I.ASCANDALINBOHEMIA
I.
ToSherlockHolmessheisalwaysthewoman.
Ihave
рідко
seldomheardhimmentionherunderanyothername.Inhiseyessheeclipsesandpredominatesthewholeofhersex.
ItwasnotthathefeltanyemotionakintoloveforIreneAdler.
Allemotions,andthatone
особливо
particularly,wereabhorrenttohiscold,точного
precisebutadmirablybalancedmind.Hewas,Itakeit,themostperfectreasoningandobservingmachinethattheworldhasseen,butasaloverhewouldhaveplacedhimselfinafalseposition.
Heneverspokeofthesofterpassions,savewithagibeandasneer.
Theywereadmirablethingsfortheobserver—excellentfordrawingthe
завісу
veilfrommen’smotivesandactions.Butforthetrainedreasonertoadmitsuchintrusionsintohisown
делікатний
delicateandfinelyadjustedtemperamentwastointroduceadistractingфактор
factorwhichmightthrowadoubtuponallhismentalresults.Gritinasensitiveinstrument,oracrackinoneofhisownhigh-powerlenses,wouldnotbemoredisturbingthanastrongemotioninanaturesuchashis.
Andyettherewasbutonewomantohim,andthatwomanwasthelateIreneAdler,ofdubiousandquestionablememory.
IhadseenlittleofHolmeslately.
Mymarriagehaddriftedusawayfromeachother.
Myowncompletehappiness,andthehome-centredinterestswhichriseuparoundthemanwhofirstfindshimselfmasterofhisownestablishment,were
достатньо
sufficienttoabsorballmyattention,whileHolmes,wholoathedeveryformofsocietywithhiswholeBohemiansoul,remainedinourlodgingsinБейкер
BakerStreet,buriedamonghisoldbooks,andalternatingfromweektoweekbetweencocaineandambition,thedrowsinessofthedrug,andthefierceenergyofhisownkeennature.Hewasstill,asever,deeplyattractedbythestudyofcrime,andoccupiedhis
величезні
immensefacultiesandextraordinarypowersofспостереження
observationinfollowingoutthoseclues,andclearingupthosemysterieswhichhadbeenabandonedashopelessbytheofficialpolice.FromtimetotimeIheardsomevagueaccountofhisdoings:
ofhissummonstoOdessainthecaseoftheTrepoffmurder,ofhisclearingupofthesingulartragedyoftheAtkinsonbrothersatTrincomalee,andfinallyofthemissionwhichhehadaccomplishedsodelicatelyand
успішно
successfullyforthereigningfamilyofHolland.Beyondthesesignsofhis
діяльності
activity,however,whichImerelysharedwithallthereadersofthedailypress,Iknewlittleofmyformerfriendandcompanion.Onenight—itwasonthetwentiethofMarch,1888—Iwasreturningfromajourneytoapatient(forIhadnowreturnedtocivilpractice),whenmywayledmethrough
Бейкер
BakerStreet.AsIpassedthewell-remembereddoor,whichmustalwaysbeassociatedinmymindwithmywooing,andwiththedarkincidentsoftheStudyinScarlet,IwasseizedwithakeendesiretoseeHolmesagain,andtoknowhowhewasemployinghisextraordinarypowers.
Hisroomswerebrilliantlylit,and,evenasIlookedup,Isawhistall,sparefigurepasstwiceinadarksilhouetteagainsttheblind.
Hewaspacingtheroom
швидко
swiftly,eagerly,withhisheadsunkuponhischestandhishandsclaspedbehindhim.Tome,whoknewhiseverymoodandhabit,hisattitudeandmannertoldtheirownstory.
Hewasatworkagain.
Hehadrisenoutofhisdrug-createddreamsandwashotuponthe
запах
scentofsomenewproblem.Irangthebellandwasshownuptothechamberwhichhad
раніше
formerlybeeninpartmyown.Hismannerwasnoteffusive.
It
рідко
seldomwas;buthewasglad,Ithink,toseeme.
Withhardlyawordspoken,butwithakindlyeye,hewavedmetoanarmchair,threwacrosshiscaseofcigars,andindicatedaspiritcaseandagasogeneinthecorner.
Thenhestoodbeforethefireandlookedmeoverinhissingularintrospectivefashion.
“Wedlocksuitsyou,”heremarked.
“Ithink,Watson,thatyouhaveputonsevenandahalfpoundssinceIsawyou.”
“Seven!”
Ianswered.
“Indeed,Ishouldhavethoughtalittlemore.
Justatriflemore,Ifancy,Watson.
Andinpracticeagain,Iobserve.
Youdidnottellmethatyouintendedtogointoharness.”
“Then,howdoyouknow?”
“Iseeit,Ideduceit.
HowdoIknowthatyouhavebeengettingyourselfverywetlately,andthatyouhaveamostclumsyandcarelessservantgirl?”
“MydearHolmes,”saidI,“thisistoomuch.
Youwouldcertainlyhavebeenburned,hadyoulivedafewcenturiesago.
ItistruethatIhadacountrywalkonThursdayandcamehomeinadreadfulmess,butasIhavechangedmyclothesIcan’timaginehowyoudeduceit.
AstoMaryJane,sheisincorrigible,andmywifehasgivenhernotice,butthere,again,Ifailtoseehowyouworkitout.”
Hechuckledtohimselfandrubbedhislong,nervoushandstogether.
“Itissimplicityitself,”saidhe;
“myeyestellmethatontheinsideofyourleftshoe,justwherethefirelightstrikesit,the
шкіра
leatherisscoredbysixalmostparallelcuts.Obviouslytheyhavebeencausedbysomeonewhohasverycarelesslyscrapedroundtheedgesofthesoleinordertoremovecrusted
бруду
mudfromit.Hence,yousee,mydoubledeductionthatyouhadbeenoutinvileweather,andthatyouhada
особливо
particularlymalignantboot-slittingspecimenoftheLondonslavey.Astoyourpractice,ifagentlemanwalksintomyroomssmellingofiodoform,withablackmarkofnitrateofsilveruponhisrightforefinger,andabulgeontherightsideofhistop-hattoshowwherehehassecretedhisstethoscope,Imustbe
нудним
dull,indeed,ifIdonotpronouncehimtobeanactivememberofthemedicalprofession.”Icouldnothelplaughingatthe
легкістю
easewithwhichheexplainedhisprocessofdeduction.“WhenIhearyougiveyourreasons,”Iremarked,“thethingalwaysappearstometobesoridiculouslysimplethatIcouldeasilydoitmyself,thoughateachsuccessiveinstanceofyour
міркування
reasoningIambaffleduntilyouexplainyourprocess.AndyetIbelievethatmyeyesareasgoodasyours.”
“Quiteso,”heanswered,lightingacigarette,andthrowinghimselfdownintoan
крісло
armchair.“Yousee,butyoudonotobserve.
The
різниця
distinctionisclear.Forexample,youhave
часто
frequentlyseenthestepswhichleadupfromthehalltothisroom.”“Frequently.”
“Howoften?”
“Well,somehundredsoftimes.”
“Thenhowmanyarethere?”
“Howmany?
Idon’tknow.”
“Quiteso!
Youhavenotobserved.
Andyetyouhaveseen.
Thatisjustmypoint.
Now,Iknowthatthereareseventeensteps,becauseIhavebothseenandobserved.
Bytheway,sinceyouareinterestedintheselittleproblems,andsinceyouaregoodenoughtochronicleoneortwoofmytriflingexperiences,youmaybeinterestedinthis.”
Hethrewovera
лист
sheetofthick,pink-tintednotepaperwhichhadbeenlyingopenuponthetable.“Itcamebythelastpost,”saidhe.
“Readitaloud.”
Thenotewasundated,andwithouteithersignatureoraddress.
“Therewillcalluponyouto-night,ataquartertoeighto’clock,”itsaid,“agentlemanwhodesiresto
проконсультуватися
consultyouuponamatteroftheverydeepestmoment.Your
недавні
recentservicestooneoftheroyalhousesofEuropehaveshownthatyouareonewhomayбезпечно
safelybetrustedwithmatterswhichareofanзначення
importancewhichcanhardlybeexaggerated.Thisaccountofyouwehavefromallquartersreceived.
Beinyourchamberthenatthathour,anddonottakeitamissifyour
відвідувач
visitorwearamask.”“Thisisindeedamystery,”Iremarked.
“Whatdoyouimaginethatitmeans?”
“Ihavenodatayet.
Itisacapitalmistaketotheorisebeforeonehasdata.
Insensiblyonebeginstotwistfactstosuittheories,insteadoftheoriestosuitfacts.
Butthenoteitself.
Whatdoyoudeducefromit?”
Icarefullyexaminedthewriting,andthepaperuponwhichitwaswritten.
“Themanwhowroteitwas
мабуть
presumablywelltodo,”Iremarked,endeavouringtoнаслідувати
imitatemycompanion’sprocesses.“Suchpapercouldnotbeboughtunderhalfacrowna
пакет
packet.Itispeculiarlystrongandstiff.”
“Peculiar—thatistheveryword,”saidHolmes.
“ItisnotanEnglishpaperatall.
Holdituptothelight.”
Ididso,andsawalarge“E”withasmall“g,”a“P,”andalarge“G”withasmall“t”wovenintothetextureofthepaper.
“Whatdoyoumakeofthat?”
askedHolmes.
“Thenameofthemaker,nodoubt;
orhismonogram,rather.”
“Notatall.
The‘G’withthesmall‘t’standsfor‘Gesellschaft,’whichistheGermanfor‘Company.’Itisacustomarycontractionlikeour‘Co.’‘P,’ofcourse,standsfor‘Papier.’Nowforthe‘Eg.’LetusglanceatourContinentalGazetteer.”
Hetookdownaheavybrown
том
volumefromhisshelves.“Eglow,Eglonitz—hereweare,Egria.
ItisinaGerman-speakingcountry—inBohemia,notfarfromCarlsbad.
‘RemarkableasbeingthesceneofthedeathofWallenstein,andforits
численні
numerousglass-factoriesandpaper-mills.’Ha,ha,myboy,whatdoyoumakeofthat?”Hiseyessparkled,andhesentupagreatbluetriumphantcloudfromhiscigarette.
“ThepaperwasmadeinBohemia,”Isaid.
“Precisely.
AndthemanwhowrotethenoteisaGerman.
Doyounotethepeculiarconstructionofthesentence—‘Thisaccountofyouwehavefromallquartersreceived.’AFrenchmanorRussiancouldnothavewrittenthat.
ItistheGermanwhoissouncourteoustohisverbs.
Itonlyremains,therefore,todiscoverwhatiswantedbythisGermanwhowritesuponBohemianpaperandpreferswearingamasktoshowinghisface.
Andherehecomes,ifIamnot
помиляюся
mistaken,toresolveallourdoubts.”Ashespoketherewasthesharpsoundofhorses’hoofsandgratingwheelsagainstthecurb,followedbyasharppullatthebell.
Holmeswhistled.
“Apair,bythesound,”saidhe.
“Yes,”hecontinued,glancingoutofthewindow.
“Anicelittlebroughamandapairofbeauties.
Ahundredandfiftyguineasapiece.
There’smoneyinthiscase,Watson,ifthereisnothingelse.”
“IthinkthatIhadbettergo,Holmes.”
“Notabit,Doctor.
Staywhereyouare.
IamlostwithoutmyBoswell.
Andthispromisestobeinteresting.
Itwouldbeapitytomissit.”
“Butyourclient—”.
“Nevermindhim.
Imaywantyourhelp,andsomayhe.
Herehecomes.
Sitdowninthatarmchair,Doctor,andgiveusyourbestattention.”
Aslowandheavystep,whichhadbeenhearduponthestairsandinthepassage,pausedimmediatelyoutsidethedoor.
Thentherewasaloudandauthoritativetap.
“Comein!”
saidHolmes.
Amanenteredwhocouldhardlyhavebeenlessthansixfeetsixinchesin
висота
height,withthechestandlimbsofaHercules.Hisdresswasrichwitharichnesswhichwould,inEngland,belookeduponasakintobadtaste.
Heavybandsofastrakhanwereslashedacrossthesleevesandfrontsofhisdouble-breastedcoat,whilethedeepblue
плащ
cloakwhichwasthrownoverhisshoulderswaslinedwithflame-colouredsilkandsecuredattheneckwithabroochwhichconsistedofasingleflamingberyl.Bootswhichextended
півдорозі
halfwayuphiscalves,andwhichweretrimmedatthetopswithrichbrownfur,completedtheвраження
impressionofbarbaricopulencewhichwassuggestedbyhiswholeappearance.Hecarriedabroad-brimmedhatinhishand,whileheworeacrossthe
верхній
upperpartofhisface,extendingdownpastthecheekbones,ablackvizardmask,whichhehadapparentlyadjustedthatverymoment,forhishandwasstillraisedtoitasheentered.Fromthelowerpartofthefaceheappearedtobeamanofstrongcharacter,withathick,hanging
губою
lip,andalong,straightchinsuggestiveofresolutionpushedtothelengthofobstinacy.“Youhadmynote?”
heaskedwithadeepharshvoiceanda
сильно
stronglymarkedGermanaccent.“ItoldyouthatIwouldcall.”
Helookedfromonetotheotherofus,asifuncertainwhichtoaddress.
“Praytakeaseat,”saidHolmes.
“Thisismyfriendand
колега
colleague,Dr.Watson,whoisіноді
occasionallygoodenoughtohelpmeinmycases.WhomhaveIthehonourtoaddress?”
“YoumayaddressmeastheCountVonKramm,aBohemiannobleman.
Iunderstandthatthisgentleman,yourfriend,isamanofhonouranddiscretion,whomImaytrustwithamatterofthemostextremeimportance.
Ifnot,Ishouldmuchpreferto
спілкуватися
communicatewithyoualone.”Irosetogo,butHolmescaughtmebythewristandpushedmebackintomychair.
“Itisboth,ornone,”saidhe.
“Youmaysaybeforethisgentlemananythingwhichyoumaysaytome.”
TheCountshruggedhisbroadshoulders.
“ThenImustbegin,”saidhe,“bybindingyoubothtoabsolute
таємниці
secrecyfortwoyears;attheendofthattimethematterwillbeofno
значення
importance.Atpresentitisnottoomuchtosaythatitisofsuchweightitmayhavean
вплинути
influenceuponEuropeanhistory.”“Ipromise,”saidHolmes.
“AndI.”
“Youwillexcusethismask,”continuedourstrange
відвідувач
visitor.“Theaugustpersonwhoemploysmewisheshisagenttobeunknowntoyou,andImay
зізнатися
confessatoncethatthetitlebywhichIhavejustcalledmyselfisnotexactlymyown.”“Iwasawareofit,”saidHolmesdryly.
“Thecircumstancesareofgreatdelicacy,andeveryprecautionhastobetakentoquenchwhatmightgrowtobeanimmense
скандал
scandalandseriouslycompromiseoneofthereigningfamiliesofEurope.Tospeakplainly,thematterimplicatesthegreatHouseofOrmstein,hereditarykingsofBohemia.”
“Iwasalsoawareofthat,”murmuredHolmes,settlinghimselfdowninhis
крісло
armchairandclosinghiseyes.Our
відвідувач
visitorglancedwithsomeapparentsurpriseatthelanguid,loungingfigureofthemanwhohadbeennodoubtdepictedtohimasthemostincisivereasonerandmostenergeticagentinEurope.Holmesslowlyreopenedhiseyesandlookedimpatientlyathisgiganticclient.
“IfyourMajestywouldcondescendtostateyourcase,”heremarked,“Ishouldbebetterableto
порадити
adviseyou.”Themansprangfromhischairandpacedupanddowntheroominuncontrollableagitation.
Then,witha
жестом
gestureofdesperation,hetorethemaskfromhisfaceandhurleditupontheground.“Youareright,”hecried;
“IamtheKing.
WhyshouldIattempttoconcealit?”
“Why,indeed?”
murmuredHolmes.
“YourMajestyhadnotspokenbeforeIwasawarethatIwasaddressingWilhelmGottsreichSigismondvonOrmstein,GrandDukeofCassel-Felstein,andhereditaryKingofBohemia.”
“Butyoucanunderstand,”saidourstrangevisitor,sittingdownoncemoreandpassinghishandoverhishighwhiteforehead,“youcanunderstandthatIamnotaccustomedtodoingsuchbusinessinmyownperson.
YetthematterwassodelicatethatIcouldnotconfideittoanagentwithoutputtingmyselfinhispower.
IhavecomeincognitofromPragueforthepurposeofconsultingyou.”
“Then,prayconsult,”saidHolmes,shuttinghiseyesoncemore.
“Thefactsare
коротко
brieflythese:Somefiveyearsago,duringalengthyvisittoWarsaw,Imadetheacquaintanceofthewell-knownadventuress,IreneAdler.
Thenameisnodoubtfamiliartoyou.”
“Kindlylookherupinmyindex,Doctor,”murmuredHolmeswithoutopeninghiseyes.
Formanyyearshehadadoptedasystemofdocketingallparagraphs
стосуються
concerningmenandthings,sothatitwasdifficulttonameasubjectorapersononwhichhecouldnotatoncefurnishinformation.InthiscaseIfoundherbiographysandwichedinbetweenthatofaHebrewrabbiandthatofastaff-commanderwhohadwrittenamonographuponthedeep-seafishes.
“Letmesee!”
saidHolmes.
“Hum!
BorninNewJerseyintheyear1858.
Contralto—hum!
LaScala,hum!
PrimadonnaImperial
Опери
OperaofWarsaw—yes!Retiredfromoperaticstage—ha!
LivinginLondon—quiteso!
YourMajesty,asIunderstand,becameentangledwiththisyoungperson,wrotehersomecompromisingletters,andisnowdesirousofgettingthoselettersback.”
“Preciselyso.
Buthow—”.