蓝宝石案 08一顶奇怪的帽子(8)

"You are certainly joking, Holmes."

"你肯定是在开玩笑，福尔摩斯。"

"Not in the least. Is it possible that even now, when I give you these results, you are unable to see how they are attained¹?"

"一点都不是开玩笑。难道现在当我把研究结果都告诉了你，你还看不出它们是怎样得出来的吗？"

"I have no doubt that I am very stupid, but I must confess that I am unable to follow you.

"我并不怀疑我自己是很迟钝的，但是我必须承认我不能领会你说的话。

For example, how did you deduce that this man was intellectual?"

举个例子说吧，你是怎样推断出这个人是很有学问的？"

For answer Holmes clapped the hat upon his head.

福尔摩斯啪的一下把帽子扣在头上来作为回答。

It came right over the forehead and settled upon the bridge of his nose.

帽子正好把整个前额罩住，并且压到了鼻梁上。

"It is a question of cubic capacity," said he; "a man with so large a brain must have something in it."

"这是一个容积的问题，"他说，"有这么大脑袋的人，头脑里必定有些东西吧！"

"The decline of his fortunes, then?"

"那么他家道中落又是怎么推断出来的呢？"

"This hat is three years old. These flat brims curled at the edge came in then.

"这顶帽子已买了三年，这种平沿、帽边向上卷起的帽子当时是很时兴的。

It is a hat of the very best quality. Look at the band of ribbed silk and the excellent lining².

它是一顶第一流的帽子。你瞧瞧这条罗纹丝绸箍带儿和那华贵的衬里。

If this man could afford to buy so expensive a hat three years ago, and has had no hat since,

如果这个人三年前买得起这么昂贵的帽子，而从那以后从没有买别的帽子，

then he has assuredly gone down in the world."

那么毫无疑问他是在走下坡路了。"

"Well, that is clear enough, certainly. But how about the foresight³ and the moral retrogression?"

"噢，这一点当然很清楚了，但是说这个人有'远见'，又说他'精神颓废'，这是怎么回事呢？"

1 attained   

（通常经过努力）实现( attain的过去式和过去分词 )； 达到； 获得； 达到（某年龄、水平、状况）

参考例句：

• She has attained the degree of Master of Arts. 她已获得文学硕士学位。
• Lu Hsun attained a high position in the republic of letters. 鲁迅在文坛上获得崇高的地位。

2 lining   

n.衬里，衬料

参考例句：

• The lining of my coat is torn.我的外套衬里破了。
• Moss makes an attractive lining to wire baskets.用苔藓垫在铁丝篮里很漂亮。

3 foresight   

n.先见之明，深谋远虑

参考例句：

• The failure is the result of our lack of foresight.这次失败是由于我们缺乏远虑而造成的。
• It required a statesman's foresight and sagacity to make the decision.作出这个决定需要政治家的远见卓识。