I sprang to my feet while she turned about and came towards me

bravely, with a wistful smile on her bold, adolescent face.



"It seems to me," she went on in a voice like a wave of love

itself, "that one should try to understand before one sets up for



being unforgiving. Forgiveness is a very fine word. It is a fine

invocation."



"There are other fine words in the language such as fascination,

fidelity, also frivolity; and as for invocations there are plenty



of them, too; for instance: alas, heaven help me."

We stood very close together, her narrow eyes were as enigmatic as



ever, but that face, which, like some ideal conception of art, was

incapable of anything like untruth and grimace, expressed by some



mysterious means such a depth of infinitepatience that I felt

profoundly ashamed of myself.



"This thing is beyond words altogether," I said. "Beyond

forgiveness, beyond forgetting, beyond anger or jealousy. . . .



There is nothing between us two that could make us act together."

"Then we must fall back perhaps on something within us, that - you



admit it? - we have in common."

"Don't be childish," I said. "You give one with a perpetual and



intense freshness feelings and sensations that are as old as the

world itself, and you imagine that your enchantment can be broken



off anywhere, at any time! But it can't be broken. And

forgetfulness, like everything else, can only come from you. It's



an impossible situation to stand up against."

She listened with slightly parted lips as if to catch some further



resonances.

"There is a sort of generousardour about you," she said, "which I



don't really understand. No, I don't know it. Believe me, it is

not of myself I am thinking. And you - you are going out to-night



to make another landing."

"Yes, it is a fact that before many hours I will be sailing away



from you to try my luck once more."

"Your wonderful luck," she breathed out.



"Oh, yes, I am wonderfully lucky. Unless the luck really is yours

- in having found somebody like me, who cares at the same time so



much and so little for what you have at heart."

"What time will you be leaving the harbour?" she asked.



"Some time between midnight and daybreak. Our men may be a little

late in joining, but certainly we will be gone before the first



streak of light."

"What freedom!" she murmured enviously. "It's something I shall



never know. . . ."

"Freedom!" I protested. "I am a slave to my word. There will be a



siring of carts and mules on a certain part of the coast, and a

most ruffianly lot of men, men you understand, men with wives and



children and sweethearts, who from the very moment they start on a

trip risk a bullet in the head at any moment, but who have a



perfect conviction that I will never fail them. That's my freedom.

I wonder what they would think if they knew of your existence."



"I don't exist," she said.

"That's easy to say. But I will go as if you didn't exist - yet



only because you do exist. You exist in me. I don't know where I

end and you begin. You have got into my heart and into my veins



and into my brain."

"Take this fancy out and trample it down in the dust," she said in



a tone of timid entreaty.

"Heroically," I suggested with the sarcasm of despair.



"Well, yes, heroically," she said; and there passed between us dim

smiles, I have no doubt of the most touching imbecility on earth.



We were standing by then in the middle of the room with its vivid

colours on a black background, with its multitude of winged figures



with pale limbs, with hair like halos or flames, all strangely

tense in their strained, decorative attitudes. Dona Rita made a



step towards me, and as I attempted to seize her hand she flung her

arms round my neck. I felt their strength drawing me towards her

• goodness [´gudnis] n.优良；美德；精华 (初中英语单词)


• beginning [bi´giniŋ] n.开始，开端；起源 (初中英语单词)


• conscious [´kɔnʃəs] a.意识的；自觉的 (初中英语单词)


• enormous [i´nɔ:məs] a.巨大地，很，极 (初中英语单词)


• extremely [ik´stri:mli] ad.极端地；非常地 (初中英语单词)


• absolutely [´æbsəlu:tli] ad.绝对地；确实 (初中英语单词)


• overcome [,əuvə´kʌm] vt.战胜，克服 (初中英语单词)


• pressure [´preʃə] n.压榨 vt.对…施压力 (初中英语单词)


• weakness [´wi:knis] n.虚弱；弱点，缺点 (初中英语单词)


• intention [in´tenʃən] n.意图；打算；意义 (初中英语单词)


• purely [´pjuəli] ad.仅仅；简单地 (初中英语单词)


• movement [´mu:vmənt] n.活动；运动；动作 (初中英语单词)


• distinct [di´stiŋkt] a.清楚的；独特的 (初中英语单词)


• impression [im´preʃən] n.印刷；印象；效果 (初中英语单词)


• contact [´kɔntækt] n.接触；联系 v.联络 (初中英语单词)


• delicate [´delikət] a.精美的；微妙的 (初中英语单词)


• lightly [´laitli] ad.轻微地，稍微 (初中英语单词)


• terror [´terə] n.恐怖；惊骇 (初中英语单词)


• nervous [´nə:vəs] a.神经的；神经过敏的 (初中英语单词)


• whisper [´wispə] v.耳语 n.低语；沙沙声 (初中英语单词)


• winged [´wiŋd] a.有翼的 (初中英语单词)


• butterfly [´bʌtəflai] n.蝴蝶；蝶式 (初中英语单词)


• absence [´æbsəns] n.不在，缺席；缺乏 (初中英语单词)


• distinctly [di´stiŋktli] ad.清楚地，明晰地 (初中英语单词)


• responsibility [ri,spɔnsə´biliti] n.责任(心)；职责；任务 (初中英语单词)


• waiting [´weitiŋ] n.等候；伺候 (初中英语单词)


• monsieur [mə´sjə:] n.先生 (初中英语单词)


• unusual [ʌn´ju:ʒuəl] a.不平常的；异常的 (初中英语单词)


• atmosphere [´ætməsfiə] n.大气；空气；气氛 (初中英语单词)


• whatever [wɔt´evə] pron.&a.无论什么 (初中英语单词)


• upward [´ʌpwəd] a.&ad.向上(的)；以上 (初中英语单词)


• sprang [spræŋ] spring 的过去式 (初中英语单词)


• instance [´instəns] n.例子，实例，例证 (初中英语单词)


• patience [´peiʃəns] n.忍耐(力)；耐心；坚韧 (初中英语单词)


• ashamed [ə´ʃeimd] a.惭愧；不好意思 (初中英语单词)


• anywhere [´eniweə] ad.无论何处；任何地方 (初中英语单词)


• slightly [´slaitli] ad.轻微地；细长的 (初中英语单词)


• generous [´dʒenərəs] a.慷慨的；丰盛的 (初中英语单词)


• midnight [´midnait] n.午夜；漆黑 (初中英语单词)


• bullet [´bulit] n.子弹 (初中英语单词)


• conviction [kən´vikʃən] n.定罪；确信，信服 (初中英语单词)


• standing [´stændiŋ] n.持续 a.直立的 (初中英语单词)


• background [´bækgraund] n.背景；经历；幕后 (初中英语单词)


• multitude [´mʌltitju:d] n.大群(批)；众多 (初中英语单词)


• reckless [´rekləs] a.不注意的；鲁莽的 (高中英语单词)


• kindred [´kindrid] n.亲属关系；同源关系 (高中英语单词)


• repeated [ri´pi:tid] a.反复的；重复的 (高中英语单词)


• hesitation [,hezi´teiʃən] n.犹豫，踌躇 (高中英语单词)


• indifference [in´difrəns] n.冷淡；无足轻重 (高中英语单词)


• shadowy [´ʃædəui] a.有阴影的；模糊的 (高中英语单词)


• motionless [´məuʃənləs] a.静止的；固定的 (高中英语单词)


• fantastic [fæn´tæstik] a.奇异的；荒谬的 (高中英语单词)


• collapse [kə´læps] vi.&n.崩溃；病倒；衰败 (高中英语单词)


• tragic [´trædʒik] a.悲剧的；悲惨的 (高中英语单词)


• incredible [in´kredəbəl] a.不能相信的；惊人的 (高中英语单词)


• persistent [pə´sistənt] a.坚持的；固执的 (高中英语单词)


• greatness [´greitnis] n.巨大；高尚；卓越 (高中英语单词)


• hurried [´hʌrid] a.仓促的，慌忙的 (高中英语单词)


• unconscious [ʌn´kɔnʃəs] a.无意识的；不觉察的 (高中英语单词)


• confident [´kɔnfidənt] a.有信心的，自信的 (高中英语单词)


• perfectly [´pə:fiktli] ad.理想地；完美地 (高中英语单词)


• seeing [si:iŋ] see的现在分词 n.视觉 (高中英语单词)


• imaginary [i´mædʒinəri] a.想象的；虚构的 (高中英语单词)


• forgiveness [fə´givnis] n.原谅，饶恕；宽仁 (高中英语单词)


• conception [kən´sepʃən] n.构思；概念；怀孕 (高中英语单词)


• infinite [´infinit] a.无限的，无穷的 (高中英语单词)


• jealousy [´dʒeləsi] n.妒忌；猜忌 (高中英语单词)


• perpetual [pə´petʃuəl] a.永恒的；终身的 (高中英语单词)


• trample [´træmpəl] v.&n.践踏；蹂躏；踩坏 (高中英语单词)


• wistful [´wistfəl] a.渴望的；不满足的 (英语四级单词)


• discretion [di´skreʃən] n.谨慎；判断(力) (英语四级单词)


• meditation [,medi´teiʃən] n.熟虑；默想 (英语四级单词)


• infinitely [´infinitli] ad.无限地；无穷地 (英语四级单词)


• touching [´tʌtʃiŋ] a.动人的 prep.提到 (英语四级单词)


• catastrophe [kə´tæstrəfi] n.大灾难；(悲剧)结局 (英语四级单词)


• audible [´ɔ:dibəl] a.听得见的 (英语四级单词)


• preceding [pri(:)´si:diŋ] a.在先的；前面的 (英语四级单词)


• totally [´təutəli] ad.统统，完全 (英语四级单词)


• composed [kəm´pəuzd] a.镇静自若的 (英语四级单词)


• exclusively [ik´sklu:sivli] ad.独有地；排外地 (英语四级单词)


• composure [kəm´pəuʒə] n.镇静，沉着 (英语四级单词)


• impatiently [im´peiʃəntli] ad.不耐烦地，急躁地 (英语四级单词)


• blackness [´blæknis] n.黑色；阴险 (英语四级单词)


• freshness [´freʃnis] n.新鲜 (英语四级单词)


• enchantment [in´tʃɑ:ntmənt] n.迷惑；妖术；魅力 (英语四级单词)


• ardour [´ɑ:də] n.热心，热情 (英语四级单词)


• wonderfully [´wʌndəfuli] ad.令人惊讶地；奇妙地 (英语四级单词)


• daybreak [´deibreik] n.黎明，拂晓 (英语四级单词)


• decorative [´dekərətiv] a.装饰的 (英语四级单词)


• drawing [´drɔ:iŋ] n.画图；制图；图样 (英语四级单词)


• unwise [ʌn´waiz] a.不聪明的，愚笨的 (英语六级单词)


• sagacity [sə´gæsəti] n.精明；敏锐；有远见 (英语六级单词)


• softness [´sɔftnis] n.柔软；柔和；温柔 (英语六级单词)


• felicity [fi´lisiti] n.幸福；(措词)适当 (英语六级单词)


• departed [di´pɑ:tid] a.已往的；已故的 (英语六级单词)


• helplessness [´helplisnis] n.无能为力 (英语六级单词)


• arched [´ɑ:tʃid] a.弓形(结构)的 (英语六级单词)