From: "Roy C. Lackey" 
Subject: Re: (urth) PEACE: Smart
Date: Mon, 14 Oct 2002 00:31:36 -0500

Ian quoted and wrote:
>> We are told that for 25 years, since the death of Olivia, that Smart did
not
>> speak to his nephew, Weer. We are not told why. Despite this
estrangement,
>> when Julius died, Weer inherited the company. Again, why?
>
>I had always thought that Weer gaining control of the company was
>completely independent of his connection to Smart.  When Smart died (or
>retired) Weer had been at the company the longest and was the best man for
>the job.  Is there any evidence that disproves this?  It has been a while
>since I read PEACE.

The plant existed before Weer went to work there, so whether or not he was
the longest-tenured employee, after Smart, I couldn't say. But in any event,
succession to ownership of a business by seniority of employment is unheard
of, at least by me. And Weer was hardly the best qualified employee; by his
own account he was "an unimportant employee of the corporation he [Smart]
had founded". (148)

-Roy


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