You know in what reverence3 the royal white elephant of Siam is held by the people of that country. You know it is sacred to kings, only kings may possess it, and that it is, indeed, in a measure even superior to kings, since it receives not merely honor but worship. Very well; five years ago, when the troubles concerning the frontier line arose between Great Britain and Siam, it was presently manifest that Siam had been in the wrong. Therefore every reparation was quickly made, and the British representative stated that he was satisfied and the past should be forgotten. This greatly relieved the King of Siam, and partly as a token of gratitude4, but partly also, perhaps, to wipe out any little remaining vestige5 of unpleasantness which England might feel toward him, he wished to send the Queen a present—the sole sure way of propitiating6 an enemy, according to Oriental ideas. This present ought not only to be a royal one, but transcendently royal. Wherefore, what offering could be so meet as that of a white elephant? My position in the Indian civil service was such that I was deemed peculiarly worthy7 of the honor of conveying the present to her Majesty8. A ship was fitted out for me and my servants and the officers and attendants of the elephant, and in due time I arrived in New York harbor and placed my royal charge in admirable quarters in Jersey9 City. It was necessary to remain awhile in order to recruit the animal's health before resuming the voyage.
All went well during a fortnight—then my calamities10 began. The white elephant was stolen! I was called up at dead of night and informed of this fearful misfortune. For some moments I was beside myself with terror and anxiety; I was helpless. Then I grew calmer and collected my faculties11. I soon saw my course—for, indeed, there was but the one course for an intelligent man to pursue. Late as it was, I flew to New York and got a policeman to conduct me to the headquarters of the detective force. Fortunately I arrived in time, though the chief of the force, the celebrated12 Inspector13 Blunt was just on the point of leaving for his home. He was a man of middle size and compact frame, and when he was thinking deeply he had a way of kniting his brows and tapping his forehead reflectively with his finger, which impressed you at once with the conviction that you stood in the presence of a person of no common order. The very sight of him gave me confidence and made me hopeful. I stated my errand. It did not flurry him in the least; it had no more visible effect upon his iron self-possession than if I had told him somebody had stolen my dog. He motioned me to a seat, and said, calmly:
“Allow me to think a moment, please.”
So saying, he sat down at his office table and leaned his head upon his hand. Several clerks were at work at the other end of the room; the scratching of their pens was all the sound I heard during the next six or seven minutes. Meantime the inspector sat there, buried in thought. Finally he raised his head, and there was that in the firm lines of his face which showed me that his brain had done its work and his plan was made. Said he—and his voice was low and impressive:
“This is no ordinary case. Every step must be warily14 taken; each step must be made sure before the next is ventured. And secrecy15 must be observed—secrecy profound and absolute. Speak to no one about the matter, not even the reporters. I will take care of them; I will see that they get only what it may suit my ends to let them know.” He touched a bell; a youth appeared. “Alaric, tell the reporters to remain for the present.” The boy retired16. “Now let us proceed to business—and systematically17. Nothing can be accomplished18 in this trade of mine without strict and minute method.”
He took a pen and some paper. “Now—name of the elephant?”
“Hassan Ben Ali Ben Selim Abdallah Mohammed Mois Alhammal Jamsetjejeebhoy Dhuleep Sultan Ebu Bhudpoor.”
“Very well. Given name?”
“Jumbo.”
“Very well. Place of birth?”
“The capital city of Siam.”
“Parents living?”
“No—dead.”
“Had they any other issue besides this one?”
“None. He was an only child.”
“Very well. These matters are sufficient under that head. Now please describe the elephant, and leave out no particular, however insignificant19—that is, insignificant from your point of view. To men in my profession there are no insignificant particulars; they do not exist.”
I described, he wrote. When I was done, he said:
“Now listen. If I have made any mistakes, correct me.”
He read as follows:
“Height, 19 feet; length from apex20 of forehead to insertion of tail, 26 feet; length of trunk, 16 feet; length of tail, 6 feet; total length, including trunk, and tail, 48 feet; length of tusks21, 9 1/2 feet ; ears keeping with these dimensions; footprint resembles the mark left when one up-ends a barrel in the snow; color of the elephant, a dull white; has a hole the size of a plate in each ear for the insertion of jewelry22 and possesses the habit in a remarkable23 degree of squirting water upon spectators and of maltreating with his trunk not only such persons as he is acquainted with, but even entire strangers; limps slightly with his right hind24 leg, and has a small scar in his left armpit caused by a former boil; had on, when stolen, a castle containing seats for fifteen persons, and a gold-cloth saddle-blanket the size of an ordinary carpet.”
There were no mistakes. The inspector touched the bell, handed the description to Alaric, and said:
“Have fifty thousand copies of this printed at once and mailed to every detective office and pawnbroker's shop on the continent.” Alaric retired. “There—so far, so good. Next, I must have a photograph of the property.”
I gave him one. He examined it critically, and said:
“It must do, since we can do no better; but he has his trunk curled up and tucked into his mouth. That is unfortunate, and is calculated to mislead, for of course he does not usually have it in that position.” He touched his bell.
“Alaric, have fifty thousand copies of this photograph made the first thing in the morning, and mail them with the descriptive circulars.”
Alaric retired to execute his orders. The inspector said:
“It will be necessary to offer a reward, of course. Now as to the amount?”
“What sum would you suggest?”
“To begin with, I should say—well, twenty-five thousand dollars. It is an intricate and difficult business; there are a thousand avenues of escape and opportunities of concealment25. These thieves have friends and pals26 everywhere—”
“Bless me, do you know who they are?”
The wary27 face, practised in concealing28 the thoughts and feelings within, gave me no token, nor yet the replying words, so quietly uttered:
“Never mind about that. I may, and I may not. We generally gather a pretty shrewd inkling of who our man is by the manner of his work and the size of the game he goes after. We are not dealing29 with a pickpocket30 or a hall thief now, make up your mind to that. This property was not 'lifted' by a novice31. But, as I was saying, considering the amount of travel which will have to be done, and the diligence with which the thieves will cover up their traces as they move along, twenty-five thousand may be too small a sum to offer, yet I think it worth while to start with that.”
So we determined32 upon that figure as a beginning. Then this man, whom nothing escaped which could by any possibility be made to serve as a clue, said:
“There are cases in detective history to show that criminals have been detected through peculiarities33, in their appetites. Now, what does this elephant eat, and how much?”
“Well, as to what he eats—he will eat anything. He will eat a man, he will eat a Bible—he will eat anything between a man and a Bible.”
“Good very good, indeed, but too general. Details are necessary—details are the only valuable things in our trade. Very well—as to men. At one meal—or, if you prefer, during one day—how man men will he eat, if fresh?”
“He would not care whether they were fresh or not; at a single meal he would eat five ordinary men.”
“Very good; five men; we will put that down. What nationalities would he prefer?”
“He is indifferent about nationalities. He prefers acquaintances, but is not prejudiced against strangers.”
“Very good. Now, as to Bibles. How many Bibles would he eat at a meal?”
“He would eat an entire edition.”
“I think he would be indifferent to illustrations that is, I think he would not value illustrations above simple letterpress.”
“No, you do not get my idea. I refer to bulk. The ordinary octavo Bible weighs about two pounds and a half, while the great quarto with the illustrations weighs ten or twelve. How many Dore Bibles would he eat at a meal?”
“If you knew this elephant, you could not ask. He would take what they had.”
“Well, put it in dollars and cents, then. We must get at it somehow. The Dore costs a hundred dollars a copy, Russia leather, beveled.”
“He would require about fifty thousand dollars worth—say an edition of five hundred copies.”
“Now that is more exact. I will put that down. Very well; he likes men and Bibles; so far, so good. What else will he eat? I want particulars.”
“He will leave Bibles to eat bricks, he will leave bricks to eat bottles, he will leave bottles to eat clothing, he will leave clothing to eat cats, he will leave cats to eat oysters36, he will leave oysters to eat ham, he will leave ham to eat sugar, he will leave sugar to eat pie, he will leave pie to eat potatoes, he will leave potatoes to eat bran; he will leave bran to eat hay, he will leave hay to eat oats, he will leave oats to eat rice, for he was mainly raised on it. There is nothing whatever that he will not eat but European butter, and he would eat that if he could taste it.”
“Very good. General quantity at a meal—say about—”
“Well, anywhere from a quarter to half a ton.”
“And he drinks—”
“Everything that is fluid. Milk, water, whisky, molasses, castor oil, camphene, carbolic acid—it is no use to go into particulars; whatever fluid occurs to you set it down. He will drink anything that is fluid, except European coffee.”
“Very good. As to quantity?”
“Put it down five to fifteen barrels—his thirst varies; his other appetites do not.”
“These things are unusual. They ought to furnish quite good clues toward tracing him.”
He touched the bell.
“Alaric; summon Captain Burns.”
Burns appeared. Inspector Blunt unfolded the whole matter to him, detail by detail. Then he said in the clear, decisive tones of a man whose plans are clearly defined in his head and who is accustomed to command:
“Captain Burns, detail Detectives Jones, Davis, Halsey, Bates, and Hackett to shadow the elephant.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Detail Detectives Moses, Dakin, Murphy, Rogers, Tupper, Higgins, and Bartholomew to shadow the thieves.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Place a strong guard—A guard of thirty picked men, with a relief of thirty—over the place from whence the elephant was stolen, to keep strict watch there night and day, and allow none to approach—except reporters—without written authority from me.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Place detectives in plain clothes in the railway; steamship37, and ferry depots38, and upon all roadways leading out of Jersey City, with orders to search all suspicious persons.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Furnish all these men with photograph and accompanying description of the elephant, and instruct them to search all trains and outgoing ferryboats and other vessels39.”
“Yes, sir.”
“If the elephant should be found, let him be seized, and the information forwarded to me by telegraph.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Let me be informed at once if any clues should be found—footprints of the animal, or anything of that kind.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Get an order commanding the harbor police to patrol the frontages vigilantly40.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Despatch detectives in plain clothes over all the railways, north as far as Canada, west as far as Ohio, south as far as Washington.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Place experts in all the telegraph offices to listen to all messages; and let them require that all cipher41 despatches be interpreted to them.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Let all these things be done with the utmost's secrecy—mind, the most impenetrable secrecy.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Yes, Sir.”
“Go!”
“Yes, sir.”
He was gone.
Inspector Blunt was silent and thoughtful a moment, while the fire in his eye cooled down and faded out. Then he turned to me and said in a placid43 voice:
“I am not given to boasting, it is not my habit; but—we shall find the elephant.”
I shook him warmly by the hand and thanked him; and I FELT my thanks, too. The more I had seen of the man the more I liked him and the more I admired him and marveled over the mysterious wonders of his profession. Then we parted for the night, and I went home with a far happier heart than I had carried with me to his office.
该作者的其它作品
《Life on the Mississippi 生活在密西西比》
《The Adventures of Tom Sawyer汤姆.索亚历险记》
《The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn哈克贝里·芬历险记》
该作者的其它作品
《Life on the Mississippi 生活在密西西比》
《The Adventures of Tom Sawyer汤姆.索亚历险记》
《The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn哈克贝里·芬历险记》
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thoroughly
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| adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地 | |
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imprinted
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| v.盖印（imprint的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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reverence
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| n.敬畏，尊敬，尊严；Reverence:对某些基督教神职人员的尊称；v.尊敬，敬畏，崇敬 | |
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gratitude
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| adj.感激，感谢 | |
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vestige
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| n.痕迹，遗迹，残余 | |
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propitiating
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| v.劝解，抚慰，使息怒( propitiate的现在分词 ) | |
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worthy
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| adj.(of)值得的，配得上的；有价值的 | |
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majesty
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| n.雄伟，壮丽，庄严，威严；最高权威，王权 | |
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jersey
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| n.运动衫 | |
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calamities
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| n.灾祸，灾难( calamity的名词复数 )；不幸之事 | |
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faculties
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| n.能力( faculty的名词复数 )；全体教职员；技巧；院 | |
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12
celebrated
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| adj.有名的，声誉卓著的 | |
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inspector
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| n.检查员，监察员，视察员 | |
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warily
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| adv.留心地 | |
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secrecy
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| n.秘密，保密，隐蔽 | |
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retired
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| adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的 | |
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systematically
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| adv.有系统地 | |
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accomplished
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| adj.有才艺的；有造诣的；达到了的 | |
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insignificant
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| adj.无关紧要的，可忽略的，无意义的 | |
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apex
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| n.顶点，最高点 | |
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tusks
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| n.（象等动物的）长牙( tusk的名词复数 )；獠牙；尖形物；尖头 | |
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jewelry
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| n.（jewllery）（总称）珠宝 | |
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remarkable
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| adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的 | |
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hind
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| adj.后面的，后部的 | |
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concealment
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| n.隐藏, 掩盖，隐瞒 | |
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pals
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| n.朋友( pal的名词复数 )；老兄；小子；（对男子的不友好的称呼）家伙 | |
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wary
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| adj.谨慎的，机警的，小心的 | |
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concealing
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| v.隐藏，隐瞒，遮住( conceal的现在分词 ) | |
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dealing
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| n.经商方法，待人态度 | |
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pickpocket
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| n.扒手；v.扒窃 | |
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novice
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| adj.新手的，生手的 | |
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determined
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| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
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peculiarities
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| n. 特质, 特性, 怪癖, 古怪 | |
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succinct
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| adj.简明的，简洁的 | |
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illustrated
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| adj. 有插图的，列举的 动词illustrate的过去式和过去分词 | |
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oysters
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| 牡蛎( oyster的名词复数 ) | |
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steamship
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| n.汽船，轮船 | |
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depots
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| 仓库( depot的名词复数 )； 火车站； 车库； 军需库 | |
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vessels
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| n.血管( vessel的名词复数 )；船；容器；（具有特殊品质或接受特殊品质的）人 | |
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vigilantly
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| adv.警觉地，警惕地 | |
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cipher
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| n.零；无影响力的人；密码 | |
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promptly
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| adv.及时地，敏捷地 | |
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placid
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| adj.安静的，平和的 | |
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