TUESDAY afternoon came, and waned¹ to the twilight². The village of St. Petersburg still mourned. The lost children had not been found. Public prayers had been offered up for them, and many and many a private prayer that had the petitioner's whole heart in it; but still no good news came from the cave. The majority of the searchers had given up the quest and gone back to their daily avocations³, saying that it was plain the children could never be found. Mrs. Thatcher⁴ was very ill, and a great part of the time delirious⁵. People said it was heartbreaking to hear her call her child, and raise her head and listen a whole minute at a time, then lay it wearily down again with a moan. Aunt Polly had drooped⁶ into a settled melancholy⁷, and her gray hair had grown almost white. The village went to its rest on Tuesday night, sad and forlorn.

Away in the middle of the night a wild peal⁸ burst from the village bells, and in a moment the streets were swarming⁹ with frantic¹⁰ half-clad people, who shouted, "Turn out! turn out! they're found! they're found!" Tin pans and horns were added to the din¹¹, the population massed itself and moved toward the river, met the children coming in an open carriage drawn¹² by shouting citizens,

点击收听单词发音  

1 waned
v.衰落( wane的过去式和过去分词 )；（月）亏；变小；变暗淡
参考例句：
However,my enthusiasm waned.The time I spent at exercises gradually diminished. 然而，我的热情减退了。我在做操上花的时间逐渐减少了。 来自《用法词典》 The bicycle craze has waned. 自行车热已冷下去了。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

2 twilight
n.暮光，黄昏；暮年，晚期，衰落时期
参考例句：
Twilight merged into darkness.夕阳的光辉融于黑暗中。 Twilight was sweet with the smell of lilac and freshly turned earth.薄暮充满紫丁香和新翻耕的泥土的香味。

3 avocations
n.业余爱好，嗜好( avocation的名词复数 )；职业
参考例句：
Most seem to come from technical avocations, like engineering, computers and sciences. 绝大多数人原有技术方面的爱好，比如工程、计算机和科学。 来自互联网 In terms of avocations, there is hardly anything in common between Jenny and her younger sister. 就业余爱好而言，珍妮和她妹妹几乎没什么共同之处。 来自互联网

4 thatcher
n.茅屋匠
参考例句：
Tom Sawyer was in the skiff that bore Judge Thatcher. 汤姆 - 索亚和撒切尔法官同乘一条小艇。 来自英汉文学 - 汤姆历险 Mrs. Thatcher was almost crazed; and Aunt Polly, also. 撒切尔夫人几乎神经失常，还有波莉姨妈也是。 来自英汉文学 - 汤姆历险

5 delirious
adj.不省人事的，神智昏迷的
参考例句：
He was delirious,murmuring about that matter.他精神恍惚，低声叨念着那件事。 She knew that he had become delirious,and tried to pacify him.她知道他已经神志昏迷起来了，极力想使他镇静下来。

6 drooped
弯曲或下垂，发蔫( droop的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
Her eyelids drooped as if she were on the verge of sleep. 她眼睑低垂好像快要睡着的样子。 The flowers drooped in the heat of the sun. 花儿晒蔫了。

7 melancholy
n.忧郁，愁思；adj.令人感伤（沮丧）的，忧郁的
参考例句：
All at once he fell into a state of profound melancholy.他立即陷入无尽的忧思之中。 He felt melancholy after he failed the exam.这次考试没通过，他感到很郁闷。

8 peal
n.钟声；v.鸣响
参考例句：
The bells of the cathedral rang out their loud peal.大教堂响起了响亮的钟声。 A sudden peal of thunder leaves no time to cover the ears.迅雷不及掩耳。

9 swarming
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。

10 frantic
adj.狂乱的，错乱的，激昂的
参考例句：
I've had a frantic rush to get my work done.我急急忙忙地赶完工作。 He made frantic dash for the departing train.他发疯似地冲向正开出的火车。

11 din
n.喧闹声，嘈杂声
参考例句：
The bustle and din gradually faded to silence as night advanced.随着夜越来越深，喧闹声逐渐沉寂。 They tried to make themselves heard over the din of the crowd.他们力图让自己的声音盖过人群的喧闹声。

12 drawn
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。

13 thronged
v.成群，挤满( throng的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
Mourners thronged to the funeral. 吊唁者蜂拥着前来参加葬礼。 来自《简明英汉词典》 The department store was thronged with people. 百货商店挤满了人。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

14 illuminated
adj.被照明的；受启迪的
参考例句：
Floodlights illuminated the stadium. 泛光灯照亮了体育场。 the illuminated city at night 夜幕中万家灯火的城市

15 adorn
vt.使美化，装饰
参考例句：
She loved to adorn herself with finery.她喜欢穿戴华丽的服饰。 His watercolour designs adorn a wide range of books.他的水彩设计使许多图书大为生色。

16 speck
n.微粒，小污点，小斑点
参考例句：
I have not a speck of interest in it.我对它没有任何兴趣。 The sky is clear and bright without a speck of cloud.天空晴朗，一星星云彩也没有。

17 fret
v.(使)烦恼；(使)焦急；(使)腐蚀，(使)磨损
参考例句：
Don't fret.We'll get there on time.别着急，我们能准时到那里。 She'll fret herself to death one of these days.她总有一天会愁死的.

18 labored
adj.吃力的，谨慎的v.努力争取(for)( labor的过去式和过去分词 )；苦干；详细分析；（指引擎）缓慢而困难地运转
参考例句：
I was close enough to the elk to hear its labored breathing. 我离那头麋鹿非常近，能听见它吃力的呼吸声。 来自辞典例句 They have labored to complete the job. 他们努力完成这一工作。 来自辞典例句

19 famished
adj.饥饿的
参考例句：
When's lunch?I'm famished!什么时候吃午饭？我饿得要死了！ My feet are now killing me and I'm absolutely famished.我的脚现在筋疲力尽，我绝对是极饿了。

20 twine
v.搓，织，编饰；（使）缠绕
参考例句：
He tied the parcel with twine.他用细绳捆包裹。 Their cardboard boxes were wrapped and tied neatly with waxed twine.他们的纸板盒用蜡线扎得整整齐齐。

21 toil
vi.辛劳工作，艰难地行动；n.苦工，难事
参考例句：
The wealth comes from the toil of the masses.财富来自大众的辛勤劳动。 Every single grain is the result of toil.每一粒粮食都来之不易。

22 ragged
adj.衣衫褴褛的，粗糙的，刺耳的
参考例句：
A ragged shout went up from the small crowd.这一小群人发出了刺耳的喊叫。 Ragged clothing infers poverty.破衣烂衫意味着贫穷。

23 sheathed
adj.雕塑像下半身包在鞘中的；覆盖的；铠装的；装鞘了的v.将（刀、剑等）插入鞘( sheathe的过去式和过去分词 )；包，覆盖
参考例句：
Bulletproof cars sheathed in armour. 防弹车护有装甲。 来自《简明英汉词典》 The effect of his mediation was so great that both parties sheathed the sword at once. 他的调停非常有效，双方立刻停战。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

24 boiler
n.锅炉；煮器(壶，锅等)
参考例句：
That boiler will not hold up under pressure.那种锅炉受不住压力。 This new boiler generates more heat than the old one.这个新锅炉产生的热量比旧锅炉多。