Mr. Bedford Meets Mr. Cavor at Lympne As I sit down to write here amidst the shadows of vine-leaves under the blue sky of southern Italy, it comes to me with a certain quality of astonishment that my participation in these amazing adventures of Mr. Cavor was, after all, the outcome of the purest accident. It might have been any one. I fell into these things at a time when I thought myself removed from the slightest possibility of disturbing experiences. I had gone to Lympne because I had imagined it the most uneventful place in the world. Here, at any rate, said I, I shall find peace and a chance to work!
And this book is the sequel. So utterly at variance is destiny with all the little plans of men. I may perhaps mention here that very recently I had come an ugly cropper in certain business enterprises. Sitting now surrounded by all the circumstances of wealth, there is a luxury in admitting my extremity. I can admit, even, that to a certain extent my disasters were conceivably of my own making. It may be there are directions in which I have some capacity, but the conduct of business operations is not among these. But in those days I was young, and my youth among other objectionable forms took that of a pride in my capacity for affairs. I am young still in years, but the things that have happened to me have rubbed something of the youth from my mind. Whether they have brought any wisdom to light below it is a more doubtful matter.
Le présent livre est un appel à une révolution constructive, à une transformation fondamentale de l'ordre social, économique et politique du monde. Nous avons besoin d'un gouvernement mondial pour résoudre les problèmes mondiaux et établir la paix. La science doit jouer un rôle central dans cette transformation, car elle est la seule méthode fiable pour résoudre les problèmes humains. Nous devons répartir équitablement la richesse pour éviter la domination de quelques-uns sur les nombreux. En lisant ce livre, vous comprendrez l'importance de ces idées et vous serez peut-être inspiré à vous joindre à la révolution constructive pour créer un avenir meilleur.