The last two missions of the original trade pioneer crew, although not as a trade pioneer crew, are in Mirkheim. The first is a mission of inquiry and informal diplomacy to Babur on behalf of their employer, van Rijn. The second is a scouting expedition to Baburite-occupied Hermes. For this, Eric Tamarision has commissioned David Falkayn, Adzel and Chee Lan as officers of the Hermetian navy and given them one of his ships. Van Rijn's other comparably qualified staff are all Commonwealth citizens.
At the bottom of p. 199, van Rijn addresses Eric:
"'You is my son for sure, a chip off...'"
We think that we know what is coming. We turn the page:
"'...the old blockhead...'" (p. 200)
Further down that page:
"'...what has all this pile of maneuvers been for?'" (ibid.)
"...pile of maneuvers..." sounds familiar because it sounds like "pile of manure..."
On the following page:
"'The jeopardy cannot change its spots.'" (p. 201)
Van Rijn maintains this line of talk all the way to his memorable closing dialogue with Eric's mother in Chapter XXI when the novel unfortunately concludes.
1 comment:
Kaor, Paul!
As usual, Old Nick's malapropisms makes me smile, esp. that bit about "the chip off the old blockhead"! And I like that use of "jeopardy," because chess players like me recognized it as originally a chess term. As Hooper/Whyld wrote in part for the 1984 edition of THE OXFORD COMPANION TO CHESS, pages 156-57: "JEOPARDY, in medieval times a chess position that seemed in the balance, the kind of position that appears today in newspapers and chess magazines as a mental exercise for the reader, the forerunner of the problem. The word is derived from the Old French 'jeu parti,' literally a divided game of uncertain issue;..."
I don't think Anderson was directly thinking of chess when he used the word "jeopardy" here. But it does show how this as well as other chess terms has passed into general literary or spoken use.
Ad astra! Sean
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