as 2 sides (for the Points of a Line may
be called by courtesy, its sides); a Square has 4 sides; 0, 2, 4; what
Progression do you call that?

I. Arithmetical.

SPHERE. And what is the next number?

I. Six.

SPHERE. Exactly. Then you see you have answered your own question.
The Cube which you will generate will be bounded by six sides, that is
to say, six of your insides. You see it all now, eh?

"Monster," I shrieked, "be thou juggler, enchanter, dream, or devil, no
more will I endure thy mockeries. Either thou or I must perish." And
saying these words I precipitated myself upon him.

Section 17. How the Sphere, having in vain tried words,
resorted to deeds

It was in vain. I brought my hardest right angle into violent
collision with the Stranger, pressing on him with a force sufficient to
have destroyed any ordinary Circle: but I could feel him slowly and
unarrestably slipping from my contact; no edging to the right nor to
the left, but moving somehow out of the world, and vanishing to
nothing. Soon there was a blank. But still I heard the Intruder's
voice.

SPHERE. Why will you refuse to listen to reason? I had hoped to find
in you--as being a man of sense and an accomplished mathematician--a
fit apostle for the Gospel of the Three Dimensions, which I am allowed
to preach once only in a thousand years: but now I know not how to
convince you. Stay, I have it. Deeds, and not words, shall proclaim
the truth. Listen, my friend.

I have told you I can see from my position in Space the inside of all
things that you consider closed. For example, I see in yonder cupboard
near which you are standing, several of what you call boxes (but like
everything else in Flatland, they have no tops nor bottoms) full of
money; I see also two tablets of accounts. I am about to descend into
that cupboard and to bring you one of those tablets. I saw you lock
the cupboard half an hour ago, and I know you have the key in your
possession. But I descend from Space; the doors, you see, remain
unmoved. Now I am in the cupboard and am taking the tablet. Now I
have it. Now I ascend with it.

I rushed to the closet and dashed the door open. One of the tablets
was gone. With a mocking laugh, the Stranger appeared in the other
corner of the room, and at the same time the tablet appeared upon the
floor. I took it up. There could be no doubt--it was the missing
tablet.

I groaned with