“格洛里亚斯科特”号三桅帆船01（在线收听）

The “Gloria Scott”

Arthur Conan Doyle

“I have some papers here,” said my friend Sherlock Holmes, as we sat one winter's night on either side of the fire, “which I really think, Watson, that it would be worth your while to glance over. These are the documents in the extraordinary case of the Gloria Scott, and this is the message which struck Justice of the Peace Trevor dead with horror when he read it.”

He had picked from a drawer a little tarnished cylinder, and, undoing the tape, he handed me a short note scrawled upon a half-sheet of slate gray-paper.

“The supply of game for London is going steadily up,” it ran. “Head-keeper Hudson, we believe, has been now told to receive all orders for fly-paper and for preservation of your hen-pheasant's life.”

As I glanced up from reading this enigmatical message, I saw Holmes chuckling at the expression upon my face.

“You look a little bewildered,” said he.

“I cannot see how such a message as this could inspire horror. It seems to me to be rather grotesque than otherwise.”

“Very likely. Yet the fact remains that the reader, who was a fine, robust old man, was knocked clean down by it as if it had been the butt end of a pistol.”

“You arouse my curiosity,” said I. “But why did you say just now that there were very particular reasons why I should study this case?”

“Because it was the first in which I was ever engaged.”

一个冬天的黄昏，我和我的朋友歇洛克-福尔摩斯对坐在壁炉两侧，福尔摩斯说道：“华生，我这里有几个文件，我确实认为很值得你一读。这些文件和‘格洛里亚斯科特’号三桅帆船奇案有关系。治安官老特雷佛就是因读了这些文件惊吓而死的。”

福尔摩斯从一抽一屉里取出一个颜色晦暗的小圆纸筒，解一开绳带，一交一给我一张石青色的纸，这是一封字迹潦草的短简，上面写着：

“The supply of game for London is going steadily up,” it ran. “Head-keeper Hudson, we believe, has been now told to receive all orders for fly-paper and for preservation of your hen-pheasant's life.”

（按字面可译为：伦敦野味供应正稳步上升。我们相信总保管赫德森现已奉命接受一切粘蝇纸的订货单并保存你的雌雉的生命——译者）

读完这封莫名其妙的短简，我抬起头，看见福尔摩斯正在观看我的表情，还抿着嘴发笑。

“你似乎有点弄糊涂了吧？”他说道。

“我看不出象这样的一份短简怎么能把人吓死。在我看来其内容只不过是荒唐一胡一言罢了。”

“不错。可是事实上，那位健壮的老人，读完这封短简，竟如手槍射中的靶子一样，应声而倒一命呜呼了。”

“你倒惹起了我的好奇心，”我说道，“可是刚才你为什么说，我有特别的原因，一定要研究这件案子呢？”

“因为这是我着手承办的第一桩案件啊。”