IT was no longer light enough to go to bed without a candle, even in Mrs. Poyser’s early household, and Hetty carried one with her as she went up at last to her bedroom soon after Adam was gone, and bolted the door behind her.

Now she would read her letter. It must — it must have comfort in it. How was Adam to know the truth? It was always likely he should say what he did say.

She set down the candle and took out the letter. It had a faint scent¹ of roses, which made her feel as if Arthur were close to her. She put it to her lips, and a rush of remembered sensations for a moment or two swept away all fear. But her heart began to flutter strangely, and her hands to tremble as she broke the seal. She read slowly; it was not easy for her to read a gentleman’s handwriting, though Arthur had taken pains to write plainly.

“DEAREST HETTY— I have spoken truly when I have said that I loved you, and I shall never forget our love. I shall be your true friend as long as life lasts, and I hope to prove this to you in many ways. If I say anything to pain you in this letter, do not believe it is for want of love and tenderness towards you, for there is nothing I would not do for you, if I knew it to be really for your happiness. I cannot bear to think of my little Hetty shedding tears when I am not there to kiss them away; and if I followed only my own inclinations³, I should be with her at this moment instead of writing. It is very hard for me to part from her — harder still for me to write words which may seem unkind, though they spring from the truest kindness.

“Dear, dear Hetty, sweet as our love has been to me, sweet as it would be to me for you to love me always, I feel that it would have been better for us both if we had never had that happiness, and that it is my duty to ask you to love me and care for me as little as you can. The fault has all been mine, for though I have been unable to resist the longing⁵ to be near you, I have felt all the while that your affection for me might cause you grief. I ought to have resisted my feelings. I should have done so, if I had been a better fellow than I am; but now, since the past cannot be altered, I am bound to save you from any evil that I have power to prevent. And I feel it would be a great evil for you if your affections continued so fixed⁶ on me that you could think of no other man who might be able to make you happier by his love than I ever can, and if you continued to look towards something in the future which cannot possibly happen. For, dear Hetty, if I were to do what you one day

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1 scent
n.气味，香味，香水，线索，嗅觉；v.嗅，发觉
参考例句：
The air was filled with the scent of lilac.空气中弥漫着丁香花的芬芳。 The flowers give off a heady scent at night.这些花晚上散发出醉人的芳香。

2 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。

3 inclinations
倾向( inclination的名词复数 )； 倾斜； 爱好； 斜坡
参考例句：
She has artistic inclinations. 她有艺术爱好。 I've no inclinations towards life as a doctor. 我的志趣不是行医。

4 kin
n.家族，亲属，血缘关系；adj.亲属关系的，同类的
参考例句：
He comes of good kin.他出身好。 She has gone to live with her husband's kin.她住到丈夫的亲戚家里去了。

5 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。

6 fixed
adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的
参考例句：
Have you two fixed on a date for the wedding yet?你们俩选定婚期了吗？ Once the aim is fixed,we should not change it arbitrarily.目标一旦确定，我们就不应该随意改变。

7 misery
n.痛苦，苦恼，苦难；悲惨的境遇，贫苦
参考例句：
Business depression usually causes misery among the working class.商业不景气常使工薪阶层受苦。 He has rescued me from the mire of misery.他把我从苦海里救了出来。

8 miserable
adj.悲惨的，痛苦的；可怜的，糟糕的
参考例句：
It was miserable of you to make fun of him.你取笑他，这是可耻的。 Her past life was miserable.她过去的生活很苦。

9 blanched
v.使变白( blanch的过去式 )；使（植物）不见阳光而变白；酸洗（金属）使有光泽；用沸水烫（杏仁等）以便去皮
参考例句：
The girl blanched with fear when she saw the bear coming. 那女孩见熊（向她）走来，吓得脸都白了。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》 Their faces blanched in terror. 他们的脸因恐惧而吓得发白。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 rustled
v.发出沙沙的声音( rustle的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
He rustled his papers. 他把试卷弄得沙沙地响。 来自《简明英汉词典》 Leaves rustled gently in the breeze. 树叶迎着微风沙沙作响。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 sobs
啜泣（声），呜咽（声）( sob的名词复数 )
参考例句：
She was struggling to suppress her sobs. 她拼命不让自己哭出来。 She burst into a convulsive sobs. 她突然抽泣起来。

12 afflicted
使受痛苦，折磨( afflict的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
About 40% of the country's population is afflicted with the disease. 全国40%左右的人口患有这种疾病。 A terrible restlessness that was like to hunger afflicted Martin Eden. 一阵可怕的、跟饥饿差不多的不安情绪折磨着马丁·伊登。

13 annihilated
v.（彻底）消灭( annihilate的过去式和过去分词 )；使无效；废止；彻底击溃
参考例句：
Our soldiers annihilated a force of three hundred enemy troops. 我军战士消灭了300名敌军。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》 We annihilated the enemy. 我们歼灭了敌人。 来自《简明英汉词典》

14 sobbing
<主方>Ⅰ adj.湿透的
参考例句：
I heard a child sobbing loudly. 我听见有个孩子在呜呜地哭。 Her eyes were red with recent sobbing. 她的眼睛因刚哭过而发红。

15 conceal
v.隐藏，隐瞒，隐蔽
参考例句：
He had to conceal his identity to escape the police.为了躲避警方，他只好隐瞒身份。 He could hardly conceal his joy at his departure.他几乎掩饰不住临行时的喜悦。

16 dreary
adj.令人沮丧的，沉闷的，单调乏味的
参考例句：
They live such dreary lives.他们的生活如此乏味。 She was tired of hearing the same dreary tale of drunkenness and violence.她听够了那些关于酗酒和暴力的乏味故事。

17 dreariness
沉寂，可怕，凄凉
参考例句：
The park wore an aspect of utter dreariness and ruin. 园地上好久没人收拾，一片荒凉。 There in the melancholy, in the dreariness, Bertha found a bitter fascination. 在这里，在阴郁、倦怠之中，伯莎发现了一种刺痛人心的魅力。

18 caresses
爱抚，抚摸( caress的名词复数 )
参考例句：
A breeze caresses the cheeks. 微风拂面。 Hetty was not sufficiently familiar with caresses or outward demonstrations of fondness. 海蒂不习惯于拥抱之类过于外露地表现自己的感情。

19 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。

20 chamber
n.房间，寝室；会议厅；议院；会所
参考例句：
For many,the dentist's surgery remains a torture chamber.对许多人来说，牙医的治疗室一直是间受刑室。 The chamber was ablaze with light.会议厅里灯火辉煌。

21 entreaty
n.恳求，哀求
参考例句：
Mrs. Quilp durst only make a gesture of entreaty.奎尔普太太仅做出一种哀求的姿势。 Her gaze clung to him in entreaty.她的眼光带着恳求的神色停留在他身上。

22 recur
vi.复发，重现，再发生
参考例句：
Economic crises recur periodically.经济危机周期性地发生。 Of course,many problems recur at various periods.当然，有许多问题会在不同的时期反复提出。

23 bruised
[医]青肿的，瘀紫的
参考例句：
his bruised and bloodied nose 他沾满血的青肿的鼻子 She had slipped and badly bruised her face. 她滑了一跤，摔得鼻青脸肿。

24 luxurious
adj.精美而昂贵的；豪华的
参考例句：
This is a luxurious car complete with air conditioning and telephone.这是一辆附有空调设备和电话的豪华轿车。 The rich man lives in luxurious surroundings.这位富人生活在奢侈的环境中。

25 passionate
adj.热情的，热烈的，激昂的，易动情的，易怒的，性情暴躁的
参考例句：
He is said to be the most passionate man.据说他是最有激情的人。 He is very passionate about the project.他对那个项目非常热心。

26 neatly
adv.整洁地，干净地，灵巧地，熟练地
参考例句：
Sailors know how to wind up a long rope neatly.水手们知道怎样把一条大绳利落地缠好。 The child's dress is neatly gathered at the neck.那孩子的衣服在领口处打着整齐的皱褶。

27 dread
vt.担忧，忧虑；惧怕，不敢；n.担忧，畏惧
参考例句：
We all dread to think what will happen if the company closes.我们都不敢去想一旦公司关门我们该怎么办。 Her heart was relieved of its blankest dread.她极度恐惧的心理消除了。

28 pillory
n.嘲弄；v.使受公众嘲笑；将…示众
参考例句：
A man has been forced to resign as a result of being pilloried by some of the press.一人因为受到一些媒体的抨击已被迫辞职。 He was pilloried,but she escaped without blemish.他受到公众的批评，她却名声未损地得以逃脱。

29 shameful
adj.可耻的，不道德的
参考例句：
It is very shameful of him to show off.他向人炫耀自己，真不害臊。 We must expose this shameful activity to the newspapers.我们一定要向报社揭露这一无耻行径。

30 industriously
参考例句：
She paces the whole class in studying English industriously. 她在刻苦学习英语上给全班同学树立了榜样。 He industriously engages in unostentatious hard work. 他勤勤恳恳，埋头苦干。

31 puff
n.一口(气)；一阵(风)；v.喷气，喘气
参考例句：
He took a puff at his cigarette.他吸了一口香烟。 They tried their best to puff the book they published.他们尽力吹捧他们出版的书。

32 nay
adv.不；n.反对票，投反对票者
参考例句：
He was grateful for and proud of his son's remarkable,nay,unique performance.他为儿子出色的，不，应该是独一无二的表演心怀感激和骄傲。 Long essays,nay,whole books have been written on this.许多长篇大论的文章，不，应该说是整部整部的书都是关于这件事的。

33 puffed
adj.疏松的v.使喷出( puff的过去式和过去分词 )；喷着汽（或烟）移动；吹嘘；吹捧
参考例句：
He lit a cigarette and puffed at it furiously. 他点燃了一支香烟，狂吸了几口。 来自《简明英汉词典》 He felt grown-up, puffed up with self-importance. 他觉得长大了，便自以为了不起。 来自《简明英汉词典》

34 resentment
n.怨愤，忿恨
参考例句：
All her feelings of resentment just came pouring out.她一股脑儿倾吐出所有的怨恨。 She cherished a deep resentment under the rose towards her employer.她暗中对她的雇主怀恨在心。

35 veins
n.纹理；矿脉( vein的名词复数 )；静脉；叶脉；纹理
参考例句：
The blood flows from the capillaries back into the veins. 血从毛细血管流回静脉。 来自《简明英汉词典》 I felt a pleasant glow in all my veins from the wine. 喝过酒后我浑身的血都热烘烘的，感到很舒服。 来自《简明英汉词典》

36 recurred
再发生，复发( recur的过去式和过去分词 )； 治愈
参考例句：
Old memories constantly recurred to him. 往事经常浮现在他的脑海里。 She always winced when he recurred to the subject of his poems. 每逢他一提到他的诗作的时候，她总是有点畏缩。

37 renounced
v.声明放弃( renounce的过去式和过去分词 )；宣布放弃；宣布与…决裂；宣布摒弃
参考例句：
We have renounced the use of force to settle our disputes. 我们已再次宣布放弃使用武力来解决争端。 来自《简明英汉词典》 Andrew renounced his claim to the property. 安德鲁放弃了财产的所有权。 来自《简明英汉词典》

38 antennae
n.天线；触角
参考例句：
Sometimes a creature uses a pair of antennae to swim.有时某些动物使用其一对触须来游泳。 Cuba's government said that Cubans found watching American television on clandestine antennae would face three years in jail.古巴政府说那些用秘密天线收看美国电视的古巴人将面临三年监禁。

39 fowl
n.家禽，鸡，禽肉
参考例句：
Fowl is not part of a traditional brunch.禽肉不是传统的早午餐的一部分。 Since my heart attack,I've eaten more fish and fowl and less red meat.自从我患了心脏病后，我就多吃鱼肉和禽肉，少吃红色肉类。

40 akin
adj.同族的，类似的
参考例句：
She painted flowers and birds pictures akin to those of earlier feminine painters.她画一些同早期女画家类似的花鸟画。 Listening to his life story is akin to reading a good adventure novel.听他的人生故事犹如阅读一本精彩的冒险小说。

41 liking
n.爱好；嗜好；喜欢
参考例句：
The word palate also means taste or liking.Palate这个词也有“口味”或“嗜好”的意思。 I must admit I have no liking for exaggeration.我必须承认我不喜欢夸大其词。

42 linen
n.亚麻布，亚麻线，亚麻制品；adj.亚麻布制的，亚麻的
参考例句：
The worker is starching the linen.这名工人正在给亚麻布上浆。 Fine linen and cotton fabrics were known as well as wool.精细的亚麻织品和棉织品像羊毛一样闻名遐迩。

43 spun
v.纺，杜撰，急转身
参考例句：
His grandmother spun him a yarn at the fire.他奶奶在火炉边给他讲故事。 Her skilful fingers spun the wool out to a fine thread.她那灵巧的手指把羊毛纺成了细毛线。

44 soothingly
adv.抚慰地，安慰地；镇痛地
参考例句：
The mother talked soothingly to her child. 母亲对自己的孩子安慰地说。 来自《简明英汉词典》 He continued to talk quietly and soothingly to the girl until her frightened grip on his arm was relaxed. 他继续柔声安慰那姑娘，她那因恐惧而紧抓住他的手终于放松了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

45 allusions
暗指，间接提到( allusion的名词复数 )
参考例句：
We should not use proverbs and allusions indiscriminately. 不要滥用成语典故。 The background lent itself to allusions to European scenes. 眼前的情景容易使人联想到欧洲风光。

46 supreme
adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的
参考例句：
It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。 He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

47 agitated
adj.被鼓动的，不安的
参考例句：
His answers were all mixed up,so agitated was he.他是那样心神不定，回答全乱了。 She was agitated because her train was an hour late.她乘坐的火车晚点一个小时，她十分焦虑。

48 irritation
n.激怒，恼怒，生气
参考例句：
He could not hide his irritation that he had not been invited.他无法掩饰因未被邀请而生的气恼。 Barbicane said nothing,but his silence covered serious irritation.巴比康什么也不说，但是他的沉默里潜伏着阴郁的怒火。

49 motiveless
adj.无动机的，无目的的
参考例句：

50 vessel
n.船舶；容器，器皿；管，导管，血管
参考例句：
The vessel is fully loaded with cargo for Shanghai.这艘船满载货物驶往上海。 You should put the water into a vessel.你应该把水装入容器中。

51 moored
adj. 系泊的 动词moor的过去式和过去分词形式
参考例句：
The ship is now permanently moored on the Thames in London. 该船现在永久地停泊在伦敦泰晤士河边。 We shipped (the) oars and moored alongside the bank. 我们收起桨，把船泊在岸边。

52 lasting
adj.永久的，永恒的；vbl.持续，维持
参考例句：
The lasting war debased the value of the dollar.持久的战争使美元贬值。 We hope for a lasting settlement of all these troubles.我们希望这些纠纷能获得永久的解决。