福尔摩斯探案经典:《恐怖谷》第9章Part3
"Vell, I vant to tell you right now that it ain't no manner of use. There's someone slipped in afore you."
"She told me so."
"Vell, you can lay that she told you truth. But did she tell you who it vas?"
"No, I asked her; but she wouldn't tell."
"I dare say not, the leetle baggage! Perhaps she did not vish to frighten you avay."
"Frighten!" McMurdo was on fire in a moment.
"Ah, yes, my friend! You need not be ashamed to be frightened of him. It is Teddy Baldwin."
"And who the devil is he?"
"He is a boss of Scowrers."
"Scowrers! I've heard of them before. It's Scowrers here and Scowrers there, and always in a whisper! What are you all afraid of? Who are the Scowrers?"
The boarding-house keeper instinctively sank his voice, as everyone did who talked about that terrible society.
"The Scowrers," said he, "are the Eminent Order of Freemen!"
The young man stared. "Why, I am a member of that order myself."
"You! I vould never have had you in my house if I had known it--not if you vere to pay me a hundred dollar a veek."
"What's wrong with the order? It's for charity and good fellowship. The rules say so."
"Maybe in some places. Not here!"
"What is it here?"
“好，现在我对你直说吧，这是毫无用处的。在你以前，已经有人缠上她了。”
“她也对我这么说过。”
“好，你应当相信她说的是真情。不过，她告诉你这个人是谁了吗？”
“没有，我问过她，可是她不肯告诉我。”
“我想她不会告诉你的，这个小丫头。也许她不愿意把你吓跑吧。”
“吓跑！"麦克默多一下子火冒三丈。
“啊，不错，我的朋友！你怕他，这也不算什么羞耻啊。这个人是特德·鲍德温。”
“这恶魔是什么人？”
“他是死酷党的一个首领。”
“死酷党！以前我听说过。这里也有死酷党，那里也有死酷党，而且总是窃窃私语！你们大家都怕什么呢？死酷党到底是些什么人呢？”
房东象每一个人谈起那个恐怖组织时一样，本能地放低了声音。
“死酷党，"他说道，“就是自由人会。”
年轻人大吃一惊，说道：“为什么？我自己就是一个自由人会会员。”
“你！要是我早知道，我决不会让你住在我这里——即使你每星期给我一百美元，我也不干。”
“这个自由人会有什么不好呢？会章的宗旨是博爱和增进友谊啊。”
“有些地方可能是这样的。这里却不然！”
“它在这里是什么样的呢？”
