English Original
One spring day, four lawyers rode on horseback along a muddy country road to attend court in the next town. As they passed through a grove, they heard frantic fluttering overhead and feeble chirping from the wet grass.
"What's the matter?" asked the first lawyer, Mr. Speed.
"Just some robins," replied Mr. Hardin. "The storm blew two chicks from their nest. They're too young to fly, and the mother is distressed."
"What a pity! They'll die," said the third lawyer.
"They're only birds. Why bother?" said Mr. Hardin. Mr. Speed agreed.
The three men glanced at the struggling chicks and the anxious mother bird, then rode on, soon forgetting the scene.
But the fourth lawyer, Abraham Lincoln, stopped. He dismounted and gently gathered the chicks in his large, warm hands. They chirped softly, unafraid.
"Never mind, little fellows," said Lincoln. "I'll return you to your cozy bed."
He found the nest high above, out of reach. Remembering his childhood skill, he climbed the thorny tree and carefully placed each chick back into the warm nest with its siblings.
Ahead, the other lawyers stopped at a spring. "Where is Lincoln?" one asked.
"He probably stopped for those birds," Mr. Speed guessed.
Soon, Lincoln rejoined them, his shoes muddy and coat torn.
"Where have you been, Abraham?" asked Mr. Hardin.
"I stopped to return the birds to their mother," Lincoln answered.
"We always thought you were a hero. Now we know it," said Mr. Speed. The three laughed heartily, thinking it foolish for a strong man to trouble himself over "worthless" birds.
"Gentlemen," said Mr. Lincoln, "I could not have slept tonight if I had left those helpless robins to perish in the wet grass."
Abraham Lincoln later became a renowned lawyer, statesman, and President of the United States, remembered as one of America's greatest leaders.
中文翻译
一个春日，四位律师骑马沿着泥泞的乡间小路前往邻镇出庭。经过一片小树林时，他们听到头顶传来慌乱的振翅声，以及湿草丛中微弱的啁啾声。
“怎么回事？”第一位律师斯皮德先生问。
“不过是些知更鸟，”哈丁先生回答，“暴风雨把两只雏鸟吹出了鸟巢。它们还太小不会飞，鸟妈妈正着急呢。”
“真可怜！它们会死的，”第三位律师说。
“不过是鸟而已，何必费心？”哈丁先生说。斯皮德先生也表示赞同。
三人瞥了一眼在冰冷湿草中挣扎的雏鸟和焦急的母鸟，便继续前行，很快忘记了这一幕。
但第四位律师，亚伯拉罕·林肯，停了下来。他下马，用他温暖的大手轻轻捧起雏鸟。小鸟们轻声叫着，并不害怕。
“别担心，小家伙们，”林肯说，“我会把你们送回舒适的小床。”
他发现鸟巢高高在上，伸手不及。想起儿时的本领，他爬上多刺的树，小心翼翼地将每只雏鸟放回温暖的巢中，与它们的兄弟姐妹团聚。
前面，另外三位律师在一处泉水边停下。“林肯在哪？”一人问道。
“他很可能为那些鸟停下了，”斯皮德先生猜测。
不久，林肯赶了上来，鞋子沾满泥泞，外套也被荆棘划破。
“亚伯拉罕，你去哪儿了？”哈丁先生问。
“我停下来把小鸟还给了它们的母亲，”林肯回答。
“我们一直以为你是个英雄，现在确信无疑了，”斯皮德先生说。三人开怀大笑，认为一个强壮的男人为一些“毫无价值”的幼鸟如此费心实在愚蠢。
“先生们，”林肯先生说，“如果我任由那些无助的小知更鸟在湿草丛中死去，今晚我将无法安眠。”
亚伯拉罕·林肯后来成为著名的律师、政治家，并当选为美国总统，被铭记为美国最伟大的领袖之一。