【荆棘鸟】第三章 02

 Built of butter-yellow sandstone blocks hand hewn in quarries¹ five hundred miles eastward², the house had two stories and was constructed on austerely³ Georgian lines, with large, many-paned windows and a wide, iron-pillared veranda⁴ running all the way around its bottom story. Gracing the sides of every window were black wooden shutters⁵, not merely ornamental⁶ but useful; in the heat of summer they were pulled closed to keep the interior cool.

  Though it was autumn now and the spindling vine was green, in spring the wistaria which had been planted the day the house was finished fifty years before was a solid mass of lilac plumes⁷, rioting all over the outer walls and the veranda roof. Several acres of meticulously⁸ scythed⁹ lawn surrounded the house, strewn with formal gardens even now full of color from roses, wall- flowers, dahlias and marigolds. A stand of magnificent ghost gums with pallid¹⁰ white trunks and drifting thin leaves hanging seventy feet above the ground shaded the house from the pitiless sun, their branches wreathed in brilliant magenta¹¹ where bougainvillea vines grew intertwined with them. Even those indispensable Outback monstrosities the water tanks were thickly clothed in hardy¹² native vines, roses and wistaria, and thus managed to look more decorative¹³ than functional¹⁴. Thanks to the late Michael Carson's passion for Drogheda homestead, he had been lavish¹⁵ in the matter of water tanks; rumor¹⁶ had it Drogheda could afford to keep its lawns green and its flower beds blooming though no rain fell in ten years. As one approached down the Home Paddock the house and its ghost gums took the eye first, but then one was aware of many other yellow sandstone houses of one story behind it and to each side, interlocking with the main structure by means of roofed ramps¹⁷ smothered¹⁸ in creepers. A wide gravel¹⁹ driveway succeeded the wheel ruts of the track, curving to a circular parking area at one side of the big house, but also continuing beyond it and out of sight down to where the real business of Drogheda lay: the stockyards, the shearing²⁰ shed, the barns. Privately²¹ Father Ralph preferred the giant pepper trees which shaded all these outbuildings and their attendant activities to the ghost gums of the main house. Pepper trees were dense²² with pale green fronds²³ and alive with the sound of bees, just the right lazy sort of foliage²⁴ for an Outback station.

 

即使是对于一位看惯了巨宅和大厦的爱尔兰人来说，这座澳大利亚的府邸依然

是令人赞叹不已的。德罗海达是这个地区最古老、最巨大的产业，它不久前的那位

老态龙钟的主人在这片产业上建了一座能与之相匹配的宅邸。这是一座两层楼的房

子，是用东边五百英里外的采石场运来的、人工凿成的米黄色沙岩建造的。它的建

筑结构是乔治王朝式的，质朴而又大方；它的底层有许多扇宽大的玻璃窗，以及带

铁柱子的宽阔的游廊。每一扇玻璃窗上都装着黑色的木百叶，这不仅仅是为了装饰，

也是为了实用。在炎热的夏天，把它们拉下来就可以使室内保持阴凉。

 

    虽然眼下已经是萧萧金秋，但细长的藤条却依然一派绿。春天的时候，那棵50

年前与这所房子竣工同日栽下的紫藤开满了密不透风的淡紫色的花簇，熙熙攘攘地

抓满了外墙和游廊的顶棚。房子的周围是几英亩用长柄镰极其精心地修整过的草坪，

草坪上点缀着一片片整整齐齐的花圃，即使是在眼下，它们也依然盛开着色彩缤纷

的玫瑰花、香罗兰、大丽花和金盖花。一排高大的魔鬼桉，树干浅白，拔地70

英尺，遮住了楼房，挡住了无情的阳光；这排桉树的一些枝杈有时和紫茉莉的藤蔓

缠绕在一起，露出了亮红的色彩。连那些不可或缺的内地怪物——贮水箱也厚厚地

长上了一层耐寒的、土生土长的藤蔓和紫藤，它们看上去与其说是实用的，倒不如

说是装饰性的。多亏了已故的迈克尔·卡森先生对这个邸宅一片热心，他在贮水箱

这类东西是是从不吝惜金钱的；据说，十年不雨，德罗海达邸内的草坪依然可以照

样绿色湛然，花坛里的鲜花也照样盛开不败。

 

    当你走这个围场府邸的时候，首先映入眼帘的是那幢房子和那些魔鬼桉，可接

着你使会发觉它的背后和两侧有许多一层楼的黄色砂岩砌成的房子；加顶的坡道把

它们和主体建筑连接在一起，坡道的顶上长满了抓山虎。满是辙印的小路的尽头是

一条宽阔的砾石东道，它在那座大房子的一侧拐进了一片圆形停车场，继续往下延

伸着，直到眼睛看不见的地方，那儿是德罗海达的真正的干活场所。与遮蔽那座主

楼的魔鬼桉树比起来，拉尔夫神父自己更喜欢那些巨大的花椒树，它们把附属建筑

物和有关的活动统统都掩盖起来了。花椒树上长着厚密的、浅绿色的叶子，蜜蜂在

嗡嗡飞舞着，这正是内地牧场里树叶懒洋洋地低垂着的景色。

1 quarries   

n.（采）石场( quarry的名词复数 )；猎物（指鸟，兽等）；方形石；（格窗等的）方形玻璃v.从采石场采得( quarry的第三人称单数 )；从（书本等中）努力发掘（资料等）；在采石场采石

参考例句：

• This window was filled with old painted glass in quarries. 这窗户是由旧日的彩色菱形玻璃装配的。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• They hewed out the stones for the building from nearby quarries. 他们从邻近的采石场开凿出石头供建造那栋房子用。 来自辞典例句

2 eastward   

adv.向东；adj.向东的；n.东方，东部

参考例句：

• The river here tends eastward.这条河从这里向东流。
• The crowd is heading eastward,believing that they can find gold there.人群正在向东移去，他们认为在那里可以找到黄金。

3 austerely   

adv.严格地，朴质地

参考例句：

• The austerely lighted garage was quiet. 灯光黯淡的车库静悄悄的。 来自辞典例句
• Door of Ministry of Agriculture and produce will be challenged austerely. 农业部门及农产品将受到严重的挑战。 来自互联网

4 veranda   

n.走廊；阳台

参考例句：

• She sat in the shade on the veranda.她坐在阳台上的遮荫处。
• They were strolling up and down the veranda.他们在走廊上来回徜徉。

5 shutters   

百叶窗( shutter的名词复数 )； （照相机的）快门

参考例句：

• The shop-front is fitted with rolling shutters. 那商店的店门装有卷门。
• The shutters thumped the wall in the wind. 在风中百叶窗砰砰地碰在墙上。

6 ornamental   

adj.装饰的；作装饰用的；n.装饰品；观赏植物

参考例句：

• The stream was dammed up to form ornamental lakes.溪流用水坝拦挡起来,形成了装饰性的湖泊。
• The ornamental ironwork lends a touch of elegance to the house.铁艺饰件为房子略添雅致。

7 plumes   

羽毛( plume的名词复数 )； 羽毛饰； 羽毛状物； 升上空中的羽状物

参考例句：

• The dancer wore a headdress of pink ostrich plumes. 那位舞蹈演员戴着粉色鸵鸟毛制作的头饰。
• The plumes on her bonnet barely moved as she nodded. 她点点头，那帽子的羽毛在一个劲儿颤动。

8 meticulously   

adv.过细地，异常细致地；无微不至；精心

参考例句：

• The hammer's silvery head was etched with holy runs and its haft was meticulously wrapped in blue leather. 锤子头是纯银制成的，雕刻着神圣符文，而握柄则被精心地包裹在蓝色的皮革中。 来自辞典例句
• She is always meticulously accurate in punctuation and spelling. 她的标点和拼写总是非常精确。 来自辞典例句

9 scythed   

v.（长柄）大镰刀( scythe的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• the scent of newly scythed grass 新割下的草散发的清香
• He's scythed half the orchard. 他已经将半个果园的草割除。 来自辞典例句

10 pallid   

adj.苍白的，呆板的

参考例句：

• The moon drifted from behind the clouds and exposed the pallid face.月亮从云朵后面钻出来，照着尸体那张苍白的脸。
• His dry pallid face often looked gaunt.他那张干瘪苍白的脸常常显得憔悴。

11 magenta   

n..紫红色（的染料）；adj.紫红色的

参考例句：

• In the one photo in which she appeared, Hillary Clinton wore a magenta gown.在其中一张照片中，希拉里身着一件紫红色礼服。
• For the same reason air information is printed in magenta.出于同样的原因，航空资料采用品红色印刷。

12 hardy   

adj.勇敢的，果断的，吃苦的；耐寒的

参考例句：

• The kind of plant is a hardy annual.这种植物是耐寒的一年生植物。
• He is a hardy person.他是一个能吃苦耐劳的人。

13 decorative   

adj.装饰的，可作装饰的

参考例句：

• This ware is suitable for decorative purpose but unsuitable for utility.这种器皿中看不中用。
• The style is ornate and highly decorative.这种风格很华丽，而且装饰效果很好。

14 functional   

adj.为实用而设计的，具备功能的，起作用的

参考例句：

• The telephone was out of order,but is functional now.电话刚才坏了，但现在可以用了。
• The furniture is not fancy,just functional.这些家具不是摆着好看的，只是为了实用。

15 lavish   

adj.无节制的；浪费的；vt.慷慨地给予，挥霍

参考例句：

• He despised people who were lavish with their praises.他看不起那些阿谀奉承的人。
• The sets and costumes are lavish.布景和服装极尽奢华。

16 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。

17 ramps   

resources allocation and multiproject scheduling 资源分配和多项目的行程安排

参考例句：

• Ramps should be provided for wheelchair users. 应该给轮椅使用者提供坡道。
• He has the upper floor and ramps are fitted everywhere for his convenience. 他住在上面一层，为了他的方便着想，到处设有坡道。

18 smothered   

（使）窒息， （使）透不过气( smother的过去式和过去分词 )； 覆盖； 忍住； 抑制

参考例句：

• He smothered the baby with a pillow. 他用枕头把婴儿闷死了。
• The fire is smothered by ashes. 火被灰闷熄了。

19 gravel   

n.砂跞；砂砾层；结石

参考例句：

• We bought six bags of gravel for the garden path.我们购买了六袋碎石用来铺花园的小路。
• More gravel is needed to fill the hollow in the drive.需要更多的砾石来填平车道上的坑洼。

20 shearing   

n.剪羊毛，剪取的羊毛v.剪羊毛( shear的现在分词 )；切断；剪切

参考例句：

• The farmer is shearing his sheep. 那农夫正在给他的羊剪毛。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The result of this shearing force is to push the endoplasm forward. 这种剪切力作用的结果是推动内质向前。 来自辞典例句

21 privately   

adv.以私人的身份，悄悄地，私下地

参考例句：

• Some ministers admit privately that unemployment could continue to rise.一些部长私下承认失业率可能继续升高。
• The man privately admits that his motive is profits.那人私下承认他的动机是为了牟利。

22 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。

23 fronds   

n.蕨类或棕榈类植物的叶子( frond的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• You can pleat palm fronds to make huts, umbrellas and baskets. 人们可以把棕榈叶折叠起来盖棚屋，制伞，编篮子。 来自百科语句
• When these breezes reached the platform the palm-fronds would whisper. 微风吹到平台时，棕榈叶片发出簌簌的低吟。 来自辞典例句

24 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。