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VOA Short Stories., The Purloined Letter

The Purloined Letter

Now the Special English program AMERICAN STORIES.

(MUSIC)

Our story today is called "The Purloined Letter. " It was written by Edgar Allan Poe. Poe is generally known for his horror stories. This is the third of three stories he wrote about Auguste Dupin and how he solves crimes. The story is about a stolen letter. It first appeared in eighteen forty-four in a yearly magazine. It was reprinted in many publications, newspapers and books. This is one of Poe's stories that influenced the development of the modern detective story. Here is Shep O'Neal with "The Purloined Letter." (MUSIC)

STORYTELLER:

One evening in Paris, during the autumn of eighteen forty-five, I went to visit a friend, Auguste Dupin. We were smoking our pipes and talking when the door of his apartment opened. Mister Germont, the head of the Paris police force, came into the room.

"I came to ask your advice," Germont said to my friend Dupin. "I am trying to solve a very important case. It is also a very simple case, so I really need your help. But I thought you would like to hear about it, because it is so strange.

"My men and I have worked on this case for three months," Germont said. "It is a very simple case of robbery. But we still cannot solve it." Dupin took the pipe out of his mouth. "Perhaps the mystery is too simple," he said. Germont began to laugh. "Too simple?" he said.

"Who ever heard of such a thing?" I looked at Germont. "Why don't you tell us the problem?" I said.

Germont stopped laughing and sat down.

"All right," he said. "But you must never tell anyone I told you this." "The wife of a very important person needs help. I cannot tell you her name, because her husband is a powerful man in the French government. Let us just call her Madame X. Three months ago, someone stole a letter from Madame X. She is offering a large amount of money to anyone who can return the letter to her.

"We know that her husband's political enemy, Mister D'Arcy, stole the letter. We also know it is somewhere in his apartment. D'Arcy plans to use the letter to embarrass Madame X's husband and destroy his political power.

"As you know, I have keys which can open any lock in Paris. For the last three months, my men and I have spent every evening looking for the letter in his apartment. But we cannot find it." Dupin stopped smoking. "Tell me how you looked for it," he said. Germont moved forward in his chair.

"We took our time," he said. "First, we examined the furniture in every room. We opened all the drawers. We looked under the rugs. We searched behind all the paintings on the walls.

"We opened every book. We removed the boards of the floor. We even took the tops off the tables to see if he had hidden the letter in the table legs. But we cannot find it. What do you advise me to do?" Dupin puffed on his pipe. "What does the letter look like?" he asked.

"It is in a white envelope with a red stamp," Germont said. "The address is written in large black letters." Dupin puffed on his pipe again. "I advise you to go back and search the apartment again," he said. (MUSIC)

About one month later, Germont came back to see us.

"I followed your advice," he said. "But I still have not found the letter." Dupin smiled. "I knew you would not find it," he said. Germont became very red in the face. "Then why did you make me search the apartment again? " he shouted. "My dear Germont," Dupin said. "Let me tell you a little story. Do you remember the famous doctor, Louis Abernathy?" "No! " Germont shouted. "Get to the point, Dupin!" "Of course! Of course," Dupin said. "Once, a rich old man met Abernathy at a party. The old man was not feeling very well. He decided he would get a medical opinion from the doctor without paying for it. So he described his problems to Abernathy. 'Now doctor,' the old man said, 'suppose you had a patient like that. What would you tell him to take?'" "'Oh, that is quite simple,' said Abernathy. 'I would tell him to take my advice.'" Germont looked embarrassed. "Look here, Dupin. I am perfectly willing to pay for advice." Dupin smiled at Germont. "How much money did you say the reward was?" he asked.

Germont sighed. "I do not want to tell you the exact amount. But I would give fifty thousand francs to the person who helps me find that letter." "In that case," Dupin said, "take out your checkbook and write me a check for fifty thousand francs. When you have signed the check, I will give you the letter." Germont looked at Dupin with his mouth open. His eyes seemed to jump out of his head. Then he took out his checkbook and pen, and wrote a check for fifty thousand francs. He gave it to Dupin.

My friend examined the check carefully and put it in his pocket. Then he unlocked a drawer of his desk, took out the letter, and gave it to Germont.

The policeman's hands shook as he opened the letter. He read it quickly. Then he put it in his pocket and ran out of the room without saying a word.

"Dupin! " I said, as I turned to my friend. "How did you solve the mystery?" "It was simple, my friend," he said. "Germont and his policemen could not find the letter, because they did not try to understand the mind of the man who stole it. Instead, they looked for the letter where they would have hidden it.

"Mister D'Arcy is not a policeman. He is, however, very intelligent. He knew the police would search his apartment. He also knew how police think. So, he did not hide the letter where he knew they would look for it.

"Do you remember how Germont laughed when I said the mystery was difficult for him to solve because it was so simple?" Dupin filled his pipe with tobacco and lit it. "Well, the more I thought about it, the more I realized the police could not find the letter because D'Arcy had not hidden it at all. "So I went to visit D'Arcy in his apartment. I took a pair of dark green eyeglasses with me. I explained to him that I was having trouble with my eyes and needed to wear the dark glasses at all times. He believed me. The glasses permitted me to look around the apartment while I seemed only to be talking to him.

"I paid special attention to a large desk where there were a lot of papers and books. However, I saw nothing suspicious there. After a few minutes, however, I noticed a small shelf over the fireplace. A few postcards and a letter were lying on the shelf. The letter looked very old and dirty.

"As soon as I saw this letter, I decided it must be the one I was looking for. It must be, even though it was completely different from the one Germont had described.

"This letter had a large green stamp on it. The address was written in small letters in blue ink. I memorized every detail of the letter while I talked to D'Arcy. Then when he was not looking, I dropped one of my gloves on the floor under my chair.

"The next morning, I stopped at his apartment to look for my glove. While we were talking, we heard people shouting in the street. D'Arcy went to the window and looked out. Quickly, I stepped to the shelf and put the letter in my pocket. Then I replaced it with a letter that looked exactly like it, which I had taken with me. I had made it the night before.

"The trouble in the street was caused by a man who had almost been run over by a horse and carriage. He was not hurt. And soon the crowd of people went away. When it was over, D'Arcy came away from the window. I said good-bye and left.

"The man who almost had an accident was one of my servants. I had paid him to create the incident." Dupin stopped talking to light his pipe. I did not understand. "But, Dupin," I said, "why did you go to the trouble of replacing the letter? Why not just take it and leave?" Dupin smiled. "D'Arcy is a dangerous man," he said. "And he has many loyal servants. If I had taken the letter, I might never have left his apartment alive." (MUSIC)

ANNOUNCER:

"The Purloined Letter" was written by Edgar Allan Poe and adapted into Special English by Dona De Sanctis. The storyteller was Shep O'Neal. The producer was Lawan Davis.

You can read and listen to other AMERICAN STORIES at our Web site, voaspecialenglish.com. I'm Barbara Klein.


The Purloined Letter Der entwendete Brief La lettre volée 盗まれた手紙 Pavogtas laiškas Skradziony list Украденное письмо Çalınan Mektup Викрадений лист 被盗的信 被偷的信

Now the Special English program AMERICAN STORIES. Nyní speciální anglický program AMERICKÉ PŘÍBĚHY.

(MUSIC)

Our story today is called "The Purloined Letter. Náš příběh se dnes jmenuje „Purloined Letter“. Bugün hikayemiz "The Purloined Letter" olarak adlandırılıyor. "  It was written by Edgar Allan Poe. „Napsal ji Edgar Allan Poe. Poe is generally known for his horror stories. По широко известен своими ужастиками. This is the third of three stories he wrote about Auguste Dupin and how he solves crimes. Toto je třetí ze tří příběhů, které napsal o Auguste Dupin a jak řeší zločiny. The story is about a stolen letter. Příběh se týká ukradeného dopisu. It first appeared in eighteen forty-four in a yearly magazine. Poprvé se objevil v osmnácti čtyřiceti čtyřech v ročním časopise. It was reprinted in many publications, newspapers and books. Bylo přetištěno v mnoha publikacích, novinách a knihách. This is one of Poe’s stories that influenced the development of the modern detective story. Toto je jeden z Poeových příběhů, které ovlivnily vývoj moderního detektivního příběhu. Bu, Poe'nun modern dedektif hikayesinin gelişimini etkileyen hikayelerinden biridir. Here is Shep O’Neal with "The Purloined Letter." Zde je Shep O'Neal s „Purloined Letter“. (MUSIC)

STORYTELLER:

One evening in Paris, during the autumn of eighteen forty-five, I went to visit a friend, Auguste Dupin. We were smoking our pipes and talking when the door of his apartment opened. Když jsme otevřeli dveře jeho bytu, kouřili jsme dýmky a mluvili jsme. Mister Germont, the head of the Paris police force, came into the room. Do místnosti vstoupil pan Germont, šéf pařížské policie.

"I came to ask your advice," Germont said to my friend Dupin. „Přišel jsem se zeptat na radu,“ řekl Germont mému příteli Dupinovi. "I am trying to solve a very important case. „Snažím se vyřešit velmi důležitý případ. It is also a very simple case, so I really need your help. Je to také velmi jednoduchý případ, takže opravdu potřebuji vaši pomoc. But I thought you would like to hear about it, because it is so strange. Ale myslel jsem, že o tom chcete slyšet, protože je to tak zvláštní.

"My men and I have worked on this case for three months," Germont said. „S mými muži jsme na tomto případě pracovali tři měsíce,“ řekl Germont. "It is a very simple case of robbery. But we still cannot solve it." Ale stále to nemůžeme vyřešit. ““ Dupin took the pipe out of his mouth. Dupin vytáhl z úst dýmku. "Perhaps the mystery is too simple," he said. „Možná je záhada příliš jednoduchá,“ řekl. Germont began to laugh. Germont se začal smát. "Too simple?" he said.

"Who ever heard of such a thing?" "Kdo někdy slyšel o takové věci?" 「そのようなことを聞いたことがありますか?」 I looked at Germont. Podíval jsem se na Germonta. "Why don’t you tell us the problem?" "Proč nám to neřekneš?" I said.

Germont stopped laughing and sat down. Germont se přestal smát a posadil se.

"All right," he said. „Dobře,“ řekl. "But you must never tell anyone I told you this." „Ale nikdy nesmíš nikomu říct, co jsem ti to řekl.“ 「しかし、私がこれをあなたに話した人には決して話してはいけません。」 "The wife of a very important person needs help. „Manželka velmi důležité osoby potřebuje pomoc. I cannot tell you her name, because her husband is a powerful man in the French government. Nemůžu ti říct její jméno, protože její manžel je mocným mužem ve francouzské vládě. Let us just call her Madame X.  Three months ago, someone stole a letter from Madame X.  She is offering a large amount of money to anyone who can return the letter to her. Zavolejme jí jen Madame X. Před třemi měsíci někdo ukradl dopis od Madame X. Nabízí velké množství peněz každému, kdo jí může dopis vrátit.

"We know that her husband’s political enemy, Mister D’Arcy, stole the letter. „Víme, že politický nepřítel jejího manžela, pane D'Arcy, ten dopis ukradl. We also know it is somewhere in his apartment. Víme také, že je někde v jeho bytě. D’Arcy plans to use the letter to embarrass Madame X’s husband and destroy his political power. D'Arcy plánuje použít tento dopis k rozpakům manžela Madamy X a zničit jeho politickou moc.

"As you know, I have keys which can open any lock in Paris. „Jak víte, mám klíče, které mohou otevřít jakýkoli zámek v Paříži. For the last three months, my men and I have spent every evening looking for the letter in his apartment. Poslední tři měsíce jsme se svými muži každý večer hledali dopis ve svém bytě. But we cannot find it." Dupin stopped smoking. Dupin přestal kouřit. "Tell me how you looked for it," he said. „Řekni mi, jak jsi to hledal,“ řekl. Germont moved forward in his chair. Germont se v křesle posunul kupředu.

"We took our time," he said. "Vzali jsme si čas," řekl. 「私たちは時間をかけた」と彼は言った。 "First, we examined the furniture in every room. „Nejprve jsme v každém pokoji prohlédli nábytek. We opened all the drawers. We looked under the rugs. We searched behind all the paintings on the walls. Prohledali jsme všechny obrazy na stěnách.

"We opened every book. „Otevřeli jsme každou knihu. We removed the boards of the floor. Odstranili jsme desky z podlahy. We even took the tops off the tables to see if he had hidden the letter in the table legs. Dokonce jsme sundali desky ze stolů, abychom zjistili, zda skryl dopis v nohách stolu. トップスをテーブルから外して、彼がテーブルの脚に文字を隠していないか確認しました。 But we cannot find it. Ale nemůžeme to najít. What do you advise me to do?" Dupin puffed on his pipe. Dupin nafoukl na dýmku. "What does the letter look like?" "Jak ten dopis vypadá?" he asked.

"It is in a white envelope with a red stamp," Germont said. „Je v bílé obálce s červeným razítkem,“ řekl Germont. "The address is written in large black letters." "Adresa je psána velkými černými písmeny." Dupin puffed on his pipe again. Dupin znovu nafoukl na dýmku. "I advise you to go back and search the apartment again," he said. „Doporučuji vám, abyste se znovu vrátili a prohledali byt,“ řekl. (MUSIC)

About one month later, Germont came back to see us. Asi o měsíc později se Germont vrátil, aby nás navštívil. 約1か月後、Germontが私たちに会いに戻ってきました。

"I followed your advice," he said. „Sledoval jsem tvou radu,“ řekl. "But I still have not found the letter." "Ale ten dopis jsem ještě nenašel." Dupin smiled. "I knew you would not find it," he said. „Věděl jsem, že to nenajdeš,“ řekl. Germont became very red in the face. Germont se do obličeje zčervenal. "Then why did you make me search the apartment again? „Tak proč jsi mě donutil znovu prohledat byt? "  he shouted. "My dear Germont," Dupin said. „Můj drahý Germont,“ řekl Dupin. "Let me tell you a little story. „Dovolte mi, abych vám řekl malý příběh. Do you remember the famous doctor, Louis Abernathy?" "No! "  Germont shouted. "Get to the point, Dupin!" "Pojď k věci, Dupine!" "Of course! Of course," Dupin said. "Once, a rich old man met Abernathy at a party. „Jednou se bohatý stařec setkal s Abernathym na večírku. The old man was not feeling very well. Starý muž se necítil moc dobře. He decided he would get a medical opinion from the doctor without paying for it. Rozhodl se, že získá lékařský posudek od lékaře, aniž by za to zaplatil. 彼はそれを支払うことなく医者から医学的意見を得るだろうと決めました。 So he described his problems to Abernathy. Takže popsal své problémy Abernathymu. それで彼は彼の問題をアバナシーに説明しました。 'Now doctor,' the old man said, 'suppose you had a patient like that. "Teď doktore," řekl stařec, "předpokládejme, že máte takového pacienta." 「今、医者だ」と老人は言った、「あなたがそのような患者を持っているとしましょう。 What would you tell him to take?'" Co byste mu řekli, aby vzal? '“ 彼に何を言うように言いますか?」」 "'Oh, that is quite simple,' said Abernathy. „Ach, to je docela jednoduché,“ řekla Abernathy. 'I would tell him to take my advice.'" 「私は彼に私の忠告をするように言うでしょう。」」 Germont looked embarrassed. Germont vypadal rozpačitě. "Look here, Dupin. I am perfectly willing to pay for advice." Jsem naprosto ochotný zaplatit za radu. “ 私は完全に助言を払う用意がある。」 Dupin smiled at Germont. "How much money did you say the reward was?" "Kolik peněz jsi říkal, že odměna byla?" he asked.

Germont sighed. Germont si povzdechl. "I do not want to tell you the exact amount. "Nechci ti říct přesnou částku." But I would give fifty thousand francs to the person who helps me find that letter." Ale dal bych osobě, která mi pomůže najít ten dopis, padesát tisíc franků. ““ "In that case," Dupin said, "take out your checkbook and write me a check for fifty thousand francs. „V tom případě,“ řekl Dupin, „vytáhněte šekovou knížku a napište mi šek na padesát tisíc franků. When you have signed the check, I will give you the letter." Po podepsání šeku vám dám dopis. “ Germont looked at Dupin with his mouth open. Germont pohlédl na Dupina s otevřenými ústy. His eyes seemed to jump out of his head. Zdálo se, že jeho oči vyskočily z jeho hlavy. 彼の目は彼の頭から飛び出したようだった。 Then he took out his checkbook and pen, and wrote a check for fifty thousand francs. Potom vytáhl šekovou knížku a pero a napsal šek na padesát tisíc franků. He gave it to Dupin. Dal to Dupinovi.

My friend examined the check carefully and put it in his pocket. Můj přítel pečlivě prohlédl šek a vložil ho do kapsy. Then he unlocked a drawer of his desk, took out the letter, and gave it to Germont. Potom odemkl zásuvku stolu, vytáhl dopis a dal ho Germontovi.

The policeman’s hands shook as he opened the letter. Když otevřel dopis, policista se potřásl rukama. He read it quickly. Then he put it in his pocket and ran out of the room without saying a word. Pak ji vložil do kapsy a vyběhl z místnosti, aniž by řekl ani slovo.

"Dupin! "  I said, as I turned to my friend. „Řekl jsem, když jsem se obrátil ke svému příteli. "How did you solve the mystery?" "Jak jsi vyřešil záhadu?" "It was simple, my friend," he said. „Bylo to jednoduché, příteli,“ řekl. "Germont and his policemen could not find the letter, because they did not try to understand the mind of the man who stole it. „Germont a jeho policisté nemohli najít ten dopis, protože se nesnažili pochopit mysl člověka, který ho ukradl. Instead, they looked for the letter where they would have hidden it. Místo toho hledali dopis, kde by ho skryli.

"Mister D’Arcy is not a policeman. „Pan D'Arcy není policista. He is, however, very intelligent. Je však velmi inteligentní. He knew the police would search his apartment. Věděl, že policie prohledá jeho byt. He also knew how police think. Věděl také, jak si myslí policie. So, he did not hide the letter where he knew they would look for it. Takže dopis neskrýval, protože věděl, že ho budou hledat. それで、彼は彼らがそれを探すであろうと知っていた手紙を隠さなかった。

"Do you remember how Germont laughed when I said the mystery was difficult for him to solve because it was so simple?" "Pamatuješ si, jak se Germont smál, když jsem řekl, že tajemství bylo pro něj těžké vyřešit, protože to bylo tak jednoduché?" Dupin filled his pipe with tobacco and lit it. Dupin naplnil dýmku tabákem a zapálil si ho. "Well, the more I thought about it, the more I realized the police could not find the letter because D’Arcy had not hidden it at all. "No, čím víc jsem o tom přemýšlel, tím více jsem si uvědomil, že policie nemůže najít dopis, protože ho D'Arcy vůbec neskryl." 「まあ、それについて考えれば考えるほど、ダーシーはまったく手紙を隠していないので、警察が手紙を見つけられないことに気づきました。 "So I went to visit D’Arcy in his apartment. „Tak jsem šel navštívit D'Arcyho v jeho bytě. I took a pair of dark green eyeglasses with me. Vzal jsem si s sebou tmavě zelené brýle. I explained to him that I was having trouble with my eyes and needed to wear the dark glasses at all times. Vysvětlil jsem mu, že mám problémy s očima a potřebuji nosit tmavé brýle. He believed me. Věřil mi. The glasses permitted me to look around the apartment while I seemed only to be talking to him. Brýle mi umožnily rozhlédnout se po bytě, zatímco jsem s ním jen mluvil.

"I paid special attention to a large desk where there were a lot of papers and books. "Zvláštní pozornost jsem věnoval velkému psacímu stolu, kde bylo mnoho papírů a knih." However, I saw nothing suspicious there. Neviděl jsem však nic podezřelého. After a few minutes, however, I noticed a small shelf over the fireplace. Po několika minutách jsem si však všiml malé police nad krbem. A few postcards and a letter were lying on the shelf. Na polici leželo několik pohlednic a dopis. The letter looked very old and dirty. Dopis vypadal velmi starý a špinavý.

"As soon as I saw this letter, I decided it must be the one I was looking for. „Jakmile jsem viděl tento dopis, rozhodl jsem se, že to musí být ten, který jsem hledal. 「この手紙を見たとき、私はそれが私が探していたものでなければならないと決めました。 It must be, even though it was completely different from the one Germont had described. Musí to být, i když to bylo úplně odlišné od toho, co popsal Germont. ジャーモントが述べたものとは完全に異なっていたとしても、それは違いません。

"This letter had a large green stamp on it. „Tento dopis měl velké zelené razítko. The address was written in small letters in blue ink. Adresa byla psána malými písmeny modrým inkoustem. I memorized every detail of the letter while I talked to D’Arcy. Když jsem mluvil s D'Arcym, zapamatoval jsem si všechny podrobnosti dopisu. Then when he was not looking, I dropped one of my gloves on the floor under my chair. Když se nedíval, položil jsem jednu ze svých rukavic na podlahu pod mou židli. Затем, когда он не смотрел, я уронил одну из своих перчаток на пол под стулом.

"The next morning, I stopped at his apartment to look for my glove. „Příští ráno jsem se zastavil v jeho bytě, abych hledal svou rukavici. While we were talking, we heard people shouting in the street. Když jsme mluvili, slyšeli jsme lidi křičet na ulici. D’Arcy went to the window and looked out. D'Arcy šel k oknu a podíval se ven. Quickly, I stepped to the shelf and put the letter in my pocket. Rychle jsem přistoupil k polici a dal mi dopis do kapsy. すぐに、私は棚に近づき、手紙を私のポケットに入れました。 Then I replaced it with a letter that looked exactly like it, which I had taken with me. Pak jsem ho nahradil dopisem, který vypadal přesně jako ten, který jsem si vzal s sebou. それから私はそれを私と一緒に持っていたそれとまったく同じように見える手紙で置き換えました。 I had made it the night before. Udělal jsem to včera večer. 私は前の晩にそれを作りました。

"The trouble in the street was caused by a man who had almost been run over by a horse and carriage. „Potíž na ulici byla způsobena člověkem, kterého téměř projel kůň a kočár. He was not hurt. Nebyl zraněn. And soon the crowd of people went away. A brzy dav lidí zmizel. When it was over, D’Arcy came away from the window. Když skončilo, D'Arcy vyšel z okna. I said good-bye and left. Rozloučil jsem se a odešel.

"The man who almost had an accident was one of my servants. „Muž, který málem měl nehodu, byl jedním z mých služebníků. I had paid him to create the incident." Zaplatil jsem mu za vytvoření incidentu. “ 我付錢給他來製造這件事。” Dupin stopped talking to light his pipe. Dupin přestal mluvit a zapálil si dýmku. I did not understand. Nerozuměl jsem. "But, Dupin," I said, "why did you go to the trouble of replacing the letter? „Ale, Dupine,“ řekl jsem, „proč jsi přešel k potížím s nahrazením dopisu? "Но, Дюпен, - спросил я, - почему вы взялись за то, чтобы заменить письмо? Why not just take it and leave?" Proč to prostě vzít a odejít? “ Dupin smiled. Dupin se usmál. "D’Arcy is a dangerous man," he said. „D'Arcy je nebezpečný muž,“ řekl. "And he has many loyal servants. „A má mnoho věrných služebníků. If I had taken the letter, I might never have left his apartment alive." Kdybych vzal ten dopis, možná bych jeho byt nikdy neopustil naživu. ““ 私が手紙を受け取っていたなら、彼のアパートを生き残ったことがなかったかもしれません。」 (MUSIC)

ANNOUNCER:

"The Purloined Letter" was written by Edgar Allan Poe and adapted into Special English by Dona De Sanctis. "Purloined Letter" byl napsán Edgarem Allanem Poem a upraven do speciální angličtiny Dona De Sanctis. The storyteller was Shep O’Neal. The producer was Lawan Davis.

You can read and listen to other AMERICAN STORIES at our Web site, voaspecialenglish.com. I’m Barbara Klein.