We all know what birds of a feather do. And it may be safely surmised¹ that if a bird of any particular feather has been for a long while unable to see other birds of its kind, it will flock with them all the more assiduously when they happen to alight in its vicinity.

Now the Ogdens were birds of Molly's feather. They wore Eastern, and not Western, plumage, and their song was a different song from that which the Bear Creek² birds sang. To be sure, the piping of little George Taylor was full of hopeful interest; and many other strains, both striking and melodious³, were lifted in Cattle Land, and had given pleasure to Molly's ear. But although Indians, and bears, and mavericks⁴, make worthy⁵ themes for song, these are not the only songs in the world. Therefore the Eastern warblings of the Ogdens sounded doubly sweet to Molly Wood. Such words as Newport, Bar Harbor, and Tiffany's thrilled her exceedingly. It made no difference that she herself had never been to Newport or Bar Harbor, and had visited Tiffany's more often to admire than to purchase. On the contrary, this rather added a dazzle to the music of the Ogdens. And Molly, whose Eastern song had been silent in this strange land, began to chirp⁶ it again during the visit that she made at the Sunk Creek Ranch⁷.

Thus the Virginian's cause by no means prospered⁸ at this time. His forces were scattered⁹, while Molly's were concentrated. The girl was not at that point where absence makes the heart grow fonder. While the Virginian was trundling his long, responsible miles in the caboose, delivering the cattle at Chicago, vanquishing

点击收听单词发音  

1 surmised
v.臆测，推断( surmise的过去式和过去分词 )；揣测；猜想
参考例句：
From the looks on their faces, I surmised that they had had an argument. 看他们的脸色，我猜想他们之间发生了争执。 From his letter I surmised that he was unhappy. 我从他的信中推测他并不快乐。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 creek
n.小溪，小河，小湾
参考例句：
He sprang through the creek.他跳过小河。 People sunbathe in the nude on the rocks above the creek.人们在露出小溪的岩石上裸体晒日光浴。

3 melodious
adj.旋律美妙的，调子优美的，音乐性的
参考例句：
She spoke in a quietly melodious voice.她说话轻声细语，嗓音甜美。 Everybody was attracted by her melodious voice.大家都被她悦耳的声音吸引住了。

4 mavericks
未烙印的牲畜( maverick的名词复数 )； 标新立异的人，不合常规的人
参考例句：
And what about the Dallas Mavericks and Dirk Nowitzki? 那达拉斯小牛队和诺维斯基呢？ And we see it with bringing Jason Kidd to the Dallas Mavericks. 而且我们看到它同实现基德向达拉斯小牛队。

5 worthy
adj.(of)值得的，配得上的；有价值的
参考例句：
I did not esteem him to be worthy of trust.我认为他不值得信赖。 There occurred nothing that was worthy to be mentioned.没有值得一提的事发生。

6 chirp
v.(尤指鸟)唧唧喳喳的叫
参考例句：
The birds chirp merrily at the top of tree.鸟儿在枝头欢快地啾啾鸣唱。 The sparrows chirp outside the window every morning.麻雀每天清晨在窗外嘁嘁喳喳地叫。

7 ranch
n.大牧场，大农场
参考例句：
He went to work on a ranch.他去一个大农场干活。 The ranch is in the middle of a large plateau.该牧场位于一个辽阔高原的中部。

8 prospered
成功，兴旺( prosper的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
The organization certainly prospered under his stewardship. 不可否认，这个组织在他的管理下兴旺了起来。 Mr. Black prospered from his wise investments. 布莱克先生由于巧妙的投资赚了不少钱。

9 scattered
adj.分散的，稀疏的；散步的；疏疏落落的
参考例句：
Gathering up his scattered papers,he pushed them into his case.他把散乱的文件收拾起来，塞进文件夹里。

10 vanquishing
v.征服( vanquish的现在分词 )；战胜；克服；抑制
参考例句：
Vanquishing HIV hinges on the development of an effective vaccine or a treatment to cure AIDS. 要彻底消灭爱滋病毒，必须研发出有效的爱滋病疫苗或治疗法。 来自互联网

11 regained
复得( regain的过去式和过去分词 )； 赢回； 重回； 复至某地
参考例句：
The majority of the people in the world have regained their liberty. 世界上大多数人已重获自由。 She hesitated briefly but quickly regained her poise. 她犹豫片刻，但很快恢复了镇静。

12 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。

13 promotion
n.提升，晋级；促销，宣传
参考例句：
The teacher conferred with the principal about Dick's promotion.教师与校长商谈了迪克的升级问题。 The clerk was given a promotion and an increase in salary.那个职员升了级，加了薪。

14 throb
v.震颤，颤动；(急速强烈地)跳动，搏动
参考例句：
She felt her heart give a great throb.她感到自己的心怦地跳了一下。 The drums seemed to throb in his ears.阵阵鼓声彷佛在他耳边震响。

15 concealed
a.隐藏的，隐蔽的
参考例句：
The paintings were concealed beneath a thick layer of plaster. 那些画被隐藏在厚厚的灰泥层下面。 I think he had a gun concealed about his person. 我认为他当时身上藏有一支枪。

16 decided
adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的
参考例句：
This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。 There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

17 missionary
adj.教会的，传教(士)的；n.传教士
参考例句：
She taught in a missionary school for a couple of years.她在一所教会学校教了两年书。 I hope every member understands the value of missionary work. 我希望教友都了解传教工作的价值。

18 afflicted
使受痛苦，折磨( afflict的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
About 40% of the country's population is afflicted with the disease. 全国40%左右的人口患有这种疾病。 A terrible restlessness that was like to hunger afflicted Martin Eden. 一阵可怕的、跟饥饿差不多的不安情绪折磨着马丁·伊登。

19 mingled
混合，混入( mingle的过去式和过去分词 )； 混进，与…交往[联系]
参考例句：
The sounds of laughter and singing mingled in the evening air. 笑声和歌声交织在夜空中。 The man and the woman mingled as everyone started to relax. 当大家开始放松的时候，这一男一女就开始交往了。

20 pensive
a.沉思的,哀思的,忧沉的
参考例句：
He looked suddenly sombre,pensive.他突然看起来很阴郁，一副忧虑的样子。 He became so pensive that she didn't like to break into his thought.他陷入沉思之中,她不想打断他的思路。

21 calves
n.(calf的复数)笨拙的男子，腓；腿肚子( calf的名词复数 )；牛犊；腓；小腿肚v.生小牛( calve的第三人称单数 )；（冰川）崩解；生（小牛等），产（犊）；使（冰川）崩解
参考例句：
a cow suckling her calves 给小牛吃奶的母牛 The calves are grazed intensively during their first season. 小牛在生长的第一季里集中喂养。 来自《简明英汉词典》

22 calf
n.小牛，犊，幼仔，小牛皮
参考例句：
The cow slinked its calf.那头母牛早产了一头小牛犊。 The calf blared for its mother.牛犊哞哞地高声叫喊找妈妈。

23 champagne
n.香槟酒；微黄色
参考例句：
There were two glasses of champagne on the tray.托盘里有两杯香槟酒。 They sat there swilling champagne.他们坐在那里大喝香槟酒。

24 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。

25 lodge
v.临时住宿，寄宿，寄存，容纳；n.传达室，小旅馆
参考例句：
Is there anywhere that I can lodge in the village tonight?村里有我今晚过夜的地方吗？ I shall lodge at the inn for two nights.我要在这家小店住两个晚上。

26 elk
n.麋鹿
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。 The refuge contains the largest wintering population of elk in the world.这座庇护所有着世界上数量最大的冬季麋鹿群。

27 cadence
n.（说话声调的）抑扬顿挫
参考例句：
He delivered his words in slow,measured cadences.他讲话缓慢而抑扬顿挫、把握有度。 He liked the relaxed cadence of his retired life.他喜欢退休生活的悠闲的节奏。

28 pensiveness
n.pensive（沉思的）的变形
参考例句：
He caught the mixture of surprise and pensiveness in her voice and looked up immediately. 他听出她声音中惊奇夹着沉思，立即抬起头来。 来自英汉文学 - 廊桥遗梦

29 prying
adj.爱打听的v.打听，刺探（他人的私事）( pry的现在分词 )；撬开
参考例句：
I'm sick of you prying into my personal life! 我讨厌你刺探我的私生活！ She is always prying into other people's affairs. 她总是打听别人的私事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

30 penetration
n.穿透，穿人，渗透
参考例句：
He is a man of penetration.他是一个富有洞察力的人。 Our aim is to achieve greater market penetration.我们的目标是进一步打入市场。

31 mesmerized
v.使入迷( mesmerize的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
The country girl stood by the road, mesmerized at the speed of cars racing past. 村姑站在路旁被疾驶而过的一辆辆车迷住了。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》 My 14-year-old daughter was mesmerized by the movie Titanic. 我14岁的女儿完全被电影《泰坦尼克号》迷住了。 来自互联网

32 perfectly
adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地
参考例句：
The witnesses were each perfectly certain of what they said.证人们个个对自己所说的话十分肯定。 Everything that we're doing is all perfectly above board.我们做的每件事情都是光明正大的。

33 savage
adj.野蛮的；凶恶的，残暴的；n.未开化的人
参考例句：
The poor man received a savage beating from the thugs.那可怜的人遭到暴徒的痛打。 He has a savage temper.他脾气粗暴。

34 prospects
n.希望，前途(恒为复数)
参考例句：
There is a mood of pessimism in the company about future job prospects. 公司中有一种对工作前景悲观的情绪。 They are less sanguine about the company's long-term prospects. 他们对公司的远景不那么乐观。

35 inquiries
n.调查( inquiry的名词复数 )；疑问；探究；打听
参考例句：
He was released on bail pending further inquiries. 他获得保释，等候进一步调查。 I have failed to reach them by postal inquiries. 我未能通过邮政查询与他们取得联系。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

36 emphatic
adj.强调的，着重的；无可置疑的，明显的
参考例句：
Their reply was too emphatic for anyone to doubt them.他们的回答很坚决，不容有任何人怀疑。 He was emphatic about the importance of being punctual.他强调严守时间的重要性。

37 immediate
adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的
参考例句：
His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。 We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

38 surmises
v.臆测，推断( surmise的第三人称单数 )；揣测；猜想
参考例句：
The detective is completely correct in his surmises. 这个侦探所推测的完全正确。 来自《简明英汉词典》 As the reader probably surmises, a variety of interest tables exists. 正如读者可能推测的那样，存在着各种各样的利息表。 来自辞典例句

39 rumor
n.谣言，谣传，传说
参考例句：
The rumor has been traced back to a bad man.那谣言经追查是个坏人造的。 The rumor has taken air.谣言流传开了。

40 malicious
adj.有恶意的，心怀恶意的
参考例句：
You ought to kick back at such malicious slander. 你应当反击这种恶毒的污蔑。 Their talk was slightly malicious.他们的谈话有点儿心怀不轨。

41 rustler
n.[美口]偷牛贼
参考例句：
The ants have cornered the rustler and are attacking it. 蚂蚁把大虫围困起来并展开进攻。 Roffman is a cattle-rustler, and he'sgot some stuff for sale. 罗夫曼是个盗肉贼，他又有赃可销了。

42 applied
adj.应用的；v.应用，适用
参考例句：
She plans to take a course in applied linguistics.她打算学习应用语言学课程。 This cream is best applied to the face at night.这种乳霜最好晚上擦脸用。

43 complimentary
adj.赠送的，免费的，赞美的，恭维的
参考例句：
She made some highly complimentary remarks about their school.她对他们的学校给予高度的评价。 The supermarket operates a complimentary shuttle service.这家超市提供免费购物班车。

44 gathering
n.集会，聚会，聚集
参考例句：
He called on Mr. White to speak at the gathering.他请怀特先生在集会上讲话。 He is on the wing gathering material for his novels.他正忙于为他的小说收集资料。

45 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。

46 galloping
adj. 飞驰的, 急性的 动词gallop的现在分词形式
参考例句：
The horse started galloping the moment I gave it a good dig. 我猛戳了马一下，它就奔驰起来了。 Japan is galloping ahead in the race to develop new technology. 日本在发展新技术的竞争中进展迅速，日新月异。

47 profanely
adv.渎神地，凡俗地
参考例句：
He kept wondering profanely why everything bad happened to him. 他骂骂咧咧，一直在嘀咕为什么所有的坏事总是落在他头上。 来自互联网