"Your boy, Arthur, went to bed after his interview with you, but he slept badly on account of his uneasiness about his club debts.

"你的儿子阿瑟和你谈话后，便上床去睡觉，不过他因为欠俱乐部的债心神不安而难以入睡。

In the middle of the night he heard a soft tread pass his door,

半夜的时候，他听见轻轻的脚步声走过他的房门，

so he rose and, looking out, was surprised to see his cousin walking very stealthily along the passage until she disappeared into your dressing-room.

因此他起床向外探视，吃惊地看到他的堂妹蹑手蹑脚地偷偷沿着过道走去，直到她消失在你的起居室里。

Petrified with astonishment, the lad slipped on some clothes and waited there in the dark to see what would come of this strange affair.

这孩子惊讶得目瞪口呆。急忙随便披上一件衣服伫立在暗地里要看看究竟是什么怪事。

Presently she emerged from the room again, and in the light of the passage-lamp your son saw that she carried the precious coronet in her hands.

这时只见她又从房间里走了出来，你儿子在过道灯光的亮光下看见她手里拿着那顶珍贵的皇冠。

She passed down the stairs, and he, thrilling with horror,

她走向楼梯，你儿子感到一阵恐慌，

ran along and slipped behind the curtain near your door, whence he could see what passed in the hall beneath.

跑过去将身子隐藏在靠近你门口的帘子后面，从那里他可以看到下面大厅里所发生的一切。

He saw her stealthily open the window, hand out the coronet to someone in the gloom,

他看见她偷偷地将窗户打开，把皇冠从窗户里递出去交给暗地里的什么人。

and then closing it once more hurry back to her room, passing quite close to where he stood hid behind the curtain.

然后把窗户重新关上，从十分靠近他站立的地方，他躲藏在帘子后面经过，匆匆地回到她房间里去了。

"As long as she was on the scene he could not take any action without a horrible exposure of the woman whom he loved.

"只要她还在现场，他就不可能采取什么行动，以免可怕地暴露他心爱的女人的可耻行径。

But the instant that she was gone he realized how crushing a misfortune this would be for you, and how all-important it was to set it right.

但是她刚一走开，他马上意识到这件事将会使你遭受多大的不幸，并感觉到把它纠正过来是多么重要。

He rushed down, just as he was, in his bare feet,

他急奔下楼，仍然是披着衣服，光着脚，

opened the window, sprang out into the snow, and ran down the lane, where he could see a dark figure in the moonlight.

打开那扇窗户，跳到外面雪地里，沿着小道跑去，在月光里他瞧见一了黑影。

Sir George Burnwell tried to get away, but Arthur caught him,

乔治·伯恩韦尔爵士正企图逃跑，但是被阿瑟捉住了，

and there was a struggle between them, your lad tugging at one side of the coronet, and his opponent at the other.

两个人在那里争夺起来，你的孩子抓着皇冠的一端，而他的对手抓着另外一端。

In the scuffle, your son struck Sir George and cut him over the eye.

扭打之间，你的儿子揍了乔治爵士一拳，打伤了他的眼部。

Then something suddenly snapped, and your son, finding that he had the coronet in his hands,

这时忽然间有什么东西被拉断了，当时你的儿子发现皇冠已经在他手里，

rushed back, closed the window, ascended to your room,

便急忙跑回来，关上窗户，上楼到你房内，

and had just observed that the coronet had been twisted in the struggle and was endeavouring to straighten it when you appeared upon the scene."

正在察看那扭坏了的皇冠并用力要把它弄正的时候，你就出现在现场了。"