52 If you had only a few precious stones, would you add lumps of lead and clay to them in order to have more?”
53 “Surely no one would do that, sir,” I answered.
54 “Take another illustration,” he continued. “The earth herself will give you an answer if you humbly ask it
55 whether it produces more gold, silver, copper, iron, lead, or clay.
56 There is more silver than gold, more copper than silver, more iron than copper, more lead than iron, and more clay than lead.
57 So judge for yourself which are more desirable and valuable, common things or rare things.”
58 I answered, “Lord and master, the common things are cheap; it is the rare things that are valuable.”