8 THE EVIDENCE OF COLONEL ARBUTHNOT

8 阿伯斯诺上校的证词

Poirot roused himself with a slight start. His eyes twinkled a little as they met the eager ones of M. Bouc.

白罗正了正身子。他的眼睛与波克先生急追的眼神交接时，眨了一下。

“Ah! my dear old friend,” he said, “you see I have become what they call the snob! The first class, I feel it should be attended to before the second class. Next, I think, we will interview the good-looking Colonel Arbuthnot.”

“呵！我亲爱的老朋友，”他说：“你可以说我已经变成个势利鬼了！我认为，我们该先照顾头等乘客，再问二等乘客。下一位，我想我们还是先找那位英俊的阿伯斯诺上校问问吧。”

Finding the Colonel’s French to be of a severely limited description, Poirot conducted his interrogatory in English.

发觉这位上校的法语能力实在有限之后，白罗决定用英语来作这次问询。

Arbuthnot’s name, age, home address and exact military standing were all ascertained. Poirot proceeded:

查清了阿伯斯诺的姓名、年龄、住址与正确的军职之后，白罗发问了：

“It is that you come home from India on what is called the leave—what we can call en permission?”

“你是从印度回家，所谓——呃，休假的吗？我们叫作准假离营。”

Colonel Arbuthnot, uninterested in what a pack of foreigners called anything, replied with true British brevity, “Yes.”

阿伯斯诺上校全然不管这帮外国佬对休假有什么定义，只用典型的英国简洁语气答道：“是的。”

“But you do not come home on the P. & O. boat?”

“可是你并不乘军舰回家？”

“No.”

“不坐。”

“Why not?”

“为什么？”

“I chose to come by the overland route for reasons of my own.”

“我选择陆路回家有我自己的理由。”

(“And that,” his manner seemed to say, “is one for you, you interfering little jackanapes.”)

（“这，”他的态度好像在说：“该够你受的！你这多管闲事的臭小子。”）

“You came straight through from India?”

“你从印度出发一路没停吗？”

The Colonel replied drily: “I stopped for one night to see Ur of the Chaldees, and for three days in Baghdad with the A.O.C., who happens to be an old friend of mine.”

上校冷漠地答道：“我停了一晚，去看迦勒底的神庙，也在巴格达停了三天，与一位陆军指挥官老朋友聚了聚。”

“You stopped three days in Baghdad. I understand that the young English lady, Miss Debenham, also comes from Baghdad. Perhaps you met her there?”

“你在巴格达逗留了三天。据我了解那位年轻的英国女士戴本瀚小姐也是从巴格达上车的。你是在那里认识她的吗？”

“No, I did not. I first met Miss Debenham when she and I shared the railway convoy car from Kirkuk to Nissibin.”

“不是。我初次遇见她，是在寇尔库克开往尼西宾的护卫车上。”

Poirot leaned forward. He became persuasive and a little more foreign than he need have been.

白罗将身子向前倾了倾，刻意恳切且郑重地说：

“Monsieur, I am about to appeal to you. You and Miss Debenham are the only two English people on the train. It is necessary that I should ask you each your opinion of the other.”

“先生，我现在要恳求你的合作。由于你与戴本瀚小姐是车上仅有的两位英籍旅客，我不得不问问你们两人对彼此的看法。”

“Highly irregular,” said Colonel Arbuthnot coldly.

“不是太违常情了吗？”阿伯斯诺冷冷地说。

“Not so. You see, this crime, it was most probably committed by a woman. The man was stabbed no fewer than twelve times. Even the chef de train said at once, ‘It is a woman.’ Well, then, what is my first task? To give all the women travelling on the Istanbul-Calais coach what Americans call the ‘once-over.’ But to judge of an Englishwoman is difficult. They are very reserved, the English. So I appeal to you, Monsieur, in the interest of justice. What sort of person is this Miss Debenham? What do you know about her?”

“并不。你知道，这桩谋杀，很可能是女性下的手，遇害人被刺了不下十二刀。就连总列车长也一下子冲口说出：”是女人干的。‘因此，我该如何着手？我只好先对伊斯坦堡——卡莱卧车上的女性乘客，作一次美国人所谓的‘大略调查’。但是要判断英国女性就困难了，英国人是很严谨的。因此，上校，请站在正义的立场告诉我，你觉得戴本瀚小姐是怎样一个人？你对她有何等的了解？“

“Miss Debenham,” said the Colonel with some warmth, “is a lady.”

“戴本瀚小姐，”上校略带温情地说：“是位高雅的女士。”

“Ah!” said Poirot with every appearance of being much gratified. “So you do not think that she is likely to be implicated in this crime?”

“呵！”白罗满脸感激不尽地说：“这么说，你认为她与本案是不可能有任何关连了？”

“The idea is absurd,” said Arbuthnot. “The man was a perfect stranger—she had never seen him before.”

“未免太滑稽了，”阿伯斯诺说：“这人对她完全是个陌生人——她从没见过他。”

“Did she tell you so?”

“是她这样对你说过吗？”

“She did. She commented at once upon his somewhat unpleasant appearance. If a woman is concerned, as you seem to think (to my mind without any evidence but on a mere assumption), I can assure you that Miss Debenham could not possibly be implicated.”

“她说过。她谈起过他那张令人生厌的脸孔。如果这事真如你所认为的有女人涉嫌（依我看毫无实据，只是推想），我可以向你保证，戴本瀚是无论如何也不会有任何关连的。”

“You feel warmly in the matter,” said Poirot with a smile.

“你倒是挺关心的。”白罗说着笑了笑。

Colonel Arbuthnot gave him a cold stare. “I really don’t know what you mean,” he said.

阿伯斯诺上校回了他一个冷峻的眼色。“我不懂你这话的意思。”他说。

The stare seemed to abash Poirot. He dropped his eyes and began fiddling with the papers in front of him.

这一眼似乎让白罗很狼狈。他低下头摆弄面前的文件。

“All this is by the way,” he said. “Let us be practical and come to facts. This crime, we have reason to believe, took place at a quarter past one last night. It is part of the necessary routine to ask everyone on the train what he or she was doing at that time.”

“只是随便说说，”他说：“我们还是言归正传谈实际的吧。我们有理由相信，这桩命案发生在昨夜一点一刻的时分。基于惯例的必要，我们车上每名旅客都要问清他或她当时的行动。”

“Quite so. At a quarter past one, to the best of my belief, I was talking to the young American fellow—secretary to the dead man.”

“这我了解。据我的记忆，一点一刻的时候，我正与死者的秘书——那位年轻的美国人聊天。”

“Ah! were you in his compartment, or was he in yours?”

“喔！在他的卧铺房，还是他到你的房里去了呢？”

“I was in his.”

“我在他房里。”

“That is the young man of the name of MacQueen?”

“就是那位姓麦昆的青年人吗？”

“Yes.”

“是的。”

“He was a friend or acquaintance of yours?”

“他是你熟朋友吗？”

“No, I never saw him before this journey. We fell into casual conversation yesterday and both became interested. I don’t as a rule like Americans—haven’t any use for ’em—”

“不是，在此行之前我没见过他。昨天，我们偶尔谈起话来，大家兴致都不错。我通常并不喜欢美国人——没什么用——”

Poirot smiled, remembering MacQueen’s strictures on “Britishers.”

白罗又笑了，他记起了麦昆对“英国人”的苛评了。

“—but I liked this young fellow. He’d got hold of some tomfool idiotic ideas about the situation in India. That’s the worst of Americans—they’re so sentimental and idealistic. Well, he was interested in what I had to tell him. I’ve had nearlythirty years’ experience of the country. And I was interested in what he had to tell me about the working of Prohibition in America. Then we got down to world politics in general. I was quite surprised to look at my watch and find it was a quarter to two.”

“——不过，我倒蛮喜欢这个小伙子。这家伙对印度的情势有满脑子莫名其妙的错误观念。美国人就是这么差劲——情感用事，理想主义。他对我的看法倒挺有兴趣的。我在那个国家少说也快有卅年了。我对他讲的美国禁酒的情形，也觉得挺有意思的。后来，我们又聊了聊世界政局，一看表，才知道都已经差一刻两点了。”

“That is the time you broke up this conversation?”

“你们就是那个时辰分手的吗？”

“Yes.”

“是的。”

“What did you do then?”

“后来呢？”

“Walked along to my own compartment and turned in.”

“回我自己的房里上床睡觉了。”

“Your bed was made up ready?”

“你的床铺已经铺好了吗？”

“Yes.”

“铺好了。”

“That is the compartment—let me see—No. 15—the one next but one to the end away from the dining-car?”

“你的房间是——让我来看看——呃，是第十五号卧铺房，就是靠餐车那头倒数第二间？”

“Yes.”

“不错。”

“Where was the conductor when you went to your compartment?”

“你回房时，列车长在哪里？”

“Sitting at the end at a little table. As a matter of fact MacQueen called him just as I went in to my own compartment.”

“坐在车尾上的一张小桌子那儿。我还记得就在我要进房时，还听见麦昆在叫他呢。”

“Why did he call him?”

“他为什么叫他？”

“To make up his bed, I suppose. The compartment hadn’t been made up for the night.”

“我想是叫他铺床吧。那时他的卧铺还没铺好呢。”

“Now, Colonel Arbuthnot, I want you to think carefully. During the time you were talking to Mr. MacQueen, did anyone pass along the corridor outside the door?”

“阿伯斯诺上校，现在我麻烦你仔细想想：在你与麦昆先生谈天时，房外过道上可曾有任何人走过？”

“A good many people, I should think. I wasn’t paying attention.”

“我想有很多人吧。我也没注意。”

“Ah! but I am referring to—let us say, the last hour and a half of your conversation. You got out at Vincovci, didn’t you?”

“喔！我指的是——呃，在你们聊天的最后一个半小时之内，在温可齐站，你下了车厢，是吧？”

“Yes, but only for about a minute. There was a blizzard on. The cold was something frightful. Made one quite thankful to get back to the fug, though as a rule I think the way these trains are overheated is something scandalous.”

“是的，但也只停了一分钟。外头风雪太大，冻死人。谢天谢地还有这么个烂地方能爬回来。不过，我认为这车上的暖气热得实在令人受不了。”

M. Bouc sighed. “It is very difficult to please everybody,” he said. “The English they open everything—then others they come along and shut everything. It is very difficult.” Neither Poirot nor Colonel Arbuthnot paid any attention to him.

波克先生叹了一口气说：“没法子使每一位乘客都满意。英国人要开窗子通风，另外的人却要门窗都关得紧紧的，实在为难。”白罗与阿伯斯诺上校都没理睬他的话。

“Now, Monsieur, cast your mind back,” said Poirot encouragingly. “It was cold outside. You have returned to the train. You sit down again, you smoke—perhaps a cigarette—perhaps a pipe—”

“现在，先生，再请你好好回想一下，”白罗鼓励式地说：“外头很冷，你回到了车上，又坐了下来，也许抽了支烟——或是烟斗——”

He paused for the fraction of a second.

他说到此地，特意顿了下来。

“A pipe for me. MacQueen smoked cigarettes.”

“我抽烟斗，麦昆抽香烟。”

“The train starts again. You smoke your pipe. You discuss the state of Europe—of the world. It is late now. Most people have retired for the night. Does anyone pass the door? Think.”

“火车又开动了。你抽你的烟斗，你们谈欧洲战事——世界情势。天已不早了，多半的旅客都休息了。有人经过门口吗？再想想。”

Arbuthnot frowned in the effort of remembrance.

阿伯斯诺皱着眉头苦思了半响。

“Difficult to say,” he said. “You see I wasn’t paying any attention.”

“真难讲，”他说：“你知道我那时候并没留意。”

“But you have the soldier’s observation for detail. You notice without noticing, so to speak.”

“可是身为军人，你有观察入微的本事。也就是说，你不经心，也会注意到的。”

The Colonel thought again, but shook his head.

上校又想了想，还是摇了头。

“I couldn’t say. I don’t remember anyone passing except the conductor. Wait a minute—and there was a woman, I think.”

“说不上来。除了列车长，我记不起谁走过了。哎，等等——我想，还有个女人。”

“You saw her? Was she old—young?”

“你瞧见她了？年纪大的，还是年轻的？”

“Didn’t see her. Wasn’t looking that way. just a rustle and a sort of smell of scent.”

“没看见。我脸是朝另一边的。只那么一掠就过去了，还带着股味道。”

“Scent? A good scent?”

“味道？香味？”

“Well, rather fruity, if you know what I mean. I mean you’d smell it a hundred yards away. But mind you,” the Colonel went on hastily, “this may have been earlier in the evening. You see, as you said just now, it was just one of those things you notice without noticing, so to speak. Some time that evening I said to myself— ‘Woman—scent—got it on pretty thick.’ But when it was I can’t be sure, except that—why, yes, it must have been after Vincovci.”

“这，是带着点水果味道，你晓得的，我指的是那种老远嗅得到的，”上校的话说得快了起来：“可是这也说不定是早些时候的事。你不是刚说过的吗，这种事情是不经心也留意得到的。那时候，我心中的确一闪——‘女人，香味太浓了！’可是究竟是什么时候，我可不敢说。反正，对的，一定是离开温可齐之后吧。”

“Why?”

“为什么？”

“Because I remember—sniffing, you know—just when I was talking about the utter washout Stalin’s Five Year Plan was turning out. I know the idea woman brought the idea of the position of women in Russia into my mind. And I know we hadn’t got on to Russia until pretty near the end of our talk.”

“因为我记得，我正在谈斯大林的五年计划的事情，我用鼻子嗅了嗅。我想是女人使我把话题转到俄国妇女地位上去了。我也知道，那是我们聊天快结束时候的事了。”

“You can’t pin it down more definitely than that?”

“你不能再精确地指明一下了吗？“

“N-no. It must have been roughly within the last half-hour.”

“没法子了。反正总该是在最后半小时之内吧。”

“It was after the train had stopped?”

“那时火车已经停下来了吧？”

The other nodded. “Yes, I’m almost sure it was.”

对方点了点头。“是的，这我记得很清楚的。”

“Well, we will pass from that. Have you ever been in America, Colonel Arbuthnot?”

“好的，这点我们先告一段落。你去过美国没有，阿伯斯诺上校？”

“Never. Don’t want to go.”

“没有。从没去过。”

“Did you ever know a Colonel Armstrong?”

“你认识一位阿姆斯壮上校吗？”

“Armstrong—Armstrong—I’ve known two or three Armstrongs. There was Tommy Armstrong in the 60th—you don’t mean him? And Selby Armstrong—he was killed on the Somme.”

“阿姆斯壮——阿姆斯壮——我认识两三位阿姆斯壮的。汤美·阿姆斯壮是第六十军区的，你不是指的他吧？还有赛伯利·阿姆斯壮——他是在松美一战中阵亡的。

“I mean the Colonel Armstrong who married an American wife and whose only child was kidnapped and killed.”

“我指的是那位娶了一个美国太太，独生女被绑架撕票的那位。”

“Ah, yes, I remember reading about that—shocking affair. I don’t think I actually ever came across the fellow, though of course I knew of him. Toby Armstrong. Nice fellow. Everybody liked him. He had a very distinguished career. Got the V.C.”

“呃，对了，我记得报上登过——的确可怕。我好像没见过这个人，不过，当然听人提起过他。图贝·阿姆斯壮，人很好，大家都很喜欢他。功名也很卓越，得过维多利亚十字勋章。”

“The man who was killed last night was the man responsible for the murder of Colonel Armstrong’s child.”

“昨夜遇害的那个人，就是绑架阿姆斯壮小女儿的幕后主使。”

Arbuthnot’s face grew rather grim. “Then in my opinion the swine deserved what he got. Though I would have preferred to see him properly hanged—or electrocuted, I suppose, over there.”

阿伯斯诺的面容阴冷了下来。“这么说，照我看来，这禽兽是罪有应得的。不过，我倒愿看他在美国上绞刑或是坐电椅的。”

“In fact, Colonel Arbuthnot, you prefer law and order to private vengeance?”

“也就是说，阿伯斯诺上校，你是遵奉法治，而不赞成私下的报复行为的？”

“Well, you can’t go about having blood feuds and stabbing each other like Corsicans or the Mafia,” said the Colonel. “Say what you like, trial by jury is a sound system.”

“总不该是你杀我砍，或像科西嘉岛上或是黑手党那样互相暗杀吧，”上校说：“不管怎么说，我认为由陪审员审判，是比较健全的制度。”

Poirot looked at him thoughtfully for a minute or two.

白罗颇有所思地打量了他半响。

“Yes,” he said. I am sure that would be your view. Well, Colonel Arbuthnot, I do not think there is anything more I have to ask you. There is nothing you yourself can recall last night that in any way snuck you—or shall we say strikes you now, looking back—as suspicious?”

“是的，”他说：“我相信一定是你的观点。好了，阿伯斯诺上校，我看我也没有别的可问你的了。你自己想不起来昨夜，或此刻有任何令你觉得心疑的事了吗？”

Arbuthnot considered for a moment or two.

“阿伯斯诺想了想。”

“No,” he said. “Nothing at all. Unless—” he hesitated.

“没有，”他说：“什么也没有。除了——”他迟疑了下来。

“But yes, continue, I pray of you.”

“请说呀，我请求你说出来。”

“Well, it’s nothing really,” said the Colonel slowly. “But you said anything.”

“其实，也不算什么，”阿伯斯诺慢吞吞地说：“不过，你说无论什么事都可以的。”

“Yes, yes. Go on.”

“是的，是的，请说。”

“Oh! it’s nothing. A mere detail. But as I got back to my compartment I noticed that the door of the one beyond mine—the end one, you know—”

“呵！实在没什么。只是一点鸡毛蒜皮的事。我回到自己房间时，我注意到我隔壁的房间——就是最末尾的那间，你晓得的——”

“Yes, No. 16.”

“是的，第十六号。“

“Well, the door of it was not quite closed. And the fellow inside peered out in a furtive sort of way. Then he pulled the door to quickly. Of course I know there’s nothing in that—but it just struck me as a bit odd. I mean, it’s quite usual to open a door and stick your head out if you want to see anything. But it was the furtive way he did it that caught my attention.”

“那扇房门没关紧。里头的人鬼鬼崇崇地往外头窥了一下，然后又迅速将门关上了。当然，这也不算什么——不过，我仍是觉得有点怪。因为，要想看看什么，将头探出门外，本是很寻常的。只是他那股鬼崇的神色倒引起了我的注意。”

“Ye-es,” said Poirot doubtfully.

“是——的。”白罗不大相信地应了一声。

“I told you there was nothing to it,” said Arbuthnot, apologetically. “But you know what it is—early hours of the morning—everything very still. The thing had a sinister look—like a detective story. All nonsense really.”

“我告诉了你这算不了什么的。”阿伯斯诺带有歉意地说：“不过，你也了解——夜已那么深了——一切死般的寂静。阴阴森森的，就像侦探小说里描述的那样。其实，这都是我心里作怪。”

He rose. “Well, if you don’t want me any more—”

他站起身来。“如果，没有别的事的话——”

“Thank you, Colonel Arbuthnot, there is nothing else.”

“谢谢你，阿伯斯诺上校，没别的事了。”

The soldier hesitated for a minute. His first natural distaste for being questioned by “foreigners” had evaporated.

这位军人踌躇了半响。他天生厌憎“外籍人士”盘问的本性，第一次发作了。

“About Miss Debenham,” he said rather awkwardly. “You can take it from me that she’s all right. She’s a pukka sahib.”

“至于戴本瀚小姐，”他有点局促地说：“我可以向你担保她是没有问题的。她是个‘将门之女’（他用的是印度语）。”

Flushing a little, he withdrew.

说完，他面色微红地走出了餐车。

“What,” asked Dr. Constantine with interest, “does a pukka sahib mean?”

“‘将门之女’是什么？”康斯丹丁医师不解地问道。

“It means,” said Poirot, “that Miss Debenham’s father and brothers were at the same kind of school as Colonel Arbuthnot was.”

“那是指，”白罗说：“戴本瀚小姐的父亲与兄弟，与阿伯斯诺上校的地位是一样的。”

“Oh! said Dr. Constantine, disappointed. “Then it has nothing to do with the crime at all.”

“喔！”康斯丹丁医师极表失望地说：“那么与我们这桩罪案是没有一点关系了。”

“Exactly,”, said, Poirot.

“可不是嘛。”白罗说。

He fell into a reverie, beating a light tattoo on the table. Then he looked up.

他陷入了空想，手指在桌面上轻轻敲了敲，然后抬起头来。

“Colonel Arbuthnot smokes a pipe,” he said. “In the compartment of Mr. Ratchett I found a pipe-cleaner. Mr. Ratchett smoked only cigars.”

“阿伯斯诺上校抽烟斗，”他说：“在罗嘉德的房间里，我找到了一枚通烟斗用的捻子。而罗嘉德先生只抽雪茄。”

“You think—?”

“你认为——？”

“He is the only man so far who admits to smoking a pipe. And he knew of Colonel Armstrong—perhaps actually did know him, though he won’t admit it.”

“是目前唯一承认抽烟斗的人。他知道阿姆斯壮上校，也许根本就认识他，只是不肯承认。”

“So you think it possible—?”

“因此你认为可能——？”

Poirot shook his head violently.

白罗猛烈地摇了摇头。

“That is just it—it is impossible—quite impossible—that an honourable, slightly stupid, upright Englishman should stab an enemy twelve times with a knife! Do you not feel, my friends, how impossible it is?”

“恰恰相反——不可能——非常不可能：一名有尊严、并不挺明智、耿直的英国人曾用刀刺了仇敌十二刀！朋友，你不觉得这很不可能吗？”

“That is the psychology,” said M. Bouc.

“这是心理学的观点。”波克先生说。

“And one must respect the psychology. This crime has a signature, and it is certainly not the signature of Colonel Arbuthnot. But now to our next interview.”

“我们正是不能小看了心理因素。这案子点出了凶手的特性，而绝非阿伯斯诺上校的心态。现在，我们问下一个吧。”

This time M. Bouc did not mention the Italian. But he thought of him.

这次，波克先生虽没有再提那名意大利人，心中想的却仍是他。