Then I went to another who had still higher pretensions to wisdom，and my conclusion was exactly the same，whereupon I made another enemy of him，and of many others besides him. Then I went to one man after another，being not unconscious of the enmity which I provoked，and I lamented and feared this：but necessity was laid upon me，the word of God，I thought，ought to be considered first. And I said to myself，I must go to all who appear to know，and find out the meaning of the oracle. And I swear to you，Athenians，by the dog I swear，for I must tell you the truth，the result of my mission was just this：I found that the men most in repute were all but the most foolish；and that others less esteemed were really wiser and better.
I will tell you the whole of my wanderings and of the“Herculean”labors，as I may call them，which I endured only to find at last the oracle irrefutable. After the politicians，I went to the poets，tragic，dithyrambic and all sorts. And there，I said to myself，you will be instantly detected；now you will find out that you are more ignorant than they are. Accordingly，I took them some of the most elaborate passages in their own writings，and asked what the meaning of them was，thinking that they would teach me something. Will you believe me? I am almost ashamed to confess the truth，but I must say that there is hardly a person present who would not have talked better about their poetry than they did themselves. Then I knew that not by wisdom do poets write poetry，but by a sort of genius and inspiration；they are like diviners or soothsayers who also say many fine things，but do not understand the meaning of them. The poets appeared to me to be much in the same case；and I further observed that upon the strength of their poetry they believed themselves to be the wisest of men in other things in which they were not wise. So I departed，conceiving myself to be superior to them for the same reason that I was superior to the politicians.
At last I went to the artisans；I was conscious that I knew nothing at all，as I may say，and I was sure that they knew many fine things；and here I was not mistaken，for they did know many things of which I was ignorant，and in this they certainly were wiser than I was. But I observed that even the good artisans fell into the same error as the poets；because they were good workmen，so they thought that they also knew all sorts of high matters，and this defect in them overshadowed their wisdom；and therefore I asked myself on behalf of the oracle，whether I would like to be as I was，neither having their knowledge nor their ignorance，or like them in both；and I made answer to myself and to the oracle that I was better off as I was.
This inquisition has led to my having many enemies of the worst and most dangerous kind，and has given occasion also to many calumnies. And I am called wise，for my hearers always imagine that I myself possess the wisdom which I find wanting in others：but the truth is，O men of Athens，that God only is wise；and by his answer he intends to show that the wisdom of men is worth little or nothing；he is not speaking of Socrates，he is only using my name by way of illustration，as if he said，O men，he is the wisest，who，like Socrates，knows that his wisdom is in truth worth nothing. And so I go about the world，obedient to the god，and search and make enquiry into the wisdom of any one，whether citizen or stranger，who appears to be wise；and if he is not wise，then I show him that he is not wise；and my occupation quite absorbs me，and I have no time to give attention to any public matter of interest or to any concern of my own，but I am in utter poverty by reason of my devotion to the god.
雅典的公民们，我无非是由于具有某种智慧而获得了智者的名声。我所指的是什么样的智慧呢？我想是人类的智慧。在这个意义上我的确可以算作有智之人。或许我刚才提到的那些天才们有超人的智慧，但我实在无法说明。我对这种超人的智慧自然是一无所知，谁说我有这种智慧就是说谎，就是有意中伤。雅典的公民们，即便是我的申辩显得放肆，也请不要打断我，因为我将要向你们讲述的并不是我自己的意见，而是引述一位无可指责的权威的话。我将请德尔菲的神为我所具有的智慧作证。
你们当然都认识开瑞丰。自幼他就是我的至交，他也是你们的朋友，在前几年的“放逐和复辟”中，他始终是和你们站在一起的。你们知道他是什么样的人，他对于他所从事的每项工作都那么热心。我在前面说过，雅典的公民们，请不要打断我。有一天，他去德尔菲向神请教这样一个问题：是否有人比我聪明。回答说，没有。开瑞丰已经死了，上述情况可以由他的兄弟来证实，此刻他就在法庭上。
请想一想我向你们说这些话的目的吧。我是想对你们解释清楚强加于我的坏名声是怎么来的。当我听了神谕后，我对自己说：“神的旨意是什么呢？他为什么不讲明白呢？我只是充分意识到自己毫无智慧，那么他说我是世界上最聪明的人又是什么意思呢？神按其本性来说是不会说谎的。”在对神谕迷惑了一段时间以后，我终于强迫自己以下述方法去证实神谕的真理性。我去访问了一位具有极高智慧声誉的人，因为我想，只有在这里我才有可能成功地对神谕作出反证，向神圣的权威指出：“你说我是最聪明的人，但这里有人比我更聪明。”我全面地考察了这个人。我在这里不提他的名字，在我考察他时，他是我们城邦的政治家之一。经过交谈，我的印象是，虽然在很多人看来，特别是他自己认为，他很聪明，但事实上他并不聪明。当我试图向他指出他只是自认为聪明而并非真正聪明时，他和在场的其他很多人都表现出了对我的憎恨。离开他后，我反复思量：“我确实比这个人聪明。很可惜我们谁都没有任何值得自夸的知识，但他对不知之物自认为有知，而我则非常自觉地意识到自己的无知。无论如何，在这点上我比他聪明，起码我不以我所不知为知。”
此后，我去访问了一个在智慧方面声誉更高的人，我又得出了同样的结论，我也同样遭到他本人和其他很多人的憎恨。从那以后，我访问了很多人，都感到悲哀和恐惧，因为我这样做并不受欢迎。但我强迫自己把神圣的使命放在首位。既然我试图揭示神谕的含义，我决意遍访每一个有智慧声誉的人。雅典的公民们，指犬为誓，我必须对你们坦率地说，我的印象是：当我遵照神的命令调查时，我发现，智慧声誉最高的人几乎完全无知，智慧声誉低于他们的人却颇有实际知识。
我愿你们想象一下我为确证神谕的真理性而踏上的，像朝圣一样的艰难路途。当我遍访了政治家后，我又去访问诗人、戏剧家、抒情诗人和其他各种人，相信在他们那里可以暴露我自己的无知。我在他们那里列举我所能想到的，他们的最好的作品，紧紧围绕他们写作的目的提问题，希望能借此机会扩充自己的知识。雅典的公民们，我不愿把真相告诉你们，可我又必须告诉你们事实的真相。毫不夸张地说，听了诗人们的回答，我感到，任何一个旁观者都能比诗的作者们更好地解释这些作品。这样，我很快就对诗人们也做出了评判，并不是聪明才智，而是本能和灵感，使他们创作出了诗歌。就像你们所见到的，先知和预言家传达神谕时，一点儿都不知道他们所说的话的含义。在我看来，显然诗人们在写诗时也是这样。我还注意到这样一个事实，他们是诗人，所以就自以为无所不知，而实际上他们对其他学科完全无知。这样，我怀着在离开政治家们时同样的优越感放弃了对诗人们的拜访。
最后，我又去访问熟练的手艺人。我很清楚，我对技术一窍不通，因而我相信我能从他们身上得到给人以深刻印象的知识。对他们的访问的确没令我失望，他们懂得我所不懂的事，在这方面他们比我聪明。但是，雅典的公民们，这些从事专门职业的人看来有着同诗人们同样的缺点，我是指他们自恃技术熟练，就声称他们完全通晓其他学科的知识，不管这些学科多么重要。我感到，他们的这一错误使他们的智慧黯然失色。于是，我使自己成为神谕的代言人，自问是保持我原来的样子，既没有像他们那样的智慧，也没有像他们那样的愚蠢好呢，还是像他们那样智慧和愚蠢同时具备的好？最后我回答我自己和神说：神谕说，我还是保持过去的样子好。
雅典的公民们，我遵循神谕，对人们进行调查的后果，引起了大家对我的敌对情绪，一种既强烈又持久的敌对情绪，它导致了很多恶意的中伤，包括把我描述成一个到处炫耀自己智慧的人。由于在某个特定的问题上，我成功地难住了一个自认为聪明的人，旁观者们就断定我对这个问题无所不通。但雅典的公民们，事实并非如此，真正的智慧只属于神。他借助上述神谕启迪我们，人类的智慧没什么价值，或者根本没有价值。在我看来，神并不是认为苏格拉底最聪明，而只是以我的名字为例告诫我们，“你们当中像苏格拉底那样聪明的人也意识到自己的智慧是微不足道的。”所以，我到处奔波，秉承神的意旨，检验每一个我认为有智慧的人，不管他是公民还是侨民。如果，他并不智慧，我就给神当助手，指出他并不智慧。这个工作使我非常忙碌，没有时间参加任何公务，连自己的私事也没工夫管，我一贫如洗，就是因为事神不解的缘故。
导读
苏格拉底，古希腊哲学家。曾自喻为“牛虻’，一只时刻叮咬国家这只硕大的骏马，以让她能够精神焕发的牛虻。可要知道，被这样不停叮咬的滋味是不好受的，尽管可能很多人都懂得它的好处。最终也正是由于这种牛虻精神，公元前399年，三个雅典公民，墨勒图斯、安尼图斯和吕孔对苏格拉底提出公诉，指控他危害社会。苏格拉底被控告犯有“教唆青年和怠慢神灵”两条罪状，而流传百万的演讲《申辩》也因此而诞生了。
诵读名句
I will tell you the whole of my wanderings and of the “Herculean” labors，as I may call them，which I endured only to find at last the oracle irrefutable.
So I departed，conceiving myself to be superior to them for the same reason that I was superior to the politicians.
This inquisition has led to my having many enemies of the worst and most dangerous kind，and has given occasion also to many calumnies.
Farewell Address to Congress
老兵永不死亡
Douglas MacArthur/道格拉斯·麦克阿瑟
Mr. President，Mr. Speaker，and Distinguished Members of the Congress，
I stand on this rostrum with a sense of deep humility and great pride. Humility in the wake of all those great American architects of our history who have stood here before me. Pride in the reflection that this home of legislative debate represents human liberty in the purest form yet devised. Here are centered the hopes and aspirations and faith of the entire human race. I do not stand here as advocate of any partisan cause，for the issues are fundamental and reach quite beyond the realm of partisan consideration. They must be resolved on the highest plane of national interest，if our cause is to prove sound and our future protected. I trust，therefore，that you will do me the justice of receiving that which I have to say as solely expressing the considered viewpoint of a fellow American. I address you with neither rancor nor bitterness，in the fading twilight of life，with but one purpose in mind：to serve my country.
The issues are global，and so interlocked that to consider the problems of one sector，oblivious to those of another is but to cause disaster for the whole. While Asia is commonly referred to as the gateway to Europe，it is no less true that Europe is the gateway to Asia，and the broad influence of the one cannot fail to have its impact upon the other. There are those who claim our strength is inadequate to protect on both fronts，that we cannot divide our effort. I can think of no greater expression of defeatism. If a potential enemy can divide his strength on two fronts，it’s for us to counter his efforts.
Beyond pointing out these general truisms，I shall confine my discussion to the general areas of Asia. Before one may objectively assess the situation now existing there，he must comprehend something of Asia’s past and the revolutionary changes which have marked her course up to the present. Long exploited by the so-called colonial powers，with little opportunity to achieve any degree of social justice，individual dignity or higher standard of life，such as guided our own noble administration of the Philippines. The peoples of Asia found their opportunity in the war just passed to throw off the shackles of colonialism，and now see the dawn of new opportunity：a heretofore unfelt dignity and the self-respect of political freedom. Mustering half of the earth’s population and sixty percent of its natural resources，these peoples are rapidly consolidating a new force，both moral and material，with which to raise their living standard and the adaptations of the design of modern progress to their own distinct cultural environments. Whether one adheres to the concept of colonization or not，this is the direction of Asian progress and it may not be stopped. It is a corollary to the shift of the world economic frontiers as the whole epicenter of world affairs rotates back toward the area whence it started. In this situation，it becomes vital that our own country orient its policies in constancy with this basic evolutionary condition rather than pursue a course blind to the reality that the colonial era is now past and the Asian peoples covet the right to shape their own free destiny. What they seek now is friendly guidance，understanding and support，not imperialist directions.
It was my constant effort to preserve them and end the savage conflict honorably and with the least loss of time and in minimum sacrifice of life. Its growing bloodshed has caused me the deepest anguish and anxiety. Those gallant men will remain often in my thoughts and my prayers，always.
I am closing my fifty-two years of military service. When I joined the army even before the turn of the century，it was the fulfillment of all my boyish hopes and dreams. The world has turned over many times since I took the oath on the plain at WestPoint，and the hopes and dreams have long since vanished. But I still remember the refrain of one of the most popular barrack ballads of that day which proclaimed most proudly that old soldiers never die，they just fade away. And like the old soldier of that ballad，I now close my military career and just fade away. An old soldier who tried to do his duty as God gave him the light to see that duty.
Good-bye.
总统先生、议长先生和尊敬的国会议员们：
我怀着十分谦卑而又十分骄傲的心情站在这演讲台上。我谦卑，是因为在我之前，许多美国历史上伟大的建筑师都曾经在这里发过言；我骄傲，是因为今天我们的立法辩论代表着经思考的最纯粹的人类解放。这是全人类的希望、热情和信仰的所在。我并不是作为任何一个党派的拥护者站在这里讲话的，因为这些问题至关重要，超越了党派的界线。如果我们需要证实我们的动因是正确的，如果要保障我们的未来，我们就要从符合国家最高利益的角度解决这些问题。我相信，当我说完这些话之后，仅仅是为了表达一个美国普通公民经过深思熟虑而得出的观点，你们会公平地接受它。在我生命之暮年做这个告别演说，我无怨无悔，在我心中只有一个目的：为我的祖国服务。
这些问题是全球性而且环环相扣的，任何的顾此失彼都会给全局造成灾难。亚洲被普遍认为是通往欧洲的门户，同样的，欧洲也是通往亚洲的大门，二者息息相关。有人认为我们的力量不足以同时保住两个阵地，因为我们不能分散我们的力量。我想，这是我听到的最悲观的失败主义论调了。如果我们潜在的敌人能够把他的力量分在两条线上，那我们就必须与之抗衡。
除了指出这些大家已经明白的问题外，我将把讨论集中在亚洲地区。在客观地估计那里的现状之前，我们必须了解亚洲的过去，了解导致她今天这种局势的革命性的变化。长期遭受所谓殖民主义势力的剥削使亚洲人民没有机会获取任何程度的社会平等、个人尊严，也无法提高生活水平，就像被我们的菲律宾贵族政府所统治的那样。亚洲人民在战争中找到了机会，得以摆脱殖民主义的枷锁，而且现在有更多的、新的契机摆在他们面前：政治独立带来了以前从未感受过的尊严和自尊。亚洲拥有世界一半的人口和60%的自然资源，她的人民正迅速地巩固着一个新兴的力量，包括精神和物质两方面，借此提高他们的生活水平，协调现代化的进步和他们特有的文化环境。不管你是不是坚持殖民的观点，这才是亚洲前进的方向，没有人能够阻止她的脚步。这一点是世界经济防线转移、国际事务中心回归原点的必然结果。在这种情况下，我们国家在政治上必须与基本的革命形势一致，而不能无视殖民时代已经过时、亚洲人民渴望开创自己的自由生活的现实，这十分重要。他们现在需要的是友好的指引、理解和支持，而不是专制的指挥。
我坚持保全他们，并希望能用最少的时间、最小的牺牲体面地结束这场野蛮的冲突。越来越多的流血让我感到极度的痛苦和焦虑。那些勇敢的人的形象在我的脑海中挥之不去，我将永远为他们祈祷。
我将结束52年的军旅生涯。我在世纪之交前就已参军，它实现了我孩童时所有的希望和梦想。自从我在西点的草坪上宣誓以来，这个世界已经经历了多次转变，童年的希望和梦想早已消失得无影无踪。但我依然记得当年那首流行的军歌的歌词：一个老兵永不死亡，他只是淡出舞台。就像歌中的老兵一样，我结束了我的军旅生涯，只是淡出了人生舞台。一个力图按照上帝指引的方式完成他的职责的老兵。
再见。
导读
1944年12月，麦克阿瑟被授予五星级上将军衔。1951年，他与家人回到美国。在这次演讲中，他以一句歌词“一个老兵永不死亡，他只是淡出舞台”来宣告自己军旅生涯的结束。
诵读名句
I address you with neither rancor nor bitterness，in the fading twilight of life，with but one purpose in mind：to serve my country.
Those gallant men will remain often in my thoughts and my prayers，always.
An old soldier who tried to do his duty as God gave him the light to see that duty.
The Road to Success
安德鲁·卡内基：成功之路
Andrew Carnegie/安德鲁·卡内基
It is well that young men should begin at the beginning and occupy the most subordinate positions. Many of the leading businessmen of Pittsburgh had a serious responsibility thrust upon then at the very threshold of their career. They were introduced to the broom，and spent the first hours of their business lives sweeping out the office. I notice we have janitors and janitresses now in offices，and our young men unfortunately miss that salutary branch of a business education. But if by chance the professional sweeper is absent any morning，the boy who has the genius of the future partner in him will not hesitate to try his hand at the broom. The other day a fond fashionable mother in Michigan asked a young man whether he had ever seen a young lady sweep in a room so grandly as her Priscilla. He said no，he never had，and the mother was gratified beyond measure，but then said he，after a pause，“What I should like to see her do is sweep out a room.”It does not hurt the newest comer to sweep out the office if necessary. I was one of those sweepers myself.
Assuming that you have all obtained employment and are fairly started，my advice to you is“aim high”. I would not give a fig for the young man who does not already see himself the partner or the head of an important firm. Do not rest content for a moment in your thoughts as head clerk，or foreman，or general manager in any concern，no matter how extensive. Say to yourself，“My place is at the top.”Be king in your dreams.
And here is the prime condition of success，the great secret：concentrate your energy，thought，and capital exclusively upon the business in which you are engaged. Having begun in one line，resolve to fight it out on that line，to lead in it，adopt every improvement，have the best machinery，and know the most about it.
The concerns which fail are those which have scattered their capital，which means that they have scattered their brains also. They have investments in this，or that，or the other，here，there，and everywhere.“Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.”is all wrong. I tell you“put all your eggs in one basket，and then watch that basket.”Look round you and take notice，men who do that not often fail. It is easy to watch and carry the one basket. It is trying to carry too many baskets that breaks most eggs in this country. He who carries three baskets must put one on his head，which is apt to tumble and trip him up. One fault of the American businessman is lack of concentration.
To summarize what I have said：Aim for the highest，never enter a bar room；do not touch liquor，or if at all only at meals；never speculate；never indorse beyond your surplus cash fund；make the firm’s interest yours；break orders always to save owners；concentrate；put all your eggs in one basket，and watch that basket；expenditure always within revenue；lastly be not impatient，for as Emers on says，“no one can cheat you out of ultimate success but yourselves.”
