Interstellar Civilization In "Starfog" II

"A carnivore screamed, somewhere off in the dark."

-Poul Anderson, Starfarers (New York, 1999), 48, p. 461.

"Somewhere a hunter beast screamed."

-"The Master Key," p. 311.

An echo between different planets in different timelines, both times appropriate. See here.

In "Starfog," the action is on the frontier planet, Serieve, then in the Cloud Universe. We are given only hints of interstellar civilization:

there are quadrillionaires, foundations, governments and consortia;

the Commonalty is "'...a private, voluntary, mutual-benefit society...'" (p. 770);

planetary governments hire Commonalty services, including space rescue;

there is contact with xenosophonts;

Daven Laure, a Ranger of the Commonalty, is from the Fireland mountains on New Vixen and was trained at Starborough near Irontower City on Aladir;

when shipwrecked in the Cloud Universe, he remembers "...a funny little tavern he'd once visited..." (p. 785).

Taverns are frequent way stations in Anderson's works. This reference to a "little tavern" provides a sharp contrast to the uninhabitable environments of the Cloud Universe. We remember the Old Phoenix tavern visited by travellers from different timelines, including this Technic History.