The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Cartels Jungle, by Irving E. Cox, Jr.

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Title: The Cartels Jungle

Author: Irving E. Cox, Jr.

Release Date: March 16, 2010 [EBook #31062]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

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Transcriber's Note:

This etext was produced from Fantastic Universe September 1955.
Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that the U.S.
copyright on this publication was renewed.

[_In most ideally conceived Utopias the world as it exists
is depicted as a mushrooming horror of maladjustment, cruelty and
crime. In this startlingly original short novel that basic premise is
granted, but only to pave the way for an approach to Utopia over a
highway of the mind so daringly unusual we predict you'll forget
completely that you're embarking on a fictional excursion into the
future by one of the most gifted writers in the field. And that
forgetfulness will be accompanied by the startling realization that
Irving E. Cox has a great deal more than a storyteller's magic to
impart._]

the cartels jungle

_by ... Irving E. Cox, Jr._

It was a world of greedy Dynasts--each contending for the
right to pillage and enslave. But one man's valor became a
shining shield.

* * * * *

_... and he who overcomes an enemy by fraud is as much to be
praised as he who does so by force._

Machiavelli, DISCORSI, III, 1531

The captain walked down the ramp carrying a lightweight bag. To a
discerning eye, that bag meant only one thing: Max Hunter had quit the
service. A spaceman on leave never took personal belongings from his
ship, because without a bag he could by-pass the tedious wait for a
customs clearance.

From the foot of the ramp a gray-haired port hand called up to Hunter,
"So you're really through, Max?"

"I always said, by the time I