第27章 造橋者

阿棲河穿過安提阿城奔流入海，河上建造了一座橋，以便利這城市的兩部分之間的交通。 橋是用大石頭築成的，大石頭是馱在安提阿的騾子的背上從山里運來的。 石橋竣工時，一根石柱上用希臘文和阿拉姆文刻了一行字："此橋系國王安提阿二世所建"。 所有的老百姓都經由這座美好的石橋走到美麗的阿棲河對岸去。 一天晚上，有個被人們認為有點兒傻裡傻氣的青年，往下爬到那石柱上刻字的地方，用木炭把刻的字塗抹掉，然後在這上面寫道："這橋上的石頭是騾子從山里馱運來的。你們在橋上來來往往，就是跨在建橋者——也就是安提阿的騾子——的背上。" 老百姓讀了那青年寫下的話，有的哈哈大笑，有的大為驚異。有的說："啊，明白了，我們知道這是誰幹的。他不是有點兒傻裡傻氣嗎？"不過，有隻騾子一邊兒哈哈大笑一邊兒對另一隻騾子說道："你可記得我們確確實實馱運了這些石頭，然而直至今日一直說這石橋是國王安提阿建造的。"

Builders Of Bridges In Antioch where the river Assi goes to meet the sea, a bridge was built to bring one half of the city nearer to the other half. It was built of large stones carried down from among the hills, on the backs of the mules of Antioch. When the bridge was finished, upon a pillar thereof was engraved in Greek and in Aramaic, "This bridge was builded by King Antiochus II."

And all the people walked across the good bridge over the goodly river Assi. And upon an evening, a youth, deemed by some a little mad, descended to the pillar where the words were engraven, and he covered over the graving with charcoal, and above it wrote, "The stones of this bridge were brought down from the hills by the mules. In passing to and fro over it you are riding upon the backs of the mules of Antioch, builders of this bridge."

And when the people read what the youth had written, some of them laughed and some marvelled. And some said, "Ah yes, we know who has done this. Is he not a little mad?" But one mule said, laughing, to another mule, "Do you not remember that we did carry those stones? And yet until now it has been said that the bridge was builded by King Antiochus."