"The entire history of Altruria as an independent republic belongs to the Transition Period in the progress of the world and in a larger, but not so well defined a sense it extends to the discovery of the continent, and even to an earlier period, distinguished by the breaking up of the ancient religious hierarchy and the introduction of a constantly increasing number of warring sects. These were the evolutionary forces developed under the operations of natural law, in strict accordance with the constitution of the human mind, which always tends towards the utmost possible development of the race, physically, mentally and morally. These forces in the early stages of human development, work so slowly, that even the best trained intellects do not discover their existence and hence have no power to intelligently co-operate with them, with a view to accelerating their own progress upward toward the highest possible planes of development. But, it was during the last fifty years of this Transition Period, that all these forces became more apparent to the careful historian, and it is these to which I have more particularly directed your attention. "Human selfishness on the lower planes of development constitutes the first step in the development of that higher selfhood, which is the predominating characteristic on the higher planes. During the last fifty years of the Transition Period, human selfishness, in the baser sense, was making its last struggle for existence as the controlling factor in human affairs. All classes of people were inspired to action by selfish interests, and these interests could not fail to clash. Out of this clashing between forces they ultimately learned that the best and highest interest of every individual could always be secured by carefully guarding the interest of every other individual. Out of this was evolved our present universal rule, which governs our relations towards each other, of 'each for all and all for each,' and hence all are equally secure in the exercise of every natural right and in the possession of absolute economic independence.