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During that third week of May the situation in Baskul had become much worse and, on the 20th, air force machines arrived by arrangement from Peshawar to evacuate [1] the white residents. These numbered about eighty, and most were safely transported across the mountains in troop carriers. A few miscellaneous [2] aircraft were also employed, among them being a cabin [3] machine lent by the maharajah [4] of Chandrapur. In this, about 10 a.m., four passengers embarked [5] : Miss Roberta Brinklow, of the Eastern Mission; Henry D. Barnard, an American; Hugh Conway, H.M. Consul; and Captain Charles Mallinson, H.M. Vice Consul [6] .
These names are as they appeared later in Indian and British newspapers.
Conway was thirty-seven. He had been at Baskul for two years, in a job which now, in the light of events, could be regarded as a persistent [7] backing of the wrong horse. A stage of his life was finished; in a few weeks' time, or perhaps after a few months' leave in England, he would be sent somewhere else. Tokyo or Teheran, Manila or Muscat; people in his profession never knew what was coming. He had been ten years in the Consular Service, long enough to assess his own chances as shrewdly [8] as he was apt to do those of others. He knew that the plums [9] were not for him; but it was genuinely consoling [10] , and not merely sour grapes, to reflect that he had no taste for plums. He preferred the less formal and more picturesque [11] jobs that were on offer, and as these were often not good ones, it had doubtless seemed to others that he was playing his cards rather badly. Actually, he felt he had played them rather well; he had had a varied and moderately [12] enjoyable decade.
He was tall, deeply bronzed, with brown short-cropped [13] hair and slate - blue [14] eyes. He was inclined to look severe and brooding [15] until he laughed, and then (but it happened not so very often) he looked boyish. There was a slight nervous twitch near the left eye which was usually noticeable when he worked too hard or drank too much, and as he had been packing and destroying documents throughout the whole of the day and night preceding [16] the evacuation [17] , the twitch was very conspicuous [18] when he climbed into the aeroplane. He was tired out, and overwhelmingly [19] glad that he had contrived [20] to be sent in the maharajah's luxurious [21] airliner instead of in one of the crowded troop carriers. He spread himself indulgently [22] in the basket seat as the plane soared aloft. He was the sort of man who, being used to major hardships, expected minor comforts by way of compensation. Cheerfully he might endure the rigors of the road to Samarkand, but from London to Paris he would spend his last tenner on the Golden Arrow.
It was after the flight had lasted more than an hour that Mallinson said he thought the pilot wasn't keeping a straight course. Mallinson sat immediately in front. He was a youngster in his middle twenties, pink-cheeked, intelligent without being intellectual, beset with [23] public school limitations, but also with their excellences. Failure to pass an examination was the chief cause of his being sent to Baskul, where Conway had had six months of his company and had grown to like him.
But Conway did not want to make the effort that an aeroplane conversation demands. He opened his eyes drowsily [24] and replied that whatever the course taken, the pilot presumably [25] knew best.
Half an hour later, when weariness [26] and the drone [27] of the engine had lulled [28] him nearly to sleep, Mallinson disturbed him again. “I say, Conway, I thought Fenner was piloting us? ”
“Well, isn't he? ”
“The chap turned his head just now and I'll swear it wasn't he.”
“It's hard to tell, through that glass panel.”
“I'd know Fenner's face anywhere.”
“Well, then, it must be someone else. I don't see that it matters.”
“But Fenner told me definitely that he was taking this machine.”
“They must have changed their minds and given him one of the others.”
“Well, who is this man, then? ”
“My dear boy, how should I know? You don't suppose I've memorized the face of every flight lieutenant [29] in the air force, do you? ”
“I know a good many of them, anyway, but I don't recognize this fellow.”
“Then he must belong to the minority [30] whom you don't know.” Conway smiled and added: “When we arrive in Peshawar very soon you can make his acquaintance [31] and ask him all about himself.”
“At this rate we shan't get to Peshawar at all. The man's right off his course. And I'm not surprised, either — flying so damned high he can't see where he is.”
Conway was not bothering. He was used to air travel, and took things for granted. Besides, there was nothing particular he was eager to do when he got to Peshawar, and no one particular he was eager to see; so it was a matter of complete indiff erence [32] to him whether the journey took four hours or six. He was unmarried; there would be no tender greetings on arrival. He had friends, and a few of them would probably take him to the club and stand him drinks; it was a pleasant prospect [33] , but not one to sigh for in anticipation.
Nor did he sigh retrospectively [34] , when he viewed the equally pleasant, but not wholly satisfying vista [35] of the past decade. Changeable, fair intervals, becoming rather unsettled [36] ; it had been his own meteorological [37] summary during that time, as well as the world's. He thought of Baskul, Pekin, Macao, and other places — he had moved about pretty often. Remotest of all was Oxford, where he had had a couple of years of donhood [38] after the war, lecturing on Oriental history, breathing dust in sunny libraries, cruising down the High on a push bicycle. The vision attracted, but did not stir him; there was a sense in which he felt that he was still a part of all that he might have been.
A familiar gastric [39] lurch [40] informed him that the plane was beginning to descend [41] . He felt tempted to rag Mallinson about his fidgets [42] , and would perhaps have done so had not the youth risen abruptly [43] , bumping his head against the roof and waking Barnard, the American, who had been dozing in his seat at the other side of the narrow gangway. “My God! ” Mallinson cried, peering [44] through the window. “Look down there! ”
Conway looked. The view was certainly not what he had expected, if, indeed, he had expected anything. Instead of the trim [45] , geometrically laid-out cantonments [46] and the larger oblongs [47] of the hangars [48] , nothing was visible but an opaque [49] mist veiling [50] an immense, sun-brown desolation [51] . The plane, though descending rapidly, was still at a height unusual for ordinary flying. Long, corrugated [52] mountain ridges [53] could be picked out, perhaps a mile or so closer than the cloudier smudge of the valleys. It was typical frontier [54] scenery, though Conway had never viewed it before from such an altitude. It was also, which struck him as odd, nowhere that he could imagine near Peshawar. “I don't recognize this part of the world, ” he commented. Then, more privately, for he did not wish to alarm the others, he added into Mallinson's ear: “Looks as if you're right. The man's lost his way.”
The plane was swooping [55] down at a tremendous speed, and as it did so,the air grew hotter; the scorched [56] earth below was like an oven with the door suddenly opened. One mountaintop [57] after another lifted itself above the horizon in craggy [58] silhouette [59] ; now the flight was along a curving valley, the base of which was strewn with rocks and the debris [60] of dried-up watercourses [61] . It looked like a floor littered with [62] nutshells. The plane bumped and tossed in air pockets as uncomfortably as a rowboat [63] in a swell [64] . All four passengers had to hold onto their seats.
“Looks like he wants to land! ” shouted the American hoarsely.
“He can't! ” Mallinson retorted. “He'd be simply mad if he tried to! He'll crash and then — ”
But the pilot did land. A small cleared space opened by the side of a gully [65] , and with considerable skill the machine was jolted and heaved to a standstill [66] . What happened after that, however, was more puzzling and less reassuring [67] . A swarm [68] of bearded and turbaned [69] tribesmen [70] came forward from all directions, surrounding the machine and effectively preventing anyone from getting out of it except the pilot. The latter clambered [71] to earth and held excited colloquy [72] with them, during which proceeding it became clear that, so far from being Fenner, he was not an Englishman at all, and possibly not even a European. Meanwhile cans of gasoline were fetched from a dump close by, and emptied into the exceptionally capacious [73] tanks. Grins [74] and disregarding silence met the shouts of the four imprisoned passengers, while the slightest attempt to alight [75] provoked a menacing [76] movement from a score of rifles. Conway, who knew a little Pushtu, harangued [77] the tribesmen as well as he could in that language, but without effect; while the pilot's sole retort to any remarks addressed to him in any language was a significant flourish of his revolver [78] . Midday sunlight, blazing on the roof of the cabin, grilled [79] the air inside till the occupants were almost fainting with the heat and with the exertion of their protests. They were quite powerless; it had been a condition of the evacuation [80] that they should carry no arms.
When the tanks were at last screwed up, a gasoline can filled with tepid [81] water was handed through one of the cabin windows. No questions were answered, though it did not appear that the men were personally hostile [82] . After a further parley the pilot climbed back into the cockpit [83] , a Pathan clumsily [84] swung the propeller [85] , and the flight was resumed [86] . The takeoff, in that confined space and with the extra gasoline load, was even more skillful than the landing. The plane rose high into the hazy vapors [87] ; then turned east, as if setting a course. It was mid-afternoon.
A most extraordinary and bewildering [88] business! As the cooler air refreshed them, the passengers could hardly believe that it had really happened; it was an outrage [89] to which none could recall any parallel [90] , or suggest any precedent, in all the turbulent [91] records of the frontier. It would have been incredible, indeed, had they not been victims of it themselves. It was quite natural that high indignation should follow incredulity [92] , and anxious speculation only when indignation [93] had worn itself out. Mallinson then developed the theory which, in the absence of any other, they found easiest to accept. They were being kidnaped for ransom [94] . The trick was by no means new in itself, though this particular technique must be regarded as original. It was a little more comforting to feel that they were not making entirely virgin [95] history; after all, there had been kidnapings before, and a good many of them had ended up all right. The tribesmen kept you in some lair [96] in the mountains till the government paid up and you were released. You were treated quite decently, and as the money that had to be paid wasn't your own, the whole business was only unpleasant while it lasted. Afterwards, of course, the Air people sent a bombing squadron [97] , and you were left with one good story to tell for the rest of your life. Mallinson enunciated the proposition a shade nervously; but Barnard, the American, chose to be heavily facetious [98] . “Well, gentlemen, I daresay this is a cute idea on somebody's part, but I can't exactly see that your air force has covered itself with glory. You Britishers make jokes about the holdups [99] in Chicago and all that, but I don't recollect any instance of a gunman running off with one of Uncle Sam's aeroplanes. And I should like to know, by the way, what this fellow did with the real pilot. Sandbagged him, I bet.” He yawned. He was a large, fleshy [100] man, with a hard-bitten [101] face in which good-humored wrinkles were not quite offset by pessimistic pouches [102] . Nobody in Baskul had known much about him except that he had arrived from Persia, where it was presumed he had something to do with oil.
Conway meanwhile was busying himself with a very practical task. He had collected every scrap of paper that they all had, and was composing messages in various native languages to be dropped to earth at intervals. It was a slender [103] chance, in such sparsely populated country, but worth taking.
The fourth occupant, Miss Brinklow, sat tight-lipped [104] and straight-backed, with few comments and no complaints. She was a small, rather leathery [105] woman, with an air of having been compelled to attend a party at which there were goings-on that she could not wholly approve.
Conway had talked less than the two other men, for translating SOS messages into dialects was a mental exercise requiring concentration. He had, however, answered questions when asked, and had agreed, tentatively [106] , with Mallinson's kidnaping theory. He had also agreed, to some extent, with Barnard's strictures on the air force. “Though one can see, of course, how it may have happened. With the place in commotion as it was, one man in flying kit would look very much like another. No one would think of doubting the bona fides [107] of any man in the proper clothes who looked as if he knew his job. And this fellow must have known it — the signals, and so forth. Pretty obvious, too, that he knows how to fly … still, I agree with you that it's the sort of thing that someone ought to get into hot water about. And somebody will, you may be sure, though I suspect he won't deserve it.”
“Well, sir, ” responded Barnard, “I certainly do admire the way you manage to see both sides of the question. It's the right spirit to have, no doubt, even when you're being taken for a ride.”
Americans, Conway reflected, had the knack [108] of being able to say patronizing [109] things without being offensive. He smiled tolerantly, but did not continue the conversation. His tiredness was of a kind that no amount of possible peril could stave off. Towards late afternoon, when Barnard and Mallinson, who had been arguing, appealed to him on some point, it appeared that he had fallen asleep.
“Dead beat, ” Mallinson commented. “And I don't wonder at it, after these last few weeks.”
“You're his friend? ” queried [110] Barnard.
“I've worked with him at the Consulate. I happen to know that he hasn't been in bed for the last four nights. As a matter of fact, we're damned lucky in having him with us in a tight corner like this. Apart from knowing the languages, he's got a sort of way with him in dealing with people. If anyone can get us out of the mess, he'll do it. He's pretty cool about most things.”
“Well, let him have his sleep, then, ” agreed Barnard.
Miss Brinklow made one of her rare remarks. “I think he looks like a very brave man, ” she said.
Conway was far less certain that he was a very brave man. He had closed his eyes in sheer physical fatigue [111] , but without actually sleeping. He could hear and feel every movement of the plane, and he heard also, with mixed feelings, Mallinson's eulogy of himself. It was then that he had his doubts, recognizing a tight sensation in his stomach which was his own bodily reaction to a disquieting [112] mental survey. He was not, as he knew well from experience, one of those persons who love danger for its own sake. There was an aspect of it which he sometimes enjoyed, an excitement, a purgative effect upon sluggish emotions, but he was far from fond of risking his life. Twelve years earlier he had grown to hate the perils of trench warfare [113] in France, and had several times avoided death by declining to attempt valorous impossibilities.Even his D.S.O. had been won, not so much by physical courage, as by a certain hardly developed technique of endurance. And since the war, whenever there had been danger ahead, he had faced it with increasing lack of relish [114] unless it promised extravagant [115] dividends [116] in thrills [117] .
He still kept his eyes closed. He was touched, and a little dismayed, by what he had heard Mallinson say. It was his fate in life to have his equanimity [118] always mistaken for pluck [119] , whereas it was actually something much more dispassionate and much less virile [120] . They were all in a damnably [121] awkward situation, it seemed to him, and so far from being full of bravery about it, he felt chiefly an enormous distaste for whatever trouble might be in store. There was Miss Brinklow, for instance. He foresaw [122] that in certain circumstances he would have to act on the supposition that because she was a woman she mattered far more than the rest of them put together, and he shrank [123] from a situation in which such disproportionate [124] behavior might be unavoidable.
Nevertheless, when he showed signs of wakefulness [125] , it was to Miss Brinklow that he spoke first. He realized that she was neither young nor pretty — negative virtues, but immensely helpful ones in such difficulties as those in which they might soon find themselves. He was also rather sorry for her, because he suspected that neither Mallinson nor the American liked missionaries, especially female ones. He himself was unprejudiced [126] , but he was afraid she would find his open mind a less familiar and therefore an even more disconcerting phenomenon. “We seem to be in a queer [127] fix, ” he said, leaning forward to her ear, “but I'm glad you're taking it calmly. I don't really think anything dreadful is going to happen to us.”
“I'm certain it won't if you can prevent it, ” she answered; which did not console [128] him.
“You must let me know if there is anything we can do to make you more comfortable.”
Barnard caught the word. “Comfortable? ” he echoed raucously [129] . “Why, of course we're comfortable. We're just enjoying the trip. Pity we haven't a pack of cards — we could play a rubber of bridge [130] .”
Conway welcomed the spirit of the remark, though he disliked bridge. “I don't suppose Miss Brinklow plays, ” he said, smiling.
But the missionary turned round briskly [131] to retort [132] : “Indeed I do, and I could never see any harm in cards at all. There's nothing against them in the Bible.”
They all laughed, and seemed obliged to her for providing an excuse. At any rate, Conway thought, she wasn't hysterical [133] .
All afternoon the plane had soared through the thin mists of the upper atmosphere, far too high to give clear sight of what lay beneath. Sometimes, at longish [134] intervals, the veil was torn for a moment, to display the jagged outline of a peak, or the glint [135] of some unknown stream. The direction could be determined roughly from the sun; it was still east, with occasional twists to the north; but where it had led depended on the speed of travel, which Conway could not judge with any accuracy. It seemed likely, though, that the flight must already have exhausted a good deal of the gasoline; though that again depended on uncertain factors. Conway had no technical knowledge of aircraft, but he was sure that the pilot, whoever he might be, was altogether an expert. That halt in the rock-strewn [136] valley had demonstrated it, and also other incidents since. And Conway could not repress a feeling that was always his in the presence of any superb and indisputable [137] competence [138] . He was so used to being appealed to for help that mere awareness of someone who would neither ask nor need it was slightly tranquilizing [139] , even amidst the greater perplexities [140] of the future. But he did not expect his companions to share such a tenuous emotion. He recognized that they were likely to have far more personal reasons for anxiety than he had himself. Mallinson, for instance, was engaged to a girl in England; Barnard might be married; Miss Brinklow had her work, vocation, or however she might regard it. Mallinson,incidentally, was by far the least composed; as the hours passed he showed himself increasingly excitable [141] — apt [142] , also, to resent to Conway's face the very coolness which he had praised behind his back. Once, above the roar of the engine, a sharp storm of argument arose. “Look here, ” Mallinson shouted angrily, “are we bound to sit here twiddling [143] our thumbs while this maniac does everything he damn well wants? What's to prevent us from smashing [144] that panel and having it out with him? ”
“Nothing at all, ” replied Conway, “except that he's armed and we're not, and that in any case, none of us would know how to bring the machine to earth afterwards.”
“It can't be very hard, surely. I daresay you could do it.”
“My dear Mallinson, why is it always me you expect to perform these miracles? ”
“Well, anyway, this business is getting hellishly [145] on my nerves. Can't we make the fellow come down? ”
“How do you suggest it should be done? ”
Mallinson was becoming more and more agitated [146] . “Well, he's there, isn't he? About six feet away from us, and we're three men to one! Have we got to stare at his damned back all the time? At least we might force him to tell us what the game is.”
“Very well, we'll see.” Conway took a few paces forward to the partition [147] between the cabin and the pilot's cockpit, which was situated in front and somewhat above. There was a pane of glass, about six inches square and made to slide open, through which the pilot, by turning his head and stooping [148] slightly, could communicate with his passengers. Conway tapped on this with his knuckles [149] . The response was almost comically [150] as he had expected. The glass panel slid sideways and the barrel of a revolver obtruded [151] . Not a word; just that. Conway retreated without arguing the point, and the panel slid back again.
Mallinson, who had watched the incident, was only partly satisfied. “I don't suppose he'd have dared to shoot, ” he commented. “It's probably bluf f [152] .”
“Quite, ” agreed Conway, “but I'd rather leave you to make sure.”
“Well, I do feel we ought to put up some sort of a fight before giving in tamely like this.”
Conway was sympathetic. He recognized the convention [153] , with all its associations of red-coated soldiers and school history books, that Englishmen fear nothing, never surrender, and are never defeated. He said: “Putting up a fight without a decent chance of winning is a poor game, and I'm not that sort of hero.”
“Good for you, sir, ” interposed [154] Barnard heartily. “When somebody's got you by the short hairs you may as well give in pleasantly and admit it. For my part I'm going to enjoy life while it lasts and have a cigar. I hope you don't think a little bit of extra danger matters to us? ”
“Not so far as I'm concerned, but it might bother Miss Brinklow.”
Barnard was quick to make amends [155] . “Pardon me, madam, but do you mind if I smoke? ”
“Not at all, ” she answered graciously [156] . “I don't do so myself, but I just love the smell of a cigar.”
Conway felt that of all the women who could possibly have made such a remark, she was easily the most typical. Anyhow, Mallinson's excitement had calmed a little, and to show friendliness he offered him a cigarette, though he did not light one himself. “I know how you feel, ” he said gently. “It's a bad outlook, and it's all the worse, in some ways, because there isn't much we can do about it.”
“And all the better, too, in other ways, ” he could not help adding to himself. For he was still immensely fatigued. There was also in his nature a trait which some people might have called laziness, though it was not quite that. No one was capable of harder work, when it had to be done, and few could better shoulder responsibility; but the facts remained that he was not passionately fond of activity, and did not enjoy responsibility at all. Both were included in his job, and he made the best of them, but he was always ready to give way to anyone else who could function as well or better. It was partly this, no doubt, that had made his success in the Service less striking than it might have been. He was not ambitious enough to shove his way past others, or to make an important parade [157] of doing nothing when there was really nothing doing. His dispatches [158] were sometimes laconic [159] to the point of curtness [160] , and his calm in emergencies, though admired, was often suspected of being too sincere. Authority likes to feel that a man is imposing some effort on himself, and that his apparent nonchalance [161] is only a cloak [162] to disguise an outfit of well-bred emotions. With Conway the dark suspicion had sometimes been current that he really was as unruffled [163] as he looked, and that whatever happened, he did not give a damn. But this, too, like the laziness, was an imperfect interpretation. What most observers failed to perceive in him was something quite bafflingly [164] simple — a love of quietness, contemplation [165] , and being alone.
Now, since he was so inclined and there was nothing else to do, he leaned back in the basket chair and went definitely to sleep. When he woke he noticed that the others, despite their various anxieties, had likewise succumbed. Miss Brinklow was sitting bolt upright with her eyes closed, like some rather dingy [166] and outmoded [167] idol; Mallinson had lolled [168] forward in his place with his chin in the palm of a hand. The American was even snoring. Very sensible of them all, Conway thought; there was no point in wearying [169] themselves with shouting. But immediately he was aware of certain physical sensations [170] in himself, slight dizziness [171] and heart-thumping [172] and a tendency to inhale [173] sharply and with effort. He remembered similar symptoms once before — in the Swiss Alps.
Then he turned to the window and gazed out. The surrounding sky had cleared completely, and in the light of late afternoon there came to him a vision which, for the instant, snatched [174] the remaining breath out of his lungs. Far away, at the very limit of distance, lay range upon range of snow peaks, festooned [175] with glaciers, and floating, in appearance, upon vast levels of cloud. They compassed the whole arc of the circle, merging towards the west in a horizon that was fierce, almost garish [176] in coloring, like an impressionist [177] backdrop done by some half-mad genius. And meanwhile, the plane, on that stupendous [178] stage, was droning [179] over an abyss in the face of a sheer white wall that seemed part of the sky itself until the sun caught it. Then, like a dozen piled-up [180] Jungfraus seen from Mürren, it flamed into superb and dazzling incandescence [181] .
Conway was not apt to be easily impressed, and as a rule he did not care for“views, ” especially the more famous ones for which thoughtful municipalities [182] provide garden seats. Once, on being taken to Tiger Hill, near Darjeeling, to watch the sunrise upon Everest, he had found the highest mountain in the world a definite disappointment. But this fearsome [183] spectacle beyond the window-pane was of different caliber [184] ; it had no air of posing to be admired. There was something raw and monstrous about those uncompromising ice cliffs, and a certain sublime [185] impertinence in approaching them thus. He pondered, envisioning maps, calculating distances, estimating times and speeds. Then he became aware that Mallinson had wakened also. He touched the youth on the arm.
[1] evacuate [iˈvækjueit] v. 疏散；撤退
[2] miscellaneous [ˌmisəˈleiniəs] a． 混杂的；各种各样的
[3] cabin [ˈkæbin] n． 客舱；船舱
[4] maharajah [ˌmɑ:həˈrɑ:dʒə] n． 大君（印度君侯尊称）
[5] embark [imˈbɑ:k] n． 登上（飞机）
[6] consul [ˈkɔnsəl] n． 领事
[7] persistent [pəˈsist(ə)nt] a. 固执的；坚持的
[8] shrewdly[ˈʃru:dli] ad． 精明干练地；机灵地
[9] plum [plʌm] n． 令人垂涎的事物
[10] consoling [kənˈsəuliŋ] a. 可安慰的
[11] picturesque [ˌpiktʃəˈresk] a． 生动的；别致的
[12] moderately [ˈmɔd(ə)rətli] ad． 适度地；中庸地
[13] short-cropped剪短的
[14] slate-blue石板蓝；石蓝色
[15] brooding [ˈbrudiŋ] a． 沉思的
[16] precede [priˈsi:d] v. 在……之前
[17] evacuation [iˌvækjuˈeiʃ(ə)n] n． 疏散；撤离
[18] conspicuous [kənˈspikjuəs] a． 显著的；显而易见的
[19] overwhelmingly [ˌəuvəˈwelmiŋli] ad． 压倒性地；不可抵抗地
[20] contrive [kənˈtraiv] v. 谋划；设法做到
[21] luxurious [lʌɡˈzjuəriəs] a． 豪华的
[22] indulgently [inˈdʌldʒəntli] ad． 溺爱地；放任地
[23] beset with受……困扰
[24] drowsily[ˈdrauzəli] ad. 昏昏欲睡地；懒洋洋地
[25] presumably [priˈzju:məbli] ad． 大概；推测起来
[26] weariness [ˈwiərinis] n. 疲倦；疲劳
[27] drone [drəun] n． 嗡嗡的声音
[28] lull [lʌl] v． 使平静；使安静
[29] lieutenant [luˈtenənt] n. 副官；上尉
[30] minority [maiˈnɔriti] n. 少数
[31] acquaintance [əˈkweint(ə)ns] n． 相识；了解
[32] indifference [inˈdifrəns] n． 漠不关心
[33] prospect [ˈprɔspekt] n． 前途；预期
[34] retrospectively [ˌretrəˈspektivli] ad． 回顾地
[35] vista [ˈvistə] n． 回顾
[36] unsettled [ʌnˈset(ə)ld] a. 未决定的
[37] meteorological [ˌmi:tiərəˈlɔdʒikəl] a． 气象的
[38] donhood [dɔnhu:d] n． 大学教师（生活）
[39] gastric [ˈɡæstrik] a． 胃的
[40] lurch [lə:tʃ] n． 突然倾斜；蹒跚
[41] descend [diˈsend] v． 下降
[42] fidget [ˈfidʒit] n． 烦躁；坐立不安
[43] abruptly[əˈbrʌptli] ad. 突然地
[44] peer [piə] v． 凝视；盯着看
[45] trim [trim] n． 整齐
[46] cantonment [kənˈtu:nmənt] n． 宿营地；兵营
[47] oblong [ˈɔblɔŋ] a． 长方形的
[48] hangar [ˈhæŋə] n． 飞机库；飞机棚
[49] opaque [əuˈpeik] a． 不透明的
[50] veil [ˈveil] v． 遮蔽
[51] desolation [desəˈleiʃ(ə)n] n． 荒芜
[52] corrugated [ˈkɔrəɡeitid] a． 波纹的
[53] ridge [ridʒ] n． 山脊；山脉
[54] frontier [ˈfrʌntiə] n． 边界
[55] swoop [swu:p] v． 突然下降
[56] scorched [skɔ:tʃt] a． 烧焦的
[57] mountaintop [ˈmaunt(ə)ntɔp] n． 山顶
[58] craggy [ˈkræɡi] a． 崎岖的；多峭壁的
[59] silhouette [ˌsiluˈet] n． 轮廓；剪影
[60] debris [ˈdeibri:] n． 碎片；残骸
[61] watercourse [ˈwɔ:təkɔ:s] n． 河道；水道
[62] littered with散落着
[63] rowboat [ˈrəubəut] n． 划艇；小船
[64] swell [swel] n． 波涌
[65] gully [ˈɡʌli] n． 冲沟；水沟
[66] standstill [ˈstæn(d)stil] n. 停顿；停止
[67] reassuring [ˌri:əˈʃuəriŋ] a. 安心的；可靠的
[68] swarm [swɔ:m] n． 蜂群；一大群
[69] turbaned [ˈtə:bənd] a． 戴头巾的
[70] tribesman [ˈtraibzmən] n. 部落男子；部落成员；tribesmen是tribesman复数形式
[71] clamber [ˈklæmbə] v． 攀登；爬上
[72] colloquy [ˈkɔləkwi] n． 谈话；会话
[73] capacious [kəˈpeiʃəs] a. 宽敞的；广阔的
[74] grin [ɡrin] n． 露齿笑
[75] alight [əˈlait] v． 下来
[76] menacing [ˈmenisiŋ] a. 威胁的
[77] harangue [həˈræŋ] v． 慷慨陈词
[78] revolver [riˈvɔlvə] n． 左轮手枪
[79] grill [ɡril] v． 烧；烤
[80] evacuation [iˌvækjuˈeiʃ(ə)n] n． 疏散；撤离
[81] tepid [ˈtepid] a． 微温的；温热的
[82] hostile [ˈhɔstail] a． 敌对的；怀敌意的
[83] cockpit [ˈkɔkpit] n． 驾驶员座舱
[84] clumsily[ˈklʌmzili] ad. 笨拙地
[85] propeller [prəˈpelə] n． 推进器
[86] resume [riˈzju:m] v． 重新开始；继续
[87] vapor [ˈveipə] n． 蒸汽；烟雾
[88] bewildering [biˈwild(ə)riŋ] a． 令人迷惑的
[89] outrage [ˈautreidʒ] n． 暴行；侮辱
[90] parallel [ˈpærəlel] a． 类似的；相同的
[91] turbulent [ˈtə:bjul(ə)nt] a． 动荡的；混乱的
[92] incredulity [inkrəˈdju:ləti] n． 怀疑；不轻信
[93] indignation [indiɡˈneiʃ(ə)n] n． 愤慨
[94] ransom [ˈræns(ə)m] n. 赎金；赎身
[95] virgin [ˈvə:dʒin] a． 未经利用的
[96] lair [lɛə] n． 藏匿之所
[97] squadron [ˈskwɔdrən] n. 空军中队
[98] facetious [fəˈsi:ʃəs] a． 诙谐的；爱开玩笑的
[99] holdup [ˈhəuldʌp] n． 持枪抢劫
[100] fleshy [ˈfleʃi] a． 略显肥胖的；丰满的
[101] hard-bitten不易对付的；不屈的
[102] pouches [pautʃiz] n． 小袋；烟草袋
[103] slender [ˈslendə] a． 微弱的
[104] tight-lipped守口如瓶的；寡言的
[105] leathery [ˈleð(ə)ri] a． 似皮革的；坚韧如皮革的
[106] tentatively [ˈtentətivli] ad． 暂时地；试验性地
[107] bona fides真诚；善意；诚实信用
[108] knack [næk] n． 诀窍；本领
[109] patronizing [ˈpætrənaiziŋ] a． 自命不凡的；高人一等的
[110] query [ˈkwiəri] v． 询问
[111] fatigue [fəˈti:ɡ] n． 疲劳
[112] disquieting [disˈkwaiətiŋ] a． 令人不安的；令人忧虑的
[113] trench warfare堑壕战
[114] relish [ˈreliʃ] n． 享受；乐趣
[115] extravagant [ikˈstrævəɡənt] a． 奢侈的；放纵的
[116] dividend [ˈdividend] n. 红利
[117] thrill [θril] n． 激动；紧张
[118] equanimity [ˌekwəˈnimiti] n． 平静；镇定
[119] pluck [plʌk] n． 勇气
[120] virile [ˈvirail] a． 男性的；有男子气概的
[121] damnably [ˈdæmnəbli] ad． 厉害地
[122] forsee [fɔ:ˈsi:] v． 预见；预料；foresaw为foresee过去式
[123] shrink [ʃriŋk] v． 收缩；shrank为shrink过去式
[124] disproportionate [ˌdisprəˈpɔ:ʃ(ə)nət] a． 不成比例的
[125] wakefulness [ˈwekfəlnis] n． 觉醒；不眠
[126] unprejudiced [ʌnˈpredʒudist] a． 没有成见的；公平的
[127] queer [kwiə] a． 奇怪的
[128] console [kənˈsəul] v． 安慰；慰藉
[129] raucously[ˈrɔkəsli] ad. 粗声地；沙哑地
[130] bridge [bridʒ] n． 桥牌
[131] briskly[ˈbriskli] ad． 迅速地；活泼地
[132] retort [riˈtɔ:t] v． 反击
[133] hysterical [hiˈsterik(ə)l] a． 歇斯底里的；异常兴奋的
[134] longish [ˈlɔŋiʃ] a． 稍长的；略长的
[135] glint [ɡlint] n． 闪烁；闪光
[136] rock-strewn岩石遍地的
[137] indisputable [ˌindiˈspju:təbəl] a． 无争论之余地的
[138] competence [ˈkɔmpitəns] n． 能力；胜任
[139] tranquilize [ˈtræŋˌkwilaiz] v． 使……安静；使……镇定
[140] perplexity [pəˈpleksiti] n. 困惑；混乱
[141] excitable [ikˈsaitəbəl] a. 易激动的
[142] apt [æpt] a． 有……倾向的
[143] twiddle [ˈtwid(ə)l] v． 旋弄；捻起来
[144] smash [smæʃ] v． 粉碎
[145] hellishly[ˈheliʃli] ad． 可怕地
[146] agitated [ˈædʒiteitid] a. 激动的；焦虑的
[147] partition [pɑ:ˈtiʃ(ə)n] n. 隔墙；隔离物
[148] stoop [ˈstup] v． 弯
[149] knuckle [ˈnʌk(ə)l] n． 关节
[150] comically[ˈkɔmikli] ad. 滑稽地；诙谐地
[151] obtrude [əbˈtru:d] v． 逼使；冲出
[152] bluff [blʌf] n． 吓唬
[153] convention [kənˈvenʃ(ə)n] n． 约定、习俗
[154] interpose [intəˈpəuz] v. 插话；插嘴
[155] make amends赔偿（损失等）；道歉
[156] graciously[ˈɡreiʃəsli] ad. 和蔼地；仁慈地
[157] parade [pəˈreid] n． 展示
[158] dispatch [diˈspætʃ] n． 派遣；处理
[159] laconic [ləˈkɔnik] a． 简洁的；简明的
[160] curtness [ˈkə:tnis] n． 简略；草率
[161] nonchalance [ˈnɔnʃ(ə)l(ə)ns] n． 冷淡；漠不关心
[162] cloak [kləuk] n． 托词；幌子
[163] unruffled [ʌnˈrʌf(ə)ld] a. 平静的；镇定的
[164] bafflingly [ˈbæf(ə)liŋli] ad． 令人困惑地
[165] contemplation [ˌkɔntemˈpleiʃ(ə)n] n． 沉思
[166] dingy [ˈdin(d)ʒi] a． 昏暗的；肮脏的
[167] outmoded [autˈməudid] a． 过时的；不流行的
[168] loll [lɔl] v． 懒洋洋地倚靠
[169] weary [ˈwiəri] v． 使疲倦；使厌烦
[170] sensation [senˈseiʃ(ə)n] n． 感觉
[171] dizziness [ˈdizinis] n． 头晕；头昏眼花
[172] heart-thumping心跳加速
[173] inhale [inˈheil] v． 吸入
[174] snatch [snætʃ] v． 迅速拿走；夺取
[175] festoon [feˈstu:n] v． 以花彩装饰
[176] garish [ˈɡɛəriʃ] a． 花哨的；过分鲜艳的
[177] impressionist [imˈpreʃənist] n． 印象派艺术家
[178] stupendous [stju:ˈpendəs] a． 惊人的；巨大的
[179] droning a． 声音低沉单调的；发嗡嗡声的
[180] piled-up堆积
[181] incandescence [ˌinkənˈdesns] n． 炽热
[182] municipality [mjuˌnisiˈpæliti] n． 市政当局
[183] fearsome [ˈfiəs(ə)m] a. 可怕的；极大的
[184] caliber [ˈkæləbə] n． 水准
[185] sublime [səˈblaim] n． 崇高；顶点