The Most Sentimental Man Read online

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  _Johnson knew he was annoying the younger man, who so obviously lived by the regulations in the_ Colonial Officer's Manual _and lacked the imagination to understand why he was doing this.... Evelyn E. Smith is famous for her bitter-sweet stories of the worlds of Tomorrow._

  the most sentimental man

  _by EVELYN E. SMITH_

  Once these irritating farewells were over with, he could begin to live as he wished and as he'd dreamed.

  Johnson went to see the others off at Idlewild. He knew they'd expecthim to and, since it would be the last conventional gesture he'd have tomake, he might as well conform to their notions of what was right andproper.

  For the past few centuries the climate had been getting hotter; now,even though it was not yet June, the day was uncomfortably warm. Thesun's rays glinting off the bright metal flanks of the ship dazzled hiseyes, and perspiration made his shirt stick to his shoulder bladesbeneath the jacket that the formality of the occasion had required. Hewished Clifford would hurry up and get the leave-taking over with.

  But, even though Clifford was undoubtedly even more anxious than he tofinish with all this ceremony and take off, he wasn't the kind of man tolet inclination influence his actions. "Sure you won't change your mindand come with us?"

  Johnson shook his head.

  The young man looked at him--hatred for the older man's complication ofwhat should have been a simple departure showing through the pelliculeof politeness. He was young for, since this trip had only slighthistorical importance and none of any other kind, the authorities hadfelt a junior officer entirely sufficient. It was clear, however, thatClifford attributed his commandership to his merits, and he was veryconscious of his great responsibility.

  "We have plenty of room on the ship," he persisted. "There weren't manyleft to go. We could take you easily enough, you know."

  Johnson made a negative sign again. The rays of the sun beating fullupon his head made apparent the grey that usually blended into thestill-thick blond hair. Yet, though past youth, he was far from being anold man. "I've made my decision," he said, remembering that anger nowwas pointless.

  "If it's--if you're just too proud to change your mind," the youngcommander said, less certainly, "I'm sure everyone will understandif ... if ..."

  Johnson smiled. "No, it's just that I want to stay--that's all."

  But the commander's clear blue eyes were still baffled, uneasy, asthough he felt he had not done the utmost that duty--not duty to theservice but to humanity--required. That was the trouble with people,Johnson thought: when they were most well-meaning they became mosttroublesome.

  Clifford lowered his voice to an appropriately funeral hush, as a freshthought obviously struck him. "I know, of course, that your loved onesare buried here and perhaps you feel it's your duty to stay withthem...?"

  At this Johnson almost forgot that anger no longer had any validity. By"loved ones" Clifford undoubtedly had meant Elinor and Paul. It was truethat Johnson had had a certain affection for his wife and son when theywere alive; now that they were dead they represented an episode in hislife that had not, perhaps, been unpleasant, but was certainly over anddone with now.

  Did Clifford think _that_ was his reason for remaining? Why, he mustbelieve Johnson to be the most sentimental man on Earth. "And, come tothink of it," Johnson said to himself, amused, "I am--or soon willbe--just that."

  The commander was still unconsciously pursuing the same train ofthought. "It does seem incredible," he said in a burst of boyish candorthat did not become him, for he was not that young, "that you'd want tostay alone on a whole planet. I mean to say--entirely alone.... There'llnever be another ship, you know--at least not in your lifetime."

  Johnson knew what the other man was thinking. If there'd been a womanwith Johnson now, Clifford might have been able to understand a littlebetter how the other could stick by his decision.

  Johnson wriggled, as sweat oozed stickily down his back. "For God'ssake," he said silently, "take your silly ship and get the hell off myplanet." Aloud he said, "It's a good planet, a little worn-out but stillin pretty good shape. Pity you can't trade in an old world like an oldcar, isn't it?"

  "If it weren't so damned far from the center of things," the young manreplied, defensively assuming the burden of all civilization, "wewouldn't abandon it. After all, we hate leaving the world on which weoriginated. But it's a long haul to Alpha Centauri--you know that--and atremendously expensive one. Keeping up this place solely out ofsentiment would be sheer waste--the people would never stand for the taxburden."

  "A costly museum, yes," Johnson agreed.

  How much longer were these dismal farewells going to continue? How muchlonger would the young man still feel the need to justify himself? "Ifonly there were others fool enough--if only there were others withyou.... But, even if anybody else'd be willing to cut himself offentirely from the rest of the civilized universe, the Earth won'tsupport enough of a population to keep it running. Not according to ourpresent living standards anyway.... Most of its resources are gone, youknow--hardly any coal or oil left, and that's not worth digging for whenthere are better and cheaper fuels in the system."

  He was virtually quoting from the _Colonial Officer's Manual_. Werethere any people left able to think for themselves, Johnson wondered.Had there ever been? Had he thought for himself in making his decision,or was he merely clinging to a childish dream that all men had had andlost?

  "With man gone, Earth will replenish herself," he said aloud. First thevegetation would begin to grow thick. Already it had released itselffrom the restraint of cultivation; soon it would be spreading out overthe continent, overrunning the cities with delicately persistent greentendrils. Some the harsh winters would kill, but others would live onand would multiply. Vines would twist themselves about the tallbuildings and tenderly, passionately squeeze them to death ...eventually send them tumbling down. And then the trees would rearthemselves in their places.

  The swamps that man had filled in would begin to reappear one by one, asthe land sank back to a pristine state. The sea would go on changingher boundaries, with no dikes to stop her. Volcanoes would heave up theland into different configurations. The heat would increase until itgrew unbearable ... only there would be no one--no human, anyway--tobear it.

  Year after year the leaves would wither and fall and decay. Rock wouldcover them. And some day ... billions of years thence ... there would becoal and oil--and nobody to want them.

  "Very likely Earth will replenish herself," the commander agreed, "butnot in your time or your children's time.... That is, not in _my_children's time," he added hastily.

  The handful of men lined up in a row before the airlock shuffled theirfeet and allowed their muttering to become a few decibels louder.Clifford looked at his wrist chronometer. Obviously he was no lessanxious than the crew to be off, but, for the sake of his conscience, hemust make a last try.

  "Damn your conscience," Johnson thought. "I hope that for this you feelguilty as hell, that you wake up nights in a cold sweat remembering thatyou left one man alone on the planet you and your kind discarded. Notthat I don't want to stay, mind you, but that I want you to suffer theway you're making me suffer now--having to listen to your platitudes."

  The commander suddenly stopped paraphrasing the _Manual_. "Camping out'sfun for a week or two, you know, but it's different when it's for alifetime."

  Johnson's fingers curled in his palms ... he was even angrier now thatthe commander had struck so close to home. Camping out ... was that allhe was doing--fulfilling childhood desires, nothing more?

/>   Fortunately Clifford didn't realize that he had scored, and scuttledback to the shelter of the _Manual_. "Perhaps you don't know enoughabout the new system in Alpha Centauri," he said, a trifle wildly. "Ithas two suns surrounded by three planets, Thalia, Aglaia, andEuphrosyne. Each of these planets is slightly smaller than Earth, sothat the decrease in gravity is just great enough to be pleasant,without being so marked as to be inconvenient. The atmosphere is almostexactly like that of Earth's, except that it contains several beneficialelements which are absent here--and the climate is more temperate. Owingto the fact that the planets are partially shielded from the suns bycloud layers, the temperature--except