I don't say at all times."
"And you don't believe that the rest of the world--England and
America--will ever be rum, too?"
"I don't see how they can. You see the poor are against it as well as the
rich. Everybody wants to have something of his own, and the trouble seems
to come from that. I don't suppose it was brought about in a day,
Altruria wasn't, ma'am?"
"No, it was whole centuries coming."
"That was what I understood from that Mr. Chrysostom--Cyril, he wants me
to call him, but I can't quite make up my mouth to it--who speaks
English, and says he has been in England. He was telling me about it, one
day when we were drying the dishes at the refectory together. He says
they used to have wars and trusts and trades-unions here in the old days,
just as we do now in civilized countries."
"And you don't consider Altruria civilized?"
"Well, not in just that sense of the word, ma'am. You wouldn't call
heaven civilized?"
"Well, not in just that sense of the word. Robert,"
"You see, it's rum here, because, though everything seems to go so right,
it's against human nature.
Pages:
320
321
322
323
324
325
326
327
328
329
330
331
332
333
334
335
336
337
338
339
340
341
342
343
344