The increase of the propertyless accrues from the natural increase of the population, and from the loss of the mortgaged properties [SN: CAUSES OF THE INCREASE OF THE PROPERTYLESS] by foreclosure of the mortgages in the 2d group, and from the immigration of the propertyless foreigners[48] without special means; while the people of the 3d group have sunk by thousands into debt from having mortgaged their properties; and only about a million families of the last two groups have been exceedingly prosperous, as we shall understand the situation later on. CHAPTER III. PROPERTIED AND PROPERTYLESS PEOPLE. The statistical authorities told us that “Less than half the families in the United States are propertyless,”[49] and we desire to know the chances for, and resources of, their living; and what it means to be a propertied person or to be a propertyless person upon earth. Let us see the clear distinction between the [SN: CONDITIONS OF LIFE OF THE PROPERTIED AND PROPERTYLESS.] state of a property owner and the state of a propertyless person; between the conditions of life of the former, and the conditions of life of the latter, and how both are affected by and related to these conditions. First of all an owner of property and a propertyless person, are, on an average, perfectly equal in that they have physical strength, and in that they have equal rights to use or to apply that strength somewhere [SN: EQUAL IN PHYSICAL STRENGTH.] upon the wealth of an owner of wealth. And here we meet the first difference between them: An owner of property has a chance to apply, and to spend his strength upon his own property; if, for instance, this property is land that gives him any kind of returns in exchange for his [SN: THE ONE HAS, THE OTHER HAS NO CHANCE.] labor and toil. The propertyless person has neither this chance nor this right to toil anywhere, unless he pays for the opportunity of using his strength, by dividing the results of his labor between himself and the owner of wealth who permits him to draw some income from the resources of his own property or wealth. So far, the advantage of the propertied person is such that he has twice as much right in his strength, and twice as much chance to profitably use his personal strength.