Heart pounding. Ogres out of a paleontology exhibit.

 More like a plumber or an electrician
 More like a plumber or an electrician. It makes living a funny joke with nobody around to laugh. the admiral cannot pay personal visit to your esteemed store. he found the man writing out a bank check." Anxiously. but Mr. I can't get faith or enthusiasm by willing it. He glanced at the girl beside him. And one has nothing. His entire selection of jewelry lay arranged on the black velvet on the surface of the counter. And I was so off stride I didn't even notice! I'll bet that's why I got that terrible line; that's the only way Hexagram Eleven can change to Hexagram Twenty-six. He seems sort of different from the others. It was time for him to graft guest gift. the Honorable Baron L. on a basis of acceptance of him as a man rather than him as a yank or. I've gotten so much out of judo. the karesansui landscape. it's idealism that makes him that bitter. "I am a collector. Baynes said. A trifle -- and yet indicative of my foolish and feckless attitude. Ramsey stumbled over the words. I'll prove it. How will Ed make out on this first selling trip? But he was too nervous to. Science fiction deals with future. literal invention of God's.

" "No. finished with her shower. and yet you won't allow me to look at you. You come over around seven and have dinner with Jean and me -- if you can stand the kids. horrified. Because it's everywhere. The Pacific. "Care to borrow Grasshopper?" Paul asked. Then there's trouble -- naturally. especially for a person so elderly and frail that he could not attempt air travel. cards. so hard that they survived even major meteor impact. am I laboring under? Opening his desk drawer he brought out the I Ching and laid the two volumes on the desk. in this case. an enormous buffalo head. the insane. Did he fall dead without me? A fink is a finch. Juliana lay holding Joe Cinnadella against her. I should take my tools. he probably would be pleased to know somebody drove so far just to tell him how much they liked his book. What I need is sleep. They are so close to the Tao. doctors. ." The rocket had almost reached the ground. also a retired officer of the Imperial Army.

 like rutted dirt roads that once turned to slop in the rainy season. Cleveland. smiled silently. carefully shopping in teeny-tiny American markets down along Mission Street. through political intrigue. making way up to slightly raised table. We are no different. possibly dead by now. And. At A. if not in a chamber being squirted with Zyklon B hydrogen cyanide gas. ." Kreuz vom Meere plodded on. W. Full of big shots. A smaller-than-life quality." Lotze said as the rocket touched the ground. And they both knew that." Mr.A. . Vision. No growth. Long since obliterated.? And then. It's in here.

 anyhow. There were shoppers everywhere. "Your fare. The whirring ceased. Anything else?" "You read the messages of condolence. Not of honorable men but of Ehre itself. I am an artist. slow." he wound up. Asking too much out of life. Childan said. And --" He paused. "The rig went on. responsible for colonial policies. It would come from the United States. All Japan joins with German people in this sad hour. The cycle of manic enthusiasm. "I have a paper for you to sign. "He didn't say no." "Shall I demonstrate art of buffalo slaying?" Mr. Adolf Hitler had passed beyond." "I have to turn the bacon." Rising. "Look ahead." he said. Only the formidable technological achievements of German science and industry have saved them.

 not pride; it is inflation of the ego to its ultimate confusion between him who worships and that which is worshiped. That's what I couldn't stand. parts lists. Soon. "He is presently out to lunch. We'd get a professional photographer to do it. it was reported. and then good-bye Todt and Rommel. It does not notice me; I live on unseen. It deals with the political situation. searching for verification of what Joe was saying. He and she had been so broke so long that despite her looks she had had to wear a cotton sweater. They had bought a few semiprecious stones. the Japanese. There. Welding and brazing. if not in a chamber being squirted with Zyklon B hydrogen cyanide gas. "Here am I aboard iron horse. "All he could do is send us away. Now the six at the top. Leaning back his chair so that it rested against the wall he sipped his tea and pondered. Your billing date May eighteenth. Person already reported in area. Fuhrerprinzip - Principle of Leadership. jade. S.

 Much respected personage. And then he thought about Africa. A preoccupation. . the goddam line; it refers to something deeper." she said. I admit I don't like to dress up. "That. "Now that I think about it. Please. and Childan had to tell a convincing story. An idea had come to Mr. Betty. I will be happy to serve Admiral Harusha. If it matters to us. "Missy want tea now?" "Coffee. she thought as she met their gaze. there he was. he thought. the Japanese Ambassador to the Pacific States of America. the noise of a door unlocking. an enormous expense was involved. Immense beauty and worth. Actually a joke. He was still asleep. wouldn't you guess? Read what it ways; read it aloud.

 he telephoned one of the city's bonded messenger and delivery services. "I've got a few ideas of my own." Mr. "Send that. because it was his Luftwaffe that knocked out those English radar stations and then finished off the RAF. Now Baynes could see the airfield itself. I wonder if Kreuz vom Meere has gotten instructions to that effect. At the embassy building he found other dignitaries' cars parked roundabout. . "." Mr. but it's ersatz as the day is long. "Thank you very much. Probably no Admiral Harusha. The bottom line was a Seven. When he caught sight of McCarthy. Cost to buyer: almost ten thousand dollars. air filled with flash of light. It's a reproduction cast from plastic molds except for the walnut. she had said." she said. Obviously somebody put the Hundsfott up to it." Taking scratch paper. Charley approached to wait on her himself. then?" "Consignment. fifteen years later.

 and other people were waiting. "No discussion. How carefully he handled it. And yet. I used to be a collector. Baynes wandered on. but you can lay some of those things out. I guess that's how those kinds of things happen. "Yes?" Childan said. "R. Childan made out the tag. Tagomi's client. "I was proud of what you said yesterday. The voice faded and became garbled. despite his excitement and optimism." That was so. "His theory is that instead of an Isolationist like Bricker. he was not certain what Mr." She held his fork toward him; he accepted it. whom. That isn't it. Childan thought." He looked tired. Because why should I make myself unhappy? They read an American book and want me to explain it to them; they hope that I. Mr. He thought.

" referred to Pinafore. Like that -- what's it called? On Montgomery Street." he said. "No discussion. not strictly empire. Again he had gotten it in connection with Juliana. "The book. one gold pin sold would bring more than forty brass pins. I can't believe it. "Thirty-four. But no one had forseen that Bormann would die at this particular moment." the man continued. ." Major Humo had explained. A static hexagram. Death instead by. now. and now he was gone. I'm not a German. Baynes said. Baynes. Actually a joke. and yet he felt that it was. His chin now had begun to quiver; he licked his lips again and again. but I heard someone say that he's almost a sort of paranoid; charged barbed wire around the place.I looked up in the directionWhence the sound came:What did I see?Only the pale moon in the dawning sky.

 Place difference did not have the significance for them. Down underneath? There is evil! It's actual like cement. I know them pretty well; I do business with them." He added. are you fond of say Bunk Johnson and Kid Ory and the like? Early Dixieland jazz? I have record library of old such music." "What is that?" Mr. out of all this the NSDAP emerging victor. it being beyond his field. And if not. A shape. That would be dreadful. And then everyone. God. A six. "Guess who got the Colonel." Joe said. It reads:A withered poplar puts forth flowers. But now -- "We can start setting up the shop. tweezers. seeking. Almost four hours in all; too late to reopen store. The British start setting up" -- he grinned at her briefly -- "what are called 'detention preserves. "We have a report. almost like old leaves far off. impressed. being a wop -- you can guess.

" Mr. a trifle nervous. and then this modesty. had taken the bags up on a service elevator. she thought." Robert said. "I don't have time to read popular fiction. at home alone in bed at night. "I like that. so far away? Another life. a little like a glasses' case; picking it up. start industry humming. the more autocratic and rigid he gets -- Churchill. No? Mr.' " Mr. As he sat drinking his tea. please. dark. Robert Childan closed up American Artistic Handcrafts Inc. He felt despair. We detected particles of several polishing and finishing compounds.and we have deplored often in the past the dreadful waste of humans in this fanatical striving which sets the broader mass of men wholly outside the legal community. inasmuch as he is toobrusque and pays too little attention to form. ." Childan said. "Any word on the Abwehr character?" Puzzled.

 Pausing. to his office? Give much the same story. fleet isn't destroyed. When he next looked up. At last she went on reading. Old Adolf. bronze. ears. dispensing with so-called necessary illusions such as belief in God. Or. Robert Childan's store appeared first. "Joe. Baynes groaned inwardly. "I'd like to see them do to England what they did in Africa." He gave them a brief friendly smile. like an animal. Herr J. On his jacket he had the name Larry. "Freiherr. Lathering his jowls. you will find yourself in Protective Custody. made their way parallel with the mountains. he felt as if were reviewing one of those stained yearbooks from his high school days. Soot-black eyebrows and hair; trace amounts of Spanish blood distributed as pure color. sir. "Much confusion and intriguing.

 one of the most dismal lines in the entire book. Tagomi said to himself. One has historicity in it. And I don't intend to find myself left out. I wish to see you. But probably no harm's been done. You must. do. Do you recall anything about him?" "Just a little. . but my understanding is that one can find good food in the international section. as for instance consuming with gusto baked potato served with sour cream and chives. had been fascinated. "I have further consulted the oracle. He noticed parked Cadillacs. his elbow out the window. glands pouring. Didn't I hear all about it from Frank? You can't tell me anything about life under the Nazis; my husband was -- is -- a Jew. it might have been an apartment house or a store. sir?" he said to Mr. . Statement expected. And to discover what they are really like. with a little silver ornamentation." He broke off." His small round eyes flickered with what Frink knew to be an almost hereditary evasiveness.

 You understand. He is not supposed to hear such matters. The chink. Ray. at last. Abendsen. rang the bell. They don the dress but they're like monkeys dolled up in the circus. What a relief! Propped comfortably against the car door. Baynes thought. greater heartbeat. It's a utopia! You imagine if the Allies had won. who knows. the chink clicked on the meter. Himmler. he chafed still. Childan knew.44 is a Colt . . "your shop sells such priceless antique artifacts from the pages of American history. Mr. Both men were quite tense. Considered idealist. Did he fall dead without me? A fink is a finch. he poured himself a cup of hot tea. carrying the two brown paper bags.

 Amazing. It's the fault of those physicists and that synchronicity theory. "Maybe there'll be a civil war now. the side with the picture. But nobody fooled. To my customers. "Toward the old. Do you really want me? You can ditch me." "He was living that way before; he wrote the book there. haircut. And that will be that. He scrambled to his feet. Or you are becoming sane. Nazi Party dramatic spectacles at Madison Square Garden. into which now the blond-haired blue-eyed Nordic races have after aeons plunged in their --" He stopped. I guess they got him." he said rapidly. pierced ears for the long dangling brass handmade earrings." McCarthy said. You read the paper." "On that he failed. Those two -- how could they doctor an item made last February? He had presumed they would go to the police or the newspapers. "The admiral desires to pay in advance. On my mother's body -- I give you my word. The U. He remembered one who had devoted his leisure time to collecting newspaper ads of American patent medicines of the 1900s.

 Get to lavatory." "The Germans. "is nothing less than creature which sustained the aboriginal in bygone days." Childan stared down at the gun. Carefully phrasing his words." Childan nodded slightly. shut his book. friends. Nobody's fool. and yet attracted her. "There's a Japanese general supposed to be traveling here incognito. she said. Two huge diesel trucks had parked. "Abendsen." "I heard to the part about Doctor Seyss-Inquart. . an enormous buffalo head. This binge is probably Joe Cinnadella's lifelong ambition. to finer polishing buffs of cotton. Each unique. over a period of months once again the delicate contact between a faction in Germany and a faction in Japan. Baynes. at least the idea was good. good God. already set with white tablecloth. like mine now as I put these plates and silver in the sink.

 Like the radio. would be a neutral. the others are busy. We must ease tensions between the East and West. The bright dangly ones. "Yes. wearing a gray jersey sweater. He stopped at the racks of men's trousers and began to inspect them. Considered a first-place product. rather -- in South America." Now he. their mutual tastes and satisfactions." McCarthy beckoned him over to a corner of the shop. Ramsey to contact one of the other Trade Missions. and of course he had all those taken care of. lifting his eyes. I met Rommel. Wyndam-Matson giggled.To quote a Western saint familiar to all: 'What profit it a man if he gain the whole world but in this enterprise lose his soul?' " The radio paused. He has offered a substantial sum of money for that particular card. he realized. What's the matter. No. even saying meaningless foolish things. sir?" he said to Mr. "Most true.

 chucked her beneath the chin. All our best. ? But. Am I racially kin to this man? Baynes wondered. Leaning back his chair so that it rested against the wall he sipped his tea and pondered. We love the Japs out here. Mr. Tagomi bowed once more. Not today or tomorrow -- but after that. Then the nauseating upward thrust of the elevator. All the Mediterranean. Tagomi reached into his overcoat pocket and brought out a small box. Here in his own home in the evening he wore a silk robe. "Harusame ni nuretsutsu yane no temari kana." she said." With great deliberation. well. is dangerous. And yet it had not eased his heart." His mind refused to think." Ed shut off the truck motor. since there was no one else to consult. "The Fat One. he had originally been drawn by her screwball expression; for no reason. Now. in the German mind.

" Half an hour later. It is too bad. both handsome. Fall of Berlin to the British. the air was heavy with grease smoke. "I held minor post in District of China. Rise to his feet. he approached the counter. A deposit of fifteen thousand PSA dollars. she found Joe once more engrossed in the Grasshopper. but finally he would move on." "I'm not scared at all to walk up and ring the bell. Deep sorrow. . "Freiherr.I looked up in the directionWhence the sound came:What did I see?Only the pale moon in the dawning sky." Mr." "Danke sehr." Baynes nodded. U. "That's him. keeping his eyes on the road. Gott. now. All we get in New York is heavy German bombastic Wagner and Orff. the others are busy.

" They drove swiftly on. sir. warm not only with human bond but with the shared enjoyment of the art objects he sold. Even lacking the fry cook's kidding." "Yes sir. PSA reckoning. "You would not have known. When the seed falls. bright sunlight. Mr. Clear back those racks of ties. She always liked people to look at her. . Tagomi said. always with suspicion. "The Home Government and its bureaucratic officialdom. smiling at Robert. The madmen are in power. not so the adults; the well-dressed young Japanese. Mr. Time passed." "You'd get used to it. Joe said. The Colt . perfected. By more practical advice.

 H. would be ruined. into the vast black deep beyond. Yes. Maybe I don't actually recall F. I would appreciate this information from your estimable newspaper. All night with him. would be earrings. Because I know you could do it. in his front room. erecting eight-floor clay apartment houses for ex-headhunters. "What's the matter?" He reached out." he managed to mutter. . lucky surprise -- amnesty so the Jews could pitch in. And the next you know. disappearing without protest like this one. that Schirach. "I would enjoy your company. He was harsh --" "I'll tell you who really did a good job in the U. Heydrich. far below. somewhat appeased. "Eh?" Baynes said. no welfare public works plans -- the Anglo-Saxon plutocrats wouldn't have permitted it. They had already begun searching into sources of scrap gold.

 What they do not comprehend is man's helplessness. We can live out our tiny lives. beating the pot. Little kids are that way; they feel if their parents aren't watching what they do then what they do isn't real. "Play my utterances back. At last he concluded reluctantly that the money would not be forthcoming. had to waken into the modern world with its jet airplanes and atomic power. Mark them up a lot higher. Herr Doktor. has succumbed. At seven o'clock the following morning." Frink said. He is not supposed to hear such matters. those people could not in a hundred years be given enough trucks or bricks or steel ingots or clothing or typewriters or canned peas or clocks or radios or nose-drops. Tagomi. They -- the local SD -- were told by someone on Heydrich's staff to watch him. you could paste together out of tin and rice paper a complete artificial America." "Listen. I don't have time for any of these harebrained adventures. then? She followed after him. unaware of everything else. he thought. "What we've done here. can I give you assistance?" Mr." "He was living that way before; he wrote the book there." Childan said.

 He slowed. he realized. He has the knack of needling a man. strangled with wire by British commandos." "I'm not a countryman of yours. and Childan began pacing about his store. obviously not understanding English. As yet no word has come as to the expected convening of the Reichstag. gasped a place-conscious acknowledgment and began loading Mr. Enter. Man faces the darkening shadows of his life. Stuck here on the West Coast. boots out its leaders.? Interesting book. as he has said many times over." McCarthy beckoned him over to a corner of the shop. He was mad as hell. Mr. The insight was. Slender. At that. for instance. "Everything." Childan said eagerly. Old Adolf. Anyhow.

 "I shall take your name and address. But he managed to keep his voice level; he even made himself sound a trifle bored. "We could!" she said. God knows how good a salesman Ed is. Service record. went to hang up his coat in the rear. Frink thought. They appeared to be Japanese; he could not tell. In a neat stack on the chair lay Joe's possessions. there really isn't any Pearl Harbor. If any of it sold he made a profit. He'll buy me expensive clothes and then take me to some luxurious hotel. like rutted dirt roads that once turned to slop in the rainy season. "The historicity?" She said. Everything. "I'll let you put the dime in the meter. would be a neutral. I'm fired. Statement expected. up from rotting poverty in Vienna. Baynes knew. Mr. I think I am going mad. . Suffered polio in youth." Now he.

 toast and marmalade. Did that cover every situation. reflected on it. Look at previous revolutions such as French. I'll have them look into both Frink and McCarthy and see if there's anything of use. Memory of his ordeal with Mr. Baynes said. Insist that he pursue matter back to source. They are overcome by some archetype; their egos have expanded psychotically so that they cannot tell where they begin and the godhead leaves off. Your billing date May eighteenth." Frink said." Mr. To save my -- virginity? My life. Ever since the nasty incident with the Colt . acting up. No praise. In the world. Childan had not been the dealer in the rare and desirable which he was now; he had operated a small rather dimly lighted secondhand bookshop on Geary. What they say is true: your powers of imitation are immense. At three o'clock that afternoon. R. Little kids are that way; they feel if their parents aren't watching what they do then what they do isn't real." He broke off." "Why naturally?" "Human nature. recalling Japan War with them. Maladroit enthusiasm.

 She shuddered. Doctor Seyss-Inquart. then returned to their football or baseball. Old Adolf. And no one -- especially the dealers and the collectors themselves -- wanted to. Boat after boat burned to a cinder. because this is his chance; probably he will never see a Swede again. Nor did he take notice of the enormous neon signs with their permanent ads obliterating the front of virtually every large building." The fry cook glanced from her to the young truck driver. please. among the cars and buses.Things are seldom what they seem -- Skim milk masquerades as cream. . He has offered a substantial sum of money for that particular card. And still the snake came on. personal articles. Say. maybe." "I. I don't like that von Karajan." The barest politeness." Hopping up. I could consult it on this; take the issue to it for its five thousand years of wisdom. I'm talking about the lousy part. Heart pounding. Ogres out of a paleontology exhibit.