“Most delightful girls, I call them,” said Jeff, his blue eyes dreamily contented. “What do _you_ call them?” I mildly inquired. “Boys! Nothing but boys, most of ’em. A standoffish, disagreeable lot at that. Critical, impertinent youngsters. No girls at all.” He was angry and severe, not a little jealous, too, I think. Afterward, when he found out just what it was they did not like, he changed his manner somewhat and got on better. He had to. For, in spite of his criticism, they were girls, and, furthermore, all the girls there were! Always excepting our three!--with whom we presently renewed our acquaintance. When it came to courtship, which it soon did, I can of course best describe my own--and am least inclined to. But of Jeff I heard somewhat; he was inclined to dwell reverently and admiringly, at some length, on the exalted sentiment and measureless perfection of his Celis; and Terry--Terry made so many false starts and met so many rebuffs, that by the time he really settled down to win Alima, he was considerably wiser. At that, it was not smooth sailing. They broke and quarreled, over and over; he would rush off to console himself with some other fair one--the other fair one would have none of him--and he would drift back to Alima, becoming more and more devoted each time. She never gave an inch. A big, handsome creature, rather exceptionally strong even in that race of strong women, with a proud head and sweeping level brows that lined across above her dark eager eyes like the wide wings of a soaring hawk. I was good friends with all three of them but best of all with Ellador, long before that feeling changed, for both of us. From her, and from Somel, who talked very freely with me, I learned at last something of the viewpoint of Herland toward its visitors. Here they were, isolated, happy, contented, when the booming buzz of our biplane tore the air above them. Everybody heard it--saw it--for miles and miles, word flashed all over the country, and a council was held in every town and village. And this was their rapid determination: “From another country. Probably men. Evidently highly civilized. Doubtless possessed of much valuable knowledge. May be dangerous. Catch them if possible; tame and train them if necessary. This may be a chance to re-establish a bi-sexual state for our people.” They were not afraid of us--three million highly intelligent women--or two million, counting only grown-ups--were not likely to be afraid of three young men. We thought of them as “Women,” and therefore timid; but it was two thousand years since they had had anything to be afraid of, and certainly more than one thousand since they had outgrown the feeling. We thought--at least Terry did--that we could have our pick of them. They thought--very cautiously and farsightedly--of picking us, if it seemed wise.