In the savage state every family owns a shelter as good as the best， and sufficient for its coarser and simpler wants； but I think that I speak within bounds when I say that， though the birds of the air have their nests， and the foxes their holes， and the savages their wigwams， in modern civilized society not more than one half the families own a shelter.  In the large towns and cities， where civilization especially prevails， the number of those who own a shelter is a very small fraction of the whole.  The rest pay an annual tax for this outside garment of all， become indispensable summer and winter， which would buy a village of Indian wigwams， but now helps to keep them poor as long as they live.  I do not mean to insist here on the disadvantage of hiring compared with owning， but it is evident that the savage owns his shelter because it costs so little， while the civilized man hires his commonly because he cannot afford to own it； nor can he， in the long run， any better afford to hire.  But， answers one， by merely paying this tax， the poor civilized man secures an abode which is a palace compared with the savage's.  An annual rent of from twenty-five to a hundred dollars（these are the country rates） entitles him to the benefit of the improvements of centuries， spacious apartments， clean paint and paper， Rumford fire-place， back plastering， Venetian blinds， copper pump， spring lock， a commodious cellar， and many other things.  But how happens it that he who is said to enjoy these things is so commonly a poor civilized man， while the savage， who has them not，is rich as a savage？  If it is asserted that civilization is a real advance in the condition of man ―― and I think that it is， though only the wise improve their advantages ―― it must be shown that it has produced better dwellings without making them more costly； and the cost of a thing is the amount of what I will call life which is required to be exchanged for it， immediately or in the long run.  An average house in this neighborhood costs perhaps eight hundred dollars， and to lay up this sum will take from ten to fifteen years of the laborer's life， even if he is not encumbered with a family ――estimating the pecuniary value of every man's labor at one dollar a day， for if some receive more， others receive less； ―― so that he must have spent more than half his life commonly before his wigwam will be earned.  If we suppose him to pay a rent instead， this is but a doubtful choice of evils.  Would the savage have been wise to exchange his wigwam for a palace on these terms？

　　It may be guessed that I reduce almost the whole advantage of holding this superfluous property as a fund in store against the future， so far as the individual is concerned， mainly to the defraying of funeral expenses.  But perhaps a man is not required to bury himself.  Nevertheless this points to an important distinction between the civilized man and the savage； and， no doubt， they have designs on us for our benefit， in making the life of a civilized people an institution， in which the life of the individual is to a great extent absorbed， in order to preserve and perfect that of the race.  But I wish to show at what a sacrifice this advantage is at present obtained， and to suggest that we may possibly so live as to secure all the advantage without suffering any of the disadvantage. What mean ye by saying that the poor ye have always with you， or that the fathers have eaten sour grapes， and the children's teeth are set on edge？

　　"As I live， saith the Lord God， ye shall not have occasion any more to use this proverb in Israel.

　　"Behold all souls are mine； as the soul of the father， so also the soul of the son is mine： the soul that sinneth， it shall die."

　　在野蠻狀態中的每一家都有一座最好的好住所來滿足他們的粗陋而簡單的需要；可是，我想，我下面的話還是說得很有分寸的，我說，雖然天空中的飛鳥都有巢，狐貍都有穴，野蠻人都有尖屋，然而在摩登的文明社會中卻只有半數家庭是有房子的。在文明特別發達的大城市中，擁有房屋的人只是極小一部分。極大多數人若要身外有所蔭蔽，得每年付出一筆租金，在夏天冬天，蔭蔽是少不得的，可是這祖金，本已足夠他買下一個印第安人的尖屋的，現在卻害得他在世上活多久也就貧困多久了。這里，我并不是把租屋與擁有房屋之優劣拿出來做比較，然而很明顯的是，野蠻人擁有房屋是因為價格低，而文明人通常租房子住，卻是因為他財力夠不上擁有房屋。有人就答辯，可憐的文明人只要付了租金，就有了一個住所；和野蠻人的尖屋比較，這房屋豈不像皇官一樣？每年只要付租金二十五元至一百元，這是鄉區價格，他就得到了經過多少世紀改良才進步的寬敞房間，有清潔的油漆和墻紙、魯姆福壁爐、內涂泥灰的墻、百葉窗、銅質的抽水機、彈簧鎖、寬敞的地窖，還有許多別的東西。然而，這究竟是怎么一回事？享受著這一切的，通常總被稱為“可憐”的文明人，而沒有這一切的野蠻人，卻生活得野蠻人似的富足。假若說，文明乃是人的生活條件的一種真正改進，――我想這話是很對的，雖然只有智者才能改進他們的有利條件，――那未，它必然能證明，它不提高價錢就把更好的房屋建造起來；所謂物價，乃是用于交換物品的那一部分生命，或者立即付出，或者以后付出。這一地區的普通房屋也許要八百元一幢，為了節儉地儲蓄起這一筆數目的錢，恐怕要一個勞動者十年以至十五年的生命，還必須是沒有家累的才行；――這是以每一個人的勞動，每天值一元來計算的，若有人收入多一些，別的人收入就要少一些――這樣，他通常必須耗費他的大半輩子生命，才能賺得了他的一幢“尖屋”。假定他依舊是租房居住的，那他還只是在兩件壞事中作了一次可疑的選擇。野蠻人懂不懂得，在這樣的條件底下，用他的尖屋來換得一座皇宮呢？

　　也許有人猜想，擁有這樣的多余房屋，是為了未雨綢繆，防患于未然，我認為對個人而言，這樣做的好處不過是可以夠他償付他的喪葬費罷了。但是人也許是用不到安葬自己的。然而，這里面就指出了文明人和野蠻人中間的一個重要區別；有人給文明人的生活設計了一套制度，無疑是為了我們的好處，這套制度為了保存種族的生活，能使種族的生活更臻完美，卻大大犧牲了個人的生活。可是我希望指出，為了得到這好處，我們目前作出何等樣的犧牲，我還要建議，我們是可以不作出任何犧牲就得到很多好處的。

　　你說可憐的窮人經常和你在一起，父親吃了酸葡萄，孩子的牙齒也發酸，說這些話有什么意思呢？

　　“主那和華說，我指著我的永生起誓，你們在以色列中必不再有用這俗語的因由。”

　　“看啊，世人都是屬于我的，為父的怎樣屬我，為子的也照樣屬我，犯罪的他必死亡。”

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