蓝宝石

帽子与鹅

The Hat and the Goose

那是圣诞节后的第二个早上。我去了贝克街221B号，去他的房间看望我的朋友夏洛克·福尔摩斯。我想祝他圣诞快乐。福尔摩斯是一位侦探，全伦敦的人遇到奇怪的问题都会来找他。我是一位医生，我的名字叫华生。

It was the second morning after Christmas. I went to see my friend Sherlock Holmes at his rooms in 221B Baker Street. I wanted to wish him a happy Christmas. Holmes was a detective, and people came to him with strange problems from all over London. I am a doctor, and my name is Watson.

福尔摩斯穿着一件紫色的睡袍，正躺在沙发上。他的身边放着一堆早报。沙发旁边有一把木椅子。椅背上挂着一顶很旧的黑帽子，椅座上放着一个放大镜。放大镜是一块圆形的玻璃，可以让小的东西看起来很大。

Holmes was lying on the sofa in a purple dressing gown. There was a pile of morning newspapers next to him. There was a wooden chair beside the sofa. A very old black hat hung on the back of the chair, and a lens lay on the seat. A lens is a round glass that makes small things look big.

“你很忙，”我说，“也许我打扰你工作了。”

“You are busy,” I said. “Maybe I am stopping your work.”

“一点也不，”福尔摩斯回答说，“我很高兴有朋友在这里。这只是一件小事。”他用大拇指指了指那顶旧帽子。“但是它很有趣。”

“Not at all,” Holmes answered. “I am glad to have a friend here. It is only a small thing.” He pointed at the old hat with his thumb. “But it is interesting.”

我在他的扶手椅上坐下来，在火炉边烤手。外面非常冷，窗户上结了冰。

I sat down in his armchair and warmed my hands at the fire. Outside it was freezing, and there was ice on the windows.

“我觉得这顶帽子背后有一个黑暗的故事，”我说，“也许它能帮你抓住一个罪犯。”

“I think this hat has a dark story,” I said. “Maybe it will help you catch a criminal.”

“不，不。没有犯罪，”福尔摩斯笑着说，“四百万人紧紧地住在这座城市里。发生了这么多奇怪的小事，其中很多都不是犯罪。”

“No, no. No crime,” said Holmes, and he laughed. “Four million people live close together in this city. So many strange little things happen, and many of them are not crimes.”

“确实是这样，”我说，“在我的笔记里，你的很多案子都没有涉及犯罪。”

“That is true,” I said. “Many of your cases in my notes have no crime in them.”

“正是这样。我认为这个小问题也是其中之一。你认识看门人彼得森吧？”

“Exactly. And I think this small problem is another one of them. You know Peterson, the commissionaire?”

我很熟悉彼得森。他是一个看门人，穿着制服送信、看门。他还是一个非常诚实的人。“认识，”我说。

I knew Peterson well. He was a commissionaire, a man in uniform who carries messages and watches doors. He was also a very honest man. “Yes,” I said.

“这顶帽子是彼得森带给我的。”

“Peterson brought me this hat.”

“这是他的帽子吗？”

“Is it his hat?”

“不，不。是他捡到的。没人知道主人是谁。它是在圣诞节早上和一只又好又肥的鹅一起送来的。”

“No, no. He found it. Nobody knows the owner. It arrived on Christmas morning with a good fat goose.”