Приключения Шерлока Холмса / The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (сборник)

“Yes. But I am now sleeping in the middle room.”

“There are some repairs, as I understand. By the way, I cannot see any very pressing need for repairs in this part of the house.”

“You are right. I believe that it was an excuse to move me from my room.”

“Ah! that is interesting. These three rooms open into a corridor. There are windows in it, of course?”

“Yes, but very small ones. Too small for anyone to get in.”

“As you both locked your doors at night, no one could get into your rooms from that side. Now, go into your room and shut your window.”

Miss Stoner did so, and Holmes, after a careful examination, attempted in every way to force the window open, but without any result. “Hum!” said he, “No one could get into the room from here. Well, we shall see if the inside throws any light upon the matter.”

We went to the corridor from which the three bedrooms opened. We passed at once to the second room, in which Miss Stoner was now sleeping, and in which her sister had met her end. It was a little room, with a low ceiling and a big fireplace, like in many old country-houses. Holmes drew one of the chairs into a corner and sat silent, while his eyes travelled round and round the room.

“Where does that bell go to?” he asked at last, pointing to a bell-rope which hung down beside the bed.

“It goes to the housekeeper’s room.”

“It looks newer than the other things.”

“Yes, it was only put there two years ago.”

“Your sister asked for it?”

“No, she never used it. We always got what we wanted ourselves.”

“It seemed unnecessary to put a bell-rope there. You will excuse me for a few minutes while I examine this floor.” He examined carefully the floor with his lens in his hand, then he did the same with the walls. Finally he walked over to the bed and spent some time looking at it and at the wall. Finally he took the bell-rope in his hand and pulled it.

“It won’t ring[22 - It won’t ring – Он не звонит],” said he. “It is not connected to anything. This is very interesting. You can see now that it is fastened above a little opening for the ventilator.”

“How very strange! I never noticed that before.”

“Very strange!” answered Holmes, pulling at the rope. “There are one or two very unusual things about this room. For example, the ventilator opens into another room, when it might have opened on the outside![23 - the ventilator opens into another room, when it might have opened on the outside! – вентилятор сообщается с соседней комнатой, в то время, когда, он мог бы забирать воздух снаружи!]”

“That is also quite modern,” said the lady.

“Was it done about the same time as the bell-rope?” asked Holmes.

“Yes, there were several little changes done at that time.”

“They seem to be very interesting – bells that do not ring and ventilators which do not ventilate. With your permission, Miss Stoner, we shall now continue our investigation in the next room.”

Dr. Grimesby Roylott’s room was larger than that of his stepdaughter. A camp-bed, a small shelf full of books, mostly of a technical character, an armchair beside the bed, a chair against the wall, a round table, and a large safe were the principal things in the room. Holmes walked slowly round and examined all of them with interest.

“What’s in here?” he asked, pointing to the safe.

“My stepfather’s business papers.”

“Oh! you have seen inside, then?”

“Only once, some years ago. I remember that it was full of papers.”

“There isn’t a cat in it, for example?”

“No. What a strange idea!”

“Well, look at this!” He took up a small saucer of milk which stood on the top of it.

“No; we don’t keep a cat. But there is a cheetah and a baboon.”

“Ah, yes, of course! Well, a cheetah is a big cat, and yet a saucer of milk will not satisfy its wants. There is one thing which I should like to see for myself.” He bent over the chair and examined it with the greatest attention.

“Thank you. That is quite clear,” said he, putting his lens in his pocket. “Hello! Here is something interesting!”

He pointed to a small dog lash that hung on one corner of the bed. The lash, however, was tied into a loop.

“What do you think of that, Watson?”

“It’s a common lash. But I don’t know why it is tied.”

“That is not quite so common, is it? Ah, it’s a wicked world, and when a clever man turns his brains to crime[24 - turns his brains to crime – использует свой ум в преступных целях] it is the worst of all. I think that I have seen enough now, Miss Stoner, and with your permission we shall go outside.”

I had never seen my friend’s face so gloomy.

Exercises

1. Answer the questions:

1. Who met Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson on the road leading to Stoke Moran?

2. What did the house look like?

3. What did Sherlock Holmes and Miss Stoner think about the repairs in the house?

4. Why did Sherlock Holmes examine the window of Miss Stoner’s room? What did he find?

5. What did Miss Stoner’s room look like?

6. What did Sherlock Holmes find out about the bell and the ventilator in the room?

7. What was Dr. Roylott’s room like?

8. What seemed unusual to Sherlock Holmes in Dr. Roylott’s room?

9. What did Sherlock Holmes say after he examined Dr. Roylott’s room?

Think and say