I have written before about the entirely imaginary territory in the Caribbean which I call the British Seaward Islands, and I want to stress yet again that the islands and all the characters in this book are absolutely fictitious. Nevertheless, some of the problems mentioned in the book are real. The plot may seem outrageous, and yet it is not beyond the bounds of possibility. Fortunately, the authorities are alert and vigilant, and I am convinced that in no territory would things reach the point described here without official intervention. Those of us who love the islands and their people pray that this will always be so.