afford it, and I propose to cast all sorts of American cant out of it in
answering your question. The economic status of the working-man among us
is essentially the same as that of the working-man all over the civilized
world. You will find plenty of people here, especially about election
time, to tell you differently, but they will not be telling you the truth,
though a great many of them think they are. In fact, I suppose most
Americans honestly believe because we have a republican form of
government, and manhood suffrage, and so on, that our economic conditions
are peculiar, and that our working-man has a status higher and better than
that of the working-man anywhere else. But he has nothing of the kind. His
circumstances are better, and provisionally his wages are higher, but it
is only a question of years or decades when his circumstances will be the
same and his wages the same as the European working-man's. There is
nothing in our conditions to prevent this."

"Yes, I understood from our friend here," said the Altrurian, nodding
toward me, "that you had broken only with the political tradition of
Europe in your Revolution; and he has explained to me that you do not hold
all kinds of labor in equal esteem; but--"

"What kind of labor did he say we did hold in esteem?" asked the banker.

"Why, I understood him to say that if America meant anything at all it
meant the honor of work, but that you distinguished and did not honor some
kinds of work so much as others; for instance, domestic service, or
personal attendance of any kind."

The banker laughed again. "Oh, he drew the line there, did he? Well, we
all have to draw the line somewhere. Our friend is a novelist, and I will
tell you in strict confidence that the line he has drawn is imaginary. We