at i take upon myself, but i have
given hopkins an excellent hint, and if he can't avail himself of
it i can do no more. see here, captain croker, we'll do this in
due form of law. you are the prisoner. watson, you are a british
jury, and i never met a man who was more eminently fitted to
represent one. i am the judge. now, gentleman of the jury, you
have heard the evidence. do you find the prisoner guilty or not
guilty?"
"not guilty, my lord," said i.
"vox populi, vox dei. you are acquitted, captain croker. so long
as the law does not find some other victim you are safe from me.
come back to this lady in a year, and may her future and yours
justify us in the judgment which we have pronounced this night."
{----------------------------------------------------------------}
{------------------------ end of text ---------------------------}
{----------------------------------------------------------------}
{seco, rev 4, 1/17/96 rms, 4th proofing}
{the adventure of the second stain, by arthur conan doyle}
{source: the strand magazine, 28 (dec. 1904)}
{etext prepared by roger squires rsquires@nmia.com}
{braces({}) in the text indicate textual end-notes}
{underscores (_) in the text indicate italics}
xiii. -- the adventure of the second stain.
i had intended "the adventure of the abbey grange" to be the last
of those exploits of my friend, mr. sherlock holmes, which i
should ever communicate to the public. this resolution of mine
was not due to any lack of material, since i have notes of many
hundreds of cases to which i have never alluded, nor was it caused
by any waning interest on the part of my readers in the singular
personality and unique methods of this remarkable man. the real
reason lay in the reluctance which mr. holmes has shown to the
continued publication of his experiences. so long as he was in
actual professional practice the records of his successes were of
some practical value to him; but since he has definitely retired
from london and betaken himself to study and bee-farming on the
sussex downs, notoriety has become hateful to him, and he has
peremptorily requested that his wishes in this matter should be
strictly observed. it was only upon my representing to him that i
had given a promise that "the adventure of the second stain"
should be published when the times were ripe, and pointing out to
him that it is only appropriate that this long series of episodes
should culminate in the most important international case which he
has ever been called upon to handle, that i at last succeeded in
obtaining his consent that a carefully-guarded account of the
incident should at last be laid before the public. if in telling
the story i seem to be somewhat vague in certain details the
public will readily understand that there is an excellent reason
for my reticence.
it was, then, in a year, and even in a decade, that shall be
nameless, that upon one tuesday morning in autumn we found two
visitors of european fame within the walls of our humble room in
baker street. the one, austere, high-nosed, eagle-eyed, and
dominant, was none other than the illustrious lord bellinger,
twice premier of britain. the other, dark, clear-cut, and
elegant, hardly yet of middle age, and endowed with every beauty
of body and of mind, was the right honourable trelawney hope,
secretary for european affairs, and the most rising statesman in
the country. they sat side by side upon our paper-littered
settee, and it was easy to see from their worn and anxious faces
that it was business of the most pressing importance which had
brought them. the premier's thin, blue-veined hands were clasped
tightly over the ivory head of his umbrella, and his gaunt,
ascetic face looked gloomily from holmes to me. the european
secretary pulled nervously at his moustache and fidgeted with the
seals of his watch-chain.
"when i discovered my loss, mr. holmes, which was at eight o'clock
this morning, i at once informed the prime minister. it was at
his suggestion that we have both come to you."
"have you informed the police?"
"no, sir," said the prime minister, with the quick, decisive
manner for which he was famous. "we have not done so, nor is it
possible that we should do so. to inform the police must, in the
long run, mean to inform the public. this is what we particularly
desire to avoid."
"and why, sir?"
"because the document in question is of such immense importance
that its publication might very easily -- i might almost say
probably -- lead to european complications of the utmost moment.
it is not too much to say that peace or war may hang upon the
issue. unless its recovery can be attended with the utmost
secrecy, then it may as well not be recovered at all, for all that
is aimed at by those who have taken it is that its contents should
be general
本文链接:
http://m.picdg.com/38_38018/5748843.html