“I seem to be one of the last. “

“Indeed, Tov Hart, du are. Case duurs proved more difficult dan had bee-an antsipated. But we have a quick and aisy treating no.”

“Well…” It might only have been the stimulant, or maybe the words, but Hart felt immensely braced. He was going to live! And in a superscientific world of friendly people, he should be able to make his way. His money would hardly have survived all the changes of history, but—well, there must be some provision made for the “sleepers. ”

The world wasn’t such a bad place. Even in the far future, it wasn’t bad.

“I’m afraid you have the better of me,” he said to the doctor. At his puzzled look, he added: “With regard to names, I mean.”

“Oh. Pardon, Tov. We are all Rostoms here. I are Waldor Rostom Chang, here are Hallan Rostom Duwgal and Olwar Rostom Serwitch.”

The three men bowed formally. Hart tried to return the gesture, but couldn’t quite imitate the slight knee bend and the position of hands and head. “Philip Bronson Hart,” he said. “But the middle name isn’t the family name, the last is.”

“As wit us,” said the doctor, Waldor Chang. “Family name nos come last, group name in middle, gived name in front. But dey had not de groupings in time duurs, did dey?” He smiled. “Come du no, towarish, above ground. De clinic are quite nea-ar, and we will suwn have du well.”

The landscape hadn’t changed much, there were still the same hills and trees, the far shining thread of a river, and the wind cool and fresh on their faces. White clouds walked overhead through a sky of sunny blue, and a thrush was singing in a little thicket.

But there were few signs of man. The little village which had once been visible down beside the river had long since moldered into the earth, and the buildings of the Crypt center were gone, replaced with a single-roomed frame hut over the vault itself. Above the trees Hart could see a structure of stone and sun-flashing glass which must be the clinic, but otherwise there was no trace of civilization.

“This region must have become pretty well depopulated in the time since I went to ‘sleep,’ ” he remarked.

“Why, nuw. It are raader heawily settled,” replied Chang. “Dere must be-a, oh, all of a million people witin a radyus of a tousand kilometers.”

“But—that’s less than—How many people are there in the country?”

“About tirty million in Nort America. Or on all Eart, abuwt haaf a billion. Of cuwrse, dere must be-a a good ten million on de oder planets of de Solsystem, and perhaps anoder haaf billion in Centaari and elsewhaar—but little are knuwed abuwt dat.”

“But—in my time, there were over two billion people on Earth!”

Chang gave Hart a quizzical look. “Su I have heared,” he said slowly. “But times have cha-enged, Tov. It may taak du some while to reelayze huw much dey have cha-enged.”