WALKING somewhat slowly by reason of his concentration, the boy--an ancient man in some phases of thought, much younger than his years in others-- was overtaken by a light-footed pedestrian, whom, notwithstanding the gloom, he could perceive to be wearing an extraordinarily1 tall hat, a swallow-tailed coat, and a watch-chain that danced madly and threw around scintillations of sky-light as its owner swung along upon a pair of thin legs and noiseless boots. Jude, beginning to feel lonely, endeavoured to keep up with him.
"Well, my man! I'm in a hurry, so you'll have to walk pretty fast if you keep alongside of me. Do you know who I am?"
"Yes, I think. Physician Vilbert?"
"Ah--I'm known everywhere, I see! That comes of being a public benefactor2."
Vilbert was an itinerant3 quack4-doctor, well known to the rustic5 population, and absolutely unknown to anybody else, as he, indeed, took care to be, to avoid inconvenient6 investigations7. Cottagers formed his only patients, and his Wessex-wide repute was among them alone. His position was humbler and his field more obscure than those of the quacks8 with capital and an organized system of advertising9. He was, in fact, a survival. The distances he traversed on foot were enormous, and extended nearly the whole length and breadth of Wessex. Jude had one day seen him selling a pot of coloured lard to an old woman as a certain cure for a bad leg, the woman arranging to pay a guinea, in instalments of a shilling a fortnight, for the precious salve, which, according to the physician, could only be obtained from a particular animal which grazed on Mount Sinai, and was to be captured only at great risk to life and limb. Jude, though he already had his doubts about this gentleman's medicines, felt him to be unquestionably a travelled personage, and one who might be a trustworthy source of information on matters not strictly10 professional.
"I s'pose you've been to Christminster, Physician?"
"I have--many times," replied the long thin man. "That's one of my centres."
"It's a wonderful city for scholarship and religion?"
"You'd say so, my boy, if you'd seen it. Why, the very sons of the old women who do the washing of the colleges can talk in Latin--not good Latin, that I admit, as a critic: dog-Latin--cat-Latin, as we used to call it in my undergraduate days."
"And Greek?"
"Well--that's more for the men who are in training for bishops11, that they may be able to read the New Testament12 in the original."
"I want to learn Latin and Greek myself."
"A lofty desire. You must get a grammar of each tongue."
"I mean to go to Christminster some day."
"Whenever you do, you say that Physician Vilbert is the only proprietor13 of those celebrated14 pills that infallibly cure all disorders15 of the alimentary16 system, as well as asthma17 and shortness of breath. Two and threepence a box--specially licensed18 by the government stamp."
"Can you get me the grammars if I promise to say it hereabout?"
"I'll sell you mine with pleasure--those I used as a student."
"Oh, thank you, sir!" said Jude gratefully, but in gasps19, for the amazing speed of the physician's walk kept him in a dog-trot which was giving him a stitch in the side. "I think you'd better drop behind, my young man. Now I'll tell you what I'll do. I'll get you the grammars, and give you a first lesson, if you'll remember, at every house in the village, to recommend Physician Vilbert's golden ointment20, life-drops, and female pills."
"Where will you be with the grammars?"
"I shall be passing here this day fortnight at precisely21 this hour of five-and-twenty minutes past seven. My movements are as truly timed as those of the planets in their courses."
"Here I'll be to meet you," said Jude.
"With orders for my medicines?"
"Yes, Physician."
Jude then dropped behind, waited a few minutes to recover breath, and went home with a consciousness of having struck a blow for Christminster.
Through the intervening fortnight he ran about and smiled outwardly at his inward thoughts, as if they were people meeting and nodding to him-- smiled with that singularly beautiful irradiation which is seen to spread on young faces at the inception22 of some glorious idea, as if a supernatural lamp were held inside their transparent23 natures, giving rise to the flattering fancy that heaven lies about them then.
He honestly performed his promise to the man of many cures, in whom he now sincerely believed, walking miles hither and thither24 among the surrounding hamlets as the Physician's agent in advance. On the evening appointed he stood motionless on the plateau, at the place where he had parted from Vilbert, and there awaited his approach. The road-physician was fairly up to time; but, to the surprise of Jude on striking into his pace, which the pedestrian did not diminish by a single unit of force, the latter seemed hardly to recognize his young companion, though with the lapse25 of the fortnight the evenings had grown light. Jude thought it might perhaps be owing to his wearing another hat, and he saluted26 the physician with dignity.
"Well, my boy?" said the latter abstractedly.
"I've come," said Jude.
"You? who are you? Oh yes--to be sure! Got any orders, lad?"
"Yes." And Jude told him the names and addresses of the cottagers who were willing to test the virtues27 of the world-renowned pills and salve. The quack mentally registered these with great care.
"And the Latin and Greek grammars?" Jude's voice trembled with anxiety.
"What about them?"
"You were to bring me yours, that you used before you took your degree."
"Ah, yes, yes! Forgot all about it--all! So many lives depending on my attention, you see, my man, that I can't give so much thought as I would like to other things."
Jude controlled himself sufficiently28 long to make sure of the truth; and he repeated, in a voice of dry misery29, "You haven't brought 'em!"
"No. But you must get me some more orders from sick people, and I'll bring the grammars next time."
Jude dropped behind. He was an unsophisticated boy, but the gift of sudden insight which is sometimes vouchsafed30 to children showed him all at once what shoddy humanity the quack was made of. There was to be no intellectual light from this source. The leaves dropped from his imaginary crown of laurel; he turned to a gate, leant against it, and cried bitterly.
The disappointment was followed by an interval31 of blankness. He might, perhaps, have obtained grammars from Alfredston, but to do that required money, and a knowledge of what books to order; and though physically32 comfortable, he was in such absolute dependence33 as to be without a farthing of his own.
At this date Mr. Phillotson sent for his pianoforte, and it gave Jude a lead. Why should he not write to the schoolmaster, and ask him to be so kind as to get him the grammars in Christminster? He might slip a letter inside the case of the instrument, and it would be sure to reach the desired eyes. Why not ask him to send any old second-hand34 copies, which would have the charm of being mellowed35 by the university atmosphere?
To tell his aunt of his intention would be to defeat it. It was necessary to act alone.
After a further consideration of a few days he did act, and on the day of the piano's departure, which happened to be his next birthday, clandestinely36 placed the letter inside the packing-case, directed to his much-admired friend, being afraid to reveal the operation to his aunt Drusilla, lest she should discover his motive37, and compel him to abandon his scheme.
The piano was despatched, and Jude waited days and weeks, calling every morning at the cottage post office before his great-aunt was stirring. At last a packet did indeed arrive at the village, and he saw from the ends of it that it contained two thin books. He took it away into a lonely place, and sat down on a felled elm to open it.
Ever since his first ecstasy38 or vision of Christminster and its possibilities, Jude had meditated39 much and curiously40 on the probable sort of process that was involved in turning the expressions of one language into those of another. He concluded that a grammar of the required tongue would contain, primarily, a rule, prescription41, or clue of the nature of a secret cipher42, which, once known, would enable him, by merely applying it, to change at will all words of his own speech into those of the foreign one. His childish idea was, in fact, a pushing to the extremity43 of mathematical precision what is everywhere known as Grimm's Law-- an aggrandizement44 of rough rules to ideal completeness. Thus he assumed that the words of the required language were always to be found somewhere latent in the words of the given language by those who had the art to uncover them, such art being furnished by the books aforesaid.
When, therefore, having noted45 that the packet bore the postmark of Christminster, he cut the string, opened the volumes, and turned to the Latin grammar, which chanced to come uppermost, he could scarcely believe his eyes.
The book was an old one--thirty years old, soiled, scribbled46 wantonly over with a strange name in every variety of enmity to the letterpress, and marked at random47 with dates twenty years earlier than his own day. But this was not the cause of Jude's amazement48. He learnt for the first time that there was no law of transmutation, as in his innocence49 he had supposed (there was, in some degree, but the grammarian did not recognize it), but that every word in both Latin and Greek was to be individually committed to memory at the cost of years of plodding50.
Jude flung down the books, lay backward along the broad trunk of the elm, and was an utterly51 miserable52 boy for the space of a quarter of an hour. As he had often done before, he pulled his hat over his face and watched the sun peering insidiously53 at him through the interstices of the straw. This was Latin and Greek, then, was it this grand delusion54! The charm he had supposed in store for him was really a labour like that of Israel in Egypt.
What brains they must have in Christminster and the great schools, he presently thought, to learn words one by one up to tens of thousands! There were no brains in his head equal to this business; and as the little sun-rays continued to stream in through his hat at him, he wished he had never seen a book, that he might never see another, that he had never been born.
Somebody might have come along that way who would have asked him his trouble, and might have cheered him by saying that his notions were further advanced than those of his grammarian. But nobody did come, because nobody does; and under the crushing recognition of his gigantic error Jude continued to wish himself out of the world.
这个孩子,按思想发展的某些状况说,是个古时候人,可是在另一些方面又比他的实际年龄幼稚许多。他这会儿一个劲儿想心事,走路就慢多了,也就让一个脚底下轻快的人赶了过去。天已昏暗,不过他多少看得出来那人头戴一顶特高的礼帽,身穿一件燕尾服,配着一根表链,脚上一双没响声的靴子。他的两条细腿甩开大步朝前闯,那根表链也就随之狂跳不已,把天光星星点点折射出来。裘德本已开始觉得孤单,一心想追上他。
“嗨,你这家伙!我赶路哪,你要想追上我,得快走才行啊。你知道我是谁吗?”
“我想我知道。你不就是韦伯大夫吗?”
“哈哈——我是尽人皆知哪,因为我时时刻刻给人办好事啊。”
韦伯是个卖假药的江湖郎中,因为他一向小心谨慎,不露马脚,免得惹出是非,引人盘查,所以只有乡里人熟识他,其他人就对他一无所知了。又因为只有草房住户才向他求医问药,所以在维塞克斯郡,也只在这类人中间有名气。他比那些既有大本钱、又有一整套广告班子替他招摇撞骗的骗子手,未免寒酸许多,病家也更卑贱。实际上他是勉强混日子。他足迹遍及维塞克斯郡,东西南北,称得上无远弗届。裘德以前有一天瞧见他把一罐子上色的猪油卖给一个老太婆,说是专治腿脚病的。老太婆得为那珍贵的药膏出一几尼,按分期付款办法,一回交一先令。大夫自称只能从西奈山上一种吃草的神兽身上提取到这药,要抓到它,非冒送掉性命和残肢败体的严重危险不可。裘德固然老早就对这位绅士的药品信不过,不过觉得拿他当个同路人也没什么关系,况且在纯属他那行当之外,也许还能提供点可信的材料呢。
“大夫,你到没到过基督堂呀?”
“到过——到过好多回啦,”又高又瘦的郎中回答,“我在那儿还办了个治疗中心呢。”
“那是个了不起的讲学术跟宗教的城市吧,对不对呀?”
“孩子,你要是瞧见它,准这么说啊。啊,连大学里头洗衣服的老太婆的儿子都说拉丁文——照我看,可不能说这拉丁文说得地道,什么狗拉丁——猫拉丁,我念大学时候就这么叫它。”
“希腊文呢?”
“呃——那是专替经过训练,以后当主教的人开的课,他们以后就能够念《新约全书》的原文啦。”
“我很想学拉丁文跟希腊文。”
“这志气可不得了。你得先每样儿弄本文法书才行哪。”
“我打算哪一天上基督堂呢。”
“随便你哪天去,你见了人都要说,韦伯大夫独家制造经营的那些著名的药丸子,专治肠胃不调、多年抖索、中气不接,功效如神。两先令一便士一盒——印花为凭,特准行销。”
“要是我答应你在方近左右传名的话,你还能给我弄到文法书?”
“我倒乐意把我的卖给你呢——是我当学生时候用的。”
“哦,谢谢啦,先生。”裘德说,显出感激不尽的样子,不过他有点上气不接下气了,因为他得小跑才跟得上郎中走路的惊人速度,累得他两肋都扎得慌。
“小伙子,我看你顶好别跟在我后边啦。我这会儿就跟你说说我打算怎么办。我要给你弄到文法书,还给你上头一课,不过你别忘了在村子里挨家挨户推销韦伯大夫的金药膏、长寿液跟妇道调荣丸。”
“那你把文法书带到哪儿呢?”
“再过两个礼拜,还是今儿个这样,我准打这儿过,准时七点五十二分,分秒不错。我一活动起来,跟行星在轨道上运行一个样儿,时间十分精确。”
“我就在这儿等你好啦。”裘德说。
“哪家订了药也带来吗?”
“那还用说,大夫。”
裘德就留在后头,歇了几分钟缓缓气。到家的时候,心里觉着已经为到基督堂办了件大事。
这中间两个礼拜,他随处走,对于自己内心蕴藏的思想,不时展露笑容,仿佛那些思想就是他平时见到的、井且对他打招呼的人。他的笑容有着那样非凡美丽的光彩,因为只要内心吸取了灿烂辉煌的思想,这样的光彩就会泛现在年轻的面庞上,如同一盏神灯把他们天生纯净澄澈的心胜照映出来,激发起令人快慰的幻念:天堂就近在身边啊。
他真心相信那个包治百病的家伙,老老实实履行了对他的承诺,作为郎中派出的代理人,在周围的村子东跑西颠了好多英里。在约好的那晚上,他站在上次同韦伯分手时的高冈上,木然不动,静候他到来。江湖郎中还算守时,可是令裘德大惑不解的是,当他过去同郎中齐步走时,他却一步也没放松,似乎没认出这年轻伙伴,尽管只过了两个礼拜,再说天也黑得晚了些。裘德以为这大概因为自己换了帽子,于是规规矩矩向他行个礼。
“呃,孩子?”后者心不在焉地说。
“我来啦!”裘德说。
“你?你是谁呀?哦,对啦,不错不错!小子,带单子没有?”
“带来啦。”裘德接着把愿意试用他的名满世界、功效如神的九药和青子的草房住户的姓名、住址一一报给他听。江湖郎中聚精会神记在心里。
“拉丁文跟希腊文的文法书呢?”裘德焦急地问,声音都发抖了。
“什么文法书呀?”
“你要把你的带来给我,你从前念学位时候用的。”
“哎,是啊,是啊!忘得一干二净啦——一干二净啦!你瞧,那么多人的命得靠我关照哪,就算我想得起来,可哪儿来那么多心思管别的事呀!”
裘德隐忍了好半天,想弄明白到底怎么回事,这才又说了一遍,声音饱含着委屈,“你没把文法书带来嘛!”
“没带来。不过你还得拉点病人来,那我下回就把文法书带来。”
裘德没再跟着他。他是个天真烂漫的孩子,哪里懂什么机诈。但是孩子有一种不期而至的天赋直觉,这使他立刻看穿卖假药的是个人面兽心的东西。从这方面是再休想得到心智方面的启发了,想象中的桂冠的叶子纷纷凋落下来;他倚在一个篱笆门上,失声痛哭。
这次失望之后是一段无精打采、无所作为的时期。或许他能从阿尔夫瑞顿买到文法书吧,可是那得有钱才行啊,再说该买什么样的书也不知道呀;何况他虽然不愁吃穿,终归是寄人篱下,自个儿是一文不名啊。
说来也巧,这时费乐生先生派人来取钢琴,裘德灵机一动:何不写信给老师,求他关照,帮他在基督堂弄到文法书呢?他不妨把信放在装钢琴的箱子里,老师收到钢琴,一定看得到。何不求他寄点什么用过的书来呢?那书里准有日薰月染的大学气氛的魅力呀。
经过几天反复考虑,他果真行动起来。运走钢琴那天正巧是他生日,他人不知鬼不觉地把信放进了装琴的箱子,寄给由衷敬仰的朋友;他生怕这件事露了馅,让他多喜姑婆知道,因为她一经发现,非逼他放弃不可。
钢琴运走后,裘德等了一天又一天,一个礼拜又一个礼拜,天天一大早趁姑婆没起床,就到草房邮政所打听。后来果然有包裹寄到村子,他从包裹两头看出来里面是薄薄两本书。他拿到一个僻静地方,坐在一棵砍倒的榆树干上,把包裹打开。
自从基督堂和它可能有的种种景象第一次使他为之欣喜若狂或想入非非以来,裘德一直潜心思索,大发奇想,以为说不定有那么一种路数足以把一种语言的词语转译为另一种语言的词语。他得出结论是:要学的语言的文法可能包含一种密码性质的定则、验方或线索,一经对这种定则。验方或线索掌握,只要通过实际应用,就能使他随心所欲地把他自己的语言的全部单词译成外国语言的单词。他这种孩子气的构想其实是把名传遐迩的格里姆定律推阐到数学意味的精确的极致,从而在各个方面使本属粗疏的法则改进、充实到理想的完善程度。因此他才设想要学的语言一定能在已经掌握的语言当中找到潜在的对应词,这需要具备一定技巧的人来揭示,而这种技巧正是由上面说的文法书提供的。
他看到包裹上盖的是基督堂邮戳,就把绳子扯断,打开包封,首先取出的恰好是放在上面的拉丁文法。他简直不敢相信自己的眼、是本旧书一出版、十年了,挺脏的,上面东涂西抹,狼藉满纸,到处有眼生的名字,好像对于有插图的正文怀有深仇大恨才这么干的,还乱七八糟地标着许多比他自己生年还早二十年的日期。但这还不是使他一下子呆若木鸡的原因。而是他到这会儿才头一次明白过来,根本没什么由他天真无知设想出来的两种语言之间彼此可以置换的法则(某种程度上,有是有,不过文法家不予认可),而要把所有拉丁文和希腊文的单词一个个记到脑子里去,那得耗尽多少艰苦卓绝的努力哟。
裘德把文法书甩到了一边,在粗壮的榆树干旁边仰面朝天躺下来,有一刻钟光景伤心以极。他习以为常,把帽子拉到脸上,眼对着从草帽缏隙缝射进来的不怀好意地觑着他的阳光。这就是拉丁文和希腊文吗?唉,真是个大骗局哟!他先前想象出来的等着他的魔力到头来竟然跟以色列人在埃及做的苦工没两样啊!
他立刻想到基督堂和大学里边的人该有怎样不同寻常的头脑,把那几万几万个词逐一学会呀!他脑袋里可没装着干这样事的脑子啊;在细微的光芒继续穿过草帽照着他时候,他但愿当初压根没见过书才好,以后永远也别见到书才好,但愿自己压根儿没生到世上来才好呢。
倘若有人路过此处,或许问问他为什么这样苦恼;听了之后,会说他的想法比他的文法家的想法还高一筹呢,以此来给他鼓劲打气。但是谁也没来,就算有人来了,也不会这样干。裘德承认他是因为犯了弥天大错而一败涂地了,继续希望离开人世。
1 extraordinarily | |
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2 benefactor | |
n. 恩人,行善的人,捐助人 | |
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3 itinerant | |
adj.巡回的;流动的 | |
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4 quack | |
n.庸医;江湖医生;冒充内行的人;骗子 | |
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5 rustic | |
adj.乡村的,有乡村特色的;n.乡下人,乡巴佬 | |
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6 inconvenient | |
adj.不方便的,令人感到麻烦的 | |
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7 investigations | |
(正式的)调查( investigation的名词复数 ); 侦查; 科学研究; 学术研究 | |
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8 quacks | |
abbr.quacksalvers 庸医,骗子(16世纪习惯用水银或汞治疗梅毒的人)n.江湖医生( quack的名词复数 );江湖郎中;(鸭子的)呱呱声v.(鸭子)发出嘎嘎声( quack的第三人称单数 ) | |
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9 advertising | |
n.广告业;广告活动 a.广告的;广告业务的 | |
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10 strictly | |
adv.严厉地,严格地;严密地 | |
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11 bishops | |
(基督教某些教派管辖大教区的)主教( bishop的名词复数 ); (国际象棋的)象 | |
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12 testament | |
n.遗嘱;证明 | |
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13 proprietor | |
n.所有人;业主;经营者 | |
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14 celebrated | |
adj.有名的,声誉卓著的 | |
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15 disorders | |
n.混乱( disorder的名词复数 );凌乱;骚乱;(身心、机能)失调 | |
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16 alimentary | |
adj.饮食的,营养的 | |
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17 asthma | |
n.气喘病,哮喘病 | |
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18 licensed | |
adj.得到许可的v.许可,颁发执照(license的过去式和过去分词) | |
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19 gasps | |
v.喘气( gasp的第三人称单数 );喘息;倒抽气;很想要 | |
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20 ointment | |
n.药膏,油膏,软膏 | |
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21 precisely | |
adv.恰好,正好,精确地,细致地 | |
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22 inception | |
n.开端,开始,取得学位 | |
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23 transparent | |
adj.明显的,无疑的;透明的 | |
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24 thither | |
adv.向那里;adj.在那边的,对岸的 | |
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25 lapse | |
n.过失,流逝,失效,抛弃信仰,间隔;vi.堕落,停止,失效,流逝;vt.使失效 | |
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26 saluted | |
v.欢迎,致敬( salute的过去式和过去分词 );赞扬,赞颂 | |
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27 virtues | |
美德( virtue的名词复数 ); 德行; 优点; 长处 | |
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28 sufficiently | |
adv.足够地,充分地 | |
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29 misery | |
n.痛苦,苦恼,苦难;悲惨的境遇,贫苦 | |
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30 vouchsafed | |
v.给予,赐予( vouchsafe的过去式和过去分词 );允诺 | |
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31 interval | |
n.间隔,间距;幕间休息,中场休息 | |
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32 physically | |
adj.物质上,体格上,身体上,按自然规律 | |
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33 dependence | |
n.依靠,依赖;信任,信赖;隶属 | |
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34 second-hand | |
adj.用过的,旧的,二手的 | |
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35 mellowed | |
(使)成熟( mellow的过去式和过去分词 ); 使色彩更加柔和,使酒更加醇香 | |
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36 clandestinely | |
adv.秘密地,暗中地 | |
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37 motive | |
n.动机,目的;adv.发动的,运动的 | |
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38 ecstasy | |
n.狂喜,心醉神怡,入迷 | |
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39 meditated | |
深思,沉思,冥想( meditate的过去式和过去分词 ); 内心策划,考虑 | |
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40 curiously | |
adv.有求知欲地;好问地;奇特地 | |
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41 prescription | |
n.处方,开药;指示,规定 | |
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42 cipher | |
n.零;无影响力的人;密码 | |
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43 extremity | |
n.末端,尽头;尽力;终极;极度 | |
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44 aggrandizement | |
n.增大,强化,扩大 | |
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45 noted | |
adj.著名的,知名的 | |
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46 scribbled | |
v.潦草的书写( scribble的过去式和过去分词 );乱画;草草地写;匆匆记下 | |
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47 random | |
adj.随机的;任意的;n.偶然的(或随便的)行动 | |
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48 amazement | |
n.惊奇,惊讶 | |
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49 innocence | |
n.无罪;天真;无害 | |
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50 plodding | |
a.proceeding in a slow or dull way | |
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51 utterly | |
adv.完全地,绝对地 | |
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52 miserable | |
adj.悲惨的,痛苦的;可怜的,糟糕的 | |
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53 insidiously | |
潜在地,隐伏地,阴险地 | |
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54 delusion | |
n.谬见,欺骗,幻觉,迷惑 | |
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