Though she had forced herself to be calm, she preferred practising this virtue¹ in private, and she forbore to show herself at tea--a repast which, on Sundays, at six o'clock, took the place of dinner. Dr. Sloper and his sister sat face to face, but Mrs. Penniman never met her brother's eye.

Late in the evening she went with him, but without Catherine, to their sister Almond's, where, between the two ladies, Catherine's unhappy situation was discussed with a frankness that was conditioned by a good deal of mysterious reticence² on Mrs. Penniman's part.

"I am delighted he is not to marry her," said Mrs. Almond, "but he ought to be horsewhipped all the same."

Mrs. Penniman, who was shocked at her sister's coarseness, replied that he had been actuated by the noblest of motives--the desire not to impoverish³ Catherine.

"I am very happy that Catherine is not to be impoverished--but I hope he may never have a penny too much!

And what does the poor girl say to YOU?" Mrs. Almond asked.

"She says I have a genius for consolation," said Mrs. Penniman.

This was the account of the matter that she gave to her sister, and it was perhaps with the consciousness of genius that, on her return that evening to Washington Square, she again presented herself for admittance at Catherine's door.

Catherine came and opened it; she was apparently⁴ very quiet.

"I only want to give you a little word of advice," she said.

"If your father asks you, say that everything is going on."

Catherine stood there, with her hand on the knob looking at her aunt, but not asking her to come in.

"Do you think he will ask me?"

"I am sure he will.

He asked me just now, on our way home from your Aunt Elizabeth's.

I explained the whole thing to your Aunt Elizabeth.

I said to your father I know nothing about it."

"Do you think he will ask me when he sees--when he sees--?"

But here Catherine stopped.

"The more he sees the more disagreeable he will be," said her aunt.

"He shall see as little as possible!" Catherine declared.

"Tell him you are to be married."

"So I am," said Catherine softly; and she closed the door upon her aunt.

She could not have said this two days later--for instance, on Tuesday, when she at last received a letter from Morris Townsend.

点击收听单词发音  

1 virtue
n.德行，美德；贞操；优点；功效，效力
参考例句：
He was considered to be a paragon of virtue.他被认为是品德尽善尽美的典范。 You need to decorate your mind with virtue.你应该用德行美化心灵。

2 reticence
n.沉默，含蓄
参考例句：
He breaks out of his normal reticence and tells me the whole story.他打破了平时一贯沈默寡言的习惯，把事情原原本本都告诉了我。 He always displays a certain reticence in discussing personal matters.他在谈论个人问题时总显得有些保留。

3 impoverish
vt.使穷困，使贫困
参考例句：
We need to reduce the burden of taxes that impoverish the economy.我们需要减轻导致经济困顿的税收负荷。 America still has enough credibility to a more profitable path that would impoverish its creditors slowly.美国尚有足够的信用来让其得以选择一条更加有利可图的路径使它的债权人们渐渐贫困枯竭。

4 apparently
adv.显然地；表面上，似乎
参考例句：
An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。 He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

5 banish
vt.放逐，驱逐；消除，排除
参考例句：
The doctor advised her to banish fear and anxiety.医生劝她消除恐惧和忧虑。 He tried to banish gloom from his thought.他试图驱除心中的忧愁。

6 scatter
vt.撒，驱散，散开；散布/播；vi.分散，消散
参考例句：
You pile everything up and scatter things around.你把东西乱堆乱放。 Small villages scatter at the foot of the mountain.村庄零零落落地散布在山脚下。

7 prospects
n.希望，前途(恒为复数)
参考例句：
There is a mood of pessimism in the company about future job prospects. 公司中有一种对工作前景悲观的情绪。 They are less sanguine about the company's long-term prospects. 他们对公司的远景不那么乐观。

8 philosophic
adj.哲学的，贤明的
参考例句：
It was a most philosophic and jesuitical motorman.这是个十分善辩且狡猾的司机。 The Irish are a philosophic as well as a practical race.爱尔兰人是既重实际又善于思想的民族。

9 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。

10 rigid
adj.严格的，死板的；刚硬的，僵硬的
参考例句：
She became as rigid as adamant.她变得如顽石般的固执。 The examination was so rigid that nearly all aspirants were ruled out.考试很严，几乎所有的考生都被淘汰了。

11 compassion
n.同情，怜悯
参考例句：
He could not help having compassion for the poor creature.他情不自禁地怜悯起那个可怜的人来。 Her heart was filled with compassion for the motherless children.她对于没有母亲的孩子们充满了怜悯心。

12 banished
v.放逐，驱逐( banish的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
He was banished to Australia, where he died five years later. 他被流放到澳大利亚，五年后在那里去世。 He was banished to an uninhabited island for a year. 他被放逐到一个无人居住的荒岛一年。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 impending
a.imminent, about to come or happen
参考例句：
Against a background of impending famine, heavy fighting took place. 即将发生饥荒之时，严重的战乱爆发了。 The king convoke parliament to cope with the impending danger. 国王召开国会以应付迫近眉睫的危险。

14 prospective
adj.预期的，未来的，前瞻性的
参考例句：
The story should act as a warning to other prospective buyers.这篇报道应该对其他潜在的购买者起到警示作用。 They have all these great activities for prospective freshmen.这会举办各种各样的活动来招待未来的新人。

15 lodged
v.存放( lodge的过去式和过去分词 )；暂住；埋入；（权利、权威等）归属
参考例句：
The certificate will have to be lodged at the registry. 证书必须存放在登记处。 来自《简明英汉词典》 Our neighbours lodged a complaint against us with the police. 我们的邻居向警方控告我们。 来自《简明英汉词典》

16 conjugal
adj.婚姻的，婚姻性的
参考例句：
Conjugal visits are banned,so marriages break down.配偶访问是禁止的，罪犯的婚姻也因此破裂。 Conjugal fate is something delicate.缘分，其实是一种微妙的东西。

17 suffocating
a.使人窒息的
参考例句：
After a few weeks with her parents, she felt she was suffocating.和父母呆了几个星期后，她感到自己毫无自由。 That's better. I was suffocating in that cell of a room.这样好些了，我刚才在那个小房间里快闷死了。

18 deliberately
adv.审慎地；蓄意地；故意地
参考例句：
The girl gave the show away deliberately.女孩故意泄露秘密。 They deliberately shifted off the argument.他们故意回避这个论点。

19 hips
abbr.high impact polystyrene 高冲击强度聚苯乙烯，耐冲性聚苯乙烯n.臀部( hip的名词复数 )；[建筑学]屋脊；臀围（尺寸）；臀部…的
参考例句：
She stood with her hands on her hips. 她双手叉腰站着。 They wiggled their hips to the sound of pop music. 他们随着流行音乐的声音摇晃着臀部。 来自《简明英汉词典》

20 eyebrows
眉毛( eyebrow的名词复数 )
参考例句：
Eyebrows stop sweat from coming down into the eyes. 眉毛挡住汗水使其不能流进眼睛。 His eyebrows project noticeably. 他的眉毛特别突出。