FOURTH DAY
LAUDS1
In which William and Severinus examine Berengar’s corpse2 and discover that the tongue is black, unusual in a drowned man. Then they discuss most painful poisons and a past theft.
I will not go into how we informed the abbot, how the whole abbey woke before the canonical3 hour, the cries of horror, the fear and grief that could be seen on every face, and how the news spread to all the people of the compound, the servants blessing4 themselves and uttering formulas against the evil eye. I don’t know whether the first office that morning proceeded accord?ing to regulations, or who took part in it. I followed William and Severinus, who had Berengar’s body wrapped up and ordered it laid out on a table in the infirmary.
When the abbot and the other monks6 had left, the herbalist and my master studied the corpse at length, with the cold detachment of men of medicine.
“He died by drowning,” Severinus said, “there’s no doubt. The face is swollen7, the belly8 taut9. ...”
“But he was not drowned by another’s hands,” William observed, “for in that case he would have reacted against the murderer’s violence, whereas everything was neat and clean, as if Berengar had heated the water, filled the bath, and lain in it of his own free will.”
“This doesn’t surprise me,” Severinus said. “Berengar suffered from convulsions, and I myself had often told him that warm baths serve to calm agitation10 of the body and the spirit. On several occasions he asked me leave to light the balneary fire. So he may have done last night. …”
“Night before last,” William said, “because this body?—as you see—has remained in the water at least one day.
William informed him of some of the events of that night. He did not tell him we had been in the scriptori?um furtively11, but, concealing12 various circumstances, he told him that we had pursued a mysterious figure who had taken a book from us. Severinus realized William was telling him only a part of the truth, but he asked no further questions. He observed that the agitation of Berengar, if he had been the mysterious thief, could have led him then to seek calm in a refreshing13 bath. Berengar, he said, was of a very sensitive nature, and sometimes a vexation or an emotion brought on his trembling and cold sweats and made his eyes bulge14, and he would fall to the ground, spitting out a whitish slime.
“In any case,” William said, “before coming here he went somewhere else, because in the balneary I didn’t see the book he stole. So he had been somewhere else, and afterward15, we’ll assume that, to calm his emotion and perhaps to elude16 our search, he slipped into the balneary and immersed himself in the water. Severinus, do you believe his illness could make him lose conscious?ness and drown?”
“That’s possible,” Severinus said, dubiously17. For some moments he had been examining the hands of the corpse. “Here’s a curious thing ...” he said.
“What?”
“The other day I observed Venantius’s hands, when the blood had been washed off, and I noticed a detail to which I attached little importance. The tips of two fingers of Venantius’s right hand were dark, as if blackened by some dark substance.. Exactly—you see?—like two fingertips of Berengar now. In fact, here we have a trace also on the third finger. At the time I thought that Venantius had handled some inks in the scriptorium. ...”
“Interesting,” William said pensively18, taking a closer look at Berengar’s fingers. Dawn was breaking, the light indoors was still faint, and my master was obvious?ly suffering the lack of his lenses. “Interesting,” he repeated. “But there are fainter traces also on the left hand, at least on the thumb and index.”
“If it were only the right hand, they would be the fingers of someone who grasps something small, or long and thin. …”
“Like a stylus. Or some food. Or an insect. Or a serpent. Or a monstrance. Or a stick. Too many things. But if there are signs also on the other hand, it could also be a goblet19; the right hand holds it firmly and the left helps, exerting less strength. ...”
Severinus was now gently rubbing the dead man’s fingers, but the dark color did not disappear. I noticed he had put on a pair of gloves, which he probably used when he handled poisonous substances. He sniffed20, but without receiving any sensation. “I could cite for you many vegetable (and also mineral) substances that leave traces of this sort. Some lethal21, others not. The illumina?tors sometimes have gold dust on their fingers. ...”
“Adelmo was an illuminator,” William said. “I imag?ine that, shattered as his body was, you didn’t think of examining the fingers. But these others may have touched something that had belonged to Adelmo.”
“I really don’t know,” Severinus said. “Two dead men, both with blackened fingers. What do you deduce from that?”
“I deduce nothing: nihil sequitur geminis ex parti?cularibus unquam. Both cases would have to conform to a rule. For example: a substance exists that blackens the fingers of those who touch it. ...”
Triumphantly22, I completed the syllogism23: “… Venantius and Berengar have blackened fingers, ergo they touched this substance!”
“Good, Adso,” William said, “a pity that your syllo?gism is not valid24, because aut semel aut iterum medium generaliter esto, and in this syllogism the middle term never appears as general. A sign that we haven’t chosen the major premise25 well. I shouldn’t have said that all those who touch a certain substance have black fingers, because there could also be people with black fingers who have not touched the substance. I should have said that all those and only all those who have black fingers have certainly touched a given substance. Venantius and Berengar, etc. With which we would have a Darii, an excellent third mode of the first syllogistic26 figure.” “Then we have the answer,” I said, delighted.
“Alas, Adso, you have too much faith in syllogisms! What we have, once again, is simply the question. That is: we have ventured the hypothesis that Venantius and Berengar touched the same thing, an unquestionably reasonable hypothesis. But when we have imagined a substance that, alone among all substances, causes this result (which is still to be established), we still don’t know what it is or where they found it, or why they touched it. And, mind you, we don’t even know if it’s the substance they touched that brought them to their death. Imagine a madman who wants to kill all those who touch gold dust. Would we say it’s gold dust that kills?”
I was upset. I had always believed logic27 was a univer?sal weapon, and now I realized how its validity depended on the way it was employed. Further, since I had been with my master I had become aware, and was to be?come even more aware in the days that followed, that logic could be especially useful when you entered it but then left it.
Severinus, who was surely not a logician28, was mean?while reflecting on the basis of his own experience. “The universe of poisons is various as the mysteries of nature are various,” he said. He pointed29 to a series of pots and ampoules, which we had already admired, neatly30 arranged on shelves along the walls, together with many volumes. “As I told you before, many of these herbs, duly compounded and administered in the proper dosage, could be used for lethal beverages31 and ointments32. Over there, datura stramonium, belladonna, hemlock34: they can bring on drowsiness35, stimulation36, or both; taken with due care they are excellent medicines, but in excess doses they bring on death.”
“But none of these substances would leave marks on the fingers?”
“None, I believe. Then there are substances that become dangerous only if ingested, whereas others act instead on the skin. And hellebore can cause vomiting37 in a person who grasps it to uproot38 it. Dittany and fraxinella, when in flower, bring on intoxication39 in gardeners who touch them, as if the gardeners had drunk wine. Black hellebore, merely at the touch, pro5?vokes diarrhea. Other plants cause palpitations of the heart, others of the head, still others silence the voice. But viper’s venom40, applied41 to the skin and not allowed to enter the blood, produces only a slight irritation42. ... And once I was shown a compound that, when applied to the inside of a dog’s thighs43, near the genitalia, causes the animal to die in a short time in horrible convulsions, as the limbs gradually grow rigid44. ...”
“You know many things about poisons,” William said with what sounded like admiration45 in his voice.
Severinus looked hard into his eyes for a few moments. “I know what a physician, an herbalist, a student of the sciences of human health must know.”
William remained thoughtful for some time. Then he asked Severinus to open the corpse’s mouth and observe the tongue. Severinus, his curiosity aroused, took a thin spatula46, one of the instruments of his medical art, and obeyed. He uttered a cry of amazement47: “The tongue is black!”
“So, then,” William murmured, “he grasped some?thing with his fingers and ingested it. ... This elimi?nates the poisons you mentioned before, which kill by penetrating48 the skin. But it doesn’t make our deduc?tions any easier. Because now, for him and for Venantius, we must presume a voluntary act. They rasped some?thing and put it in their mouths, knowing what they were doing. ...”
“Something to eat? To drink?”
“Perhaps. Or perhaps—why not?—a musical instru?ment, like a flute49 ...”
“Absurd,” Severinus said.
“Of course it’s absurd. But we mustn’t dismiss any hypothesis, no matter how farfetched. Now let’s return to the poisonous substance. If someone who knows poisons as you do had broken in here and had used some of these herbs of yours, could he have produced a lethal ointment33 capable of causing those marks on the fingers and the tongue? Capable of being mixed with food or drink, smeared50 on a spoon, on something that is put in the mouth?”
“Yes,” Severinus admitted, “but who? And besides, even if we accept this hypothesis, how would he have administered the poison to our two poor brothers?”
Frankly51, I myself couldn’t imagine Venantius or Berengar letting himself be approached by someone who handed him a mysterious substance and being persuaded to eat it or drink it. But William did not seem upset by this unlikelihood. “We will think about that later,” he said, “because now I would like you to try to remember some event that perhaps you haven’t recalled before. Someone who asked you questions about your herbs, for instance; someone who has easy access to the infirmary …”
“Just a moment,” Severinus said. “A long time ago, years it was, on one of those shelves I kept a highly powerful substance, given to me by a brother who had traveled in distant lands. He couldn’t tell me what it was made of, herbs for sure, but not all of them familiar. To look at, it was slimy and yellowish; but I was advised not to touch it, because if it only came into contact with my lips it would kill me in a short time. The brother told me that, when ingested even in minimal52 doses, in the space of a half hour it caused a feeling of great weariness, then a slow paralysis53 of all the limbs, and finally death. He didn’t want to carry it with him, and so he presented it to me. I kept it for a long time, because I meant to examine it somehow. Then one day there was a great storm up here. One of my assistants, a novice54, had left the infirmary door open, and the hurricane, wrought55 havoc56 in this room where we are now. Bottles broken, liquids spilled on the floor, herbs and powders scattered57. I worked a whole day putting my things back in order, and I accepted help only in sweeping58 away the broken vessels59 and the herbs that could not be recovered. At the end I realized that the very ampoule I mentioned to you was missing. At first I was worried, then I decided60 it had been broken and become confused with the other rubbish. I had the infirmary floor washed carefully, and the shelves. ...”
“And you had seen the ampoule a few hours before the storm?”
“Yes ... or, rather, no, now that I think about it. It was behind a row of pots, carefully hidden, and I didn’t check it every day. ...”
“Therefore, as far as you know, it could have been stolen quite a while before the storm, without your finding out?”
“Now that I think about it, yes, unquestionably.”
“And that novice of yours could have stolen it and, then could have seized the occasion of the storm delib?erately to leave the door open and create confusion among your things?”
Severinus seemed very excited. “Yes, of course. Not only that, but as I recall what happened, I was quite surprised that the hurricane, violent though it was, had upset so many things. It could quite well be that some?one took advantage of the storm to devastate61 the room and produce more damage than the wind could have done!”
“Who was the novice?”
“His name was Augustine. But he died last year, a fall from scaffolding as he and other monks and ser?vants were cleaning the sculptures of the fa?ade of the church. Actually, now that I think about it, he swore up and down that he had not left the door open before the storm. I was the one, in my fury, who held him responsi?ble for the accident. Perhaps he really was not guilty.”
“And so we have a third person, perhaps far more expert than a novice, who knew about your rare poison. Whom had you told about it?”
“That I really don’t remember. The abbot, of course, to ask his permission to keep such a dangerous substance. And a few others, perhaps in the library, because I was looking for some herbaria that might give me informa?tion.”
“But didn’t you tell me you keep here the books that are most useful to your art?”
“Yes, and many of them,” he said, pointing to a corner of the room where some shelves held dozens of volumes. “But then I was looking for certain books I couldn’t keep here, which Malachi actually was very reluctant to let me see. In fact, I had to ask the abbot’s authorization62.” His voice sank, and he was almost shy about letting me hear his words. “You know, in a secret part of the library, they keep books on necromancy63, black magic, and recipes for diabolical64 philters. I was allowed to consult some of these works, of necessity, and I was hoping to find a description of that poison and its functions. In vain.”
“So you spoke65 about it with Malachi.”
“Of course, with him definitely, and perhaps also with Berengar, who was his assistant. But you mustn’t jump to conclusions: I don’t remember clearly, perhaps other monks were present as I was talking, the scriptori?um at times is fairly crowded, you know. …”
“I’m not suspecting anyone. I’m only trying to under?stand what can have happened. In any event, you tell me this took place some years ago, and it’s odd that anyone would steal a poison and then not use it until so much later. It would suggest a malignant66 mind brooding for a long time in darkness over a murderous plan.”
Severinus blessed himself, an expression of horror on his face. “God forgive us all!” he said.
There was no further comment to be made. We again covered Berengar’s body, which had to be pre?pared for the funeral.
收听单词发音 |
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lauds
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| v.称赞，赞美( laud的第三人称单数 ) | |
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corpse
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| n.尸体，死尸 | |
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canonical
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| n.权威的；典型的 | |
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blessing
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| n.祈神赐福；祷告；祝福，祝愿 | |
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pro
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| n.赞成，赞成的意见，赞成者 | |
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monks
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| n.修道士，僧侣( monk的名词复数 ) | |
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swollen
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| adj.肿大的，水涨的；v.使变大，肿胀 | |
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belly
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| n.肚子，腹部；(像肚子一样)鼓起的部分，膛 | |
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taut
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| adj.拉紧的，绷紧的，紧张的 | |
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agitation
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| n.搅动；搅拌；鼓动，煽动 | |
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furtively
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| adv. 偷偷地, 暗中地 | |
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concealing
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| v.隐藏，隐瞒，遮住( conceal的现在分词 ) | |
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refreshing
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| adj.使精神振作的，使人清爽的，使人喜欢的 | |
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bulge
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| n.突出，膨胀，激增；vt.突出，膨胀 | |
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afterward
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| adv.后来；以后 | |
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elude
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| v.躲避，困惑 | |
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dubiously
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| adv.可疑地，怀疑地 | |
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pensively
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| adv.沉思地，焦虑地 | |
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goblet
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| n.高脚酒杯 | |
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sniffed
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| v.以鼻吸气，嗅，闻( sniff的过去式和过去分词 )；抽鼻子（尤指哭泣、患感冒等时出声地用鼻子吸气）；抱怨，不以为然地说 | |
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lethal
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| adj.致死的；毁灭性的 | |
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triumphantly
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| ad.得意洋洋地；得胜地；成功地 | |
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syllogism
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| n.演绎法，三段论法 | |
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valid
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| adj.有确实根据的；有效的；正当的，合法的 | |
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premise
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| n.前提；v.提论，预述 | |
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syllogistic
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| adj.三段论法的，演绎的，演绎性的 | |
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logic
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| n.逻辑(学)；逻辑性 | |
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logician
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| n.逻辑学家 | |
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pointed
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| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
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neatly
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| adv.整洁地，干净地，灵巧地，熟练地 | |
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beverages
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| n.饮料( beverage的名词复数 ) | |
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ointments
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| n.软膏( ointment的名词复数 )；扫兴的人；煞风景的事物；药膏 | |
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ointment
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| n.药膏，油膏，软膏 | |
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hemlock
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| n.毒胡萝卜，铁杉 | |
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drowsiness
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| n.睡意；嗜睡 | |
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stimulation
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| n.刺激，激励，鼓舞 | |
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vomiting
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| 吐 | |
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uproot
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| v.连根拔起，拔除；根除，灭绝；赶出家园，被迫移开 | |
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intoxication
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| n.wild excitement;drunkenness；poisoning | |
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venom
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| n.毒液，恶毒，痛恨 | |
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applied
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| adj.应用的；v.应用，适用 | |
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irritation
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| n.激怒，恼怒，生气 | |
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thighs
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| n.股，大腿( thigh的名词复数 )；食用的鸡（等的）腿 | |
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rigid
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| adj.严格的，死板的；刚硬的，僵硬的 | |
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admiration
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| n.钦佩，赞美，羡慕 | |
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spatula
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| n.抹刀 | |
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amazement
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| n.惊奇，惊讶 | |
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penetrating
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| adj.（声音）响亮的，尖锐的adj.（气味）刺激的adj.（思想）敏锐的，有洞察力的 | |
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flute
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| n.长笛；v.吹笛 | |
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smeared
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| 弄脏； 玷污； 涂抹； 擦上 | |
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frankly
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| adv.坦白地，直率地；坦率地说 | |
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minimal
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| adj.尽可能少的，最小的 | |
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paralysis
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| n.麻痹(症)；瘫痪(症) | |
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novice
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| adj.新手的，生手的 | |
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wrought
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| v.引起；以…原料制作；运转；adj.制造的 | |
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havoc
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| n.大破坏，浩劫，大混乱，大杂乱 | |
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scattered
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| adj.分散的，稀疏的；散步的；疏疏落落的 | |
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sweeping
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| adj.范围广大的，一扫无遗的 | |
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vessels
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| n.血管( vessel的名词复数 )；船；容器；（具有特殊品质或接受特殊品质的）人 | |
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decided
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| adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的 | |
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devastate
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| v.使荒芜，破坏，压倒 | |
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authorization
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| n.授权，委任状 | |
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necromancy
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| n.巫术；通灵术 | |
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diabolical
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| adj.恶魔似的，凶暴的 | |
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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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malignant
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| adj.恶性的，致命的；恶意的，恶毒的 | |
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