波希米亚丑闻 20乔装打扮(6)

'Thank God,' he cried. 'You'll do. Come! Come!' " 'What then?' I asked."

'谢天谢地！'他喊道，'有了你就行了。来！来！'"'这是怎么回事？'我问道。

'Come, man, come, only three minutes, or it won't be legal.'

'来，老兄，来，只要三分钟就够了，要不然就不合法了。'

"I was half-dragged up to the altar,

"我是被半拖半拉上圣坛的。

and before I knew where I was I found myself mumbling¹ responses which were whispered in my ear,

在我还没弄清楚我站在什么地方以前，我发觉我自己正喃喃地对我耳边低低的话语作出答复，

and vouching² for things of which I knew nothing,

为我一无所知的事作证。

and generally assisting in the secure tying up of Irene Adler, spinster, to Godfrey Norton, bachelor.

总的来说是帮助把未婚女子艾琳·艾德勒和单身汉戈弗雷·诺顿紧密地结合在一起。

It was all done in an instant, and there was the gentleman thanking me on the one side and the lady on the other,

这一切是在很短的时间内完成的。接着男方在我这一边对我表示感谢，女方在我那一边对我表示感谢，

while the clergyman beamed on me in front.

而牧师则在我对面向我微笑。

It was the most preposterous³ position in which I ever found myself in my life,

这是我有生以来从未碰到过的最荒谬绝伦的场面。

and it was the thought of it that started me laughing just now.

刚才我一想到这件事就禁不住大笑起来了。

It seems that there had been some informality about their license⁴,

看来他们的结婚证明有点不够合法，

that the clergyman absolutely refused to marry them without a witness of some sort,

牧师在没有某些证人的情况下，断然拒绝给他们证婚，

and that my lucky appearance saved the bridegroom from having to sally out into the streets in search of a best man.

幸而有我出现使得新郎不至于必须跑到大街上去找一位傧相。

The bride gave me a sovereign, and I mean to wear it on my watch-chain in memory of the occasion."

新娘赏给我一镑金币。我打算把它拴在表链上戴着，以纪念这次的际遇。"

"This is a very unexpected turn of affairs," said I; "and what then?"

"这真是一件完全出乎意料的事，"我说道，"后来又怎样呢？"

1 mumbling   

含糊地说某事，叽咕，咕哝( mumble的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• I could hear him mumbling to himself. 我听到他在喃喃自语。
• He was still mumbling something about hospitals at the end of the party when he slipped on a piece of ice and broke his left leg. 宴会结束时，他仍在咕哝着医院里的事。说着说着，他在一块冰上滑倒，跌断了左腿。

2 vouching   

n.（复核付款凭单等）核单v.保证( vouch的现在分词 )；担保；确定；确定地说

参考例句：

• These are references vouching for his ability. 这些都是证明他能力的介绍信。 来自互联网
• If you want to test, to test a Vouching Clerk is also more useful to some. 你如果要考，去考个单证员还更有用一些。 来自互联网

3 preposterous   

adj.荒谬的，可笑的

参考例句：

• The whole idea was preposterous.整个想法都荒唐透顶。
• It would be preposterous to shovel coal with a teaspoon.用茶匙铲煤是荒谬的。

4 license   

n.执照，许可证，特许；v.许可，特许

参考例句：

• The foreign guest has a license on the person.这个外国客人随身携带执照。
• The driver was arrested for having false license plates on his car.司机由于使用假车牌而被捕。