the works of edgar allan poe-1-第37节

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practice　in　law；　but　it　is　not　the　usage　of　reason。　My　ultimate　
object　is　only　the　truth。　My　immediate　purpose　is　to　lead　you　to　
place　in　juxta…position；　that　_very　unusual_　activity　of　which　I　have　
just　spoken　with　that　_very　peculiar_　shrill　（or　harsh）　and　_unequal_　
voice；　about　whose　nationality　no　two　persons　could　be　found　to　
agree；　and　in　whose　utterance　no　syllabification　could　be　detected。〃

At　these　words　a　vague　and　half…formed　conception　of　the　meaning　of　
Dupin　flitted　over　my　mind。　I　seemed　to　be　upon　the　verge　of　
comprehension　without　power　to　comprehend　…　men；　at　times；　find　
themselves　upon　the　brink　of　remembrance　without　being　able；　in　the　
end；　to　remember。　My　friend　went　on　with　his　discourse。

〃You　will　see；〃　he　said；　〃that　I　have　shifted　the　question　from　the　
mode　of　egress　to　that　of　ingress。　It　was　my　design　to　convey　the　
idea　that　both　were　effected　in　the　same　manner；　at　the　same　point。　
Let　us　now　revert　to　the　interior　of　the　room。　Let　us　survey　the　
appearances　here。　The　drawers　of　the　bureau；　it　is　said；　had　been　
rifled；　although　many　articles　of　apparel　still　remained　within　them。　
The　conclusion　here　is　absurd。　It　is　a　mere　guess　…　a　very　silly　one　
…　and　no　more。　How　are　we　to　know　that　the　articles　found　in　the　
drawers　were　not　all　these　drawers　had　originally　contained？　Madame　
L'Espanaye　and　her　daughter　lived　an　exceedingly　retired　life　…　saw　
no　company　…　seldom　went　out　…　had　little　use　for　numerous　changes　of　
habiliment。　Those　found　were　at　least　of　as　good　quality　as　any　
likely　to　be　possessed　by　these　ladies。　If　a　thief　had　taken　any；　why　
did　he　not　take　the　best　…　why　did　he　not　take　all？　In　a　word；　why　
did　he　abandon　four　thousand　francs　in　gold　to　encumber　himself　with　
a　bundle　of　linen？　The　gold　_was　_abandoned。　Nearly　the　whole　sum　
mentioned　by　Monsieur　Mignaud；　the　banker；　was　discovered；　in　bags；　
upon　the　floor。　I　wish　you；　therefore；　to　discard　from　your　thoughts　
the　blundering　idea　of　_motive_；　engendered　in　the　brains　of　the　
police　by　that　portion　of　the　evidence　which　speaks　of　money　
delivered　at　the　door　of　the　house。　Coincidences　ten　times　as　
remarkable　as　this　（the　delivery　of　the　money；　and　murder　committed　
within　three　days　upon　the　party　receiving　it）；　happen　to　all　of　us　
every　hour　of　our　lives；　without　attracting　even　momentary　notice。　
Coincidences；　in　general；　are　great　stumbling…blocks　in　the　way　of　
that　class　of　thinkers　who　have　been　educated　to　know　nothing　of　the　
theory　of　probabilities　…　that　theory　to　which　the　most　glorious　
objects　of　human　research　are　indebted　for　the　most　glorious　of　
illustration。　In　the　present　instance；　had　the　gold　been　gone；　the　
fact　of　its　delivery　three　days　before　would　have　formed　something　
more　than　a　coincidence。　It　would　have　been　corroborative　of　this　
idea　of　motive。　But；　under　the　real　circumstances　of　the　case；　if　we　
are　to　suppose　gold　the　motive　of　this　outrage；　we　must　also　imagine　
the　perpetrator　so　vacillating　an　idiot　as　to　have　abandoned　his　gold　
and　his　motive　together。

〃Keeping　now　steadily　in　mind　the　points　to　which　I　have　drawn　your　
attention　…　that　peculiar　voice；　that　unusual　agility；　and　that　
startling　absence　of　motive　in　a　murder　so　singularly　atrocious　as　
this　…　let　us　glance　at　the　butchery　itself。　Here　is　a　woman　
strangled　to　death　by　manual　strength；　and　thrust　up　a　chimney；　head　
downward。　Ordinary　assassins　employ　no　such　modes　of　murder　as　this。　
Least　of　all；　do　they　thus　dispose　of　the　murdered。　In　the　manner　of　
thrusting　the　corpse　up　the　chimney；　you　will　admit　that　there　was　
something　_excessively　outr開　…　something　altogether　irreconcilable　
with　our　common　notions　of　human　action；　even　when　we　suppose　the　
actors　the　most　depraved　of　men。　Think；　too；　how　great　must　have　been　
that　strength　which　could　have　thrust　the　body　_up_　such　an　aperture　
so　forcibly　that　the　united　vigor　of　several　persons　was　found　barely　
sufficient　to　drag　it　_down！_

〃Turn；　now；　to　other　indications　of　the　employment　of　a　vigor　most　
marvellous。　On　the　hearth　were　thick　tresses　…　very　thick　tresses　…　
of　grey　human　hair。　These　had　been　torn　out　by　the　roots。　You　are　
aware　of　the　great　force　necessary　in　tearing　thus　from　the　head　even　
twenty　or　thirty　hairs　together。　You　saw　the　locks　in　question　as　
well　as　myself。　Their　roots　（a　hideous　sight！）　were　clotted　with　
fragments　of　the　flesh　of　the　scalp　…　sure　token　of　the　prodigious　
power　which　had　been　exerted　in　uprooting　perhaps　half　a　million　of　
hairs　at　a　time。　The　throat　of　the　old　lady　was　not　merely　cut；　but　
the　head　absolutely　severed　from　the　body：　the　instrument　was　a　mere　
razor。　I　wish　you　also　to　look　at　the　_brutal_　ferocity　of　these　
deeds。　Of　the　bruises　upon　the　body　of　Madame　L'Espanaye　I　do　not　
speak。　Monsieur　Dumas；　and　his　worthy　coadjutor　Monsieur　Etienne；　
have　pronounced　that　they　were　inflicted　by　some　obtuse　instrument；　
and　so　far　these　gentlemen　are　very　correct。　The　obtuse　instrument　
was　clearly　the　stone　pavement　in　the　yard；　upon　which　the　victim　had　
fallen　from　the　window　which　looked　in　upon　the　bed。　This　idea；　
however　simple　it　may　now　seem；　escaped　the　police　for　the　same　
reason　that　the　breadth　of　the　shutters　escaped　them　…　because；　by　
the　affair　of　the　nails；　their　perceptions　had　been　hermetically　
sealed　against　the　possibility　of　the　windows　having　ever　been　opened　
at　all。

〃If　now；　in　addition　to　all　these　things；　you　have　properly　reflected　
upon　the　odd　disorder　of　the　chamber；　we　have　gone　so　far　as　to　
combine　the　ideas　of　an　agility　astounding；　a　strength　superhuman；　a　
ferocity　brutal；　a　butchery　without　motive；　a　_grotesquerie_　in　
horror　absolutely　alien　from　humanity；　and　a　voice　foreign　in　tone　to　
the　ears　of　men　of　many　nations；　and　devoid　of　all　distinct　or　
intelligible　syllabification。　What　result；　then；　has　ensued？　What　
impression　have　I　made　upon　your　fancy？〃

I　felt　a　creeping　of　the　flesh　as　Dupin　asked　me　the　question。　〃A　
madman；〃　I　said；　〃has　done　this　deed　…　some　raving　maniac；　escaped　
from　a　neighboring　_Maison　de　Sant？_〃

〃In　some　respects；〃　he　replied；　〃your　idea　is　not　irrelevant。　But　the　
voices　of　madmen；　even　in　their　wildest　paroxysms；　are　never　found　to　
tally　with　that　peculiar　voice　heard　upon　the　stairs。　Madmen　are　of　
some　nation；　and　their　language；　however　incoherent　in　its　words；　has　
always　the　coherence　of　syllabification。　Besides；　the　hair　of　a　
madman　is　not　such　as　I　now　hold　in　my　hand。　I　disentangled　this　
little　tuft　from　the　rigidly　clutched　fingers　of　Madame　L'Espanaye。　
Tell　me　what　you　can　make　of　it。〃

〃Dupin！〃　I　said；　completely　unnerved；　〃this　hair　is　most　unusual　…　
this　is　no　_human_　hair。〃

〃I　have　not　asserted　that　it　is；〃　said　he；　〃but；　before　we　decide　
this　point；　I　wish　you　to　glance　at　the　little　sketch　I　have　here　
traced　upon　this　paper。　It　is　a　_fac…simile_　drawing　of　what　has　been　
described　in　one　portion　of　the　testimony　as　'dark　bruises；　and　deep　
indentations　of　finger　nails；'　upon　the　throat　of　Mademoiselle　
L'Espanaye；　and　in　another；　（by　Messrs。　Dumas　and　Etienne；）　as　a　
'series　of　livid　spots；　evidently　the　impression　of　fingers。'

〃You　will　perceive；〃　continued　my　friend；　spreading　out　the　paper　
upon　the　table　before　us；　〃that　this　drawing　gives　the　idea　of　a　firm　
and　fixed　hold。　There　is　no　_slipping_　apparent。　Each　finger　has　
retained　…　possibly　until　the　death　of　the　victim　…　the　fearful　grasp　
by　which　it　originally　imbedded　itself。　Attempt；　now；　to　place　all　
your　fingers；　at　the　same　time；　in　the　respective　impressions　as　you　
see　them。〃

I　made　the　attempt　in　vain。

〃We　are　possibly　not　giving　this　matter　a　fair　trial；〃　he　said。　〃The　
paper　is　spread　out　upon　a　plane　surface；　but　the　human　throat　is　
cylindrical。　Here　is　a　billet　of　wood；　the　circumference　of　which　is　
about　that　of　the　throat。　Wrap　the　drawing　around　it；　and　try　the　
experiment　again。〃

I　did　so；　but　the　difficulty　was　even　more　obvious　than　before。　
〃This；〃　I　said；　〃is　the　mark　of　no　human　hand。〃

〃Read　now；〃　replied　Dupin；　〃this　passage　from　Cuvier。〃

It　was　a　minute　anatomical　and　generally　descriptive　account　of　the　
large　fulvous　Ourang…Outang　of　the　East　Indian　Islands。　The　gigantic　
stature；　the　prodigious　strength　and　activity；　the　wild　ferocity；　and　
the　imitative　propensities　of　these　mammalia　are　sufficiently　well　
known　to　all。　I　understood　the　full　horrors　of　the　murder　at　once。

〃The　description　of　the　digits；〃　said　I；　as　I　made　an　end　of　reading；　
〃is　in　exact　accordance　with　this　drawing。　I　see　that　no　animal　but　
an　Ourang…Outang；　of　the　species　here　mentioned；　could　have　impressed　
the　indentations　as　you　have　traced　them。　This　tuft　of　tawny　hair；　
too；　is　identical　in　character　with　that　of　the　beast　of　Cuvier。　But　
I　cannot　possibly　comprehend　the　particulars　of　this　frightful　
mystery。　Besides；　there　were　_two_　voices　heard　in　contention；　and　
one　of　them　was　unquestionably　the　voice　of　a　Frenchman。〃

〃True；　and　you　will　remember　an　expression　attributed　almost　
unanimously；　by　the　evidence；　to　this　voice；　…　the　expression；　'_mon　
Dieu！_'　This；　under　the　ci