巴斯克維爾的獵犬

The Hound of the Baskervilles

   第九章

   Chapter 9

   華生醫生的第二份報告

   (Second Report of Dr. Watson) THE LIGHT UPON THE MOOR

   BASKERVILLE HALL, Oct. 15th.

   沼地裡的燈光我親愛的福爾摩斯:如果說在我擔當起這個使命的初期,在無可奈何的情況下,我沒有能供給你多少消息的話,你就該知道,我現在正設法彌補已經損失的時間,而且現在,在我們的周圍,事件發生得愈見頻繁複雜起來了。在我最後的那篇報告裡,我把高潮結束在白瑞摩站在窗前那裡,如果我沒有估計錯的話,現在我已掌握了會使你相當吃驚的材料。事情變化得出乎我意料之外。從幾方面看來,在過去四十八小時裡,事情已經變得清楚多了,可是從另一些方面來看,又似乎變得更為複雜了。我現在就把全部情況都告訴你,你自己去加以判斷吧。

   MY DEAR HOLMES,--If I was compelled to leave you without much news during the early days of my mission you must acknowledge that I am making up for lost time, and that events are now crowding thick and fast upon us. In my last report I ended upon my top note with Barrymore at the window, and now I have quite a budget already which will, unless I am much mistaken, considerably surprise you. Things have taken a turn which I could not have anticipated. In some ways they have within the last forty-eight hours become much clearer and in some ways they have become more complicated. But I will tell you all and you shall judge for yourself.

   在我發現那樁怪事以後的第二天早飯以前,我又穿過走廊,察看了一下昨晚白瑞摩去過的那間屋子。在他專心一志地向外看的西面窗戶那裡,我發現了和屋裡其他窗戶都不同的一個特點——這窗戶是面向沼地開的,在這裡可以俯瞰沼地,而且距離最近,在這裡可以穿過兩樹之間的空隙一直望見沼地,而由其他窗口則只能遠遠地看到一點。因此可以推論出來,白瑞摩一定是在向沼地上找什麼東西或是什麼人,因為要達到這種目的只有這個窗戶適用。那天夜裡非常黑暗,因此我很難想象他能看到什麼人。我曾突然想到,這可能是在搞什麼戀愛的把戲,這樣也許可以說明他這種偷偷摸摸的行動和他妻子的惴惴不安之間的關係。他是個相貌出眾的傢伙,足可以使一個鄉村女子對他傾心,因此這一說法看來還是稍有根據的呢。我回到自己房間以後所聽到的開門聲,可能是他出去趕密約了。因此到了早晨我自己就細加推敲起來,儘管結果也許證明這種懷疑是毫無根據的,現在我還是把所懷疑的各點都告訴你吧。

   Before breakfast on the morning following my adventure I went down the corridor and examined the room in which Barrymore had been on the night before. The western window through which he had stared so intently has, I noticed, one peculiarity above all other windows in the house--it commands the nearest outlook on the moor. There is an opening between two trees which enables one from this point of view to look right down upon it, while from all the other windows it is only a distant glimpse which can be obtained. It follows, therefore, that Barrymore, since only this window would serve the purpose, must have been looking out for something or somebody upon the moor. The night was very dark, so that I can hardly imagine how he could have hoped to see anyone. It had struck me that it was possible that some love intrigue was on foot. That would have accounted for his stealthy movements and also for the uneasiness of his wife. The man is a striking-looking fellow, very well equipped to steal the heart of a country girl, so that this theory seemed to have something to support it. That opening of the door which I had heard after I had returned to my room might mean that he had gone out to keep some clandestine appointment. So I reasoned with myself in the morning, and I tell you the direction of my suspicions, however much the result may have shown that they were unfounded.

   不管究竟應該怎樣才能正確地解釋白瑞摩的行為,我總是覺得,在我能解釋清楚之前,要把這件事秘而不宣對我是個很重的負擔。早飯後我到準男爵的書房去找他的時候,就把我所見到的事都告訴他了。可是他聽了以後並不如我想象的那樣感到吃驚。

   But whatever the true explanation of Barrymore's movements might be, I felt that the responsibility of keeping them to myself until I could explain them was more than I could bear. I had an interview with the baronet in his study after breakfast, and I told him all that I had seen. He was less surprised than I had expected.

   “我早知道白瑞摩在夜裡經常走動,我曾想和他談一談這件事,”他說道,“我曾兩三次聽到他在過道里走來走去的腳步聲,時間恰和您所說的差不多。”

   "I knew that Barrymore walked about nights, and I had a mind to speak to him about it," said he. "Two or three times I have heard his steps in the passage, coming and going, just about the hour you name."

   “那麼,也許他每晚都要到那窗前去一趟呢,”我提醒道。

   "Perhaps then he pays a visit every night to that particular window," I suggested.

   “也許是。如果真是這樣的話,咱們倒可以跟蹤一下,看一看他究竟在幹什麼。我真不曉得如果您的朋友福爾摩斯在這裡的話,他會怎麼辦。

   "Perhaps he does. If so, we should be able to shadow him, and see what it is that he is after. I wonder what your friend Holmes would do, if he were here."

   “我相信他一定會象您所建議的那樣採取行動,”我說道,“他會跟蹤白瑞摩,並看看他幹些什麼事。”

   "I believe that he would do exactly what you now suggest," said I. "He would follow Barrymore and see what he did."

   “那麼咱們就一塊干吧。”

   "Then we shall do it together."

   “可是,他一定會聽到咱們的。”

   "But surely he would hear us."

   “這個人有點聾,而且無論如何咱們也得抓住這個機會。 咱們今晚就一起坐在我的屋裡,等他走過去。”亨利爵士高興得搓着雙手,顯然他是喜歡來這麼一次冒險,以消解他在沼地生活的枯寂的。*

   "The man is rather deaf, and in any case we must take our chance of that. We'll sit up in my room to-night and wait until he passes." Sir Henry rubbed his hands with pleasure, and it was evident that he hailed the adventure as a relief to his somewhat quiet life upon the moor.

   準男爵已和曾為查爾茲爵士擬訂修築計劃的建築師與來自倫敦的營造商聯繫過了,還有來自普利摩斯的裝飾匠和傢俱商。因此,不久我們可能就會在這裡看到巨大的變化了。顯然,我們的朋友懷有規模巨大的理想,並決定不辭辛苦、不惜代價地來恢復這個大族的威望。在這所房子經過整修刷新並重新佈置之後,所差的也就是一位夫人了。我們可以從一些跡象中很清楚地看到,只要這位女士願意的話,這一點就不會“尚付闕如”了,因為我很少見到過一個男人會象他對我們的美麗的鄰居斯台普吞小姐那樣地着迷。可是,在這種情況之下,真正愛情的發展並不象人們所期望的那樣順利。譬如說吧,愛情之海的平靜的水面今天就被一陣意想不到的波瀾所擾亂了,給我們的朋友造成了很大的不安和煩惱。

   The baronet has been in communication with the architect who prepared the plans for Sir Charles, and with a contractor from London, so that we may expect great changes to begin here soon. There have been decorators and furnishers up from Plymouth, and it is evident that our friend has large ideas, and means to spare no pains or expense to restore the grandeur of his family. When the house is renovated and refurnished, all that he will need will be a wife to make it complete. Between ourselves there are pretty clear signs that this will not be wanting if the lady is willing, for I have seldom seen a man more infatuated with a woman than he is with our beautiful neighbour, Miss Stapleton. And yet the course of true love does not run quite as smoothly as one would under the circumstances expect. To-day, for example, its surface was broken by a very unexpected ripple, which has caused our friend considerable perplexity and annoyance.

   在結束了我曾提過的那段關於白瑞摩的談話之後,亨利爵士就戴上帽子準備出去了,當然我也準備出去。

   After the conversation which I have quoted about Barrymore, Sir Henry put on his hat and prepared to go out. As a matter of course I did the same.

   “什麼,您也去嗎,華生?”他問道,一面怪模怪樣地望着我。

   "What, are you coming, Watson?" he asked, looking at me in a curious way.

   “那要看您是不是要到沼地去。”我說。

   "That depends on whether you are going on the moor," said I.

   “是的,我是到那裡去。”

   "Yes, I am."

   “啊,您是知道我所接受的指示的。我很抱歉對您有所妨礙,可是您也聽到過福爾摩斯是怎樣鄭重其事地堅持說我不應該離開您,尤其是您不能單獨到沼地去。”

   "Well, you know what my instructions are. I am sorry to intrude, but you heard how earnestly Holmes insisted that I should not leave you, and especially that you should not go alone upon the moor."

   亨利爵士帶著愉快的微笑把手扶在我的肩膀上。

   Sir Henry put his hand upon my shoulder with a pleasant smile.

   “我親愛的夥伴,”他說道,“雖然福爾摩斯聰明絶頂,可是他並沒有預見到從我到了沼地以來所發生的一些事情。您明白我的話嗎?我相信您決不願意做一個妨礙別人的人。我一定得單獨出去。”

   "My dear fellow," said he, "Holmes, with all his wisdom, did not foresee some things which have happened since I have been on the moor. You understand me? I am sure that you are the last man in the world who would wish to be a spoil-sport. I must go out alone."

   這事使我處在很為難的地位。我不知道該說什麼,該怎麼辦才好。就在我還沒有下定決心怎樣辦的當兒,他已拿起手杖走了。

   It put me in a most awkward position. I was at a loss what to say or what to do, and before I had made up my mind he picked up his cane and was gone.

   在我將此事重新加以考慮之後,我受到了良心的譴責,因為我竟託辭讓他離開了我的身旁。我想象得出,一旦由於我不聽你的指示而發生了一些不幸的事,使我不得不回到你的身旁向你懺悔,我的感情將是怎樣的。說真的,我一想到這裡臉就紅了。也許現在去追他還不太晚呢,因此,我馬上就朝着梅利琵宅邸那方向出發了。

   But when I came to think the matter over my conscience reproached me bitterly for having on any pretext allowed him to go out of my sight. I imagined what my feelings would be if I had to return to you and to confess that some misfortune had occurred through my disregard for your instructions. I assure you my cheeks flushed at the very thought. It might not even now be too late to overtake him, so I set off at once in the direction of Merripit House.

   我以最快的速度沿著道路匆匆走去,一直到我走到沼地小路分岔處才望到了亨利爵士。在那裡,我因為恐怕走錯路就爬上了一座小山,從山上我可以居高臨下地觀望一切—— 就是那座插入陰暗的採石場的小山。從那裡我馬上就看到了他。他正在沼地的小路上走着,距我約四分之一英里遠,身旁還有一位女士,除了斯台普吞小姐而外還能是誰呢。顯然在他倆之間已有了默契,而且是約定相會的,他們一面並肩徐徐而行,一面喁喁而語。我看見她雙手做着急促的手勢,似乎對自己所說的話很認真的樣子;他則聚精會神地聽著,有一兩次他還截然不能同意似地搖着頭。我站在亂石中間望着他們,真不知道下一步應當怎麼辦。跟上他們並打斷他們親密的交談,看來似乎是一個荒謬的舉動,而我的責任顯然是要求我一時一刻也不要讓他們離開我的視線。跟蹤窺察一個朋友,真是一件可憎的工作。儘管如此,可是除了從山上觀察他,事後再向他坦白以求心安外,我還能有什麼更好的辦法呢。確實,如果當時有任何突然的危險威脅到他,我離他就顯得太遠了,來不及援助,可是我相信,你和我的意見一定相同。處在這樣的地位是非常困難的,而且我再也沒有什麼別的好辦法了。

   I hurried along the road at the top of my speed without seeing anything of Sir Henry, until I came to the point where the moor path branches off. There, fearing that perhaps I had come in the wrong direction after all, I mounted a hill from which I could command a view--the same hill which is cut into the dark quarry. Thence I saw him at once. He was on the moor path, about a quarter of a mile off, and a lady was by his side who could only be Miss Stapleton. It was clear that there was already an understanding between them and that they had met by appointment. They were walking slowly along in deep conversation, and I saw her making quick little movements of her hands as if she were very earnest in what she was saying, while he listened intently, and once or twice shook his head in strong dissent. I stood among the rocks watching them, very much puzzled as to what I should do next. To follow them and break into their intimate conversation seemed to be an outrage, and yet my clear duty was never for an instant to let him out of my sight. To act the spy upon a friend was a hateful task. Still, I could see no better course than to observe him from the hill, and to clear my conscience by confessing to him afterwards what I had done. It is true that if any sudden danger had threatened him I was too far away to be of use, and yet I am sure that you will agree with me that the position was very difficult, and that there was nothing more which I could do.

   咱們的朋友亨利爵士和那位女士又停住了腳步,站在那裡全神貫注地談着話,我突然發現,看到他們會面的並不止我一個人,因為我一眼看到了一個綠色的東西在空中浮動着,再一看才知道那綠色的東西是裝在一根桿子的頂端的,拿着那桿子的人正在坎坷不平的地方走着。原來那正是斯台普吞拿着他的捕蝶網。他距那對情侶要比我近得多,他好象是在向着他們的方向走去。正在那時,亨利爵士突然將斯台普台小姐拉近身旁,他的胳臂環抱著她,她似乎力圖由他手中掙脫,她的臉躲向一邊。他低頭向她,可是她象是抗議似地舉起一隻手來。隨後我看到他們一跳就分開了,並且慌忙地轉過身來,原來是受到了斯台普吞的攪擾。他狂奔着向他倆跑去,那只捕蝶網可笑地在他身後擺動着。他在那對愛侶面前激怒得手舞足蹈起來,可是我想象不出他究竟是什麼意思。看樣子似乎是斯台普吞在責罵亨利爵士,爵士在進行解釋,可是斯台普吞不但拒絶接受,而且變得更加暴怒了,那位女士高傲而沉默地在旁邊站着。最後斯台普吞轉過身去專橫地向他妹妹招了招手,她猶豫不決地看了亨利爵士一眼之後,就和她哥哥並肩走了。那生物學家的手勢說明,他對那位女士也同樣的極感不快。準男爵望着他們的背影站了一會,然後就慢慢地沿著來路走回去了。他低着頭,充分表現出一副失意的神態。

   Our friend, Sir Henry, and the lady had halted on the path and were standing deeply absorbed in their conversation, when I was suddenly aware that I was not the only witness of their interview. A wisp of green floating in the air caught my eye, and another glance showed me that it was carried on a stick by a man who was moving among the broken ground. It was Stapleton with his butterfly-net. He was very much closer to the pair than I was, and he appeared to be moving in their direction. At this instant Sir Henry suddenly drew Miss Stapleton to his side. His arm was round her, but it seemed to me that she was straining away from him with her face averted. He stooped his head to hers, and she raised one hand as if in protest. Next moment I saw them spring apart and turn hurriedly round. Stapleton was the cause of the interruption. He was running wildly towards them, his absurd net dangling behind him. He gesticulated and almost danced with excitement in front of the lovers. What the scene meant I could not imagine, but it seemed to me that Stapleton was abusing Sir Henry, who offered explanations, which became more angry as the other refused to accept them. The lady stood by in haughty silence. Finally Stapleton turned upon his heel and beckoned in a peremptory way to his sister, who, after an irresolute glance at Sir Henry, walked off by the side of her brother. The naturalist's angry gestures showed that the lady was included in his displeasure. The baronet stood for a minute looking after them, and then he walked slowly back the way that he had come, his head hanging, the very picture of dejection.

   我不知道這究竟都是怎麼回事,我只是因為自己在咱們的朋友不知不覺的時候,偷看了他們這樣親密的情景而深感羞愧。我沿著山坡跑了下去,和準男爵在山腳下相遇。他的臉色氣得通紅,雙眉緊皺,就象是個智窮才竭不知所措的人一樣。*

   What all this meant I could not imagine, but I was deeply ashamed to have witnessed so intimate a scene without my friend's knowledge. I ran down the hill therefore and met the baronet at the bottom. His face was flushed with anger and his brows were wrinkled, like one who is at his wit's ends what to do.

   “天哪!華生,您是從哪裡掉下來的,”他說道,“難道說您竟真的尾隨我來了嗎?”

   "Halloa, Watson! Where have you dropped from?" said he. "You don't mean to say that you came after me in spite of all?"

   我把一切都解釋給他聽了:我怎樣感到再不可能獃在家裡,我怎樣跟蹤了他,以及我怎樣看到了所發生的一切。他以怒火熾燃的眼睛向我看了一會,可是我的坦白沖淡了他的怒氣,他終於發出了悔恨失望的笑聲。

   I explained everything to him: how I had found it impossible to remain behind, how I had followed him, and how I had witnessed all that had occurred. For an instant his eyes blazed at me, but my frankness disarmed his anger, and he broke at last into a rather rueful laugh.

   “我原以為平原的中心是個不會被人發現的相當可靠的地方呢。”他說道,“可是天哪!就好象全鄉的人都跑了出來看我求婚似的——而且還是這樣糟糕透頂的求婚!你找到的座位在什麼地方啊?”

   "You would have thought the middle of that prairie a fairly safe place for a man to be private," said he, "but, by thunder, the whole country-side seems to have been out to see me do my wooing--and a mighty poor wooing at that! Where had you engaged a seat?"

   “就在那座小山上。”

   "I was on that hill."

   “原來是坐在很遠的後排呀,啊!但是她哥哥可真的跑到最前排來了。您看到他向我們跑過去了嗎?”

   "Quite in the back row, eh? But her brother was well up to the front. Did you see him come out on us?"

   “是的,我看到了。”

   "Yes, I did."

   “您曾經見過他象是瘋了似的嗎?——她那位好哥哥。”

   "Did he ever strike you as being crazy--this brother of hers?"

   “我沒有見過。”

   "I can't say that he ever did."

   “我敢說,他一點也不瘋。直到今天為止,我一直認為他是個頭腦清醒的人,但是,請您相信我的話,不是他,就是我,總有一個得穿上捆瘋子用的緊身衣的。可是,我是怎麼的了呢?您和我相處也有幾個星期了,華生。喂!坦白地跟我說吧!我有什麼不對的地方,使我不能做我所熱愛的女人的好丈夫呢?”

   "I dare say not. I always thought him sane enough until to-day, but you can take it from me that either he or I ought to be in a strait-jacket. What's the matter with me, anyhow? You've lived near me for some weeks, Watson. Tell me straight, now! Is there anything that would prevent me from making a good husband to a woman that I loved?"

   “依我說,沒有。”

   "I should say not."

   “他總不會反對我的社會地位吧,因此,他必然是因為我本身的缺點而憎惡我。他有什麼可反對我的地方呢?在我一生所認識的人們裡,無論是男是女,我都沒有得罪過。可是他竟几乎連碰她的手指尖都不許。”

   "He can't object to my worldly position, so it must be myself that he has this down on. What has he against me? I never hurt man or woman in my life that I know of. And yet he would not so much as let me touch the tips of her fingers."

   “他說過這樣的話嗎?”

   "Did he say so?"

   “這樣的話嗎,比這還多呢。我告訴您吧,華生,我和她相識還只有幾個禮拜,可是從一開始,我就覺得好象她是為我而造出來的;而她呢,也是這樣想——她覺得和我在一起的時候很快活,對於這一點我敢發誓,因為女人的眼神是比說話更為有力的。可是他從不讓我們獃在一起,僅僅是今天我才第一次找到了能單獨和她談幾句話的機會。她很高興見到我,可是和我見面以後,她又不願談關於愛情的事,如果她能制止我的話,她甚至不許我談到愛情。她一再重複地說,這裡是個危險的地方,除非我離開這裡,她永遠也不會快樂。 我告訴她說,自從我見到她以後,我再不着急離開這裡了,如果她真的想讓我走的話,唯一的辦法就是她設法和我一起走。 我說了很多話,要求和她結婚,可是還沒等她回答,她的那位哥哥就向我們跑了過來,臉上的神色就象個瘋子。他暴怒得臉色都變白了,連他那淺色的眼裡也燃起了怒火。我對那女士怎麼了?我怎麼敢做使她不高興的事啊?難道是因為我自以為是個準男爵,就可以為所欲為嗎?如果他不是她的哥哥的話,對付他本沒有什麼困難。當時我只對他說,我並不把和他妹妹產生的感情引以為恥,而且我還希望她能屈尊做我的妻子。這樣的話似乎也未能使事態有絲毫的好轉,因此,後來我也發了脾氣。在我回答他的時候也許有些厲害過分,因為,她還站在旁邊呢。結局你是看到了,他和她一起走了,而我呢,簡直被弄得比誰都更莫名其妙和不知所措了。華生,只要您能告訴我這是怎麼回事,那我對您真是要感激莫名了。”

   "That, and a deal more. I tell you, Watson, I've only known her these few weeks, but from the first I just felt that she was made for me, and she, too--she was happy when she was with me, and that I'll swear. There's a light in a woman's eyes that speaks louder than words. But he has never let us get together, and it was only to-day for the first time that I saw a chance of having a few words with her alone. She was glad to meet me, but when she did it was not love that she would talk about, and she wouldn't have let me talk about it either if she could have stopped it. She kept coming back to it that this was a place of danger, and that she would never be happy until I had left it. I told her that since I had seen her I was in no hurry to leave it, and that if she really wanted me to go, the only way to work it was for her to arrange to go with me. With that I offered in as many words to marry her, but before she could answer, down came this brother of hers, running at us with a face on him like a madman. He was just white with rage, and those light eyes of his were blazing with fury. What was I doing with the lady? How dared I offer her attentions which were distasteful to her? Did I think that because I was a baronet I could do what I liked? If he had not been her brother I should have known better how to answer him. As it was I told him that my feelings towards his sister were such as I was not ashamed of, and that I hoped that she might honour me by becoming my wife. That seemed to make the matter no better, so then I lost my temper too, and I answered him rather more hotly than I should perhaps, considering that she was standing by. So it ended by his going off with her, as you saw, and here am I as badly puzzled a man as any in this county. Just tell me what it all means, Watson, and I'll owe you more than ever I can hope to pay."

   我當時雖然試着提出了一兩種解釋;可是,說實在的,連我自己也並沒有真正弄清其所以然。就咱們朋友的身分、財產、年齡、人品和儀表來說,條件都是最優越的,除了縈繞他家的厄運之外,我簡直找不到任何於他不利的地方。使人十分吃驚的倒是:絲毫不考慮女士本人的意願,就對她的追求者給以這樣粗暴的回絶;而那位女士在這種情況下,也竟能毫不表示任何抗議。當天下午,斯台普吞又親自來訪,這才算是把我們心裡的種種猜測平息了下去。他是為了自己早晨的態度粗魯而來道歉的,兩人在亨利爵士的書房裡經過長時間的會談,結果裂痕消除了。由我們決定下星期到梅利琵去吃飯這件事就可以看得出來。

   I tried one or two explanations, but, indeed, I was completely puzzled myself. Our friend's title, his fortune, his age, his character, and his appearance are all in his favour, and I know nothing against him unless it be this dark fate which runs in his family. That his advances should be rejected so brusquely without any reference to the lady's own wishes, and that the lady should accept the situation without protest, is very amazing. However, our conjectures were set at rest by a visit from Stapleton himself that very afternoon. He had come to offer apologies for his rudeness of the morning, and after a long private interview with Sir Henry in his study, the upshot of their conversation was that the breach is quite healed, and that we are to dine at Merripit House next Friday as a sign of it.

   “我並不是說他現在就不是個瘋子了,”亨利爵士說道,“我忘不了今早他向我跑來時的那股眼神,可是我不得不承認,再沒有人道歉能道得象他這樣圓滿自然了。”

   "I don't say now that he isn't a crazy man," said Sir Henry; "I can't forget the look in his eyes when he ran at me this morning, but I must allow that no man could make a more handsome apology than he has done."

   “他對他早晨那種行為做過任何解釋嗎?”

   "Did he give any explanation of his conduct?"

   “他說他妹妹是他生活中的一切。這是很自然的事,而且他能這樣重視她,我也高興。他們一直就生活在一起,而且正象他自己所說的那樣,他是個非常孤獨的人,只有她陪伴着,因此,當他一想到將要失去她的時候,那是多麼可怕啊! 他說他本來並沒有認為我已愛上了她,可是當他親眼看到了這確是事實,而且感覺到我可能從他手中把她奪去的時候,便使他大為震驚,以至他對自己當時的言行都無法負責了。他對發生過的事感到十分抱歉,並且也認識到,自己妄想為了個人而將象他妹妹那樣美麗的女子的一生,束縛在自己的身旁是多麼的愚蠢和自私。如果她非得離開他不可的話,他也情願把她嫁給象我這樣的鄰居,而不願嫁給其他的人。可是無論如何,對他說來這畢竟是一個嚴重的打擊,因此他還需要一些時間,以便他對這件事的來臨做好精神準備。如果我答應在今後三個月之內把這件事暫擱一下,在這期間只是培養與女士的友情而不要求她的愛情的話,他就決定不再反對了。這一點我答應了,於是事情也就平息下來了。”*

   "His sister is everything in his life, he says. That is natural enough, and I am glad that he should understand her value. They have always been together, and according to his account he has been a very lonely man with only her as a companion, so that the thought of losing her was really terrible to him. He had not understood, he said, that I was becoming attached to her, but when he saw with his own eyes that it was really so, and that she might be taken away from him, it gave him such a shock that for a time he was not responsible for what he said or did. He was very sorry for all that had passed, and he recognized how foolish and how selfish it was that he should imagine that he could hold a beautiful woman like his sister to himself for her whole life. If she had to leave him he had rather it was to a neighbour like myself than to anyone else. But in any case it was a blow to him, and it would take him some time before he could prepare himself to meet it. He would withdraw all opposition upon his part if I would promise for three months to let the matter rest and to be content with cultivating the lady's friendship during that time without claiming her love. This I promised, and so the matter rests."

   在我們那些不大的謎裡,就這樣地弄清了一個。正好象當我們在泥沼之中掙扎的時候,在什麼地方碰到了底似的。現在我們懂得了,為什麼斯台普吞那樣看不上他妹妹的追求者——即使那位追求者是象亨利爵士那樣恰當的人。現在我再轉到由一團亂綫裡抽出來的另一條線索上去吧,就是那夜半哭聲和白瑞摩太太滿面淚痕的秘密,還有管家到西面格子窗前去的秘密。祝賀我吧,親愛的福爾摩斯,你得說我沒有辜負你的囑託了吧,你不會後悔在派我來的時候所寄予我的信任的。這些事經過一夜的努力就都徹底弄清了。

   So there is one of our small mysteries cleared up. It is something to have touched bottom anywhere in this bog in which we are floundering. We know now why Stapleton looked with disfavour upon his sister's suitor--even when that suitor was so eligible a one as Sir Henry. And now I pass on to another thread which I have extricated out of the tangled skein, the mystery of the sobs in the night, of the tear-stained face of Mrs. Barrymore, of the secret journey of the butler to the western lattice window. Congratulate me, my dear Holmes, and tell me that I have not disappointed you as an agent--that you do not regret the confidence which you showed in me when you sent me down. All these things have by one night's work been thoroughly cleared.

   我說“經過一夜的努力”,實際上是經過了兩夜的努力,因為頭一夜我們什麼也沒搞出來。我和亨利爵士在他房間裡一直坐到早晨將近三點鐘的時候,可是除了樓梯上端的大鐘報時的聲音以外,我們什麼也沒有聽到。那真是一次最可憐的熬夜了,結果是我們倆都在椅子裡睡着了。所幸的是我們並沒有因此氣餒,並且決定再試一試。第二天夜裡,我們捻小了燈頭坐在那裡,無聲無息地吸着煙。時間似乎過得令人難以相信地那麼慢,可是我們靠着獵人在監視着自己設的陷阱,希望所要捉的動物會不意地闖進去時所必然會有的那種耐心和興趣熬了過來。鐘敲了一下,又敲了兩下,在絶望之中,我們几乎都想再度放棄不幹了,就在這時,突然我倆在椅子裡猛地坐直起來,已經疲倦的全部感官又重新變得警醒而敏鋭了。我們聽到了過道里的咯吱咯吱的腳步聲。

   I have said "by one night's work," but, in truth, it was by two nights' work, for on the first we drew entirely blank. I sat up with Sir Henry in his rooms until nearly three o'clock in the morning, but no sound of any sort did we hear except the chiming clock upon the stairs. It was a most melancholy vigil, and ended by each of us falling asleep in our chairs. Fortunately we were not discouraged, and we determined to try again. The next night we lowered the lamp, and sat smoking cigarettes without making the least sound. It was incredible how slowly the hours crawled by, and yet we were helped through it by the same sort of patient interest which the hunter must feel as he watches the trap into which he hopes the game may wander. One struck, and two, and we had almost for the second time given it up in despair, when in an instant we both sat bolt upright in our chairs, with all our weary senses keenly on the alert once more. We had heard the creak of a step in the passage.

   我們聽著那腳步聲偷偷摸摸地走了過去,直到在遠處消失為止。然後準男爵輕輕地推開了門,我們就開始了跟蹤。那人已轉入了迴廊,走廊裡是一片漆黑。我們輕輕地走到了另一側的廂房,剛好能看到他那蓄着黑鬚的、高高的身影。他彎腰傴背,用腳尖輕輕地走過了過道,後來就走進了上次進去過的那個門口,門口的輪廓在黑暗中被燭光照得顯露出來,一道黃光穿過了陰暗的走廊。我們小心地邁着小步走了過去,在以全身重量踩上每條地板以前,都要先試探一下。為了小心起見,我們沒有穿鞋,雖然如此,陳舊的地板還是要在腳底下咯吱作響。有時似乎他不可能聽不到我們走近的聲音,所幸的是那人相當地聾,而且他正在全神貫注地乾著自己的事。 最後,我們走到了門口偷偷一望,看到他正彎腰站在窗前,手裡拿着蠟燭,他那蒼白而聚精會神的面孔緊緊地壓在窗玻璃上,和我在前天夜裡所看到的完全一樣。

   Very stealthily we heard it pass along until it died away in the distance. Then the baronet gently opened his door and we set out in pursuit. Already our man had gone round the gallery, and the corridor was all in darkness. Softly we stole along until we had come into the other wing. We were just in time to catch a glimpse of the tall, black-bearded figure, his shoulders rounded, as he tip-toed down the passage. Then he passed through the same door as before, and the light of the candle framed it in the darkness and shot one single yellow beam across the gloom of the corridor. We shuffled cautiously towards it, trying every plank before we dared to put our whole weight upon it. We had taken the precaution of leaving our boots behind us, but, even so, the old boards snapped and creaked beneath our tread. Sometimes it seemed impossible that he should fail to hear our approach. However, the man is fortunately rather deaf, and he was entirely preoccupied in that which he was doing. When at last we reached the door and peeped through we found him crouching at the window, candle in hand, his white, intent face pressed against the pane, exactly as I had seen him two nights before.

   我們預先並未安排好行動計劃,可是準男爵這個人總是認為最直率的辦法永遠是最自然的辦法。他走進屋去,白瑞摩隨即一跳就離開了窗口,猛地吸了一口氣就在我們面前站住了,面色灰白,渾身發抖。他看看亨利爵士又看看我,在他那蒼白的臉上,閃閃發光的漆黑的眼睛裡充滿了驚恐的神色。

   We had arranged no plan of campaign, but the baronet is a man to whom the most direct way is always the most natural. He walked into the room, and as he did so Barrymore sprang up from the window with a sharp hiss of his breath and stood, livid and trembling, before us. His dark eyes, glaring out of the white mask of his face, were full of horror and astonishment as he gazed from Sir Henry to me.

   “你在這裡幹什麼呢,白瑞摩?”

   "What are you doing here, Barrymore?"

   “沒幹什麼,爵爺。”強烈的驚恐不安使他簡直說不出話來了,由於他手中的蠟燭不斷地抖動,使得人影也不停地跳動着。“爵爺,我是夜間四處走一走,看看窗戶是否都上了插銷。”

   "Nothing, sir." His agitation was so great that he could hardly speak, and the shadows sprang up and down from the shaking of his candle. "It was the window, sir. I go round at night to see that they are fastened."

   “二樓上的嗎?”

   "On the second floor?"

   “是的,爵爺。所有的窗戶。”

   "Yes, sir, all the windows."

   “告訴你,白瑞摩,”亨利爵士嚴厲地說道,“我們已決心要讓你說出實話來,所以,你與其晚說還不如早說,免得我麻煩。現在,說吧!可不要謊話!你在那窗前幹什麼來着?”

   "Look here, Barrymore," said Sir Henry, sternly; "we have made up our minds to have the truth out of you, so it will save you trouble to tell it sooner rather than later. Come, now! No lies! What were you doing at that window?"

   那傢伙無可奈何地望着我們,就象是個陷于極端疑懼、痛苦的人似的,兩手扭在一起。

   The fellow looked at us in a helpless way, and he wrung his hands together like one who is in the last extremity of doubt and misery.

   “我這樣做也沒有什麼害處啊,爵爺,我不過是把蠟燭拿近了窗戶啊!”

   "I was doing no harm, sir. I was holding a candle to the window."

   “可是你為什麼要把蠟燭拿近窗口呢?”

   "And why were you holding a candle to the window?"

   “不要問我吧,亨利爵士——不要問我了!我跟您說吧,爵爺,這不是我個人的秘密,我也不能說出來,如果它與別人無關而且是我個人的事的話,我就不會對您隱瞞了。”

   "Don't ask me, Sir Henry--don't ask me! I give you my word, sir, that it is not my secret, and that I cannot tell it. If it concerned no one but myself I would not try to keep it from you."

   我突然靈機一動,便從管家抖動着的手裡把蠟燭拿了過來。

   A sudden idea occurred to me, and I took the candle from the trembling hand of the butler.

   “他一定是拿它作信號用的,”我說道,“咱們試試看是否有什麼回答信號。”我也象他一樣地拿着蠟燭,注視着漆黑的外面。我只能模糊地辨別出重疊的黑色的樹影和顏色稍淡的廣大的沼地,因為月亮被雲遮住了。後來,我高聲歡呼起來,在正對著暗黑的方形窗框中央的遠方,忽然出現了一個極小的黃色光點刺穿了漆黑的夜幕。*

   "He must have been holding it as a signal," said I. "Let us see if there is any answer." I held it as he had done, and stared out into the darkness of the night. Vaguely I could discern the black bank of the trees and the lighter expanse of the moor, for the moon was behind the clouds. And then I gave a cry of exultation, for a tiny pin-point of yellow light had suddenly transfixed the dark veil, and glowed steadily in the centre of the black square framed by the window.

   “在那兒呢!”我喊道。

   "There it is!" I cried.

   “不,不,爵爺,那什麼也不是——什麼也不是!”管家插嘴道,“我向您保證,爵爺……”

   "No, no, sir, it is nothing--nothing at all!" the butler broke in; "I assure you, sir ----"

   “把您的燈光移開窗口,華生!”準男爵喊了起來,“看哪,那個燈光也移開了!啊,你這老流氓,難道你還要說那不是信號嗎?來吧,說出來吧!你的那個同夥是誰,正在進行着的是個什麼陰謀?”

   "Move your light across the window, Watson!" cried the baronet. "See, the other moves also! Now, you rascal, do you deny that it is a signal? Come, speak up! Who is your confederate out yonder, and what is this conspiracy that is going on?"

   那人的面孔竟公然擺出大膽無禮的樣子來。

   The man's face became openly defiant.

   “這是我個人的事,不是您的事,我一定不說。”

   "It is my business, and not yours. I will not tell."

   “那麼你馬上就不要在這裡幹事了。”

   "Then you leave my employment right away."

   “好極了,爵爺。如果我必須走的話我就一定走。”

   "Very good, sir. If I must I must."

   “你是很不體面地離開的。天哪!你真該知些羞恥啊!你家的人和我家的人在這所房子裡同居共處有一百年之久了,而現在我竟會發現你在處心積慮地搞什麼陰謀來害我。”

   "And you go in disgrace. By thunder, you may well be ashamed of yourself. Your family has lived with mine for over a hundred years under this roof, and here I find you deep in some dark plot against me."

   “不,不,爵爺,不是害您呀!”傳來了一個女人的聲音。 白瑞摩太太正站在門口,臉色比她丈夫更加蒼白,樣子也更加惶恐。如果不是她臉上驚恐的表情的話,她那穿著裙子、披着披肩的龐大身軀也許會顯得可笑了呢。

   "No, no, sir; no, not against you!" It was a woman's voice, and Mrs. Barrymore, paler and more horror-struck than her husband, was standing at the door. Her bulky figure in a shawl and skirt might have been comic were it not for the intensity of feeling upon her face.

   “咱們一定得走。伊莉薩。事情算是到了頭了。去把咱們的東西收拾一下吧。”管家說道。

   "We have to go, Eliza. This is the end of it. You can pack our things," said the butler.

   “喔,約翰哪!約翰!是我把你連累到這種地步的,這都是我干的,亨利爵士——全是我的事。完全是因為我的緣故,而且是因為我請求了他,他才那樣做的。”

   "Oh, John, John, have I brought you to this? It is my doing, Sir Henry--all mine. He has done nothing except for my sake and because I asked him."

   “那麼,就說出來吧,究竟是什麼意思呢?”

   "Speak out, then! What does it mean?"

   “我那不幸的弟弟正在沼地裡挨餓呢,我們不能讓他在我們的門口餓死。這燈光就是告訴他食物已準備好了的信號,而他那邊的燈光則是表明送飯地點的。”

   "My unhappy brother is starving on the moor. We cannot let him perish at our very gates. The light is a signal to him that food is ready for him, and his light out yonder is to show the spot to which to bring it."

   “那麼說,您的弟弟就是……”

   "Then your brother is --"

   “就是那個逃犯,爵爺——那個罪犯塞爾丹。”

   "The escaped convict, sir--Selden, the criminal."

   “這是實情,爵爺。”白瑞摩說道,“我說過,那不是我個人的秘密,而且我也不能告訴您。可是,現在您已經聽到了,您會明白的,即使有個陰謀,也不是害您的。”

   "That's the truth, sir," said Barrymore. "I said that it was not my secret and that I could not tell it to you. But now you have heard it, and you will see that if there was a plot it was not against you."

   這就是對於深夜潛行和窗前燈光的解釋。亨利爵士和我都驚異地盯着那個女人。難道這是可能的嗎?這位頑強而可敬的女人竟會和那全國最最聲名狼藉的罪犯同出一母?

   This, then, was the explanation of the stealthy expeditions at night and the light at the window. Sir Henry and I both stared at the woman in amazement. Was it possible that this stolidly respectable person was of the same blood as one of the most notorious criminals in the country?

   “是的,爵爺,我就姓塞爾丹,他就是我的弟弟。在他小的時候,我們把他縱容過度了,不管什麼事情都是隨着他的意思,弄得他認為世界就是為了使他快樂才存在的,因此他就應該在這個世界裡為所欲為。他長大以後,又碰上了壞朋友,於是他就變壞了,一直搞到使我母親為之心碎,並且玷污了我們家的名聲。由於一再地犯罪,他就愈陷愈深,終於弄到了若不是上帝仁慈的話,他就會被送上斷頭台的地步。可是對我說來,爵爺,他永遠是我這個做姐姐的曾經撫育過和共同嬉戲過的那個一頭捲髮的孩子。他之所以敢於逃出監獄來,爵爺,就是因為他知道我們在這裡住,而且我們也不能不給他以幫助。有一天夜晚,他拖着疲倦而饑餓的身體到了這裡,獄卒在後面窮追不捨,我們還能怎麼辦呢?我們就把他領了進來,給他飯吃,照顧着他。後來,爵爺,您就來了,我弟弟認為在風聲過去以前,他到沼地裡去比在哪裡都更安全些,因此他就到那裡去藏起來了。在每隔一天的晚上,我們就在窗前放一個燈火,看看他是不是還在那裡,如果有回答信號的話,我丈夫就給他送去一些麵包和肉。我們每天都希望着他快走,可是隻要是他還在那裡,我們就不能置而不顧。這就是全部的實情,我是個誠實的基督徒,您能看得出來,如果這樣做有什麼罪過的話,都不能怨我丈夫,而應該怪我,因為他是為我才幹那些事的。”

   "Yes, sir, my name was Selden, and he is my younger brother. We humoured him too much when he was a lad, and gave him his own way in everything until he came to think that the world was made for his pleasure, and that he could do what he liked in it. Then as he grew older he met wicked companions, and the devil entered into him until he broke my mother's heart and dragged our name in the dirt. From crime to crime he sank lower and lower, until it is only the mercy of God which has snatched him from the scaffold; but to me, sir, he was always the little curly-headed boy that I had nursed and played with, as an elder sister would. That was why he broke prison, sir. He knew that I was here and that we could not refuse to help him. When he dragged himself here one night, weary and starving, with the warders hard at his heels, what could we do? We took him in and fed him and cared for him. Then you returned, sir, and my brother thought he would be safer on the moor than anywhere else until the hue and cry was over, so he lay in hiding there. But every second night we made sure if he was still there by putting a light in the window, and if there was an answer my husband took out some bread and meat to him. Every day we hoped that he was gone, but as long as he was there we could not desert him. That is the whole truth, as I am an honest Christian woman, and you will see that if there is blame in the matter it does not lie with my husband, but with me, for whose sake he has done all that he has."

   那女人的話聽著十分誠懇,話的本身就能證明這都是實情。

   The woman's words came with an intense earnestness which carried conviction with them.

   “這都是真的嗎?白瑞摩?”

   "Is this true, Barrymore?"

   “是的,亨利爵士。完全是真實的。”

   "Yes, Sir Henry. Every word of it."

   “好吧,我不能怪你幫了你太太的忙。把我剛纔說過的話都忘掉吧。你們現在可以回到自己的屋子裡去了,關於這件事,咱們明早再談吧。”

   "Well, I cannot blame you for standing by your own wife. Forget what I have said. Go to your room, you two, and we shall talk further about this matter in the morning."

   他們走了以後,我們又向窗外望去。 亨利爵士把窗戶打開,夜間的寒風吹着我們的臉。在漆黑的遠處,那黃色的小小光點依舊在亮着。

   When they were gone we looked out of the window again. Sir Henry had flung it open, and the cold night wind beat in upon our faces. Far away in the black distance there still glowed that one tiny point of yellow light.

   “我真奇怪他怎麼敢這麼幹呢?”亨利爵士說道。

   "I wonder he dares," said Sir Henry.

   “也許他放出光亮的地方只能由這裡看到。”

   "It may be so placed as to be only visible from here."

   “很可能,您認為距這裡有多遠?”

   "Very likely. How far do you think it is?"

   “我看是在裂口山那邊。”

   "Out by the Cleft Tor, I think."

   “不過一二英里遠。”

   "Not more than a mile or two off."

   “恐怕還沒有那麼遠呢。”

   "Hardly that."

   “嗯,白瑞摩送飯去的地方不可能很遠,而那個壞蛋正在蠟燭旁邊等着呢。天哪,華生,我真想去抓那個人去。”

   "Well, it cannot be far if Barrymore had to carry out the food to it. And he is waiting, this villain, beside that candle. By thunder, Watson, I am going out to take that man!"

   在我的腦子裡也產生過同樣的想法,看樣子白瑞摩夫婦不見得信任我們,他們的秘密是被迫暴露出來的。那個人對社會說來是個危險,是個十足的惡棍,對他既不應該可憐,也不應該原諒。如果我們借這機會把他送回使他不能再為害於人的地方去的話,那我們也只不過是盡了我們應盡的責任罷了。就他這樣殘暴、凶狠的天性來說,如果我們袖手旁觀的話,別人可能就要付出代價呢。譬如說吧,隨便哪天夜晚,我們的鄰居斯台普吞都可能受到他的襲擊,也許正是因為想到了這一點才使得亨利爵士要去冒這樣的險呢。

   The same thought had crossed my own mind. It was not as if the Barrymores had taken us into their confidence. Their secret had been forced from them. The man was a danger to the community, an unmitigated scoundrel for whom there was neither pity nor excuse. We were only doing our duty in taking this chance of putting him back where he could do no harm. With his brutal and violent nature, others would have to pay the price if we held our hands. Any night, for example, our neighbours the Stapletons might be attacked by him, and it may have been the thought of this which made Sir Henry so keen upon the adventure.

   “我也去。”我說道。

   "I will come," said I.

   “那麼您就把左輪手槍帶著,穿上高筒皮鞋。我們愈早出發愈好,那傢伙可能會吹滅蠟燭跑掉的。”

   "Then get your revolver and put on your boots. The sooner we start the better, as the fellow may put out his light and be off."

   不到五分鐘我們就出了門,開始遠徵了,我們在秋風低吟和落葉沙沙聲中匆忙地穿過了黑暗的灌木叢。夜晚的空氣裡帶著濃厚的潮濕和腐朽的氣味。月亮不時地由雲隙裡探頭下望,雲朵在空中奔馳而過。我們剛剛走到沼地上的時候,就開始下起細雨來了。那燭光卻仍舊在前面穩定地照耀着。

   In five minutes we were outside the door, starting upon our expedition. We hurried through the dark shrubbery, amid the dull moaning of the autumn wind and the rustle of the falling leaves. The night air was heavy with the smell of damp and decay. Now and again the moon peeped out for an instant, but clouds were driving over the face of the sky, and just as we came out on the moor a thin rain began to fall. The light still burned steadily in front.

   “您帶了武器嗎?”我問道。

   "Are you armed?" I asked.

   “我有一條獵鞭。”

   "I have a hunting-crop."

   “咱們必須很快地向他衝過去,因為據說他是個不要命的傢伙。咱們得出其不意地抓住他,在他能夠進行抵抗之前就得讓他就範。”

   "We must close in on him rapidly, for he is said to be a desperate fellow. We shall take him by surprise and have him at our mercy before he can resist."

   “我說,華生,”準男爵說道,“這樣幹法福爾摩斯會有什麼意見呢?在這樣的黑夜、罪惡囂張的時候。”

   "I say, Watson," said the baronet, "what would Holmes say to this? How about that hour of darkness in which the power of evil is exalted?"

   就象回答他的話似的,廣大而陰慘的沼地裡忽然發出了一陣奇怪的吼聲,就是我在大格林盆泥潭邊緣上曾經聽見過的那樣。聲音乘風穿過了黑暗的夜空,先是一聲長而深沉的低鳴,然後是一陣高聲的怒吼,再又是一聲淒慘的呻吟,然後就消失了。聲音一陣陣地發了出來,刺耳、狂野而又嚇人,整個空間都為之悸動起來。準男爵抓住了我的袖子,他的臉在黑暗中變得慘白。

   As if in answer to his words there rose suddenly out of the vast gloom of the moor that strange cry which I had already heard upon the borders of the great Grimpen Mire. It came with the wind through the silence of the night, a long, deep mutter, then a rising howl, and then the sad moan in which it died away. Again and again it sounded, the whole air throbbing with it, strident, wild, and menacing. The baronet caught my sleeve and his face glimmered white through the darkness.

   “我的上帝啊,那是什麼呀,華生?”

   "My God, what's that, Watson?"

   “我不知道。那是來自沼地的聲音,我曾經聽見過一次。”

   "I don't know. It's a sound they have on the moor. I heard it once before."

   聲音已經沒有了,死一樣的沉寂緊緊地包圍了我們。我們站在那裡側耳傾聽,可是什麼也聽不見了。

   It died away, and an absolute silence closed in upon us. We stood straining our ears, but nothing came.

   “華生,”準男爵說道,“這是獵狗的叫聲。”

   "Watson," said the baronet, "it was the cry of a hound."

   我感覺渾身的血都涼了,因為他的話裡時有停頓,說明他已突然地產生了恐懼。

   My blood ran cold in my veins, for there was a break in his voice which told of the sudden horror which had seized him.

   “他們把這聲音叫什麼呢?”他問道。

   "What do they call this sound?" he asked.

   “誰呀?”

   "Who?"

   “鄉下人啊!”

   "The folk on the country-side."

   “啊,他們都是些沒有知識的人,您何必管他們把那聲音叫什麼呢!”

   "Oh, they are ignorant people. Why should you mind what they call it?"

   “告訴我,華生,他們怎麼說的?”

   "Tell me, Watson. What do they say of it?"

   我猶豫了一下,可是沒法逃避這問題。

   I hesitated but could not escape the question.

   “他們說那就是巴斯克維爾獵狗的叫聲。”

   "They say it is the cry of the Hound of the Baskervilles."

   他咕噥了一陣以後,又沉默了一會兒。

   He groaned and was silent for a few moments.

   “是一隻獵狗,”他終於又說話了,”可是那聲音好象是從幾里地以外傳來的,我想大概是那邊。”

   "A hound it was," he said, at last, "but it seemed to come from miles away, over yonder, I think."

   “很難說是從哪邊傳來的。”

   "It was hard to say whence it came."

   “聲音隨着風勢而變得忽高忽低。那邊不就是大格林盆那個方向嗎?”

   "It rose and fell with the wind. Isn't that the direction of the great Grimpen Mire?"

   “嗯,正是。”

   "Yes, it is."

   “啊,是在那邊。喂,華生,您不認為那是獵狗的叫聲嗎? 我又不是小孩,您不用怕,儘管說實話好了。”

   "Well, it was up there. Come now, Watson, didn't you think yourself that it was the cry of a hound? I am not a child. You need not fear to speak the truth."

   “我上次聽到的時候,正和斯台普吞在一起。他說那可能是一種怪鳥的叫聲。”

   "Stapleton was with me when I heard it last. He said that it might be the calling of a strange bird."

   “不對,不對,那是獵狗。我的上帝呀,難道這些故事會有幾分真實嗎?您不會相信這些吧,您會嗎,華生?”

   "No, no, it was a hound. My God, can there be some truth in all these stories? Is it possible that I am really in danger from so dark a cause? You don't believe it, do you, Watson?"

   “不,我決不相信。”

   "No, no."

   “這件事在倫敦可以當作笑料,但是在這裡,站在漆黑的沼地裡,聽著象這樣的叫聲,就完全是另外一回事了。我的伯父死後,在他躺着的地方,旁邊有獵狗的足跡,這些都湊在一起了。我不認為我是個膽小鬼,華生,可是那種聲音簡直把我渾身的血都要凝住了。您摸摸我的手!”

   "And yet it was one thing to laugh about it in London, and it is another to stand out here in the darkness of the moor and to hear such a cry as that. And my uncle! There was the footprint of the hound beside him as he lay. It all fits together. I don't think that I am a coward, Watson, but that sound seemed to freeze my very blood. Feel my hand!"

   他的手冰涼得象一塊石頭。

   It was as cold as a block of marble.

   “您明天就會好的。”

   "You'll be all right to-morrow."

   “我想我已無法不使那種叫聲深印在我的腦中了。您認為咱們現在應當怎麼辦呢?”

   "I don't think I'll get that cry out of my head. What do you advise that we do now?"

   “咱們回去好嗎?”

   "Shall we turn back?"

   “不,決不,咱們是出來捉人的,一定得幹下去。咱們是搜尋罪犯,可是說不定正有一隻魔鬼似的獵狗在追蹤着咱們呢。來吧!就是把所有洞穴裡的妖魔都放到沼地裡來,咱們也要堅持到底。”*

   "No, by thunder; we have come out to get our man, and we will do it. We after the convict, and a hell-hound, as likely as not, after us. Come on! We'll see it through if all the fiends of the pit were loose upon the moor."

   我們在暗中跌跌撞撞地緩緩前進着,黑暗而參差不齊的山影環繞着我們,那黃色的光點依然在前面穩定地亮着。在漆黑的夜晚,再沒有比一盞燈光的距離更能騙人了,有時那亮光好象是遠在地平線上,而有時又似乎是離我們只有幾碼遠。可是我們終於看出它是放在什麼地方了,這時我們才知道確已距離很近了。一支流着蠟油的蠟燭被插在一條石頭縫裡,兩面都被岩石擋住,這樣既可避免風吹,又可使除了巴斯克維爾莊園以外的其他方向都看不到。一塊突出的花崗石遮住了我們。於是我們就在它後面彎着腰,從石頭上面望着那作為信號的燈光。看到一支蠟燭點在沼地的中央,而周圍卻毫無生命的跡象,確是奇事——只有一條向上直立的黃色火苗和它兩側被照得發亮的岩石。

   We stumbled slowly along in the darkness, with the black loom of the craggy hills around us, and the yellow speck of light burning steadily in front. There is nothing so deceptive as the distance of a light upon a pitch-dark night, and sometimes the glimmer seemed to be far away upon the horizon and sometimes it might have been within a few yards of us. But at last we could see whence it came, and then we knew that we were indeed very close. A guttering candle was stuck in a crevice of the rocks which flanked it on each side so as to keep the wind from it and also to prevent it from being visible, save in the direction of Baskerville Hall. A boulder of granite concealed our approach, and crouching behind it we gazed over it at the signal light. It was strange to see this single candle burning there in the middle of the moor, with no sign of life near it--just the one straight yellow flame and the gleam of the rock on each side of it.

   “咱們現在怎麼辦呢?”亨利爵士悄悄地說道。

   "What shall we do now?" whispered Sir Henry.

   “就在這裡等着,他一定在燭光的附近。看一看,咱們是否能夠看得到他。”

   "Wait here. He must be near his light. Let us see if we can get a glimpse of him."

   我的話剛說出口,我們兩人就看到了他,在蠟燭附近的岩石後面探出來一張可怕的黃面孔——一張嚇人的野獸般的面孔,滿臉橫肉,骯髒不堪,長着粗硬的長鬚,亂蓬蓬的頭髮,倒很象是古代住在山邊洞穴之中的野人。在他下面的燭光照着他的小而狡猾的眼睛,可怕地向左右黑暗之中窺探,好象是一隻聽到了獵人腳步聲的狡黠的猛獸。

   The words were hardly out of my mouth when we both saw him. Over the rocks, in the crevice of which the candle burned, there was thrust out an evil yellow face, a terrible animal face, all seamed and scored with vile passions. Foul with mire, with a bristling beard, and hung with matted hair, it might well have belonged to one of those old savages who dwelt in the burrows on the hillsides. The light beneath him was reflected in his small, cunning eyes which peered fiercely to right and left through the darkness, like a crafty and savage animal who has heard the steps of the hunters.

   顯然已有什麼東西引起了他的懷疑。說不定是因為他還有什麼和白瑞摩私訂的暗號我們不知道,也許是那傢伙根據其他理由感覺到了事情的不妙,因為我從他那凶惡的臉上看出了恐懼的神色。因為考慮到每一秒鐘他都可能從亮處竄開、消失在黑暗之中,所以我就跳向前去,亨利爵士也跟了上來。 正在這時,那罪犯尖聲痛罵了我們一句,便打過來一塊石頭,那石頭在遮住我們的大石上碰得粉碎。當他跳起來轉身逃跑的時候,碰巧月光剛從雲縫裡照了下來,我一眼看到了他那矮胖而強壯的身形。我們衝過了小山頭,那人從山坡那面疾馳而下,他一路上用山羊似的動作在亂石上跳來跳去。如果用我那左輪手槍遠射,碰巧了就可能把他打瘸,可是我帶它來只是為了在受人攻擊的時候用以自衛,而不是用來打一個在逃的沒有武器的人的。

   Something had evidently aroused his suspicions. It may have been that Barrymore had some private signal which we had neglected to give, or the fellow may have had some other reason for thinking that all was not well, but I could read his fears upon his wicked face. Any instant he might dash out the light and vanish in the darkness. I sprang forward therefore, and Sir Henry did the same. At the same moment the convict screamed out a curse at us and hurled a rock which splintered up against the boulder which had sheltered us. I caught one glimpse of his short, squat, strongly- built figure as he sprang to his feet and turned to run. At the same moment by a lucky chance the moon broke through the clouds. We rushed over the brow of the hill, and there was our man running with great speed down the other side, springing over the stones in his way with the activity of a mountain goat. A lucky long shot of my revolver might have crippled him, but I had brought it only to defend myself if attacked, and not to shoot an unarmed man who was running away.

   我們兩個都是快腿,而且受過相當好的訓練,可是,不久我們就知道已沒希望追上他了。在月光之下,我們很久還看得見他,直到他在一座遠處小山山側的亂石中間變成了一個迅速移動着的小點。我們跑呀跑的,直跑到疲憊不堪,可是他和我們的距離反而愈來愈大了。最後,我們終於在兩塊大石上坐了下來,大喘着氣,眼看著他在遠處消失了。

   We were both swift runners and in fairly good training, but we soon found that we had no chance of overtaking him. We saw him for a long time in the moonlight until he was only a small speck moving swiftly among the boulders upon the side of a distant hill. We ran and ran until we were completely blown, but the space between us grew ever wider. Finally we stopped and sat panting on two rocks, while we watched him disappearing in the distance.

   就在這時發生了一件最最奇怪和想象不到的事。當時我們已經從石頭上站了起來,放棄了無望的追捕,就要轉身回家了。月亮低懸在右側空中,滿月的下半部襯托出一座花崗石岩崗的嶙峋的尖頂。在明亮的背景前面,我看到一個男人的身影,他站在岩崗的絶頂上,恰似一座漆黑的銅像。你可別認為那是一種幻覺,福爾摩斯。我敢說,在我一生裡還從沒有看得這樣清楚過呢。根據我的判斷,那是一個又高又瘦的男人。他兩腿稍稍分開地站着,兩臂交叉,低着頭,就象是面對著眼前滿佈泥炭和岩石的廣大荒野正在考慮什麼問題。他也許就是那可怕的地方的精靈呢。他不是那罪犯,他離那罪犯逃遁的地方很遠,同時他的身材也高得多。我不禁驚叫了一聲,並把他指給準男爵看,可是就在我轉身抓他手臂的時候,那人就不見了。這時花崗岩的尖頂依然遮着月亮的下半部,可是在那頂上再也沒有那靜立不動的人的蹤影了。

   And it was at this moment that there occurred a most strange and unexpected thing. We had risen from our rocks and were turning to go home, having abandoned the hopeless chase. The moon was low upon the right, and the jagged pinnacle of a granite tor stood up against the lower curve of its silver disc. There, outlined as black as an ebony statue on that shining back-ground, I saw the figure of a man upon the tor. Do not think that it was a delusion, Holmes. I assure you that I have never in my life seen anything more clearly. As far as I could judge, the figure was that of a tall, thin man. He stood with his legs a little separated, his arms folded, his head bowed, as if he were brooding over that enormous wilderness of peat and granite which lay before him. He might have been the very spirit of that terrible place. It was not the convict. This man was far from the place where the latter had disappeared. Besides, he was a much taller man. With a cry of surprise I pointed him out to the baronet, but in the instant during which I had turned to grasp his arm the man was gone. There was the sharp pinnacle of granite still cutting the lower edge of the moon, but its peak bore no trace of that silent and motionless figure.

   我本想向那方向走去,把那岩崗搜索一下,可是距離相當遠。從聽到那使他回想起他家庭可怕的故事的叫聲以後,準男爵的神經還一直在震顫,因此他已無心再作冒險了。他並沒有看到岩頂上的那個孤獨的人,因此他還不能體會那人的怪異的出現和他那威風凜凜的神氣所給予我的毛骨悚然的感覺。

    “是個獄卒,沒錯。”他說道,“從這傢伙逃脫之後,沼地裡到處都是他們。”

    嗯,也許他的解釋是正確的,可是沒有更進一步的證明,我是不會相信的。今天,我們打算給王子鎮的人們打個電報,告訴他們應當到那裡去找他們那個逃犯。說起來也真倒霉,我們竟沒有能當真勝利地把他作為我們的俘虜帶回來。這就是我們昨晚所作的冒險。你得承認,我親愛的福爾摩斯,就拿給你作報告這件事來說吧,我已經為你做得很不錯了。在我所告訴你的東西里,有很多無疑是很離題了,可是我總覺得最好還是讓我把一切事實都告訴你,讓你自己去選擇哪些是最能幫助你得出結論的東西吧。當然我們已經有了一些進展,就白瑞摩來說,我們已經找出了他的行為的動機,這就使整個的情況澄清了不少。可是神秘的沼地和那裡的奇特的居民則依舊是使人莫測高深的,也許在下一次的報告裡,我將能把這一點也稍加澄清。最好還是你到我們這裡來。無論如何,幾天之內你就會又接到我的信了。

    寄自巴斯克維爾莊園十月十五日

   I wished to go in that direction and to search the tor, but it was some distance away. The baronet's nerves were still quivering from that cry, which recalled the dark story of his family, and he was not in the mood for fresh adventures. He had not seen this lonely man upon the tor and could not feel the thrill which his strange presence and his commanding attitude had given to me. "A warder, no doubt," said he. "The moor has been thick with them since this fellow escaped." Well, perhaps his explanation may be the right one, but I should like to have some further proof of it. To-day we mean to communicate to the Princetown people where they should look for their missing man, but it is hard lines that we have not actually had the triumph of bringing him back as our own prisoner. Such are the adventures of last night, and you must acknowledge, my dear Holmes, that I have done you very well in the matter of a report. Much of what I tell you is no doubt quite irrelevant, but still I feel that it is best that I should let you have all the facts and leave you to select for yourself those which will be of most service to you in helping you to your conclusions. We are certainly making some progress. So far as the Barrymores go we have found the motive of their actions, and that has cleared up the situation very much. But the moor with its mysteries and its strange inhabitants remains as inscrutable as ever. Perhaps in my next I may be able to throw some light upon this also. Best of all would it be if you could come down to us. In any case you will hear from me again in the course of the next few days.

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