"You said 'proud,' and then added 'stuck up.'"
Betty thought it was about time to change the subject, so she observed
quietly that By-and-by seemed a long way off.
"Of course it is a long way off," replied her companion. "Don't you
wish it to be a long way off?"
Betty hesitated. "Well, I don't think I ever wished much about it.
Can you tell me how many miles it is from some place I know about? You
see, Mr. Bombus, I am pretty sure it is n't in the geography. At
least, I don't remember that I ever saw it on the map. Could n't you
tell me where it is?"
Mr. Bombus considered a moment, And then asked, "Do you know where Now
is?"
Betty thought a minute, and then replied, "I suppose it is Here, sir."
"Right!" assented the old gentleman, promptly. "Now, if you had said
There, it would have been wrong; for Then is There. You see, this is
the way: When we have lived in Now until it is all used up, it changes
into Then, and, instead of being Here, is There. I hope it's plain to
you. Well, you asked me where By-and-by was. That 's the very thing
about it: it never was, not even _is_; it's always _going to be_, and
it's generally a rather long way from Now; so, if you know where Now
is, you can make your own calculations as to the distance of By-and-by."
"But I don't know anything about calculating distances," said Betty,
dolefully.
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