The Survivors of the Chancellor大臣号遇难者
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CHAPTER 53 WE DECIDE TO DRAW LOTS

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 JANUARY 26.—All heard and understood the proposition; in fact it had been in contemplation for several days, but no one had ventured to put the idea into words. However, it was done now; lots were to be drawn1, and to each would be assigned his share of the body of the one ordained2 by fate to be the victim. For my own part, I profess3 that I was quite resigned for the lot to fall upon myself. I thought I heard Andre Letourneur beg for an exception to be made in favor of Miss Herbey; but the sailors raised a murmur4 of dissent5. As there were eleven of us on board, there were ten chances to one in each one's favor—a proportion which would be diminished if Miss Herbey were excluded; so that the young lady was forced to take her chance among the rest.
 
It was then half-past ten, and the boatswain, who had been roused from his lethargy by what the carpenter had said, insisted that the drawing should take place immediately. There was no reason for delaying the fatal lottery6. There was not one of us that clung in the least to life; and we knew that, at the worst, whoever should be doomed7 to die, would only precede the rest by a few days, or even hours. All that we desired was just once to slake8 our raging thirst and moderate our gnawing9 hunger.
 
How all the names found their way to the bottom of a hat I cannot tell. Very likely Falsten wrote them upon a leaf torn from his memorandum-book. But be that as it may, the eleven names were there, and it was unanimously agreed that the last name drawn should be the victim.
 
But who would draw the names? There was

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1 drawn MuXzIi     
v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的
参考例句：
  • All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
  • Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。
2 ordained 629f6c8a1f6bf34be2caf3a3959a61f1     
v.任命（某人）为牧师( ordain的过去式和过去分词 )；授予（某人）圣职；（上帝、法律等）命令；判定
参考例句：
  • He was ordained in 1984. 他在一九八四年被任命为牧师。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • He was ordained priest. 他被任命为牧师。 来自辞典例句
3 profess iQHxU     
v.声称，冒称，以...为业，正式接受入教，表明信仰
参考例句：
  • I profess that I was surprised at the news.我承认这消息使我惊讶。
  • What religion does he profess?他信仰哪种宗教？
4 murmur EjtyD     
n.低语，低声的怨言；v.低语，低声而言
参考例句：
  • They paid the extra taxes without a murmur.他们毫无怨言地交了附加税。
  • There was a low murmur of conversation in the hall.大厅里有窃窃私语声。
5 dissent ytaxU     
n./v.不同意，持异议
参考例句：
  • It is too late now to make any dissent.现在提出异议太晚了。
  • He felt her shoulders gave a wriggle of dissent.他感到她的肩膀因为不同意而动了一下。
6 lottery 43MyV     
n.抽彩；碰运气的事，难于算计的事
参考例句：
  • He won no less than ￡5000 in the lottery.他居然中了5000英镑的奖券。
  • They thought themselves lucky in the lottery of life.他们认为自己是变幻莫测的人生中的幸运者。
7 doomed EuuzC1     
命定的
参考例句：
  • The court doomed the accused to a long term of imprisonment. 法庭判处被告长期监禁。
  • A country ruled by an iron hand is doomed to suffer. 被铁腕人物统治的国家定会遭受不幸的。
8 slake txVwb     
v.解渴，使平息
参考例句：
  • We had to slake ourselves with rainwater in the desert.在沙漠中我们不得不用雨水解渴。
  • A menu will not satisfy your hunger,a formula will not slake your thirst.菜单不可能填饱你的肚子，一套准则也不可能消除你的饥渴。
9 gnawing GsWzWk     
a.痛苦的，折磨人的
参考例句：
  • The dog was gnawing a bone. 那狗在啃骨头。
  • These doubts had been gnawing at him for some time. 这些疑虑已经折磨他一段时间了。
10 hesitation tdsz5     
n.犹豫，踌躇
参考例句：
  • After a long hesitation, he told the truth at last.踌躇了半天，他终于直说了。
  • There was a certain hesitation in her manner.她的态度有些犹豫不决。
11 beheld beheld     
v.看，注视( behold的过去式和过去分词 )；瞧；看呀；（叙述中用于引出某人意外的出现）哎哟
参考例句：
  • His eyes had never beheld such opulence. 他从未见过这样的财富。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • The soul beheld its features in the mirror of the passing moment. 灵魂在逝去的瞬间的镜子中看到了自己的模样。 来自英汉文学 - 红字
12 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。
13 sublime xhVyW     
adj.崇高的，伟大的；极度的，不顾后果的
参考例句：
  • We should take some time to enjoy the sublime beauty of nature.我们应该花些时间去欣赏大自然的壮丽景象。
  • Olympic games play as an important arena to exhibit the sublime idea.奥运会，就是展示此崇高理念的重要舞台。
14 exclamation onBxZ     
n.感叹号，惊呼，惊叹词
参考例句：
  • He could not restrain an exclamation of approval.他禁不住喝一声采。
  • The author used three exclamation marks at the end of the last sentence to wake up the readers.作者在文章的最后一句连用了三个惊叹号，以引起读者的注意。
15 peril l3Dz6     
n.(严重的)危险；危险的事物
参考例句：
  • The refugees were in peril of death from hunger.难民有饿死的危险。
  • The embankment is in great peril.河堤岌岌可危。
16 devour hlezt     
v.吞没；贪婪地注视或谛听，贪读；使着迷
参考例句：
  • Larger fish devour the smaller ones.大鱼吃小鱼。
  • Beauty is but a flower which wrinkle will devour.美只不过是一朵，终会被皱纹所吞噬。
17 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。

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