The Green caldron - University Library

March, 1958
this system it would be possible for forty of the smaller member nations of
the U.N., having ten per cent of the world's population, to determine the
policy for the other ninety per cent of the world's people.
No, the veto cannot be abolished or modified without destroying our
national safety and sovereignty. As exasperating as the U.N. is under the
present voting system, this system is still a necessary part of the Charter. Until
the present tension in the world is relieved, we must insist upon the U.N.
Charter containing the "troublesome" veto.
THE
Travelogue
Bennett E. Gates
Rhetoric loi. Theme 8
DAY WAS HOT, AND THE CITY OF RIO SUFFERED.
The heat rose in shimmering waves from the gleaming buildings and
broad expanses of pavement, making all but the coolest "casas" and air-
conditioned "restaurantes" places of sweltering misery. High above it all, a
tiny cable car creaked and groaned and swayed its way along toward the top of
Sugar Loaf Mountain. But the temperature inside the car was hardly more
bearable than that below. Men squirmed uncomfortably in the hard wooden
seats, most of them burdened down with guide books, travel folders, their
wives' handbags, and miscellaneous curios acquired along the way. The
women, though doing their best to maintain their composure, were now and
then driven to reach back and lift the hot, damp hair that clung to the backs
of their necks. Occasionally one considerate wife would relieve her husband's
load by the amount of one rather stiff travel folder, to fan herself vigorously
a ridiculous effort, since the exertion made her that much hotter and more
uncomfortable. Most of the husbands either sat quietly, sulking behind the
wall of wifely debris that surrounded them, or else peered sullenly between
two packages at the scenery below. Their wives, however, sat as far forward
on the edges of their seats as discretion would allow, and listened eagerly to
the tour guide who now stood at the front of the car.
He was a short, dark Brazilian, and fat to the point of being perfectly
round. He was nearly bald, and when he wasn't droning his memorized speech
on the history of Brazilian culture and pointing out various scenic spots, he
pulled a sodden handkerchief from his pocket and dabbed furiously at the
perspiration that covered his head. Without a doubt he was the most miserable
and uncomfortable person on board, and when the car suddenly jerked to a
stop and sat him down quite without dignity in the middle of the floor, he
looked almost relieved. There was a moment or two of confusion while a few
unseated passengers re-seated themselves and the wives hurriedly gathered
up their scattered bundles and re-buried their husbands. When order was
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