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首页 » 经典英文小说 » THE GOLDEN ROAD黄金岁月 » CHAPTER I. A NEW DEPARTURE
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CHAPTER I. A NEW DEPARTURE
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 “I’ve thought of something amusing for the winter,” I said as we drew into a half-circle around the glorious wood-fire in Uncle Alec’s kitchen.
 
It had been a day of wild November wind, closing down into a wet, eerie1 twilight2. Outside, the wind was shrilling3 at the windows and around the eaves, and the rain was playing on the roof. The old willow4 at the gate was writhing5 in the storm and the orchard6 was a place of weird7 music, born of all the tears and fears that haunt the halls of night. But little we cared for the gloom and the loneliness of the outside world; we kept them at bay with the light of the fire and the laughter of our young lips.
 
We had been having a splendid game of Blind-Man’s Buff. That is, it had been splendid at first; but later the fun went out of it because we found that Peter was, of malice8 prepense, allowing himself to be caught too easily, in order that he might have the pleasure of catching9 Felicity—which he never failed to do, no matter how tightly his eyes were bound. What remarkable10 goose said that love is blind? Love can see through five folds of closely-woven muffler with ease!
 
“I’m getting tired,” said Cecily, whose breath was coming rather quickly and whose pale cheeks had bloomed into scarlet11. “Let’s sit down and get the Story Girl to tell us a story.”
 
But as we dropped into our places the Story Girl shot a significant glance at me which intimated that this was the psychological moment for introducing the scheme she and I had been secretly developing for some days. It was really the Story Girl’s idea and none of mine. But she had insisted that I should make the suggestion as coming wholly from myself.
 
“If you don’t, Felicity won’t agree to it. You know yourself, Bev, how contrary she’s been lately over anything I mention. And if she goes against it Peter will too—the ninny!—and it wouldn’t be any fun if we weren’t all in it.”
 
“What is it?” asked Felicity, drawing her chair slightly away from Peter’s.
 
“It is this. Let us get up a newspaper of our own—write it all ourselves, and have all we do in it. Don’t you think we can get a lot of fun out of it?”
 
Everyone looked rather blank and amazed, except the Story Girl. She knew what she had to do, and she did it.
 
“What a silly idea!” she exclaimed, with a contemptuous toss of her long brown curls. “Just as if WE could get up a newspaper!”
 
Felicity fired up, exactly as we had hoped.
 
“I think it’s a splendid idea,” she said enthusiastically. “I’d like to know why we couldn’t get up as good a newspaper as they have in town! Uncle Roger says the Daily Enterprise has gone to the dogs—all the news it prints is that some old woman has put a shawl on her head and gone across the road to have tea with another old woman. I guess we could do better than that. You needn’t think, Sara Stanley, that nobody but you can do anything.”
 
“I think it would be great fun,” said Peter decidedly. “My Aunt Jane helped edit a paper when she was at Queen’s Academy, and she said it was very amusing and helped her a great deal.”
 
The Story Girl could hide her delight only by dropping her eyes and frowning.
 
“Bev wants to be editor,” she said, “and I don’t see how he can, with no experience. Anyhow, it would be a lot of trouble.”
 
“Some people are so afraid of a little bother,” retorted Felicity.
 
“I think it would be nice,” said Cecily timidly, “and none of us have any experience of being editors, any more than Bev, so that wouldn’t matter.”
 
“Will it be printed?” asked Dan.
 
“Oh, no,” I said. “We can’t have it printed. We’ll just have to write it out—we can buy foolscap from the teacher.”
 
“I don’t think it will be much of a newspaper if it isn’t printed,” said Dan scornfully.
 
“It doesn’t matter very much what YOU think,” said Felicity.
 
“Thank you,” retorted Dan.
 
“Of course,” said the Story Girl hastily, not wishing to have Dan turned against our project, “if all the rest of you want it I’ll go in for it too. I daresay it would be real good fun, now that I come to think of it. And we’ll keep the copies, and when we become famous they’ll be quite valuable.”
 
“I wonder if any of us ever will be famous,” said Felix.
 
“The Story Girl will be,” I said.
 
“I don’t see how she can be,” said Felicity skeptically. “Why, she’s just one of us.”
 
“Well, it’s decided12, then, that we’re to have a newspaper,” I resumed briskly. “The next thing is to choose a name for it. That’s a very important thing.”
 
“How often are you going to publish it?” asked Felix.
 
“Once a month.”
 
“I thought newspapers came out every day, or every week at least,” said Dan.
 
“We couldn’t have one every week,” I explained. “It would be too much work.”
 
“Well, that’s an argument,” admitted Dan. “The less work you can get along with the better, in my opinion. No, Felicity, you needn’t say it. I know exactly what you want to say, so save your breath to cool your porridge. I agree with you that I never work if I can find anything else to do.”
 
    “‘Remember it is harder still
      To have no work to do,”’ 
quoted Cecily reprovingly.
 
“I don’t believe THAT,” rejoined Dan. “I’m like the Irishman who said he wished the man who begun work had stayed and finished it.”
 
“Well, is it decided that Bev is to be editor?” asked Felix.
 
“Of course it is,” Felicity answered for everybody.
 
“Then,” said Felix, “I move that the name be The King Monthly Magazine.”
 
“That sounds fine,” said Peter, hitching13 his chair a little nearer Felicity’s.
 
“But,” said Cecily timidly, “that will leave out Peter and the Story Girl and Sara Ray, just as if they didn’t have a share in it. I don’t think that would be fair.”
 
“You name it then, Cecily,” I suggested.
 
“Oh!” Cecily threw a deprecating glance at the Story Girl and Felicity. Then, meeting the contempt in the latter’s gaze, she raised her head with unusual spirit.
 
“I think it would be nice just to call it Our Magazine,” she said. “Then we’d all feel as if we had a share in it.”
 
“Our Magazine it will be, then,” I said. “And as for having a share in it, you bet we’ll all have a share in it. If I’m to be editor you’ll all have to be sub-editors, and have charge of a department.”
 
“Oh, I couldn’t,” protested Cecily.
 
“You must,” I said inexorably. “‘England expects everyone to do his duty.’ That’s our motto—only we’ll put Prince Edward Island in place of England. There must be no shirking. Now, what departments will we have? We must make it as much like a real newspaper as we can.”
 
“Well, we ought to have an etiquette14 department, then,” said Felicity. “The Family Guide has one.”
 
“Of course we’ll have one,” I said, “and Dan will edit it.”
 
“Dan!” exclaimed Felicity, who had fondly expected to be asked to edit it herself.
 
“I can run an etiquette column as well as that idiot in the Family Guide, anyhow,” said Dan defiantly15. “But you can’t have an etiquette department unless questions are asked. What am I to do if nobody asks any?”
 
“You must make some up,” said the Story Girl. “Uncle Roger says that is what the Family Guide man does. He says it is impossible that there can be as many hopeless fools in the world as that column would stand for otherwise.”
 
“We want you to edit the household department, Felicity,” I said, seeing a cloud lowering on that fair lady’s brow. “Nobody can do that as well as you. Felix will edit the jokes and the Information Bureau, and Cecily must be fashion editor. Yes, you must, Sis. It’s easy as wink16. And the Story Girl will attend to the personals. They’re very important. Anyone can contribute a personal, but the Story Girl is to see there are some in every issue, even if she has to make them up, like Dan with the etiquette.”
 
“Bev will run the scrap17 book department, besides the editorials,” said the Story Girl, seeing that I was too modest to say it myself.
 
“Aren’t you going to have a story page?” asked Peter.
 
“We will, if you’ll be fiction and poetry editor,” I said.
 
Peter, in his secret soul, was dismayed, but he would not blanch18 before Felicity.
 
“All right,” he said, recklessly.
 
“We can put anything we like in the scrap book department,” I explained, “but all the other contributions must be original, and all must have the name of the writer signed to them, except the personals. We must all do our best. Our Magazine is to be ‘a feast of reason and flow of soul.”’
 
I felt that I had worked in two quotations19 with striking effect. The others, with the exception of the Story Girl, looked suitably impressed.
 
“But,” said Cecily, reproachfully, “haven’t you anything for Sara Ray to do? She’ll feel awful bad if she is left out.”
 
I had forgotten Sara Ray. Nobody, except Cecily, ever did remember Sara Ray unless she was on the spot. But we decided to put her in as advertising20 manager. That sounded well and really meant very little.
 
“Well, we’ll go ahead then,” I said, with a sigh of relief that the project had been so easily launched. “We’ll get the first issue out about the first of January. And whatever else we do we mustn’t let Uncle Roger get hold of it. He’d make such fearful fun of it.”
 
“I hope we can make a success of it,” said Peter moodily21. He had been moody22 ever since he was entrapped23 into being fiction editor.
 
“It will be a success if we are determined24 to succeed,” I said. “‘Where there is a will there is always a way.’”
 
“That’s just what Ursula Townley said when her father locked her in her room the night she was going to run away with Kenneth MacNair,” said the Story Girl.
 
We pricked25 up our ears, scenting26 a story.
 
“Who were Ursula Townley and Kenneth MacNair?” I asked.
 
“Kenneth MacNair was a first cousin of the Awkward Man’s grandfather, and Ursula Townley was the belle27 of the Island in her day. Who do you suppose told me the story—no, read it to me, out of his brown book?”
 
“Never the Awkward Man himself!” I exclaimed incredulously.
 
“Yes, he did,” said the Story Girl triumphantly28. “I met him one day last week back in the maple29 woods when I was looking for ferns. He was sitting by the spring, writing in his brown book. He hid it when he saw me and looked real silly; but after I had talked to him awhile I just asked him about it, and told him that the gossips said he wrote poetry in it, and if he did would he tell me, because I was dying to know. He said he wrote a little of everything in it; and then I begged him to read me something out of it, and he read me the story of Ursula and Kenneth.”
 
“I don’t see how you ever had the face,” said Felicity; and even Cecily looked as if she thought the Story Girl had gone rather far.
 
“Never mind that,” cried Felix, “but tell us the story. That’s the main thing.”
 
“I’ll tell it just as the Awkward Man read it, as far as I can,” said the Story Girl, “but I can’t put all his nice poetical30 touches in, because I can’t remember them all, though he read it over twice for me.”
 
 
 

点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 eerie N8gy0     
adj.怪诞的;奇异的;可怕的;胆怯的
参考例句:
  • It's eerie to walk through a dark wood at night.夜晚在漆黑的森林中行走很是恐怖。
  • I walked down the eerie dark path.我走在那条漆黑恐怖的小路上。
2 twilight gKizf     
n.暮光,黄昏;暮年,晚期,衰落时期
参考例句:
  • Twilight merged into darkness.夕阳的光辉融于黑暗中。
  • Twilight was sweet with the smell of lilac and freshly turned earth.薄暮充满紫丁香和新翻耕的泥土的香味。
3 shrilling 7d58b87a513bdd26d5679b45c9178d0d     
(声音)尖锐的,刺耳的,高频率的( shrill的现在分词 ); 凄厉
参考例句:
  • The music of the pearl was shrilling with triumph in Kino. 珍珠之歌在基诺心里奏出胜利的旋律。
4 willow bMFz6     
n.柳树
参考例句:
  • The river was sparsely lined with willow trees.河边疏疏落落有几棵柳树。
  • The willow's shadow falls on the lake.垂柳的影子倒映在湖面上。
5 writhing 8e4d2653b7af038722d3f7503ad7849c     
(因极度痛苦而)扭动或翻滚( writhe的现在分词 )
参考例句:
  • She was writhing around on the floor in agony. 她痛得在地板上直打滚。
  • He was writhing on the ground in agony. 他痛苦地在地上打滚。
6 orchard UJzxu     
n.果园,果园里的全部果树,(美俚)棒球场
参考例句:
  • My orchard is bearing well this year.今年我的果园果实累累。
  • Each bamboo house was surrounded by a thriving orchard.每座竹楼周围都是茂密的果园。
7 weird bghw8     
adj.古怪的,离奇的;怪诞的,神秘而可怕的
参考例句:
  • From his weird behaviour,he seems a bit of an oddity.从他不寻常的行为看来,他好像有点怪。
  • His weird clothes really gas me.他的怪衣裳简直笑死人。
8 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。
9 catching cwVztY     
adj.易传染的,有魅力的,迷人的,接住
参考例句:
  • There are those who think eczema is catching.有人就是认为湿疹会传染。
  • Enthusiasm is very catching.热情非常富有感染力。
10 remarkable 8Vbx6     
adj.显著的,异常的,非凡的,值得注意的
参考例句:
  • She has made remarkable headway in her writing skills.她在写作技巧方面有了长足进步。
  • These cars are remarkable for the quietness of their engines.这些汽车因发动机没有噪音而不同凡响。
11 scarlet zD8zv     
n.深红色,绯红色,红衣;adj.绯红色的
参考例句:
  • The scarlet leaves of the maples contrast well with the dark green of the pines.深红的枫叶和暗绿的松树形成了明显的对比。
  • The glowing clouds are growing slowly pale,scarlet,bright red,and then light red.天空的霞光渐渐地淡下去了,深红的颜色变成了绯红,绯红又变为浅红。
12 decided lvqzZd     
adj.决定了的,坚决的;明显的,明确的
参考例句:
  • This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
  • There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。
13 hitching 5bc21594d614739d005fcd1af2f9b984     
搭乘; (免费)搭乘他人之车( hitch的现在分词 ); 搭便车; 攀上; 跃上
参考例句:
  • The farmer yoked the oxen before hitching them to the wagon. 农夫在将牛套上大车之前先给它们套上轭。
  • I saw an old man hitching along on his stick. 我看见一位老人拄着手杖蹒跚而行。
14 etiquette Xiyz0     
n.礼仪,礼节;规矩
参考例句:
  • The rules of etiquette are not so strict nowadays.如今的礼仪规则已不那么严格了。
  • According to etiquette,you should stand up to meet a guest.按照礼节你应该站起来接待客人。
15 defiantly defiantly     
adv.挑战地,大胆对抗地
参考例句:
  • Braving snow and frost, the plum trees blossomed defiantly. 红梅傲雪凌霜开。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
  • She tilted her chin at him defiantly. 她向他翘起下巴表示挑衅。 来自《简明英汉词典》
16 wink 4MGz3     
n.眨眼,使眼色,瞬间;v.眨眼,使眼色,闪烁
参考例句:
  • He tipped me the wink not to buy at that price.他眨眼暗示我按那个价格就不要买。
  • The satellite disappeared in a wink.瞬息之间,那颗卫星就消失了。
17 scrap JDFzf     
n.碎片;废料;v.废弃,报废
参考例句:
  • A man comes round regularly collecting scrap.有个男人定时来收废品。
  • Sell that car for scrap.把那辆汽车当残品卖了吧。
18 blanch 0t0z7     
v.漂白;使变白;使(植物)不见日光而变白
参考例句:
  • We blanch almonds by soaking off their skins in boiling water.我们把杏仁泡在沸水中去皮弄成白色。
  • To blanch involves plunging food into boiling water,usually very quickly.漂白是将食物放进开水里,通常非常快。
19 quotations c7bd2cdafc6bfb4ee820fb524009ec5b     
n.引用( quotation的名词复数 );[商业]行情(报告);(货物或股票的)市价;时价
参考例句:
  • The insurance company requires three quotations for repairs to the car. 保险公司要修理这辆汽车的三家修理厂的报价单。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • These quotations cannot readily be traced to their sources. 这些引语很难查出出自何处。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
20 advertising 1zjzi3     
n.广告业;广告活动 a.广告的;广告业务的
参考例句:
  • Can you give me any advice on getting into advertising? 你能指点我如何涉足广告业吗?
  • The advertising campaign is aimed primarily at young people. 这个广告宣传运动主要是针对年轻人的。
21 moodily 830ff6e3db19016ccfc088bb2ad40745     
adv.喜怒无常地;情绪多变地;心情不稳地;易生气地
参考例句:
  • Pork slipped from the room as she remained staring moodily into the distance. 阿宝从房间里溜了出来,留她独个人站在那里瞪着眼睛忧郁地望着远处。 来自辞典例句
  • He climbed moodily into the cab, relieved and distressed. 他忧郁地上了马车,既松了一口气,又忧心忡忡。 来自互联网
22 moody XEXxG     
adj.心情不稳的,易怒的,喜怒无常的
参考例句:
  • He relapsed into a moody silence.他又重新陷于忧郁的沉默中。
  • I'd never marry that girl.She's so moody.我决不会和那女孩结婚的。她太易怒了。
23 entrapped eb21b3b8e7dad36e21d322e11b46715d     
v.使陷入圈套,使入陷阱( entrap的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • He was entrapped into undertaking the work. 他受骗而担任那工作。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • He felt he had been entrapped into marrying her. 他觉得和她结婚是上了当。 来自辞典例句
24 determined duszmP     
adj.坚定的;有决心的
参考例句:
  • I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
  • He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。
25 pricked 1d0503c50da14dcb6603a2df2c2d4557     
刺,扎,戳( prick的过去式和过去分词 ); 刺伤; 刺痛; 使剧痛
参考例句:
  • The cook pricked a few holes in the pastry. 厨师在馅饼上戳了几个洞。
  • He was pricked by his conscience. 他受到良心的谴责。
26 scenting 163c6ec33148fedfedca27cbb3a29280     
vt.闻到(scent的现在分词形式)
参考例句:
  • Soames, scenting the approach of a jest, closed up. 索来斯觉察出有点调侃的味儿来了,赶快把话打断。 来自辞典例句
  • The pale woodbines and the dog-roses were scenting the hedgerows. 金银花和野蔷薇把道旁的树也薰香了。 来自辞典例句
27 belle MQly5     
n.靓女
参考例句:
  • She was the belle of her Sunday School class.在主日学校她是她们班的班花。
  • She was the belle of the ball.她是那个舞会中的美女。
28 triumphantly 9fhzuv     
ad.得意洋洋地;得胜地;成功地
参考例句:
  • The lion was roaring triumphantly. 狮子正在发出胜利的吼叫。
  • Robert was looking at me triumphantly. 罗伯特正得意扬扬地看着我。
29 maple BBpxj     
n.槭树,枫树,槭木
参考例句:
  • Maple sugar is made from the sap of maple trees.枫糖是由枫树的树液制成的。
  • The maple leaves are tinge with autumn red.枫叶染上了秋天的红色。
30 poetical 7c9cba40bd406e674afef9ffe64babcd     
adj.似诗人的;诗一般的;韵文的;富有诗意的
参考例句:
  • This is a poetical picture of the landscape. 这是一幅富有诗意的风景画。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • John is making a periphrastic study in a worn-out poetical fashion. 约翰正在对陈腐的诗风做迂回冗长的研究。 来自辞典例句


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