Following the ridge, which made a gradual descent to the south, I came at length to the brow of that massive cliff that stands between Indian Cañon and Yosemite Falls, and here the far-famed valley came suddenly into view throughout almost its whole extent. The noble walls—sculptured into endless variety of domes and gables, spires18 and battlements and plain mural precipices19—all a-tremble with the thunder tones of the falling water. The level bottom seemed to be dressed like a garden—sunny meadows here and there, and groves21 of pine and oak; the river of Mercy sweeping7 in[Pg 117] majesty22 through the midst of them and flashing back the sunbeams. The great Tissiack, or Half-Dome6, rising at the upper end of the valley to a height of nearly a mile, is nobly proportioned and life-like, the most impressive of all the rocks, holding the eye in devout23 admiration24, calling it back again and again from falls or meadows, or even the mountains beyond,—marvelous cliffs, marvelous in sheer dizzy depth and sculpture, types of endurance. Thousands of years have they stood in the sky exposed to rain, snow, frost, earthquake and avalanche25, yet they still wear the bloom of youth.
I rambled27 along the valley rim to the westward28; most of it is rounded off on the very brink29, so that it is not easy to find places where one may look clear down the face of the wall to the bottom. When such places were found, and I had cautiously set my feet and drawn30 my body erect31, I could not help fearing a little that the rock might split off and let me down, and what a down!—more than three thousand feet. Still my limbs did not tremble, nor did I feel the least uncertainty32 as to the reliance to be placed on them. My only fear was that a flake33 of the granite34, which in some places showed joints36 more or less open and running parallel with the face of the cliff, might give way. After[Pg 118] withdrawing from such places, excited with the view I had got, I would say to myself, “Now don’t go out on the verge37 again.” But in the face of Yosemite scenery cautious remonstrance38 is vain; under its spell one’s body seems to go where it likes with a will over which we seem to have scarce any control.
After a mile or so of this memorable39 cliff work I approached Yosemite Creek40, admiring its easy, graceful41, confident gestures as it comes bravely forward in its narrow channel, singing the last of its mountain songs on its way to its fate—a few rods more over the shining granite, then down half a mile in showy foam42 to another world, to be lost in the Merced, where climate, vegetation, inhabitants, all are different. Emerging from its last gorge43, it glides44 in wide lace-like rapids down a smooth incline into a pool where it seems to rest and compose its gray, agitated45 waters before taking the grand plunge46, then slowly slipping over the lip of the pool basin, it descends47 another glossy48 slope with rapidly accelerated speed to the brink of the tremendous cliff, and with sublime, fateful confidence springs out free in the air.
I took off my shoes and stockings and worked my way cautiously down alongside the rushing flood, keeping my feet and hands pressed firmly on the polished rock. The booming, roaring[Pg 119] water, rushing past close to my head, was very exciting. I had expected that the sloping apron49 would terminate with the perpendicular50 wall of the valley, and that from the foot of it, where it is less steeply inclined, I should be able to lean far enough out to see the forms and behavior of the fall all the way down to the bottom. But I found that there was yet another small brow over which I could not see, and which appeared to be too steep for mortal feet. Scanning it keenly, I discovered a narrow shelf about three inches wide on the very brink, just wide enough for a rest for one’s heels. But there seemed to be no way of reaching it over so steep a brow. At length, after careful scrutiny51 of the surface, I found an irregular edge of a flake of the rock some distance back from the margin52 of the torrent53. If I was to get down to the brink at all that rough edge, which might offer slight finger-holds, was the only way. But the slope beside it looked dangerously smooth and steep, and the swift roaring flood beneath, overhead, and beside me was very nerve-trying. I therefore concluded not to venture farther, but did nevertheless. Tufts of artemisia were growing in clefts54 of the rock near by, and I filled my mouth with the bitter leaves, hoping they might help to prevent giddiness. Then, with a caution not known in ordinary cir[Pg 120]cumstances, I crept down safely to the little ledge55, got my heels well planted on it, then shuffled56 in a horizontal direction twenty or thirty feet until close to the outplunging current, which, by the time it had descended58 thus far, was already white. Here I obtained a perfectly59 free view down into the heart of the snowy, chanting throng60 of comet-like streamers, into which the body of the fall soon separates.
While perched on that narrow niche61 I was not distinctly conscious of danger. The tremendous grandeur of the fall in form and sound and motion, acting62 at close range, smothered63 the sense of fear, and in such places one’s body takes keen care for safety on its own account. How long I remained down there, or how I returned, I can hardly tell. Anyhow I had a glorious time, and got back to camp about dark, enjoying triumphant65 exhilaration soon followed by dull weariness. Hereafter I’ll try to keep from such extravagant, nerve-straining places. Yet such a day is well worth venturing for. My first view of the High Sierra, first view looking down into Yosemite, the death song of Yosemite Creek, and its flight over the vast cliff, each one of these is of itself enough for a great life-long landscape fortune—a most memorable day of days—enjoyment66 enough to kill if that were possible.[Pg 121]
July 16. My enjoyments67 yesterday afternoon, especially at the head of the fall, were too great for good sleep. Kept starting up last night in a nervous tremor68, half awake, fancying that the foundation of the mountain we were camped on had given way and was falling into Yosemite Valley. In vain I roused myself to make a new beginning for sound sleep. The nerve strain had been too great, and again and again I dreamed I was rushing through the air above a glorious avalanche of water and rocks. One time, springing to my feet, I said, “This time it is real—all must die, and where could mountaineer find a more glorious death!”
Left camp soon after sunrise for an all-day ramble26 eastward69. Crossed the head of Indian Basin, forested with Abies magnifica, underbrush mostly Ceanothus cordulatus and manzanita, a mixture not easily trampled70 over or penetrated71, for the ceanothus is thorny72 and grows in dense73 snow-pressed masses, and the manzanita has exceedingly crooked74, stubborn branches. From the head of the cañon continued on past North Dome into the basin of Dome or Porcupine75 Creek. Here are many fine meadows imbedded in the woods, gay with Lilium parvum and its companions; the elevation76, about eight thousand feet, seems to be best suited for it—saw specimens78 that[Pg 122] were a foot or two higher than my head. Had more magnificent views of the upper mountains, and of the great South Dome, said to be the grandest rock in the world. Well it may be, since it is of such noble dimensions and sculpture. A wonderfully impressive monument, its lines exquisite79 in fineness, and though sublime in size, is finished like the finest work of art, and seems to be alive.
July 17. A new camp was made to-day in a magnificent silver fir grove20 at the head of a small stream that flows into Yosemite by way of Indian Cañon. Here we intend to stay several weeks,—a fine location from which to make excursions about the great valley and its fountains. Glorious days I’ll have sketching80, pressing plants, studying the wonderful topography and the wild animals, our happy fellow mortals and neighbors. But the vast mountains in the distance, shall I ever know them, shall I be allowed to enter into their midst and dwell with them?
We were pelted82 about noon by a short, heavy rainstorm, sublime thunder reverberating83 among the mountains and cañons,—some strokes near, crashing, ringing in the tense crisp air with startling keenness, while the distant peaks loomed84 gloriously through the cloud fringes and sheets of rain. Now the[Pg 123] storm is past, and the fresh washed air is full of the essences of the flower gardens and groves. Winter storms in Yosemite must be glorious. May I see them!
Have got my bed made in our new camp,—plushy, sumptuous85, and deliciously fragrant86, most of it magnifica fir plumes87, of course, with a variety of sweet flowers in the pillow. Hope to sleep to-night without tottering88 nerve-dreams. Watched a deer eating ceanothus leaves and twigs89.
July 18. Slept pretty well; the valley walls did not seem to fall, though I still fancied myself at the brink, alongside the white, plunging57 flood, especially when half asleep. Strange the danger of that adventure should be more troublesome now that I am in the bosom90 of the peaceful woods, a mile or more from the fall, than it was while I was on the brink of it.
Bears seem to be common here, judging by their tracks. About noon we had another rainstorm with keen startling thunder, the metallic91, ringing, clashing, clanging notes gradually fading into low bass92 rolling and muttering in the distance. For a few minutes the rain came in a grand torrent like a waterfall, then hail; some of the hailstones an inch in diameter, hard, icy, and irregular in form, like those oftentimes seen in Wisconsin. Carlo[Pg 124] watched them with intelligent astonishment as they came pelting93 and thrashing through the quivering branches of the trees. The cloud scenery sublime. Afternoon calm, sunful, and clear, with delicious freshness and fragrance94 from the firs and flowers and steaming ground.
July 19. Watching the daybreak and sunrise. The pale rose and purple sky changing softly to daffodil yellow and white, sunbeams pouring through the passes between the peaks and over the Yosemite domes, making their edges burn; the silver firs in the middle ground catching95 the glow on their spiry96 tops, and our camp grove fills and thrills with the glorious light. Everything awakening97 alert and joyful98; the birds begin to stir and innumerable insect people. Deer quietly withdraw into leafy hiding-places in the chaparral; the dew vanishes, flowers spread their petals99, every pulse beats high, every life cell rejoices, the very rocks seem to thrill with life. The whole landscape glows like a human face in a glory of enthusiasm, and the blue sky, pale around the horizon, bends peacefully down over all like one vast flower.
About noon, as usual, big bossy100 cumuli began to grow above the forest, and the rainstorm pouring from them is the most imposing101 I have yet seen. The silvery zigzag102 lightning[Pg 125] lances are longer than usual, and the thunder gloriously impressive, keen, crashing, intensely concentrated, speaking with such tremendous energy it would seem that an entire mountain is being shattered at every stroke, but probably only a few trees are being shattered, many of which I have seen on my walks hereabouts strewing103 the ground. At last the clear ringing strokes are succeeded by deep low tones that grow gradually fainter as they roll afar into the recesses104 of the echoing mountains, where they seem to be welcomed home. Then another and another peal105, or rather crashing, splintering stroke, follows in quick succession, perchance splitting some giant pine or fir from top to bottom into long rails and slivers106, and scattering107 them to all points of the compass. Now comes the rain, with corresponding extravagant grandeur, covering the ground high and low with a sheet of flowing water, a transparent108 film fitted like a skin upon the rugged109 anatomy110 of the landscape, making the rocks glitter and glow, gathering111 in the ravines, flooding the streams, and making them shout and boom in reply to the thunder.
How interesting to trace the history of a single raindrop! It is not long, geologically speaking, as we have seen, since the first raindrops fell on the newborn leafless Sierra land[Pg 126]scapes. How different the lot of these falling now! Happy the showers that fall on so fair a wilderness112,—scarce a single drop can fail to find a beautiful spot,—on the tops of the peaks, on the shining glacier113 pavements, on the great smooth domes, on forests and gardens and brushy moraines, plashing, glinting, pattering, laving. Some go to the high snowy fountains to swell114 their well-saved stores; some into the lakes, washing the mountain windows, patting their smooth glassy levels, making dimples and bubbles and spray; some into the waterfalls and cascades115, as if eager to join in their dance and song and beat their foam yet finer; good luck and good work for the happy mountain raindrops, each one of them a high waterfall in itself, descending116 from the cliffs and hollows of the clouds to the cliffs and hollows of the rocks, out of the sky-thunder into the thunder of the falling rivers. Some, falling on meadows and bogs117, creep silently out of sight to the grass roots, hiding softly as in a nest, slipping, oozing118 hither, thither119, seeking and finding their appointed work. Some, descending through the spires of the woods, sift120 spray through the shining needles, whispering peace and good cheer to each one of them. Some drops with happy aim glint on the sides of crystals,—quartz121, hornblende, garnet, zir[Pg 127]con, tourmaline, feldspar,—patter on grains of gold and heavy way-worn nuggets; some, with blunt plap-plap and low bass drumming, fall on the broad leaves of veratrum, saxifrage, cypripedium. Some happy drops fall straight into the cups of flowers, kissing the lips of lilies. How far they have to go, how many cups to fill, great and small, cells too small to be seen, cups holding half a drop as well as lake basins between the hills, each replenished122 with equal care, every drop in all the blessed throng a silvery newborn star with lake and river, garden and grove, valley and mountain, all that the landscape holds reflected in its crystal depths, God’s messenger, angel of love sent on its way with majesty and pomp and display of power that make man’s greatest shows ridiculous.
Now the storm is over, the sky is clear, the last rolling thunder-wave is spent on the peaks, and where are the raindrops now—what has become of all the shining throng? In winged vapor123 rising some are already hastening back to the sky, some have gone into the plants, creeping through invisible doors into the round rooms of cells, some are locked in crystals of ice, some in rock crystals, some in porous124 moraines to keep their small springs flowing, some have gone journeying on in the rivers to join the larger raindrop of the ocean.[Pg 128] From form to form, beauty to beauty, ever changing, never resting, all are speeding on with love’s enthusiasm, singing with the stars the eternal song of creation.
July 20. Fine calm morning; air tense and clear; not the slightest breeze astir; everything shining, the rocks with wet crystals, the plants with dew, each receiving its portion of irised dewdrops and sunshine like living creatures getting their breakfast, their dew manna coming down from the starry125 sky like swarms127 of smaller stars. How wondrous128 fine are the particles in showers of dew, thousands required for a single drop, growing in the dark as silently as the grass! What pains are taken to keep this wilderness in health,—showers of snow, showers of rain, showers of dew, floods of light, floods of invisible vapor, clouds, winds, all sorts of weather, interaction of plant on plant, animal on animal, etc., beyond thought! How fine Nature’s methods! How deeply with beauty is beauty overlaid! the ground covered with crystals, the crystals with mosses129 and lichens131 and low-spreading grasses and flowers, these with larger plants leaf over leaf with ever-changing color and form, the broad palms of the firs outspread over these, the azure132 dome over all like a bell-flower, and star above star.[Pg 129]
Yonder stands the South Dome, its crown high above our camp, though its base is four thousand feet below us; a most noble rock, it seems full of thought, clothed with living light, no sense of dead stone about it, all spiritualized, neither heavy looking nor light, steadfast133 in serene134 strength like a god.
Our shepherd is a queer character and hard to place in this wilderness. His bed is a hollow made in red dry-rot punky dust beside a log which forms a portion of the south wall of the corral. Here he lies with his wonderful everlasting135 clothing on, wrapped in a red blanket, breathing not only the dust of the decayed wood but also that of the corral, as if determined137 to take ammoniacal snuff all night after chewing tobacco all day. Following the sheep he carries a heavy six-shooter swung from his belt on one side and his luncheon on the other. The ancient cloth in which the meat, fresh from the frying-pan, is tied serves as a filter through which the clear fat and gravy138 juices drip down on his right hip139 and leg in clustering stalactites. This oleaginous formation is soon broken up, however, and diffused140 and rubbed evenly into his scanty141 apparel, by sitting down, rolling over, crossing his legs while resting on logs, etc., making shirt and trousers water-tight and shiny. His trousers, in parti[Pg 130]cular, have become so adhesive142 with the mixed fat and resin143 that pine needles, thin flakes144 and fibres of bark, hair, mica145 scales and minute grains of quartz, hornblende, etc., feathers, seed wings, moth64 and butterfly wings, legs and antennæ of innumerable insects, or even whole insects such as the small beetles146, moths147 and mosquitoes, with flower petals, pollen148 dust and indeed bits of all plants, animals, and minerals of the region adhere to them and are safely imbedded, so that though far from being a naturalist149 he collects fragmentary specimens of everything and becomes richer than he knows. His specimens are kept passably fresh, too, by the purity of the air and the resiny bituminous beds into which they are pressed. Man is a microcosm, at least our shepherd is, or rather his trousers. These precious overalls150 are never taken off, and nobody knows how old they are, though one may guess by their thickness and concentric structure. Instead of wearing thin they wear thick, and in their stratification have no small geological significance.
Besides herding151 the sheep, Billy is the butcher, while I have agreed to wash the few iron and tin utensils152 and make the bread. Then, these small duties done, by the time the sun is fairly above the mountain-tops I am[Pg 131] beyond the flock, free to rove and revel153 in the wilderness all the big immortal154 days.
Sketching on the North Dome. It commands views of nearly all the valley besides a few of the high mountains. I would fain draw everything in sight—rock, tree, and leaf. But little can I do beyond mere155 outlines,—marks with meanings like words, readable only to myself,—yet I sharpen my pencils and work on as if others might possibly be benefited. Whether these picture-sheets are to vanish like fallen leaves or go to friends like letters, matters not much; for little can they tell to those who have not themselves seen similar wildness, and like a language have learned it. No pain here, no dull empty hours, no fear of the past, no fear of the future. These blessed mountains are so compactly filled with God’s beauty, no petty personal hope or experience has room to be. Drinking this champagne157 water is pure pleasure, so is breathing the living air, and every movement of limbs is pleasure, while the whole body seems to feel beauty when exposed to it as it feels the camp-fire or sunshine, entering not by the eyes alone, but equally through all one’s flesh like radiant heat, making a passionate158 ecstatic pleasure-glow not explainable. One’s body then seems homogeneous throughout, sound as a crystal.[Pg 132] Perched like a fly on this Yosemite dome, I gaze and sketch81 and bask159, oftentimes settling down into dumb admiration without definite hope of ever learning much, yet with the longing160, unresting effort that lies at the door of hope, humbly161 prostrate162 before the vast display of God’s power, and eager to offer self-denial and renunciation with eternal toil163 to learn any lesson in the divine manuscript.
It is easier to feel than to realize, or in any way explain, Yosemite grandeur. The magnitudes of the rocks and trees and streams are so delicately harmonized they are mostly hidden. Sheer precipices three thousand feet high are fringed with tall trees growing close like grass on the brow of a lowland hill, and extending along the feet of these precipices a ribbon of meadow a mile wide and seven or eight long, that seems like a strip a farmer might mow164 in less than a day. Waterfalls, five hundred to one or two thousand feet high, are so subordinated to the mighty165 cliffs over which they pour that they seem like wisps of smoke, gentle as floating clouds, though their voices fill the valley and make the rocks tremble. The mountains, too, along the eastern sky, and the domes in front of them, and the succession of smooth rounded waves between, swelling166 higher, higher, with dark woods in[Pg 133] their hollows, serene in massive exuberant167 bulk and beauty, tend yet more to hide the grandeur of the Yosemite temple and make it appear as a subdued168 subordinate feature of the vast harmonious169 landscape. Thus every attempt to appreciate any one feature is beaten down by the overwhelming influence of all the others. And, as if this were not enough, lo! in the sky arises another mountain range with topography as rugged and substantial-looking as the one beneath it—snowy peaks and domes and shadowy Yosemite valleys—another version of the snowy Sierra, a new creation heralded170 by a thunder-storm. How fiercely, devoutly171 wild is Nature in the midst of her beauty-loving tenderness!—painting lilies, watering them, caressing172 them with gentle hand, going from flower to flower like a gardener while building rock mountains and cloud mountains full of lightning and rain. Gladly we run for shelter beneath an overhanging cliff and examine the reassuring173 ferns and mosses, gentle love tokens growing in cracks and chinks. Daisies, too, and ivesias, confiding174 wild children of light, too small to fear. To these one’s heart goes home, and the voices of the storm become gentle. Now the sun breaks forth175 and fragrant steam arises. The birds are out singing on the edges of the[Pg 134] groves. The west is flaming in gold and purple, ready for the ceremony of the sunset, and back I go to camp with my notes and pictures, the best of them printed in my mind as dreams. A fruitful day, without measured beginning or ending. A terrestrial eternity176. A gift of good God.
Wrote to my mother and a few friends, mountain hints to each. They seem as near as if within voice-reach or touch. The deeper the solitude177 the less the sense of loneliness, and the nearer our friends. Now bread and tea, fir bed and good-night to Carlo, a look at the sky lilies, and death sleep until the dawn of another Sierra to-morrow.
July 21. Sketching on the Dome—no rain; clouds at noon about quarter filled the sky, casting shadows with fine effect on the white mountains at the heads of the streams, and a soothing178 cover over the gardens during the warm hours.
Saw a common house-fly and a grasshopper179 and a brown bear. The fly and grasshopper paid me a merry visit on the top of the Dome, and I paid a visit to the bear in the middle of a small garden meadow between the Dome and the camp where he was standing180 alert among the flowers as if willing to be seen to advantage. I had not gone more than half a[Pg 135] mile from camp this morning, when Carlo, who was trotting181 on a few yards ahead of me, came to a sudden, cautious standstill. Down went tail and ears, and forward went his knowing nose, while he seemed to be saying, “Ha, what’s this? A bear, I guess.” Then a cautious advance of a few steps, setting his feet down softly like a hunting cat, and questioning the air as to the scent17 he had caught until all doubt vanished. Then he came back to me, looked me in the face, and with his speaking eyes reported a bear near by; then led on softly, careful, like an experienced hunter, not to make the slightest noise; and frequently looking back as if whispering, “Yes, it’s a bear; come and I’ll show you.” Presently we came to where the sunbeams were streaming through between the purple shafts182 of the firs, which showed that we were nearing an open spot, and here Carlo came behind me, evidently sure that the bear was very near. So I crept to a low ridge of moraine boulders183 on the edge of a narrow garden meadow, and in this meadow I felt pretty sure the bear must be. I was anxious to get a good look at the sturdy mountaineer without alarming him; so drawing myself up noiselessly back of one of the largest of the trees I peered past its bulging185 buttresses186, exposing only a part of my head,[Pg 136] and there stood neighbor Bruin within a stone’s throw, his hips187 covered by tall grass and flowers, and his front feet on the trunk of a fir that had fallen out into the meadow, which raised his head so high that he seemed to be standing erect. He had not yet seen me, but was looking and listening attentively188, showing that in some way he was aware of our approach. I watched his gestures and tried to make the most of my opportunity to learn what I could about him, fearing he would catch sight of me and run away. For I had been told that this sort of bear, the cinnamon, always ran from his bad brother man, never showing fight unless wounded or in defense189 of young. He made a telling picture standing alert in the sunny forest garden. How well he played his part, harmonizing in bulk and color and shaggy hair with the trunks of the trees and lush vegetation, as natural a feature as any other in the landscape. After examining at leisure, noting the sharp muzzle190 thrust inquiringly forward, the long shaggy hair on his broad chest, the stiff, erect ears nearly buried in hair, and the slow, heavy way he moved his head, I thought I should like to see his gait in running, so I made a sudden rush at him, shouting and swinging my hat to frighten him, expecting to see him make[Pg 137] haste to get away. But to my dismay he did not run or show any sign of running. On the contrary, he stood his ground ready to fight and defend himself, lowered his head, thrust it forward, and looked sharply and fiercely at me. Then I suddenly began to fear that upon me would fall the work of running; but I was afraid to run, and therefore, like the bear, held my ground. We stood staring at each other in solemn silence within a dozen yards or thereabouts, while I fervently191 hoped that the power of the human eye over wild beasts would prove as great as it is said to be. How long our awfully192 strenuous193 interview lasted, I don’t know; but at length in the slow fullness of time he pulled his huge paws down off the log, and with magnificent deliberation turned and walked leisurely194 up the meadow, stopping frequently to look back over his shoulder to see whether I was pursuing him, then moving on again, evidently neither fearing me very much nor trusting me. He was probably about five hundred pounds in weight, a broad, rusty195 bundle of ungovernable wildness, a happy fellow whose lines have fallen in pleasant places. The flowery glade196 in which I saw him so well, framed like a picture, is one of the best of all I have yet discovered, a conservatory197 of Nature’s precious plant people.[Pg 138] Tall lilies were swinging their bells over that bear’s back, with geraniums, larkspurs, columbines, and daisies brushing against his sides. A place for angels, one would say, instead of bears.
In the great cañons Bruin reigns198 supreme199. Happy fellow, whom no famine can reach while one of his thousand kinds of food is spared him. His bread is sure at all seasons, ranged on the mountain shelves like stores in a pantry. From one to the other, up or down he climbs, tasting and enjoying each in turn in different climates, as if he had journeyed thousands of miles to other countries north or south to enjoy their varied200 productions. I should like to know my hairy brothers better—though after this particular Yosemite bear, my very neighbor, had sauntered out of sight this morning, I reluctantly went back to camp for the Don’s rifle to shoot him, if necessary, in defense of the flock. Fortunately I couldn’t find him, and after tracking him a mile or two towards Mount Hoffman I bade him Godspeed and gladly returned to my work on the Yosemite Dome.
The house-fly also seemed at home and buzzed about me as I sat sketching, and enjoying my bear interview now it was over. I wonder what draws house-flies so far up the[Pg 139] mountains, heavy gross feeders as they are, sensitive to cold, and fond of domestic ease. How have they been distributed from continent to continent, across seas and deserts and mountain chains, usually so influential201 in determining boundaries of species both of plants and animals. Beetles and butterflies are sometimes restricted to small areas. Each mountain in a range, and even the different zones of a mountain, may have its own peculiar202 species. But the house-fly seems to be everywhere. I wonder if any island in mid-ocean is flyless. The bluebottle is abundant in these Yosemite woods, ever ready with his marvelous store of eggs to make all dead flesh fly. Bumblebees are here, and are well fed on boundless stores of nectar and pollen. The honeybee, though abundant in the foothills, has not yet got so high. It is only a few years since the first swarm126 was brought to California.
A queer fellow and a jolly fellow is the grasshopper. Up the mountains he comes on excursions, how high I don’t know, but at least as far and high as Yosemite tourists. I was much interested with the hearty203 enjoyment of the one that danced and sang for me on the Dome this afternoon. He seemed brimful of glad, hilarious204 energy, manifested by springing[Pg 140] into the air to a height of twenty or thirty feet, then diving and springing up again and making a sharp musical rattle205 just as the lowest point in the descent was reached. Up and down a dozen times or so he danced and sang, then alighted to rest, then up and at it again. The curves he described in the air in diving and rattling206 resembled those made by cords hanging loosely and attached at the same height at the ends, the loops nearly covering each other. Braver, heartier207, keener, care-free enjoyment of life I have never seen or heard in any creature, great or small. The life of this comic redlegs, the mountain’s merriest child, seems to be made up of pure, condensed gayety. The Douglas squirrel is the only living creature that I can compare him with in exuberant, rollicking, irrepressible jollity. Wonderful that these sublime mountains are so loudly cheered and brightened by a creature so queer. Nature in him seems to be snapping her fingers in the face of all earthly dejection and melancholy208 with a boyish hip-hip-hurrah. How the sound is made I do not understand. When he was on the ground he made not the slightest noise, nor when he was simply flying from place to place, but only when diving in curves, the motion seeming to be required for the sound; for the more vigorous the diving the more ener[Pg 141]getic the corresponding outbursts of jolly rattling. I tried to observe him closely while he was resting in the intervals210 of his performances; but he would not allow a near approach, always getting his jumping legs ready to spring for immediate211 flight, and keeping his eyes on me. A fine sermon the little fellow danced for me on the Dome, a likely place to look for sermons in stones, but not for grasshopper sermons. A large and imposing pulpit for so small a preacher. No danger of weakness in the knees of the world while Nature can spring such a rattle as this. Even the bear did not express for me the mountain’s wild health and strength and happiness so tellingly as did this comical little hopper. No cloud of care in his day, no winter of discontent in sight. To him every day is a holiday; and when at length his sun sets, I fancy he will cuddle down on the forest floor and die like the leaves and flowers, and like them leave no unsightly remains212 calling for burial.
Sundown, and I must to camp. Good-night, friends three,—brown bear, rugged boulder184 of energy in groves and gardens fair as Eden; restless, fussy213 fly with gauzy wings stirring the air around all the world; and grasshopper, crisp, electric spark of joy enlivening the massy sublimity214 of the mountains like the laugh of a[Pg 142] child. Thank you, thank you all three for your quickening company. Heaven guide every wing and leg. Good-night friends three, good-night.
July 22. A fine specimen77 of the black-tailed deer went bounding past camp this morning. A buck215 with wide spread of antlers, showing admirable vigor209 and grace. Wonderful the beauty, strength, and graceful movements of animals in wildernesses216, cared for by Nature only, when our experience with domestic animals would lead us to fear that all the so-called neglected wild beasts would degenerate217. Yet the upshot of Nature’s method of breeding and teaching seems to lead to excellence218 of every sort. Deer, like all wild animals, are as clean as plants. The beauties of their gestures and attitudes, alert or in repose219, surprise yet more than their bounding exuberant strength. Every movement and posture220 is graceful, the very poetry of manners and motion. Mother Nature is too often spoken of as in reality no mother at all. Yet how wisely, sternly, tenderly she loves and looks after her children in all sorts of weather and wildernesses. The more I see of deer the more I admire them as mountaineers. They make their way into the heart of the roughest solitudes221 with smooth reserve of strength, through dense belts of brush and for[Pg 143]est encumbered222 with fallen trees and boulder piles, across cañons, roaring streams, and snow-fields, ever showing forth beauty and courage. Over nearly all the continent the deer find homes. In the Florida savannas223 and hummocks224, in the Canada woods, in the far north, roaming over mossy tundras225, swimming lakes and rivers and arms of the sea from island to island washed with waves, or climbing rocky mountains, everywhere healthy and able, adding beauty to every landscape,—a truly admirable creature and great credit to Nature.
Have been sketching a silver fir that stands on a granite ridge a few hundred yards to the eastward of camp—a fine tree with a particular snow-storm story to tell. It is about one hundred feet high, growing on bare rock, thrusting its roots into a weathered joint35 less than an inch wide, and bulging out to form a base to bear its weight. The storm came from the north while it was young and broke it down nearly to the ground, as is shown by the old, dead, weather-beaten top leaning out from the living trunk built up from a new shoot below the break. The annual rings of the trunk that have overgrown the dead sapling tell the year of the storm. Wonderful that a side branch forming a portion of one of the level collars that encircle the trunk of this species (Abies[Pg 144] magnifica) should bend upward, grow erect, and take the place of the lost axis226 to form a new tree.
Many others, pines as well as firs, bear testimony227 to the crushing severity of this particular storm. Trees, some of them fifty to seventy-five feet high, were bent228 to the ground and buried like grass, whole groves vanishing as if the forest had been cleared away, leaving not a branch or needle visible until the spring thaw229. Then the more elastic230 undamaged saplings rose again, aided by the wind, some reaching a nearly erect attitude, others remaining more or less bent, while those with broken backs endeavored to specialize a side branch below the break and make a leader of it to form a new axis of development. It is as if a man, whose back was broken or nearly so and who was compelled to go bent, should find a branch backbone231 sprouting232 straight up from below the break and should gradually develop new arms and shoulders and head, while the old damaged portion of his body died.
Grand white cloud mountains and domes created about noon as usual, ridges233 and ranges of endless variety, as if Nature dearly loved this sort of work, doing it again and again nearly every day with infinite industry, and producing beauty that never palls234. A few zig[Pg 145]zags of lightning, five minutes’ shower, then a gradual wilting235 and clearing.
July 23. Another midday cloudland, displaying power and beauty that one never wearies in beholding236, but hopelessly unsketchable and untellable. What can poor mortals say about clouds? While a description of their huge glowing domes and ridges, shadowy gulfs and cañons, and feather-edged ravines is being tried, they vanish, leaving no visible ruins. Nevertheless, these fleeting237 sky mountains are as substantial and significant as the more lasting136 upheavals238 of granite beneath them. Both alike are built up and die, and in God’s calendar difference of duration is nothing. We can only dream about them in wondering, worshiping admiration, happier than we dare tell even to friends who see farthest in sympathy, glad to know that not a crystal or vapor particle of them, hard or soft, is lost; that they sink and vanish only to rise again and again in higher and higher beauty. As to our own work, duty, influence, etc., concerning which so much fussy pother is made, it will not fail of its due effect, though, like a lichen130 on a stone, we keep silent.
July 24. Clouds at noon occupying about half the sky gave half an hour of heavy rain to wash one of the cleanest landscapes in the[Pg 146] world. How well it is washed! The sea is hardly less dusty than the ice-burnished pavements and ridges, domes and cañons, and summit peaks plashed with snow like waves with foam. How fresh the woods are and calm after the last films of clouds have been wiped from the sky! A few minutes ago every tree was excited, bowing to the roaring storm, waving, swirling239, tossing their branches in glorious enthusiasm like worship. But though to the outer ear these trees are now silent, their songs never cease. Every hidden cell is throbbing240 with music and life, every fibre thrilling like harp156 strings241, while incense242 is ever flowing from the balsam bells and leaves. No wonder the hills and groves were God’s first temples, and the more they are cut down and hewn into cathedrals and churches, the farther off and dimmer seems the Lord himself. The same may be said of stone temples. Yonder, to the eastward of our camp grove, stands one of Nature’s cathedrals, hewn from the living rock, almost conventional in form, about two thousand feet high, nobly adorned243 with spires and pinnacles244, thrilling under floods of sunshine as if alive like a grove-temple, and well named “Cathedral Peak.” Even Shepherd Billy turns at times to this wonderful mountain building, though apparently245 deaf to all stone sermons. Snow that re[Pg 147]fused to melt in fire would hardly be more wonderful than unchanging dullness in the rays of God’s beauty. I have been trying to get him to walk to the brink of Yosemite for a view, offering to watch the sheep for a day, while he should enjoy what tourists come from all over the world to see. But though within a mile of the famous valley, he will not go to it even out of mere curiosity. “What,” says he, “is Yosemite but a cañon—a lot of rocks—a hole in the ground—a place dangerous about falling into—a d——d good place to keep away from.” “But think of the waterfalls, Billy—just think of that big stream we crossed the other day, falling half a mile through the air—think of that, and the sound it makes. You can hear it now like the roar of the sea.” Thus I pressed Yosemite upon him like a missionary246 offering the gospel, but he would have none of it. “I should be afraid to look over so high a wall,” he said. “It would make my head swim. There is nothing worth seeing anywhere, only rocks, and I see plenty of them here. Tourists that spend their money to see rocks and falls are fools, that’s all. You can’t humbug247 me. I’ve been in this country too long for that.” Such souls, I suppose, are asleep, or smothered and befogged beneath mean pleasures and cares.
July 25. Another cloudland. Some clouds[Pg 148] have an over-ripe decaying look, watery248 and bedraggled and drawn out into wind-torn shreds249 and patches, giving the sky a littered appearance; not so these Sierra summer midday clouds. All are beautiful with smooth definite outlines and curves like those of glacier-polished domes. They begin to grow about eleven o’clock, and seem so wonderfully near and clear from this high camp one is tempted250 to try to climb them and trace the streams that pour like cataracts251 from their shadowy fountains. The rain to which they give birth is often very heavy, a sort of waterfall as imposing as if pouring from rock mountains. Never in all my travels have I found anything more truly novel and interesting than these midday mountains of the sky, their fine tones of color, majestic252 visible growth, and ever-changing scenery and general effects, though mostly as well let alone as far as description goes. I oftentimes think of Shelley’s cloud poem, “I sift the snow on the mountains below.”
点击收听单词发音
1 rim | |
n.(圆物的)边,轮缘;边界 | |
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2 luncheon | |
n.午宴,午餐,便宴 | |
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3 ridge | |
n.山脊;鼻梁;分水岭 | |
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4 sublime | |
adj.崇高的,伟大的;极度的,不顾后果的 | |
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5 domes | |
n.圆屋顶( dome的名词复数 );像圆屋顶一样的东西;圆顶体育场 | |
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6 dome | |
n.圆屋顶,拱顶 | |
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7 sweeping | |
adj.范围广大的,一扫无遗的 | |
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8 boundless | |
adj.无限的;无边无际的;巨大的 | |
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9 affluence | |
n.充裕,富足 | |
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10 extravagant | |
adj.奢侈的;过分的;(言行等)放肆的 | |
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11 grandeur | |
n.伟大,崇高,宏伟,庄严,豪华 | |
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12 ecstasy | |
n.狂喜,心醉神怡,入迷 | |
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13 astonishment | |
n.惊奇,惊异 | |
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14 thicket | |
n.灌木丛,树林 | |
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15 tangled | |
adj. 纠缠的,紊乱的 动词tangle的过去式和过去分词 | |
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16 depressed | |
adj.沮丧的,抑郁的,不景气的,萧条的 | |
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17 scent | |
n.气味,香味,香水,线索,嗅觉;v.嗅,发觉 | |
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18 spires | |
n.(教堂的) 塔尖,尖顶( spire的名词复数 ) | |
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19 precipices | |
n.悬崖,峭壁( precipice的名词复数 ) | |
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20 grove | |
n.林子,小树林,园林 | |
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21 groves | |
树丛,小树林( grove的名词复数 ) | |
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22 majesty | |
n.雄伟,壮丽,庄严,威严;最高权威,王权 | |
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23 devout | |
adj.虔诚的,虔敬的,衷心的 (n.devoutness) | |
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24 admiration | |
n.钦佩,赞美,羡慕 | |
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25 avalanche | |
n.雪崩,大量涌来 | |
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26 ramble | |
v.漫步,漫谈,漫游;n.漫步,闲谈,蔓延 | |
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27 rambled | |
(无目的地)漫游( ramble的过去式和过去分词 ); (喻)漫谈; 扯淡; 长篇大论 | |
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28 westward | |
n.西方,西部;adj.西方的,向西的;adv.向西 | |
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29 brink | |
n.(悬崖、河流等的)边缘,边沿 | |
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30 drawn | |
v.拖,拉,拔出;adj.憔悴的,紧张的 | |
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31 erect | |
n./v.树立,建立,使竖立;adj.直立的,垂直的 | |
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32 uncertainty | |
n.易变,靠不住,不确知,不确定的事物 | |
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33 flake | |
v.使成薄片;雪片般落下;n.薄片 | |
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34 granite | |
adj.花岗岩,花岗石 | |
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35 joint | |
adj.联合的,共同的;n.关节,接合处;v.连接,贴合 | |
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36 joints | |
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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37 verge | |
n.边,边缘;v.接近,濒临 | |
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38 remonstrance | |
n抗议,抱怨 | |
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39 memorable | |
adj.值得回忆的,难忘的,特别的,显著的 | |
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40 creek | |
n.小溪,小河,小湾 | |
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41 graceful | |
adj.优美的,优雅的;得体的 | |
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42 foam | |
v./n.泡沫,起泡沫 | |
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43 gorge | |
n.咽喉,胃,暴食,山峡;v.塞饱,狼吞虎咽地吃 | |
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44 glides | |
n.滑行( glide的名词复数 );滑音;音渡;过渡音v.滑动( glide的第三人称单数 );掠过;(鸟或飞机 ) 滑翔 | |
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45 agitated | |
adj.被鼓动的,不安的 | |
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46 plunge | |
v.跳入,(使)投入,(使)陷入;猛冲 | |
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47 descends | |
v.下来( descend的第三人称单数 );下去;下降;下斜 | |
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48 glossy | |
adj.平滑的;有光泽的 | |
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49 apron | |
n.围裙;工作裙 | |
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50 perpendicular | |
adj.垂直的,直立的;n.垂直线,垂直的位置 | |
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51 scrutiny | |
n.详细检查,仔细观察 | |
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52 margin | |
n.页边空白;差额;余地,余裕;边,边缘 | |
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53 torrent | |
n.激流,洪流;爆发,(话语等的)连发 | |
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54 clefts | |
n.裂缝( cleft的名词复数 );裂口;cleave的过去式和过去分词;进退维谷 | |
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55 ledge | |
n.壁架,架状突出物;岩架,岩礁 | |
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56 shuffled | |
v.洗(纸牌)( shuffle的过去式和过去分词 );拖着脚步走;粗心地做;摆脱尘世的烦恼 | |
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57 plunging | |
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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58 descended | |
a.为...后裔的,出身于...的 | |
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59 perfectly | |
adv.完美地,无可非议地,彻底地 | |
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60 throng | |
n.人群,群众;v.拥挤,群集 | |
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61 niche | |
n.壁龛;合适的职务(环境、位置等) | |
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62 acting | |
n.演戏,行为,假装;adj.代理的,临时的,演出用的 | |
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63 smothered | |
(使)窒息, (使)透不过气( smother的过去式和过去分词 ); 覆盖; 忍住; 抑制 | |
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64 moth | |
n.蛾,蛀虫 | |
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65 triumphant | |
adj.胜利的,成功的;狂欢的,喜悦的 | |
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66 enjoyment | |
n.乐趣;享有;享用 | |
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67 enjoyments | |
愉快( enjoyment的名词复数 ); 令人愉快的事物; 享有; 享受 | |
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68 tremor | |
n.震动,颤动,战栗,兴奋,地震 | |
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69 eastward | |
adv.向东;adj.向东的;n.东方,东部 | |
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70 trampled | |
踩( trample的过去式和过去分词 ); 践踏; 无视; 侵犯 | |
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71 penetrated | |
adj. 击穿的,鞭辟入里的 动词penetrate的过去式和过去分词形式 | |
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72 thorny | |
adj.多刺的,棘手的 | |
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73 dense | |
a.密集的,稠密的,浓密的;密度大的 | |
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74 crooked | |
adj.弯曲的;不诚实的,狡猾的,不正当的 | |
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75 porcupine | |
n.豪猪, 箭猪 | |
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76 elevation | |
n.高度;海拔;高地;上升;提高 | |
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77 specimen | |
n.样本,标本 | |
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78 specimens | |
n.样品( specimen的名词复数 );范例;(化验的)抽样;某种类型的人 | |
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79 exquisite | |
adj.精美的;敏锐的;剧烈的,感觉强烈的 | |
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80 sketching | |
n.草图 | |
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81 sketch | |
n.草图;梗概;素描;v.素描;概述 | |
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82 pelted | |
(连续地)投掷( pelt的过去式和过去分词 ); 连续抨击; 攻击; 剥去…的皮 | |
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83 reverberating | |
回响,回荡( reverberate的现在分词 ); 使反响,使回荡,使反射 | |
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84 loomed | |
v.隐约出现,阴森地逼近( loom的过去式和过去分词 );隐约出现,阴森地逼近 | |
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85 sumptuous | |
adj.豪华的,奢侈的,华丽的 | |
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86 fragrant | |
adj.芬香的,馥郁的,愉快的 | |
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87 plumes | |
羽毛( plume的名词复数 ); 羽毛饰; 羽毛状物; 升上空中的羽状物 | |
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88 tottering | |
adj.蹒跚的,动摇的v.走得或动得不稳( totter的现在分词 );踉跄;蹒跚;摇摇欲坠 | |
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89 twigs | |
细枝,嫩枝( twig的名词复数 ) | |
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90 bosom | |
n.胸,胸部;胸怀;内心;adj.亲密的 | |
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91 metallic | |
adj.金属的;金属制的;含金属的;产金属的;像金属的 | |
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92 bass | |
n.男低音(歌手);低音乐器;低音大提琴 | |
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93 pelting | |
微不足道的,无价值的,盛怒的 | |
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94 fragrance | |
n.芬芳,香味,香气 | |
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95 catching | |
adj.易传染的,有魅力的,迷人的,接住 | |
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96 spiry | |
adj.尖端的,尖塔状的,螺旋状的 | |
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97 awakening | |
n.觉醒,醒悟 adj.觉醒中的;唤醒的 | |
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98 joyful | |
adj.欢乐的,令人欢欣的 | |
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99 petals | |
n.花瓣( petal的名词复数 ) | |
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100 bossy | |
adj.爱发号施令的,作威作福的 | |
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101 imposing | |
adj.使人难忘的,壮丽的,堂皇的,雄伟的 | |
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102 zigzag | |
n.曲折,之字形;adj.曲折的,锯齿形的;adv.曲折地,成锯齿形地;vt.使曲折;vi.曲折前行 | |
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103 strewing | |
v.撒在…上( strew的现在分词 );散落于;点缀;撒满 | |
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104 recesses | |
n.壁凹( recess的名词复数 );(工作或业务活动的)中止或暂停期间;学校的课间休息;某物内部的凹形空间v.把某物放在墙壁的凹处( recess的第三人称单数 );将(墙)做成凹形,在(墙)上做壁龛;休息,休会,休庭 | |
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105 peal | |
n.钟声;v.鸣响 | |
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106 slivers | |
(切割或断裂下来的)薄长条,碎片( sliver的名词复数 ) | |
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107 scattering | |
n.[物]散射;散乱,分散;在媒介质中的散播adj.散乱的;分散在不同范围的;广泛扩散的;(选票)数量分散的v.散射(scatter的ing形式);散布;驱散 | |
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108 transparent | |
adj.明显的,无疑的;透明的 | |
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109 rugged | |
adj.高低不平的,粗糙的,粗壮的,强健的 | |
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110 anatomy | |
n.解剖学,解剖;功能,结构,组织 | |
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111 gathering | |
n.集会,聚会,聚集 | |
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112 wilderness | |
n.杳无人烟的一片陆地、水等,荒漠 | |
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113 glacier | |
n.冰川,冰河 | |
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114 swell | |
vi.膨胀,肿胀;增长,增强 | |
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115 cascades | |
倾泻( cascade的名词复数 ); 小瀑布(尤指一连串瀑布中的一支); 瀑布状物; 倾泻(或涌出)的东西 | |
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116 descending | |
n. 下行 adj. 下降的 | |
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117 bogs | |
n.沼泽,泥塘( bog的名词复数 );厕所v.(使)陷入泥沼, (使)陷入困境( bog的第三人称单数 );妨碍,阻碍 | |
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118 oozing | |
v.(浓液等)慢慢地冒出,渗出( ooze的现在分词 );使(液体)缓缓流出;(浓液)渗出,慢慢流出 | |
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119 thither | |
adv.向那里;adj.在那边的,对岸的 | |
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120 sift | |
v.筛撒,纷落,详察 | |
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121 quartz | |
n.石英 | |
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122 replenished | |
补充( replenish的过去式和过去分词 ); 重新装满 | |
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123 vapor | |
n.蒸汽,雾气 | |
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124 porous | |
adj.可渗透的,多孔的 | |
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125 starry | |
adj.星光照耀的, 闪亮的 | |
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126 swarm | |
n.(昆虫)等一大群;vi.成群飞舞;蜂拥而入 | |
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127 swarms | |
蜂群,一大群( swarm的名词复数 ) | |
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128 wondrous | |
adj.令人惊奇的,奇妙的;adv.惊人地;异乎寻常地;令人惊叹地 | |
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129 mosses | |
n. 藓类, 苔藓植物 名词moss的复数形式 | |
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130 lichen | |
n.地衣, 青苔 | |
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131 lichens | |
n.地衣( lichen的名词复数 ) | |
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132 azure | |
adj.天蓝色的,蔚蓝色的 | |
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133 steadfast | |
adj.固定的,不变的,不动摇的;忠实的;坚贞不移的 | |
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134 serene | |
adj. 安详的,宁静的,平静的 | |
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135 everlasting | |
adj.永恒的,持久的,无止境的 | |
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136 lasting | |
adj.永久的,永恒的;vbl.持续,维持 | |
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137 determined | |
adj.坚定的;有决心的 | |
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138 gravy | |
n.肉汁;轻易得来的钱,外快 | |
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139 hip | |
n.臀部,髋;屋脊 | |
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140 diffused | |
散布的,普及的,扩散的 | |
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141 scanty | |
adj.缺乏的,仅有的,节省的,狭小的,不够的 | |
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142 adhesive | |
n.粘合剂;adj.可粘着的,粘性的 | |
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143 resin | |
n.树脂,松香,树脂制品;vt.涂树脂 | |
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144 flakes | |
小薄片( flake的名词复数 ); (尤指)碎片; 雪花; 古怪的人 | |
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145 mica | |
n.云母 | |
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146 beetles | |
n.甲虫( beetle的名词复数 ) | |
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147 moths | |
n.蛾( moth的名词复数 ) | |
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148 pollen | |
n.[植]花粉 | |
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149 naturalist | |
n.博物学家(尤指直接观察动植物者) | |
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150 overalls | |
n.(复)工装裤;长罩衣 | |
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151 herding | |
中畜群 | |
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152 utensils | |
器具,用具,器皿( utensil的名词复数 ); 器物 | |
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153 revel | |
vi.狂欢作乐,陶醉;n.作乐,狂欢 | |
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154 immortal | |
adj.不朽的;永生的,不死的;神的 | |
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155 mere | |
adj.纯粹的;仅仅,只不过 | |
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156 harp | |
n.竖琴;天琴座 | |
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157 champagne | |
n.香槟酒;微黄色 | |
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158 passionate | |
adj.热情的,热烈的,激昂的,易动情的,易怒的,性情暴躁的 | |
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159 bask | |
vt.取暖,晒太阳,沐浴于 | |
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160 longing | |
n.(for)渴望 | |
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161 humbly | |
adv. 恭顺地,谦卑地 | |
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162 prostrate | |
v.拜倒,平卧,衰竭;adj.拜倒的,平卧的,衰竭的 | |
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163 toil | |
vi.辛劳工作,艰难地行动;n.苦工,难事 | |
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164 mow | |
v.割(草、麦等),扫射,皱眉;n.草堆,谷物堆 | |
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165 mighty | |
adj.强有力的;巨大的 | |
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166 swelling | |
n.肿胀 | |
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167 exuberant | |
adj.充满活力的;(植物)繁茂的 | |
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168 subdued | |
adj. 屈服的,柔和的,减弱的 动词subdue的过去式和过去分词 | |
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169 harmonious | |
adj.和睦的,调和的,和谐的,协调的 | |
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170 heralded | |
v.预示( herald的过去式和过去分词 );宣布(好或重要) | |
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171 devoutly | |
adv.虔诚地,虔敬地,衷心地 | |
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172 caressing | |
爱抚的,表现爱情的,亲切的 | |
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173 reassuring | |
a.使人消除恐惧和疑虑的,使人放心的 | |
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174 confiding | |
adj.相信人的,易于相信的v.吐露(秘密,心事等)( confide的现在分词 );(向某人)吐露(隐私、秘密等) | |
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175 forth | |
adv.向前;向外,往外 | |
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176 eternity | |
n.不朽,来世;永恒,无穷 | |
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177 solitude | |
n. 孤独; 独居,荒僻之地,幽静的地方 | |
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178 soothing | |
adj.慰藉的;使人宽心的;镇静的 | |
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179 grasshopper | |
n.蚱蜢,蝗虫,蚂蚱 | |
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180 standing | |
n.持续,地位;adj.永久的,不动的,直立的,不流动的 | |
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181 trotting | |
小跑,急走( trot的现在分词 ); 匆匆忙忙地走 | |
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182 shafts | |
n.轴( shaft的名词复数 );(箭、高尔夫球棒等的)杆;通风井;一阵(疼痛、害怕等) | |
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183 boulders | |
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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184 boulder | |
n.巨砾;卵石,圆石 | |
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185 bulging | |
膨胀; 凸出(部); 打气; 折皱 | |
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186 buttresses | |
n.扶壁,扶垛( buttress的名词复数 )v.用扶壁支撑,加固( buttress的第三人称单数 ) | |
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187 hips | |
abbr.high impact polystyrene 高冲击强度聚苯乙烯,耐冲性聚苯乙烯n.臀部( hip的名词复数 );[建筑学]屋脊;臀围(尺寸);臀部…的 | |
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188 attentively | |
adv.聚精会神地;周到地;谛;凝神 | |
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189 defense | |
n.防御,保卫;[pl.]防务工事;辩护,答辩 | |
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190 muzzle | |
n.鼻口部;口套;枪(炮)口;vt.使缄默 | |
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191 fervently | |
adv.热烈地,热情地,强烈地 | |
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192 awfully | |
adv.可怕地,非常地,极端地 | |
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193 strenuous | |
adj.奋发的,使劲的;紧张的;热烈的,狂热的 | |
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194 leisurely | |
adj.悠闲的;从容的,慢慢的 | |
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195 rusty | |
adj.生锈的;锈色的;荒废了的 | |
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196 glade | |
n.林间空地,一片表面有草的沼泽低地 | |
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197 conservatory | |
n.温室,音乐学院;adj.保存性的,有保存力的 | |
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198 reigns | |
n.君主的统治( reign的名词复数 );君主统治时期;任期;当政期 | |
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199 supreme | |
adj.极度的,最重要的;至高的,最高的 | |
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200 varied | |
adj.多样的,多变化的 | |
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201 influential | |
adj.有影响的,有权势的 | |
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202 peculiar | |
adj.古怪的,异常的;特殊的,特有的 | |
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203 hearty | |
adj.热情友好的;衷心的;尽情的,纵情的 | |
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204 hilarious | |
adj.充满笑声的,欢闹的;[反]depressed | |
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205 rattle | |
v.飞奔,碰响;激怒;n.碰撞声;拨浪鼓 | |
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206 rattling | |
adj. 格格作响的, 活泼的, 很好的 adv. 极其, 很, 非常 动词rattle的现在分词 | |
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207 heartier | |
亲切的( hearty的比较级 ); 热诚的; 健壮的; 精神饱满的 | |
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208 melancholy | |
n.忧郁,愁思;adj.令人感伤(沮丧)的,忧郁的 | |
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209 vigor | |
n.活力,精力,元气 | |
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210 intervals | |
n.[军事]间隔( interval的名词复数 );间隔时间;[数学]区间;(戏剧、电影或音乐会的)幕间休息 | |
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211 immediate | |
adj.立即的;直接的,最接近的;紧靠的 | |
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212 remains | |
n.剩余物,残留物;遗体,遗迹 | |
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213 fussy | |
adj.为琐事担忧的,过分装饰的,爱挑剔的 | |
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214 sublimity | |
崇高,庄严,气质高尚 | |
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215 buck | |
n.雄鹿,雄兔;v.马离地跳跃 | |
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216 wildernesses | |
荒野( wilderness的名词复数 ); 沙漠; (政治家)在野; 不再当政(或掌权) | |
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217 degenerate | |
v.退步,堕落;adj.退步的,堕落的;n.堕落者 | |
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218 excellence | |
n.优秀,杰出,(pl.)优点,美德 | |
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219 repose | |
v.(使)休息;n.安息 | |
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220 posture | |
n.姿势,姿态,心态,态度;v.作出某种姿势 | |
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221 solitudes | |
n.独居( solitude的名词复数 );孤独;荒僻的地方;人迹罕至的地方 | |
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222 encumbered | |
v.妨碍,阻碍,拖累( encumber的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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223 savannas | |
n.(美国东南部的)无树平原( savanna的名词复数 );(亚)热带的稀树大草原 | |
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224 hummocks | |
n.小丘,岗( hummock的名词复数 ) | |
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225 tundras | |
n.(多数位于北极圈的)冻土带( tundra的名词复数 );苔原;冻原;寒漠 | |
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226 axis | |
n.轴,轴线,中心线;坐标轴,基准线 | |
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227 testimony | |
n.证词;见证,证明 | |
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228 bent | |
n.爱好,癖好;adj.弯的;决心的,一心的 | |
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229 thaw | |
v.(使)融化,(使)变得友善;n.融化,缓和 | |
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230 elastic | |
n.橡皮圈,松紧带;adj.有弹性的;灵活的 | |
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231 backbone | |
n.脊骨,脊柱,骨干;刚毅,骨气 | |
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232 sprouting | |
v.发芽( sprout的现在分词 );抽芽;出现;(使)涌现出 | |
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233 ridges | |
n.脊( ridge的名词复数 );山脊;脊状突起;大气层的)高压脊 | |
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234 palls | |
n.柩衣( pall的名词复数 );墓衣;棺罩;深色或厚重的覆盖物v.(因过多或过久而)生厌,感到乏味,厌烦( pall的第三人称单数 ) | |
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235 wilting | |
萎蔫 | |
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236 beholding | |
v.看,注视( behold的现在分词 );瞧;看呀;(叙述中用于引出某人意外的出现)哎哟 | |
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237 fleeting | |
adj.短暂的,飞逝的 | |
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238 upheavals | |
突然的巨变( upheaval的名词复数 ); 大动荡; 大变动; 胀起 | |
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239 swirling | |
v.旋转,打旋( swirl的现在分词 ) | |
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240 throbbing | |
a. 跳动的,悸动的 | |
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241 strings | |
n.弦 | |
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242 incense | |
v.激怒;n.香,焚香时的烟,香气 | |
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243 adorned | |
[计]被修饰的 | |
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244 pinnacles | |
顶峰( pinnacle的名词复数 ); 顶点; 尖顶; 小尖塔 | |
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245 apparently | |
adv.显然地;表面上,似乎 | |
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246 missionary | |
adj.教会的,传教(士)的;n.传教士 | |
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247 humbug | |
n.花招,谎话,欺骗 | |
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248 watery | |
adj.有水的,水汪汪的;湿的,湿润的 | |
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249 shreds | |
v.撕碎,切碎( shred的第三人称单数 );用撕毁机撕毁(文件) | |
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250 tempted | |
v.怂恿(某人)干不正当的事;冒…的险(tempt的过去分词) | |
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251 cataracts | |
n.大瀑布( cataract的名词复数 );白内障 | |
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252 majestic | |
adj.雄伟的,壮丽的,庄严的,威严的,崇高的 | |
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