words, a great deal of the best work done would be done in the
leisure time of men relieved from any anxiety as to their livelihood,
and eager to exercise their special talent, as all men, nay, all
animals are.

Now, again, this leisure would enable me to please myself and expand
my mind by travelling if I had a mind to it: because, say, for
instance, that I were a shoemaker; if due social order were
established, it by no means follows that I should always be obliged
to make shoes in one place; a due amount of easily conceivable
arrangement would enable me to make shoes in Rome, say, for three
months, and to come back with new ideas of building, gathered from
the sight of the works of past ages, amongst other things which would
perhaps be of service in London.

But now, in order that my leisure might not degenerate into idleness
and aimlessness, I must set up a claim for due work to do. Nothing
to my mind is more important than this demand, and I must ask your
leave to say something about it. I have mentioned that I should
probably use my leisure for doing a good deal of what is now called
work; but it is clear that if I am a member of a Socialist Community
I must do my due share of rougher work than this--my due share of
what my capacity enables me to do, that is; no fitting of me to a
Procrustean bed; but even that share of work necessary to the
existence of the simplest social life must, in the first place,
whatever else it is, be reasonable work; that is, it must be such
work as a good citizen can see the necessity for; as a member of the
community, I must have agreed to do it.

To take two strong instances of the contrary, I won't submit to be