Immediately below Miles Canon itself are the Squaw Rapids, where the torrent14 spills itself over a confusion of boulders15, bursting into foam16 and gyrating in dizzy whirlpools, its surface broken by explosions of spray or pitted by devouring17 vortices resembling the oily mouths of marine18 monsters. Below this, in turn, is the White Horse, worst of all. Here the flood somersaults over a tremendous reef, flinging on high a gleaming curtain of spray. These rapids are well named, for the tossing waves resemble nothing more than runaway19 white horses with streaming manes and tails.
These are by no means all the dangers that confronted the first Yukon stampeders—there are other troublesome waters below—for instance, Rink Rapids, where the river boils and bubbles like a kettle over an open fire, and Five Fingers, so-called by reason of a row of knobby, knuckled21 pinnacles22 that reach up like the stiff digits23 of a drowning hand and split the stream into divergent channels—but those three, Miles Canon, the Squaw, and White Horse, were the worst and together they constituted a menace that tried the courage of the bravest men.
In the canon, where the waters are most narrowly constricted24, they heap themselves up into a longitudinal ridge25 or bore, a comb perhaps four feet higher than the general level. To ride this crest26 and to avoid the destroying fangs27 that lie in wait on either side is a feat28 that calls for nerve and skill and endurance on the part of boatmen. The whole four miles is a place of many voices, a thundering place that numbs29 the senses and destroys all hearing. Its tumult30 is heard afar and it covers the entire region like a blanket. The weight of that sound is oppressive.
Winter was at the heels of the Courteau party when it arrived at this point in its journey; it brought up the very tail of the autumn rush and the ice was close behind. The Countess and her companions had the uncomfortable feeling that they were inside the jaws31 of a trap which might be sprung at any moment, for already the hills were dusted with gray and white, creeks33 and rivulets34 were steadily35 dwindling36 and shelf ice was forming on the larger streams, the skies were low and overcast37 and there was a vicious tingle38 to the air. Delays had slowed them up, as, for instance, at Windy Arm, where a gale39 had held them in camp for several days; then, too, their boats were built of poorly seasoned lumber40 and in consequence were in need of frequent attention. Eventually, however, they came within hearing of a faint whisper, as of wind among pine branches, then of a muffled41 murmur42 that grew to a sullen43 diapason. The current quickened beneath them, the river-banks closed in, and finally beetling44 cliffs arose, between which was a cleft45 that swallowed the stream.
Just above the opening was a landing-place where boats lay gunwale to gunwale, and here the Courteau skiffs were grounded. A number of weather-beaten tents were stretched among the trees. Most of them were the homes of pilots, but others were occupied by voyagers who preferred to chance a winter's delay as the price of portaging their goods around rather than risk their all upon one throw of fortune. The great majority of the arrivals, however, were restowing their outfits46, lashing49 them down and covering them preparatory to a dash through the shouting chasm50. There was an atmosphere of excitement and apprehension51 about the place; every face was strained and expectant; fear lurked53 in many an eye.
On a tree near the landing were two placards. One bore a finger pointing up the steep trail to the top of the ridge, and it was marked:
"This way—two weeks."
It read:
"This way—two minutes."
Pierce Phillips smiled as he perused56 these signs; then he turned up the trail, for in his soul was a consuming curiosity to see the place of which he had heard so much.
Near the top of the slope he met a familiar figure coming down—a tall, upstanding French-Canadian who gazed out at the world through friendly eyes.
'Poleon Doret recognized the new-comer and burst into a boisterous58 greeting.
"Wal, wal!" he cried. "You 'ain't live' to be hung yet, eh? Now you come lookin' for me, I bet."
"Yes. You're the very man I want to see."
"Good! I tak' you t'rough."
Phillips smiled frankly59. "I'm not sure I want to go through. I'm in charge of a big outfit47 and I'm looking for a pilot and a professional crew. I'm a perfect dub60 at this sort of thing."
'Poleon nodded. "Dere's no use risk it if you 'ain't got to, dat's fac'. I don' lost no boats yet, but—sometam's I bus' 'em up pretty bad." He grinned cheerily. "Dese new-comer get scare' easy an' forget to row, den61 dey say 'Poleon she's bum62 pilot. You seen de canon yet?" When Pierce shook his head the speaker turned back and led the way out to the rim63.
It was an impressive spectacle that Phillips beheld64. Perhaps a hundred feet directly beneath him the river whirled and leaped; cross-currents boiled out from projecting irregularities in the walls; here and there the waters tumbled madly and flung wet arms aloft, while up out of the gorge came a mighty65 murmur, redoubled by the echoing cliffs. A log came plunging66 through and it moved with the speed of a torpedo67. Phillips watched it, fascinated.
"Look! Dere's a boat!" 'Poleon cried. In between the basalt jaws appeared a skiff with two rowers, and a man in the stern. The latter was braced68 on wide-spread legs and he held his weight upon a steering-sweep. Down the boat came at a galloping70 gait, threshing over waves and flinging spray head-high; it bucked71 and it dove, it buried its nose and then lifted it, but the oarsman continued to maintain it on a steady course.
"Bravo!" Doret shouted, waving his cap. To Pierce he said: "Dat's good pilot an' he knows swif' water. But dere's lot of feller here who ain't so good. Dey tak' chance for beeg money. Wal, w'at you t'ink of her? She's dandy, eh?"
"It's an—inferno," Phillips acknowledged. "You earn all the money you get for running it."
"You don' care for 'im, w'at?"
"I do not. I don't mind taking a chance, but—what chance would a fellow have in there? Why, he'd never come up."
"Dat's right."
The giant shook his head in vigorous denial. "No! Money? Pouf! She come, she go. But, you see—plenty people drowned if somebody don' tak' dem t'rough, so—I stay. Dis winter I build myse'f nice cabin an' do li'l trappin'. Nex' summer I pilot again."
"Aren't you going to Dawson?" Pierce was incredulous; he could not understand this fellow.
Doret's expression changed; a fleeting74 sadness settled in his eyes. "I been dere," said he. "I ain't care much for seein' beeg city. I'm lonesome feller." After a moment he exclaimed, more brightly: "Now we go, I see if I can hire crew to row your boats."
"How does she look to you?" Lucky Broad inquired, when Pierce and his companion appeared. He and Bridges had not taken the trouble to acquaint themselves with the canon, but immediately upon landing had begun to stow away their freight and to lash48 a tarpaulin75 over it.
"Better go up and see for yourself," the young man suggested.
Lucky shook his head. "Not me," he declared. "I can hear all I want to.
Listen to it! I got a long life ahead of me and I'm going to nurse it."
Kid Bridges was of like mind, for he said: "Sure! We was a coupla brave guys in Dyea, but what's the good of runnin' up to an undertaker and giving him your measurements? He'll get a tape-line on you soon enough."
"Then you don't intend to chance it?" Pierce inquired.
"Nor me," the other gambler seconded. "Not for a million dollars would
Broad appeared to weigh the figures carefully; then he said, doubtfully: "I'm a cheap guy. I might risk it once—for five hundred thousand, cash. But that's rock bottom; I wouldn't take a nickel less."
Doret had been listening with some amusement; now he said, "You boys got wide pay-streak, eh?"
Bridges nodded without shame. "Wider'n, a swamp, and yeller'n butter."
"Wal, I see w'at I can do." The pilot walked up the bank in search of a crew.
In the course of a half-hour he was back again and with him came the Countess Courteau. Calling Pierce aside, the woman said, swiftly: "We can't get a soul to help us; everybody's in a rush. We'll have to use our own men."
"Broad and Bridges are the best we have," he told her, "but they refuse."
"You're not afraid, are you?"
Now Pierce was afraid and he longed mightily79 to admit that he was, but he lacked the courage to do so. He smiled feebly and shrugged80, whereupon the former speaker misread his apparent indifference82 and flashed him a smile.
"Forgive me," she said, in a low voice. "I know you're not." She hurried down to the water's edge and addressed the two gamblers in a business-like tone: "We've no time to lose. Which one of you wants to lead off with Doret and Pierce?"
The men exchanged glances. It was Broad who finally spoke83. "We been figuring it would please us better to walk," he said, mildly.
"Suit yourselves," the Countess told them, coolly. "But it's a long walk from here to Dawson." She turned back to Pierce and said: "You've seen the canon. There's nothing so terrible about it, is there?"
Phillips was conscious that 'Poleon Doret's eyes were dancing with laughter, and anger at his own weakness flared84 up in him. "Why, no!" he lied, bravely. "It will be a lot of fun."
Kid Bridges leveled a sour look at the speaker. "Some folks have got low ideas of entertainment," said he. "Some folks is absolutely depraved that way. You'd probably enjoy a broken arm—it would feel so good when it got well."
The Countess Courteau's lip was curled contemptuously when she said: "Listen! I'm not going to be held up. There's a chance, of course, but hundreds have gone through. I can pull an oar55. Pierce and I will row the first boat."
Doret opened his lips to protest, but Broad obviated85 the necessity of speech by rising from his seat and announcing: "Deal the cards! I came in on no pair; I don't aim to be raised out ahead of the draw-not by a woman."
"You going to tackle it?" he asked, incredulously.
"Sure! I don't want to miss all this fun I hear about."
"When you get through, if you do, which you probably won't," Bridges told him, with a bleak89 and cheerless expression, "set a gill-net to catch me. I'll be down on the next trip."
"Good for you!" cried the Countess.
"It ain't good for me," the man exclaimed, angrily. "It's the worst thing in the world for me. I'm grand-standing57 and you know it. So's Lucky, but there wouldn't be any living with him if he pulled it off and I didn't."
Doret chuckled90. To Pierce he said, in a low voice: "Plenty feller mak' fool of demse'f on dat woman. I know all 'bout52 it. But she 'ain't mak' fool of herse'f, you bet."
"How do you mean?" Pierce inquired, quickly.
'Poleon eyed him shrewdly. "Wal, tak' you. You're scare', ain't you? But you sooner die so long she don't know it. Plenty oder feller jus' lak' dat." He walked to the nearest skiff, removed his coat, and began to untie91 his boots.
Lucky Broad joined the pilot, then looked on uneasily at these preparations. "What's the idea?" he inquired. "Are you too hot?"
'Poleon grinned at him and nodded. Very reluctantly Broad stripped off his mackinaw, then seated himself and tugged92 at his footgear. He paused, after a moment, and addressed himself to Bridges.
"It's no use, Kid. I squawk!" he said.
"Beginning to weaken, eh?"
"Sure! I got a hole in my sock-look! Somebody 'll find me after I've been drowned a week or two, and what'll they say?"
"Pshaw! You won't come up till you get to St. Michael's, and you'll be spoiled by that time." Kid Bridges tried to smile, but the result was a failure. "You'll be swelled93 up like a dead horse, and so'll I. They won't know us apart."
When Pierce had likewise stripped down and taken his place at the oars72, Broad grumbled94: "The idea of calling me 'Lucky'! It ain't in the cards." He spat95 on his hands and settled himself in his seat, then cried, "Well, lead your ace7!"
As the little craft moved out into the stream, Pierce Phillips noticed that the Kirby scow, which had run the Courteau boats a close race all the way from Linderman, was just pulling into the bank. Lines had been passed ashore96 and, standing on the top of the cargo97, he could make out the figure of Rouletta Kirby.
In spite of a strong steady stroke the rowboat seemed to move sluggishly98; foam and debris99 bobbed alongside and progress appeared to be slow, but when the oarsmen lifted their eyes they discovered that the shores were running past with amazing swiftness. Even as they looked, those shores rose abruptly100 and closed in, there came a mounting roar, then the skiff was sucked in between high, rugged81 walls. Unseen hands reached forth101 and seized it, unseen forces laid hold of it and impelled102 it forward; it began to plunge103 and to wallow; spray flew and wave-crests climbed over the gunwales.
Above the tumult 'Poleon was urging his crew to greater efforts. "Pull hard!" he shouted. "Hi! Hi! Hi!" He swayed in unison104 to their straining bodies. "Mak' dose oar crack," he yelled. "By Gar, dat's goin' some!"
The fellow's teeth were gleaming, his face was alight with an exultant105 recklessness, he cast defiance106 at the approaching terrors. He was alert, watchful107; under his hands the stout108 ash steering-oar bent109 like a bow; he flung his whole strength into the battle with the waters. Soon the roar increased until it drowned his shouts and forced him to pantomime his orders. The boat was galloping through a wild smother110 of ice-cold spray and the reverberating111 cliffs were streaming past like the unrolling scenery on a painted canvas panorama112.
It was a hellish place; it echoed to a demoniac din2 and it was a tremendous sensation to brave it, for the boat did not glide113 nor slip down the descent; it went in a succession of jarring leaps; it lurched and twisted; it rolled and plunged114 as if in a demented effort to unseat its passengers and scatter115 its cargo. To the occupants it seemed as if its joints116 were opening, as if the boards themselves were being wrenched117 loose from the ribs118 to which they were nailed. The men were drenched119, of course, for they traveled in a cloud of spume; their feet were ankle-deep in cold water, and every new deluge120 caused them to gasp121.
How long it lasted Pierce Phillips never knew; the experience was too terrific to be long lived. It was a nightmare, a hideous122 phantasmagoria of frightful123 sensations, a dissolving stereopticon of bleak, scudding124 walls, of hydrophobic boulders frothing madly as the flood crashed over them, of treacherous whirlpools, and of pursuing breakers that reached forth licking tongues of destruction. Then the river opened, the cliffs fell away, and the torrent spewed itself out into an expanse of whirlpools—a lake of gyrating funnels125 that warred with one another and threatened to twist the keel from under the boat.
'Poleon swung close in to the right bank, where an eddy126 raced up against the flood; some one flung a rope from the shore and drew the boat in.
"Wal! I never had no better crew," cried the pilot. "Wat you t'ink of 'im, eh?" He smiled down at the white-lipped oarsmen, who leaned forward, panting and dripping.
"Is—that all of it?" Lucky Broad inquired, weakly.
"Mais non! Look! Dere's Wite 'Orse."
Doret indicated a wall of foam and spray farther down the river. Directly across the expanse of whirlpools stood a village named after the rapids. "You get plenty more bimeby."
"You're wrong. I got plenty right now," Broad declared.
"I'm glad the Countess didn't come," said Phillips.
When the men had wrung127 out their clothes and put on their boots they set out along the back trail over the bluffs128.
Danny Royal was not an imaginative person. He possessed129, to be sure, the superstitions130 of the average horseman and gambler, and he believed strongly in hunches131, but he was not fanciful and he put no faith in dreams and portents132. It bothered him exceedingly, therefore, to discover that he was weighed down by an unaccountable but extremely oppressive sense of apprehension. How or why it had come to obsess133 him he could not imagine, but for some reason Miles Canon and the stormy waters below it had assumed terrible potentialities and he could not shake off the conviction that they were destined134 to prove his undoing135. This feeling he had allowed to grow until now a fatalistic apathy136 had settled upon him and his usual cheerfulness was replaced by a senseless irritability137. He suffered explosions of temper quite as surprising to the Kirbys, father and daughter, as to himself. On the day of his arrival he was particularly ugly, wherefore Rouletta was impelled to remonstrate138 with him.
"I wish they would," he cried. "Boatmen! They don't know as much about boats as me and Sam."
"They do whatever they're told."
Royal acknowledged this fact ungraciously. "Trouble is we don't know what to tell 'em to do. All Sam knows is 'gee139' and 'haw,' and I can't steer69 anything that don't wear a bridle140. Why, if this river wasn't fenced in with trees we'd have taken the wrong road and been lost, long ago."
Rouletta nodded thoughtfully. "Father is just as afraid of water as you are. He won't admit it, but I can tell. It has gotten on his nerves and—I've had hard work to keep him from drinking."
"Say! Don't let him get started on THAT!" Danny exclaimed, earnestly.
"That WOULD be the last touch."
"Trust me. I—"
But Kirby himself appeared at that moment, having returned from a voyage of exploration. Said he: "There's a good town below. I had a chance to sell the outfit."
The elder man shook his gray head. "Hardly. I'm no piker."
"I wish you and Danny would take the portage and trust the pilot to run the rapids," Rouletta said.
Kirby turned his expressionless face upon first one then the other of his companions. "Nervous?" he inquired of Royal.
The latter silently admitted that he was.
"Go ahead. You and Letty cross afoot—"
"And you?"
"Oh, I'm going to stick!"
"Father—" the girl began, but old Sam shook his head.
"No. This is my case bet, and I'm going to watch it."
Royal's weazened face puckered142 until it resembled more than ever a withered143 apple. "Then I'll stick, too," he declared. "I never laid down on you yet, Sam."
"How about you, Letty?"
The girl smiled. "Why, I wouldn't trust you boys out of my sight for a minute. Something would surely happen."
Kirby stooped and kissed his daughter's cheek. "You've always been our mascot144, and you've always brought us luck. I'd go to hell in a paper suit if you were along. You're a game kid, too, and I want you to be like that, always. Be a thoroughbred. Don't weaken, no matter how bad things break for you. This cargo of rum is worth the best claim in Dawson, and it'll put us on our feet again. All I want is one more chance. Double and quit—that's us."
This was an extraordinarily145 long speech for "One-armed" Kirby; it showed that he was deeply in earnest.
"Double and quit?" breathed the girl. "Do you mean it, dad?"
He nodded: "I'm going to leave you heeled. I don't aim to take my eyes off this barge146 again till she's in Dawson."
Rouletta's face was transformed; there was a great gladness in her eyes—a gladness half obscured by tears. "Double and quit. Oh—I've dreamed of—quitting—so often! You've made me very happy, dad."
Royal, who knew this girl's dreams as well as he knew his own, felt a lump in his throat. He was a godless little man, but Rouletta Kirby's joys were holy things to him, her tears distressed147 him deeply, therefore he walked away to avoid the sight of them. Her slightest wish had been his law ever since she had mastered words enough to voice a request, and now he, too, was happy to learn that Sam Kirby was at last ready to mold his future in accordance with her desires. Letty had never liked their mode of life; she had accepted it under protest, and with the passing years her unspoken disapproval148 had assumed the proportions of a great reproach. She had never put that disapproval into words—she was far too loyal for that—but Danny had known. He knew her ambitions and her possibilities, and he had sufficient vision to realize something of the injustice149 she suffered at her father's hands. Sam loved his daughter as few parents love a child, but he was a strange man and he showed his affection in characteristic ways. It pleased Royal greatly to learn that the old man had awakened150 to the wrong he did, and that this adventure would serve to close the story, as all good stories close, with a happy ending.
In spite of these cheering thoughts, Danny was unable wholly to shake off his oppressive forebodings, and as he paused on the river-bank to stare with gloomy fascination151 at the jaws of the gorge they returned to plague him. The sound that issued out of that place was terrifying, the knowledge that it frightened him enraged152 the little man.
It was an unpropitious moment for any one to address Royal; therefore, when he heard himself spoken to, he whirled with a scowl76 upon his face. A tall French-Canadian, just back from the portage, was saying:
"M'sieu', I ain't good hand at mix in 'noder feller's bizneses, but—dat pilot you got she's no good."
Royal looked the stranger over from head to foot. "How d'you know?" he inquired, sharply.
"Biccause—I'm pilot myse'f."
"Oh, I see! You're one of the GOOD ones." Danny's air was surly, his tone forbidding.
"Yes."
"Hate yourself, don't you? I s'pose you want his job. Is that it? No wonder—five hundred seeds for fifteen minutes' work. Soft graft153, I call it." The speaker laughed unpleasantly. "Well, what does a GOOD pilot charge?"
"Me?" The Canadian shrugged indifferently. "I charge you one t'ousan' dollar."
"I don't want de job—your scow's no good—but I toss a coin wit' you.
One t'ousan' dollar or—free trip."
"Nothing doing," snapped the ex-horseman.
"Bien! Now I give you li'l AD-vice. Hol' hard to de right in lower end dis canon. Dere's beeg rock dere. Don't touch 'im or you goin' spin lak' top an' mebbe you go over W'ite 'Orse sideways. Dat's goin' smash you, sure."
Royal broke out, peevishly154: "Another hot tip, eh? Everybody's got some feed-box information—especially the ones you don't hire. Well, I ain't scared—"
"Oh yes, you are!" said the other man. "Everybody is scare' of dis place."
"Anyhow, I ain't scared a thousand dollars' worth. Takes a lot to scare me that much. I bet this place is as safe as a chapel155 and I bet our scow goes through with her tail up. Let her bump; she'll finish with me on her back and all her weights. I built her and I named her."
Danny watched the pilot as he swung down to the stony156 shore and rejoined Pierce Phillips; then he looked on in fascination while they removed their outer garments, stepped into a boat with Kid Bridges, and rowed away into the gorge.
"It's—got my goat!" muttered the little jockey.
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sinister
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| adj.不吉利的，凶恶的，左边的 | |
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din
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| n.喧闹声，嘈杂声 | |
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wrecked
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| adj.失事的，遇难的 | |
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rift
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| n.裂口，隙缝，切口；v.裂开，割开，渗入 | |
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gorge
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| n.咽喉，胃，暴食，山峡；v.塞饱，狼吞虎咽地吃 | |
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treacherous
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| adj.不可靠的，有暗藏的危险的；adj.背叛的，背信弃义的 | |
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ace
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| n.A牌；发球得分；佼佼者；adj.杰出的 | |
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exhausted
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| adj.极其疲惫的，精疲力尽的 | |
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ingenuity
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| n.别出心裁；善于发明创造 | |
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invaders
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| 入侵者，侵略者，侵入物( invader的名词复数 ) | |
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peril
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| n.(严重的)危险；危险的事物 | |
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labors
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| v.努力争取(for)( labor的第三人称单数 )；苦干；详细分析；（指引擎）缓慢而困难地运转 | |
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cataclysms
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| n.（突然降临的）大灾难( cataclysm的名词复数 ) | |
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torrent
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| n.激流，洪流；爆发，(话语等的)连发 | |
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boulders
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| n.卵石( boulder的名词复数 )；巨砾；（受水或天气侵蚀而成的）巨石；漂砾 | |
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foam
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| v./n.泡沫，起泡沫 | |
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devouring
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| 吞没( devour的现在分词 )； 耗尽； 津津有味地看； 狼吞虎咽地吃光 | |
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marine
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| adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵 | |
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runaway
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| n.逃走的人，逃亡，亡命者；adj.逃亡的，逃走的 | |
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ails
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| v.生病( ail的第三人称单数 )；感到不舒服；处境困难；境况不佳 | |
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knuckled
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| v.（指人）指关节( knuckle的过去式和过去分词 )；（指动物）膝关节，踝 | |
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pinnacles
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digits
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| n.数字( digit的名词复数 )；手指，足趾 | |
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constricted
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| adj.抑制的，约束的 | |
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ridge
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| n.山脊；鼻梁；分水岭 | |
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crest
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| n.顶点；饰章；羽冠；vt.达到顶点；vi.形成浪尖 | |
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fangs
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| 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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feat
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numbs
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| v.使麻木，使麻痹( numb的第三人称单数 ) | |
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tumult
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| n.喧哗；激动，混乱；吵闹 | |
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31
jaws
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| n.口部；嘴 | |
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32
jaw
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| n.颚，颌，说教，流言蜚语；v.喋喋不休，教训 | |
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33
creeks
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| n.小湾( creek的名词复数 )；小港；小河；小溪 | |
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34
rivulets
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| n.小河，小溪( rivulet的名词复数 ) | |
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35
steadily
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| adv.稳定地；不变地；持续地 | |
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36
dwindling
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| adj.逐渐减少的v.逐渐变少或变小( dwindle的现在分词 ) | |
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37
overcast
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| adj.阴天的，阴暗的，愁闷的；v.遮盖，（使）变暗，包边缝；n.覆盖，阴天 | |
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38
tingle
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| vi.感到刺痛，感到激动；n.刺痛，激动 | |
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39
gale
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| n.大风，强风，一阵闹声（尤指笑声等） | |
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40
lumber
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| n.木材，木料；v.以破旧东西堆满；伐木；笨重移动 | |
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41
muffled
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| adj.（声音）被隔的；听不太清的；（衣服）裹严的；蒙住的v.压抑，捂住( muffle的过去式和过去分词 )；用厚厚的衣帽包着（自己） | |
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42
murmur
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| n.低语，低声的怨言；v.低语，低声而言 | |
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43
sullen
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| adj.愠怒的，闷闷不乐的，(天气等)阴沉的 | |
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44
beetling
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| adj.突出的，悬垂的v.快速移动( beetle的现在分词 ) | |
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45
cleft
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| n.裂缝；adj.裂开的 | |
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46
outfits
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| n.全套装备( outfit的名词复数 )；一套服装；集体；组织v.装备，配置设备，供给服装( outfit的第三人称单数 ) | |
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47
outfit
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| n.（为特殊用途的）全套装备，全套服装 | |
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48
lash
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| v.系牢；鞭打；猛烈抨击；n.鞭打；眼睫毛 | |
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49
lashing
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| n.鞭打；痛斥；大量；许多v.鞭打( lash的现在分词 )；煽动；紧系；怒斥 | |
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50
chasm
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| n.深坑，断层，裂口，大分岐，利害冲突 | |
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51
apprehension
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| n.理解，领悟；逮捕，拘捕；忧虑 | |
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52
bout
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| n.侵袭，发作；一次(阵，回)；拳击等比赛 | |
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53
lurked
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| vi.潜伏，埋伏（lurk的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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54
pointed
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| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
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55
oar
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| n.桨，橹，划手；v.划行 | |
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56
perused
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| v.读（某篇文字）( peruse的过去式和过去分词 )；（尤指）细阅；审阅；匆匆读或心不在焉地浏览（某篇文字） | |
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57
standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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58
boisterous
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| adj.喧闹的，欢闹的 | |
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59
frankly
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| adv.坦白地，直率地；坦率地说 | |
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60
dub
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| vt.（以某种称号）授予，给...起绰号，复制 | |
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61
den
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| n.兽穴；秘密地方；安静的小房间，私室 | |
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62
bum
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| n.臀部；流浪汉，乞丐；vt.乞求，乞讨 | |
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63
rim
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| n.(圆物的)边，轮缘；边界 | |
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64
beheld
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| v.看，注视( behold的过去式和过去分词 )；瞧；看呀；（叙述中用于引出某人意外的出现）哎哟 | |
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65
mighty
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| adj.强有力的；巨大的 | |
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66
plunging
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| adj.跳进的，突进的v.颠簸( plunge的现在分词 )；暴跌；骤降；突降 | |
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67
torpedo
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| n.水雷，地雷；v.用鱼雷破坏 | |
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68
braced
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| adj.拉牢的v.支住( brace的过去式和过去分词 )；撑牢；使自己站稳；振作起来 | |
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69
steer
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| vt.驾驶，为…操舵；引导；vi.驾驶 | |
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70
galloping
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| adj. 飞驰的, 急性的 动词gallop的现在分词形式 | |
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71
bucked
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| adj.快v.（马等）猛然弓背跃起( buck的过去式和过去分词 )；抵制；猛然震荡；马等尥起后蹄跳跃 | |
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72
oars
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| n.桨，橹( oar的名词复数 )；划手v.划（行）( oar的第三人称单数 ) | |
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73
curiously
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| adv.有求知欲地；好问地；奇特地 | |
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74
fleeting
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| adj.短暂的，飞逝的 | |
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75
tarpaulin
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| n.涂油防水布，防水衣，防水帽 | |
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76
scowl
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| vi.(at)生气地皱眉，沉下脸，怒视；n.怒容 | |
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77
scowled
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| 怒视，生气地皱眉( scowl的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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78
embalmer
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| 尸体防腐者 | |
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79
mightily
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| ad.强烈地；非常地 | |
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80
shrugged
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| vt.耸肩（shrug的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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81
rugged
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| adj.高低不平的，粗糙的，粗壮的，强健的 | |
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82
indifference
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| n.不感兴趣，不关心，冷淡，不在乎 | |
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83
spoke
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| 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 | |
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84
Flared
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| 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 | |
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85
obviated
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| v.避免，消除（贫困、不方便等）( obviate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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86
aggrieved
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| adj.愤愤不平的，受委屈的；悲痛的；（在合法权利方面）受侵害的v.令委屈，令苦恼，侵害( aggrieve的过去式)；令委屈，令苦恼，侵害( aggrieve的过去式和过去分词) | |
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87
grimace
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| v.做鬼脸，面部歪扭 | |
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88
abhorrence
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| n.憎恶；可憎恶的事 | |
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89
bleak
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| adj.(天气)阴冷的；凄凉的；暗淡的 | |
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90
chuckled
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| 轻声地笑( chuckle的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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91
untie
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| vt.解开，松开；解放 | |
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92
tugged
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| v.用力拉，使劲拉，猛扯( tug的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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93
swelled
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| 增强( swell的过去式和过去分词 )； 肿胀； （使）凸出； 充满（激情） | |
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94
grumbled
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| 抱怨( grumble的过去式和过去分词 )； 发牢骚； 咕哝； 发哼声 | |
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95
spat
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| n.口角，掌击；v.发出呼噜呼噜声 | |
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96
ashore
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| adv.在(向)岸上，上岸 | |
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97
cargo
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| n.(一只船或一架飞机运载的)货物 | |
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98
sluggishly
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| adv.懒惰地；缓慢地 | |
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99
debris
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| n.瓦砾堆，废墟，碎片 | |
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100
abruptly
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| adv.突然地，出其不意地 | |
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101
forth
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| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
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102
impelled
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| v.推动、推进或敦促某人做某事( impel的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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103
plunge
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| v.跳入，(使)投入，(使)陷入；猛冲 | |
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104
unison
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| n.步调一致，行动一致 | |
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105
exultant
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| adj.欢腾的，狂欢的，大喜的 | |
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106
defiance
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| n.挑战，挑衅，蔑视，违抗 | |
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107
watchful
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| adj.注意的，警惕的 | |
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109
bent
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| n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的 | |
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110
smother
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| vt./vi.使窒息；抑制；闷死；n.浓烟；窒息 | |
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111
reverberating
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| 回响，回荡( reverberate的现在分词 )； 使反响，使回荡，使反射 | |
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112
panorama
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| n.全景，全景画，全景摄影，全景照片[装置] | |
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113
glide
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| n./v.溜，滑行；(时间)消逝 | |
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114
plunged
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| v.颠簸( plunge的过去式和过去分词 )；暴跌；骤降；突降 | |
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115
scatter
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| vt.撒，驱散，散开；散布/播；vi.分散，消散 | |
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116
joints
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| 接头( joint的名词复数 )； 关节； 公共场所（尤指价格低廉的饮食和娱乐场所） （非正式）； 一块烤肉 （英式英语） | |
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117
wrenched
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| v.（猛力地）扭( wrench的过去式和过去分词 )；扭伤；使感到痛苦；使悲痛 | |
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118
ribs
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| n.肋骨( rib的名词复数 )；（船或屋顶等的）肋拱；肋骨状的东西；（织物的）凸条花纹 | |
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119
drenched
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| adj.湿透的；充满的v.使湿透( drench的过去式和过去分词 )；在某人（某物）上大量使用（某液体） | |
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120
deluge
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| n./vt.洪水，暴雨，使泛滥 | |
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121
gasp
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| n.喘息，气喘；v.喘息；气吁吁他说 | |
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122
hideous
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| adj.丑陋的，可憎的，可怕的，恐怖的 | |
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123
frightful
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| adj.可怕的；讨厌的 | |
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124
scudding
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| n.刮面v.（尤指船、舰或云彩）笔直、高速而平稳地移动( scud的现在分词 ) | |
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125
funnels
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| 漏斗( funnel的名词复数 )； （轮船，火车等的）烟囱 | |
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126
eddy
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| n.漩涡，涡流 | |
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127
wrung
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| 绞( wring的过去式和过去分词 )； 握紧（尤指别人的手）； 把（湿衣服）拧干； 绞掉（水） | |
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128
bluffs
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| 恐吓( bluff的名词复数 )； 悬崖； 峭壁 | |
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129
possessed
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| adj.疯狂的；拥有的，占有的 | |
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130
superstitions
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| 迷信，迷信行为( superstition的名词复数 ) | |
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131
hunches
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| 预感，直觉( hunch的名词复数 ) | |
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132
portents
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| n.预兆( portent的名词复数 )；征兆；怪事；奇物 | |
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133
obsess
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| vt.使着迷，使心神不定，（恶魔）困扰 | |
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134
destined
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| adj.命中注定的；(for)以…为目的地的 | |
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135
undoing
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| n.毁灭的原因，祸根；破坏，毁灭 | |
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136
apathy
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| n.漠不关心，无动于衷；冷淡 | |
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137
irritability
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| n.易怒 | |
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138
remonstrate
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| v.抗议，规劝 | |
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139
gee
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| n.马；int.向右！前进！，惊讶时所发声音；v.向右转 | |
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140
bridle
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| n.笼头，束缚；vt.抑制，约束；动怒 | |
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141
conceal
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| v.隐藏，隐瞒，隐蔽 | |
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142
puckered
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| v.（使某物）起褶子或皱纹( pucker的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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143
withered
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| adj. 枯萎的，干瘪的，（人身体的部分器官）因病萎缩的或未发育良好的 动词wither的过去式和过去分词形式 | |
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144
mascot
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| n.福神，吉祥的东西 | |
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145
extraordinarily
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| adv.格外地；极端地 | |
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146
barge
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| n.平底载货船，驳船 | |
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147
distressed
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| 痛苦的 | |
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148
disapproval
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| n.反对，不赞成 | |
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149
injustice
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| n.非正义，不公正，不公平，侵犯（别人的）权利 | |
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150
awakened
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| v.（使）醒( awaken的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）觉醒；弄醒；（使）意识到 | |
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151
fascination
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| n.令人着迷的事物，魅力，迷恋 | |
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152
enraged
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| 使暴怒( enrage的过去式和过去分词 )； 歜； 激愤 | |
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153
graft
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| n.移植，嫁接，艰苦工作，贪污；v.移植，嫁接 | |
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154
peevishly
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| adv．暴躁地 | |
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155
chapel
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| n.小教堂，殡仪馆 | |
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156
stony
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| adj.石头的，多石头的，冷酷的，无情的 | |
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