“Quite so, my dear fellow, quite so,” said Lord Caterham.

 

He had used the same words three times already, each time in the hope that they would end the interview and permit him to escape. He disliked very much being forced to stand on the steps of the exclusive London club to which he belonged and listen to the interminable eloquence¹ of the Hon. George Lomax.

 

Clement² Edward Alistair Brent, ninth Marquis of Caterham, was a small gentleman, shabbily dressed, and entirely³ unlike the popular conception of a Marquis. He had faded blue eyes, a thin melancholy⁴ nose, and a vague but courteous⁵ manner.

 

The principal misfortune of Lord Caterham’s life was to have succeeded his brother, the eighth Marquis, four years ago. For the previous Lord Caterham had been a man of mark, a household word all over England. At one time Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, he had always bulked largely in the counsels of the Empire, and his country seat, Chimneys, was famous for its hospitality. Ably seconded by his wife, a daughter of the Duke of Perth, history had been made and unmade at informal week-end parties at Chimneys, and there was hardly anyone of note in England—or indeed in Europe—who had not, at one time or another, stayed there.

 

That was all very well. The ninth Marquis of Caterham had the utmost respect and esteem⁶ for the memory of his brother. Henry had done that kind of thing magnificently. What Lord Caterham objected to was the a[Pg 21]ssumption that he was bound to follow in his brother’s footsteps, and that Chimneys was a National possession rather than a private country house. There was nothing that bored Lord Caterham more than politics—unless it was politicians. Hence his impatience⁷ under the continued eloquence of George Lomax. A robust

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1 eloquence
n.雄辩；口才，修辞
参考例句：
I am afraid my eloquence did not avail against the facts.恐怕我的雄辩也无补于事实了。 The people were charmed by his eloquence.人们被他的口才迷住了。

2 clement
adj.仁慈的；温和的
参考例句：
A clement judge reduced his sentence.一位仁慈的法官为他减了刑。 The planet's history contains many less stable and clement eras than the holocene.地球的历史包含着许多不如全新世稳定与温和的地质时期。

3 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。

4 melancholy
n.忧郁，愁思；adj.令人感伤（沮丧）的，忧郁的
参考例句：
All at once he fell into a state of profound melancholy.他立即陷入无尽的忧思之中。 He felt melancholy after he failed the exam.这次考试没通过，他感到很郁闷。

5 courteous
adj.彬彬有礼的，客气的
参考例句：
Although she often disagreed with me,she was always courteous.尽管她常常和我意见不一，但她总是很谦恭有礼。 He was a kind and courteous man.他为人友善，而且彬彬有礼。

6 esteem
n.尊敬，尊重；vt.尊重，敬重；把…看作
参考例句：
I did not esteem him to be worthy of trust.我认为他不值得信赖。 The veteran worker ranks high in public love and esteem.那位老工人深受大伙的爱戴。

7 impatience
n.不耐烦，急躁
参考例句：
He expressed impatience at the slow rate of progress.进展缓慢，他显得不耐烦。 He gave a stamp of impatience.他不耐烦地跺脚。

8 robust
adj.强壮的，强健的，粗野的，需要体力的，浓的
参考例句：
She is too tall and robust.她个子太高，身体太壮。 China wants to keep growth robust to reduce poverty and avoid job losses,AP commented.美联社评论道，中国希望保持经济强势增长，以减少贫困和失业状况。

9 protuberant
adj.突出的，隆起的
参考例句：
The boy tripped over a protuberant rock.那个男孩被突起的岩石绊了一下。 He has a high-beaked nose and large protuberant eyes.他有着高鼻梁和又大又凸出的眼睛

10 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。

11 irony
n.反语，冷嘲；具有讽刺意味的事，嘲弄
参考例句：
She said to him with slight irony.她略带嘲讽地对他说。 In her voice we could sense a certain tinge of irony.从她的声音里我们可以感到某种讥讽的意味。

12 concessions
n.（尤指由政府或雇主给予的）特许权( concession的名词复数 )；承认；减价；（在某地的）特许经营权
参考例句：
The firm will be forced to make concessions if it wants to avoid a strike. 要想避免罢工，公司将不得不作出一些让步。 The concessions did little to placate the students. 让步根本未能平息学生的愤怒。

13 guise
n.外表，伪装的姿态
参考例句：
They got into the school in the guise of inspectors.他们假装成视察员进了学校。 The thief came into the house under the guise of a repairman.那小偷扮成个修理匠进了屋子。

14 longing
n.（for）渴望
参考例句：
Hearing the tune again sent waves of longing through her.再次听到那首曲子使她胸中充满了渴望。 His heart burned with longing for revenge.他心中燃烧着急欲复仇的怒火。

15 wriggled
v.扭动，蠕动，蜿蜒行进( wriggle的过去式和过去分词 )；（使身体某一部位）扭动；耍滑不做，逃避（应做的事等）
参考例句：
He wriggled uncomfortably on the chair. 他坐在椅子上不舒服地扭动着身体。 来自《简明英汉词典》 A snake wriggled across the road. 一条蛇蜿蜒爬过道路。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

16 situated
adj.坐落在...的，处于某种境地的
参考例句：
The village is situated at the margin of a forest.村子位于森林的边缘。 She is awkwardly situated.她的处境困难。

17 animation
n.活泼，兴奋，卡通片／动画片的制作
参考例句：
They are full of animation as they talked about their childhood.当他们谈及童年的往事时都非常兴奋。 The animation of China made a great progress.中国的卡通片制作取得很大发展。

18 pretext
n.借口，托词
参考例句：
He used his headache as a pretext for not going to school.他借口头疼而不去上学。 He didn't attend that meeting under the pretext of sickness.他以生病为借口，没参加那个会议。

19 depressed
adj.沮丧的，抑郁的，不景气的，萧条的
参考例句：
When he was depressed,he felt utterly divorced from reality.他心情沮丧时就感到完全脱离了现实。 His mother was depressed by the sad news.这个坏消息使他的母亲意志消沉。

20 suite
n.一套(家具)；套房；随从人员
参考例句：
She has a suite of rooms in the hotel.她在那家旅馆有一套房间。 That is a nice suite of furniture.那套家具很不错。

21 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。

22 memoirs
n.回忆录；回忆录传( mem,自oir的名词复数)
参考例句：
Her memoirs were ghostwritten. 她的回忆录是由别人代写的。 I watched a trailer for the screenplay of his memoirs. 我看过以他的回忆录改编成电影的预告片。 来自《简明英汉词典》

23 juncture
n.时刻，关键时刻，紧要关头
参考例句：
The project is situated at the juncture of the new and old urban districts.该项目位于新老城区交界处。 It is very difficult at this juncture to predict the company's future.此时很难预料公司的前景。

24 monarchy
n.君主，最高统治者；君主政体，君主国
参考例句：
The monarchy in England plays an important role in British culture.英格兰的君主政体在英国文化中起重要作用。 The power of the monarchy in Britain today is more symbolical than real.今日英国君主的权力多为象徵性的，无甚实际意义。

25 implored
恳求或乞求（某人）( implore的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
She implored him to stay. 她恳求他留下。 She implored him with tears in her eyes to forgive her. 她含泪哀求他原谅她。

26 agonized
v.使（极度）痛苦，折磨( agonize的过去式和过去分词 )；苦斗；苦苦思索；感到极度痛苦
参考例句：
All the time they agonized and prayed. 他们一直在忍受痛苦并且祈祷。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》 She agonized herself with the thought of her loss. 她念念不忘自己的损失，深深陷入痛苦之中。 来自辞典例句

27 discretion
n.谨慎；随意处理
参考例句：
You must show discretion in choosing your friend.你择友时必须慎重。 Please use your best discretion to handle the matter.请慎重处理此事。

28 relish
n.滋味，享受，爱好，调味品；vt.加调味料，享受，品味；vi.有滋味
参考例句：
I have no relish for pop music.我对流行音乐不感兴趣。 I relish the challenge of doing jobs that others turn down.我喜欢挑战别人拒绝做的工作。

29 obedience
n.服从，顺从
参考例句：
Society has a right to expect obedience of the law.社会有权要求人人遵守法律。 Soldiers act in obedience to the orders of their superior officers.士兵们遵照上级军官的命令行动。

30 obsolete
adj.已废弃的，过时的
参考例句：
These goods are obsolete and will not fetch much on the market.这些货品过时了，在市场上卖不了高价。 They tried to hammer obsolete ideas into the young people's heads.他们竭力把陈旧思想灌输给青年。

31 dictated
v.大声讲或读( dictate的过去式和过去分词 )；口授；支配；摆布
参考例句：
He dictated a letter to his secretary. 他向秘书口授信稿。 No person of a strong character likes to be dictated to. 没有一个个性强的人愿受人使唤。 来自《简明英汉词典》

32 disappearance
n.消失，消散，失踪
参考例句：
He was hard put to it to explain her disappearance.他难以说明她为什么不见了。 Her disappearance gave rise to the wildest rumours.她失踪一事引起了各种流言蜚语。

33 hiss
v.发出嘶嘶声；发嘘声表示不满
参考例句：
We can hear the hiss of air escaping from a tire.我们能听到一只轮胎的嘶嘶漏气声。 Don't hiss at the speaker.不要嘘演讲人。

34 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。

35 enjoyment
n.乐趣；享有；享用
参考例句：
Your company adds to the enjoyment of our visit. 有您的陪同，我们这次访问更加愉快了。 After each joke the old man cackled his enjoyment.每逢讲完一个笑话，这老人就呵呵笑着表示他的高兴。

36 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。

37 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。

38 redoubtable
adj.可敬的；可怕的
参考例句：
He is a redoubtable fighter.他是一位可敬的战士。 Whose only defense is their will and redoubtable spirit.他们唯一的国防是他们的意志和可怕的精神。

39 socialist
n.社会主义者；adj.社会主义的
参考例句：
China is a socialist country,and a developing country as well.中国是一个社会主义国家，也是一个发展中国家。 His father was an ardent socialist.他父亲是一个热情的社会主义者。

40 poise
vt./vi. 平衡，保持平衡；n.泰然自若，自信
参考例句：
She hesitated briefly but quickly regained her poise.她犹豫片刻，但很快恢复了镇静。 Ballet classes are important for poise and grace.芭蕾课对培养优雅的姿仪非常重要。

41 revel
vi.狂欢作乐，陶醉；n.作乐，狂欢
参考例句：
She seems to revel in annoying her parents.她似乎以惹父母生气为乐。 The children revel in country life.孩子们特别喜欢乡村生活。

42 delightful
adj.令人高兴的，使人快乐的
参考例句：
We had a delightful time by the seashore last Sunday.上星期天我们在海滨玩得真痛快。 Peter played a delightful melody on his flute.彼得用笛子吹奏了一支欢快的曲子。

43 Christian
adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒
参考例句：
They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。 His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

44 abominable
adj.可厌的，令人憎恶的
参考例句：
Their cruel treatment of prisoners was abominable.他们虐待犯人的做法令人厌恶。 The sanitary conditions in this restaurant are abominable.这家饭馆的卫生状况糟透了。