巴斯克威尔的猎犬 巴斯克维尔庄园（6）

The train pulled up at a small wayside station and we all descended¹. Outside, beyond the low,white fence, a wagonette with a pair of cobs was waiting. Our coming was evidently a great event,for station-master and porters clustered round us to carry out our luggage. It was a sweet, simplecountry spot, but I was surprised to observe that by the gate there stood two soldierly men in darkuniforms who leaned upon their short rifles and glanced keenly at us as we passed. The coachman,a hardfaced, gnarled little fellow, saluted² Sir Henry Baskerville, and in a few minutes we wereflying swiftly down the broad, white road. Rolling pasture lands curved upward on either side ofus, and old gabled houses peeped out from amid the thick green foliage³, but behind the peacefuland sunlit countryside there rose ever, dark against the evening sky, the long, gloomy curve of themoor, broken by the jagged and sinister⁴ hills.

火车在路旁的一个小站上停了下来， 我们都下了车。 在矮矮的白色栏杆外面， 有一辆两匹短腿小马拉着的四轮马车在那里等着。 我们的到来显然是件大事， 站长和脚夫都向我们围了上来， 带着我们搬行李。 这里本是一个恬静、 可爱而又朴实的地方， 但是， 在出口的地方，有两个穿着黑制服的、 象军人似的人站在那里， 却不由得使我感到诧异。 他们的身体倚在不长的来复枪上， 两眼直勾勾地瞧着我们走过去。 马车夫是个身材矮小的家伙， 相貌冷酷而又粗野， 他向亨利· 巴斯克维尔行了个礼。 几分钟之后， 我们就沿着宽阔的灰白色的大道飞驰而去了。 起伏不平的牧草地， 在大道的两侧向上隆起， 穿过浓密绿荫的隙缝， 可以看到一些墙头和屋顶都被修成人字形的古老的房屋， 宁静的、 阳光普照的村子后面出现了 绵延不断的被傍晚的天空衬托出来的阴暗的沼地， 中间还罗列着几座参差不齐的、 险恶的小山。

The wagonette swung round into a side road, and we curved upward through deep lanes wornby centuries of wheels, high banks on either side, heavy with dripping moss⁵ and fleshyhart's-tongue ferns. Bronzing bracken and mottled bramble gleamed in the light of the sinking sun.

Still steadily⁶ rising, we passed over a narrow granite⁷ bridge and skirted a noisy stream whichgushed swiftly down, foaming⁸ and roaring amid the gray boulders⁹. Both road and stream woundup through a valley dense¹⁰ with scrub oak and fir. At every turn Baskerville gave an exclamation¹¹ ofdelight, looking eagerly about him and asking countless¹² questions. To his eyes all seemedbeautiful, but to me a tinge¹³ of melancholy¹⁴ lay upon the countryside, which bore so clearly themark of the waning¹⁵ year. Yellow leaves carpeted the lanes and fluttered down upon us as wepassed. The rattle¹⁶ of our wheels died away as we drove through drifts of rotting vegetation -- sadgifts, as it seemed to me, for Nature to throw before the carriage of the returning heir of theBaskervilles.

四轮马车又转入了旁边的一条岔路， 我们穿过了被车轮在几世纪的时间里轧成的、 深深陷入地面的小巷似的沟道， 曲折上行， 道路两侧都是长满着湿漉漉的苔藓和一种枝叶肥厚的羊齿植物的石壁。 古铜色的蕨类和色彩斑驳的黑莓在落日的余辉之中闪闪发光。 我们一直在往上走着， 过了一座花岗石的窄桥， 就沿着一条奔腾叫嚣的急流向前走去了。 水流汹涌奔腾，泡沫喷溅， 在灰色的乱石之间怒吼而过。 道路在密生着矮小的橡树和枞树的峡谷之中， 沿着曲折迂回的小河蜿蜒溯流而上。 在每一转折处， 巴斯克维尔都要高兴得欢呼起来， 他急切地向四周环顾着， 一面向我们问着无数的问题。 在他看来， 什么都是美丽的， 可是我总觉得这一带乡 间有一些凄凉的味道和明显的深秋的景象。 小路上铺满了枯黄的树叶， 在我们经过的时候， 又有些树叶翩翩飞舞地由头顶上飘落下来。 当我们的马车从枯叶上走过时， 辚辚的轮声静了下来——这些东西在我看来都是造物主撒在重返家园的巴斯克维尔家族后裔车前的不祥的礼物。

1 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。

2 saluted   

v.欢迎，致敬( salute的过去式和过去分词 )；赞扬，赞颂

参考例句：

• The sergeant stood to attention and saluted. 中士立正敬礼。
• He saluted his friends with a wave of the hand. 他挥手向他的朋友致意。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 foliage   

n.叶子，树叶，簇叶

参考例句：

• The path was completely covered by the dense foliage.小路被树叶厚厚地盖了一层。
• Dark foliage clothes the hills.浓密的树叶覆盖着群山。

4 sinister   

adj.不吉利的，凶恶的，左边的

参考例句：

• There is something sinister at the back of that series of crimes.在这一系列罪行背后有险恶的阴谋。
• Their proposals are all worthless and designed out of sinister motives.他们的建议不仅一钱不值，而且包藏祸心。

5 moss   

n.苔，藓，地衣

参考例句：

• Moss grows on a rock.苔藓生在石头上。
• He was found asleep on a pillow of leaves and moss.有人看见他枕着树叶和苔藓睡着了。

6 steadily   

adv.稳定地；不变地；持续地

参考例句：

• The scope of man's use of natural resources will steadily grow.人类利用自然资源的广度将日益扩大。
• Our educational reform was steadily led onto the correct path.我们的教学改革慢慢上轨道了。

7 granite   

adj.花岗岩，花岗石

参考例句：

• They squared a block of granite.他们把一块花岗岩加工成四方形。
• The granite overlies the older rocks.花岗岩躺在磨损的岩石上面。

8 foaming   

adj.布满泡沫的；发泡

参考例句：

• He looked like a madman, foaming at the mouth. 他口吐白沫，看上去像个疯子。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He is foaming at the mouth about the committee's decision. 他正为委员会的决定大发其火。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 boulders   

n.卵石( boulder的名词复数 )；巨砾；（受水或天气侵蚀而成的）巨石；漂砾

参考例句：

• Seals basked on boulders in a flat calm. 海面风平浪静，海豹在巨石上晒太阳。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The river takes a headlong plunge into a maelstrom of rocks and boulders. 河水急流而下，入一个漂砾的漩涡中。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 dense   

a.密集的，稠密的，浓密的；密度大的

参考例句：

• The general ambushed his troops in the dense woods. 将军把部队埋伏在浓密的树林里。
• The path was completely covered by the dense foliage. 小路被树叶厚厚地盖了一层。

11 exclamation   

n.感叹号，惊呼，惊叹词

参考例句：

• He could not restrain an exclamation of approval.他禁不住喝一声采。
• The author used three exclamation marks at the end of the last sentence to wake up the readers.作者在文章的最后一句连用了三个惊叹号，以引起读者的注意。

12 countless   

adj.无数的，多得不计其数的

参考例句：

• In the war countless innocent people lost their lives.在这场战争中无数无辜的人丧失了性命。
• I've told you countless times.我已经告诉你无数遍了。

13 tinge   

vt.(较淡)着色于，染色；使带有…气息；n.淡淡色彩，些微的气息

参考例句：

• The maple leaves are tinge with autumn red.枫叶染上了秋天的红色。
• There was a tinge of sadness in her voice.她声音中流露出一丝忧伤。

14 melancholy   

n.忧郁，愁思；adj.令人感伤（沮丧）的，忧郁的

参考例句：

• All at once he fell into a state of profound melancholy.他立即陷入无尽的忧思之中。
• He felt melancholy after he failed the exam.这次考试没通过，他感到很郁闷。

15 waning   

adj.（月亮）渐亏的，逐渐减弱或变小的n.月亏v.衰落( wane的现在分词 )；（月）亏；变小；变暗淡

参考例句：

• Her enthusiasm for the whole idea was waning rapidly. 她对整个想法的热情迅速冷淡了下来。
• The day is waning and the road is ending. 日暮途穷。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

16 rattle   

v.飞奔，碰响；激怒；n.碰撞声；拨浪鼓

参考例句：

• The baby only shook the rattle and laughed and crowed.孩子只是摇着拨浪鼓，笑着叫着。
• She could hear the rattle of the teacups.她听见茶具叮当响。