1943年美国国会宋美龄英语演说

1943年美国国会宋美龄英语演说

　　Mr. President, Members of the Senate of the United States, ladies, and gentlemen, I am overwhelmed by the warmth and spontaneity of the welcome of the American people, of whom you are the representatives. I did not know that I was to speak to you today at the Senate except to say,“How do you do, I am so very glad to see you, and to bring the greetings of my people to the people of America. However, just before coming here, the Vice President told me that he wouuld like to have me say a few words to you.

　　议长先生，美国参议院各位议员，各位女士、先生，受到诸位所代表的美国人民热情与真诚的欢迎，令我感动莫名。我事先不知今天要在参议院发表演说，只以为要到此说声「大家好，很高兴见到各位」，并向贵国人民转达敝国百姓的问候之意。不过，在来到此地之前，贵国副总统告诉我，他希望我和各位说几句话。

　　I am not a very good extemporaneous speaker; in fact, I am no speaker at all; but I am not so very much discouraged, because a few days ago I was at Hyde Park, and went to the Presidents library. Something I saw there encouraged me, and made me feel that perhaps you will not expect overmuch of me in speaking to you extemporaneously. What do you think I saw there I saw many things, but the one thing which interested me most of all was that in a glass case there was the first draft of one of the Presidents speeches, a second draft, and on and on up to the sixth draft. Yesterday I happened to mention this fact to the President, and told him that I was extremely glad that he had to write so many drafts when he is such a well-known and acknowledgedly fine speaker. His reply to me was that sometimes he writes 12 drafts of a speech. So, my remarks here today, being extemporaneous, I am sure you will make allowances for me.

　　我并不擅於即席演说，事实上根本称不上是演说家，但我不会因此怯场，因为前几天我在海德公园参观过总统图书馆，在那里看见的一些东西鼓励了我，让我感觉各位或许不会对我的即席演说要求太多。各位知道我在那里见到什麽吗?我看到了许多，但最让我感兴趣的，莫过於一个放着总统先生(译按，即罗斯福总统)演说草稿的玻璃箱，里头从第一份草稿、第二份草稿，一直到第六份草稿。昨天，我碰巧向总统先生提及此事，我说我很高兴知道，以他如此知名又公认一流的演说家，还必须写这麽多份草稿。他回答说，有时他一次演说得写12份草稿。因此，今天本人在此发表的.即席演说，我确信各位一定会包容。

　　The traditional friendship between your country and mine has a history of 160 years. I feel--and I believe that I am not the only one who feels this way--that there are a great many similarities between your people and mine, and that these similarlties are the basis of our friendship.

　　贵国和敝国之间有着160年悠久历史的情谊，我觉得贵国人民和敝国百姓有许许多多的相似点，而这些相似点正是两国情谊的基础，我也相信不是只有我有这样的感觉。

　　I should like to tell you a little story which will illustrate this belief. When General Doolittle and his men went to bomb Tokyo, on their return some of your boys had to bail out in the interior of China. One of them later told me that he had to bail out of his ship. and that when he landed on Chinese soil and saw the populace running toward him, he just waved his arm and shouted the only Chinese word he knew,“Mei-kuo, Mei-kuo, which means "America. Literally translated from the Chinese it means“Beautiful country. This boy said that our people laughed and almost hugged him, and greeted him like a long lost brother. He further told me that he thought that he had come home when he saw our people; and that was the first time he had ever been to China.(Applause.)

　　在此，我想说个小故事，来说明此一信念。杜立德将军和部下一起去轰炸东京，回程时有些美国子弟兵不得不在中国内陆跳伞。其中一人後来告诉我，他被迫从飞机跳伞，踏上中国的土地时，看到当地居民跑向他，他就挥着手，喊出他会说的唯一一句中国话：「美国，美国」，也就是「美利坚」的意思，(掌声)美国在中国话的意思是「美丽的国家」。这个大男孩说，敝国人民听了都笑开来，拥抱他，像欢迎失散多年的兄弟一般。他还告诉我说，当他看到我们的人民，感觉他已经回到家;而那是他第一次来到中国。(掌声)

　　I came to your country as a little girl. I know your people. I have lived with them. I spent the formative years of my life amongst your people. I speak your language, not only the language of your hearts, but also your tongue. So coming here today I feel that I am also coming home.(Applause)

　　我来到贵国时是个小女孩，我熟悉贵国人民，我和他们一起生活过。我生命中成长的岁月是和贵国人民一起度过，我说你们的话，我想的和你们一样,说的也和你们一样。所以今天来到这里，我也感觉我好像回到家了。(掌声)

　　I believe, however, that it is not only I who am coming home, I feel that if the Chinese people could speak to you in your own tongue, or if you could understand our tongue, they would tell you that basically and fundamentally we are fighting for the same cause (great applause); that we have identity of ideals ; that the “four freedoms, which your President proclaimed to the world, resound throughout our vast land as the gong of freedom, the gong of freedom of the United Nations, and the death knell of the aggressors. (Applause.)

　　不过，我相信不只是我回到家，我觉得，如果中国人民会用你们的语言与你们说话，或是你们能了解我们的语言，他们会告诉你们，根本而言，我们都在为相同的理念奋战(如雷掌声);我们有一致的理想;亦即贵国总统向全世界揭示的「四个自由」，自由的钟声、联合国自由的钟声，和侵略者的丧钟响彻我国辽阔的土地。