福尔摩斯探案经典:《恐怖谷》第10章Part9
日期:2014-04-28 10:43

(单词翻译:单击)

英文原版

"Half a dozen, and two to guard the door. You'll come, Gower, and you, Mansel, and you, Scanlan, and the two Willabys."
"I promised the new brother he should go," said the chairman.
Ted Baldwin looked at McMurdo with eyes which showed that he had not forgotten nor forgiven. "Well, he can come if he wants," he said in a surly voice. "That's enough. The sooner we get to work the better."
The company broke up with shouts and yells and snatches of drunken song. The bar was still crowded with revellers, and many of the brethren remained there. The little band who had been told off for duty passed out into the street, proceeding in twos and threes along the sidewalk so as not to provoke attention. It was a bitterly cold night, with a half-moon shining brilliantly in a frosty, star-spangled sky. The men stopped and gathered in a yard which faced a high building. The words, "Vermissa Herald" were printed in gold lettering between the brightly lit windows. From within came the clanking of the printing press.
"Here, you," said Baldwin to McMurdo, "you can stand below at the door and see that the road is kept open for us. Arthur Willaby can stay with you. You others come with me. Have no fears, boys; for we have a dozen witnesses that we are in the Union Bar at this very moment."
It was nearly midnight, and the street was deserted save for one or two revellers upon their way home. The party crossed the road, and, pushing open the door of the newspaper office, Baldwin and his men rushed in and up the stair which faced them. McMurdo and another remained below. From the room above came a shout, a cry for help, and then the sound of trampling feet and of falling chairs. An instant later a gray-haired man rushed out on the landing. He was seized before he could get farther, and his spectacles came tinkling down to McMurdo's feet. There was a thud and a groan. He was on his face, and half a dozen sticks were clattering together as they fell upon him. He writhed, and his long, thin limbs quivered under the blows. The others ceased at last; but Baldwin, his cruel face set in an infernal smile, was hacking at the man's head, which he vainly endeavoured to defend with his arms. His white hair was dabbled with patches of blood. Baldwin was still stooping over his victim, putting in a short, vicious blow whenever he could see a part exposed, when McMurdo dashed up the stair and pushed him back.
"You'll kill the man," said he. "Drop it!"
Baldwin looked at him in amazement. "Curse you!" he cried. "Who are you to interfere--you that are new to the lodge? Stand back!" He raised his stick; but McMurdo had whipped his pistol out of his pocket.
"Stand back yourself!" he cried. "I'll blow your face in if you lay a hand on me. As to the lodge, wasn't it the order of the Bodymaster that the man was not to be killed--and what are you doing but killing him?"
"It's truth he says," remarked one of the men.
"By Gar! you'd best hurry yourselves!" cried the man below. "The windows are all lighting up, and you'll have the whole town here inside of five minutes."
There was indeed the sound of shouting in the street, and a little group of compositors and pressmen was forming in the hall below and nerving itself to action. Leaving the limp and motionless body of the editor at the head of the stair, the criminals rushed down and made their way swiftly along the street. Having reached the Union House, some of them mixed with the crowd in McGinty's saloon, whispering across the bar to the Boss that the job had been well carried through. Others, and among them McMurdo, broke away into side streets, and so by devious paths to their own homes.
“六个就够了,用两个人守门。高尔,你去;曼塞尔,还有你;斯坎伦,还有你;还有威拉比兄弟二人。”
“我允许这位新来的弟兄一同去,"麦金蒂说道。
特德·鲍德温望着麦克默多,从他的眼色可以看出,他既没有忘却前隙,也不肯宽恕。“行,如果他愿意,他可以去,"鲍德温粗暴无礼地说道,“够了。我们动手越快越好。”
这七个人有的吵嚷着,喊叫着,有的醉醺醺地哼着小调离了席。酒吧间里依然挤满欢宴的人,许多弟兄还留在那儿。这一小伙奉命执行任务的人走到街上,两三个一伙沿人行道行进,以免引人注意。这天夜晚,天气异常严寒,星光灿烂,一弦弯月高悬冷空。这些人走到一座高楼前停下来,聚集在院子里。明亮的玻璃窗户中间印着金色大字"维尔米萨先驱报社"。从里面传来印刷机的响声。
“你在这里,"鲍德温对麦克默多说道,“你可站在楼下面,守住大门,使我们退路畅通。阿瑟·威拉比和你在一起。其余的人随我来。弟兄们,不要怕,因为我们有十几个证人,可以证明我们此时是在工会的酒吧间里呢。”
这时将近午夜时分,街上除了一两个返家醉汉外,别无行人。这一伙人穿过大街,推开报社大门,鲍德温一行人冲进去,跑上对面的楼梯。麦克默多和另一个人留在楼下。从楼上的房间里传来呼救声,然后是脚步践踏声、椅子翻倒声。过了一会儿,一个鬓发灰白的人跑到楼梯平台上来。可是没跑几步,就被抓住,他的眼镜叮当一声落在麦克默多脚旁。只听砰的响了一下,接着是一阵呻吟声。这人面朝下倒在那里,几根棍棒一起向他身上噼噼啪啪地打来。他翻滚抽搐着,瘦长的四肢在打击下颤抖不已。别人都停手了,可是鲍德温凶残的脸依然狞笑不止,手中的棍棒向老人头上乱砍,老人徒然努力用双手护住头,但他的白发已经被血浸湿了。鲍德温还在找被害人双手护不着的地方乱打一阵。这时麦克默多跑上楼来,把他推开。
“你要把这个人打死的,"麦克默多说道,“住手!”
鲍德温惊讶地望着他。“该死的!"鲍德温喊道,“你是谁,敢来干涉我?你这个新入会的人吗?靠后站!"他举起了棍棒,可是麦克默多从裤子后兜中抽出手枪来。
“你自己靠后站!"麦克默多高喊道,“你敢碰我一下,我就立刻开枪。身主不是有命令吩咐不要杀死这个人么,你这不是要杀死他是什么?”
“他说得不错,"其中有一个人说道。
“哎呀,你们最好快点吧!"楼下的那个人喊道,“各家窗户里都亮了灯,过不了五分钟,全镇的人都要来追捕你们了。”
这时街上果然有人喊叫,一些排字印刷工人聚集到楼下大厅里,鼓起勇气准备行动。那些罪犯便丢下这个编辑僵卧的身体,窜下楼来,飞快沿街而逃。跑到工会大厅以后,一些人混到麦金蒂酒馆的人群中,低声向首领报告,事情已经完全得手。另一些人,其中也有麦克默多,奔到街上,从偏僻的小路各回各家去了。

背景阅读



作者简介:

亚瑟·柯南·道尔(1859——1930)英国杰出的侦探小说家、剧作家。生于苏格兰爱丁堡,父亲是一位政府建工部的公务员。柯南·道尔自幼喜欢文学,中学时任校刊主编。毕业于爱丁堡医科大学,行医10余年,收入仅能维持生活。后专写侦探小说。《血字的研究》几经退稿才发表,以《四签名》闻名于世。1891年弃医从文,遂成侦探小说家。代表作有《波西米亚丑闻》《红发会》、《五个橘核》等。1894年决定停止写侦探小说,在《最后一案》中让福尔摩斯在激流中死去。不料广大读者对此极端愤慨,提出抗议。柯南道尔只得在《空屋》中让福尔摩斯死里逃生,又写出《巴斯克维尔的猎犬》、《恐怖谷》等侦探小说。塑造的福尔摩斯已成为世界上家喻户晓的人物。就连福尔摩斯的办公地点——伦敦贝克街221号B也成了旅游景点。

导言:

《百年孤独》内容复杂,人物众多,情节离奇,手法新颖。马尔克斯在书中溶汇了南美洲特有的五彩缤纷的文化。他通过描写小镇马孔多的产生、兴盛到衰落、消亡,表现了拉丁美洲令人惊异的疯狂历史。小说以“汇集了不可思议的奇迹和最纯粹的现实生活”荣获1982年诺贝尔文学奖。

伯尔斯通庄园的主人不幸惨遭杀害,死状奇惨无比,头颅几乎被枪击得粉碎,四周血肉模糊,惨不忍睹!尸体旁边留有卡片,上面潦草地写着“V.V.341”的字样。这令案子更为扑朔迷离:这张卡片难道是凶手留下来的吗?它代表什么意义?“恐怖谷”曾令道格拉斯惴惴不安。“恐怖谷”究竟是个怎样的地方?道格拉斯的死与“恐怖谷 ”又有什么关系?
福尔摩斯,侦探的代名词;没有他,就没有侦探文学和侦探文化——新星出版社倾力打造《福尔摩斯探案全集(图注本)》,根据公认最权威英译本重新翻译,配以五百幅原版配图、两千余条专业学者注释、五十余篇延伸阅读、六十篇注释笔记,为中国福迷铸就世界上最权威、最经典的福尔摩斯探案全录。
阿瑟·柯南·道尔(Arthur Conan Doyle,1859—1930),英国著名侦探小说家、剧作家,现代侦探小说的奠基人之一,被誉为“英国侦探小说之父”。

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重点单词
  • brilliantlyadv. 辉煌地,光亮地,灿烂地
  • defendv. 防护,辩护,防守
  • provokevt. 激怒,惹起,驱使
  • swiftlyadv. 迅速地,敏捷地
  • fell动词fall的过去式 n. 兽皮 vt. 砍伐,击倒 a
  • cursen. 诅咒,咒骂,祸端 vt. 咒骂,诅咒,使受罪 vi
  • desertedadj. 废弃的,荒芜的,被遗弃的 动词desert的过
  • bandn. 带,箍,波段 n. 队,一群,乐队 v. 绑扎 v
  • sidewalkn. 人行道 =pavement(英)
  • minutesn. 会议记录,(复数)分钟