“‘Of course we searched the house from cellar to garret (разумеется, мы обыскали /весь/ дом от подвала до чердака), but there was no trace of him (но там не оказалось никаких его следов). It is, as I have said, a labyrinth of an old house (как я говорил, этот старинный дом — /настоящий/ лабиринт), especially the original wing (особенно самое старое крыло; original — первоначальный), which is now practically uninhabited (которое теперь практически необитаемо); but we ransacked every room and cellar without discovering the least sign of the missing man (однако мы обыскали каждую комнату и подвал, но не обнаружили ни малейшего следа пропавшего человека; to ransack — обыскивать, обшаривать). It was incredible to me (мне казалось немыслимым) that he could have gone away leaving all his property behind him (что он мог уйти, оставив все свое имущество), and yet where could he be (и все-таки где он мог быть)? I called in the local police, but without success (я вызвал местную полицию, но без результата). Rain had fallen on the night before (дождь прошел накануне вечером) and we examined the lawn and the paths all round the house, but in vain (мы осмотрели лужайку и дорожки вокруг дома, но это ни к чему не привело; in vain — напрасно, тщетно, безуспешно). Matters were in this state (дела находились в этом состоянии = так обстояло дело), when a new development quite drew our attention away from the original mystery (когда новое событие отвлекло наше внимание от первоначальной загадки).
money ['mVnI], cellar ['sel@], labyrinth ['lb@rInT], property ['prOp@tI]
“‘His clothes, his watch, and even his money were in his room, but the black suit which he usually wore was missing. His slippers, too, were gone, but his boots were left behind. Where then could butler Brunton have gone in the night, and what could have become of him now?
“‘Of course we searched the house from cellar to garret, but there was no trace of him. It is, as I have said, a labyrinth of an old house, especially the original wing, which is now practically uninhabited; but we ransacked every room and cellar without discovering the least sign of the missing man. It was incredible to me that he could have gone away leaving all his property behind him, and yet where could he be? I called in the local police, but without success. Rain had fallen on the night before and we examined the lawn and the paths all round the house, but in vain. Matters were in this state, when a new development quite drew our attention away from the original mystery.
