安田在現場說的版本是:
Enter to grow in knowledge, depart to better serve the country and the kind. 入學是為了更好地增長知識,畢業是為了更好地回報祖國和人民。 這就是哈佛版的“為人民服務”。可惜,安田當時口誤了,最準確的版本是:
Enter to grow in wisdom. Depart to serve better thy country and thy kind. 當然,意思上是沒有差啦!
可是,這個正確的版本不在哈佛大學圖書館牆上銘刻著,那在哈佛校園裏的哪個位置呢?為什麽同樣被尊崇為校訓呢?我們來看相關英文背景介紹:
On the threshold of Harvard Yard and Massachusetts Avenue stands Dexter Gate, donated to the college in 1890. It cuts through Wigglesworth Hall, and anybody who lives in a river house walks through it at least once a day. But for all of its traffic, few students notice the carved inscriptions in the stone arch above the gate. The outside of the gate reads, “Enter to grow in wisdom,” while the inside bears the message, “Depart to serve better thy country and thy kind."
原來如此,“Enter to Grow in Wisdom”和“Depart to Serve Better Thy Country and Thy Kind” 是分別刻在Dexter門的內外門楣上,Dexter門是為了紀念1890年畢業生Samuel Dexter所建。有圖有真相: