Sherlock Holmes took down a bottle of liquid medicine from the corner of the mantelpiece, and a hypodermic syringe from a neat suede leather case.He loaded the fine needle with his long, white, strong fingers and rolled up the shirt cuff on his left arm.He contemplated for a while on his muscular arm with many pinhole marks, finally pierced the needle point into the flesh, pushed the small needle point, and then lay down in the plush easy chair, panting contentedly Take a breath. He does this three times a day. I have been used to seeing him for a few months, but I always disapprove of it.As each day passed, the situation became more and more irritating to me.Because I didn't have the courage to stop him, every night in the dead of night, when I thought about it, I felt uneasy in my conscience.More than once I wanted to tell him what was in my heart, but because my friend was cold, withdrawn, and unwilling to accept opinions, I felt that it would not be easy to give him advice without restraint.His tenacity, his self-righteous manner, and the many peculiarities of his character which I had experienced, made me too timid to displease him.

But on this afternoon, perhaps because I drank wine with lunch, perhaps because his indifference irritated me, I felt that I could bear it no longer. I asked him, "What did you inject today? Morphine, or?" He just opened an old book, raised his head feebly and said, "This is cocaine, a seven percent solution. Do you want to try it?" I replied bluntly: "I don't want to try. The campaign in Afghanistan has damaged my physique so far. I can't destroy it anymore." He responded with a smile to my annoyance: "Watson, maybe you are right. I also know that this is harmful to the body, but I feel that since it has such a strong stimulating and refreshing ability, its side effects are also very serious." It doesn't matter anymore."

I said sincerely: "But you also consider the pros and cons! Your brain may be excited by stimulation, as you say, but this is a practice that kills itself. It will cause an aggravated organ tissue. Deterioration, otherwise it will at least lead to long-term weakness. You also know that the adverse reactions caused by this medicine are really not worth the loss. Why do you only care about the momentary pleasure and damage your natural and extraordinary energy? You should know, I am speaking not only from the standpoint of a friend, but as a doctor who takes responsibility for your health."

It seemed that instead of being angry, he put his fingers together and rested his elbows on the armrest of the chair, as if he was interested in the conversation. He said: "I am restless and restless. When I have nothing to do, I will feel restless. Give me a problem, give me a job, give me the most profound code, give me the most complicated analysis. , so that I feel the most comfortable and do not need artificial stimulation. I hate the ordinary life very much, and I pursue spiritual excitement, so I choose my own special profession—or I can say that I created this profession. Because I'm the only person in the world who's in this profession."

I looked up and asked, "The only private detective?" He replied: "The only private consulting detective. I am the supreme court of detectives. When Grayson or Lestrade or Ethelney Jones are in trouble - which is what they often do - They come to me for advice. As an expert, I review the material and contribute an expert opinion. I do not take credit, and my name is not published in the newspapers. The joy that the work itself brings out my special energy is My high reward. Do you remember some of the experience my methods gave you in the Jefferson Hope case?" I replied enthusiastically: "Yes, I still remember it. It was a strange case that I had never encountered in my life. I have written the whole story into a booklet with a novel title:."

He shook his head in dissatisfaction: "I've read it briefly, and I really can't flatter you. You know, detective art is—or should be—an exact science, and it should be studied in the same calm rather than emotional way. You Add a layer of novelty to it, and the result is like a love story mixed with a geometric theorem." I retorted him: "But there are plots in the book that look like novels, and I can't distort the facts." "Some facts can be omitted, at least the main points should be shown. The only thing worth mentioning in this case is how I found out the reason from the results of the facts, and then solved the case through precise analysis and deduction."

When I wrote that short article, I originally wanted to win his favor, but I didn't expect to be criticized instead, and I felt very unhappy.I confess that it was his ego that irritated me, and his demand seemed to be that my work should be devoted exclusively to his own conduct.During the years I lived with him in Baker Street, I more than once noticed a certain pride and conceit concealed in my companion's quiet and didactic manner.I don't want to say more, but I just sit and caress my injured leg. My leg has been shot through before. Although it doesn't hinder my walking, it hurts and embarrassing when the weather changes.

After a pause, Holmes filled his pipe and said slowly, "Recently, my business has expanded to the European continent. A man named François Le Vial came to me for advice last week. As you may know, this man has recently emerged in the French detective world. He has Celtic sensibility, but lacks the extensive knowledge necessary to improve his technique. He is consulted on a will case, which is very interesting. Interesting. I introduced two similar cases for his reference: one in Riga in 1857 and the other in St. Louis in 1871. These two cases gave him It pointed out the way to solve the case. This is his letter of thanks that I received this morning." As he spoke, he handed me a piece of crumpled foreign stationery.I looked at it, and there were many compliments in the letter, full of "greatness", "superior means", "powerful actions", etc., expressing the enthusiasm, admiration and praise of the Frenchman.

I said, "He looks like a pupil talking to his teacher." "Ah," said Sherlock Holmes softly, "he overestimates the help I give him, and he has talents of his own. He has most of what makes an ideal detective. He The ability to observe and deduce, but lacking in learning, this, he will still be able to acquire in the future. He is now translating some of my short works into French." "your works?" He laughed and said, "Don't you know? I am ashamed. I have written several monographs, all of which are technical. Do you remember that one: 'On the identification of various soots'. In it, I cite One hundred and forty kinds of cigars, cigarettes, and pipe ashes are produced, and colorful illustrations are used to explain the differences between various types of ash. This is evidence that often appears in criminal trials, and sometimes it is even the most important clue in the entire case If you recall the Jefferson Hope case, you will know that the identification of soot is somewhat helpful in solving the case. For example, you can determine that the murderer in a murder case smoked Indian cigars. In this way, Clearly narrows the range of your detection. The difference between the black ash of Indian cigars and the white ash of 'Bird's Eye' smoke is as clear to the trained eye as the difference between cabbage and potatoes."

I said, "You do have a special talent for scrutinizing minute things." "I felt their importance. Here is the monograph I wrote on the tracking of footprints, and the use of plaster of paris to preserve them. And here is a curious little treatise showing how one's occupation can affect His hands, with illustrations of the hands of masons, sailors, woodcarvers, compositors, weavers, and diamond grinders. These are of great practical significance for scientific detective art. Especially in the case of unidentified corpses. Cases and identities, etc. are useful. Oh, I'm just talking about my hobby, and it's annoying you, isn't it?"

I replied earnestly: "Rather than being disturbed, I am very interested. This is because I have seen you apply these methods myself. You have just talked about observation and inference, and of course, to a certain extent, both aspects are interrelated." He leaned back comfortably in his chair and said, puffing a thick puff of blue smoke from his pipe: "No connection. For example: observations show that you were at the Wigmore Street post office this morning, But by deduction, I know that you sent a telegram there." I said: "Yes! It's not bad! But I really don't understand, how do you know. It was a sudden action on my part, and I didn't tell anyone." Seeing my surprise, he smiled triumphantly and said, "This is so simple that there is no need to explain it, but an explanation can distinguish the scope of observation and deduction. I observed a small red spot on your shoe. Mud, the road is being repaired opposite the post office on Wigmore Street, the mud excavated from the road is piled up on the sidewalk, it is difficult for people who walk into the post office not to step into the mud, the mud there is a special red, according to me Understand, there is no soil of that color anywhere near. That is from observation, and the rest is inference." "Then how did you deduce that telegram?" "I sat across from you for the whole morning, and I didn't see you write a letter. On your desk, I also noticed that there is a large sheet of stamps and a bundle of postcards. Then you go to the post office to send What else would the newspaper do? After removing other factors, the rest must be the truth.” I thought about it for a while and said: "This is indeed the case. It is exactly what you said. This is the simplest thing. Now I will give you a more complicated test. Don't you think I am reckless?" He replied: "On the contrary, I welcome it. It will save me a second shot of cocaine. Any questions you may ask, I am happy to study." "I have often heard you say that it is very difficult to leave on any commodity of daily use without leaving traces which characterize the wearer, and are easily recognizable to the trained eye. Now I have here a newly acquired watch, Can you discern from it the character and habits of its old master?" I handed him the watch and couldn't help laughing.Because in my opinion, this experiment is unsolvable, and it can be regarded as a lesson I taught him about his usual dogmatic style.He took the watch in his hand, looked at it carefully, looked at the dial, opened the cover again, and carefully inspected the internal parts, first with the naked eye and then with a high-power magnifying glass.The look of frustration on his face almost made me laugh, and finally he closed the watch cover and handed it back to me. He said: "There are hardly any remaining traces to be found here, because the watch has recently been rubbed with grease, which has removed the most important traces." I replied, "Yes, the watch fell into my hands after it had been scrubbed of greasy dirt." I was very disapproving of my partner's use of this as an excuse to cover up his failure.It is an unrepaired watch, but what traces can be found that are helpful for inference? He looked up at the ceiling with half-closed eyes and said: "Although there are not many traces, my observations have not been completely lost. Let me ask you to correct me. I think this watch belongs to your brother, it is you His father left him." "That's right, you know it from the initials HW engraved on the back of the watch?" "Yes, it represents your surname. This watch was made almost fifty years ago, and the engraving on the watch is about the same time as the watch was made, so I know it is a relic of your previous generation. According to the custom, all jewelry Things of the same type are mostly passed on to the eldest son, and the eldest son often takes his father's name. If I remember correctly, your father has passed away for many years, so I conclude that this watch is in the hands of your brother." I said, "That's all good, is there anything else?" "He was a dissolute man. At first he had a bright future, but he missed all the good opportunities, so he often lived poorly, sometimes well, and finally died because of good wine. This is what I think. I can tell." I jumped up from the chair and couldn't help pacing up and down the room listlessly, with infinite bitterness in my heart. I said, "Holmes, it's your fault. I really can't believe that you have come up with such a trick. You must have visited my brother's tragic history in advance, and now you are pretending to use some mysterious methods to deduce it." These facts. Do you think I believe you can discover them from this old watch? To put it bluntly, you are a bit deceitful." He kindly replied: "Dear physician, please forgive me. I have reasoned a problem theoretically, and have forgotten that it may be a painful thing for you. I assure you that after you observe this for me It’s just that before, I didn’t know you had an older brother.” "But how can you deduce these facts so wonderfully? There is not a single thing you say that does not correspond to the facts." "Ah! It's a fluke. I just mentioned some possible situations. I didn't expect it to be so correct." "Then you didn't guess it?" "Yes, yes, I have never guessed. Guessing is a very bad habit, and it is harmful to logical reasoning. The reason why you feel strange is that you did not understand my train of thought, and did not notice that you can often infer big things. Those small problems. For example, I said at the beginning that your brother's behavior was very indiscreet. Look at this watch. There are not only two dents on the lower edge, but also numerous scratches on the entire top of the watch. This is Because he is used to keeping his watch in his pocket with hard things like coins and keys. To be so careless about a watch worth more than fifty gold pounds, it is not too much to say that he lives indiscreetly! But this watch is already so precious, it is unreasonable to say that the heritage is not rich." I nodded my head to show that I understood his reasoning. "The practice of pawnshops in London is: every time a watch is received, the number of the pawn ticket must be engraved on the inside of the watch with the tip of a needle. This method is better than hanging a sign, which can avoid the risk of losing or confusing the numbers. Use a magnifying glass to look carefully. Looking inside, I found at least four numbers of this kind. The conclusion is: Your brother is often in distress; and the incidental conclusion is: He is sometimes in good condition, otherwise he would not have the strength to redeem. Finally, I would like to draw your attention to this The inner cover with the keyhole has thousands of scars around the keyhole, which are caused by the friction of the key. Doesn’t a sober person insert the key and go in as soon as it is inserted? There is no watch of a drunk that does not leave these marks .He wound it at night, so there are traces of wrist tremors. What's the mystery?" I replied: "Once I tell the truth, I will see the light of day. Please forgive me for offending you. I should have more confidence in your miraculous ability. Do you still have any investigations in your hands?" " "No, that's why I shot cocaine. I can't live without thinking. What else is there to do? Come to the window, please. Was there ever such a bleak, boring world? Look, that Yellow mist rolls down the street, rubbing the dun houses and floating past, is there anything more ordinary and boring than this? Physician, think about the uselessness of heroes, what is the use of energy? Crime is commonplace , life is also an ordinary thing in this world, what else is there in this world besides ordinary things?" I was about to open my mouth to answer his fierce remarks when suddenly there was an urgent knock on the door.Our landlord walked in, holding a brass tray with a business card on it. "A young woman asks," she said to my partner. He read the card: "Miss Merry Morstan. Hmm! That's a strange name. Mrs. Hudson, please come in. Doc, don't you go. I want you to stay here."

---

Notes: