Higgins' Moon

[Roger]

Higgins' Moon

S/2178(P/2030(34Tauri(2020)C)08)02

Rotational Period: 48.0 Days
Surface Area: 40,489,160 km2 (106.8% that of Earth's Moon)
Population: 2,000,000
Terraformed: 2251
Affiliation: Red Pact

Higgins' Moon is ruled by the Higgins family as it has been since its founding over three hundred years ago when the unnamed moon was acquired by the family.  Higgins' Moon is thus ruled by a hereditary monarchy although instead of terms of royalty, the head of the Higgins family is styled "magistrate".

Higgins' Moon itself is a very poor planet in two ways.  First, the moon itself is poor.  Although a fairly large satellite the soil of Higgins' Moon is poor.  Although arable enough to farm, the labor required when balanced against the average yield barely breaks even.  Especially with massive and vertile Harvest looming in the sky above, very few have chosen the hard life on the bleak moon.  Higgins' Moon also has no substantial deposits of ore, precious metals, or anything else of the sort at least in the quantity or availability as it can be found on other worlds.

However, perhaps what makes the soil poor for farming and the ground devoid of ores is what gives Higgins' Moon its one resource.  The dirt itself has unique minerals within it.  When formed into clay, chemically treated, and then fired into ceramic it becomes ten times as strong as steel at only half the weight.  Thus mud has developed as the moon's one and only industry in this niche market.

Second, the population of Higgins' Moon is poor as well.  Known as "mudders" the vast majority of those who work the pits are indentured servants or even outright slaves since the retreat of the Alliance (no other world has a higher ration of slave/indentured to freemen in the entire 'Verse).  Those few freemen among them aren't much better off and remain in a state of serfdom to the Higgins family.  Depending on the current magistrate the living conditions of the mudders can vary greatly.

Higgins' Moon remains dependent on its primary, Harvest, and naturally has been brought into the Red Pact as well.  The capital and main settlement is Canton.