A Diversity of Creatures | Page 6

down there.' De Forest pointed.
'They'll be deaf and blind.'
'Oh, I think not, sir. The demonstration lasted less than ten minutes.'
'Marvellous!' Takahira sighed. 'I should have said it was half a night.
Now, shall we go down and pick up the pieces?'
'But first a small drink,' said Pirolo. 'The Board must not arrive
weeping at its own works.'
'I am an old fool--an old fool!' Dragomiroff began piteously. 'I did not
know what would happen. It is all new to me. We reason with them in
Little Russia.'
Chicago North landing-tower was unlighted, and Arnott worked his
ship into the clips by her own lights. As soon as these broke out we
heard groanings of horror and appeal from many people below.
'All right,' shouted Arnott into the darkness. 'We aren't beginning
again!' We descended by the stairs, to find ourselves knee-deep in a
grovelling crowd, some crying that they were blind, others beseeching
us not to make any more noises, but the greater part writhing face
downward, their hands or their caps before their eyes.
It was Pirolo who came to our rescue. He climbed the side of a
surfacing-machine, and there, gesticulating as though they could see,
made oration to those afflicted people of Illinois.

'You stchewpids!' he began. 'There is nothing to fuss for. Of course,
your eyes will smart and be red to-morrow. You will look as if you and
your wives had drunk too much, but in a little while you will see again
as well as before. I tell you this, and I--I am Pirolo. Victor Pirolo!'
The crowd with one accord shuddered, for many legends attach to
Victor Pirolo of Foggia, deep in the secrets of God.
'Pirolo?' An unsteady voice lifted itself. 'Then tell us was there anything
except light in those lights of yours just now?'
The question was repeated from every corner of the darkness.
Pirolo laughed.
'No!' he thundered. (Why have small men such large voices?) 'I give
you my word and the Board's word that there was nothing except
light--just light! You stchewpids! Your birth-rate is too low already as
it is. Some day I must invent something to send it up, but send it
down--never!'
'Is that true?--We thought--somebody said--'
One could feel the tension relax all round.
'You too big fools,' Pirolo cried. 'You could have sent us a call and we
would have told you.'
'Send you a call!' a deep voice shouted. 'I wish you had been at our end
of the wire.'
'I'm glad I wasn't,' said De Forest. 'It was bad enough from behind the
lamps. Never mind! It's over now. Is there any one here I can talk
business with? I'm De Forest--for the Board.'
'You might begin with me, for one--I'm Mayor,' the bass voice replied.
A big man rose unsteadily from the street, and staggered towards us
where we sat on the broad turf-edging, in front of the garden fences.

'I ought to be the first on my feet. Am I?' said he.
'Yes,' said De Forest, and steadied him as he dropped down beside us.
'Hello, Andy. Is that you?' a voice called.
'Excuse me,' said the Mayor; 'that sounds like my Chief of Police,
Bluthner!'
'Bluthner it is; and here's Mulligan and Keefe--on their feet.'
'Bring 'em up please, Blut. We're supposed to be the Four in charge of
this hamlet. What we says, goes. And, De Forest, what do you say?'
'Nothing--yet,' De Forest answered, as we made room for the panting,
reeling men. 'You've cut out of system. Well?'
'Tell the steward to send down drinks, please,' Arnott whispered to an
orderly at his side.
'Good!' said the Mayor, smacking his dry lips. 'Now I suppose we can
take it, De Forest, that henceforward the Board will administer us
direct?'
'Not if the Board can avoid it,' De Forest laughed. 'The A.B.C. is
responsible for the planetary traffic only.'
'And all that that implies.' The big Four who ran Chicago chanted their
Magna Charta like children at school.
'Well, get on,' said De Forest wearily. 'What is your silly trouble
anyway?'
'Too much dam' Democracy,' said the Mayor, laying his hand on De
Forest's knee.
'So? I thought Illinois had had her dose of that.'
'She has. That's why. Blut, what did you do with our prisoners last

night?'
'Locked 'em in the water-tower to prevent the women killing 'em,' the
Chief of Police replied. 'I'm too blind to move just yet, but--'
'Arnott, send some of your people, please, and fetch 'em along,' said De
Forest.
'They're triple-circuited,' the Mayor called. 'You'll have to blow out
three fuses.' He turned to De Forest, his large outline just visible in the
paling darkness. 'I hate to throw any more work on the Board. I'm an