"Why not? Your firm is enormously wealthy. A few million would mean nothing to you."
"That sounds good," said Bindris, "but I'm afraid that the firm is in a state of decline right now. Not sufficiently to bring us into serious trouble, but enough to make us unhappy. If the Empire is in a state of decay, different individual parts of it are decaying, too. We are in no position to hand out a few million. I'm truly sorry."
Seldon sat there silently and Bindris seemed unhappy. He shook his Head at last and said, "Look, Professor Seldon, I would really like to help you out, particularly for the sake of the young lady you have with you. It just can't be done. However, we're not the only firm in Trantor. Try others, Professor. You may have better luck elsewhere."
"Well," said Seldon, raising himself to his feet with an effort, "we shall try."
23
Wanda's eyes were filled with tears, but the emotion they represented was not sorrow but fury.
"Grandpa," she said, "I don't understand it. I simply don't understand it. We've been to four different firms. Each one was ruder and nastier to us than the one before. The fourth one just kicked us out. And since then, no one will let us in."
"It's no mystery, Wanda," said Seldon gently. "When we saw Bindris, he didn't know what we were there for and he was perfectly friendly until I asked for a gift of a few million credits. Then he was a great deal less friendly. I imagine the word went out as to what we wanted and each additional time there was less friendliness until now, when people won't receive us at all. Why should they? They're not going to give us the credits we need, so why waste time with us?"
Wanda's anger turned on herself. "And what did I do? I just sat there. Nothing."
"I wouldn't say that," said Seldon. "Bindris was affected by you. It seems to me that he really wanted to give me the credits, largely because of you. You were pushing him and accomplishing something."
"Not nearly enough. Besides, all he cared about was that I was pretty."
"Not pretty," muttered Seldon. "Beautiful. Very beautiful."
"So what do we do now, Grandpa?" asked Wanda. "After all these years, psychohistory will collapse."
"I suppose that," said Seldon "in a way, it's something that can't be helped. I've been predicting the breakdown of the Empire for nearly forty years and now that it's come, psychohistory breaks down with it."
"But psychohistory will save the Empire, at least partly."
"I know it will, but I can't force it to."
"Are you just going to let it collapse?"
Seldon shook his head. "I'll try to keep it from doing so, but I must admit that I don't know how I'm going to do it."
Wanda said, "I'm going to practice. There must be some way I can strengthen my push, make it easier for me to force people to do what I want them to do."
"I wish you could manage."
"What are you going to do, Grandpa?"
"Well, nothing much. Two days ago, when I was on my way to see the Chief Librarian, I encountered three men in the Library who were arguing about psychohistory. For some reason, one of them impressed me very much. I urged him to come see me and he agreed. The appointment is for this afternoon at my office."
"Are you going to have him work for you?"
"I would like to-if I have enough credits to pay him with. But it can't hurt to talk with him. After all, what can I lose?"
24
The young man arrived at precisely 4 T.S.T. (Trantorian Standard Time) and Seldon smiled. He loved punctual people. He placed his hands on his desk and made ready to heave to his feet, but the young man said, "Please, Professor, I know you have a bad leg. You needn't stand up."
Seldon said, "Thank you, young man. However, that does not mean that you cannot sit down. Please do."
The young man removed his jacket and sat down.
Seldon said, "You must forgive me... when we met and set up this appointment, I neglected to learn your name-which is...?
"Stettin Palver," said the young man.
"Ah. Palver! Palver! The name sounds familiar."
"It should, Professor. My grandfather boasted frequently of having known you."
"Your grandfather. Of course. Joramis Palver. He was two years younger than I was, as I recall. I tried to get him to join me in psychohistory, but he refused. He said there was no chance of his ever learning enough mathematics to make it possible. Too bad! How is Joramis, by the way?"
Palver said solemnly, "I'm afraid that Joramis has gone the way of old men generally. He's dead."
Seldon winced. Two years younger than he himself was-and dead. An old friend and they had lost touch to such a degree that, when death came, it did so unknowingly.
Seldon sat there for a while and finally muttered, "I'm sorry."
The young man shrugged. "He had a good life."
"And you, young man, where did you have your schooling?"
"Langano University."
Seldon frowned. "Langano? Stop me if I'm wrong, but that's not on Trantor, is it?"
"No. I wanted to try a different world. The Universities on Trantor, as you undoubtedly know very well, are all overcrowded. I wanted to find a place where I could study in peace."
"And what did you study?"
"Nothing much. History. Not the sort of thing that would lead one to a good job."
(Another wince, even worse than the first. Dors Venabili had been a historian.)
Seldon said, "But you're back here on Trantor. Why is that?"
"Credits. Jobs."