to find
enough people who wanted the institution to exist. But I've been away
from research so long--I never was much good at it really. Did you ever
know that? I've always thought of myself as a sort of impressario of
scientific productions, if I might use such a term. Maybe those closer
to the actual work are right. Maybe I'm just trying to hang on to the
past. It could be time for a jump to a new kind of progress."

"You don't believe any of that."

Hockley looked steadily in the direction of the Lab buildings. "I don't
believe any of it. That isn't just an accumulation of buildings over
there, with a name attached to them. It's the advancing terminal of all
Man's history of trying to find out about himself and the Universe. It
started before Neanderthal climbed into his caves a half million years
ago. From then until now there's a steady path of trial and error--of
learning. There's exultation and despair, success and failure. Now they
want to say it was all for nothing."

"But to be pupils--to let the Rykes teach us--"

"The only trouble with Silvers' argument is that our culture has never
understood that teaching, in the accepted sense, is an impossibility.
There can be only learning--never teaching. The teacher has to be
eliminated from the actual learning process before genuine learning can
ever take place. But the Rykes offer to become the Ultimate Teacher."

"And if this is true," said Showalter slowly, "you couldn't teach it to
those who disagree, could you? They'd have to learn it for themselves."

Hockley turned. For a moment he continued to stare at his assistant.
Then his face broke into a narrow grin. "Of course you're right! There's
only one way they'll ever learn it: go through the actual experience of
what Ryke tutelage will mean."

Most of the workrooms at Information Central were empty this time of
evening. Hockley selected the first one he came to and called for every
scrap of data pertaining to Rykeman III. There was a fair amount of
information available on the physical characteristics of the world.
Hockley scribbled swift, privately intelligible notes as he scanned. The
Rykes lived under a gravity one third heavier than Earth's, with a day
little more than half as long, and they received only forty percent as
much heat from their frail sun as Earthmen were accustomed to.

Cultural characteristics included a trading system that made the entire
planet a single economic unit. And the plane