The Bundle of Sticks

A certain man had several Sons who were always quarrelling with one another, and, try as he might, he could not get them to live together in harmony. So he determined to convince them of their folly by the following means. Bidding them fetch a bundle of sticks, he invited each in turn to break it across his knee. All tried and all failed: and then he undid the bundle, and handed them the sticks one by one, when they had no difficulty at all in breaking them.

有一个人有好几个儿子，他们总是彼此争吵不休，无论他怎么努力，都无法让他们和睦相处。于是他决定用下面的办法让他们明白自己的愚蠢。他让儿子们拿来一捆木棍，然后让他们一个接一个地用膝盖把整捆木棍折断。大家都试了，也都失败了；接着他把那捆木棍解开，把木棍一根一根地分给他们，这时他们毫不费力就把每一根都折断了。

"There, my boys," said he, "united you will be more than a match for your enemies: but if you quarrel and separate, your weakness will put you at the mercy of those who attack you."

“孩子们，你们看，”他说道，“团结起来，你们就足以战胜任何敌人；可要是你们争吵不休、彼此分离，你们的软弱就会让攻击你们的人任意摆布。”

Union is strength.

团结就是力量。