II. The Adventure 
of the Cardboard Box

 
Chapter 3

The Gruesome Packet

“It was very superficial ( 膚淺的),
my dear Watson,
I assure you.”

“I should not have 
intruded ( 打擾) it
upon your attention ( 注意)
had you not shown
some incredulity ( 不相信)
the other day.”

“But I have
in my hands ( 手上) here
a little problem ( 難題)
which may prove ( 證明)
to be more difficult
of solution ( 解決)
than my small essay ( 小品)
in thought reading ( 讀心).”

“Have you observed ( 注意到)
in the paper ( 報紙)
a short paragraph ( 段落)
referring to ( 提及)
the remarkable ( 非凡的) contents ( 內容)
of a packet ( 小包裹)
sent through the post ( 郵寄)
to Miss Cushing,
of Cross Street,
Croydon?”

“No, I saw nothing.”

“Ah! Then you must have 
overlooked ( 忽略) it.”

“Just toss it over to me.”

“Here it is,
under the financial column ( 財經欄).
Perhaps you would be 
good enough
to read it aloud ( 出聲地).”

I picked up the paper
which he had thrown 
back to me
and read the paragraph ( 段落) 
indicated ( 所指的).

It was headed ( 標題為),
“A Gruesome ( 可怖的) Packet.”

“Miss Susan Cushing,
living at Cross Street, Croydon,
has been made the victim ( 受害者)
of what must be regarded ( 視為)
as a peculiarly ( 特別地)
revolting ( 令人作嘔的) practical joke ( 惡作劇),
unless some more 
sinister ( 險惡的) meaning
should prove to be attached ( 附加)
to the incident ( 事件).”

“At two o’clock
yesterday afternoon
a small packet ( 小包裹),
wrapped in brown paper ( 牛皮紙),
was handed in ( 交到)
by the postman ( 郵差).”

“A cardboard box ( 紙板盒)
was inside,
which was filled ( 裝滿)
with coarse ( 粗糙的) salt.”

“On emptying this,
Miss Cushing was horrified ( 驚駭)
to find two human ears ( 人耳),
apparently quite freshly 
severed ( 新割下的).”

“The box had been sent
by parcel post ( 郵包)
from Belfast
upon the morning before ( 前一天早上).”

“There is no indication ( 跡象)
as to the sender ( 寄件人),
and the matter is
the more mysterious ( 神秘的)
as Miss Cushing,
who is a maiden lady ( 未婚女士) of fifty,
has led a most retired ( 幽居的) life,
and has so few acquaintances ( 相識)
or correspondents ( 通信者)
that it is a rare event
for her to receive anything
through the post ( 郵寄).”

“Some years ago, however,
when she resided ( 居住) at Penge,
she let apartments ( 寓所) 
in her house
to three young medical students ( 醫科學生),
whom she was obliged ( 被迫)
to get rid of ( 趕走)
on account of their noisy ( 吵鬧的)
and irregular ( 無規矩的) habits ( 習性).”

“The police are of opinion ( 認為)
that this outrage ( 駭人事件)
may have been perpetrated ( 犯下)
upon Miss Cushing
by these youths ( 年輕人),
who owed her a grudge ( 怨恨)
and who hoped 
to frighten her ( 嚇唬)
by sending her these relics ( 遺物)
of the dissecting-rooms ( 解剖室).”

“Some probability ( 可能性)
is lent to the theory ( 理論)
by the fact
that one of these students
came from the north of Ireland,
and, to the best 
of Miss Cushing’s belief ( 所信),
from Belfast.”

“In the meantime ( 同時),
the matter is being 
actively investigated ( 積極調查),
Mr. Lestrade,
one of the very smartest ( 最精明的)
of our detective officers ( 偵探警官),
being in charge ( 負責)
of the case ( 此案).”