馬克-吐溫：勇氣 Courage
In the matter of courage we all have our limits. There never was a hero who did not have his bounds. I suppose it may be said of Nelson and all the others whose courage has been advertised that there came times in their lives when their bravery knew it had come to its limit.
I have found mine a good many times. Sometimes this was expected――often it was unexpected. I know a man who is not afraid to sleep with a rattle-snake, but you could not get him to sleep with a safety-razor.
I never had the courage to talk across a long, narrow room. I should be at the end of the room facing all the audience. If I attempt to talk across a room I find myself turning this way and that, and thus at alternate periods I have part of the audience behind me. You ought never to have any part of the audience behind you; you never can tell what they are going to do.
I'll sit down.
中文：
在勇氣問題上，人人都有極限。從來就沒有膽大包天的英雄好漢。我想，可以說，納爾遜和所有那些被大量宣傳的勇士，一生中都有勇氣達到極限的時候。
我就多次發現自己的勇氣到了極限。有時是意料之中的――經常是出乎意料的。我認識一個人．此君不怕與響尾蛇同寢，可你無法讓他與保安剃刀共眠。
我從來就沒有勇氣在狹長房間的中央發表講話。我得站在房間的一頭，面對全體聽眾。如果我試圖站在房間中央講話，我就會不斷地轉身，這樣，就不斷有部分聽眾在我背后。你們永遠不能讓自己背后有聽眾；你們永遠鬧不清他們要干什么。
我得坐下了。
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