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Sparx, v. 1, issue 5, October 1947
Page 8
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8 SPARX TAKEOFF: (Continued from page 6.) Fletcher was softly whistling an old hymn tune. He jumped from the car. "Come on over to the commisary. Hot coffee and donuts." The mechanism which is time sense in a liar. All concerned lived a thousand years 'tween six and ten, scurrying back and forth to the spaceship, herding the thousands of onlookers, warding off fanatics who would destroy the "devlish instrument of sin," signing autographs, taking pictures, making speeches, going to the "studio" for the dawn-to-hour-past-zero telecast, checking engines, drinking coffee, smoking, breathing earth atmosphere, and biting fingernails. The first spaceship was going up, and it was up to them to get if off, and back again; the latter part the duty of the astronaughts and engineers who were to be aboard. Tension built up. By ten the field was a mass of faces, silent and staring; fearing. Women fainted. Men fainted. Three technicians collapsed. The crowd was cleared away from the vicinity of the ship. The hands of the clock crept towards the marked positions. Uncounted millions of faces watched from all over the globe, tense and tight lipped. Those at a distance, viewing the momentous moment by television comforted themselves by saying that if there was an explosion they would be safe...not like those curiosity hounds at the field. A blast of smoke. The signal. The windows of the observation barriers were closed and bolted. More smoke. Then a great blast--a pitted crater under the ship--it lifts slowly--wiggles in its course--straightens--slowly, slowly it lifts. It speeds up faster, faster. It is gone in a faint veil of smoke. A sigh of relief pours around the observation barrier. Noses are pressed against the panels for the last glimpse. Fletcher let out a warwhoop that might have been heard in San Francisco. His friend looked on, smiling from ear to ear, as Fletcher released his suppressed emotions by yodeling, then walked off in the direction of the observation post. He had seen Fletch once or twise before in this mood. Next he'd try to find Karen, and try to dance an impassioned jitterbug war-dance. Fletch was that way, genius, yet irresponsible at times. Of course no one could know quiet how he felt over seeing his brainchild leave without him. But if anything went wrong, he'd be needed to continue the fight toward the stars. C'EST TOUT I LIKE TIM'S WORK. DO YOU? I LIKE TIM'S WORK. DO YOU? I LIKE TIM'S VENUS EQUILATERAL (Continued from page 7.) myself to the one new piece of writing in the volume, and to its shortcomings. (Both those of the book, and those of the story.) First off. There are two stories ommited from the work that I feel had a definite place in Venus Equilateral (here after VE). These are the story in which the power tube was discovered on Mars, the title of which escapes me, and "Identity." The former is essential to a good understanding of most of the late stories in the ((Page 9, Please.))
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8 SPARX TAKEOFF: (Continued from page 6.) Fletcher was softly whistling an old hymn tune. He jumped from the car. "Come on over to the commisary. Hot coffee and donuts." The mechanism which is time sense in a liar. All concerned lived a thousand years 'tween six and ten, scurrying back and forth to the spaceship, herding the thousands of onlookers, warding off fanatics who would destroy the "devlish instrument of sin," signing autographs, taking pictures, making speeches, going to the "studio" for the dawn-to-hour-past-zero telecast, checking engines, drinking coffee, smoking, breathing earth atmosphere, and biting fingernails. The first spaceship was going up, and it was up to them to get if off, and back again; the latter part the duty of the astronaughts and engineers who were to be aboard. Tension built up. By ten the field was a mass of faces, silent and staring; fearing. Women fainted. Men fainted. Three technicians collapsed. The crowd was cleared away from the vicinity of the ship. The hands of the clock crept towards the marked positions. Uncounted millions of faces watched from all over the globe, tense and tight lipped. Those at a distance, viewing the momentous moment by television comforted themselves by saying that if there was an explosion they would be safe...not like those curiosity hounds at the field. A blast of smoke. The signal. The windows of the observation barriers were closed and bolted. More smoke. Then a great blast--a pitted crater under the ship--it lifts slowly--wiggles in its course--straightens--slowly, slowly it lifts. It speeds up faster, faster. It is gone in a faint veil of smoke. A sigh of relief pours around the observation barrier. Noses are pressed against the panels for the last glimpse. Fletcher let out a warwhoop that might have been heard in San Francisco. His friend looked on, smiling from ear to ear, as Fletcher released his suppressed emotions by yodeling, then walked off in the direction of the observation post. He had seen Fletch once or twise before in this mood. Next he'd try to find Karen, and try to dance an impassioned jitterbug war-dance. Fletch was that way, genius, yet irresponsible at times. Of course no one could know quiet how he felt over seeing his brainchild leave without him. But if anything went wrong, he'd be needed to continue the fight toward the stars. C'EST TOUT I LIKE TIM'S WORK. DO YOU? I LIKE TIM'S WORK. DO YOU? I LIKE TIM'S VENUS EQUILATERAL (Continued from page 7.) myself to the one new piece of writing in the volume, and to its shortcomings. (Both those of the book, and those of the story.) First off. There are two stories ommited from the work that I feel had a definite place in Venus Equilateral (here after VE). These are the story in which the power tube was discovered on Mars, the title of which escapes me, and "Identity." The former is essential to a good understanding of most of the late stories in the ((Page 9, Please.))
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