“The human race, as a whole, is not yet like it, although the tendency is certainly that way and it would be rash to predict it never will be, but there are other and older races on earth, that you overlook. Consider our relatives the Bees; did you ever see a lazy bee or one that wanted more than a reasonable share of the common property?” “Yes,” said I, “it has become instinctive with them to work and their wants are likewise, only such as instinct dictates.” “Instincts,” he replied, “are only crystallizations of reason. They are habits become hereditary to such a degree that the person is liable to fall into them with little or no teaching. I know that the people of the human race pride themselves greatly on the assumed fact that they act from reason, while other animals act from instinct, but the fact is, that 99 out of every 100 good acts that human beings perform, are done through instinct or inherited disposition to do them, while only one is reasoned out. And your teachers appear to understand that your instincts alone are to be depended upon to produce good actions, since they always depreciate and throw suspicion on good acts not done from the “heart” that is, not done from instinct. They give little or no credit for such actions, and strive by cultivation of the emotions to substitute disinterested impulse or in other words instinct, for mere calculating reason. Now, we Lunarians have long since passed this stage. Lazy Lunarians are as impossible as lazy bees. To work is instinctive with us and so is consideration for the rights and dues of the rest, and as everyone can be relied on to obey his instincts, it is not necessary to watch any one to keep him from plundering the public or shirking out of his duties.” “There have often been socialistic communities with us,” said I, “that have endeavored to live on the principles you speak of. But their lives have been of the most monotonous dead level sort. There is no chance for individuality or for the development or exercise of the superior talents, which some are certain to possess in a higher degree than others. They are merely little despotisms and endure only while their leaders are people of exceptional ability. We do not regard such a state of society as desirable even if it could be made permanent.