第一部分第一章引言。
    近7年以前，一个简短而去世之前，他在1844年，约翰英镑犯了他的文学创作和印刷字符照顾两个朋友，副主教野兔和我自己。他对遗赠的估计远远唯我独尊;在可能的小总结，在这个世界上总的活动似乎更微不足道的少数人比那些过去庄严的日子，它确实给他。他烧毁了;发现很多不值得;正在调查死亡与永恒，对他自己在工作时间领域的一个勇敢的人遗憾的判决的无声大陆坚决不容易被过于宽松。但是，在精细，这里是他的一些工作，已经得到了世界上持有，哪些部分他不能燃烧。这也是，因为它并没有被废除，消灭，但必须在一段时间内仍然生活和行为，他希望被明智地解决，因为其余的都是。因此，这是给我们留下负责，幸存者，为它做什么，我们判断适者生存，如果确实没有这样做似乎没有给我们的优胜劣汰。此消息后，他去世的沟通，自然是神圣的一对黑尔先生和我。
    经过一番的协商，并在它的困难和参与，副主教野兔微妙因素的调查和我一致认为，整个任务，选择什么著作被重印，并制订了一个传向他们介绍，应由他单独和我的干扰没有完成： - 因此这是因为，[在一地一]肯定远远优于普通的每个编辑质量好，以及世界各地的影响明显地证明了友好的虔诚，敏锐和其他礼物和杰出，和蔼可亲的人的美德。
    ===
    PART I. CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTORY.
    Near seven years ago, a short while before his death in 1844, John Sterling committed the care of his literary Character and printed Writings to two friends, Archdeacon Hare and myself. His estimate of the bequest was far from overweening; to few men could the small sum-total of his activities in this world seem more inconsiderable than, in those last solemn days, it did to him. He had burnt much; found much unworthy; looking steadfastly into the silent continents of Death and Eternity, a brave man's judgments about his own sorry work in the field of Time are not apt to be too lenient. But, in fine, here was some portion of his work which the world had already got hold of, and which he could not burn. This too, since it was not to be abolished and annihilated, but must still for some time live and act, he wished to be wisely settled, as the rest had been. And so it was left in charge to us, the survivors, to do for it what we judged fittest, if indeed doing nothing did not seem the fittest to us. This message, communicated after his decease, was naturally a sacred one to Mr. Hare and me.
    After some consultation on it, and survey of the difficulties and delicate considerations involved in it, Archdeacon Hare and I agreed that the whole task, of selecting what Writings were to be reprinted, and of drawing up a Biography to introduce them, should be left to him alone; and done without interference of mine:--as accordingly it was,[1] in a manner surely far superior to the common, in every good quality of editing; and visibly everywhere bearing testimony to the friendliness, the piety, perspicacity and other gifts and virtues of that eminent and amiable man.