…A Dangerous Thing by Bill Crider Read Free Book Online Page B

a chore, either.   Miss Tanner is most helpful, and quite attractive."
    Oh no , Burns thought.   Not another rival .
    "And there's always interlibrary loan," Holt said, distracting him.   "I can get books from just about anywhere.   But that's not answering your question.   I came here because I was asked.   As simple as that."
    "But surely you've been asked to go to other schools.   More prestigious schools."
    "True," Holt said. "But that sort of thing has never appealed to me.   I'm not an academic snob."
    "A lot of people are," Burns said.   "And then there's the money."
    "Hartley Gorman isn't exactly going to make me rich," Holt said.   "But I don't need a lot of money.   I have a place to live, I have access to a library, I have an office and classes to teach.   What does money really matter?"
    Burns didn't know what to say to that one, so he changed directions.   "Dr. Partridge seems to think highly of you."
    Holt nodded, frowning.   "I'm sure there has been some resentment against me in the department about my teaching only three classes.   I'm sorry about that.   I didn't ask for the reduced load; Dr. Partridge made the offer, and I accepted.   I didn't know that it would cause hard feelings."
    Burns didn't say anything for a few seconds in hopes that Holt might give him some clue about why Dr. Partridge had made the offer, but it seemed that no such clue was forthcoming.
    "I don't think there's been any resentment," Burns said finally.   "Well, not exactly."
    "People feel that they're being treated unfairly," Holt said.   "And I don't really blame them.   They've been very nice about it, however."
    That was the first thing Holt had said that Burns knew wasn't true.   Even Miss Darling had held herself aloof from Holt, and Miss Darling was never intentionally aloof from anyone.   Burns had done the same thing.   Under normal circumstances, he would never have let three weeks of the semester go by without having a conversation with a new faculty member.   He would have to have a talk with the other instructors, ask them to try being a little friendlier.
    The two men talked a while longer, and then Burns left the office to get ready for his evening class.   He was convinced that Holt had no ulterior motives and that there was no sinister connection between Holt and Dr. Partridge.
     
    F or a while after that day, things went more smoothly.   The other members of the English Department, with a little prodding from Burns, gradually got to know Holt somewhat better.   They began speaking to him in the hall, having a cup of coffee with him now and then, and discussing their classes with him.   Even Larry, Darryl, and Darryl would stop by his office to say hello on their way in or out of the building.
    All of that was fine.  
    What wasn't so good was the style sheet that was delivered to everyone through the faculty mail.   It contained a list of the desirable ways to refer to various groups, and it was accompanied by a list of "isms" that led to oppression.   An introduction at the top of the page stated that the sheet was a product of the combined efforts of Dean Partridge and Eric Holt. Their efforts, to put it mildly, were not appreciated by the faculty.
    "That kind of thing might go all right at some big atheistic state university," Mal Tomlin said.   "But not here at HGC."
    Burns didn't think the idea should go well anywhere.   He was of the opinion that you either had freedom of speech or you didn't.   While he didn't feel it was necessary to refer to any particular group by an unflattering or offensive name, to use "hate speech" as it was now being called, he still thought he should have the freedom to do so.
    He thought of an old paperback that was sitting on his shelves at home.   It was by James Hadley Chase, and it was called 12 Chinks and a Woman .   Burns also had a later printing, titled 12 Chinamen and a Woman .   He supposed that if the book were to be reprinted now, it