The Disestablishment of Paradise (63 page)

Extract from the official report into illicit trade in Paradise products: Paradise plum and Dendron

This document is taken from an official report concerning smuggling. While MINADEC was withdrawing from Paradise a fractal barge called
Hoy Linden
, having taken on
cargo and surplus mining equipment at the shuttle platform over Paradise, aborted its mission when just twenty minutes out from fractal. A leak in one of the containers in the cargo hold had been
discovered. The manifest indicated that the crate contained used uniforms, but the material which leaked out was juice from the Paradise plum. The crate was opened and inside were jars of the
juice. Some of these had not been made secure and several had broken at some point in transit. Discovery of this led to other crates being opened. Some were found to contain the cut wishbones of
several hundred Dendron. Other crates contained juice as well as bales of dried calypso petals. Juice may seem a strange commodity for smugglers, but as already indicated, in those early days the
belief was widespread that both the juice of the Paradise plum and the ground-up wishbone of the Dendron had aphrodisiac and generative powers. Calypso petals brought sweet dreams to even the most
chronic insomniac.

There was a ready market for all of these. Two hundred millilitres of juice could be worth up to 200 solas. Dendron fibre, with its fine blue and green flecks and its perfume reminiscent of
primrose, was worth even more, as it could be cut up to make little charms and jewellery as well as being ground into powder to be added to wines and cordials. The calypso petal was sold by the
pouch. One pouch being a hundred grams. Combine all these with a bit of vodka and you had a tincture of renowned potency. Even sold separately, the ingredients were worth a fortune.

This report was never made public and, as far as I can ascertain, the only people ever brought to justice were those caught actually on the island of Scarlatti as well as a small party of
hunters and their girls who, having enjoyed a weekend of sex, drinking and hunting, crashed their SAS on landing and were caught red-handed with the wishbones of twenty-seven Dendron in the hold.
The report was certainly not known to the agricultural pioneers such as the Newtons or the Tattersalls, who while they could see the physical damage done to native flora, had no true knowledge of
its extent.

Further evidence relating to this case was destroyed during the mysterious fire on the MINADEC torus, the year before the first agricultural pioneers arrived. However, it is inconceivable that
the managers and senior officers of MINADEC could have been ignorant of what was happening. That fire was, as one of the prosecuting offices declared at the time, ‘convenient for the
guilty’.

The report from which I have quoted only came to light as part of a routine research request submitted to SC Archives when I was preparing this book for print. I have taken steps to ensure that
it will be published in full as part of a public archives project.

‘Agricultural Developments and a Recipe’, from the Daybooks of Mayday and Marie Newton

The Newton diaries are invaluable, providing the only consistent record of day-to-day life on Paradise from the point of view of the agricultural pioneers. Reflected in these
pages are the excitement and the optimism as the small family settles in and begins to create a new life. In many ways the Newtons were fortunate. The land they occupied was virgin meadow and had
not been cleared with the herbicides used in Northern Chain and the Largo Islands. The crop they chose to grow was native – the Paradise plum – and there was a plentiful stock of young
plants in the woods nearby. Their house had one of the best views on Paradise, looking out over the Blue Sand Straits and across to the high grey cliffs of Anvil. This was of course a migration
route for the great, and already nearly extinct, Dendron. The following description was written three years after their arrival on Paradise.

The final daybook entry was made by Marie Newton, on the morning of the day on which Mayday was fatally injured.

It was one of the Mayday and Marie’s grandchildren, Proctor Newton, who hurled the chair which injured Hera at the ORBE hearing.

•

Third anniversary. Marie is down at the bay. We saw a Dendron swamped in a storm a week ago. There was nothing we could do but watch as it was toppled by the big breaking
waves. And now it has been washed up at the bay, all flags and cherries gone.

Marie wants to do a book with pictures about the life of the Dendron – or Rexes, as some people still call them. I told her to watch her step. It is not too long since someone came upon
what they thought was a stranded Dendron and climbed up on it, and it got up and walked out to sea!

I’ve been down the line having a look at the crop. Very pleased. All the plum trees I put in a year ago are doing well. A good crop, I would say. The plums are maturing, black, blue and
the deep red. In fact I somehow seem to have planted a few different varieties, as I see we have some green-veined plums and some that are bright like cherries. But they will all taste good,
I’m sure. The first crop I sent sold out the morning it went on auction, so after we’ve paid the taxes and the land loan and the insurance and the equipment levy, we might, if
we’re lucky, have a bit left over, and that would be nice. First time in our lives.

Been talking with John and Gerda Pears – they’ve got twins Peter and Benjy, arrived last month – about supply lines. They are doing quite nicely, thank you,
‘turning seaweed into solas’ as Gerda put it. John thinks we ought to all get together and start a trust fund so we can purchase either a controlling share in the Paradise platform or
the nearest fractal – or both! He reckons Paradise is about to take off commercially, and the last thing we want is some middleman from Mars controlling our supply line. He also talked about
tourism, so he is thinking far ahead. I’m not sure about that, though. As soon as you get too commercial you lose sight of the mountains and the music.

I want to talk about the trees. Life is easy so I get time to experiment and think. One thing I don’t understand about them is why they have such a bloody long root. The first time I dug
one up I tried to dig the whole thing out, but the root just went on and on, getting deeper and deeper, till finally I had to give up and chop it off. This must be one of the characteristics of the
flora on Paradise. Most of the plants I have dug up have a long root. Take the blue waltzer (or the Tattersall weed, as we are now starting to call it). It has a long single root too, but that root
has a little knot in it so that it breaks as soon as you put pressure on it, like the elbow on a tomato. Not so the plum or the stink wort or the yellow trancers – they’ve got a root
like a main drain. Why do they need a deep root like that if all their sustenance comes from surface roots? I mentioned this to Deacon Syng, and he thought it might be an evolutionary remnant from
the time when there was a shortage of water and the plants had to dig deep. He may be right, but I have seen no evidence of drought or desert in this part of Paradise.

I realized something the other day when I was scorching back some Tattersalls in the meadow bottoms. We are the true pioneers. It came as a shock. And do you know how I know we are the pioneers?
Because there are no manuals. We experiment. See what works and apply that. For instance, I tried making compost, but you can’t on Paradise. But you can make wonderful plant tea, which is
just as good.

I am probably the world expert on growing the Paradise plum. I know that Tewfic and Sullia have a few plants up and coming. Now that secondary workers are starting to arrive, things are easier,
They intend to plant out a hundred acres or so as soon as they have finished clearing their land. Tania and Sean, who have a massive holding touching two continents in mid-Chain, are also gearing
up to plant the plum. God knows why they don’t have any local ones, but I will supply them with rootstock. I think you could say that we, as a planet, are up and running. I love being
self-sufficient and I have never seen Marie so happy. I am trying to make a solar hair dryer.

Gunter and Hirondelle are starting to worry me. I don’t think they’re going to last. Everything they plant seems to fall over. I went over in the cutter to see them last week and
Hirondelle had taken to her bed in depression. She says living here is like living in a graveyard! I think she’s a few fingers short of a fist. She is very fey, full of omens, and has
designed a tarot card sequence for Paradise. She wanted to cast our future but I told her we were not interested. That kind of thing puts the willies up Marie. Me, I think it’s just ignorant
mumbo-jumbo. I suggested that Hirondelle have a smoke of the calypso lily and gave her a pouch. Marie was upset with me as she thinks it’s addictive, but I think of it as a medicine. I like a
pipe-full of an evening. It stimulates the mind.

Been talking to Tattersall and I think we need to start agitating for a research institute here. I am not sure who was responsible for the initial planning, but I suspect they thought this place
was like Earth because it looks similar and because we can breathe the air and drink the water. But as the days go by I recognize ever more deeply how totally unlike the Earth it is. Not worse or
better. But different, and we need to know how things function here. A bit of scientific nous would not go amiss, and less of Hirondelle’s spooky nonsense. The last thing we want are freaks
on Paradise. Gunter is as bad. He has this idea that you should pee on plants – so he does that, methodically, and I told him that might be why he can’t even grow a decent Tattersall
weed! But he just snorted.

Just got word. Literally just now came in: ‘To Bola and Peta Silvio, a girl called Isadora’. I’m so happy for them. No complications. All the right bits and pieces and all in
the right place. We are invited over for a party in a couple of weeks’ time. Must think about an appropriate gift.

Marie has become really interested in publicizing Paradise. She’s started an action group called WAM – Women Against MINADEC. It was after she heard about those drums of chemicals
they found up on Palestrina. A lot has not been explored yet on this world. And there’s a lot we don’t know. The group is already having an impact. They went to the Bell Tree Islands
and found the grave of the first child born on Paradise. It gave Marie and the rest of the party a real fright. They came to the falls, which were as pretty as anything you can imagine, and the
little grave was off to one side. It was in what had once been a clearing, and there was still a signpost up saying Babycry Falls, but the whole place was now completely overgrown, as you might
expect.

Marie has also started a cooking club. When we can, we all share recipes, and Marie wants to publish a little book of them to accompany the produce we send off planet. Those of
us who are into native food production think it is a good idea, and there is a distributor on Mars who is interested. Marie experiments with the Paradise plum almost every day, so I am the envy of
all the fellas! Here is one of her recipes. I provide the titles. I name this one

Isadora’s Plum Delight – recipe by Marie Newton

Take some ripe plums (a plum the size of a duck egg or a fist is usually enough for one person) and lightly wash them, being careful not to bruise the skin. Set them aside on a dry towel and let
them dry in the sun or air. Don’t rub them, as the skin detaches very easily after washing.

When dry, slice with a very sharp knife and hold the plum together as you withdraw the blade. Hold it for a few seconds, then allow the cut plum to open naturally. You will find that the flesh
of the fruit holds firm and that there is a ring of small black seeds surrounding a central yellow pith.

Using a small sharp spoon, scoop out the yellow pith and reserve in an egg cup or small bowl. Then remove the seeds with the spoon, and discard. If some of the seeds have been bruised, they may
leak a blue liquid. This is not harmful but has a flavour close to fennel, which is to be avoided in this recipe. A dab with a twist of absorbent kitchen paper is usually all that is needed to soak
up the blue liquid.