gennaro mummery was making him wait. it was a studied discourtesy, even insolence, but hari seldon remained calm.

after all, seldon needed mummery badly and for him to become angry with the librarian would only hurt himself. mummery would, in fact, be delighted with an angry seldon.

so seldon kept his temper and waited and eventually mummery did walk in. seldon had seen him before-but only at a distance. this was the first time they would be together alone.

mummery was short and plump, with a round face and a dark little beard. he wore a smile on his face, but seldon suspected that smile of being a meaningless fixture. it revealed yellowish teeth and mummery's inevitable hat was of a similar shade of yellow with a brown line snaking around it.

seldon felt a touch of nausea. it seemed to him that he would dislike mummery, even if he had no reason to do so.

mummery said, without any preliminaries, "well, professor, what can i do for you?" he looked at the time-strip on the wall but made no apology for being late.

seldon said, "i would like to ask you, sir, to put an end to your opposition to my remaining here at the library."

mummery spread his hands. "you've been here for two years. what opposition are you speaking of?"

"so far, that portion of the board represented by you and those who believe as you do have been unable to outvote the chief librarian, but there will be another meeting next month and las zenow tells me he is uncertain of the result."

mummery shrugged. "so am i uncertain. your lease-if we can call it that-may well be renewed."

"but i need more than that, librarian mummery. i wish to bring in some colleagues. the project in which i am engaged-the establishment of what is needed in the way of the eventual preparation of a very special encyclopedia-is not one i can do alone."

"surely your colleagues can work wherever they please. trantor is a large world."

"we must work in the library. i am an old man, sir, and i am in a hurry."

"who can stay the advance of time? i don't think the board will allow you to bring in colleagues. the thin edge of the wedge, professor?"

(yes, indeed, thought seldon, but he said nothing.)

mummery said, "i have not been able to keep you out, professor. not so far. but i think i can continue to keep out your colleagues."

seldon realized that he was getting nowhere. he opened the touch of frankness a notch. he said, "librarian mummery, surely your animosity toward me is not personal. surely you understand the importance of the work i am doing."

"you mean, your psychohistory. come, you have been working on it for over thirty years. what has come of it?"

"that's the point. something may come of it now."

"then let something come of it at streeling university. why must it be at the galactic library?"

"librarian mummery. listen to me. what you want is to close the library to the public. you wish to smash a long tradition. have you the heart to do that?"

"it's not heart we need. it's funding. surely the chief librarian has wept on your shoulder in telling you our woes. appropriations are down, salaries are cut, needed maintenance is absent. what are we to do? we've got to cut services and we certainly can't afford to support you and your colleagues with offices and equipment."

"has this situation been put to the emperor?"

"come, professor, you're dreaming. isn't it true that your psychohistory tells you that the empire is deteriorating? i've heard you referred to as raven seldon, something that, i believe, refers to a fabled bird of ill omen."

"it's true that we are entering bad times."

"and do you believe the library is immune to those bad times? professor, the library is my life and i want it to continue, but it won't continue unless we can find ways of making our dwindling appropriations do. -and you come here expecting an open library, with yourself as beneficiary. it won't do, professor. it just won't do."

seldon said desperately, "what if i find the credits for you?"

"indeed. how?"

"what if i talk to the emperor? i was once first minister. he'll see me and he'll listen to me."

"and you'll get funding from him?" mummery laughed.

"if i do, if i increase your appropriations, may i bring in my colleagues?"

"bring in the credits first," said mummery, "and we'll see. but i don't think you will succeed."

he seemed very sure of himself and seldon wondered how often and how uselessly the galactic library had already appealed to the emperor.

and whether his own appeal would get anywhere at all.