IT is wintertime． Theearthwearsasnowygarment，and looks like marble hewn out of the rock； the air isbright and clear； thewind is sharp as a well－temperedsword， and the trees stand like branches of white coral orblooming almond twigs， and here it is keenas on the loftyAlps．

The night is splendid with the gleam of the Northern Lights， and with the glitter of innumerable twinkling stars．

The storms come； theclouds arise and shake outtheirswan's down； the snowflakes fly； they cover roadand house， open fields and closed－in streets. But we sitin thewarmroom， by thehot stove，andtalkaboutthe old times．And we listen to thisstory：

By the open sea was a grave mound； and on it sat atmidnight the spirit of the buried hero， who had been a king． The golden circlet gleamed on his brow， his hair fluttered in the wind， and he was clad insteel and iron．He bent² hisheadmournfully， and sighed indeep sorrow，as anunquiet spiritmight sigh．

And a ship came sailing by． The sailorslowered the anchor， andlanded. Among themwasa singer，and he approached the royal spirit， andsaid，

"Why mournest thou， andwhereforedost thou suffer thus？"

And the dead man answered，

"No one hath sung the deeds of my life； they aredeadandforgotten：songdothnot carrythemforthover the lands， nor into the hearts of men； thereforeI have norest and no peace."

And he spoke³ of his works， and of his warlikedeeds， whichhis contemporaries had known， but which hadnotbeen sung，because therewasno singer among his companions．

Then the old bard⁴ struck the strings⁵ of his harp¹，and sang of the youthful courage of the hero， of the strength oftheman，and of the greatnessofhis good deeds．Then the faceofthe dead gleamedlike the marginofthe cloud in the moonlight．Gladlyandofgood courage，theformarosein splendour and in majesty， and vanished like theglancingof theNorthernLights． Naughtwastobeseen butthegreen turfymound， with thestones on which no Runic record has been graven； but at thelast sound of the harp there soaredover the hill， as though he had fluttered from the harp， alittle bird， a charming singing-bird， with the ringing voiceof the thrush， with the moving

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1 harp
n.竖琴；天琴座
参考例句：
She swept her fingers over the strings of the harp.她用手指划过竖琴的琴弦。 He played an Irish melody on the harp.他用竖琴演奏了一首爱尔兰曲调。

2 bent
n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的
参考例句：
He was fully bent upon the project.他一心扑在这项计划上。 We bent over backward to help them.我们尽了最大努力帮助他们。

3 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。

4 bard
n.吟游诗人
参考例句：
I'll use my bard song to help you concentrate!我会用我的吟游诗人歌曲帮你集中精神！ I find him,the wandering grey bard.我发现了正在徘徊的衰老游唱诗人。

5 strings
n.弦
参考例句：
He sat on the bed,idly plucking the strings of his guitar.他坐在床上，随意地拨着吉他的弦。 She swept her fingers over the strings of the harp.她用手指划过竖琴的琴弦。

6 pathos
n.哀婉，悲怆
参考例句：
The pathos of the situation brought tears to our eyes.情况令人怜悯，看得我们不禁流泪。 There is abundant pathos in her words.她的话里富有动人哀怜的力量。

7 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。

8 knightly
adj. 骑士般的 adv. 骑士般地
参考例句：
He composed heroic songs and began to write many a tale of enchantment and knightly adventure. 他谱写英雄短歌并着手编写不少记叙巫术和骑士历险的故事。 If you wear knight costumes, you will certainly have a knightly manner. 身着骑士装，令您具有骑士风度。

9 draught
n.拉，牵引，拖；一网（饮，吸，阵)；顿服药量，通风；v.起草，设计
参考例句：
He emptied his glass at one draught.他将杯中物一饮而尽。 It's a pity the room has no north window and you don't get a draught.可惜这房间没北窗，没有过堂风。

10 ravens
n.低质煤；渡鸦( raven的名词复数 )
参考例句：
Wheresoever the carcase is,there will the ravens be gathered together. 哪里有死尸，哪里就有乌鸦麇集。 来自《简明英汉词典》 A couple of ravens croaked above our boat. 两只乌鸦在我们小船的上空嘎嘎叫着。 来自辞典例句

11 sprout
n.芽，萌芽；vt.使发芽，摘去芽；vi.长芽，抽条
参考例句：
When do deer first sprout horns?鹿在多大的时候开始长出角？ It takes about a week for the seeds to sprout.这些种子大约要一周后才会发芽。

12 swell
vi.膨胀，肿胀；增长，增强
参考例句：
The waves had taken on a deep swell.海浪汹涌。 His injured wrist began to swell.他那受伤的手腕开始肿了。

13 onward
adj.向前的，前进的；adv.向前，前进，在先
参考例句：
The Yellow River surges onward like ten thousand horses galloping.黄河以万马奔腾之势滚滚向前。 He followed in the steps of forerunners and marched onward.他跟随着先辈的足迹前进。

14 swoop
n.俯冲，攫取；v.抓取，突然袭击
参考例句：
The plane made a swoop over the city.那架飞机突然向这座城市猛降下来。 We decided to swoop down upon the enemy there.我们决定突袭驻在那里的敌人。