He always gave a purely intellectual character to the conversation, keeping it within the realm of general ideas, and, moreover, expressing himself on all subjects with the greatest freedom.

He spoke frequently of the organization of society, and the conditions of labour.
"Wealth," said he, "is one of the means of living happily; but people have made it the sole end of existence." And this state of things seemed monstrous to both of them.
They returned continually to various scientific subjects with which they were both familiar.
On that day they discussed the evolution of chemistry.
"From the moment," said Clair, "that radium was seen to be transformed into helium, people ceased to affirm the immutability of simple bodies; in this way all those old laws about simple relations and about the indestructibility of matter were abolished." "However," said she, "chemical laws exist." For, being a woman, she had need of belief.
He resumed carelessly: "Now that we can procure radium in sufficient quantities, science possesses incomparable means of analysis; even at present we get glimpses, within what are called simple bodies, of extremely diversified complex ones, and we discover energies in matter which seem to increase even by reason of its tenuity." As they talked, they threw bits of bread to the birds, and some children played around them.
Passing from one subject to another: "This hill, in the quaternary epoch," said Clair, "was inhabited by wild horses.

Last year, as they were tunnelling for the water mains, they found a layer of the bones of primeval horses." She was anxious to know whether, at that distant epoch, man had yet appeared.
He told her that man used to hunt the primeval horse long before he tried to domesticate him.
"Man," he added, "was at first a hunter, then he became a shepherd, a cultivator, a manufacturer.

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