It was past ten when Mr. Polly found himself riding back towards Easewood in a broad moonlight with a little Japanese lantern dangling¹ from his handle bar and making a fiery² circle of pinkish light on and round about his front wheel. He was mightily³ pleased with himself and the day. There had been four-ale to drink at supper mixed with gingerbeer, very free and jolly in a jug⁴. No shadow fell upon the agreeable excitement of his mind until he faced the anxious and reproachful face of Johnson, who had been sitting up for him, smoking and trying to read the odd volume of “Purchas his Pilgrimes,”— about the monk⁵ who went into Sarmatia and saw the Tartar carts.

“Not had an accident, Elfrid?” said Johnson.

The weakness of Mr. Polly’s character came out in his reply. “Not much,” he said. “Pedal got a bit loose in Stamton, O’ Man. Couldn’t ride it. So I looked up the cousins while I waited.”

“Not the Larkins lot?”

“Yes.”

Johnson yawned hugely and asked for and was given friendly particulars. “Well,” he said, “better get to bed. I have been reading that book of yours — rum stuff. Can’t make it out quite. Quite out of date I should say if you asked me.”

“That’s all right, O’ Man,” said Mr. Polly.

“Not a bit of use for anything I can see.”

“Not a bit.”

“See any shops in Stamton?”

“Nothing to speak of,” said Mr. Polly. “Goo-night, O’ Man.”

Before and after this brief conversation his mind ran on his cousins very warmly and prettily⁶ in the vein⁷ of high spring. Mr. Polly had been drinking at the poisoned fountains of English literature, fountains so unsuited to the needs of a decent clerk or shopman, fountains charged with the dangerous suggestion that it becomes a man of gaiety and spirit to make love,

点击收听单词发音  

1 dangling
悬吊着( dangle的现在分词 )； 摆动不定； 用某事物诱惑…； 吊胃口
参考例句：
The tooth hung dangling by the bedpost, now. 结果，那颗牙就晃来晃去吊在床柱上了。 The children sat on the high wall,their legs dangling. 孩子们坐在一堵高墙上，摇晃着他们的双腿。

2 fiery
adj.燃烧着的，火红的；暴躁的；激烈的
参考例句：
She has fiery red hair.她有一头火红的头发。 His fiery speech agitated the crowd.他热情洋溢的讲话激动了群众。

3 mightily
ad.强烈地；非常地
参考例句：
He hit the peg mightily on the top with a mallet. 他用木槌猛敲木栓顶。 This seemed mightily to relieve him. 干完这件事后，他似乎轻松了许多。

4 jug
n.(有柄，小口，可盛水等的)大壶，罐，盂
参考例句：
He walked along with a jug poised on his head.他头上顶着一个水罐，保持着平衡往前走。 She filled the jug with fresh water.她将水壶注满了清水。

5 monk
n.和尚，僧侣，修道士
参考例句：
The man was a monk from Emei Mountain.那人是峨眉山下来的和尚。 Buddhist monk sat with folded palms.和尚合掌打坐。

6 prettily
adv.优美地；可爱地
参考例句：
It was prettily engraved with flowers on the back.此件雕刻精美，背面有花饰图案。 She pouted prettily at him.她冲他撅着嘴，样子很可爱。

7 vein
n.血管，静脉；叶脉，纹理；情绪；vt.使成脉络
参考例句：
The girl is not in the vein for singing today.那女孩今天没有心情唱歌。 The doctor injects glucose into the patient's vein.医生把葡萄糖注射入病人的静脉。

8 gallantly
adv. 漂亮地，勇敢地，献殷勤地
参考例句：
He gallantly offered to carry her cases to the car. 他殷勤地要帮她把箱子拎到车子里去。 The new fighters behave gallantly under fire. 新战士在炮火下表现得很勇敢。

9 resolute
adj.坚决的，果敢的
参考例句：
He was resolute in carrying out his plan.他坚决地实行他的计划。 The Egyptians offered resolute resistance to the aggressors.埃及人对侵略者作出坚决的反抗。