An old oak that has been growing where he stands since before the Reformation, taller than many spires, more stately than the greater part of mountains, and yet a living thing, liable to sicknesses and death, like you and me: is not that in itself a speaking lesson in history?

一棵老橡树，自宗教改革之前就生长在原地，高过许多尖塔，比大多数山峰更显庄严，却依然是一个像你我一样会生病、会死亡的生命：它本身不就是一堂生动的历史课吗？