they're much better off on the Esaron Sector than they would be as
captives of the Croutha. As far as that goes, what's the difference
between that and the way we drag these Fourth Level Primitive
Sector-Complex people off to Fifth Level Service Sector to work for
us?"

"Oh, there's a big difference, Farn," Javrath Brend said. "We recruit
those Fourth Level Primitives out of probability worlds of Stone Age
savagery, and transpose them to our own Fifth Level time lines,
practically outtime extensions of the Home Time Line. There's
absolutely no question of the Paratime Secret being compromised."

[Illustration:]

"Beside, we need a certain amount of human labor, for tasks requiring
original thought and decision that are beyond the ability of robots,
and most of it is work our Citizens simply wouldn't perform," Thalvan
Dras added.

"Well, from a moral standpoint, wouldn't these Esaron Sector people
who buy the slaves justify slavery in the same terms?" a woman whom
Vall had identified as a Left Moderate Council Member asked.

"There's still a big difference," Dalla told her. "The ServSec Proles
aren't beaten or tortured or chained; we don't break up families or
separate friends. When we recruit Fourth Level Primitives, we take
whole tribes, and they come willingly. And--"

One of Thalvan Dras' black-liveried human servants, of the class under
discussion, approached Vall.