Ode to Captain Paery?

“By the North Pole, I do challenge thee!”

Love’s Labour’s Lost.
1.

Parry, my man! has thy brave leg

Yet struck its foot against the peg¹

On which the world is spun²?

Or hast thou found No Thoroughfare

Writ³ by the hand of Nature there

Where man has never run!
2.

Hast thou yet traced the Great Unknown

Of channels in the Frozen Zone,

Or held at Icy Bay,

Hast thou still miss’d the proper track

For homeward Indian men that lack

A bracing⁴ by the way?
3.

Still hast thou wasted toil⁵ and trouble

On nothing but the North-Sea Bubble

Of geographic⁶ scholar?

Or found new ways for ships to shape,

Instead of winding⁷ round the Cape⁸,

A short cut thro’ the collar?
4.

Hast found the way that sighs were sent to

The Pole — tho’ God knows whom they went to!

That track reveal’d to Pope —

Or if the Arctic waters sally,

Or terminate in some blind alley¹⁰,

A chilly¹¹ path to grope?
5.

Alas¹²! tho’ Ross, in love with snows,

Has painted them couleur de rose,

It is a dismal¹³ doom¹⁴,

As Clauclio saith, to Winter thrice,

“In regions of thick-ribbed ice”—

All bright — and yet all gloom!
6.

’Tis well for Gheber souls that sit

Before the fire and worship it

With pecks of Wallsend coals,

With feet upon the fender’s front,

Roasting their corns — like Mr. Hunt —

To speculate on poles.
7.

’Tis easy for our Naval¹⁵ Board —

’Tis easy for our Civic¹⁶ Lord

Of London and of ease,

That lies in ninety feet of down,

With fur on his nocturnal gown,

To talk of Frozen Seas!
8.

’Tis fine for Monsieur Ude to sit,

And prate¹⁷ about the mundane¹⁸ spit,

And babble¹⁹ of Cook’s track —

He’d roast the leather off his toes,

Ere he would trudge²⁰ thro’ polar snows,

To plant a British Jack²¹!
9.

Oh, not the proud licentious²² great,

That travel on a carpet skate,

Can value toils²³ like thine!

What ’tis to take a Hecla range,

Through ice unknown to Mrs. Grange,

And alpine²⁴ lumps of brine?
10.

But we, that mount the Hill o’ Rhyme,

Can tell how hard it is to climb

The lofty slippery steep,

Ah! there are more Snow Hills than that

Which doth black Newgate, like a hat,

Upon its forehead, keep.
11.

Perchance thou’rt now — while I am writing —

Feeling a bear’s wet grinder biting

About thy frozen spine²⁵!

Or thou thyself art eating whale,

Oily, and underdone, and stale,

That, haply, cross’d thy line!
12.

But I’ll not dream such dreams of ill —

Rather will I believe thee still

Safe cellar’d in the snow —

Reciting many a gallant²⁶ story,

Of British kings and British glory,

To crony Esquimaux —
13.

Cheering that dismal game where Night

Makes one slow move from black to white

Thro’ all the tedious year —

Or smitten²⁸ by some fond frost fair,

That comb’d out crystals from her hair,

Wooing a seal-skin dear!
14.

So much a long communion tends,

As Byron says, to make us friends

With what we daily view —

God knows the daintiest taste may come

To love a nose that’s like a plum

In marble, cold and blue!
15.

To dote on hair, an oily fleece!

As tho’ it hung from Helen o’ Greece —

They say that love prevails

Ev’n in the veriest polar land —

And surely she may steal thy hand

That used to steal thy nails!
16.

But ah, ere thou art fixed²⁹ to marry,

And take a polar Mrs. Parry,

Think of a six months’ gloom —

Think of the wintry waste, and hers,

Each furnish’d with a dozen furs,

Think of thine icy dome³⁰!
17.

Think of the children born to blubber!

Ah me! hast thou an Indian rubber

Inside! — to hold a meal

For months — about a stone and half

Of whale, and part of a sea calf³¹ —

A fillet of salt veal⁹! —
18.

Some walrus³² ham — no trifle but

A decent steak — a solid cut

Of seal — no wafer slice!

A reindeer’s tongue and drink beside!

Gallons of sperm³³ — not rectified³⁴!

And pails of water-ice!
19.

Oh, canst thou fast and then feast thus?

Still come away, and teach to us

Those blessed alternations —

To-day to run our dinners fine,

To feed on air and then to dine

With Civic Corporations —
20.

To save th’ Old Bailey daily shilling,

And then to take a half-year’s filling

In P.N.‘s pious³⁵ Row —

When ask’d to Hock and haunch o’ ven’son,

Thro’ something we have worn our pens on

For Longman and his Co.
21.

O come and tell us what the Pole is —

Whether it singular and sole is —

Or straight, or crooked³⁶ bent³⁷ —

If very thick or very thin —

Made of what wood — and if akin³⁸

To those there be in Kent?
22.

There’s Combe, there’s Spurzheim, and there’s Gall²⁷,

Have talk’d of poles — yet, after all,

What has the public learn’d?

And Hunt’s account must still defer³⁹ —

He sought the poll at Westminster —

And is not yet return’d!
23.

Alvanly asks if whist, dear soul,

Is play’d in snow-towns near the Pole,

And how the fur-man deals?

And Eldon doubts if it be true,

That icy Chancellors⁴⁰ really do

Exist upon the seals!
24.

Barrow, by well-fed office grates,

Talks of his own bechristen’d Straits,

And longs that he were there;

And Croker, in his cabriolet,

Sighs o’er his brown horse, at his Bay,

And pants to cross the mer!
25.

O come away, and set us right,

And, haply, throw a northern light

On questions such as these:—

Whether, when this drown’d world was lost.

The surflux waves were lock’d in frost,

And turned to Icy Seas!
26.

Is Ursa Major white or black?

Or do the Polar tribes attack

Their neighbors — and what for?

Whether they ever play at cuffs⁴¹,

And then, if they take off their muffs

In pugilistic war?
27.

Tells us, is Winter champion there,

As in our milder fighting air?

Say, what are Chilly loans?

What cures they have for rheums beside,

And if their hearts get ossified⁴²

From eating bread of bones?
28.

Whether they are such dwarfs⁴³ — the quicker

To circulate the vital liquor —

And then, from head to heel —

How short the Methodists must choose

Their dumpy envoys⁴⁴ not to lose

Their toes in spite of zeal⁴⁵?
29.

Whether ’twill soften⁴⁶ or sublime⁴⁷ it

To preach of Hell in such a climate —

Whether may Wesley hope

To win their souls — or that old function

Of seals — with the extreme of unction —

Bespeaks⁴⁸ them for the Pope?
30.

Whether the lamps will e’er be “learn’d”

Where six months’ “midnight oil” is burn’d

Or Letters must confer

With people that have never conn’d

An A, B, C, but live beyond

The Sound of Lancaster!
31.

O come away at any rate —

Well hast thou earn’d a downier state —

With all thy hardy⁴⁹ peers —

Good lack, thou must be glad to smell dock,

And rub thy feet with opodeldock,

After such frosty years.
32.

Mayhap, some gentle dame⁵⁰ at last,

Smit by the perils⁵¹ thou hast pass’d.

However coy before,

Shall bid thee now set up thy rest

In that Brest Harbor, woman’s breast,

And tempt⁵² the Fates no more!

1 peg   

n.木栓，木钉；vt.用木钉钉，用短桩固定

参考例句：

• Hang your overcoat on the peg in the hall.把你的大衣挂在门厅的挂衣钩上。
• He hit the peg mightily on the top with a mallet.他用木槌猛敲木栓顶。

2 spun   

v.纺，杜撰，急转身

参考例句：

• His grandmother spun him a yarn at the fire.他奶奶在火炉边给他讲故事。
• Her skilful fingers spun the wool out to a fine thread.她那灵巧的手指把羊毛纺成了细毛线。

3 writ   

n.命令状，书面命令

参考例句：

• This is a copy of a writ I received this morning.这是今早我收到的书面命令副本。
• You shouldn't treat the newspapers as if they were Holy Writ. 你不应该把报上说的话奉若神明。

4 bracing   

adj.令人振奋的

参考例句：

• The country is bracing itself for the threatened enemy invasion. 这个国家正准备奋起抵抗敌人的入侵威胁。
• The atmosphere in the new government was bracing. 新政府的气氛是令人振奋的。

5 toil   

vi.辛劳工作，艰难地行动；n.苦工，难事

参考例句：

• The wealth comes from the toil of the masses.财富来自大众的辛勤劳动。
• Every single grain is the result of toil.每一粒粮食都来之不易。

6 geographic   

adj.地理学的，地理的

参考例句：

• The city's success owes much to its geographic position. 这座城市的成功很大程度上归功于它的地理位置。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Environmental problems pay no heed to these geographic lines. 环境问题并不理会这些地理界限。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法

7 winding   

n.绕，缠，绕组，线圈

参考例句：

• A winding lane led down towards the river.一条弯弯曲曲的小路通向河边。
• The winding trail caused us to lose our orientation.迂回曲折的小道使我们迷失了方向。

8 cape   

n.海角，岬；披肩，短披风

参考例句：

• I long for a trip to the Cape of Good Hope.我渴望到好望角去旅行。
• She was wearing a cape over her dress.她在外套上披着一件披肩。

9 veal   

n.小牛肉

参考例句：

• She sauteed veal and peppers,preparing a mixed salad while the pan simmered.她先做的一道菜是青椒煎小牛肉，趁着锅还在火上偎着的机会，又做了一道拼盘。
• Marinate the veal in white wine for two hours.把小牛肉用白葡萄酒浸泡两小时。

10 alley   

n.小巷，胡同；小径，小路

参考例句：

• We live in the same alley.我们住在同一条小巷里。
• The blind alley ended in a brick wall.这条死胡同的尽头是砖墙。

11 chilly   

adj.凉快的，寒冷的

参考例句：

• I feel chilly without a coat.我由于没有穿大衣而感到凉飕飕的。
• I grew chilly when the fire went out.炉火熄灭后，寒气逼人。

12 alas   

int.唉(表示悲伤、忧愁、恐惧等)

参考例句：

• Alas!The window is broken!哎呀！窗子破了！
• Alas,the truth is less romantic.然而，真理很少带有浪漫色彩。

13 dismal   

adj.阴沉的，凄凉的，令人忧郁的，差劲的

参考例句：

• That is a rather dismal melody.那是一支相当忧郁的歌曲。
• My prospects of returning to a suitable job are dismal.我重新找到一个合适的工作岗位的希望很渺茫。

14 doom   

n.厄运，劫数；v.注定，命定

参考例句：

• The report on our economic situation is full of doom and gloom.这份关于我们经济状况的报告充满了令人绝望和沮丧的调子。
• The dictator met his doom after ten years of rule.独裁者统治了十年终于完蛋了。

15 naval   

adj.海军的，军舰的，船的

参考例句：

• He took part in a great naval battle.他参加了一次大海战。
• The harbour is an important naval base.该港是一个重要的海军基地。

16 civic   

adj.城市的，都市的，市民的，公民的

参考例句：

• I feel it is my civic duty to vote.我认为投票选举是我作为公民的义务。
• The civic leaders helped to forward the project.市政府领导者协助促进工程的进展。

17 prate   

v.瞎扯，胡说

参考例句：

• Listen to him prating on about nothing.听他瞎唠叨。
• If the hen does not prate,she will not lay.母鸡不唠叨不下蛋。

18 mundane   

adj.平凡的；尘世的；宇宙的

参考例句：

• I hope I can get an interesting job and not something mundane.我希望我可以得到的是一份有趣的工作，而不是一份平凡无奇的。
• I find it humorous sometimes that even the most mundane occurrences can have an impact on our awareness.我发现生活有时挺诙谐的，即使是最平凡的事情也能影响我们的感知。

19 babble   

v.含糊不清地说，胡言乱语地说，儿语

参考例句：

• No one could understand the little baby's babble. 没人能听懂这个小婴孩的话。
• The babble of voices in the next compartment annoyed all of us.隔壁的车厢隔间里不间歇的嘈杂谈话声让我们都很气恼。

20 trudge   

v.步履艰难地走；n.跋涉，费力艰难的步行

参考例句：

• It was a hard trudge up the hill.这趟上山是一次艰难的跋涉。
• The trudge through the forest will be tiresome.长途跋涉穿越森林会令人疲惫不堪。

21 jack   

n.插座，千斤顶，男人；v.抬起，提醒，扛举；n.（Jake）杰克

参考例句：

• I am looking for the headphone jack.我正在找寻头戴式耳机插孔。
• He lifted the car with a jack to change the flat tyre.他用千斤顶把车顶起来换下瘪轮胎。

22 licentious   

adj.放纵的，淫乱的

参考例句：

• She felt uncomfortable for his licentious act.她对他放肆的行为感到有点不舒服。
• The licentious monarch helped bring about his country's downfall.这昏君荒淫无道，加速了这个国家的灭亡。

23 toils   

网

参考例句：

• It did not declare him to be still in Mrs. Dorset's toils. 这并不表明他仍陷于多赛特夫人的情网。
• The thief was caught in the toils of law. 这个贼陷入了法网。

24 alpine   

adj.高山的；n.高山植物

参考例句：

• Alpine flowers are abundant there.那里有很多高山地带的花。
• Its main attractions are alpine lakes and waterfalls .它以高山湖泊和瀑布群为主要特色。

25 spine   

n.脊柱，脊椎；(动植物的)刺；书脊

参考例句：

• He broke his spine in a fall from a horse.他从马上跌下摔断了脊梁骨。
• His spine developed a slight curve.他的脊柱有点弯曲。

26 gallant   

adj.英勇的，豪侠的；(向女人)献殷勤的

参考例句：

• Huang Jiguang's gallant deed is known by all men. 黄继光的英勇事迹尽人皆知。
• These gallant soldiers will protect our country.这些勇敢的士兵会保卫我们的国家的。

27 gall   

v.使烦恼，使焦躁，难堪；n.磨难

参考例句：

• It galled him to have to ask for a loan.必须向人借钱使他感到难堪。
• No gall,no glory.没有磨难，何来荣耀。

28 smitten   

猛打，重击，打击( smite的过去分词 )

参考例句：

• From the moment they met, he was completely smitten by her. 从一见面的那一刻起，他就完全被她迷住了。
• It was easy to see why she was smitten with him. 她很容易看出为何她为他倾倒。

29 fixed   

adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的

参考例句：

• Have you two fixed on a date for the wedding yet?你们俩选定婚期了吗？
• Once the aim is fixed,we should not change it arbitrarily.目标一旦确定，我们就不应该随意改变。

30 dome   

n.圆屋顶，拱顶

参考例句：

• The dome was supported by white marble columns.圆顶由白色大理石柱支撑着。
• They formed the dome with the tree's branches.他们用树枝搭成圆屋顶。

31 calf   

n.小牛，犊，幼仔，小牛皮

参考例句：

• The cow slinked its calf.那头母牛早产了一头小牛犊。
• The calf blared for its mother.牛犊哞哞地高声叫喊找妈妈。

32 walrus   

n.海象

参考例句：

• He is the queer old duck with the knee-length gaiters and walrus mustache.他穿着高及膝盖的皮护腿，留着海象般的八字胡，真是个古怪的老家伙。
• He seemed hardly to notice the big walrus.他几乎没有注意到那只大海象。

33 sperm   

n.精子，精液

参考例句：

• Only one sperm fertilises an egg.只有一个精子使卵子受精。
• In human reproduction,one female egg is usually fertilized by one sperm.在人体生殖过程中，一个精子使一个卵子受精。

34 rectified   

[医]矫正的，调整的

参考例句：

• I am hopeful this misunderstanding will be rectified very quickly. 我相信这个误会将很快得到纠正。
• That mistake could have been rectified within 28 days. 那个错误原本可以在28天内得以纠正。

35 pious   

adj.虔诚的；道貌岸然的

参考例句：

• Alexander is a pious follower of the faith.亚历山大是个虔诚的信徒。
• Her mother was a pious Christian.她母亲是一个虔诚的基督教徒。

36 crooked   

adj.弯曲的；不诚实的，狡猾的，不正当的

参考例句：

• He crooked a finger to tell us to go over to him.他弯了弯手指，示意我们到他那儿去。
• You have to drive slowly on these crooked country roads.在这些弯弯曲曲的乡间小路上你得慢慢开车。

37 bent   

n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的

参考例句：

• He was fully bent upon the project.他一心扑在这项计划上。
• We bent over backward to help them.我们尽了最大努力帮助他们。

38 akin   

adj.同族的，类似的

参考例句：

• She painted flowers and birds pictures akin to those of earlier feminine painters.她画一些同早期女画家类似的花鸟画。
• Listening to his life story is akin to reading a good adventure novel.听他的人生故事犹如阅读一本精彩的冒险小说。

39 defer   

vt.推迟，拖延；vi.(to)遵从，听从，服从

参考例句：

• We wish to defer our decision until next week.我们希望推迟到下星期再作出决定。
• We will defer to whatever the committee decides.我们遵从委员会作出的任何决定。

40 chancellors   

大臣( chancellor的名词复数 )； （某些美国大学的）校长； （德国或奥地利的）总理； （英国大学的）名誉校长

参考例句：

• The opposition leader spoke against the chancellors' proposals and mincemeat of them. 反对派领导人反对大臣们的建议，并将他们驳得体无完肤。
• Chancellors and defence secretaries are supposed to keep such disputes private. 各部大臣和国防大臣本应该私下进行这种争论。

41 cuffs   

n.袖口( cuff的名词复数 )v.掌打，拳打( cuff的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• a collar and cuffs of white lace 带白色蕾丝花边的衣领和袖口
• The cuffs of his shirt were fraying. 他衬衣的袖口磨破了。

42 ossified   

adj.已骨化[硬化]的v.骨化，硬化，使僵化( ossify的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• an ossified political system 僵化的政治制度
• His thinking has ossified as he's grown older;he won't accept new ideas. 随着年岁的增长，他的思想僵化了，他不接受新观点。 来自《简明英汉词典》

43 dwarfs   

n.侏儒，矮子（dwarf的复数形式）vt.（使）显得矮小（dwarf的第三人称单数形式）

参考例句：

• Shakespeare dwarfs other dramatists. 莎士比亚使其他剧作家相形见绌。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The new building dwarfs all the other buildings in the town. 新大楼使城里所有其他建筑物都显得矮小了。 来自辞典例句

44 envoys   

使节( envoy的名词复数 )； 公使； 谈判代表； 使节身份

参考例句：

• the routine tit for tat when countries expel each other's envoys 国家相互驱逐对方使节这种惯常的报复行动
• Marco Polo's travelogue mentions that Kublai Khan sent envoys to Malgache. 马可波罗游记中提到忽必烈曾派使节到马尔加什。

45 zeal   

n.热心，热情，热忱

参考例句：

• Revolutionary zeal caught them up,and they joined the army.革命热情激励他们，于是他们从军了。
• They worked with great zeal to finish the project.他们热情高涨地工作，以期完成这个项目。

46 soften   

v.(使)变柔软；(使)变柔和

参考例句：

• Plastics will soften when exposed to heat.塑料适当加热就可以软化。
• This special cream will help to soften up our skin.这种特殊的护肤霜有助于使皮肤变得柔软。

47 sublime   

adj.崇高的，伟大的；极度的，不顾后果的

参考例句：

• We should take some time to enjoy the sublime beauty of nature.我们应该花些时间去欣赏大自然的壮丽景象。
• Olympic games play as an important arena to exhibit the sublime idea.奥运会，就是展示此崇高理念的重要舞台。

48 bespeaks   

v.预定( bespeak的第三人称单数 )；订（货）；证明；预先请求

参考例句：

• The tone of his text bespeaks a certain tiredness. 他的笔调透出一种倦意。 来自辞典例句
• His record as mayor of New York bespeaks toughness. 他作为纽约市长态度十分强烈。 来自互联网

49 hardy   

adj.勇敢的，果断的，吃苦的；耐寒的

参考例句：

• The kind of plant is a hardy annual.这种植物是耐寒的一年生植物。
• He is a hardy person.他是一个能吃苦耐劳的人。

50 dame   

n.女士

参考例句：

• The dame tell of her experience as a wife and mother.这位年长妇女讲了她作妻子和母亲的经验。
• If you stick around,you'll have to marry that dame.如果再逗留多一会，你就要跟那个夫人结婚。

51 perils   

极大危险( peril的名词复数 )； 危险的事（或环境）

参考例句：

• The commander bade his men be undaunted in the face of perils. 指挥员命令他的战士要临危不惧。
• With how many more perils and disasters would he load himself? 他还要再冒多少风险和遭受多少灾难？

52 tempt   

vt.引诱，勾引，吸引，引起…的兴趣

参考例句：

• Nothing could tempt him to such a course of action.什么都不能诱使他去那样做。
• The fact that she had become wealthy did not tempt her to alter her frugal way of life.她有钱了，可这丝毫没能让她改变节俭的生活习惯。