ONCE upon a time there was a king whose only child was a girl. Now the King had been very anxious to have a son, or at least a grandson, to come after him, but he was told by a prophet whom he consulted that his own daughter’s son should kill him. This news terrified him so much that he determined¹ never to let his daughter be married, for he thought it was better to have no grandson at all than to be killed by his grandson. He therefore called his workmen together, and bade them dig a deep round hole in the earth, and then he had a prison of brass² built in the hole, and then, when it was finished, he locked up his daughter. No man ever saw her, and she never saw even the fields and the sea, but only the sky and the sun, for there was a wide open window in the roof of the house of brass. So the Princess would sit looking up at the sky, and watching the clouds float across, and wondering whether she should ever get out of her prison. Now one day it seemed to her that the sky opened above her, and a great shower of shining gold fell through the window in the roof, and lay glittering in her room. Not very long after, the Princess had a baby, a little boy, but when the King her father heard of it he was very angry and afraid, for now the child was born that should be his death. Yet, cowardly as he was, he had not quite the heart to kill the Princess and her baby outright³, but he had them put in a huge brass-bound chest and thrust out to sea, that they might either be drowned or starved, or perhaps come to a country where they would be out of his way.

So the Princess and the baby floated and drifted in the chest on the sea all day and night, but the baby was not afraid of the waves nor of the wind, for he did not know that they could hurt him, and he slept quite soundly. And the Princess sang a song over him, and this was her song:

“Child, my child, how sound you sleep!
Though your mother’s care is deep,
You can lie with heart at rest
In the narrow brass-bound chest;
In the starless night and drear
You can sleep, and never hear
Billows breaking, and the cry
Of the night-wind wandering by;
In soft purple mantle⁵ sleeping
With your little face on mine,
Hearing not your mother weeping
And the breaking of the brine.”

Well, the daylight came at last, and the great chest was driven by the waves against the shore of an island. There the brass-bound chest lay, with the Princess and her baby in it, till a man of that country came past, and saw it, and dragged it on to the beach, and when he had broken it open,

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1 determined
adj.坚定的；有决心的
参考例句：
I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。 He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

2 brass
n.黄铜；黄铜器，铜管乐器
参考例句：
Many of the workers play in the factory's brass band.许多工人都在工厂铜管乐队中演奏。 Brass is formed by the fusion of copper and zinc.黄铜是通过铜和锌的熔合而成的。

3 outright
adv.坦率地；彻底地；立即；adj.无疑的；彻底的
参考例句：
If you have a complaint you should tell me outright.如果你有不满意的事，你应该直率地对我说。 You should persuade her to marry you outright.你应该彻底劝服她嫁给你。

4 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。

5 mantle
n.斗篷，覆罩之物，罩子；v.罩住，覆盖，脸红
参考例句：
The earth had donned her mantle of brightest green.大地披上了苍翠欲滴的绿色斗篷。 The mountain was covered with a mantle of snow.山上覆盖着一层雪。

6 behold
v.看，注视，看到
参考例句：
The industry of these little ants is wonderful to behold.这些小蚂蚁辛勤劳动的样子看上去真令人惊叹。 The sunrise at the seaside was quite a sight to behold.海滨日出真是个奇景。

7 amber
n.琥珀；琥珀色；adj.琥珀制的
参考例句：
Would you like an amber necklace for your birthday?你过生日想要一条琥珀项链吗？ This is a piece of little amber stones.这是一块小小的琥珀化石。

8 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。

9 monstrous
adj.巨大的；恐怖的；可耻的，丢脸的
参考例句：
The smoke began to whirl and grew into a monstrous column.浓烟开始盘旋上升，形成了一个巨大的烟柱。 Your behaviour in class is monstrous!你在课堂上的行为真是丢人！

10 ashore
adv.在(向)岸上，上岸
参考例句：
The children got ashore before the tide came in.涨潮前，孩子们就上岸了。 He laid hold of the rope and pulled the boat ashore.他抓住绳子拉船靠岸。

11 fulfill
vt.履行，实现，完成；满足，使满意
参考例句：
If you make a promise you should fulfill it.如果你许诺了，你就要履行你的诺言。 This company should be able to fulfill our requirements.这家公司应该能够满足我们的要求。

12 vow
n.誓(言)，誓约；v.起誓，立誓
参考例句：
My parents are under a vow to go to church every Sunday.我父母许愿，每星期日都去做礼拜。 I am under a vow to drink no wine.我已立誓戒酒。

13 cleave
v．(clave；cleaved)粘着，粘住；坚持；依恋
参考例句：
It examines how the decision to quit gold or to cleave to it affected trade policies.论文分析了放弃或坚持金本位是如何影响贸易政策的。 Those who cleave to the latter view include many conservative American politicians.坚持后一种观点的大多是美国的保守派政客。

14 procured
v.（努力）取得， （设法）获得( procure的过去式和过去分词 )；拉皮条
参考例句：
These cars are to be procured through open tender. 这些汽车要用公开招标的办法购买。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》 A friend procured a position in the bank for my big brother. 一位朋友为我哥哥谋得了一个银行的职位。 来自《用法词典》

15 forth
adv.向前；向外，往外
参考例句：
The wind moved the trees gently back and forth.风吹得树轻轻地来回摇晃。 He gave forth a series of works in rapid succession.他很快连续发表了一系列的作品。

16 wagons
n.四轮的运货马车( wagon的名词复数 )；铁路货车；小手推车
参考例句：
The wagons were hauled by horses. 那些货车是马拉的。 They drew their wagons into a laager and set up camp. 他们把马车围成一圈扎起营地。

17 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。

18 mumbled
含糊地说某事，叽咕，咕哝( mumble的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
He mumbled something to me which I did not quite catch. 他对我叽咕了几句话，可我没太听清楚。 George mumbled incoherently to himself. 乔治语无伦次地喃喃自语。

19 touching
adj.动人的，使人感伤的
参考例句：
It was a touching sight.这是一幅动人的景象。 His letter was touching.他的信很感人。

20 rattled
慌乱的，恼火的
参考例句：
The truck jolted and rattled over the rough ground. 卡车嘎吱嘎吱地在凹凸不平的地面上颠簸而行。 Every time a bus went past, the windows rattled. 每逢公共汽车经过这里，窗户都格格作响。

21 rattle
v.飞奔，碰响；激怒；n.碰撞声；拨浪鼓
参考例句：
The baby only shook the rattle and laughed and crowed.孩子只是摇着拨浪鼓，笑着叫着。 She could hear the rattle of the teacups.她听见茶具叮当响。

22 implore
vt.乞求，恳求，哀求
参考例句：
I implore you to write. At least tell me you're alive.请给我音讯，让我知道你还活着。 Please implore someone else's help in a crisis.危险时请向别人求助。

23 wrung
绞( wring的过去式和过去分词 )； 握紧（尤指别人的手）； 把（湿衣服）拧干； 绞掉（水）
参考例句：
He has wrung the words from their true meaning. 他曲解这些字的真正意义。 He wrung my hand warmly. 他热情地紧握我的手。

24 miserably
adv.痛苦地；悲惨地；糟糕地；极度地
参考例句：
The little girl was wailing miserably. 那小女孩难过得号啕大哭。 It was drizzling, and miserably cold and damp. 外面下着毛毛细雨，天气又冷又湿，令人难受。 来自《简明英汉词典》

25 enchanted
adj. 被施魔法的，陶醉的，入迷的 动词enchant的过去式和过去分词
参考例句：
She was enchanted by the flowers you sent her. 她非常喜欢你送给她的花。 He was enchanted by the idea. 他为这个主意而欣喜若狂。

26 withered
adj. 枯萎的，干瘪的，（人身体的部分器官）因病萎缩的或未发育良好的 动词wither的过去式和过去分词形式
参考例句：
The grass had withered in the warm sun. 这些草在温暖的阳光下枯死了。 The leaves of this tree have become dry and withered. 这棵树下的叶子干枯了。

27 lute
n.琵琶，鲁特琴
参考例句：
He idly plucked the strings of the lute.他漫不经心地拨弄着鲁特琴的琴弦。 He knows how to play the Chinese lute.他会弹琵琶。

28 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。

29 hideous
adj.丑陋的，可憎的，可怕的，恐怖的
参考例句：
The whole experience had been like some hideous nightmare.整个经历就像一场可怕的噩梦。 They're not like dogs,they're hideous brutes.它们不像狗，是丑陋的畜牲。

30 writhed
（因极度痛苦而）扭动或翻滚( writhe的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
He writhed at the memory, revolted with himself for that temporary weakness. 他一想起来就痛悔不已，只恨自己当一时糊涂。 The insect, writhed, and lay prostrate again. 昆虫折腾了几下，重又直挺挺地倒了下去。

31 killing
n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财
参考例句：
Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。 Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

32 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。

33 clatter
v./n.(使)发出连续而清脆的撞击声
参考例句：
The dishes and bowls slid together with a clatter.碟子碗碰得丁丁当当的。 Don't clatter your knives and forks.别把刀叉碰得咔哒响。

34 shrieks
n.尖叫声( shriek的名词复数 )v.尖叫( shriek的第三人称单数 )
参考例句：
shrieks of fiendish laughter 恶魔般的尖笑声 For years, from newspapers, broadcasts, the stages and at meetings, we had heard nothing but grandiloquent rhetoric delivered with shouts and shrieks that deafened the ears. 多少年来， 报纸上， 广播里， 舞台上， 会场上的声嘶力竭，装腔做态的高调搞得我们震耳欲聋。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

35 eastward
adv.向东；adj.向东的；n.东方，东部
参考例句：
The river here tends eastward.这条河从这里向东流。 The crowd is heading eastward,believing that they can find gold there.人群正在向东移去，他们认为在那里可以找到黄金。

36 devoured
吞没( devour的过去式和过去分词 )； 耗尽； 津津有味地看； 狼吞虎咽地吃光
参考例句：
She devoured everything she could lay her hands on: books, magazines and newspapers. 无论是书、杂志，还是报纸，只要能弄得到，她都看得津津有味。 The lions devoured a zebra in a short time. 狮子一会儿就吃掉了一匹斑马。

37 slain
杀死，宰杀，杀戮( slay的过去分词 )； (slay的过去分词)
参考例句：
The soldiers slain in the battle were burried that night. 在那天夜晚埋葬了在战斗中牺牲了的战士。 His boy was dead, slain by the hand of the false Amulius. 他的儿子被奸诈的阿缪利乌斯杀死了。

38 boxers
n.拳击短裤；（尤指职业）拳击手( boxer的名词复数 )；拳师狗
参考例句：
The boxers were goaded on by the shrieking crowd. 拳击运动员听见观众的喊叫就来劲儿了。 来自《简明英汉词典》 The boxers slugged it out to the finish. 两名拳击手最后决出了胜负。 来自《简明英汉词典》

39 cowardice
n.胆小，怯懦
参考例句：
His cowardice reflects on his character.他的胆怯对他的性格带来不良影响。 His refusal to help simply pinpointed his cowardice.他拒绝帮助正显示他的胆小。