1817年3月4日，星期二
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I should be destitute of feeling if I was not deeply affected by the strong proof which my fellow－citizens have given me of their confidence in calling me to the high office whose functions I am about to assume．As the expression of their good opinion of my conduct in the public service，I derive from it a gratification which those who are conscious of having done all that they could to merit it can alone feel．My sensibility is increased by a just estimate of the importance of the trust and of the nature and extent of its duties，with the proper discharge of which the highest interests of a great and free people are intimately connected．Conscious of my own deficiency，I cannot enter on these duties without great anxiety for the result．From a just responsibility I will never shrink，calculating with confidence that in my best efforts to promote the public welfare my motives will always be duly appreciated and my conduct be viewed with that candor and indulgence which I have experienced in other stations．
同胞们满怀信心地召唤我出任这一重要职务，令我十分感动，不然我就是一个缺乏感情的人。这表明同胞们甚为赞许我的公职行为，我对此感到心满意足，而惟有竭尽全力做了值得夸奖的工作的人，才能有这种感受。我能正确估计到这一职务的重要性以及承担这一义务的性质和范围，所以我对于正确地履行同我们这一伟大自由民族的崇高利益密切相连的义务的感受也随之而增加。由于意识到自己的不足，所以在开始履行这些义务时，我无法不对将来的结果表示极大的忧虑。对应尽的责任我决不会裹足不前，我颇有信心地认为。只要我尽力促进公共福利，人们就始终会恰当地评价我的动机，而且会以公正和爱护的眼光来看待我的行为，就像我在其他职位上已经经历过的那样。
In commencing the duties of the chief executive office it has been the practice of the distinguished men who have gone before me to explain the principles which would govern them in their respective Administrations．In following their venerated example my attention is naturally drawn to the great causes which have contributed in a principal degree to produce the present happy condition of the United States．They will best explain the nature of our duties and shed much light on the policy which ought to be pursued in future．
历任杰出总统在开始履行职责前有一个惯例，即明确阐述各自执政的指导原则。在仿效这些令人尊敬的榜样时，我自然把注意力集中于目前给合众国带来高度幸褔的那些主要原因。这些原因将能充分说明我们职责的性质，并且阐明我们将来必须推行的政策。
From the commencement of our Revolution to the present day almost forty years have elapsed，and from the establishment of this Constitution twenty－eight．Through this whole term the Government has been what may emphatically be called self－government．And what has been the effect？To whatever object we turn our attention，whether it relates to our foreign or domestic concerns，we find abundant cause to felicitate ourselves in the excellence of our institutions．During a period fraught with difficulties and marked by very extraordinary events the United States have flourished beyond example．Their citizens individually have been happy and the nation prosperous．
从独立革命至今几乎已过去40个春秋，而宪法的制定也已有28载。在此时期，我们的政府一直被强调为自治政府。其结果如何呢？无论我们将目光转向何处，不论是涉及到国外问题还是国内问题，我们都有足够的理由庆幸我们拥有优越的制度。在充满艰辛和非凡事件的岁月里，我们的合众国还是取得了空前的繁荣，公民们个个幸福欢乐，国家昌盛发达。
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It is particularly gratifying to me to enter on the discharge of these duties at a time when the United States are blessed with peace．It is a state most consistent with their prosperity and happiness．It will be my sincere desire to preserve it，so far as depends on the Executive，on just principles with all nations，claiming nothing unreasonable of any and rendering to each what is due．
使我特别感到满意的是，我是在合众国深受和平之惠时开始履行这些职责的。合众国的繁荣和幸福最需要和平。我衷心希望维持和平，依靠政府的努力，以公正的原则与各国交往，不提任何不合理的要求，并对各国履行应尽的义务。