Authentic Science Fiction Monthly No. 47 — page 106: what you’re looking at

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

oo THE DAY OF ALL ELSE had been like when he was twenty-five. But memories are like books—if you don’t use them they get stale and faded. Can’t seem to get the pictures right, as though a few of the pages have fallen out and got lost. Thinking of John again he began to wish that he could somehow warn him. Not in words, perhaps, but in some way which would prevent him devoting his life to the void. Of course, if he got married... An idea began to form and he smiled softly. If he were to meet Sheila Stewart. Surely something would come of that. A rich young woman travelling home to Earth after visiting her father on Vellus, and he owned a cilium mine worth millions. What more could a man want? Apart from the fact that she was beautiful. His thoughts were inter- rupted by the approach of footsteps and, with a sigh of relief, he began to gather up his odds and ends. She prob- ably wouldn’t even look at him. “Evening, Bill. Everything allright ?”’ asked John Shirlow. 165 “‘We’re moving, aren’t we ?”’ he answered, grumpily. r “Just asking.” “Oh, by the way, John,” he said, turning at the door, “have you met Miss Stewart yet ?” The question had been asked out of curiosity, in the vague hope that, perhaps, he had met her in the mess. He was wholly unprepared for the mixture of emotions that swept across John’s face. “What if I have?’ John finally blurted. “I may be only a junior officer, but ’m entitled to speak to the pas- sengers .. . even if she is very rich and..and very...” ‘Fine, fine,’ Bill cut in. “Only wanted to know. Other- wise I would have introduced you.” On the way back to his cabin Bill gloated over the incident. Obviously John had fallen for the girl. Why else would he become so em- barrassed, and then so angry? He was still thinking of ways and means when he climbed into his bunk and switched off the lights. } It seemed that his eyes had hardly closed before someone [email protected]