Twyford, at the Bishop of St. Asaph s, 1771 DEAR SON,
I HAVE ever had pleasure in obtaining any little anecdotes of my ancestors. You may remember the inquiries I made among the remains of my relations when you were with me in England, and the journey I undertook for that purpose. Imagining it may be equally a-greeable to some of you to know the circumstances of my life, many of which you are yet unacquainted with, and expecting the enjoyment of a week s uninterrupted leisure in my present country retirement, I sit down to write them for you. To which I have besides some other inducements. Having emerged from the poverty and obscurity in which I was born and bred, to a state of affluence and some degree of reputation in the world, and having gone so far through life with a considerable share of felicity, the conducing means I made use of,
(1771年，写于都怀伏特镇，圣阿萨夫主教家)
亲爱的孩子：
我一直对收集祖上的各种奇闻轶事相当感兴趣，乐此不彼。我就曾经为了这个目的而四出旅行，你可能还记得，当我们在英国的时候，我就经常向我们家族中的老人们询问、调查有关这个方面的情况。我觉得，同样，你们中的一些人可能也很想知道我的生活情况(就好比 我渴望知道我的先人的生活一样)，因为这其中的很多事情你们是并不清楚的。正好，我现在有一个星期的休假时间，预计在这一个星期的乡村假期里是没有什么东西会来打扰我的。因而，我可以坐下来把我……
which with the blessing of God so well succeeded, my posterity may like to know, as they may find some of them suitable to their own situations, and therefore fit to be imitated.
That felicity, when I reflected on it, has induced me sometimes to say, that were it offered to my choice, I should have no objection to a repetition of the same life from its beginning, only asking the advantages authors have in a second edition to correct some faults of the first. So I might, besides correcting the faults, change some sinister accidents and events of it for others more favorable. But though this were denied, I should still accept the offer. Since such a repetition is not to be expected, the next thing most like living one s life over again seems to be a recollection of that life, and to make that recollection as durable as possible by putting it down in writing.Hereby, too, I shall indulge the inclination so natural in old men, to be talking of themselves and their own past actions; and I shall indulge it without being tiresome to others, who, through respect to age, might conceive themselves obliged to give me a hear-ing, since this may be read or not as any one pleases. And, lastly (I may as well confess it, since my denial of it will be believed by
的生活情况原原本本的告诉你。其实，写这些东西，我还有另外一个目的。我出身贫贱，后来才在这个世界上获得了财富和荣誉，为世人所称道。上帝保佑，我至今一帆风顺，万事如意。我的处世之道如此成功，我的后世子孙也许想知道它们，并且找到些和他们的境况相适应的立身之术，然后模仿它们。
当我回望、审视这种幸福的时候，我有时候禁不住会想，如果上帝再给我一次机会的话，我回毫不犹豫地重新度过我的此生，一切从头开始。我只要求像作家那样，在修订版本的时候可以改正初版的某些错误，把某些不幸的事情变得稍微顺利些。但是，要是我的这些要求都不被接受的话，我仍然愿意接受上帝的恩赐，按照我原来的样子重新活过一次。事实上既然这种重来是不可能的，那么最接近这种重演的好像只有回忆了。为了让这种回忆尽可能地保持久远，就只好把它用笔记下来了。
在这里我将顺着老年人常有的偏好，来谈谈他们自己，谈谈他们过去的所作所为。我这样做，将不会使那些尊敬老人的人感到厌烦，他
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