mity."

"Don't be horrid, Lenox! Fancy talking in that cold-blooded way about
such delightful-looking people as these, why, they are even nicer than
our dear bird-folk on Venus, and of course they are a great deal more
like ourselves."

"Wherefore it stands to reason that they must be a great deal nicer!" he
replied, with a glance which brought a brighter flush to her cheeks.
Then he went on, "Ah, now I see the difference."

"What difference? Between what?"

"Between the daughter of Earth and the daughters of Ganymede," he
replied. "You can blush, and I don't think they can. Haven't you noticed
that, although they have the most exquisite skins and beautiful eyes and
hair and all that sort of thing, not a man or woman of them has any
colouring? I suppose that's the result of living for generations in a
hothouse."

"Very likely," she said; "but has it struck you also that all the girls
and women are either beautiful or handsome, and all the men, except the
ones that seem to be servants or slaves, are something like Greek gods,
or, at least, the sort of men you see on the Greek sculptures?"

"Survival of the fittest, I presume. These are probably the descendants
of the highest races of Ganymede; the people who conceived the idea of
prolonging the life of their race and were able to carry it out. The
inferior races would either perish of starvation or become their
servants. That's what will happen on Earth, and there is no reason why
it shouldn't have happened here."

As he said this the car swung out round a broad curve into the centre of
the great square, and a little cry of amazement broke from Zaidie's lips
as her glance roamed over the multiplying splendours about her.

In the centre of the square, in the midst of smooth lawns and
flower-beds of every conceivable shape and colour, and groves of
flowering trees, stood a great domed building, which they approached
through an avenue of overarching trees interlaced with flowering
creepers.

The car stopped at the foot of a triple flight of stairs of dazzling
whiteness which led up to a broad arched doorway. Several groups of
people were sprinkled about the avenue and steps and the wide terrace
which ran along the front of the building. They looked with keen, but
perfectly well-mannered surprise at their strange visitors, and seemed
to be discussing their appearance; but not a step was taken towards
them, nor was there the slightest sign of anything like vulgar