The Testimony of Taliesin Jones (71 page)

'Com
e
in.
'

Ca
esar i
s seated behind an expansive desk upon which
a letter is
s
pread, its whiteness calling
attention to itself ag
ainst
the black leath
er
surface. He ushers Taliesin to a seat in front
of the de
sk
and dispel
s s
ome of Taliesin
's
fear
with the gestur
e.
Ca
esar
is a popular headmaster with everyone, including Tali
esin.
H
e
has an
intimidating book collection
.
His
o
ffice
is
w
all-to-wall
b
ooks;
t
en
tim
es
mor
e
b
ooks
th
an
T
aliesin
h
as, a
nd th
e
maj
ority o
f them h
ard,
thi
ck
t
exts
.
If h
e
'
s
r
ead
h
alf of
th
em
h
e
h
as
r
ead
m
ore
book
s
th
an
m
ost
p
eople i
n th
e wo
rld
.
Cae
sa
r h
as a
n
i
nterest in m
any
thin
gs.
Alth
ough
h
e's ea
rned hi
s
n
ame
from t
eaching
L
atin,
h
e
h
as
t
aught
Hi
story a
nd RE
, a
nd it is
s
aid th
at
he c
an s
peak fiv
e
l
anguages,
includin
g G
reek. He h
as
a
g
ift f
or
m
aking
p
eople
f
eel s
ignificant,
w
hoever the
y a
rc. And h
e
h
as a w
illin
gness
t
o
d
igress,
t
o go o
ff
a
t compl
ete
t
angents
t
o t
he
co
nversation
i
n h
and.
H
e o
ften
g
ives th
e
impres
sion
th
at
the j
ob o
f b
eing
h
eadmaster is
n't quite
s
o imp
ortant
.

'Ta
liesin,' th
e
h
eadmaster says,
t
aking
pl
easur
e
i
n th
e so
und
of the
n
ame
.
'''
I
a
m T
aliesin.
I
si
ng p
erfect
m
etre".
D
o yo
u kn
ow
th
at
p
oem?'

'
No
,
S
ir.'

'
I
a
m
s
urprised
yo
u d
on
't
,
wh
at w
ith
yo
ur n
ame a
nd
yo
ur likin
g
f
or
b
ooks
.
It
's a
l
ovely
p
oem
.
"I
a
m Tali
esin.
I
s
ing p
erfect
m
etre,
Whi
ch wi
ll
las
t t
o
the
e
nd
o
f the
wo
rld",' h
e s
ays.
'
It's
a
riddl
e. Eac
h lin
e
r
efers
to
a
diff
erent
per
son.
And
i
f
yo
u t
ake
th
e fi
rst l
etter of ea
ch p
e
r
son
and put th
em
to
gether,
th
e
r
iddle
i
s reve
aled. It
's a
n
ac
rostic; but I'
ve
n
ever
h
ad
th
e
tim
e
t
o wo
rk
i
t
o
ut
.
It m
ay j
ust b
e
that th
ere
i
s
no m
essage
in
i
t
a
t
a
ll. Th
e
p
oet
just want
ed
us to think th
ere
w
as. Eve
n
s
o,
yo
u
s
hould r
ead i
t
s
ome tim
e
.
'

'
Yes, Sir
.'

'
An
ywa
y
, si
t d
own
,
pl
ease, s
it down
.'

T
he h
eadmaster
r
emembers
th
e
point
o
f br
inging Ta
liesin h
ere.
H
e waves
th
e
l
etter a
littl
e.

'M
r Dav
ies h
anded
thi
s
l
etter
t
o
m
e
thi
s
m
orning
-it
's
fr
om
Mr
s
J
ones
-Will
iam
J
ones's
mothe
r.
I'm n
ot s
ure
w
hat t
o
m
ake o
f it.
S
he
says
th
at a ga
ng of bo
ys co
rnered h
er s
on and f
orced
him int
o so
me kind
o
f ritual. App
arently
thi
s ga
ng
a
re
ca
lled
"T
he B
eli
e
vers" a
nd
yo
u
a
re th
e
l
eader
of thi
s ga
ng. I
s
th
is t
rue?'

Taliesin's
first instinct is to deny it, however, he's lost the
g
uile
t
o
carry a li
e
with
confidenc
e,
and h
e
f
e
el
s
th
at C
aesar i
s
m
ore
curiou
s
th
an
cros
s.
Th
ere
I
S
an
a
ffinity b
etween
th
em. Caesa
r i
s o
n
hi
s s
ide, not th
e
s
ide
o
f
t
he
a
ngry p
arent.

'
Yes,
S
ir.'

Caesa
r r
eads
on
,
smiling
, as
if findin
g
th
e c
ontents
o
f th
e
lett
er a
musing
.
'
She al
so says
that thi
s ga
ng p
ersuaded
h
er so
n to
s
top t
aking
his ins
ulin a
nd th
at
h
e co
uld h
ave co
llapsed
as a
r
esult. S
he
sa
ys that thi
s ga
ng
s
hould b
e s
topped imm
edia
tely f
rom
d
oing
this. Did
y
ou t
ell
him t
o s
top t
aking
hi
s
in
sulin?'

'
No,
S
ir.'

'
Mr
s
J
ones
i
s ve
ry an
gry a
nd
wan
ts
so
mething
do
ne. H
owever,
I'm n
ot go
ing to d
o a
nything until I'
ve
h
eard
wh
at yo
u h
ave to say a
bout it
.
T
ell
m
e a
bout thi
s ga
ng
-
The Beli
evers.' Caesar's
tone
rem
ains
fri
endly, s
uggesting th
at
h
e
w
ants
thi
s
t
o
b
e an
intervi
ew
r
ather
th
an a
n
i
nterrogation.

'Wh
o a
re th
e o
thers in th
e ga
ng? It
's a
ll ri
ght,
I'm n
ot go
ing t
o
puni
sh a
nyone
.
I'd ju
st
lik
e
t
o
kn
ow t
hat's
a
ll.' T
aliesin
bit
es
hi
s
l
ip. '
All ri
ght,
y
ou
d
on't
h
ave
t
o
t
ell
m
e t
hat. T
ell
m
e w
hat
yo
u d
o
.'

'
We t
ry to
h
eal
p
eople
if th
ey're s
ick.'

Caesar
n
ods
a
t thi
s,
as if it
's
n
ormal.

'
How d
o yo
u
do
th
at?'

'
We ju
st
l
ay
h
ands o
n th
em a
nd p
ray
,
Sir
.'

'Does
it
wo
rk?'

'
W
e
ll
, we've o
nly don
e
it
o
nce s
o
f
ar. T
he tr
ouble
with
Willi
am
J
ones
i
s
th
at
we didn
't
pr
ay e
nough
f
or
him
,
w
e o
nly pr
ayed o
nce.
But no
o
ne t
old
h
im
t
o s
top tak
ing
hi
s
in
sulin. ' '
I
ca
n
th
ink o
f
wo
rse
thin
gs c
hildren d
o
.
' Caesa
r
t
hinks hi
s
th
oughts
thr
ough as
h
e
sp
eaks.
'P
erhaps
J
ones
mi
sunderstood
wh
at yo
u
sa
id?'

'Y
es
,
S
ir.' Th
ey
n
od
to
gether.

'What
I'd like to know is what gave you the idea? Are your parents religious people
?
'

'N
o,
Sir.'

'
Did
yo
u
see so
mething
o
n th
e
t
elevision
or r
ead a
b
ook a
bout
i
t?'

'N
o,
S
ir. '

'
Something mu
st
h
ave g
iven
yo
u th
e
idea. P
eople
d
on't s
pontaneously
s
tart pr
aying
f
or o
thers
.'

'
There's
so
meone I kn
ow.
H
e
t
aught
m
e
how to pr
ay.'

Cae
sar
ge
ts up
a
nd w
alks o
ver to th
e
bay windo
w.

'
So wh
at
m
akes yo
u w
ant
t
o
do it?
'

'Sir
?'

'
Well, d
o yo
u f
eel
di
vinely i
nspired;
is
G
od ca
lling
yo
u t
o
d
o
th
ese
thin
gs?'

'
I d
on't k
now
fo
r
s
ure
.
It
see
ms r
ight,
th
ough.'

'
What m
akes yo
u b
elieve i
t
w
ill
wo
rk?' C
aesar as
ks. T
aliesin g
rows qui
et
on
ce
h
e
h
as
t
o ex
plain it
.
Is it b
etter
t
o s
tay mut
e a
nd k
eep a
wis
e
r
eserve?
Or i
s
thi
s
silenc
e a
n
exc
use for
a
l
ack
of
co
nfidence in
w
hat he believes
?
He has a t
esti
mon
y
t
o give,
but h
e
doubts that it i
s g
ood
e
nough
fo
r
a
h
eadmaster,
th
e
cl
everest
m
an
h
e
kn
ows;
for
a
man
w
ho
ca
n
s
peak
Gree
k
a
nd h
as
thi
s
m
any
b
ooks.

'I'
ve see
n
t
hings, S
ir
.
But
i
t's diffi
cult
t
elling
p
eople w
ho h
aven't seen
i
t fo
r th
emselves.
Wh
enever
I t
ell
th
em
th
ey
d
on't
beli
eve i
t
.
It
's ea
sier if th
ey see
it th
emselves.'