“You mean you’ve engineered the disturbances?” said Mark, To

do him justice, his mind was reeling from this new revelation. Nor

was he aware of any decision to conceal his state of mind: in the

snugness and intimacy of that circle he found his facial muscles

and his voice, without any conscious volition, taking on the tone

of his colleagues.

“That’s a crude way of putting it,” said Feverstone.

“It makes no difference,” said Filostrato. “This is how things have

to be managed.”

“Quite,” said Miss Hardcastle. “It’s always done. Anyone who knows

police work will tell you. And as I say, the real thing — the big riot —

must take place within the next forty-eight hours.”

“It’s nice to get the tip straight from the horse’s mouth!” said Mark.

“I wish I’d got my wife out of the town, though.”

“Where does she live?” said the Fairy.

“Up at Sandown.”

“Ah. It’ll hardly affect her. In the meantime, you and I have got to

get busy about the account of the riot”

“But — what’s it all for?”

“Emergency regulations,” said Feverstone. “You’ll never get the

powers we want at Edgestow until the Government declares that a

state of emergency exists there.”

“Exactly,” said Filostrato. “It is folly to talk of peaceful revolutions.

Not that the canaglia would always resist — often they have to be

prodded into it — but until there is the disturbance, the firing, the

barricades — no one gets powers to act effectively. There is not

enough what you call weigh on the boat to steer him.”

http://www.samizdat.qc.ca/arts/lit/PDFs/HideousStrength_CSL.pdf