A Black Job.

“No doubt the pleasure is as great,

Of being cheated as to cheat.”— HUDIBRAS.

The history of human-kind to trace,

Since Eve — the first of dupes — our doom¹ unriddled,

A certain portion of the human race

Has certainly a taste for being diddled.

Witness the famous Mississippi dreams!

A rage that time seems only to redouble —

The Banks, Joint-Stocks, and all the flimsy schemes,

For rolling in Pactolian streams,

That cost our modern rogues² so little trouble.

No matter what — to pasture cows on stubble,

To twist sea-sand into a solid rope,

To make French bricks and fancy bread of rubble³,

Or light with gas the whole celestial⁴ cope —

Only propose to blow a bubble,

And Lord! what hundreds will subscribe⁵ for soap!

Soap! — it reminds me of a little tale,

Tho’ not a pig’s, the hawbuck’s glory,

When rustic⁶ games and merriment prevail —

But here’s my story:

Once on a time — no matter when —

A knot of very charitable men

Set up a Philanthropical Society,

Professing⁷ on a certain plan,

To benefit the race of man,

And in particular that dark variety,

Which some suppose inferior — as in vermin

The sable⁸ is to ermine,

As smut to flour, as coal to alabaster⁹,

As crows to swans, as soot¹⁰ to driven snow,

As blacking, or as ink, to “milk below,”

Or yet a better simile¹¹ to show,

As ragman’s dolls to images in plaster!

However, as is usual in our city,

They had a sort of managing Committee,

A board of grave responsible Directors —

A Secretary, good at pen and ink —

A Treasurer¹², of course, to keep the chink,

And quite an army of Collectors!

Not merely male, but female duns,

Young, old, and aged¹⁵" target="_blank">middle-aged¹⁴ — of all degrees —

With many of those persevering¹⁶ ones,

Who mite¹⁷ by mite would beg a cheese!

And what might be their aim?

To rescue Afric’s sable sons from fetters¹⁸ —

To save their bodies from the burning shame

Of branding with hot letters —

Their shoulders from the cowhide’s bloody¹⁹ strokes,

Their necks from iron yokes²⁰?

To end or mitigate²¹ the ills of slavery,

The Planter’s avarice²², the Driver’s knavery²³?

To school the heathen Negroes and enlighten ’em,

To polish up and brighten ’em,

And make them worthy²⁴ of eternal bliss²⁵?

Why, no — the simple end and aim was this —

Reading a well-known proverb much amiss —

To wash and whiten ’em!

They look’d so ugly in their sable hides:

So dark, so dingy²⁶, like a grubby lot

Of sooty sweeps, or colliers, and besides,

However the poor elves

Might wash themselves,

Nobody knew if they were clean or not —

On Nature’s fairness they were quite a blot²⁷!

Not to forget more serious complaints

That even while they join’d in pious²⁸ hymn²⁹,

So black they were and grim,

In face and limb,

They look’d like Devils, tho’ they sang like Saints!

The thing was undeniable!

They wanted washing! not that slight ablution

To which the skin of the White Man is liable,

Merely removing transient pollution —

But good, hard, honest, energetic rubbing

And scrubbing,

Sousing each sooty frame from heels to head

With stiff, strong, saponaceous lather³⁰,

And pails of water — hottish rather,

But not so boiling as to turn ’em red!

So spoke³¹ the philanthropic man

Who laid, and hatch’d, and nursed the plan —

And oh! to view its glorious consummation!

The brooms and mops,

The tubs and slops,

The baths and brushes in full operation!

To see each Crow, or Jim or John,

Go in a raven³² and come out a swan!

While fair as Cavendishes, Vanes, and Russels,

Black Venus rises from the soapy surge,

And all the little Niggerlings emerge

As lily-white as mussels.

Sweet was the vision — but alas³³!

However in prospectus³⁵ bright and sunny,

To bring such visionary scenes to pass

One thing was requisite³⁶, and that was — money!

Money, that pays the laundress and her bills,

For socks and collars, shirts and frills,

Cravats³⁷ and kerchiefs — money, without which

The negroes must remain as dark as pitch;

A thing to make all Christians³⁸ sad and shivery,

To think of millions of immortal³⁹ souls

Dwelling⁴⁰ in bodies black as coals,

And living — so to speak — in Satan’s livery!

Money — the root of evil — dross⁴¹, and stuff!

But oh! how happy ought the rich to feel,

Whose means enable them to give enough

To blanch⁴² an African from head to heel!

How blessed — yea, thrice blessed — to subscribe

Enough to scour⁴³ a tribe!

While he whose fortune was at best a brittle⁴⁴ one,

Although he gave but pence, how sweet to know

He helped to bleach⁴⁵ a Hottentot’s great toe,

Or little one!

Moved by this logic⁴⁶, or appall’d,

To persons of a certain turn so proper,

The money came when call’d,

In silver, gold, and copper⁴⁷,

Presents from “Friends to blacks,” or foes⁴⁸ to whites,

“Trifles,” and “offerings,” and “widows’ mites,”

Plump legacies⁴⁹, and yearly benefactions,

With other gifts

And charitable lifts,

Printed in lists and quarterly transactions.

As thus — Elisha Brettel,

An iron kettle.

The Dowager Lady Scannel,

A piece of flannel⁵⁰.

Rebecca Pope,

A bar of soap.

The Misses Howels,

Half-a-dozen towels.

The Master Rush’s,

Two scrubbing-brushes.

Mr. T. Groom⁵¹,

A stable broom,

And Mrs. Grubb,

A tub.

Great were the sums collected!

And great results in consequence expected.

But somehow, in the teeth of all endeavor,

According to reports

At yearly courts,

The blacks, confound them! were as black as ever!

Yes! spite of all the water sous’d aloft,

Soap, plain and mottled, hard and soft,

Soda⁵² and pearlash, huckaback and sand,

Brooms, brushes, palm of hand,

And scourers in the office strong and clever,

In spite of all the tubbing, rubbing, scrubbing,

The routing and the grubbing,

The blacks, confound them! were as black as ever!

In fact in his perennial⁵³ speech,

The Chairman own’d the niggers did not bleach,

As he had hoped.

From being washed and soaped,

A circumstance he named with grief and pity;

But still he had the happiness to say,

For self and the Committee,

By persevering in the present way

And scrubbing at the Blacks from day to day,

Although he could not promise perfect white,

From certain symptoms that had come to light,

He hoped in time to get them gray!

Lull’d by this vague assurance,

The friends and patrons of the sable tribe

Continued to subscribe,

And waited, waited on with much endurance —

Many a frugal⁵⁴ sister, thrifty⁵⁵ daughter —

Many a stinted⁵⁶ widow, pinching mother —

With income by the tax made somewhat shorter,

Still paid implicitly⁵⁸ her crown per quarter,

Only to hear as ev’ry year came round,

That Mr. Treasurer had spent her pound;

And as she loved her sable brother,

That Mr. Treasurer must have another!

But, spite of pounds or guineas,

Instead of giving any hint

Of turning to a neutral tint⁵⁷,

The plaguy Negroes and their piccaninnies

Were still the color of the bird that caws —

Only some very aged souls

Showing a little gray upon their polls,

Like daws!

However, nothing clashed

By such repeated failures, or abashed⁵⁹,

The Court still met; — the Chairman and Directors,

The Secretary, good at pen and ink,

The worthy Treasurer, who kept the chink,

And all the cash Collectors;

With hundreds of that class, so kindly⁶⁰ credulous⁶¹,

Without whose help, no charlatan⁶² alive,

Or Bubble Company could hope to thrive,

Or busy Chevalier, however sedulous⁶³ —

Those good and easy innocents in fact,

Who willingly receiving chaff⁶⁴ for corn,

As pointed⁶⁵ out by Butler’s tact⁶⁶,

Still find a secret pleasure in the act

Of being pluck’d and shorn!

However, in long hundreds there they were,

Thronging⁶⁷ the hot, and close, and dusty court,

To hear once more addresses from the Chair,

And regular Report.

Alas! concluding in the usual strain,

That what with everlasting⁶⁸ wear and tear,

The scrubbing-brushes hadn’t got a hair —

The brooms — mere¹³ stumps⁶⁹ — would never serve again —

The soap was gone, the flannels⁷⁰ all in shreds⁷¹,

The towels worn to threads,

The tubs and pails too shattered to be mended —

And what was added with a deal of pain,

But as accounts correctly would explain,

Tho’ thirty thousand pounds had been expended⁷² —

The Blackamoors had still been wash’d in vain!

“In fact, the Negroes were as black as ink,

Yet, still as the Committee dared to think,

And hoped the proposition was not rash,

A rather free expenditure⁷³ of cash —”

But ere the prospect³⁴ could be made more sunny —

Up jump’d a little, lemon-colored man,

And with an eager stammer⁷⁴, thus began,

In angry earnest, though it sounded funny:

“What! More subscriptions⁷⁵! No — no — no — not I!”

“You have had time — time — time enough to try!

They WON’T come white! then why — why — why — why,

More money?”

“Why!” said the Chairman, with an accent bland⁷⁶,

And gentle waving of his dexter hand,

“Why must we have more dross, and dirt, and dust,

More filthy⁷⁷ lucre⁷⁸, in a word, more gold —

The why, sir, very easily is told,

Because Humanity declares we must!

We’ve scrubb’d the negroes till we’ve nearly killed ’em,

And finding that we cannot wash them white,

But still their nigritude offends the sight,

We mean to gild⁷⁹ ’em!“

1 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。

2 rogues   

n.流氓( rogue的名词复数 )；无赖；调皮捣蛋的人；离群的野兽

参考例句：

• 'I'll show these rogues that I'm an honest woman,'said my mother. “我要让那些恶棍知道，我是个诚实的女人。” 来自英汉文学 - 金银岛
• The rogues looked at each other, but swallowed the home-thrust in silence. 那些恶棍面面相觑，但只好默默咽下这正中要害的话。 来自英汉文学 - 金银岛

3 rubble   

n.（一堆）碎石，瓦砾

参考例句：

• After the earthquake,it took months to clean up the rubble.地震后，花了数月才清理完瓦砾。
• After the war many cities were full of rubble.战后许多城市到处可见颓垣残壁。

4 celestial   

adj.天体的；天上的

参考例句：

• The rosy light yet beamed like a celestial dawn.玫瑰色的红光依然象天上的朝霞一样绚丽。
• Gravity governs the motions of celestial bodies.万有引力控制着天体的运动。

5 subscribe   

vi.(to)订阅，订购；同意；vt.捐助，赞助

参考例句：

• I heartily subscribe to that sentiment.我十分赞同那个观点。
• The magazine is trying to get more readers to subscribe.该杂志正大力发展新订户。

6 rustic   

adj.乡村的，有乡村特色的；n.乡下人，乡巴佬

参考例句：

• It was nearly seven months of leisurely rustic living before Michael felt real boredom.这种悠闲的乡村生活过了差不多七个月之后,迈克尔开始感到烦闷。
• We hoped the fresh air and rustic atmosphere would help him adjust.我们希望新鲜的空气和乡村的氛围能帮他调整自己。

7 professing   

声称( profess的现在分词 )； 宣称； 公开表明； 信奉

参考例句：

• But( which becometh women professing godliness) with good works. 只要有善行。这才与自称是敬神的女人相宜。
• Professing Christianity, he had little compassion in his make-up. 他号称信奉基督教，却没有什么慈悲心肠。

8 sable   

n.黑貂；adj.黑色的

参考例句：

• Artists' brushes are sometimes made of sable.画家的画笔有的是用貂毛制的。
• Down the sable flood they glided.他们在黑黝黝的洪水中随波逐流。

9 alabaster   

adj.雪白的；n.雪花石膏；条纹大理石

参考例句：

• The floor was marble tile,and the columns alabaster.地板是由大理石铺成的，柱子则是雪花石膏打造而成。
• Her skin was like alabaster.她的皮肤光洁雪白。

10 soot   

n.煤烟，烟尘；vt.熏以煤烟

参考例句：

• Soot is the product of the imperfect combustion of fuel.煤烟是燃料不完全燃烧的产物。
• The chimney was choked with soot.烟囱被煤灰堵塞了。

11 simile   

n.直喻，明喻

参考例句：

• I believe this simile largely speaks the truth.我相信这种比拟在很大程度上道出了真实。
• It is a trite simile to compare her teeth to pearls.把她的牙齿比做珍珠是陈腐的比喻。

12 treasurer   

n.司库，财务主管

参考例句：

• Mr. Smith was succeeded by Mrs.Jones as treasurer.琼斯夫人继史密斯先生任会计。
• The treasurer was arrested for trying to manipulate the company's financial records.财务主管由于试图窜改公司财政帐目而被拘留。

13 mere   

adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过

参考例句：

• That is a mere repetition of what you said before.那不过是重复了你以前讲的话。
• It's a mere waste of time waiting any longer.再等下去纯粹是浪费时间。

14 middle-aged   

adj.中年的

参考例句：

• I noticed two middle-aged passengers.我注意到两个中年乘客。
• The new skin balm was welcome by middle-aged women.这种新护肤香膏受到了中年妇女的欢迎。

15 aged   

adj.年老的，陈年的

参考例句：

• He had put on weight and aged a little.他胖了，也老点了。
• He is aged,but his memory is still good.他已年老，然而记忆力还好。

16 persevering   

a.坚忍不拔的

参考例句：

• They will only triumph by persevering in their struggle against natural calamities. 他们只有坚持与自然灾害搏斗，才能取得胜利。
• Success belongs to the persevering. 胜利属于不屈不挠的人。

17 mite   

n.极小的东西；小铜币

参考例句：

• The poor mite was so ill.可怜的孩子病得这么重。
• He is a mite taller than I.他比我高一点点。

18 fetters   

n.脚镣( fetter的名词复数 )；束缚v.给…上脚镣，束缚( fetter的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• They were at last freed from the fetters of ignorance. 他们终于从愚昧无知的束缚中解脱出来。
• They will run wild freed from the fetters of control. 他们一旦摆脱了束缚，就会变得无法无天。 来自《简明英汉词典》

19 bloody   

adj.非常的的；流血的；残忍的；adv.很；vt.血染

参考例句：

• He got a bloody nose in the fight.他在打斗中被打得鼻子流血。
• He is a bloody fool.他是一个十足的笨蛋。

20 yokes   

轭( yoke的名词复数 )； 奴役； 轭形扁担； 上衣抵肩

参考例句：

• The rhombic drive mechanism has two "yokes". 菱形驱动机构有两个“轭”。
• Contact pressure increase by 1.5 –5 with same stems and yokes. 即使采用相同的阀杆和轭架，接触压力也能够增加1.5至5倍。

21 mitigate   

vt.（使）减轻，（使）缓和

参考例句：

• The government is trying to mitigate the effects of inflation.政府正试图缓和通货膨胀的影响。
• Governments should endeavour to mitigate distress.政府应努力缓解贫困问题。

22 avarice   

n.贪婪；贪心

参考例句：

• Avarice is the bane to happiness.贪婪是损毁幸福的祸根。
• Their avarice knows no bounds and you can never satisfy them.他们贪得无厌，你永远无法满足他们。

23 knavery   

n.恶行，欺诈的行为

参考例句：

• Knavery may serve,but honesty is best.欺诈可能有用，诚实却是上策。
• This is flat knavery.这是十足的无赖作风。

24 worthy   

adj.(of)值得的，配得上的；有价值的

参考例句：

• I did not esteem him to be worthy of trust.我认为他不值得信赖。
• There occurred nothing that was worthy to be mentioned.没有值得一提的事发生。

25 bliss   

n.狂喜，福佑，天赐的福

参考例句：

• It's sheer bliss to be able to spend the day in bed.整天都可以躺在床上真是幸福。
• He's in bliss that he's won the Nobel Prize.他非常高兴，因为获得了诺贝尔奖金。

26 dingy   

adj.昏暗的，肮脏的

参考例句：

• It was a street of dingy houses huddled together. 这是一条挤满了破旧房子的街巷。
• The dingy cottage was converted into a neat tasteful residence.那间脏黑的小屋已变成一个整洁雅致的住宅。

27 blot   

vt.弄脏（用吸墨纸）吸干；n.污点，污渍

参考例句：

• That new factory is a blot on the landscape.那新建的工厂破坏了此地的景色。
• The crime he committed is a blot on his record.他犯的罪是他的履历中的一个污点。

28 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。

29 hymn   

n.赞美诗，圣歌，颂歌

参考例句：

• They sang a hymn of praise to God.他们唱着圣歌，赞美上帝。
• The choir has sung only two verses of the last hymn.合唱团只唱了最后一首赞美诗的两个段落。

30 lather   

n.(肥皂水的)泡沫，激动

参考例句：

• Soap will not lather in sea-water.肥皂在海水里不起泡沫。
• He always gets in a lather when he has an argument with his wife.当他与妻子发生争论时他总是很激动。

31 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

32 raven   

n.渡鸟，乌鸦；adj.乌亮的

参考例句：

• We know the raven will never leave the man's room.我们知道了乌鸦再也不会离开那个男人的房间。
• Her charming face was framed with raven hair.她迷人的脸上垂落着乌亮的黑发。

33 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。

34 prospect   

n.前景，前途；景色，视野

参考例句：

• This state of things holds out a cheerful prospect.事态呈现出可喜的前景。
• The prospect became more evident.前景变得更加明朗了。

35 prospectus   

n.计划书；说明书；慕股书

参考例句：

• An order form was included with the prospectus.订单附在说明书上。
• The prospectus is the most important instrument of legal document.招股说明书是上市公司信息披露制度最重要法律文件。

36 requisite   

adj.需要的，必不可少的；n.必需品

参考例句：

• He hasn't got the requisite qualifications for the job.他不具备这工作所需的资格。
• Food and air are requisite for life.食物和空气是生命的必需品。

37 cravats   

n.（系在衬衫衣领里面的）男式围巾( cravat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

38 Christians   

n.基督教徒( Christian的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Christians of all denominations attended the conference. 基督教所有教派的人都出席了这次会议。
• His novel about Jesus caused a furore among Christians. 他关于耶稣的小说激起了基督教徒的公愤。

39 immortal   

adj.不朽的；永生的，不死的；神的

参考例句：

• The wild cocoa tree is effectively immortal.野生可可树实际上是不会死的。
• The heroes of the people are immortal!人民英雄永垂不朽！

40 dwelling   

n.住宅，住所，寓所

参考例句：

• Those two men are dwelling with us.那两个人跟我们住在一起。
• He occupies a three-story dwelling place on the Park Street.他在派克街上有一幢3层楼的寓所。

41 dross   

n.渣滓；无用之物

参考例句：

• Caroline felt the value of the true ore,and knew the deception of the flashy dross.卡罗琳辨别出了真金的价值，知道那种炫耀的铁渣只有迷惑人的外表。
• The best players go off to the big clubs,leaving us the dross.最好的队员都投奔大俱乐部去了，就只给我们剩下些不中用的人。

42 blanch   

v.漂白；使变白；使(植物)不见日光而变白

参考例句：

• We blanch almonds by soaking off their skins in boiling water.我们把杏仁泡在沸水中去皮弄成白色。
• To blanch involves plunging food into boiling water,usually very quickly.漂白是将食物放进开水里，通常非常快。

43 scour   

v.搜索；擦，洗，腹泻，冲刷

参考例句：

• Mother made me scour the family silver.母亲让我擦洗家里的银器。
• We scoured the telephone directory for clues.我们仔细查阅电话簿以寻找线索。

44 brittle   

adj.易碎的；脆弱的；冷淡的；(声音)尖利的

参考例句：

• The pond was covered in a brittle layer of ice.池塘覆盖了一层易碎的冰。
• She gave a brittle laugh.她冷淡地笑了笑。

45 bleach   

vt.使漂白；vi.变白；n.漂白剂

参考例句：

• These products don't bleach the hair.这些产品不会使头发变白。
• Did you bleach this tablecloth?你把这块桌布漂白了吗？

46 logic   

n.逻辑(学)；逻辑性

参考例句：

• What sort of logic is that?这是什么逻辑？
• I don't follow the logic of your argument.我不明白你的论点逻辑性何在。

47 copper   

n.铜；铜币；铜器；adj.铜(制)的；(紫)铜色的

参考例句：

• The students are asked to prove the purity of copper.要求学生们检验铜的纯度。
• Copper is a good medium for the conduction of heat and electricity.铜是热和电的良导体。

48 foes   

敌人，仇敌( foe的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• They steadily pushed their foes before them. 他们不停地追击敌人。
• She had fought many battles, vanquished many foes. 她身经百战，挫败过很多对手。

49 legacies   

n.遗产( legacy的名词复数 )；遗留之物；遗留问题；后遗症

参考例句：

• Books are the legacies that a great genius leaves to mankind. 书是伟大的天才留给人类的精神财富。 来自辞典例句
• General legacies are subject to the same principles as demonstrative legacies. 一般的遗赠要与指定数目的遗赠遵循同样的原则。 来自辞典例句

50 flannel   

n.法兰绒；法兰绒衣服

参考例句：

• She always wears a grey flannel trousers.她总是穿一条灰色法兰绒长裤。
• She was looking luscious in a flannel shirt.她穿着法兰绒裙子，看上去楚楚动人。

51 groom   

vt.给（马、狗等）梳毛，照料，使...整洁

参考例句：

• His father was a groom.他父亲曾是个马夫。
• George was already being groomed for the top job.为承担这份高级工作，乔治已在接受专门的培训。

52 soda   

n.苏打水；汽水

参考例句：

• She doesn't enjoy drinking chocolate soda.她不喜欢喝巧克力汽水。
• I will freshen your drink with more soda and ice cubes.我给你的饮料重加一些苏打水和冰块。

53 perennial   

adj.终年的；长久的

参考例句：

• I wonder at her perennial youthfulness.我对她青春常驻感到惊讶。
• There's a perennial shortage of teachers with science qualifications.有理科教学资格的老师一直都很短缺。

54 frugal   

adj.节俭的，节约的，少量的，微量的

参考例句：

• He was a VIP,but he had a frugal life.他是位要人，但生活俭朴。
• The old woman is frugal to the extreme.那老妇人节约到了极点。

55 thrifty   

adj.节俭的；兴旺的；健壮的

参考例句：

• Except for smoking and drinking,he is a thrifty man.除了抽烟、喝酒，他是个生活节俭的人。
• She was a thrifty woman and managed to put aside some money every month.她是个很会持家的妇女，每月都设法存些钱。

56 stinted   

v.限制，节省（stint的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• Penny-pinching landlords stinted their tenants on heat and hot water. 小气的房东在房客的取暖和热水供应上进行克扣。 来自互联网
• She stinted herself of food in order to let the children have enough. 她自己省着吃，好让孩子们吃饱。 来自互联网

57 tint   

n.淡色，浅色；染发剂；vt.着以淡淡的颜色

参考例句：

• You can't get up that naturalness and artless rosy tint in after days.你今后不再会有这种自然和朴实无华的红润脸色。
• She gave me instructions on how to apply the tint.她告诉我如何使用染发剂。

58 implicitly   

adv. 含蓄地, 暗中地, 毫不保留地

参考例句：

• Many verbs and many words of other kinds are implicitly causal. 许多动词和许多其他类词都蕴涵着因果关系。
• I can trust Mr. Somerville implicitly, I suppose? 我想，我可以毫无保留地信任萨莫维尔先生吧？

59 abashed   

adj.窘迫的，尴尬的v.使羞愧，使局促，使窘迫( abash的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He glanced at Juliet accusingly and she looked suitably abashed. 他怪罪的一瞥，朱丽叶自然显得很窘。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The girl was abashed by the laughter of her classmates. 那小姑娘因同学的哄笑而局促不安。 来自《简明英汉词典》

60 kindly   

adj.和蔼的，温和的，爽快的；adv.温和地，亲切地

参考例句：

• Her neighbours spoke of her as kindly and hospitable.她的邻居都说她和蔼可亲、热情好客。
• A shadow passed over the kindly face of the old woman.一道阴影掠过老太太慈祥的面孔。

61 credulous   

adj.轻信的，易信的

参考例句：

• You must be credulous if she fooled you with that story.连她那种话都能把你骗倒，你一定是太容易相信别人了。
• Credulous attitude will only make you take anything for granted.轻信的态度只会使你想当然。

62 charlatan   

n.骗子；江湖医生；假内行

参考例句：

• The charlatan boasted that he could charm off any disease.这个江湖骗子吹牛说他能用符咒治好各种疾病。
• He was sure that he was dealing with a charlatan.他真以为自己遇上了江湖骗子。

63 sedulous   

adj.勤勉的，努力的

参考例句：

• She is as gifted as sedulous.她不但有天赋，而且勤奋。
• The young woman was so sedulous that she received a commendation for her hard work.年轻女性是如此孜孜不倦,她收到了表扬她的辛勤工作。

64 chaff   

v.取笑，嘲笑；n.谷壳

参考例句：

• I didn't mind their chaff.我不在乎他们的玩笑。
• Old birds are not caught with chaff.谷糠难诱老雀。

65 pointed   

adj.尖的，直截了当的

参考例句：

• He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
• She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。

66 tact   

n.机敏，圆滑，得体

参考例句：

• She showed great tact in dealing with a tricky situation.她处理棘手的局面表现得十分老练。
• Tact is a valuable commodity.圆滑老练是很有用处的。

67 thronging   

v.成群，挤满( throng的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Architects from around the world are thronging to Beijing theacross the capital. 来自世界各地的建筑师都蜂拥而至这座处处高楼耸立的大都市——北京。 来自互联网
• People are thronging to his new play. 人们成群结队地去看他那出新戏。 来自互联网

68 everlasting   

adj.永恒的，持久的，无止境的

参考例句：

• These tyres are advertised as being everlasting.广告上说轮胎持久耐用。
• He believes in everlasting life after death.他相信死后有不朽的生命。

69 stumps   

（被砍下的树的）树桩( stump的名词复数 )； 残肢； （板球三柱门的）柱； 残余部分

参考例句：

• Rocks and stumps supplied the place of chairs at the picnic. 野餐时石头和树桩都充当了椅子。
• If you don't stir your stumps, Tom, you'll be late for school again. 汤姆，如果你不快走，上学又要迟到了。

70 flannels   

法兰绒男裤； 法兰绒( flannel的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Erik had been seen in flannels and an imitation Panama hat. 人们看到埃里克身穿法兰绒裤，头戴仿制巴拿马草帽。
• He is wearing flannels and a blue jacket. 他穿着一条法兰绒裤子和一件蓝夹克。

71 shreds   

v.撕碎，切碎( shred的第三人称单数 )；用撕毁机撕毁（文件）

参考例句：

• Peel the carrots and cut them into shreds. 将胡罗卜削皮，切成丝。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I want to take this diary and rip it into shreds. 我真想一赌气扯了这日记。 来自汉英文学 - 中国现代小说

72 expended   

v.花费( expend的过去式和过去分词 )；使用（钱等）做某事；用光；耗尽

参考例句：

• She expended all her efforts on the care of home and children. 她把所有精力都花在料理家务和照顾孩子上。
• The enemy had expended all their ammunition. 敌人已耗尽所有的弹药。 来自《简明英汉词典》

73 expenditure   

n.(时间、劳力、金钱等)支出；使用，消耗

参考例句：

• The entry of all expenditure is necessary.有必要把一切开支入账。
• The monthly expenditure of our family is four hundred dollars altogether.我们一家的开销每月共计四百元。

74 stammer   

n.结巴，口吃；v.结结巴巴地说

参考例句：

• He's got a bad stammer.他口吃非常严重。
• We must not try to play off the boy troubled with a stammer.我们不可以取笑这个有口吃病的男孩。

75 subscriptions   

n.（报刊等的）订阅费( subscription的名词复数 )；捐款；（俱乐部的）会员费；捐助

参考例句：

• Subscriptions to these magazines can be paid in at the post office. 这些杂志的订阅费可以在邮局缴纳。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Payment of subscriptions should be made to the club secretary. 会费应交给俱乐部秘书。 来自《简明英汉词典》

76 bland   

adj.淡而无味的，温和的，无刺激性的

参考例句：

• He eats bland food because of his stomach trouble.他因胃病而吃清淡的食物。
• This soup is too bland for me.这汤我喝起来偏淡。

77 filthy   

adj.卑劣的；恶劣的，肮脏的

参考例句：

• The whole river has been fouled up with filthy waste from factories.整条河都被工厂的污秽废物污染了。
• You really should throw out that filthy old sofa and get a new one.你真的应该扔掉那张肮脏的旧沙发，然后再去买张新的。

78 lucre   

n.金钱，财富

参考例句：

• She married a foreigner for mere lucre.她仅仅为钱财而嫁给了一个外国人。
• He would sell his soul for filthy lucre.他会为了不义之财而出卖灵魂。

79 gild   

vt.给…镀金，把…漆成金色，使呈金色

参考例句：

• The sun transform the gild cupola into dazzling point of light.太阳将这些镀金的圆屋顶变成了闪耀的光点。
• With Dimitar Berbatov and Wayne Rooney primed to flower anew,Owen can gild the lily.贝巴和鲁尼如今蓄势待发，欧文也可以为曼联锦上添花。