福尔摩斯：巴斯克维尔猎犬-第9课

前情提要 

福尔摩斯推测，查尔斯爵士年事已高，身体虚弱，但却在寒冷的夜里、在潮湿的地上站了一会，后来还吓得跑了起来……这样反常的事究竟为什么会发生？福尔摩斯需要更多细节来确认。

故事原文 

The Hound of the Baskervilles L9

巴斯克维尔猎犬 L9

Dr Mortimer and Sir Henry Baskerville arrived at exactly ten o'clock the following morning. Sir Henry was a small, healthy, well-built man. His face showed that he had a strong character.⑴ He wore a country suit of thick, red-brown material, and his skin showed that he spent most of his time in the open air.

摩梯末医生和亨利·巴斯克维尔爵士于次日早上10点钟准时到达。亨利爵士长得短小精悍，身体健康，体态结实。他的面相表明他性格刚强。他穿着一件厚厚的、棕红色布料制成的外衣，他的肤色表明他大多数时间是在户外度过的。

'I am glad this meeting was already arranged,' Sir Henry said, after we had shaken hands with our visitors. 'I need your help, Mr Holmes. A strange thing happened to me this morning. Look at this letter.'

“我很高兴事先预约好了这次会面，”亨利爵士在我们与他们握手致意之后说道。“我需要您的帮助，福尔摩斯先生。我今天早上遇到了一桩奇怪的事情。看看这封信吧。”

He put a piece of paper on the table. On it were the words: 'Do not go on to the moor. If you do, your life will be in danger.' The words had been cut out of a newspaper.

他把一张纸放到了桌上。上面写着：“别前往沼地，不然您将有生命危险。”这些字是从报纸上剪下来的。

'Can you tell me, Mr Holmes, what this means, and who is so interested in me?' Sir Henry asked.

“福尔摩斯先生，您能告诉我这究竟是什么意思，还有究竟是谁对我这么感兴趣吗？”亨利爵士问道。

'This is very interesting,' said Holmes. 'Look how badly it has been done. I think the writer was in a hurry. Why? Perhaps because he did not want somebody to see him. I think the address was written in a hotel.⑵ The pen and the ink have both given the writer trouble. The pen has run dry three times in writing a short address. There was probably very little ink in the bottle. A private pen and bottle of ink are never allowed to get into that condition.⑶ Hullo, what's this?'

“这很有趣，”福尔摩斯说道。“看看这项工作是干得多么拙劣吧。我认为写信人很慌张。为什么呢？也许他是不想让人看见。我想地址是在一个旅馆里写就的。钢笔和墨水都给这人添了麻烦。写这么短的地址，笔尖上的墨水就干了三次。可能是瓶中的墨水很少。私人的钢笔和墨水是决不会被弄到这个地步的。哎呀，这是什么啊？”

He was holding the letter only a few centimetres from his eyes.

他把信拿到离眼睛只有几厘米远的地方。

'Well?' I asked.

“怎么啦？”我问道。

'Nothing,' he said, and threw the letter down. 'Now, Sir Henry, have you anything else to tell us?'

“没什么，”他说道，扔下了那封信。“那么，亨利爵士，您还有别的事情要告诉我们吗？”

'No,' said Sir Henry. 'Except that I have lost one of my shoes. I put a pair outside my door last night. I wanted the hotel to clean them, but when I went to get them this morning, one had gone. I only bought them yesterday, and I have never worn them. But I wanted a good shine on them.'⑷

“没有了，”亨利爵士说道。“除了我丢了一只鞋以外。昨晚我把一双鞋放在了门外。我本想让旅馆把它们擦一擦的，可是今早当我去取时有一只不见了。我是昨天才买的这双鞋，我还从未把它们穿上脚呢。我只是想给这双鞋好好地上点油。”

'One shoe seems a useless thing to steal,' said Holmes. 'I am sure the shoe will be found in the hotel and returned to you. But now we must tell you some things about the Baskerville family.'

“一只鞋似乎偷了也没什么用场，”福尔摩斯说道。“我敢肯定这只鞋将在旅馆中找到并归还给您。但是现在我们得将有关巴斯克维尔家族的某些事情告诉给您。”

Dr Mortimer took out the old Baskerville papers and read them to Sir Henry. Holmes then told him about the death of Sir Charles.

摩梯末医生掏出了巴斯克维尔家族的那份古老的手稿，并把它读给享利爵土听。福尔摩斯接着告诉他有关查尔斯爵上之死的情况。

'So this letter is from someone who is trying to warn me, or frighten me away,' said Sir Henry.

“这么说来这封信是出自一位想要警告我或是吓跑我的人之手了，”亨利爵土说道。

'Yes,' said Holmes. 'And we have to decide if it is sensible for you to go to Baskerville Hall. There seems to be danger there for you.'

“是的，”福尔摩斯说道。“我们还不得不决定让您去巴斯克维尔庄园是否明智。那儿对您来说似乎有危险。”

'There is no man or devil who will stop me from going to the home of my family,' said Sir Henry angrily. 'I want some time to think about what you have told me. Will you and Dr Watson join me for lunch at my hotel in two hours' time? By then, I'll be able to tell you what I think.'

“没有任何人或任何恶魔能够阻止我去我家的房子，”亨利爵士生气地讲道。“我需要时间来考虑考虑你们所告诉我的事情。您和华生医生愿意在两小时以后去我住的旅馆和我共进午餐吗？届时，我将告诉您我的想法。”

（原文中出现高光标示内容请见核心语言点）

核心语言点 

1.character 性格，个性； 人物； 文字

拓展：in character 典型的性格

           out of character 跟性格不合

           main character 主角

           character traits 性格特征

           Chinese characters 汉字

例句：He swore, which was out of character for him.

           他爆粗口，这不像他的性格。

           In the movie Better Days, the main character is a handsome boy.

           在电影《少年的你》中，主角是一个很帅气的少年。

2.address n. 地址 v. 解决（=solve）

拓展：home address 家庭住址

           private address 私人地址

           email address 邮箱地址

           address/solve a problem 解决问题

例句：Our products address the needs of real users.

           我们的产品满足实际用户的需求。

3.private 私人的

拓展：private property 私人财产

           private jet 私人飞机

           private life 私生活

           personal 个人的

           personal questions 个人问题

           personal feelings 个人情感

4.shine v. 闪耀；擅长

拓展：shining example 鲜明的例子

           shine at sth. 擅长做某事（= be good at sth.）

例句：The sun was shining.

           阳光灿烂。

           I shine at guitar. = I am very good at guitar.

           我很擅长弹吉他。

        There are very few exceptions among composers, of which Chopin is the shining example.

           作曲家中很少有例外，肖邦就是一个鲜明的例子。