“We will ride out on the ether-line to one of our schools,” remarked Paulus.  “You will be pleased with the children.”

“This is an improvement on electricity,” said their director, as seated in an elegant car, they were carried through the city without noise or jostle.  “This line is rather crude yet.  I was reading in the newspaper the other day that some very important improvements were shortly to be made.  You have noticed, ere this, our method of heating and lighting.  Don’t you think it is an advancement on the old way?”

“It certainly is, though we use some steam and considerable electricity yet in our country.”

“I suppose so—­but here we are.”

Although nothing in the city was cramped or crowded for room, the place where they now alighted was planned on an unusually large scale.  Immense buildings stood upon a large tract of land, planted with trees, grass, and flowers.  Here were breathing room and playground.  A number of streams of clear water flowed through the grounds, and small ponds were alive with fish and swimming birds.  Fountains played, and statues of marble gleamed through the foliage.

“See, what is that?” exclaimed Remand, as he caught sight of a huge, shaggy beast lying under a tree.

“Just a brown bear,” said Paulus.  “We have some lions and few of the rarest animals on these grounds—­but I am forgetting that these scenes must be strange to you.  In Poland you have not wholly shaken off the old world and its way.  It takes time of course.”

“Well,” replied Remand, “although the enmity between man and beast is nearly gone, we have not yet adopted bears and lions as pets for our children to play with.”

“Well, we have, you perceive.”

A bevy of children came dancing through the grounds.  Beautiful children they were, full of life and gladness.  They caught sight of bruin, stretched under the tree, and with a shout they stormed him.  The animal saw them coming, and extending himself at full length on the ground, seemed to enjoy the children’s tumbling over his shaggy sides.  When they patted him on the head and stroked his nose, he licked their hands.

“We haven’t reached quite that far,” remarked the king.

“Neither do we behold such sights,” added his companion, as he pointed to a tiger crouching on the grass, and gazing with no evil intention at a lamb quietly feeding by.

“You will in time,” said Paulus.  “The earth is being filled with the knowledge of God.  Hate, envy, and destruction are fast disappearing, and you see the natural results:  the wolf lying down with the lamb, and children playing with once savage beasts.  In this way, Satan is being bound, and the whole earth will soon be released from his power.”

They came to another group of children, gathered on the shore of a small lake, who were eagerly listening to a man in their midst.

“We will hear what the lesson is today,” said Paulus, and they went up to the group.  The instructor was holding up a flower which he had plucked from the margin of the water, and was illustrating some peculiarity of vegetable formation to the class.