“Now let us extend our comparison a little further. I have already remarked several times that, in our world, there is a _sharp, free, never-ending_ competition for the highest plane of perfection between individuals, between families and between communities. We settle all advancement by free competition, in which every one is invited a competitor, to stand on his or her own merits. Some of us have talents and aptitudes for one thing and some for another. We are by no means all inclined the same industrially. We are all endeavoring to push forward to the highest possible plane in our respective fields of aspirations. But, on the other hand, on account of so much extreme poverty, and wretchedness resulting from poverty, the people of earth have scarcely any other ambition than the accumulation of dollars and cents, in order, on the one hand, to occupy your best so-called social positions, and on the other to keep want and the fear of want from your door. We have learned that dollars and cents are easily gotten after other things have been adjusted harmoniously. We fundamentally seek for higher and nobler aspirations. After having obtained them the dollars and cents will easily come. We seek to learn how to co-operate most harmoniously; how to allow each individual the widest range of individual freedom; how to acquire the greatest and most useful information about the phenomenal universe; how to do our respective parts well, and how to build our happiness on the happiness of our fellow-man. Such are some of our aspirations, the field of which, no doubt, is so vast that it can never be completely explored by the power of human wisdom.” CHAPTER XV. OWNERSHIP OF LAND. “There is another fundamental question, Mr. Midith, that I have been wanting to ask you for some time,” said Mr. Uwins as we were ready the next evening to listen to Mr. Midith’s Marsian narrative, “and that question is the _ownership_ of _land_. I have thought and written quite extensively on that subject, but have thus far not been able to solve it to my entire satisfaction. We would undoubtedly be very much pleased to have you give us an account of the Marsian theory and practice of owning land. It is certainly a fundamental question, for, as you said, all wealth comes _from_ or _out_ of the land by the application of labor.” “That is very true,” said Mr. Midith; “it is one of the fundamental problems of economics, and, when once solved, it is apparently the simplest.