ring in much the way that the lines of
the building were inspiring. There were no pictures and no mirrors. All
the furniture was made in straight lines, of metal, and somewhat
futuristic in design. The chairs, however, were deep and comfortable,
although the yielding upholstery appeared at first sight hard and
brittle as metal sheets. The room was perfectly bare, and the color
scheme a dull silver and black. To me it seemed extremely somber, but it
pleased Edvar and his companion.

The first thing I noted when we sat down was the absence of any small
articles--books or papers or lamps--and I remarked on this, somewhat
rudely perhaps, to Edvar.

"Whatever you wish is accessible," he explained with a smile. He rose
and went to the draped wall. Drawing back the folds of the curtains in
several places, he showed the metal wall covered with dials and
apparatus. I noted especially a small screen, like a motion picture
screen. Later I was to find that it served not only for amusement,
showing sound-pictures projected automatically from a central office,
but also for news and for communication, like a telephone.

"Would you care for breakfast?" Edvar asked me. I accepted eagerly, and
he manipulated some dials on the wall. A moment or two later a small
section of the wall opened, and a tray appeared. Edvar placed it on the
table by my chair.

"We have had our breakfast," he explained, and I began to eat with a
keener appetite than I thought I had. It was a simple meal with a
slightly exotic flavor, but without any strange dishes. During the
course of it, I asked Edvar questions.

"Your life is amazingly centralized," I said. "Apparently all the things
you need are supplied at your rooms on a moment's notice."

"Yes," he smiled, "it makes life simpler. We have very few needs. Many
of them are satisfied while we sleep, such as cleansing and, if we like,
nourishment. We can study while we sleep, acquiring facts that we may
want to use later from an instrument which acts upon the subconscious
mind. These dials you see are mainly to give us pleasure. If we care to
have our meals served in the old-fashioned way, as you are having yours,
we can do so, but we reserve those meals for the occasions when we feel
the need of eating as a pure sensation. We can have music at any time--"
He paused. "Would you care for some music?"

"There's nothing I'd like better," I told him. He went to the wall and
turned the dials again. In a momen