介绍： 读了好几章，一开始误以为M.是Manager的缩写，其实应该是MONSIEUR [mə'sjə:]【（法）先生；绅士】的缩写，就像Mme. 是【（法）太太（Madame，等于Missus）】的缩写。
There is a part of the story of Isidore Saack I skipped. If you are interested, you can read it by yourself.
1 Thereupon, as M. Richard was on the point of...

介绍： 读了好几章，一开始误以为M.是Manager的缩写，其实应该是MONSIEUR [mə'sjə:]【（法）先生；绅士】的缩写，就像Mme. 是【（法）太太（Madame，等于Missus）】的缩写。
There is a part of the story of Isidore Saack I skipped. If you are interested, you can read it by yourself.
1 Thereupon, as M. Richard was on the point of bursting out, M. Moncharmin interfered and conducted the interrogatory, whence it appeared that Mme. Giry thought it quite natural that a voice should be heard to say that a box was taken, when there was nobody in the box. She was unable to explain this phenomenon, which was not new to her, except by the intervention of the ghost. Nobody could see the ghost in his box, but everybody could hear him. She had often heard him; and they could believe her, for she always spoke the truth. They could ask M. Debienne and M. Poligny, and anybody who knew her; and also M. Isidore Saack, who had had a leg broken by the ghost!
2 "Indeed!" said Moncharmin, interrupting her. "Did the ghost break poor Isidore Saack's leg?"
3 Mme. Giry opened her eyes with astonishment at such ignorance.However, she consented to enlighten those two poor innocents. The thing had happened in M. Debienne and M. Poligny's time, also in Box Five and also during a performance of FAUST. Mme. Giry coughed, cleared her throat—it sounded as though she were preparing to sing the whole of Gounod's score—and began:
4 "It was like this, sir. That night, M. Maniera and his lady, the jewelers in the Rue Mogador, were sitting in the front of the box, with their great friend, M. Isidore Saack, sitting behind Mme. Maniera. Mephistopheles was singing"—Mme. Giry here burst into song herself—"'Catarina, while
you play at sleeping,' and then M. Maniera heard a voice in his right ear(his wife was on his left) saying, 'Ha, ha! Julie's not playing at sleeping!'His wife happened to be called Julie. So. M. Maniera turns to the right to see who was talking to him like that. Nobody there! He rubs his ear and asks himself, if he's dreaming. Then Mephistopheles went on with his serenade… But, perhaps I'm boring you gentlemen?"
5 "No, no, go on."
6 "You are too good, gentlemen," with a smirk. "Well, then, Mephistopheles went on with his serenade"—Mme. Giry, burst into song again—"'Saint, unclose thy portals holy and accord the bliss, to a mortal bending lowly, of a pardon-kiss.' And then M. Maniera again hears the voice in his right ear, saying, this time, 'Ha, ha! Julie wouldn't mind according a kiss to Isidore!' Then he turns round again, but, this time, to the left; and what do you think he sees? Isidore, who had taken his lady's hand and was covering it with kisses through the little round place in the glove—like this, gentlemen"—rapturously kissing the bit of palm left bare in the middle of her thread gloves. "Then they had a lively time between them! Bang! Bang! M. Maniera, who was big and strong, like you, M. Richard, gave two blows to M. Isidore Saack, who was small and weak like M. Moncharmin, saving his presence. There was a great uproar. People in the house shouted, 'That will do! Stop them! He'll kill him!' Then, at last, M. Isidore Saack managed to run away."
7 "Then the ghost had not broken his leg?" asked M. Moncharmin, a little vexed that his figure had made so little impression on Mme. Giry.
8 "He did break it for him, sir," replied Mme. Giry haughtily. "He broke it for him on the grand staircase, which he ran down too fast, sir, and it will be long before the poor gentleman will be able to go up it again!"
9 "Did the ghost tell you what he said in M. Maniera's right ear?" asked M. Moncharmin, with a gravity which he thought exceedingly humorous.
10 "No, sir, it was M. Maniera himself. So——"
11 "But you have spoken to the ghost, my good lady?"
12 "As I'm speaking to you now, my good sir!" Mme. Giry replied.
13 "And, when the ghost speaks to you, what does he say?"
14 "Well, he tells me to bring him a footstool!"