THE WORLD SET FREE
come to think of it, I wonder where all the lawyers are. . . . Where are they? A lot, of course, were bagged, some of the worst ones, when they blew up my legislature. You never knew the late Lord Chancellor. . . .
"Necessities bury rights. Lawyers live on rights. . . . We've done with that way of living. We won't have more law than a code can cover and beyond that government will be free. . . .
"Before the sun sets to-day, Firmin, trust me, we shall have made our abdications, all of us, and declared the World Republic, supreme and indivisible. I wonder what my august grandmother would have made of it! All my rights! . . . And then we shall go on governing. What else is there to do? All over the world we shall declare that there is no longer mine or thine, but ours. China, the United States, two-thirds of Europe, will certainly fall in and obey. They will have to do so. What else can they do? Their official rulers are here with us. They won't be able to get together any sort of idea of not obeying us. . . . Then we shall declare that every sort of property is held in trust for the Republic. . . ."
"But, sir!" cried Firmin, suddenly enlightened. "Has this been arranged already?"
"My dear Firmin, do you think we have come
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