy which-"  "Are you going to answer my question?"  The man shrugged¹⁵⁰. "Questions of value are relative. If Rearden Metal is not good, it's a physical danger to the public. If it is good-it's a social danger."  "If you have anything to say to me about the physical danger of Rearden Metal, say it. drop the rest of it. Fast. I don't speak that language."  "But surely questions of social welfare-"  "drop it."  The man looked bewildered and lost, as if the ground had been cut from under his feet. In a moment, he asked helplessly, "But what, then, is your chief concern?"  "The market."  "How do you mean?"  "There's a market for Rearden Metal and I intend to take full advantage of it."  "Isn't the market somewhat hypothetical? The public response to your metal has not been encouraging. Except for the order from Taggart Transcontinental, you haven't obtained any major-"  "Well, then, if you think the public won't go for it, what are you worrying about?"  "If the public doesn't go for it, you will take a heavy loss, Mr. Rearden."  "That's my worry, not yours."  "Whereas, if you adopt a more co-operative attitude and agree to wait for a few years-"  "Why should I wait?"  "But I believe I have made it clear that the State Science Institute does not approve of the appearance of Rearden Metal on the metallurgical scene at the present time."  "Why should I give a damn about that?"  The man sighed. "You are a very difficult man, Mr. Rearden."  The sky of the late afternoon was growing heavy, as if thickening against the glass of the windowpanes. The outlines of the man's figure seemed to dissolve into a blob among the sharp, straight planes of the furniture.  "I gave you this appointment," said Rearden, "because you told me that you wished to discuss something of extreme importance. If this is all you had to say, you will please excuse me now. I am very busy."  The man settled back in his chair. "I believe you have spent ten years of research on Rearden Metal," he said. "How much has it cost you?"  Rearden glanced up: he could not understand the drift of the question, yet there was an undisguised purposefulness in the man's voice; the voice had hardened.  "One and a half million dollars," said Rearden.  "How much will you take for it?"  Rearden had to let a moment pass. He could not believe it. "For what?" he asked, his voice low.  "For all rights to Rearden Metal."  "I think you had better get out of here,"' said Rearden.  "There is no call for such an attitude. You are a businessman. I am offering you a business proposition. You may name your own price."  "The rights to Rearden Metal are not for sale."  "I am in a position to speak of large sums of money. Government money."  Rearden sat without moving, the muscles of his cheeks pulled tight; but his glance was indifferent, focused only by the faint pull of morbid¹⁵¹ curiosity.  "You are a businessman, Mr. Rearden. This is a proposition which you cannot afford to ignore. On the one hand, you are gambling¹⁵² against great odds¹⁵³, you are bucking¹⁵⁴ an unfavorable public opinion, you run a good chance of losing every penny you put into Rearden Metal. On the other hand, we can relieve you of the risk and the responsibility, at an impressive profit, an immediate¹⁵⁵ profit, much larger than you could hope to realize from the sale of the metal for the next twenty years."  "The State Science Institute is a scientific establishment, not a commercial one," said Rearden. "What is it that they're so afraid of?"  "You are using ugly, unnecessary words, Mr. Rearden. I am endeavoring to suggest that we keep the discussion on a friendly plane. The matter is serious."  "I am beginning to see that."  "We are offering you a blank check on what is, as you realize, an unlimited account. What else can you want? Name your price."  "The sale of the rights to Rearden Metal is not open to discussion. If you have anything else to say, please say it and leave."  The man leaned back, looked at Rearden incredulously and asked, "What are you after?"  "I? What do you mean?"  "You're in business to make money, aren't you?"  "I am."  "You want to make as big a profit as possible, don't you?"  "I do."  "Then why do you want to struggle for years, squeezing out your gains in the form of pennies per ton-rather than accept a fortune for Rearden Metal? Why?"  "Because it's mine. Do you understand the word?"  The man sighed and rose to his feet. "I hope you will not have cause to regret your decision, Mr. Rearden," he said; the tone of his voice was suggesting the opposite.  "Good day," said Rearden.  "I think I must tell you that the State Science Institute may issue an official statement condemning¹⁵⁶ Rearden Metal."  'That is their privilege."  "Such a statement would make things more difficult for you."  "Undoubtedly¹⁵⁷."  "As to further consequences . . ." The man shrugged. "This is not the day for people who refuse to co-operate. In this age, one needs friends. You are not a popular man, Mr. Rearden."  "What are you trying to say?"  "Surely, you understand."  "I don't."  "Society is a complex structure. There are so many different issues awaiting decision, hanging by a thin thread. We can never tell when one such issue may he decided and what may be the decisive factor in a delicate balance. Do I make myself clear?"  "No."  The red flame of poured steel shot through the twilight¹⁵⁸. An orange glow, the color of deep gold, hit the wall behind Rearden's desk.  The glow moved gently across his forehead. His face had an unmoving serenity¹⁵⁹.  "The State Science Institute is a government organization, Mr. Rearden. There are certain bills pending¹⁶⁰ in the Legislature, which may be passed at any moment. Businessmen are peculiarly vulnerable these days. I am sure you understand me."  Rearden rose to his feet. He was smiling. He looked as if all tension had left him.  "No, Dr. Potter," he said, "I don't understand. If I did, I'd have to kill you."  The man walked to the door, then stopped and looked at Rearden in a way which, for once, was simple human curiosity. Rearden stood motionless against the moving glow on the wall; he stood casually¹⁶¹, his hands in his pockets.  "Would you tell me," the man asked, "just between us, it's only my personal curiosity-why are you doing this?"  Rearden answered quietly, "I'll tell you. You won't understand. You see, it's because Rearden Metal is good."  Dagny could not understand Mr. Mowen's motive. The Amalgamated Switch and Signal Company had suddenly given notice that they would not complete her order. Nothing had happened, she could find no cause for it and they would give no explanation.  She had hurried to Connecticut, to see Mr. Mowen in person, but the sole result of the interview was a heavier, grayer weight of bewilderment in her mind. Mr. Mowen stated that he would not continue to make switches of Rearden Metal. For sole explanation, he said, avoiding her eyes, "Too many people don't like it."  "What? Rearden Metal or your making the switches?"  "Both, I guess . . . People don't like it . . . I don't want any trouble."  "What kind of trouble?"  "Any kind."  "Have you heard a single thing against Rearden Metal that's true?"  "Aw, who knows what's true? . . . That resolution of the National Council of Metal Industries said-"  "Look, you've worked with metals all your life. For the last four months, you've worked with Rearden Metal. Don't you know that it's the greatest thing you've ever handled?" He did not answer. "Don't you know it?" He looked away. "Don't you know what's true?"  "Hell, Miss Taggart, I'm in business, I'm only a little guy. I just want to make money."  "How do you think one makes it?"  But she knew that it was useless. Looking at Mr. Mowen's face, at the eyes which she could not catch, she felt as she had felt once on a lonely section of track, when a storm blew down the telephone wires: that communications were cut and that words had become sounds which transmitted nothing.  It was useless to argue, she thought, and to wonder about people who would neither refute an argument nor accept it. Sitting restlessly in the train, on her way back to New York, she told herself that Mr. Mowen did not matter, that nothing mattered now, except finding somebody else to manufacture the switches. She was wrestling with a list of names in her mind, wondering who would be easiest to convince, to beg or to bribe²⁰.  She knew, the moment she entered the anteroom of her office, that something had happened. She saw the unnatural¹⁶² stillness, with the faces of her staff turned to her as if her entrance were the moment they had all waited for, hoped for and dreaded¹⁶³.  Eddie Willers rose to his feet and started toward the door of her office, as if knowing that she would understand and follow. She had seen his face. No matter what it was, she thought, she wished it had not hurt him quite so badly.  "The State Science Institute," he said quietly, when they were alone in her office, "has issued a statement warning people against the use of Rearden Metal." He added, "It was on the radio. It's in the afternoon papers."  "What did they say?"  "Dagny, they didn't say it! . . . They haven't really said it, yet it's there-and it isn't. That's what's monstrous¹⁶⁴ about it."  His effort was focused on keeping his voice quiet; he could not control his words. The words were forced out of him by the unbelieving bewildered indignation of a child screaming in denial at his first encounter with evil.  "What did they say, Eddie?"  "They . . . You'd have to read it." He pointed to the newspaper he had left on her desk. "They haven't said that Rearden Metal is bad.  They haven't said that it's unsafe. What they've done is . . ." His hands spread and dropped in a gesture of futility¹⁶⁵.  She saw at a glance what they had done. She saw the sentences: "It may be possible that after a period of heavy usage, a sudden fissure¹⁶⁶ may appear, though the length of this period cannot be predicted. . . . The possibility of a molecular⁸⁴ reaction, at present unknown, cannot be entirely discounted. . . . Although the tensile strength of the metal is obviously demonstrable, certain questions in regard to its behavior under unusual stress are not to be ruled out.  . . . Although there is no evidence to support the contention¹⁶⁷ that the use of the metal should be prohibited, a further study of its properties would be of value."  "We can't fight it. It can't be answered," Eddie was saying slowly.  "We can't demand a retraction¹⁶⁸. We can't show them our tests or prove anything. They've said nothing. They haven't said a thing that could be refuted and embarrass them professionally. It's the job of a coward.  You'd expect it from some con-man or blackmailer¹⁶⁹. But, Dagny! It's the State Science Institute!"  She nodded silently. She stood, her eyes fixed¹⁷⁰ on some point beyond the window. At the end of a dark street, the bulbs of an electric sign kept going on and off, as if winking¹⁷¹ at her maliciously¹⁷².  Eddie gathered his strength and said in the tone of a military report, "Taggart stock has crashed. Ben Nealy quit. The National Brotherhood¹⁷³ of Road and Track Workers has forbidden its members to work on the Rio Norte Line. Jim has left town."  She took her hat and coat off, walked across the room and slowly, very deliberately sat down at her desk.  She noticed a large brown envelope lying before her; it bore the letterhead of Rearden Steel.  "That came by special messenger, right after you left," said Eddie.  She put her hand on the envelope, but did not open it. She knew what it was: the drawings of the bridge.  After a while, she asked, "Who issued that statement?"  Eddie glanced at her and smiled briefly¹⁷⁴, bitterly, shaking his head.  "No," he said. "I thought of that, too. I called the Institute long distance and asked them. No, it was issued by the office of Dr. Floyd Ferris, their co-ordinator."  She said nothing.  "But still! Dr. Stadler is the head of that Institute. He is the Institute. He must have known about it. He permitted it. If it's done, it's done in his name . . . Dr. Robert Stadler . . . Do you remember . . . when we were in college . . . how we used to talk about the great names in the world . . . the men of pure intellect . . . and we always chose his name as one of them, and-" He stopped. "I'm sorry, Dagny. I know it's no use saying anything. Only-"  She sat, her hand pressed to the brown envelope.  "Dagny," he asked, his voice low, "what is happening to people?  Why did that statement succeed? It's such an obvious smear-job, so obvious and so rotten. You'd think a decent person would throw it in the gutter¹⁷⁵. How could"-his voice was breaking in gentle, desperate, rebellious¹⁷⁶ anger-"how could they accept it? Didn't they read it?  Didn't they see? Don't they think? Dagny! What is it in people that lets them do this-and how can we live with it?"  "Quiet, Eddie," she said, "quiet. Don't be afraid."  The building of the State Science Institute stood over a river of New Hampshire, on a lonely hillside, halfway¹⁷⁷ between the river and the sky. From a distance, it looked like a solitary¹⁷⁸ monument in a virgin¹⁷⁹ forest. The trees were carefully planted, the roads were laid out as a park, the roof tops of a small town could be seen in a valley some miles away. But nothing had been allowed to come too close and detract from the building's austerity.  The white marble of the walls gave it a classical grandeur¹⁸⁰; the composition of its rectangular masses gave it the cleanliness and beauty of a modern plant. It was an inspired structure. From across the river, people looked at it with reverence¹⁸¹ and thought of it as a monument to a living man whose character had the nobility of the building's lines.  Over the entrance, a dedication was cut into the marble: "To the fearless mind. To the inviolate¹⁸² truth." In a quiet aisle¹⁸³, in a bare corridor, a small brass¹⁸⁴ plate, such as dozens of other name plates on other doors, said: Dr. Robert Stadler.  At the age of twenty-seven, Dr. Robert Stadler had written a treatise¹⁸⁵ on cosmic rays, which demolished¹⁸⁶ most of the theories held by the scientists who preceded him. Those who followed, found his achievement somewhere at the base of any line of inquiry¹⁸⁷ they undertook.  At the age of thirty, he was recognized as the greatest physicist¹⁸⁸ of his time. At thirty-two, he became head of the Department of Physics of the Patrick Henry University, in the days when the great University still deserved its glory. It was of Dr. Robert Stadler that a writer had said: "Perhaps, among the phenomena¹⁸⁹ of the universe which he is studying, none is so miraculous¹⁹⁰ as the brain of Dr. Robert Stadler himself." It was Dr. Robert Stadler who had once corrected a student: "Free scientific inquiry? The first adjective is redundant¹⁹¹."  At the age of forty, Dr. Robert Stadler addressed the nation, endorsing¹⁹² the establishment of a State Science Institute. "Set science free of the rule of the dollar," he pleaded. The issue had hung in the balance; an obscure group of scientists had quietly forced a bill through its long way to the floor of the Legislature; there had been some public hesitation¹⁹³ about the bill, some doubt, an uneasiness no one could define. The name of Dr. Robert Stadler acted upon the country like the cosmic rays he studied: it pierced any barrier. The nation built the white marble edifice¹⁹⁴ as a personal present to one of its greatest men.  Dr. Stadler's office at the Institute was a small room that looked like the office of the bookkeeper of an unsuccessful firm. There was a cheap desk of ugly yellow oak, a filing cabinet, two chairs, and a blackboard chalked with mathematical formulas. Sitting on one of the chairs against a blank wall, Dagny thought that the office had an air of ostentation¹⁹⁵ and elegance¹⁹⁶, together: ostentation, because it seemed intended to suggest that the owner was great enough to permit himself such a setting; elegance, because he truly needed nothing else.  She had met Dr. Stadler on a few occasions, at banquets given by leading businessmen or great engineering societies, in honor of some solemn cause or another. She had attended the occasions as reluctantly as he did, and had found that he liked to talk to her.  "Miss Taggart," he had said to her once, "I never expect to encounter intelligence. That I should find it here is such an astonishing relief!" She had come to his office, remembering that sentence. She sat, watching him in the manner of a scientist: assuming nothing, discarding emotion, seeking only to observe and to understand.  "Miss Taggart," he said gaily, "I'm curious about you, I'm curious whenever anything upsets a precedent¹⁹⁷. As a rule, visitors are a painful duty to me. I'm frankly astonished that I should feel such a simple pleasure in seeing you here. Do you know what it's like to feel suddenly that one can talk without the strain of trying to force some sort of understanding out of a vacuum?"  He sat on the edge of his desk, his manner gaily informal. He was not tall, and his slenderness gave him an air of youthful energy, almost of boyish zest¹⁹⁸. His thin face was ageless; it was a homely¹⁹⁹ face, but the great forehead and the large gray eyes held such an arresting intelligence that one could notice nothing else. There were wrinkles of humor in the corners of the eyes, and faint lines of bitterness in the corners of the mouth. He did not look like a man in his early fifties; the slightly graying hair was his only sign of age.  "Tell me more about yourself," he said. "I always meant to ask you what you're doing in such an unlikely career as heavy industry and how you can stand those people."  "I cannot take too much of your time, Dr. Stadler." She spoke with polite, impersonal²⁰⁰ precision. "And the matter I came to discuss is extremely important."  He laughed. "There's a sign of the businessman-wanting to come to the point at once. Well, by all means. But don't worry about my time-it's yours. Now, what was it you said you wanted to discuss? Oh yes. Rearden Metal. Not exactly one of the subjects on which I'm best informed, but if there's anything I can do for you-" His hand moved in a gesture of invitation.  "Do you know the statement issued by this Institute in regard to Rearden Metal?"  He frowned slightly. "Yes, I've heard about it."  "Have you read it?"  "No."  "It was intended to prevent the use of Rearden Metal."  "Yes, yes, I gathered that much."  "Could you tell me why?"  He spread his hands; they were attractive hands-long and bony, beautiful in their suggestion of nervous energy and strength. "I really wouldn't know. That is the province of Dr. Ferris. I'm sure he had his reasons. Would you like to speak to Dr. Ferris?"  "No. Are you familiar with the metallurgical nature of Rearden Metal, Dr. Stadler?"  "Why, yes, a little. But tell me, why are you concerned about it?"  A flicker²⁰¹ of astonishment²⁰² rose and died in her eyes; she answered without change in the impersonal tone of her voice, "I am building a branch line with rails of Rearden Metal, which-"  "Oh, but of course! I did hear something about it. You must forgive me, I don't read the newspapers as regularly as I should. It's your railroad that's building that new branch, isn't it?"  "The existence of my railroad depends upon the completion of that branch-and, I think," eventually, the existence of this country will depend on it as well."  The wrinkles of amusement deepened about his eyes. "Can you make such a statement with positive assurance, Miss Taggart? I couldn't."  "In this case?"  "In any case. Nobody can tell what the course of a country's future may be. It is not a matter of calculable trends, but a chaos²⁰⁴ subject to the rule of the moment, in which anything is possible."  "Do you think that production is necessary to the existence of a country, Dr. Stadler?"  "Why, yes, yes, of course."  "The building of our branch line has been stopped by the statement of this Institute."  He did not smile and he did not answer.  "Does that statement represent your conclusion about the nature of Rearden Metal?" she asked.  "I have said that I have not read it." There was an edge of sharpness in his voice.  She opened her bag, took out a newspaper clipping and extended it to him. "Would you read it and tell me whether this is a language which science may properly speak?"  He glanced through the clipping, smiled contemptuously and tossed it aside with a gesture of distaste. "Disgusting, isn't it?" he said. "But what can you do when you deal with people?"  She looked at him, not understanding. "You do not approve of that statement?"  He shrugged. "My approval or disapproval²⁰⁵ would be irrelevant²⁰⁶."  "Have you formed a conclusion of your own about Rearden Metal?"  "Well, metallurgy is not exactly-what shall we say?-my specialty²⁰⁷."  "Have you examined any data on Rearden Metal?"  "Miss Taggart, I don't see the point of your questions." His voice sounded faintly impatient.  "I would like to know your personal verdict on Rearden Metal,"  "For what purpose?"  "So that I may give it to the press."  He got up. "That is quite impossible."  She said, her voice strained with the effort of trying to force understanding, "I will submit to you all the information necessary to form a conclusive²⁰⁸ judgment."  "I cannot issue any public statements about it."  "Why not?"  "The situation is much too complex to explain in a casual discussion."  "But if you should find that Rearden Metal is, in fact, an extremely valuable product which-"  "That is beside the point."  "The value of Rearden Metal is beside the point?"  "There are other issues involved, besides questions of fact."  She asked, not quite believing that she had heard him right, "What other issues is science concerned with, besides questions of fact?"  The bitter lines of his mouth sharpened into the suggestion of a smile. "Miss Taggart, you do not understand the problems of scientists."  She said slowly, as if she were seeing it suddenly in time with her words, "I believe that you do know what Rearden Metal really is."  He shrugged. "Yes. I know. From such information as I've seen, it appears to be a remarkable²⁰⁹ thing. Quite a brilliant achievement-as far as technology is concerned." He was pacing impatiently across the office. "In fact, I should like, some day, to order a special laboratory motor that would stand just such high temperatures as Rearden Metal can take. It would be very valuable in connection with certain phenomena I should like to observe. I have found that when particles are accelerated to a speed approaching the speed of light, they-"  "Dr. Stadler," she asked slowly, "you know the truth, yet you will not state it publicly?"  "Miss Taggart, you are using an abstract term, when we are dealing²¹⁰ with a matter of practical reality."  "We are dealing with a matter of science."  "Science? Aren't you confusing the standards involved? It is only in the realm of pure science that truth is an absolute criterion. When we deal with applied²¹¹ science, with technology-we deal with people.  And when we deal with people, considerations other than truth enter the question."  "What considerations?"  "I am not a technologist, Miss Taggart. I have no talent or taste for dealing with people. I cannot become involved in so-called practical matters."  "That statement was issued in your name."  "I had nothing to do with it!"  "The name of this Institute is your responsibility."  "That's a perfectly²¹² unwarranted assumption."  "People think that the honor of your name is the guarantee behind any action of this Institute."  "I can't help what people think-if they think at all!"  "They accepted your statement. It was a lie."  "How can one deal in truth when one deals with the public?"  "I don't understand you," she said very quietly.  "Questions of truth do not enter into social issues. No principles have ever had any effect on society."  "What, then, directs men's actions?"  He shrugged. "The expediency²¹³ of the moment."  "Dr. Stadler," she said, "I think I must tell you the meaning and the consequences of the fact that the construction of my branch line is being stopped. I am stopped, in the name of public safety, because I am using the best rail ever produced. In six months, if I do not complete that line, the best industrial section of the country will be left without transportation. It will be destroyed, because it was the best and there were men who thought it expedient²¹⁴ to seize a share of its wealth."  "Well, that may be vicious, unjust, calamitous-but such is life in society. Somebody is always sacrificed, as a rule unjustly; there is no other way to live among men. What can any one person do?"  "You can state the truth about Rearden Metal."  He did not answer.  "I could beg you to do it in order to save me. I could beg you to do it in order to avert²¹⁵ a national disaster. But I won't. These may not be valid²¹⁶ reasons. There is only one reason; you must say it, because it is true."  "I was not consulted about that statement!" The cry broke out involuntarily. "I wouldn't have allowed it! I don't like it any better than you do! But I can't issue a public denial!"  "You were not consulted? Then shouldn't you want to find out the reasons behind that statement?"  "I can't destroy the Institute now!"  "Shouldn't you want to find out the reasons?"  "I know the reasons! They won't tell me, but I know. And I can't say that I blame them, either."  "Would you tell me?"  "I'll tell you, if you wish. It's the truth that you want, isn't it? Dr. Ferris cannot help it, if the morons²¹⁷ who vote the funds for this Institute insist on what they call results. They are incapable²¹⁸ of conceiving of such a thing as abstract science. They can judge it only in terms of the latest gadget²¹⁹ it has produced for them. I do not know how Dr. Ferris has managed to keep this Institute in existence, I can only marvel²²⁰ at his practical ability. I don't believe he ever was a first-rate scientist-but what a priceless valet of science! I know that he has been facing a grave problem lately. He's kept me out of it, he spares me all that, but I do hear rumors²²¹. People have been criticizing the Institute, because, they say, we have not produced enough. The public has been demanding economy. In times like these, when their fat little comforts are threatened, you may be sure that science is the first thing men will sacrifice. This is the only establishment left. There are practically no private research foundations any longer. Look at the greedy ruffians who run our industries. You cannot expect them to support science."  "Who is supporting you now?" she asked, her voice low.  He shrugged. "Society."  She said, with effort, "You were going to tell me the reasons behind that statement."  "I wouldn't think you'd find them hard to deduce. If you consider that for thirteen years this Institute has had a department of metallurgical research, which has cost over twenty million dollars and has produced nothing but a new silver polish and a new anti-corrosive preparation, which, I believe, is not so good as the old ones-you can imagine what the public reaction will be if some private individual comes out with a product that revolutionizes the entire science of metallurgy and proves to be sensationally²²² successful!"  Her head dropped. She said nothing.  "I don't blame our metallurgical department!" he said angrily. "I know that results of this kind are not a matter of any predictable time.  But the public won't understand it. What, then, should we sacrifice? An excellent piece of smelting-or the last center of science left on earth, and the whole future of human knowledge? That is the alternative."  She sat, her head down. After a while, she said, "All right, Dr. Stadler. I won't argue."  He saw her groping for her bag, as if she were trying to remember the automatic motions necessary to get up.  "Miss Taggart," he said quietly. It was almost a plea. She looked up.  Her face was composed and empty.  He came closer; he leaned with one hand against the wall above her head, almost as if he wished to hold her in the circle of his arm.  "Miss Taggart," he said, a tone of gentle, bitter persuasiveness²²³ in his voice, "I am older than you. Believe me, there is no other way to live on earth, Men are not open to truth or reason. They cannot be reached by a rational argument. The mind is powerless against them. Yet we have to deal with them. If we want to accomplish anything, we have to deceive them into letting us accomplish it. Or force them. They understand nothing else. We cannot expect their support for any endeavor of the intellect, for any goal of the spirit. They are nothing but vicious animals. They are greedy, self-indulgent, predatory dollar-chasers who-"  "I am one of the dollar-chasers, Dr. Stadler," she said, her voice low.  "You are an unusual, brilliant child who has not seen enough of life to grasp the full measure of human stupidity. I've fought it all my life. I'm very tired. . . ." The sincerity²²⁴ of his voice was genuine. He walked slowly away from her. "There was a time when I looked at the tragic²²⁵ mess they've made of this earth, and I wanted to cry out, to beg them to listen-I could teach them to live so much better than they did-but there was nobody to hear me, they had nothing to hear me with. . . . Intelligence? It is such a rare, precarious spark that flashes for a moment somewhere among men, and vanishes. One cannot tell its nature, or its future . . . or its death. . . ."  She made a movement to rise.  "Don't go, Miss Taggart. I'd like you to understand."  She raised her face to him, in obedient indifference. Her face was not pale, but its planes stood out with strangely naked precision, as if its skin had lost the shadings of color.  "You're young," he said. "At your age, I had the same faith in the unlimited power of reason. The same brilliant vision of man as a rational being. I have seen so much, since. I have been disillusioned²²⁷ so often. . . . I'd like to tell you just one story."  He stood at the window of his office. It had grown dark outside. The darkness seemed to rise from the black cut of the river, far below. A few lights trembled in the water, from among the hills of the other shore. The sky was still the intense blue of evening. A lonely star, low over the earth, seemed unnaturally²²⁸ large and made the sky look darker.  "When I was at the Patrick Henry University," he said, "I had three pupils. I have had many bright students in the past, but these three were- the kind of reward a teacher prays for. If ever you could wish to receive the gift of the human mind at its best, young and delivered into your hands for guidance, they were this gift. Theirs was the kind of intelligence one expects to see, in the future, changing the course of the world. They came from very different backgrounds, but they were inseparable friends. They made a strange choice of studies. They majored in two subjects-mine and Hugh Akston's. Physics and philosophy. It is not a combination of interests one encounters nowadays. Hugh Akston was a distinguished²²⁹ man, a great mind . . . unlike the incredible creature whom that University has now put in his place. . . . Akston and I were a little jealous of each other over these three students. It was a kind of contest between us, a friendly contest, because we understood each other, I heard Akston saying one day that he regarded them as his sons. I resented it a little . . . because I thought of them as mine. . . ."  He turned and looked at her. The bitter lines of age were visible now, cutting across his cheeks. He said, "When I endorsed²³⁰ the establishment of this Institute, one of these three damned me. I have not seen him since. It used to disturb me, in the first few years. I wondered, once in a while, whether he had been right. . . . It has ceased to disturb me, long ago."  He smiled. There was nothing but bitterness now, in his smile and his face.  'These three men, these three who held all the hope which the gift of intelligence ever proffered²³¹, these three from whom we expected such a magnificent future-one of them was Francisco d'Anconia, who became a depraved playboy. Another was Ragnar Danneskjold, who became a plain bandit. So much for the promise of the human mind."  "Who was the third one?" she asked, He shrugged. "The third one did not achieve even that sort of notorious distinction. He vanished without a trace-into the great unknown of mediocrity. He is probably a second assistant bookkeeper somewhere."  "It's a lie! I didn't run away!" cried James Taggart. "I came here because I happened to be sick. Ask Dr. Wilson. It's a form of flu. He'll prove it. And how did you know that I was here?"  Dagny stood in the middle of the room; there were melting snowflakes on her coat collar, on the brim of her hat. She glanced around, feeling an emotion that would have been sadness, had she had time to acknowledge it.  It was a room in the house of the old Taggart estate on the Hudson.  Jim had inherited the place, but he seldom came here. In their childhood, this had been their father's study. Now it had the desolate air of a room which is used, yet uninhabited. There were slipcovers on all but two chairs, a cold fireplace and the dismal²³² warmth of an electric heater with a cord twisting across the floor, a desk, its glass surface empty.  Jim lay on the couch, with a towel wrapped for a scarf around his neck. She saw a stale, filled ashtray²³³ on a chair beside him, a bottle of whisky, a wilted²³⁴ paper cup, and two-day-old newspapers scattered about the floor. A portrait of their grandfather hung over the fireplace, full figure, with a railroad bridge in the fading background.  "I have no time for arguments, Jim."  "It was your idea! I hope you'll admit to the Board that it was your idea. That's what your goddamn Rearden Metal has done to us! If we had waited for Orren Boyle . . ." His unshaved face was pulled by a twisted scramble²³⁵ of emotions: panic, hatred²³⁶, a touch of triumph, the relief of screaming at a victim-and the faint, cautious, begging look that sees a hope of help.  He had stopped tentatively, but she did not answer. She stood watching him, her hands in the pockets of her coat.  "There's nothing we can do now!" he moaned. "I tried to call Washington, to get them to seize the Phoenix-Durango and turn it over to us, on the ground of emergency, but they won't even discuss it! Too many people objecting, they say, afraid of some fool precedent or another! . . . I got the National Alliance of Railroads to suspend the deadline and permit Dan Conway to operate his road for another year -that would have given us time-but he's refused to do it! I tried to get Ellis Wyatt and his bunch of friends in Colorado to demand that Washington order Conway to continue operations-but all of them, Wyatt and all the rest of those bastards²³⁷, refused! It's their skin, worse than ours, they're sure to go down the drain-but they've refused!"  She smiled briefly, but made no comment.  "Now there's nothing left for us to do! We're caught. We can't give up that branch and we can't complete it. We can't stop or go on. We have no money. Nobody will touch us with a ten-foot pole! What have we got left without the Rio Norte Line? But we can't finish it. We'd be boycotted²³⁸. We'd be blacklisted. That union of track workers would sue us. They would, there's a law about it. We can't complete that Line! Christ! What are we going to do?"  She waited. "Through, Jim?" she asked coldly. "If you are, I'll tell you what we're going to do."  He kept silent, looking up at her from under his heavy eyelids²³⁹.  "This is not a proposal, Jim. It's an ultimatum²⁴⁰. Just listen and accept. I am going to complete the construction of the Rio Norte Line. I personally, not Taggart Transcontinental. I will take a leave of absence from the job of Vice-President. I will form a company in my own name. Your Board will turn the Rio None Line over to me. I will act as my own contractor. I will get my own financing. I will take full charge and sole responsibility. I will complete the Line on time. After you have seen how the Rearden Metal rails can take it, I will transfer the Line back to Taggart Transcontinental and I'll return to my job. That is all."  He was looking at her silently, dangling²⁴¹ a bedroom slipper¹⁰⁴ on the tip of his foot. She had never supposed that hope could look ugly in a man's face, but it did: it was mixed with cunning. She turned her eyes away from him, wondering how it was possible that a man's first thought in such a moment could be a search for something to put over on her.  Then, preposterously²⁴², the first thing he said, his voice anxious, was, "But who will run Taggart Transcontinental in the meantime?"  She chuckled; the sound astonished her, it seemed old in its bitterness.  She said, "Eddie Willers."  "Oh no! He couldn't!"  She laughed, in the same brusque, mirthless way. "I thought you were smarter than I about things of this kind. Eddie will assume the title of Acting²⁴³ Vice-President. He will occupy my office and sit at my desk. But who do you suppose will run Taggart Transcontinental?"  "But I don't see how-"  "I will commute²⁴⁴ by plane between Eddie's office and Colorado. Also, there are long-distance phones available. I will do just what I have been doing. Nothing will change, except the kind of show you will put on for your friends . . . and the fact that it will be a little harder for me."  "What show?"  "You understand me, Jim. I have no idea what sort of games you're tangled²⁴⁵ in, you and your Board of Directors. I don't know how many ends you're all playing against the middle and against one another, or how many pretenses²⁴⁶ you have to keep up in how many opposite directions. I don't know or care. You can all hide behind me. If you're all afraid, because you've made deals with friends who're threatened by Rearden Metal-well, here's your chance to go through the motions of assuring them that you're not involved, that you're not doing this-I am. You can help them to curse me and denounce me. You can all stay home, take no risks and make no enemies. Just keep out of my way."  "Well . . ." he said slowly, "of course, the problems involved in the policy of a great railroad system are complex . . . while a small, independent company, in the name of one person, could afford to-"  "Yes, Jim, yes, I know all that. The moment you announce that you're turning the Rio Norte Line over to me, the Taggart stock will rise. The bedbugs will stop crawling from out of unlikely corners, since they won't have the incentive²⁴⁸ of a big company to bite. Before they decide what to do about me, I will have the Line finished. And as for me, I don't want to have you and your Board to account to, to argue with, to beg permissions from. There isn't any time for that, if I am to do the kind of job that has to be done. So I'm going to do it alone."  "And . . . if you fail?"  "If I fail, I'll go down alone."  "You understand that in such case Taggart Transcontinental will not be able to help you in any way?"  "I understand."  "You will not count on us?"  "No."  "You will cut all official connection with us, so that your activities will not reflect upon our reputation?"  "Yes."  "I think we should agree that in case of failure or public scandal . . . your leave of absence will become permanent . . . that is, you will not expect to return to the post of Vice-President."  She closed her eyes for a moment. "All right, Jim. In such case, I will not return."  "Before we transfer the Rio Norte Line to you, we must have a written agreement that you will transfer it back to us, along with your controlling interest at cost, in case the Line becomes successful. Otherwise you might try to squeeze us for a windfall profit, since we need that Line."  There was only a brief stab of shock in her eyes, then she said indifferently, the words sounding as if she were tossing alms, "By all means, Jim. Have that stated in writing."  "Now as to your temporary successor . . ."  "Yes?"  "You don't really want it to be Eddie Willers, do you?"  "Yes. I do."  "But he couldn't even act like a vice-president! He doesn't have the presence, the manner, the-"  "He knows his work and mine. He knows what I want. I trust him. I'll be able to work with him."  "Don't you think it would be better to pick one of our more distinguished young men, somebody from a good family, with more social poise²⁴⁹ and-"  "It's going to be Eddie Willers, Jim."  He sighed. "All right. Only . . . only we must be careful about it. . . . We don't want people to suspect that it's you who're still running Taggart Transcontinental. Nobody must know it."  "Everybody will know it, Jim. But since nobody will admit it openly, everybody will be satisfied."  "But we must preserve appearances."  "Oh, certainly! You don't have to recognize me on the street, if you don't want to. You can say you've never seen me before and I'll say I've never heard of Taggart Transcontinental."  He remained silent, trying to think, staring down at the floor.  She turned to look at the grounds beyond the window. The sky had the even, gray-white pallor of winter. Far below, on the shore of the Hudson, she saw the road she used to watch for Francisco's car-she saw the cliff over the river, where they climbed to look for the towers of New York-and somewhere beyond the woods were the trails that led to Rockdale Station. The earth was snow-covered now, and what remained was like the skeleton of the countryside she remembered-a thin design of bare branches rising from the snow to the sky.  It was gray and white, like a photograph, a dead photograph which one keeps hopefully for remembrance, but which has no power to bring back anything.  "What are you going to call it?"  She turned, startled. "What?"  "What are you going to call your company?"  "Oh . . . Why, the Dagny Taggart Line, I guess."  "But . . . Do you think that's wise? It might be misunderstood.  The Taggart might be taken as-"  "Well, what do you want me to call it?" she snapped, worn down to anger. "The Miss Nobody? The Madam X? The John Galt?" She stopped. She smiled suddenly, a cold, bright, dangerous smile. 'That's what I'm going to call it: the John Galt Line."  "Good God, no!"  "Yes."  "But it's . . . if s just a cheap piece of slang!"  "You can't make a joke out of such a serious project! . . . You can't be so vulgar and . . . and undignified!"  "Can't I?"  "But for God's sake, why?"  "Because it's going to shock all the rest of them just as it shocked you."  "I've never seen you playing for effects."  "I am, this time."  "But . . ." His voice dropped to an almost superstitious²⁵⁰ sound: "Look, Dagny, you know, it's . . . it's bad luck. . . . What it stands for is . . ." He stopped.  "What does it stand for?"  "I don't know . . . But the way people use it, they always seem to say it out of-"  "Fear? Despair? Futility?"  "Yes . . . yes, that's what it is."  "That's what I want to throw in their faces!"  The bright, sparkling anger in her eyes, her first look of enjoyment, made him understand that he had to keep still.  "Draw up all the papers and all the red tape in the name of the John Galt Line," she said.  He sighed. "Well, it's your Line."  "You bet it is!"  He glanced at her, astonished. She had dropped the manners and style of a vice-president; she seemed to be relaxing happily to the level of yard crews and construction gangs.  "As to the papers and the legal side of it," he said, "there might be some difficulties. We would have to apply for the permission of-"  She whirled to face him. Something of the bright, violent look still remained in her face. But it was not gay and she was not smiling. The look now had an odd, primitive²⁵¹ quality. When he saw it, he hoped he would never have to see it again.  "Listen, Jim," she said; he had never heard that tone in any human voice. "There is one thing you can do as your part of the deal and you'd better do it: keep your Washington boys off. See to it that they give me all the permissions, authorizations, charters and other waste paper that their laws require. Don't let them try to stop me. If they try . . . Jim, people say that our ancestor, Nat Taggart, killed a politician who tried to refuse him a permission he should never have had to ask. I don't know whether Nat Taggart did it or not. But I'll tell you this: I know how he felt, if he did. If he didn't-I might do the job for him, to complete the family legend. I mean it, Jim."  Francisco d'Anconia sat in front of her desk. His face was blank. It had remained blank while Dagny explained to him, in the clear, impersonal tone of a business interview, the formation and purpose of her own railroad company. He had listened. He had not pronounced a word.  She had never seen his face wear that look of drained passivity.  There was no mockery, no amusement, no antagonism²⁵²; it was as if he did not belong in these particular moments of existence and could not be reached. Yet his eyes looked at her attentively²⁵³; they seemed to see more than she could suspect; they made her think of one-way glass: they let all light rays in, but none out.  "Francisco, I asked you to come here, because I wanted you to see me in my office. You've never seen it. It would have meant something to you, once."  His eyes moved slowly to look at the office. Its walls were bare, except for three things: a map of Taggart Transcontinental-the original drawing of Nat Taggart, that had served as model for his statue -and a large railroad calendar, in cheerfully crude colors, the kind that was distributed each year, with a change of its picture, to every station along the Taggart track, the kind that had hung once in her first work place at Rockdale.  He got up. He said quietly, "Dagny, for your own sake, and"-it was a barely perceptible hesitation-"and in the name of any pity you might feel for me, don't request what you're going to request. Don't. Let me go now."  This was not like him and like nothing she could ever have expected to hear from him. After a moment, she asked, "Why?"  "I can't answer you. I can't answer any questions. That is one of the reasons why it's best not to discuss it."  "You know what I am going to request?"  "Yes." The way she looked at him was such an eloquent²⁵⁴, desperate question, that he had to add, "I know that I am going to refuse."  "Why?"  He smiled mirthlessly, spreading his hands out, as if to show her that this was what he had predicted and had wanted to avoid.  She said quietly, "I have to try, Francisco. I have to make the request. That's my part. What you'll do about it is yours. But I'll know that I've tried everything."  He remained standing, but he inclined his head a little, in assent²⁵⁵, and said, "I will listen, if that will help you."  "I need fifteen million dollars to complete the Rio Norte Line, I have obtained seven million against the Taggart stock I own free and clear. I can raise nothing else. I will issue bonds in the name of my new company, in the amount of eight million dollars. I called you here to ask you to buy these bonds."  He did not answer.  "I am simply a beggar, Francisco, and I am begging you for money. I had always thought that one did not beg in business. I thought that one stood on the merit of what one had to offer, and gave value for value. This is not so any more, though I don't understand how we can act on any other rule and continue to exist. Judging by every objective fact, the Rio Norte Line is to be the best railroad in the country. Judging by every known standard, it is the best investment possible. And that is what damns me. I cannot raise money by offering people a good business venture: the fact that it's good, makes people reject it. There is no bank that would buy the bonds of my company. So I can't plead merit. I can only plead."  Her voice was pronouncing the words with impersonal precision. She stopped, waiting for his answer. He remained silent.  "I know that I have nothing to offer you," she said. "I can't speak to you in terms of investment. You don't care to make money. Industrial projects have ceased to concern you long ago. So I won't pretend that it's a fair exchange. It's just begging." She drew her breath and said, "Give me that money as alms, because it means nothing to you."  "Don't," he said, his voice low. She could not tell whether the strange sound of it was pain or anger; his eyes were lowered.  "Will you do it, Francisco?"  "No."  After a moment, she said, "I called you, not because I thought you would agree, but because you were the only one who could understand what I am saying. So I had to try it." Her voice was dropping lower, as if she hoped it would make emotion harder to detect. "You see, I can't believe that you're really gone . . . because I know that you're still able to hear me. The way you live is depraved. But the way you act is not. Even the way you speak of it, is not. . . . I had to try . . . But I can't struggle to understand you any longer."  "I'll give you a hint. Contradictions do not exist. Whenever you think that you are facing a contradiction, check your premises²⁵⁶. You will find that one of them is wrong."  "Francisco," she whispered, "why don't you tell me what it was that happened to you?"  "Because, at this moment, the answer would hurt you more than the doubt."  "Is it as terrible as that?"  "It is an answer which you must reach by yourself."  She shook her head. "I don't know what to offer you. I don't know what is of value to you any longer. Don't you see that even a beggar has to give value in return, has to offer some reason why you might want to help him? . . . Well, I thought . . . at one time, it meant a great deal to you-success. Industrial success. Remember how we used to talk about it? You were very severe. You expected a lot from me. You told me I'd better live up to it. I have. You wondered how far I'd rise with Taggart Transcontinental." She moved her hand, pointing at the office. "This is how far I've risen. . . . So I thought . . . if the memory of what had been your values still has some meaning for you, if only as amusement, or a moment's sadness, or just like . . . like putting flowers on a grave . . . you might want to give me the money . . . in the name of that."  "No."  She said, with effort, "That money would mean nothing to you-you've wasted that much on senseless parties-you've wasted much more on the San Sebastian Mines-"  He glanced up. He looked straight at her and she saw the first spark of a living response in his eyes, a look that was bright, pitiless and, incredibly, proud: as if this were an accusation²⁵⁷ that gave him strength.  "Oh, yes," she said slowly, as if answering his thought, "I realize that. I've damned you for those mines, I've denounced you, I've thrown my contempt at you in every way possible, and now I come back to you-for money. Like Jim, like any moocher you've ever met. I know it's a triumph for you, I know that you can laugh at me and despise me with full justice. Well-perhaps I can offer you that. If it's amusement that you want, if you enjoyed seeing Jim and the Mexican planners crawl-wouldn't it amuse you to break me? Wouldn't it give you pleasure? Don't you want to hear me acknowledge that I'm beaten by you? Don't you want to see me crawling before you? Tell me what form of it you'd like and I'll submit."  He moved so swiftly that she could not notice how he started; it only seemed to her that his first movement was a shudder. He came around the desk, he took her hand and raised it to his lips. It began as a gesture of the gravest respect, as if its purpose were to give her strength; but as he held his lips, then his face, pressed to her hand, she knew that he was seeking strength from it himself.  He dropped her hand, he looked down at her face, at the frightened stillness of her eyes, he smiled, not trying to hide that his smile held suffering, anger and tenderness.  "Dagny, you want to crawl? You don't know what the word means and never will. One doesn't crawl by acknowledging it as honestly as that. Don't you suppose I know that your begging me was the bravest thing you could do? But . . . Don't ask me, Dagny."  "In the name of anything I ever meant to you . . ." she whispered, "anything left within you . . ."  In the moment when she thought that she had seen this look before, that this was the way he had looked against the night glow of the city, when he lay in bed by her side for the last time-she heard his cry, the kind of cry she had never torn from him before: "My love, I can't!"  Then, as they looked at each other, both shocked into silence by astonishment, she saw the change in his face. It was as crudely abrupt⁶⁵ as if he had thrown a switch. He laughed, he moved away from her and said, his voice jarringly offensive by being completely casual: "Please excuse the mixture in styles of expression. I've been supposed to say that to so many women, but on somewhat different occasions."  Her head dropped, she sat huddled²⁵⁸ tight together, not caring that he saw it.  When she raised her head, she looked at him indifferently. "All right, Francisco. It was a good act. I did believe it. If that was your own way of having the kind of fun I was offering you, you succeeded. I won't ask you for anything."  "I warned you."  "I didn't know which side you belonged on. It didn't seem possible -but it's the side of Orren Boyle and Bertram Scudder and your old teacher."  "My old teacher?" he asked sharply.  "Dr. Robert Stadler."  He chuckled, relieved. "Oh, that one? He's the looter who thinks that his end justifies²⁵⁹ his seizure²⁶⁰ of my means." He added, "You know, Dagny, I'd like you to remember which side you said I'm on. Some day, I'll remind you of it and ask you whether you'll want to repeat it."  "You won't have to remind me."  He turned to go. He tossed his hand in a casual salute and said, "If it could be built, I'd wish good luck to the Rio Norte Line."  "It's going to be built. And it's going to be called the John Galt Line."  "What?!"  It was an actual scream; she chuckled derisively²⁶¹. "The John Galt Line."  "Dagny, in heaven's name, why?"  "Don't you like it?"  "How did you happen to choose that?"  "It sounds better than Mr. Nemo or Mr. Zero, doesn't it?"  "Dagny, why that?"  "Because it frightens you."  "What do you think it stands for?"  "The impossible. The unattainable. And you're all afraid of my Line just as you're afraid of that name."  He started laughing. He laughed, not looking at her, and she felt strangely certain that he had forgotten her, that he was far away, that he was laughing-in furious gaiety and bitterness-at something in which she had no part.  When he turned to her, he said earnestly, "Dagny, I wouldn't, if I were you."  She shrugged. "Jim didn't like it, either."  "What do you like about it?"  "I hate it! I hate the doom²⁶² you're all waiting for, the giving up, and that senseless question that always sounds like a cry for help. I'm sick of hearing pleas for John Galt. I'm going to fight him."  He said quietly, "You are."  "I'm going to build a railroad line for him. Let him come and claim it!"  He smiled sadly and nodded: "He will."  The glow of poured steel streamed across the ceiling and broke against one wall. Rearden sat at his desk, in the light of a single lamp. Beyond its circle, the darkness of the office blended with the darkness outside. He felt as if it were empty space where the rays of the furnaces moved at will; as if the desk were a raft hanging in mid-air, holding two persons imprisoned²⁶³ in privacy. Dagny sat in front of his desk.  She had thrown her coat off, and she sat outlined against it, a slim, tense body in a gray suit, leaning diagonally across the wide armchair.  Only her hand lay in the light, on the edge of the desk; beyond it, he saw the pale suggestion of her face, the white of a blouse, the triangle of an open collar.  "All right, Hank," she said, "we're going ahead with a new Rearden Metal bridge. This is the official order of the official owner of the John Galt Line."  He smiled, looking down at the drawings of the bridge spread in the light on his desk. "Have you had a chance to examine the scheme we submitted?"  "Yes. You don't need my comments or compliments. The order says it."  "Very well. Thank you. I'll start rolling the Metal."  "Don't you want to ask whether the John Galt Line is in a position to place orders or to function?"  "I don't need to. Your coming here says it."  She smiled. "True. It's all set, Hank. I came to tell you that and to discuss the details of the bridge in person."  "All right, I am curious: who are the bondholders of the John Galt Line?"  "I don't think any of them could afford it. All of them have growing enterprises. All of them needed their money for their own concerns.  But they needed the Line and they did not ask anyone for help." She took a paper out of her bag. "Here's John Galt, Inc.," she said, handing it across the desk.  He knew most of the names on the list: "Ellis.. Wyatt, Wyatt Oil, Colorado. Ted² Nielsen, Nielsen Motors, Colorado. Lawrence Hammond, Hammond Cars, Colorado. Andrew Stockton, Stockton Foundry, Colorado." There were a few from other states; he noticed the name: "Kenneth Danagger, Danagger Coal, Pennsylvania." The amounts of their subscriptions²⁶⁴ varied²⁶⁵, from sums in five figures to six.  He reached for his fountain pen, wrote at the bottom of the list "Henry Rearden, Rearden Steel, Pennsylvania-$1,000,000" and tossed the list back to her.  "Hank," she said quietly, "I didn't want you- in on this. You've invested so much in Rearden Metal that it's worse for you than for any of us. You can't afford another risk."  "I never accept favors." he answered coldly.  "What do you mean?"  "I don't ask people to take greater chances on my ventures than I take myself. If it's a gamble, I'll match anybody's gambling. Didn't you say that that track was my first showcase?"  She inclined her head and said gravely, "All right. Thank you."  "Incidentally, I don't expect to lose this money. I am aware of the conditions under which these bonds can be converted into stock at my option. I therefore expect to make an inordinate²⁶⁶ profit-and you're going to earn it for me."  She laughed. "God, Hank, I've spoken to so many yellow fools that they've almost infected me into thinking of the Line as of a hopeless loss! Thanks for reminding me. Yes, I think I'll earn your inordinate profit for you."  "If it weren't for the yellow fools, there wouldn't be any risk in it at all. But we have to beat them. We will." He reached for two telegrams from among the papers on his desk. "There are still a few men in existence." He extended the telegrams. "I think you'd like to see these."  One of them read: "I had intended to undertake it in two years, but the statement of the State Science Institute compels me to proceed at once. Consider this a commitment for the construction of a 12inch pipe line of Rearden Metal, 600 miles, Colorado to Kansas City. Details follow. Ellis Wyatt."  The other read: "Re our discussion of my order. Go ahead. Ken¹⁰ Danagger."  He added, in explanation, "He wasn't prepared to proceed at once, either. It's eight thousand tons of Rearden Metal. Structural metal. For coal mines."  They glanced at each other and smiled. They needed no further comment.  He glanced down, as she handed the telegrams back to him. The skin of her hand looked transparent²⁶⁷ in the light, on the edge of his desk, a young girl's hand with long, thin fingers, relaxed for a moment, defenseless.  "The Stockton Foundry in Colorado," she said, "is going to finish that order for me-the one that the Amalgamated Switch and Signal Company ran out on. They're going to get in touch with you about the Metal."  "They have already. What have you done about the construction crews?"  "Nealy's engineers are staying on, the best ones, those I need. And most of the foremen, too. It won't be too hard to keep them going. Nealy wasn't of much use, anyway."  "What about labor?"  "More applicants²⁶⁹ than I can hire. I don't think the union is going to interfere²⁷⁰. Most of the applicants are giving phony names. They're union members. They need the work desperately²⁷¹. I'll have a few guards on the Line, but I don't expect any trouble."  "What about your brother Jim's Board of Directors?"  "They're all scrambling²⁷² to get statements into the newspapers to the effect that they have no connection whatever with the John Galt Line and how reprehensible²⁷³ an undertaking²⁷⁴ they think it is. They agreed to everything I asked."  The line of her shoulders looked taut²⁷⁵, yet thrown back easily, as if poised²⁷⁶ for flight. Tension seemed natural to her, not a sign of anxiety, but a sign of enjoyment; the tension of her whole body, under the gray suit, half-visible in the darkness, "Eddie Willers has taken over the office of Operating Vice-President," she said. "If you need anything, get in touch with him. I'm leaving for Colorado tonight."  "Tonight?"  "Yes. We have to make up time. We've lost a week."  "Flying your own plane?"  "Yes. I'll be back in about ten days, I intend to be in New York once or twice a month."  "Where will you live out there?"  "On the site. In my own railway car-that is, Eddie's car, which I'm borrowing."  "Will you be safe?"  "Safe from what?" Then she laughed, startled. "Why, Hank, it's the first time you've ever thought that I wasn't a man. Of coarse I'll be safe."  He was not looking at her; he was looking at a sheet of figures on his desk. "I've had my engineers prepare a breakdown²⁷⁷ of the cost of the bridge," he said, "and an approximate schedule of the construction time required. That is what I wanted to discuss with you." He extended the papers. She settled back to read them.  A wedge of light fell across her face. He saw the firm, sensual mouth in sharp outline. Then she leaned back a little, and he saw only a suggestion of its shape and the dark lines of her lowered lashes²²⁶.  Haven't I?-he thought. Haven't I thought of it since the first time I saw you? Haven't I thought of nothing else for two years? . . . He sat motionless, looking at her. He heard the words he had never allowed himself to form, the words he had felt, known, yet had not faced, had hoped to destroy by never letting them be said within his own mind. Now it was as sudden and shocking as if he were saying it to her. . . . Since the first time I saw you . . . Nothing but your body, that mouth of yours, and the way your eyes would look at me, if . . . Through every sentence I ever said to you, through every conference you thought so safe, through the importance of all the issues we discussed . . . You trusted me, didn't you? To recognize your greatness? To think of you as you deserved-as if you were a man? . . . Don't you suppose I know how much I've betrayed? The only bright encounter of my life-the only person I respected-the best businessman I know-my ally-my partner in a desperate battle . . .  The lowest of all desires-as my answer to the highest I've met . . .  Do you know what I am? I thought of it, because it should have been unthinkable. For that degrading need, which should never touch you, I have never wanted anyone but you . . . I hadn't known what it was like, to want it, until I saw you for the first time. I had thought: Not I, I couldn't be broken by it . . . Since then . . . for two years . . . with not a moment's respite²⁷⁸ . . . Do you know what it's like, to want it? Would you wish to hear what I thought when I looked at you . . . when I lay awake at night . . . when I heard your voice over a telephone wire . . . when I worked, but could not drive it away?  . . . To bring you down to things you can't conceive-and to know that it's I who have done it. To reduce you to a body, to teach you an animal's pleasure, to see you need it, to see you asking me for it, to see your wonderful spirit dependent upon the obscenity of your need. To watch you as you are, as you face the world with your clean, proud strength-then to see you, in my bed, submitting to any infamous²⁷⁹ whim²⁸⁰ I may devise, to any act which I'll perform for the sole purpose of watching your dishonor and to which you'll submit for the sake of an unspeakable sensation . . . I want you-and may I be damned for it! . . .  She was reading the papers, leaning back in the darkness-he saw the reflection of the fire touching her hair, moving to her shoulder, down her arm, to the naked skin of her wrist.  . . . Do you know what I'm thinking now, in this moment? . . .  Your gray suit and your open collar . . . you look so young, so austere²⁸¹, so sure of yourself . . . What would you be like if I knocked your head back, if I threw you down in that formal suit of yours, if I raised your skirt-  She glanced up at him. He looked down at the papers on his desk.  In a moment, he said, "The actual cost of the bridge is less than our original estimate. You will note that the strength of the bridge allows for the eventual²⁰³ addition of a second track, which, I think, that section of the country will justify²⁸² in a very few years. If you spread the cost over a period of-"  He spoke, and she looked at his face in the lamplight, against the black emptiness of the office. The lamp was outside her field of vision, and she felt as if it were his face that illuminated²⁸³ the papers on the desk. His face, she thought, and the cold, radiant clarity of his voice, of his mind, of his drive to  a single purpose. The face was like his words-as if the line of a single theme ran from the steady glance of the eyes, through the gaunt muscles of the cheeks, to the faintly scornful, downward curve of the mouth-the line of a ruthless asceticism²⁸⁴.  The day began with the news of a disaster: a freight train of the Atlantic Southern had crashed head-on into a passenger train, in New Mexico, on a sharp curve in the mountains, scattering²⁸⁵ freight cars all over the slopes. The cars carried five thousand tons of copper, bound from a mine in Arizona to the Rearden mills, Rearden telephoned the general manager of the Atlantic Southern, but the answer he received was: "Oh God, Mr. Rearden, how can we tell? How can anybody tell how long it will take to clear that wreck²⁸⁶?  One of the worst we've ever had . . . I don't know, Mr. Rearden.  There are no other lines anywhere in that section. The track is torn for twelve hundred feet. There's been a rockslide. Our wrecking²⁸⁷ train can't get through. I don't know how we'll ever get those freight cars back on rails, or when. Can't expect it sooner than two weeks . . .  Three days? Impossible, Mr. Rearden! . . . But we can't help it! . . . But surely you can tell your customers that it's an act of God! What if you do hold them up? Nobody can blame you in a case of this kind!"  In the next two hours, with the assistance of his secretary, two young engineers from his shipping²⁸⁸ department, a road map, and the long-distance telephone, Rearden arranged for a fleet of trucks to proceed to the scene of the wreck, and for a chain of hopper cars to meet them at the nearest station of the Atlantic Southern. The hopper cars had been borrowed from Taggart Transcontinental. The trucks had been recruited from all over New Mexico, Arizona and Colorado. Rearden's engineers had hunted by telephone for private truck owners and had offered payments that cut all arguments short.  It was the third of three shipments of copper that Rearden. had expected; two orders had not been delivered: one company had gone out of business, the other was still pleading delays that it could not help.  He had attended to the matter without breaking his chain of appointments, without raising his voice, without sign of strain, uncertainty²⁸⁹ or apprehension²⁹⁰; he had acted with the swift precision of a military commander under sudden fire-and Gwen Ives, his secretary, had acted as his calmest lieutenant²⁹¹. She was a girl in her late twenties, whose quietly harmonious²⁹², impenetrable face had a quality matching the best designed office equipment; she was one of his most ruthlessly competent employees; her manner of performing her duties suggested the kind of rational cleanliness that would consider any element of emotion, while at work, as an unpardonable immorality²⁹³.  When the emergency was over, her sole comment was, "Mr. Rearden, I think we should ask all our suppliers to ship via Taggart Transcontinental." "I'm thinking that, too," he answered; then added, "Wire Fleming in Colorado. Tell him I'm taking an option on that copper mine property."  He was back at his desk, speaking to his superintendent²⁹⁵ on one phone and to his purchasing manager on another, checking every date and ton of ore on hand-he could not leave to chance or to another person the possibility of a single hour's delay in the flow of a furnace: it was the last of the rail for the John Galt Line that was being poured-when the buzzer²⁹⁶ rang and Miss Ives' voice announced that his mother was outside, demanding to see him.  He had asked his family never to come to the mills without appointment. He had been glad that they hated the place and seldom appeared in his office. What he now felt was a violent impulse to order his mother off the premises. Instead, with a greater effort than the problem of the train wreck had required of him, he said quietly, "All right. Ask her to come in."  His mother came in with an air of belligerent defensiveness²⁹⁷. She looked at his office as if she knew what it meant to him and as if she were declaring her resentment²⁹⁸ against anything being of greater importance to him than her own person. She took a long time settling down in an armchair, arranging and rearranging her bag, her gloves, the folds of her dress, while droning, "It's a fine thing when a mother has to wait in an anteroom and ask permission of a stenographer²⁹⁹ before she's allowed to see her own son who-"  "Mother, is it anything important? I am very rushed today."  "You're not the only one who's got problems. Of course, it's important. Do you think I'd go to the trouble of driving way out here, if it wasn't important?"  "What is it?"  "It's about Philip."  "Yes?"  "Philip is unhappy."  "Well?"  "He feels it's not right that he should have to depend on your charity and live on handouts³⁰⁰ and never be able to count on a single dollar of his own."  "Well!" he said with a startled smile. "I've been waiting for him to realize that."  "It isn't right for a sensitive man to be in such a position."  "It certainly isn't."  "I'm glad you agree with me. So what you have to do is give him a job."  "A . . . what?"  "You must give him a job, here, at the mills-but a nice, clean job, of course, with a desk and an office and a decent salary, where he wouldn't have to be among your day laborers³⁰¹ and your smelly furnaces."  He knew that he was hearing it; he could not make himself believe it. "Mother, you're not serious."  "I certainly am. I happen to know that that's what he wants, only 's too proud to ask you for it But if you offer it to him and make it look like it's you who're asking him a favor-why, I know he'd be happy to take it. That's why I had to come here to talk to you-so he wouldn't guess that I put you up to it."  It was not in the nature of his consciousness to understand the nature of the things he was hearing. A single thought cut through his mind like a spotlight, making him unable to conceive how any eyes could miss it. The thought broke out of him as a cry of bewilderment: "But he knows nothing about the steel business!"  "What has that got to do with it? He needs a job."  "But he couldn't do the work."  "He needs to gain self-confidence and to feel important."  "But he wouldn't be any good whatever."  "He needs to feel that he's wanted."  "Here? What could I want him for?"  "You hire plenty of strangers."  "I hire men who produce. What has he got to offer?"  "He's your brother, isn't he?"  "What has that got to do with it?"  She stared incredulously, in turn, silenced by shock. For a moment, they sat looking at each other, as if across an interplanetary distance.  "He's your brother," she said, her voice like a phonograph record repeating a magic formula she could not permit herself to doubt. "He needs a position in the world. He needs a salary, so that he'd feel that he's got money coming to him as his due, not as alms."  "As his due? But he wouldn't be worth a nickel to me."  "Is that what you think of first? Your profit? I'm asking you to help your brother, and you're figuring how to make a nickel on him, and you won't help him unless there's money in it for you-is that it?"  She saw the expression of his eyes, and she looked away, but spoke hastily, her voice rising. "Yes, sure, you're helping³⁰² him-like you'd help any stray beggar. Material help-that's all you know or understand. Have you thought about his spiritual needs and what his position is doing to his self-respect? He doesn't want to live like a beggar. He wants to be independent of you."  "By means of getting from me a salary he can't earn for work he can't do?"  "You'd never miss it. You've got enough people here who're making money for you."  "Are you asking me to help him stage a fraud of that kind?"  "You don't have to put it that way."  "Is it a fraud-or isn't it?"  "That's why I can't talk to you-because you're not human. You have no pity, no feeling for your brother, no compassion³⁰³ for his feelings."  "Is it a fraud or not?"  "You have no mercy for anybody."  "Do you think that a fraud of this kind would be just?"  "You're the most immoral²⁹⁴ man living-you think of nothing but justice! You don't feel any love at all!"  He got up, his movement abrupt and stressed, the movement of ending an interview and ordering a visitor out of his office. "Mother, I'm running a steel plant-not a whorehouse."  "Henry!" The gasp³⁶ of indignation was at his choice of language, nothing more.  "Don't ever speak to me again about a job for Philip. I would not give him the job of a cinder³⁰⁴ sweeper. I would not allow him inside my mills. I want you to understand that, once and for all. You may try to help him in any way you wish, but don't ever let me see you thinking of my mills as a means to that end."  The wrinkles of her soft chin trickled³⁰⁵ into a shape resembling a sneer. "What are they, your mills-a holy temple of some kind?"  "Why . . . yes," he said softly, astonished at the thought.  "Don't you ever think of people and of your moral duties?"  "I don't know what it is that you choose to call morality. No, I don't think of people-except that if I gave a job to Philip, I wouldn't be able to face any competent man who needed work and deserved it."  She got up. Her head was drawn³⁰⁶ into her shoulders, and the righteous bitterness of her voice seemed to push the words upward at his tall, straight figure: "That's your cruelty, that's what's mean and selfish about you. If you loved your brother, you'd give him a job he didn't deserve, precisely³⁰⁷ because he didn't deserve it-that would be true love and kindness and brotherhood. Else what's love for? If a man deserves a job, there's no virtue¹²⁴ in giving it to him. Virtue is the giving of the undeserved."  He was looking at her like a child at an unfamiliar³⁰⁸ nightmare, incredulity preventing it from becoming horror. "Mother," he said slowly, "you don't know what you're saying. I'm not able ever to despise you enough to believe that you mean it."  The look on her face astonished him more than all the rest: it was a look of defeat and yet of an odd, sly, cynical³⁰⁹ cunning, as if, for a moment, she held some worldly wisdom that mocked his innocence³¹⁰.  The memory of that look remained in his mind, like a warning signal telling him that he had glimpsed an issue which he had to understand.  But he could not grapple with it, he could not force his mind to accept it as worthy³¹¹ of thought, he could find no clue except his dim uneasiness and his revulsion-and he had no time to give it, he could not think of it now, he was facing his next caller seated in front of his desk-he was listening to a man who pleaded for his life.  The man did not state it in such terms, but Rearden knew that that was the essence of the case. What the man put into words was only a plea for five hundred tons of steel.  He was Mr. Ward⁴, of the Ward Harvester Company of Minnesota.  It was an unpretentious company with an unblemished reputation, the kind of business concern that seldom grows large, but never fails. Mr. Ward represented the fourth generation of a family that had owned the plant and had given it the conscientious³¹² best of such ability as they possessed³¹³.  He was a man in his fifties, with a square, stolid face. Looking at him, one knew that he would consider it as indecent to let his face show suffering as to remove his clothes in public. He spoke in a dry, businesslike manner. He explained that he had always dealt, as his father had, with one of the small steel companies now taken over by Orren Boyle's Associated Steel. He had waited for his last order of steel for a year. He had spent the last month struggling to obtain a personal interview with Rearden.  "I know that your mills are running at capacity, Mr. Rearden," he said, "and I know that you are not in a position to take care of new orders, what with your biggest, oldest customers having to wait their turn, you being the only decent-I mean, reliable-steel manufacturer left in the country. I don't know what reason to offer you as to why you should want to make an exception in my case. But there was nothing else for me to do, except close the doors of my plant for good, and I"- there was a slight break in his voice-"I can't quite see my way to closing the doors . . . as yet . . . so I thought I'd speak to you, even if I didn't have much chance . . . still, I had to try everything possible."  This was language that Rearden could understand, "I wish I could help you out," he said, "but this is the worst possible time for me, because of a very large, very special order that has to take precedence over everything."  "I know. But would you just give me a hearing, Mr. Rearden?"  "Sure."  "If it's a question of money, I'll pay anything you ask. If I could make it worth your while that way, why, charge me any extra you please, charge me double the regular price, only let me have the steel. I wouldn't care if I had to sell the harvester at a loss this year, just so I could keep the doors open. I've got enough, personally, to run at a loss for a couple of years, if necessary, just to hold out-because, I figure, things can't go on this way much longer, conditions are bound to improve, they've got to or else we'll-" He did not finish. He said firmly, "They've got to."  "They will," said Rearden.  The thought of the John Galt Line ran through his mind like a harmony under the confident sound of his words. The John Galt Line was moving forward. The attacks on his Metal had ceased. He felt as if, miles apart across the country, he and Dagny Taggart now stood in empty space, their way cleared, free to finish the job. They'll leave us alone to do it, he thought. The words were like a battle hymn³¹⁴ in his mind: They'll leave us alone.  "Our plant capacity is one thousand harvesters per year," said Mr. Ward. "Last year, we put out three hundred. I scraped the steel together from bankruptcy³¹⁵ sales, and begging a few tons here and there from big companies, and just going around like a scavenger³¹⁶ to all sorts of unlikely places-well, I won't bore you with that, only I never thought I'd live to see the time when I'd have to do business that way. And all the while Mr. Orren Boyle was swearing to me that he was going to deliver the steel next week. But whatever he managed to pour, it went to new customers of his, for some reason nobody would mention, only I heard it whispered that they were men with some sort of political pull. And now I can't even get to Mr. Boyle at all. He's in Washington, been there for over a month. And all his office tells me is just that they can't help it, because they can't get the ore."  "Don't waste your time on them," said Rearden. "You'll never get anything from that outfit³¹⁷."  "You know, Mr. Rearden," he said in the tone of a discovery which he could not quite bring himself to believe, "I think there's something phony about the way Mr. Boyle runs his business. I can't understand what he's after. They've got half their furnaces idle, but last month there were all those big stories about Associated Steel in all the newspapers. About their output? Why, no-about the wonderful housing project that Mr. Boyle's just built for his workers. Last week, it was colored movies that Mr. Boyle sent to all the high schools, showing how steel is made and what great service it performs for everybody. Now Mr. Boyle's got a radio program, they give talks about the importance of the steel industry to the country and they keep saying that we must preserve the steel industry as a whole. I don't understand what he means by it as a whole."  "I do. Forget it. He won't get away with it."  "You know, Mr. Rearden, I don't like people who talk too much about how everything they do is just for the sake of others. It's not true, and I don't think it would be right if it ever were true. So I'll say that what I need the steel for is to save my own business. Because it's mine. Because if I had to close it . . . oh well, nobody understands that nowadays."  "I do."  "Yes . . . Yes, I think you would. . . . So, you see, that's my first concern. But still, there are my customers, too. They've dealt with me for years. They're counting on me. It's just about impossible to get any sort of machinery anywhere. Do you know what it's getting to be like, out in Minnesota, when the farmers can't get tools, when machine break down in the middle of the harvest season and there are no parts, no replacements³¹⁸ . . . nothing but Mr. Orren Boyle's colored movies about . . . Oh well . . . And then there are my workers, too. Some of them have been with us since my father's time. They've got no other place to go. Not now."  It was impossible, thought Rearden, to squeeze more steel out of mills where every furnace, every hour and every ton were scheduled in advance for urgent orders, for the next six months. But . . . The John Galt Line, he thought. If he could do that, he could do anything.  - . . He felt as if he wished to undertake ten new problems at once.  He felt as if this were a world where nothing was impossible to him.  "Look," he said, reaching for the telephone, "let me check with my superintendent and see just what we're pouring in the next few weeks.  Maybe I'll find a way to borrow a few tons from some of the orders and-"  Mr. Ward looked quickly away from him, but Rearden had caught a glimpse of his face. It's so much for him, thought Rearden, and so little for me!  He lifted the telephone receiver, but he had to drop it, because the door of his office flew open and Gwen Ives rushed in.  It seemed impossible that Miss Ives should permit herself a breach³¹⁹ of that kind, or that the calm of her face should look like an unnatural distortion, or that her eyes should seem blinded, or that her steps should sound a shred³²⁰ of discipline away from staggering. She said, "Excuse me for interrupting, Mr. Rearden," but he knew that she did not see the office, did not see Mr. Ward, saw nothing but him. "I thought I must tell you that the Legislature has just passed the Equalization of Opportunity Bill."  It was the stolid Mr. Ward who screamed, "Oh God, no! Oh, no!"- staring at Rearden.  Rearden had leaped to his feet. He stood unnaturally bent, one shoulder drooping³²¹ forward. It was only an instant. Then he looked around him, as if regaining³²² eyesight, said, "Excuse me," his glance including both Miss Ives and Mr. Ward, and sat down again.  "We were not informed that the Bill had been brought to the floor, were we?" he asked, his voice controlled and dry.  "No, Mr. Rearden. Apparently³²³, it was a surprise move and it took them just forty-five minutes."  "Have you heard from Mouch?"  "No, Mr. Rearden." She stressed the no. "It was the office boy from the fifth floor who came running in to tell me that he'd just heard it on the radio. I called the newspapers to verify it. I tried to reach Mr. Mouch in Washington. His office does not answer."  "When did we hear from him last?"  "Ten days ago, Mr. Rearden."  "All right. Thank you, Gwen. Keep trying to get his office."  "Yes, Mr. Rearden."  She walked out. Mr. Ward was on his feet, hat in hand. He muttered, "I guess I'd better-"  "Sit down!" Rearden snapped fiercely.  Mr. Ward obeyed, staring at him.  "We had business to transact³²⁴, didn't we?" said Rearden. Mr. Ward could not define the emotion that contorted Rearden's mouth as he spoke. "Mr. Ward, what is it that the foulest³²⁵ bastards on earth denounce us for, among other things? Oh yes, for our motto of 'Business as usual.' Well-business as usual, Mr. Ward!"  He picked up the telephone receiver and asked for his superintendent. "Say, Pete . . . What? . . . Yes, I've heard. Can it. We'll talk about that later. What I want to know is, could you let me have five hundred tons of steel, extra, above schedule, in the next few weeks?  . . . Yes, I know . . . I know it's tough. . . . Give me the dates and the figures." He listened, rapidly jotting³²⁶ notes down on a sheet of paper. Then he said, "Right. Thank you," and hung up.  He studied the figures for a few moments, marking some brief calculations on the margin³²⁷ of the sheet. Then he raised his head.  "All right, Mr. Ward," he said. "You will have your steel in ten days."  When Mr. Ward had gone, Rearden came out into the anteroom.  He said to Miss Ives, his voice normal, "Wire Fleming in Colorado. He'll know why I have to cancel that option." She inclined her head, in the manner of a nod signifying obedience³²⁸. She did not look at him.  He turned to his next caller and said, with a gesture of invitation toward his office, "How do you do. Come in."  He would think of it later, he thought; one moves step by step and one must keep moving. For the moment, with an unnatural clarity, with a brutal³²⁹ simplification that made it almost easy, his consciousness contained nothing but one thought: It must not stop me. The sentence hung alone, with no past and no future. He did not think of what it was that must not stop him, or why this sentence was such a crucial absolute. It held him and he obeyed. He went step by step. He completed his schedule of appointments, as scheduled.  It was late when his last caller departed and he came out of his office. The rest of his staff had gone home. Miss Ives sat alone at her desk in an empty room. She sat straight and stiff, her hands clasped tightly together in her lap. Her head was not lowered, but held rigidly³³⁰ level, and her face seemed frozen. Tears were running down her cheeks, with no sound, with no facial movement, against her resistance, beyond control.  She saw him and said dryly, guiltily, in apology, "I'm sorry, Mr. Rearden," not attempting the futile³³¹ pretense²⁴⁷ of hiding her face.  He approached her. "Thank you," he said gently.  She looked up at him, astonished.  He smiled. "But don't you think you're underestimating me, Gwen? Isn't it too soon to cry over me?"  "I could have taken the rest of it," she whispered, "but they"-she pointed at the newspapers on her desk-"they're calling it a victory for anti-greed."  He laughed aloud. "I can see where such a distortion of the English language would make you furious," he said. "But what else?"  As she looked at him, her mouth relaxed a little. The victim whom she could not protect was her only point of reassurance in a world dissolving around her.  He moved his hand gently across her forehead; it was an unusual break of formality for him, and a silent acknowledgment of the things at which he had not laughed. "Go home, Gwen. I won't need you tonight. I'm going home myself in just a little while. No, I don't want you to wait."  It was past midnight, when, still sitting at his desk, bent over blueprints³³² of the bridge for the John Galt Line, he stopped his work abruptly, because emotion reached him in a sudden stab, not to be escaped any longer, as if a curtain of anesthesia had broken, He slumped³³³ down, halfway, still holding onto some shred of resistance, and sat, his chest pressed to the edge of the desk to stop him, his head hanging down, as if the only achievement still possible to him was not to let his head drop down on the desk. He sat that way for a few moments, conscious of nothing but pain, a screaming pain without content or limit-he sat, not knowing whether it was in his mind or his body, reduced to the terrible ugliness of pain that stopped thought.  In a few moments, it was over. He raised his head and sat up straight, quietly, leaning back against his chair. Now he saw that in postponing³³⁴ this moment for hours, he had not been guilty of evasion³³⁵: he had not thought of it, because there was nothing to think.  Thought-he told himself quietly-is a weapon one uses in order to act. No action was possible. Thought is the tool by which one makes a choice. No choice was left to him. Thought sets one's purpose and the way to reach it. In the matter of his life being torn piece by piece out of him, he was to have no voice, no purpose, no way, no defense²⁶⁸.  He thought of this in astonishment. He saw for the first time that he had never known fear because, against any disaster, he had held the omnipotent³³⁶ cure of being able to act. No, he thought, not an assurance of victory-who can ever have that?-only the chance to act, which is all one needs. Now he was contemplating³³⁷, impersonally³³⁸ and for the first time, the real heart of terror: being delivered to destruction with one's hands tied behind one's back.  Well, then, go on with your hands tied, he thought. Go on in chains.  Go on. It must not stop you. . . . But another voice was telling him things he did not want to hear, while he fought back, crying through and against it: There's no point in thinking of that . . . there's no use . . . what for? . . . leave it alone!  He could not choke it off. He sat still, over the drawings of the bridge for the John Galt Line, and heard the things released by a voice that was part-sound, part-sight: They decided it without him. . . . They did not call for him, they did not ask, they did not let him speak. . . . They were not bound even by the duty to let him know- to let him know that they had slashed³³⁹ part of his life away and that he had to be ready to walk on as a cripple. . . . Of all those concerned, whoever they were, for whichever reason, for whatever need, he was the one they had not had to consider.  The sign at the end of a long road said: Rearden Ore. It hung over black tiers of metal . . . and over years and nights . . . over a clock ticking drops of his blood away . . . the blood he had given gladly, exultantly³⁴⁰ in payment for a distant day and a sign over a road . . paid for with his effort, his strength, his mind, his hope.  Destroyed at the whim of some men who sat and voted . . . Who knows by what minds? . . . Who knows whose will had placed them in power?- what motive moved them?-what was their knowledge?-which one of them, unaided, could bring a chunk³⁴¹ of ore out of the earth? . . . Destroyed at the whim of men whom he had never seen and who had never seen those tiers of metal . . . Destroyed, because they so decided. By what right?  He shook his head. There are things one must not contemplate³⁴², he thought. There is an obscenity of evil which contaminates the observer. There is a limit to what it is proper for a man to see. He must not think of this, or look within it, or try to learn the nature of its roots.  Feeling quiet and empty, he told himself that he would be all right tomorrow. He would forgive himself the weakness of this night, it was like the tears one is permitted at a funeral, and then one learns how to live with an open wound or with a crippled factory.  He got up and walked to the window. The mills seemed deserted³⁴³ and still; he saw feeble snatches of red above black funnels³⁴⁴, long coils of steam, the webbed diagonals of cranes and bridges.  He felt a desolate loneliness, of a kind he had never known before.  He thought that Gwen Ives and Mr. Ward could look to him for hope, for relief, for renewal³⁴⁵ of courage. To whom could he look for it? He, too, needed it, for once. He wished he had a friend who could be permitted to see him suffer, without pretense or protection, on whom he could lean for a moment, just to say, "I'm very tired," and find a moment's rest. Of all the men he knew, was there one he wished he had beside him now? He heard the answer in his mind, immediate and shocking: Francisco d'Anconia.  His chuckle of anger brought him back. The absurdity³⁴⁶ of the longing³⁴⁷ jolted³⁴⁸ him into calm. That's what you get, he thought, when you indulge yourself in weakness.  He stood at the window, trying not to think. But he kept hearing words in his mind: Rearden Ore . . . Rearden Coal . . . Rearden Steel . . . Rearden Metal . . . What was the use? Why had he done it? Why should he ever want to do anything again? . . .  His first day on the ledges³⁴⁹ of the ore mines . . . The day when he stood in the wind, looking down at the ruins of a steel plant . . . The day when he stood here, in this office, at this window, and thought that a bridge could be made to carry incredible loads on just a few bars of metal, if one combined a truss with an arch, if one built diagonal bracing³⁵⁰ with the top members curved to-  He stopped and stood still. He had not thought of combining a truss with an arch, that day.  In the next moment, he was at his desk, bending over it, with one knee on the seat of the chair, with no time to think of sitting down, he was drawing lines, curves, triangles, columns of calculations, indiscriminately on the blueprints, on the desk blotter, on somebody's letters.  And an hour later, he was calling for a long-distance line, he was waiting for a phone to ring by a bed in a railway car on a siding, he was saying, "Dagny! That bridge of ours-throw in the ash can all the drawings I sent you, because . . . What? . . . Oh, that? To hell with that! Never mind the looters and their laws! Forget it! Dagny, what do we care! Listen, you know the contraption you called the Rearden Truss, that you admired so much? It's not worth a damn. I've figured out a truss that will beat anything ever built! Your bridge will carry four trains at once, stand three hundred years and cost you less than your cheapest culvert. I'll send you the drawings in two days, but I wanted to tell you about it right now. You see, it's a matter of combining a truss with an arch. If we take diagonal bracing and . . .  What? . . . I can't hear you. Have you caught a cold? . . . What are you thanking me for, as yet? Wait till I explain it to you."

1 crest   

n.顶点；饰章；羽冠；vt.达到顶点；vi.形成浪尖

参考例句：

• The rooster bristled his crest.公鸡竖起了鸡冠。
• He reached the crest of the hill before dawn.他于黎明前到达山顶。

2 ted   

vt.翻晒，撒，撒开

参考例句：

• The invaders gut ted the village.侵略者把村中财物洗劫一空。
• She often teds the corn when it's sunny.天好的时候她就翻晒玉米。

3 ridges   

n.脊( ridge的名词复数 )；山脊；脊状突起；大气层的)高压脊

参考例句：

• The path winds along mountain ridges. 峰回路转。
• Perhaps that was the deepest truth in Ridges's nature. 在里奇斯的思想上，这大概可以算是天经地义第一条了。

4 ward   

n.守卫，监护，病房，行政区，由监护人或法院保护的人（尤指儿童）；vt.守护，躲开

参考例句：

• The hospital has a medical ward and a surgical ward.这家医院有内科病房和外科病房。
• During the evening picnic,I'll carry a torch to ward off the bugs.傍晚野餐时，我要点根火把，抵挡蚊虫。

5 motive   

n.动机，目的；adv.发动的，运动的

参考例句：

• The police could not find a motive for the murder.警察不能找到谋杀的动机。
• He had some motive in telling this fable.他讲这寓言故事是有用意的。

6 shudder   

v.战粟，震动，剧烈地摇晃；n.战粟，抖动

参考例句：

• The sight of the coffin sent a shudder through him.看到那副棺材，他浑身一阵战栗。
• We all shudder at the thought of the dreadful dirty place.我们一想到那可怕的肮脏地方就浑身战惊。

7 canyon   

n.峡谷，溪谷

参考例句：

• The Grand Canyon in the USA is 1900 metres deep.美国的大峡谷1900米深。
• The canyon is famous for producing echoes.这个峡谷以回声而闻名。

8 tampers   

n.捣棒( tamper的名词复数 )；打夯机；夯具；填塞者v.窜改( tamper的第三人称单数 )；篡改；（用不正当手段）影响；瞎摆弄

参考例句：

• If anyone tampers with this door it trips the alarm. 要是有人撬这扇门，就会触响警报器。 来自辞典例句
• I do not approve of anything which tampers with natural ignorance. 我不赞成损害与生俱来的愚昧的任何事物。 来自互联网

9 contractor   

n.订约人，承包人，收缩肌

参考例句：

• The Tokyo contractor was asked to kick $ 6000 back as commission.那个东京的承包商被要求退还6000美元作为佣金。
• The style of house the contractor builds depends partly on the lay of the land.承包商所建房屋的式样，有几分要看地势而定。

10 ken   

n.视野，知识领域

参考例句：

• Such things are beyond my ken.我可不懂这些事。
• Abstract words are beyond the ken of children.抽象的言辞超出小孩所理解的范围.

11 skeptical   

adj.怀疑的，多疑的

参考例句：

• Others here are more skeptical about the chances for justice being done.这里的其他人更为怀疑正义能否得到伸张。
• Her look was skeptical and resigned.她的表情是将信将疑而又无可奈何。

12 frankly   

adv.坦白地，直率地；坦率地说

参考例句：

• To speak frankly, I don't like the idea at all.老实说，我一点也不赞成这个主意。
• Frankly speaking, I'm not opposed to reform.坦率地说，我不反对改革。

13 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

14 gorge   

n.咽喉，胃，暴食，山峡；v.塞饱，狼吞虎咽地吃

参考例句：

• East of the gorge leveled out.峡谷东面地势变得平坦起来。
• It made my gorge rise to hear the news.这消息令我作呕。

15 boulders   

n.卵石( boulder的名词复数 )；巨砾；（受水或天气侵蚀而成的）巨石；漂砾

参考例句：

• Seals basked on boulders in a flat calm. 海面风平浪静，海豹在巨石上晒太阳。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The river takes a headlong plunge into a maelstrom of rocks and boulders. 河水急流而下，入一个漂砾的漩涡中。 来自《简明英汉词典》

16 scattered   

adj.分散的，稀疏的；散步的；疏疏落落的

参考例句：

• Gathering up his scattered papers,he pushed them into his case.他把散乱的文件收拾起来，塞进文件夹里。

17 amalgamated   

v.（使）（金属）汞齐化( amalgamate的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）合并；联合；结合

参考例句：

• The company has now amalgamated with another local firm. 这家公司现在已与当地一家公司合并了。
• Those two organizations have been amalgamated into single one. 那两个组织已合并为一个组织。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

18 entirely   

ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
• His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。

19 spikes   

n.穗( spike的名词复数 )；跑鞋；（防滑）鞋钉；尖状物v.加烈酒于( spike的第三人称单数 )；偷偷地给某人的饮料加入（更多）酒精（ 或药物）；把尖状物钉入；打乱某人的计划

参考例句：

• a row of iron spikes on a wall 墙头的一排尖铁
• There is a row of spikes on top of the prison wall to prevent the prisoners escaping. 监狱墙头装有一排尖钉，以防犯人逃跑。 来自《简明英汉词典》

20 bribe   

n.贿赂；v.向…行贿，买通

参考例句：

• He tried to bribe the policeman not to arrest him.他企图贿赂警察不逮捕他。
• He resolutely refused their bribe.他坚决不接受他们的贿赂。

21 bribed   

v.贿赂( bribe的过去式和过去分词 )；向（某人）行贿，贿赂

参考例句：

• They bribed him with costly presents. 他们用贵重的礼物贿赂他。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• He bribed himself onto the committee. 他暗通关节，钻营投机挤进了委员会。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

22 random   

adj.随机的；任意的；n.偶然的(或随便的)行动

参考例句：

• The list is arranged in a random order.名单排列不分先后。
• On random inspection the meat was found to be bad.经抽查，发现肉变质了。

23 mighty   

adj.强有力的；巨大的

参考例句：

• A mighty force was about to break loose.一股巨大的力量即将迸发而出。
• The mighty iceberg came into view.巨大的冰山出现在眼前。

24 outlast   

v.较…耐久

参考例句：

• The great use of life is to spend it doing something that will outlast it.人生的充分利用就是为争取比人生更长久的东西而度过一生。
• These naturally dried flowers will outlast a bouquet of fresh blooms.这些自然风干的花会比一束鲜花更加持久。

25 structural   

adj.构造的，组织的，建筑（用）的

参考例句：

• The storm caused no structural damage.风暴没有造成建筑结构方面的破坏。
• The North American continent is made up of three great structural entities.北美大陆是由三个构造单元组成的。

26 rigidity   

adj.钢性，坚硬

参考例句：

• The rigidity of the metal caused it to crack.这金属因刚度强而产生裂纹。
• He deplored the rigidity of her views.他痛感她的观点僵化。

27 diesels   

柴油( diesel的名词复数 )； 柴油机机车（或船等）

参考例句：

• The diesels roared, the conductors jumped aboard, and off the train went. 内燃机发出轰鸣声，列车员跳上车厢，火车开走了。
• The diesels catch and roar, a welcome sound. 柴油机开动，发生了怒吼，这是令人鼓舞的声音。

28 streaks   

n.（与周围有所不同的）条纹( streak的名词复数 )；（通常指不好的）特征（倾向）；（不断经历成功或失败的）一段时期v.快速移动( streak的第三人称单数 )；使布满条纹

参考例句：

• streaks of grey in her hair 她头上的绺绺白发
• Bacon has streaks of fat and streaks of lean. 咸肉中有几层肥的和几层瘦的。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

29 salute   

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

参考例句：

• Merchant ships salute each other by dipping the flag.商船互相点旗致敬。
• The Japanese women salute the people with formal bows in welcome.这些日本妇女以正式的鞠躬向人们施礼以示欢迎。

30 rotary   

adj.(运动等)旋转的；轮转的；转动的

参考例句：

• The central unit is a rotary drum.核心设备是一个旋转的滚筒。
• A rotary table helps to optimize the beam incidence angle.一张旋转的桌子有助于将光线影响之方式角最佳化。

31 plow   

n.犁，耕地，犁过的地；v.犁，费力地前进[英]plough

参考例句：

• At this time of the year farmers plow their fields.每年这个时候农民们都在耕地。
• We will plow the field soon after the last frost.最后一场霜过后，我们将马上耕田。

32 sullen   

adj.愠怒的，闷闷不乐的，(天气等)阴沉的

参考例句：

• He looked up at the sullen sky.他抬头看了一眼阴沉的天空。
• Susan was sullen in the morning because she hadn't slept well.苏珊今天早上郁闷不乐，因为昨晚没睡好。

33 tinge   

vt.(较淡)着色于，染色；使带有…气息；n.淡淡色彩，些微的气息

参考例句：

• The maple leaves are tinge with autumn red.枫叶染上了秋天的红色。
• There was a tinge of sadness in her voice.她声音中流露出一丝忧伤。

34 exhausted   

adj.极其疲惫的，精疲力尽的

参考例句：

• It was a long haul home and we arrived exhausted.搬运回家的这段路程特别长，到家时我们已筋疲力尽。
• Jenny was exhausted by the hustle of city life.珍妮被城市生活的忙乱弄得筋疲力尽。

35 automobile   

n.汽车，机动车

参考例句：

• He is repairing the brake lever of an automobile.他正在修理汽车的刹车杆。
• The automobile slowed down to go around the curves in the road.汽车在路上转弯时放慢了速度。

36 gasp   

n.喘息，气喘；v.喘息；气吁吁他说

参考例句：

• She gave a gasp of surprise.她吃惊得大口喘气。
• The enemy are at their last gasp.敌人在做垂死的挣扎。

37 gasped   

v.喘气( gasp的过去式和过去分词 )；喘息；倒抽气；很想要

参考例句：

• She gasped at the wonderful view. 如此美景使她惊讶得屏住了呼吸。
• People gasped with admiration at the superb skill of the gymnasts. 体操运动员的高超技艺令人赞叹。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

38 slanting   

倾斜的，歪斜的

参考例句：

• The rain is driving [slanting] in from the south. 南边潲雨。
• The line is slanting to the left. 这根线向左斜了。

39 exhaustion   

n.耗尽枯竭，疲惫，筋疲力尽，竭尽，详尽无遗的论述

参考例句：

• She slept the sleep of exhaustion.她因疲劳而酣睡。
• His exhaustion was obvious when he fell asleep standing.他站着睡着了，显然是太累了。

40 pointed   

adj.尖的，直截了当的

参考例句：

• He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
• She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。

41 scrap   

n.碎片；废料；v.废弃，报废

参考例句：

• A man comes round regularly collecting scrap.有个男人定时来收废品。
• Sell that car for scrap.把那辆汽车当残品卖了吧。

42 specifications   

n.规格；载明；详述；（产品等的）说明书；说明书( specification的名词复数 )；详细的计划书；载明；详述

参考例句：

• Our work must answer the specifications laid down. 我们的工作应符合所定的规范。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• This sketch does not conform with the specifications. 图文不符。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

43 spoke   

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

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

44 notations   

记号，标记法( notation的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• He was frowning and wishing he could decode the notations on the slips. 他皱着眉，挖空心思地想认出赌签上的记号。 来自教父部分
• In section 2, we give some notations and some lemmas. 在本文第二部分，我们给出一些符号及引理。

45 sketches   

n.草图( sketch的名词复数 )；素描；速写；梗概

参考例句：

• The artist is making sketches for his next painting. 画家正为他的下一幅作品画素描。
• You have to admit that these sketches are true to life. 你得承认这些素描很逼真。 来自《简明英汉词典》

46 lumber   

n.木材，木料；v.以破旧东西堆满；伐木；笨重移动

参考例句：

• The truck was sent to carry lumber.卡车被派出去运木材。
• They slapped together a cabin out of old lumber.他们利用旧木料草草地盖起了一间小屋。

47 planks   

（厚）木板( plank的名词复数 )； 政纲条目，政策要点

参考例句：

• The house was built solidly of rough wooden planks. 这房子是用粗木板牢固地建造的。
• We sawed the log into planks. 我们把木头锯成了木板。

48 plank   

n.板条，木板，政策要点，政纲条目

参考例句：

• The plank was set against the wall.木板靠着墙壁。
• They intend to win the next election on the plank of developing trade.他们想以发展贸易的纲领来赢得下次选举。

49 bent   

n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的

参考例句：

• He was fully bent upon the project.他一心扑在这项计划上。
• We bent over backward to help them.我们尽了最大努力帮助他们。

50 scraps   

油渣

参考例句：

• Don't litter up the floor with scraps of paper. 不要在地板上乱扔纸屑。
• A patchwork quilt is a good way of using up scraps of material. 做杂拼花布棉被是利用零碎布料的好办法。

51 chuckle   

vi.／n.轻声笑，咯咯笑

参考例句：

• He shook his head with a soft chuckle.他轻轻地笑着摇了摇头。
• I couldn't suppress a soft chuckle at the thought of it.想到这个，我忍不住轻轻地笑起来。

52 chuckled   

轻声地笑( chuckle的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• She chuckled at the memory. 想起这件事她就暗自发笑。
• She chuckled softly to herself as she remembered his astonished look. 想起他那惊讶的表情，她就轻轻地暗自发笑。

53 yelping   

v.发出短而尖的叫声( yelp的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• In the middle of the table sat a little dog, shaking its paw and yelping. 在桌子中间有一只小狗坐在那儿，抖着它的爪子，汪汪地叫。 来自辞典例句
• He saved men from drowning and you shake at a cur's yelping. 他搭救了快要溺死的人们，你呢，听到一条野狗叫唤也瑟瑟发抖。 来自互联网

54 yelp   

vi.狗吠

参考例句：

• The dog gave a yelp of pain.狗疼得叫了一声。
• The puppy a yelp when John stepped on her tail.当约翰踩到小狗的尾巴，小狗发出尖叫。

55 hostility   

n.敌对，敌意；抵制［pl.］交战，战争

参考例句：

• There is open hostility between the two leaders.两位领导人表现出公开的敌意。
• His hostility to your plan is well known.他对你的计划所持的敌意是众所周知的。

56 braced   

adj.拉牢的v.支住( brace的过去式和过去分词 )；撑牢；使自己站稳；振作起来

参考例句：

• They braced up the old house with balks of timber. 他们用梁木加固旧房子。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The house has a wooden frame which is braced with brick. 这幢房子是木结构的砖瓦房。 来自《简明英汉词典》

57 touching   

adj.动人的，使人感伤的

参考例句：

• It was a touching sight.这是一幅动人的景象。
• His letter was touching.他的信很感人。

58 labor   

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

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

59 alley   

n.小巷，胡同；小径，小路

参考例句：

• We live in the same alley.我们住在同一条小巷里。
• The blind alley ended in a brick wall.这条死胡同的尽头是砖墙。

60 shoestring   

n.小额资本；adj.小本经营的

参考例句：

• In the early years,the business was run on a shoestring.早年，这家店铺曾是小本经营。
• How can I take the best possible digital pictures on a shoestring budget?怎样用很小投资拍摄最好的数码照片？

61 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

62 copper   

n.铜；铜币；铜器；adj.铜(制)的；(紫)铜色的

参考例句：

• The students are asked to prove the purity of copper.要求学生们检验铜的纯度。
• Copper is a good medium for the conduction of heat and electricity.铜是热和电的良导体。

63 sleepless   

adj.不睡眠的，睡不著的，不休息的

参考例句：

• The situation gave her many sleepless nights.这种情况害她一连好多天睡不好觉。
• One evening I heard a tale that rendered me sleepless for nights.一天晚上，我听说了一个传闻，把我搞得一连几夜都不能入睡。

64 intimacy   

n.熟悉，亲密，密切关系，亲昵的言行

参考例句：

• His claims to an intimacy with the President are somewhat exaggerated.他声称自己与总统关系密切，这有点言过其实。
• I wish there were a rule book for intimacy.我希望能有个关于亲密的规则。

65 abrupt   

adj.突然的，意外的；唐突的，鲁莽的

参考例句：

• The river takes an abrupt bend to the west.这河突然向西转弯。
• His abrupt reply hurt our feelings.他粗鲁的回答伤了我们的感情。

66 abruptly   

adv.突然地，出其不意地

参考例句：

• He gestured abruptly for Virginia to get in the car.他粗鲁地示意弗吉尼亚上车。
• I was abruptly notified that a half-hour speech was expected of me.我突然被通知要讲半个小时的话。

67 abruptness   

n. 突然，唐突

参考例句：

• He hid his feelings behind a gruff abruptness. 他把自己的感情隐藏在生硬鲁莽之中。
• Suddenly Vanamee returned to himself with the abruptness of a blow. 伐那米猛地清醒过来，象挨到了当头一拳似的。

68 winding   

n.绕，缠，绕组，线圈

参考例句：

• A winding lane led down towards the river.一条弯弯曲曲的小路通向河边。
• The winding trail caused us to lose our orientation.迂回曲折的小道使我们迷失了方向。

69 desolate   

adj.荒凉的，荒芜的；孤独的，凄凉的；v.使荒芜，使孤寂

参考例句：

• The city was burned into a desolate waste.那座城市被烧成一片废墟。
• We all felt absolutely desolate when she left.她走后，我们都觉得万分孤寂。

70 beacon   

n.烽火，（警告用的）闪火灯，灯塔

参考例句：

• The blink of beacon could be seen for miles.灯塔的光亮在数英里之外都能看见。
• The only light over the deep black sea was the blink shone from the beacon.黑黢黢的海面上唯一的光明就只有灯塔上闪现的亮光了。

71 chauffeur   

n.(受雇于私人或公司的)司机；v.为…开车

参考例句：

• The chauffeur handed the old lady from the car.这个司机搀扶这个老太太下汽车。
• She went out herself and spoke to the chauffeur.她亲自走出去跟汽车司机说话。

72 sleet   

n.雨雪；v.下雨雪，下冰雹

参考例句：

• There was a great deal of sleet last night.昨夜雨夹雪下得真大。
• When winter comes,we get sleet and frost.冬天来到时我们这儿会有雨夹雪和霜冻。

73 glistening   

adj.闪耀的，反光的v.湿物闪耀，闪亮( glisten的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Her eyes were glistening with tears. 她眼里闪着晶莹的泪花。
• Her eyes were glistening with tears. 她眼睛中的泪水闪着柔和的光。 来自《用法词典》

74 smear   

v.涂抹；诽谤，玷污；n.污点；诽谤，污蔑

参考例句：

• He has been spreading false stories in an attempt to smear us.他一直在散布谎言企图诽谤我们。
• There's a smear on your shirt.你衬衫上有个污点。

75 excavation   

n.挖掘，发掘；被挖掘之地

参考例句：

• The bad weather has hung up the work of excavation.天气不好耽误了挖掘工作。
• The excavation exposed some ancient ruins.这次挖掘暴露出一些古遗迹。

76 irritably   

ad.易生气地

参考例句：

• He lost his temper and snapped irritably at the children. 他发火了，暴躁地斥责孩子们。
• On this account the silence was irritably broken by a reproof. 为了这件事，他妻子大声斥责，令人恼火地打破了宁静。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹

77 tightening   

上紧，固定，紧密

参考例句：

• Make sure the washer is firmly seated before tightening the pipe. 旋紧水管之前，检查一下洗衣机是否已牢牢地固定在底座上了。
• It needs tightening up a little. 它还需要再收紧些。

78 controversy   

n.争论，辩论，争吵

参考例句：

• That is a fact beyond controversy.那是一个无可争论的事实。
• We ran the risk of becoming the butt of every controversy.我们要冒使自己在所有的纷争中都成为众矢之的的风险。

79 guilt   

n.犯罪；内疚；过失，罪责

参考例句：

• She tried to cover up her guilt by lying.她企图用谎言掩饰自己的罪行。
• Don't lay a guilt trip on your child about schoolwork.别因为功课责备孩子而使他觉得很内疚。

80 bleak   

adj.(天气)阴冷的；凄凉的；暗淡的

参考例句：

• They showed me into a bleak waiting room.他们引我来到一间阴冷的会客室。
• The company's prospects look pretty bleak.这家公司的前景异常暗淡。

81 brittle   

adj.易碎的；脆弱的；冷淡的；(声音)尖利的

参考例句：

• The pond was covered in a brittle layer of ice.池塘覆盖了一层易碎的冰。
• She gave a brittle laugh.她冷淡地笑了笑。

82 decomposing   

腐烂( decompose的现在分词 )； （使）分解； 分解（某物质、光线等）

参考例句：

• The air was filled with the overpowering stench of decomposing vegetation. 空气中充满了令人难以忍受的腐烂植物的恶臭。
• Heat was obtained from decomposing manures and hot air flues. 靠肥料分解和烟道为植物提供热量。

83 molecularly   

分子状态地

参考例句：

• Adsorption to trans-aconitic acid by non-molecularly imprinted microspheres is 26.26%. 充分验证了沉淀聚合法合成分子印迹聚合物微球是一种新的有效的分子印迹方法这一观点。
• Once mutants have been isolated, the mutated gene can be molecularly identified. 而一旦分离出变异体，对应的突变基因就可以鉴定出来了。

84 molecular   

adj.分子的；克分子的

参考例句：

• The research will provide direct insight into molecular mechanisms.这项研究将使人能够直接地了解分子的机理。
• For the pressure to become zero, molecular bombardment must cease.当压强趋近于零时，分子的碰撞就停止了。

85 trademark   

n.商标；特征；vt.注册的…商标

参考例句：

• The trademark is registered on the book of the Patent Office.该商标已在专利局登记注册。
• The trademark of the pen was changed.这钢笔的商标改了。

86 miserably   

adv.痛苦地；悲惨地；糟糕地；极度地

参考例句：

• The little girl was wailing miserably. 那小女孩难过得号啕大哭。
• It was drizzling, and miserably cold and damp. 外面下着毛毛细雨，天气又冷又湿，令人难受。 来自《简明英汉词典》

87 jaw   

n.颚，颌，说教，流言蜚语；v.喋喋不休，教训

参考例句：

• He delivered a right hook to his opponent's jaw.他给了对方下巴一记右钩拳。
• A strong square jaw is a sign of firm character.强健的方下巴是刚毅性格的标志。

88 lighting   

n.照明，光线的明暗，舞台灯光

参考例句：

• The gas lamp gradually lost ground to electric lighting.煤气灯逐渐为电灯所代替。
• The lighting in that restaurant is soft and romantic.那个餐馆照明柔和而且浪漫。

89 guardian   

n.监护人；守卫者，保护者

参考例句：

• The form must be signed by the child's parents or guardian. 这张表格须由孩子的家长或监护人签字。
• The press is a guardian of the public weal. 报刊是公共福利的卫护者。

90 impervious   

adj.不能渗透的，不能穿过的，不易伤害的

参考例句：

• He was completely impervious to criticism.他对批评毫不在乎。
• This material is impervious to gases and liquids.气体和液体都透不过这种物质。

91 crate   

vt.(up)把…装入箱中；n.板条箱，装货箱

参考例句：

• We broke open the crate with a blow from the chopper.我们用斧头一敲就打开了板条箱。
• The workers tightly packed the goods in the crate.工人们把货物严紧地包装在箱子里。

92 crated   

把…装入箱中( crate的过去式 )

参考例句：

• If I know Rhoda she's already crated and boxed them out of sight. 如果没猜错罗达的脾气，我相信她已经把它们装了箱放到一边了。
• Tanks must be completely drained of fuel before the vehicles are crated. 车辆在装箱前必须把油箱里的燃油完全排干。

93 publicity   

n.众所周知，闻名；宣传，广告

参考例句：

• The singer star's marriage got a lot of publicity.这位歌星的婚事引起了公众的关注。
• He dismissed the event as just a publicity gimmick.他不理会这件事，只当它是一种宣传手法。

94 reassurance   

n.使放心，使消除疑虑

参考例句：

• He drew reassurance from the enthusiastic applause.热烈的掌声使他获得了信心。
• Reassurance is especially critical when it comes to military activities.消除疑虑在军事活动方面尤为关键。

95 spotlight   

n.公众注意的中心，聚光灯，探照灯，视听，注意，醒目

参考例句：

• This week the spotlight is on the world of fashion.本周引人瞩目的是时装界。
• The spotlight followed her round the stage.聚光灯的光圈随着她在舞台上转。

96 bastard   

n.坏蛋，混蛋；私生子

参考例句：

• He was never concerned about being born a bastard.他从不介意自己是私生子。
• There was supposed to be no way to get at the bastard.据说没有办法买通那个混蛋。

97 hysterically   

ad. 歇斯底里地

参考例句：

• The children giggled hysterically. 孩子们歇斯底里地傻笑。
• She sobbed hysterically, and her thin body was shaken. 她歇斯底里地抽泣着，她瘦弱的身体哭得直颤抖。

98 belligerent   

adj.好战的，挑起战争的；n.交战国，交战者

参考例句：

• He had a belligerent aspect.他有种好斗的神色。
• Our government has forbidden exporting the petroleum to the belligerent countries.我们政府已经禁止向交战国输出石油。

99 deference   

n.尊重，顺从；敬意

参考例句：

• Do you treat your parents and teachers with deference?你对父母师长尊敬吗？
• The major defect of their work was deference to authority.他们的主要缺陷是趋从权威。

100 piecemeal   

adj.零碎的；n.片，块；adv.逐渐地；v.弄成碎块

参考例句：

• A lack of narrative drive leaves the reader with piecemeal vignettes.叙述缺乏吸引力，读者读到的只是一些支离破碎的片段。
• Let's settle the matter at one stroke,not piecemeal.把这事一气儿解决了吧，别零敲碎打了。

101 defiantly   

adv.挑战地，大胆对抗地

参考例句：

• Braving snow and frost, the plum trees blossomed defiantly. 红梅傲雪凌霜开。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• She tilted her chin at him defiantly. 她向他翘起下巴表示挑衅。 来自《简明英汉词典》

102 sarcastic   

adj.讥讽的，讽刺的，嘲弄的

参考例句：

• I squashed him with a sarcastic remark.我说了一句讽刺的话把他给镇住了。
• She poked fun at people's shortcomings with sarcastic remarks.她冷嘲热讽地拿别人的缺点开玩笑。

103 lethal   

adj.致死的；毁灭性的

参考例句：

• A hammer can be a lethal weapon.铁锤可以是致命的武器。
• She took a lethal amount of poison and died.她服了致命剂量的毒药死了。

104 slipper   

n.拖鞋

参考例句：

• I rescued the remains of my slipper from the dog.我从那狗的口中夺回了我拖鞋的残留部分。
• The puppy chewed a hole in the slipper.小狗在拖鞋上啃了一个洞。

105 slippers   

n. 拖鞋

参考例句：

• a pair of slippers 一双拖鞋
• He kicked his slippers off and dropped on to the bed. 他踢掉了拖鞋，倒在床上。

106 skyscrapers   

n.摩天大楼

参考例句：

• A lot of skyscrapers in Manhattan are rising up to the skies. 曼哈顿有许多摩天大楼耸入云霄。
• On all sides, skyscrapers rose like jagged teeth. 四周耸起的摩天大楼参差不齐。

107 crumbled   

（把…）弄碎， （使）碎成细屑( crumble的过去式和过去分词 )； 衰落； 坍塌； 损坏

参考例句：

• He crumbled the bread in his fingers. 他用手指把面包捻碎。
• Our hopes crumbled when the business went bankrupt. 商行破产了，我们的希望也破灭了。

108 boiler   

n.锅炉；煮器(壶，锅等)

参考例句：

• That boiler will not hold up under pressure.那种锅炉受不住压力。
• This new boiler generates more heat than the old one.这个新锅炉产生的热量比旧锅炉多。

109 gratitude   

adj.感激，感谢

参考例句：

• I have expressed the depth of my gratitude to him.我向他表示了深切的谢意。
• She could not help her tears of gratitude rolling down her face.她感激的泪珠禁不住沿着面颊流了下来。

110 velvet   

n.丝绒，天鹅绒；adj.丝绒制的，柔软的

参考例句：

• This material feels like velvet.这料子摸起来像丝绒。
• The new settlers wore the finest silk and velvet clothing.新来的移民穿着最华丽的丝绸和天鹅绒衣服。

111 cape   

n.海角，岬；披肩，短披风

参考例句：

• I long for a trip to the Cape of Good Hope.我渴望到好望角去旅行。
• She was wearing a cape over her dress.她在外套上披着一件披肩。

112 stolid   

adj.无动于衷的，感情麻木的

参考例句：

• Her face showed nothing but stolid indifference.她的脸上毫无表情，只有麻木的无动于衷。
• He conceals his feelings behind a rather stolid manner.他装作无动于衷的样子以掩盖自己的感情。

113 indifference   

n.不感兴趣，不关心，冷淡，不在乎

参考例句：

• I was disappointed by his indifference more than somewhat.他的漠不关心使我很失望。
• He feigned indifference to criticism of his work.他假装毫不在意别人批评他的作品。

114 enjoyment   

n.乐趣；享有；享用

参考例句：

• Your company adds to the enjoyment of our visit. 有您的陪同，我们这次访问更加愉快了。
• After each joke the old man cackled his enjoyment.每逢讲完一个笑话，这老人就呵呵笑着表示他的高兴。

115 habitual   

adj.习惯性的；通常的，惯常的

参考例句：

• He is a habitual criminal.他是一个惯犯。
• They are habitual visitors to our house.他们是我家的常客。

116 dime   

n.（指美国、加拿大的钱币）一角

参考例句：

• A dime is a tenth of a dollar.一角银币是十分之一美元。
• The liberty torch is on the back of the dime.自由火炬在一角硬币的反面。

117 stainless   

adj.无瑕疵的，不锈的

参考例句：

• I have a set of stainless knives and forks.我有一套不锈钢刀叉。
• Before the recent political scandal,her reputation had been stainless.在最近的政治丑闻之前，她的名声是无懈可击的。

118 cylinder   

n.圆筒，柱(面)，汽缸

参考例句：

• What's the volume of this cylinder?这个圆筒的体积有多少？
• The cylinder is getting too much gas and not enough air.汽缸里汽油太多而空气不足。

119 enameled   

涂瓷釉于，给…上瓷漆，给…上彩饰( enamel的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The grey walls were divided into artificial paneling by strips of white-enameled pine. 灰色的墙壁用漆白的松木条隔成镶板的模样。
• I want a pair of enameled leather shoes in size 38. 我要一双38号的亮漆皮鞋。

120 ingenuity   

n.别出心裁；善于发明创造

参考例句：

• The boy showed ingenuity in making toys.那个小男孩做玩具很有创造力。
• I admire your ingenuity and perseverance.我钦佩你的别出心裁和毅力。

121 marsh   

n.沼泽，湿地

参考例句：

• There are a lot of frogs in the marsh.沼泽里有许多青蛙。
• I made my way slowly out of the marsh.我缓慢地走出这片沼泽地。

122 bum   

n.臀部；流浪汉，乞丐；vt.乞求，乞讨

参考例句：

• A man pinched her bum on the train so she hit him.在火车上有人捏她屁股，她打了那人。
• The penniless man had to bum a ride home.那个身无分文的人只好乞求搭车回家。

123 virtues   

美德( virtue的名词复数 )； 德行； 优点； 长处

参考例句：

• Doctors often extol the virtues of eating less fat. 医生常常宣扬少吃脂肪的好处。
• She delivered a homily on the virtues of family life. 她进行了一场家庭生活美德方面的说教。

124 virtue   

n.德行，美德；贞操；优点；功效，效力

参考例句：

• He was considered to be a paragon of virtue.他被认为是品德尽善尽美的典范。
• You need to decorate your mind with virtue.你应该用德行美化心灵。

125 sublime   

adj.崇高的，伟大的；极度的，不顾后果的

参考例句：

• We should take some time to enjoy the sublime beauty of nature.我们应该花些时间去欣赏大自然的壮丽景象。
• Olympic games play as an important arena to exhibit the sublime idea.奥运会，就是展示此崇高理念的重要舞台。

126 machinery   

n.(总称)机械，机器；机构

参考例句：

• Has the machinery been put up ready for the broadcast?广播器材安装完毕了吗？
• Machinery ought to be well maintained all the time.机器应该随时注意维护。

127 mattresses   

褥垫，床垫( mattress的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The straw mattresses are airing there. 草垫子正在那里晾着。
• The researchers tested more than 20 mattresses of various materials. 研究人员试验了二十多个不同材料的床垫。

128 ignoble   

adj.不光彩的，卑鄙的；可耻的

参考例句：

• There's something cowardly and ignoble about such an attitude.这种态度有点怯懦可鄙。
• Some very great men have come from ignoble families.有些伟人出身低微。

129 unlimited   

adj.无限的，不受控制的，无条件的

参考例句：

• They flew over the unlimited reaches of the Arctic.他们飞过了茫茫无边的北极上空。
• There is no safety in unlimited technological hubris.在技术方面自以为是会很危险。

130 accomplishment   

n.完成，成就，（pl.）造诣，技能

参考例句：

• The series of paintings is quite an accomplishment.这一系列的绘画真是了不起的成就。
• Money will be crucial to the accomplishment of our objectives.要实现我们的目标，钱是至关重要的。

131 alleged   

a.被指控的，嫌疑的

参考例句：

• It was alleged that he had taken bribes while in office. 他被指称在任时收受贿赂。
• alleged irregularities in the election campaign 被指称竞选运动中的不正当行为

132 hogs   

n.（尤指喂肥供食用的）猪( hog的名词复数 )；（供食用的）阉公猪；彻底地做某事；自私的或贪婪的人

参考例句：

• 'sounds like -- like hogs grunting. “像——像是猪发出的声音。 来自英汉文学 - 汤姆历险
• I hate the way he hogs down his food. 我讨厌他那副狼吞虎咽的吃相。 来自辞典例句

133 judgment   

n.审判；判断力，识别力，看法，意见

参考例句：

• The chairman flatters himself on his judgment of people.主席自认为他审视人比别人高明。
• He's a man of excellent judgment.他眼力过人。

134 dedication   

n.奉献，献身，致力，题献，献辞

参考例句：

• We admire her courage,compassion and dedication.我们钦佩她的勇气、爱心和奉献精神。
• Her dedication to her work was admirable.她对工作的奉献精神可钦可佩。

135 sneer   

v.轻蔑；嘲笑；n.嘲笑，讥讽的言语

参考例句：

• He said with a sneer.他的话中带有嘲笑之意。
• You may sneer,but a lot of people like this kind of music.你可以嗤之以鼻，但很多人喜欢这种音乐。

136 arteries   

n.动脉( artery的名词复数 )；干线，要道

参考例句：

• Even grafting new blood vessels in place of the diseased coronary arteries has been tried. 甚至移植新血管代替不健康的冠状动脉的方法都已经试过。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• This is the place where the three main arteries of West London traffic met. 这就是伦敦西部三条主要交通干线的交汇处。 来自《简明英汉词典》

137 intensity   

n.强烈，剧烈；强度；烈度

参考例句：

• I didn't realize the intensity of people's feelings on this issue.我没有意识到这一问题能引起群情激奋。
• The strike is growing in intensity.罢工日益加剧。

138 fiat   

n.命令，法令，批准；vt.批准，颁布

参考例句：

• The opening of a market stall is governed by municipal fiat.开设市场摊位受市政法令管制。
• He has tried to impose solutions to the country's problems by fiat.他试图下令强行解决该国的问题。

139 devoid   

adj.全无的，缺乏的

参考例句：

• He is completely devoid of humour.他十分缺乏幽默。
• The house is totally devoid of furniture.这所房子里什么家具都没有。

140 meek   

adj.温顺的，逆来顺受的

参考例句：

• He expects his wife to be meek and submissive.他期望妻子温顺而且听他摆布。
• The little girl is as meek as a lamb.那个小姑娘像羔羊一般温顺。

141 preposterous   

adj.荒谬的，可笑的

参考例句：

• The whole idea was preposterous.整个想法都荒唐透顶。
• It would be preposterous to shovel coal with a teaspoon.用茶匙铲煤是荒谬的。

142 deliberately   

adv.审慎地；蓄意地；故意地

参考例句：

• The girl gave the show away deliberately.女孩故意泄露秘密。
• They deliberately shifted off the argument.他们故意回避这个论点。

143 furtive   

adj.鬼鬼崇崇的，偷偷摸摸的

参考例句：

• The teacher was suspicious of the student's furtive behaviour during the exam.老师怀疑这个学生在考试时有偷偷摸摸的行为。
• His furtive behaviour aroused our suspicion.他鬼鬼祟祟的行为引起了我们的怀疑。

144 precarious   

adj.不安定的，靠不住的；根据不足的

参考例句：

• Our financial situation had become precarious.我们的财务状况已变得不稳定了。
• He earned a precarious living as an artist.作为一个艺术家，他过得是朝不保夕的生活。

145 equilibrium   

n.平衡，均衡，相称，均势，平静

参考例句：

• Change in the world around us disturbs our inner equilibrium.我们周围世界的变化扰乱了我们内心的平静。
• This is best expressed in the form of an equilibrium constant.这最好用平衡常数的形式来表示。

146 collapse   

vi.累倒；昏倒；倒塌；塌陷

参考例句：

• The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。
• The engineer made a complete diagnosis of the bridge's collapse.工程师对桥的倒塌做了一次彻底的调查分析。

147 placatingly   

参考例句：

• He smiled placatingly and tucked the bills away in his pocket. 冯云卿陪着笑脸说，就把那些票据收起来。 来自子夜部分

148 stabilized   

v.（使）稳定， （使）稳固( stabilize的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The patient's condition stabilized. 患者的病情稳定下来。
• His blood pressure has stabilized. 他的血压已经稳定下来了。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

149 gaily   

adv.欢乐地，高兴地

参考例句：

• The children sing gaily.孩子们欢唱着。
• She waved goodbye very gaily.她欢快地挥手告别。

150 shrugged   

vt.耸肩（shrug的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• Sam shrugged and said nothing. 萨姆耸耸肩膀，什么也没说。
• She shrugged, feigning nonchalance. 她耸耸肩，装出一副无所谓的样子。 来自《简明英汉词典》

151 morbid   

adj.病的；致病的；病态的；可怕的

参考例句：

• Some people have a morbid fascination with crime.一些人对犯罪有一种病态的痴迷。
• It's morbid to dwell on cemeteries and such like.不厌其烦地谈论墓地以及诸如此类的事是一种病态。

152 gambling   

n.赌博；投机

参考例句：

• They have won a lot of money through gambling.他们赌博赢了很多钱。
• The men have been gambling away all night.那些人赌了整整一夜。

153 odds   

n.让步，机率，可能性，比率；胜败优劣之别

参考例句：

• The odds are 5 to 1 that she will win.她获胜的机会是五比一。
• Do you know the odds of winning the lottery once?你知道赢得一次彩票的几率多大吗？

154 bucking   

v.（马等）猛然弓背跃起( buck的现在分词 )；抵制；猛然震荡；马等尥起后蹄跳跃

参考例句：

• a bucking bronco in the rodeo 牛仔竞技表演中一匹弓背跳跃的野马
• That means we'll be bucking grain bags, bustin's gut. 那就是说咱们要背这一袋袋的谷子，得把五脏都累坏。 来自辞典例句

155 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

156 condemning   

v.（通常因道义上的原因而）谴责( condemn的现在分词 )；宣判；宣布…不能使用；迫使…陷于不幸的境地

参考例句：

• The government issued a statement condemning the killings. 政府发表声明谴责这些凶杀事件。
• I concur with the speaker in condemning what has been done. 我同意发言者对所做的事加以谴责。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

157 undoubtedly   

adv.确实地，无疑地

参考例句：

• It is undoubtedly she who has said that.这话明明是她说的。
• He is undoubtedly the pride of China.毫无疑问他是中国的骄傲。

158 twilight   

n.暮光，黄昏；暮年，晚期，衰落时期

参考例句：

• Twilight merged into darkness.夕阳的光辉融于黑暗中。
• Twilight was sweet with the smell of lilac and freshly turned earth.薄暮充满紫丁香和新翻耕的泥土的香味。

159 serenity   

n.宁静，沉着，晴朗

参考例句：

• Her face,though sad,still evoked a feeling of serenity.她的脸色虽然悲伤，但仍使人感觉安详。
• She escaped to the comparative serenity of the kitchen.她逃到相对安静的厨房里。

160 pending   

prep.直到，等待…期间；adj.待定的；迫近的

参考例句：

• The lawsuit is still pending in the state court.这案子仍在州法庭等待定夺。
• He knew my examination was pending.他知道我就要考试了。

161 casually   

adv.漠不关心地，无动于衷地，不负责任地

参考例句：

• She remarked casually that she was changing her job.她当时漫不经心地说要换工作。
• I casually mentioned that I might be interested in working abroad.我不经意地提到我可能会对出国工作感兴趣。

162 unnatural   

adj.不自然的；反常的

参考例句：

• Did her behaviour seem unnatural in any way?她有任何反常表现吗？
• She has an unnatural smile on her face.她脸上挂着做作的微笑。

163 dreaded   

adj.令人畏惧的；害怕的v.害怕，恐惧，担心( dread的过去式和过去分词)

参考例句：

• The dreaded moment had finally arrived. 可怕的时刻终于来到了。
• He dreaded having to spend Christmas in hospital. 他害怕非得在医院过圣诞节不可。 来自《用法词典》

164 monstrous   

adj.巨大的；恐怖的；可耻的，丢脸的

参考例句：

• The smoke began to whirl and grew into a monstrous column.浓烟开始盘旋上升，形成了一个巨大的烟柱。
• Your behaviour in class is monstrous!你在课堂上的行为真是丢人！

165 futility   

n.无用

参考例句：

• She could see the utter futility of trying to protest. 她明白抗议是完全无用的。
• The sheer futility of it all exasperates her. 它毫无用处，这让她很生气。

166 fissure   

n.裂缝；裂伤

参考例句：

• Though we all got out to examine the fissure,he remained in the car.我们纷纷下车察看那个大裂缝，他却呆在车上。
• Ground fissure is the main geological disaster in Xi'an city construction.地裂缝是西安市主要的工程地质灾害问题。

167 contention   

n.争论，争辩，论战；论点，主张

参考例句：

• The pay increase is the key point of contention. 加薪是争论的焦点。
• The real bone of contention,as you know,is money.你知道，争论的真正焦点是钱的问题。

168 retraction   

n.撤消；收回

参考例句：

• He demanded a full retraction of the allegations against him.他要求完全收回针对他的言论。
• The newspaper published a retraction of the erroneous report.那家报纸声明撤回那篇错误的报道。

169 blackmailer   

敲诈者，勒索者

参考例句：

• The blackmailer had a hold over him. 勒索他的人控制着他。
• The blackmailer will have to be bought off,or he'll ruin your good name. 得花些钱疏通那个敲诈者，否则他会毁坏你的声誉。

170 fixed   

adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的

参考例句：

• Have you two fixed on a date for the wedding yet?你们俩选定婚期了吗？
• Once the aim is fixed,we should not change it arbitrarily.目标一旦确定，我们就不应该随意改变。

171 winking   

n.瞬眼，目语v.使眼色( wink的现在分词 )；递眼色（表示友好或高兴等）；（指光）闪烁；闪亮

参考例句：

• Anyone can do it; it's as easy as winking. 这谁都办得到，简直易如反掌。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The stars were winking in the clear sky. 星星在明亮的天空中闪烁。 来自《简明英汉词典》

172 maliciously   

adv.有敌意地

参考例句：

• He was charged with maliciously inflicting grievous bodily harm. 他被控蓄意严重伤害他人身体。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• His enemies maliciously conspired to ruin him. 他的敌人恶毒地密谋搞垮他。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

173 brotherhood   

n.兄弟般的关系，手中情谊

参考例句：

• They broke up the brotherhood.他们断绝了兄弟关系。
• They live and work together in complete equality and brotherhood.他们完全平等和兄弟般地在一起生活和工作。

174 briefly   

adv.简单地，简短地

参考例句：

• I want to touch briefly on another aspect of the problem.我想简单地谈一下这个问题的另一方面。
• He was kidnapped and briefly detained by a terrorist group.他被一个恐怖组织绑架并短暂拘禁。

175 gutter   

n.沟，街沟，水槽，檐槽，贫民窟

参考例句：

• There's a cigarette packet thrown into the gutter.阴沟里有个香烟盒。
• He picked her out of the gutter and made her a great lady.他使她脱离贫苦生活，并成为贵妇。

176 rebellious   

adj.造反的，反抗的，难控制的

参考例句：

• They will be in danger if they are rebellious.如果他们造反，他们就要发生危险。
• Her reply was mild enough,but her thoughts were rebellious.她的回答虽然很温和，但她的心里十分反感。

177 halfway   

adj.中途的，不彻底的，部分的；adv.半路地，在中途，在半途

参考例句：

• We had got only halfway when it began to get dark.走到半路，天就黑了。
• In study the worst danger is give up halfway.在学习上，最忌讳的是有始无终。

178 solitary   

adj.孤独的，独立的，荒凉的；n.隐士

参考例句：

• I am rather fond of a solitary stroll in the country.我颇喜欢在乡间独自徜徉。
• The castle rises in solitary splendour on the fringe of the desert.这座城堡巍然耸立在沙漠的边际，显得十分壮美。

179 virgin   

n.处女，未婚女子；adj.未经使用的；未经开发的

参考例句：

• Have you ever been to a virgin forest?你去过原始森林吗？
• There are vast expanses of virgin land in the remote regions.在边远地区有大片大片未开垦的土地。

180 grandeur   

n.伟大，崇高，宏伟，庄严，豪华

参考例句：

• The grandeur of the Great Wall is unmatched.长城的壮观是独一无二的。
• These ruins sufficiently attest the former grandeur of the place.这些遗迹充分证明此处昔日的宏伟。

181 reverence   

n.敬畏，尊敬，尊严；Reverence:对某些基督教神职人员的尊称；v.尊敬，敬畏，崇敬

参考例句：

• He was a bishop who was held in reverence by all.他是一位被大家都尊敬的主教。
• We reverence tradition but will not be fettered by it.我们尊重传统，但不被传统所束缚。

182 inviolate   

adj.未亵渎的，未受侵犯的

参考例句：

• The constitution proclaims that public property shall be inviolate.宪法宣告公共财产不可侵犯。
• They considered themselves inviolate from attack.他们认为自己是不可侵犯的。

183 aisle   

n.（教堂、教室、戏院等里的）过道，通道

参考例句：

• The aisle was crammed with people.过道上挤满了人。
• The girl ushered me along the aisle to my seat.引座小姐带领我沿着通道到我的座位上去。

184 brass   

n.黄铜；黄铜器，铜管乐器

参考例句：

• Many of the workers play in the factory's brass band.许多工人都在工厂铜管乐队中演奏。
• Brass is formed by the fusion of copper and zinc.黄铜是通过铜和锌的熔合而成的。

185 treatise   

n.专著；(专题)论文

参考例句：

• The doctor wrote a treatise on alcoholism.那位医生写了一篇关于酗酒问题的论文。
• This is not a treatise on statistical theory.这不是一篇有关统计理论的论文。

186 demolished   

v.摧毁( demolish的过去式和过去分词 )；推翻；拆毁（尤指大建筑物）；吃光

参考例句：

• The factory is due to be demolished next year. 这个工厂定于明年拆除。
• They have been fighting a rearguard action for two years to stop their house being demolished. 两年来，为了不让拆除他们的房子，他们一直在进行最后的努力。

187 inquiry   

n.打听，询问，调查，查问

参考例句：

• Many parents have been pressing for an inquiry into the problem.许多家长迫切要求调查这个问题。
• The field of inquiry has narrowed down to five persons.调查的范围已经缩小到只剩5个人了。

188 physicist   

n.物理学家，研究物理学的人

参考例句：

• He is a physicist of the first rank.他是一流的物理学家。
• The successful physicist never puts on airs.这位卓有成就的物理学家从不摆架子。

189 phenomena   

n.现象

参考例句：

• Ade couldn't relate the phenomena with any theory he knew.艾德无法用他所知道的任何理论来解释这种现象。
• The object of these experiments was to find the connection,if any,between the two phenomena.这些实验的目的就是探索这两种现象之间的联系，如果存在着任何联系的话。

190 miraculous   

adj.像奇迹一样的，不可思议的

参考例句：

• The wounded man made a miraculous recovery.伤员奇迹般地痊愈了。
• They won a miraculous victory over much stronger enemy.他们战胜了远比自己强大的敌人，赢得了非凡的胜利。

191 redundant   

adj.多余的，过剩的；(食物)丰富的；被解雇的

参考例句：

• There are too many redundant words in this book.这本书里多余的词太多。
• Nearly all the redundant worker have been absorbed into other departments.几乎所有冗员，都已调往其他部门任职。

192 endorsing   

v.赞同( endorse的现在分词 )；在（尤指支票的）背面签字；在（文件的）背面写评论；在广告上说本人使用并赞同某产品

参考例句：

• Yet Communist leaders are also publicly endorsing religion in an unprecedented way. 不过，共产党领导层对宗教信仰的公开认可也是以前不曾有过的。 来自互联网
• Connecticut Independent Senator Joseph Lieberman is endorsing Republican Senator John McCain. 康涅狄格州独立派参议员约瑟夫。列波曼将会票选共和议员约翰。麦凯恩。 来自互联网

193 hesitation   

n.犹豫，踌躇

参考例句：

• After a long hesitation, he told the truth at last.踌躇了半天，他终于直说了。
• There was a certain hesitation in her manner.她的态度有些犹豫不决。

194 edifice   

n.宏伟的建筑物(如宫殿，教室)

参考例句：

• The American consulate was a magnificent edifice in the centre of Bordeaux.美国领事馆是位于波尔多市中心的一座宏伟的大厦。
• There is a huge Victorian edifice in the area.该地区有一幢维多利亚式的庞大建筑物。

195 ostentation   

n.夸耀，卖弄

参考例句：

• Choose a life of action,not one of ostentation.要选择行动的一生，而不是炫耀的一生。
• I don't like the ostentation of their expensive life - style.他们生活奢侈，爱摆阔，我不敢恭维。

196 elegance   

n.优雅；优美，雅致；精致，巧妙

参考例句：

• The furnishings in the room imparted an air of elegance.这个房间的家具带给这房间一种优雅的气氛。
• John has been known for his sartorial elegance.约翰因为衣着讲究而出名。

197 precedent   

n.先例，前例；惯例；adj.在前的，在先的

参考例句：

• Is there a precedent for what you want me to do?你要我做的事有前例可援吗？
• This is a wonderful achievement without precedent in Chinese history.这是中国历史上亘古未有的奇绩。

198 zest   

n.乐趣；滋味，风味；兴趣

参考例句：

• He dived into his new job with great zest.他充满热情地投入了新的工作。
• He wrote his novel about his trip to Asia with zest.他兴趣浓厚的写了一本关于他亚洲之行的小说。

199 homely   

adj.家常的，简朴的；不漂亮的

参考例句：

• We had a homely meal of bread and cheese.我们吃了一顿面包加乳酪的家常便餐。
• Come and have a homely meal with us,will you?来和我们一起吃顿家常便饭，好吗？

200 impersonal   

adj.无个人感情的，与个人无关的，非人称的

参考例句：

• Even his children found him strangely distant and impersonal.他的孩子们也认为他跟其他人很疏远，没有人情味。
• His manner seemed rather stiff and impersonal.他的态度似乎很生硬冷淡。

201 flicker   

vi./n.闪烁，摇曳，闪现

参考例句：

• There was a flicker of lights coming from the abandoned house.这所废弃的房屋中有灯光闪烁。
• At first,the flame may be a small flicker,barely shining.开始时，光辉可能是微弱地忽隐忽现，几乎并不灿烂。

202 astonishment   

n.惊奇，惊异

参考例句：

• They heard him give a loud shout of astonishment.他们听见他惊奇地大叫一声。
• I was filled with astonishment at her strange action.我对她的奇怪举动不胜惊异。

203 eventual   

adj.最后的，结局的，最终的

参考例句：

• Several schools face eventual closure.几所学校面临最终关闭。
• Both parties expressed optimism about an eventual solution.双方对问题的最终解决都表示乐观。

204 chaos   

n.混乱，无秩序

参考例句：

• After the failure of electricity supply the city was in chaos.停电后，城市一片混乱。
• The typhoon left chaos behind it.台风后一片混乱。

205 disapproval   

n.反对，不赞成

参考例句：

• The teacher made an outward show of disapproval.老师表面上表示不同意。
• They shouted their disapproval.他们喊叫表示反对。

206 irrelevant   

adj.不恰当的，无关系的，不相干的

参考例句：

• That is completely irrelevant to the subject under discussion.这跟讨论的主题完全不相关。
• A question about arithmetic is irrelevant in a music lesson.在音乐课上，一个数学的问题是风马牛不相及的。

207 specialty   

n.(speciality)特性，特质；专业，专长

参考例句：

• Shell carvings are a specialty of the town.贝雕是该城的特产。
• His specialty is English literature.他的专业是英国文学。

208 conclusive   

adj.最后的，结论的；确凿的，消除怀疑的

参考例句：

• They produced some fairly conclusive evidence.他们提供了一些相当确凿的证据。
• Franklin did not believe that the French tests were conclusive.富兰克林不相信这个法国人的实验是结论性的。

209 remarkable   

adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的

参考例句：

• She has made remarkable headway in her writing skills.她在写作技巧方面有了长足进步。
• These cars are remarkable for the quietness of their engines.这些汽车因发动机没有噪音而不同凡响。

210 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

211 applied   

adj.应用的；v.应用，适用

参考例句：

• She plans to take a course in applied linguistics.她打算学习应用语言学课程。
• This cream is best applied to the face at night.这种乳霜最好晚上擦脸用。

212 perfectly   

adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The witnesses were each perfectly certain of what they said.证人们个个对自己所说的话十分肯定。
• Everything that we're doing is all perfectly above board.我们做的每件事情都是光明正大的。

213 expediency   

n.适宜；方便；合算；利己

参考例句：

• The government is torn between principle and expediency. 政府在原则与权宜之间难于抉择。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• It was difficult to strike the right balance between justice and expediency. 在公正与私利之间很难两全。 来自辞典例句

214 expedient   

adj.有用的，有利的；n.紧急的办法，权宜之计

参考例句：

• The government found it expedient to relax censorship a little.政府发现略微放宽审查是可取的。
• Every kind of expedient was devised by our friends.我们的朋友想出了各种各样的应急办法。

215 avert   

v.防止，避免；转移(目光、注意力等)

参考例句：

• He managed to avert suspicion.他设法避嫌。
• I would do what I could to avert it.我会尽力去避免发生这种情况。

216 valid   

adj.有确实根据的；有效的；正当的，合法的

参考例句：

• His claim to own the house is valid.他主张对此屋的所有权有效。
• Do you have valid reasons for your absence?你的缺席有正当理由吗？

217 morons   

傻子( moron的名词复数 )； 痴愚者（指心理年龄在8至12岁的成年人）

参考例句：

• They're a bunch of morons. 他们是一群蠢货。
• They're a load of morons. 他们是一群笨蛋。

218 incapable   

adj.无能力的，不能做某事的

参考例句：

• He would be incapable of committing such a cruel deed.他不会做出这么残忍的事。
• Computers are incapable of creative thought.计算机不会创造性地思维。

219 gadget   

n.小巧的机械，精巧的装置，小玩意儿

参考例句：

• This gadget isn't much good.这小机械没什么用处。
• She has invented a nifty little gadget for undoing stubborn nuts and bolts.她发明了一种灵巧的小工具用来松开紧固的螺母和螺栓。

220 marvel   

vi.(at)惊叹vt.感到惊异；n.令人惊异的事

参考例句：

• The robot is a marvel of modern engineering.机器人是现代工程技术的奇迹。
• The operation was a marvel of medical skill.这次手术是医术上的一个奇迹。

221 rumors   

n.传闻( rumor的名词复数 )；[古]名誉；咕哝；[古]喧嚷v.传闻( rumor的第三人称单数 )；[古]名誉；咕哝；[古]喧嚷

参考例句：

• Rumors have it that the school was burned down. 有谣言说学校给烧掉了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Rumors of a revolt were afloat. 叛变的谣言四起。 来自《简明英汉词典》

222 sensationally   

参考例句：

• Newspapers reported the incident sensationally, making it appear worse than it really was. 报纸大肆渲染这件事，描述得更不像话。 来自辞典例句
• However Gattuso has sensationally come out against the 28-year-old's signature. 然而加图索已经公开的站出来反对签下这名28岁的球员。 来自互联网

223 persuasiveness   

说服力

参考例句：

• His speech failed in persuasiveness and proof. 他的讲演缺乏说服力和论据。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• There is inherent persuasiveness in some voices. 有些人的声音天生具有一种说服力。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

224 sincerity   

n.真诚，诚意；真实

参考例句：

• His sincerity added much more authority to the story.他的真诚更增加了故事的说服力。
• He tried hard to satisfy me of his sincerity.他竭力让我了解他的诚意。

225 tragic   

adj.悲剧的，悲剧性的，悲惨的

参考例句：

• The effect of the pollution on the beaches is absolutely tragic.污染海滩后果可悲。
• Charles was a man doomed to tragic issues.查理是个注定不得善终的人。

226 lashes   

n.鞭挞( lash的名词复数 )；鞭子；突然猛烈的一击；急速挥动v.鞭打( lash的第三人称单数 )；煽动；紧系；怒斥

参考例句：

• Mother always lashes out food for the children's party. 孩子们聚会时，母亲总是给他们许多吃的。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Never walk behind a horse in case it lashes out. 绝对不要跟在马后面，以防它突然猛踢。 来自《简明英汉词典》

227 disillusioned   

a.不再抱幻想的，大失所望的，幻想破灭的

参考例句：

• I soon became disillusioned with the job. 我不久便对这个工作不再抱幻想了。
• Many people who are disillusioned in reality assimilate life to a dream. 许多对现实失望的人把人生比作一场梦。

228 unnaturally   

adv.违反习俗地；不自然地；勉强地；不近人情地

参考例句：

• Her voice sounded unnaturally loud. 她的嗓音很响亮，但是有点反常。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Her eyes were unnaturally bright. 她的眼睛亮得不自然。 来自《简明英汉词典》

229 distinguished   

adj.卓越的，杰出的，著名的

参考例句：

• Elephants are distinguished from other animals by their long noses.大象以其长长的鼻子显示出与其他动物的不同。
• A banquet was given in honor of the distinguished guests.宴会是为了向贵宾们致敬而举行的。

230 endorsed   

vt.& vi.endorse的过去式或过去分词形式v.赞同( endorse的过去式和过去分词 )；在（尤指支票的）背面签字；在（文件的）背面写评论；在广告上说本人使用并赞同某产品

参考例句：

• The committee endorsed an initiative by the chairman to enter discussion about a possible merger. 委员会通过了主席提出的新方案，开始就可能进行的并购进行讨论。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The government has broadly endorsed a research paper proposing new educational targets for 14-year-olds. 政府基本上支持建议对14 岁少年实行新教育目标的研究报告。 来自《简明英汉词典》

231 proffered   

v.提供，贡献，提出( proffer的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• She proffered her cheek to kiss. 她伸过自己的面颊让人亲吻。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He rose and proffered a silver box full of cigarettes. 他站起身，伸手递过一个装满香烟的银盒子。 来自辞典例句

232 dismal   

adj.阴沉的，凄凉的，令人忧郁的，差劲的

参考例句：

• That is a rather dismal melody.那是一支相当忧郁的歌曲。
• My prospects of returning to a suitable job are dismal.我重新找到一个合适的工作岗位的希望很渺茫。

233 ashtray   

n.烟灰缸

参考例句：

• He knocked out his pipe in the big glass ashtray.他在大玻璃烟灰缸里磕净烟斗。
• She threw the cigarette butt into the ashtray.她把烟头扔进烟灰缸。

234 wilted   

（使）凋谢，枯萎( wilt的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The flowers wilted in the hot sun. 花在烈日下枯萎了。
• The romance blossomed for six or seven months, and then wilted. 那罗曼史持续六七个月之后就告吹了。

235 scramble   

v.爬行，攀爬，杂乱蔓延，碎片，片段，废料

参考例句：

• He broke his leg in his scramble down the wall.他爬墙摔断了腿。
• It was a long scramble to the top of the hill.到山顶须要爬登一段长路。

236 hatred   

n.憎恶，憎恨，仇恨

参考例句：

• He looked at me with hatred in his eyes.他以憎恨的眼光望着我。
• The old man was seized with burning hatred for the fascists.老人对法西斯主义者充满了仇恨。

237 bastards   

私生子( bastard的名词复数 )； 坏蛋； 讨厌的事物； 麻烦事 （认为别人走运或不幸时说）家伙

参考例句：

• Those bastards don't care a damn about the welfare of the factory! 这批狗养的，不顾大局！ 来自子夜部分
• Let the first bastards to find out be the goddam Germans. 就让那些混账的德国佬去做最先发现的倒霉鬼吧。 来自演讲部分

238 boycotted   

抵制，拒绝参加( boycott的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Athletes from several countries boycotted the Olympic Games. 有好几国的运动员抵制奥林匹克运动会。
• The opposition party earlier boycotted the Diet agenda, demanding Miyaji's resignation. 反对党曾杯葛国会议程，要宫路下台。

239 eyelids   

n.眼睑( eyelid的名词复数 )；眼睛也不眨一下；不露声色；面不改色

参考例句：

• She was so tired, her eyelids were beginning to droop. 她太疲倦了，眼睑开始往下垂。
• Her eyelids drooped as if she were on the verge of sleep. 她眼睑低垂好像快要睡着的样子。 来自《简明英汉词典》

240 ultimatum   

n.最后通牒

参考例句：

• This time the proposal was couched as an ultimatum.这一次该提议是以最后通牒的形式提出来的。
• The cabinet met today to discuss how to respond to the ultimatum.内阁今天开会商量如何应对这道最后通牒。

241 dangling   

悬吊着( dangle的现在分词 )； 摆动不定； 用某事物诱惑…； 吊胃口

参考例句：

• The tooth hung dangling by the bedpost, now. 结果，那颗牙就晃来晃去吊在床柱上了。
• The children sat on the high wall,their legs dangling. 孩子们坐在一堵高墙上，摇晃着他们的双腿。

242 preposterously   

adv.反常地；荒谬地；荒谬可笑地；不合理地

参考例句：

• That is a preposterously high price! 那价格高得出奇！ 来自辞典例句

243 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。

244 commute   

vi.乘车上下班；vt.减(刑)；折合；n.上下班交通

参考例句：

• I spend much less time on my commute to work now.我现在工作的往返时间要节省好多。
• Most office workers commute from the suburbs.很多公司的职员都是从郊外来上班的。

245 tangled   

adj. 纠缠的，紊乱的 动词tangle的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• Your hair's so tangled that I can't comb it. 你的头发太乱了，我梳不动。
• A movement caught his eye in the tangled undergrowth. 乱灌木丛里的晃动引起了他的注意。

246 pretenses   

n.借口（pretense的复数形式）

参考例句：

• They obtained money under the false pretenses of patriotism. 他们以虚伪的爱国主义为借口获得金钱。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He obtained money from her under false pretenses. 他巧立名目从她那儿骗钱。 来自辞典例句

247 pretense   

n.矫饰，做作，借口

参考例句：

• You can't keep up the pretense any longer.你无法继续伪装下去了。
• Pretense invariably impresses only the pretender.弄虚作假欺骗不了真正的行家。

248 incentive   

n.刺激；动力；鼓励；诱因；动机

参考例句：

• Money is still a major incentive in most occupations.在许多职业中，钱仍是主要的鼓励因素。
• He hasn't much incentive to work hard.他没有努力工作的动机。

249 poise   

vt./vi. 平衡，保持平衡；n.泰然自若，自信

参考例句：

• She hesitated briefly but quickly regained her poise.她犹豫片刻，但很快恢复了镇静。
• Ballet classes are important for poise and grace.芭蕾课对培养优雅的姿仪非常重要。

250 superstitious   

adj.迷信的

参考例句：

• They aim to deliver the people who are in bondage to superstitious belief.他们的目的在于解脱那些受迷信束缚的人。
• These superstitious practices should be abolished as soon as possible.这些迷信做法应尽早取消。

251 primitive   

adj.原始的；简单的；n.原(始)人，原始事物

参考例句：

• It is a primitive instinct to flee a place of danger.逃离危险的地方是一种原始本能。
• His book describes the march of the civilization of a primitive society.他的著作描述了一个原始社会的开化过程。

252 antagonism   

n.对抗，敌对，对立

参考例句：

• People did not feel a strong antagonism for established policy.人们没有对既定方针产生强烈反应。
• There is still much antagonism between trades unions and the oil companies.工会和石油公司之间仍然存在着相当大的敌意。

253 attentively   

adv.聚精会神地；周到地；谛；凝神

参考例句：

• She listened attentively while I poured out my problems. 我倾吐心中的烦恼时，她一直在注意听。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• She listened attentively and set down every word he said. 她专心听着，把他说的话一字不漏地记下来。 来自《简明英汉词典》

254 eloquent   

adj.雄辩的，口才流利的；明白显示出的

参考例句：

• He was so eloquent that he cut down the finest orator.他能言善辩，胜过最好的演说家。
• These ruins are an eloquent reminder of the horrors of war.这些废墟形象地提醒人们不要忘记战争的恐怖。

255 assent   

v.批准，认可；n.批准，认可

参考例句：

• I cannot assent to what you ask.我不能应允你的要求。
• The new bill passed by Parliament has received Royal Assent.议会所通过的新方案已获国王批准。

256 premises   

n.建筑物，房屋

参考例句：

• According to the rules,no alcohol can be consumed on the premises.按照规定，场内不准饮酒。
• All repairs are done on the premises and not put out.全部修缮都在家里进行，不用送到外面去做。

257 accusation   

n.控告，指责，谴责

参考例句：

• I was furious at his making such an accusation.我对他的这种责备非常气愤。
• She knew that no one would believe her accusation.她知道没人会相信她的指控。

258 huddled   

挤在一起（huddle的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• We huddled together for warmth. 我们挤在一块取暖。
• We huddled together to keep warm. 我们挤在一起来保暖。

259 justifies   

证明…有理( justify的第三人称单数 )； 为…辩护； 对…作出解释； 为…辩解（或辩护）

参考例句：

• Their frequency of use both justifies and requires the memorization. 频繁的使用需要记忆，也促进了记忆。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓
• In my judgement the present end justifies the means. 照我的意见，只要目的正当，手段是可以不计较的。

260 seizure   

n.没收；占有；抵押

参考例句：

• The seizure of contraband is made by customs.那些走私品是被海关没收的。
• The courts ordered the seizure of all her property.法院下令查封她所有的财产。

261 derisively   

adv. 嘲笑地，嘲弄地

参考例句：

• This answer came derisively from several places at the same instant. 好几个人都不约而同地以讥讽的口吻作出回答。
• The others laughed derisively. 其余的人不以为然地笑了起来。

262 doom   

n.厄运，劫数；v.注定，命定

参考例句：

• The report on our economic situation is full of doom and gloom.这份关于我们经济状况的报告充满了令人绝望和沮丧的调子。
• The dictator met his doom after ten years of rule.独裁者统治了十年终于完蛋了。

263 imprisoned   

下狱，监禁( imprison的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He was imprisoned for two concurrent terms of 30 months and 18 months. 他被判处30个月和18个月的监禁，合并执行。
• They were imprisoned for possession of drugs. 他们因拥有毒品而被监禁。

264 subscriptions   

n.（报刊等的）订阅费( subscription的名词复数 )；捐款；（俱乐部的）会员费；捐助

参考例句：

• Subscriptions to these magazines can be paid in at the post office. 这些杂志的订阅费可以在邮局缴纳。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Payment of subscriptions should be made to the club secretary. 会费应交给俱乐部秘书。 来自《简明英汉词典》

265 varied   

adj.多样的，多变化的

参考例句：

• The forms of art are many and varied.艺术的形式是多种多样的。
• The hotel has a varied programme of nightly entertainment.宾馆有各种晚间娱乐活动。

266 inordinate   

adj.无节制的；过度的

参考例句：

• The idea of this gave me inordinate pleasure.我想到这一点感到非常高兴。
• James hints that his heroine's demands on life are inordinate.詹姆斯暗示他的女主人公对于人生过于苛求。

267 transparent   

adj.明显的，无疑的；透明的

参考例句：

• The water is so transparent that we can see the fishes swimming.水清澈透明，可以看到鱼儿游来游去。
• The window glass is transparent.窗玻璃是透明的。

268 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

269 applicants   

申请人，求职人( applicant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• There were over 500 applicants for the job. 有500多人申请这份工作。
• He was impressed by the high calibre of applicants for the job. 求职人员出色的能力给他留下了深刻印象。

270 interfere   

v.(in)干涉，干预；(with)妨碍，打扰

参考例句：

• If we interfere, it may do more harm than good.如果我们干预的话，可能弊多利少。
• When others interfere in the affair,it always makes troubles. 别人一卷入这一事件，棘手的事情就来了。

271 desperately   

adv.极度渴望地，绝望地，孤注一掷地

参考例句：

• He was desperately seeking a way to see her again.他正拼命想办法再见她一面。
• He longed desperately to be back at home.他非常渴望回家。

272 scrambling   

v.快速爬行( scramble的现在分词 )；攀登；争夺；（军事飞机）紧急起飞

参考例句：

• Scrambling up her hair, she darted out of the house. 她匆忙扎起头发，冲出房去。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• She is scrambling eggs. 她正在炒蛋。 来自《简明英汉词典》

273 reprehensible   

adj.该受责备的

参考例句：

• Lying is not seen as being morally reprehensible in any strong way.人们并不把撒谎当作一件应该大加谴责的事儿。
• It was reprehensible of him to be so disloyal.他如此不忠，应受谴责。

274 undertaking   

n.保证，许诺，事业

参考例句：

• He gave her an undertaking that he would pay the money back with in a year.他向她做了一年内还钱的保证。
• He is too timid to venture upon an undertaking.他太胆小，不敢从事任何事业。

275 taut   

adj.拉紧的，绷紧的，紧张的

参考例句：

• The bowstring is stretched taut.弓弦绷得很紧。
• Scarlett's taut nerves almost cracked as a sudden noise sounded in the underbrush near them. 思嘉紧张的神经几乎一下绷裂了，因为她听见附近灌木丛中突然冒出的一个声音。

276 poised   

a.摆好姿势不动的

参考例句：

• The hawk poised in mid-air ready to swoop. 老鹰在半空中盘旋，准备俯冲。
• Tina was tense, her hand poised over the telephone. 蒂娜心情紧张，手悬在电话机上。

277 breakdown   

n.垮，衰竭；损坏，故障，倒塌

参考例句：

• She suffered a nervous breakdown.她患神经衰弱。
• The plane had a breakdown in the air,but it was fortunately removed by the ace pilot.飞机在空中发生了故障，但幸运的是被王牌驾驶员排除了。

278 respite   

n.休息，中止，暂缓

参考例句：

• She was interrogated without respite for twenty-four hours.她被不间断地审问了二十四小时。
• Devaluation would only give the economy a brief respite.贬值只能让经济得到暂时的缓解。

279 infamous   

adj.声名狼藉的，臭名昭著的，邪恶的

参考例句：

• He was infamous for his anti-feminist attitudes.他因反对女性主义而声名狼藉。
• I was shocked by her infamous behaviour.她的无耻行径令我震惊。

280 whim   

n.一时的兴致，突然的念头；奇想，幻想

参考例句：

• I bought the encyclopedia on a whim.我凭一时的兴致买了这本百科全书。
• He had a sudden whim to go sailing today.今天他突然想要去航海。

281 austere   

adj.艰苦的；朴素的，朴实无华的；严峻的

参考例句：

• His way of life is rather austere.他的生活方式相当简朴。
• The room was furnished in austere style.这间屋子的陈设都很简单朴素。

282 justify   

vt.证明…正当(或有理)，为…辩护

参考例句：

• He tried to justify his absence with lame excuses.他想用站不住脚的借口为自己的缺席辩解。
• Can you justify your rude behavior to me?你能向我证明你的粗野行为是有道理的吗？

283 illuminated   

adj.被照明的；受启迪的

参考例句：

• Floodlights illuminated the stadium. 泛光灯照亮了体育场。
• the illuminated city at night 夜幕中万家灯火的城市

284 asceticism   

n.禁欲主义

参考例句：

• I am not speaking here about asceticism or abstinence.我说的并不是苦行主义或禁欲主义。
• Chaucer affirmed man's rights to pursue earthly happiness and epposed asceticism.乔叟强调人权，尤其是追求今生今世幸福快乐的权力，反对神权与禁欲主义。

285 scattering   

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

参考例句：

• The child felle into a rage and began scattering its toys about. 这孩子突发狂怒，把玩具扔得满地都是。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The farmers are scattering seed. 农夫们在播种。 来自《简明英汉词典》

286 wreck   

n.失事，遇难；沉船；vt.(船等)失事，遇难

参考例句：

• Weather may have been a factor in the wreck.天气可能是造成这次失事的原因之一。
• No one can wreck the friendship between us.没有人能够破坏我们之间的友谊。

287 wrecking   

破坏

参考例句：

• He teed off on his son for wrecking the car. 他严厉训斥他儿子毁坏了汽车。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Instead of wrecking the valley, the waters are put to use making electricity. 现在河水不但不在流域内肆疟，反而被人们用来生产电力。 来自辞典例句

288 shipping   

n.船运（发货，运输，乘船）

参考例句：

• We struck a bargain with an American shipping firm.我们和一家美国船运公司谈成了一笔生意。
• There's a shipping charge of ￡5 added to the price.价格之外另加五英镑运输费。

289 uncertainty   

n.易变，靠不住，不确知，不确定的事物

参考例句：

• Her comments will add to the uncertainty of the situation.她的批评将会使局势更加不稳定。
• After six weeks of uncertainty,the strain was beginning to take its toll.6个星期的忐忑不安后，压力开始产生影响了。

290 apprehension   

n.理解，领悟；逮捕，拘捕；忧虑

参考例句：

• There were still areas of doubt and her apprehension grew.有些地方仍然存疑，于是她越来越担心。
• She is a girl of weak apprehension.她是一个理解力很差的女孩。

291 lieutenant   

n.陆军中尉，海军上尉；代理官员，副职官员

参考例句：

• He was promoted to be a lieutenant in the army.他被提升为陆军中尉。
• He prevailed on the lieutenant to send in a short note.他说动那个副官，递上了一张简短的便条进去。

292 harmonious   

adj.和睦的，调和的，和谐的，协调的

参考例句：

• Their harmonious relationship resulted in part from their similar goals.他们关系融洽的部分原因是他们有着相似的目标。
• The room was painted in harmonious colors.房间油漆得色彩调和。

293 immorality   

n. 不道德, 无道义

参考例句：

• All the churchmen have preached against immorality. 所有牧师都讲道反对不道德的行为。
• Where the European sees immorality and lawlessness, strict law rules in reality. 在欧洲人视为不道德和无规则的地方，事实上都盛行着一种严格的规则。 来自英汉非文学 - 家庭、私有制和国家的起源

294 immoral   

adj.不道德的，淫荡的，荒淫的，有伤风化的

参考例句：

• She was questioned about his immoral conduct toward her.她被询问过有关他对她的不道德行为的情况。
• It is my belief that nuclear weapons are immoral.我相信使核武器是不邪恶的。

295 superintendent   

n.监督人，主管，总监；(英国)警务长

参考例句：

• He was soon promoted to the post of superintendent of Foreign Trade.他很快就被擢升为对外贸易总监。
• He decided to call the superintendent of the building.他决定给楼房管理员打电话。

296 buzzer   

n.蜂鸣器；汽笛

参考例句：

• The buzzer went off at eight o'clock.蜂鸣器在8点钟时响了。
• Press the buzzer when you want to talk.你想讲话的时候就按蜂鸣器。

297 defensiveness   

防御性

参考例句：

• The fear of being sued for malpractice has magnified physicians' defensiveness. 担心因医疗事故而被起诉的恐惧加剧了医生们的防卫心理。
• This outbreak of defensiveness embodies one paradox and several myths. 排外行动的爆发，体现了一个矛盾和几个“神话”。

298 resentment   

n.怨愤，忿恨

参考例句：

• All her feelings of resentment just came pouring out.她一股脑儿倾吐出所有的怨恨。
• She cherished a deep resentment under the rose towards her employer.她暗中对她的雇主怀恨在心。

299 stenographer   

n.速记员

参考例句：

• The police stenographer recorded the man's confession word by word. 警察局速记员逐字记下了那个人的供词。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• A qualified stenographer is not necessarily a competent secretary. 一个合格的速记员不一定就是个称职的秘书。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

300 handouts   

救济品( handout的名词复数 )； 施舍物； 印刷品； 讲义

参考例句：

• Soldiers oversee the food handouts. 士兵们看管着救济食品。
• Even after losing his job, he was too proud to accept handouts. 甚至在失去工作后，他仍然很骄傲，不愿接受施舍。

301 laborers   

n.体力劳动者，工人( laborer的名词复数 )；（熟练工人的）辅助工

参考例句：

• Laborers were trained to handle 50-ton compactors and giant cranes. 工人们接受操作五十吨压土机和巨型起重机的训练。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• Wage-labour rests exclusively on competition between the laborers. 雇佣劳动完全是建立在工人的自相竞争之上的。 来自英汉非文学 - 共产党宣言

302 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

303 compassion   

n.同情，怜悯

参考例句：

• He could not help having compassion for the poor creature.他情不自禁地怜悯起那个可怜的人来。
• Her heart was filled with compassion for the motherless children.她对于没有母亲的孩子们充满了怜悯心。

304 cinder   

n.余烬，矿渣

参考例句：

• The new technology for the preparation of superfine ferric oxide from pyrite cinder is studied.研究了用硫铁矿烧渣为原料，制取超细氧化铁红的新工艺。
• The cinder contains useful iron,down from producing sulphuric acid by contact process.接触法制硫酸的矿渣中含有铁矿。

305 trickled   

v.滴( trickle的过去式和过去分词 )；淌；使)慢慢走；缓慢移动

参考例句：

• Blood trickled down his face. 血从他脸上一滴滴流下来。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The tears trickled down her cheeks. 热泪一滴滴从她脸颊上滚下来。 来自《简明英汉词典》

306 drawn   

v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的

参考例句：

• All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
• Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。

307 precisely   

adv.恰好，正好，精确地，细致地

参考例句：

• It's precisely that sort of slick sales-talk that I mistrust.我不相信的正是那种油腔滑调的推销宣传。
• The man adjusted very precisely.那个人调得很准。

308 unfamiliar   

adj.陌生的，不熟悉的

参考例句：

• I am unfamiliar with the place and the people here.我在这儿人地生疏。
• The man seemed unfamiliar to me.这人很面生。

309 cynical   

adj.(对人性或动机)怀疑的，不信世道向善的

参考例句：

• The enormous difficulty makes him cynical about the feasibility of the idea.由于困难很大，他对这个主意是否可行持怀疑态度。
• He was cynical that any good could come of democracy.他不相信民主会带来什么好处。

310 innocence   

n.无罪；天真；无害

参考例句：

• There was a touching air of innocence about the boy.这个男孩有一种令人感动的天真神情。
• The accused man proved his innocence of the crime.被告人经证实无罪。

311 worthy   

adj.(of)值得的，配得上的；有价值的

参考例句：

• I did not esteem him to be worthy of trust.我认为他不值得信赖。
• There occurred nothing that was worthy to be mentioned.没有值得一提的事发生。

312 conscientious   

adj.审慎正直的，认真的，本着良心的

参考例句：

• He is a conscientious man and knows his job.他很认真负责，也很懂行。
• He is very conscientious in the performance of his duties.他非常认真地履行职责。

313 possessed   

adj.疯狂的；拥有的，占有的

参考例句：

• He flew out of the room like a man possessed.他像着了魔似地猛然冲出房门。
• He behaved like someone possessed.他行为举止像是魔怔了。

314 hymn   

n.赞美诗，圣歌，颂歌

参考例句：

• They sang a hymn of praise to God.他们唱着圣歌，赞美上帝。
• The choir has sung only two verses of the last hymn.合唱团只唱了最后一首赞美诗的两个段落。

315 bankruptcy   

n.破产；无偿付能力

参考例句：

• You will have to pull in if you want to escape bankruptcy.如果你想避免破产，就必须节省开支。
• His firm is just on thin ice of bankruptcy.他的商号正面临破产的危险。

316 scavenger   

n.以腐尸为食的动物，清扫工

参考例句：

• He's just fit for a job as scavenger.他只配当个清道夫。
• He is not a scavenger nor just a moving appetite as some sharks are.它不是食腐动物，也不像有些鲨鱼那样，只知道游来游去满足食欲。

317 outfit   

n.（为特殊用途的）全套装备，全套服装

参考例句：

• Jenney bought a new outfit for her daughter's wedding.珍妮为参加女儿的婚礼买了一套新装。
• His father bought a ski outfit for him on his birthday.他父亲在他生日那天给他买了一套滑雪用具。

318 replacements   

n.代替( replacement的名词复数 )；替换的人[物]；替代品；归还

参考例句：

• They infiltrated behind the lines so as to annoy the emery replacements. 他们渗透敌后以便骚扰敌军的调度。 来自辞典例句
• For oil replacements, cheap suddenly looks less of a problem. 对于石油的替代品来说，价格变得无足轻重了。 来自互联网

319 breach   

n.违反，不履行；破裂；vt.冲破，攻破

参考例句：

• We won't have any breach of discipline.我们不允许任何破坏纪律的现象。
• He was sued for breach of contract.他因不履行合同而被起诉。

320 shred   

v.撕成碎片，变成碎片；n.碎布条，细片，些少

参考例句：

• There is not a shred of truth in what he says.他说的全是骗人的鬼话。
• The food processor can shred all kinds of vegetables.这架食品加工机可将各种蔬菜切丝切条。

321 drooping   

adj. 下垂的，无力的 动词droop的现在分词

参考例句：

• The drooping willows are waving gently in the morning breeze. 晨风中垂柳袅袅。
• The branches of the drooping willows were swaying lightly. 垂柳轻飘飘地摆动。

322 regaining   

复得( regain的现在分词 )； 赢回； 重回； 复至某地

参考例句：

• She was regaining consciousness now, but the fear was coming with her. 现在她正在恢发她的知觉，但是恐怖也就伴随着来了。
• She said briefly, regaining her will with a click. 她干脆地答道，又马上重新振作起精神来。

323 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

324 transact   

v.处理；做交易；谈判

参考例句：

• I will transact my business by letter.我会写信去洽谈业务。
• I have been obliged to see him；there was business to transact.我不得不见他，有些事物要处理。

325 foulest   

adj.恶劣的( foul的最高级 )；邪恶的；难闻的；下流的

参考例句：

• Most of the foremen abused the workmen in the foulest languages. 大多数的工头用极其污秽的语言辱骂工人。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Of all men the drunkard is the foulest. 男人中最讨人厌的是酒鬼。 来自辞典例句

326 jotting   

n.简短的笔记，略记v.匆忙记下( jot的现在分词 )；草草记下，匆匆记下

参考例句：

• All the time I was talking he was jotting down. 每次我在讲话时，他就会记录下来。 来自互联网
• The student considers jotting down the number of the businessman's American Express card. 这论理学生打算快迅速地记录下来下这位商贾的美国运通卡的金额。 来自互联网

327 margin   

n.页边空白；差额；余地，余裕；边，边缘

参考例句：

• We allowed a margin of 20 minutes in catching the train.我们有20分钟的余地赶火车。
• The village is situated at the margin of a forest.村子位于森林的边缘。

328 obedience   

n.服从，顺从

参考例句：

• Society has a right to expect obedience of the law.社会有权要求人人遵守法律。
• Soldiers act in obedience to the orders of their superior officers.士兵们遵照上级军官的命令行动。

329 brutal   

adj.残忍的，野蛮的，不讲理的

参考例句：

• She has to face the brutal reality.她不得不去面对冷酷的现实。
• They're brutal people behind their civilised veneer.他们表面上温文有礼，骨子里却是野蛮残忍。

330 rigidly   

adv.刻板地，僵化地

参考例句：

• Life today is rigidly compartmentalized into work and leisure. 当今的生活被严格划分为工作和休闲两部分。
• The curriculum is rigidly prescribed from an early age. 自儿童时起即已开始有严格的课程设置。

331 futile   

adj.无效的，无用的，无希望的

参考例句：

• They were killed,to the last man,in a futile attack.因为进攻失败，他们全部被杀，无一幸免。
• Their efforts to revive him were futile.他们对他抢救无效。

332 blueprints   

n.蓝图，设计图( blueprint的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Have the blueprints been worked out? 蓝图搞好了吗？ 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• BluePrints description of a distributed component of the system design and best practice guidelines. BluePrints描述了一个分布式组件体系的最佳练习和设计指导方针。 来自互联网

333 slumped   

大幅度下降，暴跌( slump的过去式和过去分词 )； 沉重或突然地落下[倒下]

参考例句：

• Sales have slumped this year. 今年销售量锐减。
• The driver was slumped exhausted over the wheel. 司机伏在方向盘上，疲惫得睡着了。

334 postponing   

v.延期，推迟( postpone的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• He tried to gain time by postponing his decision. 他想以迟迟不作决定的手段来争取时间。 来自辞典例句
• I don't hold with the idea of postponing further discussion of the matter. 我不赞成推迟进一步讨论这件事的想法。 来自辞典例句

335 evasion   

n.逃避，偷漏(税)

参考例句：

• The movie star is in prison for tax evasion.那位影星因为逃税而坐牢。
• The act was passed as a safeguard against tax evasion.这项法案旨在防止逃税行为。

336 omnipotent   

adj.全能的，万能的

参考例句：

• When we are omnipotent we shall have no more need of science.我们达到万能以后就不需要科学了。
• Money is not omnipotent,but we can't survive without money.金钱不是万能的，但是没有金钱我们却无法生存。

337 contemplating   

深思，细想，仔细考虑( contemplate的现在分词 )； 注视，凝视； 考虑接受（发生某事的可能性）； 深思熟虑，沉思，苦思冥想

参考例句：

• You're too young to be contemplating retirement. 你考虑退休还太年轻。
• She stood contemplating the painting. 她站在那儿凝视那幅图画。

338 impersonally   

ad.非人称地

参考例句：

• "No." The answer was both reticent and impersonally sad. “不。”这回答既简短，又含有一种无以名状的悲戚。 来自名作英译部分
• The tenet is to service our clients fairly, equally, impersonally and reasonably. 公司宗旨是公正、公平、客观、合理地为客户服务。

339 slashed   

v.挥砍( slash的过去式和过去分词 )；鞭打；割破；削减

参考例句：

• Someone had slashed the tyres on my car. 有人把我的汽车轮胎割破了。
• He slashed the bark off the tree with his knife. 他用刀把树皮从树上砍下。 来自《简明英汉词典》

340 exultantly   

adv.狂欢地，欢欣鼓舞地

参考例句：

• They listened exultantly to the sounds from outside. 她们欢欣鼓舞地倾听着外面的声音。 来自辞典例句
• He rose exultantly from their profane surprise. 他得意非凡地站起身来，也不管众人怎样惊奇诅咒。 来自辞典例句

341 chunk   

n.厚片，大块，相当大的部分（数量）

参考例句：

• They had to be careful of floating chunks of ice.他们必须当心大块浮冰。
• The company owns a chunk of farmland near Gatwick Airport.该公司拥有盖特威克机场周边的大片农田。

342 contemplate   

vt.盘算，计议；周密考虑；注视，凝视

参考例句：

• The possibility of war is too horrifying to contemplate.战争的可能性太可怕了，真不堪细想。
• The consequences would be too ghastly to contemplate.后果不堪设想。

343 deserted   

adj.荒芜的，荒废的，无人的，被遗弃的

参考例句：

• The deserted village was filled with a deathly silence.这个荒废的村庄死一般的寂静。
• The enemy chieftain was opposed and deserted by his followers.敌人头目众叛亲离。

344 funnels   

漏斗( funnel的名词复数 )； （轮船，火车等的）烟囱

参考例句：

• Conventional equipment such as mixing funnels, pumps, solids eductors and the like can be employed. 常用的设备，例如混合漏斗、泵、固体引射器等，都可使用。
• A jet of smoke sprang out of the funnels. 喷射的烟雾从烟囱里冒了出来。

345 renewal   

adj.(契约)延期，续订，更新，复活，重来

参考例句：

• Her contract is coming up for renewal in the autumn.她的合同秋天就应该续签了。
• Easter eggs symbolize the renewal of life.复活蛋象征新生。

346 absurdity   

n.荒谬，愚蠢；谬论

参考例句：

• The proposal borders upon the absurdity.这提议近乎荒谬。
• The absurdity of the situation made everyone laugh.情况的荒谬可笑使每个人都笑了。

347 longing   

n.（for）渴望

参考例句：

• Hearing the tune again sent waves of longing through her.再次听到那首曲子使她胸中充满了渴望。
• His heart burned with longing for revenge.他心中燃烧着急欲复仇的怒火。

348 jolted   

（使）摇动， （使）震惊( jolt的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The truck jolted and rattled over the rough ground. 卡车嘎吱嘎吱地在凹凸不平的地面上颠簸而行。
• She was jolted out of her reverie as the door opened. 门一开就把她从幻想中惊醒。

349 ledges   

n.（墙壁，悬崖等）突出的狭长部分( ledge的名词复数 )；（平窄的）壁架；横档；（尤指）窗台

参考例句：

• seabirds nesting on rocky ledges 海鸟在岩架上筑巢
• A rusty ironrod projected mournfully from one of the window ledges. 一个窗架上突出一根生锈的铁棒，真是满目凄凉。 来自辞典例句

350 bracing   

adj.令人振奋的

参考例句：

• The country is bracing itself for the threatened enemy invasion. 这个国家正准备奋起抵抗敌人的入侵威胁。
• The atmosphere in the new government was bracing. 新政府的气氛是令人振奋的。