The Peacock Cloak

thrilling voice of the Public Accuser came booming out of the factory Screens, demanding on behalf of everyone there that culprits be identified for him to Name.
    “Ordinary decent folk have had enough!” the Public Accuser told the city government, while every single soul in the factory stood raptly listening. “Those responsible must pay the Price.”
    Everyone cheered.
    “Too right! You go, Accuser!”
    Accuser’s dark unsmiling face stared down at them from the giant Screen.
    And then on came Factory Manager Number One and suggested they all do two hours of extra work for nothing, in memory of the little girl.
    “Let’s all do our bit extra,” Factory Manager said, “It’s what Jenny Sue would have wanted.”
    And everyone cheered once more and returned to their looms, working with such gusto that their output for the next two hours was the same as it would normally be in half a day. And some of them had tears running down their faces as they worked and worked for that poor dear dead little child.
    They knew they’d need time off, you see, when Welfare’s Name was announced.

    Friday afternoon at 3, Screen gave out that the Announcement of Welfare’s Name would be in an hour’s time at City Hall, to be done by the Public Accuser himself.
    “Work hard as you can to half three,” said Factory Manager, “and then knock off early and go with my blessing on full pay. I know you all want to do your bit. And I will do mine.”
    And once again everyone cheered, and told each other he really wasn’t so bad at all as bosses go, and they set to and worked at the looms as hard as they could until half-past three. Then it was down tools and on with coats and down through the grey streets to City Hall where a big crowd was already gathering, with a brass band playing solemn music in memory of the little girl and a big flag hanging from the balcony.

    Announcement was never on time. The last time it had happened was when Welfare took a little boy away from his loving mum and dad, and they both begged her not to, but the Welfare Officer didn’t care, that heartless cow, even though the mum was pretty and the dad had once served in the wars in Araby. The wait had been over seventy minutes that time and the crowd was going crazy with impatience by the time the Announcement was made. But in a way that was all part of it. Announcement on time would spoil things really. It wouldn’t give folk a chance to wind themselves up for what had to be done.
    Anyway, at ten past four the Mayor came out onto the balcony.
    “Fellow citizens, it is my sad duty to announce that a dear little girl from our city has died due to the criminal negligence of Welfare .”
    There must have been two, three thousand there. Everyone cheered and pretty soon the old familiar chant went up.
    “The names! The names! The names!”
    And the Mayor gave a little wave as if to say, I do know and I’d like to tell you but I’m afraid it’s not my job. And on the big Screen above, where his face was shown as high as a double-decker bus, you could see his little smile as if he were sharing with everybody the impatience he felt as a human being, whether or not he was Mayor. And everyone said to themselves, well, he’s not so bad, he’s just like us really.
    Then the Mayor went back inside – “The names! The names! The names!” – and presently out he came again with that same shy little smile and held up his hands for quiet. It was nearly half-past four by then.
    “Citizens! Citizens! Thank you as ever for your commitment and concern. You make me proud to lead this great city. It is my great pleasure and honour now to give to you that mighty defender all that is good and decent in our community, that fierce guardian of everything that is right. I give you… The Public Accuser.”
    And out came Accuser in his black robe, and you could see on the screen that he never even nodded to Mayor, never even smiled.

    “The names!” yelled out Johnny, just as everyone else was settling down, so you could hear his individual voice right across the square.
    And Accuser looked at him, looked over the top of his half-moon glasses right across the square at poor little Johnny down there in the crowd.
    Johnny went bright red.
    “Well I was only saying…” he muttered.
    “My fellow citizens,” boomed out Accuser, “a terrible crime has again been committed by Welfare in whom we generously placed our trust. We did not ask much of them. We did not