PART THREE DECEMBER 24TH XVII

XVII

Sydney Horbury did not present a very prepossessing appearance. He came into the room and

stood rubbing his hands together and darting¹ quick looks from one person to another. His manner

was unctuous².

Johnson said:

“You’re Sydney Horbury?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Valet attendant to the late Mr. Lee?”

“Yes, sir. It’s terrible, isn’t it? You could have knocked me down with a feather when I heard

from Gladys. Poor old gentleman—”

Johnson cut him short.

“Just answer my questions, please.”

“Yes, sir, certainly, sir.”

“What time did you go out tonight, and where have you been?”

“I left the house just before eight, sir. I went to the Superb, sir, just five minutes’ walk away.

Love in Old Seville was the picture, sir.”

“Anyone who saw you there?”

“The young lady in the box office, sir, she knows me. And the commissionaire at the door, he

knows me too. And—er—as a matter of fact, I was with a young lady, sir. I met her there by

appointment.”

“Oh, you did, did you? What’s her name?”

“Doris Buckle³, sir. She works in the Combined Dairies, sir, 23, Markham Road.”

“Good. We’ll look into that. Did you come straight home?”

“I saw my young lady home first, sir. Then I came straight back. You’ll find it’s quite all

right, sir. I didn’t have anything to do with this. I was—”

Colonel Johnson said curtly⁴:

“Nobody’s accusing you of having anything to do with it.”

“No, sir, of course not, sir. But it’s not very pleasant when a murder happens in a house.”

“Nobody said it was. Now, then, how long had you been in Mr. Lee’s service?”

“Just over a year, sir.”

“Did you like your place here?”

“Yes, sir. I was quite satisfied. The pay was good. Mr. Lee was rather difficult sometimes, but

of course I’m used to attending on invalids⁵.”

“You’ve had previous experience?”

“Oh, yes, sir. I was with Major West and with the Honourable⁶ Jasper Finch—”

“You can give all those particulars to Sugden later. What I want to know is this: At what time

did you last see Mr. Lee this evening?”

“It was about half past seven, sir. Mr. Lee had a light supper brought to him every evening at

seven o’clock. I then prepared him for bed. After that he would sit in front of the fire in his

dressing⁷ gown till he felt like going to bed.”

“What time was that usually?”

“It varied⁸, sir. Sometimes he would go to bed as early as eight o’clock—that’s if he felt tired.

Sometimes he would sit up till eleven or after.”

“What did he do when he did want to go to bed?”

“Usually he rang for me, sir.”

“And you assisted him to bed?”

“Yes, sir.”

“But this was your evening out. Did you always have Fridays?”

“Yes, sir. Friday was my regular day.”

“What happened then when Mr. Lee wanted to go to bed?”

“He would ring his bell and either Tressilian or Walter would see to him.”

“He was not helpless? He could move about?”

“Yes, sir, but not very easily. Rheumatoid arthritis⁹ was what he suffered from, sir. He was

worse some days than others.”

“Did he never go into another room in the daytime?”

“No, sir. He preferred to be in just the one room. Mr. Lee wasn’t luxurious¹⁰ in his tastes. It

was a big room with plenty of air and light in it.”

“Mr. Lee had his supper at seven, you say?”

“Yes, sir. I took the tray away and put out the sherry and two glasses on the bureau.”

“Why did you do that?”

“Mr. Lee’s orders.”

“Was that usual?”

“Sometimes. It was the rule that none of the family came to see Mr. Lee in the evening unless

he invited them. Some evenings he liked to be alone. Other evenings he’d send down and ask Mr.

Alfred, or Mrs. Alfred, or both of them, to come up after dinner.”

“But, as far as you know, he had not done so on this occasion? That is, he had not sent a

message to any member of the family requesting their presence?”

“He hadn’t sent any message by me, sir.”

“So that he wasn’t expecting any of the family?”

“He might have asked one of them personally, sir.”

“Of course.”

Horbury continued:

“I saw that everything was in order, wished Mr. Lee good night and left the room.”

Poirot asked:

“Did you make up the fire before you left the room?”

The valet hesitated.

“It wasn’t necessary, sir. It was well built up.”

“Could Mr. Lee have done that himself?”

“Oh no, sir. I expect Mr. Harry¹¹ Lee had done it.”

“Mr. Harry Lee was with him when you came in before supper?”

“Yes, sir. He went away when I came.”

“What was the relationship between the two as far as you could judge?”

“Mr. Harry Lee seemed in very good spirits, sir. Throwing back his head and laughing a good

deal.”

“And Mr. Lee?”

“He was quiet and rather thoughtful.”

“I see. Now, there’s something more I want to know, Horbury: What can you tell us about the

diamonds Mr. Lee kept in his safe?”

“Diamonds, sir? I never saw any diamonds.”

“Mr. Lee kept a quantity of uncut stones there. You must have seen him handling them.”

“Those funny little pebbles¹², sir? Yes, I did see him with them once or twice. But I didn’t

know they were diamonds. He was showing them to the foreign young lady only yesterday—or

was it the day before?”

Colonel Johnson said abruptly¹³:

“These stones have been stolen.”

Horbury cried out:

“I hope you don’t think, sir, that I had anything to do with it!”

“I’m not making any accusations,” said Johnson. “Now then, is there anything you can tell us

that has any bearing on this matter?”

“The diamonds, sir? Or the murder?”

“Both.”

“Horbury considered. He passed his tongue over his pale lips. At last he looked up with eyes

that were a shade furtive¹⁴.

“I don’t think there’s anything, sir.”

Poirot said softly:

“Nothing you’ve overheard, say, in the course of your duties, which might be helpful?”

The valet’s eyelids¹⁵ flickered¹⁶ a little.

“No, sir, I don’t think so, sir. There was a little awkwardness between Mr. Lee and—and

some members of his family.”

“Which members?”

“I gathered there was a little trouble over Mr. Harry Lee’s return. Mr. Alfred Lee resented it.

I understand he and his father had a few words about it—but that was all there was to it. Mr. Lee

didn’t accuse him for a minute of having taken any diamonds. And I’m sure Mr. Alfred wouldn’t

do such a thing.”

Poirot said quickly:

“His interview with Mr. Alfred was after he had discovered the loss of the diamonds, was it

not, though?”

“Yes, sir.”

Poirot leaned forward.

“I thought, Horbury,” he said softly, “that you did not know of the theft of the diamonds until

we informed you of it just now. How, then, do you know that Mr. Lee had discovered his loss

before he had this conversation with his son?”

Horbury turned brick red.

“No use lying. Out with it,” said Sugden. “When did you know?”

Horbury said sullenly¹⁷:

“I heard him telephoning to someone about it.”

“You weren’t in the room?”

“No, outside the door. Couldn’t hear much—only a word or two.”

“What did you hear exactly?” asked Poirot sweetly.

“I heard the words robbery and diamonds, and I heard him say, ‘I don’t know who to

suspect’—and I heard him say something about this evening at eight o’clock.”

Superintendent¹⁸ Sugden nodded.

“That was to me he was speaking, my lad. About five ten, was it?”

“That’s right, sir.”

“And when you went into his room afterwards, did he look upset?”

“Just a bit, sir. Seemed absentminded and worried.”

“So much so that you got the wind up—eh?”

“Look here, Mr. Sugden, I won’t have you saying things like that. Never touched any

diamonds, I didn’t, and you can’t prove I did. I’m not a thief.”

Superintendent Sugden, unimpressed, said:

“That remains¹⁹ to be seen.” He glanced questioningly at the chief constable²⁰, received a nod,

and went on: “That’ll do for you, my lad. Shan’t want you again tonight.”

Horbury went out gratefully in haste.

Sugden said appreciatively:

“Pretty bit of work, M. Poirot. You trapped him as neatly²¹ as I’ve ever seen it done. He may

be a thief or he may not, but he’s certainly a first-class liar²²!”

“An unprepossessing person,” said Poirot.

“Nasty bit of goods,” agreed Johnson. “Question is, what do we think of his evidence?”

Sugden summarized the position neatly.

“Seems to me there are three possibilities: (1) Horbury’s a thief and a murderer. (2)

Horbury’s a thief, but not a murderer. (3) Horbury’s an innocent man. Certain amount of evidence

for (1). He overheard telephone call and knew the theft had been discovered. Gathered from old

man’s manner that he was suspected. Made his plans accordingly. Went out ostentatiously at eight

o’clock and cooked up an alibi²³. Easy enough to slip out of a cinema and return there unnoticed.

He’d have to be pretty sure of the girl, though, that she wouldn’t give him away. I’ll see what I can

get out of her tomorrow.”

“How, then, did he manage to reenter the house?” asked Poirot.

“That’s more difficult,” Sugden admitted. “But there might be ways. Say one of the women

servants unlocked a side door for him.”

Poirot raised his eyebrows²⁴ quizzically.

“He places, then, his life at the mercy of two women? With one woman it would be taking a

big risk; with two—eh bien, I find the risk fantastic!”

Sugden said:

“Some criminals think they can get away with anything!”

He went on:

“Let’s take (2). Horbury pinched those diamonds. He took ’em out of the house tonight and

has possibly passed them on to some accomplice²⁵. That’s quite easy going and highly probable.

Now we’ve got to admit that somebody else chose this night to murder Mr. Lee. That somebody

being quite unaware²⁶ of the diamond complication. It’s possible, of course, but it’s a bit of a

coincidence.

“Possibility (3)—Horbury’s innocent. Somebody else both took the diamonds and murdered

the old gentleman. There it is; it’s up to us to get at the truth.”

Colonel Johnson yawned. He looked again at his watch and got up.

“Well,” he said, “I think we’ll call it a night, eh? Better just have a look in the safe before we

go. Odd thing if those wretched diamonds were there all the time.”

But the diamonds were not in the safe. They found the combination where Alfred Lee had

told them, in the small notebook taken from the dressing gown pocket of the dead man. In the safe

they found an empty chamois-leather bag. Among the papers the safe contained only one was of

interest.

It was a will dated some fifteen years previously²⁷. After various legacies²⁸ and bequests²⁹, the

provisions were simple enough. Half Simeon Lee’s fortune went to Alfred Lee. The other half was

to be divided in equal shares between his remaining children: Harry, George, David and Jennifer.

1 darting   

v.投掷，投射( dart的现在分词 )；向前冲，飞奔

参考例句：

• Swallows were darting through the clouds. 燕子穿云急飞。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• Swallows were darting through the air. 燕子在空中掠过。 来自辞典例句

2 unctuous   

adj.油腔滑调的，大胆的

参考例句：

• He speaks in unctuous tones.他说话油腔滑调。
• He made an unctuous assurance.他做了个虚请假意的承诺。

3 buckle   

n.扣子，带扣；v.把...扣住，由于压力而弯曲

参考例句：

• The two ends buckle at the back.带子两端在背后扣起来。
• She found it hard to buckle down.她很难专心做一件事情。

4 curtly   

adv.简短地

参考例句：

• He nodded curtly and walked away. 他匆忙点了一下头就走了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The request was curtly refused. 这个请求被毫不客气地拒绝了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 invalids   

病人，残疾者( invalid的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The invention will confer a benefit on all invalids. 这项发明将有助于所有的残疾人。
• H?tel National Des Invalids is a majestic building with a golden hemispherical housetop. 荣军院是有着半球形镀金屋顶的宏伟建筑。

6 honourable   

adj.可敬的；荣誉的，光荣的

参考例句：

• I don't think I am worthy of such an honourable title.这样的光荣称号，我可担当不起。
• I hope to find an honourable way of settling difficulties.我希望设法找到一个体面的办法以摆脱困境。

7 dressing   

n.(食物)调料；包扎伤口的用品，敷料

参考例句：

• Don't spend such a lot of time in dressing yourself.别花那么多时间来打扮自己。
• The children enjoy dressing up in mother's old clothes.孩子们喜欢穿上妈妈旧时的衣服玩。

8 varied   

adj.多样的，多变化的

参考例句：

• The forms of art are many and varied.艺术的形式是多种多样的。
• The hotel has a varied programme of nightly entertainment.宾馆有各种晚间娱乐活动。

9 arthritis   

n.关节炎

参考例句：

• Rheumatoid arthritis has also been linked with the virus.风湿性关节炎也与这种病毒有关。
• He spent three months in the hospital with acute rheumatic arthritis.他患急性风湿性关节炎，在医院住了三个月。

10 luxurious   

adj.精美而昂贵的；豪华的

参考例句：

• This is a luxurious car complete with air conditioning and telephone.这是一辆附有空调设备和电话的豪华轿车。
• The rich man lives in luxurious surroundings.这位富人生活在奢侈的环境中。

11 harry   

vt.掠夺，蹂躏，使苦恼

参考例句：

• Today,people feel more hurried and harried.今天，人们感到更加忙碌和苦恼。
• Obama harried business by Healthcare Reform plan.奥巴马用医改掠夺了商界。

12 pebbles   

[复数]鹅卵石； 沙砾； 卵石，小圆石( pebble的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The pebbles of the drive crunched under his feet. 汽车道上的小石子在他脚底下喀嚓作响。
• Line the pots with pebbles to ensure good drainage. 在罐子里铺一层鹅卵石，以确保排水良好。

13 abruptly   

adv.突然地，出其不意地

参考例句：

• He gestured abruptly for Virginia to get in the car.他粗鲁地示意弗吉尼亚上车。
• I was abruptly notified that a half-hour speech was expected of me.我突然被通知要讲半个小时的话。

14 furtive   

adj.鬼鬼崇崇的，偷偷摸摸的

参考例句：

• The teacher was suspicious of the student's furtive behaviour during the exam.老师怀疑这个学生在考试时有偷偷摸摸的行为。
• His furtive behaviour aroused our suspicion.他鬼鬼祟祟的行为引起了我们的怀疑。

15 eyelids   

n.眼睑( eyelid的名词复数 )；眼睛也不眨一下；不露声色；面不改色

参考例句：

• She was so tired, her eyelids were beginning to droop. 她太疲倦了，眼睑开始往下垂。
• Her eyelids drooped as if she were on the verge of sleep. 她眼睑低垂好像快要睡着的样子。 来自《简明英汉词典》

16 flickered   

（通常指灯光）闪烁，摇曳( flicker的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The lights flickered and went out. 灯光闪了闪就熄了。
• These lights flickered continuously like traffic lights which have gone mad. 这些灯象发狂的交通灯一样不停地闪动着。

17 sullenly   

不高兴地，绷着脸，忧郁地

参考例句：

• 'so what?" Tom said sullenly. “那又怎么样呢？”汤姆绷着脸说。
• Emptiness after the paper, I sIt'sullenly in front of the stove. 报看完，想不出能找点什么事做，只好一人坐在火炉旁生气。

18 superintendent   

n.监督人，主管，总监；(英国)警务长

参考例句：

• He was soon promoted to the post of superintendent of Foreign Trade.他很快就被擢升为对外贸易总监。
• He decided to call the superintendent of the building.他决定给楼房管理员打电话。

19 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

20 constable   

n.(英国)警察，警官

参考例句：

• The constable conducted the suspect to the police station.警官把嫌疑犯带到派出所。
• The constable kept his temper,and would not be provoked.那警察压制着自己的怒气，不肯冒起火来。

21 neatly   

adv.整洁地，干净地，灵巧地，熟练地

参考例句：

• Sailors know how to wind up a long rope neatly.水手们知道怎样把一条大绳利落地缠好。
• The child's dress is neatly gathered at the neck.那孩子的衣服在领口处打着整齐的皱褶。

22 liar   

n.说谎的人

参考例句：

• I know you for a thief and a liar!我算认识你了，一个又偷又骗的家伙！
• She was wrongly labelled a liar.她被错误地扣上说谎者的帽子。

23 alibi   

n.某人当时不在犯罪现场的申辩或证明；借口

参考例句：

• Do you have any proof to substantiate your alibi? 你有证据表明你当时不在犯罪现场吗？
• The police are suspicious of his alibi because he already has a record.警方对他不在场的辩解表示怀疑，因为他已有前科。

24 eyebrows   

眉毛( eyebrow的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Eyebrows stop sweat from coming down into the eyes. 眉毛挡住汗水使其不能流进眼睛。
• His eyebrows project noticeably. 他的眉毛特别突出。

25 accomplice   

n.从犯，帮凶，同谋

参考例句：

• She was her husband's accomplice in murdering a rich old man.她是她丈夫谋杀一个老富翁的帮凶。
• He is suspected as an accomplice of the murder.他涉嫌为这次凶杀案的同谋。

26 unaware   

a.不知道的，未意识到的

参考例句：

• They were unaware that war was near. 他们不知道战争即将爆发。
• I was unaware of the man's presence. 我没有察觉到那人在场。

27 previously   

adv.以前，先前（地）

参考例句：

• The bicycle tyre blew out at a previously damaged point.自行车胎在以前损坏过的地方又爆开了。
• Let me digress for a moment and explain what had happened previously.让我岔开一会儿，解释原先发生了什么。

28 legacies   

n.遗产( legacy的名词复数 )；遗留之物；遗留问题；后遗症

参考例句：

• Books are the legacies that a great genius leaves to mankind. 书是伟大的天才留给人类的精神财富。 来自辞典例句
• General legacies are subject to the same principles as demonstrative legacies. 一般的遗赠要与指定数目的遗赠遵循同样的原则。 来自辞典例句

29 bequests   

n.遗赠( bequest的名词复数 )；遗产，遗赠物

参考例句：

• About half this amount comes from individual donors and bequests. 这笔钱大约有一半来自个人捐赠及遗赠。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He left bequests of money to all his friends. 他留下一些钱遗赠给他所有的朋友。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》