"L. Sprague De Camp - The Great Fetish" - читать интересную книгу автора (De Camp L Sprague)

Although the elder Prokopius never said where they had obtained Marko, it was supposed in Skudra
that he was of Anglonian or Eropian origin. These exotic antecedents had caused the intensely
parochial Skudrans to look upon Marko with scorn and suspicion, even after he had grown too big
and burly to be openly bullied. This treatment had caused his naturally introverted personality to
become even more withdrawn.
Marko looked out over the courtroom. At the back stood the bailiff, Ivan Haliu, leaning on his
billhook and wearing the same old helmet, blackened with oxidation, that Milan Prokopiu had
hammered out for him years before. Ivan Haliu was looking intently towards the place where Bori
Bender sat near Pavlo Arkas. The Benders and the Arkases had a feud on, anaJone "of 't/ie "two
~men"migfiV 'tfy~"td sfao'~ trie otrier.' Marko Prokopiu picked out Ms friends and his foes with
his glance. In the front row were his friends: his mother, small and sharp-nosed; his wife,
Petronela, big and handsome; and his boarder, Chet Mongamri, the very tall man with the pointed
graying Anglonian mustache. It was Mongamri who had persuaded Marko of the truth of Descensionism.


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Nearly all the rest were neutral or hostile. There was Vasilio Yovanovi, the father of the pupil
whom Marko had thrashed for chasing a fellow pupil with a knife. Although this beating was
perfectly legal, as homicide was forbidden to minors, Vasilio Yovanovi had brought the action
against Marko. The boy sat beside his father and visibly gloated. No doubt Miltiadu would call him
as a witness.
And there in the bush beard and tiara of black wool was Theofrasto Vlora, Metropolitan of the Holy
Syncretic Church, who had come up from Stambu to oversee the trial and harken on the prosecution.
Even if the five jurors had not included Sokrati Yovanovi, a cousin of Vasilio Yovanovi, there was
little chance that they would acquit him under the stern eye of the Metropolitan.
"Not guilty!" said Marko loudly, and sat down.
The judge said: "The prisoner has pleaded not guilty. Prosecutor, state your case."
Jorgi Miltiadu stood up and began: "Your honor, we expect to prove that the prisoner, contrary to
the laws of the Kralate and the regulations of the school board, did willfully and wrongfully . .
." Here followed a restatement of the charge, going in more detail into Marko's iniquities. When
Miltiadu had finished, the judge said to Marko's lawyer:
"Counselor, state your case."
Rigas Lazarevi rose and began: "Your honor, the defense will stipulate that my client did, in
fact, teach the doctrines which he is accusedтАФ"
"Are you changing your plea to guilty?" cried Jorgi Miltiadu, leaping up like a startled tersor.
"Order," said Judge Kopitar. "Resume your seat, Master Prosecutor; you shall have your chance."
"No," said Rigas Lazarevi. "We adhere to our plea of innocence. It is on another ground altogether
that we shall make our defense, namely, that the doctrines in question are true, and that not even
the government has the right to compel my client to teach an untruth. For there is a higher law
than princes, as our distinguished visitor the Metropolitan"тАФhe nodded towards Theofrasto Vlora,
who stared back coldly over his bristling black beardтАФ"would be the first to assert. We shall
produceтАФ"
"I object!" cried Jorgi Miltiadu. "My honored colleague's proceeding is irregular, his arguments
are irrelevant, and his implications are subversive. This is neither a churchly synod nor a
meeting of the faculty of the University of Thine to decide what is true. For our purposes, truth
has been clearly set forth in section forty-two of Decree Number 230, Year of Descent 978,
relating to the establishment and maintenance of a public-school system . . ."
On they went all through the long morning, back and forth, objecting, arguing, and splitting