華盛頓紀念塔內的漢字碑文(組圖)
核心提示：我十分感謝這份來自中國的禮物。它直探我們作為人的內心願望：擁有生命權、自由權和追求幸福的權利，也有不受國家干預的言論、異議、結社和信仰等自由。——節選自克林頓總統在北大的演講。
欽命福建巡撫部院大中丞徐繼畬所著《瀛環志略》曰，「按，華盛頓，異人也。起事勇於勝廣，割據雄於曹劉。既已提三尺劍，開疆萬里，乃不僭位號，不傳子孫，而創為推舉之法，幾於天下為公，駸駸乎三代之遺意。其治國崇讓善俗，不尚武功，亦迥與諸國異。余嘗見其畫像，氣貌雄毅絕倫。嗚呼！可不謂人傑矣哉。」「米利堅合眾國以為國，幅員萬里，不設王侯之號，不循世及之規，公器付之公論，創古今未有之局，一何奇也！泰西古今人物，能不以華盛頓為稱首哉！」
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克林頓：徐繼畬直探美國賴以立國的自由核心理念
從我在華盛頓特區所住的白宮往窗外眺望,我們首任總統喬治·華盛頓的紀念碑高聳入雲。這是一座很高的方尖碑，但就在這個大碑鄰近有塊小石碑，上面刻著：米利堅不設王侯之號，不循世及之規，公器付之公論，創古今未有之局，一何奇也。這些話並非出自美國人，而是由福建巡撫徐繼畬所寫，1853年中國政府將它勒石為碑作為禮物贈送給我國。
我十分感謝這份來自中國的禮物。它直探我們作為人的內心願望：擁有生命權、自由權和追求幸福的權利，也有不受國家干預的言論、異議、結社和信仰等自由。這些就是我們美國220年前賴以立國的核心理念。這些就是引導我們橫跨美洲大陸登上世界舞臺的理念。這些就是美國人今天仍然珍惜的理念。
From the windows of the White House, where I live in Washington, D.C., the monument to our first President, George Washington, dominates the skyline. It is a very tall obelisk. But very near this large monument there is a small stone which contains these words: The United States neither established titles of nobility and royalty, nor created a hereditary system. State affairs are put to the vote of public opinion. This created a new political situation, unprecedented from ancient times to the present. How wonderful it is. Those words were not written by an American. They were written by Xu Jiyu, governor of Fujian Province, inscribed as a gift from the government of China to our nation in 1853.
I am very grateful for that gift from China. It goes to the heart of who we are as a people the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, the freedom to debate, to dissent, to associate, to worship without interference from the state. These are the ideals that were at the core of our founding over 220 years ago. These are the ideas that led us across our continent and onto the world stage. These are the ideals that Americans cherish today.
——節選自克林頓總統在北大的演講。