四签名 79凶手的末日（12）

It was a clear reach of the river, with Barking Level upon one side and the melancholy¹ Plumstead Marshes² upon the other.

这时已近河口，一边岸上是巴克英平地，另一侧则是普拉姆斯梯德沼泽。

At our hail the man in the stern sprang up from the deck and shook his two clenched³ fists at us,

船尾那个人听见我们的喊叫，从船面上站起来挥动两拳，

cursing the while in a high, cracked voice.

向着我们高声怒骂。

He was a good-sized, powerful man, and as he stood poising⁴ himself with legs astride

他的身体健壮，个子高大，两腿撇开站在那里。

I could see that from the thigh⁵ downward there was but a wooden stump⁶ upon the right side.

我看见他的右边大腿下面只是根木柱支着。

At the sound of his strident, angry cries, there was movement in the huddled⁷ bundle upon the deck.

他旁边蜷伏着的黑影子，听见了他的声音，慢慢地站了起来，

It straightened itself into a little black man--the smallest I have ever seen

原来是一个黑人，体格的矮小我从来没有见过。

with a great, misshapen head and a shock of tangled⁸, dishevelled hair.

他那畸形的大头，上面长着蓬乱的头发。

Holmes had already drawn⁹ his revolver, and I whipped out mine at the sight of this savage¹⁰, distorted creature.

福尔摩斯那时已经把手枪拿在手里，我看见了这个怪状的生番，也把手枪掏了出来。

He was wrapped in some sort of dark ulster or blanket, which left only his face exposed,

他围着一件黑色的好似毯子的东西，只露着脸。

but that face was enough to give a man a sleepless¹¹ night.

可是这个脸，那副丑恶的怪状足以令人丧魂失魄。

Never have I seen features so deeply marked with all bestiality and cruelty.

我从没有看见过这样狞恶的怪相。

His small eyes glowed and burned with a sombre light, and his thick lips were writhed¹² back from his teeth,

他那两个小眼凶光闪闪，嘴唇极厚，从牙根向上翻撅着，

which grinned and chattered¹³ at us with half animal fury.

他在向我们狂喊乱叫，半兽性的暴怒在发作。

"Fire if he raises his hand," said Holmes quietly.

福尔摩斯轻轻地向我说道："只要他一抬起手来，咱们就开枪。"

1 melancholy   

n.忧郁，愁思；adj.令人感伤（沮丧）的，忧郁的

参考例句：

• All at once he fell into a state of profound melancholy.他立即陷入无尽的忧思之中。
• He felt melancholy after he failed the exam.这次考试没通过，他感到很郁闷。

2 marshes   

n.沼泽，湿地( marsh的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Cows were grazing on the marshes. 牛群在湿地上吃草。
• We had to cross the marshes. 我们不得不穿过那片沼泽地。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 clenched   

v.紧握，抓紧，咬紧( clench的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He clenched his fists in anger. 他愤怒地攥紧了拳头。
• She clenched her hands in her lap to hide their trembling. 她攥紧双手放在腿上，以掩饰其颤抖。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 poising   

使平衡( poise的现在分词 )； 保持（某种姿势）； 抓紧； 使稳定

参考例句：

• The dynamic poising of the watch-balance enhances the performance of each movement. 腕表平衡摆轮的动态性能决定了机芯的性能。
• Also has the poising action to the blood sugar. 对血糖还具有双向平衡作用。

5 thigh   

n.大腿；股骨

参考例句：

• He is suffering from a strained thigh muscle.他的大腿肌肉拉伤了，疼得很。
• The thigh bone is connected to the hip bone.股骨连着髋骨。

6 stump   

n.残株，烟蒂，讲演台；v.砍断，蹒跚而走

参考例句：

• He went on the stump in his home state.他到故乡所在的州去发表演说。
• He used the stump as a table.他把树桩用作桌子。

7 huddled   

挤在一起（huddle的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• We huddled together for warmth. 我们挤在一块取暖。
• We huddled together to keep warm. 我们挤在一起来保暖。

8 tangled   

adj. 纠缠的，紊乱的 动词tangle的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• Your hair's so tangled that I can't comb it. 你的头发太乱了，我梳不动。
• A movement caught his eye in the tangled undergrowth. 乱灌木丛里的晃动引起了他的注意。

9 drawn   

v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的

参考例句：

• All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
• Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。

10 savage   

adj.野蛮的；凶恶的，残暴的；n.未开化的人

参考例句：

• The poor man received a savage beating from the thugs.那可怜的人遭到暴徒的痛打。
• He has a savage temper.他脾气粗暴。

11 sleepless   

adj.不睡眠的，睡不著的，不休息的

参考例句：

• The situation gave her many sleepless nights.这种情况害她一连好多天睡不好觉。
• One evening I heard a tale that rendered me sleepless for nights.一天晚上，我听说了一个传闻，把我搞得一连几夜都不能入睡。

12 writhed   

（因极度痛苦而）扭动或翻滚( writhe的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He writhed at the memory, revolted with himself for that temporary weakness. 他一想起来就痛悔不已，只恨自己当一时糊涂。
• The insect, writhed, and lay prostrate again. 昆虫折腾了几下，重又直挺挺地倒了下去。

13 chattered   

（人）喋喋不休( chatter的过去式 )； 唠叨； （牙齿）打战； （机器）震颤

参考例句：

• They chattered away happily for a while. 他们高兴地闲扯了一会儿。
• We chattered like two teenagers. 我们聊着天，像两个十多岁的孩子。