I know this isn’t entirely original. The Trattato di Sociologia Generale proved useful, oddly, if only in what I rejected from it; and Sorel’s syndicalism provides a nice little first-­attack theme—you know what I mean. (Syndicalism in the old sense is far from what I have taking shape, but ideas exist from which one can select. There is “peace” here, but I discovered a San-Andreas-fault of violence lying below. Recently a “scab” coal miner from a nearby town was buried alive when he refused to kowtow; and there have been other incidents. They take their groups seriously.)

Anyway, belief is important: that, I think, is my first job—to believe deeply everything I say. At all costs, I must avoid intellectuality; except of the kind we discussed. I will not think of my “system”; later on, when it’s successful, I can, like Benito, order a philosophy to be delivered within two weeks, or else.

Do you recall when we used to discuss the importance of public-speaking abilities? Well, we were wrong. I never excelled particularly at this sort of thing, yet my speeches have been enormously successful. You would not believe it. The first one whipped the crowd into a wonderful fury, and afterwards they shuffled about like Pavlovian dogs who have heard the dinner bell. A good many were roughnecks and hooligans and there were, of course, several impressionable children; but several of Caxton’s so-called “good people” were there, too, and their reactions were exceedingly gratifying. All were frustrated. Their blood was hot, and they wanted to do something—right now. When a car full of Negroes passed—I heard about this later: I was with my “sponsor,” Shipman, at the time—they stopped it, and the local sheriff had to be called!

There are a few moderately intelligent foes with whom I shall have to contend, but by and large, Max, the town is with me. SNAP is flourishing, and it will not be long before we can ease into some action. It will be necessary to show the bad influence of the Negroes in the school (a simple matter, now, with SNAP treasury funds available for pay-offs) and then, rather than have the whites withdraw (my first thought) which would seem a bit defeatist, we will—

He stopped writing; the heat began to press in upon him, and now that the pain was gone, he found that he was tired.

He removed his clothes and fell, naked, upon the bed; almost immediately he dreamed of the girl in the stateroom who rotted at his touch, but now she looked like Ella, and the laughing people were Jeaness and the French girl and his father and, peculiarly, Max Blake. They hung on the hooks and laughed hysterically.

Then the dream shifted, and he fell into a twilight state, conscious enough to realize that he was dreaming but unable to do anything about it, anything whatever, except watch.