我們很榮幸能迅速而明確地回答下面這封來信，并與此同時(shí)，為這位忠實(shí)的來信人成為《太陽報(bào)》的朋友而感到十分高興：

「親愛的編輯，我是個(gè)八歲大的小女孩。我的一些朋友說，這個(gè)世界上根本沒有圣誕老人。爸爸說：“你可以去問問《太陽報(bào)》，看看有沒有這回事?！蹦敲茨梢愿嬖V我嗎，這個(gè)世界上到底有沒有圣誕老人？」

Virginia，你的朋友說沒有圣誕老人，那是錯(cuò)的。他們對(duì)這個(gè)充斥著懷疑的時(shí)代投以同樣懷疑的目光。他們不會(huì)相信任何不是親眼所見的東西。他們覺得自己的小腦瓜能理解世界上的任何東西。Virginia啊，世界上所有的頭腦，無論大人孩子，都是那么的渺小。在浩渺的宇宙中，人類的智力不過一只螻蟻那樣細(xì)微，而那能夠掌握所有知識(shí)和真理的能力，就好比圍在這螻蟻之外的世界那般廣闊無垠。

是的，Virginia，世界上一定有圣誕老人。就像有愛、有同情心、有誠實(shí)一樣，圣誕老人也確確實(shí)實(shí)是有的。這些美好的東西生生不息，最大限度地讓你的生命充盈著美和愉悅。天哪！如果世界上沒有圣誕老人，那會(huì)多么可怕！你想想，那會(huì)和世界上沒有Virginia你這個(gè)可愛的小生命是一樣可怕的呢。那樣，那些孩子般的信仰將不復(fù)存在，詩意和浪漫也將不再有容身之所。我們能品味到的，大概只剩下眼睛能看到的、手能摸到的、身體能感覺到的東西了。并且，兒童時(shí)代充滿世界的光明，說不定也會(huì)全部消失了。

要是不相信有圣誕老人??！那也不要去信童話里的小精靈了。試試看，讓你的爸爸雇些人，讓他們?cè)谄桨惨沟臅r(shí)候守著每家每戶的每個(gè)煙囪，看能不能抓住圣誕老人。但就算你沒有看到圣誕老人從煙囪里下來，那又能證明什么呢？ 沒人見過圣誕老人，但那不代表世界上就沒有圣誕老人。無論你是大人還是孩子，世界上那些最本質(zhì)的東西都是肉眼看不到的。你見過小精靈在草地上起舞么？當(dāng)然沒見過，但不代表他們就不存在。誰也無法想象出那個(gè)看不見、也不可見的世界，有著怎樣壯美瑰麗的景象。

你能拆開孩子們玩的撥浪鼓，看看里面是什么東西讓它發(fā)聲的 。但是，眼睛看不見的、覆蓋著那個(gè)世界的大幕，即便是這個(gè)世界上最有力的人，或者是聚集所有的大力士，也揭不開。只有信念、詩意、愛和浪漫才能推開這重幕，向我們描繪、展示那無與倫比的美與壯麗。那樣美好、閃光的東西，難道是人們編的瞎話嗎？不，Virginia，這世上再?zèng)]有什么比這更為真實(shí)永恒了。

沒有圣誕老人？多么荒謬！感謝上天！他存在于這世界上，并且永遠(yuǎn)活著。即便是一千年以后，Virginia啊，哪怕從現(xiàn)在起的十個(gè)一萬年以后，他也會(huì)如現(xiàn)在一樣，永遠(yuǎn)為童心帶來歡愉。

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We take pleasure in answering at once and thus prominently the?communication below, expressing at the same time our great gratification?that its faithful author is numbered among the friends of THE SUN:

DEAR EDITOR: I am 8 years old.
Some of my little friends say there is no Santa Claus.
Papa says, ‘If you see it in THE SUN it’s so.’
Please tell me the truth; is there a Santa Claus?

VIRGINIA O’HANLON.
115 WEST NINETY-FIFTH STREET.

VIRGINIA, your little friends are wrong. They have been affected by the skepticism of a skeptical age. They do not believe except they see. They think that nothing can be which is not comprehensible by their little minds. All minds, Virginia, whether they be men’s or children’s, are little. In this great universe of ours man is a mere insect, an ant, in his intellect, as compared with the boundless world about him, as measured by the intelligence capable of grasping the whole of truth and knowledge.

Yes, VIRGINIA, there is a Santa Claus. He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist, and you know that they abound and give to your life its highest beauty and joy. Alas! how dreary would be the world if there were no Santa Claus. It would be as dreary as if there were no VIRGINIAS. There would be no childlike faith then, no poetry, no romance to make tolerable this existence. We should have no enjoyment, except in sense and sight. The eternal light with which childhood fills the world would be extinguished.

Not believe in Santa Claus! You might as well not believe in fairies! You might get your papa to hire men to watch in all the chimneys on Christmas Eve to catch Santa Claus, but even if they did not see Santa Claus coming down, what would that prove? Nobody sees Santa Claus, but that is no sign that there is no Santa Claus. The most real things in the world are those that neither children nor men can see. Did you ever see fairies dancing on the lawn? Of course not, but that’s no proof that they are not there. Nobody can conceive or imagine all the wonders there are unseen and unseeable in the world.

You may tear apart the baby’s rattle and see what makes the noise inside, but there is a veil covering the unseen world which not the strongest man, nor even the united strength of all the strongest men that ever lived, could tear apart. Only faith, fancy, poetry, love, romance, can push aside that curtain and view and picture the supernal beauty and glory beyond. Is it all real? Ah, VIRGINIA, in all this world there is nothing else real and abiding.

No Santa Claus! Thank God! he lives, and he lives forever. A thousand years from now, Virginia, nay, ten times ten thousand years from now, he will continue to make glad the heart of childhood.

《圣誕老人存在嗎？》是《太陽報(bào)》于1897年9月21日發(fā)表的一篇社評(píng)。

家住紐約曼哈頓上城西側(cè)，時(shí)年8歲的小女孩弗吉尼婭·歐漢倫（Virginia O'Hanlon）問父親：圣誕老人是否真的存在？父親告訴她：向《太陽報(bào)》寫信詢問，便會(huì)得知真相。于是弗吉尼婭寫了一封短信，寄給報(bào)社。

報(bào)社編輯弗朗西斯·徹奇（Francis Church）收到來信后，決定用報(bào)紙的社評(píng)來回復(fù)。他在美國(guó)南北戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)時(shí)期曾是一名戰(zhàn)地記者，目睹過很多血腥場(chǎng)面，并同時(shí)感到物質(zhì)條件改善的同時(shí)，人們正在失去希望和信仰。他希望利用回答這一孩子的簡(jiǎn)單提問之際，探討其更深層次的哲理。