Genre Short Story. Page - 28

is, Colonel Lamon and others, and he promptly chose Colonel Lamon, who alone accompanied him on his journey from Harrisburg to Philadelphia and thence to Washington.

Before leaving the room Governor Curtin asked Colonel Lamon whether he was armed, and he answered by exhibiting a brace of fine pistols, a huge bowie knife, a black jack, and a pair of brass knuckles. Curtin answered: "You'll do," and they were started on their journey after all the telegraph wires had been cut. We awaited through what seemed almost an endless night, until the east was purpled with the coming of another day, when Colonel Scott, who had managed the whole scheme, reunited the wires and soon received from Colonel Lamon this dispatch: "Plums delivered nuts safely," which gave us the intensely gratifying information that Lincoln had arrived in Washington.

Of all the Presidents of the United States, and indeed of all the great statesmen who have made their indelible impress upon the policy of the Republic, Abraham Lincoln

• Introduction
• Story Of King Shahryar and His Brother
  • a. Tale of the Bull and the Ass
• 1. Tale of the Trader and the Jinni
  • a. The First Shaykh's Story
  • b. The Second Shaykh's Story
  • c. The Third Shaykh's Story
• 2. The Fisherman and the Jinni
  • a. Tale of the Wazir and the Sage Duban
    • ab. Story of King Sindibad and His Falcon
    • ac. Tale of the Husband and the Parrot
    • ad. Tale of the Prince and the Ogress
  • b. Tale of the Ensorcelled Prince
• 3. The Porter and the Three Ladies of Baghdad
  • a. The First Kalandar's Tale
  • b. The Second Kalandar's Tale
    • ba. Tale of the Envier and the Envied
  • c. The Third Kalandar's Tale
  • d. The Eldest Lady's Tale
  • e. Tale of the Portress
  • Conclusion of the Story of the Porter and the Three Ladies
• 4. Tale of the Three Apples
• 5. Tale of Nur Al-din Ali and his Son
• 6. The Hunchback's Tale
  • a. The Nazarene Broker's Story
  • b. The Reeve's Tale
  • c. Tale of the Jewish Doctor
  • d. Tale of the Tailor
  • e. The Barber's Tale of Himself
    • ea. The Barber's Tale of his First Brother
    • eb. The Barber's Tale of his Second Brother
    • ec. The Barber's Tale of his Third Brother
    • ed. The Barber's Tale of his Fourth Brother
    • ee. The Barber's Tale of his Fifth Brother
    • ef. The Barber's Tale of his Sixth Brother
  • The End of the Tailor's Tale

Report back!"

Diane strained her ears for possible re-transmission of the Niccola's signals, which would indicate the Plumie's willingness to try conversation. But she suddenly raised her hand and pointed to the radar-graph instrument. It repeated the positioning of dots which were stray meteoric matter in the space between worlds in this system. What had been a spot--the Plumie ship--was now a line of dots. Baird pressed the button.

"Radar reporting!" he said curtly. "The Plumie ship is heading for us. I'll have relative velocity in ten seconds."

He heard the skipper swear. Ten seconds later the Doppler measurement became possible. It said the Plumie plunged toward the Niccola at miles per second. In half a minute it was tens of miles per second. There was no re-transmission of signals. The Plumie ship had found itself discovered. Apparently it considered itself attacked. It flung itself into a headlong dash for the Niccola.

* * * * *

Time pa

voice says. "Do you want us to check the basement, to see if they have a freezer or food storage units?"

The boss lady is scrolling through her palm computer. "Jason and Rodrigio can do that. Download their records, Kayla."

"Yes; Ma'am." Kayla walks over to the table. "I need to download your records." 

"I thought medical records were confidential."

The boss lady snorts indignantly. "That was a relic of the old free world. We got rid of that nonsense when we took over. Medical records are transparent, so health officials can determine if people are engaging in unhealthy activities. Give Kayla your bracelet."

There is a pleading look in Kayla's eyes as she makes eye contact with Zack.

Zack doesn't want to make things difficult for her. He removes his bracelet and turns it over to her to download. The bracelets were originally worn by seriously ill senior citizens and automatically notified ambulance crews of heart attacks or other medical emergencies. Their funct

work. If you occasionally find the posture uncomfortable, do not think of it as false or artificial; it is real because it is difficult.

It allows the target to feel honoured by the dignity of the archer.

Elegance is not the most comfortable of postures, but it is the best posture if the shot is to be perfect.

Elegance is achieved when everything superfluous has been discarded, and the archer discovers simplicity and concentration; the simpler and more sober the posture, the more beautiful.

The snow is lovely because it has only one colour, the sea is lovely because it appears to be a completely flat surface, but both sea and snow are deep and know their own qualities.

6. How to hold the Arrow

To hold the arrow is to be in touch with your own intention.

You must look along the whole length of the arrow, check that the feathers guiding its flight are well placed, and make sure that the point is sharp.

Ensure that it is straight and that it has not b

you've got bad luck when future chance events won't go your way. Scientific investigations into this have been inconclusive, but everyone knows that some people are lucky and others aren't. All we've got are hints and glimmers, the fumbling touch of a rudimentary talent. There's the evil eye legend and the Jonah, bad luck bringers. Superstition? Maybe; but ask the insurance companies about accident prones. What's in a name? Call a man unlucky and you're superstitious. Call him accident prone and that's sound business sense. I've said enough.

"All the same, search the space-flight records, talk to the actuaries. When a ship is working perfectly and is operated by a hand-picked crew of highly trained men in perfect condition, how often is it wrecked by a series of silly errors happening one after another in defiance of probability?

"I'll sign off with two thoughts, one depressing and one cheering. A single Chingsi wrecked our ship and our launch. What could a whole planetful of them do?

uty clung to her father in terror, which became all the greater when she saw how frightened he was. But when the Beast really appeared, though she trembled at the sight of him, she made a great effort to hide her horror, and saluted him respectfully.

This evidently pleased the Beast. After looking at her he said, in a tone that might have struck terror into the boldest heart, though he did not seem to be angry:

"Good-evening, old man. Good-evening, Beauty."

The merchant was too terrified to reply, but Beauty answered sweetly:

"Good-evening, Beast."

"Have you come willingly?" asked the Beast. "Will you be content to stay here when your father goes away?"

Beauty answered bravely that she was quite prepared to stay.

"I am pleased with you," said the Beast. "As you have come of your own accord, you may stay. As for you, old man," he added, turning to the merchant, "at sunrise to-morrow you will take your departure. When the bell rings get up quickly and eat your br

ring accidents, was an adventure for volunteers.

The population of the United States was stabilized at forty-million souls.

One bright morning in the Chicago Lying-in Hospital, a man named Edward K. Wehling, Jr., waited for his wife to give birth. He was the only man waiting. Not many people were born a day any more.

Wehling was fifty-six, a mere stripling in a population whose average age was one hundred and twenty-nine.

X-rays had revealed that his wife was going to have triplets. The children would be his first.

Young Wehling was hunched in his chair, his head in his hand. He was so rumpled, so still and colorless as to be virtually invisible. His camouflage was perfect, since the waiting room had a disorderly and demoralized air, too. Chairs and ashtrays had been moved away from the walls. The floor was paved with spattered dropcloths.

The room was being redecorated. It was being redecorated as a memorial to a man who had voluntee

The Purloined Letter
The Thousand-and-Second Tale of Scheherezade
A Descent into the Maelström
Von Kempelen and his Discovery
Mesmeric Revelation
The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar
The Black Cat
The Fall of the House of Usher
Silence -- a Fable
The Masque of the Red Death
The Cask of Amontillado
The Imp of the Perverse
The Island of the Fay
The Assignation
The Pit and the Pendulum
The Premature Burial
The Domain of Arnheim
Landor's Cottage
William Wilson
The Tell-Tale Heart
Berenice
Eleonora

Joy's eyes were upon mine.

"Darling! I didn't have the least idea. Why, it's going to be wonderful! Never a dull moment!"

I kissed my bride, after which she said, "I think I could do with a drink, sweetheart."

"Your wish is my command."

I got up and started toward the liquor supply inside the house. Joy's soft call stopped me.

"What is it, angel?" I inquired.

"Not just a drink, sweet. Bring the bottle."

I went into the kitchen and got a bottle of brandy. But upon returning, I discovered I'd neglected to bring glasses.

But Joy took the bottle from me in a rather dazed manner, knocked off the neck against a leg of the bench and tipped the bottle to her beautiful lips. She took a pull of brandy large enough to ward off the worst case of pneumonia and then passed the bottle to Bag Ears.

"Drink hearty, pal," she murmured, and sort of sank down into herself.

I never got my turn at the bott