FIFTEEN, SIXTEEN, MAIDS IN THE KITCHEN 2

II
Poirot called at Scotland Yard and asked for Japp. When he was taken up to the Chief Inspector’s
room: “I want to see Carter,” said Hercule Poirot.
Japp shot him a quick, sideways glance.
He said:
“What’s the big idea?”
“You are unwilling¹?”
Japp shrugged² his shoulders. He said:
“Oh, I shan’t make objections. No good if I did. Who’s the Home Secretary’s little pet? You
are. Who’s got half the Cabinet in his pocket? You have. Hushing up their scandals for them.”
Poirot’s mind flew for a moment to that case that he had named the Case of the Augean Stables.
He murmured, not without complacence:
“It was ingenious, yes? You must admit it. Well imagined, let us say.”
“Nobody but you would ever have thought of such a thing! Sometimes, Poirot, I think you
haven’t any scruples³ at all!”
Poirot’s face became suddenly grave. He said:
“That is not true.”
“Oh, all right, Poirot, I didn’t mean it. But you’re so pleased sometimes with your damned
ingenuity⁴. What do you want to see Carter for? To ask him whether he really murdered Morley?”
To Japp’s surprise, Poirot nodded his head emphatically.
“Yes, my friend, that is exactly the reason.”
“And I suppose you think he’ll tell you if he did?”
Japp laughed as he spoke⁵. But Hercule Poirot remained grave. He said:
“He might tell me—yes.”
Japp looked at him curiously⁶. He said:
“You know, I’ve known you a long time—twenty years? Something like that. But I still don’t
always catch on to what you’re driving at. I know you’ve got a bee in your bonnet⁷ about young
Frank Carter. For some reason or other, you don’t want him to be guilty—”
Hercule Poirot shook his head energetically.
“No, no, there you are wrong. It is the other way about—”
“I thought perhaps it was on account of that girl of his—the blonde piece. You’re a sentimental⁸
old buzzard in some ways—”
Poirot was immediately indignant.
“It is not I who am sentimental! That is an English failing! It is in England that they weep over
young sweethearts and dying mothers and devoted⁹ children. Me, I am logical. If Frank Carter is a
killer¹⁰, then I am certainly not sentimental enough to wish to unite him in marriage to a nice but
commonplace girl who, if he is hanged, will forget him in a year or two and find someone else!”
“Then why don’t you want to believe he is guilty?”
“I do want to believe he is guilty.”
“I suppose you mean that you’ve got hold of something which more or less conclusively¹¹ proves
him to be innocent? Why hold it up, then? You ought to play fair with us, Poirot.”
“I am playing fair with you. Presently, very shortly, I will give you the name and address of a
witness who will be invaluable¹² to you for the prosecution¹³. Her evidence ought to clinch¹⁴ the case
against him.”
“But then—Oh! You’ve got me all tangled¹⁵ up. Why are you so anxious to see him.”
“To satisfy myself,” said Hercule Poirot.
And he would say no more.

1 unwilling   

adj.不情愿的

参考例句：

• The natives were unwilling to be bent by colonial power.土著居民不愿受殖民势力的摆布。
• His tightfisted employer was unwilling to give him a raise.他那吝啬的雇主不肯给他加薪。

2 shrugged   

vt.耸肩（shrug的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• Sam shrugged and said nothing. 萨姆耸耸肩膀，什么也没说。
• She shrugged, feigning nonchalance. 她耸耸肩，装出一副无所谓的样子。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 scruples   

n.良心上的不安( scruple的名词复数 )；顾虑，顾忌v.感到于心不安，有顾忌( scruple的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• I overcame my moral scruples. 我抛开了道德方面的顾虑。
• I'm not ashamed of my scruples about your family. They were natural. 我并未因为对你家人的顾虑而感到羞耻。这种感觉是自然而然的。 来自疯狂英语突破英语语调

4 ingenuity   

n.别出心裁；善于发明创造

参考例句：

• The boy showed ingenuity in making toys.那个小男孩做玩具很有创造力。
• I admire your ingenuity and perseverance.我钦佩你的别出心裁和毅力。

5 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

6 curiously   

adv.有求知欲地；好问地；奇特地

参考例句：

• He looked curiously at the people.他好奇地看着那些人。
• He took long stealthy strides. His hands were curiously cold.他迈着悄没声息的大步。他的双手出奇地冷。

7 bonnet   

n.无边女帽；童帽

参考例句：

• The baby's bonnet keeps the sun out of her eyes.婴孩的帽子遮住阳光，使之不刺眼。
• She wore a faded black bonnet garnished with faded artificial flowers.她戴着一顶褪了色的黑色无边帽，帽上缀着褪了色的假花。

8 sentimental   

adj.多愁善感的，感伤的

参考例句：

• She's a sentimental woman who believes marriage comes by destiny.她是多愁善感的人，她相信姻缘命中注定。
• We were deeply touched by the sentimental movie.我们深深被那感伤的电影所感动。

9 devoted   

adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的

参考例句：

• He devoted his life to the educational cause of the motherland.他为祖国的教育事业贡献了一生。
• We devoted a lengthy and full discussion to this topic.我们对这个题目进行了长时间的充分讨论。

10 killer   

n.杀人者，杀人犯，杀手，屠杀者

参考例句：

• Heart attacks have become Britain's No.1 killer disease.心脏病已成为英国的头号致命疾病。
• The bulk of the evidence points to him as her killer.大量证据证明是他杀死她的。

11 conclusively   

adv.令人信服地，确凿地

参考例句：

• All this proves conclusively that she couldn't have known the truth. 这一切无可置疑地证明她不可能知道真相。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• From the facts,he was able to determine conclusively that the death was not a suicide. 根据这些事实他断定这起死亡事件并非自杀。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 invaluable   

adj.无价的，非常宝贵的，极为贵重的

参考例句：

• A computer would have been invaluable for this job.一台计算机对这个工作的作用会是无法估计的。
• This information was invaluable to him.这个消息对他来说是非常宝贵的。

13 prosecution   

n.起诉，告发，检举，执行，经营

参考例句：

• The Smiths brought a prosecution against the organizers.史密斯家对组织者们提出起诉。
• He attempts to rebut the assertion made by the prosecution witness.他试图反驳原告方证人所作的断言。

14 clinch   

v.敲弯，钉牢；确定；扭住对方 [参]clench

参考例句：

• Clinch the boards together.用钉子把木板钉牢在一起。
• We don't accept us dollars,please Swiss francs to clinch a deal business.我方不收美元，请最好用瑞士法郎来成交生意。

15 tangled   

adj. 纠缠的，紊乱的 动词tangle的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• Your hair's so tangled that I can't comb it. 你的头发太乱了，我梳不动。
• A movement caught his eye in the tangled undergrowth. 乱灌木丛里的晃动引起了他的注意。