They asked to be given another chance to tackle the menacing problem and were informed that virtually every pest-control organisation in the country was in fact to be brought in to deal with the situation, and all were to work strictly in conjunction with each other.
It became a political issue, the Labour Party claiming the Conservatives, the party in power, never really cared about the living conditions of the working-class people and had neglected to clear slums, allowed filth to pile up in the streets and had never implemented proposed plans (proposed by Labour when they were in office) for a completely new net-work of sewers to cope with London’s vast waste problem.
The Conservatives replied that the living conditions ofLondon’s working class had not suddenly degenerated when their party had taken over Parliamentary power, but had been allowed to deteriorate by the previous Labour Government. They quoted statistics of huge new development areas, not just inLondon’sEast End, but in every poorer section of the city. Pollution, they said, was being rescinded dramatically.
All eastern regions of the city’s Underground were temporarily shut down until a full purge of all tunnels had been completed. However, most people declined to use any section of the Tube system and rush hours became chaotic.
Dockers came out on strike, refusing to work in dockside areas where the menace seemed strongest.
Dustmen refused to risk their lives clearing rubbish that could contain the deadly vermin. Troops were called in to deal with the problem - rubbish could not be allowed to accumulate at such a precarious time.
The municipal workers who maintained the sewers naturally resisted any persuasion to continue their work.
When news of the deaths from the disease carried by the rats became known, matters became even more critical.
People living in theEast Londonboroughs demanded immediate evacuation. The government urged them to remain calm - the situation was firmly under control. Parents refused to send their children to school.
The war-time measure of child evacuation came into being once more and the children were shunted off to all parts of the country.
Poisons were laid in cellars, gardens and dustbins, killing small rats, mice and many household pets.
Restaurants were mistrusted and not used. Many butchers decided to close up shop for a while - the thought of being amongst all that raw meat proved to be too uncomfortable. Any job that entailed working beneath ground was turned down. Any job that involved night-work was refused.
The attacks continued and more people died from injuries or disease, or both.
Although the pest-control companies were meant to be working together on counter measures against the apparent rat invasion, each tried to out-do the other in finding the solution. Poisons proved fairly ineffectual for the rats seemed to feed mainly on human or animal flesh. SodiumFluoroacetate andFluoracetamide were used after the normal poisons, ZincPhosphide andArsenious Oxide, had failed, but these too seemed to have little effect.
Gas, as had been proved in the attack on the school, was the effective answer, but the rats had to be caught in a confined space. It was poured into sewers and basements of old buildings but when teams of men wearing protective clothing were sent down to investigate the results, they found many dead normal-sized rats but only a small number of dead giant rats.
Harris was staring out of the window of his flat when the phone rang. He’d been gazing at the small private park set in the square, surrounded by tall, terraced houses, magnificent in their Regency days but slightly dilapidated now. The teacher was waiting to be assigned to another school now that St Michael’s and others in that area had been shut down until matters were improved. His mind always became more relaxed when he studied the peaceful little park, and after the ordeal in the school, his taut nerves needed all the relaxation they could get.
He answered the phone, its shrill cry stirring up the tension again.
’Hello, Mr Harris? Foskins here.’
After this initial surprise, Harris answered. ‘Hello, Foskins. What can I... ?’
‘We wondered if you could help us in a small way, old chap?’
‘Well, of course, I... ‘
‘Just a few questions some of our boys would like to ask you.Nothing much, shouldn’t take long. You see, it turns out that you’re one of the very few people that have had actual contact with these killer rats and lived. If you could come along this afternoon... ?’
‘Right. But I thought you’d been... ‘
‘Dismissed? On the surface, I have, old boy, had to be.
Public demand. But I’m afraid the Ministry rather needs me at this particular time, so don’t believe everything you read in the papers. Now, here’s the address I want you to come to.
He was greeted by Foskins himself when he arrived at the address he’d been given. It had turned out to bePoplarTown Hall, a natural enough base for operations, he supposed. Foskins led him to a large assembly room, the walls covered with enlarged maps of the area, diagrams of the Underground and sewage networks, blow-ups of the giant rats themselves vivisected as well as whole, even photographs of their spoors.
The room was a hive of activity but Foskins took him over to a group of men gathered round a table in quiet, unexcited discussion.
‘Gentlemen, this is Mr Harris, the teacher I told you of,’
Foskins introduced him. ‘This is our team of experts. Researchers from the major pest-control companies, biologists, sanitation experts from our own department - even a couple of chemical warfare chaps? He nodded hello.
‘Let me just briefly bring you up to date and then we’ll put some questions to you,’ said Foskins. ‘We’ve examined these monsters thoroughly and haven’t really found anything unusual about them apart from their size of course and their slightly larger brain. Their teeth are bigger, but only in proportion to their body. Their ears, which seem peculiarly long at first because of their nakedness, are also in exact proportion to their body. But the Black rats normally have longer ears than the brown species.Which brings us to an interesting point. ’ He paused, indicating that Harris should take a seat, then went on: ‘The Brown Rat seems to have vanished fromLondon. Since the Brown rat is unable to climb as well as the Black, over the years it has had less chance to survive in the city. Whereas the Black rat is able to scale walls and leap across rooftops, the Brown has found it increasingly harder to gain access into premises that have barriers against them. For years, the two species have been battling for superiority and now it appears that the Blackhave won.
We’ve found no trace of the Brown, not even its spoors which are quite different from those of the Black.’
‘It’s natural to assume that the introduction of the freak giant Black rats tipped the balance,’ interrupted one of thegroup of men.
‘Yes, rather like a small country acquiring the Hydrogen bomb,’ continued Foskins. ‘Well, it seems they completely vanquished the Brown rat. One of our younger members,’ he looked at the man who had just spoken, ‘came up with the idea of bringing back multitudes of the Brown to do battle with the Black, giving them the advantage of numbers. Needless to say, we have no intention of turningEast Londoninto a battleground for vermin. The consequences could have been disastrous.’
The young researcher turned a deep red and studied his fingernails intently.
‘So this is the villain we face.’ Foskins held up a photograph of a large, but dead, rat.Rattusrattus . Black rat.
Or Ship rat. There are some of the species known to be this size in tropical countries. We think a member, or members of that species came over in a ship and bred with our own common variety.
Because of the difficulties involved, we suspect they were brought over secretly. The zoos claim no knowledge of such an undertaking and as the whole idea would be illegal anyway, we don’t expect an individual to come forward to admit it.’
‘Now what we want from you, Mr Harris, is information,’ said another member of the committee.
‘Anything at all that might tell us more about these creatures. You see, we haven’t managed to capture any alive yet and you are the one person that has had close contact with them on more than one occasion and lived. We don’t know anything of their behaviour pattern, where they go after they’ve attacked, why sometimes they won’t attack at all, and what’s caused their hunger for human flesh. The slightest peculiarity you may have noticed could be of invaluable help to us.’
