Republished in Golden Girl and Other Stories, Spatterlight 2012.

Quote:

My name is Henry Revere. My appearance is not remarkable, my intelligence is hardly noteworthy, and my emotions run evenly. I live in a house of synthetic shell, decorated with wood and jade, and surrounded by a pleasant garden. The view to one side is the ocean, the other, a valley sprinkled with houses similar to my own. I am by no means a prisoner, although my servants supervise me with the most minute care. Their first concern is to prevent my suicide, just as mine is to achieve it.

Full story at the internet Archive:

https://archive.org/details/Fantastic_Universe_v06n03_1956-10/page/n71

Republished in The World-Thinker and Other Stories, Spatterlight, 2012

Later expanded as The Blue World and as such published by Ballantine Books May 1966.

Comments:

“The narrow land” was meant as the first part of a three part sequence, as requested by an editor. (ref) The remaining two parts were never written, according to Vance for lack of time. (Morreion, MSF meulenhoff, preface).

Republished in Chateau d'If and Other Stories, Spatterlight 2012.