"Eric Frank Russell - Heav'n, Heav'n" - читать интересную книгу автора (Russell Eric Frank)

"Yes, Monsieur Trabaud."
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"Therefore you are old enough to know that to bake bread there must be hotness within this sacred
oven.And for that we must have fire; and to have fire we mustapply a flame. Is that not so?"

"Yes, Monsieur Trabaud," he agreed shamefacedly.

"Then why should I have to tell you these thingsagain and again and again?"

"I am an imbecile, Monsieur."

"If that were so, I could understand; I could forgiveyou. The good God makes fools in order to create
pity."Seating himself on a dusty and bulging sack, Trabaud putforth a hairy arm, drew the other to him,
went on in con-fidential tones. "Your brain wanders like a rejected lover in a strange country. Tell me, my
little, who is this girl?"

"Girl?"

"This woman, this divine creature who fills your mind."

"There is no woman, Monsieur."

"No woman?" Trabaud was frankly astonished. "Yousicken with desire and yet there is no woman?"

"No, Monsieur."

"Then of what do you dream?"

"Of the stars, Monsieur."

"A thousand thunders!" Trabaud spread hands in muteappeal and gazed prayerfully at the ceiling. "An
appren-tice baker. Of what does he dream? Of the stars!"

"I cannot help myself, Monsieur."

"Of course you cannot; you are but sixteen." He gavean expressive shrug. "I will ask you two things.
How can there be people if no man makes bread? And howcan anyone go among the stars if there are
no people?"

"I do not know, Monsieur."

"There are ships flying between the stars," continuedTrabaud, "for one reason only - because here we
havelife." Leaning to one side he picked up a yard-long loaf, yeasty and golden-crusted. "And this
sustains life."

"Yes, Monsieur."