the product of martial patriotism!"

The follies of patriotism! This was the red flag of anarchy to him. He
started to speak, flushing angrily, but held his tongue and only emitted
a "whew!" in good-humored wonder.

"I see you are not very frightened by my opposition," she rejoined in a
flash of amusement not wholly untempered by exasperation.

"We got the appropriation for an additional army corps this year," he
explained contentedly, his repose completely regained.

"Thus increasing the odds against us. But perhaps not; for we are
dealing with the children not with recruits, as I said. We call
ourselves the teachers of peace. I organized the first class in La Tir.
I have the children come together every Sunday morning and I tell them
about the children that live in other countries. I tell them that a
child a thousand miles away is just as much a neighbor as the one across
the street. At first I feared that they would find it uninteresting. But
if you know how to talk to them they don't."

"Naturally they don't, when you talk to them," he interrupted.

She was so intent that she passed over the compliment with a gesture
like that of brushing away a cobweb. Her eyes were like deep, clear
wells of faith and repose.

"I try to make the children of other countries so interesting that our
children will like them too well ever to want to kill them when they
grow up. We have a little peace prayer--they have even come to like to
recite it--a prayer and an oath. But I'll not bother you with it. Other
women have taken up the idea. I have found a girl who is going to start
a class on your side in South La Tir, and I came here to meet some women
who want to inaugurate the movement in your capital."

"I'll have to see about that!" he rejoined, half-banteringly,
half-threateningly.

"There is something else to come, even more irritating," she said, less
intently and smiling. "So please be prepared to hold your temper."

"I shall not beat my fist on the table defending war as you did
defending peace!" he retaliated with significant enjoyment.

But she used his retort for an opening.

"Oh, I'd rather you would do that than jest! It's human. It's going to
war because one is angry. You would go to war as a matter of cold
reason."

"If otherwise, I should lose," he replied.

"Exactly. You make it easy for me to approach my point. I want to
prevent you from losing!" she announced cheerfully yet very seriously.

"Yes? P