不亢不卑 - 古德明

不亢不卑 - 古德明

Whenayoungofficer,EnglishgeneralOglethorpe(1696-1785)wasinvitedtoadinneratwhichthePrinceofWurttembergwastheguest.Theprincetookupaglassofwine;and,byafillip,madesomeofitflyinOglethorpe'sface.TohavechallengedtheprinceoutrightmighthavefixedaquarrelsomecharacteruponOglethorpe,whiletohavetakennonoticeofitwouldhavebeenconsideredascowardice.Oglethorpe,therefore,keptsmiling,asifhetookinjestwhatHisHighnesshaddone,andsaid,"Prince,that'sagoodjoke;butwedoitmuchbetterinEngland,"andthrewawholeglassofwineintheprince'sface.Anoldsoldierwhosatbysaid,"Heisintheright,prince,youbeganit!"Theprincesawhiserrorand,shakingOglethorpebythehand,endedthewholethingingoodhumour.

英國將軍奧格爾索普(1695-1785)年輕時任軍官,曾應邀出席晚宴,宴會嘉賓是符騰堡公爵。公爵拿起一杯酒,用手指一彈,把酒彈到奧格爾索普臉上。奧格爾索普假如直率向公爵挑戰,可能被視為好勇鬥狠;假如若無其事,則會被視為懦怯。他於是保持微笑,似乎把公爵所為當作戲謔,說:「殿下,這玩笑很有趣,不過,我們英國人玩起來有趣得多。」他隨即把整杯酒向公爵臉上潑去。一名年老軍人坐在附近,說:「殿下,他做得對,是你挑起事端的。」公爵知道自己錯了,和奧格爾索普握手,和氣收場。
【附注】Fillip即「彈指」,可作動詞,例如:Hejokinglyfillipedmyear(他鬧着玩的用手指彈我耳朵)。符騰堡當時是西歐一公國,今為德國領土。