【前情回顧】：

罪案現(xiàn)場的受害者表情恐懼，讓華生不寒而栗。而就在一行人認(rèn)為調(diào)查已經(jīng)告一段落時，大家卻意外地在死者身上找到了案件的關(guān)鍵線索——一枚神秘的結(jié)婚戒指。同時發(fā)現(xiàn)的還有寫在墻上的血字”RACHE”。這一切都讓案件更加撲朔迷離。

【今日翻譯】：

As he spoke, he took a tape measure and a large round magnifying glass(放大鏡) from his pocket.
With these two tools he walked noiselessly about the room, sometimes stopping, occasionally kneeling(跪下), and once lying flat upon his face.
So focused was he upon his task that he appeared to have forgotten our presence.
他一邊說著，一邊從口袋里拿出一個卷尺和一個放大鏡。
落腳無聲的走向房間，有時候停下來，偶爾還會跪下，甚至還會躺在地上，臉貼著地面。
如此專注于他的檢查工作，好像已經(jīng)把我們徹底忘記了。

As I watched him, I was reminded of a pure-blooded(純種的) well-trained foxhound(獵狐犬) as it ran backwards(向后) and forwards, being hidden, until it comes across the lost scent(氣味).
For twenty minutes or more he continued his researches.
In one place he gathered up(收攏) very carefully a little pile of grey dust from the floor, and packed it away in an envelope(信封).
Finally, he examined with his glass the word upon the wall, going over every letter carefully.
This done, he appeared to be satisfied, for he replaced his tape and his glass in his pocket.
我看著他，感覺像是看到一只純種且訓(xùn)練有素的獵狐犬，來往奔突，四處嗅吠，一頭猛的要找出殘留的氣味。
他持續(xù)了有二十多分鐘，在某個地方，他還小心翼翼的從地板上的收集了一小撮灰色的塵土，放進(jìn)了一個信封里。
最后，他用放大鏡仔細(xì)的照著墻上的每個字母，一個都沒放過。
這之后，他看起來好像終于心滿意足了，因為他把卷尺和放大鏡又收起來放進(jìn)他的口袋了。

“They say that genius(天才) is an infinite(無盡的) capacity(能力) for taking pains,” he remarked with a smile.
“It’s a very bad definition(定義), but it does apply to detective(偵探) work.”
Gregson and Lestrade had watched the movements of their amateur(業(yè)余的) companion with considerable curiosity and some contempt(輕蔑).
“都說，吃得了苦就是天才。”他笑說，“我雖然不認(rèn)同這個定義，但它倒是非常適合偵探工作。”
Gregson和 Lestrade 全程看著這位實際上是業(yè)余人士的小伙伴，雖然好奇他的舉動，但是卻帶著輕蔑。

They failed to appreciate the fact that Sherlock Holmes’ smallest actions were all directed towards some definite(明確的) and practical end.
“What do you think of it, sir?” they both asked.
“It would be taking your credit for the case if I was to help you,” remarked my friend.
“You are doing so well now that it would be a pity for anyone to interfere(介入).”
There was a world of contempt(輕蔑) in his voice as he spoke.
他們顯然沒意識到，Holmes的每一個舉動，甚至是微小的看起來是多余的舉動，都帶有明確實際的目的。
“你認(rèn)為如何？”他們都問。
“若是要我出手的話，恐怕會不合事宜。你們的工作如此完美，再多一個人插手實在是有些多余。”
小伙伴雖然是在夸獎，但這話里的輕蔑實在是藏不住。

“If you will let me know how your investigations(調(diào)查) go,” he continued, “I will be happy to give you any help I can.
In the meantime(同時), I should like to speak to the officer who found the body. Can you give me his name and address?”
Lestrade glanced at(瀏覽) his note-book. “John Rance,” he said.
“He is off duty now. You will find him at 46, Audley Court, Kennington Park Gate.”
“你們要是能讓我知道調(diào)查進(jìn)展如何，我倒是很樂意提供幫助。
還有，我想與發(fā)現(xiàn)尸體的那位警員聊一聊。他的名字和地址是？”
Lestrade看了一眼他的筆記本，回到，“John Rance，他現(xiàn)在下班了，你可以去Kennington 公園 Gate路，Audley 巷4號找找看。”

Holmes took a note of the address.
“Come along, Doctor,” he said, “we should go and call on him.
I’ll tell you one thing which may help you in the case,” he continued, turning to the two detectives(警探).
“There has been murder done, and the murderer was a man.
He was more than six feet high, was in the prime of life.
He had small feet for his height, wore rough, square-toed boots and smoked a Trichinopoly cigar.
He came here with his victim in a four-wheeled cab(馬車).
The murderer was likely to have a reddish face, and the finger-nails of his right hand were remarkably long.
These are only a few indications, but they may help you.”
Holmes 記下地址。
“走，醫(yī)生，我們?nèi)タ纯础！彼麑ξ艺f，然后又看向那兩位警探，“我會告訴你們一件事情，對案件有幫助。
這是一起謀殺案。兇手是位男士。超過六英尺高（1.83米），正值壯年。
他的腳相對于身高來講稍顯小，穿一雙破舊的方頭靴，抽 Trichinopoly 牌的雪茄。
他和死者是坐四輪馬車來的。
兇手八成是面部紅潤之人，右手指甲很長。
線索不多，但對案件會有幫助。”

Lestrade and Gregson glanced at each other with a doubtful smile.
“If this man was murdered, how was it done?” asked the former.
“Poison,” said Sherlock Holmes, and walked off.
“One other thing, Lestrade,” he added, turning round at the door
“ ‘Rache’ is the German for ‘revenge(復(fù)仇)’, so don’t lose your time looking for Miss Rachel.”
Lestrade 和 Gregson互相笑了笑，都不太信。
“如果這是兇殺案，兇手如何殺死的死者？”Lestrade 問。
“毒。”Holmes說著就走出去了，“哦還有件事情， Lestrade，‘Rache’是德語單詞 ‘revenge(復(fù)仇)’，所以沒事兒就不要浪費(fèi)時間去找一位 Rachel女士了。”

Then he walked away, leaving the two rivals(對手) open-mouthed behind him.
It was one o’clock when we left No. 3, Lauriston Gardens.
Sherlock Holmes led me to the nearest telegraph office, where he left a long telegram.
He then called a cab(馬車), and ordered the driver to take us to the address given by Lestrade.
然后他就瀟灑的走了，留下兩只大張著嘴的警探。
我們離開Lauriston 花園3號的時候是下午一點。
Holmes和我先去附近的電報局，他發(fā)了一封長電報。
然后叫了輛馬車，駛向 剛剛Lestrade給的地址。

“There is nothing like first-hand evidence,” he remarked, “as a matter of fact, my mind is entirely made up upon the case, but still we may as well learn all that is to be learned.”
“You surprise me, Holmes,” said I.
“Surely you are not as sure as you pretend to be of all those details(細(xì)節(jié)) which you gave.”
“There’s no room for a mistake,” he answered.
“第一手證據(jù)是最重要的。其實，我心里已經(jīng)有大致的案發(fā)經(jīng)過了，不過還是得將各種情況查明清楚。”
“你太讓我吃驚了！Holmes。”我說，“但其實你也對剛才的線索并沒有那么大的把握吧？？”
“絕對有把握。”他說。

“The very first thing which I observed on arriving there was that a cab(馬車) had made two grooves(車槽) with its wheels close to the curb(路邊).
Now, up to last night, we have had no rain for a week, so that those wheels which left such a deep impression must have been there during the night.
Since the cab(馬車) was there after the rain began, and was not there at any time during the morning—
I have Gregson’s word for that—it follows that it must have been there during the night.
Therefore, the cab(馬車) brought those two individuals to the house.”
“That seems simple enough,” said I, “but how about the other man’s height?”
“我到了那里就發(fā)現(xiàn)，沿著馬路邊有兩條馬車痕。到昨天晚上，我們有一周沒下過雨，所以這個痕跡是肯定是夜間留下的。
由于馬車是在下雨后到的那里，然后那位Gregson警探又說整個早上沒有別的馬車到過那里，所以很明顯馬車是夜間到的。
因此，當(dāng)然是馬車帶的兩個人過去的那個屋子。”
“哦，這個看起來真是挺簡單。那你怎么知道的兇手身高？”我說。

“Well, the height of a man, in nine cases out of ten, can be told from the length of his step.
It is a simple calculation.
I had this fellow’s footprints both on the clay outside and on the dust within.
Then I had a way of checking my calculation.
When a man writes on a wall, his instinct(本能) leads him to write about the level of his own eyes.
Now that writing was just over six feet from the ground. It was child’s play.”
“哦，身高啊，一個人的身高十之八九都能從他的步伐長度看出來。
那只是個簡單的計算。
我看過兇手在外面泥地和屋內(nèi)灰塵上的腳印。
我還驗證了一下我的計算。
當(dāng)一個人要在墻上寫字的時候，他會本能的寫在和視線持平的地方。
那個字跡離地面的高度也就6英尺。
沒什么難度。”

“And his age?” I asked.
“If a man can step four and a half feet without the smallest effort, he can’t be that old.
That was the range of a puddle(水坑) on the garden path which he had obviously walked across.
Leather(皮質(zhì)的) boots had gone round, and square-toes(穿方頭鞋的人) had jumped over.
There is no mystery(謎) about it at all.
I am simply applying to ordinary life a few of those methods of observation and deduction(推理) which I recommended in that article.
Is there anything else that puzzles(困擾) you?”
“年齡呢？”
“一個人的步伐能毫不費(fèi)力就達(dá)到四英尺半，那他肯定年紀(jì)不大。
花園里就有這么大的一個水坑，很明顯穿方頭靴的人是一步邁過去的，而皮靴是從旁邊繞過去的。
這也沒什么神秘的。
我只是把我寫的那個觀察和推理中的幾個方法用到生活中。還有什么問題嗎？”

“The finger-nails and the Trichinopoly,” I suggested.
“The writing on the wall was done with a man’s forefinger(食指) dipped in blood.
My glass allowed me to observe that the plaster(灰泥) was slightly scratched(劃掉) in doing it, which would not have been the case if the man’s nail had been cut.
I gathered up some scattered(散落的) ash from the floor.
It was dark in color and flaky(薄片狀的)—such an ash as is only made by a Trichinopoly.
I have made a special study of cigar ashes, so I can distinguish(辨別) at a glance the ash of any known brand(品牌).
It is just in such details(細(xì)節(jié)) that the skilled detective(偵探) differs from the Gregson and Lestrade type.”
“指甲和Trichinopoly呢？”
“墻上的字明顯是人用食指沾血寫的。
我用放大鏡能看到字跡旁邊有的地方墻上的灰泥被劃掉了。如果這人指甲短的話，是不會碰到灰泥的。
我從地上收集到一些煙灰。
顏色是黑的，成薄片狀——這種煙灰只有Trichinopoly牌子。
我曾經(jīng)研究過各種雪茄的煙灰。所以我能辨別出它的牌子。
就是這種細(xì)節(jié)，才能區(qū)分專業(yè)偵探和Gregson 和 Lestrade之流。”

“And the reddish face?” I asked.
“Ah, that was a more daring guess, though I have no doubt that I was right.
You must not ask me that at the present state of the affair.”
“面部紅潤呢？”這些我完全推不出來啊。
“哦，那只是我大膽猜的。不過我肯定是對的。所以你現(xiàn)在還是先別問這個問題了。”

I passed my hand over my forehead.
“My head is in a spin(眩暈),” I remarked, “the more one thinks of it the more mysterious(神秘的) it grows.
How did these two men—if there were two men—come into an empty house?
What has become of the cabman(馬車夫) who drove them? How could one man compel(強(qiáng)迫) another to take poison?
Where did the blood come from? What was the aim of the murderer, since robbery had no part in it?
How did the woman’s ring come there?
Above all, why should the second man write up the German word RACHE before leaving?
I confess(承認(rèn)) that I cannot see any possible way of connecting all these facts.”
我撫了撫額。
“我更暈了。越想越覺得案件復(fù)雜。
這兩個男的——如果是兩個男的話——是怎么進(jìn)入那個空房間的？
馬車夫怎么樣了？一個人是如何讓另一個人服毒的？
血從哪兒來的？既然不是搶劫，兇手目的是什么？
為什么會有女士戒指？
還有，為什么第二個男的在離開前要寫德語RACHE？
我承認(rèn)我根本聯(lián)系不起來這些線索。”

My companion smiled.
“You sum(總結(jié)) up the problems of the situation briefly and well,” he said.
“There is much that is still obscure(模糊的), though I have quite made up my mind on the main facts.
As to poor Lestrade’s discovery, it was simply a criminal intended(意圖) to put the police upon a wrong track.
It was not done by a German.
The A, if you noticed, was printed somewhat after the German fashion(樣式).
小伙伴迷之微笑。
“你總結(jié)的很全面很精辟啊，雖然我大致知道了案件經(jīng)過，但具體細(xì)節(jié)還是有些模糊的。
Lestrade發(fā)現(xiàn)的那個血字，大概只是誤導(dǎo)警探查案方向的。
那不是一個德國人寫的。
如果你注意的話，會發(fā)現(xiàn)，字母A是仿照德文樣式寫的。

Now, a real German invariably prints in the Latin(拉丁語的)character, so that we may safely say that this was not written by a German, but by an awkward(拙劣的) imitator.
It was simply a trick to distract(轉(zhuǎn)移) inquiry(調(diào)查) into a wrong direction.
I’m not going to tell you much more of the case, Doctor.
You know a performer gets no credit when once he has explained his trick,
and if I show you too much of my method of working, you will come to the conclusion(結(jié)論) that I am a very ordinary individual after all.”
但，一個正宗德國人寫的是拉丁文字體。
所以我們能確定不是德國人寫的。而是一個低劣的模仿者。
主要是調(diào)虎離山，讓警探走錯誤的方向。
其他的我就不多說了。
你知道的，當(dāng)一個魔術(shù)師的魔術(shù)被眾所周知，大家就不覺得他有多厲害了。
要是我告訴你太多我是怎么想的話，你會覺得，我也是個不過如此的普通人。”

“I will never do that,” I answered.
“絕對不會。我對你的崇拜之情永不消滅。”我神圣的回答道。

over，不定時更新。