Chapter 4

Lord  Dorwin took  snuff. He  also had  long hair, curled  intricately and,quite obviously, artificially, to  which were added a pair of fluffy, blondsideburns,  which  he  fondled  affectionately.  Then,  too,  he  spoke  inoverprecise statements and left out all the r's.
At the moment,  Hardin had no time to think of more  of the reasons for theinstant detestation in which he had held the noble chancellor. Oh, yes, theelegant gestures of one  hand with which he accompanied his remarks and thestudied condescension with which  he accompanied even a simple affirmative.
But, at  any rate,  the problem now  was to locate him.  He had disappearedwith Pirenne  half an hour before  ?passed clean out  of sight, blast him.
Hardin  was  quite  sure  that  his  own  absence  during  the  preliminarydiscussions would quite suit Pirenne.
But Pirenne had  been seen in this wing And on this  floor. It was simply amatter of trying every  door. Halfway down, he said, "Ah!" and stepped intothe  darkened room.  The  profile of  Lord Dorwin's  intricate  hair-do wasunmistakable against the lighted screen.
Lord Dorwin  looked up  and said: "Ah,  Hahdin. You ah looking  foah us, nodoubt?"  He held  out his  snuffbox ? overadorned and poor  workmanship atthat, noted  Hardinand was politely refused whereat  he helped himself to apinch and smiled graciously.
Pirenne  scowled   and  Hardin  met  that   with  an  expression  of  blankindifference.
The only sound to break the short silence that followed was the clicking ofthe  lid of  Lord  Dorwin's snuffbox.  And then  he put  it away  and said:
"A gweat  achievement, this Encyclopedia of  yoahs, Hahdin. A feat, indeed,to   rank   with  the   most   majestic  accomplishments   of  all   time.""Most of us think so, milord. It's an accomplishment not quite accomplishedas yet, however.""Fwom the  little I have seen of the efficiency  of yoah Foundation, I haveno feahs  on that  scoah." And he  nodded to Pirenne, who  responded with adelighted bow.
Quite a love feast, thought Hardin. "I wasn't complaining about the lack ofefficiency, milord, as much  as of the definite excess of efficiency on thepart  of  the  Anacreonians  ? though  in  another  and  more  destructivedirection.""Ah, yes,  Anacweon." A negligent wave of the hand.  "I have just come fromtheah.  Most bahbawous  planet. It  is thowoughly inconceivable  that humanbeings could  live heah in the  Pewiphewy. The lack of  the most elementawywequiahments of a cultuahed  gentleman; the absence of the most fundamentalnecessities foah  comfoht and convenience ? the uttah desuetude into whichthey?
Hardin interrupted  dryly: "The  Anacreonians, unfortunately, have  all theelementary requirements for warfare and all the fundamental necessities fordestruction.""Quite, quite." Lord Dorwin seemed annoyed, perhaps at being stopped midwayin his sentence. "But we ahn't to discuss business now, y'know. Weally, I'mothahwise concuhned. Doctah Piwenne,  ahn't you going to show me the secondvolume? Do, please."The lights clicked out and for the next half-hour Hardin might as well havebeen on  Anacreon for  all the attention  they paid him. The  book upon thescreen made little sense  to him, nor did he trouble to make the attempt tofollow,  but Lord  Dorwin  became quite  humanly excited  at  times. Hardinnoticed that  during these moments of  excitement the chancellor pronouncedhis r's.
When  the  lights  went  on  again,  Lord Dorwin  said:  "Mahvelous.  Twulymahvelous.  You  ah not,  by  chance,  intewested in  ahchaeology, ah  you,Hahdin?""Eh?" Hardin shook himself out of an abstracted reverie. "No, milord, can'tsay  I am.  I'm a psychologist  by original  intention and a  politician byfinal decision.""Ah! No  doubt intewesting studies. 1, myself,  y'know" ?he helped himselfto a giant pinch of snuff ?dabble in ahchaeology.""Indeed?""His lordship,"  interrupted Pirenne,  "is most thoroughly  acquainted withthe field.""Well, p'haps  I am, p'haps I am," said his lordship  complacently. "I havedone an awful amount  of wuhk in the science. Extwemely well-read, in fact.
I've gone  thwough all  of Jawdun, Obijasi,  Kwomwill ... oh,  all of them,y'know.""I've heard  of them, of course," said Hardin,  "but I've never read them.""You  should some day,  my deah fellow.  It would  amply repay you.  Why, Icutainly considah it well  wuhth the twip heah to the Pewiphewy to see thiscopy of  Lameth. Would you believe it, my Libwawy  totally lacks a copy. Bythe  way,   Doctah  Piwenne,  you  have   not  fohgotten  yoah  pwomise  totwansdevelop a copy foah me befoah I leave?""Only too pleased.""Lameth, you must know,"  continued the chancellor, pontifically, "pwesentsa new and most  intwesting addition to my pwevious knowledge of the 'OwiginQuestion."'
"Which question?" asked Hardin.
"The  'Owigin Question.'  The  place of  the owigin  of the  human species,y'know. Suahly  you must know that it is  thought that owiginally the humanwace occupied only one planetawy system.""Well, yes, I know that.""Of cohse, no  one knows exactly which system it is ? lost in the mists ofantiquity. Theah  ah theawies, howevah. Siwius,  some say. Othahs insist onAlpha Centauwi, oah on Sol, oah on 61 Cygni ?all in the Siwius sectah, yousee.""And what does Lameth say?""Well,  he goes off  along a new  twail completely.  He twies to  show thatahchaeological  wemains on the  thuhd planet  of the Ahctuwian  System showthat  humanity   existed  theah   befoah  theah  wah   any  indications  ofspace-twavel.""And that means it was humanity's birth planet?""P'haps. I must wead it closely and weigh the evidence befoah I can sayfoah cuhtain. One must see just how weliable his obsuhvations ah."Hardin remained  silent for a short  while. Then he said,  "When did Lamethwrite his book?""Oh ?I should say about eight hundwed yeahs ago. Of cohse, he has based itlahgely on the pwevious wuhk of Gleen.""Then why  rely on  him? Why not go  to Arcturus and study  the remains foryourself?"Lord Dorwin raised his  eyebrows and took a pinch of snuff hurriedly. "Why,whatevah foah, my deah fellow?""To get the information firsthand, of course.""But  wheah's  the  necessity?   It  seems  an  uncommonly  woundabout  andhopelessly wigmawolish  method of  getting anywheahs. Look  heah, now, I'vegot  the wuhks of  all the old  mastahs ? the gweat ahchaeologists  of thepast. I wigh them  against each othah ?balance the disagweements ?analyzethe conflicting statements ?decide which is pwobably cowwect ?and come toa conclusion. That is the scientific method. At least" ?patronizingly ?asI see it. How insuffewably cwude it would be to go to Ahctuwus, oah to Sol,foah instance,  and blundah  about, when the  old mastahs have  covahed thegwound  so  much moah  effectually  than  we could  possibly  hope to  do."Hardin murmured politely, "I see.""Come,  milord,"  said  Pirenne,   "think  we  had  better  be  returning.""Ah, yes. P'haps we had."As  they  left  the  room, Hardin  said  suddenly,  "Milord,  may  I ask  aquestion?"Lord  Dorwin  smiled blandly  and  emphasized  his answer  with a  graciousflutter of  the hand. "Cuhtainly, my  deah fellow. Only too  happy to be ofsuhvice. If  I can help you  in any way fwom  my pooah stoah of knowledge-""It isn't exactly about archaeology, milord.""No?""No.  It's this:  Last year  we received  news here  in Terminus  about themeltdown of a power plant on Planet V of Gamma Andromeda. We got the barestoutline of the accident  ?no details at all. I wonder if you could tell meexactly what happened."Pirenne's mouth twisted. "I wonder you annoy his lordship with questions ontotally irrelevant subjects.""Not at  all, Doctah Piwenne," interceded the  chancellor. "It is quite allwight. Theah  isn't much to say concuhning it in  any case. The powah plantdid  undergo meltdown  and it  was quite  a catastwophe, y'know.  I believewadiatsen damage.  Weally, the govuhnment is  sewiously considewing placingseveah westwictions  upon the indiscwiminate use  of nucleah powah ?thoughthat is not a thing for genewal publication, y'know.""I  understand,"  said  Hardin.  "But  what  was  wrong  with  the  plant?""Well,  weally,"  replied Lord  Dorwin  indifferently, "who  knows? It  hadbwoken down  some yeahs pweviously and it  is thought that the weplacementsand wepaiah  wuhk wuh most infewiah. It is so  difficult these days to findmen  who  weally  undahstand  the  moah  technical details  of  ouah  powahsystems." And he took a sorrowful pinch of snuff.
"You realize," said Hardin, "that the independent kingdoms of the Peripheryhad lost nuclear power altogether?""Have they?  I'm not at all  suhpwised. Bahbawous planets?Oh,  but my deahfellow, don't call them independent. They ahn't, y'know. The tweaties we'vemade with them ah  pwoof positive of that. They acknowledge the soveweigntyof the Empewah. They'd have to, of cohse, oah we wouldn't tweat with them.""That  may   be  so,  but  they   have  considerable  freedom  of  action.""Yes, I suppose so.  Considewable. But that scahcely mattahs. The Empiah isfah bettah  off, with the Pewiphewy  thwown upon its own  wesoahces ?as itis,  moah oah  less.  They ahn't  any good  to  us, y'know.  Most bahbawousplanets. Scahcely civilized.""They were  civilized in the past.  Anacreon was one of  the richest of theoutlying provinces.  I understand it compared  favorably with Vega itself.""Oh, but, Hahdin, that  was centuwies ago. You can scahcely dwaw conclusionfwom that. Things wah  diffewent in the old gweat days. We ahn't the men weused  to be,  y'know. But,  Hahdin, come,  you ah  a most  puhsistent chap.
I've told  you I  simply won't discuss  business today. Doctah  Piwenne didpwepayah me  foah you. He told  me you would twy to  badgah me, but I'm fahtoo  old a  hand foah  that. Leave  it foah  next day.  And that  was that.