For days I had been striving in vain to get into touch with the psychic32 principle of this strange city. I had mixed with the motley multitudes that lounge and labour upon the quays20, I had lingered in the gilded33 churches where worshippers were ominously34 few, and stood for hours observant in chaffering marketplaces and amidst the crowds of sauntering citizens in the inevitable35 Pra?a de Dom Pedro; but till the revelatory moment came to me in one enlightening flash upon the Bridge of Dom Luis, I had always been alone in a foreign throng22 whose composite inner soul I could not read. But now all was changed. Thenceforward I saw Oporto whole and not in disintegrated36 fragments as before; for I had learnt the secret of 4putting the pieces of the puzzle together and the heart of the city was bared to me, a stranger.
Every large, enduring community comes to attain37 a distinct character of its own, which the outlander can only know by long association or sympathetic insight, sometimes not at all. I had looked for a people exuberant and gay in outward seeming with an underlying38 spirit of bitter mockery, such as I had known in so many other Iberian cities; but somehow these Oporto people were quite different. Grave and quiet, with introspective eyes, even the children seemed to take their play soberly. Look at the slim slip of a boy who gravely walks at the head of this team of enormous fawn-coloured oxen, toilsomely dragging their ponderous39 load up a hill so steep as almost to need a ladder to ascend40. The urchin41 cannot be more than ten or eleven, and in any other country would alternately skip and idle, or at least allow his attention to wander with every fresh object that struck his fancy. Here he stalks along for hours at a time, without lingering or straying, always calm and patient, whilst his soiled and hardened bare feet plod42 on, heedless both of the white mire43 and sharp stones of the way. Over his shoulder he carries a long 5lithe wand, double as tall as himself, with which he directs the course of the great wide-horned bullocks. A mere44 turn of the wand is sufficient to indicate the way, and with low bowed heads beneath the heavy yoke45 the dull beasts plod slowly onward46 as long-suffering as their guide. The whole equipage might belong to the times when the world itself was young, so idyllic47 is it in form. The wain is narrow and high-set upon two wheels, like an ancient chariot, with boards or high rods to form its sides; the wheels are built up ponderously48 of solid wood, the two thick spokes49 that connect the heavy tire with the hub filling up most of the circle, and the axle, a heavy log of wood, itself turns with the wheels. In this part of Portugal there stands erect50 upon the neck of the team an adornment51 which is usually the pride of the owner’s heart, and the one superfluous52 article of luxury he possesses. It is a thick board of hardwood, about eighteen inches high and some five feet broad, intricately and beautifully carved in fretted53 open-work arabesques54. The patterns are traditional, handed down from time immemorial, and usually consist of involved geometrical and curvilinear designs; sometimes, but not often, with a cross introduced 6in the centre, and with a row of little bristle55 brushes as an extra adornment along the top. A glance at this elaborate piece of ox furniture will show that its decoration is of Moorish56 origin, and the canga itself may be the survival of the high ox yoke still seen in some oriental countries. To complete the quaint picture of the universal ox team, for this part of Portugal is not a country of horses or mules58, the dress of the small teamster must be described. The boy’s breeches usually do not reach below the knee, the rest of the legs and feet being bare; a jacket of brown homespun is slung59 upon one shoulder, except at night or during the cold winter days of December and January, when it is worn, and the shirt, open at the neck and breast, leaves much of the upper part of the body exposed. The headgear is peculiar60. It is nearly always a knitted stocking bag cap, something like an old-fashioned nightcap, with a tassel61 at the end of the bag which hangs down the back or upon the shoulder of the wearer, its colour being sometimes green and red, but more frequently black.
The boy, like his similarly garbed63 elders, takes life very seriously, but neither he nor they seem sad or depressed64. There is here none of the 7squalid misery65 or whining66 mendicancy67 that are so distressing68 to strangers in Spain and Southern Italy, for the Portuguese69 of the north is a sturdy, self-respecting peasant, who works hard and lives frugally70 upon his three testoons (1s. 3d.) per day; and so long as he can earn his dried stockfish, his beans, bread, and grapes, with a little red wine to drink, he scorns to beg for the indulgence of his idleness.
These are the people, and their social betters of the same race, whom a sudden flash of sympathy brought closer to me, as in the pellucid71 golden sunlight all Oporto was spread before and beneath me, palpitating with life. The absence of vociferation and vehemence72 in the people did not mean sulkiness or stupidity, but was the result of the intense earnestness with which their daily life was faced; their unregarding aloofness73 towards strangers was not rudeness, but the highest courtesy which bade them avoid obtrusive74 curiosity; and soon I learnt to know that their cold exterior75 barely concealed76 a disinterested77 desire to extend in fullest measure aid and sympathy to those who needed them. In all my wanderings I have never met, except perhaps in Norway, a peasantry so full of willingness to 8show courtesy to strangers without thought of gain to themselves as these people of north Portugal, almost pure Celts as they are, with the Celtic innate78 kindliness79 of heart and ready sympathy, though, of course, with the Celtic shortcomings of jealousy80, inconstancy, and distrust.
I know few more characteristic thoroughfares than the road by the river-side at Oporto, called the Ribeira, which is the centre of maritime81 activity of the port. The path runs beneath what was the ancient river-wall, now pierced or burrowed82 out to form caverns83 of shops, where wine and food, cordage and clothing are sold to sailor men. Many of the open doors have vine trellises before them, in the shade of which quaintly84 garbed groups forgather, and a constant tide of men and women flows along the path, eddying85 into and out of the cavernous recesses86 in the ancient wall. Colour, flaring87 and fierce in the sun, flaunts88 everywhere; for the multi-tinted89 rags of the south festoon and flutter from every door and window and deck the persons of all the womankind. Swinging along, with peculiar and ungainly gait, go the women with prodigious90 burdens upon their heads. Everything, from babies to bales of merchandise, is borne upon the female head in Portugal; and these women of the north wear a peculiar headgear adapted to this custom. It is a round, soft, pork-pie hat of black cloth or velveteen, fitting well upon the top of the head, the upper rim91 being adorned92 with a sort of standing93 silk fringe. Such a hat, especially when surmounted95 by a knot, suffers no damage from a burden placed upon it; but the constant carrying of tremendous weights upon the head of females, even of little girls, quite spoils the figures of the women, thrusting the hips96 and pelvis forward inordinately97, and rendering98 the movements in walking most ungraceful. The women and girls almost invariably go barefooted, whilst the men, except the fishermen, usually are shod; and the females of a family share to the full the work and hardships which are the common lot.
EVENING OPPOSITE OPORTO.
9Along the shore of the busy Ribeira lie ships unloading, small craft they usually are, for the bar of the Douro is a terrible one, and the big ships now enter the harbour of Leix?es, a league away. In a constant stream the men and women pass across the planks99 from ship to shore, carrying the cargo100 upon their heads or shoulders in peculiar boat-shaped baskets, which are the 10inseparable companion of the Oporto workers. Here is a smart schooner102 hailing from the Cornish port of Fowey, from which stockfish from Newfoundland is being landed on the heads of women, flat salt slabs103 as hard and dry as wood, but good nutritious105 food for all that; and farther along, with their prows to the shore, rest a dozen un-ladened wine and fruit boats from up the Douro, and flat-bottomed passenger skiffs into which women and men with baskets and bundles, representing their week’s supplies purchased in Oporto, are crowding to be carried back to their homes in the rich vineyard villages miles up the river. One by one the quaint craft hoist106 their crimson107 sails, and struggle out from the tangle108 of the bank, until the breeze catches them, and in a shimmer109 of red gold from the setting sun they hustle110 through the brown tide until a projecting corner hides them from view. It is a scene never to be forgotten.
The centre of the Ribeira is the Pra?a called after it, where a sloping square facing the water opens out. The scene is picturesque111 in the extreme. The space is thronged by men, either sleeping in their baskets or carrying them filled with fish or merchandise upon their heads: a 11motley, water-side crowd, men of all nations, pass to and fro, or gossip under the vine trellis before the wine shop overlooking the square, and as the observer casts his eyes upwards112 he sees the gaily113 coloured houses piled apparently on the top of one another, until at the top of all, as if overhead, is the glaring white palace of the bishop114, and the glittering cathedral cross, standing out hard and clear against a sky of fathomless115 indigo116.
This busy river-side way of the Ribeira is, so to speak, a street of two storeys. Below is the walk I have described, with the cavernous shops in the face of the old river-wall, and on the top of the wall is another path reached by occasional flights of steps, and also bordered by the squalid medley117 of dark shops in which strange savoury-odoured victuals118 are washed down by strong red wine, and quiet brown men and women, and grave-eyed swarthy babies are inextricably mixed up with brown merchandise in the gloom beyond the glaring sunlight. Unexpected steep alleys120, arched and mysterious, lead to the thoroughfares higher up the precipitous slope, and the next storey, a parallel narrow street, the Rua do Robelleiro, narrow, 12dark, and ancient, is almost as picturesque as the Ribeira itself.
A slab104 let into the river-wall by the beach commemorates121 one of the most terrible days in Oporto’s history. The English army had been chased to its ships at Corunna, and the Spanish levies122 scattered123: the Peninsula seemed to be at the mercy of the French legions, which, under Napoleon’s greatest marshals, held the richest provinces of Spain in the name of King Joseph Bonaparte. But 9000 English troops remained in Lisbon, and with Portugal in the hands of his enemies Napoleon knew that he would never be master of Spain. So the word went forth124 that Soult was to march down with a great army from Galicia, and sweep the English out of Portugal. It seemed easy, and authorities even in England believed that Portugal was untenable and should be evacuated125. All but one man, Arthur Wellesley, whose victory at Vimeiro in the previous year had been wasted by the inept126 old women who were his superior officers. With 20,000 men, said Wellesley, he would hold Portugal against 100,000 French, the marshals notwithstanding; and the great Englishman had his way. Beresford was sent out to reorganise 13the scattered Portuguese fighting men, and Arthur Wellesley sailed from England with his little army to face Soult in Portugal. Before he arrived in Lisbon the French had swept down from Galicia, and on the 27th March 1809, Soult summoned Oporto to surrender. The warlike Bishop of Oporto was heading the hastily organised defence; his forces were undisciplined and badly armed, but their hearts were stout127, and behind their poor earthworks the citizens of Oporto and their bishop bade defiance128 to Soult and his invading army.
On the 29th March at dawn the devoted129 city was stormed by Napoleon’s veterans, who swept all before them. There was no quarter, no mercy, and the steep streets of the city were turned to blood-smeared shambles130. Down to the river bank flocked the affrighted people, falling as they ran under the rain of bullets that pursued them. Over the river from the Ribeira was a bridge of boats, and upon this the crowd of panic-stricken fugitives131 poured. The weight sank it, and thousands were drowned in the Douro, or struggled ashore132 only to be despatched by the French, whilst many of those who had been in arms deliberately133 drowned themselves rather 14than surrender. Eighteen thousand Portuguese perished on that awful day, without counting the drowned who were never recovered; whilst of the whole Portuguese host only two hundred live prisoners were taken.
Six weeks afterwards the tables were turned; six weeks spent by Soult in intrigues134 for his own advancement135, and by his officers in discontented idleness. On the 12th May Wellesley and his army from Lisbon surprised him at Oporto in broad daylight, crossing the river a few miles above the city by a brilliant piece of daring, and Soult ignominiously136 fled north, leaving impedimenta and baggage behind him, harassed137 and scattered by the Portuguese peasants in arms, until a mere remnant of his force finally found refuge in Spain. The very dinner to which he was about to sit down at Oporto when he was surprised regaled Sir Arthur Wellesley instead, and the victor took up his residence in that big white monastery on the Serra de Pilar, which from the height on the left of the bridge affords a panorama138 of unequalled beauty of the city opposite on its amphitheatre of hills, shining white and stately against the dark background of the sky.
15However you go from the lower level by the river-side to the main streets of the city the climb is a severe one, for in this town of precipitous hills the gradients are startling, even for the electric trams which of late years have completely taken possession of the streets. But we will leave the electric trams on this peregrination139, and face the ascent140 on foot from the lower level of the bridge on the Ribeira itself to the upper town. First some toilsome flights of steps which have taken the place of the lower end of a precipitous alley119, cut away to make the approach to the bridge, lead you up about two hundred feet to an ancient winding lane which itself is almost a flight of steps. Quaint foreign interiors are disclosed through the open doors of the dark humble141 abodes142 that line the way, and poor little home industries are carried on coram populo; half-way up the ladder-like ascent there is a ruined church, and by-and-by on the right we skirt the great battlemented wall of the vast disestablished monastery of Santa Clara. At a turn in the wall the corner of the grim old edifice143 itself appears, fortress-like and looming144 here as built for defence in the fierce times of long ago. Through the doubly-grated windows, a few feet 16above our heads, brown paws are thrust out, and a hoarse145 murmur146 from within takes form, by-and-by, as a demand for alms in the name of God. A glance inside makes one start back in horror, almost in disgust, though the sorry spectacle unfortunately soon becomes familiar to those who sojourn147 in any large Portuguese town. Huddled148 in squalor and filth149 together are half-naked, savage-looking criminals, old men, sturdy vagabonds, and youths almost children, staring out from the gloom of the prison-house through the unglazed barred windows, with whining prayer for charity, ribald jest, or explosive curses. These gaol-birds, herded151 publicly in their unutterable degradation152 behind the gratings, form the blackest spot visible in Portuguese life. Even Spain for the most part has brought her prisons into some semblance153 of civilised order, but Portugal in this one respect lags inexplicably154 behind.
FROM THE RIBEIRA, OPORTO.
A few yards distant, through a little maze155 of medi?val streets, is the cathedral, the Sé, with a quiet little courtyard before it, from the parapet of which the red roofs and abundant verdure of the city spread downward in waves to the water-side. These north Portuguese cathedrals are marvellously alike; sharing the early beauties and 17later barbarities of their successive generations of masters. This of Oporto is a good specimen156. The sturdy warrior157 kings who wrested158 Portugal, bit by bit, from Castilian and from Moor57, in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, were true crusaders. Where they set their foot sprang up the Christian159 church, to testify for ever their gratitude160 for victory vouchsafed161 to the Cross that symbolised their faith. Solid and staidly devotional were the edifices162 they raised; and wherever their work remains163 unconcealed by the scrolly banalities of a later age, it bears still the impress of simple faith and unostentatious grandeur164. Here on the hill crest at Oporto stand two massive low towers, one still crowned by the pointed165 Morisco machicolations of the twelfth century, whilst its fellow, partly rebuilt, is spoilt by the addition of a trivial eighteenth-century parapet, with urns18 as an adornment. Still, the massive solidity of the towers remains, which is something to be thankful for when we regard the hideous166 top-heavy early eighteenth-century fa?ade that connects them. The south door, of majestic167 romanesque, is similarly marred168. Around it has been built a barbarous porch, overloaded169 with meaningless ornament170, which not only obscures 18the serious work of the early builder, but half covers and cuts in two a lovely old round window above the door which lights the transept inside. But, however much these curly horrors of the late seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries may distract the eye, they do not destroy what is still visible of the old edifice. The double flight of low steps, for instance, which leads to this south door has for handrails two ancient stone serpents, so simple in design, yet so effective and perfectly171 adapted for their purpose, as to prove the unaffected but consummate172 artistry of the designer, whose taste must have been formed whilst yet the Byzantine traditions were strong in the stern romanesque.
One is struck at once in entering any of these cathedrals, and more particularly that of Oporto and its close congener Braga, with the vast difference between them and the pompous173, splendid Spanish cathedrals. In the latter the span of the nave174 is usually tremendous, the church is plunged175 in tinted gloom, and the whole of the centre of the nave is blocked by an immense choir176. Here in North Portugal the note struck in the cathedrals is not mystery richly dight, as in Spain, but sincere austerity, and a simple faith so essential in 19the edifice that the grave granite177 columns and arches appear as unaffected by the heaps, and piles, and masses of curly carved gilt178 wood around them as a monolith might be by the lizards179 that bask101 and slither round its base. Here in Oporto, for instance, the low, massive, granite pillars that line the narrow nave, and support the round romanesque arches, seem sullenly180 to bid defiance to time and decay; such is their prodigious solidity. And yet even these a later age has surmounted, if not adorned, with curly Corinthian capitals of carved gilt wood! Every altar here, and indeed nearly all over Portugal, is an overloaded mass of this particular barbaric style of decoration dear to the Portuguese since the seventeenth century. The skill in its production is undeniably great, especially in the chapel of St. Vincent in Oporto Cathedral; and in moderation the employment of richly painted, carved, and gilded wood generally may be advantageous181 where the light is low and the architectural style ornate. But here, where the simple romanesque prevails and the churches are flooded with light, it overwhelms one. In this low, old, plain Sé, either gilded wood or high-relief designs in beaten gold or silver in endless intricacy strike the eye unmercifully 20at every turn. On one of these ornate altars, screened by a curtain which a fee will raise, stands the ancient effigy182, which those who still hold the simple faith of their fathers venerate183 so devoutly—Our Lady of Alem. Ages ago, so the story runs, when this old fane was yet a-building in the twelfth century, some Douro fishermen found their nets heavy with an unusual burden, and raising them, found this image, a miraculous184 gift vouchsafed them from the sea. Since then the prayers of those who win their living on the deep have been ceaselessly offered to the Lady of Alem for safety and good luck, and simple offerings of gratitude for boons185 thus gained—for sickness healed or safe return—hang thickly round the shrine186.
The beautiful little cloisters187 of the cathedral are of a later date than the church—grave and simple Gothic of the late fourteenth century, with three small pointed lancet arches in each span, and a plain round light in the tympanum above. But even here the eighteenth century has done some damage by building out highly ornamental189 buttresses190 between the main spans. All around on the inner wall of the cloister188 is a decoration which abounds191 in nearly every Portuguese church that 21has lived through the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries—namely, large pictorial192 representations in blue and white tiles, like those commonly connected with the town of Delft. In the churches these tile pictures usually represent scenes from Scripture193 history, with a large admixture of heathen mythology194 or ordinary emblematic195 fancies, as here in Oporto, and the effect is quaint and not unpleasing. One of the things indeed which most strongly strike a stranger in Portugal, in the north especially, is the almost universal employment of glazed150 tiles, azulejos, both inside and outside buildings of all kinds, the majority of the better sort of dwelling-houses being entirely196 covered outside by tile designs in colours, sometimes very elaborate and beautiful. The custom exists to some extent in Spain, but is not so common there as in Portugal. In each case, however, the taste and original manufacture, like the name of these tiles, are clearly Moorish, and in some of the older edifices, to be mentioned later, the tiles themselves date from a period when Moors197 or Mudejares produced them.
In the sacristy of Oporto Cathedral they will show you a painting on terra-cotta of the Virgin198 and Child, backed by St. Joseph and 22angels bearing a cross, which is asserted to be a Raphael. The composition and drawing are clearly the work of a disciple199 of his school, but the colouring is dull and grey, such as the great one of Urbino would never have produced. Not this so-called Raphael, but another picture of the highest interest and beauty, is the principal artistic200 treasure of the city. In the board-room of Oporto’s most cherished and beneficent institution, the vast charitable organisation201 called the Misericordia, there hangs a painting that has few, if any, equals in Portugal. It is claimed for Jan Van Eyck, who is known to have been in Portugal for two years at about the period (1520) represented by the work, though personally I could see but slight traces of the peculiar quality of either of the brothers Van Eyck. Certainly it is broader in style than anything I have seen from the brush of the younger brother Jan, and may well be the work of Hubert Van der Goes or Hans Memling. But, whoever may be the painter, the picture is a magnificent one. Against a background representing a typical Flemish landscape and walled town, such as Memling loved to paint, 23there is a highly ornamented202 font filled with a pool of blood replenished203 from the stream that issues from the Saviour’s side, as He hangs upon the cross rising from the centre of the pool. Upon the edge of the font, on each side of the cross, in attitudes of prayer, stand two lovely life-size figures of the Virgin and St. John, whilst in the foreground there kneel, in regal robes of crimson, ermine, and gold brocade, the figures of the founder204 of the Misericordia in 1499, King Manuel the Fortunate and his wife. Kneeling behind them in decreasing size are members of their family, and on the farther side beyond the font are groups of ecclesiastics205 and laymen206, all evidently life-like portraits of prominent courtiers, or benefactors207 of the institution. The colouring of the picture is glowing and gorgeous in the extreme, and the loving care expended208 upon the details is such as only the early Flemings had patience to exercise, accompanied by a breadth and boldness unusual in most of them. Fons Vit?, as the painting is called, from an inscription209 on the edge of the font, is emblematical210 of the foundation of the home of mercy it adorns211. Nor is it the only art 24treasure the Misericordia possesses, apart from the hundreds of awful daubs representing dead and gone benefactors that crowd every inch of wall-space. There is to be seen a beautiful Gothic gold chalice212 of fifteenth-century Portuguese work, some fifteen inches high, a specimen of the famous handicraft of the city, of great interest, the work being of the most intricate and elaborate description, and the condition of the jewel perfect.
Away from the river-side and the immediate213 surroundings of the cathedral, Oporto has little to show in the form of architectural quaintness214. A busy, bustling215 place of modern-looking houses for the most part, the streets dominated by the indispensable electric tramways, casting scorn upon the lumbering216 ox wains that alone compete with them. Yet the city has some striking points that should not be missed. The view is very fine, for instance, from the top of the main modern shopping thoroughfare, the Rua de S. Antonio, which swoops217 down suddenly like a giant switchback to the Pra?a de Dom Pedro, the centre of the city, and then as the Rua dos Clerigos soars aloft again as suddenly to another eminence218 crowned by the extraordinary 25tower of the Church of the Clerigos, one of the loftiest spires219 in Portugal. The effect, looking up on either side from the Pra?a de Dom Pedro, is as curious as any streetscape of its kind in Europe. The Pra?a de Dom Pedro itself, crowded almost day and night with people, busy and idle, is a typical Portuguese “place,” paved, as most of them are, by the strange wave pattern in black and white stone mosaic220 that gives to the Pra?a de Dom Pedro in Lisbon (the Rocio) the English name of “rolling motion square.”
From the Pra?a de Dom Pedro in Oporto, leading downward towards the river-side, is the famous street of the old city called Rua das Flores, where now, as for centuries past, the gold and silver filigree221 jewelry222 for which Oporto is famous is made and sold in a score of dark old-fashioned little shops; and still farther down is the Pra?a do Comercio, with a striking statue amidst the flower-beds of Portugal’s national hero, Prince Henry the Navigator. In this square stands, too, the principal architectural boast of modern Oporto, the Exchange, of which the interior is really grandiose223 in the florid style so beloved by the 26Portuguese. The elaborate high-relief carvings224 prevalent in Portugal are usually executed in soft marble-like limestone226, which hardens with exposure to the air; but here in the Bolsa of Oporto the intricate festoons and ingenious caprices that stand out everywhere in relief on walls, pillars, and staircases are carved out of the solid grey granite of which the edifice is built, as if out of defiance the most difficult material had been sought. Some of the fine apartments, especially the Tribunal of commerce, are beautifully decorated in frescoes227 by Salgado, in style much resembling those of Lord Leighton; and the great ballroom228 is a gorgeous hall in the brilliant gold and coloured arabesques of the Alhambra.
The Exchange is built upon the site of a disestablished Franciscan monastery, and cowering229 under the shadow of its modern magnificence there still stands the convent Church of St. Francis. The seventeenth century has left little of the original fifteenth-century church standing, and the interior is a mass of extravagantly230 rococo231 carved and gilt wood and other monstrosities; but in an ancient south transept chapel there is an altar-piece of interest in the style of Mantegna, 27though the sacristan ascribes it to some impossible artist of another school and century. Nothing, indeed, can equal the ignorance of, and apparent indifference232 to, antique and artistic objects in Portugal by the persons in charge of them. Even in national museums and historic buildings belonging to the Government, the guardians233 appear to have been chosen without the slightest regard to their fitness for understanding or describing the objects in their care, and the demeanour of the Portuguese people generally towards such objects is such as to force the conviction that, however proud they may be that their country has produced gems234 of art admired by strangers, they themselves have but a vague appreciation235 of their beauties or their merit.
The precipitous street leading up from the Pra?a de Dom Pedro to the conspicuous236 Church of the Clerigos is gay with a line of the drapers’ shops, with the gaudy wares237 aflaunt, which appeal specially94 to the country folk who flock in with their produce to the picturesque market of the Anjo behind the church. Red and yellow, blue and green, strive for mastery from street kerb to parapet, for the stock is as much outside 28the shops as in; and under the blazing sun, with the eternally deep azure238 sky overhead, the feast of colour in the clear air is so lavish239 as to dazzle eyes accustomed to the low tones and soft outlines of England. But relief is near. Through the chaffering market, with its piles of luscious240 fruit and all the bounteous241 gifts of earth and sea spread temptingly before brightly clad country wenches with flashing black eyes, the wayfarer242 may pass but need not tarry; nor is it worth his while to penetrate243 into the over-florid eighteenth-century churches of the Clerigos and the Carmo, which lie in his way—for just beyond them is a beautiful sub-tropical garden where shady groves244 of palms invite to repose246, and towering planes temper the glare with a soft haze247 of sea-green. Seated in a quiet nook, with leisure now to watch the passers-by closely, one is struck by the prosperous busy look of the working people. There is no undue248 noise, and a stranger is allowed to go his way without unwelcome attention; above all, marvellous to relate, beggars are rare, whilst the persistent249, offensive, mendicancy, amounting often to sheer blackmail250, which is a perfect plague in Spain, is here quite unknown.
A SHOP IN OLD OPORTO.
29The manners of these people of North Portugal, indeed, are irreproachable251. So courteous252 are they that it seems almost rude of the stranger to note too closely the quaint garb62 of the working people around him. The peasant women especially keep their ancient costume unchanged. Barefoot they go, old and young, with their heavy burdens piled in their boat-shaped baskets upon the black, pork-pie hats they wear. Their skirts, usually black but often with a broad horizontal stripe of colour round the bottom, are very short, and gathered with great fulness at the waist and over the hips. Upon the shoulders there is almost invariably a brilliantly coloured handkerchief, and sometimes another upon the head beneath the hat; and long, pendant, gold earrings253 shine against their coarse jet-black hair. It is evident that for the most part they work quite as hard as the men, but they have no appearance of privation or ill-treatment, except that their habit of carrying heavy weights upon their heads has the effect of ruining their figures in the manner already described. There are no indications anywhere of excessive drinking, and even smoking is not conspicuous amongst the 30working men and boys in the streets; they seem, indeed, too seriously busy for that, except on some feast day, when, with their best clothes on, they are gay enough, though not vociferous254 even then, as most southern peoples are.
There is an ancient little church in the northern suburb of Oporto, which will be of some interest to students of architecture. It is little more than a fragment now, but represents the earliest orthodox Catholic foundation in the city, and indeed in this part of the Peninsula. In the clashing of creeds256 in the early centuries of Christianity, Visigothic Spain had been officially Arian, whilst orthodox trinitarianism was the creed255 of the great churchmen, and the majority of the Romanised people. In 559 Mir, King of the Suevians, who ruled in the north-west corner of the Peninsula, was distracted by the imminent257 danger of his son, who was ill apparently to death. He was an Arian, but the priests of the orthodox Church assured him that safety to his son might be gained by the aid of certain relics258 of St. Martin of Tours, and Mir swore that if the relics worked the miracle he and all his people would join the Catholic communion, and he would build a 31church to St. Martin within a year in his capital city. The prince recovered, and Mir was as good as his word. To the dismay of the Gothic monarchs259 of Spain, Suevia joined the orthodox fold, and in hot haste this Church of St. Martin was built; “Cedofeita,” “soon done,” being its name to this day. The upper part of the little cruciform church has been restored and the inner walls have been lined with the universal blue and white picture tiles; but the pillars and arches are pure romanesque, with capricious carvings on the capitals, and the charming little cloister is entered by a romanesque doorway260 of great beauty. The capitals, too, of the north doorway of the church are very curious, though apparently later than the cloister door, one of the carvings representing a man in a long gown being devoured261 by an animal’s head, doubtless an allegory of which the significance is lost to us.
Another church of some interest is that of Mattosinhos, a large and prosperous village adjoining the harbour of Leix?es, where those who come by sea to Oporto land. The way thither263 from the city by the electric tramway lies along the river-side, and past the charming tropical-looking 32public gardens at the Foz de Douro, where in the summer heat the citizens of Oporto idle, flirt264, and disport265 themselves in the surf that breaks upon the sandy beach. The Church of Mattosinhos is a great place of pilgrimage, for it possesses amongst other attractions a miraculous image of Christ, which is venerated266 throughout Portugal, and the shrine is a famous one. The church lies on a gentle eminence, and is approached by a beautiful, wide, mosaic pavement, bordered by avenues of planes and cork267 trees, under the shadow of which are six chapels268 containing life-sized groups representing scenes in the passion of Our Lord. The soft warm air from the sea comes heavy-laden with the scent5 of flowers, and on one side of the church a grove245 of orange trees shelters a merry school of boys, who do not even pause in their games to glance at the curious stranger peering about amongst them. The outside of the church, somewhat squat269 and solid eighteenth-century work, presents a fair specimen of a style of which we shall see much later; a style not at all ineffective, although its description may not sound attractive. Its peculiarity270 consists in the admixture of brownish-grey granite, of which all the architectural lines and salient points consist, 33with panels or spaces of snow-white plaster between. In this pure air, under a brilliant sun, the subdued271 colour of the granite softens272 the outlines, whilst the white spaces prevent an appearance of gloom or heaviness. Inside, the Church of Mattosinhos is grave and simple in its architectural features, but, as usual, the altars, and especially the chancel, are a riotous273 mass of gilt wood carving225, without repose or restraint.
Down by the shore the great Atlantic rollers are thundering upon the beach, as if hungering to devour262 the crescent-shaped sardine274 boats drawn275 higher up for safety; and a long mail steamer, in the little harbour of Leix?es, has its blue peter flying and its funnel276 smoking ready to sail for England. It is autumn there, no doubt, for the calendar tells us so and cannot lie; but here it is glorious summer still, for the palms and planes wave softly green in the languorous277 air, and the flowers, in great white and purple masses, hang over every wall and wrestle278 with the blue-black grapes that deck the trellises before the cottage doors. Everywhere is vivid colour and sharp outline in an atmosphere of marvellous clarity, and as we are carried rapidly through the balmy, voluptuous279 breeze to the city, we feel that life under such conditions is indeed worth living.
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1
ridge
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| n.山脊；鼻梁；分水岭 | |
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winding
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| n.绕，缠，绕组，线圈 | |
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gorge
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| n.咽喉，胃，暴食，山峡；v.塞饱，狼吞虎咽地吃 | |
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quaint
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| adj.古雅的，离奇有趣的，奇怪的 | |
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scent
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| n.气味，香味，香水，线索，嗅觉；v.嗅，发觉 | |
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prows
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| n.船首( prow的名词复数 ) | |
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gondolas
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| n.狭长小船( gondola的名词复数 )；货架（一般指商店，例如化妆品店）；吊船工作台 | |
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sanguinely
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| 乐观的，充满希望的； 面色红润的； 血红色的 | |
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sparsely
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| adv.稀疏地；稀少地；不足地；贫乏地 | |
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par
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| n.标准，票面价值，平均数量；adj.票面的，平常的，标准的 | |
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stony
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| adj.石头的，多石头的，冷酷的，无情的 | |
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flaunted
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| v.炫耀，夸耀( flaunt的过去式和过去分词 )；有什么能耐就施展出来 | |
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plumes
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| 羽毛( plume的名词复数 )； 羽毛饰； 羽毛状物； 升上空中的羽状物 | |
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slumber
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| n.睡眠，沉睡状态 | |
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ardent
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| adj.热情的，热烈的，强烈的，烈性的 | |
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throbbing
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| a. 跳动的,悸动的 | |
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exuberant
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| adj.充满活力的；（植物）繁茂的 | |
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urns
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| n.壶( urn的名词复数 )；瓮；缸；骨灰瓮 | |
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tortuously
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quays
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| 码头( quay的名词复数 ) | |
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thronged
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| v.成群，挤满( throng的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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throng
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| n.人群，群众；v.拥挤，群集 | |
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swarm
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| n.(昆虫)等一大群；vi.成群飞舞；蜂拥而入 | |
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gaudy
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| adj.华而不实的；俗丽的 | |
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apparently
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| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
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monastery
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| n.修道院，僧院，寺院 | |
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alas
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| int.唉(表示悲伤、忧愁、恐惧等) | |
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crest
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| n.顶点；饰章；羽冠；vt.达到顶点；vi.形成浪尖 | |
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29
chapel
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| n.小教堂，殡仪馆 | |
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stolidly
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| adv.迟钝地，神经麻木地 | |
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excellence
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| n.优秀，杰出，(pl.)优点，美德 | |
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32
psychic
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| n.对超自然力敏感的人；adj.有超自然力的 | |
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gilded
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| a.镀金的，富有的 | |
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ominously
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| adv.恶兆地，不吉利地；预示地 | |
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inevitable
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| adj.不可避免的，必然发生的 | |
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disintegrated
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| v.（使）破裂[分裂，粉碎]，（使）崩溃( disintegrate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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attain
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| vt.达到，获得，完成 | |
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underlying
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| adj.在下面的，含蓄的，潜在的 | |
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39
ponderous
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| adj.沉重的，笨重的，(文章)冗长的 | |
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40
ascend
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| vi.渐渐上升，升高；vt.攀登，登上 | |
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41
urchin
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| n.顽童；海胆 | |
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42
plod
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| v.沉重缓慢地走，孜孜地工作 | |
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43
mire
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| n.泥沼，泥泞；v.使...陷于泥泞，使...陷入困境 | |
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mere
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| adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过 | |
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yoke
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| n.轭；支配；v.给...上轭，连接，使成配偶 | |
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onward
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| adj.向前的，前进的；adv.向前，前进，在先 | |
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47
idyllic
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| adj.质朴宜人的，田园风光的 | |
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48
ponderously
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49
spokes
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| n.（车轮的）辐条( spoke的名词复数 )；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 | |
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50
erect
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| n./v.树立，建立，使竖立；adj.直立的，垂直的 | |
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51
adornment
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| n.装饰；装饰品 | |
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52
superfluous
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| adj.过多的，过剩的，多余的 | |
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53
fretted
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| 焦躁的，附有弦马的，腐蚀的 | |
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54
arabesques
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| n.阿拉伯式花饰( arabesque的名词复数 )；错综图饰；阿拉伯图案；阿拉贝斯克芭蕾舞姿（独脚站立，手前伸，另一脚一手向后伸） | |
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55
bristle
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| v.（毛发）直立，气势汹汹，发怒；n.硬毛发 | |
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56
moorish
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| adj.沼地的，荒野的，生[住]在沼地的 | |
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57
moor
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| n.荒野，沼泽；vt.(使)停泊；vi.停泊 | |
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58
mules
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| 骡( mule的名词复数 )； 拖鞋； 顽固的人； 越境运毒者 | |
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59
slung
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| 抛( sling的过去式和过去分词 )； 吊挂； 遣送； 押往 | |
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peculiar
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| adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的，特有的 | |
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tassel
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| n.流苏，穗；v.抽穗， （玉米）长穗须 | |
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garb
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| n.服装，装束 | |
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garbed
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| v.（尤指某类人穿的特定）服装，衣服，制服( garb的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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64
depressed
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| adj.沮丧的，抑郁的，不景气的，萧条的 | |
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65
misery
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| n.痛苦，苦恼，苦难；悲惨的境遇，贫苦 | |
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whining
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| n. 抱怨，牢骚 v. 哭诉，发牢骚 | |
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67
mendicancy
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| n.乞丐，托钵，行乞修道士 | |
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distressing
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| a.使人痛苦的 | |
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Portuguese
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| n.葡萄牙人；葡萄牙语 | |
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70
frugally
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| adv. 节约地, 节省地 | |
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71
pellucid
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| adj.透明的，简单的 | |
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72
vehemence
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| n.热切；激烈；愤怒 | |
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aloofness
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| 超然态度 | |
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obtrusive
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| adj.显眼的；冒失的 | |
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exterior
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| adj.外部的，外在的；表面的 | |
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concealed
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| a.隐藏的，隐蔽的 | |
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disinterested
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| adj.不关心的，不感兴趣的 | |
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innate
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| adj.天生的，固有的，天赋的 | |
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79
kindliness
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| n.厚道，亲切，友好的行为 | |
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jealousy
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| n.妒忌，嫉妒，猜忌 | |
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81
maritime
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| adj.海的，海事的，航海的，近海的，沿海的 | |
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burrowed
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| v.挖掘（洞穴），挖洞( burrow的过去式和过去分词 )；翻寻 | |
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caverns
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| 大山洞，大洞穴( cavern的名词复数 ) | |
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quaintly
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| adv.古怪离奇地 | |
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eddying
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| 涡流，涡流的形成 | |
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86
recesses
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| n.壁凹( recess的名词复数 )；（工作或业务活动的）中止或暂停期间；学校的课间休息；某物内部的凹形空间v.把某物放在墙壁的凹处( recess的第三人称单数 )；将（墙）做成凹形，在（墙）上做壁龛；休息，休会，休庭 | |
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flaring
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| a.火焰摇曳的，过份艳丽的 | |
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flaunts
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| v.炫耀，夸耀( flaunt的第三人称单数 )；有什么能耐就施展出来 | |
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tinted
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| adj. 带色彩的 动词tint的过去式和过去分词 | |
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prodigious
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| adj.惊人的，奇妙的；异常的；巨大的；庞大的 | |
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rim
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| n.(圆物的)边，轮缘；边界 | |
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adorned
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| [计]被修饰的 | |
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standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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specially
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| adv.特定地；特殊地；明确地 | |
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surmounted
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| 战胜( surmount的过去式和过去分词 )； 克服（困难）； 居于…之上； 在…顶上 | |
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hips
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| abbr.high impact polystyrene 高冲击强度聚苯乙烯，耐冲性聚苯乙烯n.臀部( hip的名词复数 )；[建筑学]屋脊；臀围（尺寸）；臀部…的 | |
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inordinately
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| adv.无度地，非常地 | |
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rendering
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| n.表现，描写 | |
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planks
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| （厚）木板( plank的名词复数 )； 政纲条目，政策要点 | |
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cargo
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| n.(一只船或一架飞机运载的)货物 | |
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bask
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| vt.取暖，晒太阳，沐浴于 | |
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schooner
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| n.纵帆船 | |
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slabs
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| n.厚板，平板，厚片( slab的名词复数 )；厚胶片 | |
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slab
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| n.平板，厚的切片；v.切成厚板，以平板盖上 | |
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nutritious
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| adj.有营养的，营养价值高的 | |
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106
hoist
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| n.升高，起重机，推动；v.升起，升高，举起 | |
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107
crimson
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| n./adj.深(绯)红色(的)；vi.脸变绯红色 | |
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108
tangle
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| n.纠缠；缠结；混乱；v.(使)缠绕；变乱 | |
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109
shimmer
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| v./n.发微光，发闪光；微光 | |
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110
hustle
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| v.推搡；竭力兜售或获取；催促；n.奔忙(碌) | |
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111
picturesque
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| adj.美丽如画的，（语言）生动的，绘声绘色的 | |
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112
upwards
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| adv.向上，在更高处...以上 | |
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113
gaily
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| adv.欢乐地，高兴地 | |
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114
bishop
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| n.主教，（国际象棋）象 | |
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115
fathomless
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| a.深不可测的 | |
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116
indigo
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| n.靛青，靛蓝 | |
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117
medley
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| n.混合 | |
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118
victuals
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| n.食物；食品 | |
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119
alley
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| n.小巷，胡同；小径，小路 | |
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120
alleys
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| 胡同，小巷( alley的名词复数 )； 小径 | |
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121
commemorates
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| n.纪念，庆祝( commemorate的名词复数 )v.纪念，庆祝( commemorate的第三人称单数 ) | |
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122
levies
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| （部队）征兵( levy的名词复数 )； 募捐； 被征募的军队 | |
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123
scattered
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| adj.分散的，稀疏的；散步的；疏疏落落的 | |
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124
forth
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| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
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125
evacuated
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| 撤退者的 | |
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126
inept
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| adj.不恰当的，荒谬的，拙劣的 | |
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128
defiance
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| n.挑战，挑衅，蔑视，违抗 | |
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129
devoted
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| adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的 | |
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130
shambles
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| n.混乱之处；废墟 | |
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131
fugitives
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| n.亡命者，逃命者( fugitive的名词复数 ) | |
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132
ashore
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| adv.在(向)岸上，上岸 | |
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133
deliberately
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| adv.审慎地；蓄意地；故意地 | |
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134
intrigues
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| n.密谋策划( intrigue的名词复数 )；神秘气氛；引人入胜的复杂情节v.搞阴谋诡计( intrigue的第三人称单数 )；激起…的好奇心 | |
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135
advancement
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| n.前进，促进，提升 | |
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136
ignominiously
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| adv.耻辱地，屈辱地，丢脸地 | |
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137
harassed
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| adj. 疲倦的，厌烦的 动词harass的过去式和过去分词 | |
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138
panorama
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| n.全景，全景画，全景摄影，全景照片[装置] | |
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139
peregrination
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| n.游历，旅行 | |
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140
ascent
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| n.(声望或地位)提高；上升，升高；登高 | |
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141
humble
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| adj.谦卑的，恭顺的；地位低下的；v.降低，贬低 | |
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142
abodes
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| 住所( abode的名词复数 )； 公寓； （在某地的）暂住； 逗留 | |
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143
edifice
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| n.宏伟的建筑物(如宫殿，教室) | |
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144
looming
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| n.上现蜃景（光通过低层大气发生异常折射形成的一种海市蜃楼）v.隐约出现，阴森地逼近( loom的现在分词 )；隐约出现，阴森地逼近 | |
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145
hoarse
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| adj.嘶哑的，沙哑的 | |
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146
murmur
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| n.低语，低声的怨言；v.低语，低声而言 | |
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147
sojourn
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| v./n.旅居，寄居；逗留 | |
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148
huddled
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| 挤在一起（huddle的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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149
filth
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| n.肮脏，污物，污秽；淫猥 | |
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150
glazed
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| adj.光滑的，像玻璃的；上过釉的；呆滞无神的v.装玻璃( glaze的过去式)；上釉于，上光；（目光）变得呆滞无神 | |
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151
herded
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| 群集，纠结( herd的过去式和过去分词 )； 放牧； （使）向…移动 | |
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152
degradation
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| n.降级；低落；退化；陵削；降解；衰变 | |
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153
semblance
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| n.外貌，外表 | |
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154
inexplicably
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| adv.无法说明地，难以理解地，令人难以理解的是 | |
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155
maze
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| n.迷宫，八阵图，混乱，迷惑 | |
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156
specimen
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| n.样本，标本 | |
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157
warrior
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| n.勇士，武士，斗士 | |
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158
wrested
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| （用力）拧( wrest的过去式和过去分词 )； 费力取得； （从…）攫取； （ 从… ） 强行取去… | |
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159
Christian
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| adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒 | |
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160
gratitude
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| adj.感激，感谢 | |
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161
vouchsafed
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| v.给予，赐予( vouchsafe的过去式和过去分词 )；允诺 | |
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162
edifices
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| n.大建筑物( edifice的名词复数 ) | |
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163
remains
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| n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹 | |
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164
grandeur
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| n.伟大，崇高，宏伟，庄严，豪华 | |
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165
pointed
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| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
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166
hideous
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| adj.丑陋的，可憎的，可怕的，恐怖的 | |
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167
majestic
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| adj.雄伟的，壮丽的，庄严的，威严的，崇高的 | |
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168
marred
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| adj. 被损毁, 污损的 | |
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169
overloaded
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| a.超载的，超负荷的 | |
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170
ornament
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| v.装饰，美化；n.装饰，装饰物 | |
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171
perfectly
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| adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地 | |
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172
consummate
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| adj.完美的；v.成婚；使完美 [反]baffle | |
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173
pompous
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| adj.傲慢的，自大的；夸大的；豪华的 | |
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174
nave
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| n.教堂的中部；本堂 | |
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175
plunged
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| v.颠簸( plunge的过去式和过去分词 )；暴跌；骤降；突降 | |
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176
choir
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| n.唱诗班，唱诗班的席位，合唱团，舞蹈团；v.合唱 | |
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177
granite
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| adj.花岗岩，花岗石 | |
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178
gilt
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| adj.镀金的；n.金边证券 | |
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179
lizards
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| n.蜥蜴( lizard的名词复数 ) | |
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180
sullenly
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| 不高兴地，绷着脸，忧郁地 | |
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181
advantageous
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| adj.有利的；有帮助的 | |
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182
effigy
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| n.肖像 | |
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183
venerate
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| v.尊敬，崇敬，崇拜 | |
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184
miraculous
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| adj.像奇迹一样的，不可思议的 | |
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185
boons
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| n.恩惠( boon的名词复数 )；福利；非常有用的东西；益处 | |
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186
shrine
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| n.圣地，神龛，庙；v.将...置于神龛内，把...奉为神圣 | |
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187
cloisters
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| n.（学院、修道院、教堂等建筑的）走廊( cloister的名词复数 )；回廊；修道院的生活；隐居v.隐退，使与世隔绝( cloister的第三人称单数 ) | |
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188
cloister
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| n.修道院；v.隐退，使与世隔绝 | |
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189
ornamental
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| adj.装饰的；作装饰用的；n.装饰品；观赏植物 | |
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190
buttresses
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| n.扶壁，扶垛( buttress的名词复数 )v.用扶壁支撑，加固( buttress的第三人称单数 ) | |
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191
abounds
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| v.大量存在，充满，富于( abound的第三人称单数 ) | |
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192
pictorial
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| adj.绘画的；图片的；n．画报 | |
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193
scripture
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| n.经文，圣书，手稿；Scripture:(常用复数)《圣经》，《圣经》中的一段 | |
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194
mythology
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| n.神话，神话学，神话集 | |
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195
emblematic
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| adj.象征的，可当标志的；象征性 | |
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196
entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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197
moors
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| v.停泊，系泊（船只）( moor的第三人称单数 ) | |
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198
virgin
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| n.处女，未婚女子；adj.未经使用的；未经开发的 | |
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199
disciple
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| n.信徒，门徒，追随者 | |
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200
artistic
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| adj.艺术(家)的，美术(家)的；善于艺术创作的 | |
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201
organisation
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| n.组织，安排，团体，有机休 | |
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202
ornamented
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| adj.花式字体的v.装饰，点缀，美化( ornament的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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203
replenished
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| 补充( replenish的过去式和过去分词 )； 重新装满 | |
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204
Founder
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| n.创始者，缔造者 | |
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205
ecclesiastics
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| n.神职者，教会，牧师( ecclesiastic的名词复数 ) | |
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206
laymen
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| 门外汉，外行人( layman的名词复数 )； 普通教徒（有别于神职人员） | |
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207
benefactors
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| n.捐助者，施主( benefactor的名词复数 )；恩人 | |
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208
expended
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| v.花费( expend的过去式和过去分词 )；使用（钱等）做某事；用光；耗尽 | |
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209
inscription
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| n.（尤指石块上的）刻印文字，铭文，碑文 | |
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210
emblematical
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| adj.标志的，象征的，典型的 | |
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211
adorns
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| 装饰，佩带( adorn的第三人称单数 ) | |
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212
chalice
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| n.圣餐杯；金杯毒酒 | |
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213
immediate
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| adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的 | |
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214
quaintness
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| n.离奇有趣，古怪的事物 | |
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215
bustling
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| adj.喧闹的 | |
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216
lumbering
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| n.采伐林木 | |
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217
swoops
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| 猛扑，突然下降( swoop的名词复数 ) | |
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218
eminence
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| n.卓越，显赫；高地，高处；名家 | |
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219
spires
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| n.（教堂的） 塔尖，尖顶( spire的名词复数 ) | |
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220
mosaic
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| n./adj.镶嵌细工的，镶嵌工艺品的，嵌花式的 | |
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221
filigree
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| n.金银丝做的工艺品；v.用金银细丝饰品装饰；用华而不实的饰品装饰；adj.金银细丝工艺的 | |
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222
jewelry
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| n.（jewllery）（总称）珠宝 | |
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223
grandiose
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| adj.宏伟的，宏大的，堂皇的，铺张的 | |
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224
carvings
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| n.雕刻( carving的名词复数 )；雕刻术；雕刻品；雕刻物 | |
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225
carving
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| n.雕刻品，雕花 | |
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226
limestone
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| n.石灰石 | |
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227
frescoes
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| n.壁画( fresco的名词复数 )；温壁画技法，湿壁画 | |
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228
ballroom
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| n.舞厅 | |
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229
cowering
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| v.畏缩，抖缩( cower的现在分词 ) | |
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230
extravagantly
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| adv.挥霍无度地 | |
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231
rococo
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| n.洛可可；adj.过分修饰的 | |
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232
indifference
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| n.不感兴趣，不关心，冷淡，不在乎 | |
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233
guardians
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| 监护人( guardian的名词复数 )； 保护者，维护者 | |
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234
gems
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| growth； economy； management； and customer satisfaction 增长 | |
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235
appreciation
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| n.评价；欣赏；感谢；领会，理解；价格上涨 | |
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236
conspicuous
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| adj.明眼的，惹人注目的；炫耀的，摆阔气的 | |
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237
wares
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| n. 货物, 商品 | |
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238
azure
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| adj.天蓝色的，蔚蓝色的 | |
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239
lavish
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| adj.无节制的；浪费的；vt.慷慨地给予，挥霍 | |
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240
luscious
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| adj.美味的；芬芳的；肉感的，引与性欲的 | |
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241
bounteous
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| adj.丰富的 | |
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242
wayfarer
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| n.旅人 | |
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243
penetrate
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| v.透(渗)入；刺入，刺穿；洞察，了解 | |
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244
groves
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| 树丛，小树林( grove的名词复数 ) | |
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245
grove
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| n.林子，小树林，园林 | |
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246
repose
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| v.(使)休息；n.安息 | |
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247
haze
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| n.霾，烟雾；懵懂，迷糊；vi.(over)变模糊 | |
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248
undue
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| adj.过分的；不适当的；未到期的 | |
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249
persistent
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| adj.坚持不懈的，执意的；持续的 | |
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250
blackmail
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| n.讹诈，敲诈，勒索，胁迫，恫吓 | |
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251
irreproachable
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| adj.不可指责的，无过失的 | |
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252
courteous
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| adj.彬彬有礼的，客气的 | |
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253
earrings
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| n.耳环( earring的名词复数 )；耳坠子 | |
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254
vociferous
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| adj.喧哗的，大叫大嚷的 | |
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255
creed
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| n.信条；信念，纲领 | |
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256
creeds
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| （尤指宗教）信条，教条( creed的名词复数 ) | |
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257
imminent
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| adj.即将发生的，临近的，逼近的 | |
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258
relics
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| [pl.］n.遗物，遗迹，遗产；遗体，尸骸 | |
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259
monarchs
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| 君主，帝王( monarch的名词复数 ) | |
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260
doorway
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| n.门口，(喻)入门；门路，途径 | |
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261
devoured
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| 吞没( devour的过去式和过去分词 )； 耗尽； 津津有味地看； 狼吞虎咽地吃光 | |
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262
devour
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| v.吞没；贪婪地注视或谛听，贪读；使着迷 | |
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263
thither
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| adv.向那里；adj.在那边的，对岸的 | |
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264
flirt
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| v.调情，挑逗，调戏；n.调情者，卖俏者 | |
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265
disport
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| v.嬉戏，玩 | |
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266
venerated
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| 敬重（某人或某事物），崇敬( venerate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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267
cork
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| n.软木，软木塞 | |
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268
chapels
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| n.小教堂， （医院、监狱等的）附属礼拜堂( chapel的名词复数 )；（在小教堂和附属礼拜堂举行的）礼拜仪式 | |
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269
squat
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| v.蹲坐，蹲下；n.蹲下；adj.矮胖的，粗矮的 | |
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270
peculiarity
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| n.独特性，特色；特殊的东西；怪癖 | |
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271
subdued
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| adj. 屈服的，柔和的，减弱的 动词subdue的过去式和过去分词 | |
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272
softens
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| （使）变软( soften的第三人称单数 )； 缓解打击； 缓和； 安慰 | |
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273
riotous
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| adj.骚乱的；狂欢的 | |
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274
sardine
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| n.[C]沙丁鱼 | |
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275
drawn
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| v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的 | |
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276
funnel
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| n.漏斗；烟囱；v.汇集 | |
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277
languorous
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| adj.怠惰的，没精打采的 | |
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278
wrestle
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| vi.摔跤，角力；搏斗；全力对付 | |
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279
voluptuous
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| adj.肉欲的，骄奢淫逸的 | |
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