If it is asserted that civilization is a real advance in the condition of man -- and I think that it is, though in the condition of man -- ans I think that it is, though only the wise improve their advantages -- it must be shown that it has produced better dwellings without making them more costly; and the cost of a thing is the amount of what I will call life which is required to be exchanged for it, immediately or in the long run.

如果說(shuō)文明真的改善了人的條件，--我想也是，雖說(shuō)只有聰明的人才使他們的有利條件得到了改善--那么它必須向世人表明，它已造出了價(jià)格不高、房型更好的住所，所謂物價(jià)，指的是用以交換物品所需的那部分人生，或者現(xiàn)在，或者以后。

While civilization has been improving our houses, it has not equally improved the men who are to inhabit them. It has created palaces, but it was not so easy to create noblemen and kings.

雖然文明在不斷地改善著我們的住房，但它卻沒(méi)有同時(shí)改善住在房子里面的人。文明創(chuàng)造了宮殿，但卻不易創(chuàng)造貴族和國(guó)王。

The luxury of one class is counterbalanced by the indigence of another.

一個(gè)階級(jí)在享樂(lè)，另一個(gè)階級(jí)就必然在吃苦。

Most men appear never to have considered what a house is, and are actually though needlessly poor all their lives bacause they think that they must have such a one as their neighbors have.

大多數(shù)人似乎沒(méi)考慮過(guò)，一座房子該是什么樣子，他們本不貧困，但實(shí)際上卻是窮了一輩子，因?yàn)樗麄兝舷霌碛幸蛔従蛹乙粯拥姆孔印?/p>