War of the Wing-Men

<b>From the introduction by Charles N. Brown in the Gregg Press edition:</b> "... <i>War of the Wing-Men</i> has a simple plot line. Van Rijn and two companions are marooned and need native help to get back to a human outpost 10,000 kilometers away. There's a time limit since they can't eat the native food and only have supplies to last them six weeks. The natives are in the middle of a war and haven't the time or inclination to help them. Van Rijn uses his favorite weapons - gambling, lying, cheating, killing, etc. - in order to end the war and get help. In the course of this, he solves some of the natives' problems and gives them a better civilization. The book is interesting because Wace, the handsome, strong, athletic character is not the hero, although he keeps trying to cast himself in the part. Van Rijn - fat, selfish, and scheming - is actually the man who counts (seller note: This story was originally published with the title <i>The Man Who Counts</i>) The book explores his role as a manager instead of a doer, and goes into the strategy and tactics needed to manage people and win a war...."

'The Man Who Counts' was first published as a serial in the magazine Astounding Science Fiction, February, March and April 1958. A shorter version was published by Ace Books as 'War of the Wing-Men' in 1958.