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CHAPTER XIV.
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 Mrs. Brevoort and Ned Strong sped along in silence for a time. The roads were dry and hard, and there was enough life in the breeze that had kissed the sea to make even violent exercise seductive. Ned’s companion was an enthusiastic and accomplished1 wheelwoman, and she pedalled on merrily by his side, sometimes smiling up at him in the mere2 joy of physical exertion3. They had reached the high-road, and were rapidly making their way toward New Rochelle when Ned turned to his companion and said:
 
“Tell me, Mrs. Brevoort, what is your idea of Kate’s feeling toward Count Szalaki? Do you think she is really interested in the man?”
 
“How stupid you are!” cried the little woman, who seldom failed to display either real or assumed enthusiasm regarding any given topic of conversation. Turning in her saddle, she looked back, and saw that Kate Strong was wheeling steadily4 forward a hundred yards to their rear. “But what else could I expect? All men are stupid about certain matters. Of course your sister is interested in Count Szalaki. So am I. I am wild to see the boy. From what you both say of him, he must be simply irresistible5.”
 
Ned Strong frowned and impatiently increased the speed of his wheel. He knew[77] how to withstand the coquetry of a young girl, but the “in-and-out running of a widow,” as he called it to himself, kept him in a state of nervous worry most of the time.
 
“I suppose,” he remarked crossly, “that what a man needs in these days to make him interesting are black curly hair and an air of mystery. In that case I’m out of it completely.”
 
Mrs. Brevoort laughed aloud.
 
“What a jealous creature you are, Mr. Strong! Your wife will have a sad life of it, unless she is a very clever woman.”
 
“I don’t intend to marry,” remarked the youth sternly. “What a fool I’d be to sell my birthright for a mess of affectation! And that’s what a woman is to-day—simply a mess of affectation.”
 
“What an elegant expression!” cried Mrs. Brevoort, a gleam of malice6 in her laughing eyes as she looked up at the youth, who was gazing stubbornly forward and pushing the pedals of his wheel as though he had suffered a great wrong and was obliged to work for his living. “But it does you credit, Mr. Strong. It indicates on your part a remote but more or less intimate acquaintance with biblical lore7.”
 
“But there’s one thing certain,” continued the young man, not heeding8 her sarcasm9, “and that is that if I should marry I would not tie myself down to a silly girl who might at any moment meet a curly-haired man with a title and leave me in the lurch10.”
 
Mrs. Brevoort laughed mockingly.
 
“How self-confident you are, little boy!” she exclaimed. “Let me tell you, sir, it is my opinion that you will marry a blue-eyed,[78] golden-haired young doll, who will make you believe that you are the most wonderful man on earth and that she is the happiest woman. I can see it all in my mind’s eye. You prize your freedom, as you think, more than most men. It is just your kind that fall victims to the sweet-faced, blond-haired little vixens who make the most tyrannical wives in the world. Do you like the prediction?”
 
The youth turned a frowning face to his vis-à-vis. “Why, oh, why, Mrs. Brevoort,” he cried, “will you check the natural flow of my spirits by so dire11 a prophecy? Think of the awful fate that awaits me, if your words are true! I acknowledge that I have seen other men, perhaps as hard to suit as I am myself, falling into the clutches of spotless young girls who have lured13 them into the awful maelstrom14 of marriage; but I swear to you that I shall profit by their experience. I should never marry because I wanted a parlor15 ornament16. When I give up my liberty, I shall insist upon a quid pro12 quo.”
 
“What in the world is that, Mr. Strong?” cried Mrs. Brevoort, looking shocked as she glanced up at him with exaggerated amazement17.
 
“That’s Latin,” answered the youth densely18. “It’s a dead language, but I used it for a very live purpose. I am not talking at random19, you know, Mrs. Brevoort. There is method in my madness.”
 
Ned Strong looked down at his companion meaningly, but she refused to meet his gaze.
 
“But method never yet saved madness from disaster,” she remarked, sagely20.
 
Her words seemed to check the youth’s[79] impetuosity, for he cast a pleading glance at her averted21 face and then wheeled forward in silence for a time.
 
“The fact is,” he began again, after he had renewed his courage, “the fact is, Mrs. Brevoort, that you don’t understand me.”
 
A smile that he could not see from his exalted22 perch23 crossed the widow’s face. It is only a very young man who ever dares to tell a woman that she does not weigh him justly. The average man may deceive other men; it takes a genius to blind a woman.
 
“Explain yourself,” she urged, not too warmly.
 
“I don’t want to give you the impression,” he went on, hesitatingly, “you know, that I don’t admire women—that is, some women, don’t you see?”
 
“I see,” she answered pitilessly; “you admire women—some women, that is—for anything, everything, but matrimony. You said a few moments ago that you would never marry.”
 
“Did I?” he asked, almost penitently24. “I had forgotten that I went so far. But, I assure you, I didn’t mean to imply, you know, that under certain circumstances and—don’t you see—if I got the promise of just the right woman, that I shouldn’t be very glad to give up my freedom, don’t you know; that is, if it was perfectly25 agreeable to her, of course.”
 
Mrs. Brevoort laughed outright26, as they bowled down a long hill at the top of which the Strongs’ manor-house peeped above the trees.
 
“You are the most amusing man I know, Mr. Strong,” she exclaimed, as they reached[80] the level road and moved forward more slowly. “If you were more consistent, you wouldn’t be half so much fun.”
 
The youth was not altogether pleased at her remark. He glanced at her searchingly.
 
“You may do me an injustice27, Mrs. Brevoort,” he said firmly. “It is more than possible that I am more consistent than you suspect.”
 
“In what?” she asked, rather recklessly, looking up at him mischievously28. The expression in his eyes caused her a pang29 of regret at the challenge she had made.
 
“In my ideas regarding matrimony, in my convictions as to the woman I should wish to marry,” he answered, meaningly. “Shall I explain?”
 
Mrs. Brevoort gave a questioning glance at his face and realized that he must not explain. She turned in her saddle, as if seeking the support of an ally at a crisis that must be averted at any cost.
 
“Why, where is Kate?” she cried, checking the speed of her wheel and gazing back eagerly along the road and up the hill that crept toward the manor-house.
 
Ned Strong turned, rather impatiently, and saw that the road was deserted30, save that half-way up the hill an open vehicle, that he and Mrs. Brevoort had been too absorbed in conversation to notice when it passed them, was slowly mounting toward the summit.
 
“We must go back and find her,” cried Mrs. Brevoort, dismounting from her wheel and looking at Ned anxiously.
 
“It would be useless,” he said, stubbornly. “She has grown tired of riding alone and has gone back to the club-house. Or perhaps she[81] has stopped at the lodge31 to speak to Rudolph. That’s our old homestead up there, you know, Mrs. Brevoort. Really, I don’t think it would pay us to climb that hill on the remote chance of finding her. We’ll turn off the main road just above here and get back to the club-house at once if you wish. It’s a shorter cut than we could make by retracing32 our road over the hill.”
 
Mrs. Brevoort reluctantly remounted her wheel.
 
“If you had not talked so much nonsense,” she remarked unjustly to Ned Strong as they resumed their way, “we would not have lost track of Kate.”
 
“A remark that I consider highly complimentary,” commented the youth, smiling contentedly33 down at the disturbed countenance34 of Mrs. Brevoort.
 

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1 accomplished UzwztZ     
adj.有才艺的;有造诣的;达到了的
参考例句:
  • Thanks to your help,we accomplished the task ahead of schedule.亏得你们帮忙,我们才提前完成了任务。
  • Removal of excess heat is accomplished by means of a radiator.通过散热器完成多余热量的排出。
2 mere rC1xE     
adj.纯粹的;仅仅,只不过
参考例句:
  • That is a mere repetition of what you said before.那不过是重复了你以前讲的话。
  • It's a mere waste of time waiting any longer.再等下去纯粹是浪费时间。
3 exertion F7Fyi     
n.尽力,努力
参考例句:
  • We were sweating profusely from the exertion of moving the furniture.我们搬动家具大费气力,累得大汗淋漓。
  • She was hot and breathless from the exertion of cycling uphill.由于用力骑车爬坡,她浑身发热。
4 steadily Qukw6     
adv.稳定地;不变地;持续地
参考例句:
  • The scope of man's use of natural resources will steadily grow.人类利用自然资源的广度将日益扩大。
  • Our educational reform was steadily led onto the correct path.我们的教学改革慢慢上轨道了。
5 irresistible n4CxX     
adj.非常诱人的,无法拒绝的,无法抗拒的
参考例句:
  • The wheel of history rolls forward with an irresistible force.历史车轮滚滚向前,势不可挡。
  • She saw an irresistible skirt in the store window.她看见商店的橱窗里有一条叫人着迷的裙子。
6 malice P8LzW     
n.恶意,怨恨,蓄意;[律]预谋
参考例句:
  • I detected a suggestion of malice in his remarks.我觉察出他说的话略带恶意。
  • There was a strong current of malice in many of his portraits.他的许多肖像画中都透着一股强烈的怨恨。
7 lore Y0YxW     
n.传说;学问,经验,知识
参考例句:
  • I will seek and question him of his lore.我倒要找上他,向他讨教他的渊博的学问。
  • Early peoples passed on plant and animal lore through legend.早期人类通过传说传递有关植物和动物的知识。
8 heeding e57191803bfd489e6afea326171fe444     
v.听某人的劝告,听从( heed的现在分词 )
参考例句:
  • This come of heeding people who say one thing and mean another! 有些人嘴里一回事,心里又是一回事,今天这个下场都是听信了这种人的话的结果。 来自辞典例句
  • Her dwarfish spouse still smoked his cigar and drank his rum without heeding her. 她那矮老公还在吸他的雪茄,喝他的蔗酒,睬也不睬她。 来自辞典例句
9 sarcasm 1CLzI     
n.讥讽,讽刺,嘲弄,反话 (adj.sarcastic)
参考例句:
  • His sarcasm hurt her feelings.他的讽刺伤害了她的感情。
  • She was given to using bitter sarcasm.她惯于用尖酸刻薄语言挖苦人。
10 lurch QR8z9     
n.突然向前或旁边倒;v.蹒跚而行
参考例句:
  • It has been suggested that the ground movements were a form of lurch movements.地震的地面运动曾被认为是一种突然倾斜的运动形式。
  • He walked with a lurch.他步履蹒跚。
11 dire llUz9     
adj.可怕的,悲惨的,阴惨的,极端的
参考例句:
  • There were dire warnings about the dangers of watching too much TV.曾经有人就看电视太多的危害性提出严重警告。
  • We were indeed in dire straits.But we pulled through.那时我们的困难真是大极了,但是我们渡过了困难。
12 pro tk3zvX     
n.赞成,赞成的意见,赞成者
参考例句:
  • The two debating teams argued the question pro and con.辩论的两组从赞成与反对两方面辩这一问题。
  • Are you pro or con nuclear disarmament?你是赞成还是反对核裁军?
13 lured 77df5632bf83c9c64fb09403ae21e649     
吸引,引诱(lure的过去式与过去分词形式)
参考例句:
  • The child was lured into a car but managed to escape. 那小孩被诱骗上了车,但又设法逃掉了。
  • Lured by the lust of gold,the pioneers pushed onward. 开拓者在黄金的诱惑下,继续奋力向前。
14 maelstrom 38mzJ     
n.大乱动;大漩涡
参考例句:
  • Inside,she was a maelstrom of churning emotions.她心中的情感似波涛汹涌,起伏不定。
  • The anxious person has the spirit like a maelstrom.焦虑的人的精神世界就像一个大漩涡。
15 parlor v4MzU     
n.店铺,营业室;会客室,客厅
参考例句:
  • She was lying on a small settee in the parlor.她躺在客厅的一张小长椅上。
  • Is there a pizza parlor in the neighborhood?附近有没有比萨店?
16 ornament u4czn     
v.装饰,美化;n.装饰,装饰物
参考例句:
  • The flowers were put on the table for ornament.花放在桌子上做装饰用。
  • She wears a crystal ornament on her chest.她的前胸戴了一个水晶饰品。
17 amazement 7zlzBK     
n.惊奇,惊讶
参考例句:
  • All those around him looked at him with amazement.周围的人都对他投射出惊异的眼光。
  • He looked at me in blank amazement.他带着迷茫惊诧的神情望着我。
18 densely rutzrg     
ad.密集地;浓厚地
参考例句:
  • A grove of trees shadowed the house densely. 树丛把这幢房子遮蔽得很密实。
  • We passed through miles of densely wooded country. 我们穿过好几英里茂密的林地。
19 random HT9xd     
adj.随机的;任意的;n.偶然的(或随便的)行动
参考例句:
  • The list is arranged in a random order.名单排列不分先后。
  • On random inspection the meat was found to be bad.经抽查,发现肉变质了。
20 sagely sagely     
adv. 贤能地,贤明地
参考例句:
  • Even the ones who understand may nod sagely. 即使对方知道这一点,也会一本正经地点头同意。
  • Well, that's about all of the sagely advice this old grey head can come up with. 好了,以上就是我这个满头银发的老头儿给你们的充满睿智的忠告。
21 averted 35a87fab0bbc43636fcac41969ed458a     
防止,避免( avert的过去式和过去分词 ); 转移
参考例句:
  • A disaster was narrowly averted. 及时防止了一场灾难。
  • Thanks to her skilful handling of the affair, the problem was averted. 多亏她对事情处理得巧妙,才避免了麻烦。
22 exalted ztiz6f     
adj.(地位等)高的,崇高的;尊贵的,高尚的
参考例句:
  • Their loveliness and holiness in accordance with their exalted station.他们的美丽和圣洁也与他们的崇高地位相称。
  • He received respect because he was a person of exalted rank.他因为是个地位崇高的人而受到尊敬。
23 perch 5u1yp     
n.栖木,高位,杆;v.栖息,就位,位于
参考例句:
  • The bird took its perch.鸟停歇在栖木上。
  • Little birds perch themselves on the branches.小鸟儿栖歇在树枝上。
24 penitently d059038e074463ec340da5a6c8475174     
参考例句:
  • He sat penitently in his chair by the window. 他懊悔地坐在靠窗的椅子上。 来自柯林斯例句
25 perfectly 8Mzxb     
adv.完美地,无可非议地,彻底地
参考例句:
  • The witnesses were each perfectly certain of what they said.证人们个个对自己所说的话十分肯定。
  • Everything that we're doing is all perfectly above board.我们做的每件事情都是光明正大的。
26 outright Qj7yY     
adv.坦率地;彻底地;立即;adj.无疑的;彻底的
参考例句:
  • If you have a complaint you should tell me outright.如果你有不满意的事,你应该直率地对我说。
  • You should persuade her to marry you outright.你应该彻底劝服她嫁给你。
27 injustice O45yL     
n.非正义,不公正,不公平,侵犯(别人的)权利
参考例句:
  • They complained of injustice in the way they had been treated.他们抱怨受到不公平的对待。
  • All his life he has been struggling against injustice.他一生都在与不公正现象作斗争。
28 mischievously 23cd35e8c65a34bd7a6d7ecbff03b336     
adv.有害地;淘气地
参考例句:
  • He mischievously looked for a chance to embarrass his sister. 他淘气地寻找机会让他的姐姐难堪。 来自互联网
  • Also has many a dream kindheartedness, is loves mischievously small lovable. 又有着多啦a梦的好心肠,是爱调皮的小可爱。 来自互联网
29 pang OKixL     
n.剧痛,悲痛,苦闷
参考例句:
  • She experienced a sharp pang of disappointment.她经历了失望的巨大痛苦。
  • She was beginning to know the pang of disappointed love.她开始尝到了失恋的痛苦。
30 deserted GukzoL     
adj.荒芜的,荒废的,无人的,被遗弃的
参考例句:
  • The deserted village was filled with a deathly silence.这个荒废的村庄死一般的寂静。
  • The enemy chieftain was opposed and deserted by his followers.敌人头目众叛亲离。
31 lodge q8nzj     
v.临时住宿,寄宿,寄存,容纳;n.传达室,小旅馆
参考例句:
  • Is there anywhere that I can lodge in the village tonight?村里有我今晚过夜的地方吗?
  • I shall lodge at the inn for two nights.我要在这家小店住两个晚上。
32 retracing d36cf1bfa5c6c6e4898c78b1644e9ef3     
v.折回( retrace的现在分词 );回忆;回顾;追溯
参考例句:
  • We're retracing the route of a deep explorer mission. 我们将折回一个深入的探险路线中去。 来自电影对白
  • Retracing my steps was certainly not an option. 回顾我的脚步并不是个办法。 来自互联网
33 contentedly a0af12176ca79b27d4028fdbaf1b5f64     
adv.心满意足地
参考例句:
  • My father sat puffing contentedly on his pipe.父亲坐着心满意足地抽着烟斗。
  • "This is brother John's writing,"said Sally,contentedly,as she opened the letter.
34 countenance iztxc     
n.脸色,面容;面部表情;vt.支持,赞同
参考例句:
  • At the sight of this photograph he changed his countenance.他一看见这张照片脸色就变了。
  • I made a fierce countenance as if I would eat him alive.我脸色恶狠狠地,仿佛要把他活生生地吞下去。


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