"Certainly, I do," continued Yourii obstinately. "You seem as surprised
as if such an idea were utterly impossible. Just as the law of Moses
has passed away, just as Buddha and the gods of Greece are dead, so,
too, Christ is dead. It is but the law of evolution. Why should you be
so amazed? You don't believe in the divinity of his doctrine, do you?"

"No, of course not," retorted Von Deitz, less irritated at the question
than at Yourii's offensive tone.

"Then how can you maintain that a man is able to create eternal laws?"

"Idiot!" thought Yourii, agreeably convinced that the other was
infinitely less intelligent than he, and would never be able to
comprehend what was as plain and clear as noonday.

"Supposing it were so," rejoined Von Deitz, nettled, in his turn. "The
future will nevertheless have Christianity as its basis. It has not
perished, but, like seed in the soil ..."

"I was not talking about that," said Yourii, confused somewhat, and
thus the more vexed, "what I meant to say ..."

"No, excuse me, but that's what you said...."

"If I said no, then I meant no! How absurd you are!" interrupted
Yourii, rendered more furious by the thought that this stupid Von Deitz
should for a moment presume to think himself the cleverer. "I meant to
say ..."