Taller resumed his spokesmanship. "From the first the most progressive
elements on both Texcoco and Genoa realized the value of your expedition
and have been in fundamental sympathy with the aims the _Pedagogue_
originally had. Primitive life is not idyllic. Until man is free from
nature's tyranny and has solved the basic problems of sufficient food,
clothing, shelter, medical care and education for all, he is unable to
realize himself. So we co-operated with you to the extent we found
possible."
His smile was grim. "I am afraid that almost from the beginning, and on
both planets, your very actions developed an ... underground, I believe
you call it. Not an overt one, since we needed your assistance to build
the new industrialized culture you showed us was possible. We even
protected you against yourselves, since it soon became obvious that if
left alone you'd destroy each other in your addiction to power."
Baron Leonar broke in, "Don't misunderstand. It wasn't until the past
couple of decades that this _underground_ which had sprung up
independently on both planets, amalgamated."
Barry Watson blurted, "But Joe ... Chessman--" he refused to meet the
eye of the man he'd condemned.
Taller said, "From the first you made no effort to study our customs. If
you had, you'd have realized why my father allied himself to you after
you'd killed Taller First. And why I did not take my revenge on Chessman
after he'd killed Reif. A Khan's first training is that no personal
emotion must interfere with the needs of the People. When you turned Joe
Chessman over to me, I realized his education, his abilities were too
great to destroy. We sent him to a mountain university and have used him
profitably all these years. In fact, it was Chessman who finally brought
us to space travel."
"That's right," Buchwald blurted. "You've got a spaceship out there. How
could you possibly--?"
Taller said mildly, "There are but a handful of you, you could hardly
keep track of two whole planets and all that went on upon them."
Amschel Mayer said bitingly, "All this can be gone over on our return to
Terra City. We'll have a full year to explain to ourselves and each
other why we became such complete idiots. I was originally head of this
expedition--before my supposed friends railroaded me to prison--does
anyone object if I take over again?"
"No," Joe Chessman growled.
The others shook their heads.
Taller said, "There is but one other thing. In spite of how you may feel
at this moment of embarrassment, basically you have succeeded in your
task. That is, you have brought Texcoco and Genoa to an industrialized
culture. We hold various reservations about how you accomplished this.
However, when you return to your Co-ordinator of Galactic Colonization,
please inform him that we are anxious to receive his ambassadors. The
term is _ambassadors_ and we will expect to meet on a basis of equality.
Surely in all Earth's millennia of social evolution man has worked out
something better than either of your teams have built here. We should
like to be instructed."
Dick Hawkins said stiffly, "We can instruct you on Earth's present
socio-economic system."
"I am afraid we no longer trust you, Richard Hawkins. Send
others--uncorrupted by power, privilege or great wealth."
* * * * *
When they had gone and the sound of their departing spacecraft had
faded, Amschel Mayer snapped, "We might as well get underway. And cheer
up, confound it, we have lots of time to contrive a reasonable report
for the Co-ordinator."
Jerry Kennedy managed a thin grin, almost reminiscent of the younger
Kennedy of the first years on Genoa. "Say," he said, "I wonder if we'll
be granted a good long vacation before being sent on another
assignment."