The Weapon Shops of Isher - (copyright 1951)
THE FINEST ENERGY WEAPONS IN THE KNOWN UNIVERSE
THE RIGHT TO BUY WEAPONS IS THE RIGHT TO BE FREE
By the year 4784, the Empire of Isher ruled the known universe and an impetuous willful girl ruled the empire. The Empire was dictatorial, all-conquering, and proud - yet any citizen could defy it at will by merely entering a store and buying a gun. Not just any gun, but super-weapons that the Empire couldn't duplicate or defeat - and the stores were impregnable fortresses open to everyone except soldiers and policemen! Into this balanced situation a bombshell was tossed, in the form of a man from today - reporter C. J. McAllister - a victim of a conflict which was as old as that empire and which now threatened to be the end of both Isher and its worlds. We encounter Cayle Clark, who could never lose at cards; Robert Hedrock, who knew everyone's secrets; Peter Cadron, who sold illegal super-weapons in public; and Innelda Isher, who never had to take no for an answer...

This is a "fix-up" novel, made up of the title short novel from Thrilling Wonder Stories February 1949, with 2 stories woven in: "Seesaw" from Astounding July 1941, and "The Weapon Shop" from Astounding December 1942. About half of Van Vogt's novels were "fix-ups" made from earlier stories, often with names changed and small or large changes made to the original material when incorporated. What is so amazing is how many times he produced a successful work in this fashion - and this is one of his best.