解説　場面 202「考えが形になるまで」

"The baronet himself told him about the family hound, and so prepared the way for his own death. Stapleton, as I will continue to call him, knew that the old man's heart was weak and that a shock would kill him. So much he had learned from Dr. Mortimer. He had heard also that Sir Charles was superstitious and had taken this grim legend very seriously. His ingenious mind instantly suggested a way by which the baronet could be done to death, and yet it would be hardly possible to bring home the guilt to the real murderer.

「準男爵自身が一族の猟犬について彼に話し、こうして自分の死へ至る道を用意してしまった。これからもステイプルトンと呼ぶことにするが、彼は老人の心臓が弱く、強い衝撃を受ければ死ぬと知っていた。それだけのことをモーティマー博士から聞き出していたのだ。サー・チャールズが迷信深く、この恐ろしい伝説を非常に深刻に受け止めていることも聞いていた。彼の独創的な頭脳は、準男爵を死に至らせながら、真犯人の罪を立証することがほとんど不可能な方法を即座に思いついた。

"Having conceived the idea he proceeded to carry it out with considerable finesse. An ordinary schemer would have been content to work with a savage hound. The use of artificial means to make the creature diabolical was a flash of genius upon his part. The dog he bought in London from Ross and Mangles, the dealers in Fulham Road. It was the strongest and most savage in their possession. He brought it down by the North Devon line and walked a great distance over the moor so as to get it home without exciting any remarks. He had already on his insect hunts learned to penetrate the Grimpen Mire, and so had found a safe hiding-place for the creature. Here he kennelled it and waited his chance.

「考えを思いつくと、彼はかなり巧妙にそれを実行へ移した。並の策士なら、凶暴な猟犬を使うだけで満足しただろう。人工的な手段で獣を悪魔のように見せたことは、彼のひらめいた天才的な発想だった。犬はロンドンのフラム街にある商人、ロス・アンド・マングルズから買った。店にいた中で最も強く、最も凶暴な犬だった。彼は犬をノース・デヴォン線で運び、人に怪しまれず家へ連れて帰るため荒れ地を遠くまで歩いた。昆虫採集ですでにグリンペン沼へ入る方法を身につけていたため、獣を隠す安全な場所も見つけていた。そこで犬を飼い、機会を待ったのだ。