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Holmes stuck his feet up on the corner of the mantelpiece and, leaning back with his hands in his pockets,
福爾摩斯把腳擱在壁爐臺的壁角上，手插在口袋里，向后仰著身子，
began talking, rather to himself, as it seemed, than to us.
自言自語似地開始說起來。
"The man married a woman very much older than himself for her money," said he,
"那個男人為了貪圖金錢而跟一個年齡遠比他大的女人結(jié)了婚，"他說道，
"and he enjoyed the use of the money of the daughter as long as she lived with them.
"只要女兒跟他們一起生活，他就可以享用她的錢。
It was a considerable sum, for people in their position, and the loss of it would have made a serious difference.
就他們所處的地位來說，這筆錢財相當可觀。失掉這筆錢，境況將大不相同。
It was worth an effort to preserve it.
所以值得去拼命保住它。
The daughter was of a good, amiable disposition, but affectionate and warm-hearted in her ways,
女兒為人心地善良、和藹，個性溫柔、多情。
so that it was evident that with her fair personal advantages, and her little income, she would not be allowed to remain single long.
顯而易見，有她這樣品貌和收入的姑娘是不會空守閨房的。
Now her marriage would mean, of course, the loss of a hundred a year, so what does her stepfather do to prevent it?
如果她嫁人的話，這當然將意味著每年損失一百英鎊的收入，那么她的繼父怎樣才能防止這樁親事？
He takes the obvious course of keeping her at home and forbidding her to seek the company of people of her own age.
他顯然是想設(shè)法把她關(guān)在家中，禁止她和同樣年紀的朋友們交往。
But soon he found that that would not answer forever.
不久，他發(fā)現(xiàn)這樣做不是長久之計。
She became restive, insisted upon her rights, and finally announced her positive intention of going to a certain ball.
她變得不那么聽話了，堅持自己的權(quán)利，最后竟然聲稱一定要赴舞會了。
What does her clever stepfather do then?
這么一來，她那個詭計多端的繼父怎么辦呢？
He conceives an idea more creditable to his head than to his heart.
他想出了一個毒辣的妙計。
With the connivance and assistance of his wife he disguised himself,
在妻子的默許和協(xié)助之下，他把自己偽裝起來，
covered those keen eyes with tinted glasses, masked the face with a moustache and a pair of bushy whiskers,
給敏銳的眼睛戴上墨鏡，給自己的臉戴上假髭和毛蓬蓬的假絡(luò)腮胡子，
sunk that clear voice into an insinuating whisper, and doubly secure on account of the girl's short sight,
把自己清晰的說話裝作柔聲媚氣的耳語，由于女兒近視，他的偽裝就更顯得萬無一失。
he appears as Mr. Hosmer Angel, and keeps off other lovers by making love himself."
他以霍斯默·安吉爾先生的名義出現(xiàn)。他自己向女兒求愛，免得她愛上別的男人。"
