In an art exhibition the other day I saw a painting that had been sold for $5,000. The painter was a young scrub out of the West named Kraft, who had a favourite food and a pet theory. His pabulum was an unquenchable belief in the Unerring Artistic¹ Adjustment of Nature. His theory was fixed² around corned-beef hash with poached egg.

There was a story behind the picture, so I went home and let it drip out of a fountain-pen. The idea of Kraft--but that is not the beginning of the story.

Three years ago Kraft, Bill Judkins (a poet), and I took our meals at Cypher's, on Eighth Avenue. I say "took." When we had money, Cypher got it "off of" us, as he expressed it. We had no credit; we went in, called for food and ate it. We paid or we did not pay. We had confidence in Cypher's sullenness³ end smouldering ferocity.

Deep down in his sunless soul he was either a prince, a fool or an artist. He sat at a worm-eaten desk, covered with files of waiters' checks so old that I was sure the bottomest one was for clams⁴ that Hendrik Hudson had eaten and paid for. Cypher had the power, in common with Napoleon III. and the goggle-eyed perch⁵, of throwing a film over his eyes, rendering⁶ opaque⁷ the windows of his soul. Once when we left him unpaid⁸, with egregious⁹ excuses, I looked back and saw him shaking with inaudible laughter behind his film. Now and then we paid up back scores.

But the chief thing at Cypher's was Milly. Milly was a waitress. She was a grand example of Kraft's theory of the artistic adjustment of nature. She belonged, largely, to waiting, as Minerva did to the art of scrapping

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1 artistic
adj.艺术(家)的，美术(家)的；善于艺术创作的
参考例句：
The picture on this screen is a good artistic work.这屏风上的画是件很好的艺术品。 These artistic handicrafts are very popular with foreign friends.外国朋友很喜欢这些美术工艺品。

2 fixed
adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的
参考例句：
Have you two fixed on a date for the wedding yet?你们俩选定婚期了吗？ Once the aim is fixed,we should not change it arbitrarily.目标一旦确定，我们就不应该随意改变。

3 sullenness
n. 愠怒, 沉闷, 情绪消沉
参考例句：
His bluster sank to sullenness under her look. 在她目光逼视下，他蛮横的表情稍加收敛，显出一副阴沉的样子。 Marked by anger or sullenness. 怒气冲冲的，忿恨的。

4 clams
n.蛤；蚌，蛤( clam的名词复数 )v.（在沙滩上）挖蛤( clam的第三人称单数 )
参考例句：
The restaurant's specialities are fried clams. 这个餐厅的特色菜是炸蚌。 来自《简明英汉词典》 We dug clams in the flats et low tide. 退潮时我们在浅滩挖蛤蜊。 来自辞典例句

5 perch
n.栖木，高位，杆；v.栖息，就位，位于
参考例句：
The bird took its perch.鸟停歇在栖木上。 Little birds perch themselves on the branches.小鸟儿栖歇在树枝上。

6 rendering
n.表现，描写
参考例句：
She gave a splendid rendering of Beethoven's piano sonata.她精彩地演奏了贝多芬的钢琴奏鸣曲。 His narrative is a super rendering of dialect speech and idiom.他的叙述是方言和土语最成功的运用。

7 opaque
adj.不透光的；不反光的，不传导的；晦涩的
参考例句：
The windows are of opaque glass.这些窗户装着不透明玻璃。 Their intentions remained opaque.他们的意图仍然令人费解。

8 unpaid
adj.未付款的，无报酬的
参考例句：
Doctors work excessive unpaid overtime.医生过度加班却无报酬。 He's doing a month's unpaid work experience with an engineering firm.他正在一家工程公司无偿工作一个月以获得工作经验。

9 egregious
adj.非常的，过分的
参考例句：
When it comes to blatant lies,there are none more egregious than budget figures.谈到公众谎言，没有比预算数字更令人震惊的。 What an egregious example was here!现摆着一个多么触目惊心的例子啊。

10 scrapping
刮，切除坯体余泥
参考例句：
He was always scrapping at school. 他在学校总打架。 These two dogs are always scrapping. 这两条狗总是打架。

11 flirtation
n.调情，调戏，挑逗
参考例句：
a brief and unsuccessful flirtation with the property market 对房地产市场一时兴起、并不成功的介入 At recess Tom continued his flirtation with Amy with jubilant self-satisfaction. 课间休息的时候，汤姆继续和艾美逗乐，一副得意洋洋、心满意足的样子。 来自英汉文学 - 汤姆历险

12 colossal
adj.异常的，庞大的
参考例句：
There has been a colossal waste of public money.一直存在巨大的公款浪费。 Some of the tall buildings in that city are colossal.那座城市里的一些高层建筑很庞大。

13 loom
n.织布机，织机；v.隐现，(危险、忧虑等)迫近
参考例句：
The old woman was weaving on her loom.那位老太太正在织布机上织布。 The shuttle flies back and forth on the loom.织布机上梭子来回飞动。

14 reeking
v.发出浓烈的臭气( reek的现在分词 )；散发臭气；发出难闻的气味 (of sth)；明显带有（令人不快或生疑的跡象）
参考例句：
I won't have you reeking with sweat in my bed! 我就不许你混身臭汗，臭烘烘的上我的炕！ 来自汉英文学 - 骆驼祥子 This is a novel reeking with sentimentalism. 这是一本充满着感伤主义的小说。 来自辞典例句

15 clatter
v./n.(使)发出连续而清脆的撞击声
参考例句：
The dishes and bowls slid together with a clatter.碟子碗碰得丁丁当当的。 Don't clatter your knives and forks.别把刀叉碰得咔哒响。

16 horrid
adj.可怕的；令人惊恐的；恐怖的；极讨厌的
参考例句：
I'm not going to the horrid dinner party.我不打算去参加这次讨厌的宴会。 The medicine is horrid and she couldn't get it down.这种药很难吃，她咽不下去。

17 tumult
n.喧哗；激动，混乱；吵闹
参考例句：
The tumult in the streets awakened everyone in the house.街上的喧哗吵醒了屋子里的每一个人。 His voice disappeared under growing tumult.他的声音消失在越来越响的喧哗声中。

18 swarms
蜂群，一大群( swarm的名词复数 )
参考例句：
They came to town in swarms. 他们蜂拥来到城里。 On June the first there were swarms of children playing in the park. 6月1日那一天，这个公园里有一群群的孩子玩耍。

19 steered
v.驾驶( steer的过去式和过去分词 )；操纵；控制；引导
参考例句：
He steered the boat into the harbour. 他把船开进港。 The freighter steered out of Santiago Bay that evening. 那天晚上货轮驶出了圣地亚哥湾。 来自《简明英汉词典》

20 cleaving
v.劈开，剁开，割开( cleave的现在分词 )
参考例句：
The freighter carrying pig iron is cleaving through the water. 装着生铁的货船正在破浪前进。 来自辞典例句 IL-10-cDNA fragment was obtained through cleaving pUC-T-IL-10cDNA by reconstriction enzymes. 结果：pcDNA3.1-IL-10酶切鉴定的电泳结果显示，pcDNA3.1-IL-10质粒有一个560bp左右的插入片断，大小和IL-10cDNA大致符合。 来自互联网

21 savages
未开化的人，野蛮人( savage的名词复数 )
参考例句：
There're some savages living in the forest. 森林里居住着一些野人。 That's an island inhabited by savages. 那是一个野蛮人居住的岛屿。

22 majestic
adj.雄伟的，壮丽的，庄严的，威严的，崇高的
参考例句：
In the distance rose the majestic Alps.远处耸立着雄伟的阿尔卑斯山。 He looks majestic in uniform.他穿上军装显得很威风。

23 awe
n.敬畏，惊惧；vt.使敬畏，使惊惧
参考例句：
The sight filled us with awe.这景色使我们大为惊叹。 The approaching tornado struck awe in our hearts.正在逼近的龙卷风使我们惊恐万分。

24 simplicity
n.简单，简易；朴素；直率，单纯
参考例句：
She dressed with elegant simplicity.她穿着朴素高雅。 The beauty of this plan is its simplicity.简明扼要是这个计划的一大特点。

25 indifference
n.不感兴趣，不关心，冷淡，不在乎
参考例句：
I was disappointed by his indifference more than somewhat.他的漠不关心使我很失望。 He feigned indifference to criticism of his work.他假装毫不在意别人批评他的作品。

26 cornucopia
n.象征丰收的羊角
参考例句：
The book is a cornucopia of information.书是知识的宝库。 Our cornucopia is the human mind and heart.我们富足是由于人类的智慧和热情。

27 exhaustion
n.耗尽枯竭，疲惫，筋疲力尽，竭尽，详尽无遗的论述
参考例句：
She slept the sleep of exhaustion.她因疲劳而酣睡。 His exhaustion was obvious when he fell asleep standing.他站着睡着了，显然是太累了。

28 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。

29 apropos
adv.恰好地；adj.恰当的；关于
参考例句：
I thought he spoke very apropos.我认为他说得很中肯。 He arrived very apropos.他来得很及时。

30 exquisite
adj.精美的；敏锐的；剧烈的，感觉强烈的
参考例句：
I was admiring the exquisite workmanship in the mosaic.我当时正在欣赏镶嵌画的精致做工。 I still remember the exquisite pleasure I experienced in Bali.我依然记得在巴厘岛所经历的那种剧烈的快感。

31 congruity
n.全等，一致
参考例句：
Congruity is the mother of love.和谐是爱情之母。 There is a definite congruity in the candidates' approach to the tax problem.候选人在对待税收问题的态度上有着明确的共同之处。

32 punctuating
v.（在文字中）加标点符号，加标点( punctuate的现在分词 )；不时打断某事物
参考例句：
Finally, it all came to a halt, with only Leehom's laboured breathing punctuating the silence. 最后，一切静止，只剩力宏吃力的呼吸，打破寂静。 来自互联网 Li, punctuating the air with her hands, her fingernails decorated with pink rose decals. 一边说着，一边用手在空中一挥，指甲上还画了粉红玫瑰图案。 来自互联网

33 puddle
n.(雨)水坑，泥潭
参考例句：
The boy hopped the mud puddle and ran down the walk.这个男孩跳过泥坑，沿着人行道跑了。 She tripped over and landed in a puddle.她绊了一下，跌在水坑里。

34 forefinger
n.食指
参考例句：
He pinched the leaf between his thumb and forefinger.他将叶子捏在拇指和食指之间。 He held it between the tips of his thumb and forefinger.他用他大拇指和食指尖拿着它。

35 ivy
n.常青藤，常春藤
参考例句：
Her wedding bouquet consisted of roses and ivy.她的婚礼花篮包括玫瑰和长春藤。 The wall is covered all over with ivy.墙上爬满了常春藤。

36 perturbed
adj.烦燥不安的v.使（某人）烦恼，不安( perturb的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
I am deeply perturbed by the alarming way the situation developing. 我对形势令人忧虑的发展深感不安。 来自《简明英汉词典》 Mother was much perturbed by my illness. 母亲为我的病甚感烦恼不安。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

37 hoarsely
adv.嘶哑地
参考例句：
"Excuse me," he said hoarsely. “对不起。”他用嘶哑的嗓子说。 Jerry hoarsely professed himself at Miss Pross's service. 杰瑞嘶声嘶气地表示愿为普洛丝小姐效劳。 来自英汉文学 - 双城记

38 groaned
v.呻吟( groan的过去式和过去分词 )；发牢骚；抱怨；受苦
参考例句：
He groaned in anguish. 他痛苦地呻吟。 The cart groaned under the weight of the piano. 大车在钢琴的重压下嘎吱作响。 来自《简明英汉词典》

39 virgin
n.处女，未婚女子；adj.未经使用的；未经开发的
参考例句：
Have you ever been to a virgin forest?你去过原始森林吗？ There are vast expanses of virgin land in the remote regions.在边远地区有大片大片未开垦的土地。

40 badgers
n.獾( badger的名词复数 )；獾皮；（大写）獾州人（美国威斯康星州人的别称）；毛鼻袋熊
参考例句：
Badgers had undermined the foundations of the church. 獾在这座教堂的地基处打了洞。 来自《简明英汉词典》 And rams ' skins dyed red, and badgers' skins, and shittim wood. 5染红的公羊皮，海狗皮，皂荚木。 来自互联网

41 connives
v.密谋 ( connive的第三人称单数 )；搞阴谋；默许；纵容
参考例句：

42 winsome
n.迷人的，漂亮的
参考例句：
She gave him her best winsome smile.她给了他一个最为迷人的微笑。 She was a winsome creature.她十分可爱。

43 verge
n.边，边缘；v.接近，濒临
参考例句：
The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。 She was on the verge of bursting into tears.她快要哭出来了。

44 shuddered
v.战栗( shudder的过去式和过去分词 )；发抖；（机器、车辆等）突然震动；颤动
参考例句：
He slammed on the brakes and the car shuddered to a halt. 他猛踩刹车，车颤抖着停住了。 来自《简明英汉词典》 I shuddered at the sight of the dead body. 我一看见那尸体就战栗。 来自《简明英汉词典》

45 modulated
已调整[制]的，被调的
参考例句：
He carefully modulated his voice. 他小心地压低了声音。 He had a plump face, lemur-like eyes, a quiet, subtle, modulated voice. 他有一张胖胖的脸，狐猴般的眼睛，以及安详、微妙和富于抑扬顿挫的嗓音。

46 hurled
v.猛投，用力掷( hurl的过去式和过去分词 )；大声叫骂
参考例句：
He hurled a brick through the window. 他往窗户里扔了块砖。 The strong wind hurled down bits of the roof. 大风把屋顶的瓦片刮了下来。 来自《简明英汉词典》

47 rattling
adj. 格格作响的, 活泼的, 很好的 adv. 极其, 很, 非常 动词rattle的现在分词
参考例句：
This book is a rattling good read. 这是一本非常好的读物。 At that same instant,a deafening explosion set the windows rattling. 正在这时，一声震耳欲聋的爆炸突然袭来，把窗玻璃震得当当地响。

48 stew
n.炖汤，焖，烦恼；v.炖汤，焖，忧虑
参考例句：
The stew must be boiled up before serving.炖肉必须煮熟才能上桌。 There's no need to get in a stew.没有必要烦恼。

49 trotted
小跑，急走( trot的过去分词 )； 匆匆忙忙地走
参考例句：
She trotted her pony around the field. 她骑着小马绕场慢跑。 Anne trotted obediently beside her mother. 安妮听话地跟在妈妈身边走。

50 specimen
n.样本，标本
参考例句：
You'll need tweezers to hold up the specimen.你要用镊子来夹这标本。 This specimen is richly variegated in colour.这件标本上有很多颜色。

51 rugged
adj.高低不平的，粗糙的，粗壮的，强健的
参考例句：
Football players must be rugged.足球运动员必须健壮。 The Rocky Mountains have rugged mountains and roads.落基山脉有崇山峻岭和崎岖不平的道路。

52 strewed
v.撒在…上( strew的过去式和过去分词 )；散落于；点缀；撒满
参考例句：
Papers strewed the floor. 文件扔了一地。 来自《简明英汉词典》 Autumn leaves strewed the lawn. 草地上撒满了秋叶。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

53 bead
n.念珠；(pl.)珠子项链；水珠
参考例句：
She accidentally swallowed a glass bead.她不小心吞下了一颗玻璃珠。 She has a beautiful glass bead and a bracelet in the box.盒子里有一颗美丽的玻璃珠和手镯。

54 pelts
n. 皮毛，投掷, 疾行 vt. 剥去皮毛，（连续）投掷 vi. 猛击，大步走
参考例句：
He did and Tibetans lit bonfires of the pelts. 他做到了，藏民们点起了篝火把皮毛都烧了。 Description: A warm cloak fashioned from thick fabric and wolf pelts. 一个由厚布和狼皮做成的暖和的斗篷。

55 prate
v.瞎扯，胡说
参考例句：
Listen to him prating on about nothing.听他瞎唠叨。 If the hen does not prate,she will not lay.母鸡不唠叨不下蛋。

56 loomed
v.隐约出现，阴森地逼近( loom的过去式和过去分词 )；隐约出现，阴森地逼近
参考例句：
A dark shape loomed up ahead of us. 一个黑糊糊的影子隐隐出现在我们的前面。 The prospect of war loomed large in everyone's mind. 战事将起的庞大阴影占据每个人的心。 来自《简明英汉词典》

57 gulch
n.深谷，峡谷
参考例句：
The trail ducks into a narrow gulch.这条羊肠小道突然下到一个狭窄的峡谷里。 This is a picture of California Gulch.这是加利福尼亚峡谷的图片。

58 dross
n.渣滓；无用之物
参考例句：
Caroline felt the value of the true ore,and knew the deception of the flashy dross.卡罗琳辨别出了真金的价值，知道那种炫耀的铁渣只有迷惑人的外表。 The best players go off to the big clubs,leaving us the dross.最好的队员都投奔大俱乐部去了，就只给我们剩下些不中用的人。

59 jaw
n.颚，颌，说教，流言蜚语；v.喋喋不休，教训
参考例句：
He delivered a right hook to his opponent's jaw.他给了对方下巴一记右钩拳。 A strong square jaw is a sign of firm character.强健的方下巴是刚毅性格的标志。

60 engulf
vt.吞没，吞食
参考例句：
Floodwaters engulf a housing project in the Bajo Yuna community in central Dominican Republic.洪水吞没了多米尼加中部巴杰优那社区的一处在建的住房工程项目。 If we are not strong enough to cover all the minds up,then they will engulf us,and we are in danger.如果我们不够坚强来抵挡大众的意念，就会有被他们吞没的危险。

61 afterward
adv.后来；以后
参考例句：
Let's go to the theatre first and eat afterward. 让我们先去看戏，然后吃饭。 Afterward,the boy became a very famous artist.后来，这男孩成为一个很有名的艺术家。

62 gaily
adv.欢乐地，高兴地
参考例句：
The children sing gaily.孩子们欢唱着。 She waved goodbye very gaily.她欢快地挥手告别。

63 irresistibly
adv.无法抵抗地，不能自持地；极为诱惑人地
参考例句：
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。 来自《简明英汉词典》 He was irresistibly attracted by her charm. 他不能自已地被她的魅力所吸引。 来自《简明英汉词典》

64 embalmed
adj.用防腐药物保存（尸体）的v.保存（尸体）不腐( embalm的过去式和过去分词 )；使不被遗忘；使充满香气
参考例句：
Many fine sentiments are embalmed in poetry. 许多微妙的情感保存于诗歌中。 来自辞典例句 In books, are embalmed the greatest thoughts of all ages. 伟大思想古今有，载入书中成不朽。 来自互联网

65 rumbled
发出隆隆声，发出辘辘声( rumble的过去式和过去分词 )； 轰鸣着缓慢行进； 发现…的真相； 看穿（阴谋）
参考例句：
The machine rumbled as it started up. 机器轰鸣着发动起来。 Things rapidly became calm, though beneath the surface the argument rumbled on. 事情迅速平静下来了，然而，在这种平静的表面背后争论如隆隆雷声，持续不断。

66 sling
vt.扔；悬挂；n.挂带；吊索，吊兜；弹弓
参考例句：
The boy discharged a stone from a sling.这个男孩用弹弓射石头。 By using a hoist the movers were able to sling the piano to the third floor.搬运工人用吊车才把钢琴吊到3楼。

67 puny
adj.微不足道的，弱小的
参考例句：
The resources at the central banks' disposal are simply too puny.中央银行掌握的资金实在太少了。 Antonio was a puny lad,and not strong enough to work.安东尼奥是个瘦小的小家伙，身体还不壮，还不能干活。

68 dime
n.（指美国、加拿大的钱币）一角
参考例句：
A dime is a tenth of a dollar.一角银币是十分之一美元。 The liberty torch is on the back of the dime.自由火炬在一角硬币的反面。

69 ammunition
n.军火，弹药
参考例句：
A few of the jeeps had run out of ammunition.几辆吉普车上的弹药已经用光了。 They have expended all their ammunition.他们把弹药用光。

70 babble
v.含糊不清地说，胡言乱语地说，儿语
参考例句：
No one could understand the little baby's babble. 没人能听懂这个小婴孩的话。 The babble of voices in the next compartment annoyed all of us.隔壁的车厢隔间里不间歇的嘈杂谈话声让我们都很气恼。

71 imputation
n.归罪，责难
参考例句：
I could not rest under the imputation.我受到诋毁，无法平静。 He resented the imputation that he had any responsibility for what she did.把她所作的事情要他承担，这一责难，使他非常恼火。

72 accomplished
adj.有才艺的；有造诣的；达到了的
参考例句：
Thanks to your help,we accomplished the task ahead of schedule.亏得你们帮忙,我们才提前完成了任务。 Removal of excess heat is accomplished by means of a radiator.通过散热器完成多余热量的排出。

73 apron
n.围裙；工作裙
参考例句：
We were waited on by a pretty girl in a pink apron.招待我们的是一位穿粉红色围裙的漂亮姑娘。 She stitched a pocket on the new apron.她在新围裙上缝上一只口袋。

74 descended
a.为...后裔的，出身于...的
参考例句：
A mood of melancholy descended on us. 一种悲伤的情绪袭上我们的心头。 The path descended the hill in a series of zigzags. 小路呈连续的之字形顺着山坡蜿蜒而下。

75 costlier
adj.昂贵的( costly的比较级 )；代价高的；引起困难的；造成损失的
参考例句：
Alligator skin is five times more costlier than leather. 鳄鱼皮比通常的皮革要贵5倍。 来自互联网 Disagreements among creditors can be costlier still. 债权人之间的分歧会加大重组的费用。 来自互联网

76 wholesome
adj.适合；卫生的；有益健康的；显示身心健康的
参考例句：
In actual fact the things I like doing are mostly wholesome.实际上我喜欢做的事大都是有助于增进身体健康的。 It is not wholesome to eat without washing your hands.不洗手吃饭是不卫生的。

77 tangled
adj. 纠缠的，紊乱的 动词tangle的过去式和过去分词
参考例句：
Your hair's so tangled that I can't comb it. 你的头发太乱了，我梳不动。 A movement caught his eye in the tangled undergrowth. 乱灌木丛里的晃动引起了他的注意。