Giving Glimpses of Diana Under Her Cloud Before the World and of Her Further Apprenticeship2
As the day of her trial became more closely calculable, Diana’s anticipated alarms receded3 with the deadening of her heart to meet the shock. She fancied she had put on proof-armour4, unconscious that it was the turning of the inward flutterer to steel, which supplied her cuirass and shield. The necessity to brave society, in the character of honest Defendant5, caused but a momentary6 twitch7 of the nerves. Her heart beat regularly, like a serviceable clock; none of her faculties9 abandoned her save songfulness, and none belied10 her, excepting a disposition11 to tartness12 almost venomous in the sarcastic13 shafts14 she let fly at friends interceding15 with Mr. Warwick to spare his wife, when she had determined16 to be tried. A strange fit of childishness overcame her powers of thinking, and was betrayed in her manner of speaking, though—to herself her dwindled17 humour allowed her to appear the towering Britomart. She pouted18 contemptuously on hearing that a Mr. Sullivan Smith (a remotely recollected19 figure) had besought20 Mr. Warwick for an interview, and gained it, by stratagem21, ‘to bring the man to his senses’: but an ultra-Irishman did not compromise her battle-front, as the busybody supplications of a personal friend like Mr. Redworth did; and that the latter, without consulting her, should be ‘one of the plaintive22 crew whining23 about the heels of the Plaintiff for a mercy she disdained24 and rejected’ was bitter to her taste.
‘He does not see that unless I go through the fire there is no justification25 for this wretched character of mine!’ she exclaimed. Truce26, treaty, withdrawal27, signified publicly pardon, not exoneration28 by any means; and now that she was in armour she had no dread29 of the public. So she said. Redworth’s being then engaged upon the canvass30 of a borough31, added to the absurdity32 of his meddling33 with the dilemmas34 of a woman. ‘Dear me, Emma! think of stepping aside from the parliamentary road to entreat35 a husband to relent, and arrange the domestic alliance of a contrary couple! Quixottry is agreeable reading, a silly performance.’ Lady Dunstane pleaded his friendship. She had to quit the field where such darts36 were showering.
The first dinner-party was aristocratic, easy to encounter. Lord and Lady Crane, Lady Pennon, Lord and Lady Esquart, Lord Larrian, Mr. and Mrs. Montvert of Halford Manor37, Lady Singleby, Sir Walter Capperston friends, admirers of Diana; patrons, in the phrase of the time, of her father, were the guests. Lady Pennon expected to be amused, and was gratified, for Diana had only to open her mouth to set the great lady laughing. She petitioned to have Mrs. Warwick at her table that day week, because the marquis was dying to make her acquaintance, and begged to have all her sayings repeated to him; vowed38 she must be salt in the desert. ‘And remember, I back you through thick and thin,’ said Lady Pennon. To which Diana replied: ‘If I am salt in the desert, you are the spring’; and the old lady protested she must put that down for her book. The witty39 Mrs. Warwick, of whom wit was expected, had many incitements to be guilty of cheap wit; and the beautiful Mrs. Warwick, being able to pass anything she uttered, gave good and bad alike, under the impulsion to give out something, that the stripped and shivering Mrs. Warwick might find a cover in applause. She discovered the social uses of cheap wit; she laid ambushes40 for anecdotes41, a telling form of it among a people of no conversational42 interlocution, especially in the circles depending for dialogue upon perpetual fresh supplies of scandal; which have plentiful43 crops, yet not sufficient. The old dinner and supper tables at The Crossways furnished her with an abundant store; and recollection failing, she invented. Irish anecdotes are always popular in England, as promoting, besides the wholesome44 shake of the sides, a kindly45 sense of superiority. Anecdotes also are portable, unlike the lightning flash, which will not go into the pocket; they can be carried home, they are disbursable at other tables. These were Diana’s weapons. She was perforce the actress of her part.
In happier times, when light of heart and natural, her vogue47 had not been so enrapturing48. Doubtless Cleopatra in her simple Egyptian uniform would hardly have won such plaudits as her stress of barbaric Oriental splendours evoked49 for her on the swan and serpent Nile-barge—not from posterity50 at least. It is a terrible decree, that all must act who would prevail; and the more extended the audience, the greater need for the mask and buskin.
From Lady Pennon’s table Diana passed to Lady Crane’s, Lady Esquart’s, Lady Singleby’s, the Duchess of Raby’s, warmly clad in the admiration51 she excited. She appeared at Princess Therese Paryli’s first ball of the season, and had her circle, not of worshippers only. She did not dance. The princess, a fair Austrian, benevolent52 to her sisterhood, an admirer of Diana’s contrasting complexion53, would have had her dance once in a quadrille of her forming, but yielded to the mute expression of the refusal. Wherever Mrs. Warwick went, her arts of charming were addressed to the women. Men may be counted on for falling bowled over by a handsome face and pointed54 tongue; women require some wooing from their ensphered and charioted sister, particularly if she is clouded; and old women—excellent buttresses—must be suavely55 courted. Now, to woo the swimming matron and court the settled dowager, she had to win forgiveness for her beauty; and this was done, easily done, by forbearing to angle with it in the press of nibblers. They ranged about her, individually unnoticed. Seeming unaware56 of its effect where it kindled57, she smote58 a number of musical female chords, compassion59 among them. A general grave affability of her eyes and smiles was taken for quiet pleasure in the scene. Her fitful intentness of look when conversing60 with the older ladies told of the mind within at work upon what they said, and she was careful that plain dialogue should make her comprehensible to them. Nature taught her these arts, through which her wit became extolled61 entirely62 on the strength of her reputation, and her beauty did her service by never taking aim abroad. They are the woman’s arts of self-defence, as legitimately63 and honourably64 hers as the manful use of the fists with a coarser sex. If it had not been nature that taught her the practice of them in extremity65, the sagacious dowagers would have seen brazenness66 rather than innocence67—or an excuseable indiscretion—in the part she was performing. They are not lightly duped by one of their sex. Few tasks are more difficult than for a young woman under a cloud to hoodwink old women of the world. They are the prey70 of financiers, but Time has presented them a magic ancient glass to scan their sex in.
At Princess Paryli’s Ball two young men of singular elegance71 were observed by Diana, little though she concentered her attention on any figures of the groups. She had the woman’s faculty72 (transiently bestowed73 by perfervid jealousy74 upon men) of distinguishing minutely in the calmest of indifferent glances. She could see without looking; and when her eyes were wide they had not to dwell to be detective. It did not escape her that the Englishman of the two hurried for the chance of an introduction, nor that he suddenly, after putting a question to a man beside him, retired75. She spoke76 of them to Emma as they drove home. ‘The princess’s partner in the first quadrille... Hungarian, I suppose? He was like a Tartar modelled by a Greek: supple77 as the Scythian’s bow, braced78 as the string! He has the air of a born horseman, and valses perfectly79. I won’t say he was handsomer than a young Englishman there, but he had the advantage of soldierly training. How different is that quick springy figure from our young men’s lounging style! It comes of military exercise and discipline.’
‘That was Count Jochany, a cousin of the princess, and a cavalry80 officer,’ said Emma. ‘You don’t know the other? I am sure the one you mean must be Percy Dacier.’
His retiring was explained: the Hon. Percy Dacier was the nephew of Lord Dannisburgh, often extolled to her as the promising81 youngster of his day, with the reserve that he wasted his youth: for the young gentleman was decorous and studious; ambitious, according to report; a politician taking to politics much too seriously and exclusively to suit his uncle’s pattern for the early period of life. Uncle and nephew went their separate ways, rarely meeting, though their exchange of esteem82 was cordial.
Thinking over his abrupt83 retirement84 from the crowded semicircle, Diana felt her position pinch her, she knew not why.
Lady Dunstane was as indefatigable85 by day as by night in the business of acting86 goddess to her beloved Tony, whom she assured that the service, instead of exhausting, gave her such healthfulness as she had imagined herself to have lost for ever. The word was passed, and invitations poured in to choice conversational breakfasts, private afternoon concerts, all the humming season’s assemblies. Mr. Warwick’s treatment of his wife was taken by implication for lunatic; wherever she was heard or seen, he had no case; a jury of some hundreds of both sexes, ready to be sworn, pronounced against him. Only the personal enemies of the lord in the suit presumed to doubt, and they exercised the discretion68 of a minority.
But there is an upper middle class below the aristocratic, boasting an aristocracy of morals, and eminently88 persuasive89 of public opinion, if not commanding it. Previous to the relaxation90, by amendment91, of a certain legal process, this class was held to represent the austerity of the country. At present a relaxed austerity is represented; and still the bulk of the members are of fair repute, though not quite on the level of their pretensions92. They were then, while more sharply divided from the titular93 superiors they are socially absorbing, very powerful to brand a woman’s character, whatever her rank might be; having innumerable agencies and avenues for that high purpose, to say nothing of the printing-press. Lady Dunstane’s anxiety to draw them over to the cause of her friend set her thinking of the influential94 Mrs. Cramborne Wathin, with whom she was distantly connected; the wife of a potent95 serjeant-at-law fast mounting to the Bench and knighthood; the centre of a circle, and not strangely that, despite her deficiency in the arts and graces, for she had wealth and a cook, a husband proud of his wine-cellar, and the ambition to rule; all the rewards, together with the expectations, of the virtuous96. She was a lady of incisive97 features bound in stale parchment. Complexion she had none, but she had spotlessness of skin, and sons and daughters just resembling her, like cheaper editions of a precious quarto of a perished type. You discerned the imitation of the type, you acknowledged the inferior compositor. Mr. Cramborne Wathin was by birth of a grade beneath his wife; he sprang (behind a curtain of horror) from tradesmen. The Bench was in designation for him to wash out the stain, but his children suffered in large hands and feet, short legs, excess of bone, prominences98 misplaced. Their mother inspired them carefully with the religion she opposed to the pretensions of a nobler blood, while instilling99 into them that the blood they drew from her was territorial100, far above the vulgar. Her appearance and her principles fitted her to stand for the Puritan rich of the period, emerging by the aid of an extending wealth into luxurious101 worldliness, and retaining the maxims102 of their forefathers103 for the discipline of the poor and erring104.
Lady Dunstane called on her, ostensibly to let her know she had taken a house in town for the season, and in the course of the chat Mrs. Cramborne Wathin was invited to dinner. ‘You will meet my dear friend, Mrs. Warwick,’ she said, and the reply was: ‘Oh, I have heard of her.’
The formal consultation105 with Mr. Cramborne Wathin ended in an agreement to accept Lady Dunstane’s kind invitation.
Considering her husband’s plenitude of old legal anecdotes, and her own diligent106 perusal107 of the funny publications of the day, that she might be on the level of the wits and celebrities108 she entertained, Mrs. Cramborne Wathin had a right to expect the leading share in the conversation to which she was accustomed. Every honour was paid to them; they met aristocracy in the persons of Lord Larrian, of Lady Rockden, Colonel Purlby, the Pettigrews, but neither of them held the table for a moment; the topics flew, and were no sooner up than down; they were unable to get a shot. They had to eat in silence, occasionally grinning, because a woman labouring under a stigma109 would rattle-rattle, as if the laughter of the company were her due, and decency110 beneath her notice. Some one alluded111 to a dog of Mrs. Warwick’s, whereupon she trips out a story of her dog’s amazing intelligence.
‘And pray,’ said Mrs. Cramborne Wathin across the table, merely to slip in a word, ‘what is the name of this wonderful dog?’
‘His name is Leander,’ said Diana.
‘Oh, Leander. I don’t think I hear myself calling to a dog in a name of three syllables113. Two at the most.’
No, so I call Hero! if I want him to come immediately,’ said Diana, and the gentlemen, to Mrs. Cramborne Wathin’s astonishment114, acclaimed115 it. Mr. Redworth, at her elbow, explained the point, to her disgust...
That was Diana’s offence.
If it should seem a small one, let it be remembered that a snub was intended, and was foiled; and foiled with an apparent simplicity116, enough to exasperate117, had there been no laughter of men to back the countering stroke. A woman under a cloud, she talked, pushed to shine; she would be heard, would be applauded. Her chronicler must likewise admit the error of her giving way to a petty sentiment of antagonism118 on first beholding120 Mrs. Cramborne Wathin, before whom she at once resolved to be herself, for a holiday, instead of acting demurely121 to conciliate. Probably it was an antagonism of race, the shrinking of the skin from the burr. But when Tremendous Powers are invoked123, we should treat any simple revulsion of our blood as a vice8. The Gods of this world’s contests demand it of us, in relation to them, that the mind, and not the instincts, shall be at work. Otherwise the course of a prudent124 policy is never to invoke122 them, but avoid.
The upper class was gained by her intrepidity125, her charm, and her elsewhere offending wit, however the case might go. It is chivalrous126, but not, alas127, inflammable in support of innocence. The class below it is governed in estimates of character by accepted patterns of conduct; yet where innocence under persecution128 is believed to exist, the members animated129 by that belief can be enthusiastic. Enthusiasm is a heaven-sent steeplechaser, and takes a flying leap of the ordinary barriers; it is more intrusive130 than chivalry131, and has a passion to communicate its ardour. Two letters from stranger ladies reached Diana, through her lawyers and Lady Dunstane. Anonymous132 letters, not so welcome, being male effusions, arrived at her lodgings133, one of them comical almost over the verge134 to pathos135 in its termination: ‘To me you will ever be the Goddess Diana—my faith in woman!’
He was unacquainted with her!
She had not the heart to think the writers donkeys. How they obtained her address was a puzzle; they stole in to comfort her slightly. They attached her to her position of Defendant by the thought of what would have been the idea of her character if she had flown—a reflection emanating136 from inexperience of the resources of sentimentalists.
If she had flown! She was borne along by the tide like a butterfly that a fish may gobble unless a friendly hand shall intervene. And could it in nature? She was past expectation of release. The attempt to imagine living with any warmth of blood in her vindicated137 character, for the sake of zealous138 friends, consigned139 her to a cold and empty house upon a foreign earth. She had to set her mind upon the mysterious enshrouded Twelve, with whom the verdict would soon be hanging, that she might prompt her human combativeness140 to desire the vindication141 at such a price as she would have to pay for it. When Emma Dunstane spoke to her of the certainty of triumphing, she suggested a possible dissentient among the fateful Twelve, merely to escape the drumming sound of that hollow big word. The irreverent imp1 of her humour came to her relief by calling forth142 the Twelve, in the tone of the clerk of the Court, and they answered to their names of trades and crafts after the manner of Titania’s elves, and were questioned as to their fitness, by education, habits, enlightenment, to pronounce decisively upon the case in dispute, the case being plainly stated. They replied, that the long habit of dealing143 with scales enabled them to weigh the value of evidence the most delicate. Moreover, they were Englishmen, and anything short of downright bullet facts went to favour the woman. For thus we light the balance of legal injustice144 toward the sex: we conveniently wink69, ma’am. A rough, old-fashioned way for us! Is it a Breach145 of Promise?—She may reckon on her damages: we have daughters of our own. Is it a suit for Divorce?—Well, we have wives of our own, and we can lash46, or we can spare; that’s as it may be; but we’ll keep the couple tied, let ’em hate as they like, if they can’t furnish pork-butchers’ reasons for sundering146; because the man makes the money in this country.—My goodness! what a funny people, sir!—It ‘s our way of holding the balance, ma’am.—But would it not be better to rectify147 the law and the social system, dear sir?—Why, ma’am, we find it comfortabler to take cases as they come, in the style of our fathers.—But don’t you see, my good man, that you are offering scapegoats149 for the comfort of the majority?—Well, ma’am, there always were scapegoats, and always will be; we find it comes round pretty square in the end.
‘And I may be the scapegoat148, Emmy! It is perfectly possible. The grocer, the pork-butcher, drysalter, stationer, tea-merchant, et caetera—they sit on me. I have studied the faces of the juries, and Mr. Braddock tells me of their composition. And he admits that they do justice roughly—a rough and tumble country! to quote him—though he says they are honest in intention.’
‘More shame to the man who drags you before them—if he persists!’ Emma rejoined.
‘He will. I know him. I would not have him draw back now,’ said Diana, catching150 her breath. ‘And, dearest, do not abuse him; for if you do, you set me imagining guiltiness. Oh, heaven!—suppose me publicly pardoned! No, I have kinder feelings when we stand opposed. It is odd, and rather frets151 my conscience, to think of the little resentment152 I feel. Hardly any! He has not cause to like his wife. I can own it, and I am sorry for him, heartily153. No two have ever come together so naturally antagonistic154 as we two. We walked a dozen steps in stupefied union, and hit upon crossways. From that moment it was tug155 and tug; he me, I him. By resisting, I made him a tyrant156; and he, by insisting, made me a rebel. And he was the maddest of tyrants—a weak one. My dear, he was also a double-dealer. Or no, perhaps not in design. He was moved at one time by his interests; at another by his idea of his honour. He took what I could get for him, and then turned and drubbed me for getting it.’
‘This is the creature you try to excuse!’ exclaimed indignant Emma.
‘Yes, because—but fancy all the smart things I said being called my “sallies”!—can a woman live with it?—because I behaved... I despised him too much, and I showed it. He is not a contemptible157 man before the world; he is merely a very narrow one under close inspection158. I could not—or did not—conceal my feeling. I showed it not only to him, to my friend. Husband grew to mean to me stifler159, lung-contractor, iron mask, inquisitor, everything anti-natural. He suffered under my “sallies”: and it was the worse for him when he did not perceive their drift. He is an upright man; I have not seen marked meanness. One might build up a respectable figure in negatives. I could add a row of noughts160 to the single number he cherishes, enough to make a millionnaire of him; but strike away the first, the rest are wind. Which signifies, that if you do not take his estimate of himself, you will think little of his: negative virtues161. He is not eminently, that is to say, not saliently, selfish; not rancorous, not obtrusive—tata-ta-ta. But dull!—dull as a woollen nightcap over eyes and ears and mouth. Oh! an executioner’s black cap to me. Dull, and suddenly staring awake to the idea of his honour. I “rendered” him ridiculous—I had caught a trick of “using men’s phrases.” Dearest, now that the day of trial draws nigh—you have never questioned me, and it was like you to spare me pain—but now I can speak of him and myself.’ Diana dropped her voice. Here was another confession162. The proximity163 of the trial acted like fire on her faded recollection of incidents. It may be that partly the shame of alluding164 to them had blocked her woman’s memory. For one curious operation of the charge of guiltiness upon the nearly guiltless is to make them paint themselves pure white, to the obliteration165 of minor87 spots, until the whiteness being acknowledged, or the ordeal166 imminent167, the spots recur168 and press upon their consciences. She resumed, in a rapid undertone: ‘You know that a certain degree of independence had been, if not granted by him, conquered by me. I had the habit of it. Obedience169 with him is imprisonment—he is a blind wall. He received a commission, greatly to his advantage, and was absent. He seems to have received information of some sort. He returned unexpectedly, at a late hour, and attacked me at once, middling violent. My friend—and that he is! was coming from the House for a ten minutes’ talk, as usual, on his way home, to refresh him after the long sitting and bear-baiting he had nightly to endure. Now let me confess: I grew frightened; Mr. Warwick was “off his head,” as they say-crazy, and I could not bear the thought of those two meeting. While he raged I threw open the window and put the lamp near it, to expose the whole interior—cunning as a veteran intriguer170: horrible, but it had to be done to keep them apart. He asked me what madness possessed171 me, to sit by an open window at midnight, in view of the public, with a damp wind blowing. I complained of want of air and fanned my forehead. I heard the steps on the pavement; I stung him to retort loudly, and I was relieved; the steps passed on. So the trick succeeded—the trick! It was the worst I was guilty of, but it was a trick, and it branded me trickster. It teaches me to see myself with an abyss in my nature full of infernal possibilities. I think I am hewn in black rock. A woman who can do as I did by instinct, needs to have an angel always near her, if she has not a husband she reveres172.’
‘We are none of us better than you, dear Tony; only some are more fortunate, and many are cowards,’ Emma said. ‘You acted prudently173 in a wretched situation, partly of your own making, partly of the circumstances. But a nature like yours could not sit still and moan. That marriage was to blame! The English notion of women seems to be that we are born white sheep or black; circumstances have nothing to do with our colour. They dread to grant distinctions, and to judge of us discerningly is beyond them. Whether the fiction, that their homes are purer than elsewhere, helps to establish the fact, I do not know: there is a class that does live honestly; and at any rate it springs from a liking174 for purity; but I am sure that their method of impressing it on women has the dangers of things artificial. They narrow their understanding of human nature, and that is not the way to improve the breed.’
‘I suppose we women are taken to be the second thoughts of the Creator; human nature’s fringes, mere112 finishing touches, not a part of the texture,’ said Diana; ‘the pretty ornamentation. However, I fancy I perceive some tolerance175 growing in the minds of the dominant176 sex. Our old lawyer Mr. Braddock, who appears to have no distaste for conversations with me, assures me he expects the day to come when women will be encouraged to work at crafts and professions for their independence. That is the secret of the opinion of us at present—our dependency. Give us the means of independence, and we will gain it, and have a turn at judging you, my lords! You shall behold119 a world reversed. Whenever I am distracted by existing circumstances, I lay my finger on the material conditions, and I touch the secret. Individually, it may be moral with us; collectively, it is material-gross wrongs, gross hungers. I am a married rebel, and thereof comes the social rebel. I was once a dancing and singing girl: You remember the night of the Dublin Ball. A Channel sea in uproar177, stirred by witches, flows between.’
‘You are as lovely as you were then—I could say, lovelier,’ said Emma.
‘I have unconquerable health, and I wish I could give you the half of it, dear. I work late into the night, and I wake early and fresh in the morning. I do not sing, that is all. A few days more, and my character will be up before the Bull’s Head to face him in the arena178. The worst of a position like mine is, that it causes me incessantly179 to think and talk of myself. I believe I think less than I talk, but the subject is growing stale; as those who are long dying feel, I dare say—if they do not take it as the compensation for their departure.’
The Bull’s Head, or British Jury of Twelve, with the wig180 on it, was faced during the latter half of a week of good news. First, Mr. Thomas Redworth was returned to Parliament by a stout181 majority for the Borough of Orrybridge: the Hon. Percy Dacier delivered a brilliant speech in the House of Commons, necessarily pleasing to his uncle: Lord Larrian obtained the command of the Rock: the house of The Crossways was let to a tenant182 approved by Mr. Braddock: Diana received the opening proof-sheets of her little volume, and an instalment of the modest honorarium183: and finally, the Plaintiff in the suit involving her name was adjudged to have not proved his charge.
She heard of it without a change of countenance184.
She could not have wished it the reverse; she was exonerated185. But she was not free; far from that; and she revenged herself on the friends who made much of her triumph and overlooked her plight186, by showing no sign of satisfaction. There was in her bosom187 a revolt at the legal consequences of the verdict—or blunt acquiescence188 of the Law in the conditions possibly to be imposed on her unless she went straight to the relieving phial; and the burden of keeping it under, set her wildest humour alight, somewhat as Redworth remembered of her on the journey from The Crossways to Copsley. This ironic189 fury, coming of the contrast of the outer and the inner, would have been indulged to the extent of permanent injury to her disposition had not her beloved Emma, immediately after the tension of the struggle ceased, required her tenderest aid. Lady Dunstane chanted victory, and at night collapsed190. By the advice of her physician she was removed to Copsley, where Diana’s labour of anxious nursing restored her through love to a saner191 spirit. The hopefulness of life must bloom again in the heart whose prayers are offered for a life dearer than its own to be preserved. A little return of confidence in Sir Lukin also refreshed her when she saw that the poor creature did honestly, in his shaggy rough male fashion, reverence192 and cling to the flower of souls he named as his wife. His piteous groans193 of self-accusation during the crisis haunted her, and made the conduct and nature of men a bewilderment to her still young understanding. Save for the knot of her sensations (hardly a mental memory, but a sullen194 knot) which she did not disentangle to charge him with his complicity in the blind rashness of her marriage, she might have felt sisterly, as warmly as she compassionated195 him.
It was midwinter when Dame196 Gossip, who keeps the exotic world alive with her fanning whispers, related that the lovely Mrs. Warwick had left England on board the schooner-yacht Clarissa, with Lord and Lady Esquart, for a voyage in the Mediterranean197: and (behind her hand) that the reason was urgent, inasmuch as she fled to escape the meshes198 of the terrific net of the marital199 law brutally200 whirled to capture her by the man her husband.
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imp
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apprenticeship
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| n.学徒身份；学徒期 | |
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receded
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| v.逐渐远离( recede的过去式和过去分词 )；向后倾斜；自原处后退或避开别人的注视；尤指问题 | |
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armour
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| （=armor）n.盔甲；装甲部队 | |
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defendant
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momentary
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| adj.片刻的，瞬息的；短暂的 | |
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twitch
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vice
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faculties
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belied
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disposition
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tartness
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sarcastic
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| adj.讥讽的，讽刺的，嘲弄的 | |
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shafts
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| 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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interceding
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| v.斡旋，调解( intercede的现在分词 )；说情 | |
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determined
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| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
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dwindled
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| v.逐渐变少或变小( dwindle的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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pouted
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| v.撅（嘴）( pout的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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recollected
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| 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 ) | |
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besought
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| v.恳求，乞求（某事物）( beseech的过去式和过去分词 )；(beseech的过去式与过去分词) | |
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21
stratagem
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| n.诡计，计谋 | |
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22
plaintive
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| adj.可怜的，伤心的 | |
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23
whining
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| n. 抱怨，牢骚 v. 哭诉，发牢骚 | |
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24
disdained
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| 鄙视( disdain的过去式和过去分词 )； 不屑于做，不愿意做 | |
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25
justification
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| n.正当的理由；辩解的理由 | |
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26
truce
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| n.休战，(争执，烦恼等的)缓和；v.以停战结束 | |
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withdrawal
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| n.取回，提款；撤退，撤军；收回，撤销 | |
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28
exoneration
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| n.免罪，免除 | |
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29
dread
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| vt.担忧，忧虑；惧怕，不敢；n.担忧，畏惧 | |
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30
canvass
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| v.招徕顾客，兜售；游说；详细检查，讨论 | |
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31
borough
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| n.享有自治权的市镇；(英)自治市镇 | |
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32
absurdity
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| n.荒谬，愚蠢；谬论 | |
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33
meddling
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| v.干涉，干预（他人事务）( meddle的现在分词 ) | |
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34
dilemmas
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| n.左右为难( dilemma的名词复数 )；窘境，困境 | |
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35
entreat
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| v.恳求，恳请 | |
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36
darts
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| n.掷飞镖游戏；飞镖( dart的名词复数 )；急驰，飞奔v.投掷，投射( dart的第三人称单数 )；向前冲，飞奔 | |
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37
manor
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| n.庄园，领地 | |
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38
vowed
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| 起誓，发誓（vow的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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39
witty
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| adj.机智的，风趣的 | |
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40
ambushes
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| n.埋伏( ambush的名词复数 )；伏击；埋伏着的人；设埋伏点v.埋伏( ambush的第三人称单数 )；埋伏着 | |
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41
anecdotes
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| n.掌故，趣闻，轶事( anecdote的名词复数 ) | |
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42
conversational
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| adj.对话的，会话的 | |
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43
plentiful
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| adj.富裕的，丰富的 | |
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44
wholesome
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| adj.适合；卫生的；有益健康的；显示身心健康的 | |
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45
kindly
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| adj.和蔼的，温和的，爽快的；adv.温和地，亲切地 | |
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46
lash
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| v.系牢；鞭打；猛烈抨击；n.鞭打；眼睫毛 | |
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47
Vogue
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| n.时髦，时尚；adj.流行的 | |
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48
enrapturing
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| v.使狂喜( enrapture的现在分词 ) | |
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49
evoked
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| [医]诱发的 | |
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50
posterity
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| n.后裔，子孙，后代 | |
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51
admiration
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| n.钦佩，赞美，羡慕 | |
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52
benevolent
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| adj.仁慈的，乐善好施的 | |
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53
complexion
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| n.肤色；情况，局面；气质，性格 | |
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54
pointed
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| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
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55
suavely
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56
unaware
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| a.不知道的，未意识到的 | |
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57
kindled
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| （使某物）燃烧，着火( kindle的过去式和过去分词 )； 激起（感情等）； 发亮，放光 | |
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58
smote
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| v.猛打，重击，打击( smite的过去式 ) | |
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59
compassion
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| n.同情，怜悯 | |
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60
conversing
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| v.交谈，谈话( converse的现在分词 ) | |
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61
extolled
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| v.赞颂，赞扬，赞美( extol的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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62
entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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63
legitimately
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| ad.合法地；正当地，合理地 | |
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64
honourably
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| adv.可尊敬地，光荣地，体面地 | |
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65
extremity
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| n.末端，尽头；尽力；终极；极度 | |
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66
brazenness
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| 厚颜无耻 | |
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67
innocence
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| n.无罪；天真；无害 | |
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68
discretion
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| n.谨慎；随意处理 | |
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69
wink
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| n.眨眼，使眼色，瞬间；v.眨眼，使眼色，闪烁 | |
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70
prey
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| n.被掠食者，牺牲者，掠食；v.捕食，掠夺，折磨 | |
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71
elegance
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| n.优雅；优美，雅致；精致，巧妙 | |
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72
faculty
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| n.才能；学院，系；(学院或系的)全体教学人员 | |
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73
bestowed
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| 赠给，授予( bestow的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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74
jealousy
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| n.妒忌，嫉妒，猜忌 | |
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75
retired
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| adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的 | |
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76
spoke
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| n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说 | |
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77
supple
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| adj.柔软的，易弯的，逢迎的，顺从的，灵活的；vt.使柔软，使柔顺，使顺从；vi.变柔软，变柔顺 | |
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78
braced
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| adj.拉牢的v.支住( brace的过去式和过去分词 )；撑牢；使自己站稳；振作起来 | |
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79
perfectly
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| adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地 | |
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80
cavalry
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| n.骑兵；轻装甲部队 | |
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81
promising
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| adj.有希望的，有前途的 | |
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82
esteem
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| n.尊敬，尊重；vt.尊重，敬重；把…看作 | |
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83
abrupt
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| adj.突然的，意外的；唐突的，鲁莽的 | |
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84
retirement
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| n.退休，退职 | |
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85
indefatigable
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| adj.不知疲倦的，不屈不挠的 | |
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86
acting
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| n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的 | |
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87
minor
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| adj.较小(少)的，较次要的；n.辅修学科；vi.辅修 | |
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88
eminently
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| adv.突出地；显著地；不寻常地 | |
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89
persuasive
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| adj.有说服力的，能说得使人相信的 | |
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90
relaxation
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| n.松弛，放松；休息；消遣；娱乐 | |
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91
amendment
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| n.改正，修正，改善，修正案 | |
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92
pretensions
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| 自称( pretension的名词复数 )； 自命不凡； 要求； 权力 | |
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93
titular
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| adj.名义上的，有名无实的；n.只有名义（或头衔）的人 | |
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94
influential
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| adj.有影响的，有权势的 | |
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95
potent
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| adj.强有力的，有权势的；有效力的 | |
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96
virtuous
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| adj.有品德的，善良的，贞洁的，有效力的 | |
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97
incisive
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| adj.敏锐的，机敏的，锋利的，切入的 | |
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98
prominences
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| n.织物中凸起的部分；声望( prominence的名词复数 )；突出；重要；要事 | |
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99
instilling
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| v.逐渐使某人获得（某种可取的品质），逐步灌输( instil的现在分词 )；逐渐使某人获得（某种可取的品质），逐步灌输( instill的现在分词 ) | |
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100
territorial
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| adj.领土的，领地的 | |
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101
luxurious
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| adj.精美而昂贵的；豪华的 | |
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102
maxims
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| n.格言，座右铭( maxim的名词复数 ) | |
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103
forefathers
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| n.祖先，先人；祖先，祖宗( forefather的名词复数 )；列祖列宗；前人 | |
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104
erring
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| 做错事的，错误的 | |
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105
consultation
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| n.咨询；商量；商议；会议 | |
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106
diligent
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| adj.勤勉的，勤奋的 | |
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107
perusal
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| n.细读，熟读；目测 | |
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108
celebrities
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| n.（尤指娱乐界的）名人( celebrity的名词复数 )；名流；名声；名誉 | |
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109
stigma
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| n.耻辱，污名；(花的)柱头 | |
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110
decency
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| n.体面，得体，合宜，正派，庄重 | |
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111
alluded
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| 提及，暗指( allude的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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112
mere
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| adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过 | |
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113
syllables
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| n.音节( syllable的名词复数 ) | |
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114
astonishment
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| n.惊奇，惊异 | |
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115
acclaimed
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| adj.受人欢迎的 | |
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116
simplicity
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| n.简单，简易；朴素；直率，单纯 | |
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117
exasperate
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| v.激怒，使（疾病）加剧，使恶化 | |
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118
antagonism
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| n.对抗，敌对，对立 | |
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119
behold
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| v.看，注视，看到 | |
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120
beholding
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| 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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121
demurely
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| adv.装成端庄地，认真地 | |
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122
invoke
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| v.求助于(神、法律)；恳求，乞求 | |
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123
invoked
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| v.援引( invoke的过去式和过去分词 )；行使（权利等）；祈求救助；恳求 | |
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124
prudent
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| adj.谨慎的，有远见的，精打细算的 | |
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125
intrepidity
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| n.大胆，刚勇；大胆的行为 | |
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126
chivalrous
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| adj.武士精神的；对女人彬彬有礼的 | |
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127
alas
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| int.唉(表示悲伤、忧愁、恐惧等) | |
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128
persecution
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| n. 迫害,烦扰 | |
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129
animated
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| adj.生气勃勃的，活跃的，愉快的 | |
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130
intrusive
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| adj.打搅的；侵扰的 | |
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131
chivalry
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| n.骑士气概，侠义；（男人）对女人彬彬有礼，献殷勤 | |
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132
anonymous
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| adj.无名的；匿名的；无特色的 | |
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133
lodgings
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| n. 出租的房舍, 寄宿舍 | |
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134
verge
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| n.边，边缘；v.接近，濒临 | |
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135
pathos
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| n.哀婉，悲怆 | |
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136
emanating
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| v.从…处传出，传出( emanate的现在分词 )；产生，表现，显示 | |
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137
vindicated
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| v.澄清（某人/某事物）受到的责难或嫌疑( vindicate的过去式和过去分词 )；表明或证明（所争辩的事物）属实、正当、有效等；维护 | |
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138
zealous
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| adj.狂热的，热心的 | |
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139
consigned
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| v.把…置于（令人不快的境地）( consign的过去式和过去分词 )；把…托付给；把…托人代售；丟弃 | |
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140
combativeness
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| n.好战 | |
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141
vindication
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| n.洗冤，证实 | |
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142
forth
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| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
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143
dealing
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| n.经商方法，待人态度 | |
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144
injustice
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| n.非正义，不公正，不公平，侵犯（别人的）权利 | |
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145
breach
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| n.违反，不履行；破裂；vt.冲破，攻破 | |
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146
sundering
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| v.隔开，分开( sunder的现在分词 ) | |
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147
rectify
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| v.订正，矫正，改正 | |
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148
scapegoat
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| n.替罪的羔羊，替人顶罪者；v.使…成为替罪羊 | |
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149
scapegoats
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| n.代人受过的人，替罪羊( scapegoat的名词复数 )v.使成为替罪羊( scapegoat的第三人称单数 ) | |
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150
catching
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| adj.易传染的，有魅力的，迷人的，接住 | |
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151
frets
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| 基质间片； 品丝（吉他等指板上定音的）( fret的名词复数 ) | |
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resentment
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| n.怨愤，忿恨 | |
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heartily
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| adv.衷心地，诚恳地，十分，很 | |
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154
antagonistic
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| adj.敌对的 | |
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155
tug
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| v.用力拖(或拉)；苦干；n.拖；苦干；拖船 | |
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156
tyrant
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| n.暴君，专制的君主，残暴的人 | |
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157
contemptible
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| adj.可鄙的，可轻视的，卑劣的 | |
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158
inspection
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| n.检查，审查，检阅 | |
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159
stifler
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| 窒息物，绞索 | |
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160
noughts
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| 零，无，没有( nought的名词复数 ) | |
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virtues
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| 美德( virtue的名词复数 )； 德行； 优点； 长处 | |
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confession
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| n.自白，供认，承认 | |
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proximity
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| n.接近，邻近 | |
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alluding
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| 提及，暗指( allude的现在分词 ) | |
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obliteration
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| n.涂去，删除；管腔闭合 | |
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ordeal
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| n.苦难经历，（尤指对品格、耐力的）严峻考验 | |
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imminent
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| adj.即将发生的，临近的，逼近的 | |
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168
recur
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| vi.复发，重现，再发生 | |
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169
obedience
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| n.服从，顺从 | |
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170
intriguer
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| 密谋者 | |
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171
possessed
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| adj.疯狂的；拥有的，占有的 | |
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reveres
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| v.崇敬，尊崇，敬畏( revere的第三人称单数 ) | |
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173
prudently
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| adv. 谨慎地，慎重地 | |
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174
liking
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| n.爱好；嗜好；喜欢 | |
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175
tolerance
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| n.宽容；容忍，忍受；耐药力；公差 | |
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dominant
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| adj.支配的，统治的；占优势的；显性的；n.主因，要素，主要的人(或物)；显性基因 | |
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uproar
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| n.骚动，喧嚣，鼎沸 | |
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arena
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| n.竞技场，运动场所；竞争场所，舞台 | |
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incessantly
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| ad.不停地 | |
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wig
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| n.假发 | |
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182
tenant
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| n.承租人；房客；佃户；v.租借，租用 | |
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183
honorarium
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| n.酬金，谢礼 | |
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184
countenance
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| n.脸色，面容；面部表情；vt.支持，赞同 | |
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185
exonerated
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| v.使免罪，免除( exonerate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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186
plight
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| n.困境，境况，誓约，艰难；vt.宣誓，保证，约定 | |
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187
bosom
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| n.胸，胸部；胸怀；内心；adj.亲密的 | |
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acquiescence
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| n.默许；顺从 | |
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189
ironic
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| adj.讽刺的，有讽刺意味的，出乎意料的 | |
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collapsed
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| adj.倒塌的 | |
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191
saner
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| adj.心智健全的( sane的比较级 )；神志正常的；明智的；稳健的 | |
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reverence
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| n.敬畏，尊敬，尊严；Reverence:对某些基督教神职人员的尊称；v.尊敬，敬畏，崇敬 | |
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193
groans
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| n.呻吟，叹息( groan的名词复数 )；呻吟般的声音v.呻吟( groan的第三人称单数 )；发牢骚；抱怨；受苦 | |
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194
sullen
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| adj.愠怒的，闷闷不乐的，(天气等)阴沉的 | |
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195
compassionated
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| v.同情（compassionate的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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196
dame
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| n.女士 | |
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197
Mediterranean
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| adj.地中海的；地中海沿岸的 | |
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198
meshes
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| 网孔( mesh的名词复数 )； 网状物； 陷阱； 困境 | |
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199
marital
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| adj.婚姻的，夫妻的 | |
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200
brutally
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| adv.残忍地，野蛮地，冷酷无情地 | |
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