"What it boils down to, still,
is that a hundred of those Arab Legionnaires, with their armor, could
finish us all off in ten minutes if it came to open battle."

* * * * *

El Hassan continued moving his headquarters, usually daily, but he
eluded the journalists only another twelve hours. Then they were upon
the mobile camp like locusts.

And David Moroka took over with a calm efficiency that impressed all.
In the first place, he explained, El Hassan was much too busy to
handle the press except for one conference a week. In the second
place, he spoke only Esperanto to foreigners. Meanwhile, he, Dave
Moroka, would handle all their questions, make arrangements for
suitable photographs, and for the TV and newsreel boys to trundle
their equipment as near the front lines as possible. And, meanwhile,
James and John Peters of El Hassan's staff had prepared press releases
covering the El Hassan movement and its program.

Homer, to the extent possible, was isolated from the new elements
descending upon his encampment. Attempting anything else would have
been out of the question. At this point, he was getting approximately
four hours of sleep a night.

Kenny Ballalou was continually coming and going in a mad attempt to
handle the logistics of supplying several thousand men in a desert
area all but devoid of either water or graze, not to speak of food,
petroleum products and ammunition.

Isobel and Cliff were thrown into the positions of combination
secretaries, ministers of finance, assistant bodyguards, and all else
that nobody else seemed to handle, _including_ making coffee.

It was Isobel who approached a subject which had long worried her, as
they drove across country, the only occupants of one of the original
hover-lorries, during a camp move.

She said, hesitantly, "Homer, is it a good idea to give Dave such a
free hand with the press? You know, there are some fifty or so of them
around now and they must be influencing the TV, radio, magazines and
newspapers of the world."

"He seems to know more about it than any of the rest of us," Homer
said, his eyes on the all but sand-obliterated way. "We're going to
have to move more of the men south. We simply haven't got water enough
for them. There'd be enough in Tamanrasset, but not out here. Make a
note to cover this with Kenny. I wonder where Bey is, and Elmer."

Isobel made a note. She said, "Yes, but the trouble is, he's a
compara