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But this taught Lincoln an invaluable lesson. Never again did he write an insulting letter. Never again did he ridicule anyone.
但是，这件事情给了林肯一个极其珍贵的教训。从那以后，他再也没有写过侮辱人的信，再也没嘲弄过别人。
Time after time, during the Civil War, Lincoln put a new general at the head of the Army of the Potomac, and each one in turn blundered tragically and drove Lincoln to pacing the floor in despair. Half the nation savagely condemned these incompetent generals, but Lincoln, "with malice toward none, with charity for all," held his peace. One of his favorite quotations was "Judge not, that ye be not judged."
在南北战争期间，林肯一次一次地任命一些新的将领率领波托马克军团，而每次那些将军都会犯一些极其可悲的错误，使得林肯绝望地在办公室里踱来踱去。全国半数的人都愤怒地谴责这些不称职的将军，但是“对任何人都不怨恨，对所有人都慈悲为怀”的林肯仍然保持缄默。他有一句经常引用的话是：“不要给人妄下断语，免得遭人妄加评论。”
Yet if any man ever had occasion to criticize, surely it was Lincoln. Let's take just one illustration.
然而，假如真的有人有理由批评别人的话，那就是林肯。这里我们只需举一个例子。
The Battle of Gettysburg was fought during the first three days of July 1863. During the night of July 4, Lee began to retreat southward while storm clouds deluged the country with rain. When Lee reached the Potomac with his defeated army, he found a swollen, impassable river in front of him, and a victorious Union Army behind him. Lee was in a trap. He couldn't escape. Lincoln saw that. Here was a golden, heaven-sent opportunity to capture Lee's army and end the war immediately. So, with a surge of high hope, Lincoln ordered Meade to attack Lee immediately. Lincoln telegraphed his orders and then sent a special messenger to Meade demanding immediate action.
葛底斯堡战役是在1863年7月的头三天进行的。到了第四天的夜里，乌云密布，暴雨就要来临，李将军开始向南撤退。当李将军带着败兵到达波托马克河时，他发现眼前河水暴涨，渡河已不可能，而后面是得胜的联邦军队。李将军陷入绝境，他已无法逃脱。林肯看到了这一点。他知道这是抓住李将军的部队、一举结束战争的天赐良机。于是，他满怀希望，发电报给米德将军下令，同时还派遣特使前往要求立刻采取行动。
