iles are a useless nuisance," he said.

There fell a moment's silence.

Isabel gazed incredulously at George, colour slowly heightening upon her
cheeks and temples, while Fanny watched him with a quick eagerness, her
eyes alert and bright. But Eugene seemed merely quizzical, as if not
taking this brusquerie to himself. The Major was seriously disturbed.

"What did you say, George?" he asked, though George had spoken but too
distinctly.

"I said all automobiles were a nuisance," George answered, repeating not
only the words but the tone in which he had uttered them. And he added,
"They'll never amount to anything but a nuisance. They had no business
to be invented."

The Major frowned. "Of course you forget that Mr. Morgan makes them, and
also did his share in inventing them. If you weren't so thoughtless he
might think you rather offensive."

"That would be too bad," said George coolly. "I don't think I could
survive it."

Again there was a silence, while the Major stared at his grandson,
aghast. But Eugene began to laugh cheerfully.

"I'm not sure he's wrong about automobiles," he said. "With all their
speed forward they may be a step backward in civilization--that is, in
spiritual civilization. It may be that they will not add to the beauty
of the world, nor to the life of men's souls. I am not sure. But
automobiles have come, and they bring a greater change in our life than
most of us suspect. They are here, and almost all outward things are
going to be different because of what they bring. They are going to
alter war, and they are going to alter peace. I think men's minds are
going to be changed in subtle ways because of automobiles; just how,
though, I could hardly guess. But you can't have the immense outward
changes that they will cause without some inward ones, and it may be
that George is right, and that the spiritual alteration will be bad
for us. Perhaps, ten or twenty years from now, if we can see the inward
change in men by that time, I shouldn't be able to defend the gasoline
engine, but would have to agree with him that automobiles 'had no
business to be invented.'" He laughed good-naturedly, and looking at
his watch, apologized for having an engagement which made his departure
necessary when he would so much prefer to linger. Then he shook
hands with the Major, and bade Isabel, George, and Fanny a cheerful
good-night--a collective farewell cordially addressed to all three of
them together--and