 What is ironic about Sias' view of those who 'cling tenaciously, and ignorantly to the old religion'?
[Transcriber's Note: This etext was produced from Worlds of If Science Fiction, August 1957. ] I was wandering among the tall grass of the slopes, listening to the soft whistling of the wind; allowing the grass to caress my toga and thighs. It was a day soft and clear; a day accepted by the young, cherished by we old. I do not, of course, believe in the gods per se; still there is a grandeur in the very stones that transcends their human sculptors, and it is no wonder to me that many cling tenaciously, and ignorantly, to the old religion. In whose names Man finally left this earth, to seek his cousins among the stars. Saddened, but resigned and content to live in peace with his knowledge and his power. But I knew that where Xeon is, Melia must soon appear. And indeed it was but a moment before Melia slipped through the high grass to stand at his side. Indeed, Melia was on this account made the butt of many jokes and, I fear, would have had a lonely life of it had it not been for the friendship of Xeon. "Sias," they were saying, "the Maternite's gone." Everything has evaporated in Maternite. A man my age does not hurry in the heat of the midday sun—maddugs nenglishmin go out in the midday sun, as the ancients say, although I often wonder why—but Xeon and Melia ran all the way down to the city. They are of an age to enter manhood, and have all the energy such young men do. They were aware that they stood in the midst of an unprecedented happening; indeed, an emergency. They were created so long ago, indeed, that the ignorant believe them to have been constructed by the gods themselves. Indeed, the watcher is more a tradition than a necessity. At such a time, many men feel impelled to make speeches, and one must not be disrespectful. Prayers and supplications were offered to the gods, priests were sent to sacrifice, and finally, as the light of the sun was falling between the pillars, the High Priest of the Maternite Machine was heard. He rambled through the customary opening remarks and then, continually smoothing his white beard—of which he is excessively proud—approached the crux of the matter and the Conclave finally heard the facts it had assembled to hear. Yet perhaps it is for the best, for those left were the most earnest and intelligent. Such it has always been from time immemorial."
 Sias' reactions to Rocsates' ideas suggest that he is ignorant in a similar way
 Sias' reactions to Rocsates' ideas suggest that he is ignorant in a similar way  Sias' refusal to adhere to any set of principles will get him imprisoned  Sias subscribes to an iteration of the same religion many of the elders do  Sias does not realize that the Conclave is ruled by that same religion