Mr. Henry Beecher entered Plymouth Church one Sunday and found several letters awaiting him. He opened one and found it contained the single word “Fool.” Quietly and with becoming seriousness he announced to the congregation the fact in these words:

　　“I have known many an instance of a man writing a letter and forgetting to sign his name, but this is the only instance I have ever known of a man signing his name and forgetting to write the letter.”

　　一个星期天，亨利·比切先生上普利茅斯的教堂去，在那里有他的几封信。他打开其中一封，发现信中只写着“傻瓜”两个字。他平静而认真地把这件事告诉教友们，他这样说：

　　“写信时忘了签名的人，我倒遇见过很多，但只签了名却忘了写信的人，我却是头一次遇到。”