If we are surprised at the peculiar2 and original features of what may be called the Peruvian aristocracy, we shall be still more so as we descend3 to the lower orders of the community, and see the very artificial character of their institutions, — as artificial as those of ancient Sparta, and, though in a different way, quite as repugnant to the essential principles of our nature. The institutions of Lycurgus, however, were designed for a petty state, while those of Peru, although originally intended for such, seemed, like the magic tent in the Arabian tale, to have an indefinite power of expansion, and were as well suited to the most flourishing condition of the empire as to its infant fortunes. In this remarkable8 accommodation to change of circumstances we see the proofs of a contrivance that argues no slight advance in civilization.
The name of Peru was not known to the natives. It was given by the Spaniards, and originated, it is said, in a misapprehension of the Indian name of “river.” 1 However this may be, it is certain that the natives had no other epithet10 by which to designate the large collection of tribes and nations who were assembled under the sceptre of the Incas, than that of Tavantinsuyu, or “four quarters of the world.” 2 This will not surprise a citizen of the United States, who has no other name by which to class himself among nations than what is borrowed from a quarter of the globe. 3 The kingdom, conformably to its name, was divided into four parts, distinguished12 each by a separate title, and to each of which ran one of the four great roads that diverged13 from Cuzco, the capital or navel of the Peruvian monarchy15. The city was in like manner divided into four quarters; and the various races, which gathered there from the distant parts of the empire, lived each in the quarter nearest to its respective province. They all continued to wear their peculiar national costume, so that it was easy to determine their origin; and the same order and system of arrangement prevailed in the motley population of the capital, as in the great provinces of the empire. The capital, in fact, was a miniature image of the empire. 4
1 Pelu, according to Garcilasso, was the Indian name for “river,” and was given by one of the natives in answer to a question put to him by the Spaniards, who conceived it to be the name of the country. (Com. Real., Parte 1, lib. 1, cap. 6.) Such blunders have led to the names of many places both in North and South America. Montesinos, however, denies that there is such an Indian term for “river.” (Mem. Antiguas, Ms., lib. 1, cap. 2.) According to this writer, Peru was the ancient Ophir, whence Solomon drew such stores of wealth; and which, by a very natural transition, has in time been corrupted16 into Phiru, Piru, Peru! The first book of the Memorias, consisting of thirty-two chapters, is devoted17 to this precious discovery.]
2 Ondegardo, Rel. Prim18., Ms. — Garcilasso, Com Real., Parte 1, lib. 2, cap. 11.]
3 Yet an American may find food for his vanity in the reflection, that the name of a quarter of the globe, inhabited by so many civilized19 nations, has been exclusively conceded to him. — Was it conceded or assumed?]
4 Ibid., parte 1, cap. 9, 10. — Cieza de Leon, Cronica, cap. 93.
The capital was further divided into two parts, the Upper and Lower town, founded, as pretended, on the different origin of the population; a division recognized also in the inferior cities. Ondegardo, Rel. Seg., Ms.
The four great provinces were each placed under a viceroy or governor, who ruled over them with the assistance of one or more councils for the different departments. These viceroys resided, some portion of their time, at least, in the capital, where they constituted a sort of council of state to the Inca. 5 The nation at large was distributed into decades, or small bodies of ten; and every tenth man, or head of a decade, had supervision20 of the rest, — being required to see that they enjoyed the rights and immunities21 to which they were entitled, to solicit22 aid in their behalf from government, when necessary, and to bring offenders24 to justice. To this last they were stimulated25 by a law that imposed on them, in case of neglect, the same penalty that would have been incurred27 by the guilty party. With this law hanging over his head, the magistrate28 of Peru, we may well believe, did not often go to sleep on his post. 6
5 Dec. de la Aud. Real., Ms. — Garcilasso, Com. Real., Parte 1, lib. 2, cap. 15.
For this account of the councils I am indebted to Garcilasso, who frequently fills up gaps that have been left by his fellow-laborers. Whether the filling up will, in all cases, bear the touch of time, as well as the rest of his work, one may doubt.]
6 Dec. de la Aud. Real., Ms. — Montesinos, Mem. Antiguas, Ms., lib. 2, cap. 6. — Ondegardo, Rel. Prim., Ms.
How analogous31 is the Peruvian to the Anglo–Saxon division into hundreds and tithings! But the Saxon law was more humane32, which imposed only a fine on the district, in case of a criminal’s escape.]
The people were still further divided into bodies of fifty, one hundred, five hundred, and a thousand, with each an officer having general supervision over those beneath, and the higher ones possessing, to a certain extent, authority in matters of police. Lastly, the whole empire was distributed into sections or departments of ten thousand inhabitants, with a governor over each, from the Inca nobility, who had control over the curacas and other territorial33 officers in the district. There were, also, regular tribunals of justice, consisting of magistrates34 in each of the towns or small communities, with jurisdiction35 over petty offences, while those of a graver character were carried before superior judges, usually the governors or rulers of the districts. These judges all held their authority and received their support from the Crown, by which they were appointed and removed at pleasure. They were obliged to determine every suit in five days from the time it was brought before them; and there was no appeal from one tribunal to another. Yet there were important provisions for the security of justice. A committee of visitors patrolled the kingdom at certain times to investigate the character and conduct of the magistrates; and any neglect or violation37 of duty was punished in the most exemplary manner. The inferior courts were also required to make monthly returns of their proceedings38 to the higher ones, and these made reports in like manner to the viceroys; so that the monarch14, seated in the centre of his dominions41, could look abroad, as it were, to their most distant extremities42, and review and rectify43 any abuses in the administration of the law. 7
7 Dec. de la Aud. Real., Ms. — Ondegardo, Rel. Prim. et Seg., Mss. — Garcilasso, Com. Real., Parte 1, lib. 2, cap. 11–14. — Montesinos, Mem. Antiguas, Ms., lib. 2, cap. 6.
The accounts of the Peruvian tribunals by the early authorities are very meagre and unsatisfactory. Even the lively imagination of Garcilasso has failed to supply the blank.]
The laws were few and exceedingly severe. They related almost wholly to criminal matters. Few other laws were needed by a people who had no money, little trade, and hardly any thing that could be called fixed44 property. The crimes of theft, adultery, and murder were all capital; though it was wisely provided that some extenuating45 circumstances might be allowed to mitigate46 the punishment. 8 Blasphemy47 against the Sun, and malediction48 of the Inca, — offences, indeed, of the same complexion49, — were also punished with death. Removing landmarks50, turning the water away from a neighbour’s land into one’s own, burning a house, were all severely51 punished. To burn a bridge was death. The Inca allowed no obstacle to those facilities of communication so essential to the maintenance of public order. A rebellious52 city or province was laid waste, and its inhabitants exterminated53. Rebellion against the “Child of the Sun” was the greatest of all crimes. 9
8 Ondegardo, Rel. Prim., Ms. — Herrera, Hist. General, dec. 5, lib. 4, cap 3.
Theft was punished less severely, if the offender23 had been really guilty of it to supply the necessities of life. It is a singular circumstance, that the Peruvian law made no distinction between fornication and adultery, both being equally punished with death. Yet the law could hardly have been enforced, since prostitutes were assigned, or at least allowed, a residence in the suburbs of the cities. See Garcilasso, Com Real., Parte 1, lib. 4, cap. 34.]
9 Sarmiento, Relacion, Ms., cap. 23.
“I los traidores entre ellos llamava aucaes, i esta palabra es la mas abiltada de todas quantas pueden decir aun Indio del Piru, que quiere decir traidor a su Senor.” (Cong. i Pob. del Piru, Ms.) “En las rebeliones y alzamientos se hicieron los castigos tan asperos, que algunas veces asolaron las provincias de todos los varones de edad sin quedar ninguno.” Ondegardo, Rel. Prim., Ms.]
The simplicity54 and severity of the Peruvian code may be thought to infer a state of society but little advanced; which had few of those complex interests and relations that grow up in a civilized community, and which had not proceeded far enough in the science of legislation to economize56 human suffering by proportioning penalties to crimes. But the Peruvian institutions must be regarded from a different point of view from that in which we study those of other nations. The laws emanated57 from the sovereign, and that sovereign held a divine commission, and was possessed59 of a divine nature. To violate the law was not only to insult the majesty60 of the throne, but it was sacrilege. The slightest offence, viewed in this light, merited death; and the gravest could incur26 no heavier penalty. 10 Yet, in the infliction61 of their punishments, they showed no unnecessary cruelty; and the sufferings of the victim were not prolonged by the ingenious torments62 so frequent among barbarous nations. 11
10 “El castigo era riguroso, que por la mayor parte era de muerte, por liviano que fuese el delito; porque decian, que no los castigavan por el delito que avian hecho, ni por la ofensa agena, sino por aver36 quebrantado el mandamiento, y rompido la palabra del Inca, que lo respetavan como a Dios.” Garcilasso, Com. Real. Parte 1, lib. 2. cap. 12.]
11 One of the punishments most frequent for minor63 offences was to carry a stone on the back. A punishment attended with no suffering but what arises from the disgrace attached to it is very justly characterized by McCulloh as a proof of sensibility and refinement64. Researches, p. 361.
These legislative65 provisions may strike us as very defective66, even as compared with those of the semi-civilized races of Anahuac, where a gradation of courts, moreover, with the right of appeal, afforded a tolerable security for justice. But in a country like Peru, where few but criminal causes were known, the right of appeal was of less consequence. The law was simple, its application easy; and, where the judge was honest, the case was as likely to be determined67 correctly on the first hearing as on the second. The inspection68 of the board of visitors, and the monthly returns of the tribunals, afforded no slight guaranty for their integrity. The law which required a decision within five days would seem little suited to the complex and embarrassing litigation of a modern tribunal. But, in the simple questions submitted to the Peruvian judge, delay would have been useless; and the Spaniards, familiar with the evils growing out of long-protracted69 suits, where the successful litigant71 is too often a ruined man, are loud in their encomiums of this swift-handed and economical justice. 12
12 The Royal Audience of Peru under Philip II. — there cannot be a higher authority — bears emphatic72 testimony73 to the cheap and efficient administration of justice under the Incas. “De suerte que los vicios eran bien castigados y la gente estaba bien sujeta y obediente; y aunque en las dichas penas havia esceso, redundaba en buen govierno y policia suya, y mediante ella eran aumentados. . . . . . Porque los Yndios alababan la governacion del Ynga, y aun los Espanoles que algo alcanzan de ella, es porque todas las cosas susodichas se de terminaban sin hacerles costas” Dec. de la Aud. Real., Ms.]
The fiscal74 regulations of the Incas, and the laws respecting property, are the most remarkable features in the Peruvian polity. The whole territory of the empire was divided into three parts, one for the Sun, another for the Inca, and the last for the people. Which of the three was the largest is doubtful. The proportions differed materially in different provinces. The distribution, indeed, was made on the same general principle, as each new conquest was added to the monarchy; but the proportion varied75 according to the amount of population, and the greater or less amount of land consequently required for the support of the inhabitants. 13
13 Acosta, lib. 6, cap. 15. — Garcilasso, Com. Real., Parte 1, lib. 5, cap. 1.
“Si estas partes fuesen iguales, o qual fuese mayor, yo lo he procurado averiguar, y en unas es diferente de otras, y finalmte yo tengo entendido que se hacia conforme a la disposicion de la tierra y a la calidad de los Indios” Ondegardo, Rel Prim., Ms]
The lands assigned to the Sun furnished a revenue to support the temples, and maintain the costly76 ceremonial of the Peruvian worship and the multitudinous priesthood. Those reserved for the Inca went to support the royal state, as well as the numerous members of his household and his kindred, and supplied the various exigencies77 of government. The remainder of the lands was divided, per capita, in equal shares among the people. It was provided by law, as we shall see hereafter, that every Peruvian should marry at a certain age. When this event took place, the community or district in which he lived furnished him with a dwelling78, which, as it was constructed of humble79 materials, was done at little cost. A lot of land was then assigned to him sufficient for his own maintenance and that of his wife. An additional portion was granted for every child, the amount allowed for a son being the double of that for a daughter. The division of the soil was renewed every year, and the possessions of the tenant80 were increased or diminished according to the numbers in his family. 14 The same arrangement was observed with reference to the curacas, except only that a domain81 was assigned to them corresponding with the superior dignity of their stations 15
14 Ondegardo, Rel. Prim., Ms. — Garcilasso, Com. Real., Parte 1, lib. 5, cap. 2.
The portion granted to each new-married couple, according to Garcilasso, was a fanega and a half of land. A similar quantity was added for each male child that was born; and half of the quantity for each female. The fanega was as much land as could be planted with a hundred weight of Indian corn. In the fruitful soil of Peru, this was a liberal allowance for a family.]
15 Ibid., Parte 1, lib. 5, cap. 3.
It is singular, that while so much is said of the Inca sovereign, so little should be said of the Inca nobility, of their estates, or the tenure82 by which they held them. Their historian tells us, that they had the best of the lands, wherever they resided, besides the interest which they had in those of the Sun and the Inca, as children of the one, and kinsmen83 of the other. He informs us, also, that they were supplied from the royal table, when living at court. (lib. 6, cap. 3.) But this is very loose language. The student of history will learn, on the threshold, that he is not to expect precise, or even very consistent, accounts of the institutions of a barbarous age and people from contemporary annalists.]
A more thorough and effectual agrarian84 law than this cannot be imagined. In other countries where such a law has been introduced, its operation, after a time, has given way to the natural order of events, and, under the superior intelligence and thrift85 of some and the prodigality86 of others, the usual vicissitudes87 of fortune have been allowed to take their course, and restore things to their natural inequality. Even the iron law of Lycurgus ceased to operate after a time, and melted away before the spirit of luxury and avarice88. The nearest approach to the Peruvian constitution was probably in Judea, where, on the recurrence89 of the great national jubilee90, at the close of every half-century, estates reverted91 to their original proprietors92. There was this important difference in Peru; that not only did the lease, if we may so call it, terminate with the year, but during that period the tenant had no power to alienate94 or to add to his possessions. The end of the brief term found him in precisely95 the same condition that he was in at the beginning. Such a state of things might be supposed to be fatal to any thing like attachment96 to the soil, or to that desire of improving it, which is natural to the permanent proprietor93, and hardly less so to the holder97 of a long lease. But the practical operation of the law seems to have been otherwise; and it is probable, that, under the influence of that love of order and aversion to change which marked the Peruvian institutions, each new partition of the soil usually confirmed the occupant in his possession, and the tenant for a year was converted into a proprietor for life.
The territory was cultivated wholly by the people. The lands belonging to the Sun were first attended to. They next tilled the lands of the old, of the sick, of the window and the orphan98, and of soldiers engaged in actual service; in short, of all that part of the community who, from bodily infirmity or any other cause, were unable to attend to their own concerns. The people were then allowed to work on their own ground, each man for himself, but with the general obligation to assist his neighbour, when any circumstance — the burden of a young and numerous family, for example — might demand it. 16 Lastly, they cultivated the lands of the Inca. This was done, with great ceremony, by the whole population in a body. At break of day, they were summoned together by proclamation from some neighbouring tower or eminence100, and all the inhabitants of the district, men, women, and children, appeared dressed in their gayest apparel, bedecked with their little store of finery and ornaments101, as if for some great jubilee. They went through the labors103 of the day with the same joyous104 spirit, chanting their popular ballads105 which commemorated106 the heroic deeds of the Incas, regulating their movements by the measure of the chant, and all mingling107 in the chorus, of which the word hailli, or “triumph,” was usually the burden. These national airs had something soft and pleasing in their character, that recommended them to the Spaniards; and many a Peruvian song was set to music by them after the Conquest, and was listened to by the unfortunate natives with melancholy108 satisfaction, as it called up recollections of the past, when their days glided109 peacefully away under the sceptre of the Incas. 17
16 Garcilasso relates that an Indian was hanged by Huayna Capac for tilling a curaca’s ground, his near relation, before that of the poor. The gallows111 was erected112 on the curaca’s own land. Ibid., Parte 1, lib. 5, cap. 2.]
17 Ibid., Parte 1, lib. 5, cap. 1–3. — Ondegardo, Rel. Seg., Ms.
A similar arrangement prevailed with respect to the different manufactures as to the agricultural products of the country. The flocks of llamas, or Peruvian sheep, were appropriated exclusively to the Sun and to the Inca. 18 Their number was immense. They were scattered113 over the different provinces, chiefly in the colder regions of the country, where they were intrusted to the care of experienced shepherds, who conducted them to different pastures according to the change of season. A large number was every year sent to the capital for the consumption of the Court, and for the religious festivals and sacrifices. But these were only the males, as no female was allowed to be killed. The regulations for the care and breeding of these flocks were prescribed with the greatest minuteness, and with a sagacity which excited the admiration114 of the Spaniards, who were familiar with the management of the great migratory115 flocks of merinos in their own country. 19
18 Ondegardo, Rel. Prim., Ms.
Yet sometimes the sovereign would recompense some great chief, or even some one among the people, who had rendered him a service, by the grant of a small number of llamas, — never many. These were not to be disposed of or killed by their owners, but descended116 as common property to their heirs. This strange arrangement proved a fruitful source of litigation after the Conquest. Ibid., ubi supra.]
19 See especially the account of the Licentiate Ondegardo, who goes into more detail than any contemporary writer, concerning the management of the Peruvian flocks. Rel. Seg., Ms.]
At the appointed season, they were all sheared117, and the wool was deposited in the public magazines. It was then dealt out to each family in such quantities as sufficed for its wants, and was consigned118 to the female part of the household, who were well instructed in the business of spinning and weaving When this labor30 was accomplished119, and the family was provided with a coarse but warm covering, suited to the cold climate of the mountains, — for, in the lower country, cotton, furnished in like manner by the Crown, took the place, to a certain extent, of wool, — the people were required to labor for the Inca. The quantity of the cloth needed, as well as the peculiar kind and quality of the fabric120, was first determined at Cuzco. The work was then apportioned121 among the different provinces. Officers, appointed for the purpose, superintended the distribution of the wool, so that the manufacture of the different articles should be intrusted to the most competent hands. 20 They did not leave the matter here but entered the dwellings122, from time to time, and saw that the work was faithfully executed. This domestic inquisition was not confined to the labors for the Inca. It included, also, those for the several families; and care was taken that each household should employ the materials furnished for its own use in the manner that was intended, so that no one should be unprovided with necessary apparel. 21 In this domestic labor all the female part of the establishment was expected to join. Occupation was found for all, from the child five years old to the aged99 matron not too infirm to hold a distaff. No one, at least none but the decrepit123 and the sick, was allowed to eat the bread of idleness in Peru. Idleness was a crime in the eye of the law, and, as such, severely punished; while industry was publicly commended and stimulated by rewards. 22
20 Ondegardo, Rel. Prim. et Seg., Mss.
The manufacture of cloths for the Inca included those for the numerous persons of the blood royal, who wore garments of a finer texture124 than was permitted to any other Peruvian. Garcilasso, Com. Real., Parte 1, lib. 5, cap. 6.]
21 Ondegardo, Rel. Seg., Ms — Acosta, lib. 6, cap. 15.]
22 Ondegardo, Rel. Seg., Ms — Garcilasso, Com. Real., Parte 1 lib. 5, cap. 11.]
The like course was pursued with reference to the other requisitions of the government. All the mines in the kingdom belonged to the Inca. They were wrought125 exclusively for his benefit, by persons familiar with this service, and selected from the districts where the mines were situated126. 23 Every Peruvian of the lower class was a husbandman, and, with the exception of those already specified127, was expected to provide for his own support by the cultivation128 of his land. A small portion of the community, however, was instructed in mechanical arts; some of them of the more elegant kind, subservient129 to the purposes of luxury and ornament102. The demand for these was chiefly limited to the sovereign and his Court; but the labor of a larger number of hands was exacted for the execution of the great public works which covered the land. The nature and amount of the services required were all determined at Cuzco by commissioners130 well instructed in the resources of the country, and in the character of the inhabitants of different provinces. 24
23 Garcilasso would have us believe that the Inca was indebted to the curacas for his gold and silver, which were furnished by the great vassals131 as presents. (Com. Real., Parte 1, lib. 5, cap. 7.) This improbable statement is contradicted by the Report of the Royal Audience, Ms., by Sarmiento, (Relacion, Ms., cap. 15,) and by Ondegardo, (Rel. Prim., Ms.) who all speak of the mines as the property of the government, and wrought exclusively for its benefit. From this reservoir the proceeds were liberally dispensed132 in the form of presents among the great lords, and still more for the embellishment of the temples.]
24 Garcilasso, Com. Real., Parte 1, lib. 5, cap. 13 — 16. — Ondegardo, Rel. Prim. et Seg., Mss.]
This information was obtained by an admirable regulation, which has scarcely a counterpart in the annals of a semi-civilized people. A register was kept of all the births and deaths throughout the country, and exact returns of the actual population were made to government every year, by means of the quipus, a curious invention, which will be explained hereafter. 25 At certain intervals134, also, a general survey of the country was made, exhibiting a complete view of the character of the soil, its fertility, the nature of its products, both agricultural and mineral, — in short, of all that constituted the physical resources of the empire. 26 Furnished with these statistical135 details, it was easy for the government, after determining the amount of requisitions, to distribute the work among the respective provinces best qualified136 to execute it. The task of apportioning137 the labor was assigned to the local authorities, and great care was taken that it should be done in such a manner, that, while the most competent hands were selected, it should not fall disproportionately heavy on any. 27
25 Montesinos, Mem. Antiguas, Ms., lib. 2, cap. 6. — Pedro Pizarro, Relacion del Descubrimiento y Conquista de los Reynos del Peru, Ms.
“Cada provincia, en fin5 del ano, mandava asentar en los quipos, por la cuenta de sus nudos, todos los hombres que habian muerto en ella en aquel ano, y por el consiguiente los que habian nacido, y por principio del ano que entraba, venian con7 los quipos al Cuzco.” Sarmiento, Relacion Ms., cap. 16.]
26 Garcilasso, Com. Real. Parte 1, lib. 2, cap. 14.]
27 Ondegardo, Rel. Prim., Ms. — Sarmiento, Rel., Ms., cap. 15.
“Presupuesta y entendida la dicha division que el Inga tenia hecha de su gente, y orden que tenia puesta en el govierno de ella, era muy facil haverla en la division y cobranza de los dichos tributos; porque era claro y cierto lo que a cada uno cabia sin que hubiese desigualdad ni engano.” Dec. de la Aud. Real., Ms.]
The different provinces of the country furnished persons peculiarly suited to different employments, which, as we shall see hereafter, usually descended from father to son. Thus, one district supplied those most skilled in working the mines, another the most curious workers in metals, or in wood, and so on. 28 The artisan was provided by government with the materials; and no one was required to give more than a stipulated138 portion of his time to the public service. He was then succeeded by another for the like term; and it should be observed, that all who were engaged in the employment of the government — and the remark applies equally to agricultural labor — were maintained, for the time, at the public expense. 29 By this constant rotation139 of labor, it was intended that no one should be overburdened, and that each man should have time to provide for the demands of his own household. It was impossible — in the judgment140 of a high Spanish authority — to improve on the system of distribution, so carefully was it accommodated to the condition and comfort of the artisan. 30 The security of the working classes seems to have been ever kept in view in the regulations of the government; and these were so discreetly141 arranged, that the most wearing and unwholesome labors, as those of the mines, occasioned no detriment142 to the health of the laborer29; a striking contrast to his subsequent condition under the Spanish rule. 31
28 Sarmiento, Relacion, Ms., cap. 15. — Ondegardo, Rel. Seg., Ms.]
29 Ondegardo, Rel. Prim., Ms. — Garcilasso, Com. Real., Parte 1, lib. 5, cap. 5.]
30 “Y tambien se tenia cuenta que el trabajo que pasavan fuese moderado, y con el menos riesgo que fuese posible. . . . . . . Era tanta la orden que tuvieron estos Indios, que a mi parecer aunque mucho se piense en ello Seria dificultoso mejorarla conocida su condicion y costumbres.” Ondegardo, Rel. Prim., Ms.]
31 “The working of the mines,” says the President of the Council of the Indies, “was so regulated that no one felt it a hardship, much less was his life shortened by it.” (Sarmiento, Relacion, Ms., cap. 15) It is a frank admission for a Spaniard.]
A part of the agricultural produce and manufactures was transported to Cuzco, to minister to the immediate143 demands of the Inca and his Court. But far the greater part was stored in magazines scattered over the different provinces. These spacious144 buildings, constructed of stone, were divided between the Sun and the Inca, though the greater share seems to have been appropriated by the monarch. By a wise regulation, any deficiency in the contributions of the Inca might be supplied from the granaries of the Sun. 32 But such a necessity could rarely have happened; and the providence145 of the government usually left a large surplus in the royal depositories, which was removed to a third class of magazines, whose design was to supply the people in seasons of scarcity146, and, occasionally, to furnish relief to individuals, whom sickness or misfortune had reduced to poverty; thus, in a manner, justifying147 the assertion of a Castilian document, that a large portion of the revenues of the Inca found its way back again, through one channel or another, into the hands of the people. 33 These magazines were found by the Spaniards, on their arrival, stored with all the various products and manufactures of the country, — with maize148, coca, quinua, woollen and cotton stuffs of the finest quality, with vases and utensils149 of gold, silver, and copper150, in short, with every article of luxury or use within the compass of Peruvian skill. 34 The magazines of grain, in particular, would frequently have sufficed for the consumption of the adjoining district for several years. 35 An inventory151 of the various products of the country, and the quarters whence they were obtained, was every year taken by the royal officers, and recorded by the quipucamayus on their registers, with surprising regularity152 and precision. These registers were transmitted to the capital, and submitted to the Inca, who could thus at a glance, as it were, embrace the whole results of the national industry, and see how far they corresponded with the requisitions of government. 36
32 Garcilasso, Com. Real., Parte 1, lib. 5, cap. 34. — Ondegardo, Rel. Prim., Ms.
“E asi esta parte del Inga no hay duda sino que de todas tres era la mayor, y en los depositos se parece bien que yo visite muchos en diferentes partes, e son mayores e mas largos153 que no los de su religion sin comparasion.” Idem, Rel. Seg., Ms.]
33 “Todos los dichos tributos y servicios que el Inga imponia y llevaba como dicho es eran con color y para efecto del govierno y pro1 comun de todos asi como lo que se ponia en depositos todo se combertia y distribuia entre los mismos naturales.” Dec. de la Aud. Real., Ms.]
34 Acosta, lib. 6, cap. 15.
“No podre decir,” says one of the Conquerors154, “los depositos. Vide de rropas y de todos generos de rropas y vestidos que en este reino se hacian y vsavan que faltava tiempo para vello y entendimiento para comprender tanta cosa, muchos depositos de barretas de cobre para las minas y de costales y sogas de vasos de palo y platos del oro y plata que aqui se hallo hera cosa despanto.” Pedro Pizarro, Descub. y Conq., Ms.]
35 For ten years, sometimes, if we may credit Ondegardo, who had every means of knowing. “E ansi cuando no era menester se estaba en los depositos e habia algunas vezes comida de diez anos. . . . . . Los cuales todos se hallaron Ilenos cuando Ilegaron los Espanoles desto y de todas las cosas necesarias para la vida humana” Rel. Seg., Ms.]
36 Ondegardo, Rel. Prim., Ms.
“Por tanta orden e cuenta que seria dificultoso creerlo ni darlo a entender como ellos lo tienen en su cuenta e por registros e por menudo lo manifestaron que se pudiera por estenso.” Idem, Rel. Seg., Ms.
Such are some of the most remarkable features of the Peruvian institutions relating to property, as delineated by writers who, however contradictory156 in the details, have a general conformity157 of outline. These institutions are certainly so remarkable, that it is hardly credible158 they should ever have been enforced throughout a great empire, and for a long period of years. Yet we have the most unequivocal testimony to the fact from the Spaniards, who landed in Peru in time to witness their operation; some of whom, men of high judicial159 station and character, were commissioned by the government to make investigations160 into the state of the country under its ancient rulers.
The impositions on the Peruvian people seem to have been sufficiently161 heavy. On them rested the whole burden of maintaining, not only their own order, but every other order in the state. The members of the royal house, the great nobles, even the public functionaries162, and the numerous body of the priesthood, were all exempt163 from taxation164. 37 The whole duty of defraying the expenses of the government belonged to the people. Yet this was not materially different from the condition of things formerly165 existing in most parts of Europe, where the various privileged classes claimed exemption166 — not always with success, indeed — from bearing part of the public burdens. The great hardship in the case of the Peruvian was, that he could not better his condition. His labors were for others, rather than for himself. However industrious167, he could not add a rood to his own possessions, nor advance himself one hair’s breadth in the social scale. The great and universal motive168 to honest industry, that of bettering one’s lot, was lost upon him. The great law of human progress was not for him. As he was born, so he was to die. Even his time he could not properly call his own. Without money, with little property of any kind, he paid his taxes in labor. 38 No wonder that the government should have dealt with sloth169 as a crime. It was a crime against the state, and to be wasteful170 of time was, in a manner, to rob the exchequer171. The Peruvian, laboring172 all his life for others, might be compared to the convict in a treadmill173, going the same dull round of incessant174 toil175, with the consciousness, that, however profitable the results to the state, they were nothing to him.
37 Garcilasso. Com. Real., Parte 1, lib. 5, cap. 15.]
38 “Solo el trabajo de las personas era el tributo que se dava, porque ellos no poseian otra cosa.” Ondegardo, Rel. Prim., Ms.
But this is the dark side of the picture. If no man could become rich in Peru, no man could become poor. No spendthrift could waste his substance in riotous176 luxury. No adventurous177 schemer could impoverish178 his family by the spirit of speculation179. The law was constantly directed to enforce a steady industry and a sober management of his affairs. No mendicant180 was tolerated in Peru. When a man was reduced by poverty or misfortune, (it could hardly be by fault,) the arm of the law was stretched out to minister relief; not the stinted181 relief of private charity, nor that which is doled182 out, drop by drop, as it were, from the frozen reservoirs of “the parish,” but in generous measure, bringing no humiliation183 to the object of it, and placing him on a level with the rest of his countrymen. 39
39 “Era tanta la orden que tenia en todos sus Reinos y provincias, que no consentia haver ningun Indio pobre ni menesteroso, porque havia orden i formas para ello sin que los pueblos184 reciviesen vexacion ni molestia, porque el Inga lo suplia de sus tributos.” (Conq. i Pob. del Piru, Ms.) The Licentiate Ondegardo sees only a device of Satan in these provisions of the Peruvian law, by which the old, the infirm, and the poor were rendered, in a manner, independent of their children, and those nearest of kin11, on whom they would naturally have leaned for support; no surer way to harden the heart, he considers, than by thus disengaging it from the sympathies of humanity; and no circumstance has done more, he concludes, to counteract185 the influence and spread of Christianity among the natives. (Rel. Seg., Ms.) The views are ingenious, but, in a country where the people had no property, as in Peru, there would seem to be no alternative for the supernumeraries, but to receive support from government or to starve.]
No man could be rich, no man could be poor, in Peru; but all might enjoy, and did enjoy, a competence187. Ambition, avarice, the love of change, the morbid188 spirit of discontent, those passions which most agitate189 the minds of men, found no place in the bosom190 of the Peruvian. The very condition of his being seemed to be at war with change. He moved on in the same unbroken circle in which his fathers had moved before him, and in which his children were to follow. It was the object of the Incas to infuse into their subjects a spirit of passive obedience191 and tranquillity192, — a perfect acquiescence194 in the established order of things. In this they fully110 succeeded. The Spaniards who first visited the country are emphatic in their testimony, that no government could have been better suited to the genius of the people; and no people could have appeared more contented195 with their lot, or more devoted to their government. 40
40 Acosta, lib. 6, cap. 12, 15. — Sarmiento, Relacion, Ms., cap. 10]
Those who may distrust the accounts of Peruvian industry will find their doubts removed on a visit to the country. The traveller still meets, especially in the central regions of the table-land, with memorials of the past, remains196 of temples, palaces, fortresses198, terraced mountains, great military roads, aqueducts, and other public works, which, whatever degree of science they may display in their execution, astonish him by their number, the massive character of the materials, and the grandeur199 of the design. Among them, perhaps the most remarkable are the great roads, the broken remains of which are still in sufficient preservation200 to attest201 their former magnificence. There were many of these roads, traversing different parts of the kingdom; but the most considerable were the two which extended from Quito to Cuzco, and, again diverging202 from the capital, continued in a southern direction towards Chili203.
One of these roads passed over the grand plateau, and the other along the lowlands on the borders of the ocean. The former was much the more difficult achievement, from the character of the country. It was conducted over pathless sierras buried in snow; galleries were cut for leagues through the living rock; rivers were crossed by means of bridges that swung suspended in the air; precipices204 were scaled by stairways hewn out of the native bed; ravines of hideous205 depth were filled up with solid masonry206; in short, all the difficulties that beset207 a wild and mountainous region, and which might appall208 the most courageous209 engineer of modern times, were encountered and successfully overcome. The length of the road, of which scattered fragments only remain, is variously estimated, from fifteen hundred to two thousand miles; and stone pillars, in the manner of European milestones210, were erected at stated intervals of somewhat more than a league, all along the route. Its breadth scarcely exceeded twenty feet. 41 It was built of heavy flags of freestone, and in some parts, at least, covered with a bituminous cement, which time has made harder than the stone itself. In some places, where the ravines had been filled up with masonry, the mountain torrents211, wearing on it for ages, have gradually eaten a way through the base, and left the superincumbent mass — such is the cohesion212 of the materials — still spanning the valley like an arch! 42
41 Dec. de la Aud. Real., Ms.
“Este camino hecho por valles ondos y por sierras altas, por montes de nieve, por tremedales de agua y por pena viva y junto213 a rios furiosos por estas partes y ballano y empedrado por las laderas, bien sacado por las sierras, deshechado, por las penas socavado, por junto a los Rios sus paredes, entre nieves con escalones y descanso, por todas partes limpio barrido descombrado, lleno de aposentos, de depositos de tesoros, de Templos del Sol, de Postas que havia en este camino.” Sarmiento, Relacion, Ms., cap. 60.]
42 “On avait comble les vides et les ravins par4 de grandes masses de maconnerie. Les torrents qui descendent214 des hauteurs apres des pluies abondantes, avaient creuse les endroits les moins solides, et s’etaient fraye une voie sous le chemin, le laissant ainsi suspendu en l’air comme un pont fait d’une seule piece.” (Velasco, Hist. de Quito, tom. l. p. 206.) This writer speaks from personal observation, having examined and measured different parts of the road, in the latter part of the road, in the latter part of the last century. The Spanish scholar will find in Appendix, No. 2., an animated215 description of this magnificent work, and of the obstacles encountered in the execution of it, in a passage borrowed from Sarmiento, who saw it in the days of the Incas.]
Over some of the boldest streams it was necessary to construct suspension bridges, as they are termed, made of the tough fibres of the maguey, or of the osier of the country, which has an extraordinary degree of tenacity216 and strength. These osiers were woven into cables of the thickness of a man’s body. The huge ropes, then stretched across the water, were conducted through rings or holes cut in immense buttresses217 of stone raised on the opposite banks of the river, and there secured to heavy pieces of timber. Several of these enormous cables, bound together, formed a bridge, which, covered with planks218, well secured and defended by a railing of the same osier materials on the sides, afforded a safe passage for the traveller. The length of this aerial bridge, sometimes exceeding two hundred feet, caused it, confined, as it was, only at the extremities, to dip with an alarming inclination219 towards the centre, while the motion given to it by the passenger occasioned an oscillation still more frightful220, as his eye wandered over the dark abyss of waters that foamed221 and tumbled many a fathom222 beneath. Yet these light and fragile fabrics223 were crossed without fear by the Peruvians, and are still retained by the Spaniards over those streams which, from the depth or impetuosity of the current, would seem impracticable for the usual modes of conveyance224. The wider and more tranquil193 waters were crossed on balsas — a kind of raft still much used by the natives — to which sails were attached, furnishing the only instance of this higher kind of navigation among the American Indians. 43
43 Garcilasso, Com. Real., Parte 1, lib. 3, cap. 7. A particular account of these bridges, as they are still to be seen in different parts of Peru, may be found in Humboldt. (Vues des Cordilleres, p. 230, et seq.) The balsas are described with equal minuteness by Stevenson. Residence in America, vol. II. p. 222. et seq.]
The other great road of the Incas lay through the level country between the Andes and the ocean. It was constructed in a different manner, as demanded by the nature of the ground, which was for the most part low, and much of it sandy. The causeway was raised on a high embankment of earth, and defended on either side by a parapet or wall of clay; and trees and odoriferous shrubs225 were planted along the margin226, regaling the sense of the traveller with their perfumes, and refreshing227 him by their shades, so grateful under the burning sky of the tropics. In the strips of sandy waste, which occasionally intervened, where the light and volatile228 soil was incapable229 of sustaining a road, huge piles, many of them to be seen at this day, were driven into the ground to indicate the route to the traveller. 44
44 Cieza de Leon, Cronica, cap. 60. — Relacion del Primer Descubrimiento de la Costa y Mar9 del Sur, Ms.
This anonymous230 document of one of the early Conquerors contains a minute and probably trustworthy account of both the high roads, which the writer saw in their glory, and which he ranks among the greatest wonders of the world.]
All along these highways, caravansaries, or tambos, as they were called, were erected, at the distance of ten or twelve miles from each other, for the accommodation, more particularly, of the Inca and his suite6, and those who journeyed on the public business. There were few other travellers in Peru. Some of these buildings were on an extensive scale, consisting of a fortress197, barracks, and other military works, surrounded by a parapet of stone, and covering a large tract70 of ground. These were evidently destined231 for the accommodation of the imperial armies, when on their march across the country. — The care of the great roads was committed to the districts through which they passed, and a large number of hands was constantly employed under the Incas to keep them in repair. This was the more easily done in a country where the mode of travelling was altogether on foot; though the roads are said to have been so nicely constructed, that a carriage might have rolled over them as securely as on any of the great roads of Europe. 45 Still, in a region where the elements of fire and water are both actively232 at work in the business of destruction, they must, without constant supervision, have gradually gone to decay. Such has been their fate under the Spanish conquerors, who took no care to enforce the admirable system for their preservation adopted by the Incas. Yet the broken portions that still survive, here and there, like the fragments of the great Roman roads scattered over Europe, bear evidence to their primitive233 grandeur, and have drawn234 forth235 the eulogium from a discriminating236 traveller, usually not too profuse237 in his panegyric238, that “the roads of the Incas were among the most useful and stupendous works ever executed by man.” 46
45 Relacion del Primer Descub., Ms. — Cieza de Leon, Cronica, cap. 37. — Zarate, Conq. del Peru, lib. 1, cap. 11. — Garcilasso, Com. Real., Parte 1, lib. 9, cap. 13.]
46 “Cette chaussee, bordee de grandes pierres de taille, puet etre comparee aux plus belles239 routes des Romains que j’aie vues en Italie, en France et en Espagne . . . . . . Le grand chemin de l’Inca, un des ouvrages les plus utiles, et en meme temps des plus gigantesques que les hommes aient execute.” Humboldt, Vues des Cordilleres, p. 294.]
The system of communication through their dominions was still further improved by the Peruvian sovereigns, by the introduction of posts, in the same manner as was done by the Aztecs. The Peruvian posts, however, established on all the great routes that conducted to the capital, were on a much more extended plan than those in Mexico. All along these routes, small buildings were erected, at the distance of less than five miles asunder240, 47 in each of which a number of runners, or chasquis, as they were called, were stationed to carry forward the despatches of government. 48 These despatches were either verbal, or conveyed by means of quipus, and sometimes accompanied by a thread of the crimson241 fringe worn round the temples of the Inca, which was regarded with the same implicit55 deference242 as the signet ring of an Oriental despot. 49
47 The distance between the posthouses is variously stated; most writers not estimating it at more than three fourths of a league. I have preferred the authority of Ondegardo, who usually writes with more conscientiousness243 and knowledge of his ground than most of his contemporaries.]
48 The term chasqui, according to Montesinos, signifies “one that receives a thing.” (Me. Antiguas, Ms., cap. 7) But Garcilasso, a better authority for his own tongue, says it meant “one who makes an exchange.” Com. Real., Parte 1, lib. 6, cap. 8.]
49 “Con vn hilo de esta Borla, entregado a uno de aquellos Orejones, governaban la Tierra, i proveian lo que querian con maior obediencia, que en ninguna Provincia del Mundo se ha visto tener a las Provissiones de su Rei.” Zarate, Conq. del Peru, lib. 1, cap. 9.]
The chasquis were dressed in a peculiar livery, intimating their profession. They were all trained to the employment, and selected for their speed and fidelity244. As the distance each courier had to perform was small, and as he had ample time to refresh himself at the stations, they ran over the ground with great swiftness, and messages were carried through the whole extent of the long routes, at the rate of a hundred and fifty miles a day. The office of the chasquis was not limited to carrying despatches. They frequently brought various articles for the use of the Court; and in this way, fish from the distant ocean, fruits, game, and different commodities from the hot regions on the coast, were taken to the capital in good condition, and served fresh at the royal table. 50 It is remarkable that this important institution should have been known to both the Mexicans and the Peruvians without any correspondence with one another; and that it should have been found among two barbarian245 nations of the New World, long before it was introduced among the civilized nations of Europe. 51
50 Sarmiento, Relacion, Ms., cap. 18. — Dec. de la Aud. Real., Ms.
If we may trust Montesinos, the royal table was served with fish, taken a hundred leagues from the capital, in twenty-four hours after it was drawn from the ocean! (Men. Antiguas, Ms., lib. 2, cap. 7.) This is rather too expeditious246 for any thing but rail-cars.]
51 The institution of the Peruvian posts seems to have made a great impression on the minds of the Spaniards who first visited the country; and ample notices of it may be found in Sarmiento, Relacion, Ms., cap. 15. — Dec. de la Aud. Real., Ms. — Fernandez, Hist. del Peru, Parte 2, lib. 3, cap. 5. — Conq. i Pob. del Piru, Ms., et auct. plurimis.
The establishment of posts is of old date among the Chinese, and, probably, still older among the Persians. (See Herodotus, Hist., Urania, sec. 98.) It is singular, that an invention designed for the uses of a despotic government should have received its full application only under a free one. For in it we have the germ of that beautiful system of intercommunication, which binds247 all the nations of Christendom together as one vast commonwealth248.
By these wise contrivances of the Incas, the most distant parts of the long-extended empire of Peru were brought into intimate relations with each other. And while the capitals of Christendom, but a few hundred miles apart, remained as far asunder as if seas had rolled between them, the great capitals Cuzco and Quito were placed by the high roads of the Incas in immediate correspondence. Intelligence from the numerous provinces was transmitted on the wings of the wind to the Peruvian metropolis249, the great focus to which all the lines of communication converged250. Not an insurrectionary movement could occur, not an invasion on the remotest frontier, before the tidings were conveyed to the capital, and the imperial armies were on their march across the magnificent roads of the country to suppress it. So admirable was the machinery251 contrived252 by the American despots for maintaining tranquillity throughout their dominions! It may remind us of the similar institutions of ancient Rome, when, under the Caesars, she was mistress of half the world.
A principal design of the great roads was to serve the purposes of military communication. It formed an important item of their military policy, which is quite as well worth studying as their municipal.
Notwithstanding the pacific professions of the Incas, and the pacific tendency, indeed, of their domestic institutions, they were constantly at war. It was by war that their paltry253 territory had been gradually enlarged to a powerful empire. When this was achieved, the capital, safe in its central position, was no longer shaken by these military movements, and the country enjoyed, in a great degree, the blessings254 of tranquillity and order. But, however tranquil at heart, there is not a reign58 upon record in which the nation was not engaged in war against the barbarous nations on the frontier. Religion furnished a plausible255 pretext256 for incessant aggression257, and disguised the lust258 of conquest in the Incas, probably, from their own eyes, as well as from those of their subjects. Like the followers259 of Mahomet, bearing the sword in one hand and the Koran in the other, the Incas of Peru offered no alternative but the worship of the Sun or war.
It is true, their fanaticism260 — or their policy — showed itself in a milder form than was found in the descendants of the Prophet. Like the great luminary261 which they adored, they operated by gentleness more potent262 than violence. 52 They sought to soften263 the hearts of the rude tribes around them, and melt them by acts of condescension264 and kindness. Far from provoking hostilities265, they allowed time for the salutary example of their own institutions to work its effect, trusting that their less civilized neighbours would submit to their sceptre, from a conviction of the blessings it would secure to them. When this course failed, they employed other measures, but still of a pacific character; and endeavoured by negotiation266, by conciliatory treatment, and by presents to the leading men, to win them over to their dominion40. In short, they practised all the arts familiar to the most subtle politician of a civilized land to secure the acquisition of empire. When all these expedients268 failed, they prepared for war.
52 “Mas se hicieron Senores al za.” Ondegardo, Rel. Prim., principio por mana, que por fuer — Ms.]
Their levies269 were drawn from all the different provinces; though from some, where the character of the people was particularly hardy270, more than from others. 53 It seems probable that every Peruvian, who had reached a certain age, might be called to bear arms. But the rotation of military service, and the regular drills, which took place twice or thrice in a month, of the inhabitants of every village, raised the soldiers generally above the rank of a raw militia271. The Peruvian army, at first inconsiderable, came, with the increase of population, in the latter days of the empire, to be very large, so that their monarchs272 could bring into the field, as contemporaries assure us, a force amounting to two hundred thousand men. They showed the same skill and respect for order in their military organization, as in other things. The troops were divided into bodies corresponding with out battalions273 and companies, led by officers, that rose, in regular gradation, from the lowest subaltern to the Inca noble, who was intrusted with the general command. 54
53 Idem, Rel. Prim., Ms. — Dec. de la Aud. Real., Ms.]
54 Gomara, Cronica, cap. 195 — Conq. i Pob. del Piru, Ms.]
Their arms consisted of the usual weapons employed by nations, whether civilized or uncivilized, before the invention of powder, — bows and arrows, lances, darts274, a short kind of sword, a battle-axe or partisan275, and slings276, with which they were very expert. Their spears and arrows were tipped with copper, or, more commonly, with bone, and the weapons of the Inca lords were frequently mounted with gold or silver. Their heads were protected by casques made either of wood or of the skins of wild animals, and sometimes richly decorated with metal and with precious stones, surmounted277 by the brilliant plumage of the tropical birds. These, of course, were the ornaments only of the higher orders. The great mass of the soldiery were dressed in the peculiar costume of their provinces, and their heads were wreathed with a sort of turban or roll of different-colored cloths, that produced a gay and animating278 effect. Their defensive279 armor consisted of a shield or buckler, and a close tunic280 of quilted cotton, in the same manner as with the Mexicans. Each company had its particular banner, and the imperial standard, high above all, displayed the glittering device of the rainbow, — the armorial ensign of the Incas, intimating their claims as children of the skies. 55
55 Gomara, Cronica, ubi supra. — Sarmiento, Relacion, Ms., cap. 20. — Velasco, Hist. de Quito, tom. I. pp. 176–179.
This last writer gives a minute catalogue of the ancient Peruvian arms, comprehending nearly every thing familiar to the European soldier, except fire-arms. — It was judicious281 in him to omit these.]
By means of the thorough system of communication established in the country, a short time sufficed to draw the levies together from the most distant quarters. The army was put under the direction of some experienced chief, of the blood royal, or, more frequently, headed by the Inca in person. The march was rapidly performed, and with little fatigue282 to the soldier; for, all along the great routes, quarters were provided for him, at regular distances, where he could find ample accommodations. The country is still covered with the remains of military works, constructed of porphyry or granite283, which tradition assures us were designed to lodge284 the Inca and his army. 56
56 Zarate, Conq. del Peru, lib. 1, cap. 11. — Sarmiento, Relacion, Ms., cap. 60.
Condamine speaks of the great number of these fortified285 places, scattered over the country between Quito and Lima, which he saw in his visit to South America in 1737; some of which he has described with great minuteness. Memoire sur Quelques Anciens Monumens du Perou, du Tems des Incas, ap. Histoire de l’Academie Royale des Sciences et de Belles Lettres, (Berlin, 1748,) tom. II. p. 438.]
At regular intervals, also, magazines were established, filled with grain, weapons, and the different munitions286 of war, with which the army was supplied on its march. It was the especial care of the government to see that these magazines, which were furnished from the stores of the Incas, were always well filled. When the Spaniards invaded the country, they supported their own armies for a long time on the provisions found in them. 57 The Peruvian soldier was forbidden to commit any trespass287 on the property of the inhabitants whose territory lay in the line of march. Any violation of this order was punished with death. 58 The soldier was clothed and fed by the industry of the people, and the Incas rightly resolved that he should not repay this by violence. Far from being a tax on the labors of the husbandman, or even a burden on his hospitality, the imperial armies traversed the country, from one extremity288 to the other, with as little inconvenience to the inhabitants, as would be created by a procession of peaceful burghers, or a muster289 of holiday soldiers for a review.
57 “E ansi cuando,” says Ondegardo, speaking from his own personal knowledge, “el Senor Presidente Gasca passo con la gente de castigo de Gonzalo Pizarro por el valle de Jauja, estuvo alli siete semanas a lo que me acuerdo, se hallaron en deposito maiz de cuatro y de tres y de dos anos mas de 15 hanegas junto al camino, e alli comio la gente, y se entendio que si fuera menester muchas mas no faltaran en el valle en aquellos depositos, conforme a la orden antigua, porque a mi cargo290 estubo el repartirlas y hacer la cuenta para pagarlas.” Rel. Seg., Ms.]
58 Pedro Pizarro, Descub. y Conq., Ms. — Cieza de Leon, Cronica, cap. 44. — Sarmiento, Relacion, Ms., cap. 14.]
From the moment war was proclaimed, the Peruvian monarch used all possible expedition in assembling his forces, that he might anticipate the movements of his enemies, and prevent a combination with their allies. It was, however, from the neglect of such a principle of combination, that the several nations of the country, who might have prevailed by confederated strength, fell one after another under the imperial yoke291. Yet, once in the field, the Inca did not usually show any disposition292 to push his advantages to the utmost, and urge his foe293 to extremity. In every stage of the war, he was open to propositions for peace; and although he sought to reduce his enemies by carrying off their harvests and distressing294 them by famine, he allowed his troops to commit no unnecessary outrage295 on person or property. “We must spare our enemies,” one of the Peruvian princes is quoted as saying, “or it will be our loss, since they and all that belongs to them must soon be ours.” 59 It was a wise maxim296, and, like most other wise maxims297, founded equally on benevolence298 and prudence299. The Incas adopted the policy claimed for the Romans by their countryman, who tells us that they gained more by clemency300 to the vanquished301 than by their victories. 60
59 “Mandabase que en los mantenimientos y casas de los enemigos se hiciese poco dano, diciendoles el Senor, presto302 seran estos nuestros como los que ya lo son; como esto tenian conocido, procuraban que la guerra fuese la mas liviana que ser pudiese.” Sarmiento, Relacion, Ms., cap. 14.]
60 “Plus pene parcendo victis, quam vincendo imperium auxisse.’ Livy, lib. 30, cap. 42.]
In the same considerate spirit, they were most careful to provide for the security and comfort of their own troops; and, when a war was long protracted, or the climate proved unhealthy, they took care to relieve their men by frequent reinforcements, allowing the earlier recruits to return to their homes. 61 But while thus economical of life, both in their own followers and in the enemy, they did not shrink from sterner measures when provoked by the ferocious303 or obstinate304 character of the resistance; and the Peruvian annals contain more than one of those sanguinary pages which cannot be pondered at the present day without a shudder305. It should be added, that the beneficent policy, which I have been delineating as characteristic of the Incas, did not belong to all; and that there was more than one of the royal line who displayed a full measure of the bold and unscrupulous spirit of the vulgar conqueror155.
61 Garcilasso, Com. Real., Parte 1, lib. 6, cap. 18.
The first step of the government, after the reduction of a country, was to introduce there the worship of the Sun. Temples were erected, and placed under the care of a numerous priesthood, who expounded306 to the conquered people the mysteries of their new faith, and dazzled them by the display of its rich and stately ceremonial. 62 Yet the religion of the conquered was not treated with dishonor. The Sun was to be worshipped above all; but the images of their gods were removed to Cuzco and established in one of the temples, to hold their rank among the inferior deities307 of the Peruvian Pantheon. Here they remained as hostages, in some sort, for the conquered nation, which would be the less inclined to forsake308 its allegiance, when by doing so it must leave its own gods in the hands of its enemies. 63
62 Sarmiento, Relacion, Ms., cap. 14.]
63 Acosta, lib. 5, cap. 12. — Garcilasso, Com. Real., Parte 1, lib. 5, cap. 12.]
The Incas provided for the settlement of their new conquests, by ordering a census309 to be taken of the population, and a careful survey to be made of the country, ascertaining310 its products, and the character and capacity of its soil. 64 A division of the territory was then made on the same principle with that adopted throughout their own kingdom; and their respective portions were assigned to the Sun, the sovereign, and the people. The amount of the last was regulated by the amount of the population, but the share of each individual was uniformly the same. It may seem strange, that any people should patiently have acquiesced311 in an arrangement which involved such a total surrender of property. But it was a conquered nation that did so, held in awe312, on the least suspicion of meditating313 resistance, by armed garrisons314, who were established at various commanding points throughout the country. 65 It is probable, too, that the Incas made no greater changes than was essential to the new arrangement, and that they assigned estates, as far as possible, to their former proprietors. The curacas, in particular, were confirmed in their ancient authority; or, when it was found expedient267 to depose315 the existing curaca, his rightful heir was allowed to succeed him. 66 Every respect was shown to the ancient usages and laws of the land, as far as was compatible with the fundamental institutions of the Incas. It must also be remembered, that the conquered tribes were, many of them, too little advanced in civilization to possess that attachment to the soil which belongs to a cultivated nation. 67 But, to whatever it be referred, it seems probable that the extraordinary institutions of the Incas were established with little opposition316 in the conquered territories. 68
64 Ibid., Parte 1, lib. 5, cap. 13, 14. — Sarmiento, Relacion, Ms., cap. 15.]
65 Sarmiento, Relacion, Ms., cap. 19.]
66 Fernandez, Hist. del Peru, Parte 2, lib. 3, cap. 11.]
67 Sarmiento has given a very full and interesting account of the singularly humane policy observed by the Incas in their conquests, forming a striking contrast with the usual course of those scourges317 of mankind, whom mankind are wise enough to requite318 with higher admiration, even, than it bestows319 on its benefactors320. As Sarmiento, who was President of the Royal Council of the Indies, and came into the country soon after the Conquest, is a high authority, and as his work, lodged321 in the dark recesses322 of the Escurial, is almost unknown, I have transferred the whole chapter to Appendix, No. 3.]
68 According to Velasco, even the powerful state of Quito, sufficiently advanced in civilization to have the law of property well recognized by its people, admitted the institutions of the Incas “not only without repugnance323, but with joy.” (Hist. de Quito, tom. II. p. 183.) But Velasco, a modern authority, believed easily, — or reckoned on his readers’ doing so.]
Yet the Peruvian sovereigns did not trust altogether to this show of obedience in their new vassals; and, to secure it more effectually, they adopted some expedients too remarkable to be passed by in silence. — Immediately after a recent conquest, the curacas and their families were removed for a time to Cuzco. Here they learned the language of the capital, became familiar with the manners and usages of the court, as well as with the general policy of government, and experienced such marks of favor from the sovereign as would be most grateful to their feelings, and might attach them most warmly to his person. Under the influence of these sentiments, they were again sent to rule over their vassals, but still leaving their eldest324 sons in the capital, to remain there as a guaranty for their own fidelity, as well as to grace the court of the Inca. 69
69 Garcilasso, Com. Real., Parte 1, lib. 5, cap. 12; lib. 7, cap. 2.]
Another expedient was of a bolder and more original character. This was nothing less than to revolutionize the language of the country. South America, like North, was broken up into a great variety of dialects, or rather languages, having little affinity325 with one another. This circumstance occasioned great embarrassment326 to the government in the administration of the different provinces, with whose idioms they were unacquainted. It was determined, therefore, to substitute one universal language, the Quichua, — the language of the court, the capital, and the surrounding country, — the richest and most comprehensive of the South American dialects. Teachers were provided in the towns and villages throughout the land, who were to give instruction to all, even the humblest classes; and it was intimated at the same time, that no one should be raised to any office of dignity or profit, who was unacquainted with this tongue. The curacas and other chiefs, who attended at the capital, became familiar with this dialect in their intercourse327 with the Court, and, on their return home, set the example of conversing328 in it among themselves. This example was imitated by their followers, and the Quichua gradually became the language of elegance329 and fashion, in the same manner as the Norman French was affected330 by all those who aspired331 to any consideration in England, after the Conquest. By this means, while each province retained its peculiar tongue, a beautiful medium of communication was introduced, which enabled the inhabitants of one part of the country to hold intercourse with every other, and the Inca and his deputies to communicate with all. This was the state of things on the arrival of the Spaniards. It must be admitted, that history furnishes few examples of more absolute authority than such a revolution in the language of an empire, at the bidding of a master. 70
70 Ibid., Parte 1, lib. 6, cap. 35; lib. 7, cap. 1, 2. — Ondegardo, Rel. Seg., Ms. — Sarmiento, Relacion, Ms., cap. 55.
“Aun la Criatura no hubiese dejado el Pecho de su Madre quando le comenzasen a mostrar la Lengua que havia de saber; y aunque al principio fue dificultoso, e muchos se pusieron en no quere deprender mas lenguas de las suyas propias, los Reyes pudieron tanto que salieron con su intencion y ellos tubieron por bien de cumplir su mandado y tan de veras se entendio en ello que en tiempo de pocos anos se savia y usaba una lengua en mas de mil y doscientas leguas.” Ibid., cap. 21.]
Yet little less remarkable was another device of the Incas for securing the loyalty332 of their subjects. When any portion of the recent conquests showed a pertinacious333 spirit of disaffection, it was not uncommon334 to cause a part of the population, amounting, it might be, to ten thousand inhabitants or more, to remove to a distant quarter of the kingdom, occupied by ancient vassals of undoubted fidelity to the crown. A like number of these last was transplanted to the territory left vacant by the emigrants335. By this exchange, the population was composed of two distinct races, who regarded each other with an eye of jealousy336, that served as an effectual check on any mutinous337 proceeding39. In time, the influence of the well-affected prevailed, supported, as they were, by royal authority, and by the silent working of the national institutions, to which the strange races became gradually accustomed. A spirit of loyalty sprang up by degrees in their bosoms338, and, before a generation had passed away, the different tribes mingled339 in harmony together as members of the same community. 71 Yet the different races continued to be distinguished by difference of dress; since, by the law of the land, every citizen was required to wear the costume of his native province. 72 Neither could the colonist340, who had been thus unceremoniously transplanted, return to his native district. For, by another law, it was forbidden to any one to change his residence without license341. 73 He was settled for life. The Peruvian government prescribed to every man his local habitation, his sphere of action, nay342, the very nature and quality of that action. He ceased to be a free agent; it might be almost said, that it relieved him of personal responsibility.
71 Ondegardo, Rel. Prim., Ms. — Fernandez, Hist. del Peru, Parte 2, lib. 3, cap. 11.]
72 “This regulation,” says Father Acosta, “the Incas held to be of great importance to the order and right government of the realm.” lib. 6, cap. 16.]
73 Conq. i Pob. del Piru, Ms.]
In following out this singular arrangement, the Incas showed as much regard for the comfort and convenience of the colonist as was compatible with the execution of their design. They were careful that the mitimaes, as these emigrants were styled, should be removed to climates most congenial with their own. The inhabitants of the cold countries were not transplanted to the warm, nor the inhabitants of the warm countries to the cold. 74 Even their habitual343 occupations were consulted, and the fisherman was settled in the neighbourhood of the ocean, or the great lakes; while such lands were assigned to the husbandman as were best adapted to the culture with which he was most familiar. 75 And, as migration344 by many, perhaps by most, would be regarded as a calamity345, the government was careful to show particular marks of favor to the mitimaes, and, by various privileges and immunities, to ameliorate their condition, and thus to reconcile them, if possible, to their lot. 76
74 “Trasmutaban de las tales Provincias la cantidad de gente de que de ella parecia convenir que saliese, a los cuales mandaban pasar a poblar otra tierra del temple y manera de donde salian, si fria fria, si caliente caliente, en donde les daban tierras, y campos, y casas, tanto, y mas como dejaron.” Sarmiento, Relacion, Ms., cap. 19.]
75 Ondegardo, Rel. Prim., Ms.]
76 The descendants of these mitimaes are still to be found in Quito, or were so at the close of the last century, according to Velasco, distinguished by this name from the rest of the population. Hist. de Quito, tom.l. p. 175.]
The Peruvian institutions, though they may have been modified and matured under successive sovereigns, all bear the stamp of the same original, — were all cast in the same mould. The empire, strengthening and enlarging at every successive epoch346 of its history, was, in its latter days, but the development, on a great scale, of what it was in miniature at its commencement, as the infant germ is said to contain within itself all the ramifications347 of the future monarch of the forest. Each succeeding Inca seemed desirous only to tread in the path, and carry out the plans, of his predecessor348. Great enterprises, commenced under one, were continued by another, and completed by a third. Thus, while all acted on a regular plan, without any of the eccentric or retrograde movements which betray the agency of different individuals, the state seemed to be under the direction of a single hand, and steadily349 pursued, as if through one long reign, its great career of civilization and of conquest.
The ultimate aim of its institutions was domestic quiet. But it seemed as if this were to be obtained only by foreign war. Tranquillity in the heart of the monarchy, and war on its borders, was the condition of Peru. By this war it gave occupation to a part of its people, and, by the reduction and civilization of its barbarous neighbours, gave security to all. Every Inca sovereign, however mild and benevolent350 in his domestic rule, was a warrior351, and led his armies in person. Each successive reign extended still wider the boundaries of the empire. Year after year saw the victorious352 monarch return laden353 with spoils, and followed by a throng354 of tributary355 chieftains to his capital. His reception there was a Roman triumph. The whole of its numerous population poured out to welcome him, dressed in the gay and picturesque356 costumes of the different provinces, with banners waving above their heads, and strewing357 branches and flowers along the path of the conqueror. The Inca, borne aloft in his golden chair on the shoulders of his nobles, moved in solemn procession, under the triumphal arches that were thrown across the way, to the great temple of the Sun. There, without attendants, — for all but the monarch were excluded from the hallowed precincts, — the victorious prince, stripped of his royal insignia, barefooted, and with all humility358, approached the awful shrine359, and offered up sacrifice and thanksgiving to the glorious Deity360 who presided over the fortunes of the Incas. This ceremony concluded, the whole population gave itself up to festivity; music, revelry, and dancing were heard in every quarter of the capital, and illuminations and bonfires commemorated the victorious campaign of the Inca, and the accession of a new territory to his empire. 77
77 Sarmiento, Relacion, Ms., Parte 1, lib. 3, cap. 11, 17; lib. 6 cap. 55. — Garcilasso, Com. Real., cap. 16.]
In this celebration we see much of the character of a religious festival. Indeed, the character of religion was impressed on all the Peruvian wars. The life of an Inca was one long crusade against the infidel, to spread wide the worship of the Sun, to reclaim361 the benighted362 nations from their brutish superstitions363, and impart to them the blessings of a well-regulated government. This, in the favorite phrase of our day, was the “mission” of the Inca. It was also the mission of the Christian186 conqueror who invaded the empire of this same Indian potentate364. Which of the two executed his mission most faithfully, history must decide.
Yet the Peruvian monarchs did not show a childish impatience365 in the acquisition of empire. They paused after a campaign, and allowed time for the settlement of one conquest before they undertook another; and, in this interval133, occupied themselves with the quiet administration of their kingdom, and with the long progresses, which brought them into nearer intercourse with their people. During this interval, also, their new vassals had begun to accommodate themselves to the strange institutions of their masters. They learned to appreciate the value of a government which raised them above the physical evils of a state of barbarism, secured them protection of person, and a full participation366 in all the privileges enjoyed by their conquerors; and, as they became more familiar with the peculiar institutions of the country, habit, that second nature, attached them the more strongly to these institutions, from their very peculiarity367. Thus, by degrees, and without violence, arose the great fabric of the Peruvian empire, composed of numerous independent and even hostile tribes, yet, under the influence of a common religion, common language, and common government, knit together as one nation, animated by a spirit of love for its institutions and devoted loyalty to its sovereign. What a contrast to the condition of the Aztec monarchy, on the neighbouring continent, which, composed of the like heterogeneous368 materials, without any internal principle of cohesion, was only held together by the stern pressure, from without, of physical force! — Why the Peruvian monarchy should have fared no better than its rival, in its conflict with European civilization, will appear in the following pages.
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1 pro | |
n.赞成,赞成的意见,赞成者 | |
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2 peculiar | |
adj.古怪的,异常的;特殊的,特有的 | |
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3 descend | |
vt./vi.传下来,下来,下降 | |
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4 par | |
n.标准,票面价值,平均数量;adj.票面的,平常的,标准的 | |
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5 fin | |
n.鳍;(飞机的)安定翼 | |
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6 suite | |
n.一套(家具);套房;随从人员 | |
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7 con | |
n.反对的观点,反对者,反对票,肺病;vt.精读,学习,默记;adv.反对地,从反面;adj.欺诈的 | |
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8 remarkable | |
adj.显著的,异常的,非凡的,值得注意的 | |
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9 mar | |
vt.破坏,毁坏,弄糟 | |
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10 epithet | |
n.(用于褒贬人物等的)表述形容词,修饰语 | |
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11 kin | |
n.家族,亲属,血缘关系;adj.亲属关系的,同类的 | |
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12 distinguished | |
adj.卓越的,杰出的,著名的 | |
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13 diverged | |
分开( diverge的过去式和过去分词 ); 偏离; 分歧; 分道扬镳 | |
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14 monarch | |
n.帝王,君主,最高统治者 | |
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15 monarchy | |
n.君主,最高统治者;君主政体,君主国 | |
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16 corrupted | |
(使)败坏( corrupt的过去式和过去分词 ); (使)腐化; 引起(计算机文件等的)错误; 破坏 | |
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17 devoted | |
adj.忠诚的,忠实的,热心的,献身于...的 | |
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18 prim | |
adj.拘泥形式的,一本正经的;n.循规蹈矩,整洁;adv.循规蹈矩地,整洁地 | |
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19 civilized | |
a.有教养的,文雅的 | |
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20 supervision | |
n.监督,管理 | |
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21 immunities | |
免除,豁免( immunity的名词复数 ); 免疫力 | |
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22 solicit | |
vi.勾引;乞求;vt.请求,乞求;招揽(生意) | |
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23 offender | |
n.冒犯者,违反者,犯罪者 | |
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24 offenders | |
n.冒犯者( offender的名词复数 );犯规者;罪犯;妨害…的人(或事物) | |
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25 stimulated | |
a.刺激的 | |
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26 incur | |
vt.招致,蒙受,遭遇 | |
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27 incurred | |
[医]招致的,遭受的; incur的过去式 | |
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28 magistrate | |
n.地方行政官,地方法官,治安官 | |
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29 laborer | |
n.劳动者,劳工 | |
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30 labor | |
n.劳动,努力,工作,劳工;分娩;vi.劳动,努力,苦干;vt.详细分析;麻烦 | |
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31 analogous | |
adj.相似的;类似的 | |
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32 humane | |
adj.人道的,富有同情心的 | |
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33 territorial | |
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34 magistrates | |
地方法官,治安官( magistrate的名词复数 ) | |
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35 jurisdiction | |
n.司法权,审判权,管辖权,控制权 | |
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36 aver | |
v.极力声明;断言;确证 | |
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37 violation | |
n.违反(行为),违背(行为),侵犯 | |
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38 proceedings | |
n.进程,过程,议程;诉讼(程序);公报 | |
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39 proceeding | |
n.行动,进行,(pl.)会议录,学报 | |
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40 dominion | |
n.统治,管辖,支配权;领土,版图 | |
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41 dominions | |
统治权( dominion的名词复数 ); 领土; 疆土; 版图 | |
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42 extremities | |
n.端点( extremity的名词复数 );尽头;手和足;极窘迫的境地 | |
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43 rectify | |
v.订正,矫正,改正 | |
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44 fixed | |
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45 extenuating | |
adj.使减轻的,情有可原的v.(用偏袒的辩解或借口)减轻( extenuate的现在分词 );低估,藐视 | |
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46 mitigate | |
vt.(使)减轻,(使)缓和 | |
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47 blasphemy | |
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48 malediction | |
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49 complexion | |
n.肤色;情况,局面;气质,性格 | |
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50 landmarks | |
n.陆标( landmark的名词复数 );目标;(标志重要阶段的)里程碑 ~ (in sth);有历史意义的建筑物(或遗址) | |
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51 severely | |
adv.严格地;严厉地;非常恶劣地 | |
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52 rebellious | |
adj.造反的,反抗的,难控制的 | |
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53 exterminated | |
v.消灭,根绝( exterminate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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54 simplicity | |
n.简单,简易;朴素;直率,单纯 | |
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55 implicit | |
a.暗示的,含蓄的,不明晰的,绝对的 | |
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56 economize | |
v.节约,节省 | |
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57 emanated | |
v.从…处传出,传出( emanate的过去式和过去分词 );产生,表现,显示 | |
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58 reign | |
n.统治时期,统治,支配,盛行;v.占优势 | |
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59 possessed | |
adj.疯狂的;拥有的,占有的 | |
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60 majesty | |
n.雄伟,壮丽,庄严,威严;最高权威,王权 | |
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61 infliction | |
n.(强加于人身的)痛苦,刑罚 | |
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62 torments | |
(肉体或精神上的)折磨,痛苦( torment的名词复数 ); 造成痛苦的事物[人] | |
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63 minor | |
adj.较小(少)的,较次要的;n.辅修学科;vi.辅修 | |
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64 refinement | |
n.文雅;高尚;精美;精制;精炼 | |
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65 legislative | |
n.立法机构,立法权;adj.立法的,有立法权的 | |
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66 defective | |
adj.有毛病的,有问题的,有瑕疵的 | |
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67 determined | |
adj.坚定的;有决心的 | |
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68 inspection | |
n.检查,审查,检阅 | |
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69 protracted | |
adj.拖延的;延长的v.拖延“protract”的过去式和过去分词 | |
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70 tract | |
n.传单,小册子,大片(土地或森林) | |
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71 litigant | |
n.诉讼当事人;adj.进行诉讼的 | |
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72 emphatic | |
adj.强调的,着重的;无可置疑的,明显的 | |
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73 testimony | |
n.证词;见证,证明 | |
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74 fiscal | |
adj.财政的,会计的,国库的,国库岁入的 | |
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75 varied | |
adj.多样的,多变化的 | |
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76 costly | |
adj.昂贵的,价值高的,豪华的 | |
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77 exigencies | |
n.急切需要 | |
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78 dwelling | |
n.住宅,住所,寓所 | |
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79 humble | |
adj.谦卑的,恭顺的;地位低下的;v.降低,贬低 | |
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80 tenant | |
n.承租人;房客;佃户;v.租借,租用 | |
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81 domain | |
n.(活动等)领域,范围;领地,势力范围 | |
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82 tenure | |
n.终身职位;任期;(土地)保有权,保有期 | |
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83 kinsmen | |
n.家属,亲属( kinsman的名词复数 ) | |
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84 agrarian | |
adj.土地的,农村的,农业的 | |
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85 thrift | |
adj.节约,节俭;n.节俭,节约 | |
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86 prodigality | |
n.浪费,挥霍 | |
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87 vicissitudes | |
n.变迁,世事变化;变迁兴衰( vicissitude的名词复数 );盛衰兴废 | |
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88 avarice | |
n.贪婪;贪心 | |
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89 recurrence | |
n.复发,反复,重现 | |
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90 jubilee | |
n.周年纪念;欢乐 | |
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91 reverted | |
恢复( revert的过去式和过去分词 ); 重提; 回到…上; 归还 | |
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92 proprietors | |
n.所有人,业主( proprietor的名词复数 ) | |
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93 proprietor | |
n.所有人;业主;经营者 | |
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94 alienate | |
vt.使疏远,离间;转让(财产等) | |
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95 precisely | |
adv.恰好,正好,精确地,细致地 | |
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96 attachment | |
n.附属物,附件;依恋;依附 | |
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97 holder | |
n.持有者,占有者;(台,架等)支持物 | |
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98 orphan | |
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99 aged | |
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100 eminence | |
n.卓越,显赫;高地,高处;名家 | |
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101 ornaments | |
n.装饰( ornament的名词复数 );点缀;装饰品;首饰v.装饰,点缀,美化( ornament的第三人称单数 ) | |
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102 ornament | |
v.装饰,美化;n.装饰,装饰物 | |
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103 labors | |
v.努力争取(for)( labor的第三人称单数 );苦干;详细分析;(指引擎)缓慢而困难地运转 | |
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104 joyous | |
adj.充满快乐的;令人高兴的 | |
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105 ballads | |
民歌,民谣,特别指叙述故事的歌( ballad的名词复数 ); 讴 | |
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106 commemorated | |
v.纪念,庆祝( commemorate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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107 mingling | |
adj.混合的 | |
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108 melancholy | |
n.忧郁,愁思;adj.令人感伤(沮丧)的,忧郁的 | |
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109 glided | |
v.滑动( glide的过去式和过去分词 );掠过;(鸟或飞机 ) 滑翔 | |
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110 fully | |
adv.完全地,全部地,彻底地;充分地 | |
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111 gallows | |
n.绞刑架,绞台 | |
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112 ERECTED | |
adj. 直立的,竖立的,笔直的 vt. 使 ... 直立,建立 | |
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113 scattered | |
adj.分散的,稀疏的;散步的;疏疏落落的 | |
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114 admiration | |
n.钦佩,赞美,羡慕 | |
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115 migratory | |
n.候鸟,迁移 | |
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116 descended | |
a.为...后裔的,出身于...的 | |
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117 sheared | |
v.剪羊毛( shear的过去式和过去分词 );切断;剪切 | |
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118 consigned | |
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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119 accomplished | |
adj.有才艺的;有造诣的;达到了的 | |
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120 fabric | |
n.织物,织品,布;构造,结构,组织 | |
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121 apportioned | |
vt.分摊,分配(apportion的过去式与过去分词形式) | |
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122 dwellings | |
n.住处,处所( dwelling的名词复数 ) | |
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123 decrepit | |
adj.衰老的,破旧的 | |
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124 texture | |
n.(织物)质地;(材料)构造;结构;肌理 | |
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125 wrought | |
v.引起;以…原料制作;运转;adj.制造的 | |
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126 situated | |
adj.坐落在...的,处于某种境地的 | |
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127 specified | |
adj.特定的 | |
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128 cultivation | |
n.耕作,培养,栽培(法),养成 | |
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129 subservient | |
adj.卑屈的,阿谀的 | |
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130 commissioners | |
n.专员( commissioner的名词复数 );长官;委员;政府部门的长官 | |
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131 vassals | |
n.奴仆( vassal的名词复数 );(封建时代)诸侯;从属者;下属 | |
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132 dispensed | |
v.分配( dispense的过去式和过去分词 );施与;配(药) | |
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133 interval | |
n.间隔,间距;幕间休息,中场休息 | |
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134 intervals | |
n.[军事]间隔( interval的名词复数 );间隔时间;[数学]区间;(戏剧、电影或音乐会的)幕间休息 | |
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135 statistical | |
adj.统计的,统计学的 | |
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136 qualified | |
adj.合格的,有资格的,胜任的,有限制的 | |
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137 apportioning | |
vt.分摊,分配(apportion的现在分词形式) | |
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138 stipulated | |
vt.& vi.规定;约定adj.[法]合同规定的 | |
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139 rotation | |
n.旋转;循环,轮流 | |
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140 judgment | |
n.审判;判断力,识别力,看法,意见 | |
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141 discreetly | |
ad.(言行)审慎地,慎重地 | |
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142 detriment | |
n.损害;损害物,造成损害的根源 | |
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143 immediate | |
adj.立即的;直接的,最接近的;紧靠的 | |
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144 spacious | |
adj.广阔的,宽敞的 | |
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145 providence | |
n.深谋远虑,天道,天意;远见;节约;上帝 | |
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146 scarcity | |
n.缺乏,不足,萧条 | |
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147 justifying | |
证明…有理( justify的现在分词 ); 为…辩护; 对…作出解释; 为…辩解(或辩护) | |
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148 maize | |
n.玉米 | |
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149 utensils | |
器具,用具,器皿( utensil的名词复数 ); 器物 | |
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150 copper | |
n.铜;铜币;铜器;adj.铜(制)的;(紫)铜色的 | |
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151 inventory | |
n.详细目录,存货清单 | |
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152 regularity | |
n.规律性,规则性;匀称,整齐 | |
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153 largos | |
n.缓慢曲( largo的名词复数 ) | |
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154 conquerors | |
征服者,占领者( conqueror的名词复数 ) | |
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155 conqueror | |
n.征服者,胜利者 | |
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156 contradictory | |
adj.反驳的,反对的,抗辩的;n.正反对,矛盾对立 | |
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157 conformity | |
n.一致,遵从,顺从 | |
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158 credible | |
adj.可信任的,可靠的 | |
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159 judicial | |
adj.司法的,法庭的,审判的,明断的,公正的 | |
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160 investigations | |
(正式的)调查( investigation的名词复数 ); 侦查; 科学研究; 学术研究 | |
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161 sufficiently | |
adv.足够地,充分地 | |
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162 functionaries | |
n.公职人员,官员( functionary的名词复数 ) | |
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163 exempt | |
adj.免除的;v.使免除;n.免税者,被免除义务者 | |
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164 taxation | |
n.征税,税收,税金 | |
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165 formerly | |
adv.从前,以前 | |
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166 exemption | |
n.豁免,免税额,免除 | |
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167 industrious | |
adj.勤劳的,刻苦的,奋发的 | |
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168 motive | |
n.动机,目的;adv.发动的,运动的 | |
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169 sloth | |
n.[动]树懒;懒惰,懒散 | |
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170 wasteful | |
adj.(造成)浪费的,挥霍的 | |
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171 exchequer | |
n.财政部;国库 | |
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172 laboring | |
n.劳动,操劳v.努力争取(for)( labor的现在分词 );苦干;详细分析;(指引擎)缓慢而困难地运转 | |
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173 treadmill | |
n.踏车;单调的工作 | |
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174 incessant | |
adj.不停的,连续的 | |
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175 toil | |
vi.辛劳工作,艰难地行动;n.苦工,难事 | |
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176 riotous | |
adj.骚乱的;狂欢的 | |
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177 adventurous | |
adj.爱冒险的;惊心动魄的,惊险的,刺激的 | |
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178 impoverish | |
vt.使穷困,使贫困 | |
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179 speculation | |
n.思索,沉思;猜测;投机 | |
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180 mendicant | |
n.乞丐;adj.行乞的 | |
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181 stinted | |
v.限制,节省(stint的过去式与过去分词形式) | |
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182 doled | |
救济物( dole的过去式和过去分词 ); 失业救济金 | |
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183 humiliation | |
n.羞辱 | |
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184 pueblos | |
n.印第安人村庄( pueblo的名词复数 ) | |
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185 counteract | |
vt.对…起反作用,对抗,抵消 | |
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186 Christian | |
adj.基督教徒的;n.基督教徒 | |
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187 competence | |
n.能力,胜任,称职 | |
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188 morbid | |
adj.病的;致病的;病态的;可怕的 | |
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189 agitate | |
vi.(for,against)煽动,鼓动;vt.搅动 | |
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190 bosom | |
n.胸,胸部;胸怀;内心;adj.亲密的 | |
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191 obedience | |
n.服从,顺从 | |
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192 tranquillity | |
n. 平静, 安静 | |
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193 tranquil | |
adj. 安静的, 宁静的, 稳定的, 不变的 | |
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194 acquiescence | |
n.默许;顺从 | |
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195 contented | |
adj.满意的,安心的,知足的 | |
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196 remains | |
n.剩余物,残留物;遗体,遗迹 | |
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197 fortress | |
n.堡垒,防御工事 | |
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198 fortresses | |
堡垒,要塞( fortress的名词复数 ) | |
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199 grandeur | |
n.伟大,崇高,宏伟,庄严,豪华 | |
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200 preservation | |
n.保护,维护,保存,保留,保持 | |
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201 attest | |
vt.证明,证实;表明 | |
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202 diverging | |
分开( diverge的现在分词 ); 偏离; 分歧; 分道扬镳 | |
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203 chili | |
n.辣椒 | |
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204 precipices | |
n.悬崖,峭壁( precipice的名词复数 ) | |
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205 hideous | |
adj.丑陋的,可憎的,可怕的,恐怖的 | |
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206 masonry | |
n.砖土建筑;砖石 | |
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207 beset | |
v.镶嵌;困扰,包围 | |
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208 appall | |
vt.使惊骇,使大吃一惊 | |
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209 courageous | |
adj.勇敢的,有胆量的 | |
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210 milestones | |
n.重要事件( milestone的名词复数 );重要阶段;转折点;里程碑 | |
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211 torrents | |
n.倾注;奔流( torrent的名词复数 );急流;爆发;连续不断 | |
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212 cohesion | |
n.团结,凝结力 | |
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213 junto | |
n.秘密结社;私党 | |
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214 descendent | |
adj. 下降的, 降落的, 世袭的 n. 后代,子孙 =descendant | |
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215 animated | |
adj.生气勃勃的,活跃的,愉快的 | |
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216 tenacity | |
n.坚韧 | |
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217 buttresses | |
n.扶壁,扶垛( buttress的名词复数 )v.用扶壁支撑,加固( buttress的第三人称单数 ) | |
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218 planks | |
(厚)木板( plank的名词复数 ); 政纲条目,政策要点 | |
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219 inclination | |
n.倾斜;点头;弯腰;斜坡;倾度;倾向;爱好 | |
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220 frightful | |
adj.可怕的;讨厌的 | |
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221 foamed | |
泡沫的 | |
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222 fathom | |
v.领悟,彻底了解 | |
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223 fabrics | |
织物( fabric的名词复数 ); 布; 构造; (建筑物的)结构(如墙、地面、屋顶):质地 | |
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224 conveyance | |
n.(不动产等的)转让,让与;转让证书;传送;运送;表达;(正)运输工具 | |
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225 shrubs | |
灌木( shrub的名词复数 ) | |
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226 margin | |
n.页边空白;差额;余地,余裕;边,边缘 | |
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227 refreshing | |
adj.使精神振作的,使人清爽的,使人喜欢的 | |
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228 volatile | |
adj.反复无常的,挥发性的,稍纵即逝的,脾气火爆的;n.挥发性物质 | |
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229 incapable | |
adj.无能力的,不能做某事的 | |
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230 anonymous | |
adj.无名的;匿名的;无特色的 | |
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231 destined | |
adj.命中注定的;(for)以…为目的地的 | |
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232 actively | |
adv.积极地,勤奋地 | |
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233 primitive | |
adj.原始的;简单的;n.原(始)人,原始事物 | |
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234 drawn | |
v.拖,拉,拔出;adj.憔悴的,紧张的 | |
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235 forth | |
adv.向前;向外,往外 | |
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236 discriminating | |
a.有辨别能力的 | |
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237 profuse | |
adj.很多的,大量的,极其丰富的 | |
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238 panegyric | |
n.颂词,颂扬 | |
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239 belles | |
n.美女( belle的名词复数 );最美的美女 | |
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240 asunder | |
adj.分离的,化为碎片 | |
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241 crimson | |
n./adj.深(绯)红色(的);vi.脸变绯红色 | |
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242 deference | |
n.尊重,顺从;敬意 | |
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243 conscientiousness | |
责任心 | |
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244 fidelity | |
n.忠诚,忠实;精确 | |
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245 barbarian | |
n.野蛮人;adj.野蛮(人)的;未开化的 | |
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246 expeditious | |
adj.迅速的,敏捷的 | |
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247 binds | |
v.约束( bind的第三人称单数 );装订;捆绑;(用长布条)缠绕 | |
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248 commonwealth | |
n.共和国,联邦,共同体 | |
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249 metropolis | |
n.首府;大城市 | |
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250 converged | |
v.(线条、运动的物体等)会于一点( converge的过去式 );(趋于)相似或相同;人或车辆汇集;聚集 | |
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251 machinery | |
n.(总称)机械,机器;机构 | |
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252 contrived | |
adj.不自然的,做作的;虚构的 | |
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253 paltry | |
adj.无价值的,微不足道的 | |
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254 blessings | |
n.(上帝的)祝福( blessing的名词复数 );好事;福分;因祸得福 | |
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255 plausible | |
adj.似真实的,似乎有理的,似乎可信的 | |
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256 pretext | |
n.借口,托词 | |
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257 aggression | |
n.进攻,侵略,侵犯,侵害 | |
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258 lust | |
n.性(淫)欲;渴(欲)望;vi.对…有强烈的欲望 | |
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259 followers | |
追随者( follower的名词复数 ); 用户; 契据的附面; 从动件 | |
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260 fanaticism | |
n.狂热,盲信 | |
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261 luminary | |
n.名人,天体 | |
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262 potent | |
adj.强有力的,有权势的;有效力的 | |
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263 soften | |
v.(使)变柔软;(使)变柔和 | |
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264 condescension | |
n.自以为高人一等,贬低(别人) | |
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265 hostilities | |
n.战争;敌意(hostility的复数);敌对状态;战事 | |
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266 negotiation | |
n.谈判,协商 | |
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267 expedient | |
adj.有用的,有利的;n.紧急的办法,权宜之计 | |
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268 expedients | |
n.应急有效的,权宜之计的( expedient的名词复数 ) | |
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269 levies | |
(部队)征兵( levy的名词复数 ); 募捐; 被征募的军队 | |
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270 hardy | |
adj.勇敢的,果断的,吃苦的;耐寒的 | |
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271 militia | |
n.民兵,民兵组织 | |
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272 monarchs | |
君主,帝王( monarch的名词复数 ) | |
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273 battalions | |
n.(陆军的)一营(大约有一千兵士)( battalion的名词复数 );协同作战的部队;军队;(组织在一起工作的)队伍 | |
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274 darts | |
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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275 partisan | |
adj.党派性的;游击队的;n.游击队员;党徒 | |
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276 slings | |
抛( sling的第三人称单数 ); 吊挂; 遣送; 押往 | |
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277 surmounted | |
战胜( surmount的过去式和过去分词 ); 克服(困难); 居于…之上; 在…顶上 | |
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278 animating | |
v.使有生气( animate的现在分词 );驱动;使栩栩如生地动作;赋予…以生命 | |
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279 defensive | |
adj.防御的;防卫的;防守的 | |
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280 tunic | |
n.束腰外衣 | |
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281 judicious | |
adj.明智的,明断的,能作出明智决定的 | |
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282 fatigue | |
n.疲劳,劳累 | |
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283 granite | |
adj.花岗岩,花岗石 | |
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284 lodge | |
v.临时住宿,寄宿,寄存,容纳;n.传达室,小旅馆 | |
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285 fortified | |
adj. 加强的 | |
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286 munitions | |
n.军火,弹药;v.供应…军需品 | |
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287 trespass | |
n./v.侵犯,闯入私人领地 | |
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288 extremity | |
n.末端,尽头;尽力;终极;极度 | |
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289 muster | |
v.集合,收集,鼓起,激起;n.集合,检阅,集合人员,点名册 | |
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290 cargo | |
n.(一只船或一架飞机运载的)货物 | |
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291 yoke | |
n.轭;支配;v.给...上轭,连接,使成配偶 | |
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292 disposition | |
n.性情,性格;意向,倾向;排列,部署 | |
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293 foe | |
n.敌人,仇敌 | |
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294 distressing | |
a.使人痛苦的 | |
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295 outrage | |
n.暴行,侮辱,愤怒;vt.凌辱,激怒 | |
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296 maxim | |
n.格言,箴言 | |
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297 maxims | |
n.格言,座右铭( maxim的名词复数 ) | |
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298 benevolence | |
n.慈悲,捐助 | |
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299 prudence | |
n.谨慎,精明,节俭 | |
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300 clemency | |
n.温和,仁慈,宽厚 | |
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301 vanquished | |
v.征服( vanquish的过去式和过去分词 );战胜;克服;抑制 | |
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302 presto | |
adv.急速地;n.急板乐段;adj.急板的 | |
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303 ferocious | |
adj.凶猛的,残暴的,极度的,十分强烈的 | |
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304 obstinate | |
adj.顽固的,倔强的,不易屈服的,较难治愈的 | |
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305 shudder | |
v.战粟,震动,剧烈地摇晃;n.战粟,抖动 | |
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306 expounded | |
论述,详细讲解( expound的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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307 deities | |
n.神,女神( deity的名词复数 );神祗;神灵;神明 | |
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308 forsake | |
vt.遗弃,抛弃;舍弃,放弃 | |
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309 census | |
n.(官方的)人口调查,人口普查 | |
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310 ascertaining | |
v.弄清,确定,查明( ascertain的现在分词 ) | |
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311 acquiesced | |
v.默认,默许( acquiesce的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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312 awe | |
n.敬畏,惊惧;vt.使敬畏,使惊惧 | |
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313 meditating | |
a.沉思的,冥想的 | |
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314 garrisons | |
守备部队,卫戍部队( garrison的名词复数 ) | |
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315 depose | |
vt.免职;宣誓作证 | |
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316 opposition | |
n.反对,敌对 | |
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317 scourges | |
带来灾难的人或东西,祸害( scourge的名词复数 ); 鞭子 | |
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318 requite | |
v.报酬,报答 | |
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319 bestows | |
赠给,授予( bestow的第三人称单数 ) | |
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320 benefactors | |
n.捐助者,施主( benefactor的名词复数 );恩人 | |
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321 lodged | |
v.存放( lodge的过去式和过去分词 );暂住;埋入;(权利、权威等)归属 | |
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322 recesses | |
n.壁凹( recess的名词复数 );(工作或业务活动的)中止或暂停期间;学校的课间休息;某物内部的凹形空间v.把某物放在墙壁的凹处( recess的第三人称单数 );将(墙)做成凹形,在(墙)上做壁龛;休息,休会,休庭 | |
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323 repugnance | |
n.嫌恶 | |
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324 eldest | |
adj.最年长的,最年老的 | |
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325 affinity | |
n.亲和力,密切关系 | |
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326 embarrassment | |
n.尴尬;使人为难的人(事物);障碍;窘迫 | |
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327 intercourse | |
n.性交;交流,交往,交际 | |
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328 conversing | |
v.交谈,谈话( converse的现在分词 ) | |
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329 elegance | |
n.优雅;优美,雅致;精致,巧妙 | |
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330 affected | |
adj.不自然的,假装的 | |
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331 aspired | |
v.渴望,追求( aspire的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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332 loyalty | |
n.忠诚,忠心 | |
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333 pertinacious | |
adj.顽固的 | |
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334 uncommon | |
adj.罕见的,非凡的,不平常的 | |
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335 emigrants | |
n.(从本国移往他国的)移民( emigrant的名词复数 ) | |
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336 jealousy | |
n.妒忌,嫉妒,猜忌 | |
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337 mutinous | |
adj.叛变的,反抗的;adv.反抗地,叛变地;n.反抗,叛变 | |
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338 bosoms | |
胸部( bosom的名词复数 ); 胸怀; 女衣胸部(或胸襟); 和爱护自己的人在一起的情形 | |
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339 mingled | |
混合,混入( mingle的过去式和过去分词 ); 混进,与…交往[联系] | |
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340 colonist | |
n.殖民者,移民 | |
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341 license | |
n.执照,许可证,特许;v.许可,特许 | |
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342 nay | |
adv.不;n.反对票,投反对票者 | |
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343 habitual | |
adj.习惯性的;通常的,惯常的 | |
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344 migration | |
n.迁移,移居,(鸟类等的)迁徙 | |
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345 calamity | |
n.灾害,祸患,不幸事件 | |
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346 epoch | |
n.(新)时代;历元 | |
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347 ramifications | |
n.结果,后果( ramification的名词复数 ) | |
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348 predecessor | |
n.前辈,前任 | |
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349 steadily | |
adv.稳定地;不变地;持续地 | |
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350 benevolent | |
adj.仁慈的,乐善好施的 | |
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351 warrior | |
n.勇士,武士,斗士 | |
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352 victorious | |
adj.胜利的,得胜的 | |
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353 laden | |
adj.装满了的;充满了的;负了重担的;苦恼的 | |
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354 throng | |
n.人群,群众;v.拥挤,群集 | |
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355 tributary | |
n.支流;纳贡国;adj.附庸的;辅助的;支流的 | |
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356 picturesque | |
adj.美丽如画的,(语言)生动的,绘声绘色的 | |
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357 strewing | |
v.撒在…上( strew的现在分词 );散落于;点缀;撒满 | |
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358 humility | |
n.谦逊,谦恭 | |
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359 shrine | |
n.圣地,神龛,庙;v.将...置于神龛内,把...奉为神圣 | |
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360 deity | |
n.神,神性;被奉若神明的人(或物) | |
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361 reclaim | |
v.要求归还,收回;开垦 | |
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362 benighted | |
adj.蒙昧的 | |
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363 superstitions | |
迷信,迷信行为( superstition的名词复数 ) | |
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364 potentate | |
n.统治者;君主 | |
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365 impatience | |
n.不耐烦,急躁 | |
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366 participation | |
n.参与,参加,分享 | |
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367 peculiarity | |
n.独特性,特色;特殊的东西;怪癖 | |
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368 heterogeneous | |
adj.庞杂的;异类的 | |
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