WHEN I got there it was all still and Sunday-like, and hot and sunshiny; the hands was gone to the fields; and there was them kind of faint dronings of bugs¹ and flies in the air that makes it seem so lonesome and like everybody's dead and gone; and if a breeze fans along and quivers the leaves it makes you feel mournful, because you feel like it's spirits whispering -- spirits that's been dead ever so many years -- and you always think they're talking about YOU. As a general thing it makes a body wish HE was dead, too, and done with it all.

Phelps' was one of these little one-horse cotton plantations², and they all look alike. A rail fence round a two-acre yard; a stile made out of logs sawed off and up-ended in steps, like barrels of a different length, to climb over the fence with, and for the women to stand on when they are going to jump on to a horse; some sickly grass-patches in the big yard, but mostly it was bare and smooth, like an old hat with the nap rubbed off; big double log-house for the white folks -- hewed³ logs, with the chinks stopped up with mud or mortar⁴, and these mud-stripes been whitewashed⁵ some time or another; round-log kitchen, with a big broad, open but roofed passage joining it to the house; log smokehouse back of the kitchen; three little log nigger-cabins in a row t'other side the smoke-house; one little hut all by itself away down against the back fence, and some outbuildings down a piece the other side; ashhopper and big kettle to bile soap in by the little hut; bench by the kitchen door, with bucket of water and a gourd⁶; hound asleep there in the sun; more hounds asleep round about; about three shade trees away off in a corner; some currant bushes and gooseberry bushes in one place by the fence; outside of the fence a garden and a watermelon patch; then the cotton fields begins, and after the fields the woods.

I went around and clumb over the back stile by the ash-hopper, and started for the kitchen. When I got a little ways I heard the dim hum of a spinning-wheel wailing

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1 bugs
adj.疯狂的，发疯的n.窃听器( bug的名词复数 )；病菌；虫子；[计算机]（制作软件程序所产生的意料不到的）错误
参考例句：
All programs have bugs and need endless refinement. 所有的程序都有漏洞，都需要不断改进。 来自《简明英汉词典》 The sacks of rice were swarming with bugs. 一袋袋的米里长满了虫子。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 plantations
n.种植园，大农场( plantation的名词复数 )
参考例句：
Soon great plantations, supported by slave labor, made some families very wealthy. 不久之后出现了依靠奴隶劳动的大庄园，使一些家庭成了富豪。 来自英汉非文学 - 政府文件 Winterborne's contract was completed, and the plantations were deserted. 维恩特波恩的合同完成后，那片林地变得荒废了。 来自辞典例句

3 hewed
v.（用斧、刀等）砍、劈( hew的过去式和过去分词 )；砍成；劈出；开辟
参考例句：
He hewed a canoe out of a tree trunk. 他把一根树干凿成独木舟。 来自《简明英汉词典》 He hewed out an important position for himself in the company. 他在公司中为自己闯出了要职。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

4 mortar
n.灰浆，灰泥；迫击炮；v.把…用灰浆涂接合
参考例句：
The mason flushed the joint with mortar.泥工用灰浆把接缝处嵌平。 The sound of mortar fire seemed to be closing in.迫击炮的吼声似乎正在逼近。

5 whitewashed
粉饰，美化，掩饰( whitewash的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
The wall had been whitewashed. 墙已粉过。 The towers are in the shape of bottle gourds and whitewashed. 塔呈圆形，状近葫芦，外敷白色。 来自汉英文学 - 现代散文

6 gourd
n.葫芦
参考例句：
Are you going with him? You must be out of your gourd.你和他一块去？你一定是疯了。 Give me a gourd so I can bail.把葫芦瓢给我，我好把水舀出去。

7 wailing
v.哭叫，哀号( wail的现在分词 )；沱
参考例句：
A police car raced past with its siren wailing. 一辆警车鸣着警报器飞驰而过。 The little girl was wailing miserably. 那小女孩难过得号啕大哭。

8 providence
n.深谋远虑，天道，天意；远见；节约；上帝
参考例句：
It is tempting Providence to go in that old boat.乘那艘旧船前往是冒大险。 To act as you have done is to fly in the face of Providence.照你的所作所为那样去行事，是违背上帝的意志的。

9 spokes
n.（车轮的）辐条( spoke的名词复数 )；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动
参考例句：
Her baby caught his fingers in the spokes of the pram wheel. 她宝宝的手指被婴儿车轮的辐条卡住了。 来自辞典例句 The new edges are called the spokes of the wheel. 新的边称为轮的辐。 来自辞典例句

10 acting
n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的
参考例句：
Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。 During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。

11 baton
n.乐队用指挥杖
参考例句：
With the baton the conductor was beating time.乐队指挥用指挥棒打拍子。 The conductor waved his baton,and the band started up.指挥挥动指挥棒，乐队开始演奏起来。

12 rouge
n.胭脂，口红唇膏；v.(在…上)擦口红
参考例句：
Women put rouge on their cheeks to make their faces pretty.女人往面颊上涂胭脂，使脸更漂亮。 She didn't need any powder or lip rouge to make her pretty.她天生漂亮，不需要任何脂粉唇膏打扮自己。

13 mortification
n.耻辱，屈辱
参考例句：
To my mortification, my manuscript was rejected. 使我感到失面子的是：我的稿件被退了回来。 The chairman tried to disguise his mortification. 主席试图掩饰自己的窘迫。

14 standing
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。

15 ashore
adv.在(向)岸上，上岸
参考例句：
The children got ashore before the tide came in.涨潮前，孩子们就上岸了。 He laid hold of the rope and pulled the boat ashore.他抓住绳子拉船靠岸。

16 streak
n.条理，斑纹，倾向，少许，痕迹；v.加条纹，变成条纹，奔驰，快速移动
参考例句：
The Indians used to streak their faces with paint.印第安人过去常用颜料在脸上涂条纹。 Why did you streak the tree?你为什么在树上刻条纹？

17 stump
n.残株，烟蒂，讲演台；v.砍断，蹒跚而走
参考例句：
He went on the stump in his home state.他到故乡所在的州去发表演说。 He used the stump as a table.他把树桩用作桌子。

18 hustled
催促（hustle的过去式与过去分词形式）
参考例句：
He grabbed her arm and hustled her out of the room. 他抓住她的胳膊把她推出房间。 The secret service agents hustled the speaker out of the amphitheater. 特务机关的代理人把演讲者驱逐出竞技场。

19 distress
n.苦恼，痛苦，不舒适；不幸；vt.使悲痛
参考例句：
Nothing could alleviate his distress.什么都不能减轻他的痛苦。 Please don't distress yourself.请你不要忧愁了。

20 distressed
痛苦的
参考例句：
He was too distressed and confused to answer their questions. 他非常苦恼而困惑，无法回答他们的问题。 The news of his death distressed us greatly. 他逝世的消息使我们极为悲痛。

21 meek
adj.温顺的，逆来顺受的
参考例句：
He expects his wife to be meek and submissive.他期望妻子温顺而且听他摆布。 The little girl is as meek as a lamb.那个小姑娘像羔羊一般温顺。

22 slumped
大幅度下降，暴跌( slump的过去式和过去分词 )； 沉重或突然地落下[倒下]
参考例句：
Sales have slumped this year. 今年销售量锐减。 The driver was slumped exhausted over the wheel. 司机伏在方向盘上，疲惫得睡着了。

23 swap
n.交换；vt.交换，用...作交易
参考例句：
I will swap you my bicycle for your radio.我想拿我的自行车换你的收音机。 This comic was a swap that I got from Nick.这本漫画书是我从尼克那里换来的。

24 joyful
adj.欢乐的，令人欢欣的
参考例句：
She was joyful of her good result of the scientific experiments.她为自己的科学实验取得好成果而高兴。 They were singing and dancing to celebrate this joyful occasion.他们唱着、跳着庆祝这令人欢乐的时刻。

25 wink
n.眨眼，使眼色，瞬间；v.眨眼，使眼色，闪烁
参考例句：
He tipped me the wink not to buy at that price.他眨眼暗示我按那个价格就不要买。 The satellite disappeared in a wink.瞬息之间，那颗卫星就消失了。

26 waylay
v.埋伏，伏击
参考例句：
She lingered outside the theater to waylay him after the show.她在戏院外面徘徊想在演出之后拦住他说话。 The trucks are being waylaid by bandits.卡车被强盗拦了下来。