the life of horatio lord nelson-第68章

按键盘上方向键 ← 或 → 可快速上下翻页，按键盘上的 Enter 键可回到本书目录页，按键盘上方向键 ↑ 可回到本页顶部！
————未阅读完？加入书签已便下次继续阅读！



There　was　reason　to　suppose；　from　the　appearances　upon　opening　the　body；　that　in　the　course　of　nature　he　might　have　attained；　like　his　father；　to　a　good　old　age。　Yet　he　cannot　be　said　to　have　fallen　prematurely　whose　work　was　done；　nor　ought　he　to　be　lamented　who　died　so　full　of　honours；　at　the　height　of　human　fame。　The　most　triumphant　death　is　that　of　the　martyr；　the　most　awful　that　of　the　martyred　patriot；　the　most　splendid　that　of　the　hero　in　the　hour　of　victory：　and　if　the　chariot　and　horses　of　fire　had　been　vouchsafed　for　Nelson's　translation；　he　could　scarcely　have　departed　in　a　brighter　blaze　of　glory。　He　has　left　us；　not　indeed　his　mantle　of　inspiration；　but　a　name　and　an　example　which　are　at　this　hour　inspiring　thousands　of　the　youth　of　England：　a　name　which　is　our　pride；　and　an　example　which　will　continue　to　be　our　shield　and　our　strength。　Thus　it　is　that　the　spirits　of　the　great　and　the　wise　continue　to　live　and　to　act　after　them；　verifying；　in　this　sense；　the　language　of　the　old　mythologist：





＇The　book　ends　with　two　lines　of　ancient　Greek　by　the　poet　Hesiod。　Their　meaning　is　approximately　that　of　the　final　lines　above。＇





End