Barker lifted his hand to protest and the orderly kicked him into a trot. When he turned to protest, the bayonet changed his mind.
Pike watched his chief disappear with a groan of amazement.
The General and his staff gathered around the Reverend President of the Peace Union with jovial faces. They were inclined to like him. He had contributed something new to the hilarity of nations. They put on their glasses, adjusted and removed them, adjusted them again, looked him up and down, turned him around and wagged their heads gravely.
“Well, gentlemen,” the Commander laughed, “we’re all agreed that it’s a rare specimen—the real question is—what is it?”
Each answer brought a roar of laughter.
“It looks like a man—”
“Can’t be!”
“It might have been once!”
“But not now!”
“A new microbe?”