don't matter… We shall govern all right, Firmin. Government

only becomes difficult when the lawyers get hold of it, and since

these troubles began the lawyers are shy. Indeed, come to think

of it, I wonder where all the lawyers are… Where are they? A

lot, of course, were bagged, some of the worst ones, when they

blew up my legislature. You never knew the late Lord Chancellor.

…

'Necessities bury rights. And create them. Lawyers live on dead

rights disinterred… We've done with that way of living. We

won't have more law than a code can cover and beyond that

government will be free…

'Before the sun sets to-day, Firmin, trust me, we shall have made

our abdications, all of us, and declared the World Republic,

supreme and indivisible. I wonder what my august grandmother

would have made of it! All my rights!… And then we shall go

on governing. What else is there to do? All over the world we

shall declare that there is no longer mine or thine, but ours.

China, the United States, two-thirds of Europe, will certainly

fall in and obey. They will have to do so. What else can they

do? Their official rulers are here with us. They won't be able

to get together any sort of idea of not obeying us… Then we

shall declare that every sort of property is held in trust for

the Republic…'

'But, sir!' cried Firmin, suddenly enlightened. 'Has this been

arranged already?'

'My dear Firmin, do you think we have come here, all of us, to

talk at large? The talking has been done for half a century.

Talking and writing. We are here to set the new thing, the

simple, obvious, necessary thing, going.'

He stood up.

Firmin, forgetting the habits of a score of years, remained

seated.

'WELL,' he said at last. 'And I have known nothing!'

The king smiled very cheerfully. He liked these talks with

Firmin.

Section 3

That conference upon the Brissago meadows was one of the most

heterogeneous collections of prominent people that has ever met

together. Principalities and powers, stripped and shattered until

all their pride and mystery were gone, met in a marvellous new

humility. Here were kings and emperors whose capitals were lakes

of flaming destruction, statesmen whose countries had become

chaos, scared politicians and financial potentates. Here were

leaders of thought and learned investigators dragged reluctantly

to the control of affairs. Altogether there were ninety-three of

them, Leblanc's conception of the head men of the world. They

had all come to the realisation of the simple truths that the

indefatigable Leblanc had hammered into them; and, drawing his

resources from the King of Italy, he had provisioned his

conference with a generous simplicity quite in accordance with

the rest of his character, and so at last was able to make his

astonishing and entirely rational appeal. He had appointed King

Egbert the president, he believed in this young man so firmly

that he completely dominated him, and he spoke himself as a

secretary might speak from the president's left hand, and

evidently did not realise himself that he was telling them all

exactly what they had to do. He imagined he was merely

recapitulating the obvious features of the situation for their

convenience. He was dressed in ill-fitting white silk clothes,

and he consulted a dingy little packet of notes as he spoke.

They put him out. He explained that he had never spoken from

notes before, but that this occasion was exceptional.

And then King Egbert spoke as he was expected to speak, and

Leblanc's spectacles moistened at that flow of generous

sentiment, most amiably and lightly expressed. 'We haven't to

stand on ceremony,' said the king, 'we have to govern the world.

We have always pretended to govern the world and here is our

opportunity.'

'Of course,' whispered Leblanc, nodding his head rapidly, 'of

course.'

'The world has been smashed up, and we have to put it on its

wheels again,' said King Egbert. 'And it is the simple common

sense of this crisis for all to help and none to seek advantage.

Is that our tone or not?'

The gathering was too old and seasoned and miscellaneous for any

great displays of enthusiasm, but that was its tone, and with an

astonishment that somehow became exhilarating it began to resign,

repudiate, and declare its intentions. Firmin, taking notes

behind his master, heard everything that had been foretold among

the yellow broom, come true. With a queer feeling that he was

dreaming, he assisted at the proclamation of the World State, and

saw the message taken out to the wireless operators to be

throbbed all round the habitable globe. 'And next,' said King

Egbert, with a cheerful excitement in his voice, 'we have to get

every atom of Carolinum and all the plant for making it, into our

control…'

Firman was not alone in his incredulity. Not a man there who was

not a very amiable, reasonable, benevolent creature at bottom;

some had been born to power and some had happened upon it, some

had struggled to get it, not clearly knowing what it was and what

it implied, but none was irreconcilably set upon its retention at

the price of cosmic disaster. Their minds had been prepared by

circumstances and sedulously cultivated by Leblanc; and now they

took the broad obvious road along which King Egbert was leading

them, with a mingled conviction of strangeness and necessity.

Things went very smoothly; the King of Italy explained the

arrangements that had been made for the protection of the camp

from any fantastic attack; a couple of thousand of aeroplanes,

each carrying a sharpshooter, guarded them, and there was an

excellent system of relays, and at night all the sky would be

searched by scores of lights, and the admirable Leblanc gave