The people lived in community, each colony so excellently organised that no one had ever known a single instance of any wrong being done. However, this state of things was soon to be altered, for Earthians are not yet fitted to associate with those of better life without the latter suffering. In theory, the better exercise such a splendid example for good that the less good immediately improve; but in practice, the only way to maintain the perfection of the good is to isolate them, in order that they may grow better and not worse, and then perhaps go to a still better world; which is the reason, maybe, why nature separated each world from its neighbour by instituting the laws of gravity and atmospheric pressure, and by placing between a chasm of unbreathable and unbridgable space. In conquering gravity, science and chemistry had bridged this gulf and the visits to Venus and other places had done no harm, because those particular visitors were not base, but had sought only good. In the present instance, however, the eight voyagers were very jealous-minded, and were disposed to go to great lengths to obtain the fruits of other men’s labours, hence their presence here, which was likely to prove a real calamity to the pure and honourable inhabitants of this planet, who knew no wrong,—and because they were far above the terrestrials in science, learning and morals, they were childlike in their innocence, their lives glowing with happiness and mirth; every one of them contented and jovial, taking everything that came with a smiling face; having clear consciences and knowing that everything _must_ work out for their good, they accepted each event with philosophy and good-humour, and in their own frankness they never for a moment even dreamed that their visitors could be in any way different, for were not all in the solar system closely related and under the ruling power of the same mighty Sun! They therefore trusted the strangers implicitly and, to use a well-known proverb, they wore their hearts on their sleeves, never imagining that there were such creatures as daws to peck them. Unfortunately for the natives, thought-transmission with the visitors could only be effected by very strong effort, or they would have known what manner of men they were entertaining, and the visitors’ minds not being so pure and refined as theirs could only grasp their thoughts with the utmost difficulty, failing altogether to do so as often as not. The strangers were a type of the successful business man of Earth, considering anything justifiable if gain resulted. Earth always favours such men, scorning those boneless creatures whose honour shrinks from causing another’s ruin, so these eight had always been regarded there as exceedingly smart and, bearing in mind Earth’s definition of a sound business man, they despised these clever, innocent people; before the sun set on their first day Holt said to Keeth, laughingly,—“What do you think of these folk here?”