工程师大拇指案 18被砍掉的大拇指(4)

I glanced at the books upon the table, and in spite of my ignorance of German

我瞧着桌子上的书，尽管我不懂德文，

I could see that two of them were treatises¹ on science, the others being volumes of poetry.

我还是看出其中有两本是科学论文，其它是诗集。

Then I walked across to the window, hoping that I might catch some glimpse of the country-side,

我随后走到窗口，希望能看一看乡间的景色，

but an oak shutter², heavily barred, was folded across it.

但是一扇关闭得很严的栎木百叶窗遮住了窗子。

It was a wonderfully silent house.

房间里寂静的出奇。

There was an old clock ticking loudly somewhere in the passage, but otherwise everything was deadly still.

一座旧钟在走廊里不知什么地方滴嗒滴嗒地响着，除此之外，一切都是死一般的沉寂。

A vague feeling of uneasiness began to steal over me.

一阵模模糊糊的不安的感觉渐渐支配了我。

Who were these German people, and what were they doing living in this strange, out-of-the-way place?

这些德国人是些什么人，他们卜居在这穷乡僻壤干些什么勾当？

And where was the place?

这个地方又是在哪儿？

I was ten miles or so from Eyford, that was all I knew, but whether north, south, east, or west I had no idea.

我只知道这里距离艾津十英里左右，但是连东西南北，都分不清楚。

For that matter, Reading, and possibly other large towns, were within that radius³,

就这个地方的位置来说，雷丁可能还有其它一些大镇子的位置都是在这个半径范围之内，

so the place might not be so secluded⁴, after all.

所以这个地方可能并不那么偏僻。

Yet it was quite certain, from the absolute stillness, that we were in the country.

然而，这里是那么寂静，可以十分肯定我们是在乡间。

I paced up and down the room, humming a tune⁵ under my breath to keep up my spirits

我在房间里踱来踱去，低声地哼着小调来壮胆，

and feeling that I was thoroughly⁶ earning my fifty-guinea fee.

并感觉到我完全是为了挣那五十畿尼的酬金来的。

1 treatises   

n.专题著作，专题论文，专著( treatise的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Many treatises in different languages have been published on pigeons. 关于鸽类的著作，用各种文字写的很多。 来自辞典例句
• Many other treatises incorporated the new rigor. 许多其它的专题论文体现了新的严密性。 来自辞典例句

2 shutter   

n.百叶窗；(照相机)快门；关闭装置

参考例句：

• The camera has a shutter speed of one-sixtieth of a second.这架照像机的快门速度达六十分之一秒。
• The shutter rattled in the wind.百叶窗在风中发出嘎嘎声。

3 radius   

n.半径，半径范围；有效航程，范围，界限

参考例句：

• He has visited every shop within a radius of two miles.周围两英里以内的店铺他都去过。
• We are measuring the radius of the circle.我们正在测量圆的半径。

4 secluded   

adj.与世隔绝的；隐退的；偏僻的v.使隔开，使隐退( seclude的过去式和过去分词)

参考例句：

• Some people like to strip themselves naked while they have a swim in a secluded place. 一些人当他们在隐蔽的地方游泳时，喜欢把衣服脱光。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• This charming cottage dates back to the 15th century and is as pretty as a picture, with its thatched roof and secluded garden. 这所美丽的村舍是15世纪时的建筑，有茅草房顶和宁静的花园，漂亮极了，简直和画上一样。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 tune   

n.调子；和谐，协调；v.调音，调节，调整

参考例句：

• He'd written a tune,and played it to us on the piano.他写了一段曲子，并在钢琴上弹给我们听。
• The boy beat out a tune on a tin can.那男孩在易拉罐上敲出一首曲子。

6 thoroughly   

adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地

参考例句：

• The soil must be thoroughly turned over before planting.一定要先把土地深翻一遍再下种。
• The soldiers have been thoroughly instructed in the care of their weapons.士兵们都系统地接受过保护武器的训练。