2006-4-10李敖系列之32坐牢家爸爸给女儿的八十封信-第17章
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从凯撒身上，出来许多英文名句子，像：
1．to cross the Rubicon——孤注一掷；胜败一举；采取断然手段（the Rubicon是意大利中部的一条河）。
2．Veni，vidi，vici．（I came； I saw； I conquered．——“我来了，我看到了，我征服了。”（凯撒名言。）
3．Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's；and unto God the things that are God's．——“凯撒的东西还给凯撒，上帝的东西还给上帝。”（这是《马太福音》中记耶酥的话。凯撒不但是指Julius Caesar，也指一般的罗马皇帝。）
英文中七月July就是从凯撒名字Julius来的。七月有三十一天也是他的杰作。
凯撒打Egypt后，被埃及女皇Cleopatra迷住。凯撒被刺后，他的部下Antony又被Cleopatra迷住。所以法国哲学家Pascal说：如果Cleopatra的鼻子短一点，整个世界的脸蛋都变了。（If the nose of Cleopatra had been a little shorter the whole face of the world would have been changed。）
还有一个罗马将军叫Quintus Fabius Maximus Rullianus（？—290B。C。），他拖垮了罗马大号敌人汉尼拔（Hannibal）。
罗马对面有古国迦太基（Carthage），与罗马打了Punic Wars，前后扯扯拉拉，打了一一八年。Hannibal是Carthage的将军，他本领真大，他带了三十七条象，越过Pyrenees大山，Rhone大河，从Rome背后打进来。Rome没见过象，把象叫做“像一座房子那么大的”野兽，吓都吓昏了，哪里打得过。 幸亏Rome的Quintus Fabius Maximus Rullinnus将军用了不正面作战和坚壁清野（to fortify the defense works and to leave nothing usable to the invading enemy）的法子，才在最后打败Hannibal。
这种gradually，影响到两千年后的英国的费边社（Fabian Society），影响到英国工党。
费边社的人才，爸爸跟你谈过GBS（George Bernard Shaw，萧伯纳），现在再介绍两位。1．英国小说家：威尔斯（H．G．Wells），2．英国社会学家：碧特莱丝·韦伯夫人
（Beatrice Webb）。
罗马用的是拉丁（Latin）文。最早罗马人的土包子说他不懂希腊文（Greek）。英文成语It is Greek to me．意思是I can’t understand it。。罗马人后来什么都要Greek，最后干脆用起希腊文来，不喜欢用自己的拉丁文了。
希腊罗马因为文化混在一起，所以一般都说Greco…Roman，像Greco…Roman Civilization，Greco…Roman Wrestling等。
爸 爸 一九七五年十月十九日
波澜N多的波兰
亲爱的小文：
你弹过萧邦Frederic Francois Chopin（一八一○——一八四九）的作品吗？Chopin是波兰人。只活了三十九岁。Chopin played the piano in public when only eight years old。 He began to pose soon afterward。 He studied at the Warsaw Conservatory from 1826 to 1829 before leaving Poland in 1830。 He settled in Paris in 1831； and； except for some travel； he lived there the rest of his life。
波兰夹在德国俄国之间，老是被侵略、被瓜分、被瓜剖豆分（＇of a county＇ to be divided or split like a melon or a bean；to be partitioned）。
Chopin音乐激起波兰人的爱国心。
The poles also have an insatiable appetite for translations of Molière and Shaw and for their own 19th…century dramatists who wrote from exile； when their country was partitioned among three neighboring empires。
The plays； novels； and music of this period helped keep the Poles' sense of nationhood alive。 One poser； in particular； has stirred polish pride through the dark years； He； of course； is Chopin； whose birthplace at Zelazowa Wola； 28 miles west of Warsaw； is a national shrine。 here； every Sunday in the spring and summer； the public is invited to a Chopin concert。
波兰在一七七二、一七九三、一七九五、一九三九年前后被瓜分四次。一九一四年被瓜分了以后，地图上没有波兰了。一九四五年苏联（Russia/U。S。S。R。）分了波兰东边，却把德国东边补给波兰。所以波兰“失之东隅，收之桑榆”（to suffer a loss in one place but make a gain somewhere else）。
苏联这种作风，叫“慷他人之慨”（to show generosity or unselfishness by another's wealth；to be generous at the expense of others）。爸爸在四、六信中跟你谈过，英文叫Rob Peter to pay Paul（抢彼得赔保罗）。
波兰的首都是华沙（Warsaw），Warsaw； Warsaw； Warsaw可真saw了war。二次世界大战，华沙城全毁，人死了四分之一。
葛单斯克（Gdańsk）在德文叫但泽（Danzig），是造船中心，这个城和波兰走廊（Polish Corridor）过去都是世界大新闻，因为它们老是和德国扯不清。
POLISH CORRIDOR is a historic strip of land that was once the ancient polish province of Pomorze。 Poland lost the province to Prussia in 1772。 When Prussia bee a German state in 1871； the area fell into German control。
After World War I； the Versailles Treaty established the corridor of land to give Poland free access to the Baltic Sea。 The corridor separated East Prussia and the port city of Danzig from the rest of Germany。 In 1939； Germany regained control of the area when Nazi troops invaded Poland。 After World War II； the corridor was returned to Poland。
波兰成为天主教国家已一千年，Most Poles are Roman Catholics； and religion is important in their lives； Poland has been a Christian country for 1000 years。
波兰的瓷器很有名，瓷器又叫china，所以，可以说，Poland的china很有名。
小文你还记得爸爸跟你谈过的一种猪叫Poland China吗？Poland Chinas gain weight rapidly and make excellent meat hogs。 Farmers in Ohio developed the Poland China breed。
Kraków是波兰的文化城，以前是首都（Kraków is the traditional capital of polish culture）波兰天文学家哥白尼（Copernicus）就是在这个城里出头的。
Copernicus skillfully applied this new idea in his masterpiece； Concerning the Revolutions of the Celestial Spheres（1543）。 In this book； Copernicus demonstrated how the earth's motions could be used to explain the motions of other heavenly bodies。 His theory laid the foundations for the telescopic discoveries of Galileo； the planetary laws of Johannes Kepler； and the gravitation principle of Sir Isaac Newton。
Copernicus was born in the city of Thorn（now Toruń； Poland）； and attended the University of Kraków。
波兰人跑到外国成名的：
①在法国有居里夫人Marie Sklodowska Curie（1867——1934），Polish chemist and physicist in France； wife of Pierre Curie； Madame Curie。 她是做下女出身的，苦学成功。她是唯一一个人得过两次Noble Prize的科学家。她的大女儿Iréne后来也得了Nobel Prize；小女儿È；ve。 Her life of her mother； Madame Curie（1937）； had a great and immediate success； as did Among Warriors（1943）．
②在英国有康拉德Joseph Conrad（一八五七——一九二四）。
Joseph Conrad的爸爸和一个叔叔都因为反抗俄国，被俄国人抓去，死在牢里（exiled to Siberia）。他原跟他爸爸住在Cracow（就是Kraków），不到四岁时，爸爸被抓，他和妈妈也跟着到了俄国的Siberia（西伯利亚）——政治犯可以带家属在一起。
他八岁时，妈妈死，十一岁时，爸爸死，他流浪到欧洲，一直做水手。
他二十岁以前不会英文，后果却变成了英国大文学家。
他最有名的小说是《吉姆老爷》（Lord Jim）和《黑暗的心》（Heart of Dark）。家里都有。
③在美国有鲁宾斯坦Artur Rubinstein，爸爸跟你谈过的大钢琴家。
波兰最有名的文学家是显克维支Henryk Sienkiewicz（一八四六——一九一六），他用Rome的Nero做故事，写成了《暴君焚城录》（Quo Vadis，也叫《你往何处去》），这本书和前面居里夫人女儿给她妈妈写的那本Madame Curie，你都该看。家里都有。
爸 爸 一九七五年十月二十六日
登天梯
亲爱的小文：
； ； ； 你注意到警察局里消防车上的云梯（ladder）了吗？那种梯子升起来很高，可高出一百英尺。美国underworld slang把ladder叫做Jacob，你知道是谁吗？
Jacob was the son of Isaac； and the father of the 12 sons who founded the Twelve Tribes of Israel； according to the Old Testament。 He bought his older brother Esau's birthright with a bowl of savory stew（“mess of pottage”）。 Later； Jacob enforced his claim by pretending to his blind and aged father that he himself was Esau。 Thus； he obtained from Isaac the words of blessing Isaac had meant for Esau。 Esau was so angry that Jacob fled for his life。
On the way to his uncle Laban； Jacob slept at a place called Bethel； where he dreamed of a wonderful ladder between heaven and earth。 In the dream； God promised to protect and bless him while he was away from home。 Much encouraged； Jacob went on to Laban's home。 There he fell on love with Laban's daughter； Rachel。 But Laban forced Jacob to marry hid older daughter。 Leah； before he could have Rachel for his wife。 After working 20 years for Laban； Jacob left for home。
On the way； Jacob prayed all night until God reassured him that Esau would spare his life。 Esau met him with forgiveness； and they parted good friends。 Jacob spent his last years in Egypt； where his son Joseph brought him to live。
Esau was the son of Isaac and Rebecca； and twin brother of Jacob in the Bible。 He is a main character in many stories found in Genesis 25…33。 The best known are Jacob's cheating him out of his birthright for a“mess of pottage”（Gen。25：27…34）； and the loss of his blessing through the plotting of his mother and brother（Gen。27）。 Esau was reconciled to Jacob after the latter's return to Palestine 20 years later。
Biblical history regards Esau as the founder of the Edomite nation。
Jacob就是现在以色列（Israel）人的老老老老老老老老老老……老祖宗。
Mess of pottage就是“因小失大”、“得不偿失”、“划不来”的意思。
A Jacob's ladder is a ladder made of rope or cable； usually with wooden rungs。 It is dropped over the side of a ship to enable people to ascend from or descend to small boats alongside。 Harbor pilots usually e aboard via a Jacob's ladder。
The Jacob's ladder gets its name from an incident in the Book of Genesis（28：12）。 The patriarch Jacob falls asleep and the a vision：“And he dreamed； and behold a ladder set up on the earth； and he top of it reached to heaven；and behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it。”
Jacob's ladder has been used in at least two other quite earthly meanings。 A small plant with a flower…and…leaf formation resembling a ladder bears this name。 In England； also what we Americans call“runs”in hosiery were formerly called Jacob's ladders。 Nowadays they are simply ladders。
Jacob's ladder可以登天，所以美国黑社会的thieves' Latin（盗贼的隐语，切口）就把梯子叫Jacob。
植物里头花葱属（polemoniums）中的一种就叫Jacob's ladder，因为它们有ladderlike leaves。
爸 爸 一九七五年十一月一日
