“Sure; it was the beginning of the persecutions. Well, I’ve got to be on my way.” He got heavily to his feet and arranged the bandana about his head. “Somebody stole my hat. Persecuting me, I’ll bet my bottom dollar ... little ways. Well, I’m prepared for them. They can’t stop us. Sooner or later the whole world will be Cavite.”
“Amen,” I said.
“What?” He looked at me with shock.
“I’m an old man,” I said hastily. “You must recall I was brought up in the old Christianity. Such expressions still linger on, you know.”
“It’s a good thing there’s no Squad of Belief in Luxor,” said Butler cheerily. “They’d have you up for indoctrination in a second.”
“I doubt if it’d be worth their trouble. Soon I shall be withdrawing from the world altogether.”
“I suppose so. You haven’t thought of taking Cavesway have you?”
“Of course, many times, but since my health has been good I’ve been in no great hurry to leave my contemplation of those hills.” I pointed to the western window. “Now I should hesitate to die until the very last moment, out of curiosity. I’m eager to learn, to help as much as possible in your work here.”
“Well, that of course is good news but should you ever want to take his way let me know. We have some marvellous methods now, extremely pleasant to take and, as he said, 'It’s not death which is hard but dying.’ We’ve finally made dying simply swell.”
“Will wonders never cease?”