The title which for almost a hundred years the American{115} people have given to the headquarters of their chief public servant is a fine example of historic accident. The White House was not originally intended to be a white house. It was built of a buff sandstone which proved to be so affected4 by exposure to the weather that as an afterthought it was covered with a thick coat of white paint. From its nearness to several red brick buildings, many persons fell into the way of distinguishing it by its color, and after its repainting to conceal5 the stains of the fire of 1814 this practice became general. Presidents have referred to it in their messages variously as the President’s House, the Executive Mansion6, and the White House. Among the people it was also sometimes known, in the early days, as the Palace. The Roosevelt administration made the White House both the official and the social designation, and fastened the label so tight that there is little reason to expect a change by any successor.
The White House was born under the eye of Martha Washington, was nursed into healthy babyhood by Abigail Adams, received its baptism of fire under Dolly Madison, was popularly christened under Eliza Kortright Monroe, and passed through numberless vicissitudes7 under a line of foster-mothers stretching from that time to the end of the century, every one carrying it a little further away from its original plan;{116} then Edith Kermit Roosevelt administered a restorative elixir8 which started it upon a second youth. The evolution of the Capitol, described in an earlier chapter, finds a parallel in the architectural genesis of this building. Its drawings were made and its construction superintended by James Hoban, an Irishman; but a distinguished9 critic has described it as “designed on classic lines, modified by an English hand, at a time when French art furnished the world’s models in interior detail.” That accounts, of course, for its monumental and palatial10 features.
But we must bear in mind that its sponsors intended it not only as an official residence for the executive head of the Government, but as a home for the foremost American citizen and his family, and that, in the esthetics of domestic architecture, local influences were most potent11. All the Presidents except one, for the first thirty-six years of the republic’s existence, were Virginia gentlemen; so, although broadly following in treatment the Viceregal Lodge12 in Dublin, the President’s House took on much of the character of the “great house” on a Virginia plantation13. This will explain why, in their work of restoration, when the architects were confronted by some gap in their plans which could not be filled by reference to the early records of the house itself, they drew upon the{117} material common to the Virginia mansions15 of the same period.
By no means the least notable of their revivals16 was the recognition of the proper front of the building. For a half-century, and perhaps longer, its back door had been used as its main entrance, and most visitors had borne away the impression that that was the face its designer had intended it to present to the world. Nearly all the authoritative17 pictures helped to confirm this notion, by displaying the north side as confidently as the photographers in Venice take San Marco from the Piazza18. The confusion of front and rear came about with other changes wrought19 by the increase of facilities for land transportation. The rural and suburban20 architecture of a century ago took great note of watercourses; for in those days wheeled vehicles were rarer than now and vastly less comfortable, the saddle was unsociable, and most travel was by river and canal. Hence the finest houses were built, when practicable, where they would not only command a pleasing view, but present their most picturesque21 aspect to the passing boats. Doubtless the site of the White House was chosen with reference to the bend which the Potomac made opposite the center of the building, thus opening a view down to Alexandria and beyond. The river was broader then, and probably washed the{118} outer edge of what was intended to be preserved forever as the President’s Park.
With the growing preference for land approaches, a good many Southern houses of the colonial type altered their habits, the White House among them; the side which faced the street offered the easier entrance, and thus the back door gradually usurped22 the dignities of the front, and accordingly the grounds on that side were laid out with lawns, trees, and shrubbery. Its outlook, also, is upon Lafayette Park, which, if sundry23 plans are carried through, will one day be faced on three sides with stately buildings, housing those executive Departments with which the President has to keep in closest touch.
Though President Washington was never to occupy the White House, or even to see it after it was nearly enough finished for occupancy, he took the greatest interest in watching it go up, and, only a few weeks before his death, went all over it with Mrs. Washington, thoroughly24 inspecting every part then accessible. He had borne a share in the Masonic ceremony of laying its corner-stone, and by his personal influence had induced the State of Virginia to advance a large sum of money at one particularly critical stage of the building operations; so the old mansion may boast of having some honored association with every President{119} from the foundation of our Government till now.
When John and Abigail Adams moved in, the scantiness25 of fuel and lights, and the necessity for devoting the east room to the humblest of domestic uses and converting an upstairs chamber27 into a salon28, were not the only shortcomings in their environment. Surface drainage water from a considerable bit of high ground to the eastward29 had formed a turbid30 little creek31 which almost surrounded the mansion. There was no water fit to drink and of sufficient quantity to meet the daily needs of the President’s family, short of a spring in an open tract32 which we now know as Franklin Square, about half a mile away, whence it was brought down in crude pipes. Beds of growing vegetables filled parts of the garden area where to-day we find well-kept lawns and ornamental33 shrubbery. The only way of reaching the south door from Pennsylvania Avenue was by a narrow footpath35, on which the pedestrian took a variety of chances after dark. The streets surrounding the President’s grounds were so deep in slush or mud for a large part of the year that, in order to keep their clothing fairly presentable, visitors were obliged to come in closed coaches; and when the Adamses gave their first New Year’s reception, their guests, though so few that the oval room in{120} the second story accommodated them, could not obtain in Washington enough suitable vehicles, and had to draw upon the livery stables in Baltimore.
Adams was a well-bred and well-read man, reared in the best traditions of New England, including the sanctity of a pledge; and, having promised his friend and predecessor36, Washington, to do what he could toward building up a capital in fact as well as in name, he pocketed his petty discomforts37 and made the best of things. Among his other efforts to promote the popularity of the new city must be counted several dinners of exceptional excellence38, at which Mrs. Adams presided with distinguished graciousness in a costume that, though it would strike us now as rather prim39, was in keeping with her age and antecedents. The President, who was a rotund, florid man of middle height, appeared at these entertainments in a richly embroidered40 coat, silk stockings, shoes with huge silver buckles41, and a powdered wig42. These were concessions43 to the general demand for elegance44 of attire45 on the part of the chief magistrate46, following the precedent47 established by Washington. They did not at all reflect Mr. Adams’s preferences, for he was one of the plainest of men in his tastes, and his ordinary course of domestic life in the President’s House was to the last degree unpretentious; his luncheon48, for example,{121}
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Old Carlyle Mansion, Alexandria
consisted usually of oatcake and lemonade, and one of his amusements was to play horse with a little grandchild, who used to drive him up and down the somber49 corridors with a switch.
Albeit50 Adams and Jefferson became, late in life, the warmest of friends, no love was lost between them during the period when both were active in politics. Adams, who would have been gratified to receive, like Washington, a second term, was not disposed to “enact the captive chief in the procession of the victor,” so he did not stay to see Jefferson inaugurated, but at daylight of the fourth of March, 1801, left Washington for Boston. There was no need for such haste to escape, for Jefferson, as the high priest of democratic simplicity51, had no procession; though the cheerful little fiction about his riding down Pennsylvania Avenue alone, and hitching52 his horse to a sapling in front of the Capitol while he went in to be sworn, received its death-blow long ago. The truth is, he had no use for a horse. He was boarding in New Jersey53 Avenue, where he had lived for the latter part of his term as Vice-president. A few minutes before noon on inauguration54 day he set out on foot, in company with several Congressmen who were his fellow boarders, and walked the block or so to the Capitol, where he was escorted by a committee to the Senate chamber and{122} there took the oath of office and delivered his address. Then he walked back again to his boarding-house, and at dinner occupied his customary seat at the foot of the table. A visitor from Baltimore complimented him on his address and “wished him joy” as President. “I should advise you,” was his smiling response, “to follow my example on nuptial55 occasions, when I always tell the bridegroom that I will wait till the end of the year before offering my congratulations.”
The accommodations in the President’s House were somewhat better by the time Mr. Jefferson moved in than they were when the Adams family opened it, yet he seems to have been more or less cramped56 during most of his two terms—owing, doubtless, to the continued presence of mechanics and building materials in the incomplete parts of the house. When the British Minister called in court costume to present his credentials57, he was received, with his convoy58 the Secretary of State, in a space so narrow that he had to back out of one end of it to make room for the President to enter at the other. One of the legation described Jefferson as “a tall man, with a very red, freckled59 face and gray, neglected hair; his manners were good natured and rather friendly, though he had somewhat of a cynical60 expression of countenance61. He wore a blue coat, a thick, gray-colored hairy waistcoat{123} with a red under-waistcoat lapped over it, green velveteen breeches with pearl buttons, yarn63 stockings with slippers64 down at the heels, his appearance being very much like that of a tall, raw-boned farmer.” On the other hand, an admiring contemporary insists that his dress was “plain, unstudied and sometimes old-fashioned in its form,” but “always of the finest materials,” and that “in his personal habits he was fastidious and neat.” So there you are!
A social being Jefferson certainly was. He liked company, and his former residence in France had cultivated his taste for the good things of the table, including light wines and olives. He once said that he considered olives the most precious gift of heaven to man, and he had them on his table whenever he could get them. He was also fond of figs65 and mulberries, and his household records bristle66 with purchases of crabs67, pineapples, oysters68, venison, partridges, and oranges—a pretty fair list for a man devoted69 to plain living. One of his hobbies as a host at very small and confidential70 dinners was to insure to his guests the utmost privacy, so he devised a scheme for dispensing71 as far as practicable with the presence of servants and avoiding the needless opening and closing of doors. Beside every chair was placed a small “dumb-waiter” containing all the desirable accessories, like fresh plates{124} and knives and forks and finger-bowls; while in a partition wall was hung a bank of circular shelves, so pivoted72 as to reverse itself at the pressure of a spring, the fresh viands73 entering the dining-room as the emptied platters swung around into the pantry. The company at table rarely exceeded four when this machinery74 was called into play. At big state dinners the usual array of servants did the waiting.
The first great reception in Jefferson’s administration occurred on the fourth of July next following his inauguration. For some reason, possibly because the novelty of his sweeping75 invitation prevented its being generally understood by the populace, only about one hundred persons presented themselves. A luncheon was served, in the midst of which the Marine76 Band entered, playing the “President’s March,” or, as we call it, “Hail Columbia.” The company fell in behind and joined in a grand promenade77, with many evolutions, through the rooms and corridors of the ground floor, returning at last to the place whence they had started and resuming their feast of good things.
As he was a widower78 when he succeeded Adams at the head of the Government, and it was not feasible, most of the time, for either of his daughters to preside over his public hospitalities, Jefferson naturally turned for aid to Mrs. James Madison, wife of his Secretary of{125} State. He despised empty precedent; and when, at a diplomatic dinner, he led the way to the dining-room with Mrs. Madison instead of offering his arm to Mrs. Merry, wife of the British Minister and dean of the corps80, he defied all the old-world canons. Mrs. Merry withdrew in high dudgeon, and her husband made the incident the subject of a communication to the Foreign Office in London.
Dolly Madison’s fondness for society counterbalanced the indifference81 of her husband—a little, apple-faced man with a large brain and pleasant manners but no presence, of whom every one spoke82 by his nickname, “Jemmy.” She is described as a “fine, portly, buxom83 dame” with plenty of brisk small-talk. She knew little of books, but made a point of having one in her hand when she received guests who were given to literature; and she would have peeped enough into it to enable her to open conversation with a reference to something she had found there. One of the celebrities84 she entertained was Humboldt, the scientist, concerning whom she wrote: “We have lately had a great treat in the company of a charming Prussian baron85. All the ladies say they are in love with him. He is the most polite, modest, well-informed, and interesting traveler we have ever met, and is much pleased with America.” Another was Tom Moore, who, though{126} embalming86 in verse some of the spiteful spirit he had absorbed from the Merrys, in later years recanted these utterances87.
As she was praised everywhere for the beauty of her complexion88, it is disconcerting to learn from a candid89 biographer that Mrs. Madison was wont to heighten her color by external applications, and now and then, through an accident of the toilet, gave to her nose a rosy90 flush that was meant for her cheeks. We are told also that she was addicted91 to the fashionable snuff habit and kept always at hand a dainty little box made of platinum92 and lava93, filled with her favorite brand of “Scotch,” which she would freely use at social gatherings94 and then pass around the circle of diplomatists who assiduously danced attendance upon her. This indulgence accounted for her carrying everywhere two handkerchiefs: one a bandanna95 tucked away in her sleeve, whence she could draw it promptly96 for what she called “rough work,” and the other a spider-web creation of lawn and lace, which she styled her “polisher” and wore pinned to her side.
Besides the British Minister with his standing97 grievance98, which he advertised by never bringing Mrs. Merry to the President’s House after the fateful dinner, we read of two other foreign envoys99 who used to{127} appear there spouseless. One was Sidi Mellanelli, who, Dr. Samuel Mitchill tells us, “came from Tunis to settle some differences between that regency and our Government. He is to all appearance upward of fifty years old; wears his beard and shaves his head after the manner of his country, and wears a turban instead of a hat. His dress consists simply of a short jacket, large, loose drawers, stockings, and slippers. When he goes abroad he throws a large hooded100 cloak over these garments; it is of a peculiar101 cut and is called a bernous. The colors of his drawers and bernous are commonly red. He seldom walks, but almost always appears on horseback. He is a rigid102 Mohammedan; he fasts, prays, and observes the precepts103 of the Koran. He talks much with the ladies, says he often thinks about his consort104 in Africa, and wonders how Congressmen can live a whole session without their wives.”
The other unaccompanied diplomat79 was the French Minister, General Turreau, a man of humble26 birth who had risen to some eminence105 during the recent revolution in his country. Having once been imprisoned106, he improved the opportunity to make love to his jailer’s daughter and marry her; but he appears to have tired of his bargain, and it was no secret that they led a most inharmonious life. According to Sir Augustus Foster, he was in the habit of horsewhipping{128} her to the accompaniment of a violoncello played by his secretary to drown her cries, and the scandalized neighbors had finally to interfere107. Doctor Mitchill’s version of the affair is that the Minister tried to send his wife back to France, and that, when she refused to leave and raised an outcry, a mob gathered at their house and enabled her to escape and go to live in peaceful poverty in Georgetown. The Doctor has little to say of Turreau’s ability, but dwells impressively on “the uncommon108 size and extent of his whiskers, which cover the greater part of his cheeks,” and on the profusion109 of lace with which his full-dress coat was decorated.
Jerome Bonaparte, a younger brother of the first Napoleon, passed a good deal of time in Washington during the Jefferson administration and was one of the lions at the parties in the President’s House. Meeting Miss Elizabeth Patterson of Baltimore, he succumbed110 to her attractions and lost no time in suing for her hand. Her father was a bank president and one of the richest men in the United States, and the family, whose social position was unexceptionable, were far from having their heads turned by the proposed match, possibly feeling some misgivings111 as to future complications; but the young people would listen to no argument and were married. Mr. Jefferson{129} wrote at once to the American Minister at Paris, telling him to lay all the facts before the First Consul112 and to make it plain that in the United States any marriage was lawful113 which had been voluntarily entered into by two single parties of full age. Nevertheless, the great Napoleon did not hesitate to treat the marriage as void, and Jerome lacked manliness114 to defy his brother and fight the matter out; but Mrs. Bonaparte, having spunk115 enough for two, stood up firmly for her rights as a wife to the end of her days, and commanded recognition for them everywhere outside of the imperial court.
A friend of Jefferson’s who came to Washington during his administration, and whose advent116 created not a little stir, was a man about seventy years of age, described as having “a red and rugged117 face which looks as if he had been much hackneyed in the service of the world,” eyes “black and lively,” a nose “somewhat aquiline118 and pointing downward” which “corresponds in color with the fiery119 appearance of his cheeks,” and a marked fondness for talk and anecdote120. This was none other than Tom Paine, patriot121, poet, political pamphleteer, and infidel. He was favorably remembered all over the United States for his writings in behalf of human rights, and for the leaflets and songs which had cheered the hearts of the Continental122 soldiers{130} at the most discouraging pass in our War for Independence. After the Revolution, he had gone abroad as an apostle of popular liberty, and, though outlawed123 in England, had been permitted to cross to France to take his seat as a deputy in the proletariat National Assembly. There, among other acts which won him commendation, he raised his voice and cast his vote against the resolution which sent Louis XVI to the guillotine.
Appreciating his services to this country and also strongly sympathizing with the French type of democracy, Jefferson had invited Paine to come back to his native land in a United States war-ship; and the Federalist newspapers seized their chance to make partisan124 capital by parading Paine’s religious heterodoxy and charging Jefferson with having brought him home to undermine the morals of our people. Jefferson had considerable difficulty in counteracting125 the effects of the accusation126, for his own opinions had been for a good while under fire, and it was not a day of nice distinctions. Probably in this more tolerant age a man like Paine would be given due credit for his practical benevolence127 even when mixed with a hatred128 of ecclesiasticism, and Jefferson would find himself not out of place in the Unitarian fold.
When Jefferson was not occupied with affairs of state{131} or entertaining visitors, he was fond of sitting in what he called his “cabinet”—a room which he had fitted up to suit his own fancy. The rest of the house was rather unhomelike. The east room was still unfinished, and through the others were strewn articles of furniture which, though good in their way, were not especially suggestive of comfort; many of them were relics130 of the Washington régime, brought from Philadelphia. But in the cabinet stood a long table with drawers on each side, filled with things dear to their owner’s heart. One contained books with inscriptions131 from their authors; another, letters and manuscripts; a third, a set of carpenter’s tools for his amusement on rainy days; a fourth, some small gardening implements132, and so on. Around the walls were maps, charts, and shelves laden133 with standard literature. Flowers and potted plants were everywhere, and in the midst of a bower134 of these hung the cage of his pet mockingbird; but the door of the cage was rarely shut when the President was in the room, for he loved to have the bird fly about freely, perch135 on his shoulder, and take its food from his lips.
As may be guessed, the sponsor for this greenery was fond of all growing things. Jefferson was often seen walking about the embryo136 city, watching the workmen digging or building, but manifesting a special{132} interest in tree-planting and ornamental gardening. He tried to induce Congress to vote enough money to beautify the grounds around the President’s House, but in vain; the most he could do was to enclose the yard with a common stone wall and seed it down to grass. Among the plans he prepared but was obliged to abandon was the adornment137 of these grounds exclusively with trees, shrubs138, and flowers indigenous139 to American soil. He must be credited with the first attempt ever made in Washington to establish a zo?logical park; Lewis and Clarke, the explorers, brought him from the West a few grizzly140 bears, for which he built a pen in the yard. He also made the first move to furnish Pennsylvania Avenue with shade trees. His preference was for willow-oaks; but he started four rows of Lombardy poplars to take advantage of their rapid growth till the slower oaks matured. One of his hobbies was to improve the market gardening of the neighborhood by distributing new varieties of vegetable seeds obtained through the American consuls141 in foreign countries, and instructing his steward142 always to buy the best home-grown table delicacies143 at the highest retail144 prices.
At Madison’s inauguration in 1809, Jefferson not only did not imitate the ungraciousness of Adams eight years before, but went to the opposite extreme, declining{133}
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Washington’s Pew in Christ Church, Alexandria
Madison’s invitation to drive to the Capitol in the Presidential coach lest he might divide the honors which he felt belonged exclusively to the President-elect. Madison had what was then deemed a wonderful procession of military and civic145 organizations, and turned the occasion into the first “made-in-America” gala day, wearing himself a complete suit of clothing made by an American tailor, of cloth woven on American looms146 from the wool of American sheep. Jefferson, clad in one like it, modestly waited till the procession had passed and then rode to the Capitol alone, not even a servant following to care for his horse. On entering the Hall of Representatives, he declined the chair reserved for him near Madison’s but joined the ordinary spectators, saying: “To-day I return to the people, and my proper seat is among them.” At the close of the ceremony, he mounted his horse again and rode up the Avenue unattended, till George Custis, also mounted, joined him, and they went together to the Madisons’ house.
Here a crowd of friends had gathered to welcome in the new administration. Mr. Madison’s emotions had been a good deal stirred by what had passed at the Capitol, but his manner was affable. His wife was all herself as usual. She was attired147 in a plain cambric dress with a very long train, and a bonnet148 of{134} purple velvet62 and white satin, adorned149 with white plumes151. Jefferson seems to have been, for such time as he stayed, quite as much the lion of the occasion as his successor. Presently he slipped quietly away and went over to the President’s House, where the empty halls echoed to his footsteps; for he had given all the servants a holiday so that they could see the show. But he did not remain long alone; the news spread among his old friends that he had gone back to bid his home of eight years farewell, and they followed him after a little. In the evening he went to the inaugural152 ball—the first ever held, and the only ball of any sort he had attended since his return from France.
From all accounts it was not a highly enjoyable affair. The room was so crowded that it was difficult to elbow one’s way across it; nobody could see what was going on without standing on a chair; the air became stifling153, and when an attempt was made to freshen it by letting down the upper sashes of the windows, they would not move, so nothing was left but to smash the glass. Mrs. Madison was almost crushed to death; Madison was so tired that he confessed to a friend that he wished he were abed; and as soon as supper was over, the Presidential party withdrew. The younger set stayed and danced till midnight,{135} when, at the stroke, the music ceased and the attendants began to put out the lights.
The social success achieved by Dolly Madison as official hostess through so large a part of Jefferson’s administration did not wane154 when, with the rise of her husband to the head of the Government, she came into her own by right instead of by courtesy. Her first term as mistress of the President’s House was a continuous blaze of gayety, in which we catch fleeting155 glimpses of her in a variety of toilets, the most truly typical being a buff velvet gown with pearl ornaments156 and a Paris turban topped with a bird-of-paradise plume150. Then came the second war with Great Britain and the wrecking157 of the city.
When the British approached Bladensburg, and the improvised158 home-guard of Washington went out to engage them in battle, Mr. Madison permitted his military advisers159 to persuade him that, after seeing the stiffness of the American resistance, the British would withdraw. His wife caught the infection of confidence, and together they planned to celebrate the victory by a dinner to the officers on the evening after the battle. The table was spread by three in the afternoon, when Mrs. Madison, who had been listening with composure to the distant boom of cannon160, was dismayed to see a lot of demoralized American soldiers running in from{136} the north by twos and threes. Her sudden fears were confirmed when one of her colored servants galloped161 up to the door, shouting: “Clear out! Clear out! General Armstrong has ordered a retreat!” Then a few friends came over to insist on her seeking safety in flight. They helped her to fill a wagon162 with such valuables as were not too heavy; but she provoked their indignation by waiting till the oil portrait of General Washington attributed to Stuart, which hangs in the White House to-day, could be cut out of its frame and “placed in the hands of two gentlemen from New York for safe keeping.”
We have already seen how the Capitol and other public buildings were burned. A particularly vicious scheme was worked out to assure the destruction of the President’s House, because of Mr. Madison’s personal share in the dispute which led to the war. Indeed, it was the hope of the invaders163 to find him and his wife at home and take them captive, so as to humiliate164 the American Government and people and thus impress a lesson for the future. By way of a reconnoiter, Admiral Cockburn went to the mansion and looked through it, taking with him as a hostage a young gentleman of the city, named Weightman. In the dining-room they found everything prepared for the dinner of triumph, and Cockburn ordered his companion{137} to sit down with him and “drink Jemmy’s health.” Then he bade Weightman help himself to a mantel ornament34 as a souvenir of the day. “I must take something, too,” he added, and with great hilarity165 tucked under his arm an old hat of the President’s and a cushion from Mrs. Madison’s chair.
When all was ready, a detachment of fifty sailors and marines were marched in silence up Pennsylvania Avenue, every man carrying a long pole with a ball of combustible166 material attached to the top of it. Arrived at the mansion, the balls were lighted, and the poles rested each against a window. At a command from their officer, the pole-bearers struck their windows simultaneously167 a hard blow, smashing the glass and hurling168 the fire-balls into the rooms with a single motion; and the little group of lookers-on beheld169 an outburst of flame from every part of the building at once.
At the Octagon House, where they passed some months after their return to Washington, the Madisons were surrounded by the same friends who had enjoyed the hospitalities of the President’s House before the fire. It was not, however, till they removed to the dwelling170 at the corner of Pennsylvania Avenue and Nineteenth Street that Mrs. Madison was able to entertain on the scale she desired. The house was{138} one of the most commodious171 in town, and for any fine function the whole of it was thrown open. This was done on the occasion of the levee of February, 1816, which was universally pronounced the most splendid witnessed in the United States up to that time. The illumination extended from garret to cellar, much of it coming from pine torches held aloft by slaves specially129 drilled to maintain statuesque attitudes against the walls and at the heads of staircases. Mrs. Madison’s toilet of rose-tinted satin was set off with a girdle, necklace, and bracelets172 of gold, and a gold-embroidered crown. It may have been this last adornment which suggested to Sir George Bagot, the new British Minister, his comment that “Mrs. Madison looks every inch a queen.” The compliment promptly spread over Washington, where for some time thereafter the President’s wife was constantly referred to as “the Queen.”
This levee was in the nature of a farewell, for on the fourth of the next month President Madison made way for his successor, James Monroe, whose inauguration was the first ever held in the open air. The innovation was due to a quarrel between the two chambers173 of Congress, which was then occupying its temporary quarters opposite the east grounds of the Capitol. Monroe had arranged to take the oath in the{139} Hall of Representatives; but the Senators found fault with the seats set apart for them, the Representatives were stubborn, and a deadlock174 seemed imminent175, when Monroe suggested as a compromise that a platform be raised in front of the building, and that the ceremony take place there, where all the people could witness it. Thus began what came to be known as “the era of good feeling.”
How class consciousness prevailed in those days is amusingly illustrated176 by Monroe’s resentment177 of the foreign conception of Americans. “People in Europe,” he had once said to the French Minister, while Secretary of State under Madison, “suppose us to be merchants occupied exclusively with pepper and ginger178. They are much deceived. The immense majority of our citizens do not belong to this class, and are, as much as your Europeans, controlled by principles of honor and dignity. I never knew what trade was; the President was as much a stranger to it as I.” Perhaps it was because he knew so little about trade that he took pains to cultivate its acquaintance as soon as he became President. He made a grand tour of the new West, staying away from Washington more than four months and visiting especially the commercial centers, where he showed himself to the people as much as possible. He invited some criticism by making his{140} tour in the buff-and-blue uniform of the Continental soldiery of forty years before, cocked hat and all; but his friends always contended that this appeal to patriotism179 vastly increased his popularity and went far to account for his wonderful success in his campaign for re?lection in 1820, when he captured all the electoral votes except one.
The period covered by the last few pages brought to Washington two great men, whose share in shaping the history of the United States was such as to warrant our pausing to take a closer look at them. These were Henry Clay and Daniel Webster. Clay was probably the most popular man in our public life from Washington’s time to Lincoln’s, and his legislative180 career was unique both in its beginning and in its ending. He came to Washington first to fill a vacancy181 caused by the death of a Kentucky Senator, and held this position for several months while he was still too young to be eligible182 under the Constitution, because nobody was disposed to inquire into the years of one who possessed183 so mature a mind. Both before and after this experience he served in the Kentucky legislature, where, on account of an insult received in debate, he challenged its author and “winged” him in a duel184. When the Twelfth Congress was about to meet, with every prospect185 that John Randolph and{141} his little coterie186 were going to make trouble in the House, a demand arose for a Speaker who would be able to cope with the turbulent element. Clay had just been elected a Representative, and his prowess as a duelist drew all eyes in his direction. “Harry Clay can keep Randolph in order,” declared his Kentucky neighbors, “and he is the only man who can!” On this ground, then, he was elected Speaker before he had actually taken his seat in the House. He was the first man ever thus honored; and he was, I believe, the only one who ever made two formal farewells to the Senate. The first, preliminary to his resignation in 1842, appears among the classics of American eloquence187; but, as he was sent back in 1849, he had the chance, rarely accorded any one except a histrionic star, to bow himself off the stage a second time.
During the years of his greatest activity, every announcement that he was to speak made a gala day at the Capitol. “The gallery was full,” wrote Margaret Bayard Smith of one such occasion, “to a degree that endangered it; even the outer entries were thronged188. The gentlemen are grown very gallant189 and attentive190, and, as it was impossible to reach the ladies through the gallery, a new mode was invented for supplying them with oranges, etc. They tied them up in handkerchiefs, to each of which was fixed191 a note{142} indicating for whom it was designed, and then fastened to a long pole. This was taken on the floor of the house and handed up to the ladies who sat in the front of the gallery. These presentations were frequent and quite amusing, even in the midst of Mr. Clay’s speech. I and the ladies near me divided what was brought with each other, and were as social as if acquainted.”
The orator192 who could hold his own against such a background of confusion might well take pride in his powers; but the universal testimony193 was that Clay’s wonderfully modulated194 voice and magnetic charm of personality triumphed over everything. He was so attractive a man that even Calhoun, with whom he was at swords-drawn in every forensic195 battle, could not forbear wringing196 his hand with a “God bless you!” at their final parting in the Senate chamber; and John Randolph, with whom he had clashed repeatedly and whose coat he had punctured197 in a duel, insisted on being carried to the Capitol, while dying, and laid on a couch where Clay was going to deliver a much-heralded speech. Possibly one of the secrets of Clay’s success in winning people was illustrated in his quarrel with Senator King of Alabama, which began on the Senate floor and led to the passage of a challenge. Friends interfered198, and after some days a peace was{143}
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Mount Vernon
Mount Vernon
patched up, both men publicly withdrawing their offensive remarks, and a brother Senator making some appropriate gratulatory observations on the reconciliation199. Then Clay gave the final dramatic touch to the scene by crossing the chamber to where his late adversary200 sat, saying aloud: “King, give me a pinch of your snuff!” King, surprised, sprang up and held out both a snuff-box and an open hand, while Senators and spectators applauded to the echo.
Clay was a slimly built man who always appeared for action clad in a solemn suit of black, with a claw-hammer coat, a stiff silk stock, and a huge white “choker” with pointed201 ears. His face was spare and his forehead high, his cheekbones were prominent, the nose between them was slender and forceful, and the mouth wide, thin-lipped, and straight-cut. His lank202 hair, naturally of a tawny203 hue204, became early streaked205 with gray and was worn long enough to fringe his coat collar. He was approachable in manner, had a most genial206 smile, and was ready with a pleasant response to every greeting, its effect being intensified207 by its musical clarity of enunciation208. He was distinctly fond of society and especially enjoyed a game of cards. Although his wife accompanied him to Washington, she appeared little with him in public. She was a good woman with few gifts, but a devoted mother, and her{144} chief joy in life was to sew for her six children. Wherever he went, Mr. Clay was always surrounded by a circle of adoring women, who hung upon every word of the many he uttered as he talked in desultory209 style with his back against a sofa-cushion. He followed a free fashion of his time in taking toll210 from the lips of all the young and pretty maidens211 he met. The first time he saw Dolly Madison, her youthful face and dainty dress misled him into saluting212 her in this fashion. On discovering his mistake, “Ah, madam,” he pleaded gallantly213, “had I known you for whom you are, the coin would have been larger!”
I may add in passing that the American navy owes its monitor type of fighting-craft largely to Henry Clay. Theodore Timby, who invented the revolving214 turret215 which Ericsson used during the Civil War, came to Washington bearing a letter of introduction to Clay, who became interested in the idea and helped him get the patent without which it might have been lost to the world.
Webster was cast in quite a different mold from Clay. He was godlike where Clay was human; his eloquence overwhelmed his hearers where Clay’s fascinated them. He had a big head, a big frame, a big voice, a big presence. Emerson speaks of his “awful charm.” Some one who heard him condemn{145} the dishonest gains of a certain financial institution, says that the word “disgorge,” as he uttered it, “seemed to weigh about twelve pounds.” Once Mrs. Webster brought their little son to hear his father deliver an oration14. Daniel began a sentence in his thunder-tone: “Will any man dare say—” and the audience were waiting breathless to hear what was coming next, when a wee, piping voice responded from the gallery: “Oh, no, no, Papa!”
His greatest effort in Congress, of course, was his reply to Hayne. Everybody in Washington was eager to hear it, and galleries and floor, including the platform on which the Vice-president sat, were crowded to the last limit. Representative Lewis of Alabama, being unable to gain access to the hall, climbed around behind the wooden framework which flanked the platform and bored a hole through it with his pocket-knife in order to get a view of the great expounder216. At a levee that evening at the White House, Webster was besieged217 by admirers offering congratulations. Among the crowd that drew near him at one time happened to be Hayne himself. “How are you, Colonel Hayne?” was Webster’s greeting. “None the better for you, sir,” answered Hayne, good humoredly but with sincere feeling.
We are treated to another picture of him when he{146} arrived late at a concert given by Jenny Lind. For the benefit of the statesmen who were present, Miss Lind, for an encore, sang “Hail Columbia.” Webster, who had been dining, was on his feet in an instant and added his powerful bass218 voice to hers in the chorus. Mrs. Webster did all she could to induce him to sit down, but he repeated his effort at the close of every verse, and with the last strain made the songstress a profound obeisance219, waving his hat at the same time. Miss Lind curtsyed in return, Webster repeated his bow, and this little comedy of etiquette220 was kept up for some minutes, to the delight of the audience.
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1
parlance
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| n.说法；语调 | |
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2
wont
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| adj.习惯于；v.习惯；n.习惯 | |
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3
pretensions
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| 自称( pretension的名词复数 )； 自命不凡； 要求； 权力 | |
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4
affected
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| adj.不自然的，假装的 | |
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conceal
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| v.隐藏，隐瞒，隐蔽 | |
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6
mansion
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| n.大厦，大楼；宅第 | |
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7
vicissitudes
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| n.变迁，世事变化；变迁兴衰( vicissitude的名词复数 )；盛衰兴废 | |
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8
elixir
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| n.长生不老药，万能药 | |
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9
distinguished
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| adj.卓越的，杰出的，著名的 | |
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10
palatial
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| adj.宫殿般的，宏伟的 | |
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potent
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| adj.强有力的，有权势的；有效力的 | |
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12
lodge
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| v.临时住宿，寄宿，寄存，容纳；n.传达室，小旅馆 | |
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13
plantation
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| n.种植园，大农场 | |
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14
oration
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| n.演说，致辞，叙述法 | |
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15
mansions
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| n.宅第，公馆，大厦( mansion的名词复数 ) | |
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16
revivals
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| n.复活( revival的名词复数 )；再生；复兴；（老戏多年后）重新上演 | |
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17
authoritative
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| adj.有权威的，可相信的；命令式的；官方的 | |
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18
piazza
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| n.广场；走廊 | |
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19
wrought
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| v.引起；以…原料制作；运转；adj.制造的 | |
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20
suburban
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| adj.城郊的，在郊区的 | |
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21
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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22
usurped
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| 篡夺，霸占( usurp的过去式和过去分词 )； 盗用； 篡夺，篡权 | |
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23
sundry
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| adj.各式各样的，种种的 | |
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24
thoroughly
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| adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地 | |
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25
scantiness
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| n.缺乏 | |
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26
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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27
chamber
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| n.房间，寝室；会议厅；议院；会所 | |
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28
salon
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| n.[法]沙龙；客厅；营业性的高级服务室 | |
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29
eastward
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| adv.向东；adj.向东的；n.东方，东部 | |
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30
turbid
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| adj.混浊的，泥水的，浓的 | |
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31
creek
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| n.小溪，小河，小湾 | |
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32
tract
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| n.传单，小册子，大片(土地或森林) | |
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33
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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34
ornament
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| v.装饰，美化；n.装饰，装饰物 | |
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35
footpath
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| n.小路，人行道 | |
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36
predecessor
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| n.前辈，前任 | |
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37
discomforts
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| n.不舒适( discomfort的名词复数 )；不愉快，苦恼 | |
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38
excellence
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| n.优秀，杰出，(pl.)优点，美德 | |
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39
prim
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| adj.拘泥形式的，一本正经的；n.循规蹈矩，整洁；adv.循规蹈矩地，整洁地 | |
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40
embroidered
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| adj．绣花的 | |
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41
buckles
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| 搭扣，扣环( buckle的名词复数 ) | |
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42
wig
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| n.假发 | |
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43
concessions
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| n.（尤指由政府或雇主给予的）特许权( concession的名词复数 )；承认；减价；（在某地的）特许经营权 | |
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44
elegance
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| n.优雅；优美，雅致；精致，巧妙 | |
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45
attire
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| v.穿衣，装扮[同]array；n.衣着；盛装 | |
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46
magistrate
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| n.地方行政官，地方法官，治安官 | |
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47
precedent
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| n.先例，前例；惯例；adj.在前的，在先的 | |
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48
luncheon
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| n.午宴，午餐，便宴 | |
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49
somber
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| adj.昏暗的，阴天的，阴森的，忧郁的 | |
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50
albeit
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| conj.即使；纵使；虽然 | |
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51
simplicity
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| n.简单，简易；朴素；直率，单纯 | |
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52
hitching
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| 搭乘； （免费）搭乘他人之车( hitch的现在分词 )； 搭便车； 攀上； 跃上 | |
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53
jersey
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| n.运动衫 | |
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54
inauguration
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| n.开幕、就职典礼 | |
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55
nuptial
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| adj.婚姻的，婚礼的 | |
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56
cramped
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| a.狭窄的 | |
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57
credentials
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| n.证明，资格，证明书，证件 | |
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58
convoy
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| vt.护送，护卫，护航；n.护送；护送队 | |
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59
freckled
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| adj.雀斑；斑点；晒斑；（使）生雀斑v.雀斑，斑点( freckle的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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60
cynical
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| adj.(对人性或动机)怀疑的，不信世道向善的 | |
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61
countenance
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| n.脸色，面容；面部表情；vt.支持，赞同 | |
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62
velvet
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| n.丝绒，天鹅绒；adj.丝绒制的，柔软的 | |
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63
yarn
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| n.纱，纱线，纺线；奇闻漫谈，旅行轶事 | |
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64
slippers
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| n. 拖鞋 | |
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65
figs
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| figures 数字，图形，外形 | |
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66
bristle
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| v.（毛发）直立，气势汹汹，发怒；n.硬毛发 | |
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67
crabs
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| n.蟹( crab的名词复数 )；阴虱寄生病；蟹肉v.捕蟹( crab的第三人称单数 ) | |
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oysters
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| 牡蛎( oyster的名词复数 ) | |
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69
devoted
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| adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的 | |
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70
confidential
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| adj.秘（机）密的，表示信任的，担任机密工作的 | |
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71
dispensing
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| v.分配( dispense的现在分词 )；施与；配（药） | |
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72
pivoted
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| adj.转动的，回转的，装在枢轴上的v.（似）在枢轴上转动( pivot的过去式和过去分词 )；把…放在枢轴上；以…为核心，围绕（主旨）展开 | |
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73
viands
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| n.食品，食物 | |
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74
machinery
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| n.(总称)机械，机器；机构 | |
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75
sweeping
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| adj.范围广大的，一扫无遗的 | |
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76
marine
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| adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵 | |
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77
promenade
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| n./v.散步 | |
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78
widower
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| n.鳏夫 | |
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79
diplomat
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| n.外交官，外交家；能交际的人，圆滑的人 | |
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80
corps
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| n.(通信等兵种的)部队；(同类作的)一组 | |
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81
indifference
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| n.不感兴趣，不关心，冷淡，不在乎 | |
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82
spoke
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| n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说 | |
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83
buxom
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| adj.（妇女）丰满的，有健康美的 | |
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84
celebrities
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| n.（尤指娱乐界的）名人( celebrity的名词复数 )；名流；名声；名誉 | |
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85
baron
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| n.男爵；(商业界等)巨头，大王 | |
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86
embalming
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| v.保存（尸体）不腐( embalm的现在分词 )；使不被遗忘；使充满香气 | |
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87
utterances
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| n.发声( utterance的名词复数 )；说话方式；语调；言论 | |
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88
complexion
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| n.肤色；情况，局面；气质，性格 | |
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89
candid
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| adj.公正的，正直的；坦率的 | |
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rosy
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| adj.美好的，乐观的，玫瑰色的 | |
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91
addicted
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| adj.沉溺于....的，对...上瘾的 | |
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92
platinum
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| n.白金 | |
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93
lava
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| n.熔岩，火山岩 | |
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94
gatherings
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| 聚集( gathering的名词复数 )； 收集； 采集； 搜集 | |
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95
bandanna
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| n.大手帕 | |
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96
promptly
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| adv.及时地，敏捷地 | |
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97
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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98
grievance
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| n.怨愤，气恼，委屈 | |
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99
envoys
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| 使节( envoy的名词复数 )； 公使； 谈判代表； 使节身份 | |
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100
hooded
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| adj.戴头巾的；有罩盖的；颈部因肋骨运动而膨胀的 | |
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101
peculiar
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| adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的，特有的 | |
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102
rigid
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| adj.严格的，死板的；刚硬的，僵硬的 | |
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103
precepts
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| n.规诫，戒律，箴言( precept的名词复数 ) | |
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104
consort
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| v.相伴；结交 | |
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105
eminence
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| n.卓越，显赫；高地，高处；名家 | |
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106
imprisoned
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| 下狱，监禁( imprison的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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107
interfere
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| v.(in)干涉，干预；(with)妨碍，打扰 | |
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108
uncommon
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| adj.罕见的，非凡的，不平常的 | |
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109
profusion
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| n.挥霍；丰富 | |
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110
succumbed
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| 不再抵抗（诱惑、疾病、攻击等）( succumb的过去式和过去分词 )； 屈从； 被压垮； 死 | |
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111
misgivings
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| n.疑虑，担忧，害怕；疑虑，担心，恐惧( misgiving的名词复数 )；疑惧 | |
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112
consul
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| n.领事；执政官 | |
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113
lawful
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| adj.法律许可的，守法的，合法的 | |
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114
manliness
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| 刚毅 | |
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115
spunk
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| n.勇气，胆量 | |
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116
advent
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| n.(重要事件等的)到来，来临 | |
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117
rugged
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| adj.高低不平的，粗糙的，粗壮的，强健的 | |
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118
aquiline
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| adj.钩状的，鹰的 | |
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119
fiery
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| adj.燃烧着的，火红的；暴躁的；激烈的 | |
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120
anecdote
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| n.轶事，趣闻，短故事 | |
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121
patriot
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| n.爱国者，爱国主义者 | |
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122
continental
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| adj.大陆的，大陆性的，欧洲大陆的 | |
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123
outlawed
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| 宣布…为不合法（outlaw的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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124
partisan
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| adj.党派性的；游击队的；n.游击队员；党徒 | |
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125
counteracting
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| 对抗，抵消( counteract的现在分词 ) | |
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126
accusation
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| n.控告，指责，谴责 | |
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127
benevolence
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| n.慈悲，捐助 | |
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128
hatred
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| n.憎恶，憎恨，仇恨 | |
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129
specially
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| adv.特定地；特殊地；明确地 | |
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130
relics
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| [pl.］n.遗物，遗迹，遗产；遗体，尸骸 | |
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131
inscriptions
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| （作者）题词( inscription的名词复数 )； 献词； 碑文； 证劵持有人的登记 | |
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132
implements
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| n.工具( implement的名词复数 )；家具；手段；[法律]履行（契约等）v.实现( implement的第三人称单数 )；执行；贯彻；使生效 | |
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133
laden
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| adj.装满了的；充满了的；负了重担的；苦恼的 | |
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134
bower
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| n.凉亭，树荫下凉快之处；闺房；v.荫蔽 | |
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135
perch
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| n.栖木，高位，杆；v.栖息，就位，位于 | |
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136
embryo
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| n.胚胎，萌芽的事物 | |
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137
adornment
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| n.装饰；装饰品 | |
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138
shrubs
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| 灌木( shrub的名词复数 ) | |
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139
indigenous
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| adj.土产的，土生土长的，本地的 | |
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140
grizzly
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| adj.略为灰色的，呈灰色的；n.灰色大熊 | |
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141
consuls
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| 领事( consul的名词复数 )； （古罗马共和国时期）执政官 （古罗马共和国及其军队的最高首长，同时共有两位，每年选举一次） | |
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142
steward
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| n.乘务员，服务员；看管人；膳食管理员 | |
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143
delicacies
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| n.棘手( delicacy的名词复数 )；精致；精美的食物；周到 | |
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144
retail
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| v./n.零售；adv.以零售价格 | |
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145
civic
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| adj.城市的，都市的，市民的，公民的 | |
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146
looms
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| n.织布机( loom的名词复数 )v.隐约出现，阴森地逼近( loom的第三人称单数 )；隐约出现，阴森地逼近 | |
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147
attired
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| adj.穿着整齐的v.使穿上衣服，使穿上盛装( attire的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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148
bonnet
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| n.无边女帽；童帽 | |
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149
adorned
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| [计]被修饰的 | |
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150
plume
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| n.羽毛；v.整理羽毛，骚首弄姿，用羽毛装饰 | |
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151
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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152
inaugural
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| adj.就职的；n.就职典礼 | |
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153
stifling
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| a.令人窒息的 | |
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154
wane
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| n.衰微，亏缺，变弱；v.变小，亏缺，呈下弦 | |
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155
fleeting
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| adj.短暂的，飞逝的 | |
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156
ornaments
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| n.装饰( ornament的名词复数 )；点缀；装饰品；首饰v.装饰，点缀，美化( ornament的第三人称单数 ) | |
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157
wrecking
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| 破坏 | |
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158
improvised
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| a.即席而作的,即兴的 | |
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159
advisers
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| 顾问，劝告者( adviser的名词复数 )； （指导大学新生学科问题等的）指导教授 | |
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160
cannon
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| n.大炮，火炮；飞机上的机关炮 | |
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161
galloped
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| （使马）飞奔，奔驰( gallop的过去式和过去分词 )； 快速做[说]某事 | |
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162
wagon
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| n.四轮马车，手推车，面包车；无盖运货列车 | |
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163
invaders
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| 入侵者，侵略者，侵入物( invader的名词复数 ) | |
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164
humiliate
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| v.使羞辱，使丢脸[同]disgrace | |
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165
hilarity
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| n.欢乐；热闹 | |
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166
combustible
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| a. 易燃的,可燃的; n. 易燃物,可燃物 | |
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167
simultaneously
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| adv.同时发生地，同时进行地 | |
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168
hurling
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| n.爱尔兰式曲棍球v.猛投，用力掷( hurl的现在分词 )；大声叫骂 | |
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169
beheld
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| v.看，注视( behold的过去式和过去分词 )；瞧；看呀；（叙述中用于引出某人意外的出现）哎哟 | |
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170
dwelling
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| n.住宅，住所，寓所 | |
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171
commodious
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| adj.宽敞的；使用方便的 | |
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172
bracelets
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| n.手镯，臂镯( bracelet的名词复数 ) | |
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173
chambers
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| n.房间( chamber的名词复数 )；（议会的）议院；卧室；会议厅 | |
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174
deadlock
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| n.僵局，僵持 | |
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175
imminent
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| adj.即将发生的，临近的，逼近的 | |
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176
illustrated
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| adj. 有插图的，列举的 动词illustrate的过去式和过去分词 | |
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177
resentment
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| n.怨愤，忿恨 | |
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178
ginger
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| n.姜，精力，淡赤黄色；adj.淡赤黄色的；vt.使活泼，使有生气 | |
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179
patriotism
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| n.爱国精神，爱国心，爱国主义 | |
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180
legislative
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| n.立法机构，立法权；adj.立法的，有立法权的 | |
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181
vacancy
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| n.（旅馆的）空位，空房，（职务的）空缺 | |
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182
eligible
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| adj.有条件被选中的；(尤指婚姻等)合适(意)的 | |
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183
possessed
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| adj.疯狂的；拥有的，占有的 | |
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184
duel
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| n./v.决斗；(双方的)斗争 | |
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185
prospect
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| n.前景，前途；景色，视野 | |
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186
coterie
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| n.(有共同兴趣的)小团体，小圈子 | |
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187
eloquence
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| n.雄辩；口才，修辞 | |
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188
thronged
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| v.成群，挤满( throng的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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189
gallant
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| adj.英勇的，豪侠的；(向女人)献殷勤的 | |
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190
attentive
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| adj.注意的，专心的；关心(别人)的，殷勤的 | |
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191
fixed
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| adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的 | |
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192
orator
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| n.演说者，演讲者，雄辩家 | |
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193
testimony
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| n.证词；见证，证明 | |
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194
modulated
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| 已调整[制]的，被调的 | |
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195
forensic
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| adj.法庭的，雄辩的 | |
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196
wringing
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| 淋湿的，湿透的 | |
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197
punctured
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| v.在（某物）上穿孔( puncture的过去式和过去分词 )；刺穿（某物）；削弱（某人的傲气、信心等）；泄某人的气 | |
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198
interfered
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| v.干预( interfere的过去式和过去分词 )；调停；妨碍；干涉 | |
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199
reconciliation
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| n.和解，和谐，一致 | |
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200
adversary
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| adj.敌手，对手 | |
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201
pointed
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| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
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202
lank
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| adj.瘦削的；稀疏的 | |
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203
tawny
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| adj.茶色的，黄褐色的；n.黄褐色 | |
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204
hue
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| n.色度；色调；样子 | |
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205
streaked
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| adj.有条斑纹的，不安的v.快速移动( streak的过去式和过去分词 )；使布满条纹 | |
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206
genial
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| adj.亲切的，和蔼的，愉快的，脾气好的 | |
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207
intensified
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| v.（使）增强， （使）加剧( intensify的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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208
enunciation
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| n.清晰的发音；表明，宣言；口齿 | |
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209
desultory
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| adj.散漫的，无方法的 | |
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210
toll
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| n.过路(桥)费；损失，伤亡人数；v.敲(钟) | |
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211
maidens
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| 处女( maiden的名词复数 )； 少女； 未婚女子； （板球运动）未得分的一轮投球 | |
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212
saluting
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| v.欢迎，致敬( salute的现在分词 )；赞扬，赞颂 | |
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213
gallantly
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| adv. 漂亮地，勇敢地，献殷勤地 | |
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214
revolving
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| adj.旋转的，轮转式的；循环的v.（使）旋转( revolve的现在分词 )；细想 | |
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215
turret
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| n.塔楼，角塔 | |
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216
expounder
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| 陈述者，说明者 | |
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217
besieged
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| 包围，围困，围攻( besiege的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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218
bass
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| n.男低音(歌手)；低音乐器；低音大提琴 | |
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219
obeisance
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| n.鞠躬，敬礼 | |
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220
etiquette
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| n.礼仪，礼节；规矩 | |
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