‘Ah, now we tread in the realm of theology. A new species requires progenitors containing vast numbers of descendants nested within their reproductive organs; such forms embody the highest degree of order imaginable. Can a purely physical process create such vast amounts of order? No naturalist has suggested a mechanism by which this could occur. On the other hand, while we do know that a lexical process can create order, the creation of an entire new species would require a name of incalculable power. Such mastery of nomenclature could very well require the capabilities of God; perhaps it is even part of the definition.
‘This is a question, Stratton, to which we may never know the answer, but we cannot allow that to affect our current actions. Whether or not a name was responsible for the creation of our species, I believe a name is the best chance for its continuation.’
‘Agreed,’ said Stratton. After a pause, he added, ‘I must confess, much of the time when I am working, I occupy myself solely with the details of permutation and combination, and lose sight of the sheer magnitude of our endeavor. It is sobering to think of what we will have achieved if we are successful.’
‘I can think of little else,’ replied Ashbourne.
Seated at his desk in the manufactory, Stratton squinted to read the pamphlet he’d been given on the street. The text was crudely printed, the letters blurred.
‘Shall Men be the Masters of NAMES, or shall Names be the Masters of MEN? For too long the Capitalists have hoarded Names within their coffers, guarded by Patent and Lock and Key, amassing fortunes by mere possession of LETTERS, while the Common Man must labor for every shilling. They will wring the ALPHABET until they have extracted every last penny from it, and only then discard it for us to use. How long will We allow this to continue?’
Stratton scanned the entire pamphlet, but found nothing new in it. For the past two months he’d been reading them, and encountered only the usual anarchist rants; there was as yet no evidence for Lord Fieldhurst’s theory that the sculptors would use them to target Stratton’s work. His public demonstration of the dexterous automata was scheduled for next week, and by now Willoughby had largely missed his opportunity to generate public opposition. In fact, it occurred to Stratton that he might distribute pamphlets himself to generate public support. He could explain his goal of bringing the advantages of automata to everyone, and his intention to keep close control over his names’ patents, granting licenses only to manufacturers who would use them conscientiously. He could even have a slogan: ‘Autonomy through Automata,’ perhaps?
There was a knock at his office door. Stratton tossed the pamphlet into his wastebasket. ‘Yes?’
A man entered, somberly dressed, and with a long beard. ‘Mr. Stratton?’ he asked. ‘Please allow me to introduce myself. My name is Benjamin Roth. I am a kabbalist.’
Stratton was momentarily speechless. Typically such mystics were offended by the modern view of nomenclature as a science, considering it a secularization of a sacred ritual. He never expected one to visit the manufactory. ‘A pleasure to meet you. How may I be of assistance?’
‘I’ve heard that you have achieved a great advance in the permutation of letters.’
‘Why, thank you. I didn’t realize it would be of interest to a person like yourself.’
Roth smiled awkwardly. ‘My interest is not in its practical applications. The goal of kabbalists is to better know God. The best means by which to do that is to study the art by which He creates. We meditate upon different names to enter an ecstatic state of consciousness; the more powerful the name, the more closely we approach the Divine.’
‘I see.’ Stratton wondered what the kabbalist’s reaction would be if he learned about the creation being attempted in the biological nomenclature project. ‘Please continue.’
‘Your epithets for dexterity enable a golem to sculpt another, thereby reproducing itself. A name capable of creating a being that is, in turn, capable of creation would bring us closer to God than we have ever been before.’
‘I’m afraid you’re mistaken about my work, although you aren’t the first to fall under this misapprehension. The ability to manipulate molds does not render an automaton able to reproduce itself. There would be many other skills required.’
The kabbalist nodded. ‘I am well aware of that. I myself, in the course of my studies, have developed an epithet designating certain other skills necessary.’
Stratton leaned forward with sudden interest. After casting a body, the next step would be to animate the body with a name. ‘Your epithet endows an automaton with the ability to write?’ His own automaton could grasp a pencil easily enough, but it couldn’t inscribe even the simplest mark. ‘How is it that your automata possess the dexterity required for scrivening, but not that for manipulating molds?’
Roth shook his head modestly. ‘My epithet does not endow writing ability, or general manual dexterity. It simply enables a golem to write out the name that animates it, and nothing else.’
‘Ah, I see.’ So it didn’t provide an aptitude for learning a category of skills; it granted a single innate skill. Stratton tried to imagine the nomenclatoral contortions needed to make an automaton instinctively write out a particular sequence of letters. ‘Very interesting, but I imagine it doesn’t have broad application, does it?’
Roth gave a pained smile; Stratton realized he had committed a faux pas, and the man was trying to meet it with good humor. ‘That is one way to view it,’ admitted Roth, ‘but we have a different perspective. To us the value of this epithet, like any other, lies not in the usefulness it imparts to a golem, but in the ecstatic state it allows us to achieve.’
‘Of course, of course. And your interest in my epithets for dexterity is the same?’
‘Yes. I am hoping that you will share your epithets with us.’
Stratton had never heard of a kabbalist making such a request before, and clearly Roth did not relish being the first. He paused to consider. ‘Must a kabbalist reach a certain rank in order to meditate upon the most powerful ones?’
‘Yes, very definitely.’
‘So you restrict the availability of the names.’
‘Oh no; my apologies for misunderstanding you. The ecstatic state offered by a name is achievable only after one has mastered the necessary meditative techniques, and it’s these techniques that are closely guarded. Without the proper training, attempts to use these techniques could result in madness. But the names themselves, even the most powerful ones, have no ecstatic value to a novice; they can animate clay, nothing more.’
‘Nothing more,’ agreed Stratton, thinking how truly different their perspectives were. ‘In that case, I’m afraid I cannot grant you use of my names.’
Roth nodded glumly, as if he’d been expecting that answer. ‘You desire payment of royalties.’
Now it was Stratton who had to overlook the other man’s faux pas. ‘Money is not my objective. However, I have specific intentions for my dexterous automata which require that I retain control over the patent. I cannot jeopardize those plans by releasing the names indiscriminately.’ Granted, he had shared them with the nomenclators working under Lord Fieldhurst, but they were all gentlemen sworn to an even greater secrecy. He was less confident about mystics.
‘I can assure you that we would not use your name for anything other than ecstatic practices.’
‘I apologize; I believe you are sincere, but the risk is too great. The most I can do is remind you that the patent has a limited duration; once it has expired, you’ll be free to use the name however you like.’
‘But that will take years!’