小说搜索     点击排行榜   最新入库
首页 » 经典英文小说 » The Barrier » CHAPTER IX THE AWAKENING
选择底色: 选择字号:【大】【中】【小】
CHAPTER IX THE AWAKENING
关注小说网官方公众号(noveltingroom),原版名著免费领。
 Early the next morning Corporal Thomas came into the store and found Necia tending it while Gale1 was out. Ever since the day she had questioned him about Burrell, this old man had taken every occasion to talk with the girl, and when he asked her this morning about the reports concerning Lee's strike, she told him of her trip, and all that had occurred.
 
"You see, I'm a mine-owner now," she concluded. "If it hadn't been a secret I would have told you before I went so you could have been one of the first."
 
"I'm goin', anyhow," he said, "if the Lieutenant2 will let me and if it's not too late."
 
Then she told him of the trail by Black Bear Creek3 which would save him several hours.
 
"So that's how you and he made it?" he observed, gazing at her shrewdly. "I supposed you went with your father?"
 
"Oh, no! We beat him in," she said, and fell to musing4 at the memory of those hours passed alone with Meade, while her eyes shone and her cheeks glowed. The Corporal saw the look, and it bore out a theory he had formed during the past month, so, as he lingered, he set about a task that had lain in his mind for some time. As a rule he was not a careful man in his speech, and the delicacy5 of this manoeuvre6 taxed his ingenuity7 to the utmost, for he loved the girl and feared to say too much.
 
"The Lieutenant is a smart young fellow," he began; "and it was slick work jumpin' all those claims. It's just like him to befriend a girl like you—I've seen him do it before—"
 
"What!" exclaimed Necia, "befriend other girls?"
 
"Or things just like it. He's always doing favors that get him into trouble."
 
"This couldn't cause him trouble, could it, outside of Stark8's and Runnion's grudge9?"
 
"No, I reckon not," assented10 the Corporal, groping blindly for some way of expressing what he wished to say. "Except, of course, it might cause a lot of talk at headquarters when it's known what he's done for you and how he done it. I heard something about it down the street this morning, so I'm afraid it will get to St. Michael's, and then to his folks." He realized that he was not getting on well, for the task was harder than he had imagined.
 
"I don't understand," said Necia. "He hasn't done anything that any man wouldn't do under the same circumstances."
 
"No man's got a right to make folks talk about a nice girl," said the Corporal; "and the feller that told me about it said he reckoned you two was in love." He hurried along now without offering her a chance to speak. "Of course, that had to be caught up quick; you're too fine a girl for that."
 
"Too fine?" Necia laughed.
 
"I mean you're too fine and good to let him put you in wrong, just as he's too fine a fellow and got too much ahead of him to make what his people would call a messy alliance."
 
"Would his people object to—to such a thing?" questioned the girl. They were alone in the store, and so they could talk freely. "I'm just supposing, you know."
 
"Oh, Lord! Would they object?" Corporal Thomas laughed in a highly artificial manner that made Necia bridle11 and draw herself up indignantly.
 
"Why should they, I'd like to know? I'm just as pretty as other girls, and I'm just as good. I know just as much as they do, too, except—about certain things."
 
"You sure are all of that and more, too," the Corporal declared, heartily12, "but if you knowed more about things outside you'd understand why it ain't possible. I can't tell you without hurtin' your feelin's, and I like you too much for that, Miss Necia. Seems as if I'm almost a daddy to you, and I've only knowed you for a few weeks—"
 
"Go ahead and tell me; I won't be offended," insisted the girl. "You must. I don't know much about such things, for I've lived all my life with men like father and Poleon, and the priests at the Mission, who treat me just like one of themselves. But somebody will want to marry me some day, I suppose, so I ought to know what is wrong with me." She flushed up darkly under her brown cheeks.
 
The feeling came over Corporal Thomas that he had hurt a helpless animal of some gentle kind; that he was bungling13 his work, and that he was not of the calibre to go into the social amenities14. He began to perspire15 uncomfortably, but went on, doggedly16:
 
"I'm goin' to tell you a story, not because it applies to Lieutenant Burrell, or because he's in love with you, which of course he ain't any more than you be with him—"
 
"Of course," said the girl.
 
"—but just to show you what I mean. It was a good long spell ago, when I was at Fort Supply, which was the frontier in them days like this is now. We freighted in from Dodge17 City with bull teams, and it was sure the fringe of the frontier; no women—no society—nothin' much except a fort, a lot of Injuns, and a few officials with their wives and families. Now them kind of places is all right for married men, but they're tough sleddin' for single ones, and after a while a feller gets awful careless about himself; he seems to go backward and run down mighty18 quick when he gets away from civilization and his people and restaurants and such things; he gets plumb19 reckless and forgetful of what's what. Well, there was a captain with us, a young feller that looked like the Lieutenant here, and a good deal the same sort—high-tempered and chivalrious and all that sort of thing; a West Pointer, too, good family and all that, and, what's more, a captain at twenty-five. Now, our head freighter was married to a squaw, or leastways he had been, but in them days nobody thought much of it any more than they do up here now, and particularly because he'd had a government contract for a long while, ran a big gang of men and critters, and had made a lot of money. Likewise he had a girl, who lived at the fort, and was mighty nice to look at, and restful to the eye after a year or so of cactus-trees and mesquite and buffalo-grass. She was twice as nice and twice as pretty as the women at the post, and as for money—well, her dad could have bought and sold all the officers in a lump; but they and their wives looked down on her, and she didn't mix with them none whatever. To make it short, the captain married her. Seemed like he got disregardful of everything, and the hunger to have a woman just overpowered him. She'd been courted by every single man for four hundred miles around. She was pretty and full of fire, and they was both of an age to love hard, so Jefferson swore he'd make the other women take her; but soldierin' is a heap different from any other profession, and the army has got its own traditions. The plan wouldn't work. By-and-by the captain got tired of trying, and gave up the attempt—just devoted20 himself to her—and then we was transferred, all but him. We shifted to a better post, but Captain Jefferson was changed to another company and had to stay at Supply. Gee21! it was a rotten hole! Influence had been used, and there he stuck, while the new officers cut him out completely, just like the others had done, so I was told, and it drifted on that way for a long time, him forever makin' an uphill fight to get his wife reco'nized and always quittin' loser. His folks back East was scandalized and froze him cold, callin' him a squaw-man; and the story went all through the army, till his brother officers had to treat him cold in order to keep enough warmth at home to live by, one thing leading to another till he finally resented it openly. After that he didn't last long. They made it so unpleasant that he quit the service—crowded him out, that's all. He was a born soldier, too, and didn't know nothing else nor care for nothing else; as fine a man as I ever served under, but it soured him so that a rattlesnake couldn't have lived with him. He tried to go into some kind of business after he quit the army, but he wasn't cut out for it, and never made good as long as I knew of him. The last time I seen him was down on the border, and he had sure grown cultus. He had quit the squaw, who was livin' with a greaser in Tucson—"
 
"And do you think I'm like that woman?" said Necia, in a queer, strained voice. She had listened intently to the Corporal's story, but he had purposely avoided her eyes and could not tell how she was taking it.
 
"No! You're different, but the army is just the same. I told you this to show you how it is out in the States. It don't apply to you, of course—"
 
"Of course!" agreed Necia again. "But what would happen to Lieutenant Burrell if—if—well, if he should do something like that? There are many half-breed girls, I dare say, like this other girl, or—like me."
 
She did not flush now as before; instead, her cheeks were pale.
 
"It would go a heap worse with him than it did with Captain Jefferson," said the Corporal, "for he's got more ahead of him and he comes from better stock. Why, his family is way up! They're all soldiers, and they're strong at headquarters; they're mighty proud, too, and they wouldn't stand for his doing such a thing, even if he wanted to. But he wouldn't try; he's got too much sense, and loves the army too well for that. No, sir! He'll go a long ways, that boy will, if he's let alone."
 
"I never thought of myself as an Indian," said Necia, dully. "In this country it's a person's heart that counts."
 
"That's how it ought to be," said the Corporal, heartily; "and I'm mighty sorry if I've hurt you, little girl. I'm a rough old rooster, and I never thought but what you understood all this. Up here folks look at it right, but outside it's mighty different; even yet you don't half understand."
 
"I'm glad I'm what I am!" cried the girl. "There's nothing in my blood to be ashamed of, and I'm white in here!" She struck her bosom22 fiercely. "If a man loves me he'll take me no matter what it means to him."
 
"Right for you," assented the other; "and if I was younger myself, I'd sure have a lot of nice things to say to you. If I'd 'a' had somebody like you I'd 'a' let liquor alone, maybe, and amounted to something, but all I'm good for now is to give advice and draw my pay." He slid down from the counter where he had been sitting. "I'm goin' to hunt up the Lieutenant and get him to let me off. Mebbe I can stake a claim and sell it."
 
The moment he was gone the girl's composure vanished and she gave vent23 to her feelings.
 
"It's a lie! It's a lie!" she cried, aloud, and with her fists she beat the boards in front of her. "He loves me! I know he does!" Then she began, to tremble, and sobbed24: "I'm just like other girls."
 
She was still wrestling with herself when Gale returned, and he started at the look in her face as she approached him.
 
"Why did you marry my mother?" she asked. "Why? Why did you do it?"
 
He saw that she was in a rage, and answered, bluntly, "I didn't."
 
She shrank at this. "Then why didn't you? Shame! Shame! That makes me worse than I thought I was. Oh, why did you ever turn squaw-man? Why did you make me a breed?"
 
"Look here! What ails25 you?" said the trader.
 
"What ails me?" she mocked. "Why, I'm neither white nor red; I'm not even a decent Indian. I'm a—a—" She shuddered26. "You made me what I am. You didn't do me the justice even to marry my mother."
 
"Somebody's been saying things about you," said Gale, quietly, taking her by the shoulders. "Who is it? Tell me who it is."
 
"No, no! It's not that! Nobody has said anything to my face; they're afraid of you, I suppose, but God knows what they think and say to my back."
 
"I'll—" began the trader, but she interrupted him.
 
"I've just begun to realize what I am. I'm not respectable. I'm not like other women, and never can be. I'm a squaw—a squaw!"
 
"You're not!" he cried.
 
"It's a nice word, isn't it?"
 
"What's wrong with it?"
 
"No honest man can marry me. I'm a vagabond! The best I can get is my bed and board, like my mother."
 
"By God! Who offered you that?" Gale's face was whiter than hers now, but she disregarded him and abandoned herself to the tempest of emotion that swept her along.
 
"He can play with me, but nothing more, and when he is gone another one can have me, and then another and another and another—as long as I can cook and wash and work. In time my man will beat me, just like any other squaw, I suppose, but I can't marry; I can't be a wife to a decent man."
 
She was in the clutch of an hysteria that made her writhe27 beneath Gale's hand, choking and sobbing28, until he loosed her; then she leaned exhausted29 against a post and wiped her eyes, for the tears were coming now.
 
"That's all damned rot," he said. "There's fifty good men in this camp would marry you to-morrow."
 
"Bah! I mean real men, not miners. I want to be a lady. I don't want to pull a hand-sled and wear moccasins all my life, and raise children for men with whiskers. I want to be loved—I want to be loved! I want to marry a gentleman."
 
"Burrell!" said Gale.
 
"No!" she flared30 up. "Not him nor anybody in particular, but somebody like him, some man with clean finger-nails."
 
He found nothing humorous or grotesque31 in her measure of a gentleman, for he realized that she was strung to a pitch of unreason and unnatural32 excitement, and that she was in terrible earnest.
 
"Daughter," he said, "I'm mighty sorry this knowledge has come to you, and I see it's my fault, but things are different now to what they were when I met Alluna. It wasn't the style to marry squaws where we came from, and neither of us ever thought about it much. We were happy with each other, and we've been man and wife to each other just as truly as if a priest had mumbled33 over us."
 
"But why didn't you marry her when I came? Surely you must have known what it would mean to me. It was bad enough without that."
 
The old man hesitated. "I'll own I was wrong," he said, finally, staring out into the sunshine with an odd expression. "It was thoughtless and wrong, dead wrong; but I've loved you better than any daughter was ever loved in this wide world, and I've worked and starved and froze and saved, and so has Alluna, so that you might have something to live on when I'm gone, and be different to us. It won't be long now, I guess. I've given you the best schooling34 of any girl on the river, and I'd have sent you out to a convent in the States, but I couldn't let you go so far away—God! I loved you too much for that—I couldn't do it, girl. I've tried, but you're all I've got, and I'm a selfish man, I reckon."
 
"No, no! You're not," his daughter cried, impulsively35. "You're everything that's good and dear, but you've lived a different life from other men and you see things differently. It was mean of me to talk as I did." She put her arms around his neck and hugged him. "But I'm very unhappy, dad."
 
"Don't you aim to tell what started this?" he said, gently, caressing36 her with his great, hard hand as softly as a mother. But she shook her head, and he continued, "I'll take the first boat down to the Mission and marry your ma, if you want me to."
 
"That wouldn't do any good," said she. "We'd better leave things as they are." Then she drew away and smiled at him bravely from the door. "I'm a very bad to act this way. S'cuses?"
 
He nodded and she went out, but he gazed after her for a long minute, then sighed.
 
"Poor little girl!"
 
Necia was in a restless mood, and, remembering that Alluna and the children had gone berrying on the slopes behind the Indian village, she turned her way thither37. All at once a fear of seeing Meade Burrell came upon her. She wanted to think this out, to find where she stood, before he had word with her. She had been led to observe herself from a strange angle, and must verify her vision, as it were. As yet she could not fully38 understand. What if he had changed, now that he was alone, and had had time to think? It would kill her if she saw any difference in him, and she knew she would be able to read it in his eyes.
 
As she went through the main street of the camp she saw Stark occupied near the water-front, where he had bought a building lot. He spoke39 to her as she was about to pass.
 
"Good-morning, Miss. Are you rested from your trip?"
 
She answered that she was, and would have continued on her way, but he stopped her.
 
"I don't want you to think that mining matter was my doing," he said. "I've got nothing against you. Your old man hasn't wasted any affection on me, and I can get along without him, all right, but I don't make trouble for girls if I can help it."
 
The girl believed that he meant what he said; his words rang true, and he spoke seriously. Moreover, Stark was known already in the camp as a man who did not go out of his way to make friends or to render an accounting40 of his deeds, so it was natural that when he made her a show of kindness Necia should treat him with less coldness than might have been expected. The man had exercised an occult influence upon her from the time she first saw him at Lee's cabin, but it was too vague for definite feeling, and she had been too strongly swayed by Poleon and her father in their attitude towards him to be conscious of it. Finding him now, however, in a gentle humor, she was drawn41 to him unwittingly, and felt an overweening desire to talk with him, even at the hazard of offending her own people. The encounter fitted in with her rebellious42 mood, for there were things she wished to know, things she must find out from some one who knew the world and would not be afraid to answer her questions candidly43.
 
"I'm going to build a big dance-hall and saloon here," said Stark, showing her the stakes that he had driven. "As soon as the rush to the creek is over I'll hire a gang of men to get out a lot of house logs. I'll finish it in a week and be open for the stampede."
 
"Do you think this will be a big town?" she asked.
 
"Nobody can tell, but I'll take a chance. If it proves to be a false alarm I'll move on—I've done it before."
 
"You've been in a great many camps, I suppose."
 
He said that he had, that for twenty years he had been on the frontier, and knew it from West Texas to the Circle.
 
"And are they all alike?"
 
"Very much. The land lies different but the people are the same."
 
"I've never known anything except this." She swept the points of the compass with her arm. "And there is so much beyond that I want to know about—oh, I feel so ignorant! There is something now that perhaps you could tell me, you have travelled so much."
 
"Let's have it," said he, smiling at her seriousness.
 
She hesitated, at a loss for words, finally blurting44 out what was in her mind.
 
"My father is a squaw-man, Mr. Stark, and I've been raised to think that such things are customary."
 
"They are, in all new countries," he assured her.
 
"But how are they regarded when civilization comes along?"
 
"Well, they aren't regarded, as a rule. Squaw-men are pretty shiftless, and people don't pay much attention to them. I guess if they weren't they wouldn't be squaw-men."
 
"My father isn't shiftless," she challenged, at which he remained silent, refusing to go on record. "Isn't a half-breed just as good as a white?"
 
"Look here," said he. "What are you driving at?"
 
"I'm a 'blood,'" she declared, recklessly, "and I want to know what people think of me. The men around here have never made me feel conscious of it, but—"
 
"You're afraid of these new people who are coming, eh? Well, don't worry about that, Miss. It wouldn't make any difference to me or to any of your friends whether you were red, white, black, or yellow."
 
"But it would make a difference with some people?" insisted the girl.
 
"Oh, I reckon it would with Eastern people. They look at things kind of funny, but we're not in the East."
 
"That's what I wanted to know. Nice people back there wouldn't tolerate a girl like me for a moment, would they? They wouldn't consider me good enough to associate with them?"
 
He shrugged45 his shoulders. "I guess you'd have a hard time breaking in among the 'bon-tonners.' But what's the use of thinking about it. This is your country and these are your people."
 
A morbid46 desire was upon her to track down this intangible racial distinction, but she saw Runnion, whom she could not bear, coming towards them, so thanked Stark hurriedly and went on her way.
 
"Been making friends with that squaw, eh?" remarked Runnion, casually47.
 
"Yes," replied Stark. "She's a nice little girl, and I like her. I told her I didn't have any part in that miners' meeting affair."
 
"Huh! What's the matter with you? It was all your doing."
 
"I know it was, but I didn't aim it at her. I wanted that ground next to Lee's, and I wanted to throw a jolt48 into Old Man Gale. I couldn't let the girl stand in my way; but now that it's over, I'm willing to be friends with her."
 
"Me, too," said Runnion, looking after Necia as her figure diminished up the street. "By Heaven! She's as graceful49 as a fawn50; she's white, too. Nobody would ever know she was a breed."
 
"She's a good girl," said Stark, musingly51, in a gentle tone that Runnion had never heard before.
 
"Getting kind of mushy, ain't you? I thought you had passed that stage, old man."
 
"No, I don't like her in that way."
 
"Well, I do, and I'm dead sore on that soldier."
 
"She's not your kind," said Stark. "A bad man can't hold a good woman; he can win one easy enough, but he can't keep her. I know!"
 
"Nobody but a fool would want to keep one," Runnion replied, "specially52 a squaw."
 
"She's just woke up to the fact that she is a squaw and isn't as good as white. She's worried."
 
"I'll lay you a little eight to five that Burrell has thrown her down," chuckled53 Runnion.
 
"I never thought of that. You may be right."
 
"If it's true I'll shuffle54 up a hand for that soldier."
 
"If I were you I wouldn't deal it to him," said the gambler, dryly. "He may not cut to your break."
 
Meanwhile, Necia had passed on out of the town and through the Indian village at the mouth of the creek, until high up on the slopes she saw Alluna and the little ones. She climbed up to them and seated herself where she could look far out over the westward55 valley, with the great stream flowing half a mile beneath her. She stayed there all the morning, and although the day was bright and the bushes bending with their burden of blue, she picked no berries, but fought resolutely56 through a dozen varying moods that mirrored themselves in her delicate face. It was her first soul struggle, but in time the buoyancy of youth and the almighty57 optimism of early love prevailed; she comforted herself with the fond illusion that this man was different from all others, that his regard was equal to her own, and that his love would rise above such accidental things as blood or breed or birth. And so she was in a happier frame of mind when the little company made their descent at mid-day.
 
As they approached the town they heard the familiar cry of "Steam-bo-o-o-at," and by the time they had reached home the little camp was noisy with the plaint of wolf-dogs. There were few men to join in the welcome to-day, every able-bodied inhabitant having disappeared into the hills, but the animals came trooping lazily to the bank, and sat down on their haunches watching the approaching steamer, in their soft eyes the sadness of a canine59 race of slaves. Behind them limped a sick man or two, a soldier from the barracks, and in the rear a fellow who had drifted in the week before with scurvy60. It was a pitiful review that lined up to greet the tide of tenderfeet crowding towards their El Dorado, and unusual also, for as yet the sight of new faces was strange in the North.
 
The deserted61 aspect of the town puzzled the captain of the steamer, and upon landing he made his way at once to John Gale's store, where he learned from the trader of the strike and of the stampede that had resulted. Before the recital62 was finished a man approached and spoke excitedly.
 
"Captain, my ticket reads to Dawson, but I'm getting off here. Won't you have my outfit63 put ashore64?" He was followed by a group of fellow-passengers who made a similar request.
 
"This place is good enough for me," one of them said.
 
"Me, too," another volunteered. "This strike is new, and we've hit her just in time."
 
Outside a dozen men had crowded "No Creek" Lee against the wall of the store and were clamoring to hear about his find. Before the tardy65 ones had cleared the gang-plank the news had flashed from shore to ship, and a swarm66 came up the bank and into the post, firing questions and answers at each other eagerly, elbowing and fighting for a place within ear-shot of the trader or the ragged67 man outside.
 
The frenzy68 of a gold stampede is like the rush from a burning building, and equally easy to arouse. No statement is too wild to lack believers, no rumor69 too exaggerated to find takers. Within an hour the crew of the steamer was busy unloading countless70 tons of merchandise and baggage billed to Dawson, and tents began to show their snowy whiteness here and there. As a man saw his outfit appear he would pounce71 upon it, a bundle at a time, and pile it by itself, which resulted in endless disputes and much confusion; but a spirit of youth and expectancy72 permeated73 all and prevented more than angry words. Every hour the heaps of baggage grew larger and the tents more numerous.
 
Stark wasted no time. With money in his hands he secured a dozen men who were willing to work for hire, for there are always those who prefer the surety of ten coined dollars to the hope of a hundred. He swooped74 down with these helpers on his pile of merchandise that had lain beneath tarpaulins75 on the river-bank since the day he and Runnion landed, and by mid-afternoon a great tent had been stretched over a framework of peeled poles built on the lot where he and Necia had stood earlier in the day. Before dark his saloon was running. To be sure, there was no floor, and his polished fixtures76 looked strangely new and incongruous, but the town at large had assumed a similar air of incompleteness and crude immaturity77, and little wonder, for it had grown threefold in half a day. Stark swiftly unpacked78 his gambling79 implements80, keen to scent58 every advantage, and out of the handful of pale-faced jackals who follow at the heels of a healthy herd81, he hired men to run them and to deal. By night Flambeau was a mining-camp.
 
Late in the evening the boat swung out into the river, and disclosed a strange scene of transformation82 to the puzzled captain of a few hours ago. The riverbank was lined with canvas shelters, illumined dully by the tent-lights within till they looked like a nest of glowworms in deep grass. A long, hoarse83 blast of good wishes rose from the steamer, then she sighed her way around the point above bearing forth84 the message that a new camp had been born.

点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 gale Xf3zD     
n.大风,强风,一阵闹声(尤指笑声等)
参考例句:
  • We got our roof blown off in the gale last night.昨夜的大风把我们的房顶给掀掉了。
  • According to the weather forecast,there will be a gale tomorrow.据气象台预报,明天有大风。
2 lieutenant X3GyG     
n.陆军中尉,海军上尉;代理官员,副职官员
参考例句:
  • He was promoted to be a lieutenant in the army.他被提升为陆军中尉。
  • He prevailed on the lieutenant to send in a short note.他说动那个副官,递上了一张简短的便条进去。
3 creek 3orzL     
n.小溪,小河,小湾
参考例句:
  • He sprang through the creek.他跳过小河。
  • People sunbathe in the nude on the rocks above the creek.人们在露出小溪的岩石上裸体晒日光浴。
4 musing musing     
n. 沉思,冥想 adj. 沉思的, 冥想的 动词muse的现在分词形式
参考例句:
  • "At Tellson's banking-house at nine," he said, with a musing face. “九点在台尔森银行大厦见面,”他想道。 来自英汉文学 - 双城记
  • She put the jacket away, and stood by musing a minute. 她把那件上衣放到一边,站着沉思了一会儿。
5 delicacy mxuxS     
n.精致,细微,微妙,精良;美味,佳肴
参考例句:
  • We admired the delicacy of the craftsmanship.我们佩服工艺师精巧的手艺。
  • He sensed the delicacy of the situation.他感觉到了形势的微妙。
6 manoeuvre 4o4zbM     
n.策略,调动;v.用策略,调动
参考例句:
  • Her withdrawal from the contest was a tactical manoeuvre.她退出比赛是一个战术策略。
  • The clutter of ships had little room to manoeuvre.船只橫七竖八地挤在一起,几乎没有多少移动的空间。
7 ingenuity 77TxM     
n.别出心裁;善于发明创造
参考例句:
  • The boy showed ingenuity in making toys.那个小男孩做玩具很有创造力。
  • I admire your ingenuity and perseverance.我钦佩你的别出心裁和毅力。
8 stark lGszd     
adj.荒凉的;严酷的;完全的;adv.完全地
参考例句:
  • The young man is faced with a stark choice.这位年轻人面临严峻的抉择。
  • He gave a stark denial to the rumor.他对谣言加以完全的否认。
9 grudge hedzG     
n.不满,怨恨,妒嫉;vt.勉强给,不情愿做
参考例句:
  • I grudge paying so much for such inferior goods.我不愿花这么多钱买次品。
  • I do not grudge him his success.我不嫉妒他的成功。
10 assented 4cee1313bb256a1f69bcc83867e78727     
同意,赞成( assent的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • The judge assented to allow the prisoner to speak. 法官同意允许犯人申辩。
  • "No," assented Tom, "they don't kill the women -- they're too noble. “对,”汤姆表示赞同地说,“他们不杀女人——真伟大!
11 bridle 4sLzt     
n.笼头,束缚;vt.抑制,约束;动怒
参考例句:
  • He learned to bridle his temper.他学会了控制脾气。
  • I told my wife to put a bridle on her tongue.我告诉妻子说话要谨慎。
12 heartily Ld3xp     
adv.衷心地,诚恳地,十分,很
参考例句:
  • He ate heartily and went out to look for his horse.他痛快地吃了一顿,就出去找他的马。
  • The host seized my hand and shook it heartily.主人抓住我的手,热情地和我握手。
13 bungling 9a4ae404ac9d9a615bfdbdf0d4e87632     
adj.笨拙的,粗劣的v.搞糟,完不成( bungle的现在分词 );笨手笨脚地做;失败;完不成
参考例句:
  • You can't do a thing without bungling it. 你做事总是笨手笨脚。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • 'Enough, too,' retorted George. 'We'll all swing and sundry for your bungling.' “还不够吗?”乔治反问道,“就因为你乱指挥,我们都得荡秋千,被日头晒干。” 来自英汉文学 - 金银岛
14 amenities Bz5zCt     
n.令人愉快的事物;礼仪;礼节;便利设施;礼仪( amenity的名词复数 );便利设施;(环境等的)舒适;(性情等的)愉快
参考例句:
  • The campsite is close to all local amenities. 营地紧靠当地所有的便利设施。
  • Parks and a theatre are just some of the town's local amenities. 公园和戏院只是市镇娱乐设施的一部分。 来自《简明英汉词典》
15 perspire V3KzD     
vi.出汗,流汗
参考例句:
  • He began to perspire heavily.他开始大量出汗。
  • You perspire a lot when you are eating.你在吃饭的时候流汗很多。
16 doggedly 6upzAY     
adv.顽强地,固执地
参考例句:
  • He was still doggedly pursuing his studies.他仍然顽强地进行着自己的研究。
  • He trudged doggedly on until he reached the flat.他顽强地、步履艰难地走着,一直走回了公寓。
17 dodge q83yo     
v.闪开,躲开,避开;n.妙计,诡计
参考例句:
  • A dodge behind a tree kept her from being run over.她向树后一闪,才没被车从身上辗过。
  • The dodge was coopered by the police.诡计被警察粉碎了。
18 mighty YDWxl     
adj.强有力的;巨大的
参考例句:
  • A mighty force was about to break loose.一股巨大的力量即将迸发而出。
  • The mighty iceberg came into view.巨大的冰山出现在眼前。
19 plumb Y2szL     
adv.精确地,完全地;v.了解意义,测水深
参考例句:
  • No one could plumb the mystery.没人能看破这秘密。
  • It was unprofitable to plumb that sort of thing.这种事弄个水落石出没有什么好处。
20 devoted xu9zka     
adj.忠诚的,忠实的,热心的,献身于...的
参考例句:
  • He devoted his life to the educational cause of the motherland.他为祖国的教育事业贡献了一生。
  • We devoted a lengthy and full discussion to this topic.我们对这个题目进行了长时间的充分讨论。
21 gee ZsfzIu     
n.马;int.向右!前进!,惊讶时所发声音;v.向右转
参考例句:
  • Their success last week will gee the team up.上星期的胜利将激励这支队伍继续前进。
  • Gee,We're going to make a lot of money.哇!我们会赚好多钱啦!
22 bosom Lt9zW     
n.胸,胸部;胸怀;内心;adj.亲密的
参考例句:
  • She drew a little book from her bosom.她从怀里取出一本小册子。
  • A dark jealousy stirred in his bosom.他内心生出一阵恶毒的嫉妒。
23 vent yiPwE     
n.通风口,排放口;开衩;vt.表达,发泄
参考例句:
  • He gave vent to his anger by swearing loudly.他高声咒骂以发泄他的愤怒。
  • When the vent became plugged,the engine would stop.当通风口被堵塞时,发动机就会停转。
24 sobbed 4a153e2bbe39eef90bf6a4beb2dba759     
哭泣,啜泣( sob的过去式和过去分词 ); 哭诉,呜咽地说
参考例句:
  • She sobbed out the story of her son's death. 她哭诉着她儿子的死。
  • She sobbed out the sad story of her son's death. 她哽咽着诉说她儿子死去的悲惨经过。
25 ails c1d673fb92864db40e1d98aae003f6db     
v.生病( ail的第三人称单数 );感到不舒服;处境困难;境况不佳
参考例句:
  • He will not concede what anything ails his business. 他不允许任何事情来干扰他的工作。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
  • Measles ails the little girl. 麻疹折磨着这个小女孩。 来自《简明英汉词典》
26 shuddered 70137c95ff493fbfede89987ee46ab86     
v.战栗( shudder的过去式和过去分词 );发抖;(机器、车辆等)突然震动;颤动
参考例句:
  • He slammed on the brakes and the car shuddered to a halt. 他猛踩刹车,车颤抖着停住了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • I shuddered at the sight of the dead body. 我一看见那尸体就战栗。 来自《简明英汉词典》
27 writhe QMvzJ     
vt.挣扎,痛苦地扭曲;vi.扭曲,翻腾,受苦;n.翻腾,苦恼
参考例句:
  • They surely writhe under this pressure.他们肯定对这种压力感到苦恼。
  • Her words made him writhe with shame.她的话使他惭愧地感到浑身不自在。
28 sobbing df75b14f92e64fc9e1d7eaf6dcfc083a     
<主方>Ⅰ adj.湿透的
参考例句:
  • I heard a child sobbing loudly. 我听见有个孩子在呜呜地哭。
  • Her eyes were red with recent sobbing. 她的眼睛因刚哭过而发红。
29 exhausted 7taz4r     
adj.极其疲惫的,精疲力尽的
参考例句:
  • It was a long haul home and we arrived exhausted.搬运回家的这段路程特别长,到家时我们已筋疲力尽。
  • Jenny was exhausted by the hustle of city life.珍妮被城市生活的忙乱弄得筋疲力尽。
30 Flared Flared     
adj. 端部张开的, 爆发的, 加宽的, 漏斗式的 动词flare的过去式和过去分词
参考例句:
  • The match flared and went out. 火柴闪亮了一下就熄了。
  • The fire flared up when we thought it was out. 我们以为火已经熄灭,但它突然又燃烧起来。
31 grotesque O6ryZ     
adj.怪诞的,丑陋的;n.怪诞的图案,怪人(物)
参考例句:
  • His face has a grotesque appearance.他的面部表情十分怪。
  • Her account of the incident was a grotesque distortion of the truth.她对这件事的陈述是荒诞地歪曲了事实。
32 unnatural 5f2zAc     
adj.不自然的;反常的
参考例句:
  • Did her behaviour seem unnatural in any way?她有任何反常表现吗?
  • She has an unnatural smile on her face.她脸上挂着做作的微笑。
33 mumbled 3855fd60b1f055fa928ebec8bcf3f539     
含糊地说某事,叽咕,咕哝( mumble的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • He mumbled something to me which I did not quite catch. 他对我叽咕了几句话,可我没太听清楚。
  • George mumbled incoherently to himself. 乔治语无伦次地喃喃自语。
34 schooling AjAzM6     
n.教育;正规学校教育
参考例句:
  • A child's access to schooling varies greatly from area to area.孩子获得学校教育的机会因地区不同而大相径庭。
  • Backward children need a special kind of schooling.天赋差的孩子需要特殊的教育。
35 impulsively 0596bdde6dedf8c46a693e7e1da5984c     
adv.冲动地
参考例句:
  • She leant forward and kissed him impulsively. 她倾身向前,感情冲动地吻了他。
  • Every good, true, vigorous feeling I had gathered came impulsively round him. 我的一切良好、真诚而又强烈的感情都紧紧围绕着他涌现出来。
36 caressing 00dd0b56b758fda4fac8b5d136d391f3     
爱抚的,表现爱情的,亲切的
参考例句:
  • The spring wind is gentle and caressing. 春风和畅。
  • He sat silent still caressing Tartar, who slobbered with exceeding affection. 他不声不响地坐在那里,不断抚摸着鞑靼,它由于获得超常的爱抚而不淌口水。
37 thither cgRz1o     
adv.向那里;adj.在那边的,对岸的
参考例句:
  • He wandered hither and thither looking for a playmate.他逛来逛去找玩伴。
  • He tramped hither and thither.他到处流浪。
38 fully Gfuzd     
adv.完全地,全部地,彻底地;充分地
参考例句:
  • The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气,然后全部呼出。
  • They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。
39 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。
40 accounting nzSzsY     
n.会计,会计学,借贷对照表
参考例句:
  • A job fell vacant in the accounting department.财会部出现了一个空缺。
  • There's an accounting error in this entry.这笔账目里有差错。
41 drawn MuXzIi     
v.拖,拉,拔出;adj.憔悴的,紧张的
参考例句:
  • All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
  • Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。
42 rebellious CtbyI     
adj.造反的,反抗的,难控制的
参考例句:
  • They will be in danger if they are rebellious.如果他们造反,他们就要发生危险。
  • Her reply was mild enough,but her thoughts were rebellious.她的回答虽然很温和,但她的心里十分反感。
43 candidly YxwzQ1     
adv.坦率地,直率而诚恳地
参考例句:
  • He has stopped taking heroin now,but admits candidly that he will always be a drug addict.他眼下已经不再吸食海洛因了,不过他坦言自己永远都是个瘾君子。
  • Candidly,David,I think you're being unreasonable.大卫,说实话我认为你不讲道理。
44 blurting 018ab7ab628eaa4f707eefcb74cdf989     
v.突然说出,脱口而出( blurt的现在分词 )
参考例句:
  • I can change my life minute by blurting out book. 脱口而出这本书,我就能够改变我的人生。 来自互联网
  • B: I just practiced blurting out useful sentences every day for one year. 我只是用了一年的时间每天练习脱口而出有用的句子。 来自互联网
45 shrugged 497904474a48f991a3d1961b0476ebce     
vt.耸肩(shrug的过去式与过去分词形式)
参考例句:
  • Sam shrugged and said nothing. 萨姆耸耸肩膀,什么也没说。
  • She shrugged, feigning nonchalance. 她耸耸肩,装出一副无所谓的样子。 来自《简明英汉词典》
46 morbid u6qz3     
adj.病的;致病的;病态的;可怕的
参考例句:
  • Some people have a morbid fascination with crime.一些人对犯罪有一种病态的痴迷。
  • It's morbid to dwell on cemeteries and such like.不厌其烦地谈论墓地以及诸如此类的事是一种病态。
47 casually UwBzvw     
adv.漠不关心地,无动于衷地,不负责任地
参考例句:
  • She remarked casually that she was changing her job.她当时漫不经心地说要换工作。
  • I casually mentioned that I might be interested in working abroad.我不经意地提到我可能会对出国工作感兴趣。
48 jolt ck1y2     
v.(使)摇动,(使)震动,(使)颠簸
参考例句:
  • We were worried that one tiny jolt could worsen her injuries.我们担心稍微颠簸一下就可能会使她的伤势恶化。
  • They were working frantically in the fear that an aftershock would jolt the house again.他们拼命地干着,担心余震可能会使房子再次受到震动。
49 graceful deHza     
adj.优美的,优雅的;得体的
参考例句:
  • His movements on the parallel bars were very graceful.他的双杠动作可帅了!
  • The ballet dancer is so graceful.芭蕾舞演员的姿态是如此的优美。
50 fawn NhpzW     
n.未满周岁的小鹿;v.巴结,奉承
参考例句:
  • A fawn behind the tree looked at us curiously.树后面一只小鹿好奇地看着我们。
  • He said you fawn on the manager in order to get a promotion.他说你为了获得提拔,拍经理的马屁。
51 musingly ddec53b7ea68b079ee6cb62ac6c95bf9     
adv.沉思地,冥想地
参考例句:
52 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。
53 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。
54 shuffle xECzc     
n.拖著脚走,洗纸牌;v.拖曳,慢吞吞地走
参考例句:
  • I wish you'd remember to shuffle before you deal.我希望在你发牌前记得洗牌。
  • Don't shuffle your feet along.别拖着脚步走。
55 westward XIvyz     
n.西方,西部;adj.西方的,向西的;adv.向西
参考例句:
  • We live on the westward slope of the hill.我们住在这座山的西山坡。
  • Explore westward or wherever.向西或到什么别的地方去勘探。
56 resolutely WW2xh     
adj.坚决地,果断地
参考例句:
  • He resolutely adhered to what he had said at the meeting. 他坚持他在会上所说的话。
  • He grumbles at his lot instead of resolutely facing his difficulties. 他不是果敢地去面对困难,而是抱怨自己运气不佳。
57 almighty dzhz1h     
adj.全能的,万能的;很大的,很强的
参考例句:
  • Those rebels did not really challenge Gods almighty power.这些叛徒没有对上帝的全能力量表示怀疑。
  • It's almighty cold outside.外面冷得要命。
58 scent WThzs     
n.气味,香味,香水,线索,嗅觉;v.嗅,发觉
参考例句:
  • The air was filled with the scent of lilac.空气中弥漫着丁香花的芬芳。
  • The flowers give off a heady scent at night.这些花晚上散发出醉人的芳香。
59 canine Lceyb     
adj.犬的,犬科的
参考例句:
  • The fox is a canine animal.狐狸是犬科动物。
  • Herbivorous animals have very small canine teeth,or none.食草动物的犬牙很小或者没有。
60 scurvy JZAx1     
adj.下流的,卑鄙的,无礼的;n.坏血病
参考例句:
  • Vitamin C deficiency can ultimately lead to scurvy.缺乏维生素C最终能道致坏血病。
  • That was a scurvy trick to play on an old lady.用那样的花招欺负一个老太太可真卑鄙。
61 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。
62 recital kAjzI     
n.朗诵,独奏会,独唱会
参考例句:
  • She is going to give a piano recital.她即将举行钢琴独奏会。
  • I had their total attention during the thirty-five minutes that my recital took.在我叙述的35分钟内,他们完全被我吸引了。
63 outfit YJTxC     
n.(为特殊用途的)全套装备,全套服装
参考例句:
  • Jenney bought a new outfit for her daughter's wedding.珍妮为参加女儿的婚礼买了一套新装。
  • His father bought a ski outfit for him on his birthday.他父亲在他生日那天给他买了一套滑雪用具。
64 ashore tNQyT     
adv.在(向)岸上,上岸
参考例句:
  • The children got ashore before the tide came in.涨潮前,孩子们就上岸了。
  • He laid hold of the rope and pulled the boat ashore.他抓住绳子拉船靠岸。
65 tardy zq3wF     
adj.缓慢的,迟缓的
参考例句:
  • It's impolite to make a tardy appearance.晚到是不礼貌的。
  • The boss is unsatisfied with the tardy tempo.老板不满于这种缓慢的进度。
66 swarm dqlyj     
n.(昆虫)等一大群;vi.成群飞舞;蜂拥而入
参考例句:
  • There is a swarm of bees in the tree.这树上有一窝蜜蜂。
  • A swarm of ants are moving busily.一群蚂蚁正在忙碌地搬家。
67 ragged KC0y8     
adj.衣衫褴褛的,粗糙的,刺耳的
参考例句:
  • A ragged shout went up from the small crowd.这一小群人发出了刺耳的喊叫。
  • Ragged clothing infers poverty.破衣烂衫意味着贫穷。
68 frenzy jQbzs     
n.疯狂,狂热,极度的激动
参考例句:
  • He was able to work the young students up into a frenzy.他能激起青年学生的狂热。
  • They were singing in a frenzy of joy.他们欣喜若狂地高声歌唱。
69 rumor qS0zZ     
n.谣言,谣传,传说
参考例句:
  • The rumor has been traced back to a bad man.那谣言经追查是个坏人造的。
  • The rumor has taken air.谣言流传开了。
70 countless 7vqz9L     
adj.无数的,多得不计其数的
参考例句:
  • In the war countless innocent people lost their lives.在这场战争中无数无辜的人丧失了性命。
  • I've told you countless times.我已经告诉你无数遍了。
71 pounce 4uAyU     
n.猛扑;v.猛扑,突然袭击,欣然同意
参考例句:
  • Why do you pounce on every single thing I say?干吗我说的每句话你都要找麻烦?
  • We saw the tiger about to pounce on the goat.我们看见老虎要向那只山羊扑过去。
72 expectancy tlMys     
n.期望,预期,(根据概率统计求得)预期数额
参考例句:
  • Japanese people have a very high life expectancy.日本人的平均寿命非常长。
  • The atomosphere of tense expectancy sobered everyone.这种期望的紧张气氛使每个人变得严肃起来。
73 permeated 5fe75f31bda63acdd5d0ee4bbd196747     
弥漫( permeate的过去式和过去分词 ); 遍布; 渗入; 渗透
参考例句:
  • The smell of leather permeated the room. 屋子里弥漫着皮革的气味。
  • His public speeches were permeated with hatred of injustice. 在他对民众的演说里,充满了对不公正的愤慨。
74 swooped 33b84cab2ba3813062b6e35dccf6ee5b     
俯冲,猛冲( swoop的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • The aircraft swooped down over the buildings. 飞机俯冲到那些建筑物上方。
  • The hawk swooped down on the rabbit and killed it. 鹰猛地朝兔子扑下来,并把它杀死。
75 tarpaulins 46600d444729513b3fab47b3b92e2818     
n.防水帆布,防水帆布罩( tarpaulin的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • Main wood to aluminum and plexiglass, PC, tarpaulins, toughened glass. 主材以铝型材与进口有机玻璃、PC、防水布、钢化玻璃。 来自互联网
  • That means providing tents or other materials, including plastic sheeting, tarpaulins and wood. 这意味着需要帐篷和其他物资,包括塑料布、放水油布和木材。 来自互联网
76 fixtures 9403e5114acb6bb59791a97291be54b5     
(房屋等的)固定装置( fixture的名词复数 ); 如(浴盆、抽水马桶); 固定在某位置的人或物; (定期定点举行的)体育活动
参考例句:
  • The insurance policy covers the building and any fixtures contained therein. 保险单为这座大楼及其中所有的设施保了险。
  • The fixtures had already been sold and the sum divided. 固定设备已经卖了,钱也分了。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
77 immaturity 779396dd776272b5ff34c0218a6c4aba     
n.不成熟;未充分成长;未成熟;粗糙
参考例句:
  • It traces the development of a young man from immaturity to maturity. 它描写一位青年从不成熟到成熟的发展过程。 来自辞典例句
  • Immaturity is the inability to use one's understanding without guidance from another. 不成熟就是不经他人的指引就无法运用自身的理解力。 来自互联网
78 unpacked 78a068b187a564f21b93e72acffcebc3     
v.从(包裹等)中取出(所装的东西),打开行李取出( unpack的过去式和过去分词 );拆包;解除…的负担;吐露(心事等)
参考例句:
  • I unpacked my bags as soon as I arrived. 我一到达就打开行李,整理衣物。
  • Our guide unpacked a picnic of ham sandwiches and offered us tea. 我们的导游打开装着火腿三明治的野餐盒,并给我们倒了些茶水。 来自辞典例句
79 gambling ch4xH     
n.赌博;投机
参考例句:
  • They have won a lot of money through gambling.他们赌博赢了很多钱。
  • The men have been gambling away all night.那些人赌了整整一夜。
80 implements 37371cb8af481bf82a7ea3324d81affc     
n.工具( implement的名词复数 );家具;手段;[法律]履行(契约等)v.实现( implement的第三人称单数 );执行;贯彻;使生效
参考例句:
  • Primitive man hunted wild animals with crude stone implements. 原始社会的人用粗糙的石器猎取野兽。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
  • They ordered quantities of farm implements. 他们订购了大量农具。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
81 herd Pd8zb     
n.兽群,牧群;vt.使集中,把…赶在一起
参考例句:
  • She drove the herd of cattle through the wilderness.她赶着牛群穿过荒野。
  • He had no opinions of his own but simply follow the herd.他从无主见,只是人云亦云。
82 transformation SnFwO     
n.变化;改造;转变
参考例句:
  • Going to college brought about a dramatic transformation in her outlook.上大学使她的观念发生了巨大的变化。
  • He was struggling to make the transformation from single man to responsible husband.他正在努力使自己由单身汉变为可靠的丈夫。
83 hoarse 5dqzA     
adj.嘶哑的,沙哑的
参考例句:
  • He asked me a question in a hoarse voice.他用嘶哑的声音问了我一个问题。
  • He was too excited and roared himself hoarse.他过于激动,嗓子都喊哑了。
84 forth Hzdz2     
adv.向前;向外,往外
参考例句:
  • The wind moved the trees gently back and forth.风吹得树轻轻地来回摇晃。
  • He gave forth a series of works in rapid succession.他很快连续发表了一系列的作品。


欢迎访问英文小说网

©英文小说网 2005-2010

有任何问题,请给我们留言,管理员邮箱:[email protected]  站长QQ :点击发送消息和我们联系56065533