Previous to this destructive event, this valley was one of the most desirable spots on this portion of the planet. Sheltered as it is by the mountain, its mean temperature is considerably higher than that of other regions of the same latitude, and being thoroughly cultivated it produced certain grains, fruits and vegetables in unusual abundance. Nature, left to her own devices, has perpetuated some grains, fruits and vegetables, but the harvests are gathered by wild creatures, who, being undisturbed, have increased prodigiously. The air is vocal with the notes of many birds, some of gay, others of modest plumage, and trees and undergrowth are alive with small animals, whose chatterings are to you unfamiliar. Underlying the valley and the outlying region are coal fields, reservoirs of naphtha, and deposits of various kinds, exactly corresponding with those of our Planet, and in this mountain range are immense stores of gold, silver and other minerals. Elsewhere these minerals are mined or otherwise procured, but this locality will remain undisturbed for as long as occasional slight seismic disturbances occur or those ruins serve as reminders of the terrible catastrophe which destroyed Pētûs[a:][a:] Tylû. To the Entoans life is the chiefest consideration, and no inducement is strong enough to tempt them to risk losing it. Could our daring Earth men voyage between our Planet and Ento, how quickly would this solitude be overrun with a gold mad multitude. Come here, they some time may, but, heigh-ho, they will then care not at all for all the gold in the universe. Medium--Do the peoples of Ento and of other Planets consider gold and silver more precious than other metals? De L'Ester--We have visited many Planets peopled by humans, and wherever we have found them sufficiently evolved to be able to distinguish the qualities of things, we also have found gold and silver taking precedence of all other metals. The Ento name of gold is Vybo, which in your language might mean either glittering, shining or brilliant. On this Planet gold is almost the only currency, and you will have an opportunity for observing that it is coined in flat, oblong pieces of varying weights. On the largest coin is what may be termed the national emblem, a hand holding a full blown Rodel. On other pieces are characters or symbols denoting their values. The Ento name for silver is Rytz[a:], and as currency, it relatively holds about the same value as copper holds in the estimation of your nation. Indeed, with the Entoans, copper is little less valuable than silver, but for ornamentation and the finer uses they prefer gold and silver to any other metals.