名人家书:约翰奥哈拉致 女儿（威利奥哈拉）（3）中英文对照

　　princeton

　　1963，sunday

　　my dear：

　　you left this cheque on the table in the livingroom.you will recall that as soon as you asked foryour allowance，i went to my study and wrote outthe cheque and brought it in and gave it to you，because you were going to need it the next day innew york.

　　this cheque is for a larger amount than myentire allowance any year that i was in boarding school.in 1963 it represents approximately the royalty after taxes on the sale of nearly 1000books.it is almost twice as much as i earned as areporter on the herald tribune，and i supportedmyself on that salary.that is，i paid for all myroom，board，clothes，and fun on that salary.i hadno other income.i therefore take a rather dim viewof your casual attitude toward a cheque for ＄275.

　　this is，i suppose，your swinging year，and iwant you to have a good time.nevertheless i want you from time to time to give mature thought tocertain matters.every cent，every single cent，thatis spent on you，and that you spend，comes out ofmoney that i have earned by hard，hard work.notone single cent of your mother's or grandmother'smoney had been touched.your car，for instance，cost me as much money as i have，after taxes，fromthe sale of four new yorker stories.your year atbennett will have cost me as much as i netted，aftertaxes，on the sale of a family party.

　　as authors go，i am，as i told you，a rich man.but there are not many authors who make nearlyas much money as i do，and i do it because i amgood and because i work very hard.in the midst ofyour good time i want you to stop and think oncein a while about where the money comes from；notonly because it has come from my hard work，butbecause it is absolutely necessary for you yourselfto get some perspective on your own financialposition.when you have finished your educationyou are going to have to go to work，to earn asalary.i will be 59 in january，and it is just kiddingmyself to think that i can go on working this handand earning this kind of money，and i do not oftenkid myself.at 21 you will be coming into somemoney，but as i have often told you，it is not goingto be enough to make you miss richbitch or topermit you to live as miss richbitch.i am lettingyou have a good time now，because this is the timeto have it，when you are young.but i would bedoing you no favor if i failed to remind you of thehard realities.one of the hardest realities is moneyand the handling of it.another is the fact that untilyou marry，and possibly even after，you are goingto be a working-girl i am very fond of most of yourfriends，but you must not get into the habit oftaking for granted that i am as rich as some oftheir fathers.i'm not.i have earned as much in oneyear as you will inherit from your mother's estate.and you will only get the income from your grandmother's trust fund；the principal is held intrust for your children.

　　now，and during the months ahead，i want youto direct your thoughts toward your own future，the kind of work you want to do，the kind of manyou want to marry，the contributions you can maketo your marriage，and the future wellbeing of yourchildren.i assure you that if you do this you willenjoy yourself more than if you enjoy yourselfaimlessly.

　　love，

　　dad
 

　　亲爱的女儿：

　　你把这张支票忘在了起居室的桌子上。当你想要津贴的时候，你就会想起这张支票了。当时这张支票是我去书房填好后带来给你的，因为你第二天去纽约时需要它。

　　这张支票比我当年读寄宿学校时任何一年的全部津贴的数额都大。在1963年，它大约相当于卖掉近1000本书扣除税收后所能得到的版税。它几乎是我在《民权先驱报》当记者时所挣工资的两倍，而我当时就靠这份工资生活。也就是说，我用这份工资支付所有的衣食住行以及娱乐费用。我没有其他的收入。因此，你对这张价值275美元的支票的随意态度，使我深感失望。

　　我估计，今年是你生活中丰富多彩的一年，我希望你过得愉快。但不管怎样，我希望你能时常对某些事情深思熟虑地想一想。每一分钱，花在你身上的每一分钱以及你所花掉的每一分钱，都是我辛辛苦苦地工作挣来的。我没有动用过你母亲和你祖母留下的一分钱。比如说，你的小汽车，用掉了我出售四部关于纽约人的小说所得的所有税后收入。你在本内特一年将花掉我出售《一个家庭聚会》所得的所有税后纯收入。

　　如同我告诉你的，在作家中我是比较富有的。但并非许多作家都能挣到我这么多的钱，我之所以能做到这一切，是因为我有能力并且我勤奋工作。在你度过美好时光之时，我希望你能停下来想一想钱是从哪里来的。不仅仅因为它来自于我的勤奋工作，而且因为它对你自己建立独立的经济地位观是完全必要的。当你完成学业后，你将参加工作，将去挣工资。到一月份我就59岁了，要想我能继续如此勤奋工作，挣这么多的钱，简直是自欺欺人，我极少欺骗自己。你到21岁时，将能继承一笔钱，但正如我常常告诫你的，这笔钱并不足以使你成为富家小姐或过像富家小姐那样的生活。现在，我使你过着愉快的生活，因为你还小，正是享受快乐生活的时候。但是，如果我未能让你认识到这些严峻的现实，对你是没有任何好处的。在这些严竣的现实中，其中之一就是钱以及如何使用钱。另一个就是，在你结婚之前，甚至可能在结婚之后，你都得工作。对你多数的朋友，我都很喜欢，但你不能养成这样的习惯，想当然地以为我和他们中某些人的父亲一样富有。我并不富有。我一年所挣的钱与你将从你母亲的遗产中所能继承的钱一样多。而且，你只能得到你祖母的托管金的收入 部分，而本金是给你的子女的。