The Old Willow Tree and Other Stories
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CHAPTER 5

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 Now it so happened that the squire1 and his wife went to Italy and stayed there for a couple of years. And this, in its turn, led to the result that the polled willow2 was left to stand in peace among the proud poplars. When the master and mistress were away, there was no one who gave a further thought to the stately avenue.
 
Throughout the winter, the willow stood silent and perplexed3. And it is quite natural that a tree should not care to talk when his head is chopped off. But, half-way through March, suddenly one day he fell a-moaning in the most piteous fashion:
 
"Oh, my head, my head!" he cried.
 
"Well, I never in all my born days heard the like," said the oak. "Listen to him talking about his head, when all the world can see that it's been chopped off, so that there's nothing but a wretched stump4 left."
 
"It's all very well for you to talk," said the willow-tree. "I should like to see you in my place. All my crown is gone, all the big branches and the little twigs5, on which the next year's buds used to sit so nicely, each in its axil. But I still have all my roots, all those which I procured6 when I had a big household and many to provide for. Now the ice on the ground is melting and the sun shining and the roots are sucking and sucking. All the sap is going up through my trunk and rising to my head. And I haven't the slightest use for it.... Oh, oh!... I'm bursting, I'm dying!"
 
"Poor Willow-Tree!" said the rose-bush.
 
But round on the other side of the little hillock stood an elder-bush, whom no one talked to, as a rule, and who never put in his oar7:
 
"Just wait and see," he said. "Two or three days will put things right. Only listen to what a poor, but honest elder-bush tells you. Things always end by settling themselves in one way or another."

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1 squire 0htzjV     
n.护卫, 侍从, 乡绅
参考例句：
  • I told him the squire was the most liberal of men.我告诉他乡绅是世界上最宽宏大量的人。
  • The squire was hard at work at Bristol.乡绅在布里斯托尔热衷于他的工作。
2 willow bMFz6     
n.柳树
参考例句：
  • The river was sparsely lined with willow trees.河边疏疏落落有几棵柳树。
  • The willow's shadow falls on the lake.垂柳的影子倒映在湖面上。
3 perplexed A3Rz0     
adj.不知所措的
参考例句：
  • The farmer felt the cow,went away,returned,sorely perplexed,always afraid of being cheated.那农民摸摸那头牛，走了又回来，犹豫不决，总怕上当受骗。
  • The child was perplexed by the intricate plot of the story.这孩子被那头绪纷繁的故事弄得迷惑不解。
4 stump hGbzY     
n.残株，烟蒂，讲演台；v.砍断，蹒跚而走
参考例句：
  • He went on the stump in his home state.他到故乡所在的州去发表演说。
  • He used the stump as a table.他把树桩用作桌子。
5 twigs 17ff1ed5da672aa443a4f6befce8e2cb     
细枝，嫩枝( twig的名词复数 )
参考例句：
  • Some birds build nests of twigs. 一些鸟用树枝筑巢。
  • Willow twigs are pliable. 柳条很软。
6 procured 493ee52a2e975a52c94933bb12ecc52b     
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》
7 oar EH0xQ     
n.桨，橹，划手；v.划行
参考例句：
  • The sailors oar slowly across the river.水手们慢慢地划过河去。
  • The blade of the oar was bitten off by a shark.浆叶被一条鲨鱼咬掉了。
8 slashed 8ff3ba5a4258d9c9f9590cbbb804f2db     
v.挥砍( slash的过去式和过去分词 )；鞭打；割破；削减
参考例句：
  • Someone had slashed the tyres on my car. 有人把我的汽车轮胎割破了。
  • He slashed the bark off the tree with his knife. 他用刀把树皮从树上砍下。 来自《简明英汉词典》
9 curtailed 7746e1f810c323c484795ba1ce76a5e5     
v.截断，缩短( curtail的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
  • Spending on books has been severely curtailed. 购书开支已被大大削减。
  • Their public health programme had to be severely curtailed. 他们的公共卫生计划不得不大大收缩。 来自《简明英汉词典》
10 erect 4iLzm     
n./v.树立，建立，使竖立；adj.直立的，垂直的
参考例句：
  • She held her head erect and her back straight.她昂着头，把背挺得笔直。
  • Soldiers are trained to stand erect.士兵们训练站得笔直。
11 swelling OUzzd     
n.肿胀
参考例句：
  • Use ice to reduce the swelling. 用冰敷消肿。
  • There is a marked swelling of the lymph nodes. 淋巴结处有明显的肿块。
12 eruption UomxV     
n.火山爆发；（战争等）爆发；（疾病等）发作
参考例句：
  • The temple was destroyed in the violent eruption of 1470 BC.庙宇在公元前1470年猛烈的火山爆发中摧毁了。
  • The eruption of a volcano is spontaneous.火山的爆发是自发的。
13 humble ddjzU     
adj.谦卑的，恭顺的；地位低下的；v.降低，贬低
参考例句：
  • In my humble opinion,he will win the election.依我拙见，他将在选举中获胜。
  • Defeat and failure make people humble.挫折与失败会使人谦卑。
14 forth Hzdz2     
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。
15 anemones 5370d49d360c476ee5fcc43fea3fa7ac     
n.银莲花( anemone的名词复数 )；海葵
参考例句：
  • With its powerful tentacles, it tries to prise the anemones off. 它想用强壮的触角截获海葵。 来自互联网
  • Density, scale, thickness are still influencing the anemones shape. 密度、大小、厚度是受最原始的那股海葵的影响。 来自互联网
16 swarming db600a2d08b872102efc8fbe05f047f9     
密集( swarm的现在分词 )； 云集； 成群地移动； 蜜蜂或其他飞行昆虫成群地飞来飞去
参考例句：
  • The sacks of rice were swarming with bugs. 一袋袋的米里长满了虫子。
  • The beach is swarming with bathers. 海滩满是海水浴的人。
17 croaked 9a150c9af3075625e0cba4de8da8f6a9     
v.呱呱地叫( croak的过去式和过去分词 )；用粗的声音说
参考例句：
  • The crow croaked disaster. 乌鸦呱呱叫预报灾难。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
  • 'she has a fine head for it," croaked Jacques Three. “她有一个漂亮的脑袋跟着去呢，”雅克三号低沉地说。 来自英汉文学 - 双城记
18 marsh Y7Rzo     
n.沼泽，湿地
参考例句：
  • There are a lot of frogs in the marsh.沼泽里有许多青蛙。
  • I made my way slowly out of the marsh.我缓慢地走出这片沼泽地。
19 basking 7596d7e95e17619cf6e8285dc844d8be     
v.晒太阳，取暖( bask的现在分词 )；对…感到乐趣；因他人的功绩而出名；仰仗…的余泽
参考例句：
  • We sat basking in the warm sunshine. 我们坐着享受温暖的阳光。
  • A colony of seals lay basking in the sun. 一群海豹躺着晒太阳。 来自《简明英汉词典》
20 standing 2hCzgo     
n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的
参考例句：
  • After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
  • They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。
21 lithe m0Ix9     
adj.(指人、身体)柔软的，易弯的
参考例句：
  • His lithe athlete's body had been his pride through most of the fifty - six years.他那轻巧自如的运动员体格，五十六年来几乎一直使他感到自豪。
  • His walk was lithe and graceful.他走路轻盈而优雅。
22 esteem imhyZ     
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。
23 contented Gvxzof     
adj.满意的，安心的，知足的
参考例句：
  • He won't be contented until he's upset everyone in the office.不把办公室里的每个人弄得心烦意乱他就不会满足。
  • The people are making a good living and are contented,each in his station.人民安居乐业。
24 assent Hv6zL     
v.批准，认可；n.批准，认可
参考例句：
  • I cannot assent to what you ask.我不能应允你的要求。
  • The new bill passed by Parliament has received Royal Assent.议会所通过的新方案已获国王批准。

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