Tarzan of the Apes looked at Lukedi in surprise and then out through the low doorway1 of the hut in an effort to see what it was that had so filled the breast of the black youth with terror.
The little section of the village street, framed by the doorway, showed a milling mass of brown bodies, waving spears, terrified women and children. What could it mean?
At first he thought that Lukedi meant that the Bagegos were coming for Tarzan, but now he guessed that the Bagegos were being beset2 by troubles of their own, and at last he came to the conclusion that some other savage3 tribe had attacked the village.
But, whatever the cause of the uproar4, it was soon over. He saw the Bagegos turn and flee in all directions. Strange figures passed before his eyes in pursuit, and for a time there was comparative silence, only a hurrying of feet, an occasional command and now and then a scream of terror.
Presently three figures burst into the hut—enemy warriors6 searching the village for fugitives7. Lukedi, trembling, inarticulate, paralyzed by fright, crouched8 against the far wall. Tarzan sat leaning against the center pole to which he was chained. At sight of him, the leading warrior5 halted, surprise written upon his face. His fellows joined him and they stood for a moment in excited conversation, evidently discussing their find. Then one of them addressed Tarzan, but in a tongue that the ape-man could not understand, although he realized that there was something vaguely9 and tantalizingly11 familiar about it.
Then one of them discovered Lukedi and, crossing the hut, dragged him to the center of the floor. They spoke12 again to Tarzan, motioning him toward the door so that he understood that they were ordering him from the hut, but in reply he pointed13 to the chain about his neck.
One of the warriors examined the lock that secured the chain, spoke to his fellows, and then left the hut. He returned very shortly with two rocks and, making Tarzan lie upon the ground, placed the padlock upon one of the rocks and pounded upon it with the other until it broke.
As soon as he was released, Tarzan and Lukedi were ordered from the hut, and when they had come out into the open the ape-man had an opportunity to examine his captors more closely. In the center of the village there were about one hundred light-brown warriors surrounding their Bagego prisoners, of whom there were some fifty men, women and children.
The tunics14, cuirasses, helmets, and sandals of the raiders Tarzan knew that he had never seen before, and yet they were as vaguely familiar as was the language spoken by their wearers.
The heavy spears and the swords hanging at their right sides were not precisely15 like any spears or swords that he had ever seen, and yet he had a feeling that they were not entirely16 unfamiliar17 objects. The effect of the appearance of these strangers was tantalizing10 in the extreme. It is not uncommon18 for us to have experiences that are immediately followed by such a sensation of familiarity that we could swear we had lived through them before in their minutest detail, and yet we are unable to recall the time or place or any coincident occurrences.
It was such a sensation that Tarzan experienced now. He thought that he had seen these men before, that he had heard them talk; he almost felt that at some time he had understood their language, and yet at the same time he knew that he had never seen them. Then a figure approached from the opposite side of the village—a white man, garbed19 similarly to the warriors, but in more resplendent trappings, and of a sudden Tarzan of the Apes found the key and the solution of the mystery, for the man who came toward him might have stepped from the pedestal of the statue of Julius Caesar in the Palazzo dei Conservatori in Rome.
These were Romans! A thousand years after the fall of Rome he had been captured by a band of Caesar's legionaries, and now he knew why the language was so vaguely familiar, for Tarzan, in his effort to fit himself for a place in the civilized20 world into which necessity sometimes commanded him, had studied many things and among them Latin, but the reading of Caesar's Commentaries and scanning Vergil do not give one a command of the language and so Tarzan could neither speak nor understand the spoken words, though the smattering that he had of the language was sufficient to make it sound familiar when he heard others speaking it.
Tarzan looked intently at the Caesar-like white man approaching him and at the dusky, stalwart legionaries about him. He shook himself. This indeed must be a dream, and then he saw Lukedi with the other Bagego prisoners. He saw the stake that had been set up for his burning and he knew that as these were realities so were the strange warriors about him.
Each soldier carried a short length of chain, at one end of which was a metal collar and a padlock, and with these they were rapidly chaining the prisoners neck to neck.
While they were thus occupied the white man, who was evidently an officer, was joined by two other whites similarly garbed. The three caught sight of Tarzan and immediately approached and questioned him, but the ape-man shook his head to indicate that he could not understand their language. Then they questioned the soldiers who had discovered him in the hut and finally the commander of the company issued some instructions relative to the ape-man and turned away.
The result was that Tarzan was not chained to the file of black prisoners, but though he again wore the iron collar, the end of the chain was held by one of the legionaries in whose keeping he had evidently been placed.
Tarzan could only believe that his preferential treatment was accorded him because of his color and the reluctance21 of the white officers to chain another white with negroes.
As the raiders marched away from the village one of the officers and a dozen legionaries marched in advance. These were followed by the long line of prisoners accompanied by another officer and a small guard. Behind the prisoners, many of whom were compelled to carry the live chickens that were a part of the spoils of the raid, came another contingent22 of soldiers herding23 the cows and goats and sheep of the villagers, and behind all a large rear guard comprising the greater part of the legionaries under the command of the third officer.
The march led along the base of the mountains in a northerly direction and presently upward diagonally across the rising slopes at the west end of the Wiramwazi range.
It chanced that Tarzan's position was at the rear of the line of black prisoners, at the end of which marched Lukedi.
"Who are these people, Lukedi?" asked Tarzan, after the party had settled down to steady progress.
"These are the ghost people of the Wiramwazi," replied the young Bagego.
"They have come to prevent the killing24 of their fellow," said another black, looking at Tarzan. "I knew Nyuto should not have made him prisoner. I knew that harm would come from it. It is well for us that the ghost people came before we had slain25 him."
"What difference will it make?" said another. "I would rather have been killed in my own village than to be taken into the country of the ghost people and killed there."
"Perhaps they will not kill us," suggested Tarzan.
"They will not kill you because you are one of them, but they will kill the Bagegos because they did dare to take you prisoner."
"But they have taken him prisoner, too," said Lukedi. "Can you see that he is not one of them? He does not even understand their language."
The other blacks shook their heads, but they were not convinced. They had made up their minds that Tarzan was one of the ghost people and they were determined26 that nothing should alter this conviction.
After two hours of marching the trail turned sharply to the right and entered a narrow and rocky gorge27, the entrance to which was so choked with trees and undergrowth that it could not have been visible from any point upon the slopes below.
The gorge soon narrowed until its rocky walls could be spanned by a man's outstretched arms. The floor, strewn with jagged bits of granite28 from the lofty cliffs above, afforded poor and dangerous footing, so that the speed of the column was greatly reduced.
As they proceeded Tarzan realized that, although they were entering more deeply into the mountains, the trend of the gorge was downward rather than upward. The cliffs on either side rose higher and higher above them until in places the gloom of night surrounded them and, far above, the stars twinkled in the morning sky.
For a long hour they followed the windings29 of the dismal30 gorge. The column halted for a minute or two and immediately after the march was resumed Tarzan saw those directly ahead of him filing through an arched gateway31 in the man-made wall of solid masonry32 that entirely blocked the gorge to a height of at least a hundred feet. Also, when it was the ape-man's turn to pass the portal, he saw that it was guarded by other soldiers similar to those into whose hands he had fallen and that it was further reinforced by a great gate of huge, hand-hewn timbers that had been swung open to permit the party to pass.
Ahead of him Tarzan saw a well-worn road leading down into a dense33 forest in which huge, live oaks predominated, though interspersed34 with other varieties of trees, among which he recognized acacias and a variety of plane tree as well as a few cedars35.
Shortly after passing through the gate the officer in charge gave the command to halt at a small village of conical huts that was inhabited by blacks not unlike the Bagegos, but armed with pikes and swords similar to those carried by the legionaries.
Preparations were immediately made to camp in the village, the blacks turning over their huts to the soldiers, quite evidently, judging from the expressions on their faces, with poor grace. The legionaries took possession of whatever they wished and ordered their hosts about with all the authority and assurance of conquerors37.
At this village a ration36 of corn and dried fish was issued to the prisoners. They were given no shelter, but were permitted to gather deadwood and build a fire, around which they clustered, still chained neck to neck.
Numerous birds, strange to Tarzan, flitted among the branches of the trees overhead and numerous monkeys chattered38 and scolded, but monkeys were no novelty to Tarzan of the Apes, who was far more interested in noting the manners and customs of his captors.
Presently an acorn39 fell upon Tarzan's head, but as acorns40 might be expected to fall from oak trees he paid no attention to the occurrence until a second and third acorn in rapid succession struck him squarely from above, and then he glanced up to see a little monkey perched upon a low branch above him.
"So-o, Nkima!" he exclaimed. "How did you get here?"
"I saw them take you from the village of the Gomangani. I followed."
"You came through the gorge, Nkima?"
"Nkima was afraid that the rocks would come together and crush him," said the little monkey, "so he climbed to the top and came over the mountains along the edge. Far, far below he could hear the Tarmangani and the Gomangani walking along the bottom. Away up there the wind blew and little Nkima was cold and the spoor of Sheeta the leopard41 was everywhere and there were great baboons42 who chased little Nkima, so that he was glad when he came to the end of the mountain and saw the forest far below. It was a very steep mountain. Even little Nkima was afraid, but he found the way to the bottom."
"Nkima had better run home," said Tarzan. "This forest is full of strange monkeys."
"I am not afraid," said Nkima. "They are little monkeys and they are all afraid of Nkima. They are homely43 little monkeys. They are not so beautiful as Nkima, but Nkima has seen some of the shes looking at him and admiring him. It is not a bad place for Nkima. What are the strange Tarmangani going to do with Tarzan of the Apes?"
"I do not know, Nkima," said the ape-man.
"Then Nkima will go back and fetch Muviro and the Waziri."
"No," said the ape-man. "Wait until I find the Tarmangani for whom we are searching. Then you may go back with a message for Muviro."
That night Tarzan and the other prisoners slept upon the hard ground in the open and, after it was dark, little Nkima came down and snuggled in his master's arms and there he lay all night, happy to be near the great Tarmangani he loved.
As morning dawned, Ogonyo, who had been captured with the other Bagegos, opened his eyes and looked about him. The camp of the soldiers was just stirring. Ogonyo saw some of the legionaries emerging from the huts that they had commandeered. He saw his fellow prisoners huddled44 close together for warmth and at a little distance from them lay the white man whom he had so recently guarded in the prison hut in the village of Nyuto, his chief. As his eyes rested upon the white man, he saw the head of a little monkey arise from the encircling arms of the sleeper45. He saw it cast a glance in the direction of the legionaries emerging from the huts and then he saw it scamper46 quickly to a near-by tree and swing quickly into the branches above.
"What is the matter, Ogonyo?" cried one of them.
"The ghost of my grandfather!" he exclaimed. "I saw him again. He came out of the mouth of the white man who calls himself Tarzan. He has put a curse upon us because we kept the white man prisoner. Now we are prisoners ourselves and soon we shall be killed and eaten." The others nodded their heads solemnly in confirmation48.
Food similar to that given to them the night before was given to the prisoners, and after they and the legionaries had eaten, the march was resumed in a southerly direction along the dusty road.
Until noon they plodded49 through the dust toward the south, passing through other villages similar to that at which they had camped during the night, and then they turned directly east into a road that joined the main road at this point. Shortly afterward50 Tarzan saw before him stretching across the road to the right and left as far as he could see through the forest, a lofty rampart surmounted51 by palisades and battlements. Directly ahead the roadway swung to the left just inside the outer line of the rampart and passed through a gateway that was flanked by lofty towers. At the base of the rampart was a wide moat through which a stream of water moved slowly, the moat being spanned by a bridge where the road crossed it.
There was a brief halt at the gateway while the officer commanding the company conferred with the commander of the gate, and then the legionaries and their prisoners filed through and Tarzan saw stretching before him not a village of native huts, but a city of substantial buildings.
Those near the gate were one-story stucco houses, apparently52 built around an inner courtyard, as he could see the foliage53 of trees rising high above the roofs, but at a distance down the vista54 of a long avenue he saw the outlines of more imposing55 edifices56 rising to a greater height.
As they proceeded along the avenue they saw many people upon the streets and in the doorways58 of the houses—brown and black people, clothed for the most part in tunics and cloaks, though many of the blacks were almost naked. In the vicinity of the gateway there were a few shops, but as they proceeded along the avenue these gave way to dwellings59 that continued for a considerable distance until they reached a section that seemed to be devoted60 to shops of a better grade and to public buildings. Here they began to encounter white men, though the proportion of them of the total population seemed quite small.
The people they passed stopped to look at the legionaries and their prisoners and at intersections61 little crowds formed and quite a number followed them, but there were mostly small boys.
The ape-man could see that he was attracting a great deal of attention and the people seemed to be commenting and speculating upon him. Some of them called to the legionaries, who answered them good-naturedly, and there was considerable joking and chaffing—probably, Tarzan surmised62, at the expense of the unfortunate prisoners.
During the brief passage through the city Tarzan came to the conclusion that the black inhabitants were the servants, perhaps slaves; the brown men, the soldiers and shopkeepers, while the whites formed the aristocratic or patrician63 class.
Well within the city the company turned to the left into another broad avenue and shortly afterward approached a great circular edifice57 constructed of hewn granite blocks. Arched apertures64 flanked by graceful65 columns rose tier upon tier to a height of forty or fifty feet, and above the first story all of these arches were open. Through them Tarzan could see that the enclosure was without a roof and he guessed that this lofty wall enclosed an arena66, since it bore a marked resemblance to the Colosseum at Rome.
As they came opposite the building the head of the column turned and entered it beneath a low, wide arch and here they were led through numerous corridors in the first story of the building and down a flight of granite steps into gloomy, subterranean67 chambers68, where, opening from a long corridor, the ends of which were lost in darkness in both directions, were a series of narrow doorways before which swung heavy iron gates. In parties of four or five the prisoners were unchained and ordered into the dungeons69 that lay behind.
Tarzan found himself with Lukedi and two other Bagegos in a small room constructed entirely of granite blocks. The only openings were the narrow, grated doorway, through which they entered, and a small, grated window in the top of the wall opposite the door, and through this window came a little light and air. The grating was closed upon them, the heavy padlock snapped, and they were left alone to wonder what fate lay in store for them.
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1
doorway
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| n.门口，(喻)入门；门路，途径 | |
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beset
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| v.镶嵌；困扰，包围 | |
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savage
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| adj.野蛮的；凶恶的，残暴的；n.未开化的人 | |
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uproar
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| n.骚动，喧嚣，鼎沸 | |
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warrior
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| n.勇士，武士，斗士 | |
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warriors
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| 武士，勇士，战士( warrior的名词复数 ) | |
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fugitives
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| n.亡命者，逃命者( fugitive的名词复数 ) | |
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8
crouched
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| v.屈膝，蹲伏( crouch的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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vaguely
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| adv.含糊地，暖昧地 | |
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10
tantalizing
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| adj.逗人的；惹弄人的；撩人的；煽情的v.逗弄，引诱，折磨( tantalize的现在分词 ) | |
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11
tantalizingly
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| adv.…得令人着急，…到令人着急的程度 | |
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spoke
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| n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说 | |
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pointed
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| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
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tunics
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| n.（动植物的）膜皮( tunic的名词复数 )；束腰宽松外衣；一套制服的短上衣；（天主教主教等穿的）短祭袍 | |
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precisely
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| adv.恰好，正好，精确地，细致地 | |
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entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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unfamiliar
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| adj.陌生的，不熟悉的 | |
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uncommon
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| adj.罕见的，非凡的，不平常的 | |
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garbed
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| v.（尤指某类人穿的特定）服装，衣服，制服( garb的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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civilized
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| a.有教养的，文雅的 | |
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reluctance
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| n.厌恶，讨厌，勉强，不情愿 | |
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contingent
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| adj.视条件而定的；n.一组，代表团，分遣队 | |
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herding
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| 中畜群 | |
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killing
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| n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财 | |
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slain
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| 杀死，宰杀，杀戮( slay的过去分词 )； (slay的过去分词) | |
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determined
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| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
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gorge
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| n.咽喉，胃，暴食，山峡；v.塞饱，狼吞虎咽地吃 | |
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granite
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| adj.花岗岩，花岗石 | |
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windings
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| （道路、河流等）蜿蜒的，弯曲的( winding的名词复数 )； 缠绕( wind的现在分词 )； 卷绕； 转动（把手） | |
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dismal
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| adj.阴沉的，凄凉的，令人忧郁的，差劲的 | |
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gateway
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| n.大门口，出入口，途径，方法 | |
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masonry
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| n.砖土建筑；砖石 | |
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dense
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| a.密集的，稠密的，浓密的；密度大的 | |
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interspersed
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| adj.[医]散开的；点缀的v.intersperse的过去式和过去分词 | |
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cedars
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| 雪松，西洋杉( cedar的名词复数 ) | |
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ration
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| n.定量(pl.)给养，口粮；vt.定量供应 | |
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conquerors
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| 征服者，占领者( conqueror的名词复数 ) | |
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chattered
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| （人）喋喋不休( chatter的过去式 )； 唠叨； （牙齿）打战； （机器）震颤 | |
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acorn
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| n.橡实，橡子 | |
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acorns
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| n.橡子，栎实( acorn的名词复数 ) | |
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leopard
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| n.豹 | |
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baboons
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| n.狒狒( baboon的名词复数 ) | |
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43
homely
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| adj.家常的，简朴的；不漂亮的 | |
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44
huddled
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| 挤在一起（huddle的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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sleeper
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| n.睡眠者，卧车，卧铺 | |
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46
scamper
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| v.奔跑，快跑 | |
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47
awakened
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| v.（使）醒( awaken的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）觉醒；弄醒；（使）意识到 | |
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48
confirmation
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| n.证实，确认，批准 | |
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49
plodded
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| v.沉重缓慢地走（路）( plod的过去式和过去分词 )；努力从事；沉闷地苦干；缓慢进行（尤指艰难枯燥的工作） | |
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50
afterward
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| adv.后来；以后 | |
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51
surmounted
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| 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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52
apparently
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| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
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foliage
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| n.叶子，树叶，簇叶 | |
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vista
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| n.远景，深景，展望，回想 | |
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imposing
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| adj.使人难忘的，壮丽的，堂皇的，雄伟的 | |
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edifices
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| n.大建筑物( edifice的名词复数 ) | |
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edifice
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| n.宏伟的建筑物(如宫殿，教室) | |
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doorways
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| n.门口，门道( doorway的名词复数 ) | |
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dwellings
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| n.住处，处所( dwelling的名词复数 ) | |
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devoted
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| adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的 | |
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intersections
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| n.横断( intersection的名词复数 )；交叉；交叉点；交集 | |
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surmised
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| v.臆测，推断( surmise的过去式和过去分词 )；揣测；猜想 | |
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patrician
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| adj.贵族的，显贵的；n.贵族；有教养的人；罗马帝国的地方官 | |
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64
apertures
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| n.孔( aperture的名词复数 )；隙缝；（照相机的）光圈；孔径 | |
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65
graceful
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| adj.优美的，优雅的；得体的 | |
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66
arena
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| n.竞技场，运动场所；竞争场所，舞台 | |
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67
subterranean
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| adj.地下的，地表下的 | |
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68
chambers
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| n.房间( chamber的名词复数 )；（议会的）议院；卧室；会议厅 | |
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69
dungeons
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| n.地牢( dungeon的名词复数 ) | |
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