Introductions IV

Of the six works collected in The Technic Civilization Saga, Volume III, Rise Of The Terran Empire, by Poul Anderson:

the two novels have no Introductions although the first has an extended Prologue beginning 500,000 years earlier;

two are introduced by Hloch of the Stormgate Choth in his Earth Book Of Stormgate - in fact, these are the concluding stories of the Earthbook so this is Hloch's last appearance in our lists of Introductions;

one is introduced by Donvar Ayeghen, President of the Galactic Archaeological Society;

one is introduced by Michael Karageorge, whose words however were composed not by Poul Anderson but by the Compiler of the Saga, Hank Davis, in a very welcome literary joke at the expense of this very early and otherwise rather discordant installment of the History.

Volumes I-III cover the first of the two long periods of the History. The second period, covered by Volumes IV-VII, is considerably less rich in Introductions, although I will seek out any that may be there. It certainly has no equivalent either of Hloch, who binds together twelve pre-Imperial works, or of Arkwright, who somehow insinuates himself in different ways into three Introductions without in any way being connected with the stories that are being introduced.