THE TRIAL--THE MEDICAL REPORT.
    But, as if to spite him, the case dragged out to a great length. After each witness had been examined separately and the expert last of all, and a great number of useless questions had been put, with the usual air of importance, by the public prosecutor and by both advocates, the president invited the jury to examine the objects offered as material evidence. They consisted of an enormous diamond ring, which had evidently been worn on the first finger, and a test tube in which the poison had been analysed. These things had seals and labels attached to them.
    Just as the witnesses were about to look at these things, the public prosecutor rose and demanded that before they did this the results of the doctor's examination of the body should be read. The president, who was hurrying the business through as fast as he could in order to visit his Swiss friend, though he knew that the reading of this paper could have no other effect than that of producing weariness and putting off the dinner hour, and that the public prosecutor wanted it read simply because he knew he had a right to demand it, had no option but to express his consent.
    The secretary got out the doctor's report and again began to read in his weary lisping voice, making no distinction between the "r's" and "l's."
    The external examination proved that:
    "1. Theropont Smelkoff's height was six feet five inches.
    "Not so bad, that. A very good size," whispered the merchant, with interest, into Nekhludoff's ear.
    2. He looked about 40 years of age.
    3. The body was of a swollen appearance.
    4. The flesh was of a greenish colour, with dark spots in several places.
    5. The skin was raised in blisters of different sizes and in places had come off in large pieces.
    6. The hair was chestnut; it was thick, and separated easily from the skin when touched.
    7. The eye-balls protruded from their sockets and the cornea had grown dim.
    8. Out of the nostrils, both ears, and the mouth oozed serous liquid; the mouth was half open.
    9. The neck had almost disappeared, owing to the swelling of the face and chest."
    And so on and so on.
    Four pages were covered with the 27 paragraphs describing all the details of the external examination of the enormous, fat, swollen, and decomposing body of the merchant who had been making merry in the town. The indefinite loathing that Nekhludoff felt was increased by the description of the corpse. Katusha's life, and the scrum oozing from the nostrils of the corpse, and the eyes that protruded out of their sockets, and his own treatment of her--all seemed to belong to the same order of things, and he felt surrounded and wholly absorbed by things of the same nature.
    When the reading of the report of the external examination was ended, the president heaved a sigh and raised his hand, hoping it was finished; but the secretary at once went on to the description of the internal examination. The president's head again dropped into his hand and he shut his eyes. The merchant next to Nekhludoff could hardly keep awake, and now and then his body swayed to and fro. The prisoners and the gendarmes sat perfectly quiet.
    The internal examination showed that:
    "1. The skin was easily detachable from the bones of the skull, and there was no coagulated blood.
    "2. The bones of the skull were of average thickness and in sound condition.
    "3. On the membrane of the brain there were two discoloured spots about four inches long, the membrane itself being of a dull white." And so on for 13 paragraphs more. Then followed the names and signatures of the assistants, and the doctor's conclusion showing that the changes observed in the stomach, and to a lesser degree in the bowels and kidneys, at the postmortem examination, and described in the official report, gave great probability to the conclusion that Smelkoff's death was caused by poison which had entered his stomach mixed with alcohol. To decide from the state of the stomach what poison had been introduced was difficult; but it was necessary to suppose that the poison entered the stomach mixed with alcohol, since a great quantity of the latter was found in Smelkoff's stomach.
    "He could drink, and no mistake," again whispered the merchant, who had just waked up.
    The reading of this report had taken a full hour, but it had not satisfied the public prosecutor, for, when it had been read through and the president turned to him, saying, "I suppose it is superfluous to read the report of the examination of the internal organs?" he answered in a severe tone, without looking at the president, "I shall ask to have it read."
    He raised himself a little, and showed by his manner that he had a right to have this report read, and would claim this right, and that if that were not granted it would serve as a cause of appeal.
    The member of the Court with the big beard, who suffered from catarrh of the stomach, feeling quite done up, turned to the president:
    "What is the use of reading all this? It is only dragging it out. These new brooms do not sweep clean; they only take a long while doing it."
    The member with the gold spectacles said nothing, but only looked gloomily in front of him, expecting nothing good, either from his wife or life in general. The reading of the report commenced.
    "In the year 188-, on February 15th, I, the undersigned, commissioned by the medical department, made an examination, No. 638," the secretary began again with firmness and raising the pitch of his voice as if to dispel the sleepiness that had overtaken all present, "in the presence of the assistant medical inspector, of the internal organs:
    "1. The right lung and the heart (contained in a 6-lb. glass jar).
    "2. The contents of the stomach (in a 6-lb. glass jar).
    "3. The stomach itself (in a 6-lb. glass jar).
    "4. The liver, the spleen and the kidneys (in a 9-lb. glass jar).
    5. The intestines (in a 9-lb. earthenware jar)."
    The president here whispered to one of the members, then stooped to the other, and having received their consent, he said: "The Court considers the reading of this report superfluous." The secretary stopped reading and folded the paper, and the public prosecutor angrily began to write down something. "The gentlemen of the jury may now examine the articles of material evidence," said the president. The foreman and several of the others rose and went to the table, not quite knowing what to do with their hands. They looked in turn at the glass, the test tube, and the ring. The merchant even tried on the ring.
    "Ah! that was a finger," he said, returning to his place; "like a cucumber," he added. Evidently the image he had formed in his mind of the gigantic merchant amused him.
    可是，仿佛有意跟他為難似的，審訊拖了很長時間。先是法庭逐一審問證人和鑒定人，接著副檢察官和辯護人照例煞有介事地提出種種不必要的問題，然后庭長請陪審員檢察物證，其中包括一個很大的戒指，顯然原來戴的手指很粗，戒指上面有鉆石鑲成的梅花。再有一個濾器，驗出來里面有毒。
    這些物證都蓋了火漆印，上面貼有標簽。
    陪審員正要去查看物證，不料副檢察官又站起來，要求在檢查物證以前先宣讀法醫(yī)的驗尸報告。
    庭長一心想快點結束這個案子，好趕去同他的瑞士女人相會。庭長明明知道宣讀這種報告，除了惹人厭煩，推遲吃飯時間外，不會有別的結果，而副檢察官所以提出這樣的要求，無非因為他有權這樣做。庭長畢竟不能拒絕，只得同意。書記官取出文件，又用他那舌尖音和卷舌音不分的聲調(diào)，沒精打采地念起來：
    “外部檢查結果：
    “（一）費拉朋特·斯梅里科夫身長二俄尺十二俄寸①?！?BR>    --------
    ①1俄尺等于0．71米。2俄尺12俄寸約合1．95米。
    “那漢子可真高大，”那個商人關切地湊著聶赫留朵夫的耳朵低聲說。
    “（二）就外表推測，年約四十歲。
    “（三）尸體浮腫。
    “（四）全身皮膚呈淡綠色，并有深色斑點。
    “（五）尸體表皮上有大小水泡，有幾處脫皮，狀如破布。
    “（六）頭發(fā)深褐色，很濃密，一經(jīng)觸摸，隨即脫落。
    “（七）眼球突出眼眶之外，角膜渾濁。
    “（八）鼻孔、雙耳和口腔有泡沫狀膿液流出，嘴微張。
    “（九）由于面部和胸部腫脹，頸部幾乎不復能見?！?BR>    等等，等等。
    就這樣在四頁報告紙上寫了二十七條，詳細敘述這個在城里尋歡作樂的商人高大肥胖而又浮腫腐爛的可怕尸體的外部檢查結果。聶赫留朵夫聽了這個驗尸報告，原來那種說不出的嫌惡感越發(fā)強烈了?？ㄇ锷囊簧?、從尸體鼻孔里流出來的膿液、從眼眶里暴出來的眼球、他聶赫留朵夫?qū)λ男袨?，這一切在他看來都是同一類事物。這些事物從四面八方把他團團圍住，把他吞沒了。等外部檢查報告好容易宣讀完畢，庭長長長地舒了一口氣，抬起頭，希望宣讀工作就此結束。不料書記官又立刻宣讀內(nèi)部檢查報告。
    庭長又垂下頭，一只手托住腦袋，閉上眼睛。坐在聶赫留朵夫旁邊的商人好容易忍住睡意，身子間或晃了晃。被告?zhèn)儏s回他們后面的憲兵一樣，坐著一動不動。
    “內(nèi)部檢查結果：
    “（一）頭蓋骨表皮極易從頭蓋骨分離，無一處瘀血可見。
    “（二）頭蓋骨厚度中等，完整無損。
    “（三）腦膜堅硬，有兩小塊已變色，長約四英寸，腦膜呈濁白色，”等等，另外還有十三條。
    然后是在場見證人的姓名和簽字，然后是醫(yī)生的結論。結論表明，根據(jù)尸體解剖并記錄在案，死者胃部以及部分腸子和腎臟發(fā)生異變，使人有權以高度可能性肯定，斯梅里科夫之死實由于毒藥攙入酒內(nèi)灌進胃里所致。根據(jù)胃和部分腸子異變，難以斷定用的是什么毒藥；但可以肯定毒藥是和酒一起進入胃里的，因為胃里有大量酒液。
    “看來他喝得可兇了，”那個商人瞌睡剛醒，說。
    這份報告宣讀了將近一小時，但還是沒有使副檢察官滿足。等報告宣讀完畢，庭長就對他說：
    “我看內(nèi)臟檢查報告就不用再念了?！?BR>    “我可要求念一念這個報告，”副檢察官稍稍欠起身子，眼睛不看庭長，嚴厲地說。他說話的口氣使人覺得，他有權要求宣讀，并且決不讓步，誰如果拒絕他的要求，他將有理由提出上訴。
    那個生有一雙和善的下垂眼睛的大胡子法官，因患有胃炎，覺得體力不支，就對庭長說：
    “這個何必念呢？徒然拖時間。這種新掃帚越掃越臟，白白浪費時間?！?BR>    戴金絲邊眼鏡的法官一言不發(fā)，只是憂郁而執(zhí)拗地瞪著前方。不論對妻子還是對生活他都不抱任何希望。
    宣讀文件開始了。
    “一八八×年二月十五日，本人受醫(yī)務局委托，遵照第六三八號指令，”書記官提高嗓門，仿佛想驅(qū)除所有在場者的睡意，又斷然念起來。“在副醫(yī)務檢察官監(jiān)督下，作下列內(nèi)臟檢查：
    “（一）右肺和心臟（盛于六磅玻璃瓶內(nèi)）。
    “（二）胃內(nèi)所有物（盛于六磅玻璃瓶內(nèi)）。
    “（三）胃（盛于六磅玻璃瓶內(nèi)）。
    “（四）肝臟、脾臟和腎臟（盛于三磅玻璃瓶內(nèi)）。
    “（五）腸（盛于六磅陶罐內(nèi)）。”
    這次宣讀一開始，庭長就俯身對一個法官低聲說了些什么，然后又轉(zhuǎn)向另一個法官。在獲得他們肯定的回答后，他就打斷書記官說：
    “法庭認為宣讀這個文件沒有必要，”他說。
    書記官住了口，收拾文件。副檢察官怒氣沖沖地記著什么。
    “諸位陪審員先生可以檢查物證了，”庭長宣布。
    首席陪審員和其他幾個陪審員紛紛起立，手足無措地走到桌子旁邊。他們依次察看戒指、玻璃瓶和濾器。那個商人還把戒指戴到自己手指上試了試。
    “嚯，手指好粗，”他回到他的座位，說?！盎钕笠粭l粗黃瓜，”他補充說，津津有味地猜想那個中毒喪命的商人一定象個大力士。