ing here is merely compressed into the material of which the
walls are composed and as long as that remains light will shine from it.
The light in this room comes from the miniature sun you see in the
picture; that too will give forth radiance as long as the material holds
together. Our scientists were remarkable men; they not only made use of
the sun's rays in many different ways for the benefit of mankind, but
actually controlled the power of the sun itself insofar as it related to
the earth. They also restrained the atmosphere which surrounds the earth
and made the weather conditions to suit their own welfare. But these
things are so infinitely beyond the Apeman's comprehension, who feels
that he has almost reached the limit of human resources with his crude
little steam engines, that it would only be a waste of time and power to
try and explain them to you, besides being a considerable strain upon
your half-grown brain."

"This is certainly a wonderful painting," said I, looking about the room
with much admiration. "I have never seen anything to compare with it
before."

"There is nothing about it that is extraordinary," remarked Arletta, "it
is merely a little ornamentation of my own private apartment which I did
myself according to my own fancy. Any of our ordinary house decorators
could have done as well or better. All of our children were taught to
paint and they devoted considerable of their spare time to the art, but
the works of the real artists were placed upon exhibition in the
national galleries where everybody could see and enjoy their
magnificence."

"I observe an absence of jewelry about your person," mentioned I, "was
it not the custom of your people to wear jewels?"

"Do you think that to wear rings around your toes and suspended from
your nose is a sensible thing to do?" inquired Arletta.

"No, no; decidedly not," answered I, "such are the customs of the
barbarians only, but our civilized people wear rings around their
fingers and in their ears."

"Indeed, and wherein lies the difference?" asked she, good naturedly. It
then struck me rather forcibly that there was no difference and that it
was just as ridiculous to wear rings from the ears and around the
fingers as it was to have them suspended from the nose and about the
toes. "But were there no diamonds in your country?" questioned I.

"Yes," replied Arletta, "there was a large pile of them in the national
museum which we looked upon as old