Postscript: The Rate of the World's Progress Summary

A postscript is included. This is a letter from Edward Bellamy, the author, to the editor of the Boston Transcript. Bellamy states that the biggest complaint from a reviewer of his novel is not the strides that society might make in the future, but about how quickly those changes came about in the book. The reviewer thinks that at least seventy-five centuries would have been necessary to make this kind of progress.

In argument, Bellamy cites other rapid - and unpredicted - historical changes, such as the independence of America, the uniting of Germany and the elimination of the institution of slavery. Bellamy believes that the influences are at work in America to cause these changes if men would just decide to change. Knowing that society can change for the better...