弗朗西斯·培根/Francis Bacon
A man that is young in years,may be old in hours,if he have lost n o time.But that happened rarely.Generally,youth is like the first cog itations,not so wise as the second.For there is a youth in thoughts,as well as in ages.
And yet the invention of young men,is more lively than that of old;and imaginations stream into their minds better,and,as it were,more d ivinely.Natures that have much heat,and great and violent desires and perturbations,are not ripe for action,till they have passed the meridi an of their years;as it was with Julius Caesar and Septimius Severus...
Young men are fitter to invent,than to judge;fitter for execution,than for counsel;and fitter for new projects,than for settled business.For the experience of age,in things that fall within the compass of i t,directeth them;but in new things,abuseth them.
The errors of young men,are the ruin of business;but the errors of aged men,amount but to this,that more might have been done,or sooner.Young men,in the conduct and manage of actions,embrace more than they can hold;stir more than they can quiet;fly to the end,without conside ration of the means and degrees;pursue some few principles,which they have chanced upon absurdly care not to innovate,which draws unknown inc onveniences;use extreme remedies at first;and,that which doubleth all errors,will not acknowledge or retract them;like an unready horse,tha t will neither stop nor turn.Men of age object too much,consult too lo ng,adventure too little,repent too soon,and seldom drive business hom e to the full period,but content themselves with a mediocrity of succes s.Certainly it is good to compound employments of both;for that will b e good for the present,because the virtues of either age,may correct t he defects of both;and good for succession,that young men may be learn ers,while men in age are actors;and,lastly,good for extern accidents,because authority followeth old men,and favor and popularity,youth.But for the moral part,perhaps youth will have the pre-eminence,as age hath for the politic.
一個人假使不曾虛度生活，年歲不大也可以表現得成熟老練，隻不過這種情況少有發生罷了。深思未必出自風霜，歲月同樣可見年輕，可一般的青年畢竟謀劃不過長輩，智慧也不及他們少年老成的同齡人。
但青年的創造性是更為豐富的，想象力也如湧泉一樣奔放靈活，這似乎更得益於神助。天性剛烈、心懷熱望、情緒敏感的人不曆經中年，行事總是青澀，經撒和塞維拉斯即為例證。
青年擅長創造卻缺乏判斷，擅長行動卻缺乏商討，擅長革新卻缺乏對經驗的借鑒。日積月累的經驗可以引導他們掌握舊事物，但也會遮蓋他們看見新事物的視線。
青年人犯錯往往毀壞大局，而老年人的錯則是邁步太小或行動太緩。無論謀事還是操行，青年都騖遠喜功，基調高，動幅大，好走極端，他們藐視前例，目空一切，革新的勇氣綽綽有餘，而欠方式和分寸上的考慮，結果反而招致意外的麻煩。他們有如不羈的野馬，行事極端而不自知自救，一旦開蹄犯錯，就瀉至千裏，不可複回。老年人呢？他們顧忌太多，議論過長，寧求安穩，不願冒險，總是滿足於平平成績而不向往極致的輝煌。毫無疑問，最好是將兩者特點結合。就現在來說，青年和老年可以互相取長補短。就發展來說，老年人是主事者，而青年可以學習取經。最後就社會來說，老年人以權威之姿指引方向，青年人則能振奮民心、鼓舞士氣。但如果從政治上講，老人的閱曆是珍貴的，那麽，青年人的純真則在人性中熠熠閃光。