1 A Child’s Drawing

ThE DancinG MEN

跳舞的男人

Chapter 1 A Child's Drawing It was late one morning toward the end of July 1898, and I was seated in our sitting room at 221B Baker Street deep in thought. My friend and roommate, the famous detective Sherlock Holmes, was at his experimenting table in the corner, studying some green, foul-smelling substance in a test-tube. "So, Watson," he said suddenly, "you do not plan to put your money into that South African

1898年7月底的一个早晨，我坐在贝克街221B号的客厅里陷入了沉思。 我的朋友兼室友，著名侦探夏洛克·福尔摩斯，正坐在角落里的实验桌旁，在试管里研究一种绿色的、散发恶臭的物质。 “这么说，华生，”他突然说道，“你不打算把你的钱投给那个南非人了

gold mine." I gave a start of astonishment. I knew of my friend's ability to make logical leaps, but I had no idea his talents extended to mind reading. "How on earth did you know that?" I asked. He placed his test-tube on the rack and turned on his stool to face me. "Admit you're amazed," he said. "I admit it." "Good," he smiled, "because in five minutes you'll tell me it was all absurdly simple. I work, Watson, by building a chain of small deductions, each one simple by itself. Then, by jumping to the end, I reach a conclusion that can seem startling. It was by studying the groove between your left forefinger and thumb that I knew you had decided against investing in South African gold." "I don't see the connection," I said, gazing at that part of my hand and shaking my head in confusion. "Then I will show you my chain of observations and deductions," said Holmes. "One: you had chalk between your left finger and

金矿。”我吓了一跳。 我知道我的朋友有逻辑跳跃的能力，但我不知道他的才能延伸到读心术。 “你到底是怎么知道的？”我问。 他把试管放在架子上，在凳子上转过身来面对我。 “承认你很惊讶，”他说。 “我承认。”“很好，”他笑着说，“因为五分钟后你会告诉我这一切简单得荒唐。 我的工作，华生，是通过建立一个小的推理链，每一个都很简单。 然后，跳到最后，我得出了一个似乎令人吃惊的结论。 正是通过研究你左手食指和拇指之间的凹槽，我才知道你决定不投资南非的黄金。” “我看不出有什么联系，”我说，盯着我手的那部分，困惑地摇着头。 “那么我将向您展示我一连串的观察和推论，”福尔摩斯说道。 “第一，你的左手手指夹着粉笔

thumb when you returned from your club last night. Two: you put chalk there when you play billiards to steady the cue. Three: you never play billiards except with Thurston. Four: you told me four weeks ago that Thurston had asked if you wanted to join him in buying shares in a South African gold mine and had given you a month to decide. Five: your accounts book is locked in my drawer and you haven't asked for the key. Six: you've decided not to invest." "How absurdly simple!" I cried.

当你昨晚从俱乐部回来的时候。 二：你打台球的时候把粉笔放在那里，使球杆稳定。 三，除了和瑟斯顿，你从来不打台球。 第四，你四周前告诉我，瑟斯顿问你是否愿意和他一起购买一家南非金矿的股票，并给了你一个月的时间来决定。 五：你的账簿锁在我的抽屉里，你还没有要钥匙。 第六：你已经决定不投资了。” “简单得荒唐！”我哭了。

"Quite so," sighed Holmes. "Every problem becomes absurdly simple once you have to explain it. Now here's one I can't explain. What do you make of this, Watson?" He tossed a piece of paper onto the coffee table and returned his attention to his test-tube. I frowned at the paper, which had been torn from a notebook. It showed a line of little stick men in various poses. "Why, it's just a child's drawing," I said. "Oh, do you think so?" "What else could it be?" "That is what the man who sent it to me is anxious to know," said Holmes. "He is Mr. Hilton Cubitt of Ridling Thorpe Manor in Norfolk. It arrived in this morning's post, and he promised to arrive himself by the next train... Ah, there's the doorbell now. I wouldn't be surprised if that was him."

福尔摩斯叹了口气说："的确如此。 “一旦你不得不解释，每个问题都会变得简单得荒谬。 现在有一个我无法解释。 华生，你对此有什么看法呢？”他把一张纸扔到咖啡桌上，又把注意力集中到他的试管上。 我皱起眉头看着那张从笔记本上撕下来的纸。 它展示了一排姿势各异的小木棍人。 “哎，这只是孩子的画，”我说。 “哦，你这么认为吗？”“还能是什么呢？”福尔摩斯说道：“这正是寄信给我的人急于想知道的。” “他是诺福克郡里德林索普庄园的希尔顿·丘比特先生。 信是今天上午寄来的，他答应自己乘下一班火车到达…… 啊，门铃响了。 如果是他，我不会感到惊讶。”

There was a heavy step on the stairs, and a moment later a tall, pink-cheeked gentleman with earnest blue eyes entered the room. After shaking our hands, he noticed the paper on the table. "What do you think, Mr. Holmes?" he asked. "I've heard you're fond of peculiar mysteries, and I can't think of one more peculiar than that." "At first sight," said Holmes, "it strikes me as a childish prank. What I don't understand is why you're so worried about it." "I wouldn't be," said Cubitt, "only I've seen its effect on my wife. It's frightening her half to

楼梯上响起了沉重的脚步声，过了一会儿，一位身材高大、脸颊红润、蓝眼睛真挚的绅士走了进来。 和我们握手之后，他注意到桌子上的那张纸。 “福尔摩斯先生，你觉得怎么样？”他问道。 “我听说你喜欢奇特的神秘故事，我想不出比这更奇特的了。” “乍一看，”福尔摩斯说道，“我觉得这是一个孩子气的恶作剧。 我不明白的是你为什么这么担心。” “我不会的，”丘比特说，“只是我看到了它对我妻子的影响。 这把她吓得半死