"H. Beam Piper - Naudsonce" - читать интересную книгу автора (Piper H Beam)

to realize that they had passed a point-of-no-return. They straightened and came forward steadily, the
woman seeming to be guiding her companion.

"What's happening, Mark?"

It was Lillian; she must have just come out of the soundproof speechlab.

"You know them; the pair in the queue, this afternoon.

I think we've annexed a couple of friendly natives."

They all went outside. The two natives, having come into the camp, had stopped. For a moment, the man
in the breechclout seemed undecided whether he was more afraid to turn and run than advance. The
woman, holding his hand, led him forward. They were both bruised, and both had minor cuts, and neither
of them had any of the things that had been given to them that afternoon.

Rest of the gang beat them up and robbed them," Gofredo began angrily.

See what you did?" Dorver began. "According to their own customs, they had no right to be ahead of
those others, and now you've gotten them punished for it."

"I'd have done more to that fellow then Mark did, if I'd been there when it happened." The Marine officer
turned to Meillard. "Look, this is your show, Paul; how you run it is your job. But in your place, I'd take
that pair back to the village and have them point out who beat them up, and teach the whole gang of them
a lesson. If you're going to colonize this planet, you're going to have to establish Federation law, and
Federation law says you mustn't gang up on people and beat and rob them. We don't have to speak
Svantese to make them understand what we'll put up with and what we won't."

Later. Luis. After we've gotten a treaty with somebody." Meillard broke off. "Watch this!"

The woman was making sign-talk. She pointed to the village on the mound. Then, with her hands, she
shaped a bucket like the ones that had been given to them, and made a snatching gesture away from
herself. She indicated the neckcloths, and the sheath knife and the other things, and snatched them away
too. She made beating motions, and touched her bruises and the man's. All the time she was talking
excitedly, in a high shrill voice. The man made the same ghroogh-ghroogh noises that he had that
afternoon.

"No; we can't take any punitive action. Not now," Meillard said. "But we'll have to do something for
them."

Vengeance, it seemed, wasn't what they wanted. The woman made vehement gestures of rejection
toward the village, then bowed, placing her hands on her brow. The man imitated her obeisance, then
they both straightened. The woman pointed to herself and to the man, and around the circle of huts and
landing craft. She began scuttling about, picking up imaginary litter and sweeping with an imaginary
broom. The man started pounding with an imaginary hammer, then chopping with an imaginary ax.

Lillian was clapping her hand softly. "Good; got it the first time. 'You let us stay; we work for you.' How
about it, Paul?"
Meillard nodded. "Punitive action's unadvisable, but we will show our attitude by taking them in. You tell
them, Luis; these people seem to like your voice."