Evening Republican, Volume 14, Number 285, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 1 December 1910 — A Columbus of Space [ARTICLE]

A Columbus of Space

By Garrett P. Serviss.

Copyright by Frank A. Munsey Co. CHAPTER 11. A Trip of Terror. I take up the story from the point where I dropped it’. As minute after minute elapsed, and we continued to move, we changed our minds and concluded that the inventor was going to give us a longer ride than we had anticipated. We weren’t alarmed, for the car traveled so easily that it gave one a feeling of confidence. But we were a little indignant to think that Edmund should treat us like a lot of boys, without minds or wills of our own. “See here,” said Jack at length. “I’d be obliged if you’d tell -us just what you’re about. I’ve no objection to making a little trip in your car, which is certainly mighty comfortable, but I’d at least like to be asked whether 1 want to go or not.”

Edmund made no reply, but busied himself with his knobs. First he pressed one and then another. Sundenly we were all jerked off our feet as if we had been in a trolly with a green motorman at the handle. We felt ourselves spinning through space at a fearful rate. Still Edmund said not a word; but while we staggered to our feet, and steadied ourselves with hands and knees on the leather-cushioned benches, like so many drunken men, he clung to his knobs and pushed and twisted. The car slowed down then, and motion became more regular. “Excuse me,” said Edmund, quite in a manner. “The thing in a little new yet, and I’ve got to learn the stops by experience. But there’s no occasion for alarm.” “Maybe there isn’t,” replied Jack. “But will you be kind enough to answer my question, and tell us what you’re about and where we’re going? I’d rather like to know.” Henry and I felt indignation rising, and Henry broke out: “See here! I’ve had enough of this! If you can’t tell us what it all means, just go down and let me out. I decidedly object to being carried off in this manner against my will and knowledge.” By this time Edmund seemed to have got things in the shape he wanted, and he turned to face us. He always had a magnetism that was inexplicable, and we felt it then as never before. His features were perfectly calm, but there was a light in his eyes that seemed electric. “It was my first intention,” he said, “to make this expedition alone, in case I counldn’t persuade you to go along. But you provoked me a while ago, and I made up my mind that I’d take you anyway. I’m not going to do you any harm, and you’ll thank me for it before we’re through.” “But where do you propose to take us?” asked Jack, who had rather more self-command than the rest of us. “I’ll show you,” replied Edmund. And that, for the time being, was all that we could get out of him. There was manifestly no use in making a fuss. We knew nothing about the management of the car, and couldn’t even understand what the power was that moved it. Edmund’s talk about interatomic energy was to us like calculus to schoolboys. We were in his hands, and depended absolutely upon him. He could do what he liked with us. If we had overpowered him, what should we have done next? ✓

I saw that, the only possible thing was to humor him. Besides, knowing him as we did, I couldn’t feel that he meant to bring us to any harm. As I have told you, we never thought him crazy, and we didn’t think so then. He evidently knew exactly what he was about, and we had to trust him whether we wished to or not. As I turned the thing over in my mind I became calmer. I thought that we could get something out of Edmund by quietly showing some interest and questioning him about the machine. “What are all these knobs, Edmund?” I asked. “They control the driving power,” he’’replied in perfect good humor, but like a schoolmaster addressing his pupils, who he knows cannot properly follow him. “I push or turn one way, and we.go; I push or turn another way, and we stop or go back. So, concentrate the atomic power just ai I choose. It makes us go, or it holds us motionless, or it carries us back to earth, according to where I apply it “The earth is what I kick against

and what I hold fast by. Any other body in space would serve the same purpose. As to the machinery, you'd need- an education in such things to understand it. You’d have to study the whole subject from the bottom up, and go over the experiments that I have made. I confess there arc some things the fundamental reason for which I don’t know the real reason myself. But I know that I haye this power in control; and if I had Professor Thomson and Professor Rutherford here, I’d make them open their eyes! I wish I had been able to kidnap them.” “So you admit that you’ve kidnapped us,” said Jack; but he said it, I was glad to see, with a smile. “If you want to put It that way—yes,” Edmund responded, also smiling. “Well, boys,” said Jack, turning to Henry and me, “we may as well make the best of it, so far as I can see. Edmund has got us in his aerial craft, and we’ll have to complete the voyage, whatever it may be. Perhaps you’ll treat us with a trip to Paris, Edmund. I’d like that immensely.” • “Better than that,” said Edmund. “Paris is small potatoes compared with what you are going to see.” And so, indeed, it turned out! Finally we got out our pipes and tobacco, and began to make ourselves at home. We dropped, the subject that had been uppermost in our minds and talked of other things. Jack, always full of reminiscences, entertained us with stories. So hours glided by, till most of us began to fell sleepy. “I’ll have to keep the first watch,’” said Edmund, “and all the others, too, this night.” “So, then, we’re not going to land tonight?” asked Henry. “No, not tonight,” Edmund replied. “You may as well turn in. You see, I’ve prepared good bunks.” He lifted the tops of some of the benches along the walls, and turning them outward, showed us beds already made up. “I believe I’ve not forgotten anything that can make us comfortable,” he added. “Arms, instruments, clothing, furs and lots of good things to eat.” We looked at each other in surprise, but nobody spoke, though the same thought probably occurred to each—that this promised to be a pretty long trip, judging from preparations. Arms! Edmund had said. What in the world should we need of arms? Was he going to take us off to the Rocky Mountains for a bear hunt? And the clothing and furs! (To be continued.)