331 pp. A screed against the dangers of unfettered capitalism, written from the perspective of a Christian socialist. William Shuler Harris wrote two other Christian-themed science fiction works (Sermons by the Devil in 1904 and Life in a Thousand Worlds in 1905), the latter of which includes an indictment of Martian civilization for its cruel class structure (The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction). Paul Krafft's steel-plate engravings evoke the style of political cartoons, and are ruthless in their depiction of greed and excess. Harris's dedication reads: "To the milions [sic] of honest toilers who are praying for liberty from the industrial bondage into which monopoly and competition have forced them, this book is dedicated." From the introduction: "The book makes a strong plea to free the millions of our wage earners from the enslavement into which abused liberty has forced them... It digs a path to the sunlight of emancipation and shows the human race a way out of the misery into which the slavelords of competition have whipped the masses."
