"Dad says it's the world war ... that we'll be dragged in ... that Germany has had it up her sleeve for years ... believes that bomb was made in Berlin ... nothing under heaven could have averted this impending war but a huge standing army in Great Britain ... hasn't Lord Roberts been crying out for it?.... Dad and I dined at his house one night in London and the only picture in the dining-room was an oil painting of the Kaiser in a red uniform, done expressly for Lord Roberts ... funny world ... and now Britain's got a civil war on her hands and mutinous officers who won't go over and shoot men of their own class in Ulster.... Russia hasn't built her strategic railways--all the money used up in graft.... Oh, Lord! Oh, Lord! who'd have thought it? ... Twentieth century and all the rest of it." "Twentieth century ... war ... how utterly absurd.... I don't wish to be rude ... but really..." This from every one to whom Alexina and Aileen, or even Judge Lawton, communicated their fears. II One day Alexina and Aileen met in San Francisco by appointment and telephoned to James Kirkpatrick, asking him to lunch with them at the California Market. He accepted with alacrity, and laughed genially at their apprehensions. War? War? Not on your life. There'll never be another war. Socialists won't permit it. The kaiser? To hell with the kaiser. (Excuse me.) He, James Kirkpatrick, was in frequent correspondence with certain German socialists. They would declare themselves in the coming International Congress for the general strike if any sovereign--or President--dared to try to put over a war on the millions of determined socialists, syndicalists, internationalists, and communists in Great Britain and Europe; he'd get the surprise of his life. Socialism was determined there should never be another war--the burden and life-toll of which was always borne by the poor man. He didn't believe any of those fool sovereigns, not even the crazy kaiser, would attempt it, knowing what they did; but if they turned out to be deaf and blind, well, just watch out for the Great Strike. That would be the most portentous, the most awe-inspiring event in history. And then he dismissed a prospective European war as unworthy of further attention and held forth with extreme acrimony on the subject of the Great Colorado Strike; which rose to passionate denunciation of the miserable make-shift called civilization which, would permit such a horror in the very heart of a great and prosperous nation. But with the new system ... the new system ... there would not be even these abominable little civil wars ... for that was what we had right here in our own country ... no need to use up your gray matter bothering about European states.... He was so convincing that Alexina and Aileen thanked him warmly and went to their respective destinations lulled and comforted.