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Chapter 55 The Republican Browning
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Mr Glascock had returned to Naples after his sufferings in the dining-room of the American Minister, and by the middle of February was back again in Florence. His father was still alive, and it was said that the old lord would now probably live through the winter. And it was understood that Mr Glascock would remain in Italy. He had declared that he would pass his time between Naples, Rome, and Florence; but it seemed to his friends that Florence was, of the three, the most to his taste. He liked his room, he said; at the York Hotel, and he liked being in the capital. That was his own statement. His friends said that he liked being with Carry Spalding, the daughter of the American Minister; but none of them, then in Italy, were sufficiently1 intimate with him to express that opinion to himself.

It had been expressed more than once to Carry Spalding. The world in general says such things to ladies more openly than it does to men, and the probability of a girl’s success in matrimony is canvassed2 in her hearing by those who are nearest to her with a freedom which can seldom be used in regard to a man. A man’s most intimate friend hardly speaks to him of the prospect3 of his marriage till he himself has told that the engagement exists. The lips of no living person had suggested to Mr Glascock that the American girl was to become his wife; but a great deal had been said to Carry Spalding about the conquest she had made. Her uncle, her aunt, her sister, and her great friend Miss Petrie, the poetess — the Republican Browning as she was called — had all spoken to her about it frequently. Olivia had declared her conviction that the thing was to be. Miss Petrie had, with considerable eloquence5, explained to her friend that that English title, which was but the clatter6 of a sounding brass7, should be regarded as a drawback rather than as an advantage. Mrs Spalding, who was no poetess, would undoubtedly8 have welcomed Mr Glascock as her niece’s husband with all an aunt’s energy. When told by Miss Petrie that old Lord Peterborough was a tinkling9 cymbal10 she snapped angrily at her gifted countrywoman. But she was too honest a woman, and too conscious also of her niece’s strength, to say a word to urge her on. Mr Spalding as an American minister, with full powers at the court of a European sovereign, felt that he had full as much to give as to receive; but he was well inclined to do both. He would have been much pleased to talk about his nephew Lord Peterborough, and he loved his niece dearly. But by the middle of February he was beginning to think that the matter had been long enough in training. If the Honourable11 Glascock meant anything, why did he not speak out his mind plainly? The American Minister in such matters was accustomed to fewer ambages than were common in the circles among which Mr Glascock had lived.

In the meantime Caroline Spalding was suffering. She had allowed herself to think that Mr Glascock intended to propose to her, and had acknowledged to herself that were he to do so she would certainly accept him. All that she had seen of him, since the day on which he had been courteous12 to her about the seat in the diligence, had been pleasant to her. She had felt the charm of his manner, his education, and his gentleness; and had told herself that with all her love for her own country, she would willingly become an Englishwoman for the sake of being that man’s wife. But nevertheless the warnings of her great friend, the poetess, had not been thrown away upon her. She would put away from herself as far as she could any desire to become Lady Peterborough. There should be no bias13 in the man’s favour on that score. The tinkling cymbal and the sounding brass should be nothing to her. But yet — yet what a chance was there here for her? ‘They are dishonest, and rotten at the core,’ said Miss Petrie, trying to make her friend understand that a free American should under no circumstances place trust in an English aristocrat14. ‘Their country, Carry, is a game played out, while we are still breasting the hill with our young lungs full of air.’ Carry Spalding was proud of her intimacy15 with the Republican Browning; but nevertheless she liked Mr Glascock; and when Mr Glascock had been ten days in Florence, on his third visit to the city, and had been four or five times at the embassy without expressing his intentions in the proper form, Carry Spalding began to think that she had better save herself from a heartbreak while salvation16 might be within her reach. She perceived that her uncle was gloomy and almost angry when he spoke4 of Mr Glascock, and that her aunt was fretful with disappointment. The Republican Browning had uttered almost a note of triumph; and had it not been that Olivia persisted, Carry Spalding would have consented to go away with Miss Petrie to Rome. ‘The old stones are rotten too,’ said the poetess; ‘but their dust tells no lies.’ That well known piece of hers ‘Ancient Marbles, while ye crumble,’ was written at this time, and contained an occult reference to Mr Glascock and her friend.

But Livy Spalding clung to the alliance. She probably knew her sister’s heart better than did the others; and perhaps also had a clearer insight into Mr Glascock’s character. She was at any rate clearly of opinion that there should be no running away. ‘Either you do like him, or you don’t. If you do, what are you to get by going to Rome?’ said Livy.

‘I shall get quit of doubt and trouble.’

‘I call that cowardice17. I would never run away from a man, Carry. Aunt Sophie forgets that they don’t manage these things in England just as we do.’

‘I don’t know why there should be a difference.’

‘Nor do I, only that there is. You haven’t read so many of their novels as I have.’

‘Who would ever think of learning to live out of an English novel?’ said Carry.

‘I am not saying that. You may teach him to live how you like afterwards. But if you have anything to do with people it must be well to know what their manners are. I think the richer sort of people in England slide into these things more gradually than we do. You stand your ground, Carry, and hold your own, and take the goods the gods provide you.’ Though Caroline Spalding opposed her sister’s arguments, and was particularly hard upon that allusion18 to ‘the richer sort of people,’ which, as she knew, Miss Petrie would have regarded as evidence of reverence19 for sounding brasses20 and tinkling cymbals21, nevertheless she loved Livy dearly for what she said, and kissed the sweet counsellor, and resolved that she would for the present decline the invitation of the poetess. Then was Miss Petrie somewhat indignant with her friend, and threw out her scorn in those lines which have been mentioned.

But the American Minister hardly knew how to behave himself when he met Mr Glascock, or even when he was called upon to speak of him. Florence no doubt is a large city, and is now the capital of a great kingdom; but still people meet in Florence much more frequently than they do in Paris or in London. It may almost be said that they whose habit it is to go into society, and whose circumstances bring them into the same circles, will see each other every day. Now the American Minister delighted to see and to be seen in all places frequented by persons of a certain rank and position in Florence. Having considered the matter much, he had convinced himself that he could thus best do his duty as minister from the great Republic of Free States to the newest and as he called it ‘the free-est of the European kingdoms.’ The minister from France was a marquis; he from England was an earl; from Spain had come a count and so on. In the domestic privacy of his embassy Mr Spalding would be severe enough upon the sounding brasses and the tinkling cymbals, and was quite content himself to be the Honourable Jonas G. Spalding — Honourable because selected by his country for a post of honour; but he liked to be heard among the cymbals and seen among the brasses, and to feel that his position was as high as theirs. Mr Glascock also was frequently in the same circles, and thus it came to pass that the two gentlemen saw each other almost daily. That Mr Spalding knew well how to bear himself in his high place no one could doubt; but he did not quite know how to carry himself before Mr Glascock. At home at Boston he would have been more completely master of the situation.

He thought too that he began to perceive that Mr Glascock avoided him, though he would hear on his return home that that gentleman had been at the embassy, or had been walking in the Cascine with his nieces. That their young ladies should walk in public places with unmarried gentlemen is nothing to American fathers and guardians22. American young ladies are accustomed to choose their own companions. But the minister was tormented23 by his doubts as to the ways of Englishmen, and as to the phase in which English habits might most properly exhibit themselves in Italy. He knew that people were talking about Mr Glascock and his niece. Why then did Mr Glascock avoid him? It was perhaps natural that Mr Spalding should have omitted to observe that Mr Glascock was not delighted by those lectures on the American constitution which formed so large a part of his ordinary conversation with Englishmen.

It happened one afternoon that they were thrown together so closely for nearly an hour that neither could avoid the other. They were both at the old palace in which the Italian parliament is held, and were kept waiting during some long delay in the ceremonies of the place. They were seated next to each other, and during such delay there was nothing for them but to talk. On the other side of each of them was a stranger, and not to talk in such circumstances would be to quarrel. Mr Glascock began by asking after the ladies.

‘They are quite well, sir, thank you,’ said the minister. ‘I hope that Lord Peterborough was pretty well when last you heard from Naples, Mr Glascock.’ Mr Glascock explained that his father’s condition was not much altered, and then there was silence for a moment.

‘Your nieces will remain with you through the spring I suppose?’ said Mr Glascock.

‘Such is their intention, sir.’

‘They seem to like Florence, I think.’

‘Yes yes; I think they do like Florence. They see this capital, sir, perhaps under more favourable24 circumstances than are accorded to most of my countrywomen. Our republican simplicity25, Mr Glascock, has this drawback, that away from home it subjects us somewhat to the cold shade of unobserved obscurity. That it possesses merits which much more than compensate26 for this trifling27 evil I should be the last man in Europe to deny.’ It is to be observed that American citizens are always prone28 to talk of Europe. It affords the best counterpoise they know to that other term, America, and America and the United States are of course the same. To speak of France or of England as weighing equally against their own country seems to an American to be an absurdity29 and almost an insult to himself. With Europe he can compare himself, but even this is done generally in the style of the Republican Browning when she addressed the Ancient Marbles.

‘Undoubtedly,’ said Mr Glascock, ‘the family of a minister abroad has great advantages in seeing the country to which he is accredited30.’

‘That is my meaning, sir. But, as I was remarking, we carry with us as a people no external symbols of our standing31 at home. The wives and daughters, sir, of the most honoured of our citizens have no nomenclature different than that which belongs to the least noted32 among us. It is perhaps a consequence of this that Europeans who are accustomed in their social intercourse33 to the assistance of titles, will not always trouble themselves to inquire who and what are the American citizens who may sit opposite to them at table. I have known, Mr Glascock, the wife and daughter of a gentleman who has been thrice sent as senator from his native State to Washington, to remain as disregarded in the intercourse of a European city, as though they had formed part of the family of some grocer from your Russell Square!’

‘Let the Miss Spaldings go where they will,’ said Mr Glascock, ‘they will not fare in that way.’

‘The Miss Spaldings, sir, are very much obliged to you,’ said the minister with a bow.

‘I regard it as one of the luckiest chances of my life that I was thrown in with them at St Michael as I was,’ said Mr Glascock with something like warmth.

‘I am sure, sir, they will never forget the courtesy displayed by you on that occasion,’ said the minister bowing again.

‘That was a matter of course. I and my friend would have done the same for the grocer’s wife and daughter of whom you spoke. Little services such as that do not come from appreciation34 of merit, but are simply the payment of the debt due by all men to all women.’

‘Such is certainly the rule of living in our country, sir,’ said Mr Spalding.

‘The chances are,’ continued the Englishman, ‘that no further observation follows the payment of such a debt. It has been a thing of course.’

‘We delight to think it so, Mr Glascock, in our own cities.’

‘But in this instance it has given rise to one of the pleasantest, and as I hope most enduring friendships that I have ever formed,’ said Mr Glascock with enthusiasm. What could the American Minister do but bow again three times? And what other meaning could he attach to such words than that which so many of his friends had been attributing to Mr Glascock for some weeks past? It had occurred to Mr Spalding, even since he had been sitting in his present close proximity35 to Mr Glascock, that it might possibly be his duty as an uncle having to deal with an Englishman, to ask that gentleman what were his intentions. He would do his duty let it be what it might; but the asking of such a question would be very disagreeable to him. For the present he satisfied himself with inviting36 his neighbour to come and drink tea with Mrs Spalding on the next evening but one. ‘The girls will be delighted, I am sure,’ said he, thinking himself to be justified37 in this friendly familiarity by Mr Glascock’s enthusiasm. For Mr Spalding was clearly of opinion that, let the value of republican simplicity be what it might, an alliance with the crumbling38 marbles of Europe would in his niece’s circumstances be not inexpedient. Mr Glascock accepted the invitation with alacrity39, and the minister when he was closeted with his wife that evening declared his opinion that after all the Britisher meant fighting. The aunt told the girls that Mr Glascock was coming, and in order that it might not seem that a net was being specially40 spread for him, others were invited to join the party. Miss Petrie consented to be there, and the Italian, Count Buonarosci, to whose presence, though she could not speak to him, Mrs Spalding was becoming accustomed. It was painful to her to feel that she could not communicate with those around her, and for that reason she would have avoided Italians. But she had an idea that she could not thoroughly41 realise the advantages of foreign travel unless she lived with foreigners; and, therefore, she was glad to become intimate at any rate with the outside of Count Buonarosci.

‘I think your uncle is wrong, dear,’ said Miss Petrie early in the day to her friend.

‘But why? He has done nothing more than what is just civil.’

‘If Mr Glascock kept a store in Broadway he would not have thought it necessary to shew the same civility.’

‘Yes if we all liked the Mr Glascock who kept the store.’

‘Caroline,’ said the poetess with severe eloquence, ‘can you put your hand upon your heart and say that this inherited title, this tinkling cymbal as I call it, has no attraction for you or yours? Is it the unadorned simple man that you welcome to your bosom42, or a thing of stars and garters, a patch of parchment, the minion43 of a throne, the lordling of twenty descents, in which each has been weaker than that before it, the hero of a scutcheon, whose glory is in his quarterings, and whose worldly wealth comes from the sweat of serfs whom the euphonism of an effete44 country has learned to decorate with the name of tenants45?’

But Caroline Spalding had a spirit of her own, and had already made up her mind that she would not be talked down by Miss Petrie. ‘Uncle Jonas,’ said she, ‘asks him because we like him; and would do so too if he kept the store in Broadway. But if he did keep the store perhaps we should not like him.’

‘I trow not,’ said Miss Petrie.

Livy was much more comfortable in her tactics, and without consulting anybody sent for a hairdresser. ‘It’s all very well for Wallachia,’ said Livy Miss Petrie’s name was Wallachia ‘but I know a nice sort of man when I see him, and the ways of the world are not to be altered because Wally writes poetry.’

When Mr Glascock was announced, Mrs Spalding’s handsome rooms were almost filled, as rooms in Florence are filled, obstruction46 in every avenue, a crowd in every corner, and a block at every doorway47, not being among the customs of the place. Mr Spalding immediately caught him, intercepting48 him between the passages and the ladies, and engaged him at once in conversation.

‘Your John S. Mill is a great man,’ said the minister.

‘They tell me so,’ said Mr Glascock. ‘I don’t read what he writes myself.’

This acknowledgment seemed to the minister to be almost disgraceful, and yet he himself had never read a word of Mr Mill’s writings. ‘He is a far-seeing man,’ continued the minister. ‘He is one of the few Europeans who can look forward, and see how the rivers of civilization are running on. He has understood that women must at last be put upon an equality with men.’

‘Can he manage that men shall have half the babies?’ said Mr Glascock, thinking to escape by an attempt at playfulness.

But the minister was down upon him at once, had him by the lappet of his coat, though he knew how important it was for his dear niece that he should allow Mr Glascock to amuse himself this evening after another fashion. ‘I have an answer ready, sir, for that difficulty,’ he said.‘step aside with me for a moment. The question is important, and I should be glad if you would communicate my ideas to your great philosopher. Nature, sir, has laid down certain laws, which are immutable49; and, against them —’

But Mr Glascock had not come to Florence for this. There were circumstances in his present position which made him feel that he would be gratified in escaping, even at the cost of some seeming incivility. ‘I must go in to the ladies at once,’ he said, ‘or I shall never get a word with them.’ There came across the minister’s brow a momentary50 frown of displeasure, as though he felt that he were being robbed of that which was justly his own. For an instant his grasp fixed51 itself more tightly to the coat. It was quite within the scope of his courage to hold a struggling listener by physical strength but he remembered that there was a purpose, and he relaxed his hold.

‘I will take another opportunity,’ said the minister. ‘As you have raised that somewhat trite52 objection of the bearing of children, which we in our country, sir, have altogether got over, I must put you in possession of my views on that subject; but I will find another occasion.’ Then Mr Glascock began to reflect whether an American lady, married in England, would probably want to see much of her uncle in her adopted country.

Mrs Spalding was all smiles when her guest reached her. ‘We did not mean to have such a crowd of people,’ she said, whispering; ‘but you know how one thing leads to another, and people here really like short invitations.’ Then the minister’s wife bowed very low to an Italian lady, and for the moment wished herself in Beacon53 Street. It was a great trouble to her that she could not pluck up courage to speak a word in Italian. ‘I know more about it than some that are glib54 enough,’ she would say to her niece Livy, ‘but these Tuscans are so particular with their Bocca Tostana.’

It was almost spiteful on the part of Miss Petrie the manner in which, on this evening, she remained close to her friend Caroline Spalding. It is hardly possible to believe that it came altogether from high principle, from a determination to save her friend from an impending55 danger. One’s friend has no right to decide for one what is, and what is not dangerous. Mr Glascock after awhile found himself seated on a fixed couch, that ran along the wall, between Carry Spalding and Miss Petrie; but Miss Petrie was almost as bad to him as had been the minister himself. ‘I am afraid,’ she said, looking up into his face with some severity, and rushing upon her subject with audacity56, ‘that the works of your Browning have not been received in your country with that veneration57 to which they are entitled.’

‘Do you mean Mr or Mrs Browning?’ asked Mr Glascock perhaps with some mistaken idea that the lady was out of her depth, and did not know the difference.

‘Either, both; for they are one, the same, and indivisible. The spirit and germ of each is so reflected in the outcome of the other, that one sees only the result of so perfect a combination, and one is tempted58 to acknowledge that here and there a marriage may have been arranged in Heaven. I don’t think that in your country you have perceived this, Mr Glascock.’

‘I am not quite sure that we have,’ said Mr Glascock. ‘Yours is not altogether an inglorious mission,’ continued Miss Petrie.

‘I’ve got no mission,’ said Mr Glascock ‘either from the Foreign Office, or from my own inner convictions.’

Miss Petrie laughed with a scornful laugh. ‘I spoke, sir, of the mission of that small speck59 on the earth’s broad surface, of which you think so much, and which we call Great Britain.’

‘I do think a good deal of it,’ said Mr Glascock.

‘It has been more thought of than any other speck of the same size,’ said Carry Spalding.

‘True,’ said Miss Petrie, sharply ‘because of its iron and coal. But the mission I spoke of was this.’ And she put forth60 her hand with an artistic61 motion as she spoke. ‘It utters prophecies, though it cannot read them. It sends forth truth, though it cannot understand it. Though its own ears are deaf as adder’s, it is the nursery of poets, who sing not for their own countrymen, but for the higher sensibilities and newer intelligences of lands in which philanthropy has made education as common as the air that is breathed.’

‘Wally,’ said Olivia, coming up to the poetess, in anger that was almost apparent, ‘I want to take you, and introduce you to the Marchesa Pulti.’

But Miss Petrie no doubt knew that the eldest62 son of an English lord was at least as good as an Italian marchesa. ‘Let her come here,’ said the poetess, with her grandest smile.


点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 sufficiently 0htzMB     
adv.足够地,充分地
参考例句:
  • It turned out he had not insured the house sufficiently.原来他没有给房屋投足保险。
  • The new policy was sufficiently elastic to accommodate both views.新政策充分灵活地适用两种观点。
2 canvassed 7b5359a87abbafb792cee12a01df4640     
v.(在政治方面)游说( canvass的过去式和过去分词 );调查(如选举前选民的)意见;为讨论而提出(意见等);详细检查
参考例句:
  • He canvassed the papers, hunting for notices of jobs. 他仔细查阅报纸,寻找招工广告。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
  • The stirring event was well canvassed. 那桩惊人的事情已经是满城风雨。 来自英汉文学 - 汤姆历险
3 prospect P01zn     
n.前景,前途;景色,视野
参考例句:
  • This state of things holds out a cheerful prospect.事态呈现出可喜的前景。
  • The prospect became more evident.前景变得更加明朗了。
4 spoke XryyC     
n.(车轮的)辐条;轮辐;破坏某人的计划;阻挠某人的行动 v.讲,谈(speak的过去式);说;演说;从某种观点来说
参考例句:
  • They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
  • The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。
5 eloquence 6mVyM     
n.雄辩;口才,修辞
参考例句:
  • I am afraid my eloquence did not avail against the facts.恐怕我的雄辩也无补于事实了。
  • The people were charmed by his eloquence.人们被他的口才迷住了。
6 clatter 3bay7     
v./n.(使)发出连续而清脆的撞击声
参考例句:
  • The dishes and bowls slid together with a clatter.碟子碗碰得丁丁当当的。
  • Don't clatter your knives and forks.别把刀叉碰得咔哒响。
7 brass DWbzI     
n.黄铜;黄铜器,铜管乐器
参考例句:
  • Many of the workers play in the factory's brass band.许多工人都在工厂铜管乐队中演奏。
  • Brass is formed by the fusion of copper and zinc.黄铜是通过铜和锌的熔合而成的。
8 undoubtedly Mfjz6l     
adv.确实地,无疑地
参考例句:
  • It is undoubtedly she who has said that.这话明明是她说的。
  • He is undoubtedly the pride of China.毫无疑问他是中国的骄傲。
9 tinkling Rg3zG6     
n.丁当作响声
参考例句:
  • I could hear bells tinkling in the distance. 我能听到远处叮当铃响。
  • To talk to him was like listening to the tinkling of a worn-out musical-box. 跟他说话,犹如听一架老掉牙的八音盒子丁冬响。 来自英汉文学
10 cymbal cymbal     
n.铙钹
参考例句:
  • The piece ends with a cymbal crash.这支曲子以铙钹的撞击声结束。
  • Cymbal is a pair of round brass plates.铙钹是一对黄铜圆盘。
11 honourable honourable     
adj.可敬的;荣誉的,光荣的
参考例句:
  • I don't think I am worthy of such an honourable title.这样的光荣称号,我可担当不起。
  • I hope to find an honourable way of settling difficulties.我希望设法找到一个体面的办法以摆脱困境。
12 courteous tooz2     
adj.彬彬有礼的,客气的
参考例句:
  • Although she often disagreed with me,she was always courteous.尽管她常常和我意见不一,但她总是很谦恭有礼。
  • He was a kind and courteous man.他为人友善,而且彬彬有礼。
13 bias 0QByQ     
n.偏见,偏心,偏袒;vt.使有偏见
参考例句:
  • They are accusing the teacher of political bias in his marking.他们在指控那名教师打分数有政治偏见。
  • He had a bias toward the plan.他对这项计划有偏见。
14 aristocrat uvRzb     
n.贵族,有贵族气派的人,上层人物
参考例句:
  • He was the quintessential english aristocrat.他是典型的英国贵族。
  • He is an aristocrat to the very marrow of his bones.他是一个道道地地的贵族。
15 intimacy z4Vxx     
n.熟悉,亲密,密切关系,亲昵的言行
参考例句:
  • His claims to an intimacy with the President are somewhat exaggerated.他声称自己与总统关系密切,这有点言过其实。
  • I wish there were a rule book for intimacy.我希望能有个关于亲密的规则。
16 salvation nC2zC     
n.(尤指基督)救世,超度,拯救,解困
参考例句:
  • Salvation lay in political reform.解救办法在于政治改革。
  • Christians hope and pray for salvation.基督教徒希望并祈祷灵魂得救。
17 cowardice norzB     
n.胆小,怯懦
参考例句:
  • His cowardice reflects on his character.他的胆怯对他的性格带来不良影响。
  • His refusal to help simply pinpointed his cowardice.他拒绝帮助正显示他的胆小。
18 allusion CfnyW     
n.暗示,间接提示
参考例句:
  • He made an allusion to a secret plan in his speech.在讲话中他暗示有一项秘密计划。
  • She made no allusion to the incident.她没有提及那个事件。
19 reverence BByzT     
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:
  • He was a bishop who was held in reverence by all.他是一位被大家都尊敬的主教。
  • We reverence tradition but will not be fettered by it.我们尊重传统,但不被传统所束缚。
20 brasses Nxfza3     
n.黄铜( brass的名词复数 );铜管乐器;钱;黄铜饰品(尤指马挽具上的黄铜圆片)
参考例句:
  • The brasses need to be cleaned. 这些黄铜器要擦一擦。 来自辞典例句
  • There are the usual strings, woodwinds, brasses and percussions of western orchestra. 有西洋管弦乐队常见的弦乐器,木管和铜管乐器,还有打击乐器。 来自互联网
21 cymbals uvwzND     
pl.铙钹
参考例句:
  • People shouted, while the drums and .cymbals crashed incessantly. 人声嘈杂,锣鼓不停地大响特响。 来自汉英文学 - 家(1-26) - 家(1-26)
  • The dragon dance troupe, beating drums and cymbals, entered the outer compound. 龙灯随着锣鼓声进来,停在二门外的大天井里。 来自汉英文学 - 家(1-26) - 家(1-26)
22 guardians 648b3519bd4469e1a48dff4dc4827315     
监护人( guardian的名词复数 ); 保护者,维护者
参考例句:
  • Farmers should be guardians of the countryside. 农民应是乡村的保卫者。
  • The police are guardians of law and order. 警察是法律和秩序的护卫者。
23 tormented b017cc8a8957c07bc6b20230800888d0     
饱受折磨的
参考例句:
  • The knowledge of his guilt tormented him. 知道了自己的罪责使他非常痛苦。
  • He had lain awake all night, tormented by jealousy. 他彻夜未眠,深受嫉妒的折磨。
24 favourable favourable     
adj.赞成的,称赞的,有利的,良好的,顺利的
参考例句:
  • The company will lend you money on very favourable terms.这家公司将以非常优惠的条件借钱给你。
  • We found that most people are favourable to the idea.我们发现大多数人同意这个意见。
25 simplicity Vryyv     
n.简单,简易;朴素;直率,单纯
参考例句:
  • She dressed with elegant simplicity.她穿着朴素高雅。
  • The beauty of this plan is its simplicity.简明扼要是这个计划的一大特点。
26 compensate AXky7     
vt.补偿,赔偿;酬报 vi.弥补;补偿;抵消
参考例句:
  • She used her good looks to compensate her lack of intelligence. 她利用她漂亮的外表来弥补智力的不足。
  • Nothing can compensate for the loss of one's health. 一个人失去了键康是不可弥补的。
27 trifling SJwzX     
adj.微不足道的;没什么价值的
参考例句:
  • They quarreled over a trifling matter.他们为这种微不足道的事情争吵。
  • So far Europe has no doubt, gained a real conveniency,though surely a very trifling one.直到现在为止,欧洲无疑地已经获得了实在的便利,不过那确是一种微不足道的便利。
28 prone 50bzu     
adj.(to)易于…的,很可能…的;俯卧的
参考例句:
  • Some people are prone to jump to hasty conclusions.有些人往往作出轻率的结论。
  • He is prone to lose his temper when people disagree with him.人家一不同意他的意见,他就发脾气。
29 absurdity dIQyU     
n.荒谬,愚蠢;谬论
参考例句:
  • The proposal borders upon the absurdity.这提议近乎荒谬。
  • The absurdity of the situation made everyone laugh.情况的荒谬可笑使每个人都笑了。
30 accredited 5611689a49c15a4c09d7c2a0665bf246     
adj.可接受的;可信任的;公认的;质量合格的v.相信( accredit的过去式和过去分词 );委托;委任;把…归结于
参考例句:
  • The discovery of distillation is usually accredited to the Arabs of the 11th century. 通常认为,蒸馏法是阿拉伯人在11世纪发明的。
  • Only accredited journalists were allowed entry. 只有正式认可的记者才获准入内。
31 standing 2hCzgo     
n.持续,地位;adj.永久的,不动的,直立的,不流动的
参考例句:
  • After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
  • They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。
32 noted 5n4zXc     
adj.著名的,知名的
参考例句:
  • The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
  • Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。
33 intercourse NbMzU     
n.性交;交流,交往,交际
参考例句:
  • The magazine becomes a cultural medium of intercourse between the two peoples.该杂志成为两民族间文化交流的媒介。
  • There was close intercourse between them.他们过往很密。
34 appreciation Pv9zs     
n.评价;欣赏;感谢;领会,理解;价格上涨
参考例句:
  • I would like to express my appreciation and thanks to you all.我想对你们所有人表达我的感激和谢意。
  • I'll be sending them a donation in appreciation of their help.我将送给他们一笔捐款以感谢他们的帮助。
35 proximity 5RsxM     
n.接近,邻近
参考例句:
  • Marriages in proximity of blood are forbidden by the law.法律规定禁止近亲结婚。
  • Their house is in close proximity to ours.他们的房子很接近我们的。
36 inviting CqIzNp     
adj.诱人的,引人注目的
参考例句:
  • An inviting smell of coffee wafted into the room.一股诱人的咖啡香味飘进了房间。
  • The kitchen smelled warm and inviting and blessedly familiar.这间厨房的味道温暖诱人,使人感到亲切温馨。
37 justified 7pSzrk     
a.正当的,有理的
参考例句:
  • She felt fully justified in asking for her money back. 她认为有充分的理由要求退款。
  • The prisoner has certainly justified his claims by his actions. 那个囚犯确实已用自己的行动表明他的要求是正当的。
38 crumbling Pyaxy     
adj.摇摇欲坠的
参考例句:
  • an old house with crumbling plaster and a leaking roof 一所灰泥剥落、屋顶漏水的老房子
  • The boat was tied up alongside a crumbling limestone jetty. 这条船停泊在一个摇摇欲坠的石灰岩码头边。
39 alacrity MfFyL     
n.敏捷,轻快,乐意
参考例句:
  • Although the man was very old,he still moved with alacrity.他虽然很老,动作仍很敏捷。
  • He accepted my invitation with alacrity.他欣然接受我的邀请。
40 specially Hviwq     
adv.特定地;特殊地;明确地
参考例句:
  • They are specially packaged so that they stack easily.它们经过特别包装以便于堆放。
  • The machine was designed specially for demolishing old buildings.这种机器是专为拆毁旧楼房而设计的。
41 thoroughly sgmz0J     
adv.完全地,彻底地,十足地
参考例句:
  • The soil must be thoroughly turned over before planting.一定要先把土地深翻一遍再下种。
  • The soldiers have been thoroughly instructed in the care of their weapons.士兵们都系统地接受过保护武器的训练。
42 bosom Lt9zW     
n.胸,胸部;胸怀;内心;adj.亲密的
参考例句:
  • She drew a little book from her bosom.她从怀里取出一本小册子。
  • A dark jealousy stirred in his bosom.他内心生出一阵恶毒的嫉妒。
43 minion 1wgyC     
n.宠仆;宠爱之人
参考例句:
  • At worst some egregious minion had conducted a childish private enterprise.这最多也不过是一批低能的小人物自己干的无聊把戏而已。
  • She delegated the job to one of her minions.她把这份工作委派给她的一个手下。
44 effete 5PUz4     
adj.无生产力的,虚弱的
参考例句:
  • People said the aristocracy was effete.人们说贵族阶级已是日薄西山了。
  • During the ages,Greek civilization declined and became effete.在中世纪期间,希腊文明开始衰落直至衰败。
45 tenants 05662236fc7e630999509804dd634b69     
n.房客( tenant的名词复数 );佃户;占用者;占有者
参考例句:
  • A number of tenants have been evicted for not paying the rent. 许多房客因不付房租被赶了出来。
  • Tenants are jointly and severally liable for payment of the rent. 租金由承租人共同且分别承担。
46 obstruction HRrzR     
n.阻塞,堵塞;障碍物
参考例句:
  • She was charged with obstruction of a police officer in the execution of his duty.她被指控妨碍警察执行任务。
  • The road was cleared from obstruction.那条路已被清除了障碍。
47 doorway 2s0xK     
n.门口,(喻)入门;门路,途径
参考例句:
  • They huddled in the shop doorway to shelter from the rain.他们挤在商店门口躲雨。
  • Mary suddenly appeared in the doorway.玛丽突然出现在门口。
48 intercepting 610ea325c8da487d3cb8c3e52877af6a     
截取(技术),截接
参考例句:
  • The police had been intercepting my mail, ie reading it before it was delivered. 警方一直截查我的邮件。
  • We've been intercepting radio transmissions from Moscow. 我们已从莫斯科拦截到无线电信号。
49 immutable ma9x3     
adj.不可改变的,永恒的
参考例句:
  • Nothing in the world is immutable.世界没有一成不变的东西。
  • They free our minds from considering our world as fixed and immutable.它们改变着人们将世界看作是永恒不变的观点。
50 momentary hj3ya     
adj.片刻的,瞬息的;短暂的
参考例句:
  • We are in momentary expectation of the arrival of you.我们无时无刻不在盼望你的到来。
  • I caught a momentary glimpse of them.我瞥了他们一眼。
51 fixed JsKzzj     
adj.固定的,不变的,准备好的;(计算机)固定的
参考例句:
  • Have you two fixed on a date for the wedding yet?你们俩选定婚期了吗?
  • Once the aim is fixed,we should not change it arbitrarily.目标一旦确定,我们就不应该随意改变。
52 trite Jplyt     
adj.陈腐的
参考例句:
  • The movie is teeming with obvious and trite ideas.这部电影充斥着平铺直叙的陈腐观点。
  • Yesterday,in the restaurant,Lorraine had seemed trite,blurred,worn away.昨天在饭店里,洛兰显得庸俗、堕落、衰老了。
53 beacon KQays     
n.烽火,(警告用的)闪火灯,灯塔
参考例句:
  • The blink of beacon could be seen for miles.灯塔的光亮在数英里之外都能看见。
  • The only light over the deep black sea was the blink shone from the beacon.黑黢黢的海面上唯一的光明就只有灯塔上闪现的亮光了。
54 glib DeNzs     
adj.圆滑的,油嘴滑舌的
参考例句:
  • His glib talk sounds as sweet as a song.他说的比唱的还好听。
  • The fellow has a very glib tongue.这家伙嘴油得很。
55 impending 3qHzdb     
a.imminent, about to come or happen
参考例句:
  • Against a background of impending famine, heavy fighting took place. 即将发生饥荒之时,严重的战乱爆发了。
  • The king convoke parliament to cope with the impending danger. 国王召开国会以应付迫近眉睫的危险。
56 audacity LepyV     
n.大胆,卤莽,无礼
参考例句:
  • He had the audacity to ask for an increase in salary.他竟然厚着脸皮要求增加薪水。
  • He had the audacity to pick pockets in broad daylight.他竟敢在光天化日之下掏包。
57 veneration 6Lezu     
n.尊敬,崇拜
参考例句:
  • I acquired lasting respect for tradition and veneration for the past.我开始对传统和历史产生了持久的敬慕。
  • My father venerated General Eisenhower.我父亲十分敬仰艾森豪威尔将军。
58 tempted b0182e969d369add1b9ce2353d3c6ad6     
v.怂恿(某人)干不正当的事;冒…的险(tempt的过去分词)
参考例句:
  • I was sorely tempted to complain, but I didn't. 我极想发牢骚,但还是没开口。
  • I was tempted by the dessert menu. 甜食菜单馋得我垂涎欲滴。
59 speck sFqzM     
n.微粒,小污点,小斑点
参考例句:
  • I have not a speck of interest in it.我对它没有任何兴趣。
  • The sky is clear and bright without a speck of cloud.天空晴朗,一星星云彩也没有。
60 forth Hzdz2     
adv.向前;向外,往外
参考例句:
  • The wind moved the trees gently back and forth.风吹得树轻轻地来回摇晃。
  • He gave forth a series of works in rapid succession.他很快连续发表了一系列的作品。
61 artistic IeWyG     
adj.艺术(家)的,美术(家)的;善于艺术创作的
参考例句:
  • The picture on this screen is a good artistic work.这屏风上的画是件很好的艺术品。
  • These artistic handicrafts are very popular with foreign friends.外国朋友很喜欢这些美术工艺品。
62 eldest bqkx6     
adj.最年长的,最年老的
参考例句:
  • The King's eldest son is the heir to the throne.国王的长子是王位的继承人。
  • The castle and the land are entailed on the eldest son.城堡和土地限定由长子继承。


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