The First Snow
The first snow came. How beautiful it was, falling so silently all day long, all night long, on the mountains, on the meadows, on the roofs of the living, on the graves of the dead! All white save the river, that marked its course by a winding black line across the landscape; and the leafless trees, that against the leaden sky now revealed more fully the wonderful beauty and intricacies of their branches. What silence, too, came with the snow, and what seclusion! Every sound was muffled, every noise changed to something soft and musical. No more tramping hoofs, no more ratting wheels! Only the chiming of sleigh-bells, beating as swift and merrily as the hearts of children.
Notes:
1. meadows: 草地、牧場
2. the living: 活著的人 （定冠詞the +形容詞，表示某一類人或事物）。下面的the dead與此同
3. save:（prep.) 除了......以外 eg. All had gone save his mother.
4. leaden:(adj.) 鉛灰色的
5. intricacies: (n.) 原指錯綜復雜，這里指樹枝盤結交錯
6. seclusion:寧靜、遠離喧囂
7. was muffled: 被壓抑而低沉
8. tramping:此處形容馬蹄踏地發出“得得”聲的樣子
9. rattling:此處形容車輪發出“格格”聲的樣子
10. chiming: 由動詞chime（和諧的奏鳴、敲打）得來
11. sleigh-bells:雪橇的鈴鐺
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