Chapter 9 A VERY INTERESTING TALE!
Anne and George looked at the quaint¹ old man, fascinated, as he talked to them. He stood therebehind the counter of his little dark antique shop, surrounded by things even older than himself, alittle bent² old man with only a few hairs on his head. He had a kindly³ wrinkled face with eyes sohooded with drooping⁴ lids that they seemed to look out through slits⁵.
The two girls were thrilled to hear that old Mr. Finniston was actually descended⁶ from the long-agoFinnistons, who lived in Finniston Castle.
'Is that why your name's Finniston?' asked Anne. 'Tell us about the castle. We only heard about it forthe first time today. But we don't even know exactly whereabouts it stood. I didn't see a single stonewhen we went round the farm this morning!'
'No, no, you wouldn't,' said Mr. Finniston. 'It was burnt right down to the ground, you see - andthrough the centuries people have taken the old stones for building walls. Ah well - it was a long,long time ago!'
'How long?' asked George.
'Let's see now - it was burnt down in 1192 - the twelfth century,' said Mr. Finniston. 'Norman times,you know. Ever heard of the Normans? Schooling⁷ isn't what it was, I know, so maybe...'
'Of course we've heard of the Normans!' said George, indignantly. 'Every child knows them!
They conquered England, and the first Norman king was William the First, 1066!'
'Hmm - that's right. You've had some schooling, then,' said Mr. Finniston. 'Well, it was a Normancastle - look, like that one in this picture, see?' And he showed them a copy of an old print. Theygazed at the stone castle pictured there.
'Yes. It's a Norman castle,' said George. 'Was Finniston Castle just like that?'
'I've got a copy of an old drawing of it somewhere,' said the old fellow. 'I'll find it and show it to yousometime. A small castle, of course - but a very fine specimen

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1 quaint
adj.古雅的，离奇有趣的，奇怪的
参考例句：
There were many small lanes in the quaint village.在这古香古色的村庄里，有很多小巷。 They still keep some quaint old customs.他们仍然保留着一些稀奇古怪的旧风俗。

2 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。

3 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。

4 drooping
adj. 下垂的，无力的 动词droop的现在分词
参考例句：
The drooping willows are waving gently in the morning breeze. 晨风中垂柳袅袅。 The branches of the drooping willows were swaying lightly. 垂柳轻飘飘地摆动。

5 slits
n.狭长的口子，裂缝( slit的名词复数 )v.切开，撕开( slit的第三人称单数 )；在…上开狭长口子
参考例句：
He appears to have two slits for eyes. 他眯着两眼。 "You go to--Halifax,'she said tensely, her green eyes slits of rage. "你给我滚----滚到远远的地方去！" 她恶狠狠地说，那双绿眼睛冒出了怒火。

6 descended
a.为...后裔的，出身于...的
参考例句：
A mood of melancholy descended on us. 一种悲伤的情绪袭上我们的心头。 The path descended the hill in a series of zigzags. 小路呈连续的之字形顺着山坡蜿蜒而下。

7 schooling
n.教育；正规学校教育
参考例句：
A child's access to schooling varies greatly from area to area.孩子获得学校教育的机会因地区不同而大相径庭。 Backward children need a special kind of schooling.天赋差的孩子需要特殊的教育。

8 specimen
n.样本，标本
参考例句：
You'll need tweezers to hold up the specimen.你要用镊子来夹这标本。 This specimen is richly variegated in colour.这件标本上有很多颜色。

9 traitor
n.叛徒，卖国贼
参考例句：
The traitor was finally found out and put in prison.那个卖国贼终于被人发现并被监禁了起来。 He was sold out by a traitor and arrested.他被叛徒出卖而被捕了。

10 traitors
卖国贼( traitor的名词复数 )； 叛徒； 背叛者； 背信弃义的人
参考例句：
Traitors are held in infamy. 叛徒为人所不齿。 Traitors have always been treated with contempt. 叛徒永被人们唾弃。

11 slew
v.（使）旋转；n.大量，许多
参考例句：
He slewed the car against the side of the building.他的车滑到了大楼的一侧，抵住了。 They dealt with a slew of other issues.他们处理了大量的其他问题。

12 triumphantly
ad.得意洋洋地；得胜地；成功地
参考例句：
The lion was roaring triumphantly. 狮子正在发出胜利的吼叫。 Robert was looking at me triumphantly. 罗伯特正得意扬扬地看着我。

13 thumped
v.重击， （指心脏）急速跳动( thump的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
Dave thumped the table in frustration . 戴夫懊恼得捶打桌子。 He thumped the table angrily. 他愤怒地用拳捶击桌子。

14 farmhouse
n.农场住宅（尤指主要住房）
参考例句：
We fell for the farmhouse as soon as we saw it.我们对那所农舍一见倾心。 We put up for the night at a farmhouse.我们在一间农舍投宿了一夜。

15 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》

16 delved
v.深入探究，钻研( delve的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
She delved in her handbag for a pen. 她在手提包里翻找钢笔。 He delved into the family archives looking for the facts. 他深入查考这个家族的家谱以寻找事实根据。 来自《简明英汉词典》

17 chapel
n.小教堂，殡仪馆
参考例句：
The nimble hero,skipped into a chapel that stood near.敏捷的英雄跳进近旁的一座小教堂里。 She was on the peak that Sunday afternoon when she played in chapel.那个星期天的下午，她在小教堂的演出，可以说是登峰造极。

18 dungeons
n.地牢( dungeon的名词复数 )
参考例句：
The captured rebels were consigned to the dungeons. 抓到的叛乱分子被送进了地牢。 来自《简明英汉词典》 He saw a boy in fetters in the dungeons. 他在地牢里看见一个戴着脚镣的男孩。 来自辞典例句

19 flattened
[医]（水）平扁的，弄平的
参考例句：
She flattened her nose and lips against the window. 她把鼻子和嘴唇紧贴着窗户。 I flattened myself against the wall to let them pass. 我身体紧靠着墙让他们通过。

20 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。

21 collapsed
adj.倒塌的
参考例句：
Jack collapsed in agony on the floor. 杰克十分痛苦地瘫倒在地板上。 The roof collapsed under the weight of snow. 房顶在雪的重压下突然坍塌下来。

22 nettles
n.荨麻( nettle的名词复数 )
参考例句：
I tingle where I sat in the nettles. 我坐过在荨麻上的那个部位觉得刺痛。 来自《简明英汉词典》 This bleak place overgrown with nettles was the churchyard. 那蔓草丛生的凄凉地方是教堂公墓。 来自辞典例句

23 pesters
使烦恼，纠缠( pester的第三人称单数 )
参考例句：
The little girl pesters her mother for a new skirt. 小姑娘跟妈妈磨蹭着要一条新裙子。 While Sesshoumaru keeps doing all the work, Kagome pesters him. 当杀生丸在做这一切的时候，戈微却很苦恼。