The Minister of Agriculture lowered his databoard and peered over the top of it at His Royal Highness, who stared rigidly past the minister at the tapestries behind him.
“This is a serious question,” murmured the Minister of Agriculture, as though to himself.
“I’m sure,” said His Effulgence from a tight throat. “Too serious to be delayed for my benefit. Why didn’t you just get on with it?”
“The Scroll of Establishment of Kamir-Shom-Lak requires that all matters concerning the general welfare be presented to the king for his approval or advice.”
“Since my advice is invariably ignored, I don’t advise,” said the king.
“The Great Document does not require that Your Effulgence advise. It merely requires that matters be presented in case Your Majesty might choose to do so,” said the minister, with an unsympathetic yawn.
“Take it as written that I do not choose. I neither advise nor approve. Nor will I ever approve of any matter brought before me. Certainly I do not approve of cutting the forests of Tarnen. They are the last forests remaining upon Kamir.”
“As Your Majesty knows, the removal of forests is one of the necessary steps in homo-norming a planet. Kamir has delayed far longer than most planets. Why, on Kamir, we still have animals!”
The king became very pale. “We have a few, yes. There are fifty species of birds in the forests of Tarnen, including the royal ouzel, whose feathers grace our crown, whose image is graven upon our planetary seal. There are numerous species of insects and animals. There are ferns, orchids—”
“None of which is required by man,” the Minister of Agriculture interrupted. “We have been over this, Your Majesty. In accordance with Alliance regulations, before we may establish outgrowth colonies, our home planet must be homo-normed at least to Type G. That means—”
“I know what it means! It means no trees, no birds, no animals. Why don’t we skip over a step? Why don’t we save the forests by eliminating the cattle, which we will do sooner or later when we set up the algae farms required by Class G.”
“We have preserved the patterns of the forest species, Your Effulgence. They are in our files as required by the homo-norming laws.”
“They won’t be alive! No flutter of wings, no plop of little green bodies into water, no silver glitter beneath the ripples. There will be only men and the crops to feed men!”
“The stored species can be enlivened whenever there is sufficient
space and food for them. Just now, however, there is widespread hunger in the area of Chalc. As Your Majesty is aware, food and medicines are already stringently rationed everywhere on Kamir.”
“Except among the aristocracy.”
“Your ministers cannot be expected to govern if they are hungry or worried over the welfare of their families.”
“Suggest that the peasants of Chalc restrict their fecundity.”
“Humanity comes first. Fecundity is the blessing of the universe, which was made for man.”
“What universe is that?”
The Minister of Agriculture flushed, slightly embarrassed. “One gets into the habit—”
“I am not one of your Firster constituents, Minister. I am a faithful son of Lord Fathom, ancient and enigmatic, god of the Lostres.” He took his eyes from the tapestries and looked directly into the minister’s eyes. “Listen to me for a moment. You have traveled. You are a sophisticated man. You have been to Central, as I have. What do you think of it?”
“Your Effulgence … ”
“Be honest! What do you think of it?”
“It seems a very efficient place.”
“Did you feel at all crowded?”
“Well, one does feel a bit—”
“Did you go to the Grand Canyon of Old-earth?”
“Yes. I confess, I didn’t see what the fuss was about.”
“You rode down in a transparent elevator. Through the glass you saw the strata, each one labeled as to age. At the bottom you experienced a sensurround of the way it used to be, a few centuries ago. You were told that the canyon now houses over a billion people. Do you want that for the forests of Tarnen?”
“But it’s inevitable, Your Effulgence! There will be frontiers for our great-grandchildren, perhaps, but for us, now, there is still space to fill! So long as there is space to fill, we must go on having babies. So Firstism teaches us.”