4 The Scene of the Crime

Chapter 4 The Scene of the Crime We gathered in the old hall of Ridling Thorpe to listen to the two women tell their story. Holmes's eyes gleamed with a cold determination. I knew he would dedicate all his energies to seeking justice for the client he had failed to save. The women had been woken by the sound of a gunshot, followed a minute later by a second one. Mrs. King had rushed into Miss Saunders's room and together they had descended the stairs. The study door was open with a candle burning on the table. Their master lay face down in the

我们聚集在里脊索普的旧大厅里，听那两个女人讲述她们的故事。 福尔摩斯的眼睛里闪烁着冷酷而坚定的光芒。 我知道他会竭尽全力为他没能拯救的委托人讨回公道。 两名妇女被一声枪响惊醒，一分钟后又响起第二声枪响。 金太太冲进桑德斯小姐的房间，两人一起走下楼梯。 书房的门开着，桌上点着一支蜡烛。 他们的主人脸朝下躺在床上

middle of the room. They could tell at once he was dead. Mrs. Cubitt was crouching by the window. She had a head wound and the side of her face was red with blood. She was breathing but couldn't speak. The room was full of smoke and smelled of gunpowder. The window was shut and bolted from the inside. Both women were sure about that. They had immediately sent for the doctor and the constable. Then, with the aid of the groom and the stable boy, they had carried the mistress to her room. Neither woman had ever witnessed a quarrel between Mr. and Mrs. Cubitt. They had always

房间中间。他们一眼就看出他死了。 丘比特太太蹲在窗边。 她头部受了伤，脸的一侧被血染红了。 她还在呼吸，但不能说话。 房间里充满了烟味和火药味。 窗户关着，从里面用螺栓锁住了。 两个女人都对此深信不疑。 他们立刻派人去请了医生和警察。 然后，在马夫和马童的帮助下，他们把女主人抬进了她的房间。 两个女人都没见过丘比特夫妇吵架。 他们总是

regarded them as a very devoted couple. In answer to a question from Inspector Martin, they said that every door was locked from the inside and no one could have escaped from the house. Holmes asked them when they first smelled the gunpowder and they said they smelled it from the moment they ran out of their rooms on the top floor. "Take note of that fact," Holmes said to the inspector. Once the servants had given their evidence, we went to examine the study. It was a small room, lined on three sides with books, with a window on the fourth side looking onto the garden. The large figure of Mr. Cubitt lay sprawled across the floor. He was wearing his night clothes. The bullet had entered his heart from the front and would have killed him instantly.

认为他们是非常忠诚的一对。 在回答马丁探长提出的问题时，他们说每扇门都是从里面锁上的，没有人能从房子里逃出来。 福尔摩斯问他们第一次闻到火药味是什么时候，他们说从他们跑出顶楼房间的那一刻起就闻到了。 “请注意这一事实，”福尔摩斯对侦探说。 仆人们一作证，我们就去检查书房。 这是一个小房间，三面摆着书，第四面有一扇窗户，正对着花园。 高大的丘比特先生趴在地板上。 他穿着睡衣。 子弹从正面射入他的心脏，本来可以立即杀死他。

"Have you recovered the bullet that wounded the lady?" Holmes asked the doctor. He shook his head. "That will require a serious operation." "In that case, a third bullet was fired in this room," said Holmes. We all stared at him in surprise. "Why do you say that?" asked Inspector Martin. "The women said they heard two gunshots. One bullet hit Mr. Cubitt, the other wounded Mrs. Cubitt, and there are just two empty chambers in the revolver." With his long, thin finger, Holmes pointed to a small hole in the lower edge of the window frame.

“你找到打伤那位女士的子弹了吗？”福尔摩斯问医生。 他摇了摇头。“这将需要一次严肃的手术。” “在这种情况下，第三颗子弹是在这个房间里发射的，”福尔摩斯说。 我们都惊奇地盯着他。 “你为什么这么说？”马丁探长问。 这些妇女说她们听到了两声枪响。 一颗子弹打中了库比特先生，另一颗打伤了库比特太太，左轮手枪里只有两个空腔。” 福尔摩斯用他细长的手指指着窗框下边缘的一个小洞。

"By George!" cried the inspector. "How did you spot that?" "Because I looked for it." "You are right, sir," the constable said, bending to examine the hole. "A third shot was fired, which means a third person was present. But who? And how did he get away?" "That is the problem we must solve," said Holmes. "You remember, Inspector, the servants said they smelled gunpowder on leaving their rooms. That told me that at the time of firing, both the door and window of the study must have been open, creating a current of air. It was

“天哪！”巡查员叫道。 “你是怎么发现的？”“因为我找过了。” “你说得对，先生，”警官说着，弯下腰去检查那个洞。 “有人开了第三枪，这意味着有第三个人在场。 但是谁呢?他是怎么跑掉的？”福尔摩斯说："这是我们必须解决的问题。 “你记得吗，探长，仆人们说他们一离开房间就闻到了火药味。 这告诉我，在开枪的时候，书房的门和窗户一定是开着的，产生了一股气流。 这是

the only way the smell could have spread so rapidly through the house. However, both door and window were only open for a very short time." "How do you know that?" "Because the candle was still alight when the women came in." "Brilliant!" exclaimed Inspector Martin. "Once I knew the window had been open, I concluded that a third person was involved who stood outside and fired through it," Holmes explained. "I looked for a shot fired at this person and found the bullet hole in the..." He stopped as something else caught his eye: a lady's handbag on the study table. Holmes opened it and emptied out the contents—a wad of fifty-pound notes. "This will be important evidence in any trial," he said, handing the bag and money to the constable.

气味能在屋子里传播得这么快的唯一原因。 然而，门和窗都只开了很短的时间。” “你怎么知道的？”“因为女人们进来的时候蜡烛还亮着。” “太棒了！”马丁探长叫道。 福尔摩斯解释说：“当我知道窗户是开着的时候，我断定有第三个人站在外面，向窗户开枪。” “我在寻找朝这个人开的枪，发现了一个弹孔……” 他停了下来，因为另一件东西吸引了他的目光：书房桌上的一个女士手提包。 福尔摩斯打开它，把里面的东西倒了出来——是一叠五十英镑的钞票。 “这将是任何审判的重要证据，”他说着，把包和钱交给了警察。