Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1890-10-11
1 observed; "Dus I can't remember noticing


my attention to a compile of persons near to US.
both dressed in the regulation gray trousers
and tunic.
How do you know they arc women" 1 asked
him.
why you see the metal numbers that every
body wears on their coliar?"
Yes, was Just thinking what number OF
policemen you had and wondering where the
other people were"
well the even numbers are women; the odd
numbers are the men,"
"How very SIMPLE" remarked. al suppose
after little practice you can tell ons sex from
the other almost at sancet"
'.Oh, yes" he replied. IF Won want to-"
! We walked on in silence for q while. And
then 1 said: why does everybody have q
NUMBER"
TO distinguish him by" answered my com.
Don't people have names. shen9"
| mo"
"Why?"
"Oh, there was 50 much inequality in names
Some people were called Montmorency, and
| they looked down on the Smiths and the
Smythes did not like mixing with the Joneses
so. to save further bother, it was decided to
abolish names altogether and to give every
body a number"
Did not the Montmorencies and the smy the,
object?'
Yes; but the Smiths and the Joneses were in
tho majority"
"And did not the ones and twos look down
upon the threes and tours, and SO on?"
'At first, yes; but, with the abolition OF
| wealth, numbers lost their value. except for
industrial purposes, and now No. 100 does not
| 1000, OOO"
had not washed when got up, there being
no convenlences for doing so in the museum,
and was beginning to feel somewhat hot and
dirty. l said: Can wash myself anywhere?''
He said: No; we are not allowed to wash
ourselves. You must wait until half past 4,
and then you will be washed for tea.''
| BE washedn' cried. "Who by?'
| 'The state"
( He said that they had found they could not
| maintain their equality when people were
| allowed to wash themselves. Some people
washed three or four times day, while others
| never touched soap and water from one year g
| end to the other, and in consequence there got
| to be two distinct classes, the clean and the
dirty. All the old class prejudices began to be
| revived. Tho clean despised the dirty and the
dirty hated tho clean. SO, to end dissension,
| the state decided to do the washing itself, and
zach citizen was now washed twice q day by
| acknowledgement officials, and private
| washing was prohibited.
1 noticed that passed no houses rs we
went along, only block after block of huge
| barrack-hke buildings, all OF the same size and
shape. Occasionally. at a corner. VIC came
across a smaller building labeled Museum"
Hospital" Debating Hail." Bath" GYM
nasium. Academy of Sciences, ""Exhibition Of
/ D
| never a house.
1 said: doesn't anybody live in this town."
| He said: You do ask SILLY questions; upon nv
| word. you do. Where do you think they live?''
said: That's just what I've been trying to
| think. don't see any houses anywhere ="
lie said I'VE dom, need houscs-not houses
such as You are thinking Of We are socialistic
| now; we live together Ill fraternity and equal
| ity. We 1.-Two in these blocks that you see.
| Each block accommodates one thousand citl-
,Nntn
| hundred In each room-and bath rooms and
| dressing rooms IN proportion dining hall and
| kitchens. At O'Clock every morning bell is
| run. and every one rises and tides up his bed
| At 7:30 they 60 into the dressing rooms and
are washed and shaved and have their hair
done. At o'clock breakfast is served in the
| dining hall 1t comprises a pint OF oatmeal
| porrIdge and half pint of warm milk for each
| adult citizen. We all strict vegetarians
| now. The vegetarian vote increased enor-
| mously during the last century. and their or
ganizatlon being very perfect, they have been
able to dictate every election for the past fifty
years. At O'Clock another bell is rung and
| the people return to dinner, which consists OF
beans and stewed fruits. with rolly-polly pud-
| ding twice week and plum duff on SATURDAYS
At 3 o'clock there is tea. and at 10 the lights are
| put out and everybody goes to bed. We are all
equal and we all live alike-clerk and scaven-
! ger, tinker and artist-all together, in frater-
| nifty and liberty. The men live in tho blocks
on this side of the town and the women are at
| the other end of the city"
Where are the married couples kept?" I
| asked.
"Oh, there are no married couples" he re-
piled. I'VE abolished marriage two hundred
| years ago. You see, married life did not work
! at all well with our system Domestic life we
| found. was thoroughly anti-socialistic in its
/ tendencies. Men thought more of their wives
and families than they did OF their state. They
wished to labor for the beneh. of their little
4 n ~ hall thart e., H.. 4
| of the community. They cared more for the
| future Of their children than about the DESTINY
| of humanity. The ties of love and blood
bound men together fast in little groups instead
OF one great whole. Before the advancement
| OF the human race, men thought of the advance
| ment OF their kith and kin Before the greatest
| happiness Of the great number. men strove for
| the happiness of the few who were near and
| dear to them. In secret men aud women
| boarded up and labored and denied themselves
so as in secret to give some little extra gift of
| Joy to their beloved. Love stirred the vice of
| ambition in mems hearts. To win the smiles
Of the women they loved. to leave a name be-
| hind them that their children might be proud
| to bear. men sought to raise themselves above
| the general level to do some deed that should
make the world look up to them and honor
| them above their fellOw-men, to press a deeper
| footprint than another's upon tile dusty high
! way Of the age. The fundamental principles O,
socialism were being daily thwarted and con-
| temned. Each house was a revolutionary GEN.
| ter for the propagation of individuaism and
personality. From the warmth of each do
| mestic hearth grew up the vipers Of independ-
ence, self-interest and clannlshness to sting the
state and poison the minds Of men.
Tho doctrines of equality were openly dis.
pnted. Men, when they loved women,
| thought her superior to every other woman,
and hardly took any pains to disguise their
opinion. Loving wives believed their husbands
to be wiser and Drawer and better than all
| other men. Mothers laughed Mt the idea OF
their children being in no way superior to other
| children. Children imbibed the hIdeous heresy
| that their father and mother were the bes,
| father and mother IN the world
| From whatever point you looked at ID the
| family stood forth our foe. One man had a
| charming wife and two sweet-tempered chill.
| dren; his neigh was married to a shrew and
was the father OF eleven noisy, il-disp ositioneu
brats-where was the equality?
again, wherever the family existed, there
lowered, ever contending. the angels Of ioy
and sorrow. and in a world where Joy end sor.
row are known equality cannot live One man
and woman, IN the night stand weeping beside
| a little bed. On the other side Of the lath and
plaster fair yourg couple, hand in hand
stand laughing at the silly antics of h grave.
faced, gurgling baby. What is poor equality
doing?
such things could not be allowed. All Love
we saw, was our envy at every turn. He made
suffering in his train. He disturbed mems be-
liefs and imperiled the destiny Of humanity
30 VIC abolished him and all his works
Vow, there are no marriages, and there
fore, no domestic troubles: no m aking Of love
and therefore, no iealousles and heart acbas