Chapter 1 Passenger To Frankfurt（1）

Book 1 Interrupted Journey

Chapter 1 Passenger To Frankfurt
I
‘Fasten your seat-belts, please.’ The diverse passengers in the plane wereslow to obey. There was a general feeling that they couldn’t possibly be ar-riving at Geneva yet. The drowsy¹ groaned² and yawned. The more thandrowsy had to be gently roused by an authoritative³ stewardess⁴.
‘Your seat-belts, please.’
The dry voice came authoritatively⁵ over the Tannoy. It explained in Ger-man, in French, and in English that a short period of rough weather wouldshortly be experienced. Sir Stafford Nye opened his mouth to its full ex-tent, yawned and pulled himself upright in his seat. He had been dream-ing very happily of fishing an English river.
He was a man of forty- five, of medium height, with a smooth, olive,clean-shaven face. In dress he rather liked to affect the bizarre. A man ofexcellent family, he felt fully⁶ at ease indulging any such sartorial⁷ whims⁸. Ifit made the more conventionally dressed of his colleagues wince⁹ occasion-ally, that was merely a source of malicious¹⁰ pleasure to him. There wassomething about him of the eighteenth-century buck¹¹. He liked to be no-ticed.
His particular kind of affectation when travelling was a kind of bandit’scloak which he had once purchased in Corsica. It was of a very darkpurply-blue, had a scarlet¹² lining¹³ and had a kind of burnous hanging downbehind which he could draw up over his head when he wished to, so as toobviate draughts¹⁴.
Sir Stafford Nye had been a disappointment in diplomatic circles.
Marked out in early youth by his gifts for great things, he had singularlyfailed to fulfil his early promise. A peculiar¹⁵ and diabolical¹⁶ sense of hu-mour was wont¹⁷ to afflict¹⁸ him in what should have been his most seriousmoments. When it came to the point, he found that he always preferred toindulge his delicate Puckish malice¹⁹ to boring himself. He was a well-known figure in public life without ever having reached eminence²⁰. It wasfelt that Stafford Nye, though definitely brilliant, was not–and presumablynever would be–a safe man. In these days of tangled²¹ politics and tangledforeign relations, safety, especially if one were to reach ambassadorialrank, was preferable to brilliance²². Sir Stafford Nye was relegated²³ to theshelf, though he was occasionally entrusted²⁴ with such missions as neededthe art of intrigue²⁵, but were not of too important or public a nature. Journ-alists sometimes referred to him as the dark horse of diplomacy²⁶.
Whether Sir Stafford himself was disappointed with his own career,nobody ever knew. Probably not even Sir Stafford himself. He was a manof a certain vanity, but he was also a man who very much enjoyed indul-ging his own proclivities²⁷ for mischief²⁸.
He was returning now from a commission of inquiry²⁹ in Malaya. He hadfound it singularly lacking in interest. His colleagues had, in his opinion,made up their minds beforehand what their findings were going to be.
They saw and they listened, but their preconceived views were not affec-ted. Sir Stafford had thrown a few spanners into the works, more for thehell of it than from any pronounced convictions. At all events, he thought,it had livened things up. He wished there were more possibilities of doingthat sort of thing. His fellow members of the commission had been sound,dependable fellows, and remarkably³⁰ dull. Even the well-known Mrs Nath-aniel Edge, the only woman member, well known as having bees in herbonnet, was no fool when it came down to plain facts. She saw, shelistened and she played safe.
He had met her before on the occasion of a problem to be solved in oneof the Balkan capitals. It was there that Sir Stafford Nye had not been ableto refrain from embarking³¹ on a few interesting suggestions. In that scan-dal-loving periodical Inside News it was insinuated³² that Sir Stafford Nye’spresence in that Balkan capital was intimately connected with Balkanproblems, and that his mission was a secret one of the greatest delicacy³³. Akind of friend had sent Sir Stafford a copy of this with the relevant pas-sage marked. Sir Stafford was not taken aback. He read it with a delightedgrin. It amused him very much to reflect how ludicrously far from thetruth the journalists were on this occasion. His presence in Sofiagrad hadbeen due entirely³⁴ to a blameless interest in the rarer wild flowers and tothe urgencies of an elderly friend of his, Lady Lucy Cleghorn, who was in-defatigable in her quest for these shy floral rarities, and who at any mo-ment would scale a rock cliff or leap joyously³⁵ into a bog³⁶ at the sight ofsome flowerlet, the length of whose Latin name was in inverse³⁷ proportionto its size.
A small band of enthusiasts³⁸ had been pursuing this botanical search onthe slopes of mountains for about ten days when it occurred to Sir Staffordthat it was a pity the paragraph was not true. He was a little–just a little–tired of wild flowers and, fond as he was of dear Lucy, her ability despiteher sixty-odd years to race up hills at top speed, easily outpacing him,sometimes annoyed him. Always just in front of him he saw the seat ofthose bright royal blue trousers and Lucy, though scraggy enough else-where, goodness knows, was decidedly too broad in the beam to wearroyal blue corduroy trousers. A nice little international pie, he hadthought, in which to dip his fingers, in which to play about…In the aeroplane the metallic³⁹ Tannoy voice spoke⁴⁰ again. It told the pas-sengers that owing to heavy fog at Geneva, the plane would be diverted toFrankfurt airport and proceed from there to London. Passengers toGeneva would be re-routed from Frankfurt as soon as possible. It made nodifference to Sir Stafford Nye. If there was fog in London, he supposedthey would re-route the plane to Prestwick. He hoped that would not hap-pen. He had been to Prestwick once or twice too often. Life, he thought,and journeys by air, were really excessively boring. If only– he didn’tknow–if only–what?

1 drowsy   

adj.昏昏欲睡的，令人发困的

参考例句：

• Exhaust fumes made him drowsy and brought on a headache.废气把他熏得昏昏沉沉，还引起了头疼。
• I feel drowsy after lunch every day.每天午饭后我就想睡觉。

2 groaned   

v.呻吟( groan的过去式和过去分词 )；发牢骚；抱怨；受苦

参考例句：

• He groaned in anguish. 他痛苦地呻吟。
• The cart groaned under the weight of the piano. 大车在钢琴的重压下嘎吱作响。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 authoritative   

adj.有权威的，可相信的；命令式的；官方的

参考例句：

• David speaks in an authoritative tone.大卫以命令的口吻说话。
• Her smile was warm but authoritative.她的笑容很和蔼，同时又透着威严。

4 stewardess   

n.空中小姐，女乘务员

参考例句：

• Please show your ticket to the stewardess when you board the plane.登机时请向空中小姐出示机票。
• The stewardess hurried the passengers onto the plane.空中小姐催乘客赶快登机。

5 authoritatively   

命令式地，有权威地，可信地

参考例句：

• "If somebody'll come here and sit with him," he snapped authoritatively. “来个人到这儿陪他坐着。”他用发号施令的口吻说。
• To decide or settle(a dispute, for example) conclusively and authoritatively. 判定结论性、权威性地决定或解决（纠纷等）

6 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

7 sartorial   

adj.裁缝的

参考例句：

• John has never been known for his sartorial elegance.约翰从来没有因为衣着讲究而出名。
• Jeans a powerful egalitarian message,but are far more likely to a sartorial deathtrap for politicians.政客们穿上牛仔裤是传递亲民的讯息，但也更容易犯穿衣禁忌。

8 WHIMS   

虚妄，禅病

参考例句：

• The mate observed regretfully that he could not account for that young fellow's whims. 那位伙伴很遗憾地说他不能说出那年轻人产生怪念头的原因。
• The rest she had for food and her own whims. 剩下的钱她用来吃饭和买一些自己喜欢的东西。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹

9 wince   

n.畏缩，退避，（因痛苦，苦恼等)面部肌肉抽动；v.畏缩，退缩，退避

参考例句：

• The barb of his wit made us wince.他那锋芒毕露的机智使我们退避三舍。
• His smile soon modified to a wince.他的微笑很快就成了脸部肌肉的抽搐。

10 malicious   

adj.有恶意的，心怀恶意的

参考例句：

• You ought to kick back at such malicious slander. 你应当反击这种恶毒的污蔑。
• Their talk was slightly malicious.他们的谈话有点儿心怀不轨。

11 buck   

n.雄鹿，雄兔；v.马离地跳跃

参考例句：

• The boy bent curiously to the skeleton of the buck.这个男孩好奇地弯下身去看鹿的骸骨。
• The female deer attracts the buck with high-pitched sounds.雌鹿以尖声吸引雄鹿。

12 scarlet   

n.深红色，绯红色，红衣；adj.绯红色的

参考例句：

• The scarlet leaves of the maples contrast well with the dark green of the pines.深红的枫叶和暗绿的松树形成了明显的对比。
• The glowing clouds are growing slowly pale,scarlet,bright red,and then light red.天空的霞光渐渐地淡下去了，深红的颜色变成了绯红，绯红又变为浅红。

13 lining   

n.衬里，衬料

参考例句：

• The lining of my coat is torn.我的外套衬里破了。
• Moss makes an attractive lining to wire baskets.用苔藓垫在铁丝篮里很漂亮。

14 draughts   

n. <英>国际跳棋

参考例句：

• Seal (up) the window to prevent draughts. 把窗户封起来以防风。
• I will play at draughts with him. 我跟他下一盘棋吧！

15 peculiar   

adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的，特有的

参考例句：

• He walks in a peculiar fashion.他走路的样子很奇特。
• He looked at me with a very peculiar expression.他用一种很奇怪的表情看着我。

16 diabolical   

adj.恶魔似的，凶暴的

参考例句：

• This maneuver of his is a diabolical conspiracy.他这一手是一个居心叵测的大阴谋。
• One speaker today called the plan diabolical and sinister.今天一名发言人称该计划阴险恶毒。

17 wont   

adj.习惯于；v.习惯；n.习惯

参考例句：

• He was wont to say that children are lazy.他常常说小孩子们懒惰。
• It is his wont to get up early.早起是他的习惯。

18 afflict   

vt.使身体或精神受痛苦，折磨

参考例句：

• I wish you wouldn't afflict me with your constant complains.我希望你不要总是抱怨而使我苦恼。
• There are many illnesses,which afflict old people.有许多疾病困扰着老年人。

19 malice   

n.恶意，怨恨，蓄意；[律]预谋

参考例句：

• I detected a suggestion of malice in his remarks.我觉察出他说的话略带恶意。
• There was a strong current of malice in many of his portraits.他的许多肖像画中都透着一股强烈的怨恨。

20 eminence   

n.卓越，显赫；高地，高处；名家

参考例句：

• He is a statesman of great eminence.他是个声名显赫的政治家。
• Many of the pilots were to achieve eminence in the aeronautical world.这些飞行员中很多人将会在航空界声名显赫。

21 tangled   

adj. 纠缠的，紊乱的 动词tangle的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• Your hair's so tangled that I can't comb it. 你的头发太乱了，我梳不动。
• A movement caught his eye in the tangled undergrowth. 乱灌木丛里的晃动引起了他的注意。

22 brilliance   

n.光辉，辉煌，壮丽，（卓越的）才华，才智

参考例句：

• I was totally amazed by the brilliance of her paintings.她的绘画才能令我惊歎不已。
• The gorgeous costume added to the brilliance of the dance.华丽的服装使舞蹈更加光彩夺目。

23 relegated   

v.使降级( relegate的过去式和过去分词 )；使降职；转移；把…归类

参考例句：

• She was then relegated to the role of assistant. 随后她被降级做助手了。
• I think that should be relegated to the garbage can of history. 我认为应该把它扔进历史的垃圾箱。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

24 entrusted   

v.委托，托付( entrust的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He entrusted the task to his nephew. 他把这任务托付给了他的侄儿。
• She was entrusted with the direction of the project. 她受委托负责这项计划。 来自《简明英汉词典》

25 intrigue   

vt.激起兴趣，迷住；vi.耍阴谋；n.阴谋，密谋

参考例句：

• Court officials will intrigue against the royal family.法院官员将密谋反对皇室。
• The royal palace was filled with intrigue.皇宫中充满了勾心斗角。

26 diplomacy   

n.外交；外交手腕，交际手腕

参考例句：

• The talks have now gone into a stage of quiet diplomacy.会谈现在已经进入了“温和外交”阶段。
• This was done through the skill in diplomacy. 这是通过外交手腕才做到的。

27 proclivities   

n.倾向，癖性( proclivity的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Raised by adoptive parents,Hill received early encouragement in her musical proclivities. 希尔由养父母带大，从小，她的音乐爱好就受到了鼓励。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Whatever his political connections and proclivities, he did not care to neglect so powerful a man. 无论他的政治关系和脾气如何，他并不愿怠慢这样有势力的人。 来自辞典例句

28 mischief   

n.损害，伤害，危害；恶作剧，捣蛋，胡闹

参考例句：

• Nobody took notice of the mischief of the matter. 没有人注意到这件事情所带来的危害。
• He seems to intend mischief.看来他想捣蛋。

29 inquiry   

n.打听，询问，调查，查问

参考例句：

• Many parents have been pressing for an inquiry into the problem.许多家长迫切要求调查这个问题。
• The field of inquiry has narrowed down to five persons.调查的范围已经缩小到只剩5个人了。

30 remarkably   

ad.不同寻常地，相当地

参考例句：

• I thought she was remarkably restrained in the circumstances. 我认为她在那种情况下非常克制。
• He made a remarkably swift recovery. 他康复得相当快。

31 embarking   

乘船( embark的现在分词 )； 装载； 从事

参考例句：

• He's embarking on a new career as a writer. 他即将开始新的职业生涯——当一名作家。
• The campaign on which were embarking was backed up by such intricate and detailed maintenance arrangemets. 我们实施的战争，须要如此复杂及详细的维护准备。

32 insinuated   

v.暗示( insinuate的过去式和过去分词 )；巧妙或迂回地潜入；（使）缓慢进入；慢慢伸入

参考例句：

• The article insinuated that he was having an affair with his friend's wife. 文章含沙射影地点出他和朋友的妻子有染。
• She cleverly insinuated herself into his family. 她巧妙地混进了他的家庭。 来自《简明英汉词典》

33 delicacy   

n.精致，细微，微妙，精良；美味，佳肴

参考例句：

• We admired the delicacy of the craftsmanship.我们佩服工艺师精巧的手艺。
• He sensed the delicacy of the situation.他感觉到了形势的微妙。

34 entirely   

ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
• His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。

35 joyously   

ad.快乐地, 高兴地

参考例句：

• She opened the door for me and threw herself in my arms, screaming joyously and demanding that we decorate the tree immediately. 她打开门，直扑我的怀抱，欣喜地喊叫着要马上装饰圣诞树。
• They came running, crying out joyously in trilling girlish voices. 她们边跑边喊，那少女的颤音好不欢快。 来自名作英译部分

36 bog   

n.沼泽；室...陷入泥淖

参考例句：

• We were able to pass him a rope before the bog sucked him under.我们终于得以在沼泽把他吞没前把绳子扔给他。
• The path goes across an area of bog.这条小路穿过一片沼泽。

37 inverse   

adj.相反的，倒转的，反转的；n.相反之物；v.倒转

参考例句：

• Evil is the inverse of good.恶是善的反面。
• When the direct approach failed he tried the inverse.当直接方法失败时，他尝试相反的做法。

38 enthusiasts   

n.热心人，热衷者( enthusiast的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• A group of enthusiasts have undertaken the reconstruction of a steam locomotive. 一群火车迷已担负起重造蒸汽机车的任务。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Now a group of enthusiasts are going to have the plane restored. 一群热心人计划修复这架飞机。 来自新概念英语第二册

39 metallic   

adj.金属的；金属制的；含金属的；产金属的；像金属的

参考例句：

• A sharp metallic note coming from the outside frightened me.外面传来尖锐铿锵的声音吓了我一跳。
• He picked up a metallic ring last night.昨夜他捡了一个金属戒指。

40 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。