A. D. 2000

“This is a vast and wonderful increase since the census of 1880,” exclaimed Cobb. “Why, I remember, in 1887, that the most sanguine statistician estimated only 67,000,000 for the next census, that of 1890.”

“True,” returned the Secretary. “That was above the exact figure; if I remember correctly, it was only 64,987,504. But even that population was a trifle more than twenty-five per cent. increase upon the census of 1880. The ratio of increase since we were a nation of only 3,000,000, averaged about thirty per cent. until the year 1900. In 1910 it fell to twenty-two per cent., but the next census, that of 1920, showed an increase of thirty-four per cent. The reason for this great increase is found in the fact that in 1915 the United States acquired Mexico and all Central America, with its population of over 20,000,000 souls, and in 1917, after the conquest, the whole of British America, with 10,000,000 more. Our population was, by the census of 1920 – counting in 30,000,000 people acquired – 137,000,000. The increase since 1890 has averaged only 18.5 per cent, every ten years, or less than two per cent. a year.”

“And is not the country somewhat crowded by this great mass of people?” inquired Cobb.

“By no means; there is room for double the number – yes, treble as many. The great States of Slave, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Assiniboia, and west of the isothermal line of thirty-eight degrees are teeming with people engaged in agriculture.”

“What is the strength of the army required to protect the country from internal violence, and for a cadre of a full army?” asked Cobb.

“Our army consists of 148,000 men only, comprising 70,000 infantry, 28,000 cavalry, and 50,000 artillery. The maintenance and distribution of this force is very different from what it was during the years when the country was new and sparsely inhabited. The artillery is along the sea-board, and is a full-paid army. The enlisted portion serve for three years at a time, and are paid at a fixed rate of $20 per month for the privates. The infantry and cavalry are distributed among the States; each State and the Territories of North and South Alaska, and Indian, has one regiment of infantry and a battalion of cavalry (400). The posts are near the great centers of the States, and from them the troops can be quickly transported to the scene of any disturbance. Each governor has authority to order out his State garrison for the preservation of life or property, or to quell riot or disorder in his State. The posts are large and handsome, and with fine and sufficient quarters for officers and men. The social standing of the soldier is equal to that of the citizen, except that, as a soldier, full and implicit obedience to his officers is required and maintained. The food is excellent, and well cooked and served; the uniform is of the best material. Now, Colonel, I will explain the system: The infantry and cavalry posts are schools for the instruction of the youth of the country. The period of service is three years, and the strength of each garrison strictly maintained. The regiments are recruited wholly from the State they are in, and do not leave that State to garrison other posts. This applies only to the enlisted portion of the army; the officers hold life positions, and are promoted lineally in their own branch of the service. They are moved from station to station every three years, but never returning to a station at which they had served before. The pay of the army of instruction, or ‘Inland Army,’ as it is named, is $5 per month per man, regardless of grade, and $100 upon discharge after three years of faithful service. Every year the State furnishes 500 young men who have passed the physical examination, and they are sworn into the service of the United States.”

“But how are these men found? Do they voluntarily enlist?” broke in Cobb.

“Not all, though many do, in order to get their service in. Each State keeps a complete record of every male in its territory – his age, occupation, and physical condition. From a list of all those between twenty-one and twenty-four years of age, is selected, by chance, the yearly quota for military service, less the number of voluntary enlistments; and no one so selected can avoid the three years’ service at the State post; nor do they try, I might add, for no excuse but physical incapacity will avail to free them from this duty to the State and Union. From every walk in life they come – the rich, the poor, the worker and the young man of leisure. If a son is the only support of a family, the State supplies a substitute. Except in time of war, they are never called upon again for military service. This is what makes the soldier the equal of the civilian. If a name is once selected and the man does not report, being at the time a resident of the State, he is declared a deserter, and punished as such. To their officers these men are obedient and respectful; with the civilian, they are sons of the State, and their duty honorable in the extreme. Desertion is almost unknown; but when it does occur, the offender receives the fixed punishment of twenty years in the government island prison.”

“And the government pays these men?” asked Cobb.

“No; the pay proper and subsistence is paid by the State, but everything else is furnished by the government.”

“And their duties, what are they?”

“They are taught all the duties of a soldier; they make marches from point to point, and diffuse a military feeling among the people; they learn to ride, to use their arms, and to become able, if the time occurs, to impart this instruction to others. They are a guard against interior violence in the State, and their presence tends to keep alive that little spark of military ardor which should never be allowed to die, even in a country deemed ever so secure from foreign invasion.”

“A system both great and useful!” exclaimed Cobb. “But how are the artillery regiments kept full?”

“By enlistment only. The applications far exceed the demands. The majority come from the Inland Army, from those who are poor and from those who have taken a fancy to a military life.”

“And the officers – how are they appointed?”

“They are taken from the non-commissioned officers who have completed their three years’ service and are desirous of becoming officers. From the number of non-commissioned officers of each regiment competing, the five who lead in the examinations are sent to the United States military school and pursue a three years’ course of study. From this class, in the order of their standing, are filled the vacancies existing on New-Year’s-Day of each year, the remainder of the class being discharged.”

“Will you tell me what kind of arms are now used?” asked Cobb.

“For infantry, the service rifle and milag cartridge; for cavalry the same, but shorter and lighter, besides a pistol using the milag cartridge of calibre 35. The artillery use nothing but the heavy guns, which are of different styles and for different purposes. Some are for lipthalene, others for lipthalene and meteorite, and still others using meteorite alone.”

“What! did I understand you to say meteorite?” and Cobb looked at the Secretary with a surprised and earnest expression, while his hand nervously grasped the back of his chair.

“Yes; certainly. Is there anything strange in the name, that you should look at me so doubtingly?”

“No; I suppose not,” settling back in his chair.

“But you appeared very much surprised.”

“Yes?”

“Yes; have you seen this explosive? But no; you could not have seen it. It did not come to the notice of the government until after your time.”

“Will you show me one of these milag cartridges?”

“Certainly.”

He rang a bell and ordered a box of milag cartridges sent to him in the office. When the Secretary had received them, he gave one to Cobb, saying:

“This small bullet does not look much like a cartridge, does it?”

Cobb took it and carefully examined it.

It was precisely similar to those he had sent to Washington in 1887. Smiling to himself, he turned his eyes first upon the President and then upon the Secretary.

“When did you say these were invented?” he asked, in an unconcerned manner.

“I can soon tell you.”

Rising and taking a book from the shelf, he quickly found the history of the milag cartridge, and read:

“‘Milag cartridge; from the Volapük word milag, “wonderful.” A cartridge using meteorite as an explosive; usual charge for 40 calibre, one and one-third grains; initial velocity, 3,562; range, four miles. Meteorite was discovered in 1899, and the formula sold to the government by John Otis, chief clerk to the Chief of Ordnance.’”

“Chief of Ordnance?” broke in Cobb, quickly.

“Yes; Chief of Ordnance. But have you read this?”

“No, sir.”

“But there certainly is some mystery here!” exclaimed the President, highly interested in the conversation.

Cobb took his penknife from his pocket, and slowly opening it, said:

“If I cut this black cement in the base of the bullet, I come to the meteorite; am I correct?”

“Yes.”

“And it is white.” And he cut the cement carefully away and disclosed the little disc of fulminate and the white explosive surrounding it.

“Strange!” cried both of the others together, surprised that he should know the color of an explosive invented after his time.

“Have you any nitric acid?” asked Cobb.

“Yes; here is a little,” and Secretary Fowler handed him a small bottle containing the nitric acid used in testing at the War Department.

Dipping a twisted paper into the liquid, Cobb let fall a single drop of the acid on the explosive in the bullet; then moving toward the window, which he threw open, he struck a match and said:

“If I understand this meteorite, it will, upon the application of flame, dissipate itself in vapor, but not explode.”

“Hold, Colonel!” cried Mr. Fowler, in great alarm, as he and the President drew back. “It will explode and tear your hand into pieces.”

It was too late. Holding his hand containing the bullet well out through the window, he touched the flame to the cartridge. A slight flash from the fulminate followed, and then the meteorite disappeared in a colorless gas. Holding aloft the empty bullet, he exultingly cried:

“Was I not right when I claimed a knowledge of this explosive?”

Then Junius Cobb explained how he had discovered this compound; how he had transmitted it to the Chief of Ordnance in 1887, and the restrictions he had placed upon that office regarding the sealed packet containing the formula. Time passed, and he had been dropped for desertion, but the sealed packet still remained in the office of the Chief of Ordnance. It had been opened, and a subordinate in that office had stolen his secret, sold it to the government, and reaped immense reward and honor. But Cobb had no ill-feeling against the man; he had died long years ago; and what did this theft avail him at that moment?

“You are a wonderful man, my dear Colonel; and I believe that, in the dim past, you conceived the idea of many of our greatest inventions of to-day.”

President Craft arose from his seat as he spoke.

Thanking Secretary Fowler for his kindness, Cobb turned to the President and asked:

“Is it time to take our departure?”

“Yes, Colonel.” Then, turning to the Secretary, he said: “By the way, Mr. Fowler, be so kind as to have an order made out directing Captain Hathaway, Second Cavalry, to report to Colonel Cobb to-night for orders; send it at once.”

“Sir, I will attend to it immediately.”

“Then, Mr. Fowler, we will say good afternoon.”

“Good afternoon, gentlemen;” and then to Cobb: “Come and see me, Colonel, whenever you feel inclined.”

In fifteen minutes they were back at the executive mansion.

After partaking of a cup of coffee, as was the President’s custom at that hour, they entered the drag again, and were rapidly propelled toward the Capitol.

Cobb noticed the handsome exterior of the buildings, their beautiful architecture and harmonious coloring.

Pennsylvania Avenue was, indeed, a beautiful thoroughfare. Its buildings were large and grand; great hotels, clubs, bazars, churches, and theatres were thrown together in one complex but magnificent order. Over the sidewalk, on either side, and also covering the cross-streets, was a glass canopy supported by pillars of the same material, handsomely carved and finished. The windows and doors were grand in their size; and what seemed strange and dangerous to Cobb, no sash was to be observed; nothing but great panes of glass, some white and clear, others of various hues.

The streets and walks were as clean as a parlor floor, and no obstructions were to be seen upon them. The pavement was of a soft gray tint, and like a felt blanket in its appearance. The sidewalks were laid in tessellated work of all the hues of the solar spectrum. Statues and works of art were everywhere observable. Great trees ranged on either side, while beautiful plants and green grass plats surrounded many of the buildings.

As the rays of the sun in the west fell upon the buildings, they were reflected back to the opposite side of the street, again and again reflected, and the eye of Cobb beheld the parallel lines of Pennsylvania Avenue adorned with millions of sparkling, dancing lights, meeting at the farther end in one great diamond whose lustre could almost compare with the sun itself.

Ah! what a grand sight! – worthy of a life of inanimation for a thousand years. Cobb feasted his eyes on the beauty of the scene. Lost in the ecstasy of the moment, he was rudely awakened to a sense of the reality by the President remarking:

“It is a grand sight, is it not?”

“Yes! yes, indeed! Grand beyond expression!”

“This street, Colonel Cobb, is said to be the handsomest in the world.”

“I can well believe it! I cannot conceive of one that could be more beautiful.”

“And yet, Colonel, it is all glass.”

“Glass?”

“Yes; plain, cheap, common glass.”

“You mystify me! You do not mean to tell me that these magnificent buildings are built of glass?”

“The buildings, walks, streets, and nearly everything visible to your eye is of glass.”

President Craft enjoyed the look of amazement and incredulity which overspread the other’s face.

“Surely you are jesting with me! Glass is no substance for any of these purposes.”

“Remember,” slowly, “you are in the year 2000. That which was impossible, unheard of, to you in 1887, may be possible and common with us to-day.”

“True! I find I must accept as possible every theory and proposition advanced, until it is, by undeniable evidence, totally disproved. But blame me not if doubt sometimes arises. Will you stop the drag a moment?”

“Certainly,” was the puzzled answer.

Turning his head to the driver in the rear, he ordered the drag stopped at the curb.

In front of the entrance to the Dom Kanitöl Legletik (Grand Opera House), by the side of two tall and elaborately carved pillars covered with fine and thread-like filigree work, the drag came to a standstill. Without a word of explanation, Cobb sprang from his seat, walked up to the nearest pillar and dashed the heel of his boot against a beautiful rose of pure white. A look of triumph came into his eyes. They might make it to appear like glass, but it was not glass! The beautiful rose lay crushed against its stem, its delicate petals bent and twisted, and its leaves flattened together.

The President comprehended the young man’s motive, and smiled. As Cobb again entered the drag, the President said, but kindly:

“You have destroyed that beautiful glass rose, and because you doubted me.”

“Blame me not for doubting, kind sir, nor blame me for investigating. Without investigation we could never arrive at a certain knowledge of the truth or falsity of any proposition.”

“And you have investigated?”

“Yes.”

“And proved – ”

“That glass is not the component part of that pillar,” with confidence.

“One word will dispel that illusion.” Mr. Craft spoke very deliberately.

“Speak it, then, I pray you,” with greater astonishment than ever.

“Malleability!”

Like a flash of lightning, the conviction of the truth of the President’s words fell upon the doubting man’s mind. Malleable glass! that ignis-fatuus which had caused men’s minds to turn from reason to insanity; had caused chemists and philosophers throughout the known world to struggle for years and years, and finally go down to their graves with their hopes unfulfilled; that art which was said to have been known in the third century, during the reign of Tiburon – had been again discovered and made known to mankind.

“And is all of this of malleable glass?” still with wonder.

“All. The art has been known for over fifty years. It is common glass, composed of silica, lime, barytes, etc., to which is added nitrate of zesüd and coloring matter. It is cheaper than wood or any of the metals, is about the weight of copper, and has its strength and malleability. It is made into every conceivable form and shape, and has almost entirely taken the place of the cheaper metals where temper and extreme rigor are not desired. It never tarnishes, decays, or breaks. When exposed to the inclemencies of the weather, it is as bright to-day as it was yesterday, or years ago.”

Wonderful, indeed, were the inventions of the twentieth century!

At 16:5 dial the President’s electric drag glided evenly and noiselessly out of Pennsylvania Avenue, rounded the corner, and stopped at the grand entrance to the Dom Lon, or Capitol, of the United States.

An hour was passed in visiting the three houses of Congress, and Cobb carefully noted the working of the national legislature.

On the way home, the President said:

“There is a Senate of 136 members, or two from each State, presided over by the First Vice-President; two lower houses of 400 and 280 members, respectively, presided over by the Second and Third Vice-Presidents. The Smadom, or lower house, is that body in which are introduced all bills of a private nature whatsoever – such as claims or appeals for money, position, justice, rights and franchises. If approved in this house they go to the Senate, and are usually approved by that body. In the Gledom, or upper house, originate all bills for the good of the nation at large. The system of committees, as of old, is a component part of the machinery of this house. The functions of the Senate, with the restrictions imposed upon it by the creation of a third house, have undergone few changes since your time.”

“Are there any changes in the method of electing Senators, Representatives, and chief magistrate?”

“Yes; the President’s term of office is five years, taking office on New-Year’s-Day of every year divisible by five without a remainder – that is, it commenced in 1940. In the October of the year preceding the taking of office, the governors of all the States assemble at a designated place and nominate four candidates for each office. The two houses of Representatives meet on the first day of November, and proceed to elect, from the nominees, the President and Vice-Presidents.”

“Then, I take it that a Republican house would surely elect a Republican, and vice versa?” said Cobb.

“There is no Republican or Democratic party, nor any two parties, as formerly. One party, the American, rules this country. No diversity of opinion exists as regards the welfare of the nation. No policy from the candidates for the Presidency is called for, or expected. To-day there are no great questions to split the nation with contention.”

“But may not the choice of the people be defeated, where the election is in the hands of so few?”

“Again experience teaches that you are wrong. Under the old system the people had a choice between two men; now the nation has a choice from four men. The extent and population of the country being so enormous, individual voting would necessitate long and arduous work in counting and verifying the vote. Were the two distinct parties in the field, our method might – mind you, I say might – work disadvantageously to one party or the other. The fairness of the system now in vogue consists in the celerity of the election after nomination, and in the number of nominees. No man can tell beforehand upon whom will fall the nominations given by sixty-eight men, high in social and civil standing, and who come together from every part of this great country – men who are, as a rule, unacquainted with one another. Even if collusion brought about a certain nomination, who could tell that that nominee would be elected by the two houses? The nomination takes place October first, and certified copies, signed by every governor present, though he may have voted against the nominee, are delivered by the three governors oldest in years to each of the three Vice-Presidents of the United States. On the first day of November the names are presented, and the balloting commences in both houses simultaneously, and continues until an election is completed by that house. The record is sent to the Senate, and that body counts and verifies the vote of the two houses, and announces the result.”

“Very simple, after all,” remarked Cobb. “But has it always worked well?”

“Perfectly.”

“How long have you been in office, Mr. President?”

“Since last New-Year’s-Day.”

“Will you get the nomination again, do you think?”

“No; assuredly not. One of the most strictly followed laws of the United States is that no man can hold the same elective office twice. This law applies to all national and State offices, but not to others below that dignity.”

“Does this law not tend to deprive the State and nation of the services of tried and capable men?”

“Colonel, this nation is great; vast. There are thousands upon thousands of men fully as capable as those in office, ready to take their turn.”

“And federal appointments, the patronage of the party, as it was formerly called – how are they made?”

“Wholly upon competitive examination; not in scientific branches of learning, but upon the duties required, together with a common-school education.”

“And the term of office?”

“In many positions it is during active life; in others for ten years, or less periods. But in all cases the period is known, and removals never take place without cause having been given by the incumbent: this cause is never political.”

“I see we are at the door,” reluctantly said Cobb, as the drag came to a standstill before the entrance to the executive mansion, “so will ask you no more questions to-day – but the subject is one of great interest to me.”

After dinner, as Cobb and Hugh were lounging about and smoking their cigars, the President came into the room and handed the former the evening paper, remarking:

“You have not seen a paper to-day. Here is the American: you will find all the news in it.”

Moving toward the door, the President turned around, and added:

“By the bye, Junius, Captain Hathaway will report to you this evening for orders; dispose of him as you please,” and he passed out into the hall.

“Don’t mind me, Junius,” said Hugh; “read your paper. I’ll look at the society news in it – there is no such nonsense in yours,” drawing out the “Washington Report” from his pocket.