An immediate meeting was held between our delegation and the leaders
of your government. After the formalities of greeting were over, the
spokesman for the Earth government reviewed the facts of the Morning
Star incident as they had been related by Captain Daniels and his
crew. Venusian forces, they claimed, had been guilty of an unprovoked
attack against the ship. We had barbarously murdered all of the ship's
complement, save for the eleven "hostages" whom we had brought to Earth
aboard the Tunn.
The government of Earth demanded an explanation. Ser Alaga spoke the
truth. The Earthians were not satisfied.
(THE FOLLOWING CONVERSATION IS REPRODUCED FROM
THE AUTO-TAPE RECORDING OF THE MEETING)
Earth Spokesman: _We will grant that your act of aggression was not
premeditated, but resulted from a misinterpretation, on your part,
of the friendly intentions of our forces. Nevertheless, our vessel
was destroyed. Twenty-three of our men were killed. The government
of the World Federation demands that your government make suitable
reparations._
Ser Alaga: _Mr. Cartwright, we respectfully deny the allegation
that our forces were guilty of any act of aggression._
Cartwright: _The Morning Star was destroyed by your men, was it
not?_
Ser Alaga: _In self-defense, yes. As we have explained, the captain
of your ship threatened our welcoming committee with...._