原文：

There is only one wish realisable on the earth; only one thing that can be perfectly attained: Death. And from a variety of circumstances we have no one to tell us whether it be worth attaining.

A strange picture we make on our way to our chimaeras, ceaselessly marching, grudging ourselves the time for rest; indefatigable, adventurous pioneers. It is true that we shall never reach the goal; it is even more than probable that there is no such place; and if we lived for centuries and were endowed with the powers of a god, we should find ourselves not much nearer what we wanted at the end. O toiling hands of mortals! O unwearied feet, travelling ye know not whither! Soon, soon, it seems to you, you must come forth on some conspicuous hilltop, and but a little way further, against the setting sun, descry the spires of El Dorado. Little do ye know your own blessednes; for to travel hopefully is a better thing than to arrive, and the true success is to labour.

译文：

世上只有一种愿望可以实现，也仅有一种事物绝对能得到，那便是死亡。但因身处境地的不同，没人能告诉我们是否死得其所。我们不停向着梦想前进，不肯稍作休息，这形成了一幅奇异的画面：不知疲倦，勇于冒险的先锋。的确，我们永远不会达到目标，甚至目的地根本就不存在;即使活上几百年，被赋予神的力量，我们最终也不能接近目标多少。啊辛劳的双手! 啊，不知疲倦的双脚，一直不停地奔走，却不知要到何方。不久，你便会发现，你必须登上某些显著的山头，然而在不远处，在夕阳的照耀下，你会看到黄金国的尖顶。身处于幸福之中，你却没有觉察:旅行远比抵达要充满乐趣;真正的成功就在于奋斗。