Astounding Science Fiction, British Edition, December 1955 — page 51: what you’re looking at

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

THE WAITABITS 49 to launch itself then glides to wherever it’s going. On Earth it couldn’t catch a weary gnat.” “Did you make a record of it?” “No, sir. The last magazine was in the camera and I didn’t want to waste strip. I didn’t know if anything more important might turn up later.” “All right.” Leigh watched the other depart, picked up the phone, said to Shallom, “If those ’copter reels prove sharp enough for long-range beaming, you’d better run off an extra copy for the signals room. Have them boost it to Sector Nine for relay to Earth.” As he put down the phone Romero entered looking desperate. ““Commo- dore, could you get the instrument mechs to concoct a phenakistoscope with a revolution-counter attached?” “We can make anything, positively anything,’ chimed in Pascoe from near the port. ““Given enough centuries in which to do it.” Ignoring the interruption, Leigh asked, ‘““What do you want it for?” ““Hoffnagle and Nolan think we could use it to measure the precise optical register of those sluggards outside. If we can find out at what minimum speed they see pictures merge into motion it would be a great help.” ““Wouldn’t the ship’s movie projector serve the same purpose?” “It isn’t sufficiently variable,’ Romero objected. “Besides, we can’t operate it independently of our own power supply. A phenakistoscope can be carried around and cranked by hand.” “This becomes more fascinating every moment,’’ Pascoe interjected. “It can be cranked. Add a few more details and I'll start to get a hazy idea of what the darned thing is.” Taking no notice of that either, Leigh got through to Shallom again, put the matter to him. | ‘““Holy Moses!” ejaculated Shallom. ““The things we get asked for! Who thought up that one?” A pause, followed by, “‘It will take two days.” “Two days,” Leigh repeated to Romero. The other looked aghast. ‘““What’s eating you?’’ asked Pascoe. ““I'wo days to get started on measur- ing visual retention is mighty fast in this world. You're on Eterna now. Adapt, boy, adapt!” Leigh eyed Pascoe carefully and said, “Becoming rather pernickety this last hour or two, aren’t you?” ‘“Not yet. I have several dregs of patience left. When the last of them has trickled away you can lock me in the brig because I’ll be nuts.” ‘Don’t worry. We’re about to have some action.” ‘““Haha!”’ said Pascoe disrespectfully. “We'll drag out the patrol wagon, go to town and have a look around in the middle of them.” “About time, too,’’ Pascoe indorsed. b The armored, eight-seater car rumbled down the ramp on heavy cater- pillars, squatted in the clover. Only a short, flared nozzle in its bonnet and another in its tail revealed the presence of button-controlled Ce ie COMICOOKS. com