福爾摩斯探案集·四簽名 第46期:木桶的插曲(8)

"Very clearly."

"全很清楚。"

"Now what could Jonathan small do?

"可是瓊諾贊·斯茂還能怎么辦呢？

He could only continue to keep a secret watch upon the efforts made to find the treasure.

他只能暗地留心別人搜尋寶物的行動。

Possibly he leaves England and only comes back at intervals.

可能他有時離開英國，有時回來探聽消息。

Then comes the discovery of the garret, and he is instantly informed of it.

當屋頂室和寶物被發(fā)現(xiàn)的時候，馬上就有人報告給他

We again trace the presence of some confederate in the household.

這更加證明，他有內(nèi)線是毫無疑問的了。

Jonathan, with his wooden leg, is utterly unable to reach the lofty room of Bartholomew Sholto.

瓊諾贊裝著木腿，要想爬上巴索洛謬·舒爾托家的高樓是絕對不可能的，

He takes with him, however, a rather curious associate,

所以他帶了一個古怪的同謀，

who gets over this difficulty but dips his naked foot into creosote,

讓他先爬上樓去。但是他的光腳踏了木餾油，

whence come Toby, and a six-mile limp for a half-pay officer with a damaged tendo Achillis."

因此才弄來了個透比，并使一個腳筋受傷的半俸軍官不得不跛著走了六英里路。"

"But it was the associate and not Jonathan who committed the crime."

"那么說，殺人的兇犯是那個同謀，而不是斯茂了。"

"Quite so. And rather to Jonathan's disgust, to judge by the way he stamped about when he got into the room.

"是的。從斯茂在屋內(nèi)頓足的情形來判斷，瓊諾贊還是很反對這樣干的。

He bore no grudge against Bartholomew Sholto and would have preferred if he could have been simply bound and gagged.

他和巴索洛謬·舒爾托并沒有仇恨，至多把他的嘴塞上再捆起來就夠了。

He did not wish to put his head in a halter.

殺人須要抵命，他決不肯以身試法的。

There was no help for it, however:

他已無法挽回，

the savage instincts of his companion had broken out, and the poison had done its work:

沒想到他的同謀一時蠻性發(fā)作，竟用毒刺殺人。

so Jonathan Small left his record, lowered the treasure-box to the ground, and followed it himself.

因此瓊諾贊·斯茂留下紙條，盜了寶物，便和同謀一同逃走了。

That was the train of events as far as I can decipher them.

這就是我所能推想出來的一些情況。

Of course, as to his personal appearance,

至于他的相貌，

he must be middle-aged and must be sunburned after serving his time in such an oven as the Andamans.

當然從他在奇熱的安達曼島拘押了多年，可以知道他必然是中年而皮膚很黑的了。

His height is readily calculated from the length of his stride, and we know that he was bearded.

他的高矮從他步子的長短可以計算出來。他的臉上多須，

His hairiness was the one point which impressed itself upon Thaddeus Sholto when he saw him at the window.

這是塞笛厄斯·舒爾托從窗內(nèi)親自見過的。

I don't know that there is anything else."

此外大概沒有什么遺漏的了。"

"The associate?"

"那么，那個同謀呢？"

"Ah, well, there is no great mystery in that. But you will know all about it soon enough.

"?。∵@個也沒有多大神秘，不久你就會知道了。

How sweet the morning air is!

這早晨的空氣真新鮮呀！

See how that one little cloud floats like a pink feather from some gigantic flamingo.

你看那朵紅云，就象一只紅鶴的羽毛一樣美麗，

Now the red rim of the sun pushes itself over the London cloud-bank.

紅日已越過倫敦的云層。

It shines on a good many folk, but on none, I dare bet, who are on a stranger errand than you and I.

被日光所照的人，何止萬千，可是象咱們兩個負著這樣奇怪使命的人，恐怕是絕無僅有的了。

How small we feel with our petty ambitions and strivings in the presence of the great elemental forces of Nature!

在大自然里，咱們的一點兒雄心，顯得多么渺小！

Are you well up in your Jean Paul?"

你讀約翰·保羅的著作有心得嗎？"

"Fairly so. I worked back to him through Carlyle."

"多少領(lǐng)會些，我先讀了卡萊爾的著作，回過來才研究他的作品的。"

"That was like following the brook to the parent lake. He makes one curious but profound remark.

"這如同由河流回溯到湖泊一樣。他曾說過一句奇異而有深意的話

It is that the chief proof of man's real greatness lies in his perception of his own smallness.

'一個人的真正偉大之處就在于他能夠認識到自己的渺小'

It argues, you see, a power of comparison and of appreciation which is in itself a proof of nobility.

你看這里還論到比較和鑒別的力量，這種力量本身就是一個崇高的證明。

There is much food for thought in Richter. You have not a pistol, have you?"

在瑞奇特的作品里，能找到許多精神食糧。你帶手槍來了沒有？"

"I have my stick."

"我有這根手杖。"

"It is just possible that we may need something of the sort if we get to their lair.

"咱們一找到匪穴，可能就需要這類的兵器了。

Jonathan I shall leave to you, but if the other turns nasty I shall shoot him dead."

我把斯茂交給你，他那個同伴如果不老實，我就用手槍把他打死。"

He took out his revolver as he spoke, and, having loaded two of the chambers,

他隨手掏出左輪手槍，裝上兩顆子彈，

he put it back into the right-hand pocket of his jacket.

放回到他大衣的右邊口裝里。