The valley descended3 sharply to a hollow thickly overgrown with red pines. Thirteen years back an unusually violent storm had swept the vicinity, and hurled4 an entire pine belt to the ground. Now, under the wide, windy sky, spread a luxuriant growth of young firs, while little oaks, hazels, and alders5 here and there dotted the depression.
Here the leader of the wolf-pack had his lair6. Here for thirteen years his mate had borne his cubs7. He was already old, but huge, strong, greedy, ferocious8, and fearless, with lean legs, powerful snapping jaws9, a short, thick neck on which the hair stood up shaggily like a short mane and terrified his younger companions.
This great, gaunt old wolf had been leader for seven years, and with good reason. By day he kept to his lair. At night, terrible and relentless10, he prowled the fields and growled11 a short summons to his mates. He led the pack on their quests for food, hunting throughout the night, racing12 over plains and down ravines, ravening13 round farms and villages. He not only slew14 elks15, horses, bulls, and bears, but also his own wolves if they were impudent16 or rebellious17. He lived—as every wolf must live—to hunt, to eat, and to breed.
In winter the snow lay over the land like a dead white pall18, and food was scarce. The wolves sat round in a circle, gnashed their teeth, and wailed19 long and plaintively20 through the night, their noses pointed21 at the moon.
Five days back, on a steep slope of the valley not far from the wolf track to a watering place, and close to a belt of young fir-trees surrounded by a snow-topped coppice, some men from a neighbouring farm had set a powerful wolf-trap, above which they had thrown a dead calf22. On their nocturnal prowls the wolves discovered the carcase. For a long time they sat round it in the grey darkness, howling plaintively, hungrily gnashing their fangs23, afraid to move nearer, and each one timidly jostling the other forward with cruel vicious eyes.
At last one young wolf's hunger overcame his fear; he threw himself on the calf with a shrill24 squeal25, and after him rushed the rest, whining26, growling27, raising their tails, bending their bony backs, bristling28 the hair on their short thick necks—and into the trap fell the leader's mate.
They paid no attention to her, but eagerly devoured29 the calf, and it was only when they had finished and cleared away all traces of the orgy that they realised the she-wolf was trapped there for good.
All night she howled and threw herself about, saliva30 falling from her dripping jaws, her eyes rolling wildly and emitting little sparks of green fire as she circled round and round on a clanking chain. In the morning two farm-hands arrived, threw her on their sleigh and drove away.
The leader remained alone the whole day. Then, when night again returned, he called his band together, tore one young wolf to pieces, rushed round with lowered head and bristling hair, finally leaving the pack and returning to his lair. The wolves submitted to his terrible punishment, for he was their chief, who had seized power by force, and they patiently awaited his return, thinking he had gone on a solitary31 food-hunt.
But as the night advanced and he did not come, they began to howl their urgent summons to him, and now there was an undercurrent of menace in their cries, the lust32 to kill, for the code of the wild beasts prescribed only one penalty for the leader who deserted33 his pack—death!
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1 blizzard | |
n.暴风雪 | |
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2 misty | |
adj.雾蒙蒙的,有雾的 | |
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3 descended | |
a.为...后裔的,出身于...的 | |
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4 hurled | |
v.猛投,用力掷( hurl的过去式和过去分词 );大声叫骂 | |
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5 alders | |
n.桤木( alder的名词复数 ) | |
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6 lair | |
n.野兽的巢穴;躲藏处 | |
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7 cubs | |
n.幼小的兽,不懂规矩的年轻人( cub的名词复数 ) | |
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8 ferocious | |
adj.凶猛的,残暴的,极度的,十分强烈的 | |
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9 jaws | |
n.口部;嘴 | |
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10 relentless | |
adj.残酷的,不留情的,无怜悯心的 | |
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11 growled | |
v.(动物)发狺狺声, (雷)作隆隆声( growl的过去式和过去分词 );低声咆哮着说 | |
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12 racing | |
n.竞赛,赛马;adj.竞赛用的,赛马用的 | |
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13 ravening | |
a.贪婪而饥饿的 | |
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14 slew | |
v.(使)旋转;n.大量,许多 | |
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15 elks | |
n.麋鹿( elk的名词复数 ) | |
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16 impudent | |
adj.鲁莽的,卑鄙的,厚颜无耻的 | |
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17 rebellious | |
adj.造反的,反抗的,难控制的 | |
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18 pall | |
v.覆盖,使平淡无味;n.柩衣,棺罩;棺材;帷幕 | |
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19 wailed | |
v.哭叫,哀号( wail的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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20 plaintively | |
adv.悲哀地,哀怨地 | |
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21 pointed | |
adj.尖的,直截了当的 | |
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22 calf | |
n.小牛,犊,幼仔,小牛皮 | |
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23 fangs | |
n.(尤指狗和狼的)长而尖的牙( fang的名词复数 );(蛇的)毒牙;罐座 | |
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24 shrill | |
adj.尖声的;刺耳的;v尖叫 | |
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25 squeal | |
v.发出长而尖的声音;n.长而尖的声音 | |
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26 whining | |
n. 抱怨,牢骚 v. 哭诉,发牢骚 | |
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27 growling | |
n.吠声, 咆哮声 v.怒吠, 咆哮, 吼 | |
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28 bristling | |
a.竖立的 | |
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29 devoured | |
吞没( devour的过去式和过去分词 ); 耗尽; 津津有味地看; 狼吞虎咽地吃光 | |
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30 saliva | |
n.唾液,口水 | |
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31 solitary | |
adj.孤独的,独立的,荒凉的;n.隐士 | |
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32 lust | |
n.性(淫)欲;渴(欲)望;vi.对…有强烈的欲望 | |
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33 deserted | |
adj.荒芜的,荒废的,无人的,被遗弃的 | |
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