Page 110 - BraveNewWorld

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On their way back to London they stopped at the Television Corporation’s fac-
tory at Brentford.

“Do you mind waiting here a moment while I go and telephone?” asked Ber-
nard.
The Savage waited and watched. The Main Day-Shift was just going off duty.
Crowds of lower-caste workers were queued up in front of the monorail station-
seven or eight hundred Gamma, Delta and Epsilon men and women, with not
more than a dozen faces and statures between them. To each of them, with his
or her ticket, the booking clerk pushed over a little cardboard pillbox. The long
caterpillar of men and women moved slowly forward.
“What’s in those” (remembering The Merchant of Venice) “those caskets?” the
Savage enquired when Bernard had rejoined him.
“The day’s soma ration,” Bernard answered rather indistinctly; for he was mas-
ticating a piece of Benito Hoover’s chewing-gum. “They get it after their work’s
over. Four half-gramme tablets. Six on Saturdays.”
He took John’s arm affectionately and they walked back towards the helicopter.

Lenina came singing into the Changing Room.
“You seem very pleased with yourself,” said Fanny.
“I am pleased,” she answered. Zip! “Bernard rang up half an hour ago.” Zip,
zip! She stepped out of her shorts. “He has an unexpected engagement.” Zip!
“Asked me if I’d take the Savage to the feelies this evening. I must fly.” She
hurried away towards the bathroom.
“She’s a lucky girl,” Fanny said to herself as she watched Lenina go.
There was no envy in the comment; good-natured Fanny was merely stating a
faet. Lenina was lucky; lucky in having shared with Bernard a generous porti-
on of the Savage’s immense celebrity, lucky in reflecting from her insignificant
person the moment’s supremely fashionable glory. Had not the Secretary of the
Young Women’s Fordian Association asked her to give a lecture about her ex-
periences? Had she not been invited to the Annual Dinner of the Aphroditeum
Club? Had she not already appeared in the Feelytone News-visibly, audibly
and tactually appeared to countless millions all over the planet?
Hardly less flattering had been the attentions paid her by conspicuous individu-
als. The Resident World Controller’s Second Secretary had asked her to dinner
and breakfast. She had spent one week-end with the Ford Chief- Justice, and
another with the Arch-Community-Songster of Canterbury. The President of
the Internal and External Secretions Corporation was perpetually on the pho-
ne, and she had been to Deauville with the Deputy- Governor of the Bank of

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