VIII.
When Toad found himself immured2 in a dank and noisome3 dungeon4, and knew that all the grim darkness of a medieval fortress5 lay between him and the outer world of sunshine and well-metalled high roads where he had lately been so happy, disporting6 himself as if he had bought up every road in England, he flung himself at full length on the floor, and shed bitter tears, and abandoned himself to dark despair. “This is the end of everything” (he said), “at least it is the end of the career of Toad, which is the same thing; the popular and handsome Toad, the rich and hospitable7 Toad, the Toad so free and careless and debonair8! How can I hope to be ever set at large again” (he said), “who have been imprisoned10 so justly for stealing so handsome a motor-car in such an audacious manner, and for such lurid11 and imaginative cheek, bestowed12 upon such a number of fat, red-faced policemen!” (Here his sobs13 choked him.) “Stupid animal that I was” (he said), “now I must languish14 in this dungeon, till people who were proud to say they knew me, have forgotten the very name of Toad! O wise old Badger15!” (he said), “O clever, intelligent Rat and sensible Mole16! What sound judgments17, what a knowledge of men and matters you possess! O unhappy and forsaken19 Toad!” With lamentations such as these he passed his days and nights for several weeks, refusing his meals or intermediate light refreshments21, though the grim and ancient gaoler, knowing that Toad’s pockets were well lined, frequently pointed22 out that many comforts, and indeed luxuries, could by arrangement be sent in—at a price—from outside.
Now the gaoler had a daughter, a pleasant wench and good-hearted, who assisted her father in the lighter23 duties of his post. She was particularly fond of animals, and, besides her canary, whose cage hung on a nail in the massive wall of the keep by day, to the great annoyance24 of prisoners who relished25 an after-dinner nap, and was shrouded26 in an antimacassar on the parlour table at night, she kept several piebald mice and a restless revolving27 squirrel. This kind-hearted girl, pitying the misery28 of Toad, said to her father one day, “Father! I can’t bear to see that poor beast so unhappy, and getting so thin! You let me have the managing of him. You know how fond of animals I am. I’ll make him eat from my hand, and sit up, and do all sorts of things.”
Her father replied that she could do what she liked with him. He was tired of Toad, and his sulks and his airs and his meanness. So that day she went on her errand of mercy, and knocked at the door of Toad’s cell.
“Now, cheer up, Toad,” she said, coaxingly29, on entering, “and sit up and dry your eyes and be a sensible animal. And do try and eat a bit of dinner. See, I’ve brought you some of mine, hot from the oven!”
It was bubble-and-squeak, between two plates, and its fragrance30 filled the narrow cell. The penetrating31 smell of cabbage reached the nose of Toad as he lay prostrate32 in his misery on the floor, and gave him the idea for a moment that perhaps life was not such a blank and desperate thing as he had imagined. But still he wailed33, and kicked with his legs, and refused to be comforted. So the wise girl retired34 for the time, but, of course, a good deal of the smell of hot cabbage remained behind, as it will do, and Toad, between his sobs, sniffed35 and reflected, and gradually began to think new and inspiring thoughts: of chivalry36, and poetry, and deeds still to be done; of broad meadows, and cattle browsing37 in them, raked by sun and wind; of kitchen-gardens, and straight herb-borders, and warm snap-dragon beset38 by bees; and of the comforting clink of dishes set down on the table at Toad Hall, and the scrape of chair-legs on the floor as every one pulled himself close up to his work. The air of the narrow cell took a rosy39 tinge40; he began to think of his friends, and how they would surely be able to do something; of lawyers, and how they would have enjoyed his case, and what an ass20 he had been not to get in a few; and lastly, he thought of his own great cleverness and resource, and all that he was capable of if he only gave his great mind to it; and the cure was almost complete.
When the girl returned, some hours later, she carried a tray, with a cup of fragrant41 tea steaming on it; and a plate piled up with very hot buttered toast, cut thick, very brown on both sides, with the butter running through the holes in it in great golden drops, like honey from the honeycomb. The smell of that buttered toast simply talked to Toad, and with no uncertain voice; talked of warm kitchens, of breakfasts on bright frosty mornings, of cosy parlour firesides on winter evenings, when one’s ramble42 was over and slippered43 feet were propped44 on the fender; of the purring of contented45 cats, and the twitter of sleepy canaries. Toad sat up on end once more, dried his eyes, sipped46 his tea and munched47 his toast, and soon began talking freely about himself, and the house he lived in, and his doings there, and how important he was, and what a lot his friends thought of him.
The gaoler’s daughter saw that the topic was doing him as much good as the tea, as indeed it was, and encouraged him to go on.
“Tell me about Toad Hall,” said she. “It sounds beautiful.”
“Toad Hall,” said the Toad proudly, “is an eligible48 self-contained gentleman’s residence very unique; dating in part from the fourteenth century, but replete49 with every modern convenience. Up-to-date sanitation50. Five minutes from church, post-office, and golf-links, Suitable for——”
“Bless the animal,” said the girl, laughing, “I don’t want to take it. Tell me something real about it. But first wait till I fetch you some more tea and toast.”
She tripped away, and presently returned with a fresh trayful; and Toad, pitching into the toast with avidity, his spirits quite restored to their usual level, told her about the boathouse, and the fish-pond, and the old walled kitchen-garden; and about the pig-styes, and the stables, and the pigeon-house, and the hen-house; and about the dairy, and the wash-house, and the china-cupboards, and the linen-presses (she liked that bit especially); and about the banqueting-hall, and the fun they had there when the other animals were gathered round the table and Toad was at his best, singing songs, telling stories, carrying on generally. Then she wanted to know about his animal-friends, and was very interested in all he had to tell her about them and how they lived, and what they did to pass their time. Of course, she did not say she was fond of animals as pets, because she had the sense to see that Toad would be extremely offended. When she said good night, having filled his water-jug and shaken up his straw for him, Toad was very much the same sanguine51, self-satisfied animal that he had been of old. He sang a little song or two, of the sort he used to sing at his dinner-parties, curled himself up in the straw, and had an excellent night’s rest and the pleasantest of dreams.
They had many interesting talks together, after that, as the dreary52 days went on; and the gaoler’s daughter grew very sorry for Toad, and thought it a great shame that a poor little animal should be locked up in prison for what seemed to her a very trivial offence. Toad, of course, in his vanity, thought that her interest in him proceeded from a growing tenderness; and he could not help half-regretting that the social gulf53 between them was so very wide, for she was a comely54 lass, and evidently admired him very much.
One morning the girl was very thoughtful, and answered at random55, and did not seem to Toad to be paying proper attention to his witty56 sayings and sparkling comments.
“Toad,” she said presently, “just listen, please. I have an aunt who is a washerwoman.”
“There, there,” said Toad, graciously and affably, “never mind; think no more about it. I have several aunts who ought to be washerwomen.”
“Do be quiet a minute, Toad,” said the girl. “You talk too much, that’s your chief fault, and I’m trying to think, and you hurt my head. As I said, I have an aunt who is a washerwoman; she does the washing for all the prisoners in this castle—we try to keep any paying business of that sort in the family, you understand. She takes out the washing on Monday morning, and brings it in on Friday evening. This is a Thursday. Now, this is what occurs to me: you’re very rich—at least you’re always telling me so—and she’s very poor. A few pounds wouldn’t make any difference to you, and it would mean a lot to her. Now, I think if she were properly approached—squared, I believe is the word you animals use—you could come to some arrangement by which she would let you have her dress and bonnet57 and so on, and you could escape from the castle as the official washerwoman. You’re very alike in many respects—particularly about the figure.”
“We’re not,” said the Toad in a huff. “I have a very elegant figure—for what I am.”
“So has my aunt,” replied the girl, “for what she is. But have it your own way. You horrid58, proud, ungrateful animal, when I’m sorry for you, and trying to help you!”
“Yes, yes, that’s all right; thank you very much indeed,” said the Toad hurriedly. “But look here! you wouldn’t surely have Mr. Toad of Toad Hall, going about the country disguised as a washerwoman!”
“Then you can stop here as a Toad,” replied the girl with much spirit. “I suppose you want to go off in a coach-and-four!”
Honest Toad was always ready to admit himself in the wrong. “You are a good, kind, clever girl,” he said, “and I am indeed a proud and a stupid toad. Introduce me to your worthy59 aunt, if you will be so kind, and I have no doubt that the excellent lady and I will be able to arrange terms satisfactory to both parties.”
Next evening the girl ushered60 her aunt into Toad’s cell, bearing his week’s washing pinned up in a towel. The old lady had been prepared beforehand for the interview, and the sight of certain gold sovereigns that Toad had thoughtfully placed on the table in full view practically completed the matter and left little further to discuss. In return for his cash, Toad received a cotton print gown, an apron61, a shawl, and a rusty62 black bonnet; the only stipulation63 the old lady made being that she should be gagged and bound and dumped down in a corner. By this not very convincing artifice64, she explained, aided by picturesque65 fiction which she could supply herself, she hoped to retain her situation, in spite of the suspicious appearance of things.
Toad was delighted with the suggestion. It would enable him to leave the prison in some style, and with his reputation for being a desperate and dangerous fellow untarnished; and he readily helped the gaoler’s daughter to make her aunt appear as much as possible the victim of circumstances over which she had no control.
“Now it’s your turn, Toad,” said the girl. “Take off that coat and waistcoat of yours; you’re fat enough as it is.”
Shaking with laughter, she proceeded to “hook-and-eye” him into the cotton print gown, arranged the shawl with a professional fold, and tied the strings66 of the rusty bonnet under his chin.
“You’re the very image of her,” she giggled67, “only I’m sure you never looked half so respectable in all your life before. Now, good-bye, Toad, and good luck. Go straight down the way you came up; and if any one says anything to you, as they probably will, being but men, you can chaff68 back a bit, of course, but remember you’re a widow woman, quite alone in the world, with a character to lose.”
With a quaking heart, but as firm a footstep as he could command, Toad set forth69 cautiously on what seemed to be a most hare-brained and hazardous70 undertaking71; but he was soon agreeably surprised to find how easy everything was made for him, and a little humbled72 at the thought that both his popularity, and the sex that seemed to inspire it, were really another’s. The washerwoman’s squat73 figure in its familiar cotton print seemed a passport for every barred door and grim gateway74; even when he hesitated, uncertain as to the right turning to take, he found himself helped out of his difficulty by the warder at the next gate, anxious to be off to his tea, summoning him to come along sharp and not keep him waiting there all night. The chaff and the humourous sallies to which he was subjected, and to which, of course, he had to provide prompt and effective reply, formed, indeed, his chief danger; for Toad was an animal with a strong sense of his own dignity, and the chaff was mostly (he thought) poor and clumsy, and the humour of the sallies entirely75 lacking. However, he kept his temper, though with great difficulty, suited his retorts to his company and his supposed character, and did his best not to overstep the limits of good taste.
It seemed hours before he crossed the last courtyard, rejected the pressing invitations from the last guardroom, and dodged76 the outspread arms of the last warder, pleading with simulated passion for just one farewell embrace. But at last he heard the wicket-gate in the great outer door click behind him, felt the fresh air of the outer world upon his anxious brow, and knew that he was free!
Dizzy with the easy success of his daring exploit, he walked quickly towards the lights of the town, not knowing in the least what he should do next, only quite certain of one thing, that he must remove himself as quickly as possible from the neighbourhood where the lady he was forced to represent was so well-known and so popular a character.
As he walked along, considering, his attention was caught by some red and green lights a little way off, to one side of the town, and the sound of the puffing77 and snorting of engines and the banging of shunted trucks fell on his ear. “Aha!” he thought, “this is a piece of luck! A railway station is the thing I want most in the whole world at this moment; and what’s more, I needn’t go through the town to get it, and shan’t have to support this humiliating character by repartees which, though thoroughly78 effective, do not assist one’s sense of self-respect.”
He made his way to the station accordingly, consulted a time-table, and found that a train, bound more or less in the direction of his home, was due to start in half-an-hour. “More luck!” said Toad, his spirits rising rapidly, and went off to the booking-office to buy his ticket.
He gave the name of the station that he knew to be nearest to the village of which Toad Hall was the principal feature, and mechanically put his fingers, in search of the necessary money, where his waistcoat pocket should have been. But here the cotton gown, which had nobly stood by him so far, and which he had basely forgotten, intervened, and frustrated79 his efforts. In a sort of nightmare he struggled with the strange uncanny thing that seemed to hold his hands, turn all muscular strivings to water, and laugh at him all the time; while other travellers, forming up in a line behind, waited with impatience80, making suggestions of more or less value and comments of more or less stringency81 and point. At last—somehow—he never rightly understood how—he burst the barriers, attained82 the goal, arrived at where all waistcoat pockets are eternally situated83, and found—not only no money, but no pocket to hold it, and no waistcoat to hold the pocket!
To his horror he recollected84 that he had left both coat and waistcoat behind him in his cell, and with them his pocket-book, money, keys, watch, matches, pencil-case—all that makes life worth living, all that distinguishes the many-pocketed animal, the lord of creation, from the inferior one-pocketed or no-pocketed productions that hop9 or trip about permissively, unequipped for the real contest.
In his misery he made one desperate effort to carry the thing off, and, with a return to his fine old manner—a blend of the Squire85 and the College Don—he said, “Look here! I find I’ve left my purse behind. Just give me that ticket, will you, and I’ll send the money on to-morrow? I’m well-known in these parts.”
The clerk stared at him and the rusty black bonnet a moment, and then laughed. “I should think you were pretty well known in these parts,” he said, “if you’ve tried this game on often. Here, stand away from the window, please, madam; you’re obstructing86 the other passengers!”
An old gentleman who had been prodding87 him in the back for some moments here thrust him away, and, what was worse, addressed him as his good woman, which angered Toad more than anything that had occurred that evening.
Baffled and full of despair, he wandered blindly down the platform where the train was standing88, and tears trickled89 down each side of his nose. It was hard, he thought, to be within sight of safety and almost of home, and to be baulked by the want of a few wretched shillings and by the pettifogging mistrustfulness of paid officials. Very soon his escape would be discovered, the hunt would be up, he would be caught, reviled90, loaded with chains, dragged back again to prison and bread-and-water and straw; his guards and penalties would be doubled; and O, what sarcastic91 remarks the girl would make! What was to be done? He was not swift of foot; his figure was unfortunately recognisable. Could he not squeeze under the seat of a carriage? He had seen this method adopted by schoolboys, when the journey-money provided by thoughtful parents had been diverted to other and better ends. As he pondered, he found himself opposite the engine, which was being oiled, wiped, and generally caressed92 by its affectionate driver, a burly man with an oil-can in one hand and a lump of cotton-waste in the other.
“Hullo, mother!” said the engine-driver, “what’s the trouble? You don’t look particularly cheerful.”
“O, sir!” said Toad, crying afresh, “I am a poor unhappy washerwoman, and I’ve lost all my money, and can’t pay for a ticket, and I must get home to-night somehow, and whatever I am to do I don’t know. O dear, O dear!”
“That’s a bad business, indeed,” said the engine-driver reflectively. “Lost your money—and can’t get home—and got some kids, too, waiting for you, I dare say?”
“Any amount of ’em,” sobbed93 Toad. “And they’ll be hungry—and playing with matches—and upsetting lamps, the little innocents!—and quarrelling, and going on generally. O dear, O dear!”
“Well, I’ll tell you what I’ll do,” said the good engine-driver. “You’re a washerwoman to your trade, says you. Very well, that’s that. And I’m an engine-driver, as you well may see, and there’s no denying it’s terribly dirty work. Uses up a power of shirts, it does, till my missus is fair tired of washing of ’em. If you’ll wash a few shirts for me when you get home, and send ’em along, I’ll give you a ride on my engine. It’s against the Company’s regulations, but we’re not so very particular in these out-of-the-way parts.”
The Toad’s misery turned into rapture94 as he eagerly scrambled95 up into the cab of the engine. Of course, he had never washed a shirt in his life, and couldn’t if he tried and, anyhow, he wasn’t going to begin; but he thought: “When I get safely home to Toad Hall, and have money again, and pockets to put it in, I will send the engine-driver enough to pay for quite a quantity of washing, and that will be the same thing, or better.”
The guard waved his welcome flag, the engine-driver whistled in cheerful response, and the train moved out of the station. As the speed increased, and the Toad could see on either side of him real fields, and trees, and hedges, and cows, and horses, all flying past him, and as he thought how every minute was bringing him nearer to Toad Hall, and sympathetic friends, and money to chink in his pocket, and a soft bed to sleep in, and good things to eat, and praise and admiration96 at the recital97 of his adventures and his surpassing cleverness, he began to skip up and down and shout and sing snatches of song, to the great astonishment98 of the engine-driver, who had come across washerwomen before, at long intervals99, but never one at all like this.
They had covered many and many a mile, and Toad was already considering what he would have for supper as soon as he got home, when he noticed that the engine-driver, with a puzzled expression on his face, was leaning over the side of the engine and listening hard. Then he saw him climb on to the coals and gaze out over the top of the train; then he returned and said to Toad: “It’s very strange; we’re the last train running in this direction to-night, yet I could be sworn that I heard another following us!”
Toad ceased his frivolous100 antics at once. He became grave and depressed101, and a dull pain in the lower part of his spine102, communicating itself to his legs, made him want to sit down and try desperately103 not to think of all the possibilities.
By this time the moon was shining brightly, and the engine-driver, steadying himself on the coal, could command a view of the line behind them for a long distance.
Presently he called out, “I can see it clearly now! It is an engine, on our rails, coming along at a great pace! It looks as if we were being pursued!”
The miserable104 Toad, crouching105 in the coal-dust, tried hard to think of something to do, with dismal106 want of success.
“They are gaining on us fast!” cried the engine-driver. And the engine is crowded with the queerest lot of people! Men like ancient warders, waving halberds; policemen in their helmets, waving truncheons; and shabbily dressed men in pot-hats, obvious and unmistakable plain-clothes detectives even at this distance, waving revolvers and walking-sticks; all waving, and all shouting the same thing—‘Stop, stop, stop!’”
Then Toad fell on his knees among the coals and, raising his clasped paws in supplication107, cried, “Save me, only save me, dear kind Mr. Engine-driver, and I will confess everything! I am not the simple washerwoman I seem to be! I have no children waiting for me, innocent or otherwise! I am a toad—the well-known and popular Mr. Toad, a landed proprietor108; I have just escaped, by my great daring and cleverness, from a loathsome109 dungeon into which my enemies had flung me; and if those fellows on that engine recapture me, it will be chains and bread-and-water and straw and misery once more for poor, unhappy, innocent Toad!”
The engine-driver looked down upon him very sternly, and said, “Now tell the truth; what were you put in prison for?”
“It was nothing very much,” said poor Toad, colouring deeply. “I only borrowed a motorcar while the owners were at lunch; they had no need of it at the time. I didn’t mean to steal it, really; but people—especially magistrates—take such harsh views of thoughtless and high-spirited actions.”
The engine-driver looked very grave and said, “I fear that you have been indeed a wicked toad, and by rights I ought to give you up to offended justice. But you are evidently in sore trouble and distress110, so I will not desert you. I don’t hold with motor-cars, for one thing; and I don’t hold with being ordered about by policemen when I’m on my own engine, for another. And the sight of an animal in tears always makes me feel queer and softhearted. So cheer up, Toad! I’ll do my best, and we may beat them yet!”
They piled on more coals, shovelling111 furiously; the furnace roared, the sparks flew, the engine leapt and swung but still their pursuers slowly gained. The engine-driver, with a sigh, wiped his brow with a handful of cotton-waste, and said, “I’m afraid it’s no good, Toad. You see, they are running light, and they have the better engine. There’s just one thing left for us to do, and it’s your only chance, so attend very carefully to what I tell you. A short way ahead of us is a long tunnel, and on the other side of that the line passes through a thick wood. Now, I will put on all the speed I can while we are running through the tunnel, but the other fellows will slow down a bit, naturally, for fear of an accident. When we are through, I will shut off steam and put on brakes as hard as I can, and the moment it’s safe to do so you must jump and hide in the wood, before they get through the tunnel and see you. Then I will go full speed ahead again, and they can chase me if they like, for as long as they like, and as far as they like. Now mind and be ready to jump when I tell you!”
They piled on more coals, and the train shot into the tunnel, and the engine rushed and roared and rattled112, till at last they shot out at the other end into fresh air and the peaceful moonlight, and saw the wood lying dark and helpful upon either side of the line. The driver shut off steam and put on brakes, the Toad got down on the step, and as the train slowed down to almost a walking pace he heard the driver call out, “Now, jump!”
Toad jumped, rolled down a short embankment, picked himself up unhurt, scrambled into the wood and hid.
Peeping out, he saw his train get up speed again and disappear at a great pace. Then out of the tunnel burst the pursuing engine, roaring and whistling, her motley crew waving their various weapons and shouting, “Stop! stop! stop!” When they were past, the Toad had a hearty114 laugh—for the first time since he was thrown into prison.
But he soon stopped laughing when he came to consider that it was now very late and dark and cold, and he was in an unknown wood, with no money and no chance of supper, and still far from friends and home; and the dead silence of everything, after the roar and rattle113 of the train, was something of a shock. He dared not leave the shelter of the trees, so he struck into the wood, with the idea of leaving the railway as far as possible behind him.
After so many weeks within walls, he found the wood strange and unfriendly and inclined, he thought, to make fun of him. Night-jars, sounding their mechanical rattle, made him think that the wood was full of searching warders, closing in on him. An owl18, swooping115 noiselessly towards him, brushed his shoulder with its wing, making him jump with the horrid certainty that it was a hand; then flitted off, moth-like, laughing its low ho! ho! ho; which Toad thought in very poor taste. Once he met a fox, who stopped, looked him up and down in a sarcastic sort of way, and said, “Hullo, washerwoman! Half a pair of socks and a pillow-case short this week! Mind it doesn’t occur again!” and swaggered off, sniggering. Toad looked about for a stone to throw at him, but could not succeed in finding one, which vexed116 him more than anything. At last, cold, hungry, and tired out, he sought the shelter of a hollow tree, where with branches and dead leaves he made himself as comfortable a bed as he could, and slept soundly till the morning.
1 toad [təʊd] 第8级 | |
n.蟾蜍,癞蛤蟆 | |
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2 immured [ɪˈmjʊəd] 第11级 | |
v.禁闭,监禁( immure的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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3 noisome [ˈnɔɪsəm] 第11级 | |
adj.有害的,可厌的 | |
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4 dungeon [ˈdʌndʒən] 第10级 | |
n.地牢,土牢 | |
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5 fortress [ˈfɔ:trəs] 第7级 | |
n.堡垒,防御工事 | |
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6 disporting [dɪˈspɔ:tɪŋ] 第11级 | |
v.嬉戏,玩乐,自娱( disport的现在分词 ) | |
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7 hospitable [hɒˈspɪtəbl] 第9级 | |
adj.好客的;宽容的;有利的,适宜的 | |
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8 debonair [ˌdebəˈneə(r)] 第11级 | |
adj.殷勤的,快乐的 | |
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9 hop [hɒp] 第7级 | |
n.单脚跳,跳跃;vi.单脚跳,跳跃;着手做某事;vt.跳跃,跃过 | |
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10 imprisoned [ɪmˈprɪzənd] 第8级 | |
下狱,监禁( imprison的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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11 lurid [ˈlʊərɪd] 第11级 | |
adj.可怕的;血红的;苍白的 | |
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12 bestowed [biˈstəud] 第9级 | |
赠给,授予( bestow的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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13 sobs ['sɒbz] 第7级 | |
啜泣(声),呜咽(声)( sob的名词复数 ) | |
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14 languish [ˈlæŋgwɪʃ] 第8级 | |
vi.变得衰弱无力,失去活力,(植物等)凋萎 | |
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15 badger [ˈbædʒə(r)] 第9级 | |
vt.一再烦扰,一再要求,纠缠 | |
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16 mole [məʊl] 第10级 | |
n.胎块;痣;克分子 | |
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17 judgments [d'ʒʌdʒmənts] 第7级 | |
判断( judgment的名词复数 ); 鉴定; 评价; 审判 | |
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18 owl [aʊl] 第7级 | |
n.猫头鹰,枭 | |
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19 Forsaken [] 第7级 | |
adj. 被遗忘的, 被抛弃的 动词forsake的过去分词 | |
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20 ass [æs] 第9级 | |
n.驴;傻瓜,蠢笨的人 | |
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21 refreshments [rɪf'reʃmənts] 第7级 | |
n.点心,便餐;(会议后的)简单茶点招 待 | |
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22 pointed [ˈpɔɪntɪd] 第7级 | |
adj.尖的,直截了当的 | |
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23 lighter [ˈlaɪtə(r)] 第8级 | |
n.打火机,点火器;驳船;v.用驳船运送;light的比较级 | |
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24 annoyance [əˈnɔɪəns] 第8级 | |
n.恼怒,生气,烦恼 | |
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25 relished [ˈreliʃt] 第7级 | |
v.欣赏( relish的过去式和过去分词 );从…获得乐趣;渴望 | |
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26 shrouded [ʃraudid] 第9级 | |
v.隐瞒( shroud的过去式和过去分词 );保密 | |
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27 revolving [rɪˈvɒlvɪŋ] 第7级 | |
adj.旋转的,轮转式的;循环的v.(使)旋转( revolve的现在分词 );细想 | |
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28 misery [ˈmɪzəri] 第7级 | |
n.痛苦,苦恼,苦难;悲惨的境遇,贫苦 | |
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30 fragrance [ˈfreɪgrəns] 第8级 | |
n.芬芳,香味,香气 | |
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31 penetrating ['penitreitiŋ] 第7级 | |
adj.(声音)响亮的,尖锐的adj.(气味)刺激的adj.(思想)敏锐的,有洞察力的 | |
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32 prostrate [ˈprɒstreɪt] 第11级 | |
vt.拜倒,平卧,衰竭;adj.拜倒的,平卧的,衰竭的 | |
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33 wailed [weild] 第9级 | |
v.哭叫,哀号( wail的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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34 retired [rɪˈtaɪəd] 第8级 | |
adj.隐退的,退休的,退役的 | |
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35 sniffed [snift] 第7级 | |
v.以鼻吸气,嗅,闻( sniff的过去式和过去分词 );抽鼻子(尤指哭泣、患感冒等时出声地用鼻子吸气);抱怨,不以为然地说 | |
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36 chivalry [ˈʃɪvəlri] 第10级 | |
n.骑士气概,侠义;(男人)对女人彬彬有礼,献殷勤 | |
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37 browsing [b'raʊzɪŋ] 第7级 | |
v.吃草( browse的现在分词 );随意翻阅;(在商店里)随便看看;(在计算机上)浏览信息 | |
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38 beset [bɪˈset] 第9级 | |
vt.镶嵌;困扰,包围 | |
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39 rosy [ˈrəʊzi] 第8级 | |
adj.美好的,乐观的,玫瑰色的 | |
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40 tinge [tɪndʒ] 第9级 | |
vt.(较淡)着色于,染色;使带有…气息;n.淡淡色彩,些微的气息 | |
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41 fragrant [ˈfreɪgrənt] 第7级 | |
adj.芬香的,馥郁的,愉快的 | |
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42 ramble [ˈræmbl] 第9级 | |
vi.漫步,漫谈,漫游;vt.漫步于;n.漫步,闲谈,蔓延 | |
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43 slippered [ˈslɪpəd] 第7级 | |
穿拖鞋的 | |
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44 propped [prɔpt] 第7级 | |
支撑,支持,维持( prop的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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45 contented [kənˈtentɪd] 第8级 | |
adj.满意的,安心的,知足的 | |
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46 sipped [sipt] 第7级 | |
v.小口喝,呷,抿( sip的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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47 munched [mʌntʃt] 第11级 | |
v.用力咀嚼(某物),大嚼( munch的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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48 eligible [ˈelɪdʒəbl] 第7级 | |
adj.有条件被选中的;(尤指婚姻等)合适(意)的 | |
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49 replete [rɪˈpli:t] 第11级 | |
adj.饱满的,塞满的;n.贮蜜蚁 | |
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50 sanitation [ˌsænɪˈteɪʃn] 第8级 | |
n.公共卫生,环境卫生,卫生设备 | |
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51 sanguine [ˈsæŋgwɪn] 第9级 | |
adj.充满希望的,乐观的,血红色的 | |
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52 dreary [ˈdrɪəri] 第8级 | |
adj.令人沮丧的,沉闷的,单调乏味的 | |
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53 gulf [gʌlf] 第7级 | |
n.海湾;深渊,鸿沟;分歧,隔阂 | |
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54 comely [ˈkʌmli] 第11级 | |
adj.漂亮的,合宜的 | |
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55 random [ˈrændəm] 第7级 | |
adj.随机的;任意的;n.偶然的(或随便的)行动 | |
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56 witty [ˈwɪti] 第8级 | |
adj.机智的,风趣的 | |
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57 bonnet [ˈbɒnɪt] 第10级 | |
n.无边女帽;童帽 | |
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58 horrid [ˈhɒrɪd] 第10级 | |
adj.可怕的;令人惊恐的;恐怖的;极讨厌的 | |
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59 worthy [ˈwɜ:ði] 第7级 | |
adj.(of)值得的,配得上的;有价值的 | |
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60 ushered [ˈʌʃəd] 第8级 | |
v.引,领,陪同( usher的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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61 apron [ˈeɪprən] 第7级 | |
n.围裙;工作裙 | |
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62 rusty [ˈrʌsti] 第9级 | |
adj.生锈的;锈色的;荒废了的 | |
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63 stipulation [ˌstɪpjʊ'leɪʃn] 第8级 | |
n.契约,规定,条文;条款说明 | |
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64 artifice [ˈɑ:tɪfɪs] 第9级 | |
n.妙计,高明的手段;狡诈,诡计 | |
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65 picturesque [ˌpɪktʃəˈresk] 第8级 | |
adj.美丽如画的,(语言)生动的,绘声绘色的 | |
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66 strings [strɪŋz] 第12级 | |
n.弦 | |
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67 giggled [ˈɡiɡld] 第7级 | |
v.咯咯地笑( giggle的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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68 chaff [tʃɑ:f] 第11级 | |
vt.&vi.取笑,嘲笑;n.谷壳 | |
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69 forth [fɔ:θ] 第7级 | |
adv.向前;向外,往外 | |
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70 hazardous [ˈhæzədəs] 第9级 | |
adj.(有)危险的,冒险的;碰运气的 | |
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71 undertaking [ˌʌndəˈteɪkɪŋ] 第9级 | |
n.保证,许诺,事业 | |
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72 humbled [ˈhʌmbld] 第7级 | |
adj. 卑下的,谦逊的,粗陋的 vt. 使 ... 卑下,贬低 | |
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73 squat [skwɒt] 第8级 | |
vi. 蹲,蹲下;蹲坐;蹲伏 vt. 使蹲坐,使蹲下 n. 蹲坐,蜷伏 | |
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74 gateway [ˈgeɪtweɪ] 第8级 | |
n.大门口,出入口,途径,方法 | |
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75 entirely [ɪnˈtaɪəli] 第9级 | |
ad.全部地,完整地;完全地,彻底地 | |
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76 dodged [dɔdʒd] 第8级 | |
v.闪躲( dodge的过去式和过去分词 );回避 | |
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77 puffing [pʊfɪŋ] 第7级 | |
v.使喷出( puff的现在分词 );喷着汽(或烟)移动;吹嘘;吹捧 | |
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78 thoroughly [ˈθʌrəli] 第8级 | |
adv.完全地,彻底地,十足地 | |
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79 frustrated [frʌˈstreɪtɪd] 第7级 | |
adj.挫败的,失意的,泄气的v.使不成功( frustrate的过去式和过去分词 );挫败;使受挫折;令人沮丧 | |
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80 impatience [ɪm'peɪʃns] 第8级 | |
n.不耐烦,急躁 | |
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81 stringency ['strɪndʒənsɪ] 第9级 | |
n.严格,紧迫,说服力;严格性;强度 | |
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82 attained [ə'teɪnd] 第7级 | |
(通常经过努力)实现( attain的过去式和过去分词 ); 达到; 获得; 达到(某年龄、水平、状况) | |
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83 situated [ˈsɪtʃueɪtɪd] 第8级 | |
adj.坐落在...的,处于某种境地的 | |
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84 recollected [ˌrekə'lektɪd] 第7级 | |
adj.冷静的;镇定的;被回忆起的;沉思默想的v.记起,想起( recollect的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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85 squire [ˈskwaɪə(r)] 第11级 | |
n.护卫, 侍从, 乡绅 | |
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86 obstructing [əbˈstrʌktɪŋ] 第7级 | |
阻塞( obstruct的现在分词 ); 堵塞; 阻碍; 阻止 | |
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87 prodding [ˈprɒdɪŋ] 第9级 | |
v.刺,戳( prod的现在分词 );刺激;促使;(用手指或尖物)戳 | |
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88 standing [ˈstændɪŋ] 第8级 | |
n.持续,地位;adj.永久的,不动的,直立的,不流动的 | |
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89 trickled [ˈtrikld] 第8级 | |
v.滴( trickle的过去式和过去分词 );淌;使)慢慢走;缓慢移动 | |
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90 reviled [rɪˈvaɪld] 第11级 | |
v.辱骂,痛斥( revile的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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91 sarcastic [sɑ:ˈkæstɪk] 第9级 | |
adj.讥讽的,讽刺的,嘲弄的 | |
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92 caressed [kəˈrest] 第7级 | |
爱抚或抚摸…( caress的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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93 sobbed ['sɒbd] 第7级 | |
哭泣,啜泣( sob的过去式和过去分词 ); 哭诉,呜咽地说 | |
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94 rapture [ˈræptʃə(r)] 第9级 | |
n.狂喜;全神贯注;着迷;vt.使狂喜 | |
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95 scrambled [ˈskræmbld] 第8级 | |
v.快速爬行( scramble的过去式和过去分词 );攀登;争夺;(军事飞机)紧急起飞 | |
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96 admiration [ˌædməˈreɪʃn] 第8级 | |
n.钦佩,赞美,羡慕 | |
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97 recital [rɪˈsaɪtl] 第8级 | |
n.朗诵,独奏会,独唱会 | |
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98 astonishment [əˈstɒnɪʃmənt] 第8级 | |
n.惊奇,惊异 | |
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99 intervals ['ɪntevl] 第7级 | |
n.[军事]间隔( interval的名词复数 );间隔时间;[数学]区间;(戏剧、电影或音乐会的)幕间休息 | |
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100 frivolous [ˈfrɪvələs] 第9级 | |
adj.轻薄的;轻率的;无聊的 | |
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101 depressed [dɪˈprest] 第8级 | |
adj.沮丧的,抑郁的,不景气的,萧条的 | |
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102 spine [spaɪn] 第7级 | |
n.脊柱,脊椎;(动植物的)刺;书脊 | |
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103 desperately ['despərətlɪ] 第8级 | |
adv.极度渴望地,绝望地,孤注一掷地 | |
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104 miserable [ˈmɪzrəbl] 第7级 | |
adj.悲惨的,痛苦的;可怜的,糟糕的 | |
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105 crouching ['kraʊtʃɪŋ] 第8级 | |
v.屈膝,蹲伏( crouch的现在分词 ) | |
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106 dismal [ˈdɪzməl] 第8级 | |
adj.阴沉的,凄凉的,令人忧郁的,差劲的 | |
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107 supplication [ˌsʌplɪˈkeɪʃn] 第12级 | |
n.恳求,祈愿,哀求 | |
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108 proprietor [prəˈpraɪətə(r)] 第9级 | |
n.所有人;业主;经营者 | |
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109 loathsome [ˈləʊðsəm] 第11级 | |
adj.讨厌的,令人厌恶的 | |
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110 distress [dɪˈstres] 第7级 | |
n.苦恼,痛苦,不舒适;不幸;vt.使悲痛 | |
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111 shovelling [ʃʌ'vəlɪŋ] 第8级 | |
v.铲子( shovel的现在分词 );锹;推土机、挖土机等的)铲;铲形部份 | |
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112 rattled ['rætld] 第7级 | |
慌乱的,恼火的 | |
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113 rattle [ˈrætl] 第7级 | |
vt.&vi.飞奔,碰响;激怒;n.碰撞声;拨浪鼓 | |
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114 hearty [ˈhɑ:ti] 第7级 | |
adj.热情友好的;衷心的;尽情的,纵情的 | |
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