（原文）
Reliance， South Dakots， U.S.A.，January 30th， 1912
Hon.Sun Yat Sen，President Republic of China，Nanking， China.
Dear Sir：
Since your recent accession to the presidency of the newly launched Chinese Republic， you have doubtless been the recipient of many letters， messages and verbal expressions of congratulation， but I anticipate I am reasonably safe from error in assuming that most of these expressions have come from officials of the various governments of the would and others occupying commanding public station， with but few at least from individuals of the“common herd” or “plebeian tribe” as the common people are sometimes dubbed here in America.
I trust you will not deem it presumptive or egotistical of me in responding to the impulse to write you a letter of congratulation， and express therein some candid opinions， which your scholarship， wisdom and statesmanship qualities and qualifications will enable you to determine the value or non-value of， without danger of under or overvaluation.Here in America， in the Republic of The United States， where every citizen is， in theory at least， a sovereign， the common man feels it his duty to know， and it is in fact his duty to know and understand the theory and philosophy of the affairs and function of government; and he feels， and in fact is privileged to freely express his opinions， which of course I know is no information to you， as you are fully cognizant of that.
Most heartily and sincerely I congratulate and honor you as the first president， and in that sense， the George Washington of China; and more especially do I congratulate the Millions of people of China upon their magnificent courage， patriotism and enterprise， as evidenced by their successful revolution against the continued authority and mis-government of the imbecile， grafting Manchu Dynasty， whose rule over its millions of subjects has been one of intolerable misrule， graft and spoliation.I congratulate the people of China further upon the establishment of a Republic， with a well-balanced， enlightened patriot， scholar and statesman as their first president， and in no doing， I am sure that I voice no more than the sentiment of the great mass of my fellow citizens of the Great American Republic.
I feel that the… of no person in the world will rejoice more than mine， if China shall … assume and maintain… confident he will， her… station… progressive nations of the earth.I am especially rejoiced to note the birth of another Republic to take her place as another Beacon Light among the enlightened， self-governing democracies of the earth.
Much as I prize my free-born American citizenship， and unaware as I am of any incentive that would induce me to change it， still I cannot wholly repel the wish that I might be temporarily a citizen of China， so that I might perhaps， directly or indirectly， be instrumental in assisting in the work of drafting and adoption of a Constitution—the fundamental law of the land—so framed in every detail of its structure and phraseology as to be and constitute a certain guarantee of a “Government by the people， of the people， and for the people”—retaining and fortifying every possible foot of vantage ground for the protection of the people of the present and succeeding generations in all of their natural privileges， immunities， prerogatives and inalienable rights， against the incursions of the special interests， which in China， as in America， will seek， through the instrumentality of all the subtle cunning and craft that human ingenuity can devise， to control the government for purposes of graft and public spoliation and the resultant concomitants of wealth， station and power.Human nature runs in substantially unvarying channels the world over.
I note with great interest and pleasure that in your declarations of public policy， you have given clear expression to the idea that the PEOPLE of China shall hereafter rule—that their will shall be the law of the land.If you and those associated with you in the formulation of a governmental fabric， shall be able to build sure and strong upon this everlasting rock of governmental theory and philosophy， leaving none of your civic ramparts vulnerable to successful attack by the enemies of popular government， then you will indeed have built wisely and well.May patriotic wisdom and Divine Inspiration guide you and those associated with you in this all important foundation work.
In the framing and adoption of a Constitution， you will doubtless have to contend against much the same influence as beset the fathers of The American Republic in their foundation work.Your knowledge of world history fully apprises you of what those influences were， as well as the motives that prompted them.In the struggle incident to the framing and adoption of our Constitution， Thomas Jefferson and those who stood by him in the… to establish a constitutional democracy， were compelled to concede much to the monarchical influences against which they were pitted—the same “tory” influences that had done all they could to hamper George Washington and his compatriots and prevent the Consummation of American independence.Thus the American Constitution， as finally drafted and adopted， fell far short of what it should have been as the fundamental law of a Constitutional Democracy， and though many amendments have since been adopted and another is now pending， it is still seriously defective as a fundamental law.I trust that you and your co-laborers may be able to overcome the enemies of popular government and profit by the mistakes of the builders of the American Constitution.
But whatever may be the defects or perfection of your Constitution， political parties will form， as here and else where in represontative governments， with opposing ideas of governmental policy， and the people of China must learn that “Eternal vigilance is the price of liberty”.The government will be in the hands of whatever political party happens to be for the time being in power.The special interests， never fighting honestly in the open， but always clandestinely， will seek， through all the cunning and craft and corrupting and overawing methods that human ingenuity can devise， to control the political parties， for only through control of the political party in power can the government be controlled， and only through control of the government can their propaganda of public graft and exploitation be successfully propagated.The special interests will never honestly admit their selfish aims， but will always hypocritically pretend that the policies advocated are in the interest of the people.The political platforms which they dictate for the parties they control， will be similar to Shakespeare's “Two Headed Janus” —looking in more direction than one， and susceptible of various constructions， and the candidates whose nominations are thus dictated， will be men willing and obligated to give the platforms the construction desired.Guard well the Judiciary.The special interest will spare no effort to make sure of its control.
I have written more than I intended when I began，but the theme is so pregnant with thought that it is difficult to execute a resolve to halt.
Long life， moral courage and Divine guidance to President Sun Yat Sen and his co-laborers， and may the Republic of China live and prosper forever， a free and independent Representative Democracy and nation of the earth， is the forever with and hope of，
Your… obedient servant，
Y.H.Smith
（译文）
美国南达科他州利来恩斯市，1912年1月30日
致尊敬的中华民国总统孙逸仙先生，中国南京。
尊敬的先生：
从您最近就任新成立的中华民国总统以来，无疑收到了许多来信、贺电和口头祝贺，但我认为，我的推断可能不会出错，多数表态都来自世界各国政府官员，或另一些处于重要公众领袖地位的人，但很少有人来自“芸芸众生”或“平民部落”，因为在美国，平民有时被冠以这样的称谓。
我相信您不会认为我冒昧给您写贺信的冲动是自以为是，并在信里表达一些直率的看法，您的学识、智慧和政治家素质与资格，将使您能够确定其值或不值，不用担心评价过高或过低。在美洲，在美利坚合众国，每个公民至少在理论上是一个主权者，普通人觉得自己有责任去了解，事实上他也有责任去了解和理解政府事务和职能的理论和哲学；他觉得，事实上他有特权自由地表达自己的意见，当然，我知道这对您而言不是什么新消息，因为您完全明了这一点。
我最衷心、最诚挚地祝贺您、敬仰您，作为首任总统，这一意义上您就是中国的乔治·华盛顿；我更特别要祝贺亿万中国人民的史无前例的勇气、爱国主义和进取精神，这表现在他们成功地进行了革命，反抗愚蠢的、贪污腐败的清王朝的长期威压和暴政，清王朝对其亿万臣民的统治是一种不可容忍的荒唐、贪污和掠夺。我进一步祝贺中国人民建立了共和国，并有了一个稳健、开明的爱国者、学者和政治家作为他们的首位总统，我确信，我所表达的不过是我伟大的美利坚共和国众多同胞的心声而已。
我觉得，如果中国能成为世界上进步的国家……我尤其欣喜注意到，另一个共和国诞生，取而代之成为地球上文明、自治民主国家中的另一盏明灯。
尽管我非常珍视我天赋自由的美国公民身份，我也不知有何动机会令我改变它，但我依然忍不住希望自己可以暂时成为一位中国公民，以便我能够直接或间接地协助起草和通过宪法——这块土地上的根本大法。它的结构和措辞的每一细节都如此规范，成为并构成了“民治、民有、民享”的确切保证，为“人民”保留和巩固一切可能的有利条件，保护民众今生后世的一切天赋权利、豁免权、特权和不可剥夺的权利，抵制特殊利益的侵犯。在中国与美国都同样如此，这些特殊利益会通过人类智商所能设计的一切巧妙手段和技巧来寻求控制政府，以达到其贪污掠夺大众以及由此而来的财富、地位和权力之目的。全世界的人性皆遵循此基本不变的逻辑。
我非常感兴趣和高兴地注意到，在您的公共政策宣言中，明确地表达了中国民众今后将统治国家的思想，即人民的意志将成为国家的根本法。如果您和您的同伴们在规划政府结构时，能够将此建构在恒久的政府理论和哲学的稳固基石上，不让公民壁垒处于人民政府之敌的攻击之下，这样你们的政府才真正明智而妥善地建立起来。愿爱国智慧和天赋灵感能在这一切重要的基础工作中给予您和同伴们引导。
在制定与采用宪法的过程中，您无疑将不得不与美利坚共和国的国父们所曾受到的类似影响作抗争。您对世界史的了解充分地告诉您这些影响是何物，以及背后之动机。在制定和通过我国宪法的较量中，托马斯·杰斐逊和那些支持他建立宪政民主的人，被迫对他们所反对的君主制的影响作出巨大让步，这种“托利党”的影响已经尽其所能地阻碍了乔治·华盛顿和他的同胞们，妨害了美国独立的实现。因而美国宪法最终的起草和通过，远远达不到它应有的高度。它作为宪政民主的根本法一直依然存在着严重的缺陷，虽然后来也通过了许多修正案，现在仍有一项修正案悬而未决。我相信，您和您的同伴们也许能够战胜人民政府的敌人，并反思美国宪法制定者的错误并从中获益。
无论你们的宪法有什么缺陷或完善之处，政党都会在政府政策上形成对立的观念，中国人民必须认识到“永远的警惕是自由的代价”，政府将掌握在任何一个暂时执政的政党手中，特别利益集团永远不会在公开场合诚实地战斗，而是永远秘密地寻求，通过人类的聪明才智所能设计的一切狡猾的、巧妙的、腐败的、过激的方法来控制政党，因为只有通过控制执政党，才能控制政府。只有通过控制政府，他们绑架公益、盘剥大众的宣传才能得以成功传播。特殊利益集团永远不会诚实地承认其自私目的，总会虚伪地装作所倡导的政策是为了大众利益。他们为所控制的政党所制定的政纲，将类似于莎士比亚的“双头雅努斯”——观察的方向不止一个，而且容易受到各种理论建构的影响，而被提名的候选人，将是情愿和有义务为其政纲提供所需理论建构的人。要保卫好司法系统，特殊利益集团将不遗余力地确保控制它。
我开始写信时并没想写这么长，但这个话题充满了思想，很难下决心停笔。
祝孙逸仙总统及其同伴健康长寿，获得道德勇气和神的指引。愿中华民国恒久长存、繁荣昌盛，愿一个自由独立的代议制民主国家和普世民族，希望永存。
Y.H.史密斯 敬上