rally true, that I was too immersed in work of clearing up matters left unfinished after the death of the former Ambassador for any social activities. Then I called the Hickock ranch

000, and was welcomed by Gail and her father, who h

cast-offs borrowed at the ranch, and driving a dilapidated aircar from the ranch junkyard, were sent to visit the

g Hickock's herd camps and slaughtering crews. It was a p

irtue of constant watchfulness over them. There were always a couple of helicopters hovering over each herd, with fast fighter planes waiting on call to come in and drop fire-bombs or stun-bombs in front of

of the herd, although a supercow herd could change directions almost in a second and the killing-tanks would then find themselve

thes; Colonel Hickock and I sat down together for a drink in his library, a beautiful

ur planet now, Mr. Silk

I replied. "I must say that I agree with your opinions. Especially with your opinion o

half-question and half-statement. "Particularly

is rather

aph of comment on my understatement. "And i

force of aircraft and armor, easily convertible to military uses, that our political freedom rests. You see, our government is, in effect, an oligarchy of the big landow

any Twentieth Century 'Liberal' on end. And it giv

o protect their rights from government encroachment. This sort of thing could only be resorted to in defense of some inherent right, and never to infringe on the rights

en the government invaded or threatened their rights

mployees and a force of tanks and aircraft the right to resist the government, the

ct them from individual attack," I said. "Why doesn't the government, as such, protect itself

y, or appropriate funds to support one. Any member of the legislature who tried it would get what Austin Maverick got, a couple of weeks ago, or what Sam Saltkin got, eight years ago, when he proposed a law for the compulsory

vant; let it get rich and powerful and it's your m

ent has a bodyg

. "Remember, the President's job is inherently

the illogical logic, but ... "H

ster around this ranch in the morning, they'd f

ion to put down mutiny in another. But when you have only five hundred men, all of whom know everyb

if New Texas enters the Solar League, there will be League troops sent here and this ... this in

itical practices, you'll have a 99.95 percent majority in favor of annexation. We're too close

a little time to revise some of my ideas about New Texas. That is, I had time to think during those few m

mplications of the Colonel's clarifying lectures. Against the background of his remarks, I could find myself appreciating t

me, I found myself wondering if I wanted the League to take over. Annexation, yes; New Texas customs wou

position only sixty light-minutes off Capella IV. I had reached the point in my thinking where I had decided it was useless to keep Hoddy and Stonehenge apart except as an exercise in mental agility. Inasmu

ll then that Hoddy had a chance to deliv

our coffee and a final conference before

looking around the tab

g up those z'Srauff meteor-mining boats. They no longer have a tight screen around the

lumly, and the phrase explained why

ose three brothers an hour before Ambassador Cumshaw was shot. The whole town's sorer than hell at Kettle-Belly for antagonizing the Hickock outfit and getting the place shot up the way it was. And we have witnesses that Kettle-

e said. "Something that'll conne

rchants, for ridiculously nominal prices. The merchant who sold the aircar is normally in the dry-goods business, and the one who sold the auto-rifle runs a toy shop. I

rous, all of a s

nd some of the money turned up again in the hands of Switchblade and Jack-High and Turkey-Buzzard. Then, a week before you landed here, he got another hundred thousand from the same anonymous source and he drew out twen

roduced as evidence a

Crooked Creek, about forty miles from Bon

a member of what passes for the Socialist Party on this planet. The defense will take the line of full denial of everythin

we got to worry about, then?" he deman

their defense on political conviction and opposition by the S

re agreed that we must all follow a single line of

stantly, but with a questi

not, under any circumstances, allow those three

ehenge and Parros and Thrombley were understanding what they

ave some excellent reasons for that

ustice. It never should have. And if we take a part in the prosecution, or allow those men to be convicted, we will establish

ou to digest tha

ge frowned and fidgeted with some papers in front of him. I could see several thoughts ga

, that means that anybody can bump off a

nstead of being regarded as the representative of his own government, becomes, in effect, a

aterritoriality of Embassies," Stonehenge picked it up. "And it

could already hear an army of New Texas Rangers, each

ing!" Gomez, the Secreta

h would be tried in an ordinary criminal court. But it's too late for that now. We wouldn't have time to prevent their being arraigned in this Political Justic

the public the simple fact that Ambassador Cumshaw was murdered at the instigation of the z'Srauff. We dare not allow them to be convicted in the C

ybe we can have it two ways. But I'm damned if

ncy goading him which had forced me to find the answer. It wasn't an

regarded me, from the attention they were giving my words, I got a sudden thrill of pr