scientists seldomspeak to you and me, but only to each other. To the extent their circleof communication is limited, so is their value. Shall we support the manwho speaks to the world, or the man who speaks only in order to hear hisown echo?"
He had them now, Fenwick was convinced. He could quit any time and beahead. The gallery was smiling approval. The press was nodding andwhispering to each other. The senators wouldn't be human if they weren'tmoved.
Baker swept aside all these charts now and placed another series beforethe audience. "This is the Index on an institution to whom we have givena sizable grant," he said. "Is there anyone here who would question ourdecision?
"This institution would have accepted every one of the list ofscientists I gave you a moment ago. They would have had their chancehere. This institution has men in whom new ideas pop up like cherryblossoms in the spring. I don't know how many of them are good ideas. Noone can tell at this stage, but, at least, these men are_thinking_--which is a basic requirement for producing scientificdiscovery.
"Finally, this institution is staffed by men who can't be shut up. Theydon't communicate merely with each other. They talk about their ideas toanyone who comes along. They write articles for little publications andfor big ones. They are in the home mechanics' journals and onpublishers' book lists.
"Most important of all, these are some of the men responsible for thered line on the first curve I showed you. These are the men who haveproduced the most new developments and inventions with the least amountof money.
"I leave it to you, gentlemen. Has the National Bureau of ScientificDevelopment chosen correctly, or should we return to our former course?"
There were cheers and applause as Baker sat down. Landrus closed thehearing with the announcement that the evidence would be examined atlength and a report issued. Wily hurried forward to buttonhole him asthe crowd filed out.
* * * * *
"It was a good show," Fenwick said, "but I'm still puzzled by whatyou've done. This new Index is really just about as phony as your oldone."
They were seated in Baker's office once more. Baker smiled and glancedthrough the window beyond Fenwick. "I suppose so," Baker admittedfinally, "but do you think Wily will be able to convince Landrus and hiscommittee of that no matter how big a dinner he buys him tonight?"
"No--I don't think he will."
"Then we've accomplished our purpose. Besides, there's a good deal oftruth buried in the Index. It's no lie that we can give them scientificresearch at a cheaper price than ever before."
"But what was the purpose you were trying to accomplish?"
Baker hesitated. "To establish myself as an Authority," he said,finally. "After today, I will be the recognized Authority on how tomanage the nation's greatest research and development program."
Fenwick stared, then gasped. "Authority--you? This is the thing you weretrying to fight. This is the great Plague Sam Atkins taught you--"
Baker was shaking his head and laughing. "No. Sam Atkins didn't tell methat one man could become immune and fight the Plague head on all byhimself. He taught me something else that I didn't understand for a longtime. He told me that he who ceases to fear Authority becomes Authority.
"To become Authority was the last thing in the world I wanted. Butfinally I recognized what Sam meant; it was the only way I could everaccomplish anything in the face of this Plague. You can't tell men ofthis culture that it is wrong to put themselves in total agreement withAuthority. If that's the program on which they've chosen to function,the destruction of the program would destroy them, just as it did me.There had to be another way.
"If men are afraid of lions, you don't teach them it's wrong for men tobe afraid of beasts; you teach them how to trap lions.
"If men are afraid of new knowledge-experiences, you don't teach themthat new knowledge is not to be feared. There was a time when men gotburned at the stake for such efforts. The response today is not entirelydifferent. No--when men are afraid of knowledge you teach them to trapknowledge, just as you might teach them to trap lions.
"I can do this now because I have shown them that I am an Authority. Ican lead them and it will not fracture their basic program tapes, whichinstruct them to be in accord with Authority. I can stop their battleagainst those who are not possessed of the Plague. It may even be that Ican change the course of the Plague. Who knows?"
Fenwick was silent for a long time. Then he spoke again. "I readsomewhere about a caterpillar that's called the ProcessionaryCaterpillar. Several of them hook up, nose to fanny, and travel througha forest wherever the whims of the front caterpillar take them.
"A naturalist once took a train of Processionary Caterpillars and placedthem on the rim of a flower pot in a continuous chain. They marched fordays around the flower pot, each one supposing the caterpillar in frontof him knew where he was going. Each was the Authority to the onebehind. Food and water were placed nearby, but the caterpillarscontinued marching until they dropped off from exhaustion."
Baker frowned. "And what's that got to do with--?"
"You," said Fenwick. "You just led the way down off the flower pot. Youjust got promoted to head caterpillar."
Thank you for reading books on BookFrom.Net Share this book with friends