7 THE BODY
7 尸体
Followed by Dr. Constantine, Poirot made his way to the next coach and to the compartment occupied by the murdered man.
康斯丹丁医师紧跟在白罗身后，两人来到隔壁车厢被害人的卧铺房间。
The conductor came and unlocked the door for them with his key.
列车长赶来用钥匙为他们启开锁住的房门。
The two men passed inside. Poirot turned inquiringly to his companion.
两人进入室内，白罗向医师询问道：
“How much has been disarranged in this compartment?”
“这房里有人动过吗？”
“Nothing has been touched. I was careful not to move the body in making my examination.”
“什么东西也不会碰过。我验尸时也格外谨慎，没有挪动尸体。”
Poirot nodded. He looked round him.
白罗点点头，又往屋里四下看了一遍。
The first thing that struck the senses was the intense cold. The window was pushed down as far as it would go, and the blind was drawn up.
他首先感到了一阵奇寒。车窗被拉下到了底，百叶窗也是推上去的。
“Brrr,” observed Poirot.
“好冷。”白罗打了个寒噤说。
The other smiled appreciatively.
医师也颇表同感地挤出一丝笑容。
“I did not like to close it,” he said.
“我想我是不应该把窗户开着的。”他说。
Poirot examined the window carefully.
白罗细心查看了一番车窗。
“You are right,” he announced. “Nobody left the carriage this way. Possibly the open window was intended to suggest that somebody did; but if so, the snow has defeated the murderer’s intention.”
“你说的很对，”他宣称：“没人能打这扇车窗逃离列车。打开车窗极可能是故设的陷井，然而凶手的诡计却让大雪给揭穿了。”
He examined the frame of the window carefully. Taking a small case from his pocket he blew a little powder over the frame.
他仔细查看窗沿，然后自衣袋中取出一只小盒，往窗沿上吹了一些粉末。
“No fingerprints at all,” he said. “That means it: has been wiped. Well, if there had been fingerprints they would have told us very little. They would have been those of Mr. Ratchett or his valet or the conductor. Criminals do not make mistakes of that kind nowadays.
“一丝指纹也没有留下，”他说：“这是被人擦掉了。其实即使有指纹留下，也不见得有什么用。指纹可能是罗嘉德本人，或是他的男仆和列车长的。如今罪犯已不再干留下指纹这类的笨事了。”
“And that being so,” he added cheerfully, “we might as well shut the window. Positively it is the cold storage in here!”
“既然如此，”他轻松地说：“我们不妨把窗户关上。这里简直成了冷库了嘛！”
He suited the action to the word and then turned his attention for the first time to the motionless figure lying in the bunk.
说着，将车窗关了上去，然后首次将视线移往卧铺上静卧的尸体上。
Ratchett lay on his back. His pyjama jacket, stained with rusty patches, had been unbuttoned and thrown back.
罗嘉德仰天躺着。补绽四现的睡衣，钮扣敞着，而且还被翻到了肩后。
“I had to see the nature of the wounds, you see,” explained the doctor.
“你知道，这样我才能查验刀刺的伤痕。”医师解释说。
Poirot nodded. He bent over the body. Finally he straightened himself with a slight grimace.
白罗点了点头。他弯身查看尸体良久，才皱着眉头直起身来。
“It is not pretty,” he said. “Someone must have stood there and stabbed him again and again. How many wounds are there exactly?”
“真可怕。”他说：“凶手一定站在那儿不知猛刺了多久呢！你说到底一共有多少处刀伤？”
“I make it twelve. One or two are so slight as to be practically scratches. On the other hand, at least three would be capable of causing death.”
“我算的是十二处。有一两处轻得只伤了表皮，但另外至少有三处却重得足以致命。”
Something in the doctor’s tone caught Poirot’s attention. He looked at him sharply. The little Greek was standing staring down at the body with a puzzled frown.
医师的语气引起了白罗的注意，他冷锐地注视他。这位矮小的希腊医师正皱紧了眉头瞪视着卧铺上的尸体。
“Something strikes you as odd, does it not?” he asked gently. “Speak, my friend. There is something here that puzzles you?”
“你觉得有些蹊跷，是不？有点想不通？朋友，直说嘛！”
“You are right,” acknowledged the other.
“是的。”
“What is it?”
“是什么呢？”
“You see these two wounds—here and here—” He pointed. “They are deep. Each cut must have severed blood vessels—and yet the edges do not gape. They have not bled as one would have expected.”
“你看这两处伤痕，这儿，还有这儿，”医师指点着说：“有多深！每一刀连血管都割断了——可是——伤口却又是合着的，血流的似乎也并不多。”
“Which suggests?”
“这意味着？”
“That the man was already dead—some little time dead—when they were delivered. But that is surely absurd.”
“人早就死了的。这几刀刺下去之前，被害人已经死了有一会儿了。可是，这关在荒谬得解释不通。”
“It would seem so,” said Poirot thoughtfully. “Unless our murderer figured to himself that he had not accomplished his job properly and came back to make quite sure—but that is manifestly absurd! Anything else?”
“可不是吗！”白罗深思地说：“除非是凶手觉得干得不妥当，又翻回来补上几刀。可是这更荒谬了！还有别的疑窦吗？”
“Well, just one thing.”
“呃，还有一点。”
“And that?”
“什么？”
“You see this wound here—under the right arm—near the right shoulder. Take this pencil of mine. Could you deliver such a blow?”
“你看这处伤口，靠近右肩的膀子下头。来，用我的铅竹试试，看你能那么刺吗？”
Poirot poised his hand.
白罗举起了右手。
“Précisément,” he said. “I see. With the right hand it is exceedingly difficult, almost impossible. One would have to strike backhanded, as it were. But if the blow were struck with the left hand—”
“可不是吗！”他说：“我懂了，用右手是非常难那么刺法的。简直不可能，除非反着刺。要不然就是用左手刺的——”
“Exactly, M. Poirot. That blow was almost certainly struck with the left hand.”
“正是，白罗先生。这一刀必定是用左手刺的。”
“So that our murderer is left-handed? No, it is more difficult than that, is it not?”
“那么，咱们的凶手是个左撇子了？不对，不会那么容易的，是不？”
“As you say, M. Poirot. Some of these other blows are just as obviously righthanded.”
“不过，白罗先生，确如你所说，有几处伤口却又显然是出自右手的刺杀。”
“Two people. We are back at two people again,” murmured the detective.
“两个人。我们又翻回到两名凶手的假设上来了，”大侦探喃喃地说。
He asked abruptly: “Was the electric light on?”
突然，他又问“当时灯是开着的吗？”
“It is difficult to say. You see, it is turned off by the conductor every morning about ten o’clock.”
“难说，因为每天早上十时，列车长负责把灯熄灭的。”
“The switches will tell us,” said Poirot.
“看看开关就知道了。”白罗说。
He examined the switch of the top light and also the roll-back bed-head light. The former was turned off. The latter was closed.
他查看了头顶上的灯泡与床头的电灯，两者的开关都是关了的。
“Eh bien,” he said thoughtfully. “We have here a hypothesis of the First and the Second Murderer, as the great Shakespeare would put it. The First Murderer stabbed his victim and left the compartment, turning off the light. The SecondMurderer came in in the dark, did not see that his or her work had been done, andstabbed at least twice at a dead body. Que pensez-vous de .a?”
“吓！正如莎士比亚所说的，我们现在有了第一凶手与第二凶手的假设了。第一名凶手刺完了被害者，扭熄电灯，离开了房间。第二名凶手进来，摸着黑，看不见第一凶手的任务已经完成，就往死者尸体上又刺了至少两刀。你想对不对？”
“Magnificent!” said the little doctor with enthusiasm.
“妙极了！”矮小的医师兴奋得叫了出来。
The other’s eyes twinkled.
“You think so? I am glad. It sounded to me a little like the nonsense.”
“对吗？多谢你的捧场！不过，我自己倒觉得简直是胡说八道！”
“What other explanation can there be?”
“那还有什么别的解释呢？”
“That is just what I am asking myself. Have we here a coincidence, or what? Are there any other inconsistencies, such as would point to two people being concerned?”
“我正问自己呢。这案子是否有巧合因素存在？若说有两名凶手，又是否有不符的疑点？”
“I think I can say yes. Some of these blows, as I have already said, point to a weakness—a lack of strength or a lack of determination. They are feeble, glancing blows. But this one here—and this one—”
“依我看是有的。譬如说，有些伤处，正如我指出的，显出了凶手个性上的弱点——缺少力量与决心。下手太轻，太浅。但是这儿——还有这一处，”
Again he pointed. “Great strength was needed for those blows. They have penetrated the muscle.”
医生又指着说：“却又是不用大刀刺不了这么深、这么重的，刀伤已经刺穿了肌肉了。”
“They were, in your opinion, delivered by a man?”
“照你看来，这是男人刺的了。”
“Most certainly.”
“应该没问题。”
“They could not have been delivered by a woman?”
“不可能是女人吗？”
“A young, vigorous, athletic woman might have struck them, especially if she were in the grip of a strong emotion; but it is in my opinion highly unlikely.”
“除非是个年轻力壮的女运动员型的才会有那么大的力气，并且得是在情绪极端激动的时候。但是，我看极不可能是个女人下的手。”
Poirot was silent a moment or two.
白罗沉默了片刻。
The other asked anxiously, “You understand my point?”
医师又迫切地问：“你了解我的观点吗？”
“Perfectly,” said Poirot. “The matter begins to clear itself up wonderfully! The murderer was a man of great strength—he was feeble—it was a woman—it was a right-handed person—it was a left-handed person. Ah! c’est rigolo, tout .a!” He spoke with sudden anger. “And the victim—what does he do in all this? Does he cry out? Does he struggle? Does he defend himself?”
“当然了！”白罗说：“案情可真是愈来愈明朗了！凶手是个强壮的男人，却又软弱无力；凶手是个女的，是个使用右手的人——又可能是个左撇子——啊呀！真滑稽！”他愈说愈气愤：“再说，死者当时又如何呢？他叫喊了吗？挣扎了吗？自卫了吗？”
He slipped his hand under the pillow and drew out the automatic pistol which Ratchett had shown him the day before.
说着，他自床头枕头下抽出一把自动手枪，就是罗嘉德前一不亮给他看过的那柄。
“Fully loaded, you see,” he said.
“你看，上满了子弹的。”他说。
They looked round them. Ratchett’s day clothing was hanging from the hooks on the wall. On the small table formed by the lid of the wash basin were various objects. False teeth in a glass of water. Another glass, empty. A bottle of mineral water. A large flask. An ash-tray containing the butt of a cigar and some charred fragments of paper; also two burnt matches.
他俩又四下搜看。罗嘉德的便装仍挂在壁上，盥洗缸上的小台架上摆满了零碎东西——一只玻璃杯上泡着假牙，另有一只，是空的；一瓶矿泉水，一个大罐子，烟灰缸内有一节雪茄烟屁股、焚过的纸片、还有两根燃过的火柴梗。
The doctor picked up the empty glass and sniffed it.
医生拿起那只空玻璃杯，嗥了嗥说：“
“Here is the explanation of the victim’s inertia,” he said quietly.
这可以解释何以死者在遇害时竟没有任何反抗。”
“Drugged?”
“被人下了麻药？”
“Yes.”
“正是。”
Poirot nodded. He picked up the two matches and scrutinised them carefully.
白罗点点头。他拣起那两根火柴梗，仔细查看了片刻。
“You have a clue then?” demanded the little doctor eagerly.
“怎么？发现线索了？”矮小的医师急切地问。
“Those two matches are of different shapes,” said Poirot. “One is flatter than the other. You see?”
“这两根火柴的形态不同，一根比较扁些，看得出来吗？”
“It is the kind you get on the train,” said the doctor. “In paper covers.”
“那是火车上给的钉成一排排的那种，”医生说：“用硬纸壳夹起来的。”
Poirot was feeling in the pockets of Ratchett’s clothing. Presently he pulled out a box of matches. He compared them carefully with the burnt ones.
白罗在罗嘉德衣袋中摸了一下，掏出一盒火柴来，仔细地比较。
“The rounder one is a match struck by Mr. Ratchett,” he said. “Let us see if he had also the flatter kind.”
“罗嘉德用的是圆梗的这种，”白罗说：“我们来找找看他是否也有扁形的火柴。”
But a further search showed no other matches.
找了半天，并没找到别种的。
Poirot’s eyes were darting about the compartment. They were bright and sharp like a bird’s. One felt that nothing could escape their scrutiny.
白罗的眼睛苍鹰般地在房内四下打量，似乎什么也逃不过他的搜索。
With a little exclamation he bent and picked-up something from the floor.
突然，一声小小的惊喜，他弯身拾起了一件东西。
It was a small square of cambric, very dainty. In the corner was an embroidered initial—H.
是块小巧精致的麻纱手帕，一角上编着一个字母——H.
“A woman’s handkerchief,” said the doctor. “Our friend the chef de train was right. There is a woman concerned in this.”
“是块女人的手帕，”医生说：“居然叫我们总列车长给猜中了。确实有个女人牵涉在内呢！”
“And most conveniently she leaves her handkerchief behind!” said Poirot. “Exactly as it happens in the books and on the films—and to make things even easier for us, it is marked with an initial.”
“她倒是挺有心的，留块手帕在现场！真像小说或电影里所描述的，为了方便我们，手帕上还编了名字的缩写字母呢！”
“What a stroke of luck for us!” exclaimed the doctor.
“我们的运气可真不错！”医生大叫着说。
“Is it not?” said Poirot.
“可不是吗！”白罗说。
Something in his tone surprised the doctor, but before he could ask for elucidation Poirot had made another dive onto the floor.
白罗的语气有些出乎医生的意外，但正当他想问个明白，白罗又向地板上俯冲了下去。
This time he held out on the palm of his hand—a pipe-cleaner.
这次，他手掌上捧着的是一根通烟斗的捻子。
“It is perhaps the property of Mr. Ratchett?” suggested the doctor.
“是罗嘉德先生用的？”医师小心翼翼地问。
“There was no pipe in any of his pockets, and no tobacco or tobacco pouch.”
“罗嘉德的衣袋中没有烟斗，没有烟草，也没有烟草袋。”
“Then it is a clue.”
“总该是个线索吧？”
“Oh! decidedly. And again dropped most conveniently. A masculine clue, this time, you note! One cannot complain of having no clues in this case. There are clues here in abundance. By the way, what have you done with the weapon?”
“呵！那当然了！而且也是故意留下来的，这次可是非常的男性化了！哼！这案子的线索可真丰富得过了份！喔，对了，你把凶器放在哪儿了？“
“There was no sign of any weapon. The murderer must have taken it away with him.”
“没找到凶器。大概是凶手带走了。”
“I wonder why,” mused Poirot.
“倒不知是为了什么。”白罗咕噜了一句。
“Ah!” The doctor had been delicately exploring the pyjama pockets of the dead man.
“啊！”医师正在小心地翻看死者睡衣的口袋。
“I overlooked this,” he said. “I unbuttoned the jacket and threw it straight back.”
“我忘了这儿了，”他说：“我验尸时忙着解钮扣，并把睡衣翻到肩后去了。”
From the breast pocket he brought out a gold watch. The case was dented savagely, and the hands pointed to a quarter past one.
白睡衣前胸口袋里，他取出了一只金表，表面已经捶得稀裂，时针指出的时候是一点一刻。
“You see?” cried Constantine eagerly. “This gives us the hour of the crime. It agrees with my calculations. Between midnight and two in the morning is what I said, and probably about one o’clock, though it is difficult to be exact in thesematters. Eh bien, here is confirmation. A quarter past one. That was the hour of thecrime.”
“看，怎么样？”康斯丹丁医师热切地嚷着：“谋杀的时刻正与我所估计的相吻合！我说的是午夜十二时至二时之间，极可能是一时左右，尽管这种断定不容易极端正确。你看，现在不是证实了吗？一点过一刻正是谋杀的时刻。”
“It is possible, yes. It is certainly possible.”
“可能，非常可能。”
The doctor looked at him curiously. “You will pardon me, M. Poirot, but I do not quite understand you.”
医师费解地看着白罗说：“对不起，可是白罗先生，我不懂你话里的真意”
“I do not understand myself,” said Poirot. “I understand nothing at all. And, as you perceive, it worries me.”
“我自己也不懂，”白罗说：“你可以看得出来，我对这个案子真是一点也说不出所以然来，这正是令人担心的所在。”
He sighed and bent over the little table examining the charred fragment of paper. He murmured to himself, “What I need at this moment is an old-fashioned woman’s hat-box.”
他叹了口气，弯身验看小桌上的一团焚化的纸片，然后自言自语地说：“我现在需要一个老式的女用帽子盒。”
Dr. Constantine was at a loss to know what to make of this singular remark. In any case Poirot gave him no time for questions. Opening the door into the corridor, he called for the conductor.
康斯丹丁医师听到耳里，更是一头的雾水。然而白罗不等医师问话，打开房门，到过道上召唤列车长。
The man arrived at a run.
列车长应声跑了过来。
“How many women are there in this coach?”
“这节车厢里一共有几位女客？”
The conductor counted on his fingers.
列车长扳着手指算了算。
“One, two, three—six, Monsieur. The old American lady, a Swedish lady, the young English lady, the Countess Andrenyi, and Madame la Princesse Dragomiroff and her maid.”
“一位，两位——一共六位。那个美国老太太，一个瑞典妇人，那位年轻的英国小姐，安君业伯爵夫人，德瑞格米罗夫郡主与她的女仆。”
Poirot considered.
白罗想了想。
“They all have hat-boxes, yes?”
“她们都有帽子盒吧？”
“Yes, Monsieur.”
“都有。”
“Then bring me—let me see—yes, the Swedish lady’s and that of the lady’smaid. Those two are the only hope. You will tell them it is a customs regulation— something—anything that occurs to you.”
“拿一个来吧——我看——对了，那位瑞典妇人或是那个女仆的都可以，只有这两个人的可能还有点用。你就告诉她们说是例行的验关检查，反正随便编个借口去吧。”
“That will be all right, Monsieur. Neither lady is in her compartment at the moment.”
“不要紧，先生，她们两个现在都不在房间里。”
“Then be quick.”
“那就快去。”
The conductor departed. He returned with the two hatboxes. Poirot opened that of the maid, and tossed it aside. Then he opened the Swedish lady’s and uttered an exclamation of satisfaction. Removing the hats carefully, he disclosed round humps of wire-netting.
不一刻，列车长捧着两只帽子盒回来。白罗先打开那个女仆的，随即又扔到一边。然后又打开那位瑞典妇人的，满意地叫了一声。他将帽子取出之后，果然见下面有一团垫帽子用的铁丝网。
“Ah, here is what we need! About fifteen years ago hat-boxes were made like this. You skewered through the hat with a hatpin on to this hump of wire-netting.”
“哈！正是我们所需要的。十五年前做的帽盒都是这样的，女人用夹子把帽子别在这个小铁丝网上。”
As he spoke he was skillfully removing two of the attached humps. Then he repacked the hat-box and told the conductor to return both boxes where they belonged.
说着，他很技巧地取下了两圈铁丝，然后将帽子放进盒里，叫列车长立刻送回原处。
When the door was shut once more he turned to his companion.
房门关上之后，他向医师解释。
“See you, my dear doctor, me, I am not one to rely upon the expert procedure. It is the psychology I seek, not the fingerprint or the cigarette ash. But in this case Iwould welcome a little scientific assistance. This compartment is full of clues, butcan I be sure that those clues are really what they seem to be?”
“你看，亲爱的朋友，我个人，是不循专家的作业程序的。我要探索的是心理状态，而不是指纹或烟灰。不过，拿这个案子来说，我例有赖于一些科学的帮助。这房里虽然不乏线索可寻，但是又怎能知道确是名副其实的线索呢？”
“I do not quite understand you, M. Poirot.”
“我还是不大明白，白罗先生。”
“Well, to give you an example—we find a woman’s handkerchief. Did a woman drop it? Or did a man, committing the crime, say to himself: ‘I will make this look like a woman’s crime. I will stab my enemy an unnecessary number of times, making some of the blows feeble and ineffective, and I will drop this handkerchief where no one can miss it’? That is one possibility. Then there is another. Did a woman kill him, and did she deliberately drop a pipe-cleaner to make it look like a man’s work? Or are we seriously to suppose that two people, a man and a woman, were separately concerned, and that each was so careless as to drop a clue to his or her identity? It is a little too much of a coincidence, that!”
“那么，我给你打个比方吧——就拿我们发现那块女用手帕来说吧。真是一个女人留下的吗？还是一个男人在下手时，想道：‘我要把这事干行像个女人作的，乱刺一通，有的刀伤要重，有的特别轻，然后故意留下谁也看得到的手帕在地板上’？这当然是一种可能。另外也有一种可能：是个女人杀的，然后故意留下通烟斗的捻子，好让人觉得是男人干的。如果说我们真的认为是一男、一女分别行的凶，他们又为何如此大意地为自己的身份留下这些线索呢？这未免太巧合了吧！”
“But where does the hat-box come in?” asked the doctor, still puzzled.
“可是你要这帽子盒干什么用呢？”医师仍然一脸不解地问。
“Ah! I am coming to that. As I say, these clues—the watch stopped at a quarter past one, the handkerchief, the pipe-cleaner—they may be genuine, or they may be faked. As to that I cannot yet tell. But there is one clue here which—though again I may be wrong—I believe has not been faked. I mean this flat match, M. le docteur. I believe that that match was used by the murderer, not by Mr. Ratchett. It was used to burn an incriminating paper of some kind. Possibly a note. If so, there was something in that note, some mistake, some error, that left a possible clue to the assailant. I am going to try to discover what that something was.”
“呵！这我要解释给你听了。如我所说，这些线索——金表时针停在一点过一刻、手帕、还有烟斗捻子——可能是真的，也可能是故作虚假的，这我一时还不敢说。但是有一项——当然我的判断也可能不正确——线索，我却认为不会是伪作的。我指的是这扁型的火柴梗，亲爱的医生。我相信那根火柴是凶手用过，而非罗嘉德先生所用的。那是用来焚毁某种犯罪证据的，很可能是一张字条。如果不错的话，那字条里可能含有错误、疏忽或对凶手不利的线索。我现在就要寻出此一线索来。”
He went out of the compartment and returned a few moments later with a small spirit stove and a pair of curling-tongs.
白罗说着走出了房门，返回时手里拿着一盏小酒精灯与一把小钳子。
“I use them for the moustaches,” he said, referring to the latter.
“我是用来卷仁丹胡的。”他指的是那把小钳子。
The doctor watched him with great interest. Poirot flattened out the two humps of wire, and with great care wriggled the charred scrap of paper on to one of them. He clapped the other on top of it and then, holding both pieces together with the tongs, held the whole thing over the flame of the spirit-lamp.
医师兴致勃勃地看他表演。白罗将两圈铁丝展平，然后极谨慎地将焚化的纸片放在一圈铁丝上，再将另一圈铁丝覆在上头，用小钳子夹好。他将两圈铁丝轻轻放在点燃的酒精灯上。
“It is a very makeshift affair, this,” he said over his shoulder. “Let us hope that it will answer our purpose.”
“只有用这种穷则变的办法了，”他对背后的医师说：“但愿能为我们找出答案。”
The doctor watched the proceedings attentively. The metal began to glow. Suddenly he saw faint indications of letters. Words formed themselves slowlywords of fire.
医师在一旁看得已是目瞪口呆。铁丝渐渐烧红。突然，他看见字迹开始显露了，火烧成的字慢慢成形了。
It was a very tiny scrap. Only three words and part of another showed.
那块字条非常小，只有三个字，另一个字也只剩下一部分了。
—member little Daisy Armstrong
——记（得）小黛西·阿姆斯壮
“Ah!” Poirot gave a sharp exclamation.
“啊！”白罗尖叫了一声。
“It tells you something?” asked the doctor.
“上头说了什么了吗？”医师问。
Poirot’s eyes were shining. He laid down the tongs carefully.
白罗眼中闪着光芒。他小心地放下了小钳子。
“Yes,” he said. “I know the dead man’s real name. I know why he had to leave America.”
“是的，”他说：“我晓得了死者的真实姓名，也明白了他为什么非得远离美国。”
“What was his name?”
“他叫什么名字？”
“Cassetti.”
“卡赛提。”
“Cassetti?” Constantine knitted his brows. “It brings back to me something. Some years ago. I cannot remember. ... It was a case in America, was it not?”
“卡赛提？”康斯丹丁皱起了眉毛思索着说：“似乎有点印象。好多年以前了……记不清了。好像在美国发生的一桩什么案子。”
“Yes,” said Poirot. “A case in America.”
“是的，”白罗说：“在美国发生的一个案子。”
Further than that Poirot was not disposed to be communicative. He looked round him as he went on:
除此之外，他不想对此再表示什么意见。他四下看了看，又说：
“We will go into all that presently. Let us first make sure that we have seen all there is to be seen here.”
“这我们稍后再说。目前让我们再查看一下房里的东西。”
Quickly and deftly he went once more through the pockets of the dead man’s clothes but found nothing there of interest. He tried the communicating door which led through to the next compartment, but it was bolted on the other side.
他速迅而谨慎地又翻了一下死者衣装的口袋，并未发现任何可取之物。他扳了扳通往隔壁房间的门，但是房门是在另一边锁上的。
“There is one thing that I do not understand,” said Dr. Constantine. “If the murderer did not escape through the window, and if this communicating door was bolted on the other side, and if the door into the corridor was not only locked on the inside but chained, how then did the murderer leave the compartment?”
“这我就不懂了，”康斯丹丁医师说：“如果说凶手不是自车窗逃走的，而这个通门又是自另一边锁住，再说，这扇通往过道的门不但是反锁的，而且还加了锁练，那么凶手是怎么离开这间小屋的呢？”
“That is what the audience says when a person bound hand and foot is shut into a cabinet—and disappears.”
“这就是我们在舞台上看到的所谓‘返身术’戏法了。”
“You mean—?”
“呃——？”
“I mean,” explained Poirot, “that if the murderer intended us to believe that he had escaped by way of the window, he would naturally make it appear that the other two exits were impossible. Like the ‘disappearing person’ in the cabinet, it is a trick. It is our business to find out how the trick is done.
“你想，”白罗解释说：“如果凶手有意告诉我们他是自窗口逃出，他当然要把房中其他两个出口弄成不可能逃身的情况，就像魔术中的‘返身术’一样，全是障眼的戏法。得看我们如何去揭穿了。”
He locked the communicating door on their side—“in case,” he said, “the excellent Mrs. Hubbard should take it into her head to acquire first-hand details of the crime to write to her daughter.”
他将通往隔室的门也锁上了。“以防万一，”他说：“说不定那位伟大的侯伯太太心血来潮，想过来亲自查看一番，好给她女儿写一篇恐怖侦探小说。”
He looked round once more.
他又在房里四下打量了一次。
“There is nothing more to do here, I think. Let us rejoin M. Bouc.”
“这里没什么事可做了。我们去找波克先生吧。”