Can you solve a mystery before Sherlock Holmes? - Alex Rosenthal

譯者: Lilian Chiu 審譯者: SF Huang

I called upon my friend, Mr. Sherlock Holmes,

去年秋天，有一天，我去拜訪 我的朋友夏洛克‧福爾摩斯，

one day in the autumn of last year and found him in deep conversation

那時他正與人深談，

with a very stout, florid-faced, elderly gentleman with fiery red hair.

對方是個體形壯碩， 面色紅潤的老紳士，

有一頭火紅的頭髮。

Where I saw merely an unhappy tradesman,

在我眼中，那只是個不開心的商人，

Sherlock observed a Freemason who had done manual labor,

根據夏洛克的觀察， 他是共濟會的人，

曾經當過勞工，去過中國，

visited China, and written quite a bit recently.

最近還常書寫。

And this last inference was at the heart of the matter.

這最後一個推論，是這件事的核心。

This gentleman, Mr. Jabez Wilson, was a pawnbroker.

這名紳士是賈貝茲‧威爾森，

他是當舖老闆。

Two months ago he answered a peculiar newspaper advertisement.

兩個月前，他回應了 一則奇怪的報紙廣告。

The mysterious League of Red-Headed Men had announced an opening

神秘的紅髮男子聯盟宣布開幕，

that came with a significant cash incentive,

還提供不小的現金獎勵，

and every red-headed man above the age of 21 in London was encouraged to apply.

鼓勵倫敦所有二十一歲 以上的紅髮男性申請。

Wilson was hesitant to go; it seemed too strange to be true,

威爾森很猶豫要不要去，

這件事似乎太奇怪了，不像真的，

but his assistant of recent employ, who found the ad in the first place,

但，最先發現這則廣告的新進助理

convinced him to.

說服了他。

Outside the League’s office, they found hundreds of men,

他們到了聯盟辦公室外， 看到數百名男子，

all awaiting their shots at the position.

都在等待得到這個職位的機會。

Seeing Wilson's particularly magnificent hair,

看到威爾森特別壯觀的頭髮，

the hosts parted the red sea and ushered him through to a room with a little man.

主辦人分開紅海，引導他 穿過人群進入一間房間，

裡面有個小個子男人。

This interviewer, one Duncan Ross,

這位面試官叫鄧肯‧羅斯，

subjected Wilson to a single, painful test,

對威爾森進行了一項痛苦的測試，

then inducted him into the League.

接著讓他正式加入聯盟。

All he had to do to receive his stipend was spend four hours here every day

只需做一件事，他就能拿到酬勞，：

就是每天在這裡待四個小時，

transcribing the encyclopedia.

抄寫百科全書。

He’d be paid handsomely; much more than his day job.

他會得到很高的酬金， 比他白天的工作還多。

Wilson, of course, accepted,

威爾遜當然接受了，

and showed up to that address every day without fail for two months.

每天都前往那個地方， 兩個月都沒有缺席。

Including today, when he was shocked to discover a sign

今天他也去了，卻很震驚， 因為他發現了一個告示，

saying that the League had been disbanded.

上面寫著聯盟已解散。

Ross, meanwhile, had disappeared without a trace.

同時，羅斯也消失得無影無蹤。

So Wilson turned to the one man who might make red heads or red tails

因此，威爾森便去找 那個有可能可以解釋

of these events.

這些事件的人。

Sherlock accepted the remarkable case

夏洛克接下了這個不凡的案子，

and whisked me to Wilson’s place of business,

並匆匆地帶我前往威爾森的當鋪，

where his assistant, a young man named Vincent Spaulding,

在那裡，應門的是他的助理， 叫做文森‧斯伯丁的男子。

answered the door.

Sherlock asked him nothing more than walking directions to the Strand

夏洛克只問了他要如何 步行前往河岸街，

and concluded the interview.

訪談就告一段落。

The great detective proceeded to examine the area,

這位偉大的偵探開始檢查這個區域，

then led me on a stroll around the block.

接著帶我到附近街區散步。

Satisfied, he instructed me, to my great surprise,

他感到很滿意，給了我 一項讓我很驚訝的指示，

to meet him at Baker Street at 10 pm to thwart a considerable crime.

晚上十點到貝克街和他碰面，

去阻止一宗重大犯罪。

I ask you this: what was the crime and who was going to commit it?

我要問你的是：罪行是什麼？

要犯罪的人又是誰？

That night, at the doorstep of 221B Baker Street,

那晚，在貝克街 221B 號的門外，

I discovered a carriage waiting.

我發現有輛馬車在等候。

Inside, Sherlock and two other men: a bank director and a police officer.

車內是夏洛和和另外兩名男子：

銀行董事和警察。

Sherlock explained: we’d gathered to prevent a robbery.

夏洛克解釋說：

我們聚集在此是要防止一樁搶劫。

Not just any robbery, the banker added;

銀行家補充說，不是任何搶劫，

the theft of a massive quantity of French gold,

是要偷竊大量的法國黃金，

on temporary storage in his bank’s subterranean vault.

這些黃金暫時存放在 他的銀行地下室的金庫裡。

The carriage let us out, and there, in the cold recesses of the bank's basement,

馬車讓我們下車，

到了銀行陰冷隱密的地下室裡，

we found ... absolutely nothing of criminal consequence.

我們完全沒有找到 任何重大犯罪的證據。

Sherlock told us to hide ourselves in the darkness,

夏洛克叫我們躲在暗處，

ready for a fight.

準備戰鬥。

And at long last we heard a scratching, then a sliding sound.

等了很久，終於我們 聽到了刮擦聲和滑動聲。

We leapt into action and, after a scuffle, detained two men:

我們立刻展開行動，在一番 混戰之後拘留了兩名男子：

Wilson’s assistant Spaulding, and the man Wilson knew as Duncan Ross.

威爾森的助理斯伯丁，

以及威爾遜認為 叫做鄧肯‧羅斯的那個人。

Sherlock explained: the target all along had been the French gold.

夏洛克解釋說：

目標一直都是法國黃金。

Spaulding knew it would be here, so he got himself employed by Wilson

斯伯丁知道黃金會在這裡， 所以他讓威爾森僱用他，

on account of the proximity of the pawnshop to the bank.

原因是當舖和銀行很接近。

But in order to dig a tunnel undetected,

但為了不知不覺地挖掘隧道，

he’d need Wilson out of the way for long stretches.

他需要威爾森長時間離開當舖。

And that was when he dreamed up the Red-Headed League,

此時他想出了紅髮聯盟的點子，

for which he recruited his accomplice.

為此，他找來了那位共犯。

Every day while Wilson toiled away for a pittance

威爾森每天辛勤工作賺取的酬勞 相較他們要偷的黃金算是很微薄，

compared to the value they’d steal,

Spaulding and Ross dug their tunnel, finally reaching the bank vault today.

他工作時，斯伯丁就在挖地道，

終於在今天挖到了銀行的金庫。

Sherlock wasn’t sure exactly what Spaulding was up to

夏洛克本來不確定 斯伯丁有什麼盤算，

until he saw the worn and dusty knees of his trousers,

直到他看到了斯伯丁的褲子 在膝蓋處有磨損和塵土，

and recognized him as notorious thief John Clay.

便認出了他是惡名昭彰的 竊賊約翰‧克雷。

He tested the pavement by the pawn shop, and finding it hollow, rounded the block,

他檢查了當舖外的人行道， 發現底下是空的，

繞過街區，

where he discovered the true target.

他便發現了真正的目標。

“Poor Wilson,” I concluded.

「可憐的威爾森，」我下了結論：

“Out of the best job of his life and 4 pounds per week.”

「他一生中做過最好的 工作 ，週薪是四英磅。」

To which Sherlock retorted, “Have no pity, Watson;

夏洛克反駁道：「別憐憫他，華生，

the man is richer by far in his newfound knowledge of aardvarks, Abbasids,

這個人現在很富有， 因為他新學了一堆知識，

包括食蟻獸、阿巴斯王朝、 針灸，和各種其他

acupuncture, and assorted other subjects that begin with the letter A.”

百科全書中 A 開頭的主題。」