respected; their complaints obtained a hearing, and little by little

it came to be believed that all the victims whom the king's



silversmith had sent to the scaffold were innocent. Some persons

declared that the cruel miser imitated the king, and sought to put



terror and gibbets between himself and his fellow-men; others said

that he had never been robbed at all,--that these melancholy



executions were the result of cool calculations, and that their real

object was to relieve him of all fear for his treasure.



The first effect of these rumors was to isolate Maitre Cornelius. The

Touraineans treated him like a leper, called him the "tortionnaire,"



and named his house Malemaison. If the Fleming had found strangers to

the town bold enough to enter it, the inhabitants would have warned



them against doing so. The most favorable opinion of Maitre Cornelius

was that of persons who thought him merely baneful. Some he inspired



with instinctiveterror; others he impressed with the deep respect

that most men feel for limitless power and money, while to a few he



certainly possessed the attraction of mystery. His way of life, his

countenance, and the favor of the king, justified all the tales of



which he had now become the subject.

Cornelius travelled much in foreign lands after the death of his



persecutor, the Duke of Burgundy; and during his absence the king

caused his premises to be guarded by a detachment of his own Scottish



guard. Such royal solicitude made the courtiers believe that the old

miser had bequeathed his property to Louis XI. When at home, the



torconnier went out but little; but the lords of the court paid him

frequent visits. He lent them money rather liberally, though



capricious in his manner of doing so. On certain days he refused to

give them a penny; the next day he would offer them large



sums,--always at high interest and on good security. A good Catholic,

he went regularly to the services, always attending the earliest mass



at Saint-Martin; and as he had purchased there, as elsewhere, a chapel

in perpetuity, he was separated even in church from other Christians.



A popular proverb of that day, long remembered in Tours, was the

saying: "You passed in front of the Fleming; ill-luck will happen to



you." Passing in front of the Fleming explained all sudden pains and

evils, involuntarysadness, ill-turns of fortune among the



Touraineans. Even at court most persons attributed to Cornelius that

fatal influence which Italian, Spanish, and Asiatic superstition has



called the "evil eye." Without the terrible power of Louis XI., which

was stretched like a mantle over that house, the populace, on the



slightest opportunity, would have demolished La Malemaison, that "evil

house" in the rue du Murier. And yet Cornelius had been the first to



plant mulberries in Tours, and the Touraineans at that time regarded

him as their good genius. Who shall reckon on popular favor!



A few seigneurs having met Maitre Cornelius on his journeys out of

France were surprised at his friendliness and good-humor. At Tours he



was gloomy and absorbed, yet always he returned there. Some

inexplicable power brought him back to his dismal house in the rue du



Murier. Like a snail, whose life is so firmly attached to its shell,

he admitted to the king that he was never at ease except under the



bolts and behind the vermiculated stones of his little bastille; yet

he knew very well that whenever Louis XI. died, the place would be the



most dangerous spot on earth for him.

"The devil is amusing himself at the expense of our crony, the



torconnier," said Louis XI. to his barber, a few days before the

festival of All-Saints. "He says he has been robbed again, but he



can't hang anybody this time unless he hangs himself. The old vagabond

came and asked me if, by chance, I had carried off a string of rubies



he wanted to sell me. 'Pasques-Dieu! I don't steal what I can take,' I

said to him."

• outline [´autlain] n.外形 vt.画出…轮廓 (初中英语单词)


• aspect [´æspekt] n.面貌；神色；方向 (初中英语单词)


• hammer [´hæmə] n.锤子 v.重击 (初中英语单词)


• frequent [´fri:kwənt] a.常见的，频繁的 (初中英语单词)


• striking [´straikiŋ] a.显著的，明显的 (初中英语单词)


• supposed [sə´pəuzd] a.想象的；假定的 (初中英语单词)


• conclusion [kən´klu:ʒən] n.结束；结论；推论 (初中英语单词)


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


• readily [´redili] ad.乐意地；容易地 (初中英语单词)


• contrast [´kɔntrɑ:st] n.对比 v.使对比(照) (初中英语单词)


• enterprise [´entəpraiz] n.企业；雄心；胆识 (初中英语单词)


• horror [´hɔrə] n.恐怖；战栗 (初中英语单词)


• terror [´terə] n.恐怖；惊骇 (初中英语单词)


• interrupt [,intə´rʌpt] v.中断；打扰 (初中英语单词)


• protection [prə´tekʃən] n.警戒；护照；通行证 (初中英语单词)


• commercial [kə´mə:ʃəl] a.商业的 n.广告节目 (初中英语单词)


• rarely [´reəli] ad.难得；非凡地 (初中英语单词)


• monarch [´mɔnək] n.君主；(大)王 (初中英语单词)


• equally [´i:kwəli] ad.相等地；平等地 (初中英语单词)


• facility [fə´siliti] n.容易；熟练；灵巧 (初中英语单词)


• conscience [´kɔnʃəns] n.良心；道德心 (初中英语单词)


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


• jealous [´dʒeləs] a.妒忌的 (初中英语单词)


• extraordinary [ik´strɔ:dinəri] a.非常的；额外的 (初中英语单词)


• arrival [ə´raivəl] n.到达；到达的人(物) (初中英语单词)


• considerable [kən´sidərəbəl] a.重要的；值得重视 (初中英语单词)


• attribute [ə´tribju:t] n.象征 vt.归因于 (初中英语单词)


• wealth [welθ] n.财富，财产 (初中英语单词)


• amount [ə´maunt] n.总数；数量 v.合计 (初中英语单词)


• feeble [´fi:bəl] a.虚弱的，无力的 (初中英语单词)


• torture [´tɔ:tʃə] n.&vt.折磨；痛苦；拷问 (初中英语单词)


• innocent [´inəsənt] a.无罪的；单纯的 (初中英语单词)


• unhappy [ʌn´hæpi] a.不幸的；不快乐的 (初中英语单词)


• permission [pə´miʃən] n.允许；同意；许可 (初中英语单词)


• neighborhood [´neibəhud] n.邻居；邻近；附近 (初中英语单词)


• violent [´vaiələnt] a.强暴的；猛烈的 (初中英语单词)


• security [si´kjuəriti] n.安全；证券；抵押品 (初中英语单词)


• stolen [´stəulən] steal 的过去分词 (初中英语单词)


• suspicion [sə´spiʃən] n.怀(猜)疑；嫌疑 (初中英语单词)


• severe [si´viə] a.严厉的；苛刻的 (初中英语单词)


• examination [ig,zæmi´neiʃən] n.检查；考试；检验 (初中英语单词)


• unfortunate [ʌn´fɔ:tʃunit] a.不幸的，运气差的 (初中英语单词)


• admission [əd´miʃən] n.接纳；承认 (初中英语单词)


• plainly [´pleinli] ad.平坦地；简单地 (初中英语单词)


• communication [kə,mju:ni´keiʃən] n.通信；通讯联系 (初中英语单词)


• promptly [´prɔmptli] ad.敏捷地；即时地 (初中英语单词)


• guilty [´gilti] a.有罪的；心虚的 (初中英语单词)


• mourning [´mɔ:niŋ] n.悲伤；治丧；戴孝 (初中英语单词)


• relieve [ri´li:v] v.救济，援救；减轻 (初中英语单词)


• favorable [´feivərəbəl] a.赞成的；顺利的 (初中英语单词)


• mystery [´mistəri] n.神秘；秘密；故弄玄虚 (初中英语单词)


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


• elsewhere [,elsweə] ad.在别处；向别处 (初中英语单词)


• italian [i´tæliən] a.意大利 n.意大利人 (初中英语单词)


• genius [´dʒi:niəs] n.天才(人物)；天赋 (初中英语单词)


• reckon [´rekən] v.计算；认为；估计 (初中英语单词)


• firmly [´fə:mli] ad.坚固地，稳定地 (初中英语单词)


• whenever [wen´evə] conj.&ad.无论何时 (初中英语单词)


• barber [´bɑ:bə] n.理发师 (初中英语单词)


• architect [´ɑ:kitekt] n.建筑师 (高中英语单词)


• joyous [´dʒɔiəs] a.充满快乐的 (高中英语单词)


• crooked [´krukid] a.弯曲的；畸形的 (高中英语单词)


• singular [´siŋgjulə] a.单一的；非凡的 (高中英语单词)


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


• venice [´venis] n.威尼斯 (高中英语单词)


• learned [´lə:nid] a.有学问的，博学的 (高中英语单词)


• virgin [´və:dʒin] a.处女(般)的 n.处女 (高中英语单词)


• secretly [´si:kritli] ad.秘密地；隐蔽地 (高中英语单词)


• countless [´kauntlis] a.无数的 (高中英语单词)


• oriental [ɔ:ri´entl] a.东方人的 (高中英语单词)


• pleasing [´pli:ziŋ] a.使人愉快的；合意的 (高中英语单词)


• innocence [´inəsəns] n.无罪；天真 (高中英语单词)


• solitude [´sɔlitju:d] n.孤独；寂寞；荒凉 (高中英语单词)


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


• shrewd [ʃru:d] a.精明的；狡猾的 (高中英语单词)


• orphan [´ɔ:fən] n.&a.孤儿 vt.使成孤儿 (高中英语单词)


• suspicious [sə´spiʃəs] a.可疑的，多疑的 (高中英语单词)


• hearing [´hiəriŋ] n.听力；听证会；审讯 (高中英语单词)


• isolate [´aisəleit] vt.隔离；孤立 (高中英语单词)


• attraction [ə´trækʃən] n.吸引(力)；引力 (高中英语单词)


• regularly [´regjuləli] ad.有规律地；经常地 (高中英语单词)


• sadness [´sædnis] n.悲哀；悲痛；凄惨 (高中英语单词)


• superstition [,su:pə´stiʃən, ,sju:-] n.迷信(行为) (高中英语单词)


• mantle [´mæntl] n.斗蓬 v.覆盖；笼罩 (高中英语单词)


• gloomy [´glu:mi] a.昏暗的；忧郁的 (高中英语单词)


• dismal [´dizməl] a.灰暗的；阴郁的 (高中英语单词)


• amusing [ə´mju:ziŋ] a.有趣的 (高中英语单词)


• respectively [ri´spektivli] ad.各自地；分别地 (英语四级单词)


• sinister [´sinistə] a.阴险的；不吉的 (英语四级单词)


• uproar [´ʌprɔ:] n.喧嚣；骚动；轰鸣，轰动 (英语四级单词)


• daring [´deəriŋ] a.&n.勇敢(的) (英语四级单词)


• commonplace [´kɔmənpleis] a.平凡的；常见的 (英语四级单词)


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


• politic [´pɔlitik] a.精明的；有策略的 (英语四级单词)


• transmit [trænz´mit, træns-] vt.传送；播送；发射 (英语四级单词)


• apprentice [ə´prentis] n.学徒 vt.使当学徒 (英语四级单词)


• cashier [kæ´ʃiə] n.出纳员 (英语四级单词)


• judicial [dʒu:´diʃəl] a.法庭(官)的，审判的 (英语四级单词)


• collector [kə´lektə] n.收款(税)员；收藏家 (英语四级单词)


• devoted [di´vəutid] a.献身…的，忠实的 (英语四级单词)


• fidelity [fi´deliti] n.忠实；精确；保真度 (英语四级单词)


• summary [´sʌməri] a.&n.摘要(的) (英语四级单词)


• banking [´bæŋkiŋ] n.银行业 (英语四级单词)


• detachment [di´tætʃmənt] n.分开(离)；分遣队 (英语四级单词)


• proverb [´prɔvə:b] n.谚语；格言 (英语四级单词)


• asiatic [,eiʃi´ætik ,eizi´ætik] a.亚洲(人)的 n.亚洲人 (英语四级单词)


• populace [´pɔpjuləs] n.平民；大众；人口 (英语六级单词)


• hapless [´hæpləs] a.不幸的；倒楣的 (英语六级单词)


• countess [´kauntis] n.伯爵夫人；女伯爵 (英语六级单词)


• hazardous [´hæzədəs] a.危险的 (英语六级单词)


• enmity [´enmiti] n.敌意；憎恨；不和 (英语六级单词)


• averse [ə´və:s] a.反对的，不乐意的 (英语六级单词)


• fabulous [´fæbjuləs] a.难以置信的；惊人的 (英语六级单词)


• instinctive [in´stiŋktiv] a.本能的，天性的 (英语六级单词)


• involuntary [in´vɔləntəri] a.无意识的；非自愿的 (英语六级单词)


• friendliness [´frendlis] n.友爱，友好，友谊 (英语六级单词)