"Hiding Place," collected in Trader To The Stars, has an introduction beginning, "The world's great age begins anew..." (See here.)
When "Esau" was collected in The Earth Book Of Stormgate, it acquired an introduction by Hloch which states that, by the time of this story, the philosophy and practice that had once animated the Polesotechnic League were already becoming archaic or even obsolete.
When both stories were collected in The Technic Civilization Saga, Volume I, The Van Rijn Method, "Esau" was placed immediately before "Hiding Place." Thus, reading consecutively, the League becomes obsolete before the world begins anew. However, the Le Matelot introduction really belongs not immediately before "Hiding Place" but before any stories dealing with the League. In The Earth Book Of Stormgate, the first two League stories are, in this order:
"How To Be Ethnic In One Easy Lesson"
"Margin of Profit" -
- whereas, in The Van Rijn Method, this order is reversed. I prefer the Earth Book order, i.e., I prefer a longer delay before the introduction of the continuing character, van Rijn. Four substantial stories begin the History and build towards the League period, thus setting the stage for the first appearance of van Rijn.
According to Sandra Miesel's Chronology of Technic Civilization, the League was founded in the 23rd century and Gray/Avalon was explored in the 24th century. However, I see no evidence in "The Problem of Pain" that the League existed then. I prefer to think of three exploration stories as preceding the League period.
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