傑克·倫敦/Jack London
傑克·倫敦（Jack London，1876—1916），美國著名作家之一。出身貧困，童年以從事繁重勞動謀生，先後做過工人、水手、司爐、淘金者，甚至流浪漢。艱苦的生活使他深切體會到損貧利富的社會弊端，由此對社會問題深感興趣，自稱社會學者，從事過工人運動。他的短篇小說獨樹一幟，情節緊湊，人物形象栩栩如生，深受讀者喜愛。代表作有《狼的兒子》《荒野的呼喚》《鐵蹄》等。
John Claverhouse was a moon-faced man. You know the kind, cheek-bones wide apart, chin and forehead melting into the cheeks to complete the perfect round, and the nose, broad and pudgy, equidistant from the circumference, fattened against the very centre of the face like a dough-ball upon the ceiling. Perhaps that is why I hated him, for truly he had become an offense to my eyes, and I believed the earth to be cumbered with his presence.
Be that as it may, I hated John Claverhouse. Not that he had done me what society would consider a wrong or an ill turn. Far from it. The evil was of a deeper, subtler sort；so elusive, so intangible, as to defy clear, defnite analysis in words. We all experience such things at some period in our lives. For the frst time we see a certain individual, one who the very instant before we did not dream existed；and yet, at the frst moment of meeting, we say：“I do not like that man.”Why do we not like him?Ah, we do not know why；we know only that we do not. We have taken a dislike, that is all. And so I with John Claverhouse.
What right had such a man to be happy?Yet he was an optimist. He was always gleeful and laughing. All things were always all right, curse him！Ah！How it grated on my soul that he should be so happy！Other men could laugh, and it did not bother me. I even used to laugh myself-before I met John Claverhouse.
But his laugh！It irritated me, maddened me, as nothing else under the sun could irritate or madden me. It haunted me, gripped hold of me, and would not let me go. It was a huge, gargantuan laugh. Waking or sleeping it was always with me, whirring and jarring across my heart-strings like an enormous rasp. At break of day it came whooping across the felds to spoil my pleasant morning revery. Under the aching noonday glare, when the green things drooped and the birds withdrew to the depths of the forest, and all nature drowsed, his great“Ha! ha！”and“Ho! ho！”rose up to the sky and challenged the sun. And at black midnight, from the lonely cross-roads where he turned from town into his own place, came his plaguey cachinnations to rouse me from my sleep and make me writhe and clench my nails into my palms.
I went forth privily in the night-time, and turned his cattle into his felds, and in the morning heard his whooping laugh as he drove them back again.“It is nothing，”he said，“the poor, dumb beasties are not to be blamed for straying into fatter pastures.”
He had a dog he called“Mars，”a big, splendid brute, part deer-hound and part blood-hound, and resembling both. Mars was a great delight to him, and they were always together. But I bided my time, and one day, when opportunity was ripe, lured the animal away and settled for him with strychnine and beefsteak. It made positively no impression on John Claverhouse. His laugh was as hearty and frequent as ever, and his face as much like the full moon as it always had been.
Then I set fire to his haystacks and his barn. But the next morning, being Sunday, he went forth blithe and cheerful.“Where are you going?”I asked him, as he went by the cross-roads.“Trout，”he said, and his face beamed like a full moon.“I just dote on trout.”
Was there ever such an impossible man！His whole harvest had gone up in his haystacks and barn. It was uninsured, I knew. And yet, in the face of famine and the rigorous winter, he went out gayly in quest of a mess of trout, forsooth, because he“doted”on them！Had gloom but rested, no matter how lightly, on his brow, or had his bovine countenance grown long and serious and less like the moon, or had he removed that smile but once from off his face, I am sure I could have forgiven him for existing. But no, he grew only more cheerful under misfortune.
I insulted him. He looked at me in slow and smiling surprise.“I fght you?Why?”he asked slowly. And then he laughed.“You are so funny！Ho! ho！Youll be the death of me！Hee! hee! hee！Oh！Ho! ho! ho！”
What would you?It was past endurance. By the blood of Judas, how I hated him！Then there was that name-Claverhouse！What a name！Wasnt it absurd?Claverhouse！Merciful heaven, why Claverhouse?Again and again I asked myself that question. I should not have minded Smith, or Brown, or Jones-but Claverhouse！I leave it to you. Repeat it to yourself-Claverhouse. Just listen to the ridiculous sound of it-Claverhouse！Should a man live with such a name?I ask of you.“No，”you say. And“No”said I.
But I bethought me of his mortgage. What of his crops and barn destroyed, I knew he would be unable to meet it. So I got a shrewd, close-mouthed, tight-fsted money-lender to get the mortgage transferred to him. I did not appear but through this agent I forced the foreclosure, and but few days were given John Claverhouse to remove his goods and chattels from the premises. Then I strolled down to see how he took it, for he had lived there upward of twenty years. But he met me with his saucer-eyes twinkling, and the light glowing and spreading in his face till it was as a full-risen moon.
“Ha! ha! ha！”he laughed.“The funniest tike, that youngster of mine！Did you ever hear the like?Let me tell you. He was down playing by the edge of the river when a piece of the bank caved in and splashed him.‘O papa！’he cried；‘a great big puddle few up and hit me.’”
He stopped and waited for me to join him in his infernal glee.
“I dont see any laugh in it，”I said shortly, and I know my face went sour.
He regarded me with wonderment, and then came the damnable light, glowing and spreading, as I have described it, till his face shone soft and warm, like the summer moon, and then the laugh-“Ha! ha！That‘s funny！You don’t see it, eh?Hee! hee！Ho! ho! ho！He doesnt see it！Why, look here. You know a puddle.”
But I turned on my heel and left him. That was the last. I could stand it no longer. The thing must end right there, I thought, curse him！The earth should be quit of him. And as I went over the hill, I could hear his monstrous laugh reverberating against the sky.
Now, I pride myself on doing things neatly, and when I resolved to kill John Claverhouse I had it in mind to do so in such fashion that I should not look back upon it and feel ashamed. I hate bungling, and I hate brutality. To me there is something repugnant in merely striking a man with ones naked fst-faugh! it is sickening！So, to shoot, or stab, or club John Claverhouse（oh, that name！）did not appeal to me. And not only was I impelled to do it neatly and artistically, but also in such manner that not the slightest possible suspicion could be directed against me.
To this end I bent my intellect, and, after a week of profound incubation, I hatched the scheme. Then I set to work. I bought a water spaniel bitch, five months old, and devoted my whole attention to her training. Had any one spied upon me, they would have remarked that this training consisted entirely of one thing-retrieving. I taught the dog, which I called“Bellona，”to fetch sticks I threw into the water, and not only to fetch, but to fetch at once, without mouthing or playing with them. The point was that she was to stop for nothing, but to deliver the stick in all haste. I made a practice of running away and leaving her to chase me, with the stick in her mouth, till she caught me. She was a bright animal, and took to the game with such eagerness that I was soon content.
After that, at the first casual opportunity, I presented Bellona to John Claverhouse. I knew what I was about, for I was aware of a little weakness of his, and of a little private sinning of which he was regularly and inveterately guilty.
“No，”he said, when I placed the end of the rope in his hand.“No, you dont mean it.”And his mouth opened wide and he grinned all over his damnable moon-face.
“I-I have a kind of thought, somehow, you didnt like me.”he explained.“Wasnt it funny for me to make such a mistake?”And at the thought he held his sides with laughter.
“What is her name?”he managed to ask between paroxysms.“Bellona，”I said.“Hee! hee！”he tittered.“What a funny name.”
I gritted my teeth, for his mirth put them on edge, and snapped out between them，“She was the wife of Mars, you know.”
Then the light of the full moon began to suffuse his face, until he exploded with：“That was my other dog. Well, I guess shes a widow now. Oh！Ho! ho！E！hee! hee！Ho！”he whooped after me, and I turned and fed swiftly over the hill.
The week passed by, and on Saturday evening I said to him，“You go away Monday, dont you?”
He nodded his head and grinned.
“Then you won‘t have another chance to get a mess of those trout you just’doteon.”
But he did not notice the sneer.“Oh, I dont know，”he chuckled.“Im going up tomorrow to try pretty hard.”
Thus was assurance made doubly sure, and I went back to my house hugging myself with rapture.
Early next morning I saw him go by with a dip-net and gunnysack, and Bellona trotting at his heels. I knew where he was bound, and cut out by the back pasture and climbed through the underbrush to the top of the mountain. Keeping carefully out of sight, I followed the crest along for a couple of miles to a natural amphitheatre in the hills, where the little river raced down out of a gorge and stopped for breath in a large and placid rock-bound pool. That was the spot！I sat down on the croup of the mountain, where I could see all that occurred, and lighted my pipe.
Many minutes had passed, John Claverhouse came plodding up the bed of the stream. Bellona was ambling about him, and they were in high feather, her short, snappy barks mingling with his deeper chest-notes. Arrived at the pool, he threw down the dip-net and sack, and drew from his hip-pocket what looked like a large, fat candle. But I knew it to be a stick of“giant”；for such was his method of catching trout. He dynamited them. He attached the fuse by wrapping the“giant”tightly in a piece of cotton. Then he ignited the fuse and tossed the explosive into the pool.
Like a flash, Bellona was into the pool after it. I could have shrieked aloud for joy. Claverhouse yelled at her, but without avail. He pelted her with clods and rocks, but she swam steadily on till she got the stick of“giant”in her mouth. When she whirled about and headed for the shore, then, for the frst time, he realized his danger, and started to run. As foreseen and planned by me, she made the bank and took out after him. Oh, I tell you, it was great！
As I have said, the pool lay in a sort of amphitheatre. Above and below, the stream could be crossed by stepping-stones. And around and around, up and down and across the stones, raced Claverhouse and Bellona. I could never have believed that such an ungainly man could run so fast. But run he did, Bellona hot-footed after him, and gaining. And then, just as she caught up, he in full stride, and she leaping with nose at his knee, there was a sudden fash, a burst of smoke, a terrifc detonation, and where man and dog had been the instant before there was nothing to be seen but a big hole in the ground.
“Death from accident while engaged in illegal fishing.”That was the verdict of the coroner‘s jury；and that is why I pride myself on the neat and artistic way in which I fnished off John Claverhouse. There was no bungling, no brutality；nothing of which to be ashamedin the whole transaction, as I am sure you will agree. No more does his infernal laugh go echoing among the hills, and no more does his fat moon-face rise up to vex me. My days are peaceful now, and my night’s sleep deep.
約翰·克萊沃豪斯長著一張跟十五的月亮一樣的圓臉，你肯定見過這種長相的男人，寬寬的顴骨，基本看不出有下巴和前額，因為它們已經和臉不分界線地融合在一起了，這些構成了完美的圓形輪廓。鼻子又短又粗，與圓臉邊緣線保持同樣的距離，可以說，恰好長在臉盤的中心部位。在圓臉的襯托下，它看上去就像是黏在天花板上的一個麵團。也許，正是因為約翰·克萊沃豪斯的這種長相，我才這麽討厭他。他是我的眼中釘，而且我相信，他的存在也是地球的累贅。
就像社會上的人們通常認為的那樣，我這麽討厭約翰·克萊沃豪斯，不是因為他對我做過什麽錯事或者無禮的舉止。不過，如果他真的做了錯事，我現在對他的厭惡遠遠超過這個，更深刻、更微妙，是那樣的不可理解，難以捉摸，以至於我都無法用清晰、準確的語言表達出來。我們每個人都會在人生中的某個階段經曆這樣的事情：平生第一次見到某個陌生人，就是那麽擦肩而過，即使在夢中也不會留下一絲印象。然而就是這麽一個人，在第一眼見到他時，我們往往會說“我不喜歡那個人”。我們憑什麽不喜歡人家呢？哎，其實我們自己也不知道。我們僅知道不喜歡他。不喜歡就是不喜歡，僅此而已。我對約翰·克萊沃豪斯的印象就是這樣。
有著這麽一副長相的男人有什麽資格享受快樂和幸福呢？然而事實恰恰相反，他是一個地地道道的樂觀派。他總是笑容滿麵，笑聲不斷，仿佛在這個世界上沒有不順心的事一樣，真是個該被詛咒的家夥！哎，看著他總是這麽高興，這簡直是對我靈魂的莫大刺激！別人可以大笑，可以快樂，這很正常，也不會令我煩惱。就連我自己過去也常常開懷大笑——當然是在我遇上約翰·克萊沃豪斯之前。
可是他的笑使我非常惱火，簡直要把我逼瘋了，好像除了他的笑之外，世界上其他任何事物都無法激怒我，不會使我瘋狂。它總是揮之不去，圍繞在我的周圍，使我的心為之瘋狂，讓我得不到片刻的放鬆。那是一種洪亮的、瘋狂的笑聲，不論在清醒時還是在睡眠中，我都能感覺到它的存在。它就像一把巨大的銼刀，發出尖厲的聲音穿刺著我的心靈。在蒙蒙亮的清晨，它呐喊著，穿過時空攪亂我的美夢；在中午炫目的烈日下，當那些繁茂的枝葉都耷拉下腦袋時，當鳥雀們都躲到森林深處去時，當自然萬物都在昏昏欲睡時，他那巨大如雷的“哈哈”和“嗬嗬”的笑聲響徹雲霄，挑戰著頭頂的炎炎烈日。還有，在漆黑的深夜，在寂靜的十字路口——那是他從城裏回家的必經之路，總會傳來那令人討厭的狂笑，將我從睡夢中驚醒，接著我輾轉難眠，苦惱不已，我狠狠地攥緊了拳頭。
在一個黑暗的夜晚，我偷偷摸到他的家，把他的牛放到他的地裏。但次日清晨，我聽見他又大笑著把牛趕回家了，說：“其實沒什麽，我不應該因為它走進更肥美的牧場而責備這個不會說話的可憐畜生。”
他養了一條狗名叫火星。這條狗體形龐大，性情凶猛，有點像獵狗，也有點像警犬，可以說兼兩者的特征。火星給他帶來了無窮的快樂，他倆總是形影不離。我一直在等待時機。這一天終於來了，機會簡直是從天而降。我想辦法引出那條狗，然後用加了士的寧毒藥的牛排打發它。但火星的死竟然對約翰·克萊沃豪斯沒有造成絲毫影響，他那發自內心的笑聲和往常一樣頻繁，而那張臉也和往日一樣，圓如中天滿月。
後來，我幹脆放火燒了他的草垛和穀倉。可是，第二天早上，正好是星期天，他還是像往常一樣無憂無慮地歡快地出了門。當他經過十字路口的時候，我趕上去問他：“你要去哪裏？”“去捕鮭魚，”他回應著，笑容滿麵，臉蛋圓得像十五的月亮，“我酷愛捕鮭魚。”
天哪！世界上怎麽會有這樣不可思議的人！他一年的收成都貯藏在穀倉和草垛裏，而且據我所知，他的這些財產也沒有上保險。然而，麵對突然而至的災難和即將來臨的寒冬，他竟然還能高高興興地出去捕鮭魚。當然了，人家不是說了嘛，因為人家“酷愛”捕鮭魚！如果憂愁曾在他的眉毛上停留，哪怕片刻也可以，如果他那張臉能表現出哪怕是一丁點的驚慌或嚴肅，起碼不要再像那輪滿月，如果他的麵頰上在某個時候不再有笑容的影子，哪怕隻有一次，我相信自己一定早原諒他了。但是事實告訴我，他沒有，在禍不單行的不幸麵前，他反而越來越快樂了。
我辱罵他，他雖然表現得驚訝，但望著我的時候，遲鈍的臉上仍保持著微笑！“要我跟你打架？為什麽？”他慢吞吞地問道。而後，他又大笑，“你真是太有趣了！哈哈哈！你簡直要笑死我了！嘻！嘻！嘻！啊！哈！哈！哈！”
麵對這麽一個人，你還能做什麽呢？這簡直是挑戰我的忍耐極限！我恨死他了，這種憎惡之情簡直無法形容。還有他的那個名字——克萊沃豪斯（“屠刀”和“房子”的合音）！這是個什麽名字啊？簡直是荒謬至極！克萊沃豪斯！仁慈的上帝啊，為什麽會給他起名叫克萊沃豪斯？我一遍又一遍地問著自己。我不會對史密斯、布朗、瓊斯之類的名字介意，除了克萊沃豪斯！大家都來聽聽這個名字，自己念一遍“克萊沃豪斯”，隻要聽聽這個可笑的發音就行了——克萊沃豪斯！我想問問你們，這難道是人類應該有的名字嗎？我想你一定會說“不”。沒錯，我也會有同樣的回答——“不是人類的名字！”
我一定要擊敗他！於是，我又想到了他的抵押品——房子。既然他的莊稼和糧食都已經被毀掉了，那麽他就失去了還債的能力。因此，我找到一個精明、吝嗇且守口如瓶的放高利貸者，把那抵押品轉讓給了他。關於這件事情，我始終沒有露麵，而是通過這個放高利貸的中間人迫使克萊沃豪斯喪失了抵押品的贖回權，隻留給他幾天的時間把那些亂七八糟的東西從房子裏搬出去。之後，我裝作若無其事地過去看他，看他麵對這樣的事情到底怎麽做。因為我知道，至今為止，他在那裏已經居住了二十年了，對這樣的事情他會怎樣呢？但是，他那橢圓形的眼珠忽閃忽閃的，臉上仍然洋溢著快樂，那張圓臉依舊宛如一輪滿月。
“哈！哈！哈！”他大笑起來，“那個最調皮的孩子，就是我最小的那個，你沒聽說過吧？那我就告訴你。有一天他正在河邊玩，突然，一段河堤坍塌了，於是把他卷進河水中。他在水裏哭著喊我，‘噢爸爸！一個大旋渦打過來，把我卷住啦。’”
他停了下來，等著我和他一起分享那種可惡的快樂。
“我看不出這件事情到底有什麽好笑的。”我直截了當地對他說，臉上帶著幾分惱火。
聽完我的話，他起初吃驚地盯著我，接著臉上又浮現出那該死的微笑，正如我以前描繪過的那樣，神采飛揚，充溢四周。直到他的臉色又變得柔和、溫暖，讓人想起夏日裏的柔和月亮。但是隨後便是大笑：“哈哈！真是太有趣了！你竟然沒看出來那麽好笑，嗯？嘻嘻嘻！嗬嗬嗬！他竟然沒看不出來！為什麽，我給你比劃比劃，看這裏，你知道有一個旋渦……”
我沒有看他像小醜似的比劃，而是轉身走了，我知道這已經達到我的忍耐極限，無法忍受他了。我想，事情到此為止吧，這個混蛋！全世界都應該摒棄這個人。當我從他那裏逃出來後，我依然能聽見他那種惡魔般的笑聲，響徹雲霄。
到目前為止，我對自己幹淨利落的辦事風格頗為滿意。那時，當我下定決心幹掉約翰·克萊沃豪斯時，我一直將此事牢牢記在心裏，並時刻告誡自己千萬不要退縮，因為幹掉這種人渣沒什麽可愧疚的。我很討厭那種拖拖拉拉的辦事風格，也對野蠻凶殘的手段深惡痛疾。我極度憎惡**裸地用拳頭教訓人的方式，這種事情令我作嘔！因此，對約翰·克萊沃豪斯（簡直受不了這個名字！）采取槍殺、刀刺或棒打的方式，對我來說根本沒有吸引力。幹掉他的方式不僅要幹淨利索，天衣無縫，而且要不留痕跡，絕不能讓人懷疑到我的頭上。
為了想出一個萬全之策，我絞盡腦汁。一周後，一條妙計終於冒出來了。很快，我就著手實施這套方案。首先我買來一隻五個月大的長毛垂耳母狗，然後用我全部的心思對這隻狗進行集中訓練。任何見過我訓練的人，都認為我對小狗進行訓練的目的隻有一個——叼回獵物。我訓練“女戰神”（我給小狗起的名字）叼回我扔進水中的木棍，並命令它不僅要叼回目標物，而且在叼到後要迅速返回，不能有片刻的嬉戲玩耍。我對它訓練的要點就是以最快的速度取回木棍並交給我，不能被任何事務耽擱。我假裝逃跑，讓它叼回木棍後，在後麵追我，直至追上。這隻狗可真是個聰明的家夥，它總是急切地加入到這個遊戲中——這著實讓我滿意。
就這樣過了一段時間，我利用一個偶然的機會將“女戰神”送給了約翰·克萊沃豪斯。當然，我這樣做是有目的的，因為我特別清楚他的弱點和一些隱私，這些東西常使他產生負罪感。
當我把狗繩遞到他手裏的時候，他急忙推讓，說：“不，你不要這麽客氣。”他的嘴巴張得大大地，那張可惡的圓臉上又露出了令人討厭的笑容。
“我……我想，不知怎麽的，我覺得你有點討厭我，”他解釋說，“我犯這樣一個錯誤是不是有點可笑？”話音剛落，就哈哈大笑起來。
“她叫什麽名字？”他好不容易在大笑的間隙中擠出一句話。
“女戰神。”我告訴他。
“嘻！嘻！”他傻笑著，說，“這個名字真有趣！”
看著他那副高興的樣子，我狠狠地咬了咬牙，咯咯直響，然後對他說：“她是‘火星’的妻子，這個你應該知道。”接下來，他的臉上又露出喜色，像滿月的光輝彌漫開來，直到突然爆發。“那就是說我又有一條狗了，嗬嗬，很好，不過我想她現在是個寡婦了。哈哈！嘻嘻！”他在我的身後狂歡高呼著，我無法忍受了，轉過身，飛快地逃離了這個地方。
自從我把狗送給約翰·克萊沃豪斯，已經有一周的時間了。星期六晚上，我終於忍不住跑過去問他：“您是不是周一就要走了？”
他點了點頭，張著嘴笑著。
“那您以後豈不是沒有機會去享受捕捉鮭魚的樂趣了？那可是您的最愛啊！”我假裝關心地嘲弄他。
但是他沒有注意到我的嘲笑口氣，“噢，我也不知道，”他咯咯地笑著說，“不過，我準備明天去，多捕點鮭魚回來。”
這番話使我對行動方案有了雙倍的把握，我興高采烈地跑回家，想提前慶祝一下勝利。
第二天清晨，我看見他帶著一張漁網和一個黃麻袋出了門，“女戰神”屁顛屁顛地跟在後麵。我知道他要去哪裏，所以，我抄近路穿過後麵的牧場，趟過那些草叢向山頂爬去。我小心地不被他發現，沿著山路走了幾英裏，之後來到群山中的一處山窩裏，它宛如一座古希臘的“圓形劇場”。峽穀裏流出來的一條湍急的小溪在這裏陡然變緩，形成了一個清澈透明的大水灣，四周的岩石環繞著。這就是他要來的那個地方！我在山頂的某個位置找了塊石頭坐下來，這個位置可以一覽水灣邊的一切，我得意地點起了煙鬥。
我在那等了好長一段時間，約翰·克萊沃豪斯才沿著河床慢悠悠地迎麵走來，“女戰神”漫不經心地在他四周轉悠著，看來他們的心情都不錯。“女戰神”短促而輕快地吠叫著，約翰·克萊沃豪斯嘴裏哼著低沉的小調，兩個家夥一唱一和。等他來到水灣後，便扔下漁網和黃麻袋，然後從屁股口袋裏掏出一個又大又粗的像是蠟燭一樣的東西。我知道那是一根“爆破筒”，這是他捕魚的工具之一。他就是靠這個炸藥炸死鮭魚的。隻見他把那個“爆破筒”緊緊地綁在一團棉花裏，塞進導火索並點燃它，然後立刻把它扔進了水灣。
這時，“女戰神”像閃電一樣跳進水裏去追那個“爆破筒”。我高興地忘了形，竟然尖叫起來。克萊沃豪斯朝它大喊著，但是沒有一點兒用。盡管他用泥塊和石子朝它扔去，它依然義無反顧地遊了過去，直到抓到那根“木棍”，然後將其銜在嘴裏。當“女戰神”轉身朝岸上遊來時，克萊沃豪斯破天荒地頭一次意識到了危險，撒腿就向遠處跑。正如我預測和計劃的那樣，狗上岸後，就緊追克萊沃豪斯不放。噢，我想告訴你們的是，那簡直是太棒了！
在此之前我已經描述過這裏的地形，那個水灣位於一個圓形山穀中，水灣的上遊和下遊遍地是墊腳的石頭。於是，克萊沃豪斯和“女戰神”踩著那些墊腳石追來繞去，上躥下跳的。如果不是親眼所見，我簡直不敢相信那樣一個笨拙的人竟然跑得那麽快。但是，盡管他跑得那麽快，“女戰神”卻在他後麵緊追不舍，並且離他越來越近。正當要追上他時，克萊沃豪斯使出全身的力氣猛地向前一躍，“女戰神”也隨之一躍，鼻子正好碰到他的膝蓋。猛然間，一道火光閃過，一股煙柱衝天而起，可怕的爆炸終於發生了。等到能看清楚時，發現地麵上除了一個大坑外，之前的那個男人和那條狗都已經灰飛煙滅。
“非法捕魚時死於意外事故”——這是驗屍員下的結論。我就是這樣幹淨利索、天衣無縫地除掉了約翰·克萊沃豪斯，並得意於自己的這種辦事風格。這件事既沒有拖泥帶水，也不野蠻凶殘，因此，在整個實施過程中我沒必要感到愧疚，我敢肯定你也會這樣想。從此，他惡魔般的狂笑再也不會回**在群山之間了，他那張肥胖的圓臉再也不會惹我心煩了。現在，我的生活又恢複了平靜，連晚上做夢都覺得很香了。
知識點
什麽是懸念？希區柯克曾經給“懸念”下過一個著名的定義：如果你要表現一群人圍著一張桌子玩牌，然後突然一聲爆炸，那麽你便隻能拍到一個十分呆板的炸後一驚的場麵。另一方麵，雖然你是表現這同一場麵，但是在打牌開始之前，如果先表現桌子下麵的定時炸彈，那麽你就造成了懸念，並牽動著觀眾的心。
W詞匯筆記
equidistant[，i：kwidist?nt]adj.距離相等的，等距的
例 The two parks are about equidistant from the station.
這兩個公園離火車站的距離差不多相同。
intangible[?nt?nd??b?l]adj.觸不到的；難以理解的；無法確定的
例 Sound and light are intangible.
聲和光是觸摸不到的。
endurance[indju?r?ns]n.耐久（力），持久（力）；忍耐，忍耐力
例 The long climb tested our powers of endurance.
那次長時間登山考驗了我們的耐力。
reverberate[r?v?：b?，re?t]v.回響；彈回；反射；使回響；使反射；使回彈
例 Echoes of cries of pain reverberate in my heart.
痛苦的呼喚回**在我的心中。
S小試身手
第二天早上，正好是星期天，他還是像往常一樣無憂無慮地歡快地出了門。
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為了想出一個萬全之策，我絞盡腦汁。
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猛然間，一道火光閃過，一股煙柱衝天而起，可怕的爆炸終於發生了。
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P短語家族
I knew what I was about, for I was aware of a little weakness of his……be aware of：知道；意識到
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I knew where he was bound, and cut out by the back pasture and climbed through the underbrush to the top of the mountain.
cut out：停止；裁剪；剪下；取代
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