名畫失竊案 Problem of the Stolen Rubens
雅克·福特雷爾/Jacques Futrelle
雅克·福特雷爾（Jacques Futrelle，1875—1912），美國推理小說家。在他的推理短篇小說中，最著名的是《思想機器》。膾炙人口的偵探小說為他在偵探小說界贏得了較高的聲譽。
Matthew Kale made ffty million dollars out of axle grease, after which he began to patronize the high arts. It was simple enough：he had the money, and Europe had the old masters. His method of buying was simplicity itself. There were five thousand square yards, more or less, in the huge gallery of his marble mansion which were to be covered, so he bought fve thousand square yards, more or less, of art. Some of it was good, some of it fair, and much of it bad. The chief picture of the collection was a Rubens, which he had picked up in Rome for ffty thousand dollars.
Soon after acquiring his collection, Kale decided to make certain alterations in the vast room where the pictures hung. They were all taken down and stored in the ball room, equally vast, with their faces toward the wall. Meanwhile Kale and his family took refuge in a nearby hotel.
It was at this hotel that Kale met Jules de Lesseps. De Lesseps was distinctly French, the sort of Frenchman whose conversation resembles calisthenics. He was nervous, quick, and agile, and he told Kale in confidence that he was not only a painter himself, but was a connoisseur in the high arts. Pompous in the pride of possession, Kale went to a good deal of trouble to exhibit his private collection for de Lesseps‘delectation. It happened in the ball room, and the true artist’s delight shone in the Frenchmans eyes as he handled the pieces which were good. Some of the others made him smile, but it was an inoffensive sort of smile.
With his own hands Kale lifted the precious Rubens and held it before the Frenchmans eyes. It was a“Madonna and Child，”one of those wonderful creations which have endured through the years with all the sparkle and color beauty of their pristine days. Kale seemed disappointed because de Lesseps was not particularly enthusiastic about this picture.
“Why, its a Rubens！”he exclaimed.
“Yes, I see，”replied de Lesseps.
“It cost me ffty thousand dollars.”
“It is perhaps worth more than that，”and the Frenchman shrugged his shoulders as he turned away.
Kale looked at him in chagrin. Could it be that de Lesseps did not understand that it was a Rubens, and that Rubens was a painter?Or was it that he had failed to hear him say that it cost him ffty thousand dollars. Kale was accustomed to seeing people bob their heads and open their eyes when he said ffty thousand dollars；therefore，“Dont you like it?”he asked.
“Very much indeed，”replied de Lesseps，“but I have seen it before. I saw it in Rome just a week or so before you purchased it.”
They rummaged through the pictures, and at last a Whistler was turned up for their inspection. It was one of the famous Thames series, a water color. De Lessepsface radiated excitement, and several times he glanced from the water color to the Rubens as if mentally comparing the exquisitely penciled and colored modern work with the bold, masterly technic of the old.
Kale misunderstood the silence.“I dont think much of this one myself，”he explained apologetically.“It‘s a Whistler, and all that, and it cost me fve thousand dollars, and I sort of had to have it, but still it isn’t just the kind of thing that I like. What do you think of it?”
“I think it is perfectly wonderful！”replied the Frenchman enthusiastically.“It is the essence, the superlative, of modern work. I wonder if it would be possible，”and he turned to face Kale，“for me to make a copy of that?I have some slight skill in painting myself, and dare say I could make a fairly creditable copy of it.”
Kale was flattered. He was more and more impressed each moment with the picture.“Why, certainly，”he replied.“I will have it sent up to the hotel, and you can-”
“No, no, no！”interrupted de Lesseps quickly.“I wouldnt care to accept the responsibility of having the picture in my charge. There is always a danger of fre. But if you would give me permission to come here-this room is large and airy and light, and besides it is quiet-”
“Just as you like，”said Kale magnanimously.“I merely thought the other way would be most convenient for you.”
De Lesseps drew near, and laid one hand on the millionaires arm.“My dear friend，”he said earnestly，“if these pictures were my pictures, I shouldnt try to accommodate anybody where they were concerned. I dare say the collection as it stands cost you-”
“Six hundred and eighty-seven thousand dollars，”volunteered Kale proudly.
“And surely they must be well protected here in your house during your absence?”
“There are about twenty servants in the house while the workmen are making the alterations，”said Kale，“and three of them dont do anything but watch this room. No one can go in or out except by the door we entered-the others are locked and barred-and then only with my permission, or a written order from me. No, sir, nobody can get away with anything in this room.”
“Excellent, excellent！”said de Lesseps admiringly. He smiled a little bit.“I am afraid I did not give you credit for being the far-sighted business man that you are.”He turned and glanced over the collection of pictures abstractedly.“A clever thief, though，”he ventured，“might cut a valuable painting, for instance the Rubens, out of the frame, roll it up, conceal it under his coat, and escape.”
Kale laughed pleasantly and shook his head.
It was a couple of days later at the hotel that de Lesseps brought up the subject of copying the Whistler. He was profuse in his thanks when Kale volunteered to accompany him to the mansion and witness the preliminary stages of the work. They paused at the ball room door.
“Jennings，”said Kale to the liveried servant there，“this is Mr. de Lesseps. He is to come and go as he likes. He is going to do some work in the ball room here. See that he isnt disturbed.”
De Lesseps noticed the Rubens leaning carelessly against some other pictures, with the holy face of the Madonna toward them.“Really, Mr. Kale，”he protested，“that picture is too valuable to be left about like that. If you will let your servants bring me some canvas, I shall wrap it and place it up on the table here off the foor. Suppose there were mice here！”
Kale thanked him. The necessary orders were given, and fnally the picture was carefully wrapped and placed beyond harms reach, whereupon de Lesseps adjusted himself, paper, easel, stool, and all, and began his work of copying. There Kale left him.
Three days later Kale just happened to drop in, and found the artist still at his labor.
“I just dropped by，”he explained，“to see how the work in the gallery was getting along. It will be fnished in another week. I hope I am not disturbing you?”
“Not at all，”said de Lesseps，“I have nearly fnished. See how I am getting along?”He turned the easel toward Kale.
The millionaire gazed from that toward the original which stood on a chair near by, and frank admiration for the artists efforts was in his eyes.“Why, its fne！”he exclaimed.“It‘s just as good as the other one, and I bet you don’t want any fve thousand dollars for it-eh?”
That was all that was said about it at the time. Kale wandered about the house for an hour or so, then dropped into the ball room where the artist was just getting his paraphernalia together, and they walked back to the hotel. The artist carried under one arm his copy of the Whistler, loosely rolled up.
One week passed, and the workmen who had been engaged in refinishing and decorating the gallery had gone. De Lesseps volunteered to assist in the work of rehanging the pictures, and Kale gladly turned the matter over to him. It was in the afternoon of the day this work began that de Lesseps, chatting pleasantly with Kale, ripped loose the canvas which enshrouded the precious Rubens. Then he paused with an exclamation of dismay. The picture was gone；the frame which had held it was empty. A thin strip of canvas around the inside edge showed that a sharp penknife had been used to cut out the painting.
All of these facts came to the attention of Professor Augustus S. F.X.Van Dusen-The Thinking Machine. This was a day or so after Kale had rushed into Detective Mallory‘s office at police headquarters, with the statement that his Rubens had been stolen. He banged his fst down on the detective’s desk and roared at him.“It cost me ffty thousand dollars！”he declared violently.“Why dont you do something?What are you sitting there staring at me for?”
“Dont excite yourself, Mr. Kale，”the detective advised.“I will put my men at work right now to recover the-the-What is a Rubens, anyway?”
“Its a picture！”bellowed Mr. Kale.“A piece of canvas with some paint on it, and it cost me fifty thousand dollars-dont you forget that！”
So the police machinery was set in motion to recover the painting. And in time the matter fell under the watchful eye of Hutchinson Hatch, reporter. He learned the facts preceding the disappearance of the picture, and then called on de Lesseps. He found the artist in a state of excitement bordering on hysteria；an intimation from the reporter of the object of his visit caused de Lesseps to burst into words.
“Mon Dieu！It is outrageous！”he exclaimed.“What can I do?I was the only one in the room for several days. I was the one who took such pains to protect the picture. And now it is gone！The loss is irreparable. What can I do?”
Hatch didnt have any very defnite idea as to just what he could do, so he let him go on.“As I understand it, Mr. de Lesseps，”he interrupted at last，“no one else was in the room, except you and Mr. Kale, all the time you were there?”
“No one else.”
“And I think Mr. Kale said that you were making a copy of some famous water color, werent you?”
“Yes, a Thames scene, by Whistler，”was the reply.“That is it, hanging over the mantel.”
Hatch glanced at the picture admiringly. It was an exquisite copy, and showed the deft touch of a man who was himself an artist of great ability.
De Lesseps read the admiration in his face.“It is not bad，”he said modestly.“I studied with Carolus Duran.”
With all else that was known, and this little additional information, which seemed of no particular value to the reporter, the entire matter was laid before The Thinking Machine. That distinguished man listened from beginning to end without comment.
“Who had access to the room?”he asked fnally.
“That is what the police are working on now，”was the reply.“There are a couple of dozen servants in the house, and I suppose, in spite of Kales rigid orders, there was a certain laxity in their enforcement.”
“Of course that makes it more difficult，”said The Thinking Machine in the perpetually irritated voice which was so distinctly a part of himself.“Perhaps it would be best for us to go to Mr. Kales home and personally investigate.”
Kale received them with the reserve which all rich men show in the presence of representatives of the press. He stared frankly and somewhat curiously at the diminutive figure of the scientist, who explained the object of their visit.
“I guess you fellows cant do anything with this，”the millionaire assured them.“Ive got some regular detectives on it.”
“Is Mr. Mallory here now?”asked“The Thinking Machine”curtly.
“Yes, he is up stairs in the servantsquarters.”
“May we see the room from which the picture was taken?”inquired the scientist, with a suave intonation which Hatch knew well.
Kale granted the permission with a wave of the hand, and ushered them into the ball room, where the pictures had been stored. From the relative center of this room The Thinking Machine surveyed it all. The windows were high. Half a dozen doors leading out into the hallways, to the conservatory, and quiet nooks of the mansion offered innumerable possibilities of access. After this one long comprehensive squint, The Thinking Machine went over and picked up the frame from which the Rubens had been cut. For a long time he examined it. Kales impatience was painfully evident. Finally the scientist turned to him.
“How well do you know Mr. de Lesseps?”he asked.
“Ive known him for only a month or so. Why?”
“Did he bring you letters of introduction, or did you meet him merely casually?”
Kale regarded him with evident displeasure.“My own personal affairs have nothing whatever to do with this matter，”he said pointedly.“Mr. de Lesseps is a gentleman of integrity, and certainly he is the last whom I would suspect of any connection with the disappearance of the picture.”
“That is usually the case，”remarked The Thinking Machine tartly. He turned to Hatch.“Just how good a copy was that he made of the Whistler picture?”he asked.
“I have never seen the original，”Hatch replied，“but the workmanship was superb. Perhaps Mr. Kale wouldnt object to us seeing-”
“Oh, of course not，”said Kale resignedly.“Come in, its in the gallery.”
Hatch submitted the picture to a careful scrutiny.“I should say that the copy is well nigh perfect，”was his verdict.“Of course, in its absence, I couldnt say exactly；but it is certainly a superb work.”
The curtains of a wide door almost in front of them were thrown aside suddenly, and Detective Mallory entered. He carried something in his hand, but at the sight of them concealed it behind him. Unrepressed triumph was in his face.
“Ah, professor, we meet often；dont we?”he said.
“This reporter here and his friend seem to be trying to drag de Lesseps into this affair somehow，”Kale complained to the detective.“I dont want anything like that to happen. He is liable to go out and print anything. They always do.”
The Thinking Machine glared at him unwaveringly, straight in the eye for an instant, then extended his hand toward Mallory.“Where did you fnd it?”he asked.
“Sorry to disappoint you, professor，”said the detective sarcastically，“but this is the time when you were a little late，”and he produced the object which he held behind him.“Here is your picture, Mr. Kale.”
Kale gasped a little in relief and astonishment, and held up the canvas with both hands to examine it.“Fine！”he told the detective.“I‘ll see that you don’t lose anything by this. Why, that thing cost me ffty thousand dollars！”Kale didnt seem able to get over that.
The Thinking Machine leaned forward to squint at the upper right hand corner of the canvas.“Where did you fnd it?”he asked again.
“Rolled up tight, and concealed in the bottom of a trunk in the room of one of the servants，”explained Mallory.“The servants name is Jennings. He is now under arrest.”
“Jennings！”exclaimed Kale.“Why, he has been with me for years.”
“Did he confess?”asked the scientist imperturbably.
“Of course not，”said Mallory.“He says some of the other servants must have hidden it there.”
The Thinking Machine nodded at Hatch.“I think perhaps that is all，”he remarked.“I congratulate you, Mr. Mallory, upon bringing the matter to such a quick and satisfactory conclusion.”
Ten minutes later they left the house and caught a car for the scientists home. Hatch was a little chagrined at the unexpected termination of the affair, and was thoughtfully silent for a time.
“Mallory does show an occasional gleam of human intelligence, doesnt he?”he said at last quizzically.
“Not that I ever noticed，”remarked The Thinking Machine crustily.
“But he found the picture，”Hatch insisted.
“Of course he found it. It was put there for him to fnd.”
“Put there for him to find！”repeated the reporter.“Didnt Jennings steal it?”
“If he did, hes a fool.”
“Well, if he didnt steal it, who put it there?”
“De Lesseps.”
“De Lesseps！”echoed Hatch.“Why the deuce did he steal a ffty thousand-dollar picture and put it in a servants trunk to be found?”
The Thinking Machine twisted around in his seat and squinted at him coldly for a moment.“At times, Mr. Hatch, I am absolutely amazed at your stupidity，”he said frankly.“I can understand it in a man like Mallory, but I have always given you credit for being an astute, quick-witted man.”
Hatch smiled at the reproach. It was not the first time he had heard of it. But nothing bearing on the problem in hand was said until they reached The Thinking Machines apartments.
“The only real question in my mind, Mr. Hatch，”said the scientist then，“is whether or not I should take the trouble to restore Mr. Kales picture at all. He is perfectly satisfed, and will probably never know the difference. So-”
Suddenly Hatch saw something.“Great Scott！”he exclaimed.“Do you mean that the picture that Mallory found was-”
“A copy of the original，”supplemented the scientist.“Personally I know nothing whatever about art；therefore, I could not say from observation that it is a copy, but I know it from the logic of the thing. When the original was cut from the frame, the knife swerved a little at the upper right hand corner. The canvas remaining in the frame told me that. The picture that Mr. Mallory found did not correspond in this detail with the canvas in the frame. The conclusion is obvious.”
“And de Lesseps has the original?”
De Lesseps has the original. How did he get it?In any one of a dozen ways. He might have rolled it up and stuck it under his coat. He might have had a confederate. But I dont think that any ordinary method of theft would have appealed to him. I am giving him credit for being clever, as I must when we review the whole case.
For instance, he asked for permission to copy the Whistler, which you saw was the same size as the Rubens. It was granted. He copied it practically under guard, always with the chance that Mr. Kale himself would drop in. It took him three days to copy it, so he says. He was alone in the room all that time. He knew that Mr. Kale had not the faintest idea of art. Taking advantage of that, what would have been simpler than to have copied the Rubens in oil?He could have removed it from the frame immediately after he canvased it over, and kept it in a position near him where it could be quickly concealed if he was interrupted. Remember, the picture is worth ffty thousand dollars；therefore, was worth the trouble.
“De Lesseps is an artist-we know that-and dealing with a man who knew nothing whatever of art, he had no fears. We may suppose his idea all along was to use the copy of the Rubens as a sort of decoy after he got away with the original. You saw that Mallory didn‘t know the difference, and it was safe for him to suppose that Mr. Kale wouldn’t. His only danger until he could get away gracefully was of some critic or connoisseur, perhaps, seeing the copy. His boldness we see readily in the fact that he permitted himself to discover the theft；that he discovered it after he had volunteered to assist Mr. Kale in the general work of rehanging the pictures in the gallery. Just how he put the picture in Jenning‘s trunk I don’t happen to know. We can imagine many ways.”He lay back in his chair for a minute without speaking, eyes steadily turned upward, fngers placed precisely tip to tip.
“The only thing remaining is to go get the picture. It is in de Lessepsroom now-you told me that-and so we know it is safe. I dare say he knows that if he tried to run away it would inevitably put him under suspicion.”
“But how did he take the picture from the Kales home?”asked Hatch.
“He took it with him probably under his arm the day he left the house with Mr. Kale，”was the astonishing reply.
Hatch was staring at him in amazement. After a moment the scientist arose and passed into the adjoining room, and the telephone bell there jingled. When he joined Hatch again he picked up his hat and they went out together.
De Lesseps was in when their cards went up, and received them. They conversed of the case generally for ten minutes, while the scientists eyes were turned inquiringly here and there about the room. At last there came a knock on the door.
“It is Detective Mallory, Mr. Hatch，”remarked The Thinking Machine.“Open the door for him.”
De Lesseps seemed startled for just one instant, then quickly recovered. Mallorys eyes were full of questions when he entered.
“I should like, Mr. Mallory，”began The Thinking Machine quietly，“to call your attention to this copy of Mr. Kale‘s picture by Whistler-over the mantel here. Isn’t it excellent?You have seen the original?”
Mallory grunted. De Lessepsface, instead of expressing appreciation of the compliment, blanched suddenly, and his hands closed tightly. Again he recovered himself and smiled.
“The beauty of this picture lies not only in its faithfulness to the original，”the scientist went on，“but also in the fact that it was painted under extraordinary circumstances. For instance, I dont know if you know, Mr. Mallory, that it is possible so to combine glue and putty and a few other commonplace things into a paste which would effectually blot out an oil painting, and offer at the same time an excellent surface for water color work.”
“This water color-this copy of Whistler，”continued the scientist evenly-“is painted on such a paste as I have described. That paste in turn covers the original Rubens picture. It can be removed with water without damage to the picture, which is in oil, so that instead of a copy of the Whistler painting, we have an original by Rubens, worth fifty thousand dollars. That is true；isnt it, Mr.de Lesseps?”
There was no reply to the question-none was needed. It was an hour later, after de Lesseps was safely in his cell, that Hatch called up The Thinking Machine on the telephone and asked one question.
“How did you know that the water color was painted over the Rubens?”
“Because it was the only absolutely safe way in which the Rubens could be hopelessly lost to those who were looking for it, and at the same time perfectly preserved，”was the answer of The Thinking Machine，“I told you de Lesseps was a clever man, and a little logic did the rest. Two and two always make four, Mr. Hatch, not sometimes, but all the time.”
馬修·科爾在車軸潤滑油生意上足足賺了五千萬，隨後他便開始四處收購名畫。原因很簡單，他有錢，而歐洲也不缺大師級名作。不過，他收購名畫隻是為了填滿府邸中占地大約五千平方米的藝術廳，所以他總共買了總麵積大約五千平方米的畫。畫的品質參差不齊，大多數都是次品，不過，他也買到了不少好的作品，其中最有名的當屬他在羅馬花了五萬美元買下的魯本斯的名作。
收購完成之後，科爾打算對這間寬敞的大廳作些許變動。於是，他讓人把畫全部摘下來，存放在同樣寬敞的宴會廳裏，並讓所有的畫都麵朝牆壁。同時，科爾和家人則暫住在一家小旅館內。
就是在這家小旅館裏，科爾和吉爾斯·德·勒賽普斯相遇了。德·勒賽普斯是那種典型的說話細聲細氣的法國人，神經兮兮的，但是又聰明伶俐。他告訴科爾，自己不但是個畫家，而且是個高級藝術鑒賞家，聲音中帶著神秘。一向為自己的藏品感到自豪的科爾想在這位“專家”麵前炫耀一下，於是便帶著他在宴會廳內費力地翻看自己的收藏。德·勒賽普斯時而眼中閃現出驚歎的神情，時而隻是禮貌地笑一笑，看不出任何感情色彩。
隨後，科爾把魯本斯的名作《聖母子》拿到這個法國人的麵前。雖然經曆了歲月的洗禮，但是這幅畫依然色彩鮮豔、栩栩如生。可令科爾有點兒失望的是，德·勒賽普斯好像並沒有對它另眼相看。
“看到了嗎？魯本斯的名作！”他大喊。
“看到了。”德·勒賽普斯回答說。
“我花了五萬美元買下的。”
“可能不值這些。”德·勒賽普斯聳了聳肩，移開了目光。
科爾有點兒懊惱地看著他。怎麽回事？難道他不知道這是魯本斯的名作，不知道魯本斯是個大畫家嗎？還是沒聽到這是自己花五萬美元買來的？以前他每次提到五萬美元的價格的時候，聽眾們總是目瞪口呆。
“喜歡嗎？”科爾問。
“當然，”德·勒賽普斯回答道，“但是我以前見過這幅畫，就在羅馬，就在你買下它的一周前，我已經看過了。”
他們繼續翻看著其他畫，突然，一幅惠斯勒的畫映入眼簾，這是著名的泰晤士水彩畫係列中的一幅。德·勒賽普斯兩眼放光地盯著它，還不時地瞟瞟魯本斯的畫，似乎在比較現代作品中的細膩與古老畫派的豪放。
科爾卻誤解了德·勒賽普斯的沉默，他說道：“我也不怎麽喜歡這幅畫。”他的語氣中略帶歉意，“隻是惠斯勒的一幅風景畫而已，我花五千美元買下了它，不過，我自己卻不怎麽喜歡。你覺得呢？”
“我覺得太棒了，”法國人興奮地說，“我覺得這是現代作品中的精華，是最完美的一幅。請問，我可不可以……”他轉向科爾，“臨摹一幅呢？我自認為繪畫水平還不錯，我肯定可以畫得以假亂真。”
科爾被誇得有點兒飄飄然了，漸漸地，他也覺得這幅畫確實很不錯。“當然可以，”他答道，“我可以把它送到你的旅館裏，然後你可以……”
“不不不，”德·勒賽普斯馬上打斷他，“旅館裏隨時都可能發生火災，萬一出了問題我可負不起責任。如果可以的話，我能不能到這裏來？這裏寬敞明亮，通風好，而且還很安靜……”
“我隻是覺得旅館對你而言更方便一些，”科爾很大度地說，“但是，如果你願意的話，就在這兒畫吧。”
德·勒賽普斯走到科爾的身邊，挽著這個有錢人的胳膊，誠懇地說：“我的朋友，如果這些畫是我的，我不會讓任何人在這裏多作停留。我敢說這些畫肯定花了你……”
“六十八萬七千美元。”科爾驕傲地說道。
“想必你不在家的時候一定是派人嚴加看管？”
“有二十個傭人負責裝修時家裏的安全，”科爾答道，“其中有三個人專門負責看管這些畫。我們進來的門是這個房間唯一的入口，其他入口都已經用鐵棍封住了。隻有得到我的允許或者拿著我的書麵許可，才能夠進來。所以說，沒人能偷走這裏的任何東西。”
“不錯，不錯，”德·勒賽普斯微笑著，充滿敬佩地說，“我覺得我看待事情可沒有你這麽強的預見性。”他回過身來漫不經心地看了一下，試探道：“可是，一個聰明的竊賊完全可以把畫從畫框裏割下來，然後卷起來藏在衣服裏麵帶出去。”
科爾笑著搖了搖頭。
幾天之後，德·勒賽普斯買齊了臨摹惠斯勒的畫所需的全部物品。科爾則親自把他送到了宴會廳門口，德·勒賽普斯自然千恩萬謝。
“簡寧斯，”科爾對一個仆人說道，“這是德·勒賽普斯先生。他要到宴會廳內畫幾幅畫，他可以在這裏自由出入。記住，不要讓任何人打擾他。”
德·勒賽普斯看到魯本斯的名作被隨意地丟在其他畫的旁邊，畫中的聖母正好麵對著他們。“科爾先生，”他抗議道，“這幅如此名貴的畫這樣放著不大好吧，萬一有老鼠呢？請您讓仆人拿一塊帆布來，我會把它包起來，然後放到這邊的桌子上。”
科爾表示感謝，讓仆人照辦，隨後他們把畫包起來放在了安全的地方。德·勒賽普斯開始布置作畫的物品——紙張、畫架、凳子等等，科爾看了一會兒便離開了。
三天之後，當科爾進來的時候，德·勒賽普斯仍然在畫板前忙碌著。
“我隻是路過，”科爾解釋道，“來看看這兒裝修得怎麽樣了。還有一周就完工了。我沒打攪到你吧？”
“當然沒有，”德·勒賽普斯趕忙說，“我也快完成了。看看，我畫得怎麽樣？”說著，他把畫架轉向科爾。
這位富豪看了一眼仿作，又轉頭看了一下原作，眼中流露出敬佩的神色。“哇，太棒了！”他大聲說，“簡直和真的一樣。五千美元你肯定不賣吧？”
他們就聊了這幾句。隨後，科爾出去轉悠了大約一個小時，查看了裝修情況，然後又回到了宴會廳。他看見德·勒賽普斯在收拾畫畫的工具，於是便和他一起回到了旅店。德·勒賽普斯腋下夾著卷起來的惠斯勒水彩畫的臨摹本。
一周之後，藝術廳裝修完畢，施工人員也離開了。德·勒賽普斯主動要求幫科爾把所有的畫掛回去，科爾當然開心地答應了。那天下午，他一邊掛畫，一邊和科爾開心地聊天，但是，當他打開包有魯本斯名畫的帆布時，突然目瞪口呆——畫不見了！空空的畫框上殘餘的帆布碎片留下了刀子割畫的痕跡。
科爾報案一天之後，被稱為“思想機器”的奧古斯都S.F.X.範杜森開始關注這件事。畫被偷後，科爾焦急地跑到警察局馬洛裏警官的辦公室報案，生氣地將雙拳砸在馬洛裏的桌子上，氣衝衝地說：“我花了五萬美元啊。你怎麽不去調查？你坐在這裏盯著我幹嗎？”
“冷靜點兒，科爾先生。”警官說，“我馬上派人去找你丟的那個……對了，那個魯本斯到底是什麽東西？”
“那是一幅畫！”科爾大叫道，“是一塊上麵畫著東西的畫布。我花了五萬美元，你一定要給我找回來。”
警察們馬上開始著手調查。與此同時，哈金森·海奇記者也開始關注這個案子。他了解到畫被偷之前的情況，然後便去拜訪德·勒賽普斯。門開了，首先映入他眼簾的是這位藝術家那近乎暴怒的眼神。記者的到訪令原本就很激動的德·勒賽普斯變得更加神經質，他大聲說道：
“老天，太不可思議了！叫我怎麽說？除了我之外，那幾天沒人到過宴會廳；而我也是唯一一個願意不怕麻煩，去保護這幅畫的人！現在畫被偷了，損失這麽大，我真是跳進黃河都洗不清了。”
海奇不知道此時該說些什麽，索性讓他繼續說下去。最後，海奇打斷了他：“德·勒賽普斯先生，據我所知，在這段時間內，除了科爾先生之外，沒有其他人去過宴會廳，對嗎？”
“沒有其他人去過。”
“科爾先生說你在臨摹一幅著名的水彩畫，是嗎？”
“是的，是惠斯勒的，泰晤士風景畫之一。”他回答說，“看，就是那幅掛在壁爐上麵的畫。”
海奇看了一眼，那確實是一幅臨摹得非常精美的畫，他對德·勒賽普斯的繪畫技巧產生了一種敬佩之情。
德·勒賽普斯注意到了海奇臉上的讚美，他謙虛地說：“還不錯吧？我的老師是卡羅勒斯·杜倫。”
案件情況就是這樣。後麵的這則信息對海奇來說，也沒有什麽特別的價值。現在整個事件都擺在了“思想機器”的麵前，在海奇講述的過程中，這位高人自始至終都沒有說話，隻是靜靜地聽著。
“誰進過房間？”最後他問。
“警察正在調查呢。”海奇回答，“雖說當時房子裏有二十幾個傭人，但是我覺得不管科爾的命令多麽嚴格，傭人們總會有鬆懈的時候。”
“這讓案件更加撲朔迷離了，”“思想機器”用他那別具一格的、略微有些不耐煩的語調說道，而這種語調似乎已經成為他本人的一部分，“我們最好能去一趟科爾先生家，單獨問問他。”
就像有錢人在麵對媒體時一貫表現的那樣，科爾顯得相當拘謹嚴肅。可是，他還是有點兒好奇地盯著眼前這位解釋來意的矮小的科學家。
“我覺得你們可能束手無策，”這位富豪說道，“警察已經在查了。”
“馬洛裏先生在這裏嗎？”“思想機器”無動於衷地問。
“他就在樓上傭人的房間裏。”
“我們可不可以查看一下名畫失竊的現場？”科學家禮貌地問道。他的這種語氣，海奇再熟悉不過了。
科爾揮了揮手，示意他們跟著自己去宴會廳，而那幅畫就是從這兒被偷走的。“思想機器”站在屋子中間環視四周——窗戶很高；六扇門分別通往大廳，從那兒可以通向溫室。大樓僻靜的角落裏隱藏著任何作案的可能。在仔細觀察了好長時間之後，“思想機器”走過去，撿起原先鑲有魯本斯畫作的畫框，他盯著畫框看了很久，科爾有些不耐煩了。最後，科學家轉過身來問道：
“你和德·勒賽普斯先生很熟嗎？”
“剛認識一個多月吧，怎麽了？”
“是有人介紹你們認識的，還是你們自己偶然相識的？”
科爾麵帶慍色地說：“我的私人關係與案子無關。德·勒賽普斯先生是一位極富涵養的紳士，我永遠不會懷疑是他偷走了我的畫。”
“不一定。”“思想機器”的語氣中有點兒諷刺的意味。隨後他轉向海奇，問道：“那幅惠斯勒的畫，他仿得怎麽樣？”
“我沒見過原作，”海奇回答道，“但是他畫得真不錯。科爾先生，我們可不可以看看——”
“當然可以，”科爾坦然地說，“跟我來，原作就在藝術廳內。”
海奇從頭到尾仔細查看了一下，然後說：“他仿得太逼真了。當然，沒看到原作前，我還不敢確定，但是現在，我要說他畫得確實很不錯。”
他們麵前大門的簾子突然被掀開，馬洛裏警官閃了進來。他的手裏似乎拿著什麽，但是當他看到海奇和教授時，就把它藏在了身後。他的喜色溢於言表。
“啊哈，教授，我們又見麵了。”他說道。
“他們想把德·勒賽普斯先生拉下水，”科爾向馬洛裏抱怨，“我知道事情絕不是這樣，他是一個好人，是我允許他自由出入以便畫畫的。他們卻不相信。”
“思想機器”目不轉睛地盯著科爾，眼光中充滿了憤怒，隨後他向馬洛裏伸出手。“你在哪裏找到的？”他問。
“抱歉，教授，這次你來遲一步。”馬洛裏的話中流露出強烈的諷刺意味，他把藏在背後的手拿出來，“你的畫在這裏，科爾先生。”
科爾如釋重負，卻又驚奇不已。他把畫攤開，“很好，”他對警官說，“你終於把它找回來了，它可花了我五萬美元。”科爾似乎永遠也忘不了這一點。
“思想機器”俯身向前端詳了一下畫的右上角，再次問道：“你在哪裏找到的？”
“它被緊緊地卷起來，藏在了一個傭人房間的箱子底下，”馬洛裏解釋道，“那個傭人叫簡寧斯，他現在已經被捕了。”
“簡寧斯？”科爾驚呼，“怎麽可能？他已經跟我好幾年了！”
“他認罪了嗎？”教授平靜地問。
“當然沒有，”馬洛裏說，“他說一定是別人藏在那裏陷害他的。”
“思想機器”對海奇點頭示意，隨後對馬洛裏說：“那就這樣吧，祝賀你，馬洛裏先生，這麽快就破獲了這起案件。”
十分鍾後，他們開車返回教授的住所。這種意外的結局使海奇感到有點兒不甘心，於是他們一路都沉默不語。
“馬洛裏偶爾也會靈光一現，不是嗎？”海奇迷惑不解地問。
“我還沒見過。”“思想機器”生硬地說。
“但是，他找回了那幅畫。”海奇堅持道。
“當然，隻不過，那是有人故意放在那兒讓他找到的。”
“故意放在那裏？”海奇很驚訝，“是簡寧斯偷的嗎？”
“如果是他偷的，那他就是個白癡。”
“如果不是他，還能是誰？”
“德·勒賽普斯！”
“德·勒賽普斯？”海奇不解，“他偷一幅五萬美元的畫，然後放在仆人的箱子裏故意讓人找到，這是什麽邏輯？”
“思想機器”轉過身來盯著他。“海奇先生，”他直白地說，“有時候我真的為你的愚蠢感到驚訝，但是我一直相信你應該是個聰明機智的人。”
海奇不禁莞爾，這樣的責備他已經不是第一次聽到了。不過，直到他們到了教授家之後，才又重新開始討論此案。
“海奇先生，我現在考慮的隻有一個問題，”教授說，“那就是我該不該把真相告訴科爾先生。他現在已經滿足了，這樣他可能永遠都不會知道真相，所以——”
海奇恍然大悟。“老天，”他大喊道，“你是說馬洛裏找到的畫是——”
“一幅仿製品！”教授補充道，“我個人並不太懂藝術，因此，我無法從專業的角度去評判，但是，從邏輯上來說，它肯定是假的。當原作從畫框上被割下來時，在右上角有一點兒扭曲，仔細看一下畫布的畫，你就會發現這一點，而馬洛裏找到的畫的右上角卻沒有這道痕跡。所以，結論很明確。”
“德·勒賽普斯偷走了原作？”
毫無疑問是這樣的！他有太多的方法可以把畫帶出去。他可以把畫卷起來藏在衣服下麵，也可能有一個同黨。但是我認為，他不會用這些小兒科的方法。綜觀整個案件，我認為他相當有頭腦。
比如說，他請求臨摹惠斯勒的畫，而你會發現這幅畫和魯本斯的畫大小相同。得到許可之後，他在嚴密監視下完成了臨摹，其間，隻有科爾有可能進去。按照他的說法，三天之內他完全是一個人在工作。他知道科爾一點兒都不懂藝術，利用這一點，他可以輕而易舉地臨摹出一張魯本斯的畫來迷惑科爾。在原畫被包起來後，不久他就把原畫割了下來，然後放在身邊。即使有人進來，他也可以輕鬆地把它放到隱秘的地方。你知道，那幅畫值五萬美元，當然值得冒這個險。
“據我們所知，科爾根本不懂藝術，所以作為藝術家的德·勒賽普斯想要糊弄他簡直太容易了。我想，他肯定是用自己的仿製品替換掉了真品。你也看到了，馬洛裏都沒看出兩幅畫的差異，德·勒賽普斯當時肯定能夠大膽斷定科爾看不出來真假。唯一擔心的就是藝術鑒賞家們會看到那幅仿作。所以他主動提出留下來幫助科爾把畫掛回去，然後大膽地自己揭露盜竊案。至於他是如何將畫放進簡寧斯的櫃子，我還沒有想明白。我們可以設想一些方式。”說完，他將身體靠在椅背上，盯著天花板，手指不停地敲打著扶手，半天都沒有說話。
“我們剩下要做的，就是把真畫拿回來。照你所說，現在肯定在德·勒賽普斯的家裏，所以肯定很安全。而且他自己很明白，如果逃跑的話，就會引起懷疑。”
“可是，他是怎麽把畫從科爾家帶出來的呢？”海奇問。
“與科爾一起離開的那天，他很可能已經把畫藏在了袖子裏麵。”教授答道。
海奇驚訝地盯著他。幾分鍾後，教授站起來走進隔壁的房間，這時電話鈴響了。教授回來後，拿起帽子，然後和海奇一起走了出去。
他們把證件遞出去的時候，德·勒賽普斯正好在家，並且接待了他們。在他們談論該案子的十幾分鍾內，“思想機器”不斷地來回打量著房間內的一切。這時，外麵響起了敲門聲。
“馬洛裏警官來了，海奇先生，”“思想機器”說，“請幫他開門。”
德·勒賽普斯的眼中顯出一絲恐慌，但是隨即隱去。馬洛裏進來的時候一臉的疑惑。
“馬洛裏警官，”“思想機器”平靜地說，“我們該好好地欣賞一下壁爐上麵這幅惠斯勒的畫。多美啊！你還記得看過的原作嗎？”
馬洛裏嘟囔了一聲。德·勒賽普斯的臉上沒有流露出絲毫因為得到讚美而表現出來的得意之情，相反，他的臉瞬間變得蒼白，雙手緊握成拳。但是，他很快恢複了平靜，麵帶微笑。
“它的美妙之處不僅僅在於它忠實於原作，”科學家說道，“還在於畫家在創作它時所處的特殊的環境。比如，我不知道馬洛裏警官是否了解，如果把膠水、油灰和其他一些常見的材料和成黏稠物質的話，那就可以很輕鬆地用它來掩蓋油畫並作為畫布，同時又不會損傷原來的畫。”
“這張水彩畫，也就是惠斯勒的這幅畫，”“思想機器”繼續說道，“就是畫在我剛才提到的那種物質上的。它的下麵就是魯本斯的畫，它可以在不損傷下麵油畫的前提下被除去。所以，我們看到的並不是惠斯勒的水彩畫，而是價值五萬美元的魯本斯的名作。對不對，德·勒賽普斯先生？”
德·勒賽普斯沒有回答，也沒必要回答。一個小時後，他就被關進了警察局的牢房。而海奇則在電話中問了“思想機器”一個他百思不解的問題：
“你怎麽知道水彩畫是畫在魯本斯的油畫上的？”
“因為這是唯一可以讓人找不到魯本斯的原畫，同時還能避免它受到損傷的方法。”“思想機器”答道，“我告訴過你，德·勒賽普斯是個聰明人，動動腦筋就能想到。海奇先生，二加二不是有時才等於四，而是永遠等於四。”
知識點
第二次世界大戰後，美國迎來了科幻小說的“黃金時代”。核裂變、宇宙航行、彩色電視機、電子計算機等科學技術的飛速發展，進一步催生西方科幻小說的繁榮。經過二三十年的繁榮，科幻小說家對作品的主題、情節以及藝術的方法進行了新的探索。
W詞匯筆記
calisthenics[，k?lisθeniks]n.柔軟體操；徒手體操
例 The large-scale group calisthenics performance at the opening ceremony was grand and magnificent.
開幕式上的那個大型團體健美體操表演盛大而華麗。
rummage[r?mid?]v.翻查；搜出；翻箱倒櫃
例 We rummaged through the drawers.
我們翻查了整個抽屜。
profuse[pr?fu：s]adj.大量的；豐富的；慷慨的；浪費的例He sent me profuse apologies.
他一再向我道歉。
outrageous[autreid??s]adj.令人驚訝的；粗暴的；可惡的
例 I demand an explanation for this outrageous bill.
我要你解釋一下這張天價賬單。
S小試身手
雖然經曆了歲月的洗禮，但是這幅畫依然色彩鮮豔，栩栩如生。
譯________________________________________
他的喜色溢於言表。
譯________________________________________
這種意外的結局使海奇感到有點兒不甘心，於是他們一路都沉默不語。
譯________________________________________
P短語家族
I just dropped by.
drop by：順便拜訪
造________________________________________
So the police machinery was set in motion to recover the painting.
set in motion：開動；調動；把……發動起來
造________________________________________