Carol is wary of asking for VidaÂ’s support because she has a very patronizing attitude. Yet she turns to Vida as her last hope to get the work done. Vida too rejects the plan as impractical and advises that one should work from within and have patience to wait for even ten years if it would take that long for the committee members to understand the need. Carol feels that she is being blocked by mere stupidity. She is however happy that no one can stop her from dreaming of a beautiful city. She feels sorry that there is no one in the whole town to share her dreams.

The reaction of the rich Dawsons is also very disappointing to Carol. The very idea of parting with his hard-earned money sends Dawson into a rage. He considers spending money on ‘shiftless beggars that never had the sense to save money’ a waste. He assures her that Gopher Prairie is a beautiful city at the same time he tells her that he is planning to settle in Pasadena. Bjornstam whom she considers a kindred spirit surprisingly agrees with Dawson’s view that there is no need to spend money on the town. He even shocks her by saying that they should not request him for the money but take it away from him. He invites Carol to join the ‘cheerful bums’ and Carol dislikes the ‘autocracy’ of ‘his cheerful bums’. She soon forgets Bjornstam and her plans to beautify the town.

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