Luton. “If you read the papers you’ll know that three years ago he made it public that, given fifty years of weather records, he could forecast for sure what the weather would be like four, five, six years ahead. No matter what part of Australia, no matter what part of the world, providing he had them fifty years’ records. Not what the weather was likely to be, but what the weather would be, any particular day or night. He predicted this drought, even the days when the rain threatened and didn’t come. You know what happened?”

“What did happen?” replied Bony.

“The farmers didn’t do any fallowing last summer and autumn. They didn’t sow crops this winter. So they didn’t buy any super-phosphate and other manures. They didn’t buy any machinery last year, and they won’t be buying any this year. They sold their stock and sacked their hands. And the graziers cut their stock down to barest, and put off their stockmen. And none of ’em, neither farmers nor graziers, lashed out a lot of money on work and wages and machinery just to watch it burned to dust by the sun. So none of ’emare in the hands of the banks and financial concerns. Instead of the drought bankrupting ’em, they’re all living comfortably on their fat.”

Mr. Luton regarded Bony with quiet confidence, and Knocker Harris said:

“And that’s why Ben was murdered.”

“Murdered because he assisted the farmers and graziers?” Bony expostulated.

“No, murdered because the finance companies, the big merchants and the banks couldn’t sell their stuff and lend money to the farmers and graziers and make ’emtheir slaves for years to come, like they always did following droughts.”

Knocker Harris again put in his oar.

“And theGov’ment’s in it, too, Federal and State. ’Cos why?’Cos the men on the land threw thousands of men on the labour market. The machinery makers have their yards a mile high withrustin ’ iron, and the manure firms have mountains of super no one will take at any price, and the oil companies can’t sell tractor oil. Y’see, Inspector, knowing what the weather is going to be this day next year, like, and this day the year after, is no damn good to lots and lots of people with lots and lots of money to lend out to drought-stricken farmers. So they bumped off poor old Ben.”