THE MODERN SKELETON.

 As kings of old in riotous¹ royal feasts,

Among the piled up roses and the wine,

Wild music and soft-footed dancing girls,

The pearls and gold and barbarous luxury,

Used to show also a white skeleton,—

To make life meeker² in the sight of death,

To make joy sweeter by the thought thereof,—

So our new kings in their high banqueting,

With the electric lustre³ unforeseen,

And unimagined costliness⁴ of flowers;

Rich wines of price and food as rare as gems⁵,

And all the wondrous⁶ waste of artifice⁷;

Midst high-bred elegance⁸ and jewelled ease

And beauty of rich raiment; they should set,

High before all, a sickly pauper⁹ child,

To keep the rich in mind of poverty,—

The sure concomitant of their estate.

1 riotous   

adj.骚乱的；狂欢的

参考例句：

• Summer is in riotous profusion.盛夏的大地热闹纷繁。
• We spent a riotous night at Christmas.我们度过了一个狂欢之夜。

2 meeker   

adj.温顺的，驯服的( meek的比较级 )

参考例句：

• I know about Greg Meeker and his pathetic little scam. 我了解格雷格·米克和他的可怜的小骗局。 来自电影对白

3 lustre   

n.光亮，光泽；荣誉

参考例句：

• The sun was shining with uncommon lustre.太阳放射出异常的光彩。
• A good name keeps its lustre in the dark.一个好的名誉在黑暗中也保持它的光辉。

4 costliness   

昂贵的

参考例句：

5 gems   

growth； economy； management； and customer satisfaction 增长

参考例句：

• a crown studded with gems 镶有宝石的皇冠
• The apt citations and poetic gems have adorned his speeches. 贴切的引语和珠玑般的诗句为他的演说词增添文采。

6 wondrous   

adj.令人惊奇的，奇妙的；adv.惊人地；异乎寻常地；令人惊叹地

参考例句：

• The internal structure of the Department is wondrous to behold.看一下国务院的内部结构是很有意思的。
• We were driven across this wondrous vast land of lakes and forests.我们乘车穿越这片有着湖泊及森林的广袤而神奇的土地。

7 artifice   

n.妙计，高明的手段；狡诈，诡计

参考例句：

• The use of mirrors in a room is an artifice to make the room look larger.利用镜子装饰房间是使房间显得大一点的巧妙办法。
• He displayed a great deal of artifice in decorating his new house.他在布置新房子中表现出富有的技巧。

8 elegance   

n.优雅；优美，雅致；精致，巧妙

参考例句：

• The furnishings in the room imparted an air of elegance.这个房间的家具带给这房间一种优雅的气氛。
• John has been known for his sartorial elegance.约翰因为衣着讲究而出名。

9 pauper   

n.贫民，被救济者，穷人

参考例句：

• You lived like a pauper when you had plenty of money.你有大把钱的时候，也活得像个乞丐。
• If you work conscientiously you'll only die a pauper.你按部就班地干，做到老也是穷死。