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首页 » 经典英文小说 » When a Man's Single A Tale of Literary Life » CHAPTER IV 'THE SCORN OF SCORNS'
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CHAPTER IV 'THE SCORN OF SCORNS'
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 St. Leonard's Lodge1 is the residence of Mr. William Meredith, an ex-mayor of Silchester, and stands in the fashionable suburb of the town. There was at one time considerable intercourse4 between this house and Dome5 Castle, the seat of Colonel Abinger, though they are five miles apart and in different counties; and one day, after Rob had been on the Press for a few months, two boys set out from the castle to show themselves to Nell Meredith. They could have reached the high road by a private walk between a beech6 and an ivy7 hedge, but they preferred to climb down a steep path to the wild-running Dome. The advantage of this route was that they risked their necks by taking it.
 
Nell, who did not expect visitors, was sitting by the fire in her boudoir dreaming. It was the room in which she and Mary Abinger had often discussed such great questions as Woman, her Aims, her Influence; Man, his Instability, his Weakness, his Degeneration; the Poor, how are we to Help them; why Lady Lucy Gilding8 wears Pink when Blue is obviously her Colour.
 
Nell was tucked away in a soft arm-chair, in which her father never saw her without wondering that such a little thing should require eighteen yards for a dress.
 
'I'm not so little,' she would say on these occasions, and then Mr. Meredith chuckled9, for he knew that there were young men who considered his Nell tall and terrible. He liked to watch her sweeping10 through a room. To him the boudoir was a sea of reefs. Nell's dignity when she was introduced to a young gentleman was another thing her father could never look upon without awe11, but he also noticed that it soon wore off.
 
On the mantelpiece lay a comb and several hairpins12. There are few more mysterious things than hairpins. So far back as we can go into the past we see woman putting up her hair. It is said that married men lose their awe of hairpins and clean their pipes with them.
 
A pair of curling-tongs had a chair to themselves near Nell, and she wore a short blue dressing-jacket. Probably when she woke from her reverie she meant to do something to her brown hair. When old gentlemen called at the Lodge they frequently told their host that he had a very pretty daughter; when younger gentlemen called they generally called again, and if Nell thought they admired her the first time she spared no pains to make them admire her still more the next time. This was to make them respect their own judgment13.
 
It was little Will Abinger who had set Nell a-dreaming, for from wondering if he was home yet for the Christmas holidays her thoughts wandered to his sister Mary, and then to his brother Dick. She thought longer of Dick in his lonely London chambers14 than of the others, and by and by she was saying to herself petulantly15, 'I wish people wouldn't go dying and leaving me money.' Mr. Meredith, and still more Mrs. Meredith, thought that their only daughter, an heiress, would be thrown away on Richard Abinger, barrister-at-law, whose blood was much bluer than theirs, but who was, nevertheless, understood to be as hard-up as his father.
 
The door-bell rang, and two callers were ushered16 into the drawing-room without Nell's knowing it. One of them left his companion to talk to Mrs. Meredith, and clattered17 upstairs in search of the daughter of the house. He was a bright-faced boy of thirteen, with a passion for flinging stones, and, of late, he had worn his head in the air, not because he was conceited19, but that he might look with admiration20 upon the face of the young gentleman downstairs.
 
Bouncing into the parlour, he caught sight of the object of his search before she could turn her head.
 
'I say, Nell, I'm back.'
 
Miss Meredith jumped from her chair.
 
'Will!' she cried.
 
When the visitor saw this young lady coming toward him quickly, he knew what she was after and tried to get out of her way. But Nell kissed him.
 
'Now, then,' he said indignantly, pushing her from him.
 
Will looked round him fearfully, and then closed the door.
 
'You might have waited till the door was shut, at any rate,' he grumbled21. 'It would have been a nice thing if any one had seen you!'
 
'Why, what would it have mattered, you horrid22 little boy!' said Nell.
 
'Little boy! I'm bigger than you, at any rate. As for its not mattering—but you don't know who is downstairs. The captain——'
 
'Captain!' cried Nell.
 
She seized her curling-tongs.
 
'Yes,' said Will, watching the effect of his words, 'Greybrooke, the captain of the school. He is giving me a week just now.'
 
Will said this as proudly as if his guest was Napoleon Bonaparte, but Nell laid down her curling-irons. The intruder interpreted her action and resented it.
 
'You're not his style,' he said; 'he likes bigger women.'
 
'Oh, does he?' said Nell, screwing up her little Greek nose contemptuously.
 
'He's eighteen,' said Will.
 
'A mere3 schoolboy.'
 
'Why, he shaves.'
 
'Doesn't the master whip him for that?'
 
'What? Whip Greybrooke!'
 
Will laughed hysterically23.
 
'You should just see him at breakfast with old Jerry. Why, I've seen him myself, when half a dozen of us were asked to tea by Mrs. Jerry, and though we were frightened to open our mouths, what do you think Greybrooke did?'
 
'Something silly, I should say.'
 
'He asked old Jerry, as cool as you like, to pass the butter! That's the sort of fellow Greybrooke is.'
 
'How is Mary?'
 
'Oh, she's all right. No, she has a headache. I say, Greybrooke says Mary's rather slow.'
 
'He must be a horror,' said Nell, 'and I don't see why you brought him here.'
 
'I thought you would like to see him,' explained Will. 'He made a hundred and three against Rugby, and was only bowled off his pads.'
 
'Well,' said Nell, yawning, 'I suppose I must go down and meet your prodigy24.'
 
Will, misunderstanding, got between her and the door.
 
'You're not going down like that,' he said anxiously, with a wave of his hand that included the dressing-jacket and the untidy hair. 'Greybrooke's so particular, and I told him you were a jolly girl.'
 
'What else did you tell him?' asked Nell suspiciously.
 
'Not much,' said Will, with a guilty look.
 
'I know you told him something else?'
 
'I told him you—you were fond of kissing people.'
 
'Oh, you nasty boy, Will—as if kissing a child like you counted!'
 
'Never mind,' said Will soothingly26, 'Greybrooke's not the fellow to tell tales. Besides, I know you girls can't help it. Mary's just the same.'
 
'You are a goose, Will, and the day will come when you'll give anything for a kiss.'
 
'You've no right to bring such charges against a fellow,' said Will indignantly, strutting27 to the door.
 
Half-way downstairs he turned and came back.
 
'I say, Nell,' he said, 'you—you, when you come down, you won't kiss Greybrooke?'
 
Nell drew herself up in a way that would have scared any young man but Will.
 
'He's so awfully28 particular,' Will continued apologetically.
 
'Was it to tell me this you came upstairs?'
 
'No, honour bright, it wasn't. I only came up in case you should want to kiss me, and to—to have it over.'
 
Nell was standing25 near Will, and before he could jump back she slapped his face.
 
The snow was dancing outside in a light wind when Nell sailed into the drawing-room. She could probably still inform you how she was dressed, but that evening Will and the captain could not tell Mary. The captain thought it was a reddish dress or else blue; but it was all in squares like a draught-board, according to Will. Forty minutes had elapsed since Will visited her upstairs, and now he smiled at the conceit18 which made her think that the captain would succumb29 to a pretty frock. Of course Nell had no such thought. She always dressed carefully because—well, because there is never any saying.
 
Though Miss Meredith froze Greybrooke with a glance, he was relieved to see her. Her mother had discovered that she knew the lady who married his brother, and had asked questions about the baby. He did not like it. These, he thought, were things you should pretend not to know about. He had contrived30 to keep his nieces and nephews dark from the fellows at school, though most of them would have been too just to attach any blame to him. Of this baby he was specially31 ashamed, because they had called it after him.
 
Mrs. Meredith was a small, stout32 lady, of whose cleverness her husband spoke33 proudly to Nell, but never to herself. When Nell told her how he had talked, she exclaimed, 'Nonsense!' and then waited to hear what else he had said. She loved him, but probably no woman can live with a man for many years without having an indulgent contempt for him, and wondering how he is considered a good man of business. Mrs. Meredith, who was a terribly active woman, was glad to leave the entertainment of her visitors to Nell, and that young lady began severely34 by asking 'how you boys mean to amuse yourselves?'
 
'Do you keep rabbits?' she said to the captain sweetly.
 
'I say, Nell!' cried Will warningly.
 
'I have not kept rabbits,' Greybrooke replied, with simple dignity, 'since I was a boy.'
 
'I told you,' said Will, 'that Greybrooke was old—why, he's nearly as old as yourself. She's older than she looks, you know, Greybrooke.'
 
The captain was gazing at Nell with intense admiration. As she raised her head indignantly he thought she was looking to him for protection. That was a way Nell had.
 
'Abinger,' said the captain sternly, 'shut up.'
 
'Don't mind him, Miss Meredith,' he continued; 'he doesn't understand girls.'
 
To think he understands girls is the last affront35 a youth pays them. When he ceases trying to reduce them to fixed36 principles he has come of age. Nell, knowing this, felt sorry for Greybrooke, for she foresaw what he would have to go through. Her manner to him underwent such a change that he began to have a high opinion of himself. This is often called falling in love. Will was satisfied that his friend impressed Nell, and he admired Greybrooke's politeness to a chit of a girl, but he became restless. His eyes wandered to the piano, and he had a lurking37 fear that Nell would play something. He signed to the captain to get up.
 
'We'll have to be going now,' he said at last; 'good-bye.'
 
Greybrooke glared at Will, forgetting that they had arranged beforehand to stay as short a time as possible.
 
'Perhaps you have other calls to make?' said Nell, who had no desire to keep them there longer than they cared to stay.
 
'Oh yes,' said Will.
 
'No,' said the captain, 'we only came into Silchester with Miss Abinger's message for you.'
 
'Why, Will,' exclaimed Nell, 'you never gave me any message?'
 
'I forgot what it was,' Will explained cheerily; 'something about a ribbon, I think.'
 
'I did not hear the message given,' the captain said, in answer to Nell's look, 'but Miss Abinger had a headache, and I think Will said it had to do with that.'
 
'Oh, wait a bit,' said Will, 'I remember something about it now. Mary saw something in a Silchester paper, the Mirror, I think, that made her cry, and she thinks that if you saw it you would cry too. So she wants you to look at it.'
 
'The idea of Mary's crying!' said Nell indignantly. 'But did she not give you a note?'
 
'She was too much upset,' said Will, signing to the captain not to let on that they had refused to wait for the note.
 
'I wonder what it can be?' murmured Nell.
 
She hurried from the room to her father's den2, and found him there surrounded by newspapers.
 
'Is there anything in the Mirror, father?' she asked.
 
'Nothing,' said Mr. Meredith, who had made the same answer to this question many hundreds of times; 'nothing except depression in the boot trade.'
 
'It can't be that,' said Nell.
 
'Can't be what?'
 
'Oh, give me the paper,' cried the ex-mayor's daughter impatiently.
 
She looked hastily up and down it, with an involuntary glance at the births, deaths, and marriages, turned it inside out and outside in, and then exclaimed 'Oh!' Mr. Meredith, who was too much accustomed to his daughter's impulses to think that there was much wrong, listened patiently while she ejaculated, 'Horrid!' 'What a shame!' 'Oh, I wish I was a man!' and, 'Well, I can't understand it.' When she tossed the paper to the floor, her face was red and her body trembled with excitement.
 
'What is it, Nelly?' asked her father.
 
Whether Miss Abinger cried over the Mirror that day is not to be known, but there were indignant tears in Nell's eyes as she ran upstairs to her bedroom. Mr. Meredith took up the paper and examined it carefully at the place where his daughter had torn it in her anger. What troubled her seemed to be something in the book notices, and he concluded that it must be a cruel 'slating38' of a novel in one volume called The Scorn of Scorns. Mr. Meredith remembered that Nell had compelled him to read that book and to say that he liked it.
 
'That's all,' he said to himself, much relieved.
 
He fancied that Nell, being a girl, was distressed39 to see a book she liked called 'the sentimental40 out-pourings of some silly girl who ought to confine her writing to copy-books.' In a woman so much excitement over nothing seemed quite a natural thing to Mr. Meredith. The sex had ceased to surprise him. Having retired41 from business, Mr. Meredith now did things slowly as a good way of passing the time. He had risen to wealth from penury42, and counted time by his dining-room chairs, having passed through a cane43, a horsehair, and a leather period before arriving at morocco. Mrs. Meredith counted time by the death of her only son.
 
It may be presumed that Nell would not have locked herself into her bedroom and cried and stamped her feet on an imaginary critic had The Scorn of Scorns not interested her more than her father thought. She sat down to write a note to Mary. Then she tore it up, and wrote a letter to Mary's elder brother, beginning with the envelope. She tore this up also, as another idea came into her head. She nodded several times to herself over this idea, as a sign that the more she thought of it the more she liked it. Then, after very nearly forgetting to touch her eyes with something that made them look less red, she returned to the drawing-room.
 
'Will,' she said, 'have you seen the new ponies44 papa gave me on my birthday?'
 
Will leapt to his feet.
 
'Come on, Greybrooke,' he cried, making for the door.
 
The captain hesitated.
 
'Perhaps,' said Nell, with a glance at him, 'Mr. Greybrooke does not have much interest in horses?'
 
'Doesn't he just!' said Will; 'why——'
 
'No,' said Greybrooke; 'but I'll wait here for you, Abinger.'
 
Will was staggered. For a moment the horrible thought passed through his mind that these girls had got hold of the captain. Then he remembered.
 
'Come on,' he said, 'Nell won't mind.'
 
But Greybrooke had a delicious notion that the young lady wanted to see him by himself, and Will had to go to the stables alone.
 
'I won't be long,' he said to Greybrooke, apologising for leaving him alone with a girl. 'Don't bother him too much,' he whispered to Nell at the door.
 
As soon as Will had disappeared Nell turned to Greybrooke.
 
'Mr. Greybrooke,' she said, speaking rapidly in a voice so low that it was a compliment to him in itself, 'there is something I should like you to do for me.'
 
The captain flushed with pleasure.
 
'There is nothing I wouldn't do for you,' he stammered45.
 
'I want you,' continued Miss Meredith, with a most vindictive46 look on her face, 'to find out for me who wrote a book review in to-day's Mirror, and to—to—oh, to thrash him.'
 
'All right,' said the captain, rising and looking for his hat.
 
'Wait a minute,' said Nell, glancing at him admiringly. 'The book is called The Scorn of Scorns, and it is written by—by a friend of mine. In to-day's Mirror it is called the most horrid names, sickly sentimental, not even grammatical, and all that.'
 
'The cads!' cried Greybrooke.
 
'But the horribly mean, wicked thing about it,' continued Nell, becoming more and more indignant as she told her story, 'is that not two months ago there was a review of the book in the same paper, which said it was the most pathetic and thoughtful and clever tale that had ever been published by an anonymous47 author!'
 
'It's the lowest thing I ever heard of,' said Greybrooke, 'but these newspaper men are all the same.'
 
'No, they're not,' said Nell sharply (Richard Abinger, Esq.'s, only visible means of sustenance48 was the press), 'but they are dreadfully mean, contemptible49 creatures on the Mirror—just reporters, you know.'
 
Greybrooke nodded, though he knew nothing about it.
 
'The first review,' Nell continued, 'appeared on the 3rd of October, and I want you to show them both to the editor, and insist upon knowing the name of the writer. After that find the wretch50 out, and——'
 
'And lick him,' said the captain.
 
His face frightened Nell.
 
'You won't hit him very hard?' she asked apprehensively51, adding as an afterthought, 'perhaps he is stronger than you.'
 
Greybrooke felt himself in an unfortunate position. He could not boast before Nell, but he wished very keenly that Will was there to boast for him. Most of us have experienced the sensation.
 
Nell having undertaken to keep Will employed until the captain's return, Greybrooke set off for the Mirror office with a look of determination on his face. He went into two shops, the one a news-shop, where he bought a copy of the paper. In the other he asked for a thick stick, having remembered that the elegant cane he carried was better fitted for swinging in the air than for breaking a newspaper man's head. He tried the stick on a paling. Greybrooke felt certain that Miss Meredith was the novelist. That was why he selected so thick a weapon.
 
He marched into the advertising52 office, and demanded to see the editor of the Mirror.
 
''Stairs,' said a clerk, with his head in a ledger53. He meant upstairs, and the squire54 of dames55 took his advice. After wandering for some time in a labyrinth56 of dark passages, he opened the door of the day composing-room, in which half a dozen silent figures were bending over their cases.
 
'I want the editor,' said Greybrooke, somewhat startled by the sound his voice made in the great room.
 
''Stairs,' said one of the figures, meaning downstairs.
 
Greybrooke, remembering who had sent him here, did not lose heart. He knocked at several doors, and then pushed them open. All the rooms were empty. Then he heard a voice saying—
 
'Who are you? What do you want?'
 
Mr. Licquorish was the speaker, and he had been peering at the intruder for some time through a grating in his door. He would not have spoken at all, but he wanted to go into the composing-room, and Greybrooke was in the passage that led to it.
 
'I don't see you,' said the captain; 'I want the editor.'
 
'I am the editor,' said the voice, 'but I can see no one at present except on business.'
 
'I am here on business,' said Greybrooke. 'I want to thrash one of your staff.'
 
'All the members of my literary staff are engaged at present,' said Mr. Licquorish, in a pleasant voice; 'which one do you want?'
 
'I want the low cad who wrote a review of a book called The Scorn of Scorns, in to-day's paper.'
 
'Oh!' said Mr. Licquorish.
 
'I demand his name,' cried Greybrooke.
 
The editor made no answer. He had other things to do than to quarrel with schoolboys. As he could not get out he began a leaderette. The visitor, however, had discovered the editorial door now, and was shaking it violently.
 
'Why don't you answer me?' he cried.
 
Mr. Licquorish thought for a moment of calling down the speaking-tube which communicated with the advertisement office for a clerk to come and take this youth away, but after all he was good-natured. He finished a sentence, and then opened the door. The captain strode in, but refused a chair.
 
'Are you the author of the book?' the editor asked.
 
'No,' said Greybrooke, 'but I am her friend, and I am here to thrash——'
 
Mr. Licquorish held up his hand to stop the flow of the captain's indignation. He could never understand why the public got so excited over these little matters.
 
'She is a Silchester lady?' he asked.
 
Greybrooke did not know how to reply to this. He was not sure whether Nell wanted the authorship revealed.
 
'That has nothing to do with the matter,' he said. 'I want the name of the writer who has libelled her.'
 
'On the press,' said Mr. Licquorish, repeating some phrases which he kept for such an occasion as the present, 'we have a duty to the public to perform. When books are sent us for review we never allow prejudice or private considerations to warp57 our judgment. The Mirror has in consequence a reputation for honesty that some papers do not possess. Now I distinctly remember that this book, The Vale of Tears——'
 
'The Scorn of Scorns.'
 
'I mean The Scorn of Scorns, was carefully considered by the expert to whom it was given for review. Being honestly of opinion that the treatise——'
 
'It is a novel.'
 
'That the novel is worthless, we had to say so. Had it been clever, we should——'
 
Mr. Licquorish paused, reading in the other's face that there was something wrong. Greybrooke had concluded that the editor had forgotten about the first review.
 
'Can you show me a copy of the Mirror,' the captain asked, 'for October 3rd?'
 
Mr. Licquorish turned to the file, and Greybrooke looked over his shoulder.
 
'There it is!' cried the captain indignantly.
 
They read the original notice together. It said that, if The Scorn of Scorns was written by a new writer, his next story would be looked for with great interest. It 'could not refrain from quoting the following exquisitely58 tender passage.' It found the earlier pages 'as refreshing59 as a spring morning,' and the closing chapters were a triumph of 'the art that conceals60 art.'
 
'Well, what have you to say to that?' asked Greybrooke fiercely.
 
'A mistake,' said the editor blandly61. 'Such things do happen occasionally.'
 
'You shall make reparation for it!'
 
'Hum,' said Mr Licquorish.
 
'The insult,' cried Greybrooke, 'must have been intentional62.'
 
'No. I fancy the authoress must be to blame for this. Did she send a copy of the work to us?'
 
'I should think it very unlikely,' said Greybrooke, fuming63.
 
'Not at all,' said the editor, 'especially if she is a Silchester lady.'
 
'What would make her do that?'
 
'It generally comes about in this way. The publishers send a copy of the book to a newspaper, and owing to pressure on the paper's space, no notice appears for some time. The author, who looks for it daily, thinks that the publishers have neglected their duty, and sends a copy to the office himself. The editor, forgetful that he has had a notice of the book lying ready for printing for months, gives the second copy to another reviewer. By and by the first review appears, but owing to an oversight64 the editor does not take note of it, and after a time, unless his attention is called to the matter, the second review appears also. Probably that is the explanation in this case.'
 
'But such carelessness on a respectable paper is incomprehensible,' said the captain.
 
The editor was looking up his books to see if they shed any light on the affair, but he answered—
 
'On the contrary, it is an experience known to most newspapers. Ah, I have it!'
 
Mr. Licquorish read out, 'The Scorn of Scorns, received September 1st, reviewed October 3rd.' Several pages farther on he discovered, 'The Scorn of Scorns, received September 24th, reviewed December 19th.'
 
'You will find,' he said, 'that this explains it.'
 
'I don't consider the explanation satisfactory,' replied the captain, 'and I insist, first, upon an apology in the paper, and second, on getting the name of the writer of the second review.'
 
'I am busy this morning,' said Mr. Licquorish, opening his door, 'and what you ask is absurd. If the authoress can give me her word that she did not send the book and so bring this upon herself, we shall insert a word on the subject but not otherwise. Good-morning.'
 
'Give me the writer's name,' cried the captain.
 
'We make a point of never giving names in that way,' said Mr. Licquorish.
 
'You have not heard the last of this,' Greybrooke said from the doorway65. 'I shall make it my duty to ferret out the coward's name, and——'
 
'Good-morning,' Mr. Licquorish repeated.
 
The captain went thumping66 down the stairs, and meeting a printer's devil at the bottom, cuffed67 him soundly because he was part of the Mirror.
 
To his surprise, Miss Meredith's first remark when he returned was—
 
'Oh, I hope you didn't see him.'
 
She looked at Greybrooke's face, fearing it might be stained with blood, and when he told her the result of his inquiries68 she seemed pleased rather than otherwise. Nell was soft-hearted after all, and she knew how that second copy of the novel had reached the Mirror office.
 
'I shall find the fellow out, though,' said Greybrooke, grasping his cudgel firmly.
 
'Why, you are as vindictive as if you had written the book yourself,' said Nell.
 
Greybrooke murmured, blushing the while, that an insult to her hurt him more than one offered to himself. Nell opened the eyes of astonishment69.
 
'You don't think I wrote the book?' she asked; then seeing that it was so from his face, added, 'oh no, I'm not clever enough. It was written by—by a friend of mine.'
 
Nell deserves credit for not telling Greybrooke who the friend was, for that was a secret. But there was reason to believe that she had already divulged70 it to twelve persons (all in the strictest confidence). When the captain returned she was explaining all about it by letter to Richard Abinger, Esq. Possibly that was why Greybrooke thought she was not nearly so nice to him now as she had been an hour before.
 
Will was unusually quiet when he and Greybrooke said adieu to the whole family of Merediths. He was burning to know where the captain had been, and also what Nell called him back to say in such a low tone. What she said was—
 
'Don't say anything about going to the Mirror office, Mr. Greybrooke, to Miss Abinger.'
 
The captain turned round to lift his hat, and at the same time expressed involuntarily a wish that Nell could see him punishing loose bowling71.
 
Mrs. Meredith beamed to him.
 
'There is something very nice,' she said to Nell, 'about a polite young man.'
 
'Yes,' murmured her daughter, 'and even if he isn't polite.'

点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 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。
2 den 5w9xk     
n.兽穴;秘密地方;安静的小房间,私室
参考例句:
  • There is a big fox den on the back hill.后山有一个很大的狐狸窝。
  • The only way to catch tiger cubs is to go into tiger's den.不入虎穴焉得虎子。
3 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。
4 intercourse NbMzU     
n.性交;交流,交往,交际
参考例句:
  • The magazine becomes a cultural medium of intercourse between the two peoples.该杂志成为两民族间文化交流的媒介。
  • There was close intercourse between them.他们过往很密。
5 dome 7s2xC     
n.圆屋顶,拱顶
参考例句:
  • The dome was supported by white marble columns.圆顶由白色大理石柱支撑着。
  • They formed the dome with the tree's branches.他们用树枝搭成圆屋顶。
6 beech uynzJF     
n.山毛榉;adj.山毛榉的
参考例句:
  • Autumn is the time to see the beech woods in all their glory.秋天是观赏山毛榉林的最佳时期。
  • Exasperated,he leaped the stream,and strode towards beech clump.他满腔恼怒,跳过小河,大踏步向毛榉林子走去。
7 ivy x31ys     
n.常青藤,常春藤
参考例句:
  • Her wedding bouquet consisted of roses and ivy.她的婚礼花篮包括玫瑰和长春藤。
  • The wall is covered all over with ivy.墙上爬满了常春藤。
8 gilding Gs8zQk     
n.贴金箔,镀金
参考例句:
  • The dress is perfect. Don't add anything to it at all. It would just be gilding the lily. 这条裙子已经很完美了,别再作任何修饰了,那只会画蛇添足。
  • The gilding is extremely lavish. 这层镀金极为奢华。
9 chuckled 8ce1383c838073977a08258a1f3e30f8     
轻声地笑( chuckle的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • She chuckled at the memory. 想起这件事她就暗自发笑。
  • She chuckled softly to herself as she remembered his astonished look. 想起他那惊讶的表情,她就轻轻地暗自发笑。
10 sweeping ihCzZ4     
adj.范围广大的,一扫无遗的
参考例句:
  • The citizens voted for sweeping reforms.公民投票支持全面的改革。
  • Can you hear the wind sweeping through the branches?你能听到风掠过树枝的声音吗?
11 awe WNqzC     
n.敬畏,惊惧;vt.使敬畏,使惊惧
参考例句:
  • The sight filled us with awe.这景色使我们大为惊叹。
  • The approaching tornado struck awe in our hearts.正在逼近的龙卷风使我们惊恐万分。
12 hairpins f4bc7c360aa8d846100cb12b1615b29f     
n.发夹( hairpin的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • The price of these hairpins are about the same. 这些发夹的价格大致相同。 来自互联网
  • So the king gives a hundred hairpins to each of them. 所以国王送给她们每人一百个漂亮的发夹。 来自互联网
13 judgment e3xxC     
n.审判;判断力,识别力,看法,意见
参考例句:
  • The chairman flatters himself on his judgment of people.主席自认为他审视人比别人高明。
  • He's a man of excellent judgment.他眼力过人。
14 chambers c053984cd45eab1984d2c4776373c4fe     
n.房间( chamber的名词复数 );(议会的)议院;卧室;会议厅
参考例句:
  • The body will be removed into one of the cold storage chambers. 尸体将被移到一个冷冻间里。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • Mr Chambers's readable book concentrates on the middle passage: the time Ransome spent in Russia. Chambers先生的这本值得一看的书重点在中间:Ransome在俄国的那几年。 来自互联网
15 petulantly 6a54991724c557a3ccaeff187356e1c6     
参考例句:
  • \"No; nor will she miss now,\" cries The Vengeance, petulantly. “不会的,现在也不会错过,”复仇女神气冲冲地说。 来自英汉文学 - 双城记
16 ushered d337b3442ea0cc4312a5950ae8911282     
v.引,领,陪同( usher的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • The secretary ushered me into his office. 秘书把我领进他的办公室。
  • A round of parties ushered in the New Year. 一系列的晚会迎来了新年。 来自《简明英汉词典》
17 clattered 84556c54ff175194afe62f5473519d5a     
发出咔哒声(clatter的过去式与过去分词形式)
参考例句:
  • He dropped the knife and it clattered on the stone floor. 他一失手,刀子当啷一声掉到石头地面上。
  • His hand went limp and the knife clattered to the ground. 他的手一软,刀子当啷一声掉到地上。
18 conceit raVyy     
n.自负,自高自大
参考例句:
  • As conceit makes one lag behind,so modesty helps one make progress.骄傲使人落后,谦虚使人进步。
  • She seems to be eaten up with her own conceit.她仿佛已经被骄傲冲昏了头脑。
19 conceited Cv0zxi     
adj.自负的,骄傲自满的
参考例句:
  • He could not bear that they should be so conceited.他们这样自高自大他受不了。
  • I'm not as conceited as so many people seem to think.我不像很多人认为的那么自负。
20 admiration afpyA     
n.钦佩,赞美,羡慕
参考例句:
  • He was lost in admiration of the beauty of the scene.他对风景之美赞不绝口。
  • We have a great admiration for the gold medalists.我们对金牌获得者极为敬佩。
21 grumbled ed735a7f7af37489d7db1a9ef3b64f91     
抱怨( grumble的过去式和过去分词 ); 发牢骚; 咕哝; 发哼声
参考例句:
  • He grumbled at the low pay offered to him. 他抱怨给他的工资低。
  • The heat was sweltering, and the men grumbled fiercely over their work. 天热得让人发昏,水手们边干活边发着牢骚。
22 horrid arozZj     
adj.可怕的;令人惊恐的;恐怖的;极讨厌的
参考例句:
  • I'm not going to the horrid dinner party.我不打算去参加这次讨厌的宴会。
  • The medicine is horrid and she couldn't get it down.这种药很难吃,她咽不下去。
23 hysterically 5q7zmQ     
ad. 歇斯底里地
参考例句:
  • The children giggled hysterically. 孩子们歇斯底里地傻笑。
  • She sobbed hysterically, and her thin body was shaken. 她歇斯底里地抽泣着,她瘦弱的身体哭得直颤抖。
24 prodigy n14zP     
n.惊人的事物,奇迹,神童,天才,预兆
参考例句:
  • She was a child prodigy on the violin.她是神童小提琴手。
  • He was always a Negro prodigy who played barbarously and wonderfully.他始终是一个黑人的奇才,这种奇才弹奏起来粗野而惊人。
25 standing 2hCzgo     
n.持续,地位;adj.永久的,不动的,直立的,不流动的
参考例句:
  • After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
  • They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。
26 soothingly soothingly     
adv.抚慰地,安慰地;镇痛地
参考例句:
  • The mother talked soothingly to her child. 母亲对自己的孩子安慰地说。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • He continued to talk quietly and soothingly to the girl until her frightened grip on his arm was relaxed. 他继续柔声安慰那姑娘,她那因恐惧而紧抓住他的手终于放松了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
27 strutting 2a28bf7fb89b582054410bf3c6bbde1a     
加固,支撑物
参考例句:
  • He, too, was exceedingly arrogant, strutting about the castle. 他也是非常自大,在城堡里大摇大摆地走。
  • The pompous lecturer is strutting and forth across the stage. 这个演讲者在台上趾高气扬地来回走着。
28 awfully MPkym     
adv.可怕地,非常地,极端地
参考例句:
  • Agriculture was awfully neglected in the past.过去农业遭到严重忽视。
  • I've been feeling awfully bad about it.对这我一直感到很难受。
29 succumb CHLzp     
v.屈服,屈从;死
参考例句:
  • They will never succumb to the enemies.他们决不向敌人屈服。
  • Will business leaders succumb to these ideas?商业领袖们会被这些观点折服吗?
30 contrived ivBzmO     
adj.不自然的,做作的;虚构的
参考例句:
  • There was nothing contrived or calculated about what he said.他说的话里没有任何蓄意捏造的成分。
  • The plot seems contrived.情节看起来不真实。
31 specially Hviwq     
adv.特定地;特殊地;明确地
参考例句:
  • They are specially packaged so that they stack easily.它们经过特别包装以便于堆放。
  • The machine was designed specially for demolishing old buildings.这种机器是专为拆毁旧楼房而设计的。
33 spoke XryyC     
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
参考例句:
  • They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
  • The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。
34 severely SiCzmk     
adv.严格地;严厉地;非常恶劣地
参考例句:
  • He was severely criticized and removed from his post.他受到了严厉的批评并且被撤了职。
  • He is severely put down for his careless work.他因工作上的粗心大意而受到了严厉的批评。
35 affront pKvy6     
n./v.侮辱,触怒
参考例句:
  • Your behaviour is an affront to public decency.你的行为有伤风化。
  • This remark caused affront to many people.这句话得罪了不少人。
36 fixed JsKzzj     
adj.固定的,不变的,准备好的;(计算机)固定的
参考例句:
  • Have you two fixed on a date for the wedding yet?你们俩选定婚期了吗?
  • Once the aim is fixed,we should not change it arbitrarily.目标一旦确定,我们就不应该随意改变。
37 lurking 332fb85b4d0f64d0e0d1ef0d34ebcbe7     
潜在
参考例句:
  • Why are you lurking around outside my house? 你在我房子外面鬼鬼祟祟的,想干什么?
  • There is a suspicious man lurking in the shadows. 有一可疑的人躲在阴暗中。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
38 slating 1a8f6885f4cd1b2a9e46f4d166dbcb48     
批评
参考例句:
  • A heavy slating always does me good. 狠狠地斥责对我常有好处。
  • A hearty slating always does me good. 由衷的批评对我常有好处。
39 distressed du1z3y     
痛苦的
参考例句:
  • He was too distressed and confused to answer their questions. 他非常苦恼而困惑,无法回答他们的问题。
  • The news of his death distressed us greatly. 他逝世的消息使我们极为悲痛。
40 sentimental dDuzS     
adj.多愁善感的,感伤的
参考例句:
  • She's a sentimental woman who believes marriage comes by destiny.她是多愁善感的人,她相信姻缘命中注定。
  • We were deeply touched by the sentimental movie.我们深深被那感伤的电影所感动。
41 retired Njhzyv     
adj.隐退的,退休的,退役的
参考例句:
  • The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
  • Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。
42 penury 4MZxp     
n.贫穷,拮据
参考例句:
  • Hardship and penury wore him out before his time.受穷受苦使他未老先衰。
  • A succession of bad harvest had reduced the small farmer to penury.连续歉收使得这个小农场主陷入了贫困境地。
43 cane RsNzT     
n.手杖,细长的茎,藤条;v.以杖击,以藤编制的
参考例句:
  • This sugar cane is quite a sweet and juicy.这甘蔗既甜又多汁。
  • English schoolmasters used to cane the boys as a punishment.英国小学老师过去常用教鞭打男学生作为惩罚。
44 ponies 47346fc7580de7596d7df8d115a3545d     
矮种马,小型马( pony的名词复数 ); £25 25 英镑
参考例句:
  • They drove the ponies into a corral. 他们把矮种马赶进了畜栏。
  • She has a mania for ponies. 她特别喜欢小马。
45 stammered 76088bc9384c91d5745fd550a9d81721     
v.结巴地说出( stammer的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • He stammered most when he was nervous. 他一紧张往往口吃。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
  • Barsad leaned back in his chair, and stammered, \"What do you mean?\" 巴萨往椅背上一靠,结结巴巴地说,“你是什么意思?” 来自英汉文学 - 双城记
46 vindictive FL3zG     
adj.有报仇心的,怀恨的,惩罚的
参考例句:
  • I have no vindictive feelings about it.我对此没有恶意。
  • The vindictive little girl tore up her sister's papers.那个充满报复心的小女孩撕破了她姐姐的作业。
47 anonymous lM2yp     
adj.无名的;匿名的;无特色的
参考例句:
  • Sending anonymous letters is a cowardly act.寄匿名信是懦夫的行为。
  • The author wishes to remain anonymous.作者希望姓名不公开。
48 sustenance mriw0     
n.食物,粮食;生活资料;生计
参考例句:
  • We derive our sustenance from the land.我们从土地获取食物。
  • The urban homeless are often in desperate need of sustenance.城市里无家可归的人极其需要食物来维持生命。
49 contemptible DpRzO     
adj.可鄙的,可轻视的,卑劣的
参考例句:
  • His personal presence is unimpressive and his speech contemptible.他气貌不扬,言语粗俗。
  • That was a contemptible trick to play on a friend.那是对朋友玩弄的一出可鄙的把戏。
50 wretch EIPyl     
n.可怜的人,不幸的人;卑鄙的人
参考例句:
  • You are really an ungrateful wretch to complain instead of thanking him.你不但不谢他,还埋怨他,真不知好歹。
  • The dead husband is not the dishonoured wretch they fancied him.死去的丈夫不是他们所想象的不光彩的坏蛋。
51 apprehensively lzKzYF     
adv.担心地
参考例句:
  • He glanced a trifle apprehensively towards the crowded ballroom. 他敏捷地朝挤满了人的舞厅瞟了一眼。 来自辞典例句
  • Then it passed, leaving everything in a state of suspense, even the willow branches waiting apprehensively. 一阵这样的风过去,一切都不知怎好似的,连柳树都惊疑不定的等着点什么。 来自汉英文学 - 骆驼祥子
52 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。
53 ledger 014xk     
n.总帐,分类帐;帐簿
参考例句:
  • The young man bowed his head and bent over his ledger again.那个年轻人点头应诺,然后又埋头写起分类帐。
  • She is a real accountant who even keeps a detailed household ledger.她不愧是搞财务的,家庭分类账记得清楚详细。
54 squire 0htzjV     
n.护卫, 侍从, 乡绅
参考例句:
  • I told him the squire was the most liberal of men.我告诉他乡绅是世界上最宽宏大量的人。
  • The squire was hard at work at Bristol.乡绅在布里斯托尔热衷于他的工作。
55 dames 0bcc1f9ca96d029b7531e0fc36ae2c5c     
n.(在英国)夫人(一种封号),夫人(爵士妻子的称号)( dame的名词复数 );女人
参考例句:
  • Dames would not comment any further. Dames将不再更多的评论。 来自互联网
  • Flowers, candy, jewelry, seemed the principal things in which the elegant dames were interested. 鲜花、糖果和珠宝看来是那些贵妇人的主要兴趣所在。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
56 labyrinth h9Fzr     
n.迷宫;难解的事物;迷路
参考例句:
  • He wandered through the labyrinth of the alleyways.他在迷宫似的小巷中闲逛。
  • The human mind is a labyrinth.人的心灵是一座迷宫。
57 warp KgBwx     
vt.弄歪,使翘曲,使不正常,歪曲,使有偏见
参考例句:
  • The damp wood began to warp.这块潮湿的木材有些翘曲了。
  • A steel girder may warp in a fire.钢梁遇火会变弯。
58 exquisitely Btwz1r     
adv.精致地;强烈地;剧烈地;异常地
参考例句:
  • He found her exquisitely beautiful. 他觉得她异常美丽。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • He wore an exquisitely tailored gray silk and accessories to match. 他穿的是做工非常考究的灰色绸缎衣服,还有各种配得很协调的装饰。 来自教父部分
59 refreshing HkozPQ     
adj.使精神振作的,使人清爽的,使人喜欢的
参考例句:
  • I find it'so refreshing to work with young people in this department.我发现和这一部门的青年一起工作令人精神振奋。
  • The water was cold and wonderfully refreshing.水很涼,特别解乏提神。
60 conceals fa59c6f4c4bde9a732332b174939af02     
v.隐藏,隐瞒,遮住( conceal的第三人称单数 )
参考例句:
  • He conceals his worries behind a mask of nonchalance. 他装作若无其事,借以掩饰内心的不安。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • Drunkenness reveals what soberness conceals. 酒醉吐真言。 来自《简明英汉词典》
61 blandly f411bffb7a3b98af8224e543d5078eb9     
adv.温和地,殷勤地
参考例句:
  • There is a class of men in Bristol monstrously prejudiced against Blandly. 布里斯托尔有那么一帮人为此恨透了布兰德利。 来自英汉文学 - 金银岛
  • \"Maybe you could get something in the stage line?\" he blandly suggested. “也许你能在戏剧这一行里找些事做,\"他和蔼地提议道。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
62 intentional 65Axb     
adj.故意的,有意(识)的
参考例句:
  • Let me assure you that it was not intentional.我向你保证那不是故意的。
  • His insult was intentional.他的侮辱是有意的。
63 fuming 742478903447fcd48a40e62f9540a430     
愤怒( fume的现在分词 ); 大怒; 发怒; 冒烟
参考例句:
  • She sat in the car, silently fuming at the traffic jam. 她坐在汽车里,心中对交通堵塞感到十分恼火。
  • I was fuming at their inefficiency. 我正因为他们效率低而发火。
64 oversight WvgyJ     
n.勘漏,失察,疏忽
参考例句:
  • I consider this a gross oversight on your part.我把这件事看作是你的一大疏忽。
  • Your essay was not marked through an oversight on my part.由于我的疏忽你的文章没有打分。
65 doorway 2s0xK     
n.门口,(喻)入门;门路,途径
参考例句:
  • They huddled in the shop doorway to shelter from the rain.他们挤在商店门口躲雨。
  • Mary suddenly appeared in the doorway.玛丽突然出现在门口。
66 thumping hgUzBs     
adj.重大的,巨大的;重击的;尺码大的;极好的adv.极端地;非常地v.重击(thump的现在分词);狠打;怦怦地跳;全力支持
参考例句:
  • Her heart was thumping with emotion. 她激动得心怦怦直跳。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
  • He was thumping the keys of the piano. 他用力弹钢琴。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
67 cuffed e0f189a3fd45ff67f7435e1c3961c957     
v.掌打,拳打( cuff的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • She cuffed the boy on the side of the head. 她向这男孩的头上轻轻打了一巴掌。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • Mother cuffed the dog when she found it asleep on a chair. 妈妈发现狗睡在椅子上就用手把狗打跑了。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
68 inquiries 86a54c7f2b27c02acf9fcb16a31c4b57     
n.调查( inquiry的名词复数 );疑问;探究;打听
参考例句:
  • He was released on bail pending further inquiries. 他获得保释,等候进一步调查。
  • I have failed to reach them by postal inquiries. 我未能通过邮政查询与他们取得联系。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
69 astonishment VvjzR     
n.惊奇,惊异
参考例句:
  • They heard him give a loud shout of astonishment.他们听见他惊奇地大叫一声。
  • I was filled with astonishment at her strange action.我对她的奇怪举动不胜惊异。
70 divulged b0a9e80080e82c932b9575307c26fe40     
v.吐露,泄露( divulge的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • He divulged nothing to him save the terrible handicap of being young. 他想不出个所以然来,只是想到自己年纪尚幼,极端不利。 来自辞典例句
  • The spy divulged the secret plans to the enemy. 那名间谍把秘密计划泄漏给敌人。 来自辞典例句
71 bowling cxjzeN     
n.保龄球运动
参考例句:
  • Bowling is a popular sport with young and old.保龄球是老少都爱的运动。
  • Which sport do you 1ike most,golf or bowling?你最喜欢什么运动,高尔夫还是保龄球?


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