Investigation Of Beta In Bric Economy - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 7 Words: 2044 Downloads: 8 Date added: 2017/06/26 Category Economics Essay Type Research paper Did you like this example? Beta is the risk associated with an asset in relation to the market underlined. The developing countries/emerging economies such as Brazil, Russian, India, and China (BRICs) are playing important role in the world economy as producers of goods and services. The BRIC countries are expected to grow at a rate of more than 8 percent for next several years. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Investigation Of Beta In Bric Economy" essay for you Create order The main purpose of this research is to focus on these fast growing economies and work out the betas of these BRIC markets. A particular focus is given on the Indian market as India is one of the main contenders in BRIC economies. Indiaà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s GDP is expected to be 35 times of its current level. Taking into account the performance of the economy over the years and keeping in mind the study of Goldman Sachs (2003), Indian markets are predicted to be the most developed one by 2050. This report also covers the objectives and the methodology i.e. the Single Index Model, which the research will follow and finally it concludes as the stated objectives will be covered and the research will be concluded by August 2010. Introduction: Beta in general term means an assetà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s risk in relation to the market or a benchmark. It is measured by using short-term return intervals. An asset with beta of 0 means that it is not correlated with the markets. A positive beta shows that the asset is correlated to market and it follows the market. A negative beta shows that the asset is negatively correlated to the market. Beta is known as financial elasticity or correlated volatility. Literature review: According to Hodges; Taylor ; Yoder (2003) Beta of stock and bond portfolios change drastically with time. Therefore it is difficult to find beta of for intended horizon. They prove that betas calculated from annual returns cannot be used for lond period as it changes with time. Single period betas are useful when the investment horizon matches the holding period which is considered to find the returns. Generally single index pricing is used to model the structure of returns. However, Solnik (1974), suggests that a single index model may fail to capture international and domestic risks and, hence, a multi index model which takes into consideration both factors would be more appropriate. The presence of both risks that influence assets indicate that neither a purely domestic nor purely international beta of a security would be a complete measure of systematic risk. But on the other side, Bartholdy and Riding (1994) used the Dimson and Scholes and Williams methods on NZ data to corre ct for beta biases. They found that the two beta-correcting methods have no add on efficiency compared to standard OLS estimators and concluded that OLS estimators are more efficient and are more closure to relevant data. We therefore adopt the simple OLS beta estimation in this study. Ragunathan; Faff; Brooks (2000) found that the relative to the domestic index, betas were always significant while the betas relative to the international indices were not always significant. The BRIC countries are expected to grow at a rate of more than 8 percent for next several years. The developing countries/emerging economies such as Brazil, Russian, India, and China (BRICs) are playing important role in the world economy as producers of goods and services and increasing capital. The four countries went through major transformational changes in their economic structure. Though BRICs countries followed a sustainable growth path to integrate them self among globalised economy. After a lot of soc io-economic transformations in the twentieth century all these countries were replaced by gradual integration in the global economy in the 1980s and 1990s. In recent times, there is a surge in the global economy particularly in BRICs countries due to economic liberalisation. According to Bharadwaj (editor) the BRIC countries have many good things going in their favour. China is a leader in manufacturing powerhouse in the world and India is number one for services sector (In information technology area),while Russia and Brazil have abundant natural resources. Companies from countries like China and India have intended global ambitions various fields like information technology, industrial production, service sector, etc. BRIC countries have showed global geopolitical leadership in various regions. The new and good changes in economic policies have boosted the developing economies like China, India, Brazil and Russia. Among these countries a new economy is emerging and if the cu rrent growth level is maintained they will become the global economic player in near future. Wilson, D. and Purushothaman, R. in their paper suggest that in the coming decades large developing countries like the BRICs (Brazil, Russia, India and China) will become a great force in the world economy from its current level even above the expectations the investors currently anticipate. It is evident that from the onset of the 21st century more than a third of the worldà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s growth has originated in these countries. So, the rise of new powerhouse economies in the developing world can shift the equation of global economic order is predicted by Bloomberg (2007). It is also projected that the BRICs economies as a whole could be larger than the G6 in future. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Thus the BRIC thesis recognizes that Brazil, Russia, India and China have changed their political systems to embrace global capitalism. Moreover, Brazil, Russia, India and China have long been a favou rable destination of emerging market investors.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? By Farah, Paolo(2006) This is optimistic for economic growth and huge investment may come to the BRICs in coming decades. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“The spur in economic growth there is a great requirement of broad analysis to get the perfect image of the BRICs economic progressà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? Kumar, Fodea (2007). That is the main purpose of this research, to find the betas of these developing economies and forecast them. In year 2006 India has been worldà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s second fastest growing economy. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Every year at the World Economic Forum in Davos, there is a superstar. Not an individual but a Nation as a whole. One country impresses the gathering of global leaders because of a particularly smart Finance minister or a compelling tale of reform. In the decade that Ive been going to Davos, no country has captured the imagination of the conference and dominated the conversation as India in 2006.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? ( Fareed Zakaria, News week issue dated Mar 6, 2006) . Chinas economy has risen by almost 10 percent since 1980Indias is a tale of future, which is coming into sharp focus. In the study by Goldman Sachs (2003)shows that à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“ in coming 50 years, India will be worldà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s fastest growing economy (largely because of its young workforce). The report suggests that in 10 years Indias economy will be larger than Italys and in 15 years larger than that of Britains. By 2040 the worlds third largest economy. By 2050 it will be five times the size of Japans and its per capita income will have risen to 35 times its current level. Predictions like these are a treacherous business, though its worth noting that Indias current growth rate is actually higher than the study assumed.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? Thus we can see from the above information that there is lot of potential of making money in this BRIC economies over coming years. But care has to be taken regarding the risks and hence, I would like to carry out this project to investigate Beta of these economies. With a particular focus on the Indian economy. Objectives: The objectives of this thesis are to use the data of BRIC markets and interpret them to answer the following questions What is the beta of BRIC economies? What is the forecasted beta of the BRIC economies? What is the performance of sectors in individual economies? We hope that the outcome of this research will answer these questions and help the investors who wish to invest into these economies. Data: The data to conduct this research will be taken from Bloomberg and the exchanges of the four BRIC economies: Brazil Russia India China The focus of this research is to find the beta of these markets and compare them, the weekly prices from 2000 to 2008 will be used. Methodology: The research method of this project will be of a quantitative one. The data required will be secondary data. We will mainly interpret this data to find out beta of each market. We will further remove beta of the different sectors and compare the performance of each sector with that of whole market. Single-Index Model: For our research we will mainly use Single-Index Model. So firstly, we will use the regression equation of the Single-Index model. This can be done by using the past data of the markets and trying to find out systematic risk. As this model is linear, we can estimate the sensitivity (beta) coefficient of a security, Ri= ri-rf The regression equation is: Ri(t)= ÃŽÂ ±i+ ÃŽÂ ²iRm (t) +ei(t) Where the intercept of this equation (denoted by the greek letter alpha,ÃŽÂ ±) is the securityà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s expected return which is excess, when the excess return of the market is zero. The slope coefficient ÃŽÂ ²i is the beta of the security.Thus w e can find beta. Beta is the securityà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s sensitivity to the index. The Expected Retun-Beta Relationship: As E(ei)=o we can get value of E(ri), thus we can get a new equation return-beta relationship with the help of single index model. E(Ri)= ÃŽÂ ±i+ ÃŽÂ ²iRm The above equation explains that the securityà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s risk premium is due to risk premium of the index. The market risk premium is multiplied by the beta or sensitivity. It is also called systematic risk premium. Any reminder is given in the form of alpha. It is also called as non market premium. To explain this in a simple example, if the value of alpha is positive which means that the security is underpriced, or in other words there is a chance to earn an extra premium. As the price of the security is brought to equilibrium the value of alpha is driven to zero. Thus this is how a relation can be established between Return and Beta. Thus by using the above Single-Index Model we c an find betas of particular markets and we can also find betas of particular sectors of that market. Once this is done we can try to compare the results of that of Indian market with rest of BRIC economies. Conclusion / Expected outcome: The expected outcomes of the project research are: A beta value for BRIC economies. The forecasted beta of BRIC economies. Sector vise beta of the economy. With the help of these information investors can make a good decision regarding their investments into these booming economies. They will be able to make the most of these markets. Time Line: I will be following a time-line to complete this research. I intend to collect all my data by May using Bloomberg and the exchanges of respective markets. By June and July I will be interpreting and analyzing the collected data. I assume that I will finish this research by end of August. Refrencing: Asness, C. S. (1996) Why not 100% equities?, Journal of Portfolio Management, 22, 29à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å"34. Bartholdy, J. and A. Riding (1994), Thin trading and the estimation of betas: The efficacy of alternative techniques, Journal of Financial Research, 17/2, Summer, 241-254. Bodie, Kane, Marcus (Eds.). (2008). Investments (8th ed.) Mcgraw hill. C Kenneth Jones. (1992). Portfolio management McGraw-hill. Choi, Fu. (2005). The dual-beta model: Evidence from the new zealand stock market. Department of Finance, Waikato Management School, Dr. Avaneendra Misra. India getting better. Retrieved from https://ssrn.com/abstract=1214202 Fodea, Kumar, Perspective on ec onomic growth of BRIC countries: A case of brazil and india. HODGES, TAYLOR, YODER. (2003). Beta, the treynor ratio, and long-run investment horizons. Applied Financial Economics, (8), 503à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å"508. KLEMKOSKY, MARTIN. THE ADJUSTMENT OF BETA FORECASTS.NO. 4(SEPTEMBER 1975). Pogue G and Solnik B. 1974. The market model applied to European common stocks: Some empirical results. Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, 9:17-944. Prashanth N. Bharadwaj. (2007). BRIC Countriesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬ A competitive analysis. Robert A. Levy. On the short-term stationarity of beta coefficients Financial Analysts Journal(27 (November-December 1971)), 55-62. Scholes, M. and J. Williams (1977), Estimating betas from nonsynchronous data, Journal of Financial Economics, 5, 309-327. Sromon Das. Testing the stability of beta over market phases an empirical study in the indian context. VANITHA RAGUNATHAN, ROBERT W. FAFF, ROBERT D. BROOKS. (2000). Australian industry beta risk, the choice of market index and business cycles.10, 49-58.

Is It Not My Body - 2365 Words

Is It Not My Body? Lidia M Jaens Spring 2015 University of Houston- Downtown Introduction The debate over abortions has been a controversial one in the United States through the years. The primary question has been, â€Å" Does a women have the right to have an abortion performed?† and if they do have this right, â€Å"when, why and under what conditions should the procedure be performed.† Women decide to get abortions for a multitude of reasons such as: medical issues, toxic family life, rape, economic situations, and some simply do not wish to have children. For a Hispanic women, an abortion is one of the hardest thins to decide, due to family dynamics, religion and resources. Never the less an abortion is an elective medical procedure, and like any other medical procedure, it should be offer to anyone who wants it, without prejudice in a safe environment. Catholics, Abortions and Hispanic Women The debate over abortion is split between Pro-Choice Advocates, who simply believe that it is the women’s right to choose if she wants or doesn’t want to have an abortion performed. While Pro-Life Advocates argue that life begins at conception, thus an abortion is considered a murderous act. In theory most Hispanics would fall in the Pro- Life bracket, due to religion, but the truth is that many are simply uneducated on the matter. Abortion is legal in the United States; it has been lawful since 1973 with the Supreme Court verdict of Roe v Wade, that ruledShow MoreRelatedMy Body, My Choice1509 Words   |  7 PagesMy Body, My Choice Abortion, the controversial issue that has been in American society for years, the process of removing a fertilized egg from the mother’s uterus in order to terminate a pregnancy. 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HEALTH PROMOTION AND THE DETERMINANTS OF HEALTH Free Essay Example, 1000 words

Nurses play a fundamental role in health promotion; their role branches out to caring for fit people, as well as the ill (Mikkonen education, as well as availability to the clients, has proven effective. Long-term relation with mothers by working even in their homes has encouraged mothers to take advantage of their strength and achieve their goals (Public Health Agency of Canada, 2010). Nurses act as advisers to mothers from child birth to parenthood (Hartford, 2012). Their support, through deliverance of healthy babies to becoming confident parents and encouragement to pursue a better future for themselves and their children, has proven most effective. Such roles manifest themselves like: Helping mothers practice preventive health procedures and good parental skills. These include diet improvement and reduction of stimuli and other drugs for instance tobacco, alcohol among others. We will write a custom essay sample on HEALTH PROMOTION AND THE DETERMINANTS OF HEALTH or any topic s pecifically for you Only $17.96 $11.86/pageorder now Moreover, such roles help the mother to be prepared emotionally during delivery and nurturing of the baby. Provision of awareness of specific child development skills through education and better ways of child care for the child and the mother, as well as encouragement to use more cuddly techniques rather than harsh methods. Through coaching of the family and mothers to be self reliant and encourage them to be visionaries helps the plan for future pregnancy, manage employment as well as pursue academic avenues. Everyday interaction of nurses with clients can be an educational platform where health promotion can be done (Hartford, 2012). An example is in a situation where a cancer patient being nursed a wound is informed of ways of treating the cancer through therapy and other forms of treatment. A different scenario is if the mother has brought the child for vaccination, then the nurse can use such an opportunity to explain to the parent better feed ing practices for the child as well as best vitamin supplements for the child. Such acts promote health significantly. Nurses believe that they promote health all through their profession. That is what they advise patients whenever they encounter with them (Kozier, 2009). However, even though a lot of nurses are available to promote health, the determining factor in effective health promotion is narrowed to the individuals where their knowledge is necessary.

Essay on Animal Farm by George Orwell - 1117 Words

Orwell deals with the problem of rhetoric in ’Animal Farm’ by demonstrating how language can cause corruption. There are many characters in his book ‘Animal Farm’ that use rhetoric to convince and manipulate, however, the most talented persuasive speaker is Squealer. Squealer’s ability to use rhetoric is unrivalled, this is the reason Napoleon rises to power. Squealer uses the power in language to distort the truth in his speeches. When Napoleon wanted a problem fixed he would simply ask Squealer to talk to the animals and the animals would believe and be on board with whatever he said. Squealer uses many persuasive techniques such as rhetorical questions, inclusive language and exaggeration, but most of all he uses rhetoric. Rhetoric,†¦show more content†¦He had no persuasive power but he had fear. Later in the book to justify what he did to Snowball he employed Squealer to make Snowball look like a bad guy which in doing so inferred that N apoleon was the good guy. Once again Squealer uses the power of language to distort the truth and use persuasive rhetorical questions that the animals can only agree with.† Surely, comrades, you do not want Jones back?†, he persuaded the animals to believe that Snowball was plotting to get Mr. Jones back in control by double crossing them at the battle of the cowshed. He made the animals believe that Snowball was evil from the start and even though at first the animals did not believe it, they quickly disregarded their shared thoughts just because they were told to do so by a pig. Benjamin, the donkey sees straight through this but never bothers to tell anyone. When an animal said that Snowball did in fact fight well in the battle of the cowshed Squealer was quick to say that it had all been staged and they all believed it. This demonstrates the gullibility of the animals. The animals are easy targets for Squealer and the pigs as they are uneducated, ignorant and gullible. They are easily convinced and controlled. It only takes a couple of swift words from Squealer and you will have almost all the animals on board and agreeing with him. An extra comment here and there and he would have all the animalsShow MoreRelatedAnimal Farm And George Orwell By George Orwell1034 Words   |  5 Pages Eric Arthur Blair, under the pseudonym of George Orwell, composed many novels in his lifetime that were considered both politically rebellious and socially incorrect. Working on the dream since childhood, Orwell would finally gain notoriety as an author with his 1945 novel Animal Farm, which drew on personal experiences and deeply rooted fear to satirically critique Russian communism during its expansion. Noticing the impact he made, he next took to writing the novel 1984, which similarly criticizedRead MoreAnimal Farm By George Orwell1397 Words   |  6 PagesAn important quote by the influential author of Animal Farm, George Orwell, is, â€Å"Every line of serious work that I have written since 1936 has been written, directly or indirectly, against totalitarianism.† George Orwell, a Democratic Socialist, wrote the book Animal Farm as an attack on the Communist country of Russia (â€Å"The Political Ideas of George Orwell,† worldsocialism.org). He had a very strong disliking of Communism and the Socialist party of Russia. However, he insisted on finding the truthRead MoreAnimal Farm, By George Orwell1545 Words   |  7 Pagesallow because an this elite institution of people often use this gear to dominate and oppress society. In George Orwell’s story, Animal Farm, Orwell demonstrates that education is a powerful weapon and is a device that can be used to at least one’s benefit. Living in a world where strength is a straightforward to benefit, the pigs quick use education to govern the relaxation of the animals on the farm to serve themselves worked to their advantage. This story in shows the underlying message that   firstRead MoreAnimal Farm By George Orwell944 Words   |  4 Pageslegs(Orwell 132). He carried a whip in his trotter(Orwell 133). In the novel Animal Farm by George Orwell, animals have the ability to talk and form their own ethos, Animalism. Animal Farm is an intriguing allegory by George Orwell, who is also th e author of 1984, includes many enjoyable elements. More knowledge of the author, his use of allegorical elements, themes, symbols, and the significance in the real world, allows the reader to get more out of this glance into the future. George OrwellRead MoreAnimal Farm, By George Orwell876 Words   |  4 Pagesrebellious animals think no man means freedom and happiness, but they need to think again. The animals of Manor Farm rebel against the farm owner, Mr. Jones, and name it Animal Farm. The animals create Animalism, with seven commandments. As everything seems going well, two of the animals get into a rivalry, and things start changing. Food starts disappearing and commandments are changed, and the power begins to shift. Father of dystopian genre, George Orwell writes an interesting allegory, Animal FarmRead MoreAnimal Farm by George Orwell1100 Words   |  4 PagesIntroduction: Widely acknowledged as a powerful allegory, the 1945 novella Animal Farm, conceived from the satirical mind of acclaimed author George Orwell, is a harrowing fable of a fictional dystopia that critiques the socialist philosophy of Stalin in terms of his leadership of the Soviet Union. 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Black House Chapter Twenty-six Free Essays

string(39) " The head switches back the other way\." 26 WE HAVE HAD our little conversation about slippage, and it’s too late in the game to belabor the point more than a little, but wouldn’t you say that most houses are an attempt to hold slippage back? To impose at least the illusion of normality and sanity on the world? Think of Libertyville, with its corny but endearing street names Camelot and Avalon and Maid Marian Way. And think of that sweet little honey of a home in Libertyville where Fred, Judy, and Tyler Marshall once lived together. What else would you call 16 Robin Hood Lane but an ode to the everyday, a paean to the prosaic? We could say the same thing about Dale Gilbertson’s home, or Jack’s, or Henry’s, couldn’t we? Most of the homes in the vicinity of French Landing, really. We will write a custom essay sample on Black House Chapter Twenty-six or any similar topic only for you Order Now The destructive hurricane that has blown through the town doesn’t change the fact that the homes stand as brave bulwarks against slippage, as noble as they are humble. They are places of sanity. Black House like Shirley Jackson’s Hill House, like the turn-of-the-century monstrosity in Seattle known as Rose Red is not sane. It is not entirely of this world. It’s hard to look at from the outside the eyes play continual tricks but if one can hold it steady for a few seconds, one sees a three-story dwelling of perfectly ordinary size. The color is unusual, yes that dead black exterior, even the windows swabbed black and it has a crouching, leaning aspect that would raise uneasy thoughts about its structural integrity, but if one could appraise it with the glammer of those other worlds stripped away, it would look almost as ordinary as Fred and Judy’s place . . . if not so well maintained. Inside, however, it is different. Inside, Black House is large. Black House is, in fact, almost infinite. Certainly it is no place to get lost, although from time to time people have hoboes and the occasional unfortunate runaway child, as well as Charles Burnside/Carl Bierstone’s victims and relics here and there mark their passing: bits of clothing, pitiful scratchings on the walls of gigantic rooms with strange dimensions, the occasional heap of bones. Here and there the visitor may see a skull, such as the ones that washed up on the banks of the Hanover River during Fritz Haarman’s reign of terror in the early 1920s. This is not a place where you want to get lost. Let us pass through rooms and nooks and corridors and crannies, safe in the knowledge that we can return to the outside world, the sane anti-slippage world, anytime we want (and yet we are still uneasy as we pass down flights of stairs that seem all but endless and along corridors that dwindle to a point in the distance). We hear an eternal low humming and the faint clash of weird machinery. We hear the idiot whistle of a constant wind either outside or on the floors above and below us. Sometimes we hear a faint, houndly barking that is undoubtedly the abbalah’s devil dog, the one that did for poor old Mouse. Sometimes we hear the sardonic caw of a crow and understand that Gorg is here, too somewhere. We pass through rooms of ruin and rooms that are still furnished with a pale and rotten grandeur. Many of these are surely bigger than the whole house in which they hide. And eventually we come to a humble sitting room furnished with an elderly horsehair sofa and chairs of fading red velvet. There is a smell of noisome cooking in the air. (Somewhere close by is a kitchen we must never visit . . . not, that is, if we ever wish to sleep without nightmares again.) The electrical fixtures in here are at least seventy years old. How can that be, we ask, if Black House was built in the 1970s? The answer is simple: much of Black House most of Black House has been here much longer. The draperies in this room are heavy and faded. Except for the yellowed news clippings that have been taped to the ugly green wallpaper, it is a room that would not be out of place on the ground floor of the Nelson Hotel. It’s a place that is simultaneously sinister and oddly banal, a fitting mirror for t he imagination of the old monster who has gone to earth here, who lies sleeping on the horsehair sofa with the front of his shirt turning a sinister red. Black House is not his, although in his pathological grandiosity he believes differently (and Mr. Munshun has not disabused him of this belief ). This one room, however, is. The clippings around him tell us all we need to know of Charles â€Å"Chummy† Burnside’s lethal fascinations. YES, I ATE HER, FISH DECLARES: New York Herald Tribune BILLY GAFFNEY PLAYMATE AVERS â€Å"IT WAS THE GRAY MAN TOOK BILLY, IT WAS THE BOGEYMAN†: New York World Telegram GRACE BUDD HORROR CONTINUES: FISH CONFESSES!: Long Island Star FISH ADMITS â€Å"ROASTING, EATING† WM GAFFNEY: New York American FRITZ HAARMAN, SO-CALLED â€Å"BUTCHER OF HANOVER,† EXECUTED FOR MURDER OF 24: New York World WEREWOLF DECLARES: â€Å"I WAS DRIVEN BY LOVE, NOT LUST.† HAARMAN DIES UNREPENTANT: The Guardian CANNIBAL OF HANOVER’S LAST LETTER: â€Å"YOU CANNOT KILL ME, I SHALL BE AMONG YOU FOR ETERNITY†: New York World Wendell Green would love this stuff, would he not? And there are more. God help us, there are so many more. Even Jeffrey Dahmer is here, declaring I WANTED ZOMBIES. The figure on the couch begins to groan and stir. â€Å"Way-gup, Burny!† This seems to come from thin air, not his mouth . . . although his lips move, like those of a second-rate ventriloquist. Burny groans. His head turns to the left. â€Å"No . . . need to sleep. Everything . . . hurts.† The head turns to the right in a gesture of negation and Mr. Munshun speaks again. â€Å"Way-gup, dey vill be gummink. You must move der buu-uoy.† The head switches back the other way. Sleeping, Burny thinks Mr. Munshun is still safe inside his head. He has forgotten things are different here in Black House. Foolish Burny, now nearing the end of his usefulness! But not quite there yet. â€Å"Can’t . . . lea’ me ‘lone . . . stomach hurts . . . the blind man . . . fucking blind man hurt my stomach . . .† But the head turns back the other way and the voice speaks again from the air beside Burny’s right ear. Burny fights it, not wanting to wake and face the full ferocious impact of the pain. The blind man has hurt him much worse than he thought at the time, in the heat of the moment. Burny insists to the nagging voice that the boy is safe where he is, that they’ll never find him even if they can gain access to Black House, that they will become lost in its unknown depth of rooms and hallways and wander until they first go mad and then die. Mr. Munshun, however, knows that one of them is different from any of the others who have happened on this place. Jack Sawyer is acquainted with the infinite, and that makes him a problem. The boy must be taken out the back way and into End-World, into the very shadow of Din-tah, the great furnace. Mr. Munshun tells Burny that he may still be able to have some of the boy before turning him over to the abbalah, but not here. Too dangerou s. Sorry. Burny continues to protest, but this is a battle he will not win, and we know it. Already the stale, cooked-meat air of the room has begun to shift and swirl as the owner of the voice arrives. We see first a whirlpool of black, then a splotch of red an ascot and then the beginnings of an impossibly long white face, which is dominated by a single black shark’s eye. This is the real Mr. Munshun, the creature who can only live in Burny’s head outside of Black House and its enchanted environs. Soon he will be entirely here, he will pull Burny into wakefulness (torture him into wakefulness, if necessary), and he will put Burny to use while there is still use to be gotten from him. For Mr. Munshun cannot move Ty from his cell in the Black House. Once he is in End-World Burny’s Sheol things will be different. At last Burny’s eyes open. His gnarled hands, which have spilled so much blood, now reach down to feel the dampness of his own blood seeping through his shirt. He looks, sees what has bloomed there, and lets out a scream of horror and cowardice. It does not strike him as just that, after murdering so many children, he should have been mortally wounded by a blind man; it strikes him as hideous, unfair. For the first time he is visited by an extremely unpleasant idea: What if there’s more to pay for the things he has done over the course of his long career? He has seen End-World; he has seen Conger Road, which winds through it to Din-tah. The blasted, burning landscape surrounding Conger Road is like hell, and surely An-tak, the Big Combination, is hell itself. What if such a place waits for him? What if There’s a horrible, paralyzing pain in his guts. Mr. Munshun, now almost fully materialized, has reached out and twisted one smoky, not-quite-transparent hand in the wound Henry inflicted with his switchblade knife. Burny squeals. Tears run down the old child-murderer’s cheeks. â€Å"Don’t hurt me!† â€Å"Zen do ass I zay.† â€Å"I can’t,† Burny snivels. â€Å"I’m dying. Look at all the blood! Do you think I can get past something like this? I’m eighty-five fucking years old!† â€Å"Duff brayyg, Burn-Burn . . . but dere are zose on z’osser zide who could hill you off your wunds.† Mr. Munshun, like Black House itself, is hard to look at. He shivers in and out of focus. Sometimes that hideously long face (it obscures most of his body, like the bloated head of a caricature on some newspaper’s op-ed page) has two eyes, sometimes just one. Sometimes there seem to be tufted snarls of orange hair leaping up from his distended skull, and sometimes Mr. Munshun appears to be as bald as Yul Brynner. Only the red lips and the fangy pointed teeth that lurk inside them remain fairly constant. Burny eyes his accomplice with a degree of hope. His hands, meanwhile, continue to explore his stomach, which is now hard and bloated with lumps. He suspects the lumps are clots. Oh, that someone should have hurt him so badly! That wasn’t supposed to happen! That was never supposed to happen! He was supposed to be protected! He was supposed to â€Å"It iss not even peeyond ze realm of bossibility,† Mr. Munshun says, â€Å"zat ze yearz could be rawled avey vrum you jusst as ze stunn vas rawled avey from ze mouse of Cheezus Chrizze’s doom.† â€Å"To be young again,† Burny says, and exhales a low, harsh sigh. His breath stinks of blood and spoilage. â€Å"Yes, I’d like that.† â€Å"Of gorse! And soch zings are bossible,† Mr. Munshun says, nodding his grotesquely unstable face. â€Å"Soch gifts are ze abbalah’s to giff. But zey are not bromised, Charles, my liddle munching munchkin. But I can make you one bromise.† The creature in the black evening suit and red ascot leaps forward with dreadful agility. His long-fingered hand darts again into Chummy Burnside’s shirt, this time clenches into a fist, and produces a pain beyond any the old monster has ever dreamed of in his own life . . . although he has inflicted this and more on the innocent. Mr. Munshun’s reeking countenance pushes up to Burny’s. The single eye glares. â€Å"Do you feel dat, Burny? Do you, you mizz-er-a-ble old bag of dirt and zorrow? Ho-ho, ha-ha, of gorse you do! It iss your in-destines I haff in my hand! Und if you do not mooff now, schweinhund, I vill rip dem from your bledding body, ho-ho, ha-ha, und vrap dem arund your neg! You vill die knowing you are choking on your own gudz! A trick I learned from Fritz himzelf, Fritz Haarman, who vas so yunk und loff-ly! Now! Vat do you say? Vill you brink him, or vill you choke?† â€Å"I’ll bring him!† Burny screams. â€Å"I’ll bring him, only stop, stop, you’re tearing me apart!† â€Å"Brink him to ze station. Ze station, Burn-Burn. Dis one iz nodd for ze radhulls, de fogzhulls not for ze Com-bin-ay-shun. No bledding foodzies for Dyler; he works for his abbalah vid dis.† A long finger tipped with a brutal black nail goes to the huge forehead and taps it above the eyes (for the moment Burny sees two of them, and then the second is once more gone). â€Å"Understand?† â€Å"Yes! Yes!† His guts are on fire. And still the hand in his shirt twists and twists. The terrible highway of Mr. Munshun’s face hangs before him. â€Å"Ze station where you brought the other sbecial ones.† â€Å"YES!† Mr. Munshun lets go. He steps back. Mercifully for Burny, he is beginning to grow insubstantial again, to discorporate. Yellowed clippings swim into view not behind him but through him. Yet the single eye hangs in the air above the paling blotch of the ascot. â€Å"Mayg zure he vears za cab. Ziss one ezbeshully must wear za cab.† Burnside nods eagerly. He still smells faintly of My Sin perfume. â€Å"The cap, yes, I have the cap.† â€Å"Be gare-ful, Burny. You are old und hurt. Ze bouy is young und desberate. Flitt of foot. If you let him get avey â€Å" In spite of the pain, Burny smiles. One of the children getting away from him! Even one of the special ones! What an idea! â€Å"Don’t worry,† he says. â€Å"Just . . . if you speak to him . . . to Abbalah-doon . . . tell him I’m not past it yet. If he makes me better, he won’t regret it. And if he makes me young again, I’ll bring him a thousand young. A thousand Breakers.† Fading and fading. Now Mr. Munshun is again just a glow, a milky disturbance on the air of Burny’s sitting room deep in the house he abandoned only when he realized he really did need someone to take care of him in his sunset years. â€Å"Bring him just dis vun, Burn-Burn. Bring him just dis vun, und you vill be revarded.† Mr. Munshun is gone. Burny stands and bends over the horsehair sofa. Doing it squeezes his belly, and the resulting pain makes him scream, but he doesn’t stop. He reaches into the darkness and pulls out a battered black leather sack. He grasps its top and leaves the room, limping and clutching at his bleeding, distended belly. And what of Tyler Marshall, who has existed through most of these many pages as little more than a rumor? How badly has he been hurt? How frightened is he? Has he managed to retain his sanity? As to his physical condition, he’s got a concussion, but that’s already healing. The Fisherman has otherwise done no more than stroke his arm and his buttocks (a creepy touch that made Tyler think of the witch in â€Å"Hansel and Gretel†). Mentally . . . would you be shocked to hear that, while Mr. Munshun is goading Burny onward, Fred and Judy’s boy is happy? He is. He is happy. And why not? He’s at Miller Park. The Milwaukee Brewers have confounded all the pundits this year, all the doomsayers who proclaimed they’d be in the cellar by July Fourth. Well, it’s still relatively early, but the Fourth has come and gone and the Brew Crew has returned to Miller tied for first place with Cincinnati. They are in the hunt, in large part due to the bat of Richie Sexson, who came over to Milwaukee from the Cleveland Indians and who has been â€Å"really pickin’ taters,† in the pungent terminology of George Rathbun. They are in the hunt, and Ty is at the game! EXCELLENT! Not only is he there, he’s got a front-row seat. Next to him big, sweating, red-faced, a Kingsland beer in one hand and another tucked away beneath his seat for emergencies is the Gorgeous George himself, bellowing at the top of his leather lungs. Jeromy Burnitz of the Crew has just been called out at first on a bang-bang play, and while there can be no doubt that the Cincinnati shortstop handled the ball well and got rid of it fast, there can also be no doubt (at least not in George Rathbun’s mind) that Burnitz was safe! He rises in the twilight, his sweaty bald pate glowing beneath a sweetly lavender sky, a foamy rill of beer rolling up one cocked forearm, his blue eyes twinkling (you can tell he sees a lot with those eyes, just about everything), and Ty waits for it, they all wait for it, and here it is, that avatar of summer in the Coulee Country, that wonderful bray that means everything is okay, terror has been denied, and slippage has been canceled. â€Å"COME ON, UMP, GIVE US A BREAK! GIVE US A FREEEEAKIN’ BRAYYYYK! EVEN A BLIND MAN COULD SEE HE WAS SAFE!† The crowd on the first-base side goes wild at the sound of that cry, none wilder than the fourteen or so people sitting behind the banner reading MILLER PARK WELCOMES GEORGE RATHBUN AND THE WINNERS OF THIS YEAR’S KDCU BREWER BASH. Ty is jumping up and down, laughing, waving his Brew Crew hat. What makes this doubly boss is that he thought he forgot to enter the contest this year. He guesses his father (or perhaps his mother) entered it for him . . . and he won! Not the grand prize, which was getting to be the Brew Crew’s batboy for the entire Cincinnati series, but what he got (besides this excellent seat with the other winners, that is) is, in his opinion, even better. Of course Richie Sexson isn’t Mark McGwire nobody can hit the tar out of the ball like Big Mac but Sexson has been awesome for the Brewers this year, just awesome, and Tyler Marshall has won Someone is shaking his foot. Ty attempts to pull away, not wanting to lose this dream (this most excellent refuge from the horror that has befallen him), but the hand is relentless. It shakes. It shakes and shakes. â€Å"Way-gup,† a voice snarls, and the dream begins to darken. George Rathbun turns to Ty, and the boy sees an amazing thing: the eyes that were such a shrewd, sharp blue only a few seconds ago have gone dull and milky. Cripe, he’s blind, Ty thinks. George Rathbun really is a â€Å"Way-gup,† the growling voice says. It’s closer now. In a moment the dream will wink out entirely. Before it does, George speaks to him. The voice is quiet, totally unlike the sportscaster’s usual brash bellow. â€Å"Help’s on the way,† he says. â€Å"So be cool, you little cat. Be â€Å" â€Å"Way-GUP, you shit!† The grip on his ankle is crushing, paralyzing. With a cry of protest, Ty opens his eyes. This is how he rejoins the world, and our tale. He remembers where he is immediately. It’s a cell with reddish-gray iron bars halfway along a stone corridor lit with cobwebby electric bulbs. There’s a dish of some sort of stew in one corner. In the other is a bucket in which he is supposed to pee (or take a dump if he has to so far he hasn’t, thank goodness). The only other thing in the room is a raggedy old futon from which Burny has just dragged him. â€Å"All right,† Burny says. â€Å"Awake at last. That’s good. Now get up. On your feet, asswipe. I don’t have time to fuck with you.† Tyler gets up. A wave of dizziness rolls through him and he puts his hand to the top of his head. There is a spongy, crusted place there. Touching it sends a bolt of pain all the way down to his jaws, which clench. But it also drives the dizziness away. He looks at his hand. There are flakes of scab and dried blood on his palm. That’s where he hit me with his damned rock. Any harder, and I would have been playing a harp. But the old man has been hurt somehow, too. His shirt is covered with blood; his wrinkled ogre’s face is waxy and pallid. Behind him, the cell door is open. Ty measures the distance to the hallway, hoping he’s not being too obvious about it. But Burny has been in this game a long time. He has had more than one liddle one dry to esscabe on hiz bledding foodzies, oh ho. He reaches into his bag and brings out a black gadget with a pistol grip and a stainless steel nozzle at the tip. â€Å"Know what this is, Tyler?† Burny asks. â€Å"Taser,† Ty says. â€Å"Isn’t it?† Burny grins, revealing the stumps of his teeth. â€Å"Smart boy! A TV-watching boy, I’ll be bound. It’s a Taser, yes. But a special type it’ll drop a cow at thirty yards. Understand? You try to run, boy, I’ll bring you down like a ton of bricks. Come out here.† Ty steps out of the cell. He has no idea where this horrible old man means to take him, but there’s a certain relief just in being free of the cell. The futon was the worst. He knows, somehow, that he hasn’t been the only kid to cry himself to sleep on it with an aching heart and an aching, lumpy head, nor the tenth. Nor, probably, the fiftieth. â€Å"Turn to your left.† Ty does. Now the old man is behind him. A moment later, he feels the bony fingers grip the right cheek of his bottom. It’s not the first time the old man has done this (each time it happens he’s reminded again of the witch in â€Å"Hansel and Gretel,† asking the lost children to stick their arms out of their cage), but this time his touch is different. Weaker. Die soon, Ty thinks, and the thought its cold collectedness is very, very Judy. Die soon, old man, so I don’t have to. â€Å"This one is mine,† the old man says . . . but he sounds out of breath, no longer quite sure of himself. â€Å"I’ll bake half, fry the rest. With bacon.† â€Å"I don’t think you’ll be able to eat much,† Ty says, surprised at the calmness of his own voice. â€Å"Looks like somebody ventilated your stomach pretty g â€Å" There is a crackling, accompanied by a hideous, jittery burning sensation in his left shoulder. Ty screams and staggers against the wall across the corridor from his cell, trying to clutch the wounded place, trying not to cry, trying to hold on to just a little of his beautiful dream about being at the game with George Rathbun and the other KDCU Brewer Bash winners. He knows he actually did forget to enter this year, but in dreams such things don’t matter. That’s what’s so beautiful about them. Oh, but it hurts so bad. And despite all his efforts all the Judy Marshall in him the tears begin to flow. â€Å"You want another un?† the old man gasps. He sounds both sick and hysterical, and even a kid Ty’s age knows that’s a dangerous combination. â€Å"You want another un, just for good luck?† â€Å"No,† Ty gasps. â€Å"Don’t zap me again, please don’t.† â€Å"Then start walkin’! And no more smart goddamn remarks!† Ty starts to walk. Somewhere he can hear water dripping. Somewhere, very faint, he can hear the laughing caw of a crow probably the same one that tricked him, and how he’d like to have Ebbie’s .22 and blow its evil shiny black feathers off. The outside world seems light-years away. But George Rathbun told him help was on the way, and sometimes the things you heard in dreams came true. His very own mother told him that once, and long before she started to go all wonky in the head, too. They come to a stairway that seems to circle down forever. Up from the depths comes a smell of sulfur and a roast of heat. Faintly he can hear what might be screams and moans. The clank of machinery is louder. There are ominous creaking sounds that might be belts and chains. Ty pauses, thinking the old guy won’t zap him again unless he absolutely has to. Because Ty might fall down this long circular staircase. Might hit the place on his head the old guy already clipped with the rock, or break his neck, or tumble right off the side. And the old guy wants him alive, at least for now. Ty doesn’t know why, but he knows this intuition is true. â€Å"Where are we going, mister?† â€Å"You’ll find out,† Burny says in his tight, out-of-breath voice. â€Å"And if you think I don’t dare zap you while we’re on the stairs, my little friend, you’re very mistaken. Now get walking.† Tyler Marshall starts down the stairs, descending past vast galleries and balconies, around and down, around and down. Sometimes the air smells of putrid cabbage. Sometimes it smells of burned candles. Sometimes of wet rot. He counts a hundred and fifty steps, then stops counting. His thighs are burning. Behind him, the old man is gasping, and twice he stumbles, cursing and holding the ancient banister. Fall, old man, Ty chants inside his head. Fall and die, fall and die. But at last they are at the bottom. They arrive in a circular room with a dirty glass ceiling. Above them, gray sky hangs down like a filthy bag. There are plants oozing out of broken pots, sending greedy feelers across a floor of broken orange bricks. Ahead of them, two doors French doors, Ty thinks they are called stand open. Beyond them is a crumbling patio surrounded by ancient trees. Some are palms. Some the ones with the hanging, ropy vines might be banyans. Others he doesn’t know. One thing he’s sure of: they are no longer in Wisconsin. Standing on the patio is an object he knows very well. Something from his own world. Tyler Marshall’s eyes well up again at the sight of it, which is almost like the sight of a face from home in a hopelessly foreign place. â€Å"Stop, monkey-boy.† The old man sounds out of breath. â€Å"Turn around.† When Tyler does, he’s pleased to see that the blotch on the old man’s shirt has spread even farther. Fingers of blood now stretch all the way to his shoulders, and the waistband of his baggy old blue jeans has gone a muddy black. But the hand holding the Taser is rock-steady. God damn you, Tyler thinks. God damn you to hell. The old man has put his bag on a little table. He simply stands where he is for a moment, getting his breath. Then he rummages in the bag (something in there utters a faint metallic clink) and brings out a soft brown cap. It’s the kind guys like Sean Connery sometimes wear in the movies. The old man holds it out. â€Å"Put it on. And if you try to grab my hand, I’ll zap you.† Tyler takes the cap. His fingers, expecting the texture of suede, are surprised by something metallic, almost like tinfoil. He feels an unpleasant buzzing in his hand, like a mild version of the Taser’s jolt. He looks at the old man pleadingly. â€Å"Do I have to?† Burny raises the Taser and bares his teeth in a silent grin. Reluctantly, Ty puts the cap on. This time the buzzing fills his head. For a moment he can’t think . . . and then the feeling passes, leaving him with an odd sense of weakness in his muscles and a throbbing at his temples. â€Å"Special boys need special toys,† Burny says, and it comes out sbecial boyz, sbecial toyz. As always, Mr. Munshun’s ridiculous accent has rubbed off a little, thickening that touch of South Chicago Henry detected on the 911 tape. â€Å"Now we can go out.† Because with the cap on, I’m safe, Ty thinks, but the idea breaks up and drifts away almost as soon as it comes. He tries to think of his middle name and realizes he can’t. He tries to think of the bad crow’s name and can’t get that, either was it something like Corgi? No, that’s a kind of dog. The cap is messing him up, he realizes, and that’s what it’s supposed to do. Now they pass through the open doors and onto the patio. The air is redolent with the smell of the trees and bushes that surround the back side of Black House, a smell that is heavy and cloying. Fleshy, somehow. The gray sky seems almost low enough to touch. Ty can smell sulfur and something bitter and electric and juicy. The sound of machinery is much louder out here. The thing Ty recognized sitting on the broken bricks is an E-Z-Go golf cart. The Tiger Woods model. â€Å"My dad sells these,† Ty says. â€Å"At Goltz’s, where he works.† â€Å"Where do you think it came from, asswipe? Get in. Behind the wheel.† Ty looks at him, amazed. His blue eyes, perhaps thanks to the effects of the cap, have grown bloodshot and rather confused. â€Å"I’m not old enough to drive.† â€Å"Oh, you’ll be fine. A baby could drive this baby. Behind the wheel.† Ty does as he is told. In truth, he has driven one of these in the lot at Goltz’s, with his father sitting watchfully beside him in the passenger seat. Now the hideous old man is easing himself into that same place, groaning and holding his perforated midsection. The Taser is in the other hand, however, and the steel tip remains pointed at Ty. The key is in the ignition. Ty turns it. There’s a click from the battery beneath them. The dashboard light reading CHARGE glows bright green. Now all he has to do is push the accelerator pedal. And steer, of course. â€Å"Good so far,† the old man says. He takes his right hand off his middle and points with a bloodstained finger. Ty sees a path of discolored gravel once, before the trees and underbrush encroached, it was probably a driveway leading away from the house. â€Å"Now go. And go slow. Speed and I’ll zap you. Try to crash us and I’ll break your wrist for you. Then you can drive one-handed.† Ty pushes down on the accelerator. The golf cart jerks forward. The old man lurches, curses, and waves the Taser threateningly. â€Å"It would be easier if I could take off the cap,† Ty says. â€Å"Please, I’m pretty sure that if you’d just let me â€Å" â€Å"No! Cap stays! Drive!† Ty pushes down gently on the accelerator. The E-Z-Go rolls across the patio, its brand-new rubber tires crunching on broken shards of brick. There’s a bump as they leave the pavement and go rolling up the driveway. Heavy fronds they feel damp, sweaty brush Tyler’s arms. He cringes. The golf cart swerves. Burny jabs the Taser at the boy, snarling. â€Å"Next time you get the juice! It’s a promise!† A snake goes writhing across the overgrown gravel up ahead, and Ty utters a little scream through his clenched teeth. He doesn’t like snakes, didn’t even want to touch the harmless little corn snake Mrs. Locher brought to school, and this thing is the size of a python, with ruby eyes and fangs that prop its mouth open in a perpetual snarl. â€Å"Go! Drive!† The Taser, waving in his face. The cap, buzzing faintly in his ears. Behind his ears. The drive curves to the left. Some sort of tree burdened with what look like tentacles leans over them. The tips of the tentacles tickle across Ty’s shoulders and the goose-prickled, hair-on-end nape of his neck. Ourr boyy . . . He hears this in his head in spite of the cap. It’s faint, it’s distant, but it’s there. Ourrrrr boyyyyy . . . yesssss . . . ourrrrs . . . Burny is grinning. â€Å"Hear ’em, don’tcha? They like you. So do I. We’re all friends here, don’t you see?† The grin becomes a grimace. He clutches his bloody middle again. â€Å"Goddamned blind old fool!† he gasps. Then, suddenly, the trees are gone. The golf cart rolls out onto a sullen, crumbling plain. The bushes dwindle and Ty sees that farther along they give way entirely to a crumbled, rocky scree: hills rise and fall beneath that sullen gray sky. A few birds of enormous size wheel lazily. A shaggy, slump-shouldered creature staggers down a narrow defile and is gone from sight before Ty can see exactly what it is . . . not that he wanted to. The thud and pound of machinery is stronger, shaking the earth. The crump of pile drivers; the clash of ancient gears; the squall of cogs. Tyler can feel the golf cart’s steering wheel thrumming in his hands. Ahead of them the driveway ends in a wide road of beaten earth. Along the far side of it is a wall of round white stones. â€Å"That thing you hear, that’s the Crimson King’s power plant,† Burny says. He speaks with pride, but there is more than a tinge of fear beneath it. â€Å"The Big Combination. A million children have died on its belts, and a zillion more to come, for all I know. But that’s not for you, Tyler. You might have a future after all. First, though, I’ll have my piece of you. Yes indeed.† His blood-streaked hand reaches out and caresses the top of Ty’s buttock. â€Å"A good agent’s entitled to ten percent. Even an old buzzard like me knows that.† The hand draws back. Good thing. Ty has been on the verge of screaming, holding the sound back only by thinking of sitting at Miller Park with good old George Rathbun. If I’d really entered the Brewer Bash, he thinks, none of this would have happened. But he thinks that may not actually be true. Some things are meant to be, that’s all. Meant. He just hopes that what this horrible old creature wants is not one of them. â€Å"Turn left,† Burny grunts, settling back. â€Å"Three miles. Give or take.† And, as Tyler makes the turn, he realizes the ribbons of mist rising from the ground aren’t mist at all. They’re ribbons of smoke. â€Å"Sheol,† Burny says, as if reading his mind. â€Å"And this is the only way through it Conger Road. Get off it and there are things out there that’d pull you to pieces just to hear you scream. My friend told me where to take you, but there might be just a leedle change of plan.† His pain-wracked face takes on a sulky cast. Ty thinks it makes him look extraordinarily stupid. â€Å"He hurt me. Pulled my guts. I don’t trust him.† And, in a horrible child’s singsong: â€Å"Carl Bierstone don’t trust Mr. Munshun! Not no more! Not no more!† Ty says nothing. He concentrates on keeping the golf cart in the middle of Conger Road. He risks one look back, but the house, in its ephemeral wallow of tropical greenery, is gone, blocked from view by the first of the eroded hills. â€Å"He’ll have what’s his, but I’ll have what’s mine. Do you hear me, boy?† When Ty says nothing, Burny brandishes the Taser. â€Å"Do you hear me, you asswipe monkey?† â€Å"Yeah,† Ty says. â€Å"Yeah, sure.† Why don’t you die? God, if You’re there, why don’t You just reach down and put Your finger on his rotten heart and stop it from beating? When Burny speaks again, his voice is sly. â€Å"You looked at the wall on t’other side, but I don’t think you looked close enough. Better take another gander.† Tyler looks past the slumped old man. For a moment he doesn’t understand . . . and then he does. The big white stones stretching endlessly away along the far side of Conger Road aren’t stones at all. They’re skulls. What is this place? Oh God, how he wants his mother! How he wants to go home! Beginning to cry again, his brain numbed and buzzing beneath the cap that looks like cloth but isn’t, Ty pilots the golf cart deeper and deeper into the furnace-lands. Into Sheol. Rescue help of any kind has never seemed so far away. How to cite Black House Chapter Twenty-six, Essay examples

African before European arrival DBQ free essay sample

It was not until the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries when Europeans colonized Africa. By that time, the Africans already had progressive civilizations. This included having wealth and power through trade, a well-organized society, and a vigorous military force/government. Along all the land routes and sea routes, such as the trans-Saharan trade route, many products were traded. For example, products such as gold, salt, ivory, animal skins, etc. Aksum’s location by the Red Sea provided it with a large coastline and ports which gave access to the Indian Ocean as well as the Mediterranean Sea. Since Aksum was surrounded by water, it was easier to get products place by place using caravans. The only way for the Arabs and the Wangara to trade was to pass through the ancient empire of Ghana. The Arab traders wanted gold while the Wangara traders wanted salt. Ghana’s military force helped keep peace and safety throughout the trade routes as well as the empire. We will write a custom essay sample on African before European arrival DBQ or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page One important factor throughout Africa was the gold supply. Also, since the civilizations were so wealthy, the people lived happier and more organized. The wealth was evident in clothing, shields, and animal accessories such as a horse trappings and a dog’s collar. An Arab scholar, Al-Bakri, describes the king’s court in ancient Ghana covered in gold. An Egyptian official visited Mansa Musa and was impressed with the amount of gold present. A Moroccan traveler went to the city of Timbuktu and was fascinated due to the many opportunities of work there was such as doctors, judges, priests, etc. which were supported and funded by the king. The military force’s job was to maintain peace and protection all over the cities and empires. When Ibn Battuta traveled to Mali, he was very impressed with the justice and security the people had. In Mali, they hated the thought of lack of fairness or justice. They believe everybody has their own rights but to show no mercy to anyone who is guilty. Also, they were extremely stern when it came to punishments due to not obeying the law. Ancient African Civilizations were successful mainly because of the outcome of trade, wealth and power. Because of these two things, the empires did not decline quickly and accomplished many things.

Supply Chain Management Report Of Devondale Milk - Samples

Question: Discuss about the Supply Chain Management Report Of Devondale Milk. Answer: Introduction This report is the summary presentation of identifying underperformance of Devondale milk product which is one of the largest dairy milk food providers in Australia. They are also one the largest exporter of milk products. They deliver their products to food chains, consumers; restaurants and several other food corners (Christopher, 2016).They have number of farmers and suppliers associated with them for their daily production. However currently in 2016-17, the milk product of the Devondale is underperforming as per expected growth and the company has failed to raise expected profits. The supply chain management in Devondale milk product The supply chain management in Devondale milk product is not that complex to understand. The following are the main members of supply chain management in milk industry with their roles and responsibilities:- Roles Responsibilities:- Farmers: - The farmers are most important key members of dairy product supply chain as they grow healthy crops to feed to cow which in return provide quality milk to them. Milk transportation: - This milk produced by cows is transported to production units with the help of containers and trucks. Processing Packing: - The milk gathered in 2nd process is furthered processed for production and then finished milk product is packed for sending to distributors and warehouses. Distribution Sales: - The milk product is then transported to distributors on order based which is further sold to customers. This is the final process of supply chain in Devondale milk products. Evaluation of Supply Chain: The flowchart illustrated above indicates that the milk product is originally produced by the farmers (Monczka et al., 2015). This is moved through the specialized milk transportation that transfers the product to the processing and packaging centre after which it moves towards the final distribution and sales which enables the product to reach the final consumer. The supply chain of the Devondale milk products is very effective in nature (Stadtler, 2015). Everybody in the organization is performing its role really well keeping in view the market demand and company requirements. Challenges Opportunities: Strength: - The strength of supply chain of Devondale milk is highly commitment towards their work. All the departments are working with each other to provide best product to the consumers. Weakness/ barriers:- As the stated product is totally dependent on farmers and milk, so due to weather, seasonal changes, daily change in price of milk, poor handling of finished product, the production level of Devondale milk has decrease (Seuring, 2013). Easy available of alike product at lower cost could also be one of the major weakness of the said product. Opportunities: - Devondale product has played an important role in providing opportunities to so many classes of the society be it farmers, cattle feeder, transporters, labour class,marketing class (Ross,2015).Every working class mentioned above is directly involved in the making the product successful. Threats: -Following are the threats to Devondale milk product:- Increase in prices of milk. Alternate of milk product/similar other company product. Dependency on farmers and cows. SWOT ANALYSIS STRENGTHS WEAKNESSES Largest milk product supplier Dependency on cows and farmers Effective local supply chain Fluctuation in daily prices Experienced logistic department. Change in weather OPPURTUNITIES THREATS Satisfied Customer base Competitive firms No. of products and flavours Perishable item Large capital resources Similar product Recommendations: Strength: - The traditional strength of milk product is that it is consumed almost every day by vast population of all age groups. So, the company should focus more on providing high quality milk product to its customers at lowest prices(Gerber Tempio,2013). It should focus on producing unique flavour, specialized product rather than jumping into all types of milk product. Weakness: - The major weakness of milk product can be poor hygiene in preparation of milk product or poor handling of finished product. (Kaipia Loikkan, 2013). To eradicate this weakness, the company should take care of all the resources related to handling and preparing of Devondale milk product(Monczka et al., 2015). The company should try to produce unique product to create monopoly of their product in the market. Opportunities: - Devondale milk has provided so many employment opportunities to so many people in Australia. Farmers, cattle feeders, transporters, small food chain retailers all are making money with sale of this milk product. Minimizing threats Few of the threats which can be included in this point are explained below:- Increase in milk prices: The Devondale product is very much affected due to this factor. The increase in input cost of milk has hampered the industry a lot. Dependency on farmers contracted cows: The Company should think of purchasing their own cattle and cows for their milk needs Alternate milk product: The Company should bring uniqueness in their product taste inorder to make sure that their product recipe is not copied by any other firm. (Kamal El Aal, 2013) Use of relevant supply chain theory: Supply chain theory is a continuous process of flow of goods and services from point of origin to end user includes all the processes like procurement of raw material, production, packing and sale of finished goods (Seuring, 2013). Evidence of research Definition Explanation along withMarketing Performance: The supply chain can be a great use in order to make marketing strategies (Stadtler, 2015). Data can be collected through mails, surveys, internet which can be used by the Board in making marketing strategy of the Devondale milk (Monczka et al., 2015). The supply chain performance is directly linked with the performance of an organization (Stadtler, 2015). Based on the data collected, the management can build future strategies for success of product. Conclusion The Devondale milk product is under performing due to its chemical properties and its nature as the processing time from origin of product to its consumption is very less and important. The weather of the region also effects the chemical composition of this product. The stiff competition in market also resulted in declining the sale of said product. The company should also think to advertise themselves using social media and other media platforms in order to reach more customers and wide areas. The company should focus on providing high quality product to consumers and bring new products in the market in order to survive. References Christopher, M., 2016.Logistics supply chain management. Pearson UK. Gerber, P.J., Steinfeld, H., Henderson, B., Mottet, A., Opio, C., Dijkman, J., Falcucci, A. and Tempio, G., 2013.Tackling climate change through livestock: a global assessment of emissions and mitigation opportunities. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). Kaipia, R., Dukovska-Popovska, I. and Loikkanen, L., 2013. Creating sustainable fresh food supply chains through waste reduction.International journal of physical distribution logistics management,43(3), pp.262-276. Kamal, R.M., Bayoumi, M.A. and El Aal, S.F.A., 2013. MRSA detection in raw milk, some dairy products and hands of dairy workers in Egypt, a mini-survey.Food Control,33(1), pp.49-53. Monczka, R.M., Handfield, R.B., Giunipero, L.C. and Patterson, J.L., 2015.Purchasing and supply chain management. Cengage Learning. Ross, D.F., 2015.Distribution Planning and control: managing in the era of supply chain management. Springer. Seuring, S., 2013. A review of modeling approaches for sustainable supply chain management.Decision support systems,54(4), pp.1513-1520. Stadtler, H., 2015. Supply chain management: An overview. InSupply chain management and advanced planning(pp. 3-28). Springer Berlin Heidelberg.