(Anne’s Narrative1 Resumed)
I thoroughly2 enjoyed the journey up to Rhodesia. There was somethingnew and exciting to see every day. First the wonderful scenery of the HexRiver valley, then the desolate3 grandeur4 of the Karoo, and finally thatwonderful straight stretch of line in Bechaunaland, and the perfectly5 ador-able toys the natives brought to sell. Suzanne and I were nearly left be-hind at each station—if you could call them stations. It seemed to me thatthe train just stopped whenever it felt like it, and no sooner had it done sothan a horde6 of natives materialized out of the empty landscape, holdingup mealie bowls and sugar canes8 and fur karosses and adorable carvedwooden animals. Suzanne began at once to make a collection of the latter.
I imitated her example—most of them cost a “tiki” (threepence) and eachwas different. There were giraffes and tigers and snakes and a melan-choly- looking eland and absurd little black warriors9. We enjoyedourselves enormously.
Sir Eustace tried to restrain us—but in vain. I still think it was a miraclewe were not left behind at some oasis10 of the line. South African trainsdon’t hoot11 or get excited when they are going to start off again. They justglide quietly away, and you look up from your bargaining and run foryour life.
Suzanne’s amazement12 at seeing me climb upon the train at Cape7 Towncan be imagined. We held an exhaustive survey of the situation on thefirst evening out. We talked half the night.
It had become clear to me that defensive13 tactics must be adopted as wellas aggressive ones. Travelling with Sir Eustace Pedler and his party, I wasfairly safe. Both he and Colonel Race were powerful protectors, and Ijudged that my enemies would not wish to stir up a hornet’s nest about myears. Also, as long as I was near Sir Eustace, I was more or less in touchwith Guy Pagett—and Guy Pagett was the heart of the mystery. I asked Su-zanne whether in her opinion it was possible that Pagett himself was themysterious “Colonel.” His subordinate position was, of course, against theassumption, but it had struck me once or twice that, for all his autocraticways, Sir Eustace was really very much influenced by his secretary. Hewas an easy-going man, and one whom an adroit14 secretary might be ableto twist round his little finger. The comparative obscurity of his positionmight in reality be useful to him, since he would be anxious to be well outof the limelight.
Suzanne, however, negatived these ideas very strongly. She refused tobelieve that Guy Pagett was the ruling spirit. The real head — the “Col-onel”—was somewhere in the background and had probably been alreadyin Africa at the time of our arrival.
I agreed that there was much to be said for her view, but I was not en-tirely satisfied. For in each suspicious instance Pagett had been shown asthe directing genius. It was true that his personality seemed to lack the as-surance and decision that one would expect from a master criminal—butafter all, according to Colonel Race, it was brain work only that this mys-terious leader supplied, and creative genius is often allied15 to a weak andtimorous physical constitution.
“There speaks the Professor’s daughter,” interrupted Suzanne, when Ihad got to this point in my argument.
“It’s true, all the same. On the other hand, Pagett may be the Grand Viz-ier, so to speak, of the All Highest.” I was silent for a minute or two, andthen went on musingly16: “I wish I knew how Sir Eustace made his money!”
“Suspecting him again?”
“Suzanne, I’ve got into that state that I can’t help suspecting somebody! Idon’t really suspect him—but, after all, he is Pagett’s employer, and he didown the Mill House.”
“I’ve always heard that he made his money in some way he isn’t anxiousto talk about,” said Suzanne thoughtfully. “But that doesn’t necessarilymean crime—it might be tintacks or hair restorer!”
I agreed ruefully.
“I suppose,” said Suzanne doubtfully, “that we’re not barking up thewrong tree? Being led completely astray, I mean, by assuming Pagett’scomplicity? Supposing that, after all, he is a perfectly honest man?”
I considered that for a minute or two, then I shook my head.
“I can’t believe that.”
“After all, he has his explanations for everything.”
“Y—es, but they’re not very convincing. For instance, the night he triedto throw me overboard on the Kilmorden, he says he followed Rayburn upon deck and Rayburn turned and knocked him down. Now we know that’snot true.”
“No,” said Suzanne unwillingly17. “But we only heard the story at secondhand from Sir Eustace. If we’d heard it direct from Pagett himself, it mighthave been different. You know how people always get a story a littlewrong when they repeat it.”
I turned the thing over in my mind.
“No,” I said at last, “I don’t see any way out. Pagett’s guilty. You can’t getaway from the fact that he tried to throw me overboard, and everythingelse fits in. Why are you so persistent18 in this new idea of yours?”
“Because of his face.”
“His face? But—”
“Yes, I know what you’re going to say. It’s a sinister19 face. That’s just it.
No man with a face like that could be really sinister. It must be a colossaljoke on the part of Nature.”
I did not believe much in Suzanne’s argument. I know a lot aboutNature in past ages. If she’s got a sense of humour, she doesn’t show itmuch. Suzanne is just the sort of person who would clothe Nature with allher own attributes.
We passed on to discuss our immediate20 plans. It was clear to me that Imust have some kind of standing21. I couldn’t go on avoiding explanationsforever. The solution of all my difficulties lay ready to my hand, though Ididn’t think of it for some time. The Daily Budget! My silence or my speechcould no longer affect Harry22 Rayburn. He was marked down as “The Manin the Brown Suit” through no fault of mine. I could help him best byseeming to be against him. The “Colonel” and his gang must have no suspi-cion that there existed any friendly feeling between me and the man theyhad elected to be the scapegoat23 of the murder at Marlow. As far as I knew,the woman killed was still unidentified. I would cable to Lord Nasby, sug-gesting that she was no other than the famous Russian dancer “Nadina”
who had been delighting Paris for so long. It seemed incredible to me thatshe had not been identified already—but when I learnt more of the caselong afterwards I saw how natural it really was.
Nadina had never been to England, during her successful career inParis. She was unknown to London audiences. The pictures in the papersof the Marlow victim were so blurred24 and unrecognizable that it is smallwonder no one identified them. And, on the other hand, Nadina had kepther intention of visiting England a profound secret from everyone. Theday after the murder, a letter had been received by her manager purport-ing to be from the dancer, in which she said that she was returning to Rus-sia on urgent private affairs and that he must deal with her broken con-tract as best he could.
All this, of course, I only learned afterwards. With Suzanne’s full ap-proval, I sent a long cable from De Aar. It arrived at a psychological mo-ment (this again, of course, I learnt afterwards). The Daily Budget washard up for a sensation. My guess was verified and proved to be correctand the Daily Budget had the scoop25 of its lifetime. “Victim of the MillHouse Murder identified by our special reporter.” And so on. “Our re-porter makes voyage with the murderer. The Man in the Brown Suit.
What he is really like.”
The main facts were, of course, cabled to the South African papers, but Ionly read my own lengthy26 articles at a much later date! I received ap-proval and full instructions by cable at Bulawayo. I was on the staff of theDaily Budget, and I had a private word of congratulation from Lord Nasbyhimself. I was definitely accredited27 to hunt down the murderer, and I, andonly I, knew that the murderer was not Harry Rayburn! But let the worldthink that it was he—best so for the present.
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1
narrative
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| n.叙述，故事；adj.叙事的，故事体的 | |
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thoroughly
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| adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地 | |
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3
desolate
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| adj.荒凉的，荒芜的；孤独的，凄凉的；v.使荒芜，使孤寂 | |
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grandeur
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| n.伟大，崇高，宏伟，庄严，豪华 | |
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perfectly
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| adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地 | |
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horde
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| n.群众，一大群 | |
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cape
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| n.海角，岬；披肩，短披风 | |
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canes
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| n.（某些植物，如竹或甘蔗的）茎( cane的名词复数 )；（用于制作家具等的）竹竿；竹杖 | |
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warriors
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| 武士，勇士，战士( warrior的名词复数 ) | |
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oasis
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| n.（沙漠中的）绿洲，宜人的地方 | |
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hoot
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| n.鸟叫声，汽车的喇叭声； v.使汽车鸣喇叭 | |
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12
amazement
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| n.惊奇，惊讶 | |
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defensive
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| adj.防御的；防卫的；防守的 | |
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adroit
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| adj.熟练的，灵巧的 | |
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allied
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| adj.协约国的；同盟国的 | |
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musingly
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| adv.沉思地，冥想地 | |
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unwillingly
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| adv.不情愿地 | |
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persistent
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| adj.坚持不懈的，执意的；持续的 | |
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sinister
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| adj.不吉利的，凶恶的，左边的 | |
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immediate
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| adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的 | |
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standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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harry
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| vt.掠夺，蹂躏，使苦恼 | |
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scapegoat
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| n.替罪的羔羊，替人顶罪者；v.使…成为替罪羊 | |
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blurred
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| v.（使）变模糊( blur的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）难以区分；模模糊糊；迷离 | |
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scoop
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| n.铲子，舀取，独家新闻；v.汲取，舀取，抢先登出 | |
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lengthy
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| adj.漫长的，冗长的 | |
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accredited
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| adj.可接受的；可信任的；公认的；质量合格的v.相信( accredit的过去式和过去分词 )；委托；委任；把…归结于 | |
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