“Come, come,” suggested Bondy propitiatingly. “Up to the present its behaviour has been very . . . dignified.”

The Bishop raised his finger warningly.

“Up to the present; but we don’t know how it will behave next. Look here, Mr. Bondy,” he suddenly said in a confidential tone, “it is to your interest that there should be no unpleasantness. To our interest, too. You would like to settle it quickly, like a practical business man. So should we, as the representatives and servants of the Lord. We cannot permit the rise of some new God or possibly a new religion.”

“Thank Heaven,” Mr. Bondy sighed with relief. “I knew we should come to an agreement.”

“Splendid!” cried the Bishop, his eyes sparkling with happiness through his spectacles. “An agreement, that’s the thing. The venerable Consistory decided that in the interests of the Church it would place your . . . er . . . Absolute provisionally under its patronage. It would attempt to bring it into harmony with Catholic doctrine. It would proclaim the premises in Břevnov known as No. 1651 a miraculous shrine and place of pilgrimage. . . .”

“Oho!” growled Marek, and leaped to his feet.

“Permit me,” said the Bishop with an imperious motion. “A miraculous shrine and place of pilgrimage—with certain conditions, of course. The first condition is that on the aforesaid premises the production of the Absolute should be limited to the smallest possible quantity, and that it should be only weak, almost innocuous, very much diluted Absolute, whose manifestations would be less uncontrollable and more irregular, rather as at Lourdes. Otherwise we cannot assume the responsibility.”

“Very well,” agreed Mr. Bondy. “And what else?”

“Further,” continued the Bishop, “it is to be manufactured only from coal obtained at Male Svantovice. As you know, there is a miraculous shrine of the Virgin in that district, so that with the aid of this particular coal we might establish at No. 1651 Břevnov a centre for the worship of Our Lady.”

“Undoubtedly,” assented Mr. Bondy. “Anything more?”

“In the third place, you must bind yourself not to manufacture the Absolute at any other place or time.”

“What?” cried G. H. Bondy, “and our Karburators——”

“—Will never come into operation, with the exception of the one at Břevnov, which remains the property of the Holy Church, and will be under her management.”

“Nonsense,” protested G. H. Bondy. “The Karburators shall be manufactured. In three weeks’ time ten of them will be erected. In the first six months there will be twelve hundred. In the course of a year, ten thousand. Our arrangements have gone as far as that already.”

“And I tell you,” said the Bishop quietly and sweetly, “that at the end of that year not a single Karburator will be running.”

“Why not?”

“Because mankind, whether believers or unbelievers, cannot do with a real and active God. We simply cannot, gentlemen. It is out of the question.”