よみうち英語Read the classics by typingNotes Scene 4: The Ring and the Cases
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Notes on this scene
Holmes says that the ring came from the Dutch royal family, though he cannot reveal the case behind it. His present consultations lack distinctive features, but he values apparently trivial cases for the reasoning they demand. He then announces that a new client seems to be approaching.
Japanese in this scene
- は
- は marks the topic of the sentence and can also contrast it with another topic. It is written ha but normally pronounced wa.
- が
- が marks the grammatical subject or introduces newly focused information. It can also connect clauses with a mild contrast.
- を
- を marks the direct object of a verb. With a movement verb, it can instead mark the route or place being crossed.
- に
- に can mark a destination, target, time, recipient, purpose, or resulting state. The predicate shows its role here.
Full text: original English and Japanese translation
"And the ring?" I asked, glancing at a remarkable brilliant which sparkled upon his finger.
「では、その指輪は」と私は、彼の指で輝く見事なダイヤモンドに目をやって尋ねた。
"It was from the reigning family of Holland, though the matter in which I served them was of such delicacy that I cannot confide it even to you, who have been good enough to chronicle one or two of my little problems."
「オランダの王家からだよ。ただ、お役に立った件があまりに微妙な問題なので、私のちょっとした事件を一つ二つ、親切にも記録してくれたきみにさえ、打ち明けられないのだ」
"And have you any on hand just now?" I asked with interest.
「今も何か手がけているのかい」と、私は興味を覚えて尋ねた。
"Some ten or twelve, but none which present any feature of interest. They are important, you understand, without being interesting. Indeed, I have found that it is usually in unimportant matters that there is a field for the observation, and for the quick analysis of cause and effect which gives the charm to an investigation. The larger crimes are apt to be the simpler, for the bigger the crime the more obvious, as a rule, is the motive. In these cases, save for one rather intricate matter which has been referred to me from Marseilles, there is nothing which presents any features of interest. It is possible, however, that I may have something better before very many minutes are over, for this is one of my clients, or I am much mistaken."
「十か十二ほどあるが、興味を引く特徴のあるものは一つもない。どれも重要ではあるが、面白くはないのだよ。実際、観察の余地があり、捜査の魅力となる原因と結果の素早い分析を行えるのは、たいてい重要でない事柄だと分かってきた。大きな犯罪ほど単純になりがちだ。犯罪が大きければ大きいほど、たいてい動機も明白になるからね。これらの事件には、マルセイユから持ち込まれた、かなり込み入った一件を除けば、興味深い特徴を持つものは何もない。だが、何分もたたないうちに、もう少し面白いことがありそうだ。私の大きな見当違いでなければ、あれは依頼人の一人だからね」