巴斯克维尔的猎犬 华生医生的第一份报告（8）

 

　　"I could not quite understand the object of your questions this morning, Sir Henry," said he.

　　"I trust that they do not mean that I have done anything to forfeit¹ your confidence?"“我不大明白， 今天早晨您提出那问题来的目的何在， 亨利爵士， ” 他说道，“我想， 您所以那样问我， 不会是说我已作了 什么事使您失去对我的信任了吧？ ”

　　Sir Henry had to assure him that it was not so and pacify² him by giving him a considerablepart of his old wardrobe, the London outfit³ having now all arrived.

　　亨利爵士这时不得不向他保证说绝无此意， 并且把自己大部的旧衣服都给了他， 以使他安心。 因为在伦敦新置办的东西现在已经全部运来了。

　　Mrs. Barrymore is of interest to me. She is a heavy, solid person, very limited, intenselyrespectable, and inclined to be puritanical⁴. You could hardly conceive a less emotional subject. YetI have told you how, on the first night here, I heard her sobbing⁵ bitterly, and since then I havemore than once observed traces of tears upon her face. Some deep sorrow gnaws⁶ ever at her heart.

　　Sometimes I wonder if she has a guilty memory which haunts her, and sometimes I suspectBarrymore of being a domestic tyrant⁷. I have always felt that there was something singular andquestionable in this man's character, but the adventure of last night brings all my suspicions to ahead.

　　白瑞摩太太引起了我的注意， 她生得胖而结实， 很拘谨， 极为可敬， 几乎是带着清教徒式的严峻， 你很难想象出一个比她更难动情感的人来了。 可是我曾告诉过你， 在我到这里来的第一天晚上， 曾听到她伤心地啜泣过， 从那以后， 我不止一次地看到她脸上带有泪痕， 深重的悲哀在噬啮着她的心。 有时我想， 是否她心中存有什么内疚； 有时我怀疑白瑞摩也许是个家庭的暴君。 我总觉得在这个人的性格里有些特别可疑之处， 可是昨晚的奇遇消除了我全部的怀疑。

　　And yet it may seem a small matter in itself. You are aware that I am not a very sound sleeper,and since I have been on guard in this house my slumbers⁸ have been lighter⁹ than ever. Last night,about two in the morning, I was aroused by a stealthy step passing my room. I rose, opened mydoor, and peeped out. A long black shadow was trailing down the corridor. It was thrown by a manwho walked softly down the passage with a candle held in his hand. He was in shirt and trousers,with no covering to his feet. I could merely see the outline, but his height told me that it wasBarrymore. He walked very slowly and circumspectly¹⁰, and there was something indescribablyguilty and furtive¹¹ in his whole appearance.

　　也许这事情本身是微不足道的。 你知道， 我是个睡觉不很沉的人， 又因为我在这所房子里时刻警醒着的缘故， 所以我的觉睡得比平常还要不踏实。 昨天晚上， 大约在午夜以后两点钟的时候， 我被屋外偷偷走过的脚步声惊醒了 。 我爬了起来， 打开我的房门， 偷偷地往外瞧，有一条长长的黑影投射在走廊的地上。那是一个手里拿着蜡烛、轻轻地沿着过道走去的身影，他穿着衬衫和长裤， 光着双脚。 我只能看到他身体的轮廓， 可是， 由他的身材可以看得出来，这人就是白瑞摩。 他走得很慢， 很谨慎， 由他的整个外表看来， 有一种难以形容的鬼鬼祟祟不可告人的样子。

 

1 forfeit   

vt.丧失；n.罚金，罚款，没收物

参考例句：

• If you continue to tell lies,you will forfeit the good opinion of everyone.你如果继续撒谎，就会失掉大家对你的好感。
• Please pay for the forfeit before you borrow book.在你借书之前请先付清罚款。

2 pacify   

vt.使(某人)平静(或息怒)；抚慰

参考例句：

• He tried to pacify the protesters with promises of reform.他试图以改革的承诺安抚抗议者。
• He tried to pacify his creditors by repaying part of the money.他为安抚债权人偿还了部分借款。

3 outfit   

n.（为特殊用途的）全套装备，全套服装

参考例句：

• Jenney bought a new outfit for her daughter's wedding.珍妮为参加女儿的婚礼买了一套新装。
• His father bought a ski outfit for him on his birthday.他父亲在他生日那天给他买了一套滑雪用具。

4 puritanical   

adj.极端拘谨的；道德严格的

参考例句：

• He has a puritanical attitude towards sex.他在性问题上主张克制，反对纵欲。
• Puritanical grandfather is very strict with his children.古板严厉的祖父对子女要求非常严格。

5 sobbing   

<主方>Ⅰ adj.湿透的

参考例句：

• I heard a child sobbing loudly. 我听见有个孩子在呜呜地哭。
• Her eyes were red with recent sobbing. 她的眼睛因刚哭过而发红。

6 gnaws   

咬( gnaw的第三人称单数 )； （长时间） 折磨某人； （使）苦恼； （长时间）危害某事物

参考例句：

• Time, whose tooth gnaws away everything else, is powerless against truth. 时间，它的利齿可咬碎万物，但对真理却无能为力。
• The water gnaws at the shoreline. 海水侵蚀海岸线。

7 tyrant   

n.暴君，专制的君主，残暴的人

参考例句：

• The country was ruled by a despotic tyrant.该国处在一个专制暴君的统治之下。
• The tyrant was deaf to the entreaties of the slaves.暴君听不到奴隶们的哀鸣。

8 slumbers   

睡眠，安眠( slumber的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His image traversed constantly her restless slumbers. 他的形象一再闯进她的脑海，弄得她不能安睡。
• My Titan brother slumbers deep inside his mountain prison. Go. 我的泰坦兄弟就被囚禁在山脉的深处。

9 lighter   

n.打火机，点火器；驳船；v.用驳船运送；light的比较级

参考例句：

• The portrait was touched up so as to make it lighter.这张画经过润色，色调明朗了一些。
• The lighter works off the car battery.引燃器利用汽车蓄电池打火。

10 circumspectly   

adv.慎重地，留心地

参考例句：

• He paid for two tickets as circumspectly as possible. 他小心翼翼地付了两张票的钱。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹

11 furtive   

adj.鬼鬼崇崇的，偷偷摸摸的

参考例句：

• The teacher was suspicious of the student's furtive behaviour during the exam.老师怀疑这个学生在考试时有偷偷摸摸的行为。
• His furtive behaviour aroused our suspicion.他鬼鬼祟祟的行为引起了我们的怀疑。