Feeling the need of fresh air and quiet after the strain of the last half hour, Ralph 124C 41+ climbed the few steps leading from the laboratory to the roof and sat down on a bench beneath the revolving aerial. The hum of the great city came faintly from below. Aeroflyers dotted the sky. From time to time, trans-oceanic or trans-continental air liners passed with a low vibration, scarcely audible.
At times a great aircraft would come close—within 500 yards perhaps—when the passengers would crane their necks to get a good view of his "house," if such it could be called.
Indeed, his "house," which was a round tower, 650 feet high, and thirty in diameter, built entirely of crystal glass-bricks and steelonium, was one of the sights of New York. A grateful city, recognizing his genius and his benefits to humanity, had erected the great tower for him on a plot where, centuries ago, union Square had been.
The top of the tower was twice as great in circumference as the main building, and in this upper part was located the research laboratory, famous throughout the world. An electromagnetic tube elevator ran down the tower on one side of the building, all the rooms being cir[Pg 41]cular in shape, except for the space taken up by the elevator.
Ralph, sitting on the roof of his tower, was oblivious to all about him. He was unable to dismiss from his mind the lovely face of the girl whose life he had just been the means of saving. The soft tones of her voice were in his ears. Heretofore engrossed in his work, his scientific mind had been oblivious to women. They had played no part in his life. Science had been his mistress, and a laboratory his home.
And now, in one short half hour, for him the whole world had become a new place. Two dark eyes, a bewitching pair of lips, a voice that had stirred the very core of his being—
Ralph shook himself. It was not for him to think of these things, he told himself. He was but a tool, a tool to advance science, to benefit humanity. He belonged, not to himself, but to the Government—the Government, who fed and clothed him, and whose doctors guarded his health with every precaution. He had to pay the penalty of his +. To be sure, he had everything. He had but to ask and his wish was law—if it did not interfere with his work.
There were times he grew restive under the restraint, he longed to smoke the tobacco forbidden him by watchful doctors, and to indulge in those little vices which vary the monotony of existence for the ordinary individual. There were times when he most ardently wished that he were an ordinary individual.
He was not allowed to make dangerous tests personally, thereby endangering a life invaluable to the Government. That institution would supply him with some criminal un[Pg 42]der sentence of death who would be compelled to undergo the test for him. If the criminal were killed during the experiment, nothing was lost; if he did not perish, he would be imprisoned for life.
Being a true scientist, Ralph wanted to make his own dangerous experiments. Not to do this took away the very spice of life for him, and on occasion he rebelled. He would call up the Planet Governor, the ruler of 15 billion human beings, and demand that he be relieved of his work.
"I can't stand it," he would protest. "This constraint which I am forced to endure maddens me, I feel that I am being hampered."
The Governor, a wise man, and a kindly one, would often call upon him in person, and for a long time they would discuss the question, Ralph protesting, the Governor reasoning with him.
"I am nothing but a prisoner," Ralph stormed once.
"You are a great inventor," smiled the Governor, "and a tremendous factor in the world's advancement. You are invaluable to humanity, and—you are irreplaceable. You belong to the world—not to yourself."
Many times in the past few years he recalled, had the two been over the same ground, and many times had the diplomatic Governor convinced the scientist that in sacrifice of self and devotion to the world's future lay his great reward.
The voice of his manservant interrupted his reverie.
"Sir," he said, "your presence in the transmission-room would be appreciated."
"What is it?" asked the scientist, impatient at the interruption.
[Pg 43]
"Sir, the people have heard all about the Switzerland incident of an hour ago and desire to show their appreciation."
"Well, I suppose I must submit," the inventor rather wearily responded, and both stepped over into the round steel car of the electromagnetic elevator. The butler pressed one of the 28 ivory buttons and the car shot downward, with neither noise nor friction. There were no cables or guides, the car being held and propelled by magnetism only. At the 22nd floor the car stopped, and Ralph stepped into the transmission-room.
No sooner had he entered than the deafening applause of hundreds of thousands of voices greeted him, and he was forced to put his hands to his ears to muffle the sound.
Yet, the transmission-room was entirely empty.
Every inch of the wall, however, was covered with large-sized Telephots and loud-speaking devices.
Centuries ago, when people tendered some one an ovation, they would all assemble in some great square or large hall. The celebrity would have to appear in person, else there would be no ovation—truly a clumsy means. Then, too, in those years, people at a distance could neither see nor hear what was going on throughout the world.
Ralph's ovation was the result of the enterprise of a news "paper" which had issued extras about his exploit, and urged its readers to be connected with him at 5 p.m.
Naturally everyone who could spare the time had called the Teleservice Company and asked to be connected with the inventor's trunk-line—and this was the result.
Ralph 124C 41 + stepped into the middle of the room[Pg 44] and bowed to the four points of the compass, in order that all might see him perfectly. The noise was deafening, and as it rather grew in volume than diminished he beseechingly held up his hands. In a few seconds the applause ceased and some one cried—"Speech!"
Ralph spoke briefly, thanking his audience for their interest, and touching but lightly upon his rescue of the young Swiss girl, begged his hearers to remember that in no way had he risked his life and therefore could scarcely be called a hero.
Vociferous cries of "No, no," told him that no one shared his humble opinion of the achievement.
It was at this juncture that Ralph's attention was caught by two persons in the audience. There were so many thousands of faces on each plate that nearly every countenance was blurred, due to their constant movement. (He himself, however, was clearly seen by them, as each one had switched on their "reversers," making it possible to see only the object at the end of the line.)
To Ralph, the shifting, clouded appearance of his audience was a commonplace.
This was not the first time that he had been called upon to receive the thanks of the multitude for some unusual service he had rendered them, or some surprising scientific feat he had successfully accomplished. While realizing that he must of necessity yield to public adulation, it more or less bored him.
He was not particularly interested in the crowd, either collectively or individually, and as there were so many faces crowded into each faceplate he made no attempt to distinguish friends from strangers.
Yet there were two faces among the numerous Tele[Pg 45]phot faceplates that Ralph in making his brief speech, found his eyes returning to again and again. Each occupied the whole of a respective faceplate and while dissimilar in appearance, nevertheless were markedly alike in expression. It was as if they were studying this great scientist, endeavoring to fix in their minds a permanent picture of him. Ralph sensed no animosity in their steady almost hypnotic gaze and yet they were curiously apart from the enthusiastic throng. He felt as though he were, to both of them, under the microscope.
One of the faces was that of a man in his early thirties. It was a handsome face, though, to the close observer, the eyes were set just a trifle too near together, and the mouth betrayed cunning and had a touch of viciousness.
The other was not a Terrestrial, but a visiting Martian. It was impossible to mistake the distinctly Martian cast of countenance. The great black horse eyes in the long, melancholy face, the elongated slightly pointed ears were proof enough. Martians in New York were not sufficiently rare to excite any particular comment. Many made that city their permanent home, although the law on the planet Earth, as well as on Mars, which forbade the intermarriage of Martians and Terrestrials, kept them from flocking earthwards in any great numbers.
In the applause that followed the conclusion of Ralph's words the incident of the two pairs of scrutinizing eyes vanished from his thoughts. But his sub-conscious self, that marvelous mechanism which forgets nothing, had photographed them indelibly. With the plaudits of the crowd still ringing he bowed and left the room.
He went, via the elevator, directly to his library, and asked for the afternoon news.
[Pg 46]
His man handed him a tray on which lay a piece of material as large as a postage stamp, as transparent and flexible as celluloid.
"What edition is this?" he asked.
"The 5 o'clock New York News,[1] sir."
Ralph took the "News" and placed it in a metal holder which was part of the hinged door of a small box. He closed the door and turned on a switch on the side of the box. Immediately there appeared on the opposite white wall of the room, a twelve-column page of the New York News and the scientist, leaning back in his chair, proceeded to read.
The New York News was simply a microscopic reduction of a page, which, when enlarged by a powerful lens, became plainly visible.
Moreover, each paper had eight "pages," in separate sheets, as was the fashion centuries ago, but eight pages literally on top of each other. The printing process was electrolytic, no ink whatsoever being used in the manufacture of the "newspaper." This process was invented in 1910 by an Englishman, and improved by the American 64L 52 in 2031, who made it possible to "print" in one operation eight different subjects, one on top of another.
These eight impressions could be made visible only by subjecting the "paper" to different colors, the color rays bringing out the different prints. The seven colors of the rainbow were used, while white light was employed to show reproduced photographs, etc., in their natural colors. With this method it was possible to "print" a "newspaper," fully ten times as large in volume as any newspaper[Pg 47] of the 21st century, on a piece of film, the size of a postage-stamp.
Each paper published an edition every 30 minutes, and if one did not possess a projector, one could read the "paper" by inserting the News in a holder beneath a powerful lens which one carried in one's pocket, folded when not in use. To read the eight different pages, a revolving color screen was placed directly underneath the lens, to bring out the different colors necessary to read the "paper."
Ralph, 124C 41+, glancing over the head-lines of his News, saw that considerable space was given to his latest exploit, the paper showing actual photographs of the Swiss Alpine scene, which a correspondent had taken as the avalanche thundered down the mountain. The photographs had been sent by Teleradiograph immediately after the occurrence in Switzerland, and the News had printed them in all the natural colors twenty minutes after Ralph had turned off the ultra-power in New York.
These photographs seemed to be the only thing that interested Ralph, as they showed the house and the surrounding Alps. These, with the monstrous avalanche in progression photographed and reproduced in the natural colors, were very impressive.
Presently he revolved the color screen of his projector to green—the technical page of the News—to him the most interesting reading in the paper.
He soon had read all that interested him, and as there was still an hour before dinner time he began to "write" his lecture: "On the prolongation of animal life by π-Rays."
He attached a double leather head-band to his head.[Pg 48] At each end of the band was attached a round metal disc that pressed closely on the temples. From each metal disc an insulated wire led to a small square box, the Menograph, or mind-writer.
He then pressed a button and a low humming was heard; simultaneously two small bulbs began to glow with a soft green fluorescent light. Grasping a button connected with a flexible cord to the Menograph, he leaned back in his chair.
After a few minutes' reflection he pressed the button, and at once a wave line, traced in ink, appeared on a narrow white fabric band, the latter resembling a telegraph recorder tape.
The band which moved rapidly, was unrolled from one reel and rolled up on another. Whenever the inventor wished to "write" down his thoughts, he would press the button, which started the mechanism as well as the recording tracer.
(Below is shown the record of a Menograph, the piece of tape being actual size.
illus
Where the wave line breaks, a new word or sentence commences; the three words shown are the result of the thought which expresses itself in the words, "In olden times." ...)
The Menograph was one of Ralph 124C 41+'s earliest inventions, and entirely superseded the pen and pencil.[Pg 49] It was only necessary to press the button when an idea was to be recorded and to release the button when one reflected and did not wish the thought-words recorded.
Instead of writing a letter, one sent the recorded Menotape, and inasmuch as the Menolphabet was universal and could be read by anyone—children being taught it at an early age—it was considered that this invention of Ralph's was one of his greatest gifts to humanity: Twenty times as much work could be done by means of the Menograph as could be done by the old-fashioned writing, which required considerable physical effort. Typewriters soon disappeared after its invention. Nor was there any use for stenographers, as the thoughts were written down direct on the tape, which was sent out as a letter was sent centuries ago.
As was his custom in the evening he worked for some hours in the laboratory, and retired at midnight. Before he fell asleep he attached to his head a double leather head-band with metal temple plates, similar to the one used in connection with the Menograph.
He then called for his man, Peter, and told him to "put on" Homer's Odyssey for the night.
Peter went down to the library on the 15th floor, and took down from a shelf a narrow box, labeled Odyssey, Homer. From this he extracted a large but thin reel on which was wound a long narrow film. This film was entirely black but for a white transparent wave-line running through the center of it.
Peter returning to Ralph's bedroom placed the reel containing the film in a rack and introduced the end of the film into the Hypnobioscope. This wonderful instrument, invented by Ralph, transmitted the impulses of the wave-[Pg 50]line direct to the brain of the sleeping inventor, who thus was made to "dream" the Odyssey.
It had been known for centuries that the brain could be affected during sleep by certain processes. Thus one could be forced to dream that a heavy object was lying on one's chest, if such an object was placed on the sleeper's chest. Or one could be forced to dream that one's hand was being burnt or frozen, simply by heating or cooling the sleeper's hand.
It remained to Ralph, however, to perfect the Hypnobioscope, which transmitted words direct to the sleeping brain, in such a manner that everything could be remembered in detail the next morning.
This was made possible by having the impulses act directly and steadily on the brain. In other words, it was the Menograph reversed, with certain additions.
Thus, while in a passive state, the mind absorbed the impressions quite readily and mechanically and a story "read" by means of the Hypnobioscope left a much stronger impression than if the same story had been read while conscious.
For thousands of years humanity had wasted half of its life during sleep—the negative life. Since Ralph's invention, all this was changed. Not one night was lost by anyone if anywhere possible, conditions permitting. All books were read while one slept. Most of the studying was done while one slept. Some people mastered ten languages, during their sleep-life. Children who could not be successfully taught in school during their hours of consciousness, became good scholars if the lessons were repeated during their sleep-life.
The morning "newspapers" were transmitted to the[Pg 51] sleeping subscribers by wire at about 5 a.m. The great newspaper offices had hundreds of Hypnobioscopes in operation, the subscriber's wire leading to them. The newspaper office, notified by each subscriber what kind of news is desirable, furnished only such news. Consequently, when the subscriber woke up for breakfast he already knew the latest news, and could discuss it with his family, the members of which were also connected with the newspaper Hypnobioscope.