Mme Chiang\'s Speech at the Senate (Feb 18, 1943)

Address to The U.S. Senate

by Madame Chiang Kai-Shek

宋美齡1943年在美國參議院的演講

 

【The committee appointed by Vice president, preceded by the Secretary of the Senate Edwin A. Halsey), and the Sergeant at Arms Wall Doxey, and consisting of Mr. Barkley, Mr. McNary, Mr. Connally, Mr. Capper, And Mrs. Caraway, entered the Chamber at the main door and escorted Mme. Chiang Kai-shek to a seat at the desk immediately in front of the Vice Presidnt.

 

(Mme. Chiang Kai-shek was greeted with prolonged applause, Senators and guests of the Senate rising.)

 

The VICE PRESIDENT. Senators, distinguished guests, Mme. Chiang Kai-shek, wife of    the Generalissimo of the armies of China, will now address you.】

 

[Applause]

 

ADDRESS BY MME. CHIANG KAI-SHEK

 

Mr. President, Members of the Senate of the United States, ladies and gentlemen, I am overwhelmed by the warmth and spontaneity of the welcome of the American people, of whom you are the representatives. I did not know that I was to speak to you today at the Senate except to say, “How do you do? I am so very glad to see you,” and to bring the greetings to my people to the people of America. However, just before coming here, the Vice President told me that he would like to have me say a few words to you.

 

I am not a very good extemporaneous speaker; in fact, I am no speaker at all; but I am not so very much discouraged, because a few days ago I was at Hyde Park, and went to the President’s library. Something I saw there encouraged me, and made me feel that perhaps you will not expect overmuch of me in speaking to you extemporaneously. What do you think I saw there? I saw many things. But the one thing which interested me most of all was that in a glass case there was the first draft of tone of the President’s speeches, a second draft, and on and on up to the sixth draft. Yesterday I happened to mention this fact to the President, and told him that I was extremely glad that he had to write so many drafts when he is such a well-known and acknowledgedly fine speaker. His reply to me was that sometimes he writes 12 drafts of a speech. So, my remarks here today, being extemporaneous, I am sure you will make allowances for me.

 

The traditional friendship between your country and mine has a history of 160 years. I feel, and I believe that I am now the only one who feels this way, that there are a great many similarities between your people and mine, and that these similarities are the basis of our friendship.

 

I should like to tell you a little story which will illustrate this belief. When General Doolittle and his men went to bomb Tokyo, on their return some of your boys had to bail out in the interior of China. One of them later told me that he had to mail out of his ship. And that when he landed on Chinese soil and saw the populace running toward him, he just waved his arm and shouted the only Chinese word he knew, “Mei-kuo, Mei-kuo,” which means “America,” [Applause.] Literally translated from the Chinese it means “Beautiful country.” This boy said that our people laughed and almost hugged him, and greeted him like a long lost brother. He further told me that the thought that he had come home when he saw our people; and that was the first time he had ever been to China. [Applause.]

 

I came to your country as a little girl. I know your people. I have lived with them. I spent the formative years of my life amongst your people. I speak your language, not only the language of your hearts, but also your tongue. So coming here today I feel that I am also coming home. [Applause.]

 

I believe, however, that it is not only I who am coming home; I feel that if the Chinese people could speak to you in your own tongue, or if you could understand our tongue, they would tell you that basically and fundamentally we are fighting for the same cause [great applause]; that we have identity of ideals’ that the “four freedoms,” which your President proclaimed to the world, resound throughout our vast land as the gong of freedom, the gong of freedom of the United Nations, and the death knell of the aggressors. [Applause.]

 

I assure you that our people are willing and eager to cooperate with you in the realization of these ideals, because we want to see to it that they do not echo as empty phrases, but become realities for ourselves, for your children, for our children’s children, and for all mankind. [Applause.]

 

How are we going to realize these ideals? I think I shall tell you a little story which just came to my mind. As you know, China is a very old nation. We have a history of 5,000 years. When we were obliged to evacuate Hankow and go into the hinterland to carry on and continue our resistance against aggression, the Generalissimo and I passed one of our fronts, the Changsha front. One day we went in to the Heng-yang Mountains, where there are traces of a famous pavilion called “Rub-the-mirror” pavilion, which perhaps interest you to hear the story of that pavilion.

 

Two thousand years ago near that spot was an old Buddhist temple. One of the young monks went there , and all day long he sat cross-legged, with his hands clasped before him in and attitude of prayer, and murmured “Amita-Buddha! Amita-Buddha! Amita-Buddha!” He murmured and chanted day after day, because he hoped that he would acquire grace.

 

The Father Prior of that temple took a piece of brick and rubbed it against a stone hour after hour, day after day, and week after week. The little acolyte, being very young, sometimes cast his eyes around to see what the old Father Prior was doing. The old Father Prior just kept on this work of rubbing the brick against the stone. So one day the young acolyte said to him, “Father Prior, what are you doing day after day rubbing this brick of stone?” The Father Prior replied, “I am trying to make a mirror out of this brick.” The young acolyte said, “But it is impossible to make a mirror out of a brick, Father Prior.” “Yes,” said the Father Prior, “and it is just as impossible for you to acquire grace by doing nothing except murmur ‘Amita-Buddha’ all day long, day in and day out.” [Applause.]

 

So my friends, I feel that it is necessary for us not only to have ideals and to proclaim that we have them, it is necessary that we act to implement them. [Applause.] And so to you, gentlemen of the Senate, and to you ladies and gentleman in the galleries, I say that without the active help of all of us, our leaders cannot implement these ideals. It’s up to you and to me to take to heart the lesson of “Rub-the-Mirror” pavilion.

 

I thank you. [Great applause, Senators and their guests rising.]

Following her address, Mme. Chiang Kai-shek and the distinguished visitors accompanying her and the others guests of the Senate were escorted from the Chamber.

 

議長先生，美國參議院各位議員，各位女士、先生

       受到諸位所代表的美國人民熱情與真誠的歡迎，令我感動莫名。我事先不知今天要在參議員發表演說，隻以為要到此說聲“大家好，很高興見到各位”，並向貴國人民轉達敝國百姓的問候之意。不過，在來到此地之前，貴國副總統告訴我，他希望我和各位說幾句話。

       我並不善於即席演說，事實上根本稱不上是演說家，但我不會因此怯場，因為前幾天我在海德公園參觀過總統圖書館，在那裏看見一些東西鼓動了我，讓我感覺各位或許不會對我的即席演說要求太多。

       各位知道我在那裏見到什麽嗎？我看到了許多，但最讓我感興趣的，莫過於一個放著總統先生（即羅斯福總統）演說草稿的玻璃箱，裏頭從第一份草稿，第二份草稿，一直到第六份草稿。昨天，我碰巧向總統先生提及此事，我說倭很高興知道，以他如次知名又公認的演說家，還必須寫這麽多份草稿。他回答說，有時他一次演說得寫12份草稿。因此，今天本人在此發表的即席演說，我確信各位一定會包容。

       貴國和敝國之間有著160年悠久曆史的情誼，我覺得貴國人民和敝國百姓有許許多多的相似點，而這些相似點正是兩國情誼的基礎，我也相信並非隻有我有這樣的感覺。

       在此，我想說個小故事，來說明此一信念。

       杜利特爾將軍和部下一起去轟炸東京，回程時有些美國子弟兵不得不在中國內陸跳傘，其中一人後來告訴我，他被迫從飛機跳傘，踏上中國的土地時，看到當地居民跑向他，他就揮著手，喊出他會說的唯一中國話：“美國。美國”，也就是“美利堅”的意思，（掌聲）“美國”在中國話的意思是“美麗的國家”。這個大男孩說，敝國人民聽了都笑起來，擁抱他，像歡迎失散多年的兄弟一般。他還告訴我說，當他看到我們的人民，感覺他已經回到了家；而那是他第一次來到中國。（掌聲）

       我來到貴國時是個小女孩，我熟悉貴國人民，我和他們一起生活過。我生命中成長的歲月是和貴國人民一起度過的，我說你們的話，我想的和你們一樣，說的也和你們一樣。所以今天來到這裏，我也感覺我好像回到家了。（掌聲）

       不過，我相信不隻是我回到了家，我覺得，如果中國人民會用你們的語言與你們說話，或者你們能了解我們的語言，他們會告訴你們，根本而言，我們都在為相同的理念奮戰（如雷掌聲）；我們有一致的理想；亦即貴國總統向全世界揭示的“四個自由”：自由的鍾聲、聯合國自由的鍾聲，和侵略者的喪鍾響徹我國遼闊的土地。（掌聲）

       謹向各位保證，敝國人民深願亦渴望為實現這些理想和貴國合作，因為我們希望這些理想不會流於空言，而是成為我們的子子孫孫、全人類的真況實境。（掌聲）

       我們要如何實現這些理想？我想，我可以告訴各位一個我剛想到的小故事。各位知道，中國是一個非常古老的國家。我們有五千年曆史。我們被迫從漢口撤退，轉入大後方繼續抵抗侵略的時候，蔣委員長和我經過一處前線，就在長沙。有一天，我們上衡山，山上有一處有名的遺跡，叫“磨鏡台”，是兩千多年前的古跡。諸位或許有興趣聽聽這古跡的故事。

       兩千年前，台址近旁有一座古老的佛寺。一名年輕和尚來此修行，他整天盤腿坐禪，雙手合一，口中喃喃念著“阿彌陀佛！阿彌陀佛！阿彌陀佛！”他唱念佛號，日複一日，因為他希望成佛。

       寺裏的主持於是也跟著拿一塊磚去磨一塊石頭，時時刻刻地磨，一天又一天地磨，一周又一周地磨。小和尚有時抬眼瞧瞧老和尚在做什麽。主持隻是一個勁兒拿磚磨石。終於有一天，小和尚對主持說：“大師，您每天拿這塊磚磨石頭。到底為什麽呢？”主持答道：“我要用這塊磚做鏡子。”小和尚說：“可磚塊是做不成鏡子的呀，大師。”“沒錯”主持說：“就像你成天光念阿彌陀佛，是成不了佛的。”（掌聲）

       因此，朋友們，我覺得，我們不但必須有理想，不但要昭告我們有理想，我們還必須以行動來落實理想。（掌聲）

       所以，我要對諸位參議員先生，以及旁聽席上的女士和先生們說，沒有我們大家的積極協助，我們的領袖無法落實這些理想。諸位和我都必須謹記“磨鏡台”的教訓。

       非常感謝大家。（全場起立，掌聲）