So the red Indian, by Ontario’s side,
Nursed hardy1 on the brindled2 panther’s hide,
As fades his swarthy race, with anguish3 sees
The white man’s cottage rise beneath the trees;
He leaves the shelter of his native wood,
He leaves the murmur4 of Ohio’s flood,
And forward rushing in indignant grief,
Where never foot has trod the fallen leaf,
He bends his course where twilight5 reigns6 sublime7.
O’er forests silent since the birth of time.
In tracing the rise and progress of the Scottish Maroon9 war, we must not omit to mention that years had rolled on, and that little Harry10 Bertram, one of the hardiest11 and most lively children that ever made a sword and grenadier’s cap of rushes, now approached his fifth revolving12 birthday. A hardihood of disposition13, which early developed itself, made him already a little wanderer; he was well acquainted with every patch of lea ground and dingle around Ellangowan, and could tell in his broken language upon what baulks grew the bonniest flowers, and what copse had the ripest nuts. He repeatedly terrified his attendants by clambering about the ruins of the old castle, and had more than once made a stolen excursion as far as the gipsy hamlet.
On these occasions he was generally brought back by Meg Merrilies, who, though she could not be prevailed upon to enter the Place of Ellangowan after her nephew had been given up to the press-gang, did not apparently14 extend her resentment15 to the child. On the contrary, she often contrived16 to waylay17 him in his walks, sing him a gipsy song, give him a ride upon her jackass, and thrust into his pocket a piece of gingerbread or a red-cheeked apple. This woman’s ancient attachment18 to the family, repelled19 and checked in every other direction, seemed to rejoice in having some object on which it could yet repose20 and expand itself. She prophesied21 a hundred times, ‘that young Mr. Harry would be the pride o’ the family, and there hadna been sic a sprout22 frae the auld23 aik since the death of Arthur Mac-Dingawaie, that was killed in the battle o’ the Bloody24 Bay; as for the present stick, it was good for nothing but fire-wood.’ On one occasion, when the child was ill, she lay all night below the window, chanting a rhyme which she believed sovereign as a febrifuge, and could neither be prevailed upon to enter the house nor to leave the station she had chosen till she was informed that the crisis was over.
The affection of this woman became matter of suspicion, not indeed to the Laird, who was never hasty in suspecting evil, but to his wife, who had indifferent health and poor spirits. She was now far advanced in a second pregnancy25, and, as she could not walk abroad herself, and the woman who attended upon Harry was young and thoughtless, she prayed Dominie Sampson to undertake the task of watching the boy in his rambles26, when he should not be otherwise accompanied. The Dominie loved his young charge, and was enraptured27 with his own success in having already brought him so far in his learning as to spell words of three syllables28. The idea of this early prodigy29 of erudition being carried off by the gipsies, like a second Adam Smith,6 was not to be tolerated; and accordingly, though the charge was contrary to all his habits of life, he readily undertook it, and might be seen stalking about with a mathematical problem in his head, and his eye upon a child of five years old, whose rambles led him into a hundred awkward situations. Twice was the Dominie chased by a cross-grained cow, once he fell into the brook30 crossing at the stepping-stones, and another time was bogged31 up to the middle in the slough32 of Lochend, in attempting to gather a water-lily for the young Laird. It was the opinion of the village matrons who relieved Sampson on the latter occasion, ‘that the Laird might as weel trust the care o’ his bairn to a potatoe bogle’; but the good Dominie bore all his disasters with gravity and serenity33 equally imperturbable34. ‘Pro-di-gi-ous!’ was the only ejaculation they ever extorted35 from the much-enduring man.
The Laird had by this time determined36 to make root-and-branch work with the Maroons37 of Derncleugh. The old servants shook their heads at his proposal, and even Dominie Sampson ventured upon an indirect remonstrance38. As, however, it was couched in the oracular phrase, ‘Ne moveas Camerinam,’ neither the allusion39, nor the language in which it was expressed, were calculated for Mr. Bertram’s edification, and matters proceeded against the gipsies in form of law. Every door in the hamlet was chalked by the ground-officer, in token of a formal warning to remove at next term. Still, however, they showed no symptoms either of submission40 or of compliance41. At length the term-day, the fatal Martinmas, arrived, and violent measures of ejection were resorted to. A strong posse of peace-officers, sufficient to render all resistance vain, charged the inhabitants to depart by noon; and, as they did not obey, the officers, in terms of their warrant, proceeded to unroof the cottages, and pull down the wretched doors and windows — a summary and effectual mode of ejection still practised in some remote parts of Scotland when a tenant42 proves refractory43. The gipsies for a time beheld44 the work of destruction in sullen45 silence and inactivity; then set about saddling and loading their asses46, and making preparations for their departure. These were soon accomplished47, where all had the habits of wandering Tartars; and they set forth48 on their journey to seek new settlements, where their patrons should neither be of the quorum49 nor custos rotulorum.
Certain qualms50 of feeling had deterred51 Ellangowan from attending in person to see his tenants52 expelled. He left the executive part of the business to the officers of the law, under the immediate53 direction of Frank Kennedy, a supervisor54, or riding-officer, belonging to the excise55, who had of late become intimate at the Place, and of whom we shall have more to say in the next chapter. Mr. Bertram himself chose that day to make a visit to a friend at some distance. But it so happened, notwithstanding his precautions, that he could not avoid meeting his late tenants during their retreat from his property.
It was in a hollow way, near the top of a steep ascent57, upon the verge58 of the Ellangowan estate, that Mr. Bertram met the gipsy procession. Four or five men formed the advanced guard, wrapped in long loose great-coats that hid their tall slender figures, as the large slouched hats, drawn59 over their brows, concealed60 their wild features, dark eyes, and swarthy faces. Two of them carried long fowling-pieces, one wore a broadsword without a sheath, and all had the Highland61 dirk, though they did not wear that weapon openly or ostentatiously. Behind them followed the train of laden62 asses, and small carts or tumblers, as they were called in that country, on which were laid the decrepit63 and the helpless, the aged64 and infant part of the exiled community. The women in their red cloaks and straw hats, the elder children with bare heads and bare feet, and almost naked bodies, had the immediate care of the little caravan65. The road was narrow, running between two broken banks of sand, and Mr. Bertram’s servant rode forward, smacking66 his whip with an air of authority, and motioning to the drivers to allow free passage to their betters. His signal was unattended to. He then called to the men who lounged idly on before, ‘Stand to your beasts’ heads, and make room for the Laird to pass.’
‘He shall have his share of the road,’ answered a male gipsy from under his slouched and large-brimmed hat, and without raising his face, ‘and he shall have nae mair; the highway is as free to our cuddies as to his gelding.’
The tone of the man being sulky, and even menacing, Mr. Bertram thought it best to put his dignity in his pocket, and pass by the procession quietly, on such space as they chose to leave for his accommodation, which was narrow enough. To cover with an appearance of indifference67 his feeling of the want of respect with which he was treated, he addressed one of the men, as he passed him without any show of greeting, salute68, or recognition — ‘Giles Baillie,’ he said, ‘have you heard that your son Gabriel is well?’ (The question respected the young man who had been pressed.)
‘If I had heard otherwise,’ said the old man, looking up with a stern and menacing countenance69, ‘you should have heard of it too.’ And he plodded70 on his way, tarrying no further question.7 When the Laird had pressed on with difficulty among a crowd of familiar faces, which had on all former occasions marked his approach with the reverence71 due to that of a superior being, but in which he now only read hatred72 and contempt, and had got clear of the throng73, he could not help turning his horse, and looking back to mark the progress of their march. The group would have been an excellent subject for the pencil of Calotte. The van had already reached a small and stunted74 thicket75, which was at the bottom of the hill, and which gradually hid the line of march until the last stragglers disappeared.
His sensations were bitter enough. The race, it is true, which he had thus summarily dismissed from their ancient place of refuge, was idle and vicious; but had he endeavoured to render them otherwise? They were not more irregular characters now than they had been while they were admitted to consider themselves as a sort of subordinate dependents of his family; and ought the mere76 circumstance of his becoming a magistrate77 to have made at once such a change in his conduct towards them? Some means of reformation ought at least to have been tried before sending seven families at once upon the wide world, and depriving them of a degree of countenance which withheld78 them at least from atrocious guilt79. There was also a natural yearning80 of heart on parting with so many known and familiar faces; and to this feeling Godfrey Bertram was peculiarly accessible, from the limited qualities of his mind, which sought its principal amusements among the petty objects around him. As he was about to turn his horse’s head to pursue his journey, Meg Merrilies, who had lagged behind the troop, unexpectedly presented herself.
She was standing56 upon one of those high precipitous banks which, as we before noticed, overhung the road, so that she was placed considerably81 higher than Ellangowan, even though he was on horseback; and her tall figure, relieved against the clear blue sky, seemed almost of supernatural stature82. We have noticed that there was in her general attire83, or rather in her mode of adjusting it, somewhat of a foreign costume, artfully adopted perhaps for the purpose of adding to the effect of her spells and predictions, or perhaps from some traditional notions respecting the dress of her ancestors. On this occasion she had a large piece of red cotton cloth rolled about her head in the form of a turban, from beneath which her dark eyes flashed with uncommon84 lustre85. Her long and tangled86 black hair fell in elf-locks from the folds of this singular head-gear. Her attitude was that of a sibyl in frenzy87, and she stretched out in her right hand a sapling bough88 which seemed just pulled.
‘I’ll be d — d,’ said the groom89, ‘if she has not been cutting the young ashes in the dukit park!’ The Laird made no answer, but continued to look at the figure which was thus perched above his path.
‘Ride your ways,’ said the gipsy, ‘ride your ways, Laird of Ellangowan; ride your ways, Godfrey Bertram! This day have ye quenched90 seven smoking hearths91; see if the fire in your ain parlour burn the blyther for that. Ye have riven the thack off seven cottar houses; look if your ain roof-tree stand the faster. Ye may stable your stirks in the shealings at Derncleugh; see that the hare does not couch on the hearthstane at Ellangowan. Ride your ways, Godfrey Bertram; what do ye glower92 after our folk for? There’s thirty hearts there that wad hae wanted bread ere ye had wanted sunkets, and spent their life-blood ere ye had scratched your finger. Yes; there’s thirty yonder, from the auld wife of an hundred to the babe that was born last week, that ye have turned out o’ their bits o’ bields, to sleep with the tod and the blackcock in the muirs! Ride your ways, Ellangowan. Our bairns are hinging at our weary backs; look that your braw cradle at hame be the fairer spread up; not that I am wishing ill to little Harry, or to the babe that’s yet to be born — God forbid — and make them kind to the poor, and better folk than their father! And now, ride e’en your ways; for these are the last words ye’ll ever hear Meg Merrilies speak, and this is the last reise that I’ll ever cut in the bonny woods of Ellangowan.’
So saying, she broke the sapling she held in her hand, and flung it into the road. Margaret of Anjou, bestowing93 on her triumphant94 foes95 her keen-edged malediction96, could not have turned from them with a gesture more proudly contemptuous. The Laird was clearing his voice to speak, and thrusting his hand in his pocket to find a half-crown; the gipsy waited neither for his reply nor his donation, but strode down the hill to overtake the caravan.
Ellangowan rode pensively97 home; and it was remarkable98 that he did not mention this interview to any of his family. The groom was not so reserved; he told the story at great length to a full audience in the kitchen, and concluded by swearing, that ‘if ever the devil spoke99 by the mouth of a woman, he had spoken by that of Meg Merrilies that blessed day.’
收听单词发音 |
1
hardy
|
|
| adj.勇敢的，果断的，吃苦的；耐寒的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
2
brindled
|
|
| adj.有斑纹的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
3
anguish
|
|
| n.(尤指心灵上的)极度痛苦，烦恼 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
4
murmur
|
|
| n.低语，低声的怨言；v.低语，低声而言 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
5
twilight
|
|
| n.暮光，黄昏；暮年，晚期，衰落时期 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
6
reigns
|
|
| n.君主的统治( reign的名词复数 )；君主统治时期；任期；当政期 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
7
sublime
|
|
| adj.崇高的，伟大的；极度的，不顾后果的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
8
infancy
|
|
| n.婴儿期；幼年期；初期 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
9
maroon
|
|
| v.困住，使（人）处于孤独无助之境；n.逃亡黑奴；孤立的人；酱紫色，褐红色；adj.酱紫色的，褐红色的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
10
harry
|
|
| vt.掠夺，蹂躏，使苦恼 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
11
hardiest
|
|
| 能吃苦耐劳的，坚强的( hardy的最高级 )； （植物等）耐寒的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
12
revolving
|
|
| adj.旋转的，轮转式的；循环的v.（使）旋转( revolve的现在分词 )；细想 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
13
disposition
|
|
| n.性情，性格；意向，倾向；排列，部署 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
14
apparently
|
|
| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
15
resentment
|
|
| n.怨愤，忿恨 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
16
contrived
|
|
| adj.不自然的，做作的；虚构的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
17
waylay
|
|
| v.埋伏，伏击 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
18
attachment
|
|
| n.附属物，附件；依恋；依附 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
19
repelled
|
|
| v.击退( repel的过去式和过去分词 )；使厌恶；排斥；推开 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
20
repose
|
|
| v.(使)休息；n.安息 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
21
prophesied
|
|
| v.预告，预言( prophesy的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
22
sprout
|
|
| n.芽，萌芽；vt.使发芽，摘去芽；vi.长芽，抽条 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
23
auld
|
|
| adj.老的，旧的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
24
bloody
|
|
| adj.非常的的；流血的；残忍的；adv.很；vt.血染 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
25
pregnancy
|
|
| n.怀孕，怀孕期 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
26
rambles
|
|
| （无目的地）漫游( ramble的第三人称单数 )； （喻）漫谈； 扯淡； 长篇大论 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
27
enraptured
|
|
| v.使狂喜( enrapture的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
28
syllables
|
|
| n.音节( syllable的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
29
prodigy
|
|
| n.惊人的事物，奇迹，神童，天才，预兆 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
30
brook
|
|
| n.小河，溪；v.忍受，容让 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
31
bogged
|
|
| adj.陷于泥沼的v.（使）陷入泥沼， （使）陷入困境( bog的过去式和过去分词 )；妨碍，阻碍 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
32
slough
|
|
| v.蜕皮，脱落，抛弃 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
33
serenity
|
|
| n.宁静，沉着，晴朗 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
34
imperturbable
|
|
| adj.镇静的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
35
extorted
|
|
| v.敲诈( extort的过去式和过去分词 )；曲解 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
36
determined
|
|
| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
37
maroons
|
|
| n.逃亡黑奴（maroon的复数形式）vt.把…放逐到孤岛（maroon的第三人称单数形式） | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
38
remonstrance
|
|
| n抗议，抱怨 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
39
allusion
|
|
| n.暗示，间接提示 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
40
submission
|
|
| n.服从，投降；温顺，谦虚；提出 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
41
compliance
|
|
| n.顺从；服从；附和；屈从 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
42
tenant
|
|
| n.承租人；房客；佃户；v.租借，租用 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
43
refractory
|
|
| adj.倔强的，难驾驭的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
44
beheld
|
|
| v.看，注视( behold的过去式和过去分词 )；瞧；看呀；（叙述中用于引出某人意外的出现）哎哟 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
45
sullen
|
|
| adj.愠怒的，闷闷不乐的，(天气等)阴沉的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
46
asses
|
|
| n. 驴，愚蠢的人，臀部 adv. (常用作后置)用于贬损或骂人 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
47
accomplished
|
|
| adj.有才艺的；有造诣的；达到了的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
48
forth
|
|
| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
49
quorum
|
|
| n.法定人数 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
50
qualms
|
|
| n.不安；内疚 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
51
deterred
|
|
| v.阻止，制止( deter的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
52
tenants
|
|
| n.房客( tenant的名词复数 )；佃户；占用者；占有者 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
53
immediate
|
|
| adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
54
supervisor
|
|
| n.监督人，管理人，检查员，督学，主管，导师 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
55
excise
|
|
| n.(国产)货物税；vt.切除，删去 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
56
standing
|
|
| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
57
ascent
|
|
| n.(声望或地位)提高；上升，升高；登高 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
58
verge
|
|
| n.边，边缘；v.接近，濒临 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
59
drawn
|
|
| v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
60
concealed
|
|
| a.隐藏的，隐蔽的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
61
highland
|
|
| n.(pl.)高地，山地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
62
laden
|
|
| adj.装满了的；充满了的；负了重担的；苦恼的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
63
decrepit
|
|
| adj.衰老的，破旧的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
64
aged
|
|
| adj.年老的，陈年的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
65
caravan
|
|
| n.大蓬车；活动房屋 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
66
smacking
|
|
| 活泼的，发出响声的，精力充沛的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
67
indifference
|
|
| n.不感兴趣，不关心，冷淡，不在乎 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
68
salute
|
|
| vi.行礼，致意，问候，放礼炮；vt.向…致意，迎接，赞扬；n.招呼，敬礼，礼炮 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
69
countenance
|
|
| n.脸色，面容；面部表情；vt.支持，赞同 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
70
plodded
|
|
| v.沉重缓慢地走（路）( plod的过去式和过去分词 )；努力从事；沉闷地苦干；缓慢进行（尤指艰难枯燥的工作） | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
71
reverence
|
|
| 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 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
72
hatred
|
|
| n.憎恶，憎恨，仇恨 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
73
throng
|
|
| n.人群，群众；v.拥挤，群集 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
74
stunted
|
|
| adj.矮小的；发育迟缓的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
75
thicket
|
|
| n.灌木丛，树林 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
76
mere
|
|
| adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
77
magistrate
|
|
| n.地方行政官，地方法官，治安官 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
78
withheld
|
|
| withhold过去式及过去分词 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
79
guilt
|
|
| n.犯罪；内疚；过失，罪责 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
80
yearning
|
|
| a.渴望的；向往的；怀念的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
81
considerably
|
|
| adv.极大地；相当大地；在很大程度上 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
82
stature
|
|
| n.（高度）水平，（高度）境界，身高，身材 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
83
attire
|
|
| v.穿衣，装扮[同]array；n.衣着；盛装 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
84
uncommon
|
|
| adj.罕见的，非凡的，不平常的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
85
lustre
|
|
| n.光亮，光泽；荣誉 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
86
tangled
|
|
| adj. 纠缠的，紊乱的 动词tangle的过去式和过去分词 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
87
frenzy
|
|
| n.疯狂，狂热，极度的激动 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
88
bough
|
|
| n.大树枝，主枝 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
89
groom
|
|
| vt.给（马、狗等）梳毛，照料，使...整洁 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
90
quenched
|
|
| 解（渴）( quench的过去式和过去分词 )； 终止（某事物）； （用水）扑灭（火焰等）； 将（热物体）放入水中急速冷却 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
91
hearths
|
|
| 壁炉前的地板，炉床，壁炉边( hearth的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
92
glower
|
|
| v.怒目而视 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
93
bestowing
|
|
| 砖窑中砖堆上层已烧透的砖 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
94
triumphant
|
|
| adj.胜利的，成功的；狂欢的，喜悦的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
95
foes
|
|
| 敌人，仇敌( foe的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
96
malediction
|
|
| n.诅咒 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
97
pensively
|
|
| adv.沉思地，焦虑地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
98
remarkable
|
|
| adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
99
spoke
|
|
| n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
| 欢迎访问英文小说网 |