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

receiver [rɪˈsi:vǝ], wrong [rɔŋ], sufficient [sǝˈfɪʃ(ǝ)nt]

“I soon managed to get the address of the receiver who had them, on promising him that there would be no prosecution. Off I set to him, and after much chaffering I got our stones at 1000 pounds apiece. Then I looked in upon your son, told him that all was right, and eventually got to my bed about two o’clock, after what I may call a really hard day’s work.”

“A day which has saved England from a great public scandal,” said the banker, rising. “Sir, I cannot find words to thank you, but you shall not find me ungrateful for what you have done. Your skill has indeed exceeded all that I have heard of it. And now I must fly to my dear boy to apologize to him for the wrong which I have done him. As to what you tell me of poor Mary, it goes to my very heart. Not even your skill can inform me where she is now.”

“I think that we may safely say,” returned Holmes, “that she is wherever Sir George Burnwell is. It is equally certain, too, that whatever her sins are, they will soon receive a more than sufficient punishment.”

The Resident Patient

(постоянный пациент)

Glancing over the somewhat incoherent series of Memoirs (просматривая несколько несвязанные воспоминания; incoherent — бессвязный, непоследовательный, несвязный; series — ряд, последовательность; серия, выпуск) with which I have endeavored to illustrate a few of the mental peculiarities of my friend Mr. Sherlock Holmes (в которых я попытался проиллюстрировать некоторые интеллектуальные особенности моего друга Шерлока Холмса peculiarity — специфичность, особенность; характерная черта; отличительное качество), I have been struck by the difficulty (я столкнулся с трудностью) which I have experienced in picking out examples (которые я испытал, выбирая примеры) which shall in every way answer my purpose (которые во всех отношениях отвечали бы /поставленной/ задаче). For in those cases in which Holmes has performed some tour de force of analytical reasoning (так как в тех случаях, где Холмс проявил силу своего аналитического мышления; to perform — исполнять; совершать; tour de force — проявление силы, ловкости или изобретательности /франц./), and has demonstrated the value of his peculiar methods of investigation (и продемонстрировал ценность своих необычных методов расследования), the facts themselves have often been so slight or so commonplace (сами обстоятельства часто были столь незначительны и обыденны; slight — легкий, небольшой, незначительный: a slight headache — небольшая головная боль) that I could not feel justified in laying them before the public (что я не чувствую себя вправе предложить их /на суд/ публики; justified — обоснованный; оправданный; правомерный). On the other hand (с другой стороны), it has frequently happened that he has been concerned in some research (зачастую случалось, что Холмс занимался расследование /таких дел/) where the facts have been of the most remarkable and dramatic character (где события были крайне удивительными и волнующими), but where the share which he has himself taken in determining their causes (но участие, которое он принимал в определении их причин) has been less pronounced than I, as his biographer, could wish (было меньше выраженным, чем я, как его биограф, мог бы желать).

incoherent [ˌɪnkǝuˈhɪ(ǝ)rǝnt], endeavored [ɪnˈdevǝd], pronounced [prǝˈnaunst]

Glancing over the somewhat incoherent series of Memoirs with which I have endeavored to illustrate a few of the mental peculiarities of my friend Mr. Sherlock Holmes, I have been struck by the difficulty which I have experienced in picking out examples which shall in every way answer my purpose. For in those cases in which Holmes has performed some tour de force of analytical reasoning, and has demonstrated the value of his peculiar methods of investigation, the facts themselves have often been so slight or so commonplace that I could not feel justified in laying them before the public. On the other hand, it has frequently happened that he has been concerned in some research where the facts have been of the most remarkable and dramatic character, but where the share which he has himself taken in determining their causes has been less pronounced than I, as his biographer, could wish.

The small matter which I have chronicled under the heading of “A Study in Scarlet (одно небольшое дело, которое я записал под заглавием «Этюд в багровых тонах»; to chronicle — записывать, заносить /в хронику, летопись/; описывать),” and that other later one connected with the loss of the Gloria Scott (и другое, более позднее, связанное с исчезновением «Глории Скотт»), may serve as examples of this Scylla and Charybdis (могут служить примерами этаких Сциллы и Харибды) which are forever threatening the historian (которые всегда угрожают историку). It may be that in the business of which I am now about to write (может быть, в истории, о которой я собираюсь написать) the part which my friend played is not sufficiently accentuated (роль, сыгранная моим другом, не была особенно заметной; sufficiently — достаточно, в достаточной мере; to accentuate — делать ударение; выделять, подчеркивать); and yet the whole train of circumstances is so remarkable (однако вся цепь обстоятельств настолько поразительна; train — поезд; ряд, цепь, вереница; ход, развитие /событий/) that I cannot bring myself to omit it entirely from this series (что я не могу заставить себя совсем исключить ее из этого цикла).

It had been a close, rainy day in October (был душный дождливый октябрьский день; close — закрытый; спертый, душный). Our blinds were half-drawn (наши шторы были наполовину опущены), and Holmes lay curled upon the sofa (Холмс лежал, свернувшись, на диване), reading and re-reading a letter which he had received by the morning post (читая и перечитывая письмо, полученное с утренней почтой). For myself (что касается меня), my term of service in India had trained me to stand heat better than cold (то служба в Индии научила меня переносить жару лучше, чем холод; term of service — стаж, срок службы), and a thermometer of 90 was no hardship (и температура в 90 градусов /по Фаренгейту; примерно 32 градуса по Цельсию/ не представляла для меня трудности = я легко выдерживал 32-х градусную жару). But the paper was uninteresting (но газета была неинтересной). Parliament had risen (парламент завершил сессию; to rise — подниматься; закрываться, прекращать работу /о съезде, сессии и т. п./). Everybody was out of town (все уехали из города), and I yearned for the glades of the New Forest or the shingle of Southsea (а я тосковал по просекам Нью-Фореста и по покрытому галькой берегу Саутси).

chronicled [ˈkrɔnɪkld], accentuated [ǝkˈsenʧueɪtɪd], Parliament [ˈpɑ:lǝmǝnt]

The small matter which I have chronicled under the heading of “A Study in Scarlet,” and that other later one connected with the loss of the Gloria Scott, may serve as examples of this Scylla and Charybdis which are forever threatening the historian. It may be that in the business of which I am now about to write the part which my friend played is not sufficiently accentuated; and yet the whole train of circumstances is so remarkable that I cannot bring myself to omit it entirely from this series.

It had been a close, rainy day in October. Our blinds were half-drawn, and Holmes lay curled upon the sofa, reading and re-reading a letter which he had received by the morning post. For myself, my term of service in India had trained me to stand heat better than cold, and a thermometer of 90 was no hardship. But the paper was uninteresting. Parliament had risen. Everybody was out of town, and I yearned for the glades of the New Forest or the shingle of Southsea.

A depleted bank account had caused me to postpone my holiday (опустевший банковский счет заставил меня отложить отпуск; depleted — истощенный, исчерпанный; to deplete — уменьшать /количество, размер/; исчерпывать /запасы, финансовые ресурсы/), and as to my companion (а что касается моего товарища), neither the country nor the sea presented the slightest attraction to him (ни сельская местность, ни море его совершенно не привлекали: «не представляли для него ни малейшей привлекательности»). He loved to lie in the very centre of five millions of people (он любил находиться в самом центре /города/ в пять миллионов человек), with his filaments stretching out and running through them (опутав его сетью своих осведомителей; filament — нить; to stretch out — протягивать/ся/, растягивать/ся/; to run through — прокалывать; пронизывать), responsive to every little rumor or suspicion of unsolved crime (сразу же реагирующий на любые слухи или подозрения на нераскрытое преступление; responsive — чуткий; отзывчивый; быстро реагирующий /на что-либо/; to respond — отвечать; реагировать, отзываться на /что-либо/). Appreciation of Nature found no place among his many gifts (понимание природы не находило себе места среди его многочисленных дарований), and his only change was when he turned his mind from the evil-doer of the town (и единственная перемена происходила в нем, когда он переключался с /выслеживания/ городского преступника; evil-doer — злодей; преступник; злоумышленник) to track down his brother of the country (на его сельского собрата; to track — следить, прослеживать; выслеживать /часто: track out, track up, track down/; track — след /след колеса, дорожка от корабля на воде и т. д./, отпечаток).

Finding that Holmes was too absorbed for conversation (обнаружив, что Холмс был слишком занят для разговора; to absorb — всасывать, впитывать; абсорбировать; поглощать; поглощать /внимание/), I had tossed aside the barren paper (я отбросил в сторону бессодержательную газету; barren — бесплодный; скучный, пустой, бессодержательный), and leaning back in my chair (и, откинувшись в кресле), I fell into a brown study (я погрузился в мрачное раздумье/в меланхолию; brown study — глубокое раздумье; мрачное настроение). Suddenly my companion’s voice broke in upon my thoughts (вдруг голос моего товарища прервал мои мысли; to break in — врываться, вламываться; вмешиваться, прерывать).

depleted [dɪˈpli:tɪd], nature [ˈneɪʧǝ], country [ˈkʌntrɪ]

A depleted bank account had caused me to postpone my holiday, and as to my companion, neither the country nor the sea presented the slightest attraction to him. He loved to lie in the very centre of five millions of people, with his filaments stretching out and running through them, responsive to every little rumor or suspicion of unsolved crime. Appreciation of Nature found no place among his many gifts, and his only change was when he turned his mind from the evil‑doer of the town to track down his brother of the country.

Finding that Holmes was too absorbed for conversation, I had tossed aside the barren paper, and leaning back in my chair, I fell into a brown study. Suddenly my companion’s voice broke in upon my thoughts.

“You are right, Watson (вы правы, Ватсон),” said he. “It does seem a very preposterous way of settling a dispute (это действительно очень нелепый способ разрешения спора).”