第三冊第7篇：本杰明.富蘭克林
Franklin’s life is full of charming stories which all young men should know----how he peddled ballads in Boston, and stood, the guest of kings, in Europe; how he worked his passage as a stowaway to Philadelphia, and rode in the queen’s own litter in France; how he walked the streets of Philadelphia, homeless and unknown, with three-penny rolls for his breakfast, and dined at the tables of princess, and received his friends in a palace; how he raised a kite from a cow shed, and was showered with all the high degrees the colleges of the world could give; how he was duped by a false friend as a boy, and became the friend of all humanity as a man; how he was made Major General Franklin, only to resign because, as he said he was no soldier, and yet helped to organize the army that stood before the trained troops of England and Germany.
富蘭克林的一生允滿了迷人的傳奇故事，青年人都應(yīng)該知道:他如何在波士頓街道上叫賣民歌唱本，而后來又成為歐洲各國君土的賓客;他如何逃票登船，然后靠做工抵償船資才到達贊城，后來在法蘭西卻坐上了土后的轎子;他如何買三個便士的面包卷當(dāng)早飯，在費城的街道上流浪，舉口無親，無家可歸。后來卻成為公土筵席上的?？停⑶以趯m殿里會見他的朋友;他如何從牛棚放起風(fēng)箏，后來卻榮獲世界各大學(xué)所能給予的雪片般飛來的高級學(xué)銜;他在兒時如何被一個虛偽的朋友所欺騙，成年后卻成為全人類的良友;他如何被任命為富蘭克林少將，但他僅是說他不是軍人就辭了職，然而卻又幫助締造了那支敢于同訓(xùn)練有素的英德聯(lián)軍抗衡的軍隊.
This poor Boston boy, with scarcely a day’s schooling, became master of six languages and never stopped studying; this neglected apprentice tamed the lightning, made his name famous, received degrees and diplomas from colleges in both hemispheres, and became forever remembered as “Doctor Franklin”, philosopher, patriot, scientist, philanthropist and statesman.
這位貧窮的波士頓孩子，幾乎沒有受過一天的正式教育，后來卻掌握了六種語言，而且從來沒有中斷過學(xué)習(xí)。這位被人忽視的學(xué)徒卻馴服了閃電，從而名揚天下，榮獲了東西兩半球許多大學(xué)的學(xué)位和證書，并成為永遠被人們銘記的哲學(xué)家、愛國者、科學(xué)家、慈善家和政治家：“富蘭克林博士”。
Self-made and self-taught, and self-reared, the candle maker’s son gave light to all the world; the street ballad seller set all men singing of liberty; the runaway apprentice became the most soughtafter man of two continents, and brought his native land to praise and honour him.
這位蠟燭制造商的兒子，自強不息，自食其力，自學(xué)成才，給全世界帶來了光明;這位民謠歌本的街頭叫賣者使所有的人唱起了自由之歌;這位逃跑的學(xué)徒成了歐美兩大陸最為人渴慕求見的人，贏得了祖國的贊美和敬仰。
He built America,----for what our Republic is today is largely due to the prudence, the forethought, the statesmanship, the enterprise, the wisdom, and the ability of Benjamin Franklin. He belongs to the world, but especially does he belong to America. As the nations honoured him while living, so the Republic glorifies him when dead, and has enshrined him in the choicest of its niches----the one he regarded as the loftiest the hearts of the common people.from whom he had sprung and in their hearts Franklin will live forever.
他締造了美國—我們共和國能有今日，很大程度上是歸功于他的深思熟慮、他的遠見卓識、他的治國之術(shù)、他的進取精神、他的智慧和才干。他屬于全世界，但是，他侍別屬于美國。生前，各國人民崇敬他;死后，共和國同樣贊揚褒獎他，把他安置于最為珍貴的壁會中一一一個他視為最最神圣的壁會一一普通人的心中，因為他來自人民;富蘭克林將永遠活在人民的心中。
