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CHAPTER ONE: Letters of Mark
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 Messrs. Frobisher & Haslitt, the solicitors1 on the east side of Russell Square, counted amongst their clients a great many who had undertakings2 established in France; and the firm was very proud of this branch of its business.
 
"It gives us a place in history," Mr. Jeremy Haslitt used to say. "For it dates from the year 1806, when Mr. James Frobisher, then our very energetic senior partner, organised the escape of hundreds of British subjects who were detained in France by the edict of the first Napoleon. The firm received the thanks of His Majesty's Government and has been fortunate enough to retain the connection thus made. I look after that side of our affairs myself."
 
Mr. Haslitt's daily batch3 of letters, therefore, contained as a rule a fair number bearing the dark-blue stamp of France upon their envelopes. On this morning of early April, however, there was only one. It was addressed in a spidery, uncontrolled hand with which Mr. Haslitt was unfamiliar4. But it bore the postmark of Dijon, and Mr. Haslitt tore it open rather quickly. He had a client in Dijon, a widow, Mrs. Harlowe, of whose health he had had bad reports. The letter was certainly written from her house, La Maison Crenelle, but not by her. He turned to the signature.
 
"Waberski?" he said, with a frown. "Boris Waberski?" And then, as he identified his correspondent, "Oh, yes, yes."
 
He sat down in his chair and read. The first part of the letter was merely flowers and compliments, but half-way down the second page its object was made clear as glass. It was five hundred pounds. Old Mr. Haslitt smiled and read on, keeping up, whilst he read, a one-sided conversation with the writer.
 
"I have a great necessity of that money," wrote Boris, "and——"
 
"I am quite sure of that," said Mr. Haslitt.
 
"My beloved sister, Jeanne-Marie——" the letter continued.
 
"Sister-in-law," Mr. Haslitt corrected.
 
"—cannot live for long, in spite of all the care and attention I give to her," Boris Waberski went on. "She has left me, as no doubt you know, a large share of her fortune. Already, then, it is mine—yes? One may say so and be favourably5 understood. We must look at the facts with the eyes. Expedite me, then, by the recommended post a little of what is mine and agree my distinguished6 salutations."
 
Haslitt's smile became a broad grin. He had in one of his tin boxes a copy of the will of Jeanne-Marie Harlowe drawn7 up in due form by her French notary8 at Dijon, by which every farthing she possessed9 was bequeathed without condition to her husband's niece and adopted daughter, Betty Harlowe. Jeremy Haslitt almost destroyed that letter. He folded it; his fingers twitched10 at it; there was already actually a tear at the edges of the sheets when he changed his mind.
 
"No," he said to himself. "No! With the Boris Waberskis one never knows," and he locked the letter away on a ledge11 of his private safe.
 
He was very glad that he had when three weeks later he read, in the obituary12 column of The Times, the announcement of Mrs. Harlowe's death, and received a big card with a very deep black border in the French style from Betty Harlowe inviting13 him to the funeral at Dijon. The invitation was merely formal. He could hardly have reached Dijon in time for the ceremony had he started off that instant. He contented14 himself with writing a few lines of sincere condolence to the girl, and a letter to the French notary in which he placed the services of the firm at Betty's disposal. Then he waited.
 
"I shall hear again from little Boris," he said, and he heard within the week. The handwriting was more spidery and uncontrolled than ever; hysteria and indignation had played havoc15 with Waberski's English; also he had doubled his demand.
 
"It is outside belief," he wrote. "Nothing has she left to her so attentive16 brother. There is something here I do not much like. It must be one thousand pounds now, by the recommended post. 'You have always had the world against you, my poor Boris,' she say with the tears all big in her dear eyes. 'But I make all right for you in my will.' And now nothing! I speak, of course, to my niece—ah, that hard one! She snap her the fingers at me! Is that a behaviour? One thousand pounds, mister! Otherwise there will be awkwardnesses! Yes! People do not snap them the fingers at Boris Waberski without the payment. So one thousand pounds by the recommended post or awkwardnesses"; and this time Boris Waberski did not invite Mr. Haslitt to agree any salutations, distinguished or otherwise, but simply signed his name with a straggling pen which shot all over the sheet.
 
Mr. Haslitt did not smile over this letter. He rubbed the palms of his hands softly together.
 
"Then we shall have to make some awkwardnesses too," he said hastily, and he locked this second letter away with the first. But Mr. Haslitt found it a little difficult to settle to his work. There was that girl out there in the big house at Dijon and no one of her race near her! He got up from his chair abruptly17 and crossed the corridor to the offices of his junior partner.
 
"Jim, you were at Monte Carlo this winter," he said.
 
"For a week," answered Jim Frobisher.
 
"I think I asked you to call on a client of ours who has a villa18 there—Mrs. Harlowe."
 
Jim Frobisher nodded. "I did. But Mrs. Harlowe was ill. There was a niece, but she was out."
 
"You saw no one, then?" Jeremy Haslitt asked.
 
"No, that's wrong," Jim corrected. "I saw a strange creature who came to the door to make Mrs. Harlowe's excuses—a Russian."
 
"Boris Waberski," said Mr. Haslitt.
 
"That's the name."
 
Mr. Haslitt sat down in a chair.
 
"Tell me about him, Jim."
 
Jim Frobisher stared at nothing for a few moments. He was a young man of twenty-six who had only during this last year succeeded to his partnership19. Though quick enough when action was imperative20, he was naturally deliberate in his estimates of other people's characters; and a certain awe21 he had of old Jeremy Haslitt doubled that natural deliberation in any matters of the firm's business. He answered at length.
 
"He is a tall, shambling fellow with a shock of grey hair standing22 up like wires above a narrow forehead and a pair of wild eyes. He made me think of a marionette23 whose limbs have not been properly strung. I should imagine that he was rather extravagant24 and emotional. He kept twitching25 at his moustache with very long, tobacco-stained fingers. The sort of man who might go off at the deep end at any moment."
 
Mr. Haslitt smiled.
 
"That's just what I thought."
 
"Is he giving you any trouble?" asked Jim.
 
"Not yet," said Mr. Haslitt. "But Mrs. Harlowe is dead, and I think it very likely that he will. Did he play at the tables?"
 
"Yes, rather high," said Jim. "I suppose that he lived on Mrs. Harlowe."
 
"I suppose so," said Mr. Haslitt, and he sat for a little while in silence. Then: "It's a pity you didn't see Betty Harlowe. I stopped at Dijon once on my way to the South of France five years ago when Simon Harlowe, the husband, was alive. Betty was then a long-legged slip of a girl in black silk stockings with a pale, clear face and dark hair and big eyes—rather beautiful." Mr. Haslitt moved in his chair uncomfortably. That old house with its great garden of chestnuts26 and sycamores and that girl alone in it with an aggrieved27 and half-crazed man thinking out awkwardnesses for her—Mr. Haslitt did not like the picture!
 
"Jim," he said suddenly, "could you arrange your work so that you could get away at short notice, if it becomes advisable?"
 
Jim looked up in surprise. Excursions and alarms, as the old stage directions have it, were not recognised as a rule by the firm of Frobisher & Haslitt. If its furniture was dingy28, its methods were stately; clients might be urgent, but haste and hurry were words for which the firm had no use No doubt, somewhere round the corner, there would be an attorney who understood them. Yet here was Mr. Haslitt himself, with his white hair and his curious round face, half-babyish, half-supremely intelligent, actually advocating that his junior partner should be prepared to skip to the Continent at a word.
 
"No doubt I could," said Jim, and Mr. Haslitt looked him over with approbation29.
 
Jim Frobisher had an unusual quality of which his acquaintances, even his friends, knew only the outward signs. He was a solitary30 person. Very few people up till now had mattered to him at all, and even those he could do without. It was his passion to feel that his life and the means of his life did not depend upon the purchased skill of other people; and he had spent the spare months of his life in the fulfilment of his passion. A half-decked sailing-boat which one man could handle, an ice-axe, a rifle, an inexhaustible volume or two like The Ring and the Book—these with the stars and his own thoughts had been his companions on many lonely expeditions; and in consequence he had acquired a queer little look of aloofness31 which made him at once noticeable amongst his fellows. A misleading look, since it encouraged a confidence for which there might not be sufficient justification32. It was just this look which persuaded Mr. Haslitt now. "This is the very man to deal with creatures like Boris Waberski," he thought, but he did not say so aloud.
 
What he did say was:
 
"It may not be necessary after all. Betty Harlowe has a French lawyer. No doubt he is adequate. Besides"—and he smiled as he recollected33 a phrase in Waberski's second letter—"Betty seems very capable of looking after herself. We shall see."
 
He went back to his own office, and for a week he heard no more from Dijon. His anxiety, indeed, was almost forgotten when suddenly startling news arrived and by the most unexpected channel.
 
Jim Frobisher brought it. He broke into Mr. Haslitt's office at the sacred moment when the senior partner was dictating34 to a clerk the answers to his morning letters.
 
"Sir!" cried Jim, and stopped short at the sight of the clerk. Mr. Haslitt took a quick look at his young partner's face and said:
 
"We will resume these answers, Godfrey, later on."
 
The clerk took his shorthand notebook out of the room, and Mr. Haslitt turned to Jim Frobisher.
 
"Now, what's your bad news, Jim?"
 
Jim blurted35 it out.
 
"Waberski accuses Betty Harlowe of murder."
 
"What!"
 
Mr. Haslitt sprang to his feet. Jim Frobisher could not have said whether incredulity or anger had the upper hand with the old man, the one so creased36 his forehead, the other so blazed in his eyes.
 
"Little Betty Harlowe!" he said in a wondering voice.
 
"Yes. Waberski has laid a formal charge with the Prefect of Police at Dijon. He accuses Betty of poisoning Mrs. Harlowe on the night of April the twenty-seventh."
 
"But Betty's not arrested?" Mr. Haslitt exclaimed.
 
"No, but she's under surveillance."
 
Mr. Haslitt sat heavily down in his arm-chair at his table. Extravagant! Uncontrolled! These were very mild epithets37 for Boris Waberski. Here was a devilish malignity38 at work in the rogue39, a passion for revenge just as mean as could be imagined.
 
"How do you know all this, Jim?" he asked suddenly.
 
"I have had a letter this morning from Dijon."
 
"You?" exclaimed Mr. Haslitt, and the question caught hold of Jim Frobisher and plunged40 him too among perplexities. In the first shock of the news, the monstrous41 fact of the accusation42 had driven everything else out of his head. Now he asked himself why, after all, had the news come to him and not to the partner who had the Harlowe estate in his charge.
 
"Yes, it is strange," he replied. "And here's another queer thing. The letter doesn't come from Betty Harlowe, but from a friend, a companion of hers, Ann Upcott."
 
Mr. Haslitt was a little relieved.
 
"Betty had a friend with her, then? That's a good thing." He reached out his hand across the table. "Let me read the letter, Jim."
 
Frobisher had been carrying it in his hand, and he gave it now to Jeremy Haslitt. It was a letter of many sheets, and Jeremy let the edges slip and flicker43 under the ball of his thumb.
 
"Have I got to read all this?" he said ruefully, and he set himself to his task. Boris Waberski had first of all accused Betty to her face. Betty had contemptuously refused to answer the charge, and Waberski had gone straight off to the Prefect of Police. He had returned in an hour's time, wildly gesticulating and talking aloud to himself. He had actually asked Ann Upcott to back him up. Then he had packed his bags and retired44 to an hotel in the town. The story was set out in detail, with quotations45 from Waberski's violent, crazy talk; and as the old man read, Jim Frobisher became more and more uneasy, more and more troubled.
 
He was sitting by the tall, broad window which looked out upon the square, expecting some explosion of wrath46 and contempt. But he saw anxiety peep out of Mr. Haslitt's face and stay there as he read. More than once he stopped altogether in his reading, like a man seeking to remember or perhaps to discover.
 
"But the whole thing's as clear as daylight," Jim said to himself impatiently. And yet—and yet—Mr. Haslitt had sat in that arm-chair during the better part of the day, during the better part of thirty years. How many men and women during those years had crossed the roadway below this window and crept into this quiet oblong room with their grievances47, their calamities48, their confessions49? And had passed out again, each one contributing his little to complete the old man's knowledge and sharpen the edge of his wit? Then, if Mr. Haslitt was troubled, there was something in that letter, or some mission from it, which he himself in his novitiate had overlooked. He began to read it over again in his mind to the best of his recollection, but he had not got far before Mr. Haslitt put the letter down.
 
"Surely, sir," cried Jim, "it's an obvious case of blackmail50."
 
Mr. Haslitt awoke with a little shake of his shoulders.
 
"Blackmail? Oh! that of course, Jim."
 
Mr. Haslitt got up and unlocked his safe. He took from it the two Waberski letters and brought them across the room to Jim.
 
"Here's the evidence, as damning as any one could wish."
 
Jim read the letters through and uttered a little cry of delight.
 
"The rogue has delivered himself over to us."
 
"Yes," said Mr. Haslitt.
 
But to him, at all events, that was not enough; he was still looking through the lines of the letter for something beyond, which he could not find.
 
"Then what's troubling you?" asked Frobisher.
 
Mr. Haslitt took his stand upon the worn hearthrug with his back towards the fire.
 
"This, Jim," and he began to expound51. "In ninety-five of these cases out of a hundred, there is something else, something behind the actual charge, which isn't mentioned, but on which the blackmailer52 is really banking53. As a rule it's some shameful54 little secret, some blot55 on the family honour, which any sort of public trial would bring to light. And there must be something of that kind here. The more preposterous56 Waberski's accusation is, the more certain it is that he knows something to the discredit57 of the Harlowe name, which any Harlowe would wish to keep dark. Only, I haven't an idea what the wretched thing can be!"
 
"It might be some trifle," Jim suggested, "which a crazy person like Waberski would exaggerate."
 
"Yes," Mr. Haslitt agreed. "That happens. A man brooding over imagined wrongs, and flighty and extravagant besides—yes, that might well be, Jim."
 
Jeremy Haslitt spoke58 in a more cheerful voice.
 
"Let us see exactly what we do know of the family," he said, and he pulled up a chair to face Jim Frobisher and the window. But he had not yet sat down in it, when there came a discreet59 knock upon the door, and a clerk entered to announce a visitor.
 
"Not yet," said Mr. Haslitt before the name of the visitor had been mentioned.
 
"Very good, sir," said the clerk, and he retired. The firm of Frobisher & Haslitt conducted its business in that way. It was the real thing as a firm of solicitors, and clients who didn't like its methods were very welcome to take their affairs to the attorney round the corner. Just as people who go to the real thing in the line of tailors must put up with the particular style in which he cuts their clothes.
 
Mr. Haslitt turned back to Jim.
 
"Let us see what we know," he said, and he sat down in the chair.
 

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1 solicitors 53ed50f93b0d64a6b74a2e21c5841f88     
初级律师( solicitor的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • Most solicitors in England and Wales are in private practice . 英格兰和威尔士的大多数律师都是私人执业者。
  • The family has instructed solicitors to sue Thomson for compensation. 那家人已经指示律师起诉汤姆森,要求赔偿。
2 undertakings e635513464ec002d92571ebd6bc9f67e     
企业( undertaking的名词复数 ); 保证; 殡仪业; 任务
参考例句:
  • The principle of diligence and frugality applies to all undertakings. 勤俭节约的原则适用于一切事业。
  • Such undertakings require the precise planning and foresight of military operations. 此举要求军事上战役中所需要的准确布置和预见。
3 batch HQgyz     
n.一批(组,群);一批生产量
参考例句:
  • The first batch of cakes was burnt.第一炉蛋糕烤焦了。
  • I have a batch of letters to answer.我有一批信要回复。
4 unfamiliar uk6w4     
adj.陌生的,不熟悉的
参考例句:
  • I am unfamiliar with the place and the people here.我在这儿人地生疏。
  • The man seemed unfamiliar to me.这人很面生。
5 favourably 14211723ae4152efc3f4ea3567793030     
adv. 善意地,赞成地 =favorably
参考例句:
  • The play has been favourably commented by the audience. 本剧得到了观众的好评。
  • The open approach contrasts favourably with the exclusivity of some universities. 这种开放式的方法与一些大学的封闭排外形成了有利的对比。
6 distinguished wu9z3v     
adj.卓越的,杰出的,著名的
参考例句:
  • Elephants are distinguished from other animals by their long noses.大象以其长长的鼻子显示出与其他动物的不同。
  • A banquet was given in honor of the distinguished guests.宴会是为了向贵宾们致敬而举行的。
7 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。
8 notary svnyj     
n.公证人,公证员
参考例句:
  • She is the town clerk and a certified public accountant and notary public.她身兼城镇文书、执业会计师和公证人数职。
  • That notary is authorised to perform the certain legal functions.公证人被授权执行某些法律职能。
9 possessed xuyyQ     
adj.疯狂的;拥有的,占有的
参考例句:
  • He flew out of the room like a man possessed.他像着了魔似地猛然冲出房门。
  • He behaved like someone possessed.他行为举止像是魔怔了。
10 twitched bb3f705fc01629dc121d198d54fa0904     
vt.& vi.(使)抽动,(使)颤动(twitch的过去式与过去分词形式)
参考例句:
  • Her lips twitched with amusement. 她忍俊不禁地颤动着嘴唇。
  • The child's mouth twitched as if she were about to cry. 这小孩的嘴抽动着,像是要哭。 来自《简明英汉词典》
11 ledge o1Mxk     
n.壁架,架状突出物;岩架,岩礁
参考例句:
  • They paid out the line to lower him to the ledge.他们放出绳子使他降到那块岩石的突出部分。
  • Suddenly he struck his toe on a rocky ledge and fell.突然他的脚趾绊在一块突出的岩石上,摔倒了。
12 obituary mvvy9     
n.讣告,死亡公告;adj.死亡的
参考例句:
  • The obituary records the whole life of the deceased.讣文记述了这位死者的生平。
  • Five days after the letter came,he found Andersen s obituary in the morning paper.收到那封信五天后,他在早报上发现了安德森的讣告。
13 inviting CqIzNp     
adj.诱人的,引人注目的
参考例句:
  • An inviting smell of coffee wafted into the room.一股诱人的咖啡香味飘进了房间。
  • The kitchen smelled warm and inviting and blessedly familiar.这间厨房的味道温暖诱人,使人感到亲切温馨。
14 contented Gvxzof     
adj.满意的,安心的,知足的
参考例句:
  • He won't be contented until he's upset everyone in the office.不把办公室里的每个人弄得心烦意乱他就不会满足。
  • The people are making a good living and are contented,each in his station.人民安居乐业。
15 havoc 9eyxY     
n.大破坏,浩劫,大混乱,大杂乱
参考例句:
  • The earthquake wreaked havoc on the city.地震对这个城市造成了大破坏。
  • This concentration of airborne firepower wrought havoc with the enemy forces.这次机载火力的集中攻击给敌军造成很大破坏。
16 attentive pOKyB     
adj.注意的,专心的;关心(别人)的,殷勤的
参考例句:
  • She was very attentive to her guests.她对客人招待得十分周到。
  • The speaker likes to have an attentive audience.演讲者喜欢注意力集中的听众。
17 abruptly iINyJ     
adv.突然地,出其不意地
参考例句:
  • He gestured abruptly for Virginia to get in the car.他粗鲁地示意弗吉尼亚上车。
  • I was abruptly notified that a half-hour speech was expected of me.我突然被通知要讲半个小时的话。
18 villa xHayI     
n.别墅,城郊小屋
参考例句:
  • We rented a villa in France for the summer holidays.我们在法国租了一幢别墅消夏。
  • We are quartered in a beautiful villa.我们住在一栋漂亮的别墅里。
19 partnership NmfzPy     
n.合作关系,伙伴关系
参考例句:
  • The company has gone into partnership with Swiss Bank Corporation.这家公司已经和瑞士银行公司建立合作关系。
  • Martin has taken him into general partnership in his company.马丁已让他成为公司的普通合伙人。
20 imperative BcdzC     
n.命令,需要;规则;祈使语气;adj.强制的;紧急的
参考例句:
  • He always speaks in an imperative tone of voice.他老是用命令的口吻讲话。
  • The events of the past few days make it imperative for her to act.过去这几天发生的事迫使她不得不立即行动。
21 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。
22 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。
23 marionette sw2ye     
n.木偶
参考例句:
  • With this marionette I wish to travel through the world.我希望带着这个木偶周游世界。
  • The development of marionette had a great influence on the future development of opera.木偶戏的发展对以后的戏曲有十分重要的影响。
24 extravagant M7zya     
adj.奢侈的;过分的;(言行等)放肆的
参考例句:
  • They tried to please him with fulsome compliments and extravagant gifts.他们想用溢美之词和奢华的礼品来取悦他。
  • He is extravagant in behaviour.他行为放肆。
25 twitching 97f99ba519862a2bc691c280cee4d4cf     
n.颤搐
参考例句:
  • The child in a spasm kept twitching his arms and legs. 那个害痉挛的孩子四肢不断地抽搐。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
  • My eyelids keep twitching all the time. 我眼皮老是跳。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
26 chestnuts 113df5be30e3a4f5c5526c2a218b352f     
n.栗子( chestnut的名词复数 );栗色;栗树;栗色马
参考例句:
  • A man in the street was selling bags of hot chestnuts. 街上有个男人在卖一包包热栗子。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • Talk of chestnuts loosened the tongue of this inarticulate young man. 因为栗子,正苦无话可说的年青人,得到同情他的人了。 来自汉英文学 - 中国现代小说
27 aggrieved mzyzc3     
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)
参考例句:
  • He felt aggrieved at not being chosen for the team. 他因没被选到队里感到愤愤不平。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • She is the aggrieved person whose fiance&1& did not show up for their wedding. 她很委屈,她的未婚夫未出现在他们的婚礼上。 来自《简明英汉词典》
28 dingy iu8xq     
adj.昏暗的,肮脏的
参考例句:
  • It was a street of dingy houses huddled together. 这是一条挤满了破旧房子的街巷。
  • The dingy cottage was converted into a neat tasteful residence.那间脏黑的小屋已变成一个整洁雅致的住宅。
29 approbation INMyt     
n.称赞;认可
参考例句:
  • He tasted the wine of audience approbation.他尝到了像酒般令人陶醉的听众赞许滋味。
  • The result has not met universal approbation.该结果尚未获得普遍认同。
30 solitary 7FUyx     
adj.孤独的,独立的,荒凉的;n.隐士
参考例句:
  • I am rather fond of a solitary stroll in the country.我颇喜欢在乡间独自徜徉。
  • The castle rises in solitary splendour on the fringe of the desert.这座城堡巍然耸立在沙漠的边际,显得十分壮美。
31 aloofness 25ca9c51f6709fb14da321a67a42da8a     
超然态度
参考例句:
  • Why should I have treated him with such sharp aloofness? 但我为什么要给人一些严厉,一些端庄呢? 来自汉英文学 - 中国现代小说
  • He had an air of haughty aloofness. 他有一种高傲的神情。 来自辞典例句
32 justification x32xQ     
n.正当的理由;辩解的理由
参考例句:
  • There's no justification for dividing the company into smaller units. 没有理由把公司划分成小单位。
  • In the young there is a justification for this feeling. 在年轻人中有这种感觉是有理由的。
33 recollected 38b448634cd20e21c8e5752d2b820002     
adj.冷静的;镇定的;被回忆起的;沉思默想的v.记起,想起( recollect的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • I recollected that she had red hair. 我记得她有一头红发。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • His efforts, the Duke recollected many years later, were distinctly half-hearted. 据公爵许多年之后的回忆,他当时明显只是敷衍了事。 来自辞典例句
34 dictating 9b59a64fc77acba89b2fa4a927b010fe     
v.大声讲或读( dictate的现在分词 );口授;支配;摆布
参考例句:
  • The manager was dictating a letter to the secretary. 经理在向秘书口授信稿。 来自辞典例句
  • Her face is impassive as she listens to Miller dictating the warrant for her arrest. 她毫无表情地在听米勒口述拘留她的证书。 来自辞典例句
35 blurted fa8352b3313c0b88e537aab1fcd30988     
v.突然说出,脱口而出( blurt的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • She blurted it out before I could stop her. 我还没来得及制止,她已脱口而出。
  • He blurted out the truth, that he committed the crime. 他不慎说出了真相,说是他犯了那个罪。 来自《简明英汉词典》
36 creased b26d248c32bce741b8089934810d7e9f     
(使…)起折痕,弄皱( crease的过去式和过去分词 ); (皮肤)皱起,使起皱纹; 皱皱巴巴
参考例句:
  • You've creased my newspaper. 你把我的报纸弄皱了。
  • The bullet merely creased his shoulder. 子弹只不过擦破了他肩部的皮肤。
37 epithets 3ed932ca9694f47aefeec59fbc8ef64e     
n.(表示性质、特征等的)词语( epithet的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • He insulted me, using rude epithets. 他用粗话诅咒我。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • He cursed me, using a lot of rude epithets. 他用上许多粗鲁的修饰词来诅咒我。 来自辞典例句
38 malignity 28jzZ     
n.极度的恶意,恶毒;(病的)恶性
参考例句:
  • The little witch put a mock malignity into her beautiful eyes, and Joseph, trembling with sincere horror, hurried out praying and ejaculating "wicked" as he went. 这个小女巫那双美丽的眼睛里添上一种嘲弄的恶毒神气。约瑟夫真的吓得直抖,赶紧跑出去,一边跑一边祷告,还嚷着“恶毒!” 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • Outside, the pitiless rain fell, fell steadily, with a fierce malignity that was all too human. 外面下着无情的雨,不断地下着,简直跟通人性那样凶狠而恶毒。 来自辞典例句
39 rogue qCfzo     
n.流氓;v.游手好闲
参考例句:
  • The little rogue had his grandpa's glasses on.这淘气鬼带上了他祖父的眼镜。
  • They defined him as a rogue.他们确定他为骗子。
40 plunged 06a599a54b33c9d941718dccc7739582     
v.颠簸( plunge的过去式和过去分词 );暴跌;骤降;突降
参考例句:
  • The train derailed and plunged into the river. 火车脱轨栽进了河里。
  • She lost her balance and plunged 100 feet to her death. 她没有站稳,从100英尺的高处跌下摔死了。
41 monstrous vwFyM     
adj.巨大的;恐怖的;可耻的,丢脸的
参考例句:
  • The smoke began to whirl and grew into a monstrous column.浓烟开始盘旋上升,形成了一个巨大的烟柱。
  • Your behaviour in class is monstrous!你在课堂上的行为真是丢人!
42 accusation GJpyf     
n.控告,指责,谴责
参考例句:
  • I was furious at his making such an accusation.我对他的这种责备非常气愤。
  • She knew that no one would believe her accusation.她知道没人会相信她的指控。
43 flicker Gjxxb     
vi./n.闪烁,摇曳,闪现
参考例句:
  • There was a flicker of lights coming from the abandoned house.这所废弃的房屋中有灯光闪烁。
  • At first,the flame may be a small flicker,barely shining.开始时,光辉可能是微弱地忽隐忽现,几乎并不灿烂。
44 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。
45 quotations c7bd2cdafc6bfb4ee820fb524009ec5b     
n.引用( quotation的名词复数 );[商业]行情(报告);(货物或股票的)市价;时价
参考例句:
  • The insurance company requires three quotations for repairs to the car. 保险公司要修理这辆汽车的三家修理厂的报价单。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • These quotations cannot readily be traced to their sources. 这些引语很难查出出自何处。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
46 wrath nVNzv     
n.愤怒,愤慨,暴怒
参考例句:
  • His silence marked his wrath. 他的沉默表明了他的愤怒。
  • The wrath of the people is now aroused. 人们被激怒了。
47 grievances 3c61e53d74bee3976a6674a59acef792     
n.委屈( grievance的名词复数 );苦衷;不满;牢骚
参考例句:
  • The trade union leader spoke about the grievances of the workers. 工会领袖述说工人们的苦情。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
  • He gave air to his grievances. 他申诉了他的冤情。 来自《简明英汉词典》
48 calamities 16254f2ca47292404778d1804949fef6     
n.灾祸,灾难( calamity的名词复数 );不幸之事
参考例句:
  • They will only triumph by persevering in their struggle against natural calamities. 他们只有坚持与自然灾害搏斗,才能取得胜利。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
  • One moment's false security can bring a century of calamities. 图一时之苟安,贻百年之大患。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
49 confessions 4fa8f33e06cadcb434c85fa26d61bf95     
n.承认( confession的名词复数 );自首;声明;(向神父的)忏悔
参考例句:
  • It is strictly forbidden to obtain confessions and to give them credence. 严禁逼供信。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
  • Neither trickery nor coercion is used to secure confessions. 既不诱供也不逼供。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
50 blackmail rRXyl     
n.讹诈,敲诈,勒索,胁迫,恫吓
参考例句:
  • She demanded $1000 blackmail from him.她向他敲诈了1000美元。
  • The journalist used blackmail to make the lawyer give him the documents.记者讹诈那名律师交给他文件。
51 expound hhOz7     
v.详述;解释;阐述
参考例句:
  • Why not get a diviner to expound my dream?为什么不去叫一个占卜者来解释我的梦呢?
  • The speaker has an hour to expound his views to the public.讲演者有1小时时间向公众阐明他的观点。
52 blackmailer a031d47c9f342af0f87215f069fefc4d     
敲诈者,勒索者
参考例句:
  • The blackmailer had a hold over him. 勒索他的人控制着他。
  • The blackmailer will have to be bought off,or he'll ruin your good name. 得花些钱疏通那个敲诈者,否则他会毁坏你的声誉。
53 banking aySz20     
n.银行业,银行学,金融业
参考例句:
  • John is launching his son on a career in banking.约翰打算让儿子在银行界谋一个新职位。
  • He possesses an extensive knowledge of banking.他具有广博的银行业务知识。
54 shameful DzzwR     
adj.可耻的,不道德的
参考例句:
  • It is very shameful of him to show off.他向人炫耀自己,真不害臊。
  • We must expose this shameful activity to the newspapers.我们一定要向报社揭露这一无耻行径。
55 blot wtbzA     
vt.弄脏(用吸墨纸)吸干;n.污点,污渍
参考例句:
  • That new factory is a blot on the landscape.那新建的工厂破坏了此地的景色。
  • The crime he committed is a blot on his record.他犯的罪是他的履历中的一个污点。
56 preposterous e1Tz2     
adj.荒谬的,可笑的
参考例句:
  • The whole idea was preposterous.整个想法都荒唐透顶。
  • It would be preposterous to shovel coal with a teaspoon.用茶匙铲煤是荒谬的。
57 discredit fu3xX     
vt.使不可置信;n.丧失信义;不信,怀疑
参考例句:
  • Their behaviour has bought discredit on English football.他们的行为败坏了英国足球运动的声誉。
  • They no longer try to discredit the technology itself.他们不再试图怀疑这种技术本身。
58 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。
59 discreet xZezn     
adj.(言行)谨慎的;慎重的;有判断力的
参考例句:
  • He is very discreet in giving his opinions.发表意见他十分慎重。
  • It wasn't discreet of you to ring me up at the office.你打电话到我办公室真是太鲁莽了。


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