[读而思惑 品而有获]林肯给胡克将军的一封信

瓶盖儿。。。

 

赞美像玫瑰一样清香，不但能赢得朋友，在说服敌人时也能起到非凡的作用。从赞美开始的批评更能说服别人，它像手术之前的麻醉剂，能大大减轻病人的痛苦，也容易被人接受，林肯总统给胡克将军的一封信被视为说话艺术的范本，这封当年林肯仅用五分钟写好的短信，在1926年的拍卖中竟卖得12090美元。fficeffice" />

此信写于1862年，当时美国内战已经持续了18个月，林肯领导的北方联军屡战屡败，整个国家一片混蓝，一些共和党的议员竟通电叛乱，计划将林肯赶出白宫。在这样的局势下林肯写了这封信。

 

Major General Hooker:

General: I have placed you at the head of the Army of the Potomac. Of course I have done this upon what appears to me to be sufficient reasons, and yet I think it best for you to know that there are some things in regard to which I am not quite satisfied with you. I believe you to be a brave and skillful soldier, which, of course, I like. I also believe you do not mix politics with your profession, in which you are right. You have confidence in yourself, which is a valuable, if not an indispensable, quality. You are ambitious, which, within reasonable bounds, does good rather than harm; but I think that during General Burnside's command of the army you have taken counsel of your ambition, and thwarted him as much as you could, in which you did a great wrong to the country and to a most meritorious and honorable brother officer. I have heard, in such a way as to believe it, of your recently saying that both the Army and the Government needed a dictator. Of course, it was not for this, but in spite of it, that I have given you the command. Only those generals who gain successes can set up dictators. What I now ask of you is military success, and I will risk the dictatorship. The Government will support you to the utmost of its ability, which is neither more nor less than it has done and will do for all commanders. I much fear that the spirit which you have aided to infuse into the army, of criticizing their commander and withholding confidence from him, will now turn upon you. I shall assist you as far as I can to put it down. Neither you nor Napoleon, if he were alive again, could get any good out of an army while such a spirit prevails in it.

And now beware of rashness. Beware of rashness, but with energy and sleepless vigilance go forward and give us victories.

Yours, very truly,

A. Lincoln

 

胡克少将：

我委任你为波托马克军司令。当然，我这样做是有着充分的理由的，但是你最好也应该知道，在有些事情上我对你并不太满意。

我相信你是一名勇敢善战的军人，对于这样的人，我当然喜欢了。

我还相信你不会将政治和你的职业相混淆。在你的职业方面，你是正确的。

你很自信。这即使不是一个不可缺少的品质，至少也是一个珍贵的品质。

你有着雄心壮志。在合理的范围内，这是好事而不是坏事。但是，我认为，在伯恩赛德将军指挥期间，你保守着自己的雄心，并且极力阻挠他。你这样做，无论是对国家，还是对一个最优秀可敬的将领，你都犯了一个巨大的错误。

你最近说，无论是军队还是政府都需要一个独裁者。我相信这种传言是真的。当然，我授权于你，并不是因为这件事，而是尽管有这件事。只有那些建功立业的将军才能建立独裁。现在，我要求你的是军事上的成功，我将为此而面临独裁的危险。政府将全力支持你，对于所有的将军，它都一视同仁，也不会另眼看待你。你对司令官横加指责，心存疑虑，你助长的这种风气将会毁了你。我将协助你压倒这种风气。如果任其蔓延，别说是你，就是拿破仑再世，也无能为力。现在，戒骄戒躁，勇往直前，去争取胜利。

 

你真诚的朋友亚伯拉罕•林肯

[此贴子已经被作者于2010-8-29 16:19:23编辑过]

瓶盖儿。。。

转自家人林帆的林肯的葛底斯堡演说

来看看林肯这篇仅仅只有十句话272个字，但名垂青史的演讲吧

Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.

Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battle field of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.

But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate—we can not consecrate—we can not hallow—this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us — that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion — that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain — that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom — and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.

译文：

八十又七年前吾辈先祖于这大陆上，肇建一个新的国度，乃孕育于自由，且致力于凡人皆生而平等此信念。

当下吾等被卷入一场伟大的内战，以考验是否此国度，或任何肇基于和奉献于斯者，可永垂不朽。吾等现相逢于此战中一处浩大战场。而吾等将奉献此战场之部分，作为这群交付彼者生命让那国度勉能生存的人们最后安息之处。此乃全然妥切且适当而为吾人应行之举。

但，于更大意义之上，吾等无法致力、无法奉上、无法成就此土之圣。这群勇者，无论生死，曾于斯奋战到底，早已使其神圣，而远超过吾人卑微之力所能增 减。这世间不曾丝毫留意，也不长久记得吾等于斯所言，但永不忘怀彼人于此所为。吾等生者，理应当然，献身于此辈鞠躬尽瘁之未完大业。吾等在此责无旁贷献身 于眼前之伟大使命：自光荣的亡者之处吾人肩起其终极之奉献—吾等在此答应亡者之死当非徒然—此国度，于神佑之下，当享有自由之新生—民有、民治、民享之政府当免于凋零。

[此贴子已经被作者于2010-8-29 16:51:54编辑过]

peak.hsu

瓶盖儿乃一介女子尚喜如此豪言壮语的文章，

实在佩服！