Argosy All-Story Weekly — page 60: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

694 normal speed—some of the red, glowing look was lost; it assumed more its familiar as- pect of our own time world. But still an hour above the horizon as it was now, I could stare at it quite steadily without being blinded.” ‘““T wanted to ask you about that sun,’ “the Big Business Man began. “Is it your idea that the change of climate=9 ‘“‘ Not now,” the ‘Banker objected. Heaven’s sake—”’ “JT was heading east,’ Loto resumed obediently. ‘In another ten minutes I would have been back over Manhattan. “‘ Abruptly a course of action came to me. I would leave the plane secluded some- where and approach the house on foot— quietly. If I could only elude the dogs— not arouse them—I hoped to be able to get into the house and get the girl out. Once I could get her outside and back to the plane. Yes, mamita, it was a foolhardy plan. I realize it now. I know I should not have risked such an attempt. “T flew very low up the Hudson from its mouth. I was afraid I might be seen. Then it suddenly occurred to me how easily I could avoid that for a certainty. I threw the switch of the Proton current into the first and then the second intensity; and be- gan a slow time flight forward through the day simultaneously with my flight up the river. “T found a good hiding place for the plane, on the east bank of the river—a broad, flat sort of gully some two hundred feet wide—I figured this was about abreast of the house— and I lowered the plane into it with the helicopters. It was difficult to do because of my south- ward drift, but I managed it. As I neared the ground I shut off the Proton current and came to rest in time and space almost together. ‘The sun was just setting behind a line of hills across the river. I had not eaten for several hours; I sat in the cabin now and ate, planning exactly what I should do to rescue the girl. ‘‘ Vou will not understand it, gentlemen, but as I sat there alone, with no one to consult, it did not seem to me so desperate an enterprise. My Collinger—no bigger “ For ARGOSY-ALLSTORY WEEKLY. than your hand—would fire soundlessly and smokelessly a dozen bullets in as many sec- ° onds, each capable of killing a human, or one of those dogs. “It was the dogs I was most afraid of. And yet—I had observed from the labora- tory—they did not run loose about the grounds at night, but were trained to stay . in the kennel, which was some distance from the dwelling. Three or four hundred feet perhaps. ‘“‘T decided to start about midnight. My clock gave a totally different hour, of course, from the correct one of that particular time world. But I was planning to leave the plane about six hours after sunset. ‘It was a long evening, but the time finally arrived. I put on my fur coat— one with the fur outside—and went bare- headed. Why? Because I wanted to look as rational to the girl as_ pos- sible. She would be afraid of me at best—a stranger—doubtless more afraid of me than of her captors. I realized fully what a difficulty that would be. An outcry from her—resistance on her part—might lose me everything.” , “* Wouldn’t blame her a bit,” murmured the Big Business Man. ‘‘ A man dropping from nowhere to carry her off—” “Yes, sir,” Loto agreed gravely. ‘“ But my intentions were the best, though she could not know it. Her attitude would be, perhaps my greatest difficulty—and that is why I wanted my general appearance to be as near like the men of her own time world as possible. “T left the plane. Besides the Collinger, I had a hand compass, and a small electric torch. . “Tt was very cold. I scrambled out through the snow, up the side of the gulley to the level land above—a climb of sixty or seventy feet. ‘“‘ The snow was deep, with an underlying surface of snow or ice that would support my weight. Up here on the higher land it was colder than ever. The north wind hit me full; and I had been walking no more than five minutes when it began to snow.” Again Loto faced his mother. “ You will say, mamita, that Providence was surely watching over me. I could not know it oO CoOmicooolks (S@