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diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..d7b82bc --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,4 @@ +*.txt text eol=lf +*.htm text eol=lf +*.html text eol=lf +*.md text eol=lf diff --git a/LICENSE.txt b/LICENSE.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6312041 --- /dev/null +++ b/LICENSE.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements, +metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be +in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES. + +Procedures for determining public domain status are described in +the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org. + +No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in +jurisdictions other than the United States. Anyone seeking to utilize +this eBook outside of the United States should confirm copyright +status under the laws that apply to them. diff --git a/README.md b/README.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..d4ceb3c --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #63757 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/63757) diff --git a/old/63757-0.txt b/old/63757-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 3125381..0000000 --- a/old/63757-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,941 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of Breath of Beelzebub, by Larry Sternig - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and -most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms -of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you -will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before -using this ebook. - -Title: Breath of Beelzebub - -Author: Larry Sternig - -Release Date: November 14, 2020 [EBook #63757] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -Produced by: Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online Distributed - Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - -*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK BREATH OF BEELZEBUB *** - - - - - Breath Of Beelzebub - - By LARRY STERNIG - - All that had been distilled from the curious - vegetation of the doomed planetoid was half - an ounce, a mere timbleful of blue liquor. - But it was enough to drive a universe mad. - - [Transcriber's Note: This etext was produced from - Planet Stories Winter 1946. - Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that - the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.] - - -The martian servant stopped at my desk, coughed faintly to attract -my attention. I looked up and he handed me a calling card on which -was printed "Slane O'Graeme." It was a limp, thumb-marked and -discouraged-looking emissary. - -"'E wishes to see Mr. Ames," the wedge-faced servant told me. The high -disdain in his tone of voice revealed more clearly than words his -opinion of the visitor. - -I shrugged and dropped the card on my desk. "Oh, well, send him in. -I'll give him the brush-off." - -The Martian faded away and I turned back to the 1999 capitulation -figures Mr. Ames wanted. I forgot about Slane O'Graeme, whoever he was, -until a timid "hello" made me look up from the reports. - -"You're Mr. Fleming Ames?" he asked diffidently. - -He was an odd-looking little guy with a head like an oversize cue-ball -and a narrow fringe of fuzzy graying hair that looked like a misguided -halo. He wore green-tinted contact lenses that made his eyes seem -unusually large and bright. - -"No, I'm not Fleming Ames," I told him. "I'm Bill Dineen, Mr. Ames' -confidential secretary. What can I do for you?" - -"Uh--Mr. Ames is president of Universal Liquors, Incorporated, isn't -he?" - -I nodded. - -"I have something I'd like to show him, Mr. Dineen. It's something new. -I found it on Planetoid Y-145." - -I stared at him almost incredulously. He didn't look like a spaceman. - -"You mean a kind of drink? But I didn't think any of the planetoids -were inhabited. How did you--" - -"It isn't a drink exactly, Mr. Dineen. And Planetoid Y-145 isn't -inhabited--in fact, there isn't any Planetoid Y-145 any more. A meteor -hit it last week, I read in the astrogation reports. Busted it to -smithereens." - -He reached in his pocket and held up a little transpariplast vial, -which held about half an ounce of a murky blue fluid. - -"So this is all there is anywhere, as far as I know," he revealed. -"It's the juice of a kind of lichen that grew on the planetoid. I -stopped there last month looking for minerals, and I took some of the -lichen along just to see what it was. I didn't know then. I distilled -this on the way back and threw out the lichen, so this is all--" - -"--there is," I finished for him, a bit impatiently. "But what is it? -And if there isn't any more, what good can it do us?" - -"Your laboratories can synthesize things, can't they? Yes, I know it's -an expensive process, but this stuff is very concentrated and a little -goes a long way. So, even if it did cost quite a bit to make, just -think of the--" - -"But get to the point, Mr. O'Graeme. What _is_ it?" - -"Uh--I've named it 'Breath of Beelzebub'. You put a drop of it in -water, and--oh, boy! You don't even drink the water. The gas works -through your skin. Osmosis, or something. I found it out accidentally." - - * * * * * - -I frowned at him. "What do you mean 'Oh, boy!'? If you've read anything -about our policies, you know that we discourage the use of strong -intoxicants. Ever since the Martian uprising ten years ago, we've been -promoting beers, ales and Venusian klorah, and weaning drinks away from -anything stronger. What effect does this have?" - -O'Graeme took the stopper out of the vial and set it carefully upright -on my desk. - -"It works without water, too," he said. "But it's less efficient this -way. One drop in water is more potent than a whole vial plain. Feel it?" - -I did, before he even finished speaking. My hands were resting on -the desk and it began there, and worked its way up my arms--a warm -throbbing glow of sensation that was unlike anything I'd ever felt -before. Must have gone right through clothing, for it reached my -shoulders and started up my neck and down my body from there. - -It was a mildly pleasant tingling--until it reached my head. Then -suddenly I realized that it was more than pleasant. It was--well, it -just wasn't like anything I'd ever felt before. A feeling of utter -happiness is the nearest I can come to describing it, although it was -only partly that. - -I knew that I hadn't a care in the system worth worrying about. I -knew that it didn't matter the least bit whether or not I got those -figures co-ordinated for Mr. Ames. If he fired me for not doing them, -so what? Wasn't I going to marry his daughter--Margie Amelita Ames? You -can bet your last rocket charge I was, and if he or that fat, snooty, -dictatorial wife of his objected, I'd just tell them to-- - -O'Graeme with the bulging green eyes, picked up the vial and carefully -replaced the stopper. He was smiling. He started to say, "Well, what do -you--" - -I stood up, and leaned forward across the desk. "Slane, ol' bosom pal -of mine," I said, "You've _got_ something there. Listen, why let a -stuffed shirt like Fleming Ames in on it? I'll handle it for you. I'll -make us _millions_." - -Slane O'Graeme looked at me and frowned a little. "Ummm," he said -skeptically. "I'm sure you mean well, Mr. Dineen, but hadn't you better -wait until you get over feeling--" - -"Feeling what?" I demanded. "I assure you, palsy, that I'm not in the -slightest upset--" - -"Have you a laboratory, like Mr. Ames'? Can you synthesize--" - -I waved a hand airily. "Laboratory? Don't need one for something simple -as that. I studied chemistry in high school, and I assure you, pal, -that I can quite easily--" - -O'Graeme shook his head slowly. "I've tried this stuff often, Mr. -Dineen, and I'm used to it, but I see that you--Perhaps I'd better come -back tomorrow evening instead of--" - -"And lose a whole day?" I scoffed. "Why, we'll be rich by then. Come -on, palsy. Let's go back and join Fleming Ames' dinner party. I want -you to meet Margie Ames. The old folks don't know it yet, but Margie -and I are engaged. Besides," I added with a sly grin, winking at him, -"there is a tank full of mermaids back there that'll knock your eyes -out. It cost a fortune to have them brought in from Mercury." - -I took O'Graeme by the arm and propelled him out into the long -corridor. The Polaroid glass walls of the huge building looked down -upon the great City of Mars with its network of shuttle-car tubes, the -'copter landings and--We passed a section of wall that opened onto the -sky parkway and a draft of cold fresh air hit me. I stopped suddenly. - -"Whew!" I said, closing my eyes and then opening them again slowly. -"Say, I've been talking like a--Will you please forget everything I've -said?" - -The little guy grinned. "I discounted it. I've been there myself. The -first time I tried it--on my way back to Mars--I put three drops in -_water_, and I radioed on ahead to tell them that I was buying the -whole fleet of Interplanetary, and to get me an option on--" - -"Listen," I cut in soberly. "I _will_ take you back to Mr. Ames, -though, dinner party or not. Unless he objects because it's too -potent, I'm sure he'll be interested if we demonstrate. What's a safe -dose--nothing like the one I just had?" - -"One drop, if it's a large room. Mild exhilaration and release from -care. You had about the equivalent of two drops in water; delusions of -grandeur, if you'll pardon my--" - -"Sure," I grinned. We'd been walking and were almost back to the big -drawing-room where Fleming Ames would be entertaining his dinner -guests. "What happens if you use--not that I'm suggesting it--four or -five drops?" - -"Partial dissociation of personality, and with six or seven drops, -you might find yourself in the body of whoever happens to be in the -room with--" His voice trailed off absently and his green-tinted eyes -actually popped as we stepped through the doorway. - -He gulped. "You--you really _meant_ that about--" - -"The mermaids?" I laughed as he fumbled in his pocket and brought out -the vial to make sure the stopper was on tight. "Sure. You needn't have -discounted _that_, my friend!" - - * * * * * - -I led him to the glowing, plexiglass tank in the center of the room. It -was a drum-like affair, about five feet high and eight in diameter; -complete with bright green sea weed and a glittering red cave-like -shelter of Mercurian coral. - -But that wasn't what we were looking at, nor the dozens of goldfish -that swam merrily about the coral and bumped their snouts against -the plexiglass sides of the tank. It was the ten tiny mermaids that -crowded around the coral base, wiggling gracefully toward us one by one -to stare at us staring at them. - -They were much like the fabled marine creatures I'd read about on -Earth, only smaller--like little dolls--and far more beautiful than -those imaginative ancients ever dreamed of. - -From the waist up they were pocket-editions of perfectly-formed girls. -Their eyes were amber, with the sparkle of a coquette, their hair -luxuriantly long and golden. Silver nails tipped each tiny finger -and the silver was repeated in the gleaming scales which covered the -tapering lower half of the graceful bodies. - -O'Graeme peered in delighted fascination at the strange sight. -"Fantastic!" he breathed. - -"Stupendous!" I corrected. "Aren't they honeys?" - -Just then the dinner party filed in from the adjoining room. I caught -Mr. Ames' eye, and he gave me the nod. So I introduced Slane O'Graeme. -Besides Mr. Ames and his wife and Margie, there were three guests, -Roger Wescott, Interplanetary Transport magnate, and his wife, and -Senator B. Peerpont Weems. - -Fleming Ames turned the little vial over in his hands and examined it -frowningly. "You say, Bill, that the effect is a mild and pleasant -exhilaration?" - -I smiled. "Well, Mr. Ames, it was more than mild, but then I got an -overdose, I suppose. There was no physical incoordination, though. -Just mental stimulus. I had a momentary inclination to--" I paused--it -didn't seem wise to tell my employer just what that momentary -inclination had been. - -Mr. Ames carefully uncorked the vial. "Well," he said, "I guess, if -you've tried it and found it safe we'll give it a group test. Try it as -an after-dinner cordial. Anyone mind?" - -He glanced about the huge air-cushioned divans and lounging chairs -where the guests were comfortably settled. Both Mr. Wescott and Senator -Weems nodded approvingly. - -Mrs. Ames stiffened in her overstuffed chair and said a bit tensely, -"Fleming, I simply will not tolerate--" But Margie put a hand on her -mother's arm and said, "Now, Mother, don't be a spoilsport. I'm sure -Bill wouldn't let Dad try it if it wasn't all right." - -I smiled at Margie gratefully. - -Then Mr. Ames turned toward the mermaid tank behind him, and Slane -O'Graeme said quickly, "Be careful, Mr. Ames. Don't drop--" - -And then it happened. - - * * * * * - -The opened vial slipped from the liquor magnate's hand as he lifted it -over the rim on the tank. It hit the top of the water with a soft plop, -sank and struck the coral with a faint clink. Diffusion in the water -must have been almost instantaneous; it was light blue throughout even -before the vial hit bottom. - -I heard a low exclamation from O'Graeme, and then he yelped excitedly, -"Quick, everyone, get out of--" His voice trailed off there and a -beatific expression came over his face. I was only a bit farther from -the tank than he, and it hit me almost at the same time. - -It was the same sensation I had experienced in my office. Not much -stronger, but far more sudden and complete. - -My eyes were still on the mermaid tank, and I thought for an instant -that it was empty, that the mermaids and goldfish had mysteriously -vanished into nothingness. Then a pair of golden streaks, faintly -visible, followed by the flash of a mermaid's body, showed me my error. - -Suddenly it came to me: This was the time to tell Mrs. Ames about -wanting to marry Margie. Now! Tell her, and tell her to go to Jupiter -if she didn't like it. - -I whirled around, and paused aghast. Mrs. Ames was slumped down in -her chair, and her eyes were vacuous. Her mouth was wide open and -her fat arms were making wriggling motions as though her hands were -flippers and she was trying to swim. She looked like a fish out of -water--certainly _not_ like a mermaid. - -Slowly, I turned back to O'Graeme. I grabbed his arm and he looked up, -obviously startled. "Listen," I said. "What did you say an overdose of -this Breath of Beelzebub would do?" - -His popping green eyes opened wide. "Why, darling," he said, "how -should _I_ know? And how did I get over here?" - -I sort of swayed on my feet and closed my eyes. I was looking down at a -bald-headed little man, and hearing Slane O'Graeme's voice, but--but-- - -It couldn't be! I opened my eyes and looked across the tank at Margie -Ames. My Margie. Her beautiful blue eyes were wide with astonishment -and she was staring down at her own arms and hands in the blankest -sort of bewilderment. Then she looked up and caught my eye and said, -"Mr. Dineen, what the devil--Didn't I tell you that six or seven drops -would--" - -I shook my head and closed my eyes again. And something seemed to -slip. I didn't open them, but they were open just the same, and all I -was seeing was a blur of motion and I seemed to be going in circles -through something wet and blue. I got dizzy and tried to close my eyes -again, but they wouldn't close. But I did manage to stop moving--and -I shuddered, and the shudder wasn't because the water in the tank was -cold. - -A beautiful young woman, with long flowing hair of gold, swam by. But -she didn't have any clothes on and where her legs should have been -there was the tail of a fish. I thought suddenly here was my chance to -kiss a mermaid, but she flung some sea weed in my face and ducked into -what looked like a cave. - -I tried to look out of the tank, but everything was distorted and I -couldn't make out much. I could hear sounds as though several people -were talking at once, but the sounds, too, were distorted and I -couldn't make out what was being said. - -I tried to groan and found I couldn't do that, either. And that made -me, strangely, want to giggle. And, oddly enough, I _was_ giggling. - -Then someone was saying, "_Stop_ that!" and shaking my shoulder and it -didn't seem to be wet and cold any more. My shoulder was bare, and the -hand hurt and I looked up, and suddenly a nursery song of long ago that -I'd heard in my childhood came back to me and I started to sing, "I -fwam and I fwam right over the--" until the shock of hearing my voice -come out a rich throaty contralto made me stop and bring my eyes into -focus. - -And I was looking up at myself leaning over me, and the other I was -saying in my voice, "Listen, I'm Margie Ames, and I'm curious to know -who is in my body." - -"I'm Bill," I said. "What in the--" - -"Bill!" she cut in. "Where _were_ you? This Mr. O'Graeme (he's over in -Senator Weems right now) was explaining what happened and we took a -roll-call and you weren't around." - -I closed my eyes (or Margie's eyes) again. I should have had it by -then, but I was still confused. Coming down the hallway, O'Graeme had -told me that four or five drops of the fluid, in water, would cause -"partial dissociation of personality." More than that would make it -complete. And Mr. Ames had dropped the whole vial into the mermaid tank! - -"It's temporary," Margie said. "We change around every few minutes or -so and it'll all come out right when the stuff wears off, but--" - -I was looking down at my--temporary--shapely arms and bare shoulders, -and I started to chuckle. Suddenly--possibly it was the realization -that whatever was happening was temporary--I began to see the humor -of the situation. It isn't funny unexpectedly to find oneself in the -body of a goldfish. But it _had_ been a rare experience--and I'd almost -kissed a mermaid! - -I said, "This is a beautiful dress we have on, Margie." - - * * * * * - -She blushed and stamped her big foot on my dainty little open-toed -slipper. "Bill!" she wailed. "How could you? _You_ of all people! It -isn't decent! It--it's--" - -And then the funny side of it struck her too, and we were both laughing -like a couple of lunatics. I saw she was waving my arms around in glee. -I sobered up a moment, and warned, "Be careful of that watch-candid on -your--my--wrist. It set me back a hundred credits." - -I stood up and looked around. And my scope of interest widened as I -found myself in the center of a lot of confusion. - -Roger Wescott, the Interplanetary Transport magnate, was chasing -his mouse-like wife around the mermaid tank. She ran past me with a -frightened look on her face and I grabbed Wescott's arm. - -"Look, Wescott," I said. "Isn't that a bit--" - -He grinned at me. "That's Mrs. Ames, and she's down to the size now -where I can give her the spanking I've always wanted--" He jerked and I -let go his arm. If anyone wanted to spank Mrs. Ames while the spanking -was good, he had my blessing. - -When they came around again, I yelled, "But who are you?" - -He winked and didn't answer and that was enough of a tip-off. There are -times when a confidential secretary shouldn't even pretend to recognize -his boss. - -I turned back to see if I was still standing beside myself, and I was, -so I said, "Listen, Margie--" - -My voice interrupted, "Margie? I thought _you_ were Miss Ames. I'm -O'Graeme. I was going to say--" - -I grabbed myself by the lapels. "See here, O'Graeme," I said. "Are you -_sure_ this is all right? I mean, everybody seems to be having lots of -fun, but what if we get stuck this way? And, listen, can't everyone -just walk out of range of that stuff? It must affect only a given area." - -He grinned my best grin. "I suggested it. But nobody _wants_ to. Do -you?" - -I hadn't thought about it before, but I didn't. I looked across to -where Mr. Ames was lying on the floor trying to make like a mermaid, -and then I glanced at the tank and wondered who was in there, for nine -little mermaids were trying to get away from the tenth one! - -And I began to howl with laughter. No, not for a million credits would -I want to walk out on a party like this. Even if it cost me my job, and -I was beginning to have a hunch it would. - -[Illustration: _Not for a million credits would I walk out on a party -like this!_] - -Then I had an idea that it might be fun to stir the water in the -mermaid tank and see what--I started toward it and nearly fell over a -chair. The chair hadn't been there before and I saw I was facing in the -opposite direction than the one I'd started out, so I muttered, "What -the--" and looked down and recognized my own suit, my own hands, and -my own watch-candid on my wrist. - -I was back home! - -Just me, or everyone? No, Mr. Ames was still trying to wiggle his way -across the floor, and at one end of the divan Mrs. Ames was smoking a -big black Venusian cigar. - -Senator B. Peerpont Weems--or was it?--banged me on the shoulder and -said, "Some fun, huh? Nobody knows who's who, so nobody can--" He -glanced across my shoulder and grinned and started to move past me. I -looked back and saw Margie's cute little French maid coming in from the -dining room. Her eyes were wide with amazement--and then I saw her face -go blank for a moment. So she'd gone under, too! - -I grabbed the senator's arm--or was it the senator?--as he tried to -pass me, and warned, "Hey, none of that. What if it's Mrs. Ames?" and -he shuddered, and started the other way. - -Mr. Ames was starting to get up from the floor. I saw him gazing down -at himself with blank bewilderment, and then he looked across at me. -"What ees thees?" he asked. - -I grinned and turned to O'Graeme--I think it was O'Graeme. "A newcomer -in our midst," I said, jerking a thumb toward Mr. Ames. "Better explain -things to her before she takes her turn in the tank, or she's in for a -worse shock." - -I didn't want to bother with explanations myself, because I'd just -remembered my watch-candid. It could take fifty pictures without -reloading, and I had a reload in my pocket, if I stayed inside my own -coat long enough to use it. It was a Undex B-29, the kind that can -photograph the inside of your hat by starlight. - -Margie came up and touched my arm and said, "Bill?" I nodded, and she -said, "This is me. Kiss me quick while we have a chance." - -It was a proposition I'd never turn down, but I'll admit I looked a bit -scared when I put my arms around her and complied. - -She grinned impishly. "Sure, darling, Mother and Dad are probably -looking, but so what? For all they know it's Mr. Wescott kissing the -maid or your Slane O'Graeme making love to a mermaid, or the Senator--" - -When her lips were free again, she said, "Bill, I took some shots on -your candid before, when I--when I had the chance. Some of them are -wows, too! Look, quick! Don't miss that!" - -I laughed, and swung the candid around to get the shot. - - * * * * * - -When I awoke it was ten o'clock, but I felt as though I'd had one -hour's sleep instead of six. At four o'clock in the morning, I'd left -Mr. Ames talking to Slane O'Graeme. And when Mr. Ames had said he'd -want to talk to me in the morning, I'd already kissed my job goodbye. - -The first thing I wanted to do was destroy those all-too-candid shots. -But I wanted to develop them and have a look-see first. Maybe there'd -be one or two mild ones it would be safe to take along as souvenirs. - -I was taking the last of the positives out of the acid when there was a -knock on my door, and I said, "Come in." - -Mr. Ames, wearing a lounging robe, pushed through the door. I made a -mental note to look in the mirror later to see if my face looked as bad -as his. But, surprisingly, he grinned at me and sat down on the edge of -the bed. - -"What a night!" he sighed. "But--" - -"But never again," I finished for him. "Yeah, I feel the same way. That -stuff would have been dynamite to turn loose on the natives." - -He nodded gloomily. "I suppose so, but--Well, it was my fault it's all -gone. There isn't a trace left for analysis, and because it was my -fault, I gave O'Graeme his price for it. Somehow I liked the little -cuss. What're you doing?" - -"Look," I said, and passed him the quick-drying rack. - -He stared from one to another of the shots, and gulped. Then he stared -some more and his face turned red, then pale. - -"Bill," he said, "do you know these photographs would be worth a -million credits to my enemies, and those of Wescott and the Senator? I -hope you're not thinking of--" - -I shook my head firmly. "Just developed them out of curiosity. I'm -destroying them right now, and the films, too. Then if you say so, I'll -leave." - -I took the pictures back and started to tear them up. - -"Leave? Oh, you think I--" He laughed at the gloomy expression on my -face. "Now that you mention it, Bill, you _are_ leaving. I've had you -in mind for the Venusian Branch. We need a good man there to get things -organized. You're taking over on the first." - -I had another picture in my hand to tear up, but my heart was making -flip-flops. Manager of the Venusian Branch! Why, that meant I'd be able -to offer Margie a real home! - -"Uh--Mr. Ames," I said, "Margie and I are in love. We want to get -married." - -He shrugged, his face suddenly gloomy. "Margie's told me that, Bill. -But her mother--Well, you're not blind. You know how much say so -I--Hey, don't tear _those_ up!" - - * * * * * - -The yell was so sudden and unexpected that I jumped and dropped the -rack from which I'd been peeling the pictures while we talked. I'd torn -up only a few. - -Fleming Ames picked up the rack, his eyes gleaming. He looked it over -eagerly and picked off four pictures. I walked around to see which they -were, and grinned as I suddenly understood. - -One was Mrs. Ames seated with her feet on the coffee table smoking -a big black cigar. Another was Mrs. Ames, her hair in wild disarray -and her mouth open, trying to swim across the room. A third was Mrs. -Ames--but why go into details? - -"Bill," said Mr. Ames, his face happier than I'd ever seen it before, -"your wedding day is next Saturday. And that's from a man who -knows--from the present and future boss of the Ames household. And you -can take my new space-cruiser for your honeymoon." - -He stood up and stuck out his hand and I shook it. - -"And Bill," he added wistfully. "If you should stop on any planetoids, -and see any peculiar-looking species of lichen--" - -*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK BREATH OF BEELZEBUB *** - -***** This file should be named 63757-0.txt or 63757-0.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/6/3/7/5/63757/ - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. Special rules, set forth in the General Terms of Use part -of this license, apply to copying and distributing Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic works to protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm -concept and trademark. 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You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms -of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you -will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before -using this ebook. - -Title: Breath of Beelzebub - -Author: Larry Sternig - -Release Date: November 14, 2020 [EBook #63757] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -Produced by: Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online Distributed - Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - -*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK BREATH OF BEELZEBUB *** -</pre> - -<div class="titlepage"> - -<h1>Breath Of Beelzebub</h1> - -<h2>By LARRY STERNIG</h2> - -<p>All that had been distilled from the curious<br /> -vegetation of the doomed planetoid was half<br /> -an ounce, a mere timbleful of blue liquor.<br /> -But it was enough to drive a universe mad.</p> - -<p>[Transcriber's Note: This etext was produced from<br /> -Planet Stories Winter 1946.<br /> -Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that<br /> -the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.]</p> - -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p>The martian servant stopped at my desk, coughed faintly to attract -my attention. I looked up and he handed me a calling card on which -was printed "Slane O'Graeme." It was a limp, thumb-marked and -discouraged-looking emissary.</p> - -<p>"'E wishes to see Mr. Ames," the wedge-faced servant told me. The high -disdain in his tone of voice revealed more clearly than words his -opinion of the visitor.</p> - -<p>I shrugged and dropped the card on my desk. "Oh, well, send him in. -I'll give him the brush-off."</p> - -<p>The Martian faded away and I turned back to the 1999 capitulation -figures Mr. Ames wanted. I forgot about Slane O'Graeme, whoever he was, -until a timid "hello" made me look up from the reports.</p> - -<p>"You're Mr. Fleming Ames?" he asked diffidently.</p> - -<p>He was an odd-looking little guy with a head like an oversize cue-ball -and a narrow fringe of fuzzy graying hair that looked like a misguided -halo. He wore green-tinted contact lenses that made his eyes seem -unusually large and bright.</p> - -<p>"No, I'm not Fleming Ames," I told him. "I'm Bill Dineen, Mr. Ames' -confidential secretary. What can I do for you?"</p> - -<p>"Uh—Mr. Ames is president of Universal Liquors, Incorporated, isn't -he?"</p> - -<p>I nodded.</p> - -<p>"I have something I'd like to show him, Mr. Dineen. It's something new. -I found it on Planetoid Y-145."</p> - -<p>I stared at him almost incredulously. He didn't look like a spaceman.</p> - -<p>"You mean a kind of drink? But I didn't think any of the planetoids -were inhabited. How did you—"</p> - -<p>"It isn't a drink exactly, Mr. Dineen. And Planetoid Y-145 isn't -inhabited—in fact, there isn't any Planetoid Y-145 any more. A meteor -hit it last week, I read in the astrogation reports. Busted it to -smithereens."</p> - -<p>He reached in his pocket and held up a little transpariplast vial, -which held about half an ounce of a murky blue fluid.</p> - -<p>"So this is all there is anywhere, as far as I know," he revealed. -"It's the juice of a kind of lichen that grew on the planetoid. I -stopped there last month looking for minerals, and I took some of the -lichen along just to see what it was. I didn't know then. I distilled -this on the way back and threw out the lichen, so this is all—"</p> - -<p>"—there is," I finished for him, a bit impatiently. "But what is it? -And if there isn't any more, what good can it do us?"</p> - -<p>"Your laboratories can synthesize things, can't they? Yes, I know it's -an expensive process, but this stuff is very concentrated and a little -goes a long way. So, even if it did cost quite a bit to make, just -think of the—"</p> - -<p>"But get to the point, Mr. O'Graeme. What <i>is</i> it?"</p> - -<p>"Uh—I've named it 'Breath of Beelzebub'. You put a drop of it in -water, and—oh, boy! You don't even drink the water. The gas works -through your skin. Osmosis, or something. I found it out accidentally."</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>I frowned at him. "What do you mean 'Oh, boy!'? If you've read anything -about our policies, you know that we discourage the use of strong -intoxicants. Ever since the Martian uprising ten years ago, we've been -promoting beers, ales and Venusian klorah, and weaning drinks away from -anything stronger. What effect does this have?"</p> - -<p>O'Graeme took the stopper out of the vial and set it carefully upright -on my desk.</p> - -<p>"It works without water, too," he said. "But it's less efficient this -way. One drop in water is more potent than a whole vial plain. Feel it?"</p> - -<p>I did, before he even finished speaking. My hands were resting on -the desk and it began there, and worked its way up my arms—a warm -throbbing glow of sensation that was unlike anything I'd ever felt -before. Must have gone right through clothing, for it reached my -shoulders and started up my neck and down my body from there.</p> - -<p>It was a mildly pleasant tingling—until it reached my head. Then -suddenly I realized that it was more than pleasant. It was—well, it -just wasn't like anything I'd ever felt before. A feeling of utter -happiness is the nearest I can come to describing it, although it was -only partly that.</p> - -<p>I knew that I hadn't a care in the system worth worrying about. I -knew that it didn't matter the least bit whether or not I got those -figures co-ordinated for Mr. Ames. If he fired me for not doing them, -so what? Wasn't I going to marry his daughter—Margie Amelita Ames? You -can bet your last rocket charge I was, and if he or that fat, snooty, -dictatorial wife of his objected, I'd just tell them to—</p> - -<p>O'Graeme with the bulging green eyes, picked up the vial and carefully -replaced the stopper. He was smiling. He started to say, "Well, what do -you—"</p> - -<p>I stood up, and leaned forward across the desk. "Slane, ol' bosom pal -of mine," I said, "You've <i>got</i> something there. Listen, why let a -stuffed shirt like Fleming Ames in on it? I'll handle it for you. I'll -make us <i>millions</i>."</p> - -<p>Slane O'Graeme looked at me and frowned a little. "Ummm," he said -skeptically. "I'm sure you mean well, Mr. Dineen, but hadn't you better -wait until you get over feeling—"</p> - -<p>"Feeling what?" I demanded. "I assure you, palsy, that I'm not in the -slightest upset—"</p> - -<p>"Have you a laboratory, like Mr. Ames'? Can you synthesize—"</p> - -<p>I waved a hand airily. "Laboratory? Don't need one for something simple -as that. I studied chemistry in high school, and I assure you, pal, -that I can quite easily—"</p> - -<p>O'Graeme shook his head slowly. "I've tried this stuff often, Mr. -Dineen, and I'm used to it, but I see that you—Perhaps I'd better come -back tomorrow evening instead of—"</p> - -<p>"And lose a whole day?" I scoffed. "Why, we'll be rich by then. Come -on, palsy. Let's go back and join Fleming Ames' dinner party. I want -you to meet Margie Ames. The old folks don't know it yet, but Margie -and I are engaged. Besides," I added with a sly grin, winking at him, -"there is a tank full of mermaids back there that'll knock your eyes -out. It cost a fortune to have them brought in from Mercury."</p> - -<p>I took O'Graeme by the arm and propelled him out into the long -corridor. The Polaroid glass walls of the huge building looked down -upon the great City of Mars with its network of shuttle-car tubes, the -'copter landings and—We passed a section of wall that opened onto the -sky parkway and a draft of cold fresh air hit me. I stopped suddenly.</p> - -<p>"Whew!" I said, closing my eyes and then opening them again slowly. -"Say, I've been talking like a—Will you please forget everything I've -said?"</p> - -<p>The little guy grinned. "I discounted it. I've been there myself. The -first time I tried it—on my way back to Mars—I put three drops in -<i>water</i>, and I radioed on ahead to tell them that I was buying the -whole fleet of Interplanetary, and to get me an option on—"</p> - -<p>"Listen," I cut in soberly. "I <i>will</i> take you back to Mr. Ames, -though, dinner party or not. Unless he objects because it's too -potent, I'm sure he'll be interested if we demonstrate. What's a safe -dose—nothing like the one I just had?"</p> - -<p>"One drop, if it's a large room. Mild exhilaration and release from -care. You had about the equivalent of two drops in water; delusions of -grandeur, if you'll pardon my—"</p> - -<p>"Sure," I grinned. We'd been walking and were almost back to the big -drawing-room where Fleming Ames would be entertaining his dinner -guests. "What happens if you use—not that I'm suggesting it—four or -five drops?"</p> - -<p>"Partial dissociation of personality, and with six or seven drops, -you might find yourself in the body of whoever happens to be in the -room with—" His voice trailed off absently and his green-tinted eyes -actually popped as we stepped through the doorway.</p> - -<p>He gulped. "You—you really <i>meant</i> that about—"</p> - -<p>"The mermaids?" I laughed as he fumbled in his pocket and brought out -the vial to make sure the stopper was on tight. "Sure. You needn't have -discounted <i>that</i>, my friend!"</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>I led him to the glowing, plexiglass tank in the center of the room. It -was a drum-like affair, about five feet high and eight in diameter; -complete with bright green sea weed and a glittering red cave-like -shelter of Mercurian coral.</p> - -<p>But that wasn't what we were looking at, nor the dozens of goldfish -that swam merrily about the coral and bumped their snouts against -the plexiglass sides of the tank. It was the ten tiny mermaids that -crowded around the coral base, wiggling gracefully toward us one by one -to stare at us staring at them.</p> - -<p>They were much like the fabled marine creatures I'd read about on -Earth, only smaller—like little dolls—and far more beautiful than -those imaginative ancients ever dreamed of.</p> - -<p>From the waist up they were pocket-editions of perfectly-formed girls. -Their eyes were amber, with the sparkle of a coquette, their hair -luxuriantly long and golden. Silver nails tipped each tiny finger -and the silver was repeated in the gleaming scales which covered the -tapering lower half of the graceful bodies.</p> - -<p>O'Graeme peered in delighted fascination at the strange sight. -"Fantastic!" he breathed.</p> - -<p>"Stupendous!" I corrected. "Aren't they honeys?"</p> - -<p>Just then the dinner party filed in from the adjoining room. I caught -Mr. Ames' eye, and he gave me the nod. So I introduced Slane O'Graeme. -Besides Mr. Ames and his wife and Margie, there were three guests, -Roger Wescott, Interplanetary Transport magnate, and his wife, and -Senator B. Peerpont Weems.</p> - -<p>Fleming Ames turned the little vial over in his hands and examined it -frowningly. "You say, Bill, that the effect is a mild and pleasant -exhilaration?"</p> - -<p>I smiled. "Well, Mr. Ames, it was more than mild, but then I got an -overdose, I suppose. There was no physical incoordination, though. -Just mental stimulus. I had a momentary inclination to—" I paused—it -didn't seem wise to tell my employer just what that momentary -inclination had been.</p> - -<p>Mr. Ames carefully uncorked the vial. "Well," he said, "I guess, if -you've tried it and found it safe we'll give it a group test. Try it as -an after-dinner cordial. Anyone mind?"</p> - -<p>He glanced about the huge air-cushioned divans and lounging chairs -where the guests were comfortably settled. Both Mr. Wescott and Senator -Weems nodded approvingly.</p> - -<p>Mrs. Ames stiffened in her overstuffed chair and said a bit tensely, -"Fleming, I simply will not tolerate—" But Margie put a hand on her -mother's arm and said, "Now, Mother, don't be a spoilsport. I'm sure -Bill wouldn't let Dad try it if it wasn't all right."</p> - -<p>I smiled at Margie gratefully.</p> - -<p>Then Mr. Ames turned toward the mermaid tank behind him, and Slane -O'Graeme said quickly, "Be careful, Mr. Ames. Don't drop—"</p> - -<p>And then it happened.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>The opened vial slipped from the liquor magnate's hand as he lifted it -over the rim on the tank. It hit the top of the water with a soft plop, -sank and struck the coral with a faint clink. Diffusion in the water -must have been almost instantaneous; it was light blue throughout even -before the vial hit bottom.</p> - -<p>I heard a low exclamation from O'Graeme, and then he yelped excitedly, -"Quick, everyone, get out of—" His voice trailed off there and a -beatific expression came over his face. I was only a bit farther from -the tank than he, and it hit me almost at the same time.</p> - -<p>It was the same sensation I had experienced in my office. Not much -stronger, but far more sudden and complete.</p> - -<p>My eyes were still on the mermaid tank, and I thought for an instant -that it was empty, that the mermaids and goldfish had mysteriously -vanished into nothingness. Then a pair of golden streaks, faintly -visible, followed by the flash of a mermaid's body, showed me my error.</p> - -<p>Suddenly it came to me: This was the time to tell Mrs. Ames about -wanting to marry Margie. Now! Tell her, and tell her to go to Jupiter -if she didn't like it.</p> - -<p>I whirled around, and paused aghast. Mrs. Ames was slumped down in -her chair, and her eyes were vacuous. Her mouth was wide open and -her fat arms were making wriggling motions as though her hands were -flippers and she was trying to swim. She looked like a fish out of -water—certainly <i>not</i> like a mermaid.</p> - -<p>Slowly, I turned back to O'Graeme. I grabbed his arm and he looked up, -obviously startled. "Listen," I said. "What did you say an overdose of -this Breath of Beelzebub would do?"</p> - -<p>His popping green eyes opened wide. "Why, darling," he said, "how -should <i>I</i> know? And how did I get over here?"</p> - -<p>I sort of swayed on my feet and closed my eyes. I was looking down at a -bald-headed little man, and hearing Slane O'Graeme's voice, but—but—</p> - -<p>It couldn't be! I opened my eyes and looked across the tank at Margie -Ames. My Margie. Her beautiful blue eyes were wide with astonishment -and she was staring down at her own arms and hands in the blankest -sort of bewilderment. Then she looked up and caught my eye and said, -"Mr. Dineen, what the devil—Didn't I tell you that six or seven drops -would—"</p> - -<p>I shook my head and closed my eyes again. And something seemed to -slip. I didn't open them, but they were open just the same, and all I -was seeing was a blur of motion and I seemed to be going in circles -through something wet and blue. I got dizzy and tried to close my eyes -again, but they wouldn't close. But I did manage to stop moving—and -I shuddered, and the shudder wasn't because the water in the tank was -cold.</p> - -<p>A beautiful young woman, with long flowing hair of gold, swam by. But -she didn't have any clothes on and where her legs should have been -there was the tail of a fish. I thought suddenly here was my chance to -kiss a mermaid, but she flung some sea weed in my face and ducked into -what looked like a cave.</p> - -<p>I tried to look out of the tank, but everything was distorted and I -couldn't make out much. I could hear sounds as though several people -were talking at once, but the sounds, too, were distorted and I -couldn't make out what was being said.</p> - -<p>I tried to groan and found I couldn't do that, either. And that made -me, strangely, want to giggle. And, oddly enough, I <i>was</i> giggling.</p> - -<p>Then someone was saying, "<i>Stop</i> that!" and shaking my shoulder and it -didn't seem to be wet and cold any more. My shoulder was bare, and the -hand hurt and I looked up, and suddenly a nursery song of long ago that -I'd heard in my childhood came back to me and I started to sing, "I -fwam and I fwam right over the—" until the shock of hearing my voice -come out a rich throaty contralto made me stop and bring my eyes into -focus.</p> - -<p>And I was looking up at myself leaning over me, and the other I was -saying in my voice, "Listen, I'm Margie Ames, and I'm curious to know -who is in my body."</p> - -<p>"I'm Bill," I said. "What in the—"</p> - -<p>"Bill!" she cut in. "Where <i>were</i> you? This Mr. O'Graeme (he's over in -Senator Weems right now) was explaining what happened and we took a -roll-call and you weren't around."</p> - -<p>I closed my eyes (or Margie's eyes) again. I should have had it by -then, but I was still confused. Coming down the hallway, O'Graeme had -told me that four or five drops of the fluid, in water, would cause -"partial dissociation of personality." More than that would make it -complete. And Mr. Ames had dropped the whole vial into the mermaid tank!</p> - -<p>"It's temporary," Margie said. "We change around every few minutes or -so and it'll all come out right when the stuff wears off, but—"</p> - -<p>I was looking down at my—temporary—shapely arms and bare shoulders, -and I started to chuckle. Suddenly—possibly it was the realization -that whatever was happening was temporary—I began to see the humor -of the situation. It isn't funny unexpectedly to find oneself in the -body of a goldfish. But it <i>had</i> been a rare experience—and I'd almost -kissed a mermaid!</p> - -<p>I said, "This is a beautiful dress we have on, Margie."</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>She blushed and stamped her big foot on my dainty little open-toed -slipper. "Bill!" she wailed. "How could you? <i>You</i> of all people! It -isn't decent! It—it's—"</p> - -<p>And then the funny side of it struck her too, and we were both laughing -like a couple of lunatics. I saw she was waving my arms around in glee. -I sobered up a moment, and warned, "Be careful of that watch-candid on -your—my—wrist. It set me back a hundred credits."</p> - -<p>I stood up and looked around. And my scope of interest widened as I -found myself in the center of a lot of confusion.</p> - -<p>Roger Wescott, the Interplanetary Transport magnate, was chasing -his mouse-like wife around the mermaid tank. She ran past me with a -frightened look on her face and I grabbed Wescott's arm.</p> - -<p>"Look, Wescott," I said. "Isn't that a bit—"</p> - -<p>He grinned at me. "That's Mrs. Ames, and she's down to the size now -where I can give her the spanking I've always wanted—" He jerked and I -let go his arm. If anyone wanted to spank Mrs. Ames while the spanking -was good, he had my blessing.</p> - -<p>When they came around again, I yelled, "But who are you?"</p> - -<p>He winked and didn't answer and that was enough of a tip-off. There are -times when a confidential secretary shouldn't even pretend to recognize -his boss.</p> - -<p>I turned back to see if I was still standing beside myself, and I was, -so I said, "Listen, Margie—"</p> - -<p>My voice interrupted, "Margie? I thought <i>you</i> were Miss Ames. I'm -O'Graeme. I was going to say—"</p> - -<p>I grabbed myself by the lapels. "See here, O'Graeme," I said. "Are you -<i>sure</i> this is all right? I mean, everybody seems to be having lots of -fun, but what if we get stuck this way? And, listen, can't everyone -just walk out of range of that stuff? It must affect only a given area."</p> - -<p>He grinned my best grin. "I suggested it. But nobody <i>wants</i> to. Do -you?"</p> - -<p>I hadn't thought about it before, but I didn't. I looked across to -where Mr. Ames was lying on the floor trying to make like a mermaid, -and then I glanced at the tank and wondered who was in there, for nine -little mermaids were trying to get away from the tenth one!</p> - -<p>And I began to howl with laughter. No, not for a million credits would -I want to walk out on a party like this. Even if it cost me my job, and -I was beginning to have a hunch it would.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<div class="figcenter"> - <img src="images/illus.jpg" alt=""/> - <div class="caption"> - <p> <i>Not for a million credits would I walk out on a party like this!</i></p> - </div> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p>Then I had an idea that it might be fun to stir the water in the -mermaid tank and see what—I started toward it and nearly fell over a -chair. The chair hadn't been there before and I saw I was facing in the -opposite direction than the one I'd started out, so I muttered, "What -the—" and looked down and recognized my own suit, my own hands, and -my own watch-candid on my wrist.</p> - -<p>I was back home!</p> - -<p>Just me, or everyone? No, Mr. Ames was still trying to wiggle his way -across the floor, and at one end of the divan Mrs. Ames was smoking a -big black Venusian cigar.</p> - -<p>Senator B. Peerpont Weems—or was it?—banged me on the shoulder and -said, "Some fun, huh? Nobody knows who's who, so nobody can—" He -glanced across my shoulder and grinned and started to move past me. I -looked back and saw Margie's cute little French maid coming in from the -dining room. Her eyes were wide with amazement—and then I saw her face -go blank for a moment. So she'd gone under, too!</p> - -<p>I grabbed the senator's arm—or was it the senator?—as he tried to -pass me, and warned, "Hey, none of that. What if it's Mrs. Ames?" and -he shuddered, and started the other way.</p> - -<p>Mr. Ames was starting to get up from the floor. I saw him gazing down -at himself with blank bewilderment, and then he looked across at me. -"What ees thees?" he asked.</p> - -<p>I grinned and turned to O'Graeme—I think it was O'Graeme. "A newcomer -in our midst," I said, jerking a thumb toward Mr. Ames. "Better explain -things to her before she takes her turn in the tank, or she's in for a -worse shock."</p> - -<p>I didn't want to bother with explanations myself, because I'd just -remembered my watch-candid. It could take fifty pictures without -reloading, and I had a reload in my pocket, if I stayed inside my own -coat long enough to use it. It was a Undex B-29, the kind that can -photograph the inside of your hat by starlight.</p> - -<p>Margie came up and touched my arm and said, "Bill?" I nodded, and she -said, "This is me. Kiss me quick while we have a chance."</p> - -<p>It was a proposition I'd never turn down, but I'll admit I looked a bit -scared when I put my arms around her and complied.</p> - -<p>She grinned impishly. "Sure, darling, Mother and Dad are probably -looking, but so what? For all they know it's Mr. Wescott kissing the -maid or your Slane O'Graeme making love to a mermaid, or the Senator—"</p> - -<p>When her lips were free again, she said, "Bill, I took some shots on -your candid before, when I—when I had the chance. Some of them are -wows, too! Look, quick! Don't miss that!"</p> - -<p>I laughed, and swung the candid around to get the shot.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>When I awoke it was ten o'clock, but I felt as though I'd had one -hour's sleep instead of six. At four o'clock in the morning, I'd left -Mr. Ames talking to Slane O'Graeme. And when Mr. Ames had said he'd -want to talk to me in the morning, I'd already kissed my job goodbye.</p> - -<p>The first thing I wanted to do was destroy those all-too-candid shots. -But I wanted to develop them and have a look-see first. Maybe there'd -be one or two mild ones it would be safe to take along as souvenirs.</p> - -<p>I was taking the last of the positives out of the acid when there was a -knock on my door, and I said, "Come in."</p> - -<p>Mr. Ames, wearing a lounging robe, pushed through the door. I made a -mental note to look in the mirror later to see if my face looked as bad -as his. But, surprisingly, he grinned at me and sat down on the edge of -the bed.</p> - -<p>"What a night!" he sighed. "But—"</p> - -<p>"But never again," I finished for him. "Yeah, I feel the same way. That -stuff would have been dynamite to turn loose on the natives."</p> - -<p>He nodded gloomily. "I suppose so, but—Well, it was my fault it's all -gone. There isn't a trace left for analysis, and because it was my -fault, I gave O'Graeme his price for it. Somehow I liked the little -cuss. What're you doing?"</p> - -<p>"Look," I said, and passed him the quick-drying rack.</p> - -<p>He stared from one to another of the shots, and gulped. Then he stared -some more and his face turned red, then pale.</p> - -<p>"Bill," he said, "do you know these photographs would be worth a -million credits to my enemies, and those of Wescott and the Senator? I -hope you're not thinking of—"</p> - -<p>I shook my head firmly. "Just developed them out of curiosity. I'm -destroying them right now, and the films, too. Then if you say so, I'll -leave."</p> - -<p>I took the pictures back and started to tear them up.</p> - -<p>"Leave? Oh, you think I—" He laughed at the gloomy expression on my -face. "Now that you mention it, Bill, you <i>are</i> leaving. I've had you -in mind for the Venusian Branch. We need a good man there to get things -organized. You're taking over on the first."</p> - -<p>I had another picture in my hand to tear up, but my heart was making -flip-flops. Manager of the Venusian Branch! Why, that meant I'd be able -to offer Margie a real home!</p> - -<p>"Uh—Mr. Ames," I said, "Margie and I are in love. We want to get -married."</p> - -<p>He shrugged, his face suddenly gloomy. "Margie's told me that, Bill. -But her mother—Well, you're not blind. You know how much say so -I—Hey, don't tear <i>those</i> up!"</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>The yell was so sudden and unexpected that I jumped and dropped the -rack from which I'd been peeling the pictures while we talked. I'd torn -up only a few.</p> - -<p>Fleming Ames picked up the rack, his eyes gleaming. He looked it over -eagerly and picked off four pictures. I walked around to see which they -were, and grinned as I suddenly understood.</p> - -<p>One was Mrs. Ames seated with her feet on the coffee table smoking -a big black cigar. Another was Mrs. Ames, her hair in wild disarray -and her mouth open, trying to swim across the room. A third was Mrs. -Ames—but why go into details?</p> - -<p>"Bill," said Mr. Ames, his face happier than I'd ever seen it before, -"your wedding day is next Saturday. And that's from a man who -knows—from the present and future boss of the Ames household. And you -can take my new space-cruiser for your honeymoon."</p> - -<p>He stood up and stuck out his hand and I shook it.</p> - -<p>"And Bill," he added wistfully. 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