The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes | Progressive Translation Books for Italian A1 Learners

The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes | Progressive Translation Books for Italian A1 Learners

Unlock the potential of this modern translation approach, designed to enhance your language learning experience. By allowing you to choose your difficulty level, it guarantees a personalized challenge that's suited to your progress. This method promotes comprehension by encouraging you to infer the meaning of new words from context, rather than relying heavily on direct translations. Though some translations are obscured to stimulate guessing, it's perfectly fine to consult a dictionary when needed. This technique combines challenge and support, making language learning fun and effective. Explore these translated classics to enjoy literature while advancing your language skills.

I.ASCANDALINBOHEMIA
I.
ToSherlockHolmessheis
sempre
always
thewoman.
Ihaveseldom
sentito
heard
himmentionherunderany
altro
other
name.
Inhiseyessheeclipses
e
and
predominatesthewholeofher
sesso
sex
.
Itwasnotthathe
sentisse
felt
anyemotionakintoloveforIreneAdler.
Tutte
All
emotions,andthatoneparticularly,wereabhorrenttohiscold,precise
ma
but
admirablybalancedmind.
Hewas,Itakeit,the
più
most
perfectreasoningandobservingmachine
che
that
theworldhasseen,
ma
but
asaloverhewould
abbia
have
placedhimselfinafalseposition.
Henever
parlava
spoke
ofthesofterpassions,savewith
una
a
gibeandasneer.
Theywereadmirablethingsfor
il
the
observer—excellentfordrawingtheveilfrommen’smotives
e
and
actions.
Butforthetrainedreasonertoadmitsuchintrusionsintohisowndelicate
e
and
finelyadjustedtemperamentwastointroduce
un
a
distractingfactorwhichmightthrow
un
a
doubtuponallhismentalresults.
Gritinasensitiveinstrument,
o
or
acrackinoneofhisownhigh-powerlenses,
sarebbero
would
notbemoredisturbingthanastrongemotioninanaturesuchashis.
E
And
yettherewasbut
una
one
womantohim,andthat
donna
woman
wasthelateIreneAdler,ofdubious
e
and
questionablememory.
Ihad
visto
seen
littleofHolmeslately.
Mymarriage
aveva
had
driftedusawayfromeachother.
My
proprio
own
completehappiness,andthehome-centredinterestswhichriseup
attorno
around
themanwhofirstfindshimself
padrone
master
ofhisownestablishment,weresufficienttoabsorballmyattention,
mentre
while
Holmes,wholoathedeveryformofsocietywithhiswholeBohemiansoul,remainedinourlodgingsinBakerStreet,buriedamonghisoldbooks,
e
and
alternatingfromweekto
settimana
week
betweencocaineandambition,thedrowsinessofthedrug,
e
and
thefierceenergyofhis
proprio
own
keennature.
Hewas
ancora
still
,asever,deeplyattractedby
le
the
studyofcrime,andoccupiedhisimmensefaculties
e
and
extraordinarypowersofobservationin
seguire
following
outthoseclues,andclearingupthosemysteries
che
which
hadbeenabandonedashopelessby
le
the
officialpolice.
FromtimetotimeI
sentivo
heard
somevagueaccountofhisdoings:
ofhissummonstoOdessain
la
the
caseoftheTrepoffmurder,ofhisclearingupof
la
the
singulartragedyoftheAtkinsonbrothersatTrincomalee,
e
and
finallyofthemission
che
which
hehadaccomplishedsodelicately
e
and
successfullyforthereigning
famiglia
family
ofHolland.
Beyondthesesignsofhisactivity,however,
che
which
Imerelysharedwith
tutti
all
thereadersofthedailypress,I
sapevo
knew
littleofmyformer
amico
friend
andcompanion.
Onenight—itwasonthetwentiethofMarch,1888—Iwasreturningfromajourneytoapatient(forIhad
ora
now
returnedtocivilpractice),
quando
when
mywayledme
attraverso
through
BakerStreet.
AsIpassedthewell-remembered
porta
door
,whichmustalwaysbeassociatedinmy
mente
mind
withmywooing,andwiththedarkincidentsoftheStudyinScarlet,Iwasseizedwith
un
a
keendesiretoseeHolmes
di nuovo
again
,andtoknowhowhewasemployinghisextraordinarypowers.
Hisroomswerebrilliantly
illuminate
lit
,and,evenasIlookedup,I
visto
saw
histall,sparefigurepasstwicein
una
a
darksilhouetteagainsttheblind.
Hewaspacingtheroomswiftly,eagerly,
di
with
hisheadsunkuponhischest
e
and
hishandsclaspedbehindhim.
To
me
me
,whoknewhiseverymood
e
and
habit,hisattitudeandmanner
raccontavano
told
theirownstory.
Hewasat
lavoro
work
again.
Hehadrisenoutofhisdrug-createddreamsandwas
caldo
hot
uponthescentofsome
nuovo
new
problem.
Irangthebellandwasshownupto
la
the
chamberwhichhadformerlybeenin
parte
part
myown.
Hismannerwasnoteffusive.
Itseldomwas;
ma
but
hewasglad,Ithink,toseeme.
Withhardlya
parola
word
spoken,butwithakindlyeye,hewavedmetoanarmchair,threwacrosshis
caso
case
ofcigars,andindicatedaspirit
caso
case
andagasogenein
la
the
corner.
Thenhestoodbeforethe
fuoco
fire
andlookedmeoverinhissingularintrospectivefashion.
“Wedlocksuitsyou,”heremarked.
“Ithink,Watson,
che
that
youhaveputonseven
e
and
ahalfpoundssinceIsawyou.”
“Seven!”
I
risposto
answered
.
“Indeed,Ishouldhavethought
un
a
littlemore.
Justatriflemore,Ifancy,Watson.
E
And
inpracticeagain,Iobserve.
Youdidnot
detto
tell
methatyouintendedtogointoharness.”
“Then,
come
how
doyouknow?”
“I
visto
see
it,Ideduceit.
Come
How
doIknowthatyou
hai
have
beengettingyourselfverywetlately,
e
and
thatyouhaveamostclumsy
e
and
carelessservantgirl?”
“My
caro
dear
Holmes,”saidI,“thisistoomuch.
Youwouldcertainly
avessi
have
beenburned,hadyou
vissuto
lived
afewcenturiesago.
Itis
vero
true
thatIhada
campagna
country
walkonThursdayandcame
casa
home
inadreadfulmess,
ma
but
asIhavechangedmyclothesIcan’timaginehowyoudeduceit.
AstoMaryJane,sheisincorrigible,
e
and
mywifehasgivenhernotice,
ma
but
there,again,Ifailto
vedere
see
howyouworkitout.”
Hechuckledtohimself
e
and
rubbedhislong,nervoushands
insieme
together
.
“Itissimplicityitself,”
disse
said
he;
“myeyestellme
che
that
ontheinsideofyourleftshoe,
proprio
just
wherethefirelightstrikesit,theleatherisscoredby
sei
six
almostparallelcuts.
Obviouslythey
ha
have
beencausedbysomeone
che
who
hasverycarelesslyscrapedroundtheedgesofthesoleinordertoremovecrustedmudfromit.
Hence,you
vedi
see
,mydoubledeductionthatyou
avessi
had
beenoutinvileweather,
e
and
thatyouhadaparticularlymalignantboot-slittingspecimenof
la
the
Londonslavey.
Astoyourpractice,
se
if
agentlemanwalksintomyroomssmellingofiodoform,witha
nero
black
markofnitrateofsilveruponhis
destro
right
forefinger,andabulgeonthe
destro
right
sideofhistop-hatto
mostrare
show
wherehehassecretedhisstethoscope,I
devo
must
bedull,indeed,ifIdonotpronouncehimtobeanactivememberofthemedicalprofession.”
Icouldnothelplaughingat
il
the
easewithwhichheexplainedhisprocessofdeduction.
“WhenI
sento
hear
yougiveyourreasons,”Iremarked,“the
cosa
thing
alwaysappearstometobesoridiculouslysimple
che
that
Icouldeasilydoitmyself,
anche se
though
ateachsuccessiveinstanceofyourreasoningIambaffleduntilyouexplainyourprocess.
AndyetI
credo
believe
thatmyeyesareasgoodasyours.”
“Quiteso,”he
rispose
answered
,lightingacigarette,andthrowinghimself
giù
down
intoanarmchair.
“You
vedi
see
,butyoudonotobserve.
La
The
distinctionisclear.
Forexample,you
avete
have
frequentlyseenthesteps
che
which
leadupfromthehallto
questa
this
room.”
“Frequently.”
“Howoften?”
“Well,somehundredsoftimes.”
“Thenhowmanyarethere?”
“Howmany?
Idon’tknow.”
“Quiteso!
Youhavenotobserved.
Andyetyouhave
visto
seen
.
Thatisjustmy
punto
point
.
Now,Iknowthat
ci
there
areseventeensteps,becauseI
ho
have
bothseenandobserved.
Bytheway,sinceyouareinterestedintheselittleproblems,
e
and
sinceyouaregood
abbastanza
enough
tochronicleoneor
due
two
ofmytriflingexperiences,youmaybeinterestedinthis.”
Hethrew
su
over
asheetofthick,pink-tintednotepaper
che
which
hadbeenlyingopenuponthetable.
“Itcamebythelastpost,”
detto
said
he.
“Readitaloud.”
Il
The
notewasundated,and
senza
without
eithersignatureoraddress.
“Therewill
chiamerà
call
uponyouto-night,ataquartertoeighto’clock,”it
disse
said
,“agentlemanwhodesirestoconsultyouupona
questione
matter
oftheverydeepest
momento
moment
.
Yourrecentservicestooneof
i
the
royalhousesofEurope
hanno
have
shownthatyouareonewhomaysafelybe
fidare
trusted
withmatterswhichareofanimportancewhichcanhardlybeexaggerated.
Questo
This
accountofyouwehavefrom
tutte
all
quartersreceived.
Beinyourchamberthenatthathour,
e
and
donottakeitamiss
se
if
yourvisitorwearamask.”
“Thisisindeed
un
a
mystery,”Iremarked.
“Whatdoyouimagine
che
that
itmeans?”
“Ihave
non
no
datayet.
Itisacapitalmistaketotheorisebeforeone
avere
has
data.
Insensiblyonebeginstotwistfactstosuittheories,insteadoftheoriestosuitfacts.
Ma
But
thenoteitself.
Whatdoyoudeducefromit?”
Icarefullyexaminedthe
scritto
writing
,andthepaperupon
cui
which
itwaswritten.
“Theman
che
who
wroteitwaspresumablywelltodo,”Iremarked,endeavouringtoimitatemycompanion’sprocesses.
“Suchpapercouldnotbeboughtunderhalfacrownapacket.
Itispeculiarlystrong
e
and
stiff.”
“Peculiar—thatistheveryword,”
disse
said
Holmes.
“Itisnot
un
an
Englishpaperatall.
Holdituptothelight.”
I
fatto
did
so,andsawalarge“E”with
una
a
small“g,”a“P,”
e
and
alarge“G”with
una
a
small“t”wovenintothetextureofthepaper.
“Whatdoyoumakeofthat?”
chiesto
asked
Holmes.
“Thenameof
il
the
maker,nodoubt;
orhismonogram,rather.”
“Notatall.
The‘G’withthesmall‘t’
sta
stands
for‘Gesellschaft,’whichistheGermanfor‘Company.’Itisacustomarycontraction
come
like
our‘Co.’‘P,’ofcourse,
sta
stands
for‘Papier.’Nowforthe‘Eg.’LetusglanceatourContinentalGazetteer.”
Hetook
giù
down
aheavybrownvolumefromhisshelves.
“Eglow,Eglonitz—hereweare,Egria.
Itisin
un
a
German-speakingcountry—inBohemia,not
lontano
far
fromCarlsbad.
‘Remarkableasbeingthesceneofthe
morte
death
ofWallenstein,andforitsnumerousglass-factories
e
and
paper-mills.’Ha,ha,my
ragazzo
boy
,whatdoyoumakeofthat?”
Hiseyessparkled,
e
and
hesentupa
grande
great
bluetriumphantcloudfromhiscigarette.
“Thepaperwas
fatto
made
inBohemia,”Isaid.
“Precisely.
E
And
themanwhowrote
il
the
noteisaGerman.
Doyounotethepeculiarconstructionofthesentence—‘Thisaccountofyouwe
avrebbero
have
fromallquartersreceived.’
Un
A
FrenchmanorRussiancouldnot
avrebbero
have
writtenthat.
ItistheGerman
che
who
issouncourteoustohisverbs.
It
solo
only
remains,therefore,todiscoverwhatiswantedby
questo
this
GermanwhowritesuponBohemianpaper
e
and
preferswearingamaskto
mostrare
showing
hisface.
Andherehecomes,
se
if
Iamnotmistaken,toresolve
tutti
all
ourdoubts.”
Ashe
parlava
spoke
therewasthesharp
suono
sound
ofhorses’hoofsandgratingwheels
contro
against
thecurb,followedby
un
a
sharppullatthebell.
Holmeswhistled.
“Apair,bythesound,”
disse
said
he.
“Yes,”hecontinued,glancing
fuori
out
ofthewindow.
“Anice
piccolo
little
broughamandapairofbeauties.
Ahundredandfiftyguineasapiece.
There’s
soldi
money
inthiscase,Watson,
se
if
thereisnothingelse.”
“Ithink
che
that
Ihadbettergo,Holmes.”
“Notabit,
Dottore
Doctor
.
Staywhereyouare.
Iamlost
senza
without
myBoswell.
Andthis
promette
promises
tobeinteresting.
It
sarebbe
would
beapitytomissit.”
“Butyourclient—”.
“Nevermind
lui
him
.
Imaywantyour
aiuto
help
,andsomayhe.
Herehecomes.
Sieda
Sit
downinthatarmchair,
Dottore
Doctor
,andgiveusyour
migliore
best
attention.”
Aslowandheavystep,
che
which
hadbeenhearduponthestairs
e
and
inthepassage,pausedimmediately
fuori
outside
thedoor.
Thentherewas
un
a
loudandauthoritativetap.
“Comein!”
detto
said
Holmes.
Amanenteredwhocouldhardlyhavebeenlessthan
sei
six
feetsixinchesinheight,with
il
the
chestandlimbsof
un
a
Hercules.
Hisdresswasrichwith
una
a
richnesswhichwould,inEngland,belookeduponasakinto
cattivo
bad
taste.
Heavybandsofastrakhanwereslashedacross
il
the
sleevesandfrontsofhisdouble-breastedcoat,
mentre
while
thedeepbluecloak
che
which
wasthrownoverhisshoulderswaslinedwithflame-colouredsilk
e
and
securedattheneckwithabrooch
che
which
consistedofasingleflamingberyl.
Boots
che
which
extendedhalfwayuphiscalves,
e
and
whichweretrimmedat
il
the
topswithrichbrownfur,completed
il
the
impressionofbarbaricopulence
che
which
wassuggestedbyhiswholeappearance.
Hecarriedabroad-brimmedhatinhis
mano
hand
,whileheworeacrosstheupper
parte
part
ofhisface,extendingdownpastthecheekbones,a
nero
black
vizardmask,whichhe
aveva
had
apparentlyadjustedthatvery
momento
moment
,forhishandwas
ancora
still
raisedtoitasheentered.
Fromthelower
parte
part
ofthefaceheappearedtobe
un
a
manofstrongcharacter,with
un
a
thick,hanginglip,and
un
a
long,straightchinsuggestiveofresolutionpushedtothelengthofobstinacy.
“You
avevi
had
mynote?”
heaskedwithadeepharshvoice
e
and
astronglymarkedGermanaccent.
“I
detto
told
youthatIwouldcall.”
He
guardato
looked
fromonetotheotherofus,as
se
if
uncertainwhichtoaddress.
“Praytakeaseat,”
disse
said
Holmes.
“Thisismy
amico
friend
andcolleague,Dr.Watson,
che
who
isoccasionallygoodenoughtohelpmeinmycases.
Whom
ho
have
Ithehonourtoaddress?”
“YoumayaddressmeastheCountVonKramm,
un
a
Bohemiannobleman.
Iunderstand
che
that
thisgentleman,yourfriend,isa
uomo
man
ofhonouranddiscretion,whomImaytrustwitha
questione
matter
ofthemostextremeimportance.
Ifnot,Ishouldmuchprefertocommunicatewithyoualone.”
Iroseto
andare
go
,butHolmescaughtmeby
il
the
wristandpushedmebackintomychair.
“Itis
entrambe
both
,ornone,”saidhe.
“Youmay
dire
say
beforethisgentlemananything
che
which
youmaysaytome.”
TheCountshruggedhisbroadshoulders.
“ThenI
devo
must
begin,”saidhe,“bybindingyou
entrambi
both
toabsolutesecrecyfor
due
two
years;
attheendofthattime
la
the
matterwillbeof
non
no
importance.
Atpresentitisnottoomuchto
dire
say
thatitisof
tale
such
weightitmayhave
un
an
influenceuponEuropeanhistory.”
“Ipromise,”
disse
said
Holmes.
“AndI.”
“Youwillexcuse
questa
this
mask,”continuedourstrangevisitor.
“Theaugustpersonwhoemploysme
desidera
wishes
hisagenttobeunknowntoyou,
e
and
Imayconfessatoncethat
il
the
titlebywhichIhave
appena
just
calledmyselfisnot
esattamente
exactly
myown.”
“Iwasawareofit,”
disse
said
Holmesdryly.
“Thecircumstancesareof
grande
great
delicacy,andeveryprecautionhastobetakentoquenchwhat
potrebbe
might
growtobeanimmensescandal
e
and
seriouslycompromiseoneof
le
the
reigningfamiliesofEurope.
To
parlare
speak
plainly,thematterimplicates
la
the
greatHouseofOrmstein,hereditarykingsofBohemia.”
“Iwasalsoawareofthat,”murmuredHolmes,settlinghimselfdowninhisarmchair
e
and
closinghiseyes.
Ourvisitorglancedwithsomeapparentsurpriseatthelanguid,loungingfigureoftheman
che
who
hadbeennodoubtdepictedtohimasthe
più
most
incisivereasonerandmostenergeticagentinEurope.
Holmesslowlyreopenedhiseyes
e
and
lookedimpatientlyathisgiganticclient.
“IfyourMajesty
vuole
would
condescendtostateyourcase,”heremarked,“Ishouldbe
meglio
better
abletoadviseyou.”
La
The
mansprangfromhischair
e
and
pacedupanddown
la
the
roominuncontrollableagitation.
Then,with
un
a
gestureofdesperation,hetorethemaskfromhis
viso
face
andhurleditupontheground.
“Youareright,”hecried;
“Iam
il
the
King.
WhyshouldIattempttoconcealit?”
“Why,indeed?”
murmuredHolmes.
“YourMajesty
aveva
had
notspokenbeforeIwasaware
che
that
IwasaddressingWilhelmGottsreichSigismondvonOrmstein,GrandDukeofCassel-Felstein,
e
and
hereditaryKingofBohemia.”
“Butyoucanunderstand,”
disse
said
ourstrangevisitor,sittingdown
volta
once
moreandpassinghis
mano
hand
overhishighwhiteforehead,“youcan
capire
understand
thatIamnotaccustomedto
fare
doing
suchbusinessinmyownperson.
Yetthe
questione
matter
wassodelicatethatIcouldnotconfideitto
un
an
agentwithoutputtingmyselfinhispower.
Ihave
venuto
come
incognitofromPragueforthepurposeofconsultingyou.”
“Then,prayconsult,”
detto
said
Holmes,shuttinghiseyes
volta
once
more.
“Thefactsarebrieflythese:
Some
cinque
five
yearsago,duringalengthyvisittoWarsaw,I
fa
made
theacquaintanceofthewell-knownadventuress,IreneAdler.
Il
The
nameisnodoubtfamiliartoyou.”
“Kindly
cerchi
look
herupinmyindex,Doctor,”murmuredHolmes
senza
without
openinghiseyes.
For
molti
many
yearshehadadoptedasystemofdocketing
tutti
all
paragraphsconcerningmenandthings,sothatitwasdifficulttonameasubject
o
or
apersononwhichhecouldnotatoncefurnishinformation.
In
questo
this
caseIfoundherbiographysandwichedin
tra
between
thatofaHebrewrabbi
e
and
thatofastaff-commanderwhohad
scritto
written
amonographuponthedeep-seafishes.
“Letmesee!”
detto
said
Holmes.
“Hum!
BorninNewJerseyintheyear1858.
Contralto—hum!
LaScala,hum!
PrimadonnaImperialOperaofWarsaw—yes!
Retiredfromoperaticstage—ha!
Vivere
Living
inLondon—quiteso!
YourMajesty,asI
capito
understand
,becameentangledwiththis
giovane
young
person,wrotehersomecompromisingletters,
e
and
isnowdesirousofgettingthoselettersback.”
“Preciselyso.
Ma
But
how—”.