*  *  *  *

Looking around at the New Detroiters, Benjamin smiled at Ford's
comment about Westerners, and feigning innocence of his true meaning,
said with a conspiratorial grin, "Well, sir, surely you live on the
Western side of the River and we on the Eastern, but it is not so wide
a River as needs separate us in our Enterprises."

Ford looked curiously at Benjamin. "Now, don't tell me you didn't
get what I was driving at."

"I took your Meaning, sir, but you did not take mine.  Here in this new
Life, should such Rivalry continue?  There is no more East and West; the
River mixes us all together, and we profit by it."

Indicating Matoaka, Benjamin continued, "For instance, I have learned
more from this woman in just a few Days than from a Month amongst my
Peers in the Continental Congress, because her Wisdom is of different
Subjects.  The River brings us together that we might expand our
Learning; will you pass up that Opportunity and remain only amongst
those who only know what you already know?  Here more than before,
don't value a man for the Quality he is of, but for the Qualities he
possesses."

Ford raises his eyebrow. "Well, now, I've got nothing against learning
about a strange woman's wisdom," he says, with a straight face. "But
look, while we may all be reborn and given a chance for new life, our
attitudes weren't changed the way our bodies were. Now maybe that
means that we were meant to keep our attitudes, and maybe it just
means that knowing that other people still harbor their former
rivalries and grudges, I'd better protect myself as well." The New
Detroiters murmur approval at his words.

He leans forward and his voice drops. "Besides, I wouldn't be much
good to you without these boys, and these boys have pretty strong
feelings about Toyoda's folks."

Matoaka stared at Ford with silent distaste.
She did not care nor did she understand why the rivalry between Ford
and Toyoda-san for those odd-looking carriages.  Smiling at her thoughts:
In her time, the white man seemed fond of them, they had their purpose, but
fighting over them seemed ridiculous to her, besides, there are no horses
on Riverworld. Hearing about this Western and Eastern conflict only made
her raise an eyebrow. 

"That is a great Loss for you and for Ferrum as well," Benjamin
said. "Certainly your Skills and those of your Men would be put to
better Use as part of the new Civilization that will blossom here.
But it is not my place to choose your Destiny.  I pray you will
reconsider; is your Pride worth the loss to all of us?  As Pride
increases, Fortune declines."

Benjamin turned as if to leave, but Ford stopped him.

"Now wait a minute," Ford said. "Why don't you kick out Toyoda's bunch
and we'll help you. We can do better than they can, anyway. In fact,
we'd be willing to prove it, in a contest maybe."

"The Essence of our Enterprise is Cooperation for mutual Benefit.  The
best 'Contest', as you put it, that proves someone able to serve that
Purpose, is one which tests the Willingness to cooperate.  It seems to
me, that one such Test is already underway."

Benjamin turned to leave again, and once more Ford called out.  "Well,
perhaps I should consider this further. I'm not a one for hasty
judgments. At least stay for lunch before you leave, and let me talk
to some of the boys and see what I can do."

The ambassadors agreed, and placed their grails into the grailstone to
await noon. Ford huddled together with some of the other New
Detroiters for a time, and then finally, smiling, they returned to the
grailstone just as it fired.

"Well, the boys and I talked about it, and we decided you were right
about putting our skills to better use." Before the three could react,
two muscular New Detroiters grabbed each of them. The ambassadors'
deaths were quick and painless.

			      *  *  *  *

"Toyoda-san," Charles said in response to the serious-looking Japanese
leader, "We honor our agreement with you and your people. However, for
civilization to flourish, we must have groups outside this village for
trade and growth.  We will trade with many groups.  Your group is part
of this village, and have direct access to our mining efforts.  Ford
will likely not leave his village to move here.  Likely we will set up
trade with him and his people."

Toyoda nods.  "Trade is good and necessary. But, as you say, we are
friends, and partners with you. Whatever our village does not need,
and whatever we can produce that other villages can't, we should
certainly trade when it is to our advantage. With Ford's group or any
others." He returned to his people, some of whom had begun to consider
how the iron ore might be fashioned into axles.

Charles found Diana, and together they took a walk along the river.

Charles asked her more about her time on Earth. In the 20th century, he
learned, much of the Earth had been polluted by industry. She told him
of wonders -- self-propelled vehicles for land and air, and factories that
could produce articles faster than any person could, and every article
the same.

"Henry Ford, in fact, was responsible for the birth of the assembly
line and standardized parts in America," she said. But she went on to
tell him of sooty air and murky water, and of poisons in the land.
Charles knew how salting or scorching the earth could make it unusable
for years; he was appalled that earth might become unusable for
decades.

Josephine spent the morning hours with her 'son', teaching him to
swim, speaking to him in both French and English, in turn learning some
Celtic from him.

Taking the time to identify each object around, first in English, then
French, Josephine started slowly, then built speed in identifying and
instructing Llyr. The boy was not unduly fast, but not overly slow
either, and seemed pleased to share words.

As the morning latened, she found Cixi, and spoke to her quietly.

"I haven't had much military training," Josephine said. "Just a few
years in the underground as a spy, but I do know bodies.  I mean,
human bodies.  Muscles, bones, tendons.  Perhaps I could volunteer
some time to teach the soldiers balance and dexterity?"

After a long pause, she pointed to her skin.  "My people, too, have
suffered under the yoke of the white devil."

Josephine and Cixi walked together toward the grailstone as noon neared.
Jeanne and Louis were already there, having come after finishing
Lauds. Louis had been uncomfortable during the service, his eyes
flitting about the room as if he were caged and wished to escape, or
closing as he tried to breathe slowly.

"Melancholy is a sickness of the spirit, Louis," Jeanne said to him as
the others neared. "The only physic for it is God. Yet you turn from
Him. Why is this?"

Louis says, "Jeanne, you are a fine pupil; I could wish for no other."
He watches the River flow, listening to the stillness of the night.
"Let me be...I am just prone to melancholy...from the time I was a
child I have always been told I think too much."

As the grailstone fired, Charles frowned. "I think Benjamin, Shaw, and
Matoaka should have returned by now," he said.

"Perhaps the discussions go well," Diana suggested. "Or more likely,
they were invited to lunch with Ford's people."

Charles nodded hopefully. "Has anyone thought more about paper?"

"How about something like papyrus?" Ehrich suggested.  "There are
plenty of reeds which can be beaten to a pulp and spread out.  For
less permanent writing, a thin layer of clay on a board could be used
for calculating; just draw in it when it's wet, and erasing is quick."

Jeanne looked puzzled. "I have not heard of 'papyrus' before. Will
this work? Benjamin seemed sure that making paper was a great
undertaking. His method seemed far more complicated."

Ehrich shrugged. "I've never actually done it, but I think I know the
way of it. I'll try, this afternoon."

By dinnertime, Ehrich had found a ready supply of reeds that he
thought would suit. He carefully split them and removed the pith at
their center. Then he began laughing. "Well," he said to the others
who had been watching, "now I think you cut the pith into thin slices
and press them together. When it dries, you've got papyrus. But until
we've got a metal blade that's fine enough to slice the pith, we'd be
stuck with very thick paper -- and a very long drying time." He
grinned sheepishly and looked at Robbie. "Make me a knife."

The dinner grailstone fired, and the night grew darker. The
ambassadors still had not returned. The lazari agreed to wait until
morning. Morning came, with no sign of the missing three.

			      *  *  *  *


The first thing that Benjamin, Shaw, and Matoaka noticed when they
opened their eyes and arose from dead again was the thin sunlight of
the Riverworld dawn. The second was that they had been reborn
together, to their great joy and surprise. The third was the group of 
bronze-skinned men and women who were regarding them cautiously as
they sat up.

The villagers worse their towels as pants, dresses, and turbans. Some
of the women had pinned wooden spheres to their left nostrils; others
had red dots painted in the center of their foreheads which reminded
Matoaka that her own face was unpainted -- a circumstance she must
rectify soon. The men wore chert knives at their belts, and greeted
them in an unfamiliar language. Shaw suggested it might be a spoken
dialect of Sanskrit.

The fourth thing they noticed was that they were not the only lazari
reawakening from the temporarily sleep that death had become. A small,
tanned man sat up next to them, and spoke, first in Hebrew, and then
in Arabic, which he was pleased to learn that Shaw could understand.
"Yitsaak ben Solomon Luria," he said by way of introduction.