第二章: 案情的陈述 The Statement of the Case
Miss Morstan entered the room with a firm step and an outward composure of manner. She was a blonde young lady, small, dainty, well gloved, and dressed in the most perfect taste. There was, however, a plainness and simplicity about her costume which bore with it a suggestion of limited means. The dress was a sombre grayish beige, untrimmed and unbraided, and she wore a small turban of the same dull hue, relieved only by a suspicion of white feather in the side. Her face had neither regularity of feature nor beauty of complexion, but her expression was sweet and amiable, and her large blue eyes were singularly spiritual and sympathetic. In an experience of women which extends over many nations and three separate continents, I have never looked upon a face which gave a clearer promise of a refined and sensitive nature. I could not but observe that as she took the seat which Sherlock Holmes placed for her, her lip trembled, her hand quivered, and she showed every sign of intense inward agitation.
摩斯坦小姐迈着稳重的步伐，以沉着的姿态走进房间。她是一个头发金黄的年轻姑娘，娇小俊秀，戴着精致的手套，穿衣品位不俗。然而，她简单、朴素的衣着说明，她的生活并不宽裕。她的衣服是暗褐色毛呢料子的，没有任何的花边或修饰，她戴着一款同属暗色的小巧头巾帽，只在边缘上插着一根白色翎毛。她的样貌既说不上平凡，也称不上美丽，但她的神情却非常甜美、友善，一双蓝色的大眼睛格外脱俗，充满感情。我见过许多国家和三个大洲的许多女人，但却从来没有见过这样一副高雅、聪慧的容貌。当舍洛克·福尔摩斯请她坐下的时候，我无法不注意到，她的嘴唇在颤抖，双手在哆嗦，显示出内心的不安和紧张。
“I have come to you, Mr. Holmes,” she said, “because you once enabled my employer, Mrs. Cecil Forrester, to unravel a little domestic complication. She was much impressed by your kindness and skill.”
“我来找你，福尔摩斯先生，”她说，“是因为你曾经为我的女主人塞西尔·福里斯特成功解决过一桩家庭纠纷。你的善意和能力给她留下了深刻的印象。
“She did not think so. But at least you cannot say the same of mine. I can hardly imagine anything more strange, more utterly inexplicable, than the situation in which I find myself.”
“她并不这么认为。但最起码，您并不会认为我的案子简单的。我简直不能想象，还有什么事比我现在经历的这件事更怪异、更令人费解。”
Holmes rubbed his hands, and his eyes glistened. He leaned forward in his chair with an expression of extraordinary concentration upon his clear-cut, hawk-like features.
福尔摩斯搓着他的双手，双眼放光。他在躺椅中微微地倾身向前，他那清瘦得如鹞鹰一般的脸上露出了精神极度集中的样子。
“Mrs. Cecil Forrester,” he repeated thoughtfully. “I believe that I was of some slight service to her. The case, however, as I remember it, was a very simple one.”
“塞西尔·福里斯特女士，”他若有所思地重复道，“我相信我为她提供了一些微不足道的服务。那个案件，就我的回忆来说，其实是非常简单的。”
“You will, I am sure, excuse me,” I said, rising from my chair.
“那我就失陪了。”我说着，从椅子上站了起来。
“If your friend,” she said, “would be good enough to stop, he might be of in estimable service to me.”
“如果您的朋友，”她说道，“肯稍微留一会儿的话，会对我大有帮助的。”
To my surprise, the young lady held up her gloved hand to detain me.
让我很惊讶的是，这位年轻的姑娘伸出她戴着手套的手，制止了我。
“State your case,” said he in brisk business tones.
“说说你的案子。”他精神抖擞、一本正经地说道。
I relapsed into my chair.
于是，我又重新坐回到了椅子上。
I felt that my position was an embarrassing one.
我发觉，我的处境有些尴尬。
“Briefly,” she continued, “the facts are these. My father was an officer in an Indian regiment, who sent me home when I was quite a child. My mother was dead, and I had no relative in England. I was placed, however, in a comfortable boarding establishment at Edinburgh, and there I remained until I was seventeen years of age. In the year 1878 my father, who was senior captain of his regiment, obtained twelve months’ leave and came home. He telegraphed to me from London that he had arrived all safe and directed me to come down at once, giving the Langham Hotel as his address. His message, as I remember, was full of kindness and love. On reaching London I drove to the Langham and was informed that Captain Morstan was staying there, but that he had gone out the night before and had not returned. I waited all day without news of him. That night, on the advice of the manager of the hotel, I communicated with the police, and next morning we advertised in all the papers. Our inquiries led to no result; and from that day to this no word has ever been heard of my unfortunate father. He came home with his heart full of hope to find some peace, some comfort, and instead –“
“简单来说，”她继续道，“事情是这样的。我的父亲是驻印度的军官，我很小的时候就被他送回了英国。我母亲已经去世了，我在英国没有任何亲人。然而，我被安排进入爱丁堡的一所条件优越的寄宿学校读书，在那里，我一直呆到十七岁。一八七八年，我的父亲当时已经是团里的高级上尉了，他请了十二个月的假，返回祖国。他从伦敦发了电报告诉我，他已经平安抵达，就住在兰厄姆旅馆，叫我立刻前去会面。我记得，他的电文中充满了慈爱。我一到伦敦，就坐车去了兰厄姆，并被告知，摩斯坦上尉虽然住在那里，但是，自从前一天晚上出门以后，他就再也没有回来。我等了一整天，却没有得到任何消息。那天晚上，在旅馆经理的建议下，我联系了警方，第二天早上，我们就在报纸上登了寻人启事。但我们的探询没有得到任何结果，而从那天起直到现在，我没有得到我那不幸的父亲的任何消息。他带着满怀的希望回到家里来，期望找寻一丝平静和安慰，但是——”
She put her hand to her throat, and a choking sob cut short the sentence.
她用手抚摸着自己的喉咙，话音未落，已经泣不成声。
“He disappeared upon the third of December, 1878– nearly ten years ago.”
“他是在一八七八年十二月三日失踪的，几乎有近十年了。”
“The date?” asked Holmes, opening his notebook.
“日期是？”福尔摩斯一边问，一边打开了他的笔记本。
“Remained at the hotel. There was nothing in it to suggest a clue — some clothes, some books, and a considerable number of curiosities from the Andaman Islands. He had been one of the officers in charge of the convict-guard there.”
“留在了旅馆里。”“那里面没有任何线索，只有一些衣服、书籍，以及不少安达曼群岛的古玩。他曾是那里负责监禁囚犯的军官。
“His luggage?”
“他的行李呢？”
“Had he any friends in town?”
“他在伦敦有没有什么朋友呢？”
“Only one that we know of — Major Sholto, of his own regiment, the Thirty-fourth Bombay Infantry. The major had retired some little time before and lived at Upper Norwood. We communicated with him, of course, but he did not even know that his brother officer was in England.”
“我只知道一个——肖尔托少校，在驻孟买陆军第三十四团，是我父亲自己团里的。这位少校前些时候已经退伍，住在上诺伍德区。我们当然联系过他，但他连他的军官弟兄在英国都不知道。”
“A singular case,” remarked Holmes.
“真是一件怪事。”福尔摩斯说道。
“I have not yet described to you the most singular part. About six years ago — to be exact, upon the fourth of May, 1882– an advertisement appeared in the Times asking for the address of Miss Mary Morstan, and stating that it would be to her advantage to come forward. There was no name or address appended. I had at that time just entered the family of Mrs. Cecil Forrester in the capacity of governess. By her advice I published my address in the advertisement column. The same day there arrived through the post a small cardboard box addressed to me, which I found to contain a very large and lustrous pearl. No word of writing was enclosed. Since then every year upon the same date there has always appeared a similar box, containing a similar pearl, without any clue as to the sender. They have been pronounced by an expert to be of a rare variety and of considerable value. You can see for yourself that they are very handsome.”
“我还没有跟您讲述最奇怪的部分呢。六年前——准确地说，是一八八二年的五月四日——《泰晤士报》上出现了一则广告，征询玛丽·摩斯坦小姐的住址，并说如果回应的话，会对她有好处。但上面并没有附上任何地址或姓名。那时，我刚到塞西尔·福里斯特夫人那里做家庭教师。在她的建议之下，我登出了我的地址。就在同一天，我收到了邮局寄来的一个小纸盒子，里面装着一颗硕大而炫目的珍珠。但却没有任何附言。从那时起，每年的同一天，我都会收到类似的盒子，里面装着类似的珍珠，但没有任何邮寄者的信息。专业人士鉴定，这些珠子都非常罕见，并且有很高的价值。您亲眼看看，就知道它们有多么华美了。”
“Your statement is most interesting,” said Sherlock Holmes. “Has anything else occurred to you?”
“你所说的情况非常有趣，”福尔摩斯说，“还发生过什么奇怪的事情吗？”
She opened a flat box as she spoke and showed me six of the finest pearls that I had ever seen.
她打开一个扁平的盒子，在那里面，我看到了六颗我生平看到过的最美的珍珠。
“Thank you,” said Holmes. “The envelope, too, please. Postmark, London, S. W. Date, July 7. Hum! Man’s thumb-mark on corner — probably postman. Best quality paper. Envelopes at six pence a packet. Particular man in his stationery. No address.
“谢谢，”福尔摩斯说道，“还有信封，请递给我。邮戳，伦敦西南区，七月七日。哦！在信封的角落留有一个大拇指指纹，可能是邮差留下的。上好的纸质。信封是六便士一扎的。看来是一个对文具相当考究的人。没有寄信人的地址。
Well, really, this is a very pretty little mystery! What do you intend to do, Miss Morstan?”
哦，这真是一件玄妙、有趣的事情呢！摩斯坦小姐，你打算怎么办呢？”
“Yes, and no later than to-day. That is why I have come to you. This morning I received this letter, which you will perhaps read for yourself.”
“是的，就在今天。这就是我来找你的原因今天早上，我收到了一封信，我想你或许想亲自阅读它。”
“Be at the third pillar from the left outside the Lyceum Theatre tonight at seven o’clock. If you are distrustful bring two friends. You are a wronged woman and shall have justice. Do not bring police. If you do, all will be in vain. Your unknown friend.
“今晚七点，请到莱西厄姆剧院外左边第三根柱子前等我。如果您有所疑虑的话，可以带两个朋友来。你是一个受了委屈的女士，应该得到公正。不要带警察来。如果你带了警察来，那么一切就落空了。你的一个不知名的朋友。
“That is exactly what I want to ask you.”
“这正是我想问你的事情。”
“Then we shall most certainly go — you and I and — yes, why Dr. Watson is the very man. Your correspondent says two friends. He and I have worked together before.”
“我们是一定要去的——你和我——当然了，沃森先生也是我们需要的人。信上说的是两位朋友。他和我一直在一起工作。”
“I shall be proud and happy,” said I fervently, “if I can be of any service.”
“荣幸至极，”我热切地说，“如果我能提供什么帮助的话。”
“I have them here,” she answered, producing half a dozen pieces of paper.
“我把它们带来了，”她回答着，拿出了一沓信笺。
“But would he come?” she asked with something appealing in her voice and expression.
“但他肯去吗？”她用恳求的语气和表情说道。
“You must not be later,” said Holmes. “There is one other point, however. Is this handwriting the same as that upon the pearl-box addresses?”
“不要来晚了，”福尔摩斯说，“还有一点。这封信的笔迹和寄珍珠的盒子上住址的笔迹是一样的吗？”
“You are both very kind,” she answered. “I have led a retired life and have no friends whom I could appeal to. If I am here at six it will do, I suppose?”
“你们两位都实在是太善良了。”她回答，“我过着幽静的生活，也没有什么朋友可以求助。我六点钟来可以吧？”
“You are certainly a model client. You have the correct intuition. Let us see, now.” He spread out the papers upon the table and gave little darting glances from one to the other. “They are disguised hands, except the letter,” he said presently; “but there can be no question as to the authorship. See how the irrepressible Greek e will break out, and see the twirl of the final s. They are undoubtedly by the same person. I should not like to suggest false hopes, Miss Morstan, but is there any resemblance between this hand and that of your father?”
“你考虑得这么周到，简直堪称模范委托人了。你有着正确的直觉。现在，让我们来看看吧。”他把信纸铺开在桌面上，并一字一句地对比着。“这些笔迹全都是伪装的，除了这封信以外，”过了一会儿，他说，“但毫无疑问都是出自同一个人的手笔。看看这个希腊字母e，那么突出，再看看这个字末s的弯法。毫无疑问，它们都出自同一个人。我不愿意给你虚假的希望，摩斯坦小姐，但这些笔迹跟你父亲的有任何相似之处吗？”
“Au revoir,” said our visitor; and with a bright, kindly glance from one to the other of us, she replaced her pearl-box in her bosom and hurried away.
“再见。”我们的客人说，并用明亮、善意的目光看了看我们两个，她把装着珍珠的盒子放在胸前，匆忙地走了出去。
“It is of the first importance,” he cried, “not to allow your judgment to be biased by personal qualities. A client is to me a mere unit, a factor in a problem. The emotional qualities are antagonistic to clear reasoning. I assure you that the most winning woman I ever knew was hanged for poisoning three little children for their insurance-money, and the most repellent man of my acquaintance is a philanthropist who has spent nearly a quarter of a million upon the London poor.”
“有件事是头等重要的，”他大声说道，“就是不要让个人特质影响你的判断。委托人对于我来说，仅仅是一个单位，是问题里的一个因素。感情问题是清晰推理的大敌。我可以告诉你，我所见过的最美丽的女人，为了获取保险款而毒死了三个孩子，因此被判了绞刑；而我认识的一个最不讨人喜欢的男人却是一名慈善家，捐赠了二十五万英镑来救济伦敦的穷人。”
“Nothing could be more unlike.”
“一点儿也不像。”
He had lit his pipe again and was leaning back with drooping eyelids. “Is she?” he said languidly, “I did not observe.”
他却已经重新点燃了烟斗，合上了双眼，躺回到了椅背上。“是吗？”他无力地说，“我一点儿也没注意到。”
“I expected to hear you say so. We shall look out for you, then, at six. Pray allow me to keep the papers, I may look into the matter before then. It is only half-past three. Au revoir, then.”
“我想也是这样。那么，我们六点钟等着你。请允许我留下这些信纸，在那之前，我将进一步研究它们。现在只有三点半。再见吧。”
Standing at the window, I watched her walking briskly down the street until the gray turban and white feather were but a speck in the sombre crowd.
我站在窗前，看着她急速地走在街上，直到那顶灰帽子和白翎毛消失在人群当中。
He smiled gently.
他温和地微笑着。
“You really are an automaton — a calculating machine,” I cried.
“你真是一个机器人——一个计算机，”我喊道。
“What a very attractive woman!” I exclaimed, turning to my companion.
“多么有魅力的女人啊！”我转向我的伙伴，大声说道。
“There is something positively inhuman in you at times.”
“有时候你简直毫无人性可言。”
“Look at his long letters,” he said. “They hardly rise above the common herd. That d might be an a, and that l an e. Men of character always differentiate their long letters, however illegibly they may write. There is vacillation in his k’s and self-esteem in his capitals. I am going out now. I have some few references to make. Let me recommend this book — one of the most remarkable ever penned. It is Winwood Reade’s Martyrdom of Man. I shall be back in an hour.”
“看看他这些长字母，”他说，“它们不比普通字母高出多少。d像个a，还有那个l像个e。个性分明的人，不论写得多么难以辨认，字总是高矮分明的。他的k写得很踌躇，而大写字母倒还写得挺饱满。我现在要出去了。还有一些问题需要搞清楚。让我推荐一本书给你吧——一本最非凡的著作。这是温伍德·里德写的《成仁记》。我一个小时后就会回来。”
“I never make exceptions. An exception disproves the rule. Have you ever had occasion to study character in handwriting? What do you make of this fellow’s scribble?”
“我从来不作区别对待。定理不允许例外的存在。你曾经研究过笔迹吗？对于这个人的笔迹，你有什么见解吗？
“In this case, however –“
“但在这件事中——”
“It is legible and regular,” I answered. “A man of business habits and some force of character.”
“写得很整齐，很清楚，”我回答，“应该是有一些经商经验并且有个性的人写的吧。”
I sat in the window with the volume in my hand, but my thoughts were far from the daring speculations of the writer. My mind ran upon our late visitor — her smiles, the deep rich tones of her voice, the strange mystery which overhung her life. If she were seventeen at the time of her father’s disappearance she must be seven-and-twenty now — a sweet age, when youth has lost its self-consciousness and become a little sobered by experience. So I sat and mused until such dangerous thoughts came into my head that I hurried away to my desk and plunged furiously into the latest treatise upon pathology. What was I, an army surgeon with a weak leg and a weaker banking account, that I should dare to think of such things? She was a unit, a factor — nothing more. If my future were black, it was better surely to face it like a man than to attempt to brighten it by mere will-o’-the-wisps of the imagination.
我坐在窗前，拿着书，但我的思绪却完全不在作者的深刻见地上。我的思绪跑到了刚才那位客人身上——她的笑靥、她低沉悦耳的嗓音，以及她生命里发生的神秘事件。如果她父亲失踪时，她是十七岁，那么，她现在应该是二十七——一个曼妙的年纪，正是青春逐渐褪去轻狂，而逐渐成熟起来的时候。我就这样坐在那里冥想，直到有一些危险的念头闯入脑海，我才冲到桌前，拿出一本最新出的病理书，仔细阅读起来，以遏制我的胡思乱想。我是一个什么人？一个陆军军医，有一条受伤的腿，又没有多少钱，怎么可以有这种幻想呢？她只是案子的一个单位，一个因素——再没有什么别的了。如果我的未来是灰暗的，我最好还是像一个男子汉一样直面它，而不是试图用胡思乱想去照亮它。
Holmes shook his head.
福尔摩斯摇了摇头。
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