"

"They'll have had the International Tea Company and all sorts of people
cutting them up," I said. "And that dog's been on the pavement this six
years--can't sleep even there, poor dear, because of the motor-horns and
its shattered nerves."

"Movin' everywhere," said my uncle. "I expect you're right.... It's a
big time we're in, George. It's a big Progressive On-coming Imperial
Time. This Palestine business--the daring of it.... It's, it's a
Process, George. And we got our hands on it. Here we sit--with our hands
on it, George. Entrusted.

"It seems quiet to--night. But if we could see and hear." He waved his
cigar towards Leatherhead and London.

"There they are, millions, George. Jes' think of what they've been up to
to-day--those ten millions--each one doing his own particular job. You
can't grasp it. It's like old Whitman says--what is it he says? Well,
anyway it's like old Whitman. Fine chap, Whitman! Fine old chap! Queer,
you can't quote him. ... And these millions aren't anything. There's
the millions over seas, hundreds of millions, Chinese, M'rocco, Africa
generally, 'Merica.... Well, here we are, with power, with leisure,
picked out--because we've been energetic, because we've seized
opportunities, because we've made things hum when other people have
waited for them to hum. See? Here we are--with our hands on it. Big
people. Big growing people. In a sort of way,--Forces."

He paused. "It's wonderful, George," he said.

"Anglo-Saxon energy," I said softly to the night.

"That's it, George--energy. It's put things in our grip--threads, wires,
stretching out and out, George, from that little office of ours, out to
West Africa, out to Egypt, out to Inja, out east, west, north and south.
Running the world practically. Running it faster and faster. Creative.
There's that Palestine canal affair. Marvellous idee! Suppose we take
that up, suppose we let ourselves in for it, us and the others, and run
that water sluice from the Mediterranean into the Dead Sea Valley--think
of the difference it will make! All the desert blooming like a rose,
Jericho lost for ever, all the Holy Places under water.... Very likely
destroy Christianity."...

He mused for a space. "Cuttin' canals," murmured my uncle. "Making
tunnels.... New countries.... New centres.... Zzzz.... Finance.... Not
only Palestine.

"I wonder where we shall get before we done, George? We got a lot of big
things going. We got the investing public sound