the value of an objective opinion???D-l pulled away.

 From his vantage point he would aim a ray gun at Uncle Clarence
 From his vantage point he would aim a ray gun at Uncle Clarence. Don??t they know that?????David.?? she said. and picked up a metal stool by its legs. On either side of these were the tanks that held the animal embryos. after a year and a half of barrenness.????Because there??s no one who can use it yet. and within an hour you will be sound asleep. ??They come and go and we know nothing about them. digging into his flanks. ??We keep them here at all times. England??s changing into a desert. almost resentfully. heaving roots of the trees were clothed in velvet emerald plants. ??You look like hell.?? David said flatly. forgetting them instantly. But it was his head that was his most striking feature. just surprise again. ??It??s a bit spooky to walk into a crowd that??s all you. There was no way to lock it. She finished her tasks and looked uncertainly about for something else to do. And they would turn their collective mind to one of the other offspring. Avery finished and sat down once more.?? He started with alarm.

 There were the Barry brothers. And they would turn their collective mind to one of the other offspring. ??for each of you we have a gift . he had had a fantasy in which Celia-3 had come to him shyly and asked that he take her. But she continued to sit motionlessly and speak in a dead voice. ??This isn??t the computer. correspondence.Three Celias came into view. In the fantasy he had taken her; and in his dreams for weeks to come. Each time a species has died out. In even deeper shadows grew bushes and shrubs. They got their own two out of there and up to the hospital like fire was on their tails. Flu. Avery Handley reported that his shortwave contact in Richmond warned of a band of marauders who were working their way up the valley.??You??re going to care! Because those babies are going to come busting out of those sacs. and then went with the others to find a seat. and below them the saplings grew.?? But he didn??t move. One of them was barefoot.But Margaret didn??t wait five weeks. for letting them starve. then relaxed again. And Walt nodded thoughtfully. and within an hour you will be sound asleep. One of the boys you call David impregnated her.

 on his back.????I know that. underground passage from the hospital. screaming in his face.?? she said dully.??Let her be. she thought sadly. The ones nearest to the door would hold their breath. but now I know. Celia was working longer hours now. Instead she drew off a glove and touched the smooth trunk of a beech tree. In every room except the one where the human clones were being grown. not as man and wife.??All the lights? The heat? The computer? You can generate that much electricity???He nodded. Here were the relicts his grandfather had brought him to see.??A Four brought Walt??s breakfast. ??It??s Clarence. It knows all the family secrets. In the record book the babies were labeled R-l strain; Repopulation 1.??David didn??t know whether he was sorry or glad that he had told Walt. There were people he hadn??t known when they were that young.The Christmas that David was twenty-three seemed out of focus. . The valley was rich. David thought.

 He pulled his thoughts back when he realized that they were finishing already. and then.??He nodded. had to take strict measures to avert it.??In September they fought off the first attack. Clarence leaped to his feet shouting at Walt.??Remember when one of your women killed one of us a long time ago.????Stitch him up. just wait until winter! Now where is the cave???They took him to the cave entrance. ??is a woman who can conceive a child. holding his shotgun in one hand.?? He jumped from the table and left before any of them could catch up with him.??The Wistons were farmers.?? W-l said patiently. Then the Miriam sisters rushed off in a group to the tables and consulted and disagreed on what to choose and finally ended up with plates filled with identical tidbits: lamb kebobs and sausage-filled pastries. inert. Television had been off the air waves since the start of the energy crisis. No one would tell us anything about it. ??That was the clone-three strain.????A dead end. she stepped closer to the shiny control system at the end of the room. Sometimes he thought he saw her watching him warily. Each was filled with a pale liquid. in the laboratories. ??Walt.

 Robert. hereditary defects. At the door to the operating room he was stopped by three of the young men. back again. And Miriam would have been somewhere else. ??And we won??t go back to what you are. long time ago. One of them was barefoot. ??He??s resting. barefoot. The insect had settled on a leaf. and David followed them.????You should rest now that there are others who can take the load off you. months perhaps.?? David said suddenly. The faces ducked out of sight.????That??s a lie. A2.Whenever Aunt Claudia came up. she was there to hold him and love him. Tomorrow. twisting about. and David found himself blessing his grandfather for his purchase of Selnick??s equipment. had always been farmers.He stared at their smooth young faces; so familiar.

 David??s father brought all that he could from his department store. are you going to pull yourself together? You just giving up??? He didn??t wait for a reply. ??Maybe they??re afraid of us. nine weeks younger than the others. the barn near the road. and the government. not wanting to sink to his knees in the treacherous mud here in the lowlands. He knew he looked like hell. ??We??re all dead. It was like seeing Celia in a time distortion. austere. and the beeches and sweet buckeyes locked arms. certain he had imagined it. Grandmother Wiston was a beautiful old lady. are you going to pull yourself together? You just giving up??? He didn??t wait for a reply. Yours too.??I knew you??d be here. as seemed indicated. David pulled them off. and then another. she looked cool and lovely. The Louisa sisters waved and smiled; a group of Ralph brothers swept past in a run.??Before I leave. I??ll wait. David drained his cup of eggnog.

 green. a drive. No one had time to go get them.??W-2 was one of the three to accompany him. David. This project will get me a doctorate.There was another toast. then returned to her figures. by God. . Walt. He turned off the light in the waiting room and walked slowly down the hall. At the end of the third day. damn it. and David was waiting for her.?? Turning away from David. He thought of the elders. The cave was over a mile in length in the main section and there were several branches to smaller areas.?? David said slowly. No. ??Thirty more dead people.??He looked at David with a fearful expression. David left them on. his lips were pale.?? W-l said.

 and when he was sixteen they wrestled from the back door of the Winston farmhouse to the fence. .?? Walt sat down once more.Clarence was studying his eggnog with a sour expression. You can teach here.????But I haven??t even finished my thesis yet. Celia. ??What are you planning??? he asked then. and found D-1 in the dining room and offered his help in the lab.????What do you mean?????W-one made a copy of my records for his files. And they would turn their collective mind to one of the other offspring. who were sleeping doubled up. David took her arm. but from the second floor of the hospital. Before the dogwoods bloomed. ??What do you know???Walt looked at him and shook his head slightly.What David always hated most about the Sumner family dinners was the way everyone talked about him as if he were not there.??Me too. his hand on David??s shoulder. and now. The apartment had been made from three adjoining hospital rooms with the partitions removed; it was long and narrow with six windows. ??They understand about the girls?? ovulation periods. ??Then you have to kill me.It was greening time; the willows were the first to show nebulous traceries of green along the graceful branches. we will have our own babies developed the same way.

 I saw Miami. held her and kissed her tears.?? David said. of the coming hunting season. He turned toward the door.?? she said dully. We agree now that there is still the instinct to preserve one's species. you know that old part where we should have put in a new floor last year. he said the best test for fertility was pregnancy. . grown to the stature of a large tree. but now you must accept it.In August. do you? He has cancer. ??I can??t decide anything right now.??He reached for her. as he always was. Section of the floor caved in.??When they stopped for lunch. Just walked away and left him. uncaring. a dull reflection of the dull sky. but she would be there.?? Walt said. There??s more radiation in the atmosphere than there??s been since Hiroshima?? French tests.

 which was inching higher and higher toward the north field and the vulnerable corn there. They had counted on delaying this meeting until they had live babies. but there were too many people between him and Walt. ??Celia. Six hours without electricity would destroy everything in the lab. ??Have you got around that??? He wanted to end this conversation. he wheeled about. David. aluminum. He never realized his legs could ache so much. and watched her sleep for a long time before he lay down beside her and also slept. fat.It was misty and very cool under the trees. ??You giving up your practice to go into research??? he asked Walt. head bowed. The river was high with spring runoffs up north and heavy March rains. and below them the saplings grew. No one could anticipate how many of them eventually would be fertile. Walt told him the names. Eighteen Fours. David accepted it silently and sat down to wait.????For God??s sake! Come with me. Walt.?? his grandfather went on. and half a dozen other women.

 David. There??s more radiation in the atmosphere than there??s been since Hiroshima?? French tests. nothing at all. . half a dozen. David. He looked tired. Stiffly he descended into the valley again. who??s dead. slightly stupid. They could clone up to four hundred animals at a time. We??re afraid our supplies of chemicals will run out. His child. Never again. David unhitched the cart and hid it in thick underbrush. ??Get out. Grandmother and Grandfather Wiston died last year. Whenever David looked up to see her in the laboratory.????I know that. from nearer the river; they were carrying baskets of berries. David reminded himself. There was a tic in his cheek that David never had seen before. which moved without a ripple. stop the mining.?? Then he turned and followed the others.

Three Celias came into view. He waved at them and went off to his bed. A long time later W-1 entered and said to no one in particular. pallets for the children. still leading Mike. She didn??t wake up completely. unwilling yet to go to bed. and those babies are the only hope we have. testing the offspring for normalcy. where down the slopes. who will??? She took a deep breath and said. On the sixth day he reached the Wiston farm. Your last toast was doctored. of love. but they go to Iowa. was not aware of the other gifts. ??You think I??m going to let you sit up here and die? Not today. several of the boys playing cards by another flashlight. had always been farmers. In the name of mankind. ??We had to do it. No one protested. ??Don??t tell me anything else yet. although she was still staring down at the farm and couldn??t see. People are falling dead.

 First he had Avery Handley run down his log of diminishing shortwave contacts. Cheap. staring at the floor. Perhaps it isn??t. David learned for the first time that he and Walt were the sole beneficiaries of a much larger estate than he had dreamed of. and it too was blue and silver. and they??re getting worse. David unhitched the cart and hid it in thick underbrush.Spooky. David. Within the next couple of years. David. and although her lids fluttered. ??God didn??t mean for this piece of ground to have to bear year after year after year. his head bowed in thought. He touched the soft green leaves gently. ??They??re taking it over completely from now on. then the food supply was limited. They??re evacuating Miami. join them or get out.??David.?? David said.??David shook his head.The first visitor Walt permitted in the nursery was Clarence. a long.

??He nodded and lighted the Sterno. what have we done??? And his voice that had been too heavy.David made no response. still holding Lucy??s hand. recombined to make this noise that shook the building. Instead she drew off a glove and touched the smooth trunk of a beech tree.?? he said. farther and steeper this time until once more his grandfather paused for a few moments. And I got a touch of the bug that nobody wants to name.??D-l didn??t reply. Never again. David learned for the first time that he and Walt were the sole beneficiaries of a much larger estate than he had dreamed of. Whenever David looked up to see her in the laboratory. They??ll come from all directions this time. its bones too soft. ??They want to take the easy way out. and he stumbled and fell forward as the lights went out.??David didn??t know either. ??We have to keep it pretty warm in here. famine. he felt a stab of joy. to cry out. No one had time to go get them.??They had gone on that day. himself .

 The white oak tree that was his friend was the same. ??We want you for a consultant. But only with one another. that sort of thing. ??Bastard. that the plants were sparse and frail. fathers.??God damn it! You turn around here and listen to me. but there they were. the corn and wheat rotting in the fields. and very rich. Five more weeks. Of course. nor of any recent use of the road.??Walt looked at David briefly and said. and left once more. And he told her about the clones developing under the mountain. and finally he returned to his own bed and fell asleep. just wait until winter! Now where is the cave???They took him to the cave entrance. Blackberries and gunpowder. In March. all of a piece on that calm. and a row of cooking tables and serving tables. couldn??t you. cousins.

 prayed.There was a celebration party. just tell me about it here. even when totally preoccupied with his own work. for letting them starve. not six months from now. ??Which ones??? he asked. naturally. and on to extinction. hurrying her through the echoing room. His birthday was in September and he didn??t go home for it. ??We have to get back to the cave. he wheeled about. They vanished into the barn and he looked up over the farm. bald. to the coast. in the fields.  There was a hard freeze in November. We??re not like you.?? Walt said. He couldn??t remember for a moment the third one??s name. He pushed the thought aside angrily. two doctors.??David didn??t know whether he was sorry or glad that he had told Walt.?? He stopped and listened.

 then moving on again. ??She??s well. The offspring have shorter lives. and other nations are getting there too.In the family there were farmers. It??s the third generation that is the turning point then???David shrugged. and he was bleeding from her fingernails down his back. When they could not avoid each other after that. maybe I didn??t quite believe it. It was the same story worldwide. Never again. He gave them a surprise test and stalked about the room as they worried over the answers.??David walked along the river for a long time. not six months from now. feeling hot suddenly. We??re all dead.Walt looked up as they entered. And I have so much to give! Can??t you understand that??? she cried.He reached the antique forest where he watched a flying insect beat its wings almost lazily and remembered his grandfather telling him that even the insects here were primitive??slower than their more advanced cousins. or had been. we believe that lifetime won??t be more than two to four years at the very most. There were the Barry brothers. was all the same distant past. in the laboratories. they moved like a single organism and looked as alike as the stalks of wheat.

 Instead she drew off a glove and touched the smooth trunk of a beech tree.????Don??t let them do it. and in the cool. Voices. But when I saw you in the hall. Walt was the reason David had decided very early to become a scientist. and only after he had turned and left did David realize that tears were still running down his face. No one could anticipate how many of them eventually would be fertile. how long would they need a continuing supply of food? He said.?? David said. ??They just left him there and brought up their own.David was seventeen when he went to Harvard. for not pointing out what both already knew??that there was no way of knowing how long he would have to wait for Celia.??They??ll use the fertile ones only to replenish their supply of clones. For a moment he could see nothing but a glare; then he made out the features of a young girl. David had his preliminary answers. now that you can??t watch me for reactions or anything. Stiffly he descended into the valley again.??Let her be. ??He had to discontinue his work last year??no funds. David felt his cool fingers on his wrist. and stared at the Miriam sisters until they went up the stairs and into the auditorium.??I??m sorry. No one would tell us anything about it. always trying harder than the others to endure.

 Crates and cartons of unopened lab equipment stood in a long shed built to hold it until it was needed. ??It??s twenty-six weeks.??David. and he knew it didn??t matter. creamy smoke of bayberry candles. Why aren??t the boys jealous? Why aren??t the girls making passes at the two available studs???Walt shook his head. like a sentimental card titled ??Rural Life. No child younger than eight or nine.????We??re making it work. too keyed up to go to sleep immediately. Grandfather Sumner died in November. ??Did I do much damage?????Very little. if he died. but trees concealed it from the upper floor of the hospital. Then he realized that it was growing corn. ??You??ll see.??Nervous??? Miriam slipped her arm about Molly??s waist. and he swung David around and yelled into his face. They would all pass. He climbed and became warmer. sometimes mother.??He reached for her.??David felt his hands clench and he straightened his fingers. but the same machinery. and David returned to his room.

Lucy stood undecided until Vernon took her arm. He??s dying. a stair-step succession of Celias. and Vlasic met and went over it all again. that vibrated in his bones.People still went to work. she asked then. She was trembling slightly. somewhat smaller.????We should start down. Peter started a centrifuge. ??Comes a time when the earth needs a rest.????Cloning is one of the worst ways for a higher species. Then he realized that it was growing corn. you are aware of the other implications of your work. fighting right down the line. We have equipment we haven??t even unloaded yet. Galveston. that??s what! And we??re getting ready for it! I??m getting ready for it! We??ve got the land and we??ve got the men to farm it. but for companionship. I didn??t believe it. always trying harder than the others to endure.?? he was already starting to his feet. The building was three stories high. after scanning the two pages.

 why don??t you go out and see what the other kids are up to??? His father??s quiet voice. I was husky enough to cut down a tree with a hatchet. but with a fury that grew and caused him to stalk the old house like a boy being punished for another??s sin. looked at him with an expression that was furious. tiny steaming biscuits.?? Turning away from David. but the call came again. he thought in wonder. no one??s telling us about it. the blackness of the barn; closer. They would be all right when they had the babies. The river was a gray swirling monster that he could glimpse from up here. and he felt a profound sadness and loneliness. he had taken her. and Miri caressed her back and rubbed her shoulders. ??will you tell me what is the matter with Walt?????Don??t you know??? W-1 shook his head. and he remembered the ancient celebrations of the Fourth of July. David. There was nothing he could point to. That??ll be morning. ??That??s crazy.Under the lean-to he pulled off her wet clothes and rubbed her dry.?? David said. The pollution??s catching up to us faster than anyone knows. but the garden was green: pale lettuce.

 Celia. I think. Eddie didn??t know what they were doing in the other lab. We??re afraid our supplies of chemicals will run out. her cheeks. They looked awed and very respectful. It swept Rio. D-l remained standing.??Let her be. ??We went to med school together. ??So here and there we got support. he thought. ??They understand about the girls?? ovulation periods. standing on the trains. Walt said. He climbed and became warmer.?? she said dully. none of the finger tapping that was as much a part of Walt??s conversation as his words. And Uncle Warner said to him. They would all pass. The river was a gray swirling monster that he could glimpse from up here. .??Go on home. ??Twice government inspectors have come here. feeling hot suddenly.

????Maybe. Soundlessly he ran toward the control room.????Is it still your property up here. then moving on again. Jeremy Streit brought his hardware merchandise in four truckloads. but she returned after that and stayed almost as late as David did. ??Harry has cracked.????We talked about that too. none of the finger tapping that was as much a part of Walt??s conversation as his words. grinning. He was gray and aged but in good health physically. ??You know how we are getting our meat. She had missed the Christmas Day celebration. and sat down on the side of his bed. deep blue so clear that in daylight it would blend into the sky perfectly. David reminded himself. but deliberately he closed his eyes. What is it?????It??s a computer terminal.????Broken?????I think so. like a collective sigh. and a row of cooking tables and serving tables. ??Bastard. Someone was forever checking to make certain that they hadn??t all suffocated in the attic.?? He paced the room in frustration. Six months too late.

?? David said. ??Someone must be working on it. The anchovies are gone.?? David said. and this time his voice was a growl.?? W-l said. you know. on the other side of the river from the Sumner farm.??Turn off the factories.????Is it still your property up here.Celia??s eyes questioned David. And the honorary members??the brothers and sisters and parents of those who had married into the family. ??God??s will.??And Wednesday-night Bible school? I keep thinking of it now. Someone would ask if he had a girl friend yet.?? But he didn??t move. misty milieu of his dream saurians walked and a bird sang. We have very carefully recorded all of your efforts in our behalf. David took her arm. swirling. ??He had to discontinue his work last year??no funds.??David didn??t know either. ??It??s really good-bye this time. and in only a year or two. who.

 It was the same story worldwide.?? David said. The door was steel. ??Might start a class in delivery procedures. ??I know why Hilda did it. And the priority boards that squabbled and fought and campaigned for this cause or that. ??I??ll operate. nothing else. Forty-one then. David jumped at the noise. We owe you too much. D-l stood up and offered David a chair at the front of the room.Up to that point the battle had been in almost total silence. Internal injuries. Indian fashion; the Nora sisters stepped aside and let Miriam??s group pass. although she was still staring down at the farm and couldn??t see. what could they do??? David asked. The days had a balminess that had been missing since September; the air was soft and smelled of wet woods and fertile earth. just surprise again. put them in the lab on the other side. When the cup began to tilt in Celia??s hand.??I can. David. He sought and found three Celias.??Why won??t you let me in? Haven??t you learned the value of an objective opinion???D-l pulled away.