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"Well, since you ask me, I spent, as I told you that I would, some hours last night at the Manor House."
"好，既然你们问我，我不妨告诉你们。正如我对你们说过的，我昨夜在庄园里消磨了几个小时。"
"Well, what happened?"
"那么，发生了什么事？"
"Ah, I can only give you a very general answer to that for the moment.
"啊！现在我权且给你们一个非常一般的回答。
By the way, I have been reading a short but clear and interesting account of the old building, purchasable at the modest sum of one penny from the local tobacconist."
顺便说一下，我曾经读过一篇介绍资料，它简明而又有趣，是关于这座古老庄园的，这份资料只要花一个便士就可以在本地烟酒店买到。"
Here Holmes drew a small tract, embellished with a rude engraving of the ancient Manor House, from his waistcoat pocket.
福尔摩斯从背心口袋里掏出一本小册子，书皮上印有这座古老庄园的粗糙的版画。
"It immensely adds to the zest of an investigation, my dear Mr. Mac, when one is in conscious sympathy with the historical atmosphere of one's surroundings.
他又说道："我亲爱的麦克先生，当一个人在周围古老环境气氛中深受感染的时候，这本小册子对调查是很能增加情趣的。
Don't look so impatient; for I assure you that even so bald an account as this raises some sort of picture of the past in one's mind.
你们不要不耐烦，因为我可以向你们保证，即使象这样一篇简短的介绍资料，也可以使人在头脑中浮现出这座古厦的昔日情景。
Permit me to give you a sample.
请允许我给你们读上一段吧。
'Erected in the fifth year of the reign of James I, and standing upon the site of a much older building,
'伯尔斯通庄园是在詹姆士一世登基后第五年，在一些古建筑物的遗址上建造的，
the Manor House of Birlstone presents one of the finest surviving examples of the moated Jacobean residence...'"
它是残留的詹姆士一世时代有护城河的宅邸最完美的典型...'"
"You are making fools of us, Mr. Holmes!"
"福尔摩斯先生，你别捉弄我们了。"
"Tut, tut, Mr. Mac! The first sign of temper I have detected in you. Well, I won't read it verbatim, since you feel so strongly upon the subject.
"啧！啧！麦克先生！我已经看出你们有些不耐烦了。好，既然你们对这个问题不太感兴趣，我就不再逐字地念了。
But when I tell you that there is some account of the taking of the place by a parliamentary colonel in 1644, of the concealment of Charles for several days in the course of the Civil War,
不过我告诉你们，这里有一些描写，谈到1644年反对查理一世的议会党人中的一个上校取得了这块宅基；谈到在英国内战期间，查理一世本人曾在这里藏了几天；
and finally of a visit there by the second George, you will admit that there are various associations of interest connected with this ancient house."
最后谈到乔治二世也到过这里；你们会承认这里面有许多问题都与这座古老别墅有种种的关系。"
"I don't doubt it, Mr. Holmes; but that is no business of ours."
"我不怀疑这一点，福尔摩斯先生，不过这与我们的事毫无关系。"
"Is it not? Is it not? Breadth of view, my dear Mr. Mac, is one of the essentials of our profession.
"没有关系吗？是没有关系吗？我亲爱的麦克先生，干咱们这一行，一个最重要的基本功，就是眼界必须开阔。
The interplay of ideas and the oblique uses of knowledge are often of extraordinary interest.
各种概念的相互作用以及知识的间接使用始终是非常重要的。
You will excuse these remarks from one who, though a mere connoisseur of crime, is still rather older and perhaps more experienced than yourself."
请原谅，我虽然只是一个犯罪问题专家，但总比你岁数大些，也许经验多一些。"
"I'm the first to admit that," said the detective heartily. "You get to your point, I admit; but you have such a deuced round-the-corner way of doing it."
"我首先承认这一点，"麦克唐纳恳切地说道。"我承认你有你的道理，可是你做起事来未免太转弯抹角了。"
"Well, well, I'll drop past history and get down to present-day facts.
"好，好，我可以把过去的历史放下不谈，回到当前的事实上来。
I called last night, as I have already said, at the Manor House. I did not see either Barker or Mrs. Douglas.
正像我已经说过的那样，昨晚我曾经到庄园去过。我既没有见到巴克先生，也没有见到道格拉斯夫人。
I saw no necessity to disturb them; but I was pleased to hear that the lady was not visibly pining and that she had partaken of an excellent dinner.
我认为没有必要去打扰他们，不过我很高兴地听说，这个女人并没有形容憔悴的样子，而且刚吃过一顿丰盛的晚餐。
My visit was specially made to the good Mr. Ames, with whom I exchanged some amiabilities,
我专门去拜访了那位善良的艾姆斯先生，和他亲切地交谈了一阵，
which culminated in his allowing me, without reference to anyone else, to sit alone for atime in the study."
他终于答应我，让我独自在书房里呆一阵子，不让其他任何人知道。"
"What! With that?" I ejaculated.
"什么！和这个死尸在一起！"我突然喊出来。
"No, no, everything is now in order. You gave permission for that, Mr. Mac, as I am informed.
"不，不，现在一切正常。麦克先生，我听说，你已许可这么做了。
The room was in its normal state, and in it I passed an instructive quarter of an hour."
这间屋子已恢复了原状。我在里面呆了一刻钟，很有启发。"
"What were you doing?"
"你做了些什么事呢？"
"Well, not to make a mystery of so simple a matter, I was looking for the missing dumb-bell.
"噢，我并没有把这样简单的事情神秘化，我是在寻找那只丢失了的哑铃。
It has always bulked rather large in my estimate of the case. I ended by finding it."
在我对这件案子的判断中，它始终显得很重要。我终于找到了它。"
"Where?"
"在哪儿找到的？"
"Ah, there we come to the edge of the unexplored. Let me go a little further, a very little further, and I will promise that you shall share everything that I know."
"啊，咱们已经到了真相大白的边缘了，让我进一步做下去，再稍微前进一步，就能答应你们把我所知道的一切和盘托出。"
