12 TWO INTERESTING ENCOUNTERS

CHAPTER TWELVE TWO INTERESTING ENCOUNTERS THE MAN came into the light of the street lamp, but only for a second. Peter tried to take in everything at one glance. He suddenly thought that Janet would have been very good at that! The man went past the lamp, and into the darkness again. Couldn't see very much, really, thought Peter. He had his hat pulled so well down over his face. He seems to limp a bit. Bother, I'd never recognise him again! The man got along pretty quickly. He was

第十二章两次有趣的相遇那人走到路灯下，但只走了一秒钟。 彼得试图一眼就把一切都看清楚。 他突然想到珍妮特会很擅长这个！那人走过灯，又走进了黑暗中。 真的，看不清什么，彼得想。 他把帽子拉得很低，遮住了脸。 他似乎有点跛行。真讨厌，我再也认不出他了！这个人很快就适应了。 他是

making for the bus stop. It was easy for the boys to shadow him, because now other people were walking in the street too. 'He's making for the bus stop,' said Colin. 'We'll see which bus he catches. Shall we get on it, and look at him more carefully?' 'Yes,' said Peter, forgetting the lateness of the evening, forgetting his homework, in fact forgetting everything except for the excitement of the moment. They were on the track of a new mystery. How could anyone stop in the middle of it and go home! The man made for the second of the two buses that were standing at the stop. 'It's the bus for Pilberry,' said Peter. 'Come on, we'll get on too.' The man put out his hand to the bus-rail and swung himself up. Other people followed. The boys began to get on too, but the conductor put out his arm.

向公共汽车站走去。男孩们很容易跟着他，因为现在街上也有其他人在走。 “他要去公共汽车站，”柯林说。 “我们要看看他坐哪辆公共汽车。” 我们要不要上去，更仔细地看看他？“是的，”彼得说，他忘记了已经很晚了，忘记了他的家庭作业，事实上，除了一时的兴奋，他什么都忘记了。 他们正在探索一个新的谜团。 怎么会有人中途停下来回家呢！那人向停在车站的两辆公共汽车中的第二辆走去。 “这是去皮尔贝里的公共汽车。”彼得说。 “来吧，我们也要上去。”那人把手伸到公共汽车栏杆上，把自己荡了上去。 其他人紧随其后。男孩们也开始上车，但售票员伸出了手臂。

'Sorry,' he said. 'Full up!' He rang the bell, and the bus rumbled off. 'Bother!' said Peter, disappointed. 'We might have been able to shadow him all the way home.'

“对不起，”他说。“满了!”他按了门铃，公共汽车轰隆隆地开走了。 “麻烦!”彼得失望地说。 “我们也许可以一路跟着他回家。”

'Well, I don't expect he's anything to do with the dog affair, really,' said Colin. 'We might have gone on a real wild-goose chase, and found he was just a harmless old businessman, catching a bus home.' 'Peter! Colin! Did you notice his hand?' said Jack, in a voice suddenly bubbling with excitement. 'When he put it out to take hold of the bus-rail?' 'No. Why?' said both boys at once. 'Well, he had two fingers missing, and the hand was crooked,' said Jack. 'Don't you remember Janet's report, don't you re—?' 'Gosh, yes!' said Peter. 'That man she described getting off the train from Pilberry, at the station on Saturday morning! Hat well pulled down over his eyes, he walked a bit lame, a funny hand…' 'And very square shoulders,' said Colin. 'It all fits. He's the same man. But wait a bit, there's nothing extraordinary about us seeing

“嗯，我不指望他和狗的事有什么关系，真的。”科林说。 “我们可能是在白费力气，最后发现他只是一个没有恶意的老商人，正赶着公交车回家。”“彼得!科林!你注意到他的手了吗？杰克说，声音里突然充满了兴奋。 “当他扑灭它抓住公共汽车栏杆的时候？”“没有。 为什么?两个男孩同时说。 “嗯，他少了两根手指，手也弯了。”杰克说。 “你不记得珍妮特的报告了，是不是？”“天哪，是的！”彼得说。 “她描述的那个男人星期六早上在火车站从皮尔贝里下车！”帽子拉得很好，遮住了眼睛，走起路来有点跛，一只手很奇怪……” “都说得通。他还是那个人。 但是等一下，我们的视觉并没有什么特别之处

the same man as Janet saw, is there? I mean, it's only just chance, and doesn't mean anything.' 'No, you're right. It doesn't really mean anything,' said Jack, his excitement fading. 'It just seemed strange that's all. Perhaps we're making a mountain out of a molehill– he's just an ordinary person going home.' They turned to walk across the square again, and passed the little alley-way that led to the yard. Someone came out of it briskly, and almost bumped into them. It was too dark to see what the man was like, but he soon passed under a lamp-post, and something swinging from his hand caught Jack's eye. 'Look, a dog lead,' he said, in a low voice. 'But no dog! It's the same man who lives at Starling's Hotel.' 'The one I saw with the dog yesterday!' said Colin, excited. 'What's he doing here again?

就是珍妮特看到的那个人，是吗？ 我是说，这只是偶然，并不意味着什么。”“不，你说得对。 “这并不意味着什么。”杰克说，他的兴奋消退了。 “就是觉得很奇怪。 也许我们是小题大做——他只是一个要回家的普通人。”他们转身再次穿过广场，经过一条通向院子的小巷子。 有人轻快地走了出来，差点撞到他们。 天太黑了，看不清那个人是什么样子，但他很快就从一根灯柱下走过，他手里晃来晃去的东西引起了杰克的注意。 “看，一条狗牵着。”他低声说。 “可是没有狗！”就是住在星城酒店的那个人。“就是我昨天看见带狗的那个！”科林兴奋地说。 “他又在这儿干什么？”

Has he taken another dog into that yard and pushed it down the coal-hole? Gosh! This is all very peculiar, isn't it? What is going on?' They went on, keeping well behind the young man. He went round a corner, and vanished from sight. The boys went round the corner too, and then got a sudden shock. The young man came out from a doorway as they passed and caught hold of Colin and Peter by the shoulder. He flashed a torch in their faces. 'Ha– it's you three, is it?' he said. 'Members of the famous Secret Shadowing Gang, or whatever you call yourselves! I thought you were following me! Look here, I took that fourth boy, what's his name, George, to his parents, and got him punished for this idiotic following of people at night. And I've a good mind to take you to the police, the three of you, and hand you over for making yourselves a nuisance by doing the same thing!'

他是不是又带了一条狗进院子，把它推到煤洞里去了？ 天啊!这一切都很奇怪，不是吗？ 发生了什么事？”他们继续往前走，紧紧跟在那个年轻人后面。 他拐了个弯，就不见了。 两个男孩也走到拐角处，突然吓了一跳。 他们经过的时候，年轻人从门口走出来，抓住科林和彼得的肩膀。 他用手电筒照他们的脸。 “哈——是你们三个，是吗？”他说。 “著名的秘密影子帮的成员，或者随便你们怎么称呼自己！”我以为你在跟踪我！听着，我把第四个男孩，叫什么名字，乔治，带到他父母那里，让他因为在晚上愚蠢地跟着人而受到惩罚。 我真想把你们三个带到警察局去，把你们交给警察，因为你们干了同样的事，让人讨厌！”