"Mike Resnick - Bully!" - читать интересную книгу автора (Resnick Mike)

Roosevelt walked to the door of the tent, then paused and turned back to face Boyes.

“A force, you say?” he asked thoughtfully, as a lion coughed and a pair of hyenas
laughed maniacally in the distance.

“That's right, Mr. President,” said Boyes, getting to his feet. “I can promise you at
least fifty men like ourselves. They may not be much to look at, but they'll be men
who aren't afraid to work or to fight, and each and every one of them will be loyal to
you, sir.”
“Father, it's getting late,” called Kermit from outside the tent.

“You go along,” said Roosevelt distractedly. “I'll join you in a few minutes.” He
turned back to Boyes. “Fifty men?”

“That's right, Mr. President.”

“Fifty men to tame the whole of Central Africa?” mused Roosevelt.

Boyes nodded. “That's right. There's seven of us right here; we could have the rest
assembled inside of two weeks.”

“It's very tempting,” admitted Roosevelt, trying to surpress a guilty smile. “It would
be a chance to be both a boy and a President again.”

“The Congo would make one hell of a private hunting preserve, sir,” said Boyes.

The American was silent for a moment, and finally shook his massive head. “It
couldn't be done,” he said at last. “Not with fifty men.”

“No,” said Boyes. “I suppose not.”

“There are no roads, no telephones, no telegraph lines.” Roosevelt paused, staring at
the flickering lanterns that illuminated the interior of the tent. “And the railway ends
in Uganda.”

“No access to the sea, either,” agreed Boyes pleasantly, as the lion coughed again
and a herd of hippos started bellowing in the nearby river.

“No,” said Roosevelt with finality. “It simply couldn't be done—not with fifty men,
not with five thousand.”

Boyes grinned. “Not a chance in the world.”

“A man would have to be mad to consider it,” said Roosevelt.

“I suppose so, Mr. President,” said Boyes.

Roosevelt nodded his head for emphasis. “Totally, absolutely mad.”