He was aware that he was lying again, that
he was going to do all the talking and his doctor friends all the listening. “I
am sure you all know that women have been fighting for equal rights with men
through-out all the ages. We shall not concern ourselves about whether women
should be equal with men or not.”
“Let
us consider, however, the inter-dependence of man and woman. Which of them can
do without the other? Obviously, neither of them can, for the absence of one
means the extinction of the other. That is, as long as men and women remain
biologically as they are. Suppose, however, that you wanted to change either
the male or female in such a way that only one of them was necessary for
reproduction, which would be easier to change? It should be the woman. All you
will need to do is to make her reproduce the male reproductive cell herself. Simpler
still, you could try cultivating some male cells and practicing artificial insemination
on her. Then, perhaps, you will have to get a means of killing the instinct in
her which seeks for the company of the male”.
“In
order to make the male the only reproductive person you have to give him a
womb, you would have to construct a birth canal in him, give him ovaries to
reproduce the female cells, make him milk glands and quench his ever strong
desire for the female.”
The
big man paused in his speech. His eyes went round his listeners once, but that
was enough to tell him he was going places. He knew he would. He always did.
“You
all know that there are some animals which have both male and female
reproductive organs. Among several examples there is the Hydra. These go to
form the Hermaphrodites.” The S.B. man lit a cigarette and blew a thin stream
of smoke up to the ceiling. “I am sorry,” he said, “to have to talk to you
about something you all learned more than twenty years ago and which you
understand more than I do. I only wanted you to recall it.” A smoke ring, then
another. One of these days, he was sure to burn his lungs to cinders because of
smoking. “Now suppose the human being were suddenly to become a hermaphrodite,
which of the sexes could more easily be converted? For the reasons I have
already given, it would be the female. As scientists, you realize that nothing
is impossible once there is a chance of it taking place no matter how small the
chance. Well, I wish to tell you the unlikely does happen at times and this time
it has happened in our country”. “Gentlemen,” he started to tap, looked down at
his desk and raised his head again, “the person who brought you coffee not long
ago is a hermaphrodite.”
Tongues
lolled out of the doctors’ mouths—what was this mad man talking about? But that
was incredible? Such things happen to only the simple animals—the unicellular
and multi-cellular. Not the very high animals and of all high animals, not the
highest of them?
The
Special Branch man gave his friends time to drink in what he was sure they
thought was fantasy, then he resumes: “I am sure you all realize that I came
from the C.I.D.!” He knew that they knew he was from Special Branch. They could
guess he was the boss there. “My department has very up-to-date information
about this affair. It all began in the Upper Region. At Bongo, to be precise.” He
turned to the wall map behind him and showed the location of a small town near
Bolgatanga. Then he went back to his desk and brought out a larger leather
bound book. He began to turn through the pages. “I am going to tell you the
history of this unfortunate affair. I hope you are listening carefully.
READ EPISODE 3 HERE
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