馬克．吐溫故事 - 古德明
When Mark Twain was editor of a small Missouri newspaper, he got a letter from a subscriber stating that he had found a spider in his paper, and asking if this was an omen of good or bad luck. Twain wrote: "Finding a spider in your paper is neither good luck nor bad. The spider was merely looking over our paper to see which merchant was not advertising so that he could go to that store, spin his web across the door, and lead a life of undisturbed peace ever afterward."
* * *
French novelist Paul Bourget once said, "Life can never become entirely dull to an American. When he has nothing else to do he can always spend a few years trying to discover who his grandfather was." Mark Twain replied, "Yes, but I reckon a Frenchman has his little standby for a dull time too; he can always amuse himself by trying to find out who his father was."
馬克．吐溫任密蘇里州一分小報編輯時，收到訂閱者一封信，說報紙藏了一隻蜘蛛，問是主凶還是主吉。吐溫回信說：「報紙裏找到蜘蛛，不主吉凶。那蜘蛛只是要讀讀本報，看那家商戶沒有登廣告，好去其門前結網，從此安安樂樂，不受打擾。」
* * *
法國小說家保羅．布爾熱曾說：「美國人不可能感覺生活枯燥。假如無所事事，他們大可以花幾年時間研究，看看找不找到祖父是誰。」馬克．吐溫回答說：「不錯，但依我看，法國人無聊時，也有辦法自娛，就是看看找不找到生父是誰。」
