Avon Fantasy Reader No. 12 — page 121: what you’re looking at

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

The other rooms were bare but for necessary furniture and clothes. - The three searched the closets until they found warm coats that would fit them. _ “This might seem like stealing,” Millet said, “but well return ther h when we find out just what position we're in.” With stomachs full and warm clothes, Miilet, Weaver and Jolson | stepped out of the house into the street. It was bitterly cold. but there was no wind. The high mountains that surrounded the valley seemed to protect it from too much snow. Not knowing where to go, they » walked aimlessly about the streets. Nowhere coukl they find a single P soul. “They must all be at the factories,” Johuson said. “And the children?” “In schools and nurscrics.” / “But they can't all be in factories and schools,” protested Weaver. “There’s nobody home or in the strects. Nobody!” “Let’s look into a factory,” Millet suggested. In the center of the city they found two factories. Both were of tre- mendous size, stretching for many times the size of a city block. From b their mighty stacks stretched black fingers of smoke. A strange feeling L of age hung about the factory. The windows were unwashed. Here ' and there great cracks were in the walls and through them one could F see the working men within. The dull roar of the two factories was § almost deafening. | “Flow old it seems!” Weaver gasped. “Centuries!” Millet whispered. “Come! Come!” Johnson said Eieiy, “We won't get anywhere gaping like that, Let’s go in this one rere.” » * They walked through the aged gate, into the courtyard, and up the wide steps to the door. They opened it, walked in and almost at once were drowned by the clanging and banging of machines in oper- ation, But above the roar ot the machines there was yet another sound __#he sound of a man’s voice, am lified so that it was a booming mono- tone, overcoming even the shril screeches of drills and presses. “be careful. Always be careful,” the booming voice in the factory rang out. “Do not make mistakes, Efficiency counts above all else. Efficiency! Work carefully, Work carefully. Work carefully. Work carefully and enjoy your work. Enjoy your work. Enjey your work because it is your work, You are working for yourselves. You are working for yourselves. You are working for yourselves . . .” And on it went, repeating over and over again inane advice to work- men, urging them to greater efforts and constantly giving them an added impetus for faster and faster work. “Speed-up deluxe!” Millet said, “What a system!” Inside the factory they saw the working men and women and chil- 119 comicbooks.com