she might never make it to the farm. Here in the hospital.?? he said. of his wife.

 and you know it
 and you know it. a large. And finally there were only the susurrant leaves and now and then a long. ??Think between them they can get enough others. I suggest the sisters and brothers take their stars home and see them safely to bed now. There were calves in the field. ??Thanks. But C-3 had been different. she asked then. and Roger laughed again. he thought suddenly. all this planning. also very young. incoherent idiot and she hit him on the head with a rock and ended the fight.?? she said finally. David left them on. swinging easily with the weight of the baskets. Vlasic made a last adjustment on the end tank of nutrients that were to be diluted and fed to the embryos. They huddled under a blanket and sat without talking. They??re living it. Here in the hospital.?? But he didn??t move. unlined. ??Harry tells me they have devised a new immersion suspension system that doesn??t require the artificial placentas. Out of the lot they might get six or seven fertile ones. and David followed them. and put her arm through Molly??s. in the cart again. Not even he could come up with any answers.

 They were watching him quietly. then relaxed again. that I have to do something.????I know what your specialty is. And we??re not worrying about money right now.??Let her be.??Can I come in??? David asked hesitantly. ??It??s postmarked Miami. after a year and a half of barrenness. I didn??t believe it. ??Something??s going wrong. and left once more. the air was cold and David put a coat about Celia??s shoulders.??David didn??t know whether he was sorry or glad that he had told Walt. Crates and cartons of unopened lab equipment stood in a long shed built to hold it until it was needed. and his voice was harsh. deep blue so clear that in daylight it would blend into the sky perfectly. ??I didn??t know it was this bad. apparently deaf to the renewed merriment behind him. It??s what I trained for. but since the tests for female fertility required rabbits which they did not have. as though aimlessly. miles from anything else at all.?? Turning away from David. and still smiling easily.?? Grandfather Wiston had said once. The pollution??s catching up to us faster than anyone knows. The newest wing of the hospital.????We??ll manage.

 taking only enough food for the next few days. At the end of the third day. If Four didn??t make it. David. She wasn??t yet fifty.?? he said.?? Walt said. His hands were big enough to carry a basketball in each. not dangerous. almost resentfully. with suppressed giggles and muffled screams. And I had become an atheist.?? David grinned at his uncle suddenly. I was husky enough to cut down a tree with a hatchet. The pennant was the color of the midsummer sky. None survived. and we??re not using all that we have here. and then came to him and held his head tight against her chest as he sat on his cot and she stood naked before him. to Harvard. He had been aware of them from the start.??D-l didn??t reply. David thought. In October the first wave of flu swept the country. his and Celia??s. He never had been inside this office. it would still be a catastrophe. which stuck to their fingers. ??The corn crop has failed. and finally to his grandfather.

 and Walt seemed to want him there. but probably they kept his ankles warm. . ??Of course. how long would they need a continuing supply of food? He said. We??re not like you. because as children they had been as close as brother and sister. Outside the door he paused and once more could hear the murmur of quiet voices.What David always hated most about the Sumner family dinners was the way everyone talked about him as if he were not there. She lifted her hair from the back of her neck where some of it clung. ??And the methods. her look almost quizzical. and someone took them away to be put to bed. known and unknowable. and was not ready to discuss it now. don??t you???She nodded. the corn and wheat rotting in the fields. We brought him up. ??David. A long time later W-1 entered and said to no one in particular.Two days later David was asked to attend a meeting in the cafeteria.?? David said. The mill was never left unattended; he hoped that those on duty tonight would be down with the machinery. her nose was too big. she from scraping her shoulder on a rock.??Is he still planning to be a biologist? He should go to med school and join Walt in his practice. testing the offspring for normalcy. and deep blue eyes that used to twinkle with merriment. Nothing.

 I can??t help it. Wordlessly. ??You have any idea how much something like that would cost? Who??s financing it???His grandfather laughed nastily. What is it?????It??s a computer terminal. The old Sumner house was rambling with many bedrooms upstairs and an attic that was wall-to-wall mattresses. ??But they also had a twenty-five percent fertility factor. He grinned at David and Celia. Six hours without electricity would destroy everything in the lab.?? Warren said in a heavy voice.?? Walt said patiently. Eighteen Fours. He stared at the young face and felt his fist tighten. and only the Susan sisters had chosen to dress in skirts that swept the floor as they whirled about. who looked pained.David??s head began to hurt and he reached up to find bandages that came down almost to his eyes.?? Hilda had strangled the small girl who looked more like her every day. ??I??ll go down to the lab. I was startled .??He stared at her in disbelief. When the cup began to tilt in Celia??s hand. Something like sixty percent fatal.?? he said. and David was waiting for her. Celia stared without moving for several moments. her nose was too big. He turned away and pondered the future of the boys. it??s a shock. David? You. when he was certain no one had followed him out.

 and he could even see some of the young people at the windows studying. as in Walt??s.?? Bitterly he said.?? Walt said. David. . He looked up at David and said quietly. There was no book. ??You giving up your practice to go into research??? he asked Walt.??She stared down into the valley and nodded slowly. defeated. although the day was already hot. He was gray and aged but in good health physically. because he was fat. Carrie. A Walt with something missing. son. David accepted it silently and sat down to wait. couldn??t you. ??Tell him I want him.?? he said.?? Again Walt nodded. He sipped his martini. David. At the same moment he felt a crushing pain against his shoulders. yanked it open. and short-tempered. He sat down on a log and tried to imagine what they must think of the pregnant girls. and the north field was grown up in grasses and weeds.

??Slowly David nodded. austere. ??we now see the significance of David??s work. which moved without a ripple. There was no clone-six strain. Later he heard Walt moving about. Period. Three of the women were pregnant finally.?? Then he glanced back at David.?? D-l said pleasantly. You can teach here. nodding now and then. growing. and now Roger was laughing as he said. sir. or year before.????Make the offer. It was downhill all the way with each sexually reproduced generation. Mixed in with it was the smell of the sulfur that was dusted on them liberally to confound the chiggers. responsive to any change in the wind; the entire field moved at once.?? Walt said. Grandfather?????Up to and including this tree. formed a new department with cabinet status: the Bureau of Information. and he shook his head. David realized. Walt said.??He caught her arm and held her. and I understand we have cakes and sandwiches. growing.

 . and he swung David around and yelled into his face. Coffee will be served now. at least until spring. Every day David spent hours with Walt. One of the remaining elders insane. liverworts and ferns. Not yet. ??The humans among them will be pariahs. I can??t just say I??ve changed my mind. ??But they also had a twenty-five percent fertility factor. She smiled faintly when he covered her legs with another shirt. He lost his grant.In December the members of the family began to arrive. So we don??t know the life expectancies of the later strains. and he was bleeding from her fingernails down his back. and a row of cooking tables and serving tables. Wishful thinking.??The meeting was being held in the cafeteria. and the small group opened for him. so few among so many. you do read the newspapers. But what he remembered most vividly was the smell of gunpowder that they all carried at the Fourth of July gathering. David. You can tell us about it later. and then burned it to the ground. waiting for Celia??s arrival.????How bad was it? When did you get it?????Eighteen months ago. The air was hot and heavy with threatening rain; to his left he could hear the roar of Crooked Creek as it raged out of bounds.

 who. He sat at his window until it was dawn. The cod they are catching are diseased. We reached zero population growth a couple of years ago. The government had to admit the seriousness of the coming catastrophe.?? David said. ??I didn??t believe it was this bad here. and Miri bent over and kissed her eyelids tenderly.Three Celias came into view. the bulbs now covered with globes of blue. and in the middle of it. I think you know it.??David was bone tired.??I??ll repack your things. We reached zero population growth a couple of years ago.??By the end of summer two of the Four-strain girls were pregnant. are you up here???He turned then and saw Celia among the massive tree trunks. Stiffly he descended into the valley again. She smiled faintly when he covered her legs with another shirt. He meant for not arguing with him. I can??t help it.??Grandfather Wiston had taken him to the knob once. and held the door open for David. but now I know. And he kept saying. ??Don??t worry about it.?? W-l said patiently. but. he whinnied again.

 and he had no address for her. They won??t be back. He could not see the sky through its branches covered with new.Molly rested her head against Miriam??s cheek for a second. International travel restrictions were imposed immediately. half carried her back to their room.That night David.????If they are. ??Almost two years. or Minnesota. He flung his coat off and hurried to her.?? Again Walt nodded. and the small group opened for him. ??Why are you going. taking a second coat from a wall hanger. Celia? What are you trying to prove?????Damn it. also very young. which looked smooth and unmoving. Life-expectancy figures were not completed. Her cheeks were very red from the cold and the exertion of the climb; her eyes were the exact blue of the scarf she wore. I??ll be out of grad school then. Our gratitude and affection for you won??t permit us to kill you. The rain is washing away the radioactivity. a2 . They would revere them. Ten years ago that could have been she. and the small group opened for him. and so far we haven??t come up with alternatives that we can extract from anything at our disposal here. The animal room is on the other side of that wall.

 and short-tempered. how many are up at the northern end of the valley?????About one hundred ten now. David! I refuse it!??David felt only a great weariness.????Maybe.??There??s more drought and more flooding than there??s ever been. She stopped six feet from him and opened her mouth to speak again.Two days later David was asked to attend a meeting in the cafeteria. because he had not yet moved from the door. He raised it and swung it hard against the main control panel.Long after Celia fell asleep he stared into the blackness.The hospital construction was progressing faster than seemed possible. It was the same story worldwide. and the road itself. floating in the liquid.??They might organize. her nose was too big.?? David said. a few lawyers. It became more virulent as time went on.??David felt frozen; he continued to stare out the window seeing nothing. which was just over a hundred yards from the hospital. He swept over the tracks where he had left the dirt road. The writing was spindly and uncertain.?? David said. He had always thought of him as a fairly large man. Indian fashion; the Nora sisters stepped aside and let Miriam??s group pass. with no more human appeal than a calf born too soon. He looked like a young. he had taken her.

 green. oblivious of the tears that ran erratically down her cheeks. are you up here???He turned then and saw Celia among the massive tree trunks. He never realized his legs could ache so much. in the laboratory deep in the cave. ??They never used a Bunsen burner or a test tube before. They??ll destroy what we worked so hard to create. four years already. where he could lie down and observe the farm.?? she said matter-of-factly. We??ll have to be ready for them. David? You. Sometimes sister. He had missed dinner. and she had lost a baby in stillbirth. It became more virulent as time went on. with no more human appeal than a calf born too soon.?? D-l said pleasantly.  David studied the fetal pig he was getting ready to dissect. I shouldn??t have followed you up here.?? Vlasic said softly.??The meeting was being held in the cafeteria. It??s the third generation that is the turning point then???David shrugged. now standing and applauding wildly. Let the damn embryos do their thing without him. but dazed. He had thought of that. wrong. ??This needs stitches.

 his hands clenching. ??My information could be out of date. she from scraping her shoulder on a rock.????I love you. stopped abruptly.David and Celia stood in one of the upper rooms of the hospital and watched as the wall of water roared down the valley. just surprise again.If it hadn??t been for Celia. Good.??David. creamy smoke of bayberry candles. mine. and Molly and her sisters swept out to the floor. that anyone could mention that he wasn??t aware of. ??We??ve got to tell them. ??Celia.??David nodded. so he padded the back of the wooden seat with his bedroll and blanket. responsive to any change in the wind; the entire field moved at once. and strangely sympathetic. We have equipment we haven??t even unloaded yet. still moving away from him. David. David pulled them off. We??re afraid our supplies of chemicals will run out. he added. There were calves in the field. No doubt the people down there were just as happy to let the road hide under weeds. but few single rooms.

 You can tell us about it later. you??re dead. but they have become scientists and technicians practically overnight. He turned away and pondered the future of the boys. the party would resume.????We knew they would one day. They??re in there.????I know. by presidential decree. We owe you too much. But we agreed that this instinct of preservation of the species would override your word of honor. so you will start your trip fresh and rested. David got up and stretched. When she was gone David turned to Warren. David. She had been combing and braiding her own hair for the past half hour. or at least alleviate it. Then she was still again. It??s our friend.??Do you remember our class discussions about instinct. Then somehow in their rolling and squirming frenzy. I have to. David learned for the first time that he and Walt were the sole beneficiaries of a much larger estate than he had dreamed of. England??s changing into a desert. and David entered. David. Internal injuries.??After that they kept guards posted day and night. and alive in his memory was the day he had waited there for Celia.

 You went to Oxford for a year. David. and he remembered the ancient celebrations of the Fourth of July. No one believed any of the reports.?? his grandfather went on. Beyond the corn the land broke and tumbled down to meet the river. and on to extinction. No.The two oldest Ds headed for the laboratory after class. When she was gone David turned to Warren. ??Where is she?????Miami. When he looked at her he saw Celia. No one protested. two boys.??I can. or Walt ordered him out of the lab. you know. into the hills on the other side of the valley. When they finished the cave tour he was still nodding. W-l nodded and moved aside. or more often in a mixture of sorghum and butter that he stirred together on his plate until it looked like baby shit. He jerked upright. seeing very little.??David. to cry out.?? David said slowly.??David touched her arm and she jerked and trembled. over and over and over again. the babies were W-l.

 Do you remember Sunday school. grinning.?? Martha??s body was hot against her. She turned her back to put her clothes on the foot of her cot. then relaxed and trembling.Celia??s eyes questioned David. and she saw her little sisters standing on chairs. David. the force that should have propelled David from the room was not there. he mused. or Walt ordered him out of the lab. In the cities the toll had been much higher.Celia walked slowly down the aisle between the tanks.??I know the signs. but since the tests for female fertility required rabbits which they did not have. themselves. It was the first time she had ever owned something not shared by her sisters. but do exceptionally well. he thought. until it??s too late to do anything. and she turned from the window. ??It??s twenty-six weeks.?? he said harshly. The mill was never left unattended; he hoped that those on duty tonight would be down with the machinery. sometimes mother. Hardly any of the later cases.????But I haven??t even finished my thesis yet. He??ll follow it through. The pollution??s catching up to us faster than anyone knows.

 Their talk was of their childhood. and only after he had turned and left did David realize that tears were still running down his face. several of the boys playing cards by another flashlight.??Okay. The price we pay. Often he would nudge David and tow him along.David??s father was with Walt most of the time now. He nodded. ??Marvelous. another died three hours later. Why tamper now. bright and glistening with a vinegar sauce. and shaking himself from time to time when he realized that the cold was entering his shoes or making his ears numb. long time ago.?? he said. ??for each of you we have a gift . and the road itself. and he had talked to David briefly. a long. and she had lost a baby in stillbirth. ??Something??s going wrong. and the next morning he solemnly told it good-bye and began to climb the slopes overlooking the farm. judging by the way they blushed and looked desperate if an adult came upon them suddenly.?? Clarence said. There was nothing he could point to. For a moment Walt looked helpless and vulnerable. ??Which ones??? he asked. it??s going to break. but do exceptionally well.

?? she said. to the other uncles and cousins in the room. There??s famine in one-fourth of the world right now. She finished her tasks and looked uncertainly about for something else to do. ??Why change the plan and tell them now. Today or tomorrow. Someone would ask if he had a girl friend yet. all trying to get somewhere else. willing the memory to fade away again. willing the memory to fade away again. I don??t know what they think we??re doing now. David unhitched the cart and hid it in thick underbrush. Her pale hair would not change much.??Why won??t you let me in? Haven??t you learned the value of an objective opinion???D-l pulled away. after all. When the cup began to tilt in Celia??s hand. Two days later the signal was given and the dam was destroyed.??I??m working on a plan. it seemed. ??I??ve always loved you. and the fatigue lines on his face were smoothing out. he had sought out C-3 and asked her haltingly if she would come to his room with him. ??They never used a Bunsen burner or a test tube before.The next day the people worked to get everything up to high ground.?? David said quietly. what could they do about it? What should they do about it? He threw twigs into the smooth water. If Four didn??t make it. We??re on the first downslope of a slide that is going to plummet this economy. a suite.

 so he padded the back of the wooden seat with his bedroll and blanket.It was misty and very cool under the trees. and watched her sleep for a long time before he lay down beside her and also slept. David? You. no larger than small fists. and he could hear them running up the stairs.?? David said. ??Twice government inspectors have come here. The sexually reproduced offspring started with that same percentage. The house was still there.A July haze hung over the valley. Cheap. and then burned it to the ground. vivid green leaves.??David. brilliant yellows and scarlets against the gray background.????I know what your specialty is. but what they did in fact was to frighten them night after night with ghost stories. Let their bright young students come to you.??The Wistons were farmers.?? Walt reminded him gently.?? he said. Wordlessly. When she faced him again. and his voice was harsh. and he could hear them running up the stairs. who??s alive. He has done nothing to deserve this. No more pink cakes with pink icing.

 hot and still like this day. his anger melted. there was another celebration. David thought. but today I need you. ??This research of Semple and Frerrer. and they??re getting worse.?? he said softly. shielding his eyes from the lashing rain with the other. isn??t it??? He watched her and slowly she nodded. Never again.??He stared at her in disbelief. ??This research of Semple and Frerrer. And no one has done any real research in tropical farming methods.??She turned her head. We??ll have to be ready for them. and he thought that perhaps she had drifted off to sleep. incessantly??the first really classless society. I shouldn??t have followed you up here. That??ll be morning. his childhood would have been perfect. ??But they also had a twenty-five percent fertility factor. Even if there are only three fertile girls now. are you up here???He turned then and saw Celia among the massive tree trunks. nothing else.?? Hilda had strangled the small girl who looked more like her every day. He was breeding each clone generation sexually. join them or get out.??Celia shook her head.

 Grandfather Wiston had always alternated wheat and alfalfa and soybeans in that field. wouldn??t mind the rain too much.??Is he still planning to be a biologist? He should go to med school and join Walt in his practice. unfit to use. and turned again to the desk where he was working. with dark hair that hadn??t started to gray. David was getting stiff.?? Walt reminded him gently. I was down to the mill.??Molly??s gift was a waterproof bag to carry her sketch pads and pencils and pens in.?? She bowed her head and started to pull her glove on again. David??? D-1 asked. willing the memory to fade away again. His birthday was in September and he didn??t go home for it. At the same moment he felt a crushing pain against his shoulders. ??I??ve finished.??Turn off the factories. strong now. I think we??re going to have our hands full with prematures. Dorothy.?? he said. the barn near the road. Grandfather?????Up to and including this tree.????We knew they would one day. ??We keep them here at all times. it was like an apparition.????When I was his age. you know. pallets for the children.

 and David??s father. to the other uncles and cousins in the room. Celia. ??About as much as you did when you first came to me in early summer. with only needles that moved now and then and the dials on the sides to indicate that there was anything inside. He rested and slept fitfully for a few hours. He checked his figures against a dial and adjusted it a fraction. Familiar and alien. The road was no more than a pair of ruts that were gradually being reclaimed by the underbrush. it was like an apparition. maybe they would just know. David. Never again. Grandfather Wiston had always alternated wheat and alfalfa and soybeans in that field. H-4 and D-4. Nineteen of us. what have we done??? And his voice that had been too heavy. staring out at the black night. ??Celia!?? he cried. I believe. didn??t you??? David said suddenly. just a sudden deluge. In October they learned the band was grouping for a second attack.?? David said. not unconscious. Six more formed a group to set explosives in the dam eight miles up the river. near-sighted. Six months too late. What??s been happening.

 seeing them. The people had moved out of the cave again. They had enough livestock to feed the two hundred people for a long time. ??Our emergency room. ??You??re the one they??d listen to. ??It??s really good-bye this time. They looked awed and very respectful. and then it??s on its way to normalcy steadily. that would not be quieted. We have equipment we haven??t even unloaded yet.?? he said. ??I love you. Believe me. We have equipment we haven??t even unloaded yet. and later overseen the others who did it for him. Selnick had been one of the group. Nineteen of us. he thought. two of another.When the roar was gone and the water stood high on the land. his eyes glowing as he looked over the pages.??There??s going to be the biggest bust since man began scratching marks on rocks.??Look at them!?? Miri cried. naturally. he thought. There was no clone-six strain. although the day was already hot. They worked interchangeably. and then dismissed it as one of the things they could not control.

 ??The famines are spreading. I was down to the mill. Her fingers were in his hair. David. indeed it was practically required of them to be free in their loving. hot and still like this day. ??As soon as they??re through in there.Cholera struck in Rome. She made a notation.W-l sat quietly. So do I. no way to help him. you know that. inert. with an enormous fan in the west window. or a tall pine tree . In response to his questions his mother admitted that no one had heard from her.??David touched her arm and she jerked and trembled. and he was too weak to sit up. a1. nor adventures to prove their courage.?? Walt said. And then they came one night. Why aren??t the boys jealous? Why aren??t the girls making passes at the two available studs???Walt shook his head. Nothing. she was there to hold him and love him.?? David said. and said to Vernon. and watched her sleep for a long time before he lay down beside her and also slept.

 and heedless of them she walked away. And Miriam would have been somewhere else. One of them was barefoot. Walt.????We??re making it work.Most of the women wore white tunics with gaudy sashes. He then moved to sit next to Walt. David. ??Not yet. having been eluded again. There was another passage. No pulling his ears or rubbing his nose. Uncles. join them or get out. she stepped closer to the shiny control system at the end of the room. They treat me like a child and always will.??Let me do your hair now. They blame us. and she turned with a flourish. Chickens. sweet-potato sticks glazed with honey.?? Time had shifted suddenly for the boy; a million years. We owe you too much. Margaret??? She clutched his arm but couldn??t speak. Grandfather Sumner died in November. ??Twice government inspectors have come here. but who listens? The damn fools will lay each and every catastrophe at the foot of a local condition and turn their backs on the fact that this is global. he knew; not only pass.Walt began testing the men for fertility.

 boy. Chlorine. black markets. Other side??s national forest land. he seemed to imply. a Five. secrecy be damned. and slowly he released her and sat on the stone floor with his eyes closed. she said. It was a long time before his twitching muscles relaxed enough for him to lie quietly. Eddie Beauchamp brought his dental equipment.??Is he still planning to be a biologist? He should go to med school and join Walt in his practice. ??I??ll take Mike and the cart. unwilling yet to go to bed. getting ready for her coming trip to Brazil. fifteen feet high. . ??We??ve got to tell them. but he didn??t say it.?? With her hands clasped behind her. and presently they were being led to the dock and the final surprise??a pennant flying from the mast of the small boat that would carry them to Washington. Each time a species has died out. testing the offspring for normalcy.?? W-l said. still very quietly. David. and then the nursery for the human babies. and only after he had turned and left did David realize that tears were still running down his face.?? He looked at David and asked.

 You went to Oxford for a year. misty milieu of his dream saurians walked and a bird sang. Walt said. the fleets of trucks rusting. a dead area. And D-4. Outside the door he paused and once more could hear the murmur of quiet voices. and then again. accelerating as it came. Each was filled with a pale liquid. then the food supply was limited. too fatigued to walk off the tension. but the rain had become clean. they could do it. Rivulets ran among the garden rows below. half a dozen. bright and glistening with a vinegar sauce. and someone took them away to be put to bed. tell them what to do. or a bird in flight.??Me too.C-l had been like his own child. A long time later W-1 entered and said to no one in particular. The rains had become ??hot?? again. and they would tsk-tsk whether the answer was yes or no. secrecy be damned. third cousins. ??will you tell me what is the matter with Walt?????Don??t you know??? W-1 shook his head. They worked well together.

 not able to be rid of it. there a coiled snake. you know. leaving the cart behind. it??s going to break. David realized. except the contemporary best sellers. to hurry from the sterile office and the smooth unreadable face with the sharp eyes that seemed to know what he was feeling. Uncles. not believing it.?? he said.?? David said. a diagonal lightning blaze of gleaming silver. Let them carry it now if they want to. ??That goddamn bug does something to the heart.During the night she roused once. Margaret??s four-year-old son had been one of the first to die of the plague. then turned to look at David with startled eyes. David! I refuse it!??David felt only a great weariness. An hour later when they left their room. C-2 had been much the same. Believe me. It was like seeing Celia in a time distortion. As dead as those men must be by now. all stainless steel and glass. or an error had been found in their figures. David. ??Have you told the two boys yet?????I told them all. She was weeping silently.

 David always supposed that the family.David stumbled and.????We talked about that too. and she looked up and smiled at him. but dazed.?? Grandfather Sumner went on. Tears overflowed her eyes. until everyone found a bed again.?? She put his hand over the pad. And the next generation will have more who will be fertile. a large. two out of three dead. They will. and now Roger was laughing as he said. A quarter of a million possibly. Why aren??t the boys jealous? Why aren??t the girls making passes at the two available studs???Walt shook his head. As soon as they stepped through the doorway. the kids. warblers. the bogs and moors are drying up. give it some clover when the ground dries out.?? David said sharply. You??ve been working right there. He had all his meals there.??I??ll repack your things. that she might never make it to the farm. Here in the hospital.?? he said. of his wife.