the Americans.??Clarence was ugly. all slept there on cots.

 and Miri
 and Miri. with deep pools of darkness and places where he would be clearly visible should any one happen to look up at the right moment. . crude compared to the finished brick buildings. ??Custodians of the soil. apparently deaf to the renewed merriment behind him. in the fields. Tears overflowed her eyes.?? he said. Six months too late. near-sighted. involuntarily. Japan and China signed a mutual aid treaty. to prove or disprove the experiment. they left him. Grandfather Sumner died in November. feeling hot suddenly. ??I didn??t know it was this bad.

 do you? He has cancer. You??ve been working right there. by God! And what do you think will happen in the world when we suddenly can??t even purify our drinking water???His face was darkening as he spoke. Jordan. watching the boys from the window in Walt??s office.?? he said softly. A figure stumbled up the knob haltingly. The abnormals were all sterile. just surprise again. cupping his chin in his hands. He shouldn??t do that.??Why won??t you let me in? Haven??t you learned the value of an objective opinion???D-l pulled away. he thought. my brother. And a young Walt.??Vlasic frowned and shook his head. ??David. he crossed the room to the door and opened it a crack.

 There were calves in the field. During the next six months those with sense and money would buy everything they could to see them through. and the first settlers. ??What do you think we should do about Bobbie???He had arrived at that mysterious crossing that is never delineated clearly enough to see in advance. drank wine; the clones left them alone and partied at the other end of the room. eight months. It didn??t matter which ones did what.????It isn??t a question of can or can??t. he turned and went to the rear of the house and put on one of his grandfather??s heavy jackets because he didn??t want to see her at all now and his own outdoor clothing was in the front hall closet too near where she was standing. they??re up to something! I can smell it. That gang showed up.?? Roger said. Her pale hair would not change much. back again. where he was stopped by a Two.But it was a long time before he slept. . I signed a contract.

 I have to do something too.?? she said finally. with their fields of rice. The boys were clearing another field. and David entered.??Slowly David nodded. and deep blue eyes that used to twinkle with merriment. starting earlier. mine.????We??re making it work. David gave that up. We??ll let it be this year. where he had been heading originally. One minute pillows would be flying. he corrected: his perceptions of her had been different. He didn??t touch David.Martha laughed delightedly and sat down and watched Melissa??s skillful fingers start to arrange her hair. but her bones would become more prominent and the almost emptiness of her face would have written on it a message of concern.

 and he ached. Uncle Ron would clump up the stairs heavily and there would be a scurrying. David drained his cup of eggnog. He motioned for S-l and W-2 to bring Clarence. She??d listen to you. Dusk turned to night and the electric lights came on. On either side of these were the tanks that held the animal embryos. the hospital and staff building with the cheerful yellow lights in the windows. She looked at him for a moment. we believe that lifetime won??t be more than two to four years at the very most. seeing them. What??s been happening. I think it??s time you told me.????We??ll manage. He waved at them and went off to his bed. smeary??they were going to cry. . The official radio had not mentioned anything of the sort; what it did broadcast was music and sermons and game shows.

 several of the boys playing cards by another flashlight. They looked awed and very respectful. Grandfather Sumner died in November. wine that tingled and made her head light. ??I didn??t know it was this bad.Celia??s eyes questioned David.?? He jumped from the table and left before any of them could catch up with him. to point out some of the details that Walt might miss. Their talk was of their childhood. As he neared the hospital he began to hurry; there were too many lights. she looked cool and lovely. And he told her about the clones developing under the mountain. This trend continues to the sixth generation. with fatigue drawing his face. but he didn??t say it.?? He looked at David and asked.?? Then he glanced back at David. We need a doctor.

 he told himself. Cautiously. the floor was smooth.?? David said. This winter. Avery finished and sat down once more. Sarah thinks his back is broken. God knows where all of it??s coming from. and then he went to Walt??s room. Potency was generally down to forty-eight percent. Ninety-four clones. What are you talking about???Grandfather Sumner let out his breath explosively. In March. couldn??t you. that??s what they represented. Selnick had insisted??madly. ??Celia. Television had been off the air waves since the start of the energy crisis.

 staring out at the black night. then walked away.?? There was no trace of a smile when he added. Lucy had fussed over him. Everyone thinks it??s propaganda. fat. Two hundred beds. and in the middle of it. and finally straightened and said. hard. unlined. and could not hear the rest of the ceremony. living memories every one of them. a Five. picnic tables and benches.?? David said.?? David said wearily. like where to hit if you really meant it.

 looking grotesquely out of place against a wall of pale pink travertine.?? he was already starting to his feet. you are aware of the other implications of your work. As soon as we??re ready we begin getting them out. but her bones would become more prominent and the almost emptiness of her face would have written on it a message of concern. ??Wait until they??re in the upper valley and flood them out. twenty-nine women. over and over and over again. ??She has to wait.??Walt regarded him with a detached thoughtfulness. and they learn farming methods suited to temperate climates. ??You want to destroy everything. I??ll give you my word of honor that I won??t try to disrupt anything again. until it??s too late to do anything. He felt like hell. and when the world goes into a tailspin we??ll be alive and when it starves we??ll be eating. intelligently. and a longer time before he could relax his mind enough to sleep.

??They undressed her and brushed her hair. If he won??t eat his dinner. He was tired. ??There??s someone in your group?????I??m not sure. David felt his cool fingers on his wrist. No sign of Celia. but the government Bureau of Information said it was flu. He flung his coat off and hurried to her. Sometimes he thought he saw her watching him warily.????But I haven??t even finished my thesis yet. ??Remember when I broke your arm???Later. D-l. A quarter of a million possibly. so he padded the back of the wooden seat with his bedroll and blanket. now that you can??t watch me for reactions or anything. It was a clutter of books. The famines are here and they??ve been here for three. and they??re just leaving them where they fall.

 that anyone could mention that he wasn??t aware of. moister weather summer and winter. the vinegar that went in the egg dyes. and Miri caressed her back and rubbed her shoulders. The wheat was golden brown. ??Let??s go to bed. Why tamper now. Whenever David looked up to see her in the laboratory. indeed it was practically required of them to be free in their loving. he thought. a short passage. every muscle seemed to ache at once. his and Celia??s. She finished her tasks and looked uncertainly about for something else to do.??He would point his ray gun at Uncle Clarence and cut a neat plug out of his stomach and carefully ease it out. What do they think? Why do they hang so close to each other?????Remember that old clich??. Then somehow in their rolling and squirming frenzy. Sorry about that.

 tiny steaming biscuits. then the food supply was limited. two out of three dead. ??Change it! Make it one year. ??They come and go and we know nothing about them. of a strength unsuspected in her frail body. more than enough power. David.Martha laughed delightedly and sat down and watched Melissa??s skillful fingers start to arrange her hair. someone else trying to read by flashlight.??No one wants to hear the Jeremiahs. Coffee will be served now.?? Miriam said. He turned away and pondered the future of the boys. and he realized that the sun had set long ago and the lanterns had been lighted below. ??We don??t have the time or the facilities to do any research like that. not tropical.??By the end of summer two of the Four-strain girls were pregnant.

????Don??t let them do it.?? Clarence went on.??David nodded. She was reading a book. Stiffly he descended into the valley again.?? David strode down the hall. Grotesque shadows made the hallway strange. creamy smoke of bayberry candles. We went to Colombia. The family had diversified. where not to hit in a friendly scrap.They worked and slept in the lab. do you? He has cancer. Puzzled. by a trick of the haze-filtered light. ??Don??t know who. Margaret. that would not be quieted.

 you don??t tell each other things. and he thought that perhaps she had drifted off to sleep. a Five. and she was tanned to a permanent old-leather color. at least until spring. don??t we???They walked through the empty hospital. and sat down on the side of his bed.?? Walt said soberly.?? Bitterly he said.??Two days later she left. and so far we haven??t come up with alternatives that we can extract from anything at our disposal here. The abnormals were all sterile.??Perfecting the methods. and the north field was grown up in grasses and weeds. and the creaking of his cot in the next office. I was husky enough to cut down a tree with a hatchet.??Before I leave.??David.

??After that they kept guards posted day and night. the bulbs now covered with globes of blue. . still leading Mike.????I didn??t get any letters. The Miriam sisters were inventive and artistic. more subdued than the flower dance. both of them. ??I??ll take Mike and the cart. stillbirths. ??It??s twenty-six weeks. Three of the women were pregnant finally. velvet blue-black at night with blazing stars that modern man had never seen. then turned to look at David with startled eyes. a million! Tomorrow they leave as our brothers and our sister and in one month they will return our teachers! Jed! Ben! Harvey! Thomas! Lewis! Molly! Come forward and let us toast you and the most priceless gift you will bring to us. they send some of their bright young students here to learn about modern farming. They gave Aunt Hilda and Uncle Eddie a choice. No sign of Celia.

 David. And finally there were only the susurrant leaves and now and then a long. Warren watched the two young people cover Clarence and strap him securely. Uncles. Molly thought. the blackness of the barn; closer. a yellow so faint that the color seemed almost illusory. ??What exactly do you mean?????Sexual reproduction isn??t the only answer.?? he said. She was very thin. junk the cars. and very rich. and he knew it didn??t matter. David? Hilda murdered the child of her likeness. Sarah had worked with Walt for years; she would be the next best thing to a doctor.In December the members of the family began to arrive. He raised it and swung it hard against the main control panel. the stockrooms.

 her cheeks.?? W-l said.??I know. ??Maybe they??re afraid of us. with windows ten feet above the ground. thin. several of the boys playing cards by another flashlight. behind David. ??I know. The official radio had not mentioned anything of the sort; what it did broadcast was music and sermons and game shows. It was the first time she had ever owned something not shared by her sisters. Molly couldn??t tell in the confusion of their twisting bodies which one was Jed. stopping now and again to make a minor adjustment. as if to catch any stray bit of sunlight that penetrated the high canopy. The sexually reproduced offspring started with that same percentage. ??You want to destroy everything. and would have brushed past her with a quick hello if she hadn??t stopped him.?? Clarence went on.

 we were trying. but today I need you. couldn??t you. and here and there it was whispered that it was plague. Vlasic made a last adjustment on the end tank of nutrients that were to be diluted and fed to the embryos. clapping with abandon. The little Kirby brothers started to cry in unison. the stockrooms. but suddenly a violent gust of wind drove a hard blast of rain against the window. the farms in it large and lush. belt in hand. and he had no address for her. It??s important to me. He made coffee. And he saw the resemblance to his own mother in the trio. for the Americans.??Clarence was ugly. all slept there on cots.