Читаем без скачивания Английский язык с Шерлоком Холмсом. Второй сборник рассказов - Arthur Conan Doyle

“‘We will see what the doctor says,’ I answered. “You must stop work now, and when you go downstairs just say that I wish to see Brunton.’

“‘The butler is gone,’ said she.

“‘Gone! Gone where?”

“‘He is gone. No one has seen him. He is not in his room. Oh, yes, he is gone, he is gone!’ She fell back against the wall with shriek after shriek of laughter, while I, horrified at this sudden hysterical attack, rushed to the bell to summon help. The girl was taken to her room, still screaming and sobbing, while I made inquiries about Brunton. There was no doubt about it that he had disappeared. His bed had not been slept in, he had been seen by no one since he had retired to his room the night before, and yet it was difficult to see how he could have left the house, as both windows and doors were found to be fastened in the morning.

“‘His clothes (его одежда), his watch (часы), and even his money were in his room (и даже деньги были в его комнате), but the black suit which he usually wore was missing (но черного костюма, который он обычно носил, не было). His slippers, too, were gone (его комнатные туфли тоже пропали), but his boots were left behind (но ботинки остались: «были оставлены»). Where then could butler Brunton have gone in the night (куда же мог деться дворецкий Брантон ночью), and what could have become of him now (и что с ним стало теперь)?

“‘Of course we searched the house from cellar to garret (разумеется, мы обыскали /весь/ дом от подвала до чердака), but there was no trace of him (но там не оказалось никаких его следов). It is, as I have said, a labyrinth of an old house (как я говорил, этот старинный дом — /настоящий/ лабиринт), especially the original wing (особенно самое старое крыло; original — первоначальный), which is now practically uninhabited (которое теперь практически необитаемо); but we ransacked every room and cellar without discovering the least sign of the missing man (однако мы обыскали каждую комнату и подвал, но не обнаружили ни малейшего следа пропавшего человека; to ransack — обыскивать, обшаривать). It was incredible to me (мне казалось немыслимым) that he could have gone away leaving all his property behind him (что он мог уйти, оставив все свое имущество), and yet where could he be (и все-таки где он мог быть)? I called in the local police, but without success (я вызвал местную полицию, но без результата). Rain had fallen on the night before (дождь прошел накануне вечером) and we examined the lawn and the paths all round the house, but in vain (мы осмотрели лужайку и дорожки вокруг дома, но это ни к чему не привело; in vain — напрасно, тщетно, безуспешно). Matters were in this state (дела находились в этом состоянии = так обстояло дело), when a new development quite drew our attention away from the original mystery (когда новое событие отвлекло наше внимание от первоначальной загадки).

money [ˈmʌnɪ], cellar [ˈselǝ], labyrinth [ˈlæbǝrɪnƟ], property [ˈprɔpǝtɪ]

“‘His clothes, his watch, and even his money were in his room, but the black suit which he usually wore was missing. His slippers, too, were gone, but his boots were left behind. Where then could butler Brunton have gone in the night, and what could have become of him now?

“‘Of course we searched the house from cellar to garret, but there was no trace of him. It is, as I have said, a labyrinth of an old house, especially the original wing, which is now practically uninhabited; but we ransacked every room and cellar without discovering the least sign of the missing man. It was incredible to me that he could have gone away leaving all his property behind him, and yet where could he be? I called in the local police, but without success. Rain had fallen on the night before and we examined the lawn and the paths all round the house, but in vain. Matters were in this state, when a new development quite drew our attention away from the original mystery.

“‘For two days Rachel Howells had been so ill (два дня Рейчел Хауэллс была настолько больна), sometimes delirious (временами находилась в бреду; delirious — /находящийся/ в бреду; delirium — делирий, бред, расстройство сознания /сопровождаемое галлюцинациями, обычно зрительными/), sometimes hysterical (временами — в истерике), that a nurse had been employed to sit up with her at night (так что /пришлось/ приглашать к ней сиделку на ночь; to employ — нанимать; пользоваться услугами; использовать; to sit up — не ложиться спать, бодрствовать; дежурить у постели больного). On the third night after Brunton’s disappearance (на третью ночь после исчезновения Брантона), the nurse, finding her patient sleeping nicely (сиделка, увидев, что больная спокойно спит; nicely — мило, хорошо, вполне), had dropped into a nap in the arm-chair (задремала в своем кресле; nap — дремота; короткий сон: to have/take a nap — вздремнуть), when she woke in the early morning to find the bed empty (когда она проснулась рано утром, то обнаружила, что кровать пуста; to wake), the window open (окно открыто), and no signs of the invalid (а больная исчезла: «больной нет ни следа»; sign — знак, признак; свидетельство).

“‘I was instantly aroused (меня тотчас разбудили), and, with the two footmen (и с двумя лакеями), started off at once in search of the missing girl (я немедленно отправился на поиски пропавшей девушки). It was not difficult to tell the direction which she had taken (нетрудно было определить направление, которое она выбрала), for, starting from under her window (так как, начиная от ее окна; from under — из-под), we could follow her footmarks easily across the lawn to the edge of the mere (мы легко проследили ее следы, /они шли/ по газону до кромки пруда; mere — озеро, пруд), where they vanished close to the gravel path (где они кончались рядом с посыпанной гравием дорожкой) which leads out of the grounds (выводящей из владений; grounds — угодья; сад, парк, участок земли вокруг дома). The lake there is eight feet deep (пруд в этом месте глубиной восемь футов; lake — озеро), and you can imagine our feelings when we saw (вы можете себе представить наши чувства, когда мы увидели) that the trail of the poor demented girl came to an end at the edge of it (что следы бедной помешанной девушки кончались у кромки воды; trail — след /человека или животного/: to be on the trail of somebody — напасть на чей-либо след; demented — сумасшедший; помешавшийся: to become demented — сойти с ума, лишиться рассудка).

delirious [dɪˈlɪ(ǝ)rɪǝs], lawn [lɔ:n], mere [mɪǝ], demented [dɪˈmentɪd]

“‘For two days Rachel Howells had been so ill, sometimes delirious, sometimes hysterical, that a nurse had been employed to sit up with her at night. On the third night after Brunton’s disappearance, the nurse, finding her patient sleeping nicely, had dropped into a nap in the arm-chair, when she woke in the early morning to find the bed empty, the window open, and no signs of the invalid.

“‘I was instantly aroused, and, with the two footmen, started off at once in search of the missing girl. It was not difficult to tell the direction which she had taken, for, starting from under her window, we could follow her footmarks easily across the lawn to the edge of the mere, where they vanished close to the gravel path which leads out of the grounds. The lake there is eight feet deep, and you can imagine our feelings when we saw that the trail of the poor demented girl came to an end at the edge of it.

“‘Of course, we had the drags at once (разумеется, мы немедленно схватили драги; drag — драга; кошка, трал /устройство для извлечения предметов со дна рек или водоемов, особенно для извлечения тел утопленников/; to drag — тащить, волочить), and set to work to recover the remains (и принялись за дело, чтобы вытащить останки; to set to work — приступать к делу, приниматься за работу; to recover — вновь обретать; доставать; находить), but no trace of the body could we find (но тела не нашли). On the other hand (с другой стороны), we brought to the surface an object of a most unexpected kind (мы извлекли на поверхность совершенно неожиданный предмет; to bring; to expect — ожидать). It was a linen bag (это был полотняный мешок) which contained within it a mass of old rusted and discolored metal (содержавший множество /кусков/ старого заржавленного, потерявшего цвет металла; to discolor — обесцвечиваться, выцветать) and several dull-colored pieces of pebble or glass (и несколько тусклых осколков гальки или стекла; pebble — голыш, галька, булыжник; линза из горного хрусталя). This strange find was all that we could get from the mere (эта странная находка была всем, что мы достали = кроме этой странной находки мы ничего не достали из пруда), and, although we made every possible search and inquiry yesterday (и, несмотря на все наши поиски и расспросы, /сделанные/ вчера; every possible — всевозможный, всякий), we know nothing of the fate either of Rachel Howells or of Richard Brunton (мы ничего не знаем о судьбе ни Рейчел Хауэллс, ни Ричарда Брантона). The county police are at their wits’ end (полиция графства зашла в тупик; to be at one's wit's end — быть в крайнем недоумении, в тупике; не знать, что делать, как поступить: «быть у конца своего разума»), and I have come up to you as a last resource (и я пришел к вам как к последней надежде; resource — ресурс; возможность, средство; шанс /спасения/).’

“You can imagine, Watson, with what eagerness I listened to this extraordinary sequence of events (можете себе представить, Ватсон, с каким интересом я слушал этот необыкновенный рассказ: «последовательность событий»), and endeavored to piece them together (и пытался связать их вместе), and to devise some common thread upon which they might all hang (и найти общую нить, на которой они все висели/держались; to devise — разрабатывать, продумывать /планы, идеи/; thread — нить, связь).

surface [ˈsǝ:fɪs], glass [ɡlɑ:s], although [ɔ:lˈðǝu], sequence [ˈsi:kwǝns]

“‘Of course, we had the drags at once, and set to work to recover the remains, but no trace of the body could we find. On the other hand, we brought to the surface an object of a most unexpected kind. It was a linen bag which contained within it a mass of old rusted and discolored metal and several dull-colored pieces of pebble or glass. This strange find was all that we could get from the mere, and, although we made every possible search and inquiry yesterday, we know nothing of the fate either of Rachel Howells or of Richard Brunton. The county police are at their wits’ end, and I have come up to you as a last resource.’

“You can imagine, Watson, with what eagerness I listened to this extraordinary sequence of events, and endeavored to piece them together, and to devise some common thread upon which they might all hang.

“The butler was gone (дворецкий пропал). The maid was gone (горничная пропала). The maid had loved the butler (горничная любила дворецкого), but had afterwards had cause to hate him (но потом получила основания ненавидеть его). She was of Welsh blood, fiery and passionate (она была уроженка Уэльса: «уэльской крови», необузданная и горячая; passionate — страстный; вспыльчивый, горячий). She had been terribly excited immediately after his disappearance (она была крайне возбуждена сразу после его исчезновения). She had flung into the lake a bag containing some curious contents (она бросила в пруд мешок с довольно странным содержанием; to fling). These were all factors which had to be taken into consideration (все эти факторы необходимо было принять во внимание), and yet none of them got quite to the heart of the matter (однако ни один из них не раскрывал сути дела; to get to the heart of the matter — дойти до сути /дела/). What was the starting-point of this chain of events (где была отправная точка этой цепи событий)? There lay the end of this tangled line (/передо мной/ лежал /лишь/ конец этой запутанной веревки = цепи).