ullen face was twitching at the right corner of his
mouth. Young Taller made no attempt to disguise his contempt at the
other's weakness in time of stress.

Chessman's eyes went around the half circle of them. "This is the only
alternative? It'll slow up our heavy industry program. We might not
catch up with Genoa as quickly as planned."

Watson gestured with a hand in quick irritation. "Look here, Chessman,
don't we get through to you? Whether or not we build up a steel capacity
as large as Amschel Mayer's isn't important now. Everything's at stake."

"Don't talk to me that way, Barry," Chessman growled truculently. "I'll
make the decisions. I'll do the thinking." He said to Reif, "How much of
the Tulan army is loyal?"

The aging Tulan looked at Watson before turning back to Joe Chessman.
"All of the Tulan army is loyal--to me."

"Good!" Chessman pushed some of the dispatches on his desk aside, letting
them flutter to the floor. He bared a field map. "If we crush half a
dozen of the local communes ... crush them hard! Then the others ..."

Watson said very slowly and so low as hardly to be heard, "You didn't
bother to listen, Chessman. We told you, all that's needed is a spark."

Joe Chessman sat back in his chair, looked at them all again, one by
one. Re-evaluating. For a moment the facial tic stopped and his eyes
held the old alertness.

"I see," he said. "And you all recommend capitulation to their demands?"

"It's our only chance," Hawkins said. "We don't even know it'll work.
There's always the chance if we throw them a few crumbs they'll want the
whole loaf. You've got to remember that some of them have been living
for twenty-five years or more under this pressure. The valve is about to
blow."

"I see," Chessman grunted. "And what else? I can see in your faces
there's something else."

The three Earthmen didn't answer. Their eyes shifted.

He looked to young Taller and then to Reif. "What else?"

"We need a scapegoat," Reif said without expression.

Joe Chessman thought about that. He looked to Barry Watson again.

Watson said, "The whole Texcocan State is about to topple. Not only do
we have to give them immediate reform, but we're going to have to blame
the past hardships and mistakes on somebody. Somebody has to take the
rap, be thrown to the wolves. If not, maybe we'll all wind up taking the
blame."

"Ah," Chessman said. His red-rimmed eyes went around them again,
thoughtfully. "We should b