University of California Berkeley
Gift of
ARTHUR L. NORBERG
HIS WISDOM
THE DEFENDER
BY SIMON NEWCOMB
HARPER & BROTHERS
New York and London
M-D-C-C-C-C
Copyright, 1900, by HARPER & BROTHERS.
All rights rtstnta.
Contents
PAGE
PROLOGUE vii
I. AN UNCANNY WORKSHOP 1
II. THE CITY OP THE POTOMAC 16
III. AN ITALIAN ROMANCE 32
IV. THE ANGELIC ORDER OF SERAPHIM 44
V. THE FIRST MOTES 66
VI. MYSTERY ON MYSTERY 74
VII. AND ANOTHER FOR THE DUKE 92
VIII. THE GREAT UNVEILING 102
IX. A VOYAGE THROUGH SPACE 120
X. How THE WORLD RECEIVED THE NEWS ... 144
XI. THE RED-HEADED MAN SCORES THE GREATEST
"BEAT" IN THE HISTORY OF JOURNALISM . . 165
XII. OUR HERO MAKES A CLEAN BREAST .... 187
XIII. THE MYSTERIOUS EXPEDITION . , . . . . . . 206
XIV. THE ATTACK ON THE GERMAN ARMIES. ... 221
XV. A CAPTIVE EMPEROR 241
XVI. THE NAVAL ATTACK ON ELBA 257
XVII. THE FRENCH ATTEMPT ON THE CYNTHIA . . . 276
XVIII. AUSTRIA THREATENS CHECKMATE 293
XIX. THE DAWN 304
XX. THE PROCLAMATION 314
XXI. RAH ! RAH ! RAH ! THE DEFENDER . 326
Prologue
WE who live in this Golden Age never tire of
comparing our happy lot with the backward condition
of our forefathers. We need not go further back
than the beginning of the century now closing to
see the striking contrast between our powers over
nature and theirs. Did we not have historical evi-
dence of the fact, it would be scarcely credible to the
rising generation that nearly half of this century
had elapsed before such a thing as a mote was known
or even imagined; before the words etherine and
therm were found in any dictionary. We can hard-
ly imagine what a dull life even the greatest and
most powerful men must have lived. President
Reed never took a spin round the world. He never
saw the Antarctic glacier, or even knew of its exist-
ence. He never set foot upon the North Pole. He
never looked down on the clouds from the window
of a himote. Had any one told him that before he
had been dead thirty years it would be an every-
day occurrence for a merchant to talk with a fur-
rier in Siberia and a leather dealer in Australia on
vti
Prologue
the same day, he would have looked upon the speak-
er as Washington would have looked upon a prophet
of the ocean cable and what men would do with it.
The idea of utilizing the action of ether on matter,
simple though it seems to us, never entered the mind
of any nineteenth-century philosopher.
As all our readers are aware, the history of the
steps by which the Golden Age was inaugurated, and
the evils which afflicted humanity removed, has been
enveloped in great mystery. We well know that the
revolution was brought about by the first Defender,
whose work, for reasons which he deemed imperative,
was carried on in profound secrecy. But recently
his successor has permitted the publication of a great
mass of historical documents bearing on the subject.
These are, however, too voluminous to be read by a
busy man. We have, therefore, by their aid, and by
a diary which has been placed at our disposal, pre-
pared a brief history of such part of the first De-
fender's life and work as has hitherto been unknown
to the public.
His Wisdom the Defender
An Uncanny Workshop
AiONG the historic monuments so carefully
f
preserved in the university town of Cam-
bridge, in the State of Massachusetts, the
one which attracts most visitors is, in its aspect, the
least attractive of all. It is nothing more than a
long, unsightly old house, whose sixty feet of front
are unbroken by a single ornament. Its material is
the rough red brick of the early years of the century.
The joints between the bricks have never been smooth-
ed except by the trowel that originally fashioned
them. The window-sills and caps are of wood, paint-
ed white. Not even a branch of ivy variegates the
walls which, at the top of their three stories, are
surmounted by an old-fashioned tile roof, sloping
to the front and back. The only visible doorway is
but the breadth of an ordinary room from the east
end. If a visitor unacquainted with the history of
A 1
His Wisdom the Defender
the place, as we assume the reader to be, should won-
der why so ugly and seemingly useless an old trap
had not long ago given way to the two or three mod-
ern houses that could have found room on its site,
an answer would at once have been suggested by its
situation. It fronts on a narrow lane leading out
from the little-frequented Church Street, where no
one would ever look for a residence unless he want-
ed to be forgotten by the world.
As our visitor went through the house he would
find nothing to explain the mystery. Passing through
a narrow vestibule, he would see before him an en-
trance hall, with a door on each side and a stairway
in the rear. If he opened either of the doors he
would see nothing but bare plastered walls and old
oak furniture, of which the uniformity is not re-
lieved by a trace of ornament. But few stop for
this, and we in imagination may follow the crowd.
The attractive part of the house is in the third story,
and thither we mount with the others. But even
when we get there our curiosity would be whetted
rather than gratified. We should see nothing but
what might be collected from a few sufficiently old
and dilapidated blacksmith and carpenter shops.
What can people see here to interest them?
To answer this question we must ask the reader
to go back with us two generations while we describe
the place as it would then have been seen. There
was one particular evening when the scene within
would have raised our curiosity to the highest pitch.
2
An Uncanny Workshop
This was Thursday, May 15, 1941. The hour is of
great importance; let us make our visit at nine
o'clock. Mounting to the third story, we see a door
on each side of the hall, as in the stories below. That
on the right has nailed to it a printed card :
Professor Campbell.
The opposite door bears the forbidding sign
No Admittance.
Having taken the liberty of choosing our time,
we take the further liberty of paying no attention
to this warning. Entering the forbidden door, we
should have found ourselves in a study, rather nar-
row, but extending along the whole breadth of the
building. Seeing nothing but a lounge, tables,
chairs, and four walls covered with books, we should
have wondered why visitors should be excluded.
But looking around we should have noticed a door
facing the one by which we entered, with the same
sign painted on it in large capitals. Of course, after
going thus far the mandate would not have stopped
us. Opening the second door, we should have found
ourselves in a room of ample size. The walls on
one side were without windows, while on the other
side they were pierced for two, which, however, were
closed by solid wooden shutters. There was no ceil-
ing; the roof of the building was that of the room.
It was pierced with four skylights on each slope,
sufficient to give ample light during the day. At
3
His Wisdom the Defender
the hour of which we speak, the place was brilliant
with electric lights.
Looking around him, the visitor would have been
unable to decide whether he was in a physical labo-
ratory, a workshop, or a garret for the deposit of old
junk. Two turning-lathes, a small forge, chemical
and electrical apparatus, a carpenter's bench, count-
less old bottles, half of them filled with chemicals,
balls of cord, bundles of rope, and every kind of tool
used by carpenters or blacksmiths would have sug-
gested to us the laboratory of some twentieth-century
Faust.
At the hour in question the room had three occu-
pants, two of whom were preparing to leave for the
night. From their garb they were evidently work-
men. They laid aside their tools, put on their coats,
and departed. The third, who seemed to be their
employer, followed them through the study, care-
fully locked and tried the door after them, then, re-
turning, locked the inner door with equal care.
Thus left alone he would have riveted our attention
both by his appearance and his movements.
In build he was a man of medium height, but slen-
der and wiry. His ample supply of dark-brown hair
and his full though thin beard betokened one dis-
posed to avoid the barber's chair. His dark, quick-
moving eyes had an anxious look. Two characters
seemed to be combined in his person the business
man and the philosopher. It would have been diffi-
cult to decide which element was the dominant one.
4
An Uncanny Workshop
His photograph would have suggested nothing but a
keen, active man of business. But no sooner had
his workmen gone than he fell into the brown study
appropriate to a mathematical professor.
Whatever his calling, he evidently wished to be
enveloped in mystery. When he felt himself alone
he glanced furtively around on all sides, even scan-
ning the skylights with the greatest solicitude, as if
to make sure that no indiscreet eye was prying into
his doings. Every now and then, sometimes when
walking across the room, he stood still for a moment,
evidently buried deep in thought; then as suddenly
darted forward.
On one side of the room, set in the wall, was a
high but shallow safe. Near it the wall was pene-
trated by a key-hole, so minute that no one would
have noticed it except on careful examination. The
man took a key from his vest-pocket, put it into this
hole and opened a small and almost invisible door.
Here was nothing but a closet with one shelf, on the
inner corner of which lay another key. He took
the latter, and with it opened the safe. From the
safe he took what looked like a polished metal rod,
four feet long and about an inch in diameter, round-
ed off at each end. He carried it carefully to the
middle of the room and stood it up. Left to itself,
it behaved as rod never did before; it stood alone.
Worse still, it refused to fall down, even when the
little man pressed against it. He could only make
the bottom slide along the floor as fast as the upper
5
His Wisdom the Defender
part was moved. Placing his foot against the bot-
tom to keep it from sliding, he seized the top and
swung himself around to get the rod out of its per-
pendicular position, but in vain.
Determined, it would seem, to enforce the law of
gravitation, he continued the experiment by screw-
ing firmly to the floor a small block of wood with a
hole in the centre. He stood the rod in this hole.
Near him was a cord and several heavy weights.
The cord passed around a pulley and had suspended
to its lower end a scale-pan, in which the weights
could be put. The cord was then attached to the up-
per part of the rod as if to force it out of the perpen-
dicular position if possible. But the heaviest weight
that the cord could bear did not appear to budge the
rod. The little man made a record of the weight,
and with some sort of a small optical instrument
was evidently measuring the minute amount, invisi-
ble to our unpractised eyes, by which the rod could
be made to diverge.
The trial of the rod completed, he carried it back
to the safe, it retaining its vertical position all the
while, and stood it carefully up in its original place.
He then took from the shelf of the safe something
which, at first sight, looked like a tall half-gallon
mug. But it had no bottom, being nothing but a hol-
low cylinder, perhaps a foot high and three inches
in diameter, with a handle. It was of a black
substance, which shone with a metallic lustre,
though the color was not that of any metal. It was
6
An Uncanny Workshop
surrounded at top and bottom by thin metallic rings,
in which were set clamps for holding wires. On a
stand near the chimney-piece was an electric battery.
He set the implement upon the hearth and connected
the wires of the battery with it. He then took from
the work-bench a roll of copper wire, cut off a piece
about a yard in length, and returned to the hearth.
He took the mug in his left hand, and with the other
held the wire so that it passed vertically through the
centre of the cylinder. In a few seconds the portion
of the wire within the mug was white-hot, then it
began to melt and run to the hearth in drops; and
yet all the while the implement was so cool that he
held it in his hand.
Then he held a pipe-stem in the centre in place of
the wire. Soon white frost began to collect on the
outside of the mug, while the pipe became red-hot.
But nothing else occurred. With a look of disap-
pointment he took a hollow spirit-lamp, shaped
like the lamp of a light-house, lit it, and placed the
mug within the flame. Then, placing the pipe-stem
in the centre, it grew red-hot, white-hot, and at
length melted down and fell on the hearth in metallic
drops.
Going back to the safe, he next took from it an
article of clothing. It was a close-fitting leather
coat, fastened to the outside of which were a number
of tubes of the size and shape of small organ-pipes.
When the little man arrayed himself in this coat he
stood in the centre of the circle of pipes and looked
7
His Wisdom the Defender
as if an organist might have played a tune on him.
The coat was a very close fit. He buttoned it as
tightly as if he feared it would be torn off. He then
walked to the carpenter's bench, on which lay an in-
strument looking like a pair of wooden pincers
about four feet long. Near them lay two or three
little round metal handles, rather more than a hand's-
bre^dth long. Simple though these things looked,
he seemed afraid to touch or even approach them.
He carefully took hold of the long pincers, and,
reaching out his arm, took the handles one by one
and laid them on the floor. Near where he put
them a solid staple had been driven firmly into the
floor. He then took a piece of cord some twenty feet
long, tied one end to his foot and fastened the other
end to the staple, as if he were a cow allowed to graze,
but secured from running away. As soon as the
knots were tied he tested each of them by a pull this
way and that with all his strength, as if resolved to
make escape impossible. Then he stooped cautious-
ly to where the handles were lying and took one in
each hand, being careful at first to hold both at arm's-
length. He gradually brought them closer to his
body, holding them in a vertical position.
As they approached the organ-pipes, the reason
for his caution became evident. The little man be-
gan to rise from the floor as the spiritual mediums
were said to do a hundred years ago, and was very
soon nearly up to the roof, being prevented from
striking it and perhaps passing through it only by
8
An Uncanny Workshop
the rope with which his leg was tied. As he moved
the handles slightly from him he began to descend.
He then proceeded to amuse himself by alternately
swinging up and down in the way described. He
could apparently move in any direction he might
choose through the air, by a very slight inclination
of the handles. Holding them in one way, he swung
round and round a circle having for its radius the
length of the rope; holding them another way, he
swung in the reverse direction. And, all the while,
he kept peering round as if fearful that he might be
seen.
Having completed this exercise to his satisfaction,
he returned slowly to the floor, untied the rope from
his leg, and deposited the handles in the little closet
where the key of the safe was kept. He removed his
organ-pipe coat, replaced it carefully in the safe,
and took from the latter what seemed like a smooth
wooden log, drew it to the middle of the room, and
carefully fastened it at the end of the same rope with
which he had been tied, evidently to keep it from
running away. He then sat astride of the log, look-
ing like a man riding an alligator. The careful ob-
server would have noticed two holes on opposite
sides of the log near the forward end. From each
of these projected a little lever. The would-be rider
seized these levers in his fingers and gave them a
slight turn. Immediately the log, with him on it,
rose in the air until it was at the full height of the
rope. He then rode around, evidently to his great
9
His Wisdom the Defender
amusement, with motions much the same as those he
had made with the organ-pipe coat. Looking round
to be sure he could not be heard, he laughed heartily
to himself, so much did he enjoy the sport. When he
had satisfied himself he descended to the ground by
simply taking hold of the levers, guided the log alli-
gator back to the safe as if it had been a tame
animal, and returned it to its place. The secrecy
which he threw around his operations was clearly
justified, unless he wished to make the looker-on
doubt the evidence of his senses or lose confidence in
the law of gravitation.
Again a fit of abstraction came over him, which
lasted several minutes. Then he took a large folio
blank-book, very strongly bound, from the safe, placed
it on the work-bench, took a seat in front of it, and
proceeded to write. It was evidently a diary.
When he had finished his entry, which took some
time, the book was returned to the safe, the latter
locked, and the key itself again locked up in the
closet with the greatest care, and the key of the
closet returned to his vest-pocket. Looking care-
fully to see that all was secure, he extinguished the
electric lights and left the room.
His experiments finished, he looked around in the
adjoining study for something to read. The books
with which the long walls were lined were of the
most heterogeneous character. Scientific text-books,
histories, old folios, with the writings of the Church
fathers, law books, especially works on international
10
An Uncanny Workshop
law, old English state trials, and collections of
all sorts were mixed up in the utmost confusion.
Apparently quite at random, he took down a folio,
Grotius's De Lege belli et pads, in the original Lat-
in, sat down and began to read. He could not have
been much interested, for he soon began to nod.
Probably he only used the book as a soporific after
his exciting experiences, for he now arose and pre-
pared to retire. He locked all the doors with the ut-
most care, tried each to make sure that there was no
failure on the part of the keys to perform their func-
tion, put them in his pocket, went across to the rooms
on the opposite side of the passage, which formed his
reception and sleeping apartments, and retired to his
bed.
The morning after these queer proceedings Presi-
dent Winthrop was sitting in his office. Professor
Campbell was announced.
" Mr. President, I have called to apprise you of
my resignation."
The president knew that Campbell generally used
the English language to carry a point by assault
rather than by regular approaches. But he fancied
that his manner was even more abrupt than usual,
as if he had come with an ultimatum to be immedi-
ately and unconditionally accepted.
" If you will allow me to be as abrupt as your-
self, I reply that your resignation will not be ac- (
cepted."
11
His Wisdom the Defender
" Not accepted ! But if I stop work and leave,
what is the corporation going to do about it? This
is not a military organization."
" The corporation will do just this it will give
you leave of absence for a year. You have been
entitled to your sabbatical year for some time, and
now you shall have it. Scofield was here only ten
minutes ago proposing that you should be forced to
take it. We know that you have been overworked,
and you must travel abroad and cease to think of
your work here. This will be even better than ac-
cepting your resignation."
" But I do not propose to travel abroad. The fact
is, I intend to completely change my occupation and
go into business. If the university chooses to give me
a year's leave of absence with that understanding, I
have no objection."
" Of course, I have no right to inquire into the
matter, but if you choose to tell me what business
you expect to undertake, that information might be
useful in enabling the corporation- to decide upon a
course."
" Well, I propose to go into a manufacturing busi-
ness. First of all I shall start a brick-yard."
It took the president some moments to recover the
power of speech.
" You do not expect me to take you seriously.
The idea of the Professor of Molecular Physics in
Harvard University resigning to make brick may
do well in a comic paper, but can hardly be discussed
before the corporation of the university."
An Uncanny Workshop
" I did not say I was going to do nothing but make
brick ; I said that was the first thing I should under-
take. The fact is, there are cogent reasons, which I
am not at liberty to set forth, which make me desire
to proceed as quietly as possible in my enterprise,
exciting neither remark nor surprise on the part of
any one. I wish to disappear from the public gaze,
with no notice whatever, if such a thing be possible,
from my friends or the newspapers. The latter will
be sure to find me out quicker than I want to be
found out, but I shall postpone the evil day as long
as I can."
" Are you not willing to solve for me, in the most
private and confidential way if you wish, the mys-
tery of your speech ? You must see how enigmatical
the situation is, as you present it."
" You know that I have very great confidence
in your discretion; and yet I am not at liberty to
unravel what may seem to you a mystery. I see as
well as you do the reasonableness of your standpoint.
But I will tell you one thing, if you will solemnly
promise to keep it an absolute secret."
"As between knowing nothing and knowing a
secret, I shall for the moment take the part of a wom-
an and choose the secret. So you may rely on my
confidence and talk freely."
" If the day ever comes when my enterprise
succeeds and all my hopes are realized, that day
will be the greatest in the history of the world."
The two 'men looked at each other for a mo-
ment in silence: the one to see the effect of his
13
His Wisdom the Defender
words; the other wondering if his companion was
really sane.
" How you talk ! Is that all you have to say ?"
" That is all. I hope it is enough."
" Then I will bring the matter before the corpo-
ration, set forth the absolute necessity of giving you
a year's relief from your work, and ask that you be
allowed to take your sabbatical year without any
questions as to where you shall go or what you shall
do."
" Thank you. Please remember that I want the
fact of my retirement kept secret as long as possible.
I delivered my last lecture for the term yesterday,
so there is no occasion that any one should notice
my absence. I may at some future day have oc-
casion to take you into my confidence. For the pres-
ent, good-morning."
The president was deeply concerned. Either one
of his favorite professors had gone completely daft
or something incredible was going to occur. Were
Campbell addicted to rhetorical exaggeration, some
escape from the dilemma might have been possible.
Knowing him to be the most exact of men in his
talk, there was none. The president could not dis-
guise from himself that the unfavorable horn of the
dilemma was the more likely one. Two generations
had passed without a scientific discovery that could
be called epoch-making. Investigators had, to all
appearance, found out everything of a radical nat-
ure that was to be learned, and were now quietly
It
An Uncanny Workshop
developing new phases of the known. How unlikely
that one of them, without any premonitory an-
nouncement, would be able to make a revolution in
human affairs. And, granting that a revolution was
possible, how could it possibly begin with a brick-
yard?
H
The City of the Potomac
IF we had, at the time our history begins, searched
the whole land east of the Mississippi to find
some nook into which the forces of modern civ-
ilization had never been able to penetrate, we might
well have hit upon a certain bend in the Potomac
River less than a hundred miles south of Washing-
ton. In the peninsula thus formed no railway had
ever been seen. What little produce was raised by
the farmers found its way to market from occasional
steamboat landings. ~No one had ever wanted to
move into such a place, and so it happened that the
land had remained in the families which held it
for I know not how many generations. The ances-
tral houses in various stages of decay were scattered
at great distances, and the only society which their
inhabitants enjoyed was that afforded by an occasion-
al frolic, coming off once a year, perhaps, when some
farmer would invite all the inhabitants of the pen-
insula to a dance.
Great, therefore, was the surprise of Farmer Will-
iams's household one fine morning when the children
16
The City of the Potomac
came running into the house in a condition of great
excitement.
" Oh, Pop ! there's somebody a-comin' in a bug-
" Boy, you're crazy ! Who would ever come here
in a buggy ?"
" I don't know, but if you look out you'll see."
The father went to the door, and, sure enough, the
boy was right. A person attired like a city gentle-
man was driving up in a more respectable-looking
vehicle than was usual in those parts. A cigar in
his mouth added greatly to the effect. It is very
surprising how much more impressive a man driving
a carriage looks when he has a cigar in his mouth.
Tt gives him the appearance of knowing exactly what
he is about of being master of the situation, in fact.
The result of the city gentleman's visit to the
region was that a few weeks later sundry deeds, con-
veying large areas of land to Archibald Camp-
bell, were duly recorded in the land records of the
county seat. The whole of Peter's Island was in-
cluded, Campbell deeming the possession of an isl-
and necessary to the protection of some of his works
from the curiosity of the public.
A few days later the new owner, accompanied by
his attorney and a surveying-party, had engaged a
river tug to make an inspection of his possessions.
As the party were stepping into it, an unlooked-for
interruption occurred.
" I was just going to engage a boat for a little
B IT
His Wisdom the Defender
excursion down the river. I see you gentlemen are
on a similar errand. If it would be agreeable to
you to join with me, I should be very glad to pay my
share of the expense."
Campbell looked at the new-comer with amazement.
He was a short and rather plump young man, of a de-
cidedly florid complexion round, unwrinkled face
and bright-red hair and mustache. His prevailing tint
had even entered his eyes. His rubicund visage
was illuminated by what was intended to be a very
pleasant smile. In the eyes of Campbell it was the
most repulsive leer he had ever seen. The cool au-
dacity of the proposal filled him with a surprise
which must have been quite evident to its maker.
But the latter was unaffected by the unpleasant im-
pression he had made. As Campbell mutely sur-
veyed him he surveyed back, and his manner, smile,
and expression all seemed to say, " E"ow you need
not put on any airs with me. I have got your meas-
ure exactly, and know who and what you are. It
is for you to accept or decline my offer, as you may
deem best. But no expressions of either courtesy or
contempt will have the slightest effect upon me."
It took our friend several seconds to decide what
to say.
" We are going on more than a mere excursion,
and may not return for two or three days. Under
any circumstances we do not desire additional com-
pany."
All right ; good-morning."
18
The City of the Potomac
As the two men boarded the tug, they saw the red-
headed man engaging another at the next wharf be-
low. It seemed a little puzzling that a lone man
should hire a tug to make an excursion 'on his own
account.
In a few minutes more steam was up and the
party making its way down the river at a moderate
speed. As they passed the next wharf the red-head-
ed man gazed upon them, his smile undiminished,
and his placidity undisturbed. They had not got
half a mile down the river when the other tug had
got up steam and was following them. Through his
glass Campbell could see the red-headed man sitting
in the bow, calmly smoking a cigar. The pursuer
slowly gained upon them, and at Alexandria was not
a hundred yards in the rear.
" I think," said Campbell, " we may as well let
that fellow go past us. I have not brought along
any materials for notes or sketches. So let us stop
here a moment and buy pencils and paper. No doubt
we shall find a stationery shop near the wharf."
So the tug fastened to a wharf, while he inquired
the way to the nearest shop and made his purchase.
Meanwhile the other tug passed and then slowed up.
When he returned to his tug it was less than a mile
below, and scarcely making headway. There was no
time to lose, because it was desired to commence the
inspection, if possible, before nightfall. Under a
full head of steam the other tug was soon reached.
The red-headed man was still placidly smoking his
19
His Wisdom the Defender
cigar, and bestowed only a glance upon the other
party as it passed. But by this time his tug was
making more rapid progress, and was soon again fol-
lowing them at a distance of a few hundred yards.
" That fellow is evidently out to watch us/' said
Campbell. " Do get away from him if possible.
Here, Captain, put on all the steam your boilers will
stand and get out of sight of the rascal."
But the other tug was nearly as fast as theirs.
The black smoke from their own funnel was soon
followed by black smoke from the other; her bows
dashed up foam on both sides; the distance apart
was only increased half a mile. Campbell turned
to his companion.
" Has that fellow a right to follow us up this way \
I am quite unacquainted with the law in such a case
as this. Here we are, going down the river on our
own private business, and the idle scamp turns out
to follow us up. Can we do anything lawful to stop
him?"
" I fear nothing can be done at the moment. He
would claim that the river was free ; and if there is
any law for the case, we could only enforce it by
returning at least to Alexandria to sue out an in-
junction. That would make our expedition public
with a vengeance."
" Can you imagine what he is after ?"
" I may have my suspicions, but they are not
worth much. Let us wait and see."
They had only to wait till they could get a copy
20
The City of the Potomac
of the next day's New York Herald. As Campbell
looked over it, a heading caught his eye. There was
a despatch, a column long, " from our Washington
correspondent." It began as follows:
A NEW LAND COMPANY.
Project for Improving the Loicer Potomac.
A syndicate, having its headquarters in Boston, is about to es-
tablish a new watering-place on the lower Potomac. A well-
known real-estate dealer in Baltimore and a distinguished Har-
vard Professor are the active promoters of the scheme. A site
has already been selected near Nanjemoy. A large hotel will
soon be erected, which, it is thought, will attract many Bostonians
iu search of a mild winter climate. . . .
The history of Campbelltown, the great manufact-
uring city of the Potomac, has been so often writ-
ten that we need not repeat it. But the diary of
the founder has recently come into our possession,
and shed so new a light upon the beginning of his
enterprise that we transcribe some passages :
" June 18, 1941. I have murder in my heart.
A Herald man has located my enterprise before
I got it started. I must go on in the broad light
of publicity. This is annoying, but, after all, my
secret cannot be endangered. No one else has ever
conceived of a substance whose vibrations could re-
act on the ether of space in such a way as to fly
through it as a bird flies through the air. If I
should talk of etherine, as I call it, no one would
know what I meant. And yet I am superstitious
enough to feel troubled.
21
His Wisdom the Defender
" June 23, 1941. Here I am, ready to begin work.
What the end shall be I cannot foresee. It seems
contrary to all human experience to suppose that
one man should be able to revolutionize the world
without letting his fellow-men know what he is
about. I fear that when I have everything ready
for the decisive move, my men will be unwilling
to engage in what will seem a foolish and dangerous
enterprise, not only without public support, but in
the face of opposition by the whole world. I have
been planning how to meet the difficulty. My army
must have officers and men like any other. I have
long thought of engaging Lieutenant Gheen, gradu-
ate of West Point, to command it. But will he be
willing to brave such a risk ? Will any one be will-
ing?
" After much pondering I have concluded to choose
the other officers from the athletes, especially the
football players, of our leading colleges. These
are the men who, having the greatest physical and
mental vigor, will be most ready to engage in an ex-
citing enterprise. If possible I must, before I be-
gin active operations, arrange to have them isolated
from all human society for several weeks, perhaps
for several months. This, with the consciousness
of their power, which will be evident to them, will
induce that mental condition known as ' spoiling
for a fight.' To add to their interest in the affair
and their mutual confidence in each other, I pro-
pose to organize them into a secret society, to be
22
The City of the Potomac
called the Angelic Order of Seraphim. No one
will at first see the significance of the name; but
when actual operations are begun it will be apparent
enough.
" In the case of the men, I will solve the problem
by making up an army of Irishmen. The latter
are loyal to employers who get into their good graces,
and, like good soldiers, are always ready to obey
orders without counting the cost. Once in a fight,
they will go through it to the bitter end.
" July 8, 1941. I have talked with Gheen and, to
my pleasant surprise, found him quite ready to take
the place of chief engineer of my works. Of course,
I did not tell him what else I had in mind.
" July 11, 1941. My counsel tells me I should
have my business run under a company name, so I
have decided to call myself the ' Anita Company.'
" September 8, 1941. The first aluminium fur-
nace is complete and the secret foundations and other
underworks for five others are ready. I shall have
the more delicate portions of these five completed
before anybody suspects what I have in view. It
is really amusing how I have mixed up the Herald
man. He reports that the chimney is for the laun-
dry of my proposed hotel! The wharf is nearly
complete, and it is in perfect accord with his theory.
" September 25, 1941. The aluminium furnace
No. 1 is now in successful operation, and turning
out a ton a day. So far only Gheen and two of
his skilled workmen even know what we are making.
23
His Wisdom the Defender
The ingots are all purified and cast underground,
and carried out after dark to be stored in a little
brick building near the wharf, into which no out-
sider is allowed to penetrate.
"November 20, 1941. To - day I shipped my
first instalment of aluminium, about fifty tons,
to Smithmeyer & Co., of New York, who will dis-
pose of it according to their judgment, but will for
the time being keep its origin secret.
" March 23, 1942. The inevitable denouement
has come at last. The fact is discovered and pub-
lished that I am turning out aluminium at the rate
of six or eight tons a day by some process unknown
to any one but myself. The first attempt to see the
process was made only this morning, when three
men, with a very suspicious combination of intelli-
gent faces and dirty attire, sought employment. Of
course, it would not do them a bit of good to see the
whole process, because no one could carry it out
without a furnace like mine, and no one can make
such a furnace without a supply of etherine to begin
with. This no one knows how to make; and if he
did, it would take him years to do it, as it has taken
me. But I do not want the world to suspect there
is anything so very extraordinary in my proceedings
or process, until the suspicion becomes inevitable, so
I simply figure as the possessor of a secret process.
" April 1, 1942. The newspapers are devoting
more and more attention to me and my supposed ec-
centricities. Among the things that excite their
24
The City of the Potomac
curiosity is the name of my firm. It has been dis-
covered that a young woman named Anita, the
daughter of a Yale professor, died some ten years
ago; and the theory is that I have held her in such
affectionate remembrance as to take her name for my
company. "No one has ever heard of Tiana across
the ocean. A friend indulged in a little pleasantry
on the subject the other day. I reminded him with
all seriousness that ' A.C.' were the initials both of
the company and of myself, so that they could be
applied to either, and refused to assign any other
reason for the name.
" May 3, 1942. Broke ground on Peter's Island
for the foundation of the Coliseum. It will be, like
its old Koman namesake, elliptical in form, but will
greatly exceed it in size. I have decided, in order
to have plenty of room, to build it a thousand feet
in length and six hundred in breadth. How the
public, guided by the red-headed man, will wonder
when they see this monstrous structure rising! I
am going, as long as possible, to let everybody ex-
amine its interior, on the same principle that a jug-
gler asks the audience to examine his sleeves before
he begins his work. So far I have not broached
the subject of our ultimate object to Gheen, but must
do so on the first occasion. I scarcely know how to
begin.
"May 7, 1942. Tried to sound Gheen on the
ethical principles which should govern the relations
of nations, especially the abstract rightfulness of
25
His Wisdom the Defender
war. The result was much as I expected. Prac-
tical man as he is, he looked upon war as inevitable
in the present state of society. It was therefore use-
less to occupy ourselves with discussions of its right-
fulness or wrongfulness. At length I broke out
with the plain question : ( If you had the power to
put an end to war, would you do it f '
" Of course he looked upon this as a pure abstrac-
tion and scarcely deemed the question worthy of
a serious answer. How shall I make it clear to
him that it is a really serious question on my part,
and that, in spite of this, I am sane when I put it ?
" June 15, 1942. Strongly as I am impelled to
the idea of having the great powers, with our own
country as their leader, rule the world, two cir-
cumstances have happened within a week which
make it clearer than ever to me that such a policy
will be disastrous to the best interests of mankind.
" One is the brutal letter of the head of the German
navy to the French ambassador, who had been ac-
cused, perhaps wrongfully, of seeking to purchase
secrets respecting the German naval armament.
Poor France is not in a condition to resent the in-
sult, and must therefore put up with it. If this is the
spirit which animates a great power, how must we
expect such a power to behave towards Siarn or
Japan, or the Tartars, or any other of the weaker
nations? Such tyranny as will be exercised and
such humiliations as will be imposed seem 'to me
so unendurable that, if I cannot make the arrange-
26
The City of the Potomac
ments for carrying through the enterprise myself,
I feel like letting the secret die with me.
" Now comes the other event, showing how ready
France is to do the same to a weaker power that
Germany did to her. A party of sailors from a
French ship of war in the harbor of Lisbon went
ashore and got into a fight with a party of Portu-
guese. As might have been expected, the French
were victorious. A formal complaint was made
to their government by that of Portugal, which,
after a careful investigation of the whole matter,
claimed that the others were the aggressors. But a
court of inquiry on board the French ship, after
hearing the story as told by their side, reported that
the Portuguese were the aggressors. In view of
their difference of opinion, Portugal asked France
to have the affair tried by an impartial joint com-
mission, to be chosen by both governments. This
France refused to do, replying that she could not go
back of the findings of her own officers ; that, accord-
ing to these findings, the Portuguese were the aggres-
sors, and that an indemnity must therefore be paid
by Portugal without further question. The worst
of it is that the attitude of their government is sup-
ported by the great body of the Paris press.
" June 20, 1942. Every day I see more plainly
that if I am to carry through my main enterprise all
by myself, I shall need a great deal more than the
seven million dollars of my former estimate. I
have therefore decided not to rely on aluminium
27
His Wisdom the Defender
alone, and have perfected a form of bicycle which
can be run with almost any speed, even forty miles
an hour, with a thermic engine supplied with therm
by a little petroleum lamp. I have an auto-
mobile carriage to run on the same system. To
save people's eyes I shall also make an incandescent
burner by which a white globe, surrounding a com-
mon gas-jet, shall glow with the soft light of day and
fill a whole room with its radiance."
That every effort was made to penetrate Camp-
bell's secret goes without saying. The two men
described in his diary were simply the pioneers of a
multitude. There was a singular frankness in his
way of dealing with these curiosity seekers. When
a suspicious visitor appeared, evidently bent on
learning something of value, he was received either
by the secretary of the company or a trusted subor-
dinate with the greatest affability, and seemingly
given every encouragement to make inquiries. He
was informed that visitors were allowed to see the
process of manufacture only on certain days, the
reason being that their presence interfered with the
workmen.
" But if you really wish to see the process, come
next Wednesday morning and you may be allowed
to do so."
" I supposed it was an impenetrable secret."
" In one sense it is and in another it is not. There
may be something that Mr. Campbell is not yet pre-
28
The City of the Potomac
pared to reveal. But if you care to see what the
process is, there is no objection."
At the appointed time the visitors, perhaps a dozen
in number, were taken into the furnace-room.
They found the base of the tall, large chimney sur-
rounded by a furnace twenty feet in diameter and
six feet high. The furnace was pierced through with
eight round vertical openings, each about four feet
in diameter, in each of which was a hollow cylinder
of some hitherto unknown substance. The remain-
ing space was filled with burning coal. Vertically
above the surface, at a height of about ten feet, the
chimney was surrounded by a circular platform hav-
ing eight holes, each about six inches in diameter,
one over the centre of each cylinder in the furnace
below. Bars of baked clay, about two inches in
diameter and eight or ten feet long, were suspended
from this platform by machinery, so that their low-
er ends should pass through the heated cylinders.
Here they were exposed to a temperature so high
that the clay itself rapidly melted or dissolved in a
shower of sparks. As fast as the lower portion was
thus dissolved the bar was let down by machinery.
The melted product ran down in a stream, which,
being at the bottom of the cylinder, could not be
seen by the visitor without endangering his eyes.
The substance of the cylinders possessed a physical
property never before known to be possible, in virtue
of which all the heat was radiated directly towards
the centre. The result was that the heat was concen-
29
His Wisdom the Defender
trated as in the focus of an immense burning-glass.
How such a result could be brought about, the visitor
was left to conjecture.
" May we see what is going on below this fur-
nace ?"
" Oh, certainly ; come, down-stairs and we will
show you."
Below, nothing was to be seen but a small stream
of molten aluminium mixed with a large quantity
of dross, which flowed into refining furnaces.
:e There, gentlemen, you see the whole process.
What more can we show you?"
The visitors had to admit that they had seen every-
thing there was to see, and left as wise as they came.
The injunction of secrecy was not a very difficult
one to comply with.
No better off was the man who tried to see how
the vital portion of the thermobike was made. All
they could see were rows of workmen engaged in
moulding, forging, boring, and performing every
other process known in mechanics. Any one who
chose could take the thermobike to pieces, analyze it,
and see how it was made. A careful examination
by scientific experts showed how the machine oper-
ated. The " bike," as it was familiarly called from
the beginning, was driven by a petroleum lamp, the
chimney of which was lined with aluminium bronze.
Outside this lining was a layer, half an inch thick,
of a substance which seemed to defy physical exami-
nation. It was unacted on by acids and had no
30
The City of the Potomac
chemical properties. Exposed to intense heat, it
was resolved into a few commonplace substances,
mostly silicon and carbon. It was a very poor con-
ductor of electricity. Outside this again was a sec-
ond metal cylinder. When the lamp was lit the in-
terior and exterior cylinders at once became the
poles of a powerful electric battery. The current
from this battery was passed round the rim of a
wheel, which again was coated with a substance
having a peculiar relation to electricity. As the
current passed in one direction, the wheel turned with
great force and any required speed in the other.
What was most singular was that scientific exami-
nation showed nearly all the energy set free by the
petroleum to be turned into effective work in the
turning of the wheel. The heat from a very small
lamp sufficed to run a bike with any required speed.
The same principle was soon applied to the manu-
facture of the new kind of automobile carriage, or
" mobie," as we now call it.
So the mysterious vehicles were rapidly coming
into use without any one being able to penetrate
the secret of their operation. . V
Ill
An Italian Romance
IT goes without saying that the interest in what
was going on at Campbelltown, for such was the
natural name of the new town, soon spread
from America to Europe and thence over the
world. Bikes and mobies were wanted everywhere.
Manufacturers of bicycles, carriages, and machinery
of every kind would have liked to supply this grow-
ing demand. As this was clearly impossible with-
out Campbell's co-operation, the efforts which capi-
talists and manufacturers had already made in
America were now seconded by those of Europe.
By expending two or three million dollars in each
European country in the necessary manufacturing
plant, a prospect of reaping rich profits was opened.
Steps were first taken by the Rothschilds. They or-
ganized a combination of well-known capitalists on
both sides of the Atlantic, chose a committee of the
ablest and most prominent men, including the best
of those who had business relations with the Anita
Company, and despatched it to headquarters to see
what could be done.
Meantime Campbell had assumed an almost regal
32
An Italian Romance
inaccessibility to visitors. He took good care, how-
ever, to have a system by which no person having
really serious and important business should be
obliged to depart without having an interview either
with him or with some one who could determine
whether an interview was necessary. The Roth-
schild committee had no difficulty in securing
an audience. It set forth its objects in a moderate
way, laying great stress on the immense benefits
which could be conferred on the people of Europe
if Campbell would either place manufacturers in
possession of his secret, or establish branch works in
various countries of the same general character as
those at Campbelltown.
" We venture to approach you with this proposi-
tion only because you have on various occasions
stated that your first object is to promote the welfare
of humanity in general, and that you are compara-
tively indifferent to accumulating wealth for your
own use beyond such limit as you may find neces-
sary to carry out your beneficent projects. We ap-
pear before you neither as rivals nor as seekers of
your bounty, but as representative men, able and
willing to aid in extending the benefits of your dis-
coveries to men the world over who are impatient
to share in them."
" I entirely sympathize with your objects," was
the reply. " It has all along been my intention to
enable mankind to share in the benefits to which
you allude, as rapidly as possible. The only point
c 33
His Wisdom the Defender
of divergence between us is that perhaps you want
to go ahead a little faster than seems to me condu-
cive to ultimate success. If we reflect that the high-
est form of civilization existed for centuries with-
out the thermic engine, may we not concede it pos-
sible for men to wait two or three years longer for
its full development ?
" I intend, as soon as possible, to found an estab-
lishment in Europe corresponding to this in Amer-
ica. Moreover, when this central branch is set up
I shall proceed to the establishment of local branches
in other countries. I shall be quite ready to see
companies formed for the establishment and admin-
istration of these local branches. But the central
branch I must establish as my own. As soon as
that is in full operation, I shall, step by step, grant
every facility for carrying on the manufactures in
other European countries with all possible despatch."
" May we ask when and where your European
branch will be set up ?"
" I must ask to be excused from any statement
on the subject at present, beyond the fact that I hope
to decide the question within a few months."
The fact was that for a year past Campbell had
been actively at work in Europe, in a way of which
the world was quite ignorant. A young American
lawyer had spent an entire summer in Spain, Por-
tugal, and Italy, studying the laws of land tenure
in these countries, and their applications to the isl-
ands owned by them. Maps of Madeira, the Bale-
34
An Italian Romance
aric Islands, Elba, and the shores of the Adriatic
had been collected. A party of three or four men
had personally visited all these islands, made the
acquaintance of some of their leading inhabitants,
and begun a general survey of their productions.
It was due to the discretion with which they proceed-
ed that they did not fall into the hands of the police
as suspicious characters. Architects in Chicago
were preparing plans of palaces, and artists of Paris
were negotiating for the employment of Chinese
carvers. Men were spying out the arsenals and
factories of arms in every part of the Continent with
the same secrecy, and reporting the results of their
inquiries at Campbelltown, which was thus rapidly
becoming a depot of information, the object of
which no outsider could at the time have divined,
even had he known of its collection.
Great was the public interest when it became
known that the president of the Anita Company
would establish a branch of his works in some Euro-
pean country. Every indication of his plan was
eagerly watched. There was no way of gratifying
public curiosity as to where the branch would be
located, except by waiting to see, a necessity under
which the newspapers chafed. They were soon
electrified by the announcement that he had taken
passage from New York to Genoa. But what it
meant they could not imagine. His departure was
not known until the very day on which the ship
sailed, when his name was found among the list of
35
His Wisdom the Defender
passengers. On landing he was at once besieged by
reporters who had been sent on in advance to in-
terview him. But he refused to say anything ex-
cept that he was in Italy on business of his own.
He took rooms at a hotel, and secretly engaged a
carriage to call for him at four o'clock in the morn-
ing. He got into it and drove off. Then for sev-
eral days nothing certain was heard of him. At
the end of a week it was learned that he was inspect-
ing the island of Elba. It was soon announced
from Rome that his European branch would be lo-
cated on that island, and that its erection would be
begun immediately. Before his return he paid a visit
to the President of the Italian Republic, with whom
he had a conference which lasted several hours.
Then he returned to Genoa and sailed for home
after a stay of less than two weeks.
This was all the reporters could find out about the
movements of the man they were chasing. With
the more ample sources of information at our dis-
posal, we are able to fill the gaps in their history.
To do so we must begin by narrating an almost
forgotten incident near the city of Florence nearly
twenty years before. Campbell, newly graduated
from Harvard, was spending a year in Italy, and,
at the time of which we speak, was studying in Flor-
ence. One morning, while walking near the hill of
Arcetri, he saw a runaway landau, drawn by two
horses and containing four people, coming towards
him. As they approached him he stood squarely
36
An Italian Romance
in the middle of the road, until the horses were al-
most upon him. Then he ran forward a few steps
to diminish the force of the shock, sprang upon
the tongue of the coach between the two animals,
and seized the bridles. He was thus enabled, with
the aid of a few gentle words, to bring the team to
a standstill, just before a turn in the road which
might have been fatal was reached. But he suffered
much in the encounter. The end of the tongue struck
him in the face as he was jumping upon it, tearing
and bruising the flesh and knocking out one of his
teeth.
The occupants of the carriage were the Duke of
Bernaletti, with his wife, son, and ten-year-old
daughter. As they took their rescuer to their home,
the most touching feature of the case was the intense
concern of the little girl. She cried and lamented
over his injury, and during the whole drive gave vent
to the hope that he would not die. Although his in-
juries were severe, his recovery was rapid. In a
couple of weeks he took leave of the family, and soon
after returned home.
In the course of time the impression of the Duke
and his chateau had nearly faded from the mind of
the young man, who had soon become a professor.
But there was one voice which never ceased to sound
in his ears as clearly as if he had heard it but yester-
day. It was that of the little child who forgot the
danger she had run in her sympathy for him. " Are
you much hurt, sir? Does it pain you? You will
37
His Wisdom the Defender
not die, will you, sir? Oh! papa, the surgeon will
cure him, will he not ?"
When he next visited Florence, seven years later,
he found Tiana budding into womanhood. It seem-
ed to him that the tenderness of feeling she had
shown as a child had so permeated her nature that
she was now the very embodiment of purity, sweet-
ness, and love. Let us not blame him if, under such
an influence, he lost no chance to make himself
agreeable to the young lady, and perhaps strained
the rigid etiquette of the country a little in his
efforts to win her affection. Knowing how hopeless
would be a suit prosecuted in the regular Italian
way, his only excuse for the course he took was the
hope that he might, by the scientific discoveries
which he saw almost within his grasp, not only be-
come the greatest benefactor of modern times, but
win a position which the proudest ducal family in
Europe would accept as the equivalent of princely
birth.
It will not surprise our readers to learn that, in
a few hours after the reporters lost track of him
at Genoa, he was once more a guest at the Bernaletti
palace.
" Will you not accompany me to Elba," said the
guest at lunch, " and see what I am going to do ?
We shall drive over the island together while I fix
upon a point for my establishment. Permit me to
assure you that sympathy is, at the present moment,
one of my greatest wants. Please give me the honor
38
An Italian Romance
and the pleasure of your company, if you possibly
can."
" I shall think the matter over in the course of the
afternoon/' said the Duke. " If you will wait until
morning, we shall see whether I can accompany
you."
On rising from the table he sought a moment to
whisper one word to the daughter.
" Do you remember," said he " my once telling you
that I would try to be the best man in the world
for your sake?"
"I think I do; it was at the Villa Carlotta,
was it not ?"
" I am going to keep on trying, all for your sake."
"But there is no need of your doing it for my
sake. You know I am going to be a sister in the
convent."
" Do not say that. I cannot endure hearing you
say it."
She hurried from the room, and he saw her no
more until dinner-time. Next morning he had only
a chance to say one word to her before leaving.
" Please never forget me, as I shall never forget
you."
" A sister must sometimes forget what she would
gladly remember," was the only reply.
The two men left for Elba. Campbell had char-
tered a steamer to carry them from point to point
on the coast of the island. They first touched at
Porto Ferrajo.
39
His Wisdom the Defender
" Here," said Campbell, " I intend to found a
great city, which shall be for Europe what Campbell-
town is for America."
Next morning they re-embarked, continued their
journey westward, and landed at Brocchio. There a
carriage was engaged, and they drove to the base
of Mount Campanne, where they changed to a small
mountain-cart drawn by two mules, and proceeded
to make the ascent of the mountain.
The Duke noticed that his companion, who had
shown a sparkling vivacity and fiery enthusiasm in
unfolding his plans for the future, now became si-
lent, abstracted, and even melancholy. Every now
and then he closed his eyes as if in deep thought.
He felt some concern at such a change under condi-
tions that should have produced the opposite effect.
At every turn of the narrow road there was a new
and wider view both of the Mediterranean and of
the island, which was to him a source of exhilara-
tion, but seemed to the other a source of depression.
He tried to interest him in the view.
" Is it not beautiful ?" he said.
" It is, and I hope it will be still more so when
we reach the top." Then, as if exhausted, he again
relapsed into a fit of abstraction.
After two hours' drive in their rough vehicle, the
summit was reached. Now a view was disclosed
quite unlike any that either* of the spectators had
before seen. Below their feet, towards the east,
the island stretched its length beyond the horizon.
40
An Italian Romance
The port from which they had started seemed al-
most beneath them. In every other direction the
blue waters of the Mediterranean bounded the hori-
zon. To the west and southwest the mountains of
Corsica were as gray clouds resting on the water.
The bright rays of the sun softened everything
round them in a way that one sees only in Italy.
The elder of the two men wondered why his
companion had brought him up. He seemed so
meditative that he would have given many a penny
for his thoughts. The fact is, he was dwelling on
the plans which had for years centred round this
place. Would they ever be realized? Was this
to be the seat of future empire? Would the most
splendid of palaces rear its dome upon the spot
where they were standing? He at length ventured
a word to his companion.
" What will our posterity see who shall look upon
this place a hundred years from now? If I have
my way, we shall see much before many years are
over."
Seating himself on a rock, he took from his pocket
a roll of tracing-paper, on which was copied the plan
and front elevation of a building.
" Here is the site which I have chosen for my
possible future residence. Here is the proposed
plan ; what think you of it ?"
The old man scanned the drawing. " That will
be the grandest and most beautiful palace I ever
saw ; but why erect it in so inaccessible a situation ?
41
His Wisdom the Defender
How will you ever get even the materials to build
it up here? And when your house is done you
must either be a monk in a monastery or build a
mountain railway."
" Or call it a convent," thought the other.
" The machinery which I command will trans-
port the materials without difficulty ; but this is a de-
tail into which we need not go at present. I have
brought you up here, first of all, to give you some
idea of the future extent of my European establish-
ment. I have also a favor to ask of you. On, the
first day of every month, after I begin to build, I
shall have a photograph of my rising palace taken,
showing its steady progress from foundation upward.
I ask permission to have copies of these pictures sent
you regularly for the use of your family."
" It seems to me that that is rather doing me a
favor, and it is one which I shall accept with great
pleasure."
"Perhaps you would like to know the name of
the city I shall found here. I shall call it Urani-
berg, the city of heaven."
Descending to the plain, Campbell spent another
day in conference with his chief manager at the sta-
tion, and then sailed for home.
It was fortunate that during the voyage home
the daily papers could not reach his ship. Among
all the eccentricities which had marked his conduct
there was none to compare with that of choosing
such a place for a great manufacturing establish-
42
An Italian Romance
ment. If he could have seen the comments on his
doings, the questions raised as to his sanity, the dis-
cussions as to what might be done to bring him to
his senses or to deprive him of control over his own
works, and the torrents of abuse poured upon him
on all sides, he* would have been saved from discom-
fort only by forming a contemptuous opinion of
human -nature.
He had made arrangements for purchasing or
leasing a considerable portion of the island. With-
in a few months a city began to take form, and an
army of laborers was engaged in erecting machin-
ery of the same sort as was in operation at Camp-
belltown. But there was no Coliseum. Much as
the world wondered, no one anticipated that the lit-
tle island in the Ligurian Sea was to be the centre
from which the sun of the Golden Age should send
its rays.
IV
The Angelic Order of Seraphim
PUBLIC attention was so concentrated upon the
eccentric doings at Campbelltown that cer-
tain minor features of the situation were
overlooked, even by the red-headed man. One was
the number of college athletes that Campbell took
into his service. It is hardly an exaggeration to say
that every enthusiastic football player who gradu-
ated at any college in the land during the years
1942-44 received through some friend or travel-
ling agent a glowing account of the advantages
offered to young men of enterprise and ability by
the great factory for bikes and mobies. If the
young man had some profession in view, he was told
that Campbell would need men of almost every pro-
fession, and would give every encouragement and
facility in its study, even to supplying money should
it be required. If he replied that Campbell could
have no rational object in patronizing a young man
he never saw or heard of, he was reminded that the
ways of the owner of Campbelltown were past find-
ing out; that the youth had better go and see him;
44
The Angelic Order of Seraphim
that free transportation was ready, and that when he
arrived he might find that his reputation for schol-
arship and enterprise had preceded him.
Few could resist the temptation to see the famous
establishment. Arriving at the gate of the fac-
tory, the doubting and diffident youth had only to
state his errand to be immediately shown into the
office of the manager, by whom he was received
with the greatest urbanity.
" I am sorry that I cannot introduce you to the
president of the company, as he is engaged at this
moment; but if you will let me know your feelings
on the subject of entering the service of the Anita
Company, I shall gladly see what can be done."
" Well, really, sir, I have had no idea of ask-
ing employment here. A few days ago I met a
friend who expressed a strong desire that I should
come, and who, curiously enough, was supplied with,
a free ticket here, which he gave me to use. My
intention always has been to study architecture at
New York, and I do not feel like changing that plan.
You may therefore consider that I am here out of
pure curiosity."
" Your plan will meet our views exactly. The
Anita Company has constant need of architects in
extending the limits of its town and in putting up
buildings elsewhere. This need will increase dur-
ing the next few years rather than diminish. We
shall be very glad to have you continue your studies
in architecture under our auspices. If money will
45
His Wisdom the Defender
help, we are ready to advance it. The fact is, our
president always takes the greatest interest in able
young men studying a profession, and is ready to
do all he can to promote them."
' That is very attractive, but I do not see the
slightest reason why the Anita Company should be-
stow any such position on me. I do not deny that
the help you propose would be very welcome, but,
on the other hand, I have absolutely nothing to
offer in return. I cannot, therefore, consent to re-
ceive it at this time."
" There is not the slightest occasion for any dif-
fidence. Only two conditions are attached to our
arrangements. One is that, during the course of
your studies, you shall come down here once or
twice a month to meet other young men like yourself
and have a good time together. You can come down
on Saturday and return on Sunday, so as not to
interfere with your work in any way. The other
condition is that, whenever the proper time comes,
and you feel that you can do something on your own
account, you will give us a chance of accepting
your services. I forgot there is a third condition.
We do not desire you to say anything about this ar-
rangement. It is to be regarded as a tribute from
our company to a few of the best young men of the
country; and we do not wish to be overwhelmed
with applications from others."
In the large majority of cases so tempting an
offer could not be declined. To some selected youths
46
The Angelic Order of Seraphim
who were willing to undertake it immediate em-
ployment was offered. It might be clerical or tech-
nical; it might be nothing more than overlook-
ing the building of a house, the making of motors,
or the running of machinery that the youth knew
nothing about. If he objected on the score of ig-
norance, he was told that he only had to learn.
At the time of which we speak, the number of
selected young men who were either in the employ
of the company or studying under its auspices
amounted to several hundred. All who were able
to do so visited Campbelltown on the first and third
Saturday of every month. Here they dined at a
hospitable table, presided over by Gheen or the
manager, and met their friends employed in the works.
Naturally enough, the young men wondered much
what possible object the Anita Company could have
in all this. The only explanation that could be
offered was that the president was a queer fellow,
unlike other men in every point, conducting his
business on principles utterly different from any on
which business had ever been conducted before. Im-
penetrable as to his motives and invisible in his
ways, the only certain facts were that he was piling
up money by the million and was ready to expend
some of it in this odd way. So the best policy
was to accept what was offered and ask no ques-
tions.
One evening at a reunion a special invitation was
extended to about a hundred of the company to
47
His Wisdom the Defender
call in a body on the president after dinner. The
guests were first shown into a spacious anteroom.
In one corner was a book containing a pledge of
absolute secrecy as to the meeting about to be held.
Each was asked to sign this pledge. As he did so
a little ticket was handed to him by which he was
to gain admittance to the assembly. The men were
then shown into a spacious reception - room, at
one end of which sat the president, the tickets being
taken at the door. They passed him in single file,
each being introduced by Gheen, and then sat in
several circles around the room waiting for what
was to come next. The president addressed them
to the following effect:
" I believe, gentlemen, that you have all stood
in a more or less intimate relation to the Anita Com-
pany. The end and objects of that relation may
seem very mysterious. You must excuse me if
I am not able at the present moment to unfold the
mystery in its entirety. I may, however, do so in
part. You see me here in sole possession of an
enormous source of wealth and power. I have none
of the ordinary motives for accumulating wealth.
I have no family, no children ; so far as I am aware,
no near relatives. The whole human race is one to
me, and my greatest object in life is to do what I can
towards promoting its happiness. Of course I must
have helpers. No helpers can be more effective than
the best and most energetic of our college graduates.
This is why I have called you together. We must
48
The Angelic Order of Seraphim
work together as a unit. The first condition of our
success is absolute loyalty on the part of each mem-
ber of our organization, both to myself, its patron,
and the organization as a whole. What I therefore
propose is the formation of a secret order pledged
to fealty and obedience, and ready to act together
whenever called upon.
" It may be that many among you do not feel dis-
posed to form such an order, or to engage yourselves
in the way I have suggested. All such are at per-
fect liberty to leave, if, after thinking the matter
over during the next four weeks, they choose to do
so. They have only to remember that the pledge of
secrecy as to what I have here said has been taken,
and remains absolute. All who feel like entering
what I shall call the new order and subscribing to its
pledges are invited to meet again four weeks from
to-day. At that time as many of you as are willing
to form the nucleus of the order are invited to be
here. Until then, good-bye."
The question which burdened Campbell's mind
during the next four weeks was whether it was pos-
sible that no one of that hundred young men would
betray the secret. Every day the newspapers were
searched to see if, in the numerous accounts of what
was goiong on at Campbelltown, there was anything
about this meeting. It was a real surprise to him
to find that not even the red-headed man had found
out anything on the subject.
Mystery has its attractions for youth. Our read-
D 49
His Wisdom the Defender
ers will not be surprised to learn that ninety of those
present at the first meeting appeared at the second.
On entering, each was asked whether he was pre-
pared to sign the pledge of the new order. Reply-
ing in the affirmative, he was asked to read and sign
the following, which was printed at the top of each
page of a thin blank-book.
" We, the members of the proposed Angelic Or-
der of Seraphim, pledge our sacred honor to keep
all the secrets of said order; to be true and loyal
under all circumstances both to each other and to
the patron of the order, Archibald Campbell; to
place ourselves at his service whenever required, and
to obey all orders received from him."
Under the first of these printed pledges was writ-
ten the following, of which all were invited to take
notice :
" I, Archibald Campbell, president of the Anita
Company and patron of the Angelic Order of Sera-
phim, hereby pledge myself to perform all my du-
ties as patron of that order, and, to the best of my
ability, to see that none of its members ever suffer
want. ARCHIBALD CAMPBELL."
When all was ready, the patron again briefly ad-
dressed them:
" Gentlemen, I have not much to add to what I
said to you at our last meeting. The name of our
order has been made known to you. Its appropri-
ateness is not yet apparent it will not be apparent
until we have our initiation ceremonies, which may
50
The Angelic Order of Seraphim
not occur for several months, perhaps not for a year
or more. They will be extremely interesting. It
is not too much to say they will be as a new reve-
lation to you. You will find yourselves possessed
of powers never before given by God to man. Mean-
while let us pursue our usual vocations. I shall
expect you to spend a good deal of your time in
these precincts. It is desirable that the order be
enlarged to about three hundred members. I must
ask your assistance in doing this. If any of you
know good and true young men who may be willing
to come in, and whom you feel safe in trusting with
your honor, consult them discreetly on the subject,
give their names, and let their records be examined.
I shall expect you to meet and talk together every
month, and, during the interval, to engage in such
exercises as will be prepared for you."
At the next Saturday's meeting of the Angelic
Order the members were invited to accompany Gheen
to the Coliseum and see what was there going
on. Breathless was their curiosity as they approach-
ed the mysterious place. An odd scene met their
eyes on entering. Near one end of the enclosure
were erected two rows of massive iron towers about
sixty feet apart and fifty feet in height. Stout
ropes passed between the tops, like the wires of
a suspension bridge. At each end they were con-
nected with the towers by a spiral spring, so that if
a heavy weight was hung to one of the ropes it would
sink to a considerable distance. Suspended to each
51
His Wisdom the Defender
rope, near its mid-point, was an object of singular
shape and aspect. Seen externally, it looked like a
large hogshead, perhaps six feet in diameter and eight
feet high. On top of the hogshead was what might
be a little cask about a foot in diameter. This was
pierced round its upper portion with little holes filled
with glass, giving the appearance of as many eyes.
On each side of the hogshead, two feet below the top,
projected two jointed arms. Hanging below it, and
reaching to within ten feet of the ground, were a
pair of jointed legs. The whole looked like a gro-
tesque caricature of the human form. The sight
was greeted by the arriving party with a shout of
" Daddy-Long-Legs," mixed with peals of laughter.
No other name had ever been invented for the ma-
chine, and this one was so appropriate that it stuck.
Very soon, however, the last two syllables were
dropped as unnecessary, and the machine was called
the " daddie." This is the origin of our name for
the useful implement used in lifting heavy weights,
a term the derivation of which would have puzzled
the most expert etymologists if its history had not
been revealed.
If the spectators could have seen inside they
would have found the interior structure to be very
complex. Six vertical pipes, each a foot in diam-
eter, were concealed within the hogshead, around its
circumference. Levers without number were be-
tween them. In the centre of all a man was seated
at his ease. His foot pressed one system of levers
52
The Angelic Order of Seraphim
and his hand had hold of another system. These
levers were connected by a number of linked rods,
which again connected with the arms and legs seen
externally. I will so far reveal the secret in ad-
vance as to say that the arrangement was such that
every motion that the man made with his arms or
legs was communicated by means of etherine to the
corresponding limb of the daddie with a force mul-
tiplied a hundredfold. Daddie might therefore be
described as a being of enormous muscular force
wielded by a human intellect.
The pairs of towers supporting the daddies were
about one hundred feet apart. Across the line be-
tween the two central ones was stretched another
rope with a netting suspended from it, and touching
the ground as if a game of gigantic tennis was to be
played. To make the resemblance complete, a huge
wooden ball, two feet in diameter, bound round with
three iron rings, lay on the ground beneath one of
the daddies. It must have weighed several hun-
dred pounds.
" Has a race of giants been playing tennis ?" asked
the new-comers.
" Commence the game !" cried the leader.
The daddie beneath whose feet the ball lay im-
mediately dipped towards the ground, tightening the
rope and stretching the springs. He seized the
ball between his feet as lightly and easily as a man
would seize a tennis-ball, drew it back, and hurled
it forward through the air at the other daddie. The
53
His Wisdom the Defender
latter stooped to catch it with his hands, but missed
it at the first trial. It was caught by a third daddie
and returned in tennis fashion to the thrower.
The game was played through with entire success.
The daddie always threw the ball with his feet, but
caught it sometimes with his hands and sometimes
with his feet. To catch it with his hands he some-
times had to throw himself in an almost horizontal
position. His dexterity in doing this seemed super-
natural. At one moment he pulled and stretched
the string by his weight; at another he sprang up-
ward as lightly as a ballet-dancer.
" Now," said Gheen, " your first duty will be
to learn this game and to play it well. Only expert
players are eligible for initiation into the Angelic
Order of Seraphim."
Those of the visitors who had read Alice Behind
the Looking-Glass thought of the world there pict-
ured. The temptation to betray the secret of the
order was diminished rather than increased by the
mystery of the proceedings. If they should have
told all they had seen going on their hearers would
have thought they were being made sport of.
During the following weeks the number of dad-
dies was increased, so that one or more games were
always going on, and the new men were gotten into
practice as rapidly as possible. At first it was a
clumsy proceeding, the exact connection between
the movements of the player's limbs and the move-
ments of the daddie in which he was seated was
54
The Angelic Order of Seraphim
difficult to bring about. Improvements were from
time to time made in the machine so as to make the
co-ordination more perfect.
Before a month had passed a new mystery was
unveiled. The players with the daddie, entering
the Coliseum one morning, saw at the other end of
the enclosure a monstrous object, which certainly
had not 'been there the night before. In shape
it was a giant centipede. The body of the insect
was a flat-bottomed boat, a hundred feet in length,
thirty feet in breadth, and fifteen or twenty feet
deep. It was suspended by a rope stretched be-
tween two pillars much like the daddies, and almost
touched the ground.
Its numerous limbs were not unlike colossal
human arms, fifteen feet in length. Each had a
joint at the side of the mote to which it was fasten-
ed, an elbow near the middle, then a wrist-joint,
and, instead of a hand, a sort of two-handed claw
which could open out to the extent of eighteen
inches, and close up when necessary. Inside the
vessel, at each point where an arm was attached, was
a piece of apparatus too complicated to be described
in full without drawings. The visible part consist-
ed of a breast-plate with two openings, through
which a man could thrust his hands and seize a lever
with each. There were ten arms on each side of the
" centipede," as it came to be called, making twenty
in all.
Campbell himself inaugurated the exercise with
55
His Wisdom the Defender
this machine. He took one of his neophytes
with him into the centipede, showed him how to get
hold of the levers attached to the arm, and then ask-
ed "him to notice what could be done with them.
On moving his own arms it was found that the arms
of the centipede were mysteriously affected by a cor-
responding motion. Closing his hands together, the
immense claws of the centipede closed up ; then open-
ed again when the hands were separated. Raising
the lever, the shoulder and elbow joints of the cen-
tipede's arms rose in a corresponding way, and the
claws were thrown high in the air.
" Now," said Campbell, " I want you to practise
with this until you have all the motions, then we
will see what we can do next."
The Seraph, having got himself into practice, so
that he was able to move the arms in any way he
chose, was now told to show his companions of the
order how the machine worked. Two days were
spent in getting about fifty men into practice. Then
a number of large wooden logs, perhaps a foot in
diameter and from six to twelve feet long, were
placed on the ground near the centipede, and with-
in reach of his arms. The men were, then prac-
tised in taking hold of these logs with their giant
claws, lifting them up and placing them on the deck
above. Then a platform was erected above where
the logs lay, and the logs were picked up and placed
upon it.
Continued practice naturally suggested a
56
The Angelic Order of Seraphim
ber of improvements in the construction of the
centipede's arms and of the levers which moved
them. In time, however, the instrument was per-
fected, and then any number of them could be made
on the same model.
We who look back at the whole proceeding can
scarcely imagine how eccentric the scenes at the
Coliseum appeared to all concerned in them. It
seemed as if the " Little Professor," as he was fa-
miliarly called by all those nearest to him, must be
the most singular compound of genius and insanity
that the world had ever seen. So far as immediate
results were concerned, all his plans had been made
and executed with a success that evinced not only
the greatness of his scientific powers, but the highest
order of executive ability. How could a serious
man of so much ability spend the time he was spend-
ing on so singular a proceeding as this now going on
in the Coliseum ? Why such secrecy ? The answer
seemed obvious. The chief actor knew how ridicu-
lous his amusements would look to the world if they
should ever be known. But this was only a part of
the truth. Had the real object of all these doings
been discovered, not a crowned head nor prime-min-
ister in Europe would have slept that night.
The time had now come when an understanding
whether Gheen was to be his active agent in carrying
through his plans had to be reached.
One morning, when the daddie and the centipede
were both perfected, Campbell invited Gheen to a
57
His Wisdom the Defender
conference. " I do not want you to do much to-
day. I want to have a very important talk with
you at four o'clock this afternoon; and I do not
want you to have anything on your mind or to be
fatigued by the day's work. So go where you
please. If nothing suits you better, take a sail on
the Potomac and be back here at the appointed
hour."
At the appointed hour the two men sat in Camp-
bell's private office. Gheen was all attention.
" A crisis in our arrangements is now approach-
ing," said Campbell. " It must soon be decided
whether you shall be as close to me in the future as
you have been in the past, or whether you shall
simply be the chief engineer of the works here,
while some one else takes your place in confidential
relations with me. My proceedings in the erection
and running of these works have been marked by
what the business world considers unaccountable
eccentricities. The exercises in the Coliseum must
have seemed to you and those engaged in them
even more eccentric than my business management.
Is not this the case ?"
" I cannot deny that the management of your
works, in which I have taken a prominent part from
the beginning, has seemed to me very mysterious.
They have been so mysterious that I am no longer
surprised at anything, not even at what is going on
in the Coliseum."
" Now I want to unravel to you the whole mys-
58
The Angelic Order of Seraphim
tery. But I want you in advance to make me a
solemn and unconditional pledge of the most abso-
lute secrecy. This pledge is to be equally binding
whether you take part in my future plans or not.
If you take the leading part in them which I wish
you to, the secrecy will be necessary for your own
interests. If you do not, you will be concerned only
with the development of the works, and need not
be concerned in what is going on in the Coliseum.
To make the matter sure, I would like you to sign
this pledge."
Gheen read over the paper which was handed to
him and affixed his signature. Campbell proceeded:
' The world at large, which considers the making
of money to be one of the chief ends of man, or at
least the ultimate end of those engaged in business,
cannot understand how I can have any other end
in view than piling up wealth. If, as I have always
maintained, my tastes lie in the scientific direction
and not in that of money, why have I engaged in a
wealth-producing enterprise ? I will tell you. I
am the possessor of a power which, if made public,
would result in disaster to the human race, but
which, if I wield it myself, so as to carry out my
plans with entire success, will revolutionize the
world, and make those who are instrumental in that
revolution the greatest benefactors the world has
ever seen. To speak plainly, I propose to put an
end to war now and forever. May I have your co-
operation in that work ? Can you go into the work
59
His Wisdom the Defender
of putting an end to war with an approving con-
science ?"
" Abstractly, I agree with you that it would
be an excellent thing to put an end to war. But
I cannot help regarding it as impracticable. From
what I know of human nature I do not see how it
is possible to stop nations from engaging in war.
What are armies for except to fight ? How are you
going to stop them from fighting ?"
" That is the very secret I wish to unfold to you
to-night. It is no use to tell you in advance. Let
us meet at the private laboratory at the south end of
the Coliseum at nine o'clock this evening. You
shall enjoy the experience of your life."
The laboratory here referred to was a good-sized
building, into which Campbell had carefully re-
moved the entire contents of the uncanny workshop
described in our first chapter. He had, during the
past few months, spent much of his time in this
workshop, improving and adding to the singular
apparatus which it contained.
At the appointed hour the two men entered the
Coliseum. The watchman in charge had been
previously directed to make a thorough examination
of the interior to see that every one left at the close
of the day's work, and to allow no one to enter it
during the evening except the owner and the man
accompanying him. Curiously enough, Gheen him-
self had never been inside of this place. In fact,
none of the employees had ever been allowed in it
60
The Angelic Order of Seraphim
except Campbell's three workmen, two of whom
were the same men that we saw in Cambridge.
Campbell called Gheen's attention to two singu-
lar-looking chairs. In shape they were much like
ordinary arm-chairs, only much larger. They were
nicely cushioned, and each had a step at the bottom
on which the sitter could rest his feet. The up-
rights were very large, consisting of tubes not less
than three inches in diameter.
" Let us bring these chairs out," said Campbell.
Being mounted on rollers, they were pushed out
without difficulty.
" Now I want to tie these chairs together," he
continued. He got a piece of cord and thoroughly
bound them side by side by the arms, backs, and
spokes. Then, opening a case in the side of the
room, he took out two standing rods, with one of
which we are already familiar, and handed them
to Gheen.
" Here, I want you to take these rods out and
put them down through the two tubes which you
see in the back of each chair; you will find an ar-
rangement for fastening them in."
Gheen took the rods from Campbell's hands, and,
as he went out, noticed their singular behavior.
They remained in a vertical position, from which
they could not be removed by any force he could
exert. But as they could be picked up and moved
about without any difficulty at all, they were put
into the tubes as directed.
61
His Wisdom the Defender
" Now we need only one more piece of apparatus.
We must attach these cranks to a little handle which
you will see projecting from the arms of each chair."
The cranks were attached.
"Now let us take our seats. Plant your feet
on the foot-rest and be careful not to move them.
Now, I hope you are a man of nerve. Graduates of
pieces which go across them. You are tightly fast-
tened, are you ? Now put one foot on each lever, but
be careful not to press it until you see me do so. The
moment I say ' Press,' press the lever forward and
I will do the same thing. Let us watch each other's
hands, so that the pressure shall be simultaneous.
Now, I hope you are a man of nerve. Graduates of
West Point ought to be. I selected you with that sup-
position. If you have any doubt about your nerve,
just say so, and we will give up the whole job. The
fact is, if you go on you are now to be initiated as
the head of the Angelic Order of Seraphim. Are
you ready?"
" I am ready for anything, and burning all over
with curiosity."
"Now press!"
Gheen's first impression on making the motion
was that some kind of a noiseless bomb had burst
under his chair. His second was that somebody
had given it a push. His third and more correct
impression was that the two chairs, with himself and
Campbell in them, were flying through the air. Be-
fore he could collect his thoughts the Coliseum was
62
The Angelic Order of Seraphim
far below. A vertical wind was felt blowing down-
ward because of the rapid flight.
" Where are we going ?" exclaimed Gheen, as soon
as he could get his breath.
" Wherever we please," was the reply. " Shall
we take a look at Washington ?"
Campbell pressed the foot-rest with his left foot,
gave his levers a slight motion, and in a few seconds
the faces of the two men were directed towards a
bright patch on the clouds in the northern horizon,
which they knew was caused by the reflection of the
electric lights of Washington. In a minute they
were flying with the speed of a railway train. The
wind from their rapid motion soon began to chill
them through.
" I do not think we need go to Washington," said
Campbell. " I only want to show you what we can
do. Let us return home."
" But how shall we ever find our way back ?"
" Very easily. I have a number of lamps placed
on the ground in the Coliseum which shine directly
upward and can only be seen from above. Imme-
diately we see those lamps we shall drop down upon
them."
With a slight motion of the levers the chairs de-
scribed a semi-circle, and the men were on the re-
turn journey. The lights of Campbelltown had
been in sight all the time, and there was no diffi-
culty in getting vertically over the Coliseum. A
slight motion of the levers stopped the forward
His Wisdom the Defender
course, and the two chairs floated in the air half
a mile above their destination.
" Now we have to be very cautious. Going
down we have no idea how fast we may be going,
except so far as we can judge by the wind we make.
Draw your lever back as I do mine."
Very soon they were falling quite rapidly, and
the lights in the Coliseum were plainly seen below.
Then the levers were pushed slightly forward, so
that the motion should be checked. They slowly
approached the ground and landed outside the door
of the workshop.
" Now we must be very careful in getting out
of the chairs ; they still press upward with our entire
weight, and if we should leave them as they are,
they would fly away and we should never see or hear
of them again. That is what we will do to crimi-
nals in the future, instead of hanging them. We
shall simply fasten a tube like those in the chairs
to the criminal's body, attach a little lever, and up
he will go, never to be seen or heard of again."
" I am not sure that that would be good policy
with the negroes," said Gheen. " They would think
they were bound straight to heaven, and would
rather like to go out of the world in so glorious a
way."
" Well, we need not cross that bridge until we
come to it. Let us get our chairs safely into the
workshop."
The levers were moved into their original posi-
64
The Angelic Order of Seraphim
tion and taken off. The two men loosened them-
selves and took the chairs into the shop. The up-
rights were removed and put into lockers, and the
chairs placed in one corner of the room, looking as
innocent as two chairs possibly could.
" I do not think we need discuss the matter further
to-night. You have got as much as you can think
about for the present. I am afraid you will not
sleep as it is. I will merely tell you that when I
fill the tubes, which you must have noticed in the
daddie and centipede, with etherine, we can run
them through the air as we ran our chairs to-night;
we can go where we please and do what we please.
I may add, for your peace of mind, that our cen-
tipedes and daddies will all be bullet-proof."
Two days later Gheen, after thinking the whole
matter over, expressed to his chief his willingness
to perform the duties of chief of the Angelic Order
of Seraphim.
V
The First Motes
THE factories for the manufacture of alumin-
ium, bikes, and mobies, which I have al-
ready described, were all grouped round a
single nucleus near the end of the bridge connecting
the mainland with Peter's Island. They stretched
about a quarter of a mile along the river-bank and
extended a half-mile back. To the northwest and
north that is, up the river and towards Washington
as well as back from the works, was built the resi-
dence part of the new town. The region on the op-
posite side of the factories 'remained vacant till after
the first year of active operations. Then a brick
wall, ten feet high, began to extend itself from the
outer limit of the works, half a mile from the river,
first in a southwesterly direction, and then towards
the river, so as to enclose a space more than half a
mile square, bounded on one side by the river-bank.
This enclosure gradually became a scene of ac-
tivity. Buildings, first of wood and then of brick,
were erected, chimneys grew up, draftsmen began to
work, and pieces of massive machinery were trans-
The First Motes
ported from the great iron-works of Pittsburg and
Bethlehem. Everything betokened the beginning of
some new manufacture; but what it was to be no
one but Campbell seemed to know, and he would
not tell. The first output comprised the daddies
and the centipede; then there was a pause, during
which nothing was done but to pile up immense
stores of aluminium and roll it into huge cylinders.
The policy of the establishment towards reporters
and curiosity-seekers was much the same as before.
" The only purpose of this wall," they were inform-
ed, " is to guard against thieves and meddlers. We
thought of leaving holes here and there in it, large
enough to look through, so that you could peep all
you chose, but we thought you might consider that
rather undignified. So we have made arrangements
for letting you look in upon us at certain hours in
each week. Outside of those hours we do not wish
to be disturbed."
So far as possible all reporters were excluded from
any permanent residence in the town, but the ~New
York Herald was not to be checkmated in this way.
The red-headed man was soon the occupant of one
of the farm-houses which the owner had reserved
from sale in the beginning and still legally held.
He made it his exclusive business to pry round and
find out all he could, which was, however, very little.
His despatches, nevertheless, were not wanting either
in length or sensation. The theory on which they
were constructed was that the readers would, under
67
His Wisdom the Defender
any circumstances, forget all about them, the next
day, so that, even if their falsity were then shown
up, no harm would be done to the reputation of the
journal.
The keels of what looked like four ships were in
due time laid along the river-bank. This tended
rather to satiate than to excite curiosity. The theory
was current that Campbell was going into ship-build-
ing, it being presumed, of course, that the new mo-
tive power which he commanded would be used to
propel the ships. As the supposed ships progress-
ed they became of an unusual shape, which had been
tried about a century before, but had failed. It was
that of a large but short cigar. The total length
varied from 300 to 360 feet, and the breadth from
50 to 60 feet. The sections being circular, the height
was as great as the breadth. The theory gained cur-
rency that they were to move along the sea by rolling.
As fast as the centipedes were built, they were
brought to the river-bank ready for launching. Here
was something new to interest the curious. The
shops in which the machines were put together were
two or three hundred yards from the river, but after
the machines were finished they were found on the
river-bank.
How did they get there ? They looked as if they
must weigh a hundred tons, and yet there was no
possible means of transportation. It was at length
discovered that they were moved during the night,
but how it was done no one could find out.
68
The First Motes
The centipedes, as they were thus exposed, were
without their feet. The latter, with all the ma-
chinery that worked them, were carefully stored
inside the body.
When upwards of a hundred centipedes were
built, an equal number of vessels of another kind
were constructed, differing from the first in having
no openings for legs. They were much like the
boats of that time, with only a single deck, surround-
ed by a bulwark or a high railing. There was more
room in the interior of these vehicles than in that
of the centipedes. This was utilized to store articles
of the most varied character : condensed food, bever-
ages of various sorts, medicines, portable forges,
implements and tools of all kinds, canvas, poles,
tents in fine, about every article that could be need-
ed for an expedition to some uninhabited country.
And yet, there lay the " boats " on the river-bank,
still unlaunched, with no apparent means of getting
them into the water.
As the rolling machinery was improved, the manu-
facture of a somewhat different mote was commenced.
This was also cigar-shaped, differing from the motes
just described only in being much smaller. The lengths
varied from 30 to 100 feet, and the breadth from
6 to 20 feet. These vehicles had windows in the
side, and the employees of the establishment could
hardly suppress their merriment when they were
ordered to design, make, and supply the mote
with seats like those of the railway cars then in
69
His Wisdom the Defender
vogue. " What can the boss mean ?" said every-
body.
Four of these motes excited especial attention from
the strength and care with which they were built.
They were all alike in size, about 80 feet in
length and 20 in breadth. They were built in cy-
lindrical sections, each about 10 feet long, the cylin-
ders having an arm on the edge so that they could be
fastened end to end like the different lengths of a
pipe for conveying water. They were screwed together
in the usual way, and then, to give additional
strength, were so clamped by " IPs " that the junc-
tion was as strong as the cylinders themselves. Each
end of the mote terminated in a hemisphere. One
of these ends was completely closed and the other
supplied with an opening barely sufficient to allow a
man to enter in a stooping posture. Along the sides
openings, about six inches in diameter, were pierced
at distances of four feet. These were filled with
disks of glass, cemented so as to be quite air-
tight.
Before the ends of the mote were fastened on,
the interior was supplied with a number of longitu-
dinal tubes extending along the walls. The three
upper tubes could be filled with air or oxygen from
the outside, by means of stop-cocks extending
through the wall of the mote. The lower half of
each of these was lined with porcelain. Holes closed
by tight-fitting covers were pierced here and there
along the upper part. A floor was laid along the
70
The First Motes
whole length, and seats to accommodate forty people
were firmly screwed down.
Each vehicle was tested by pumping air into it,
until a pressure of two atmospheres above that of
the air outside was reached. While subjected to this
pressure, every possible exit for the air was care-
fully searched out and closed up.
Among the numerous committees of scientific men
which Campbell had, from time to time, engaged to
examine special points in connection with this work,
was one to experiment on the time during which
human beings could live inside this air-tight en-
closure. He intrusted the work of this committee
to his former colleague, Professor Banks, of Har-
vard. The latter was charged to employ all the re-
sources of chemistry and physiology to investigate
the products of respiration in the air of a confined
space, and learn how they could be made harmless.
From what I have already said of the locality,
it will be recalled that the position of the vessels,
when launched from the point where they stood,
would not be in the open river, but in the narrow
channel between the mainland and Peter's Island.
This channel, while only 200 yards wide at the up-
per end where the bridge was built, widened down
to 500 yards near the lower end of the island.
The red-headed man was very anxious to witness
the launching of the vessels whenever it should take
place. He made a daily visit to the factory, and
was allowed by the watchmen to look into the sacred
71
His Wisdom the Defender
enclosure. The absence of all machinery and all
preparation for launching, and the activity in other
directions, completely threw him off his guard.
Great, therefore, was his chagrin to arrive one morn-
ing and see the centipedes and flat boats, some two
hundred and fifty in number, all floating in the chan-
nel. How they got there was quite beyond his com-
prehension. He vainly interviewed the workmen
and all the employees of his acquaintance. Finally
he had to give up the attempt to solve the mystery.
This was all the easier that a yet greater one seemed
to be in sight. The queer boats must be intended
to sail, and the first effort in this direction was eager-
ly awaited by the reporters. The fact that the ves-
sels had no visible means of propulsion heightened
their curiosity. But they had seen wonders enough,
among which the launching was not the least, to
make them feel that this might be no obstacle to their
departure at any moment. So a constant watch was
kept up by day and night.
Two days after the launching there was another
development. It was found that hundreds of the
employees and workmen slept in the boats every
night. The red-headed man bought a row-boat,
and every evening went in it as far as the bridge to
watch what might be going on after dark. There
was sometimes a great waving of signal lights, but
nothing more. The boats were evidently the sleep-
ing-rooms for more than a thousand men; but what
else?
73
The First Motes
One moonless evening was so cloudy that it was
impossible to see what was going on. All was dark ;
not even a signal light was in motion. Whether
the boats could sail at night under any circumstances
was doubtful; that they should start such a night
as this was clearly impossible. So he rowed back
and went to bed instead of watching.
Next morning he was awakened by an unusual
hubbub. His office-boy ran in to tell him that the
boats had all disappeared. He could not believe it
till he went out into the rain to see for himself. The
report was true! Not a boat was in sight!
VI
Mystery on Mystery
NOTWITHSTANDING the foresight which
Campbell had exercised at every step of his
enterprise, he was quite unprepared for the
outburst of public objurgation that followed the dis-
appearance of the motes. Pent-up dissatisfaction
with the secrecy in which he enveloped his proceed-
ings had been constantly increasing. That he had
the right to keep his secret was admitted; but men
do not always like to see a right exercised. Cap-
italists, investors, and brokers everywhere were dis-
satisfied that there was " nothing in it for them."
Patent attorneys and the Patent Office were almost
scandalized to see the greatest inventions ever made
brought into use without their protection. Manu-
facturers in general, and especially the great trusts
of the country, were concerned for their future.
The newspapers were dissatisfied because he would
not tell them all about what he was doing. From
these classes the leaven of dissatisfaction spread to
all the people. It needed only an occasion to burst
its bonds, and now that occasion was offered.
74
Mystery on Mystery
During the day following the disappearance of
the fleet, the reporters around Campbelltown felt
that a march had been stolen upon them, and they
were determined to " even things up " or know the
reason why. Under the leadership of the red-head-
ed man they crowded to the gate, determined to see
the manager, the secretary, or even the president
himself, who was usually inaccessible. Their
clamor was such that the manager had to admit
them in a body, but he really could not tell them any-
thing as to the whereabouts of the fleet. All he
knew was that preparations had been going on for
several days to give the boats a trial trip; but
whither they were to go he did not know.
" Then we must see the president of the com-
pany."
" I doubt if he knows any better than I do."
" He ought to know, and he must know, and we
are determined to see him. Our papers are all
calling upon us for news, and it must be had."
Word of their demands was sent into the office of
the president. He directed their admission. He
seemed very cool and collected.
" Well, gentlemen, you seem to be out in force
this morning. What can I do for you ? I am sure
the newspapers ought to be my good friends after
all the news I am making for them."
The president's unconcern was like the trickling
of ice-water on a much-excited man. It took a mo-
ment for the red-headed man to collect his thoughts.
75
His Wisdom the Defender
When at length he could command his speech, he felt
that, after all, there was very little to inquire about.
" We have noticed two or three hundred boats
moored in the channel for several weeks past."
" Yes, I noticed them there myself."
" This morning they are gone."
" Quite right ; when I looked out of my window
this morning I could see nothing of them."
He looked for all the world as if he wanted the
reporters to tell him where they were.
" We wish to know where they have gone where
they are now."
" That's more than I know myself. They were
under the command of Captain Gheen, and he is the
only one who can give the information. Are you
sure they are not somewhere behind the island ?"
" But if Captain Gheen is with the boats, we can-
not find him until we find them."
" That may be quite true, but it only makes clear
the difficulty. Captain Gheen has, for several days,
had directions to take the boats out on a trial trip
as soon as he was ready. If he found anything
wrong, he was to come right back. If he did not,
he could go as far as he pleased, even to the north
pole if the ice was not in the way. Have you seen
nothing of him or his boats ?"
" No, or we would not have been here. We wish
to know where you think they are. What did you
expect Captain Gheen to do, and where did you ex-
pect him to go?"
76
Mystery on Mystery
" My thoughts on the subject are worth no more
than yours. I have told you where I authorized him
to go. Until I hear from him I can give you no
further information."
" How long before you expect to hear from him ?"
" I do not know ; it may be this very minute, and
it may not be for several months."
" What route did you expect him to take ?"
" The most direct route he could."
" Suppose he should sail to the pole, how long
would it take him to get there ?"
" That depends upon how fast the boats are run.
As this is their first serious trial, I cannot tell you
their speed, but I expect them to go very fast."
" Can you not tell us how fast ?"
" If I could tell you how fast, you would not be-
lieve it. At full speed they would be out of sight and
hearing long before daylight."
" You speak as if you expected them to go as fast
as a railway train."
"I would certainly be very much disappointed
if they went anything like as slowly as a train."
There was a look of astonishment and a great
scratching of pencils.
" How many people were in the boats ?"
" There were a great many, but for the moment
I cannot give you exact figures ; neither do I intend
to do so. You may have more complete information on
the subject at some future time. You must excuse
my saying anything further at present."
77
His Wisdom the Defender
Although their curiosity was whetted by the presi-
dent's expectations of the speed of the boats, they
departed with the feeling that they had been un-
necessarily excited by a very slight occurrence.
But the editors saw things in a different light.
Thousands of men, many of them youths of respect-
ability, had suddenly disappeared, no one knew how
or where. They determined to get information on
the subject and to make all the noise about it they
could. Here was a chance to have their revenge,
and it should not be allowed to pass. The reporters
were all ordered to remain in Campbelltown that
night, if they had to bivouac on the ground, and to
ascertain, the names of all the people who had gone
on the mysterious expedition.
This work was vigorously begun by the reporters
next morning, making a house-to-house canvass, and
finding out what occupants had been unaccounted for
during the last twenty-four hours, and where they
were last seen ; and farmers along the shore were in-
terviewed to know if they had seen the boats go down
the river but all to no purpose. The keeper of the
lighthouse, about three miles below Campbelltown,
reported that he had seen them pass about ten
o'clock. This was the last that could be learned of
tEem. Neither of the lighthouse-keepers at Capes
Henry or Charles had seen anything of them. Every
steamer and vessel which was known to be on the
Chesapeake that night or the following day was asked
for information. Telegrams were sent to all points
78
Mystery on Mystery
on the coast. The Herald even fitted out a steam-
yacht to meet schooners and ascertain if anything
had been seen. Not a scrap of information could
be gained concerning the fleet after it had passed the
lighthouse.
The evening papers, in describing the results of
the search, called upon the public for information
as to friends and relatives employed at Campbell-
town. The result of all these inquiries was made
known in time for publication in the next morning's
papers. Between two and three thousand people had
disappeared from the face of the earth. In all
probability the whole fleet of boats, chained together
as they were, had sunk, either near the mouth of the
Potomac or in Chesapeake Bay, and not a soul had
been saved.
Telegrams poured in upon the president by the
hundred. Every newspaper in the country called
for further information, and some parent or near
relative of almost every missing man begged for in-
formation as to his fate. The clamor made a pub-
lic reply absolutely necessary, and the following
authoritative statement was telegraphed everywhere:
" There is no reason for solicitude as to the safe-
ty of the party which left Campbelltown on Tuesday
night. Every possible precaution has been taken
to insure the safety of its members. Captain Gheen
was ordered to report immediately in the event of
any accident, or any failure of the machinery to
79
His Wisdom the Defender
operate succssfully. The boats are practically
unsinkable ; even in the heaviest storm the only way
in which one could be sunk would be by suddenly
shipping a sea. If this accident did happen to one,
she would be kept up by the others. But the acci-
dent itself seems practically impossible. If the ex-
pedition was successfully started, there was no ex-
pectation of hearing from it for several weeks. Its
exact destination was left to the judgment of Cap-
tain Gheen ; he was, however, to proceed as far north
as he conveniently could. There is no probabilty that
he would be seen by other vessels; hence no anxiety
need be felt because he has not been heard from.
" A. CAMPBELL/'
This statement seemed to relieve the fears of those
who had friends on the expedition; but it did not
relieve the newspapers in the slightest. When the
Herald yacht failed to get news from passing ves-
sels, people would not believe that the expedition
had ever got outside the capes. So tugs were sent
to dredge the river and the Chesapeake in all di-
rections below where the boats had last been seen.
The absurdity of supposing that two hundred and
fifty good-sized vessels, with fifteen hundred men
on board, could be sunk in so shallow a sea and not
a trace be visible was pointed out by Campbell him-
self. But the newspapers only denounced him the
louder. The whole country resounded with the out-
cry. Had Congress been in session it would have
80
Mystery on Mystery
been called upon to institute a rigid investigation.
It happened that the Maryland Legislature was in
session, and the pressure upon it for action was such
that a committee of inquiry was formally ordered in
accordance with the following resolution:
" WHEBEAS, no less than two hundred and fifty
floating vehicles, having on board more than two
thousand men, many of them citizens of Maryland,
have suddenly disappeared from Peter's Channel
in the Potomac River ; and
" WHEREAS, the fate of the said men is involved
in mystery; therefore be it
"Resolved, that a committee of nine members,
of whom six shall ' be representatives and three
senators, shall be appointed by the presiding
officers of the two Houses, with power to send for
persons and papers, and to investigate whither the
said boats have gone and what has become of the men
in them."
This resolution was adopted with practical una-
nimity in both Houses.
Without losing a day, the chairman and two mem-
bers of the committee went to Campbelltown, ac-
companied by a clerk, to make arrangements for
beginning the investigation. They were admitted,
shown into the office of the president, and received
by the secretary.
"We represent, as you are probably aware, a
F 81
His Wisdom the Defender
committee of the Legislature of Maryland, ordered
to investigate the disappearance of a fleet of boats
from this place. We should like, first of all, to con-
fer with President Campbell."
" I am sorry to say that the president is not at
home. He left town on Thursday evening, and is
not expected back until Tuesday next."
" Where has he gone ?"
" That I do not know. So far as I am aware, he
said nothing to any- one about/ his intended move-
ments."
The chairman looked surprised.
" We have seen no notice of his departure. Does
he often go away for five days without leaving any
word as to how you are to reach him in case of an
emergency ?"
" He never did it before ; I do not know why he
has done it now. You know he does not encourage
any inquiry into his affairs on the part of anybody
here."
" What train did he take ?"
" I have no idea. He simply left his office a lit-
tle after the usual hour and went towards the Coli-
seum. That was the last I saw of him."
"I never heard of such a man leaving without
his movements getting into the papers, and without
any one knowing anything about it. It seems as
if our first task will be to investigate his disappear-
ance. However, this is Saturday, and we can wait
until Monday. Monday morning you may expect
82
Mystery on Mystery
the entire committee to begin its investigation. We
desire to conduct it here because we can so easily
examine the officers and employees of the company.
Can you place a room at our disposal at nine in the
morning ?"
" I would not like to promise you a room within
the enclosure, but you can doubtless find one out-
side with great ease. The newspaper men have a
building to themselves, as you probably know; per-
haps you could get a room there in which to go to
work."
The new disappearance was, of course, telegraphed
to every city and every newspaper office in the
United States. In this way, by Saturday evening,
every person in the country was inquiring after the
President of the Anita Company, with the hope that
whoever might know anything of his whereabouts
would speak. But not a word was heard about him.
When the committee reconvened at Campbelltown
on Monday morning, the mystery was as great as
ever. Before noon the work of the committee had
made it yet darker. All the watchmen of the place
had been examined to find out at what hour and in
what direction the missing man had left. The last
person who had seen him was the gate-keeper at the
Coliseum. At his usual hour, about sunset, he had
left his office and entered the mysterious place. No
one had seen him since. Five men were in the en-
closure at the time. Neither of them had again been
seen.
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His Wisdom the Defender
Evidently he must be hiding in the Coliseum.
The committee determined to visit the place and
conduct their investigations there, if they could
secure admittance. The manager acceded to this
course, and escorted the committee across the bridge
and into the place. They noticed with surprise a
number of low but rather large buildings inside,
with machinery of all sorts here and there. Of course
they were amazed at the sight of the suspended dad-
dies, but no one could tell what they were for. A
few workmen were found in several of the shops, but
nothing of the missing men. After two hours' search
and examination they left as wise as they came.
Determined not to leave until the mystery was
solved, they passed the night at what was known as
" Newspaper House." Next morning the commit-
tee was convened at the usual hour. The secretary
was the first witness to be examined :
" I believe you said the president was to be back
to-day?"
" Yes ; he is now in his office."
" How did he get there ? We heard nothing of
his return."
" I know nothing about it, sir. All I know is he
came in as usual this morning. He said he came
from the Coliseum."
" It looks as if he had been hiding there all this
time. Did you ever know him to do such a thing
before?"
" I cannot say that I did."
84
Mystery on Mystery
" We must subpoena him immediately."
While the subpoena was being made out the crowd
of reporters was more clamorous than ever.
" They are determined to know where you have
been and what you have been doing," said the secre-
tary. " Unless we tell them something, I do not
know what is to happen."
" Very well. Tell them a rest of a few days from
time to time is necessary to keep me from being worn
out. So I have been vegetating as far from my
usual surroundings as I can well get."
" That will only excite their curiosity the more
to know where you were."
" Very well. Tell them I entered the Coliseum
Thursday night and came out again Tuesday morn-
ing, and that is all I will tell them."
When he appeared in response to the summons
he was so cool and unconcerned that the chairman
hardly knew how to begin his questions. Had he
followed the impulse of the moment, he would have
asked him where he had been during the last five
days. But a little reflection showed him that this
would be an impertinence. So he briefly but for-
mally set forth the object of the committee.
" We were ready to commence our investigations
Saturday, but owing to your absence we were obliged
to postpone it until yesterday."
He looked for an answer, but none came.
" The committee will now be glad to hear any
statement you have to make on the subject before it."
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His Wisdom the Defender
" I do not see that I can add anything to what
I have already publicly said to correspondents and
others. Indeed, the case is so simple that I fail to
understand what the committee can expect of me. I
authorized Captain Gheen, in charge of the fleet,
to make a trial trip whenever he was ready. From
his absence I suppose that he has gone on that trip.
Until he returns I cannot give you more definite in-
formation."
" Why did the fleet leave in the night ?"
Counsel whom the witness brought with him ob-
jected to this question as irrelevant. The commit-
tee was only empowered to inquire where the boats
had gone and what had become of the men in them.
No authority was given to inquire into reasons.
The correctness of this contention had to be admit-
ted, but it made the questioning rather tame. After
some consideration the chairman continued:
" These boats were not propelled by steam-power,
we believe ?"
" No, sir, they were not."
" By what power were they propelled ?"
Counsel objected. The committee was not au-
thorized by the resolution to inquire into the meth-
ods of propulsion.
This was undeniable, and the question was with-
drawn.
" The only objection I have to the question," said
Campbell, " is that it is impossible to answer it in
an intelligible way. I am free to say that the boats
86
Mystery on Mystery
are not propelled by steam-power, but by etherine
through the action of therm."
" Etherine ? What is etherine, and what is
therm?"
" These are terms which I have applied to certain
new agencies discovered by me. I mean by etherine
a new form of matter having relations to the lumi-
niferous ether, not possessed by any other matter
formerly known to men. Therm is an agent some-
what akin to electricity, also discovered by me, and
still unknown to the scientific world. By these two
agencies I can exercise force and produce motion
in ways never before known."
" The committee admits that it has no right, un-
der the powers given by the resolution, to inquire
into the conduct of your business. Permit us to
say, however, that both the committee and the coun-
try would be much gratified if you would explain
the reason for the secrecy in which you have en-
veloped all your operations, including so important
a one as sending several thousand men out on a
perilous expedition."
Counsel: " My client, of course, understands that
this question is quite outside the limits of the inves-
tigation. If he chooses to answer it I am not re-
sponsible."
Campbell: "I can only answer in a general way
by saying that when my reasons are once fully un-
derstood I expect them to meet with universal ap-
proval. I have no interests in view but those of the
87
His Wisdom the Defender
'world at large. These can best be secured by the
policy I have adopted. When the proper time
comes I shall have no further secrets, but shall glad-
ly make everything known."
" When will that proper time be ?"
" It will be as soon as I can guard against any
misuse of the power I wield. Just when that may
be I cannot say, but I hope we shall all live to see the
day."
" We understand, then, that in sending Captain
Gheen out on this expedition you gave him no pre-
cise instructions as to his destination ?"
" I did not absolutely fix any destination for him.
He was authorized to go to the north pole if he
could."
" What was the object of the expedition ?"
Counsel: " Again I must make the point that the
committee is not empowered to inquire into objects,
but only into facts."
The question was changed.
" What provision had the party for their comfort-
able subsistence during their absence ?"
" They were provisioned for three months ; it is
the utmost limit of absence I expect. If they are
not here before the expiration of that time, I shall
have everything ready to send another expedition
to search for them."
" But if their whereabouts is unknown, how can
a search be effected ?"
" All coasts and bays where the expedition is like-
: * 88
Mystery on Mystery
ly to have landed can be inspected and examined in
a very short time."
" If you yourself had a son on this expedition,
would you not feel a deep solicitude for his safety ?"
" I should feel no other solicitude than that aris-
ing from his having gone out on an expedition of a
very extraordinary kind, possibly involving un-
known perils. So far as any foreseeable accident
is concerned, I should feel no great fear. Of course,
we are all liable to accident and death at any mo-
ment; but I do not think the liability materially
greater than it would have been had they stayed
at home."
This terminated Campbell's examination. He
felt greatly relieved by the contrast between the
courtesy and consideration with which it was con-
ducted and the noise which the newspapers were
making.
The committee left no stone unturned to gain the
information expected of it. Lighthouse - keepers,
residents along the coast, captains of vessels, em-
ployees of the Anita Company, and reporters were
all sent for and examined at length. It was ascer-
tained without doubt that the boats were floating
in Peter's Channel on the evening of Tuesday, the
llth; that several thousand men had been sleeping
on board them for several nights previous; that on
Tuesday night, about nine P.M., they had cast off
the ropes which bound them to the shore and moved
down the river; that they had been seen to pass the
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His Wisdom the Defender
lighthouse. From the time occupied in going down
the river and the rate of speed in passing the light-
house, it had been inferred that they travelled as
fast as an ocean steamer. Nothing had happened
to the boats within Chesapeake Bay, else the bodies
of the men or the wrecks of the boats would have
been discovered. It was understood that, under
their orders, they had gone to sea and proceeded to
the northeast. Nothing more could be learned.
A report to this effect was made on the 22d. Next
day the following despatch from St. Johns, New-
foundland, appeared in all the newspapers :
" At five o'clock this evening a small boat was
seen oceanward approaching this port at an extraor-
dinary rate of speed. It entered the harbor as
fast as a railroad train, dashing the water into foam
on both sides. It landed a man at the wharf, who
went to the telegraph office to send a despatch, and
immediately returned to the boat. The man gave
the names of himself and his companion as William
H. Robinson and James R. Clay, both being mem-
bers of the Anita Company's expedition which left
Campbelltown for the north nearly two weeks ago.
He reported the expedition as having safely effected
a landing on the coast of Baffin's Bay, and that all
were well on board. A number of letters were
brought from members of the expedition for their
friends, which were duly posted and will be sent by
the next mail. To the great disappointment of the
inhabitants the two men resisted all entreaties to re-
90
Mystery on Mystery
main, sailing away as soon as they had finished
their errand, and before the reporters had time to
interview them.
" Great curiosity was excited by the movements of
their boat, which seemed to float on the water as
lightly as a feather. Rapid as were its movements,
no mode of propulsion was visible. When at full
speed it seemed even lighter than when at rest, mere-
ly skimming the water and throwing it up into foam
as it went along. It passed the lighthouse on its
way out at six o'clock, and twenty minutes later was
lost in the distance. Any attempt to follow it would
have been useless."
This despatch served to calm the public, but it
may be feared that the relief it afforded the news-
papers was tinged with a feeling of disappointment
that nothing so sensational as the destruction of sev-
eral thousand men could be reported. They con-
tinued their attacks on Campbell with undiminished
vigor. Nothing less would satisfy them than the
immediate fitting out of a fast steamer which should
be sent off to search for the party and report its
movements. They knew well that nothing of the
sort would be done unless they did it themselves,
and they concluded not to try, for the new mystery
of Campbell's five days' disappearance gave them
ample material for discussion.
VII
And Another for the Duke
THE disappearance at Campbelltown was fol-
lowed next evening by an equally mysterious
appearance at Leghorn, in Italy. About nine
o'clock a small steamer entered the harbor of that
town and landed a slender, dark-bearded gentleman.
Being recognized as belonging to the works on Elba,
the customs officers allowed the boat to come in with-
out question. The passenger went rapidly to the rail-
way station and chartered a special train for Pisa,
paying a good price in advance. There he passed the
night, took the first train in the morning for Flor-
ence, and was driven to the Villa Bernaletti.
" There seems to be some comedy of errors about
your movements," said the Duke. " I received a
telegram from Elba a couple of days ago, telling
me that you would be here this morning. But yes-
terday I read in the Gazzetta a long account of the
sudden disappearance of a fleet of your boats from
the place which bears your name, in which you were
repeatedly mentioned as present on the spot. I
therefore supposed that the despatch must have been
92
And Another for the Duke
sent me by error. Will you pardon my curiosity
if I ask how these contradictory statements are to
be reconciled ?"
" I am really afraid to reconcile them, else I
should do so with the greatest pleasure. You see
me before you ready to take you and such of your
family as will accompany me on the visit of inspec-
tion which I proposed to you last month. Doubt-
less that object was duly mentioned in the despatch.
We may talk about news blunders some other time."
" We had made all the arrangements for accepting
your invitation; but yesterday's news made us sup-
pose that, as a matter of course, you would not be
here. Still, I do not think we have made any in-
compatible engagements. We shall be ready after
lunch."
" Your daughter will be of the party, I hope.
I think something new to see will be for her benefit."
" After much difficulty I got her consent to ac-
company us. But how are we to reach your moun-
tain?"
" Very easily. I came in my despatch-boat, which
is kept for use between the ports of Elba, and is
now waiting for us in the harbor of Leghorn."
The party, consisting of the black-bearded man,
the Duke, and his son and daughter, took a special
train immediately after lunch, and, passing through
Pisa, reached Leghorn before dark and embarked
on the boat.
They passed the night at Terra jo, and the follow-
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His Wisdom the Defender
ing morning found them on the way up Mount Cam-
panne, or, as it is now called, Uraniberg, where the
two men had driven eighteen months before. The
building of the so-called convent was making rapid
progress.
" The lady superior of this convent will be a Sis-
ter of Mercy to the whole world," said the conductor
of the party.
The early evening found them back at Terr a jo,
where the great factories were in full operation,
doing for Europe what Campbelltown was doing
for America. Great was the astonishment of the
ducal family when told that their host could not
even stop to show them the factories, but must leave
immediately. The boat would be at their orders in
the morning to take them wherever they wished.
" Will you excuse me if I come and go like a
ghost? Be my guests here as long as you choose,
but excuse the necessity which I am under of depart-
ing this evening."
He took the tug at dusk and disappeared, while
his guests wondered what manner of man this
was.
When the Duke arrived home with his family the
evening following, he at once asked for the numbers
of the Gazzetta which had arrived during his absence.
The first thing that struck his eye was a head-line
announcing the mysterious disappearance of the
president of the Anita Company. Whether he had
wandered away, or had concealed himself in his own
94
And Another for the Duke
town to evade the committee of investigation, no one
could tell. To the outcry consequent upon the dis-
appearance of more than two thousand men was add-
ed another about this new mystery. The paper for
the next morning announced no really new event.
It only described the continuance of the uproar which
increased with every hour of the president's ab-
sence. Then followed a special evening edition
announcing the equally mysterious reappearance.
The missing man had quietly walked out of the Coli-
seum early in the morning as collected as though
nothing had happened. He refused to explain his
absence to any one.
As we grow old the light in which recent events
are seen is not quite so clear as during the prime
of life. When the Duke thought of the sudden way
in which, if his memory served him aright, he and
his family had been whisked away from his home,
carried to the top of a mountain, shown through an
almost limitless manufacturing establishment, re-
turned to his villa by sea and land, and now found
himself reclining on his comfortable sofa as if noth-
ing had happened, it needed some assurance from
his family and some examination of his own memory
to be sure he had not been dreaming.
" Is it really you who stand before me ?" he said
to his wife. " I am not dreaming ?"
" What a question !"
" You and I and all of us have been on a voyage
to Elba, have we not ?"
95
His Wisdom the Defender
" Of course we have. Why do you ask such a
question ?" She looked alarmed.
"Who took us to Elba?"
" My dear husband, what is the matter with you ?
If you ask such a question as that I must telephone
immediately for our medical man."
" There is not the slightest need of that. I just
want to hear you repeat the name of our leader and
tell me all about it."
" Why, you must know. It was Professor Camp-
bell."
" The president of the Anita Company ?"
" Of course. Who else could it be ?"
" Now look at the Gazzetta, and you will see why
I asked you. President Campbell was reported as
at his post in America only last Wednesday morning,
and he was there again this morning. Did you not
notice something very odd about him while he was
travelling with us as if he were made up of some
ethereal substance which might vanish into thin air
at any moment? It is true that he made no such
impression upon me at the time; but now, when I
recall his visit, I cannot help thinking of him as a
sort of ghost that had never existed until he reached
our house that morning."
" I certainly formed no such impression."
" You recall the sudden and mysterious way in
which he took his departure ?"
" Yes, very well ; it was sudden and mysterious,
as you say, but that was all."
96
And Another for the Duke
" I cannot help feeling that no human being made
of ordinary flesh and blood could have departed
in such a way. I cannot altogether get rid of the
idea that he dissolved into thin air the moment he
was out of our sight. How else could he have been
in America thirty-six hours later ?"
" I shall really be alarmed if you entertain such
a notion."
Another question presented itself to the Duke's
mind. The student whom he had entertained at his
house long ago the professor who had visited them
the owner of one-half of Elba the mysterious
president of the Anita Company, and his guide of the
past three days were they all one and the same per-
son ? If the telegraph was to be believed, they cer-
tainly could not be ; but who was who ? The defer-
ence shown his guide at Ferrajo during the whole
visit to the works was such that he could not be less
than lord and master. So there was nothing to do
but wait for light.
Let us now return to the Potomac. During the
next weeks the building of the queer boats went on
as if nothing had happened. ~No explanation of the
mystery was vouchsafed; the president of the Anita
Company answered all inquiries as if he saw noth-
ing unusual to inquire about; reporters searched in
vain; editors exhausted themselves in declamation
and discussion without reaching any conclusion.
Reporters were now freely admitted nearly every day.
G 97
His Wisdom the Defender
Occasionally, when some public man or well-known
editor paid a visit to the works, Campbell himself
would accompany him to show him what was going
on and explain the luxury of the future traveller in
these new vessels.
Entering a mote and climbing to the upper deck,
Campbell would show the visitor how beautifully
the light would come through the magnificent arch
formed by the upper part of the " ship," and how lux-
urious all the arrangements for passengers were to
be. While this was being set forth at such length
the visitor's thoughts were elsewhere.
" But how are 'you going to propel this vessel
through the water?"
" By etherine."
Then the visitor would smile in silence. If
he had not known that the boats were actually going
in a very mysterious way, he would not have be-
lieved. Knowing what he did, he wondered in si-
lence, and left no wiser than he came.
A month had elapsed since the disappearance of
the fleet. The press had continued to pour vials of
wrath on the report of the Maryland committee as
hot as those with which they had been visiting the
Anita Company. During this interval the letters
which had been mailed at St. John's reached their
destination. To the great embarrassment of the
reporters there was no indication as to the friends
to whom they might be directed. To get hold of
them, their only course was to learn the names of
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And Another for the Duke
those persons whose relatives at the works were sup-
posed to have gone on the expedition, and to ask them
for the letters when they arrived. Several were thus
obtained, and, of course, immediately published.
They were, however, so tame as to lead to a very
strong suspicion of having passed a censorship, a
suspicion which our readers will not be slow in be-
lieving well-founded. There were glowing accounts
of the rapidity with which the voyage had been made
and the pleasure attending it. But no events were
related. There was nothing about wind or weather.
The coast where they landed and the country in the
neighborhood were described, but nothing was stated
by which the location could be determined. A very
interesting experience had been gained, but no one
told what that experience was. The really good
news, though bad for the newspapers, was that all
were well, barring a few accidents to the men arising
from the unusual character of the boats in which
they sailed. All were happy, but did not know
when they should get back to their friends.
The daily visits of the reporters to Campbelltown
were almost futile so far as any new results were
concerned. Every day the same story : " Nothing
more has been heard from the Northern expedition,
and nothing is expected to be heard for several weeks
to come. If anything is heard you will be duly in-
formed. These queer, cigar-shaped boats are being
completed as usual. When they are finished and
ready to proceed on a voyage, you will be notified.
99
His Wisdom the Defender
The veil of secrecy will then be lifted, and you shall
see how the boats are propelled."
The next development was the issue of a large,
beautifully engraved invitation, to the following
effect :
ff The Owner of the Motes requests the pleasure of
*******
company on Tuesday, May 29th, to witness the first
public attempt to run the Motes."
This invitation was sent to the President and the
heads of departments, the diplomatic corps, both
Houses of Congress, the leading officials at Washing-
ton, including the judges of the Supreme Court, and
a few officers of high rank in the army and navy.
The press came in for a liberal supply, each address-
ed to the editor of the journal in his official capacity.
Presidents and professors in the universities and col-
leges were remembered.
With each invitation was a card stating that a train
would leave Washington for Campbelltown at 2.30
P.M.,, on the appointed day, and start on its return
about seven.
In addition to these general invitations, a select
number received invitations to dinner, at 6.30, with
the information that the owner of the motes would
take advantage of the occasion to make a statement
respecting his policy.
There were some half-dozen people whose pres-
ence, for various reasons, Campbell especially de-
100
And Another for the Duke
sired. Among them were Winthrop, the Speaker
of the House of Representatives, and the French Am-
bassador. Fearing that the latter might have some
previous engagement, a private note of explanation
was sent him in advance, to the effect that the exer-
cises would be of the highest order of interest. The
ambassador took the hint and accepted both invita-
tions. The British and German ambassadors both
sent regrets. It happened that the former had a
ball and the latter a dinner on that very evening.
Campbell was not in the least dissatisfied at this, as
the presence of the Frenchman and the absence of
the other two would serve a purpose in the intricate
game he expected to play.
Outside the press, the amount of public curiosity
excited was less than would have been expected. The
word " mote " had never been publicly used until
it was printed in the invitation. People could only
guess that it meant the queer, cigar-shaped boats.
" Who wants to see a mere attempt ? We may as
well wait until they run; then we shall see them
without doubt." Influenced by such considerations
as these, about one-third of the invitees either de-
clined or failed to appear.
The great body of the Angelic Order had gone
with the expedition. Some twenty neophytes had
been kept at home to take part in the unveiling.
VIII
The Great Unveiling
O1ST the morning of the great day all was bustle
and activity in the works of the Anita
Company. The few remaining daddies and
centipedes were taken down, supporting ropes
were removed, and they were allowed to rest upon
the ground. Then, instead of being tied as be-
fore to the top of the tower, they were fastened
to the ground, as if to prevent them from flying
away. When the Seraphim commenced their prac-
tice, they were astonished to find that the motes ran
just as well without the supporting cords as they
had done with them. The difficulty now was to
prevent their flying away altogether. When the
proper lever was removed, they rose in the air and
could be directed at pleasure so far as the tethers by
which they were bound would permit. It was a rep-
etition, on a larger scale, of the scene in the uncanny
workshop.
Three of the best-trained Seraphs were then taken
on board the loomotes, where they were shown how
102
The Great Unveiling
the mote was to be managed and run. Thus every-
thing was ready for the exhibition before the ap-
pointed hour. Trains were kept running all day,
and a large body of visitors besides those who had
been specially invited availed themselves of the oc-
casion to see the town and, if possible, witness the
unveiling of the mystery. When the two trains
bearing the invitees arrived, they were shown into
the enclosure, where the motes, now two hundred in
number, lay.
The regular guests were followed by the crowd
of sight-seers, who were freely admitted. All were
requested to arrange themselves round the borders
of the enclosure.
The gate by which the guests entered was near
the middle of the northern wall. About a hundred
yards in front of the entrance was a grand-stand,
erected for the accommodation of the specially in-
vited guests, the crowd being kept in the rear. As the
stand was filled, the scene presented to the eyes of the
occupants excited their curiosity to the highest pitch.
Immediately in front of them was one of the huge
structures we have already described a cylindrical-
ly formed " ship " built of aluminium, 300 feet long
in the body, and towering 60 feet above the ground.
One end terminated in a hemisphere, the other in a
round, blunt projection in the shape of a rifle cannon-
shot or the end of a cigar. The whole was painted
light green. On this background was painted in im-
mense letters the words:
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His Wisdom the Defender
"To the ocean now I fly and the happy climes that lie
Where day never shuts his eye up in the broad fields of the
sky."
This inscription extended along two-thirds the
length of the mote, and might have been read half
a mile away. Above everything towered what was
evidently the pilot-house, in which could be seen
several men, looking for all the world as if they were
on ship-board, waiting for the engines to start. And
yet, not only was the ship not launched, but there
were no visible means of propulsion if she had been.
On each side of the pilot-house was painted the name
Hesperus.
Beyond the Hesperus was a sister-mote of the same
size, the Cynthia. She also had her poetic inscrip-
tion:
" Nature, that heard such sound, beneath the hollow round
Of Cynthia's seat the airy region thrilling,
Now was almost won to think her part was done,
And that her reign had here its last fulfilling."
To the left of the Hesperus, and yet farther from
the river, were two motes of somewhat smaller size,
which were being fitted up most sumptuously. The
nearest bore the name Concordia and the inscrip-
tion:
"Hoch uberm niedern Erdenleben soil sie im blauen Himmels-
zelt
Die Nachbarin des Donners schweben und grenzen an die
Sternenwelt."
The other bore the name Friede.
104
The Great Unveiling
As the guests faced the Hesperus the river was
on their right. The space between the huge mote
and the river had been cleared away, as if to make
room for the expected launching. But every ap-
pliance for such an operation was wanting. The
only noticeable object was a small cannon, pointed
towards the river. What could be coming?
To the left, on each of the great motes, were the
two hundred or more smaller ones we have described.
Individually they looked insignificant alongside their
huge neighbors, but collectively excited as much
curiosity as the others. What possible object could
there be in building so many of these vessels in ad-
vance? The name of the nearest one excited spe-
cial attention. This was the air-tight one we have
already described, which now bore on its side the
words
THE GOLDEN AGE.
It seemed to the guests that if any of the " boats,"
as they called them, were worthy of this appellation,
it ought to be the largest ones. They changed their
minds in less than forty-eight hours.
The attention of Campbell was principally occu-
pied with the Hesperus. He stood outside of her,
giving directions to and hearing reports from a num-
ber of assistants who were continually running in
and out of her, and talking with the men in the pilot-
house. It was at length noticed that this bustle
ceased. The spectators held their breath as they
saw the central figure of the whole scene walk slow-
105
His Wisdom the Defender
ly to the stand, ascend the steps, and take one of the
seats which had been reserved for his party in front.
On his right sat the French ambassador ; on his left
President Winthrop and Mr. Justice Geary of the
Supreme Court. He first looked intently at the
men in the pilot-house, then, rising from his seat,
he leaned forward towards the right and made a
signal to the man at the gun. The report of the
latter was echoed from the sides of the motes.
Immediately a scene was presented to the spec-
tators which made each feel that he must either be
dreaming or was being treated to a theatrical exhi-
bition. The mighty Hesperus, with its thousand tons
of weight, began to move, then rose slowly and ma-
jestically in the air to a height of several thousand
feet, swung in a vast circle, including half the
breadth of the river in its radius, returned to its
starting-point, and slowly settled down in its place.
Then, one after the other, three or four of the
lesser motes rose in the same way, described a yet
wider circle, and returned in like manner.
A herald cried out a request to all the guests who
wished to take a sail to enter the Hesperus and climb
to her upper deck. Campbell entered first, follow-
ed by some fifty of the boldest of his visitors. Among
the latter was President Winthrop. The opening in
the bottom through which they had entered was
closed and the word of command was given. In a
moment all on board felt themselves in motion, and,
looking through the glass sides which enclosed them,
106
The Great Unveiling
could see the ground about them and the thou-
sands of upturned faces sinking rapidly downward.
In three minutes the broad Potomac was below their
feet, and a rushing, whizzing sound gradually in-
creased. This was caused by the rapid motion of
the mote through the air. Five minutes later the
whole breadth of the Chesapeake was spread out to
view, as the vessel rushed forward in her swift course
of more than two hundred miles an hour. A great
swing was made which brought Fortress Monroe in
sight. A broad curve was then taken towards the
north, and in less than an hour, with the increasing
height, Baltimore and Washington were seen through
the air.
The emotion felt on board was such that scarcely
a word was uttered. The passengers looked on in
almost breathless expectancy, not unmingled with
apprehension.
When the mote returned and was safely landed,
Campbell and Winthrop approached each other.
Both recalled a conversation they had held four years
before. Campbell spoke first:
" Do you remember what I said to you at that
interview when I asked leave of absence from my
professional duties ?"
" Yes, I have never forgotten it."
" I have often been curious to know what you
thought of my remark at the time."
" I was simply perplexed beyond measure, and
had serious fears for your mental condition, Not
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His Wisdom the Defender
before you began to astonish the world by your in-
ventions was my uneasiness removed. Now it looks
to me as if you might very well claim that this is
the greatest day in the history of the world."
" Perhaps it is the greatest day the world has yet
seen, but I hope for a yet greater one hereafter."
A crowd had gathered round, listening with intense
interest to the conversation. " Excuse us a moment,"
said Campbell, " I wish to say a word in private to
Winthrop. Come with me." Then, when they had
retired into a corner:
" This is only the beginning, and is not the day
I had in mind when I spoke. The greatest day in
the history of the world, if I can bring it about, will
be that when war shall have ceased forever, armies
and navies exist no longer, and universal peace reign
over all the nations. Not till then will all my hopes
be fulfilled."
" That looks hopeless, and yet I must admit that
if any man can bring it about it's you."
" Be sure you do not drop a whisper about it to
any one; but I mean to bring it about."
The dining-table was spread in the Coliseum, in
the north end of which had been erected a large
banqueting-hall.
After the table was cleared Campbell made an ad-
dress, which is of such historic importance that we
shall reproduce its main features:
"FRIENDS AND FELLOW-CITIZENS, I do not
108
The Great Unveiling
think you will look for any apology from me for
making some remarks on what you have to-day seen.
Many questions must be presenting themselves to
your minds. I fancy that one of the foremost of
these questions is why I have proceeded so secretly
in the work of perfecting the application of certain
forces of nature, the result of which you have seen
before you to-day. This question will be answer-
ed when I set forth to you the state of things as it
has presented itself to my mind.
" It is now a little more than four years since
I found myself in possession of a natural agent of
which man had never before suspected the existence,
an agent by using which, instead of being confined
to the earth as heretofore, he could fly from conti-
nent to continent with a speed which the wildest
imagination of the poet never conceived. The in-
auguration of the golden age seemed quite within
my power. No part of the earth would hereafter
be difficult of access. Men could fly above the air
and, in the pure ether, make the circuit of the earth
with almost astronomic speed.
" As a scientific investigator, the main object
of whose life had been to benefit his fellows, my
first impulse was to make known my discovery to
the world and invite all men to share in its benefi-
cent results. But a little consideration showed that
this course would be productive, for a long time to
come, of irreparable disaster. A situation would at
once be created with which the laws and customs of
109
His Wisdom the Defender
men would not enable them to cope. Universal
confusion would have followed the demonstration
of my discovery. I can hardly describe to you in
detail what would have happened. First of all, it
is clear enough that the stocks and bonds of all exist-
ing railway and transportation companies would, at
a single stroke, have become nearly worthless, were
the building of the new vehicles allowed to go on
as rapidly as enterprise could produce them. A year
or two only would be necessary to do away with
railways, unless for local transportation, and steam-
ships would have ceased to run within another year.
The fall in railway stocks would have produced a
universal panic and a corresponding fall in almost
every other form of investment securities. Univer-
sal bankruptcy, with all the calamities attending
upon it, would have been the immediate result. Al-
most every form of industry would have been strick-
en as by a paralysis. Widespread starvation among
the masses, now deprived of employment, could have
been averted only by an almost universal system of
gratuitous distribution of food and other supplies.
The work of recovering from the cataclysm would
have been that of making a new world.
" Must T then abandon the project of doing to my
fellow-men a great good, because they would con-
vert it into a great evil ? Must the secret be allowed
to die with me, perhaps to be revived in some fut-
ure generation ? After a long and careful reflec-
tion it became evident to me that if I could retain
110
The Great Unveiling
in my own hands the power to guide the revolution,
I could bring about all its benefits without its at-
tendant evils. To do this my power must be abso-
lute. To gain absolute power I must acquire the
means of carrying on my enterprise before the pub-
lic should be made acquainted with its nature. Had
it been known when I founded this town four years
ago that I was building vehicles which would do
away with railways and steamships, the whole coun-
try would have been thrown into a panic. The
pressure on me and the crowd around me would have
been such that it would have been impossible for me
to go on with the work in the quiet and systematic
way which was necessary to success. I must, there-
fore, whenever my object became public, be able to
say to my fellow-men, see what I can do for you,
but do not crowd upon me to seize what I have got,
and thus bring disaster upon your fellows.
" The key-stone of my policy is that the power of
the flying motes, which has been exhibited to you to-
day, shall be used solely for the benefit of the entire
human race. From this day forward no person,
not even myself, shall derive any emoluments from it
except those to which they shall be entitled as com-
pensation for services rendered.
*******
" I propose to call the vehicles which you have to-
day seen running through the air by the general
name of motes. It is brief and significant, and will
not fail to strike you favorably. The motes, so far
111
His Wisdom the Defender
as I have yet built and projected them, are of three
kinds. I propose to call them loomotes, weemotes,
and himotes. These little syllables are short and
easily distinguished. The loomotes are the largest
of the kind. The Cynthia and the Hesperus, on the
last named of which many of you to-day have made
a wide circuit, are examples. They are several hun-
dred feet in length, and so fitted up that passengers
may easily eat and sleep during their journey, as
they do on steamships."
We spare our readers his description of the wee-
motes and himotes, with which they are so familiar.
" The radical change which the running of the
motes will make in the relations of nations cannot
avoid having its political side, which must be taken
account of in framing all plans. I propose as soon as
possible to send a mission, in one of the smaller
loomotes, to each of the principal European capitals.
I desire that this mission shall invite one or more
leading publicists in each country to a general con-
ference with me at the earliest possible date. Per-
haps this conference may assume a certain perma-
nence in its deliberations. Its main purpose will
be to advise me as to the political effects of the mote
service. I cannot at the present time go far in an-
ticipating the conclusions of these deliberations. One
conclusion, however, seems clear: the mote service
should be able to assume a position of political in-
112
The Great Unveiling
dependence, so far at least as the international ser-
vice is concerned. This end must be kept in view
from the beginning.
" Whether this end be gained or not, it seems de-
sirable that the supreme authority in directing the
policy of the motes should have a special title. I
propose that e Owner of the Motes ' shall be that
title, until a better one is devised.
" I now wish to read one general regulation which
I have established for the special benefit of the
gentlemen of the press, with whom I desire to hold
the most friendly relations. The profession of jour-
nalism is a trying one, in that it is necessary to pub-
lish every piece of news as soon as possible, which
frequently makes errors unavoidable. It is embar-
rassing to have such errors speedily pointed out by
those in authority. To guard against this the rule
I have made is as follows :
" ' Neither the Owner of the Motes nor any one
connected with their management shall contradict
any false report that may be published respecting
the views or proceedings of those in charge of the
mote service.' '
After reading this he hesitated a moment, and, for
the first time in the course of the day, a humorous
smile began to spread over his features.
" I notice," he said, " that there is a curious feat-
ure about this order. It forbids the contradiction
of a false report, but does not forbid the contradic-
H 113
His Wisdom the Defender
tion of a true one. The inevitable conclusion is
that, in case any report is contradicted, that very
fact will give evidence of its truth. It is no doubt
a pity that the order is so worded as to make this
possible, but the difficulty may be avoided by simply
not contradicting any report whatever. I am sure
such a policy will relieve our journals of all embar-
rassment."
It is questionable whether even the red-headed
man saw how astutely this order was contrived. The
pleasure of publishing authoritative confirmations
and contradictions could never be enjoyed so long as
the order was enforced. The public would have to
take what the newspapers said with just as many
grains of salt as it thought proper.
Our readers will not fail to note that in all this
address the uppermost thought in Campbell's mind
was evaded. This was the relation of the motes
to warfare. He judged it best not to let the public
know that he had this aspect of the case in mind
until it had at least seen the importance of the prob-
lem by itself. His solution, as our readers have al-
ready seen, was completely worked out, but he want-
ed to see what conclusions the world would reach
on the subject by its own motion.
After thanking the guests for thieir attention,
Campbell invited them to follow him to a scene very
different in its character to that which they had
witnessed, but which he hoped they would not con-
sider inappropriate. As they left the structure in
114
The Great Unveiling
which the banquet had been held they saw in the star-
light an immense curtain spread before them, through
the folds of which glimmered what looked like moon-
light, though there was no moon in the sky. As their
leader approached, the curtain opened and exposed
what seemed to be a Grecian temple. Its end was
turned towards them, and its pediment was support-
ed by a row of Corinthian columns. It was built en-
tirely of phosphorescent ware, and was seen only by
its own glow, which gave it the appearance of masses
of transparent alabaster illuminated through their
whole interior. Its walls seemed higher than the
Coliseum in which it was built, and the surrounding
gloom was made impressive by the soft light which
it shed. The steps and the floor were of wood, and
therefore dark else the guests would have hardly
dared to mount them. Entering, the shining walls
on each side, strengthened by rows of pilasters, seem-
ed to extend more than a hundred yards, and to be a
hundred feet in height. These dimensions were part-
ly the result of a cunningly devised illusion in per-
spective. The light shed from all sides illuminated
the whole interior without casting a shadow. Look-
ing up, it was seen that there was no roof, and the
sky, with the few stars whose light was not extin-
guished by that of the walls, added to the impress-
iveness of the scene. On each side were rows of
seats, which the company were invited to occupy.
Presently strains of sacred music were heard,
though no organ was in sight. Commencing as if at
115
His Wisdom the Defender
a great distance, its tones grew louder and louder.
Then, above the farther end of the temple, was seen
approaching in the air a crowd of beings attired
as angels in robes, which seemed to shine even bright-
er than the walls of the temple. Soon the great song
of praise was heard, sung by the whole chorus of
Seraphim and their companions in the language in
which the largest part of the Christian Church has
listened to it for centuries:
" Te Deum laudamus, te Dominum confitemur,
Te seternum Patrem omnis terra veneratur."
The song of thanksgiving concluded, Campbell
took leave of his guests, after inviting four of them
to accompany him to his private office.
" Never in my life have I seen anything so im-
pressive," said Winthrop. " It makes me feel as
if all things sublunary were, for the time at least,
unworthy to occupy our thoughts. And yet you
have given us more to think about than the world
ever gave before. That is, if I am not dreaming.
I cannot feel quite sure that I am not, for the dream-
er is often sure that he is awake."
" Let us dream on, then ; I would feel as you do
if I had not had this picture before my mind for
years. Now let me tell you something. I want
you to be nearest to me for some time to come ; per-
haps for good. And yet, I do not dare to tell you
all that I have in mind. You perceive what a ter-
rible responsibility rests upon me in so conducting
116
The Great Unveiling
this enterprise that the ends I have in view shall
be reached."
Then, turning to the others :
" I desire to have your frank opinions from time
to time, either individually or collectively. I de-
sire your help in getting the best men for each high
and responsible station that has to be filled. In
the case of the highest positions the responsibility
will be too great for the place to be sought after and
the honor too great for it to be declined.
" I am not sure that you fully appreciate the grav-
ity of the situation which has been created. In my
speech I have purposely omitted the main point, be-
cause I considered it best to say nothing about it un-
til the public should see and inquire for itself. It
is evident enough that the first power which can
get possession of a fleet of motes can land an army
in its neighbor's capital, take possession of its gov-
ernment, devastate its cities with dynamite, blow up
its fortifications, and do anything it pleases. It can
make itself master of the world. The turmoil which
the mad rush for money will make will be of small
importance alongside the public danger from the
use of the motes as instruments of conquest.
" What is my duty in this conjuncture ? I feel
myself responsible to God and man for taking such
measures that the power I have created shall be used
for good and not for evil. What must I do to secure
this end? On this matter I want the advice both
of yourselves and of the wisest men of the world.
117
His Wisdom the Defender
My own opinion I will state only in a general way.
Every consideration forces me to the conclusion
that the more aggressive my policy, and the more
fearless my determination, so long as I keep with-
in the bounds of law, the better it will be for hu-
manity. And when I say the bounds of law I do
not mean the law of the past, but the law that must
govern the future.
" I have spoken of the mission which I propose
to send immediately to the leading capitals of the
world. I wish President Winthrop to be the leader
in this mission. I regard this duty as coming into
the category of those I have described which are
neither to be sought nor declined. President Win-
throp, do you accept this view ?"
Winthrop asked for time to think over the matter.
No one knew what a day might bring forth.
Campbell resumed:
" My policy, whatever it may be, must be pur-
sued unflinchingly to the end. I want you to sus-
tain me in this, and not to let me give way at a criti-
cal moment. One last word. It is necessary that
the dignity of my position as the leader in this enter-
prise shall be sustained. I trust that you will do
what you can to assert it.
"Please keep within call. Perhaps you did not
notice out there in the field a few motes smaller than
the others, and shaped quite differently. These I
call i messenger motes.' They are intended for the
rapid conveyance of envoys or of despatches from
118
The Great Unveiling
one point to another; hence their name. One of
these will be at the service of each of you from and
after to-morrow. By their aid you can go where
you please and confer with whom you think proper.
I ask you to be my guests for to-night. In the morn-
ing, after breakfast, your motes will be at your dis-
posal."
IX
A Voyage Through Space
AHONG the Seraphim, one who had especially
attracted Campbell's attention by his cool-
ness, nerve, and silence was the since famous
Captain Rogers. He had therefore been selected to
run the Hesperus on the day of the unveiling, and
was to take the Golden Age, the first of the himotes,
on her trial trip next morning. This venture gave
Campbell more real anxiety than the short trips of
the Hesperus, because his experiments had already
demonstrated what the latter could do, while the
possibilities of the himote were still untried. Noth-
ing less was projected than sending the Golden Age
round the world above the atmosphere. So daring a
conception, and one fraught with such possibilities,
might well appall even the courageous author. No
human being had ever mounted more than four or
five miles above the earth's surface, not only from
the impossibility of the ascent, but because the air
got too rare to breathe. How could men ascend
entirely above the air into the celestial spaces, in
fact by the newly discovered force ? Only one way
120
A Voyage Through Space
was possible. They must be hermetically sealed in-
side an air-tight tube, and carry the air to breathe
with them. The contrivances for enabling them to
determine their height and position, guide and direct
the mote, purify the small supply of air at their dis-
posal, and guard against the dangers they might in-
cur during their flight through the celestial spaces
had long occupied an important part of Campbell's
attention.
It was a prime condition with him that the first
experiments in so perilous an enterprise must be
made by men who had no near relatives. Another
was that no one should be allowed to go who did not
volunteer to do so after fully understanding the pos-
sibilities of the case. Rogers, having, in his own
words, " neither parents, wife, chick, nor child," was
quite ready to be one of a party who could always
thereafter say
"We were the first that ever burst
Into that silent sea"
of the celestial spaces. With the knowledge only
of his chief, he had, on several previous nights, risen
from the Coliseum in the Golden Age to a height,
first of fifty, and then of a hundred miles, in order
to insure that all the contrivances were in proper
working order. Being satisfied on this point, he
was eager to make the trip.
With no resistance from the air, there was no
limit to the possible speed of travel except that set
121
His Wisdom the Defender
by the limit to which the etherine within the tubes
of the mote might be thermalized. The energy from
five hundred tons of coal had been infused into the
etherine, and this, Campbell had calculated, would
suffice not only to carry the mote to a height of a
hundred miles or more but to set it flying with a
speed of at least two miles a second. But he warn-
ed his captain against attempting any such speed at
first; he must find, by careful watching, what effects
might be produced by the speed. Even the thinnest
air would speedily burn the hardest body passing
through it at such a rate.
Rogers had two companions to go with him.
The duties of all three men were strictly defined.
The captain was to occupy himself principally with
the levers by which the vibrations of the etherine
were directed and controlled, and thus guide the
mote and fix her speed.
A second, called the " Sounder," was to occupy
himself with the optical instrument by which the
height of the mote above the earth's surface at any
moment could be ascertained. This consisted main-
ly of a slender telescope which passed through a ver-
tical tube and through a small round opening in
the bottom of the mote. At the bottom of the tele-
scope were two reflectors so arranged that, when the
mote was high above the earth, the man at the tele-
scope could see a portion of the horizon on each side
in his field of view, and, by the angle between them,
determine the height. All the fittings of the tele-
122
A Voyage Through Space
scope and of the tube in which it slid had to be air-
tight, so that no air could escape from the mote
through them. The upper parts of the tube and
telescope were contained in a vertical case, about
six inches square, which rose from the floor, to which
it was fastened. In front of it was a seat for the
observer, who sat with the case between his knees,
and his body bent forward, so that he could look
vertically downward into the telescope. He was
not to leave his seat while the mote was in rapid mo-
tion, except in an emergency, but was continually
to report to the captain the varying height.
The third man was to keep a lookout generally,
especially at and through the glasses which closed
the port-holes, and at the barometers which indicated
the internal and external air-pressure. He was to
watch the air-blowers, to see that they kept the air
passing through the sulphuric-acid tubes, and reg-
ulate the flow from the tubes of compressed oxygen,
by which that element was added to the air so as to
keep pace with its exhaustion by the breathing of the
party. In case of the fracture of a window, or any
leak of the air, he was instantly to spring at the point
and cover the leak with the nearest cushion.
A bundle of New York papers was taken on board,
to be thrown out when over some of the great
cities, especially London. Kogers was apprised that it
would be of no use ? even were it practicable, to do
this at the greatest heights, because the velocity ac-
quired by the papers in falling through the vacuum
123
His Wisdom the Defender
would be such that they would take fire on reaching
the thinnest air, and never reach the ground.
Next morning it was after sunrise when Camp-
bell, two laborers, and the three ambitious voyagers
met at the entrance of the Golden Age. There was a
warm shaking of hands. The chief was so affected by
his emotions that he embraced the captain before
parting with him. Then, one after the other, the three
men lay themselves inside the entering-tubes and
were pushed into the mote by the two workmen. The
door closed after them, shutting them out of all com-
munication with the world of men. A few moments
of breathless suspense, and the mote rose from its
supports; then, when all was clear, darted forward
and upward. In five minutes it was a black speck
high up in the blue sky to the southeast. This
speck grew smaller and grayer every moment till
it vanished from sight. Then Campbell slowly
walked to his home to hear what the world had to
say.
The sailing orders of the Golden Age were that
if everything went right she should make first for
the Cape of Good Hope and land there in order to
make a careful examination to see if she had suffered
from the effect of her voyage. What to be done
next was left mostly to the judgment of the captain.
He could go around the world if he chose, but was
warned not to go far into the shadow of the earth,
but keep within sunshine, lest the intense cold of the
celestial spaces might injuriously affect the walls
124
A Voyage Through Space
of the mote. Let us accompany the party and share
its experiences.
For twenty minutes hardly a word was spoken.
Then the sounder, looking up from his instrument,
made his first announcement:
"Fifteen miles high!"
"How dark the sky is getting!" said the look-
out.
In fact, the windows on the right-hand side were
rapidly growing darker, as if night were coming on.
On the left the sun shone through the openings with
a strange tinge, its rays seeming hardly to illumi-
nate anything on their passage, but, falling on the
walls of the other side, made a long row of bright
bluish circles.
In front of the captain was a white circular disk,
about a foot in diameter, something like a large
aneroid barometer. Figures went round its cir-
cumference 0, 5, 10, 15, 20, etc., up to 150.
Through the centre passed a pointer, which, at the
start, marked 0. This was part of a contrivance so
connected with the etherine as to show the speed of
the mote in miles a minute. When the sounder called
out fifteen miles high, the pointer had got more than
half-way from to 5, and was making visible prog-
ress towards the latter figure every minute.
The rush of the mote through the air could be
heard. The sound increased to that of a strong gale,
then slowly changed to the roar of Niagara.
" Twenty miles 1" said the sounder. . The pointer
125
His Wisdom the Defender
was nearly at 5. The roar was diminished in vol-
ume, but taking a higher key-note.
" Twenty-five miles !"
" I see the stars," said the lookout. " The sky is
as black as night."
But the row of circles made by the shining sun
still illuminated the interior, so that they could see
as if by a row of electric lights. The roar of the cata-
ract was rapidly changing to the base note of an or-
gan-pipe. Soon the- pointer had passed 5 and was
hopefully on its way towards 10.
Up to the present time the mote kept the same
inclination with which it was started that is, its
prow was so much higher than the stern that to go
towards it was like climbing a steep hill. One had
to hold on to the seats on each side. The object of
this inclination was that her motion through the
air might be end on, so that the resistance should
be the least possible. Now the air had got so thin
that its resistance was of little account. So Rogers
called on the lookout to come and help him operate
the machinery by which the mote was to be brought
to a horizontal position. This was worked by a
double crank, of which both men took hold. Two
minutes' pretty hard turning of the crank brought
the mote into the required position, so that one could
walk on a level from end to end.
"Thirty miles!"
The voice of the sounder had a metallic sound, as
though coming from a throat of brass. The tone of
126
A Voyage Through Space
the organ was changing to a musical note of a high
pitch, growing higher and yet feebler every moment.
Rogers went to the nearest window, put his face
close to the glass, and peered out. The sky was
blacker than night, and, though the sun was shining
brighter than ever, the constellations all sparkled
as he had never seen them sparkle before. The
number of the stars seemed countless. The horizon
was not that of the sea ; it was a foggy white border
to a sky below. For now there did seem to be a
sky below. It was of a dark blue, almost black tint,
over which, scattered here and there, were bright
clouds, thirty or forty miles below, and increasing
their distance every moment. This blue-black sky
was the Atlantic Ocean. Some bright patches near
the horizon, less bright, however, than the clouds,
were the Bermuda Islands.
"Forty miles!"
Notwithstanding that the pointer was now well
past 10 and still advancing, the sound of passing
through the air had completely died away, and a
silence the like of which man had never before
known took its place. By each of the voyagers,
not only the beating of his heart, but the pulsations
of the blood through his arteries, its coursing
through the veins of his head, the contraction and ex-
pansion of his chest, the inspiration and expiration
of air from his lungs, were all heard with startling
distinctness. They dared not speak much above
whispers, for when they did the brazen ring of their
127
His Wisdom the Defender
throats was frightful. The sky was black as ink,
and the illuminated circles of the sunshine filled
the interior of the mote with a light so blue that
their faces looked to one another like those of corpses.
A superstitious dread nearly overcame the sounder
and the lookout ; and the captain, to whom, as a train-
ed physicist, the reason of the singular phenomena
was clear, required all his nerve to keep up. They
were now, to all appearance, above the atmosphere,
with nothing about them but the pure ether of in-
finite space.
"Fifty miles!"
" We must be completely above the upper limit
of the atmosphere," said Rogers. " I think it will
be safe to put on speed."
And they were already going fifteen miles a min-
ute, leaving a mile behind them every four beats
of the clock! There seemed to be two men within
the captain, of very different sentiments. One was
filled with speechless dread at the awful situation in
which they were placed, and the yet more awful one
into which they were running. The other was cool,
collected, and fearless, so much the stronger of the
two that he had his frightened companion complete-
ly at his mercy. The strong man reached for a le-
ver which had been set and clamped when first they
started, and had remained untouched. He un-
clamped it, slowly turned it, and again clamped it.
All felt the mote spring forward like a fiery horse
when his driver has touched him with a whip. Then.
128
A Voyage Through Space
a singular change was felt. The prow seemed to
have risen up into the same position as when they
started. All had to hold on to keep from falling
down into the stern. Kogers looked through the
window. The horizon, now nearly a thousand miles
away, had in appearance the same inclination as the
mote. The earth and the ocean far below were tipped
up as if by some cosmic convulsion.
The explanation -was evident to his trained mind
in a moment. The speed of the mote was being con-
stantly accelerated ; and this had a tendency to force
everything towards the stern, and thus change the
apparent direction of gravity. He called to the
lookout to come again to the crank. A few more
turns brought the mote once more into what seemed
a horizontal position, though, in reality, the stern
was now higher than the prow.
" Seventy miles 1"
" I shall keep her at about that height," said the
captain. " Let me know when she deviates." He
took hold of a lever which regulated the height, and
set it at 0.
!N"ow for fifteen minutes they seemed immovable.
"Not a quiver was felt. And yet the magic pointer was
seen slowly creeping round. It passed 20, then 30,
more than keeping pace with the passing minutes.
90 was at length passed, 100 would soon be
reached. The captain felt that the speed had reach-
ed if not passed the prudent limit, so he again un-
damped the speed lever and set it at 0.
i 129
His Wisdom the Defender
There was again a shock, but this time in the re-
verse direction. The mote seemed to jump back-
ward, and her prow to fall with a suddenness that
alarmed them all. In fact, the prow had really been
down all the time, but they only felt it when the
elevation ceased to increase and the speed became
uniform. The two men again turned the crank, now
in the reverse direction, and the mote was again
brought into a horizontal position.
So complete became the stillness that all motion
seemed to have ceased. The men felt as if afloat
in the ether. But when they watched the clouds
and ocean seventy miles below, the latter seemed to
be slowly moving under them, passing behind, and
disappearing one by one at the horizon. More than
an hour passed thus. A gray streak was seen com-
ing out of the horizon ahead. It was the island
of St. Helena.
" Sixty-five miles !" said the sounder. " We seem
to be getting lower."
A squad of soldiers at St. Helena noticed one of
their number looking up at the sky.
" What are you gazing at ?"
" In the name of all that's holy, what's that up
there?"
A sergeant, more intelligent than the rest, saw the
men gazing, and looked up also.
" I'm blessed if there's not a comet in broad day-
light, too ! Did you ever hear of such a thing ?"
130
A Voyage Through Space
Soon the whole garrison, commissioned officers in-
cluded, were gazing at the strange sight.
" It must be moving," said the sergeant. " When
I first saw it it was right over Simmons's Rocks.
Now it's over the guard-house."
He was right. It seemed to keep slowly on, then
grow smaller, and finally disappear from view en-
tirely. One of the officers proceeded immediately
to write an account of this strange comet or meteor
he could not tell which and send it to a scien-
tific journal. But he did not know that there were
three human beings inside the comet. He could only
tell how it was first seen in the southwest, almost
forty-five degrees above the horizon, and had a tail
half a degree long. Indeed, this tail was all that
was visible. It moved slowly towards the south, in-
creasing its altitude, and in five or ten minutes faded
away from view.
Let us return to the men inside the mote. When
the captain heard the announcement, " Sixty-five
miles," he gently drew down the elevating lever to
check the fall. The lookout happened, while this
was being done, to be gazing out of the stern win-
dow.
" We are getting down towards sixty," said the
sounder.
The captain drew the lever yet farther down, and
clamped it As he did so the lookout exclaimed :
" Do come here ! What does this mean ?"
" What is it ?" said the captain, as he hurried aft
131
His Wisdom the Defender
" A big ball of light as big round as the mote
itself."
The captain peered anxiously through the win-
dow. Sure enough, there was a round sheet of yel-
low light, quite bright at the centre. The cause was
evident in a moment. The atmosphere, which he
had been taught extended only to a height of forty-
five miles, must really be much higher over sixty
miles. Darting through it at the rate of a hundred
miles a minute, rare though it was, it was burn-
ing off the material of the mote, which was being
left behind in the form of a long flame. This
flame he saw end on, so that it looked like a round
sheet of light. It was bright in the central part,
because there he saw the light through its whole
length, which might be several furlongs. In a word,
the frail vehicle which contained them was a shoot-
ing-star !
Such a consciousness, in connection with the gen-
eral situation, might have paralyzed the faculties of
an ordinary man. But, fortunately, Rogers was not
an ordinary man. He jumped like a tiger over the
space that separated him from his station and pulled
the elevating lever to its lowest limit. They felt
the mote take an upward bound; in two or three
minutes the sounder called " Sixty-five miles," then
"Seventy" and "Seventy-five." Before this the
flame had disappeared, and probably the danger was
past. But there was still room for anxiety. How much
of the walls of the mote had been burned away, it was
132
A Voyage Throifgh Space
impossible to conjecture until a landing should be
effected. Worse yet, who knew but the burning
might still be going on, but too slowly to be per-
ceived ? Not till one hundred miles was- announced
did he dare to stop the upward flight.
After a half-hour of suspense the coast of South
Africa was seen rising out of the horizon. The speed
was gently slackened, and the mote at length brought
to rest at a point, as near as could be judged, above
Cape Town.
Now came the greatest trial of the nerves, the
fall through the eighty miles which separated them
from the earth. True, the arrangements for com-
manding the motion were so carefully devised that
there was no real danger. But who could feel safe
when falling, falling, mile after mile? Whatever
the feeling, it had to be done. The elevating lever
was raised, and all felt the floor falling from under
them. The sensation of falling continued, whereas
in the previous experiences there was no sensation
of motion except for a few moments at a time after
a sudden adjustment of some lever. Now, how-
ever, the continuance of the sensation produced an
attack of nausea, quite like that which our ancestors
had to suffer in crossing the ocean, and which they
therefore called " sea-sickness." Eogers returned the
lever to the zero point when a minute had elapsed,
but the stomach of the lookout went through a gym-
nastic performance of a very disagreeable kind. Al-
though the falling sensation now disappeared, they
133
His Wisdom the Defender
were really approaching the earth at the rate of a
thousand feet a second, and the sounder went through
his calls, " Sixty-five miles," " Sixty miles," and so
on, in regular succession.
" Forty miles," said the sounder.
Now a gentle wind began to be heard. It was
caused by the rush through the air. The lever was
depressed in order to diminish the speed of the drop.
The effect was to make them feel as if a sudden ad-
dition of thirty pounds had been made to their
weight, and to bring on a return of the nausea. But
the lever was turned back a little by the watchful
captain as he saw that the speed of the drop had been
brought within a safe limit.
But how was he to know how heavily he might
strike the earth so long as he was hermetically sealed
in the mote ? On each side of the latter, below one
of the windows, a small tube projected, through
which a little air-vane could be pushed. A simple
contrivance enabled the speed of the fall to be seen
at any moment by the motion of this vane.
In due time the* mote touched ground at a point
just east of the limits of Cape Town. Then, for the
first time since he started, it occurred to the captain
to note the time by the chronometer that had been
ticking alongside of his station during the entire
journey. It read 9.50. He had arisen from the
ground at 6.45. The entire journey had therefore
occupied little over three hours.
The uppermost question now in his mind was how
134
A Voyage Through Space
much the mote had suffered during the few minutes
that it had been playing the part of a meteor. The
exit was opened. He got into the sliding-tube, was
pushed out, and, springing to his feet, began inspect-
ing the mote, heedless of the crowd that was gather-
ing around. At the first glance he was thunder-
struck. She was white when they started; now she
was black as coal from end to end, except on the hem-
ispherical stern. Not only had the paint been com-
pletely swept or burned away, but the wooden casing
beneath it was charred over its whole surface. On
scraping the surface it was found that the charring
was less than an eighth of an inch deep, even around
the bow, which must have suffered most. Below this
the oak casing, an inch thick, was quite intact, and
as hard as ever.
Relieved by this discovery the captain consulted
with his two assistants as to what had better be done.
" Count me out, whatever you do," said the sound-
er, who had borne what was really the most trying
duty of the three, that of sitting constantly at his
post while the most exciting experiences were going
on. " The mote may rest here and rot, so far as
I am concerned. I am going back by the ocean, even
if it takes a month."
The captain proposed that, before reaching a de-
cision, they should lunch. They had only taken
a bite since starting, and their minds had been so
much occupied during the passage that the wants of
their stomachs had been unfelt. There was a supply
135
His Wisdom the Defender
of food and drink in the mote, but it seemed best to
leave this intact, and go to the nearest restaurant
for breakfast. His two assistants went first, guided
by the crowd, while he kept guard over the Golden
Age, now minus its name, during their absence.
They were asked to send him a pot of coffee and
lunch from the restaurant.
I need not describe the scenes around him while
he was waiting. He had, of course, to talk with re-
porters the whole time. He had humor enough in
his composition to talk of his journey as if it were
a very commonplace affair, and to affect wonder at
their interest in it. He talked of sixty, seventy,
or ninety miles a minute, much as a railway engineer
of the time would have talked of sixty, seventy, or
ninety miles an hour. Only one little word was
changed ; why wonder so ? As he was taking his cof-
fee, which he did astride of the entering-tube, with
a plank thrown across it as a table, his humor and
his inability to see why his arrival caused so much
interest and commotion both increased. To ques-
tions what he would do and where he would go
next, he replied that he must get home to dinner.
" My wife " (an imaginary quantity, as our readers
know) " is very precise in her household arrange-
ments and always complains if I am late to meals.
However " (looking at his watch), " it is hardly
eleven o'clock by our time, and I intend to take a spin
round the south pole on my way home. If I then
find that I have time, I shall also take a look at the
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A Voyage Through Space
Pacific Ocean, and make a little run over the north
pole during the afternoon. I would return by way
of Australia and China; but just now it is night in
China, and we should suffer from the cold."
" But you don't mean that you can visit both poles
the same day, or reach China before the sun rises
there?"
" Why not ? I can go where I please as long as
I am back to dinner. You have learned geography,
and know that it is only twenty-five thousand miles
round the world. Running one hundred and twenty-
five miles a minute, you can soon cipher out that
I have plenty of time to get round the world, and
wash and dress before six o'clock."
All this talk was recorded by nimble pencils as it
advanced, and immediately cabled to the leading
journals of the world, with results that we shall see
in the next chapter.
A good breakfast and a sight of the wondering
crowd, which now included almost every inhabitant
of Cape Town old enough to walk and well enough
to leave his bed, had a wonderful effect on the sound-
er. He had heard some of the captain's talk, and
felt ashamed that he should have to say, " We cannot
move, after all, because one of my assistants is afraid
to return." So he agreed to try again, if only he
could be relieved by the lookout during a part of
the run change places with him, in fact, from time
to time. As Campbell had taken the precaution to
have each of the three men trained in the duties
137
His Wisdom the Defender
of the two others, so that the mote would not be crip-
pled by any disability of either during the run, the
proposed arrangement was readily acceded to by
the captain.
The latter had telegraphed his arrival to the Owner
as soon as possible after landing, and now made
preparations for continuing his journey. We spare
our readers the details of the start. The curiosity
with which the crowd watched the three men as they
lay down one by one in the entering-tube and were
pushed or drawn in by the others, their amazement
when they saw the forward end of the huge vehicle
raise itself up as if alive and turn round so as to
point towards the south, and their bewilderment
when it darted away, all go without saying. It was
now by the local time four P.M., though the chro-
nometer in the mote only marked eleven.
The experiences of the voyagers were, for the most
part, so like those of the outward journey that we need
not detail them. Extracts from the captain's log,
which he now kept and embodied in his report, will
show the salient features of the trip :
11.30. Height, twenty miles. Speed, moderate.
11.40. Height, forty miles. Begin to put on
speed.
12. Height, one hundred miles. Have driven
speed nearly up to its limit one hundred and twen-
ty-five miles a minute. Deem this quite safe so long
as the height is maintained. Keep up a good look-
out for any sign of meteoric combustion.
138
A Voyage Through Space
12.5. A bright line of white on the south hori-
zon. The Antarctic ice.
12.15. All below is dark. The sun is shining on
the horizon only. Curving course as fast as pos-
sible for speedy return to sunlight after passing pole.
Continuous observations of zenith tube kept up.
12.18. Passing south pole; height one hundred
and ten miles; speed one hundred and twenty-two.
All is now darkness, except an illumination of the
horizon in the direction where the sun has set. Di-
rection of passage, from meridian 10 degrees east
of Greenwich to 170 degrees west. Course still curv-
ing, so as to reach 160th meridian, where sunlight
will be reached.
12.22. Sun rising, but all is darkness above
and below. Now curving course towards the west,
so as to run as nearly as possible on the 160th me-
ridian.
12.40. A curious spectacle. On the left all is
darkness ; on the right the clouds below are brightly
illuminated by the sun. They almost cover the
ocean, which can be seen only in black patches. The
silence is complete and awful. The mote runs itself,
except as the elevating lever has to be touched from
time to time to regulate her height. Do not deem
it safe to fall below one hundred miles.
12.50. Clouds below getting thinner, so that the
dark ocean is seen between them.
1.30. The Sandwich Islands are sighted by the
lookout. Must curve towards west, so as to take an
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His Wisdom the Defender
S-shaped course to the north pole, and not get into
darkness after passing it.
1.50. Passed the Aleutian Islands and Bering
Strait.
2.7. Passed over the north pole, now running
on a meridian 15 degrees east.
2.25. Over the Baltic Sea. Slowing down and
making a sharp curve to west to pass over London.
2.36. Speed, eighty; height, one hundred and
five.
2.45. Speed, thirty; height, seventy.
2.50. Speed, twenty; height, forty.
3. Speed, twelve; height, thirty.
Getting dark; twilight below; England in sight.
Preparing to throw out papers.
3.10. During the last five minutes supposed to
be passing over London; throwing out papers;
cost some air; barometer reduced two inches, one
inch of which will be made up by oxygen from tubes.
Shall now start on the home stretch.
3.25. Height, thirty-five; speed, twenty.
3.50. Height, ninety-five; speed, ninety. Ireland
seen far behind in the light of the setting sun.
3.53. Losing sight of Ireland.
4.10. Lookout reports patch of land ahead
Newfoundland.
4.30. Over the Nova Scotia coast, Massachusetts
Bay coming into sight. Put on the speed-break
with as great force as is prudent. Can hear the
joints squeak under the pressure.
^40
A Voyage Through Space
At this point the log suddenly ceases. The report
of the captain tells us why :
" A few minutes, not more than three or four,
after putting on the hrake-lever to stop the mote, we
were startled by what we all supposed to be a flash
of lightning, accompanied by a single crack of thun-
der so sharp that I felt it as a slap in the face, and,
for a moment, thought I was deafened. At first
none of us supposed it to be anything else than an
electric discharge, probably caused by the rapid
thermalization of the etherine which was now going
on through the loss of kinetic energy by the mote.
Soon a faint whistling sound was heard, the origin
of which was obscure. After some examination to
learn whence it proceeded, I found that it came from
a minute hole in the wall of the mote, about two or
three millimetres (one - eighth to one - twelfth of an
inch) in diameter. As this hole seemed quite dark on
looking into it, I supposed at first that it was a shal-
low one, which some workman had bored by mistake.
Yet, when I put my finger over it the whistling
ceased, showing that air was escaping through it
Further examination showed that it passed in a
straight line quite through the metallic wall of the
mote and the wooden sheathing, looking dark only
because of the blackness of the sky outside. Putting
my eye near it, I could see a star through it. I whit-
tled a piece from a stick of wood and plugged up the
hole.
" Then we noticed that the sound had not quite
141
His Wisdom the Defender
ceased, and soon found a similar hole on the opposite
side of the mote, which was also plugged up. The
holes were so small that the escape of air was too
slight to cause trouble."
The report then goes on to explain how, forgetting
that a himote at full speed would run a thousand
miles before she could be brought to a standstill, the
captain had omitted to put on the brake till he was
over the coast of Nova Scotia. In consequence they
were carried to the southwestern part of Virginia be-
fore they could stop.
After hearing of the departure of the Golden Age
from Cape Town for home, Campbell looked for her
return with the greatest solicitude. The mishap by
which her name had been swept away, and her color
changed from white to black, which had been tele-
graphed to all the world, made him feel that Rogers
had been imprudent in venturing to return after so
slight an examination of the damage as he could
make. Great, therefore, was his relief when, a little
after five o'clock, an object was sighted in the sky
which could be no other than the mote so anxiously
awaited. She landed without further accident, and
all was safe.
Campbell's scientific commission had no difficulty
in demonstrating the cause of the strange stroke
which the Golden Age had received. " It is well
known that shooting-stars are caused by minute
bodies flying through space at the rate of twenty,
thirty, or even forty miles a second. Though no
142
A Voyage Through Space
larger than a pebble, one of these bodies, striking
a plate of metal, would bore a hole through it as a
bullet would go through a plank. As they actually
strike our air, they first pass through many miles
of the rarest air of the upper regions, and are thus
dissipated before reaching the dense air below. But,
on passing through the side of the mote, the meteor
instantly encountered the dense air within, where its
high speed cleaved the air like a stroke of lightning.
We find that the two holes are exactly in the same
line, so that an eye outside the mote looking into one
can see quite through the other also."
X
How the World Received the News
TO narrate the events following this memorable
20th of May would require volumes. In fact,
so many volumes have been written on the
subject that our readers would not be interested in
the repetition of the details, even if we had room
for them. We shall confine our narrative to a few
leading features of the case, personal to the great
actor, to which publicity has not yet been given.
The first sentiment, especially in Europe, was one
of combined amazement and incredulity. It was
late in the evening in London before the American
correspondents of the leading journals could cable
the final event. The newspapers were nearly ready
to go to press, and there was little time for comment.
The general feeling was accurately expressed by the
London Times, which commenced a leader on the sub-
ject in the following way:
" Has the order of nature changed ? Or is some
demon playing with the Atlantic cables, sending mes-
sages in both directions at its own good pleasure
without regard to the signals which the operators
144
How the World Received the News
are making? The readers who peruse our columns
this morning will be forced to the conclusion that
one of these questions must be answered in the affirm-
ative. A succession of despatches which have the
self-consistence and every other external appearance
of truth poured in with the signature of our Wash-
ington correspondent during the afternoon and even-
ing. The general press despatches were equally ex-
plicit and consistent. All told the same story. A
thousand people assembled to witness a long-expect-
ed event, the exact nature of which was left in doubt.
They gazed on immense structures of metal, sixty
feet in height, hundreds of feet in length, weighing
thousands of tons. These structures were visited
from end to end and examined inside and out with-
out the discovery of any source of power or any
possible means of setting them in motion. Suddenly
one of them rises in the air, ascends to the height
of a mile, and sweeps in a vast circuit over land and
water, hill and dale, carrying hundreds of people
with it. A circle nearly two hundred miles in cir-
cumference is described with a speed far exceeding
that of the swiftest railway train, and the structure
then returns and settles down into its former place
without the slightest evidence that it had ever been
moved.
" If the cable is conveying real intelligence, our
correspondent was himself on the structure and was
carried round with it in its aerial course.
" That such a story could be anything else than the
K 145
His Wisdom the Defender
outcome of some widespread hallucination or dis-
eased imagination few will be disposed to believe.
Are all the cables, then, operated by demons ? Sev-
eral despatches of inquiry sent by us over two differ-
ent cables to our correspondents were promptly an-
swered in such a way as to show that they must
have been correctly understood by the agency answer-
ing them. All our expressions of surprise and incre-
dulity found an answering response from the other
end of the wire."
* ******
These words well expressed the feeling of that
small portion of the people who were up till mid-
night and in receipt of the news. The great ma-
jority had retired to bed after hearing vague rumors
that something of a very unusual nature was trans-
piring on the banks of the Potomac. They would
naturally wait for their morning papers to see what
it was all about.
But before people had finished breakfast the morn-
ing papers were behind the age. About one-half the
directors of the Atlantic cable companies had spent
the last hours of the night in the telegraph offices, or
at the cable landings when they could be reached, to
see if any signs of the cables being bewitched, other
than the extraordinary statements they were carry-
ing, could be discovered. By morning they received
messages in such number and of such consistency
that further doubt seemed scarcely possible. All
day the newspapers kept issuing an unbroken stream
146
How the World Received the News
of extras, without being able to supply the great
demand.
Of course, when Parliament met in the afternoon
his Majesty's government was overwhelmed with
inquiries as to what had happened. Much cha-
grin was expressed when members had to be informed
that the government was without any important
information not already found in the public prints,
owing to the fact that his Majesty's ambassador in
Washington had been otherwise engaged during the
reported event. The ambassador had been constant-
ly telegraphing all the morning, but his despatches
were based entirely on the reports of the news-gather-
ers, without adding anything new. They only con-
firmed the truth of these reports by showing that he
saw no reason to doubt them.
Scarcely had this been said when new fuel was
added to the flame by the reported arrival of the
Golden Age at the Cape of Good Hope, with the
story of its captain and crew that they had left
Campbelltown that morning, and had made the pas-
sage in three hours. The first effect of this news
was to renew the suspicions of some demoniac illu-
sion, because it seemed to involve, if possible, some-
thing yet further beyond the bounds of credibility
than the sweeping of the Hesperm through the air.
Among the scores of scientific experts interviewed
was Professor Gale, of the University of London,
the leading physicist of England. He said:
" Accepting the laws of nature as they have always
147
His Wisdom the Defender
operated from the beginning of time, what is re-
ported is a simple impossibility. From the Potomac
to the Cape of Good Hope is some TOGO miles.
A very simple calculation will show that to make this
distance in three hours a speed of more than 3300
feet per second would have to be maintained. An
object like that described going through the air at
such a speed would be heated red-hot during the
first half-hour, and would be completely dissipated
burned up, so to say by the friction of the air
during the next half -hour."
" The report says the mote was completely black-
ened and had all her paint swept away," said the
reporter.
" I can hardly regard that statement in any other
light than as a concession to plausibility," continued
the professor. " Just think of the absurdity. The
mere air pressure would have been a thousand tons
or more, enough to sweep away any possible wooden
casing and burst in the end of the mote. And where
is such a power to come from ? Either, as the Times
said this morning, the order of nature has changed
or some singular deception is being practised."
We do not wish to harrow the reader's feelings,
and therefore draw a veil over those of Professor
Gale when it dawned upon his intellect that a mote
flying above the air would evade his seemingly in-
superable objections, and that one which could rise a
foot might as well rise a hundred miles. In fact,
when he learned the truth he could not help making
148
How the World Received the News
a disadvantageous comparison of his own wit with
that of a French lady who, when told that some de-
capitated martyr (I forget who) had picked up
his own head and carried it half a mile, promptly
replied : " C'est le premier pas qui coute !"
It happened that Professor Gale had a colleague
whose intellect bore a remarkable resemblance to
that of Campbell. He was not only one of the most
eminent mathematicians of England, but in his
writings were found the profoundest researches that
had ever been published in the hidden realms of phi-
losophy. When he first heard the news his brain
was racked to imagine how such a thing could be.
The theory which he thought out was only confirmed
instead of being shattered by the news from the Cape.
It was set forth in the following letter :
" To the Editor of the Times:
" The event said to have occurred yesterday on the
banks of the Potomac is not so incredible to me as
it appears to you. It is only its suddenness that
makes it appear so. How would it have been if
neither telegraph nor telephone had ever been known
to us until some enterprising expert had secretly
stretched wires and cables under land and sea around
the globe, perfected, his apparatus, trained his oper-
ators, and then asked us to come to see the result?
The leading men of the empire are invited to the
newly founded telegraph and telephone office, and
the King himself is invited to step to the 'phone and
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His Wisdom the Defender
address his cousin in Berlin. The latter answers in
a clear voice, which the King at once recognizes. He
carries on a conversation. Presently a ticking is
heard and a printing-machine begins to operate.
The distinguished assembly is told that the machine
is worked by an operator in Australia.
" Would one of those present cease to believe that
the whole affair was a delusion until the mechanism
was explained to him ? I trow not.
" Now let us see if we cannot conceive a way in
which the results reported the last two days might-
be brought about. It has long been well understood
by physicists that the luminiferous ether, which, so
far as we know, fills all space, has the properties of
an elastic solid, clear and invisible, like an abso-
lutely transparent crystal. Why matter should move
through this solid as it does, without encountering
the slightest resistance, is a mystery which fails to
strike us in its true character because of the familiar-
ity of the fact. Professor Campbell announces that
he has succeeded in producing a kind of matter
which exerts a new reaction upon the ether when
made to vibrate in a certain way. If he has done this,
then nothing is simpler than to produce the result
described. A mass of matter of this kind might
be made to fly through space, carrying any burden
whatever as lightly and easily as a bird flies through
the air. The motion may be swifter than that of a
bird, as the propagation of light through the ether
is swifter than any motions we see on the earth.
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How the World Received the News
These considerations lead me to look for a complete
confirmation of everything reported by your cor-
respondent, w K CoNSTANT .
The excitement in the business world on both
sides of the Atlantic beggared description. The ex-
changes and brokers' boards were everywhere in a
state of such wild uproar that business had to be sus-
pended as a measure of public safety. But for the
assurance given by Campbell that the interests of
all holders of stock in railways and other transporta-
tion companies should be carefully guarded, a vast
amount of these properties would have been sacri-
ficed by their owners in a moment. The form of the
announcement tended to discourage sales, because he
had stated that only original holders on the date in
question could look to him for aid.
Campbell had been planning everything for years
with such minute attention to details that he had
little to do but select the men who were to act and
send them on their several errands. Sites for mote
stations had already been purchased in the principal
cities, and two weeks had not elapsed before motes
began to run between New York, Philadelphia, Chi-
cago, and San Francisco. The Hesperus and the
Cynthia were designed to ply between New York
as one terminus and Paris and London as the others.
But, foreseeing the temptation to which governments
might be exposed, they were not sent on their first
voyage until arrangements could be made with the
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His Wisdom the Defender
respective governments of France and England to
guarantee their neutrality.
The mission to the principal nations of the world
foreshadowed in his speech at the banquet was organ-
ized in the course of two weeks. The principal capi-
tals of Europe, as well as those of China and Japan,
were to be visited. In each country one or more
citizens learned in international law were to be in-
vited to take part in a general council as to the policy
to be pursued by the Owner of the Motes in order that
the beneficent end he had in view might best be car-
ried out. These gentlemen were expected to deliber-
ate during the voyage from place to place, and upon
their conclusions would depend to a certain extent
the future policy of the Owner. At each capi-
tal a personal representative of the Owner was sta-
tioned, whose business it was to establish the closest
relations both with the government and with com-
mercial bodies of every kind, with a view to reporting
on public feeling as to the policy best adapted to
each country. The head of the whole expedition was
President Winthrop, who had been selected by
Campbell for the duty, not so much on the score of
friendship, as of confidence in his general fitness
for the work.
A somewhat embarrassing question was to devise
a method of procedure which would not sacrifice
Campbell's independence and would at the same time
not ignore the functions which the government of the
United States might legitimately expect to assume
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How the World Received the News
in the affair. To secure the latter object, a formal
letter was written by the Owner to the Secre-
tary of State informing him of the purpose and
objects of the expedition, and asking that special
arrangements for its visit to each capital should be
made by the representative of the United States
there resident. In this way Mr. Winthrop was
placed in direct communication with each American
ambassador, whom he apprised of his intended move-
ments.
The mote Friede was chosen to carry the party,
doubtless on account of the significance of its name.
It left on the morning of May 31. Its arrival at
London next day was looked for with breathless in-
terest, not unmixed with incredulity and fear. A
point in Hyde Park had been offered the American
ambassador by the British government as a place
for its landing. At ten o'clock in the morning a
black-looking speck was sighted in the clouds. It
speedily grew larger. When no doubt could remain
the police cleared the crowd from the chosen spot,
and the large object slowly and majestically descend-
ed towards the ground. The American ambassador
was on the spot and was received by Winthrop at
the door of the mote. Arrangements were soon
made for a visit of the King, pending which no other
visitors would be received. His Majesty was duly
advised and fixed on the hour of five o'clock that
afternoon. Campbell would have been impatient of
the delay; but Winthrop was well enough trained
153
His Wisdom the Defender
to make due allowance for the dignity that must
hedge the person and movements of a monarch. At
the appointed hour the King and his suite arrived,
escorted by the American ambassador. The royal
party was welcomed by Winthrop at the door of the
mote and taken to the upper deck. Here the follow-
ing address was made to the King:
"May it please your Majesty: I am directed by
the Owner of the Motes to assure your Majesty of his
high appreciation of the honor done him by this visit.
He trusts that the determination he has expressed
to administer his extraordinary powers in promoting
the welfare of the entire human race will be favored
with your Majesty's approval. Animated by this
motive, he has deputed an able and distinguished citi-
zen of the United States to reside in London as his
personal representative. The functions of this rep-
resentative will be to invite the closest relations with
representatives of British interests, and acquaint
himself with the needs of commercial bodies and
other organizations, in order that he may report
from time to time what policy and what measures
on the part of the Owner of the Motes will be most
conducive to their usefulness as an agency for pro-
moting the welfare of your Majesty's subjects."
The King was quite unprepared for so formal an
address, but was well enough trained to make a very
brief but quite proper reply, expressing his apprecia-
154
How the World Received the News
tion of the sentiments and intentions of the Owner
of the Motes. There was then a somewhat embar-
rassing pause. The King was naturally interested to
see the distinguished representative alluded to, who
was to fulfil so important a part in acquainting him-
self with the views and wishes of the British people.
Mr. Winthrop and the citizen himself were quite de-
sirous that the latter should be presented to the King.
The privilege was then asked of presenting him,
which was accordingly done.
We mention this proceeding because it looked so
much like the presentation of an ambassador from
a foreign power to the Court of St. James. It look-
ed a little that way to the American ambassador him-
self : while the procedure was so adroitly managed
that an escape from the conclusion was very easy.
One great and indisputable fact had begun to
dawn on the minds of men. The motes might be
new and terrible engines in future warfare. As this
fact became more and more evident, it caused uni-
versal alarm. The impossibility of defence from
an attack of a fleet of motes was felt on all sides. It
was clear to every one that something must be done
to guard against the danger, but what to do no one
knew.
On the problem thus presented, Americans, as rep-
resented by Mr. Secretary Bayne, looked with less
concern than others, because they felt that the motes
belonged to their country, and would therefore be
used for no purpose antagonistic to its own interests.
155
His Wisdom the Defender
True, this view of the case was a little weakened by
the knowledge that several hundred of these vehicles
were in the course of construction on the island of
Elba; but, although this island was still under the
jurisdiction of Italy, the danger was minimized by
the fact that the motes still belonged to one of
their own citizens, who alone would be likely
to control them. On the other hand, the citizen re-
peatedly speaks -of himself rather as a citizen of
the world than of the United States. What will be
his policy as regards the great political power which
he wields?
The second morning following the arrival of the
mote in London and the ceremonies we have de-
scribed, a messenger arrived at Campbelltown from
the Secretary of State, bearing the following note:
" STATE DEPARTMENT, June 11, 1945.
" DEAR SIR, I am directed by the Secretary of
State to say that he will esteem it a very great favor
to have you call on him at your earliest convenience
this afternoon if possible. He wishes to consult
with you on a matter of the highest importance both
to yourself and to' our government. If not convenient
to come this afternoon, please state the time of your
arrival in order that the Secretary may arrange his
engagements to suit your convenience.
"Very respectfully,
ff JAMES B. SMYTHE,
" Private Secretary."
156
How the World Received the News
An answer was immediately despatched that the
Owner of the Motes would call on the Secretary at
three o'clock that afternoon. He arrived promptly
on the hour and was at once ushered into the private
office of the Secretary, whom he found awaiting
him.
" Mr. Campbell, I have requested this interview
because it must be quite evident to you that the en-
terprise you are inaugurating has an interest not
attached to any ordinary affair, since it concerns not
only the welfare of every citizen of our country, but
must be intimately associated with the international
relations of nations, our own included. You will,
therefore, see that it is a part of the duty of our gov-
ernment to assure itself that your proceedings shall
not either imperil its relations with other govern-
ments, compromise this government, or prove in any-
way detrimental to the interests of our country.
Acting on these considerations, the President and his
advisers have been deliberating on the measures to
provide against any evil of the kind to which I have
alluded. Naturally you are yourself a very im-
portant factor in any arrangement that may be made.
The responsibility which you have assumed is fully
recognized by all. It is therefore the desire of the
President that you be consulted as to every measure
taken and duly informed of all that may be done.
On the other hand, it is expected by this government
that you will with equal frankness recognize its su-
perior responsibility in the case, especially its re-
157
His Wisdom the Defender
sponsibility to foreign nations for your own acts.
I must, therefore, ask your permission to make some
inquiries, which I should have no right to make of
an ordinary citizen, as to your future policy in or-
ganizing a mote service."
" Mr. Secretary, I fully recognize the propriety of
all you say. I shall be glad to answer any questions
you may ask so far as I am able so to do. At the
same time, you will observe that it would not be a
mark of the highest wisdom on my part to reach any
absolute conclusion as to what I shall or shall not
do in advance of the contingencies that may arise.
I have certain great things in view; I mentioned
these in a speech at a banquet which I regret that
you were unable to attend, but which you have per-
haps done me the honor to read."
" I have done so, and there are a few points in it
about which I wish first to inquire. You spoke of
the desirableness that the organization for running
the motes should enjoy a position of political inde-
pendence. Will you kindly explain the exact mean-
ing which you attach to that phrase ?"
" The meaning attached to the phrase seems to
me as clear as circumstances permit it to be. It must
be evident to you, Mr. Secretary, that the control of
the motes carries with it enormous power, the power
of doing not only a good heretofore unknown, but
of bringing about untold miseries in a word, the
power which controls a fleet of motes can land armies
where it chooses and conquer whom it chooses.
158
How the World Received the News
Moreover, the commercial relations of nations will
be made much closer when intercourse is carried
on in so easy and rapid a way, as it soon will be. Un-
der these circumstances it seems very desirable that
the motes be controlled by no one nation, because
that nation would practically command the world.
My view, therefore, is that the control should be ex-
ercised by some neutral and independent power,
obliged to provide positively against the use of the
motes for the purpose of conquest of any people
whatever, or in the special interest of any nation at
the expense of other nations."
" You have partly explained the other question I
was going to ask you as to your intended use of the
motes for the benefit of the entire human race ; your
own country, apparently, having no higher claim
on you than any other ? If I understand correctly,
this is your view."
" I tried to make that view perfectly clear in my
address, and I do not see how anything can be added
to what I have stated. Please remember that this
country will necessarily have enormous advantages
at the start, which may well become permanent.
Such being the case, I cannot feel under any obliga-
tion to favor it at the expense of other nations."
" Now, a third point. The attention of the De-
partment has been called to the proceedings at the
presentation of your personal representative to the
King of England, which are said to have been con-
ducted in such a way as to imply that you were your-
159
His Wisdom the Defender
self an independent sovereign, sending an ambassa-
dor to a foreign court. I trust you will deny any
such intention."
" I certainly had no such intention. I suppose
my right to have a personal representative at the cap-
ital of any country is unquestioned. The presenta-
tion of Mr. Robinson to the King had no more sig-
nificance than the presentation of any other citizen
of the United States. It was done simply because
he and the King were both on board the. mote, and
the King was willing to make his acquaintance on ac-
count of the very important position which he occu-
pied."
" That is quite satisfactory. But I am not satis-
fied with the sentiments you express as to your duties
towards your own government. You must be per-
fectly aware that this government cannot for a mo-
ment tolerate any act of one of its own citizens look-
ing to the formation, by his own will, of an organ-
ization independent of it. It is responsible to for-
eign nations for your acts. It is therefore impera-
tive that you act only as authorized by it. So far
as I am aware, you have not yet done any overt thing
calling for repression. At the same time, you must
be quite conscious that one of your proceedings has
caused and is causing great anxiety throughout this
country that is, the sending of an expedition, sev-
eral thousand strong, to some unknown point in the
northern regions, and refusing to give any informa-
tion as to its purpose or object."
160
How the World Received the News
" The reasons for sending the expedition out were
implied in my address. It was necessary to train
a large body of men in the use of the motes, and to
have their training carried on without the public
knowing anything about it; otherwise, the calami-
ties which I described would have at once been
brought on, and unending confusion would have
been the result. At the present time there is no ob-
ject in bringing the expedition away from where
it now is until I shall need the services of its mem-
bers."
" You will, I trust, deem it right that I should
speak with perfect frankness. I must say that your
explanation for still keeping the force out of sight
seems to me unsatisfactory; but it is useless to go
into details. I can only caution you once more
against taking any measures which will call for
repressive action on the part of the government.
" Meanwhile, there is another point which I have
to mention. The President contemplates calling an
international conference to negotiate and deliberate on
the measures to be taken by the various governments
of the world to protect them against the dangers you
have pointed out. It seems to me eminently proper
that you should be named as one of the conferees. I
apprise you of this because the President has ex-
pressed a special desire to hear your views on the
subject."
" Will the specific purpose and end of the con-
ference be named in the call ?"
L 161
His Wisdom the Defender
" I cannot say ; that matter has not jet been de-
cided upon. At present the idea is only assuming
shape."
" I do not think I ought, under any circumstances,
to take part in such a conference. For me to do so
as a representative of this government, with all due
deference to your views, would not be wholly com-
patible with the responsibilities which you have, in
part, recognized in my position. What interest I
shall take in the conference will depend upon its ob-
jects ; if you will allow me a moment to put my views
of the matter in writing, I will do so."
A tablet was handed to him and he wrote as fol-
lows :
" Call a conference to agree upon the immediate
and complete abolition of the military and naval
establishments of all the powers taking part in it,
and the disbandment of all troops, wherever employ-
ed, not absolutely necessary to the protection of life
and property against unlawful violence."
He handed the paper to the Secretary, who read
it and reread it slowly and carefully.
" This is going altogether too far. It cannot be
thought that any of the great powers would consent
to entering into a conference on such terms. This
government would not do so itself. It must keep
the influence due it as one of the leading mili-
tary powers of the world. All it can agree to is
that this power shall not be so used as to imperil the
interest of any other independent nation. If all na-
162
How the World Received the News
tions shall agree, the power shall be restricted so far
as the concensus of opinion may deem proper."
" I fully concede," replied Campbell, " that the
leading nations of the world would not be likely to
agree to any such proposal. For that reason I shall
feel little interest in the proposed conference. My
own private opinion is that the interests of humanity
cannot be guarded by any measure less drastic than
the one I have suggested. Meanwhile, all I can do is
to prevent, to the best of my ability, the power which
I wield being used in an attack on the rights and
liberties of any people whatever. More than that
I cannot say. Is there anything to be added? If
not I have only to thank you for your kind con-
sideration in all that you have stated."
The two men shook hands and took leave of each
other. The interview had greatly increased the so-
licitude of each as to the intentions of the other.
The fears of the Secretary that Campbell contem-
plated some move incompatible with the duty of a citi-
zen to his own country, and likely to complicate in-
ternational relations, were not allayed. Campbell
saw that the policy he had in contemplation would
meet with no sympathy in the Department of State.
But a voice sounded in his ears :
"He who would wield the power of a god must
bear the responsibility of a god."
Besides the personal representative who had been
presented to the King, and who was not expected to
take any active part in business negotiations, Camp-
163
His Wisdom the Defender
bell had sent out in the mote a skilled attorney and
a man of business, with a view to making arrange-
ments with the British and French governments to
run the two great loomotes between New York and
their respective capitals. The great point aimed at
was that each government should agree to respect
the neutrality of the motes under all circumstances.
In the course of a week a contract was made with
a duly authorized representative of his Majesty's
government, in which occurred the following clause :
" It is agreed by the party of the first part that the
mote to be run under the present contract is guaran-
teed against detention or seizure by any power what-
ever while within the jurisdiction of his Majesty's
government, except as provided in the following
clause : If it should appear that any persons or par-
ties in an arriving mote design to inflict unlawful
injuries upon his Majesty's subjects or upon their
property, or to make war upon the forces of his said
Majesty, then his Majesty's forces shall have the
right to enter said mote and seize and remove all
such persons. The mote shall then be released and
restored to the Owner."
Under these arrangements the loomote Hesperus
started on its first voyage to London, and the Cynthia
left for Paris on the day following. In the mean-
time the expedition under Mr. Winthrop had nearly
completed the tour of the capitals of Europe, and
was about to start for Pekin, when an unforeseen
event disturbed the current of the Owner's plans.
164
XI
The Red-headed Man Scores the Greatest
" Beat " in the History of Journalism
IF telegraph wires could feel the weight of the mes-
sages they were conveying, the whole line from
Washington to Campbelltown would, within a
week after the interview with the Secretary of State,
have bowed beneath its burden. Long before Camp-
bell was up, despatches came in so rapidly that the
operators found it was almost impossible to take
them. The messengers carried them to headquarters
in handfuls. The purport of all was a good deal the
same:
" Please deny report in New York Herald this
morning."
" Please allow our representative an interview on
the subject of your intentions, as stated in the Her-
ald."
" Please explain situation. What authority has
the Herald for its statement? The Bungtown Ban-
ner will gladly publish anything you have to say on
the subject."
And so on, in an endless chain.
165
His Wisdom the Defender
During breakfast it was Campbell's habit to read,
before their classification by his secretary, both the
newspapers and such despatches as might have ar-
rived. The moment he entered the room and took
his seat at the table, he saw that something extraor-
dinary had happened. There was such a stack of
despatches that it seemed hopeless to attack them.
They were still falling like snow-flakes. A glance
at two or three was sufficient to show that the issue
of the New York Herald that morning must contain
something of a very striking character. As soon
as the paper arrived, he called for it and examined
it with eagerness. The very first page, usually
devoted to advertisements, was taken up with a blaz-
ing article in double-leaded type, with the most strik-
ing phrases printed here and there in red and blue
colors. The heading took up about half the page,
and the first line was printed in red letters an inch
high:
THE SECRET OUT!
What Archibald the Great has been doing and
thinking 1
What he is going to do !
The armies of the world to be swept from the
earth !
The navies to be sunk!
The United States of the World to be organized!
King Archibald the First to assume the reins of
Universal Government!
166
A Feat of Journalism
Full account of his plans from our special corre-
spondent !
This was the prelude to a despatch from " our cor-
respondent " at Campbelltown. It was a paper such
as no one but a Herald reporter could write. The
phrases in red or blue were in type twice as large
as the pica of the rest of the article. Glanc-
ing down the page at them, such expressions as these
caught the eye : " Machine-guns," " Dynamite Earth-
quake-makers," " Hailstorm of bullets," " His Most
Gracious Majesty, Archibald the Great, Ruler of
the World." The despatch extended over to the sec-
ond page. Each of the six columns on this page was
headed with the words " The Secret Out " in red
letters.
Campbell read the first two columns, then threw
the paper down in dismay and disgust. The words
which he read were these :
" The whole human race may well tear its hair
when it sees its stupidity in failing to divine the ob-
jects of the man who, during the past four years, has
filled so prominent a place in its eyes. That no one
should ever have guessed his motives and seen
through his purposes will hereafter seem incredible.
All that was dark is now light. Everything that
was concealed is made known. All the eccentrici-
ties of his conduct, his singular ways of doing busi-
ness, his constant refusals to accept even the most
advantageous offers of co-operation, the mystery
167
His Wisdom the Defender
i
which enshrouded all his movements, his regal in-
accessibility to the public all are now explained.
When he invented his thermic engine, people won-
dered why he did not patent it and proceed with its
manufacture on the largest scale. For a long time
they did not even guess that he had anything else in
view. Then his secrecy was explained by showing
that he had something else in view no less than the
building and running of the motes. Even these
were enveloped in mystery until it was absolutely
necessary to his plans that they should be shown
to the world.
" No one could for a moment believe that the ex-
cuses he made were his sole reasons for secrecy. ~No
one has given any credence to his explanation why,
at this day, thousands of his men and hundreds of
his motes are still practising at some unknown, un-
inhabited point in or near the Arctic zone.
" Now all is clear, as it should have been from the
very beginning. He has intended all along to be-
come the ruler of the world. In a few weeks
everything will be ready for the final move. Is it not
singular that among the few people who managed
to see the strange port-holes pierced in the sides of
more than a hundred of the motes, no one suspected
what they were for ? Out of each of these holes now
peers a machine-gun. Flying through the air, taking
up any position they please, dodging every weapon
that can be aimed at them, taking every hiding-place
within their range of vision, these phantom ships
168
A Feat of Journalism
are invincible. Under the hailstorm of bullets from
their artillery, every army in the world will melt
away like snow-flakes under a tropical sun. Help-
less as sheep, soldiers can escape their fate only by
hiding in casemates or hurrying themselves out of
sight in caverns and cellars. Any city that refuses
to submit can be brought to terms by dynamite shells.
Any ruler who objects to the new order of things can
be carried in chains before the higher than imperial
throne of the modern Jehovah.
" The great problem before him has been to keep
his plans secret until he was ready to act, and thus
prevent not only the seizure of his person and his
establishment by the government in self-defence,
but the danger of any combination among the na-
tions to defeat his plans. This is the real reason
for the great Arctic encampment being still kept out
of sight. That he really has communication with it
every night no well-informed person can seriously
doubt. He awaits the report that all is ready ..."
There was also an editorial, in double-leaded type,
calling attention to the discovery made by the cor-
respondent and to the achievement of the Herald in
being the only journal to make known the secret.
It was written in as light a vein as if it had com-
mented on an e very-day subject. It spoke rather
breezily of King Archibald I. " He will be a fairly
good monarch, after all, and the world may not have
much occasion to object to his rule."
169
His Wisdom the Defender
It may be believed that Campbell did not eat much
breakfast, especially when he was informed that a
crowd of reporters were besieging the gate, deter-
mined to see him immediately, and would not take
" no " for an answer. The situation was a critical
one, and it was necessary to appear as cool and placid
as possible. He went into his reception-hall and
directed their admission. The red-headed man was
in the front rank, but resigned his usual functions of
spokesman to the Times man. Campbell noticed
him with some surprise. He had expected to see a
look of triumph on his rubicund visage, as much as
to say, " Now, haven't I got you ?" But the only
change in his usual smile was that it was tinged with
a serious look, as if he had important business on
hand. He had his note-book in hand, and seemed
to have no other idea than that of reporting the pro-
ceedings of a meeting.
" Mr. Campbell, we have called to inquire about
the article in the Herald this morning, which I sup-
pose you have seen."
" Yes, I have seen the article, but I have not read
it, and have not time to read it, so I don't know that
I can tell you much about it. You know what it
is, and I do not see why you come to me for infor-
mation."
" We wish to know whether it is true. Everybody
wants to know what you have to say on the subject.
If it is not true, it is necessary for you to deny it."
" Here you place me in an embarrassing position.
170
A Feat of Journalism
You know I have already announced, as one of the
rules of my organization, that no person in it is to
deny any false report that may be set in circulation.
Of course I must obey my own rules."
" But this is one of those extraordinary cases for
which rules were never made."
" But let me remind you further that the rule
does not prohibit the denial of a true report. Hence,
as I have already told you, if I deny the report, it
will imply that it is true. I am not prepared to ad-
mit the truth of the report. You must therefore
excuse me from denying it."
" But it must be denied. The whole country is
in a turmoil, greater than it was even on the morn-
ing after your motes were launched."
" But will it lessen the turmoil for me to say
something leading to the inference that the report
is true ?"
" You surely can say something that people will
believe and which will thus relieve the public ten-
sion."
Campbell pondered a moment. " Well, I will
tell you one thing, which I trust you will all believe.
If the report does prove to be true, I shall undoubt-
edly be an absolute monarch, shall I not ?"
" That will depend on yourself. You will be
what you choose."
" On the theory which you say was set forth in
the Herald this morning, I could not be anything
else. Then let me categorically inform you that if
171
His Wisdom the Defender
I do assume the position of ruling monarch of the
world, my first official act will be to order the exe-
cution, by hanging, of the man who was guilty of the
treasonable conduct of betraying my secret."
As he said this, he darted at the red-headed man
a look which he intended to be very fierce. The vic-
tim winced for a moment. Then a smile spread over
the faces of the assemblage, in which the red-headed
man soon joined. They could not help smiling at
the idea of the gentle little man before them order-
ing anybody to execution. His affected wrath was
comical, and his threat seemed too ludicrous to be
feared.
" Surely you can tell us something. Are the motes
now practising in polar regions armed with machine-
guns ?"
" I don't see that anything I can say would be of
the slightest use. If the theory set forth in the
Herald's article- is a correct one, of course I am not
going to give my plans away by telling you about
them. If it is false, no harm is done by my saying
nothing, for the simple reason that no denial that
I might make would be of any use. Of course, it
might be necessary for me to deny it if it were true.
When the proper time comes I shall speak; mean-
while, I propose to give you newspapers full swing to
invent what you please."
" When will that proper time come ?"
" I do not know exactly possibly in a day or two,
possibly not for a week. I had not intended to speak
172
A Peat of Journalism
for a month to come. I must ask you to excuse me
from any further statement at present."
He left the room, only to be confronted by a mes-
senger bearing a despatch of especial importance.
It came' from the British ambassador at Washington,
and was couched in the following terms:
" His Britannic Majesty's ambassador at Wash-
ington desires the honor of an immediate interview
with the Owner of the Motes. He is about to take a
special train for Campbelltown with this end in
view."
Campbell called his secretary and dictated the fol-
lowing reply:
" The Owner of the Motes will be very glad to re-
ceive the British ambassador. To facilitate his
coming, a mote will be at once despatched to Wash-
ington to bring him hither."
He gave orders to have one of the smallest motes
made ready immediately, and sent to Washington.
Before it had time to leave, similar despatches came
from the Kussian, German, French, and Italian am-
bassadors.
Answers were sent to them that a mote would ar-
rive at the State Department in about an hour to
bring them to Campbelltown.
But before the answers were received, all were on
the way to the railway station. The British ambas-
sador arrived there first, and ordered a special car
drawn by the best engine available, regardless of the
wants of traffic. The other ambassadors. arrived one
173
His Wisdom the Defender
by one before the engine was ready, and, easily guess-
ing each other's errand, all came in the same car.
It took two hours for the train to reach Campbell-
town, and this gave Campbell time to think over
what he was to say.
It was the most embarrassing situation in which
he had ever been placed. The ambassadors, repre-
senting a good part of the civilized world, were not
to be put off with any such light-hearted logic as that
with which he had dismissed the reporters. Every
direct refusal to answer their questions and every
obvious evasion would increase the suspicion which
the world now entertained as to his intentions. To
say anything false or even misleading was not only
too despicable to be thought of, but would seriously
impair the universal confidence and respect which
he hoped that his future course would command.
Strictly construed, and considered as separate state-
ments, the Herald article was a tissue of falsehoods
which he could easily deny. He had no machine-
guns. He did not intend to attack any army with
deadly weapons, because he had no such weapons at
command. He did not want to be a ruler of any sort.
There was, therefore, no difficulty in denying in de-
tail the assertions of the article.
The real cause of embarrassment was that the
statements were untrue only when taken singly and
verbally, and that the mind of the correspondent
was cast in too small a mould to grasp the extent of
his plans. The world, at first, would see little es-
174
A Feat of Journalism
sential difference between his actual plans, if he
announced them, and those attributed to him. If he
did not intend to become a ruler in name, he was de-
termined, if possible, to perform the most important
we might almost say the sole function of a ruler
of the world that of enforcing law and order in the
intercourse of nations. If he was not going to sweep
armies from the face of the earth, it was a part of
his plan to abolish them. If he was not going to
sink navies, he might haul them ashore. Of two
plans so near alike, how was he to deny the one and
not the other? The world in its present frame of
mind would refuse to recognize any difference be-
tween the two. Persuasion or force was the only
question the world had in mind, and this question
he must evade.
The five ambassadors arrived in a body, and were,
of course, immediately shown in. Their approach
was marked with most perfect courtesy, and Camp-
bell had collected his faculties sufficiently to receive
them in a corresponding way. He invited them to
be seated, expressed his pleasure at meeting them
and his readiness to know to what he owed the dis-
tinguished honor of such a visit.
" Mr. Campbell, you have doubtless seen an ar-
ticle published in the i!^ew York Herald of this morn-
ing purporting to give an exposition of your policy
and intentions."
" I have seen the article, and from the headings
and some expressions scattered here and there I have
175
His Wisdom the Defender
a general idea of its contents. But I really have lit-
tle time to read the newspapers, and have not at-
tributed sufficient importance to the article to oc-
cupy my time in giving it serious attention. If you
will state any points to which you wish particularly
to refer, I will be glad to discuss them."
This indifference to so serious a subject disconcert-
ed the visitors for a moment, but for a moment only.
" You will readily understand that the article
in question is causing the greatest alarm to the peo-
ple of every civilized country. We hope that you
can make such a disavowal of the intentions accredit-
ed to you as will allay their anxiety."
" Do your Excellencies think that any statement
I could now make would really have that effect?
Either the assertions of the Herald are true or they
are false. If they are false, then there is no oc-
casion for alarm. If they are true, will any ad-
vantage be gained by my either admitting them or
denying them? If I admit them, then the alarm
will be well founded; but if I deny them, may it
not be attributed to a desire to conceal my intentions ?
In a word, would a person speaking under such press-
ure command credence in any quarter? Might he
not be expected to consider that prevarication would
be excusable under circumstances so extraordinary ?"
This frank presentation of the case, so different
from what they had expected, puzzled the visitors,
and it took them some time to frame a reply.
" However that may be, it is certain that a decli-
176
A Feat of Journalism
nation on your part to make a statement on the sub-
ject will be looked upon the world over as conceding
the truth of the article to which we allude. The
result will be an immediate decision by the authori-
ties of the leading nations as to the course to be pur-
sued under the circumstances. What this course will
be it is not advisable, even were it possible, for us
to say. A careful consideration of the emergency
on your part will make the case as clear to you as
it is possible for us to present it."
Campbell was annoyed that they were not more
specific that they did not ask questions instead of
calling for statements.
" Granting the correctness of all that your Excel-
lencies say, I do not see that the inutility of my mak-
ing a specific answer to the allegations in question is
thereby disproved. But I make no secret of the
general objects and purposes which I have in view.
Allow me to set them forth in an authoritative way.
" I am by nature and constitution an individual-
ist. In my judgment, the whole history of modern
progress shows that the highest development of men
is reached when the individual has the largest liberty.
Moreover, the sovereignty and independence of na-
tions are of equal importance with individual liberty.
It is this sovereignty and independence which will
be in danger unless it is guaranteed that motes shall
never be used by one nation in making war upon an-
other. I desire so to strengthen my enterprise
and my power that any such use of- the motes
M 177
His Wisdom the Defender
shall be impossible. Whether I am able to do this,
and, if I am able, the best way of bringing it about,
are subjects on which I desire the wisest counsel that
the world has to offer.
" At the same time I have reached certain con-
clusions on the subject which seem to me indisput-
able. These conclusions and a more complete state-
ment of the principles governing my policy I desire
to set forth at the earliest day when I can prepare a
statement. If yourselves and other leading repre-
sentatives of the governments and people of the world
will do me the honor to listen, I shall gladly have
you hear what I shall say on the subject."
" Are we then to understand that you decline
to state specifically whether any of the assertions
contained in the Herald's article are true or false?"
Campbell secretly rejoiced at this question. It
gave him the opportunity to turn the inquiries of his
visitors in the direction he wished them to take. He
must, however, tempt them forward so gently as
to make them feel they were advancing solely on
their own volition.
" By no means, so far as any specific points are
concerned. Your Excellencies have asked me to dis-
avow intentions attributed to me by an irresponsible
writer, in an article filling nearly two pages of a
newspaper, which I have not even had time to read.
I am sure the impossibility of my doing so will be
evident on mature consideration, especially in view
of the difficulty of my foreseeing what policy it is
178
A Feat of Journalism
best for me to pursue. But if you desire informa-
tion as to the truth or falsity of any specific points
mentioned in the article, I shall be glad to give it.
I have nothing to conceal."
After a few whispers of consultation, the British
representative, who was acting as spokesman, con-
tinued :
" We thank you, and ask that you will allow us to
be as pointed in our questions as the situation calls
for. First of all, we assume it to be true that you
have, at some unknown point in the Arctic regions,
a camp of instruction where several thousand men
are practising aerial evolutions with several hundred
motes."
" That I suppose to be true. It is certainly my
intention." [Now we are getting on the right track.
If only they don't touch the wrong thing while they
are groping round in the dark.]
We put in brackets Campbell's unexpressed
thoughts.
" It is stated in the article that this expedition
is an armed one ; that it is armed with machine-guns
and perhaps other instruments of warfare. Have
you any objections to telling us what truth, if any,
there is in this statement?"
[Good!] "None whatever. The expedition has
no machine-guns, no arms, or weapons of any sort "
[I came very near saying " nothing that can properly
be called arms or weapons " what a lucky escape !]
" unless they have been taken without either my or-
179
His Wisdom the Defender
ders or my knowledge." [That's a stunner.] " Stop !
they have got fifty or a hundred rifles to shoot game
and defend themselves against wild animals. I think
that is all, unless some of the men carried knives or
revolvers in their pockets."
" This statement of yours will, we are sure, be re-
ceived with pleasure. With your permission, and
without any intention of doubting your word, we
shall make another inquiry. It is stated elsewhere
in this same issue of the Herald that you purchased
eight machine-guns from the American Arms Com-
pany. Is that true ?"
[Lucky that I didn't let Gheen take those guns
with him. I mustn't seem to remember them.]
" I think we did buy guns of some kind, includ-
ing a cannon, about two years ago. We shall soon
see." (Taps a bell.) " James, tell the property
clerk to come here and bring his book of purchases
with him I do not remember even opening the
boxes containing the guns. If they have gone with
the expedition, it is through some mistake. A great
amount of material had to be packed up and sent off,
and there is always a chance of things being taken
by mistake."
The clerk entered with a big record book.
" Mr. Black, didn't we buy some guns a couple of
years ago or so ? If so, have you still got them, and
where are they ?"
The clerk laid the book on a desk and examined the
index.
180
A Feat of Journalism
" If your Excellencies would like to see how my
records of property are kept, I would be glad to
have you look at the book."
The party went to the desk and looked over the
clerk's shoulder. He found " Guns " indexed as on
pages 247 and 350. Page 247 was found, and the
following entry shown :
" Eight Gattling guns, 42 Sept. 7, Cellar A. 43
Nov. 13, Col. 41." "Yes, sir; they were first
stored in Cellar A of the old building, and are now
in room 41 of the Coliseum," said the clerk.
"Now, what's on page 350?"
" One three-inch cannon, in shed M. That's the
signal gun that was fired for the launching."
" You are quite sure that Gheen did not take those
things with the expedition?"
" If he did, it was without my knowledge," said
the clerk. " But I can soon see if they are in their
place."
"Do so, please, and let us know. If your Ex-
cellencies wish we can go with the clerk and satisfy
ourselves that the guns are here."
" That is hardly necessary. We will take his
word on the subject. But can you give the date of
the purchase?"
By the property book they were received Septem-
ber 7, 1942.
" That is pretty close. The Herald gives the
date of the bill as September 10, 1942."
[No need telling them that with those guns I in-
181
His Wisdom the Defender
tend to defend my works on the Island of Elba a
I entrance.]
" Then we are to understand you that the organ-
ization under Captain Gheen's command is in no
sense a military one ?"
[Bad ! but I must take the bull by the horns, and
that boldly.] " I fail to see how a body of unarmed
men can in any proper sense be called military. At
the same time, I should be wanting in frankness did
I not point out that the organization might as well
be military. It must be quite evident to you that
a body of men moving through the air in motes need
only be supplied with arms to become a military
force of the most formidable kind. These arms they
can seize in almost any quarter and at any moment.
The possibility of this is the great feature of the situ-
ation, the gravity of which I fear the world still fails
to grasp, else your questions would, to-day, have
taken a different turn."
The Property Cleric: " The guns are all there,
sir. They are still boxed up. I do not think the
boxes have been unscrewed since the inspection on
arrival."
The ambassadors received this announcement with
evident satisfaction.
" The frankness with which you have responded
to our inquiries prompts us to offer a suggestion. It
must be quite evident to you that the Herald article
and the universal apprehension which it excites are
due to your unexplained course in keeping this
182
A Feat of Journalism
expedition, a force which, as you say, may in a mo-
ment be transformed into a military one, out of sight
of the world, making its doings and objects an im-
penetrable secret, and not allowing a word of intel-
ligence to escape from it. If you should deem it
proper to tell us why the expedition is kept where
it is, and what it is doing, we are sure it would go
far to relieve the apprehension which now prevails."
Campbell sprang to his feet.
" Gentlemen, I fear what you say is too true, so
far as the apprehension and the method of relieving
it are concerned. But this only shows all the drift
of your questioning shows how lamentably men
fail to grasp the situation. The great question be-
tween us this morning has been whether there is any
danger of my using the motes in warfare. The ques-
tion you should have asked me is how am I to pre-
vent the motes being used in warfare? As long as
the motes are controlled by one man, unless that
man is lost to all sense of his responsibility, the
world has nothing to fear. One man can have no
object in ruling the world; and if he did want to
rule it, what harm could he do so long as his rule
was reasonably impartial ? The real danger is from
the love of conquest and dominion on the part of
nations. International law still permits any nation
to make war when it chooses, for any purpose it
deems appropriate, and with the most effective ap-
pliances it can control. As long as that liberty
is recognized, so long will the very existence of
183
His Wisdom the Defender
motes afford a just ground of dread to mankind at
large.
" I have said more than I intended to say at pres-
ent. Allow me to repeat that, in my next address,
I expect to have the honor to make such further
statements as may seem called for by the situation."
The ambassadors made no reply, and soon took
their leave. Let us see what Campbell had to say
on the subject in his journal :
" May, 1942. This world of humanity is a queer
compound of folly and wisdom. It worships most
what it most abhors force. If it sees a young man
struggling against difficulties to carry on some great
and useful work, it looks on with apathy or some-
thing worse, so long as he keeps strictly within the
law. If he shows too much energy, it will enact
laws to impede him. When he violates the law,
every effort is made to crush him with its machinery.
If he proves stronger than the law, more especially
if his course is marked by such violence as to attract
universal attention to his energy, if every effort to
crush him proves futile, then the world proceeds
to worship him and erects monuments to his mem-
ory ; when, if he had done his work in a law-abiding
way, he would have excited no notice from his
contemporaries and been forgotten as soon as he was
dead. Each of the six great manufacturing cor-
porations of the country, which have proved instru-
ments of such beneficence in making the necessaries
of life cheap and plenty, were fought so bitterly at
184
A Feat of Journalism
every step that its managers had to get the upper-
hand of the public and rule it with a rod of iron. I
except the seventh, my own, because I went about
in such a way that men could find nothing to legis-
late about ; so they could do nothing but spit gall and
bitterness at me.
"Possibly my scruples against killing may be crim-
inal weakness on my part. I cannot deny that the
most certain and speedy way of inaugurating the
golden age of universal peace and plenty would be
to carry out the Herald programme sweep armies
off the face of the earth with murderous artillery, or
drive their men into caves of refuge, inspire univer-
sal terror by my power, and say to the world, ' Behold
your master; submit to his sway or see your cities
destroyed and your works brought to naught P There
might be a few weeks of raging and gnashing of
teeth. After that I should be worshipped by all
but those malecontents whose principal trait is a
state of congenital dissatisfaction with all that ex-
ists."
It is hardly necessary to say that the interview did
not satisfy the Herald. It claimed that none of
the really serious allegations made by its correspond-
ent were denied, and that the most essential among
them were admitted. Meantime guns could be put
into the motes at any moment. No matter by what
term he might call himself King or Universal
Judge it was clearly the intention of the Owner of
the Motes to exercise supreme authority over the
185
His Wisdom the Defender
nations of the world. The question whether they
should submit to that authority was one for the na-
tions themselves to decide.
Three days later an invitation to the following
effect was addressed to the highest officers of the
government and to all the foreign ambassadors and
ministers :
" The Owner of the Motes requests the honor of
your company on board the Concordia, in the city
of Washington, on Tuesday next, the 12th instant.
He will avail himself of the opportunity to make
a public utterance on the subject of the political
effects of the motes as bearing upon international
law and the mutual relations of the governments of
the world."
The invited party was more select than that which
came together to witness the first running of the
motes. It included only the President and his cab-
inet, the chairmen of the foreign affairs committees
in the House and Senate, and the representatives of
foreign nations. ~No invitations were extended to
the press, except that the three press associations
were each allowed to have a reporter present.
XII
Our Hero Makes a Clean Breast
THE position in which Campbell was placed by
the Herald article was one of the greatest
perplexity. Had it appeared a month later,
when his preparations for action were complete,
he would have cared but little. The real trouble
was not that the article had revealed his plans
his interview with the ambassadors had gone far to
relieve the public mind on that score but that pub-
lic attention had been pointedly called to what it
was in his power to do if he chose.
History tells us that when horses were in use it
was necessary to cover their eyes with pieces of
leather known as " blinders," which kept them from
seeing in any direction except straight ahead. The
reason was that these animals were extremely timid,
and liable to be frightened out of their senses by
any unusual object in motion around them, and thus
jump about in such a manner as to endanger both
carriage and occupants. But if the driver could
merely turn the horse's head so that the blinders
would prevent his seeing the object, and could for-
187
His Wisdom the Defender
cibly keep him from looking at it, then the horse,
although if he could be said to know anything must
have known that the dreadful thing was still there,
was immediately reassured. In fact, he feared only
what he could see, not what he knew to exist out of
his sight.
It was a good deal the same way with the world
at this most critical moment in its history. What it
could see was one man in possession of the power of
doing almost anything he pleased to or with his
fellow-men. This caused it universal concern, and
so it wanted him deprived of his power. The world
knew well that if this power was taken from him, and
placed in the hands of any nation or of any combi-
nation of nations, the case would be yet worse, be-
cause, while an individual might lead a nation to
conquest, he could not well engage in conquest him-
self without having a nation behind him. But this
greater danger was not existent at the moment, and
so was relegated to the background. The newspapers,
with the Herald at their head, living on excitement,
poured forth an unceasing stream of rumors, reports,
and suggestions as to what Campbell intended to
do or might do or had done, and added to the tur-
moil and uncertainty by contradicting each other, not
to say themselves, as often as possible. Under these
circumstances the Herald article had much the ef-
fect of the appearance of a wolf in the midst of a
flock of sheep. But what was to be done ?
At first nothing definite was proposed. But in
188
Our Hero Makes a Clean Breast
a couple of days the scattered thoughts of the fright-
ened public began to take a common direction, and
loud calls were made on the President to send a
regiment of soldiers to Campbelltown and take pos-
session of the entire place, its owner included. What
good this would do when the owner could escape
through the air with as many motes as he might
choose to take, and, if his intentions were really
those attributed to him, could do what he pleased to
his assailants, no one stopped to inquire. Curiously
enough, for some twenty-four hours a number of
European journals joined in this cry. But it only
took them one day to see that such a proceeding,
if it were successful, would only result in placing
the destiny of Europe in the hands of the most
powerful and united country in the world, which,
though noted for its justice and respect for inter-
national law, had for half a century been ambitious
to rule. Then the cry changed to one for a union
of European nations to offer an unbroken front to
any invasion or attack that might hereafter be at-
tempted either by the Owner of the Motes or the
American government.
What increased Campbell's depression was that he
stood alone, without, so far as he knew, either support
or sympathy from any quarter whatsoever. Gheen
was the only man completely acquainted with his
plans; and he was only a trusted assistant in no
way a representative man.
Winthrop, on whom he expected most to rely, was
189
His Wisdom the Defender
absent on his European mission. He had visited
London, Paris, Madrid, Eome, and Vienna, and was
now in Berlin conferring with German publicists.
In each capital visited he had selected a few of the
most sagacious and enlightened professors of inter-
national law, one or two of whom were to be invited
to the conference which Campbell had planned to
hold. Four of these men, from England, France,
and Italy, were with him as the nucleus of the pro-
posed assemblage. His plan was to go from Berlin
to St. Petersburg, and thence to China and Japan.
Campbell's idea was that, as the whole subject was
thought over and talked over by these men, the ab-
solute necessity of a universal disarmament and aban-
donment of war would be evident. Then the way in
which this could be brought about would be discussed
from day to day. The international rules which
he had long been thinking over would* be laid before
them ; and he was sure that the more these rules were
examined and discussed, the more apparent would
be their wisdom, feasibility, and justice, if only na-
tions could be brought to accept them. A distinct
goal being thus brought plainly in sight, the method
of reaching it would be the next subject of study.
When all other means had been shown impracticable
or doubtful, then would Campbell for the first time
propose his drastic plan of using force. Severe,
though this measure might be, it would only be di-
rected towards the enforcement of written law.
Such being the case, he had not fully unfolded his
190
Our Hero Makes a Clean Breast
plans, even to Winthrop. And now the latter was
away on his mission when his counsel was most
wanted.
A change of programme was necessary. The
Herald article had precipitated a crisis in which the
well-considered and leisurely proceedings he had
intended were impossible. He must either retire
or go on as rapidly as possible at all hazards. The
day after the visit of the ambassadors he telegraphed
Winthrop to return immediately, bringing with him
for consultation such of the publicists as were will-
ing to come. The message was not unexpected by
the recipient, and the second morning after the
Friede was at Campbelltown, with Winthrop and
the five European professors. The two leaders met
in Campbell's private office. The first greetings
were exchanged.
" Well ! you have set the world in an uproar."
" I cannot deny the impeachment. The question
is, what am I to do?"
" The situation seems to me a very difficult and
perplexing one. I hope you have somie way of
getting out of it."
" My reason and my feelings are so much at vari-
ance that I find my resolution trembling in the bal-
ance. I have sent for you because I need sympathy
as no man before ever needed it. I hope I may add
support also, but I am not yet sure whether you are
ready to support all my plans."
" I can speak better when I know them."
191
His Wisdom the Defender
" Let me repeat what I said to you the day of the
launching. I told you my conviction that the more
firm and aggressive my policy, so long as I keep
within the bounds of law, the better for humanity.
Under our system of international law, the first
nation that can get possession of a fleet of motes will
have power to make all other nations its vassals.
Its right to do this if it can is recognized. To clar-
ify our ideas, and not mislead you, let me say that
this law was not altogether bad in the past, because
the nation that could overcome in battle was the one
that possessed in the highest degree those qualities
of intellect, enterprise, courage, and patriotism
which fitted it to rule weaker peoples for their good.
But this is no longer the case when the conqueror
is merely the first nation that chances to get a fleet
of motes. We must, therefore, secure the indepen-
dence of nations and peoples by law.
" Now, we cannot discuss the situation profitably
unless we have some previously defined basis to start
from. Allow me, therefore, to say that I have for
years past in fact, ever since I discovered that
motes were possible been perfecting a system of
laws to govern the relations of nations. I want
you to study them, and tell me what you think of
them. I also want you to submit them to' the coun-
sellors you have brought from Europe, to be dis-
cussed and amended by them. Here they are ; read
them."
Winthrop read aloud:
192
Our Hero Makes a Clean Breast
" ' Article 1. There shall be no more war.'
" An excellent provision if you could enforce it.
But how are you going to prevent nations from going
to war? What are armies and navies for except
to fight?"
" I am glad you put the question in that form, be-
cause that is just what I am asking myself. Now
read on arid see my answer."
" ' Article 2. There shall hereafter be no armies
or navies except such as shall be necessary to the pro-
tection of life and property within the state to which
they belong.'
" This is also very good, but how are you ever
going to induce nations to give up armies and navies ?
One will always be waiting for another to disband
first, even after they all agree to disband. Perhaps
in a few hundred years they will do it, little by little,
but in our time never !"
" First let me ask : will it be a good thing, under
present circumstances, if war, armies, and navies be
all abolished, and the relations of nations governed
bylaw?"
" To that question there can be no two answers.
My objection is not to the desirability, but to the
possibility of the end."
" Very well ; suppose I abolish the armies and
navies of Europe by force ?"
Winthrop looked at his companion in astonish-
ment.
" Why, my dear friend, you nearly take my breath
w 193
His Wisdom the Defender
away. Is this really the object of keeping Gheen's
expedition out of sight and hearing?"
"It is!"
" But you told the ambassadors it was not armed."
" It is not. I do not propose to use a weapon of
any sort, except in self-defence. I have for a year
been perfecting my plan in the minutest details.
Nothing remains but to put it into execution, if I
can."
" But what right have you, a private individual,
to make war for war it will be on your own ac-
count ?"
" So far as existing law goes, none whatever no
more than I have to batter down the door of a man's
house and enter it by force to keep it from burning
down. I hold that the might which God has placed
in my hands makes right in such an emergency as
the present one."
" But do you seriously believe that you have the
physical force to disarm all Europe?"
" I cannot speak with entire confidence, but I
think I have. If I cannot do more, I can at least de-
monstrate the uselessness of the existing armies, and
thus pave the way for voluntary disbandment. I feel
confident I can bring the nations of Europe to terms
of some kind."
The speaker rose to his feet and continued his
discourse with an energy that took his interlocutor
quite by surprise.
" Let us rise above our petty surroundings and
194
Our Hero Makes a Clean Breast
look into the future. If I succeed in my efforts ; if
I induce or force the nations to accept the principle
that all international differences are to be settled by
impartial tribunals of statesmen and publicists; if
I thus introduce an era of universal peace what
will the world of the future say? What will you
say?"
Winthrop also arose, and paced the floor in medi-
tation. Then he began to be imbued with some, of
the feelings of his companion.
" You will be the greatest benefactor of the hu-
man race that the modern world has seen !"
" That is enough. Now let me tell you what I
want of you. I have long felt that if I should suc-
ceed in having my plans accepted by the world, I
would want you as my leading official adviser, for a
time at least, perhaps for good. Will you accept
a position that I hope will be among the most brill-
iant the world can offer, if the time should come ?"
" Is it necessary to decide in advance ?"
" No, not absolutely. I only want to know your
sentiments, because I want your help in the mean-
time. Let me explain. You know that to-morrow
I am to meet the foreign representatives and the lead-
ing dignitaries of this country. I shall make what
will be as good as a clean breast of my plans, omit-
ting details. I want you to be present and receive
as my representative. Immediately after my ad-
dress I shall disappear. Remember, above all, that I
do not want to involve you in any way. I shall tread
195
His Wisdom the Defender
the wine-press alone, and you can proclaim your-
self as in no way responsible for me or my doings.
I want you to stay here, or at Washington, as you
deem best, and see people. But first of all I shall
leave with you a number of printed copies of the pro-
posed laws. I want you to lay them before our
counsellors, and invite them to study and perfect
them by amendments. Very likely they will decline,
lest their own governments hold them guilty of high-
treason. If so, let them return to their homes, and
you can make the laws public as soon as you please.
Before our own authorities you can disclaim all re-
sponsibility for my acts. You have neither aided
nor abetted them in any way. You are simply one
of my acquaintances perhaps the one who has most
influence with me. I do not know whether you can
reach me by telegraph ; when you can you may send
me news, but I am not desirous of any word of dis-
couragement."
" Allow me one word before we part," said Win-
throp. " You are not sure of success ; is there not
something desperate in your resolve to risk every-
thing in a single bold venture? What will become
of yon what will become of your motes, what will
become of all of us if you are driven to succumb?
Is it not better, after all, to wait, watch the course
of events, and make some arrangement with the
world?"
" Here again you fail to grasp the logic of the
situation. The world will come to no conclusion
196
Our Hero Makes a Clean Breast
until it knows by actual experience what the motes
can do. If I fail, if I am forced to desist from mj
attempt, I can still say, * Behold what a terrible
power you see before you. What will you do to
regulate it and insure that it shall be used only for
the benefit of humanity ?' Then, especially with my
solution of the problem before it, the world will cer-
tainly be in a better position to reach a conclusion
than it is now. I will explain this view in my ad-
dress to-morrow. I do not see that we can profitably
discuss the subject any further at present. Please
return to the Concordia to-morrow at one o'clock
and go with me to Washington. I shall see that our
publicists are included in the invitation. Till then,
adieu."
Just before the appointed hour the Concordia
was seen hovering over the State Department, her
motto, freshly gilt, shining in the sun. She came
slowly and majestically to the ground in front of the
building, and then threw out sumptuous steps, cover-
ed with velvet, on which the guests could mount into
her. A crowd of policemen kept order in the pre-
cincts, and the attendants of the Concordia, in the
white livery of the Owner's messengers, challenged
all who came to the steps, admitting only the invitees.
Arriving on the main deck the guests were ushered
into a spacious room fitted up with a splendor which
must have required many months of work.
Here they were received by Mr. Winthrop, who
for the moment, represented the Owner of the Motes,
197
His Wisdom the Defender
with a ceremonious formality quite unlocked for.
An usher inquired the official rank of each guest,
and introduced him by his proper title.
First came his Excellency, the President of the
United States. Then the Honorable Secretary of
State of the United States. He was followed by the
senior member of the diplomatic corps, his Excel-
lency the Ambassador Extraordinary and Minister
Plenipotentiary of his Majesty the Czar of all the
Russias. And so on to the end.
The formality and the temporary absence of the
principal figure caused some uneasiness among the
foreign guests. If a coup d'etat the sudden as-
sumption of a more than imperial authority over the
affairs of the world was really intended, a better
opportunity could not have been found. All gov-
ernments important enough to be in diplomatic com-
munication with the leading country were represent-
ed here in the persons of their ambassadors. Could
it be that the latter were entrapped into something
in the nature of a coronation ? Would they find the
Owner of the Motes in the gorgeous robes of his self-
assumed office ? All that Winthrop could do to allay
their apprehensions was to excuse the momentary ab-
sence of the Owner, who was in the adjoining saloon
preparing his address.
Great, therefore, was the relief of all when the
man they were looking for stepped in, as plainly clad
as the rest. Even the red button of the Legion of
Honor of France, which he habitually wore on cere-
198
Our Hero Makei a Clean Breast
monial occasions, was, with obvious propriety, re-
placed by a rose. Each guest was presented, then
the whole party followed Campbell into the saloon.
At the farther end stood a table, at which two secre-
taries were seated, one of whom had a pile of papers
before him. Beyond the table was seen in artisti-
cally illuminated letters the lines:
"When the war-drum throbs no longer and the battle flag is
furled,
In the Parliament of Man, the Federation of the world."
Campbell took his seat at the table, while the
guests were being seated around the saloon. When
all was still he arose, amid breathless silence, and
began to read his address from the printed sheets,
handed him by one of the secretaries, while the
other took each sheet as its reading was completed.
He began with picturing the extraordinary crisis
which the building of the motes was to make in the
history of the world and the revolution which they
would necessarily create in the relations of nations.
The whole picture was drawn from the point of view
of an impartial looker-on belonging to no one coun-
try, and not even bound to any one stage of civili-
zation. Jew and Gentile, bond and free, European,
African, and Asiatic were all considered as having
equal rights. Then the results of using motes in
warfare were touched upon. The world at large
had already seen these results so clearly that there
was no need of depicting them. One thing was evi-
dent there could logically be only one more war.
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His Wisdom the Defender
The outcome of the first war would be to make the
conquering nation, whichever it might be, the mas-
ter of the world. That nation would not be the
strongest or the most civilized, but simply the one
that should first get possession of a fleet of motes.
The reasons why such a result was not to be tolerated
were fully set forth.
Was it then possible to make any arrangements
by which the practice of war should be continued,
and yet the motes be neutralized by an international
agreement that they should never be used in war-
fare? If such an agreement was made, would all
implicitly rely on its performance?
Who could decide what " use in warfare " might
mean? It would doubtless be easy to say that no
troops will be transported in the motes under any
circumstances, but how would it be with military
supplies ? How would it be with supplies necessary
for defending a port ? Would there not be something
illogical in a people submitting to seeing its territory
invaded, its fortifications bombarded, and its cities
occupied by a foreign power, when it had a most
efficient and certain means of defence within its
reach, which, however, it had agreed not to use?
Self-preservation is the first law of nature, for a
nation as for an individual. " I ask you on your
consciences, Excellencies and Gentlemen, whether
any one of the nations which you represent would
wage war upon another having in its hands the
means to repel attack, with entire confidence that such
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Our Hero Makes a Clean Breast
means would not be called into requisition? I am
sure your answer would be in the negative ; and this
would be equivalent to admitting that war is no long-
er to be waged. If, then, we are to have no more
war, are we still to have armies ? These have no
purpose except to fight. If a nation is resolved to
fight no more, it has no use for an army. To main-
tain one would be making known to all other nations
that it still had war in view. No obvious course
seems open short of all nations coming together and
agreeing each and all to absolutely abolish their
military establishments ?
" Such a course cannot for a moment be expected
of them. ~No matter what agreement may be made,
every one will wait for the others. It is impos-
sible that all should keep step in full confidence that
every other would accept the situation without reserve.
No government would feel justified in going before
its people with a proposition to disband all its armies
unconditionally, until it has satisfied itself as to the
means of defence it might then have against en-
croachments.
" What, then, is the situation ? The world stands
on a slumbering volcano, whose fires it has no means
to quench, and from which it has no avenue of escape
by its own act. Who brought it there? The man
who has the honor to address you. What is the duty
of one that has brought on such a crisis ? To carry
the world safely through it if he can. What can he
do?
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His Wisdom the Defender
' The answer is uncertain until he makes the at-
tempt. It is still uncertain whether I possess the
power to disarm and disband the armies of the world
and to haul its navies ashore."
These words produced among those who heard
them what might be described as a shock of silence.
Every one started as if by an electric stroke, but ut-
tered no word. The speaker continued :
" But if I should possess this power, then the
question will arise whether the best interests of hu-
manity do not demand its immediate exercise.
" If I should now proceed, without bloodshed, to
disarm and disband the armies of the world, to haul
its navies ashore, to assume for myself and my suc-
cessors in office the title and functions of Defender of
the Peace of the World; as such Defender to move
all nations to the establishment of a central tribunal
for the arbitration of all international questions, and
for the exercise of supreme power over the system of
international communication which I am now or-
ganizing if I should thus put an end to war and
assure to all nations and peoples the blessings of se-
curity and peace forever, then, whatever my con-
temporaries might think of my acts, would not all
future generations call me blessed ?
" Gentlemen, I am not here to conceal any thought
from you. If you should ask me how I think and
feel on this question, I would answer thus: When
I reflect, on the one hand, how great the labor and
how heavy the responsibility which I should assume
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Our Hero Makes a Clean Breast
by the policy I have indicated; and, on the other,
how easy it is to let events take their course and
leave humanity to guard its own interests I shrink
from the task. But when I reflect that perhaps it is
within my power so to guide the course of events that
never again in human history shall father, son, or
brother take leave of his loved ones to expose his
person in battle; that never again shall a seaport
fear the bombardment of a navy; that never again
shall a city fear the attack of an army; that never
again shall a people groan under a war tax; that
never again shall a nation tremble for its indepen-
dence I feel moved to action by a power which I
doubt my ability to resist."
These concluding words were spoken with a pathos
which added to their force, and at the same time,
if it were possible, calmed the feelings which they
were fitted to excite. Printed copies of the ad-
dress were circulated among the guests. The
latter were so moved that they scarcely knew what
to do first. As a matter of official duty it was neces-
sary for the ambassadors to telegraph the address im-
mediately to their respective governments. But they
also wanted to confer together. To some it seemed
necessary to give a word of warning to the Owner of
the Motes as to the grave consequences of entering
upon such a policy as he had indicated. A few hur-
ried words were exchanged with the President and
the Secretary of State. All the ambassadors had
time to say was, " You had better not attempt it ;
203
His Wisdom the Defender
count the cost. Mr. President, Mr. Secretary, the
motes are under the control of a citizen of your
country ; give him due warning."
The President simply remarked, " I trust you will
listen to what will be said on the subject. Let the
Secretary of State speak."
" Mr. Campbell," said the Secretary, " when you
were in my office a few days since I asked you as to
your reason for maintaining in such secrecy, at some
distant and unknown point, the expedition which you
had sent out. Your answer to my question was
evasive. Now an answer is no longer necessary.
We conclude, and the world will conclude, that that
expedition is an armed one, intended to attack coun-
tries with which the United States is at peace. You
are a man of intelligence and learning, and are doubt-
less acquainted with the neutrality laws of your
country. I feel it my duty to go outside the usual
limits of my official position and ask you to reflect
upon the consequences of such an act as you propose.
You know what my painful duty will be should you
enter upon it, and you cannot need any assurance
from me that it will be performed, come what may.
We must now leave you to your own reflections."
Again to Campbell's ear the voice, audible to none
but him, repeated its maxim : " He who would wield
the power of a god must bear the responsibility of a
god."
In the excitement of the moment the visitors had
overlooked a feature of their reception in which they
204
Our Hero Makes a Clean Breast
might have seen some significance. Among the two
or three people who were in the room when they
were presented to the Owner of the Motes was one
of the leading artists of New York, who quietly
remained in the background during the entire course
of the proceedings. He was behind a screen at
Campbell's right in the farther corner of the room.
His head could be seen over the screen, behind which
he was sketching the outlines of a picture. This
was the origin of what is now one of the historic pict-
ures of the world. The original is well known to
every visitor who has called at the Defender's Palace
in Uraniberg; a replica is one of the great attrac-
tions at the Metropolitan Museum in New York.
As soon as the last visitor had departed the Con-
cordia sailed away for Campbelltown. There Camp-
bell had everything ready for the instant departure
of a second expedition under his personal command.
No one was surprised when, shortly after dark, a
hundred motes, most of which had been fitting out
for several days, rose in the air and disappeared
towards the north.
The departure was of course telegraphed imme-
diately to all the journals of the world. The ur-
gent inquiries made by correspondents and others
of the superintendent left in charge at Campbell-
town failed to reveal anything further as the in-
tentions or projected movements of the Owner. Win-
throp alone was in possession of the essential part
of the secret, and he refused to say anything.
205
XIII
The Mysterious Expedition
WE now return to the fleet of motes, number-
ing more than two hundred, which so mys-
teriously disappeared from the channel in
which they were moored more than a month before
the date of the events recorded in the last chapter.
The boats, as they were naturally called, were a mys-
tery to all concerned, except their owner, Captain
Gheen, and perhaps two or three of the leading
Seraphs. As they floated they were arranged in
rank and file; each was chained to the one in front,
the one behind, and the one on each side of it, so that
it was impossible for any one to escape from the
serried mass. For several days the work of loading
them had been going on. Not only every article
which one could imagine to be required on any sort
of an expedition, but countless mysterious boxes,
some large, some small, some light, some heavy, were
put aboard. That after being thus loaded all the
motes seemed to float as lightly as swans, was only
one of the many mysteries connected with this singu-
lar affair. For several nights the Seraphs and work-
206
The Mysterious Expedition
men selected for the expedition had been required
to sleep on board in their respective stations, even
when employed at their regular duties during the
day. And yet, in the absence of any visible mode of
propulsion, it could scarcely be believed that the ex-
pedition was really going to start soon.
Each boat had a captain, a lieutenant, and ten or
twelve men. In each was a system of levers work-
ed by an electric current, starting from the cap-
tain's mote in the centre of the fleet. To guard
against any possible failure of the current to
move these levers, it was explained to each cap-
tain that on a signal being given he was to see that
the levers took their proper position. This was done
so often without any effect occurring that captain
and men looked upon the process with entire in-
difference. The sharp edge of curiosity as to the
object of such eccentric proceedings had been worn
away by custom until everybody went through his
part with an approach to stolidity.
On the eventful night the men had nearly all re-
tired to their respective bunks, while the captains,
as usual, were watching the levers. A slight motion
was given, when, to the surprise of the few who
were awake and looking out, the whole fleet started
down the stream, with about the swiftness of an aver-
age steamer. In an hour the mouth of the Potomac was
reached, and the fleet was making its way into the
Chesapeake. Gheen stood on the deck of his mote,
peering round to see if any stray boat might be in
207
His Wisdom the Defender
sight to watch his movements. Seeing none, he gave
the signal for setting the levers, and then touched
the electric button which moved them. Those who
were still awake felt so singular a motion that many
jumped out of their hunks and mounted to the deck
to ascertain the cause. To the astonishment of all,
the water was no longer to be seen. The whole fleet
seemed to be in a dark cloud. The astonishment
among the lookers-out was such that they could not
cry to their companions. Such exclamations, in a low
voice, as, " Bedad, we're bewitched 1" " Holy Mither,
where are we ?" " Virgin Mary, have mercy on us !"
were all that one could have heard uttered.
One poor man jumped overboard in his fright,
and of course was not again heard of. Very soon,
however, the motion was so smooth that, swift though
it was, the sleepers were not disturbed by it. Short-
ly the whole fleet was above the clouds, making its
swift way to the north. It was extremely desirable
that the journey should be made unseen from the
earth.
The starting hour had been so arranged that it
was hoped the northern limit of the Canadian border
would be passed before sunrise. Fortunately the
morning was cloudy in the region through which
the motes ran, so that, being above the clouds, they
passed on from below unperceived. In the afternoon
the fleet was over Hudson's Bay and proceeded to
follow the northern coast of Smith Strait, keeping
a sharp lookout to avoid the possible eyes of men on
208
The Mysterious Expedition
board passing vessels. The problem was to get as
far north as possible, so as to run the least danger
of being discovered for at least a month, and to find
a place which was not covered with snow. A map
had been carefully prepared long before, showing the
location of all the trading and fur posts in the region.
A point was at length fixed upon which seemed to
fulfil the necessary conditions as well as could be
expected. The fleet, its motion guided by the ad-
justing levers, slowly and carefully came to the
ground. Gheen called his captains together, and all
joined in a prayer-offering of heartfelt thanks for
having made their wonderful journey in safety.
" What does this mean ?" was demanded of Gheen
on all sides.
" It means," said he, " that we are the pioneers
of a new dispensation; that we are to inaugurate a
golden age; that, if we are true to each other, we
shall soon be among the greatest men of the world.
More than that I cannot now tell you. Unload the
motes and pitch the tents."
On unloading, wood and iron for huts were brought
forth, machinery of all sorts was taken out and put
together, and comfortable beds were found and put
into the huts. By nightfall, which, at that season
and in that latitude, did not occur until ten
o'clock, the encampment looked as if much of
the wealth of a populous city had been sudden-
ly poured down into the uninhabited place. As
soon as possible all tried to sleep as best they
o 209
His Wisdom the Defender
could, either in the tents or in the motes. The men,
nine-tenths of whom were natives of the Emerald
Isle, had been so much fatigued that they slept sound-
ly, regardless of the morrow. We doubt very much
whether the same was true of the three hundred
Seraphs. To them it was as if they had been sud-
denly transferred to some new world, where every-
thing went by contraries. They puzzled their
brains in vain to divine the object of their expedi-
tion. But all had pledged their honor to obey orders
and ask no questions; so nothing could be done but
await developments.
Next morning they had got sufficiently inured to
their situation to at least recover their tranquillity.
How long they were to remain, only Gheen and
perhaps two or three others knew, but the pitching
of the tents had shown that an immediate departure
was not intended. After breakfast the work of un-
loading the motes was resumed. Within them were
found the dissected parts of not less than two hun-
dred daddies. All had been practised in putting
these together, and in the course of a day the party
had the satisfaction of seeing many of them ready
for use, so far as externals went. But to all appear-
ance they compared with those in the Coliseum only
as dead men would compare with live ones. They
lay prone on the ground with no apparent faculty
of life or motion. The general idea was that they
needed cords with which to be suspended, though
of what use they could be even then no one could
210
The Mysterious Expedition
divine. Of the motes, about one-half were pierced
with openings through which were to pass the linked
arms, which, when in place, would turn them into
the centipedes already described. Each centipede
had its arms inside the mote which was to form its
body. Taking them out and fitting them into place
occupied the rest of the day. The party went to bed
that night without seeing any more light on the prob-
lem what they were to do.
On the second morning a number of articles were
unloaded which, if possible, were even more puzzling
than those already brought out. They consisted
of soft gunny-bags, about a foot in diameter and five
feet long, each of which was stuffed with thin, empty
bottles. Notwithstanding the delicacy of these bot-
tles, they were made of very ordinary glass, like
that of wine-bottles. Each was about four inches
in diameter and a foot high, so that it would hold
almost a gallon. A number of the men were em-
ployed in taking them out of the bags and filling
them with water, corking them up and putting them
back again in place. When properly arranged and
tied up, each bag, stuffed as it was with bottles, could
be stood erect.
While this was going on Gheen informed the
Seraphs that their principal work while they remain-
ed at the station would be the practice of certain evo-
lutions. The chains by which the motes had been
fastened together had been removed in order to fa-
cilitate the unloading. Now, the captains were told,
211
His Wisdom the Defender
each mote would have to move on its own account,
in obedience to orders from headquarters. They
were warned in no case to go more than a mile from
the central station, because the therm with which
they were charged had been so nearly consumed by
the journey that it might give out at any moment.
When it did give out, it could be renewed by heat
generated by the combustion of coal which had been
brought along. Until this was done, it would be im-
possible for the motes to go any great distance.
Before operations could begin, it was necessary
to charge the daddies so that they could be used.
For this purpose a large supply of levers of the kind
we saw in the workshop at Cambridge four years
before were brought into requisition. Two pairs of
these levers were placed in each daddie. A Seraph
crawled into the hollow through the head and soon
saw what was to be done from having practised in
the Coliseum. As a precaution, each daddie was
first tied down by a long rope to prevent the possi-
bility of its flying off into space and never being seen
again, through some blunder on the part of the man
inside of it. The daddie first stood erect and then
rose into the air, its long legs dangling below it.
It was manoeuvred by the man inside of it until it
was certain that the method of managing it was fully
understood. Then it came to the ground, the tether
which fastened it was cast off, and in its place an
electric wire was connected with a system of keys
inside of it. The other end of this wire was carried
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The Mysterious Expedition
to a centipede and then connected with a signal-board
within it. In this way the man in the daddie could
send such signals as he desired to the captain of the
centipede, who was to stand at the switchboard.
Inside the daddie the electric wire was wound round
a roll, so that it could be drawn in or pulled out at
pleasure, thus permitting of the daddie being either
close down to the mote or at a height of several hun-
dred yards in the air.
To communicate orders from headquarters, a num-
ber of electric syrens had been provided. The larg-
est of these were on board of Gheen's mote. They
emitted a musical note, the tone of which could be
changed at pleasure, so as to play any required tune.
The volume of sound emitted by them was such that
they could be heard at a distance of from one to two
miles. Twenty of the daddies were supplied with
smaller syrens, by which any signals received from
the great ones could be repeated. A system of num-
bers was devised, so that every man in charge of a
daddie or a mote should know for whom an order
was intended.
When everything was ready, evolutions were be-
gun. The commanding mote took its position half a
mile in the air. Practice was first begun with a
single centipede. When the latter was in operation
each of its dozen legs was worked by a man inside
the body of the mote, and therefore invisible. The
twelve men sat in two rows, six on each side. Along-
side of each opening through which an arm went was
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His Wisdom the Defender
a small round hole, about an inch in diameter, in
which was fitted a peculiar binocular telescope, es-
pecially designed for the purpose in view. By put-
ting his eye to this telescope, the man who was man-
aging the arm could see round and below him on
the outside. At the word of command the mote
rose and fell, described a circle in one direction or
another, or rested on the ground while the arms
worked in the air. Everything being understood,
the gunny-bags, with their strange contents, were
stood up in a row, about four feet apart. Every one
was then informed that a centipede was to approach
these bags, seize them gently in its tentacles, lift them
into the air, and stand them on the deck of the mote
without breaking any of the bottles. This took a
good deal of practice, and so many bottles were
broken in the beginning that new bags had to be
several times filled. Then similar practice was had
in putting the bags, not on the deck of the centipede
itself, but on the deck of another mote. The first
attempts of this sort were so destructive to the bottles
that, instead of practising the remaining centipedes
on them, a dozen wooden logs, which had been brought
along for the purpose, were stood up to take the place
of the gunny-bags.
The first practice of this sort was witnessed by
the assembled crowd in order to familiarize it with
what was to be done. Then one mote after another
was gradually landed and put through the motions,
until the whole fleet was manosuvring simultaneously
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The Mysterious Expedition
over a space extending a quarter of a mile on all
sides of the camp. Sometimes orders were given
directly to the mote and sometimes to the daddie.
As a general rule, the captain of the mote kept his
position in the daddie, that he might see what was
going on.
It would take too much time to enumerate all the
evolutions that were performed. Besides those al-
ready mentioned, practice was had in the manage-
ment of powerful hooks attached to about a dozen
of the daddies, much larger and more powerful than
the others. There was nothing in the region that we
should call trees, only some low shrubbery showing
itself here and there above the moss-covered ground.
The hooks in question were employed in tearing these
up by the roots, in digging in the ground for stones,
in rolling logs, and in pulling things to pieces gener-
ally. The other daddies were practised in the use
of their hands and feet, so that they could pick up
almost anything, large or small, and handle it at
pleasure. To give interest to the exercises, games
were devised which could be played sometimes by
the centipedes or the daddies by themselves, and
sometimes by both combined. In one game the
centipedes were on one side and the daddies on the
other.
When great facility in manoeuvring the tentacles
of the centipedes and the hands of the daddies was
attained, a different kind of practice was begun.
Several hundred of the men would be arranged in
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His Wisdom the Defender
ranks, like a company of soldiers, with sticks in their
hands to serve as arms. The daddies and the centi-
pedes were to go up to them, pull these sticks out of
their hands, and deposit them in the motes, without
endangering the men. The latter were to fight against
this by brandishing their sticks and pushing off the
daddies, if possible. Very soon the metallic finger
of the crooked beings acquired such dexterity that
the stick could be instantly seized in spite of every-
thing which the holder could do to prevent it.
This exercise seemed to throw light on a possible
object of the whole affair. What that light was our
readers can judge as well as we can tell them. When
an army used to suffer, for a period of several weeks,
the ennui of camp life, the soldiers felt ready for
any adventure, regardless of consequences. It was
not at all wonderful that the members of this iso-
lated community, after a month of labor in a
position where they were completely cut off from
all contact with the rest of the world, got into a state
of mind not altogether different. They were not ex-
actly desirous of a fight, for, so far as had yet ap-
peared, no fight was in view. But they did get very
anxious to try their newly acquired skill on a large
scale, and a feeling of recklessness as to the way in
which their skill should be used gradually took pos-
session of them.
The directions given to Gheen were that, after his
men had gotten into thorough practice, the whole ex-
pedition was to move over to Iceland and camp on
216
The Mysterious Expedition
the peninsula in its northern portion. There the
exercises were to be renewed, and thither supplies
of everything necessary would be sent him.
At the end of a month Gheen received the message
we have already mentioned, directing him to be in
readiness as soon as possible. He lost no time in
packing up and moving the whole encampment over
to Iceland. Here everything was again unpacked
and put into working order, evolutions recommenced,
and further orders were awaited. Before a week
had been passed at the new station, one of the men
caught sight of an approaching fleet of motes in the
air. It was the supplementary fleet with which the
Owner himself had started from Campbelltown on
the evening before. The new-comers were welcomed
with their supply of several weeks' news from the
outer world, besides fresh provisions and a number
of miscellaneous articles conducive to human com-
fort. They learned for the first time of the great
unveiling and the universal excitement thereby
caused. As a matter of prudence, Campbell had not
allowed any papers containing the discussions of the
past weeks as to his objects and purposes to be brought
along. But letters from families and friends were
brought in sufficient number to compensate for the
absence of the latest general intelligence.
As every hour's delay in commencing active oper-
ations would enable the authorities of Europe to pre-
pare against possible attack, he took Gheen's word
that everything was in readiness, and ordered the
217
His Wisdom the Defender
expedition to start. He waited only to call the
Seraphs together and make a short speech on the im-
portance of their enterprise. " If you are true to
one another," he said, " and if you falter not, you
will make more and better history during the next six
months than all the kings and rulers of the world
have made in a thousand years. You will be among
the greatest benefactors of the human race that have
ever appeared on the earth. Your children's chil-
dren will remember your title with pride; the in-
signia of your order will be a source of greater
honor than the stars of any order in Europe."
Campbell and Gheen had long before decided that
their first attempt should be made on the German
armies. Minute information respecting encamp-
ments, arsenals, factories, stores, and everything else
pertaining to the German military organization had
been collected. So towards Berlin the fleet took its
way, arriving just before sunset. After making a
survey of the city and the surrounding country, a
point in an unfrequented locality, about twenty miles
north of Berlin, was selected in which to pass the
night. In order to relieve the captains of the neces-
sity of keeping the motes afloat, the repose of night
was sought with the motes resting on the ground.
Of course the point was chosen as far as possible
from railways and telegraphs, so that there should
be no danger of an attack before morning. Mean-
while, a messenger was sent with a letter to the Ger'
man Emperor, to the following effect:
218
The Mysterious Expedition
" To His Majesty, the German Emperor:
" May it please your Majesty
" Deeming it of the greatest importance to the
human race that the question whether I possess the
power to disarm and disband the armies of Europe
should be decisively settled, at the earliest possible
moment, I beg leave to inform your Majesty that
I propose to learn by actual experiment whether I
possess the power to disarm and disband your Maj-
esty's armies. Should the result be in the affirm-
ative, I shall consider myself bound to protect the
German territory from any attack by another power,
if only your Majesty's government shall enter into
some arrangement for abolishing the practice of war.
It is also my intention to compensate the treasury
of your Majesty for all property that may be de-
stroyed by my operations."
" Your Majesty's obedient servant,
" ARCHIBALD CAMPBELL/'
The problem how to get this letter into the hands
of the Emperor was no easy one. It was first sent
direct to the royal palace, but the messenger
returned with the statement that the sentry sta-
tioned at the door had refused to receive it. The
plan was therefore adopted of sending it to the near-
est post-office. The messenger who carried it was
conveyed in a small but swift mote, from which he
descended out of the sky almost in a moment, as
it were.
219
His Wisdom the Defender
The rules did not permit the postmaster to trans-
mit the letter unless assured of its legitimate char-
acter. But, in the present case, telegraphic com-
munication with the central postal authorities re-
sulted in the letter being speedily forwarded. What
its result was Campbell could only guess.
XIV
The Attack on the German Armies
WE now return to the world at large and re-
view its history during the days following
the address of Campbell to the assembled
dignitaries. The excitement caused by this message
exceeded even that which had followed the previous
developments of these eventful weeks. The calmest
view of the case was taken by the New York Even-
ing Post in the following terms :
" Never in history have words been spoken of such
import to mankind as those which are found in our
present issue. Almost before the end of the address
was reached, every telegraph line in the world was
carrying the message under the ocean and through
the air to all the nations and peoples of the globe. In
the most distant parts of China men are telling the
news to their neighbors; on the plains of Tibet the
assembled tribes are hearing it from their leaders;
in Australia men are running to and fro asking each
other what is to be done. Round every camp-fire
in Africa sable crowds are gathered, listening to the
reading. Every crowned head and every prime-min-
221
His Wisdom the Defender
ister in Europe is absorbed by the questions which it
raises. Men everywhere have abandoned their usual
occupations and are eagerly awaiting the blow that
is to be struck. For the first time in the history of
the world only one subject is being discussed by the
learned and the ignorant, by savage and sage, by the
rulers and the masses." ....
By some telephatic process, perhaps, a general im-
pression was spread abroad that, if Campbell really
entered upon his daring attempt, the German armies
would be his first object of attack. How the attack
would be made, by what means he could possibly
expect to disarm a hundred thousand men, and
that without bloodshed, even with the advantages
offered by the motes, no one could anticipate. The
German Emperor spent most of the day in council
with his generals as to the proper disposition of the
troops in order that they might defend themselves
to the best advantage.
Two views were held by members of the council
the one prudent, the other bold. The counsel of the
more prudent leaders was to order all the troops into
their barracks, or quarter them everywhere in houses,
so that it would be as difficult as possible to get at
them, and to keep them there until the plan of attack
was discovered. This party urged the imprudence
of massing men in the open field against an aerial
enemy that might be armed with machine-guns. Who
knew but that, after all, the statements of the New
York Herald might not be literally true? Grant-
222
The Attack on the German Armies
ing that Campbell had no purchased machine-guns
with him, he might have made any number in the
secret recesses of his vast establishment, which no
visitor had ever been allowed to see. His denial that
his force was not armed with these or any other
weapons could not be trusted. If he lied outright,
what resource was left against him? He would
claim that the end justified the means, and all ethical
argument with him would be useless. If he had
sent guns, an army in the field would, as the Herald
had said, melt away like snow under a tropical sun,
unless the lives of its soldiers were saved by an un-
conditional surrender.
It was urged, on the other side, that soldiers hid-
den away in barracks and houses would be like chick-
ens in a coop. They might be captured or killed,
but could not fight. For all practical purposes an
army of such soldiers was already disbanded. The
whole country would be at the mercy of the enemy,
who, if he had guns and ammunition, could rid-
dle the barracks with shot and burn down the houses
in which the men were quartered. An enemy which
would attack a body of helpless men with murderous
weapons would devastate the country and burn and
destroy property without limit.
The Emperor spoke. " I am in favor of the more
active course. Armies are organized to fight. The
day their men are scattered in houses where they
can not fight they cease to be armies."
A middle course was at length decided on. Of
223
His Wisdom the Defender
the army practising the autumn manoeuvres, 100,000
should be massed in the field where they now were,
and the remainder should be sent to their barracks
until it was seen how the others fared, or, at least,
how they were to be attacked.
" A system of defence must next be devised,"
said the Emperor. " To do this we must have some
idea of the probable mode of attack. Can any one
of the generals make a suggestion on this subject ?"
" The matter presents itself to me in this way,"
said General Steinitz. " Notwithstanding all that
has been said as to what schemes our enemy may
have in mind, I am disposed to attach credence to his
utterances. He has absolutely denied having dead-
ly weapons in the possession of his forces. Both in
his address and in his letter to your Majesty he has
spoken only of disarming, not of fighting. To at-
tack with missiles of any sort would not be to dis-
arm. He cannot disarm without sending his forces
to grapple hand to hand with our troops. J^"ow let
us take this point of view, as to the possibility of
doing this. He knows, or at least may well think,
that, if he can once get into the midst of a regiment
with his motes, he can act with impunity, because he
cannot be attacked by guns of any kind without our
own men being killed. While he is in the air he
can bid defiance to artillery ; it is impossible to point
a gun at a flying object. As for musketry, we may
assume that all the motes he intends to attack us in
are built with the toughened alloy, and are therefore
224
The Attack on the German Armies
bullet-proof, as we have already found by experi-
ment. At any rate, if they are not proof, our task
will be a very simple one. Troops firing in the air
can all fire at once and incessantly without breaking
their ranks or moving from their places. Motes not
bullet-proof would therefore be riddled before one
of them could reach our army. The enemy must
know this, and have guarded against it. Thus the
problem is how our troops can defend themselves
from an enemy in their midst without danger to
themselves ?"
" How heavy a shot is required to pierce the
toughened alloy ?" asked the Emperor. " I have
not the results of the trials in detail in my mind."
" We found that to really pierce a plate of the
metal one centimetre thick required a steel shot of the
weight of three ounces. A lighter steel shot, or a lead-
en shot of that weight, would indent the plate but
would not pierce it. The weight of metal required
was proportioned to the thickness of the plate."
" In all likelihood the sides of the motes are at
least a centimetre thick," said the Emperor ; " it is
clearly useless to attack with anything lighter than
the Nordhoff repeating-guns."
" If our men should throw themselves flat on the
ground, could not the Nordhoffs be fired at the motes
over their heads ?"
" We should hit more of our men than of the
enemy," replied the Emperor, " and I do not want
it said that our men merely killed each other."
p 225
His Wisdom the Defender
" Suppose we instructed our troops to break ranks,
and run from the mote in each direction the moment
one landed in their midst. This would leave the
enemy alone for at least a few seconds, and then
the gun could put in its work."
" We are talking as if the enemy had no eyes,"
said General Miiller. " If we had Nordhoff guns
or any other artillery in the field, he would make for
them first and carry them off in a jiffy."
" We can conceal them," replied the other, after
a pause. " We can put them under small tents or
even sheets of canvas, leaving a hole to fire through.
Let them be trained so as to enfilade our ranks ; then,
when our ranks scatter, they can be trained on any
mote near the line of fire in an instant."
This plan soon received unanimous approval,
though the Emperor was somewhat fearful that the
gunners might lose their heads in the turmoil and
fire while their own men were in line. " Select the
coolest gunners in the army for this work," said he
to the chief of artillery. " I leave the details to the
several generals. The chief of cavalry is to have
all the cavalry within reach drawn up to help the in-
fantry if possible."
The question of this arm had not even been con-
sidered in council, and the generals doubted the wis-
dom of calling on it. But the case was not clear
enough to warrant the raising of any objection to the
imperial will.
"Tow," said the Emperor, "I want the result
226
The Attack on the German Armies
to be decisive if possible. The men who shall at-
tack us to-morrow have no standing in the eye of the
law. They will be outlaws, pure and simple, from
the moment that they strike a blow. The Adjutant-
General will therefore issue a general order to the
army in the terms which I am now going to dic-
tate:
" It is expected that you will be attacked by ban-
dits from the air, either to-morrow morning or at
some very early day. Defend yourselves to the ut-
most. Fire at the armies in the air as you would
fire upon armies on the ground. Capture the enemy
and his ships, if possible. Show no quarter to any,
but put every man you find in the motes immediately
to death, with bullet and bayonet."
There were no late sleepers next morning in north-
ern Germany. Every one well enough to move was
up at daylight, and, if near enough to Potsdam, was
on his way to see what should happen. The troops
were marshalled on the proposed place at break of
day.
Let us now return to the attacking party. The
leaders were as much in the dark trying to guess
the policy of the Germans as the latter were to guess
the mode of attack. Would the Emperor show fight,
or would he surrender to superior force with all the
protestations necessary to save his honor? Could
an army be induced to fight vigorously against a
foe in the clouds, or would hereditary superstition so
227
His Wisdom the Defender
demoralize them that they would lay down their
arms at the first blow? If determined to defend
themselves to the bitter end, what would be their
tactics ?
These questions could be answered only by trial.
The whole plan of attack was in Gheen's hands. He
had been somewhat uneasy as to this, but his solici-
tude on this point was set at rest by the declaration
of his chief:
" Heretofore we have consulted at every step. We
have now reached a stage where, for the time being,
vigorous and united action is the watchword. From
this moment you are sole commander of our forces,
and I am only a spectator, except when some ques-
tion of policy arises which I am to decide. So give
your orders and change your plan of battle from
moment to moment as you deem best, consulting me
only in case you are in such trouble that I must de-
cide upon the course to be pursued. We both need
a sound night's sleep to prepare us for the morrow.
So try to sleep as if you had nothing on your mind.
They say that a condemned man always sleeps well
the night before he is to be hanged, and that an army
does the same when it expects to be awakened by the
rattling of musketry. Perhaps the rule will apply
to our case."
It did. Both men were surprised when informed
by the sentries that it was nearly sunrise. Gheen
wanted to start early, because he did not know where
or in what condition he might find the enemy.
228
The Attack on the German Armies
As he was getting ready he was surprised by one of
the captains of the centipedes asking to have a con-
fidential interview with him. The captain reported
that suspicions existed among several of the Sera-
phim as to the loyalty of one of their number. The
suspected person was in charge of daddie 79.
He had made several remarks to his fellow-men ex-
pressing deep concern as to the legality of the under-
taking in which they were engaged, and a keen ap-
preciation of the advantages that would accrue to
any one who should succeed in putting his instru-
ment into the possession of the Germans. Gheen
thought it best to take no action in the matter, but
simply to keep a look-out on the suspected daddie.
Naturally the first place to look for the army was
on the field of manoeuvres, where he hoped it might
be bivouacked. He was therefore agreeably sur-
prised to see the enemy drawn up in the very array
he would have chosen had he been allowed to direct
its formation. What he had most feared was being
under the necessity of chasing scattered squads here
and there over the country, a proceeding which might
have worn him out, enticed him into ambushes, and
led to the capture of some of his motes. In serried
ranks the enemy had no chance of escape, unless by
some device he had not foreseen.
At six o'clock the fleet of 350 motes was over the
field, a mile high, looking like so many huge vultures
about to pounce upon their prey. Lowest of all
were the plain motes, about two hundred in number.
229
His Wisdom the Defender
They were followed by 150 centipedes. Above and
around them was a cloud of daddies. Still higher up
were Gheen's headquarters on board the captain's
mote. Above all, looking on but taking no active
part in the struggle, was the Concordia, with the
Owner on board.
As the motes approached, a perfect hailstorm of
bullets was poured upon them from the army, but
the aim was mostly too low ; and the few that struck
did no harm, because, as our readers know, the ma-
terial of which they were made was bullet-proof, even
if vulnerable to heavy shot. It was different with
the centipedes, for, although they were made of the
same material, there were joints and openings
through which the bullets might enter and disable
either the men or the delicate machinery. They
were therefore ordered to stop and rise above the
motes, out of the range of musketry.
While this was going on, Gheen surveyed the field.
No heavy artillery, machine-guns, or ammunition
wagons were in sight. Evidently the soldiers had
no ammunition except what was in their pouches,
and it would not take long to exhaust the supply
if such a fire were kept up. He therefore directed
the motes to sway back and forth, up and down, ap-
proaching the army and receding again, so as to
tempt it to keep up the fire.
He thought the arrangement of the tents on each
flank looked unusual, and, fearing a trap, ordered
some daddies to pull a few of them up. Nothing un-
230
The Attack on the German Armies
usual being found under any of those removed, his
suspicions were allayed. Still, he thought it prudent
to begin his attack with a small force.
The work began without apparent loss of life or
even serious injury to the infantry, as Campbell had
hoped ; but there was one tragic, if rather ludicrous
incident. We have said that the Emperor, deter-
mined to use all his forces, had called out the cav-
alry as well as the other arms of the service, though
it was difficult to see of what use it could have been.
The unaccustomed sight of an armed force approach-
ing in the air so frightened the horses that they be-
came unmanageable, and ran away in a compact
body, falling down and rolling over each other in
their vain struggles with the bits of their riders. The
result was that many of the latter suffered severe
injuries, which proved fatal in not a few cases. The
destruction among the horses was, of course, yet
greater. That squadron of cavalry was most effectu-
ally disbanded.
When the fire began to slacken three or four cen-
tipedes came down side by side, swayed almost upon
the ground alongside the front ranks of the soldiers,
and proceeded to seize the arms from their hands
and throw them on board, with a dexterity gained
by long practice. The soldiers retreated slowly at
first, closely followed by the centipedes. Then they
suddenly turned and ran. At the same instant a
machine-gun, concealed in a tent, opened fire. The
shot was so heavy that the few which took effect com-
231
His Wisdom the Defender
pletely pierced the nearest mote. Not only were
two men seriously wounded by the flying missiles,
but the great tube, containing the etherine, which
gave buoyancy to the vehicle, was pierced. The
daddie immediately above the mote, grasping the
situation, pounced upon the tent before more than
three or four rounds could be fired, and carried the
gun off with the greatest ease, throwing it after the
retreating men as it had formerly thrown the gigan-
tic tennis-balls in the Coliseum. The injured mote
undertook to rise, but soon fell to the ground, flut-
tering like a wounded bird. It was first blood for
the Germans.
The device was now obvious, and no difficulty was
found in discovering the other guns concealed in the
same way. All the tents along the flanks were de-
molished, and whatever guns were found in them
were thrown to the ground in a moment. Then the
great mass of motes came down upon the ranks of the
army. In the main, the method of attack was to
have a centipede settle on one side of a rank of
soldiers and a plain mote on the other. As neither
touched the ground, it was very easy in this way to
follow the men as they tried to retreat. The centi-
pede took the arms out of the mens' hands and put
them on top of its own deck, and then took the men
up and put them on the upper deck of the mote.
Here, unarmed as they were, they were quite help-
less, and obeyed the order to go below till the two
lower decks were crowded. When a mote had as
232
The Attack on the German Armies
many of the disarmed men as could find a place
on the decks, the men were asked to what part of
the country they belonged. Usually all, or nearly
all, on any one mote were from the same town or
region. The mot was despatched to take them
home, and on reaching their destination they were
turned loose in the streets.
Campbell and Gheen had planned a scheme for
requiring the men to put off their uniforms and dress
in plain clothes, to be supplied them, but this was
one of the arrangements which had fallen through
in consequence of the necessity for a premature exe-
cution of the plan. The soldiers were therefore al-
lowed to go home in their uniforms, thus leaving it
possible to identify them as soldiers and collect them
again if the opportunity offered. But it was hoped
that the opportunity would not be offered.
The few mounted officers who had brought their
horses into the field suffered as the cavalry had done,
and were glad to dismount and let their horses run
away. The men were in such good discipline that
the confusion thus caused in the ranks was soon
repaired, but the officers were on foot, like the men,
and were sent off with them, a course quite different
from that which had been intended.
" What does that mean ?" said Gheen's signal offi-
cer, just at the height of the turmoil. Both men
looked at a mano3uvre not in the day's programme.
Daddie 79 was flying high above the main body
of the force and making its way with all speed tow-
233
His Wisdom the Defender
ards Berlin. " Tell centipedes King and Paul to
follow it and bring it back," said Gheen.
The centipedes were, of course, much swifter than
a daddie; but the latter was lighter and could be
moved about more readily. When the centipedes
overtook and sought to seize it, it had no difficulty
in evading them by an upward, downward, or lat-
eral movement, without slackening its onward course.
It kept on in this way, reached Berlin, and landed on
the Unter den Linden immediately in front of the
royal palace, before which a company of the Im-
perial Guards was stationed. The Seraph in charge
of it opened its port and sprang to the ground. He
was immediately pierced by a volley of balls from
the soldiers, who naturally supposed that an attack
on the palace, or on the person of the Emperor, was
intended. A moment later the two centipedes fol-
lowed. A volley was discharged against them, but,
being shot-proof, no harm was done them. The fore-
most had no difficulty in seizing the daddie when the
latter was on the ground, and in carrying it off.
The only result of the incident was the death of the
traitor by the hands of the enemy.
It is needless to say that a deep impression was
made on the attacking army by this tragic result. It
showed that, as a mere matter of safety, loyalty was
the best policy.
When it became evident that the success of the
plan was possible, a new and strange sight greeted
the eyes of both armies. It was an immense banner, a
234
The Attack on the German Armies
hundred feet long and sixty feet in breadth, floating
in the air between two motes, and bearing the
words *
STREKET GEWEHR
DANN FR1EDE UND FREUDE
EUCH KINDERN UND
VATERLANDE
Many of the troops were quite ready to obey
this request when it was seen that resistance was no
longer possible. By nightfall three-quarters of the
army assembled on the field were disarmed and sent
to their homes, while the remainder, in a dazed and
frightened condition, had thrown away their weapons
and taken refuge in the barracks, thereby demoral-
izing their companions, or were wandering aimlessly
over the country. Desirable though it was to lose
no time in the pursuit, nothing could be done in the
darkness; besides which, the men of the attacking
party, though mostly working in two relays, were
thoroughly exhausted. The fleet was therefore re-
called at sunset, and a camping-place for the night
was selected.
Up to this moment Campbell and Gheen had heard
nothing from the world since the former had made
*Lay down your arms, then peace and joy for yourselves,
children, and fatherland.
235
His Wisdom the Defender
his address and left his home to join forces with
Gheen. Although he had deliberately reached the
conclusion that the less he knew of what men thought
of his doings, the better he could carry out his work,
his curiosity had now got the upper-hand. He call-
ed three messenger motes and directed their con-
ductors to sweep over the streets of Berlin, look for
newspapers, and bring him a copy of each separate
paper they could find. They were notified that the
three must keep together, so that, in case anything
happened to one of them, the two others could come
to its rescue. Copies of several Berlin daily papers
were thus secured, which the two leaders eagerly
scanned.
What Campbell most feared was some concerted
action by the leading nations to checkmate him by a
common resistance to the bitter end. But the numer-
ous telegrams from all quarters told of little but wild
excitement, unreasoning comment, and proposals and
suggestions of every degree of sanity and unsanity.
So far as any thread of consistency could be traced
in the mass, the feeling was in favor of waiting to
see what the motes could or would do before taking
decided action.
"But," said Campbell, studying the army news
in the evening paper, " here is something we have
got to look into."
"Well, what is it?"
Campbell read the Emperor's general order and
looked at his companion.
236
The Attack on the German Armies
" I am rather glad our men did not know of that,"
said Gheen. " It might have enraged them or fright-
ened them, and I don't know which would have been
the worse."
" As they did not know it, I can't say that I am
altogether sorry the Emperor has taken such ground.
We want to know whether the old regime is to stand
or give way to the new. The more desperate the
fight it makes, the more decisive will be its defeat, if
defeat it is, and the more readily men will welcome
the victor. For this reason I am disposed to meet
the Emperor's order with action as aggressive as his
words. Would there be any difficulty in capturing
him if he shows himself in the field to-morrow as
he did to-day ?"
" Not the slightest ; but I don't believe he will
show himself again. We should likely find it neces-
sary to hunt him up in the council-chamber of the
Schloss. He must have learned prudence from the
day's experience."
" I am hardly prepared to go so far as to drag him
from his council-chamber just at present. If he is
seen out of doors, have him captured at once and
brought on board the Concordia. If he keeps under
cover well we will think the matter over."
" I should capture him wherever found on the
very grounds you have taken. But there is no
hurry, and perhaps we shall find him."
The Emperor's general order proved innocuous, as
the troops had not found it possible to make any pris-
237
His Wisdom the Defender
oners or to seize a single mote except the disabled
one, which was of no use to any one, and was there-
fore left on the field. When the worst of the fight
was over a daddie was sent to blow it to pieces with
dynamite.
The Emperor again spent the evening in council
with his generals. Of the great army, 100,000
strong, which in the morning had been drawn up
on the plains of Potsdam, hardly a vestige could be
found. Telegrams from various towns in the prov-
inces of Brandenburg and Mecklenburg showed that
a large part of the men who had formed it were
at their several homes, without arms, and that it was
doubtful if they could be again brought together
without a complete re-enlistment. The remainder
had taken refuge in tents, barracks, or private houses,
wherever they could find shelter, or were wandering
aimlessly through the streets or over the fields. De-
cidedly the party which sustained the waiting policy
was vindicated.
Only one course seemed feasible. All the troops
in the neighborhood of Berlin, still numbering more
than 100,000, must be gotten into their barracks or
into the casemates of the fortifications before the at-
tack was renewed in the morning. As the tents af-
forded no protection, those who were quartered in
them might remain there for the night, but must
join their comrades in the barracks by daylight.
The weapons and artillery were to be stored out of
sight so far as possible.
238
The Attack on the German Armies
When the aerial fleet returned to the attack in the
morning not a vestige of an army could be seen. All
the arms which had been taken from the soldiers
the day previous had been left in piles on or around
the field, and there they still lay. Every prepara-
tion for disposing of them had been made long be-
fore. In the imperial park at Potsdam was an ar-
tificial lake, about four acres in extent, in the midst
of which a fountain played on gala days. A squad-
ron of fifty centipedes was directed to pick up the
arms, carry them to Potsdam, and throw them pell-
mell into the centre of the pond. When the top of
the pile got above the water, the muskets were to be
piled up on top of those already there, so as to form
a huge pyramid. When the pile was complete, sev-
eral carboys of sulphuric acid were poured over the
top of it, which would be carried through the whole
mass by the first shower of rain.
While this was going on the main body of the
fleet scoured the region for its prey. Even without
the maps which Gheen had with him there would
have been little difficulty in finding the barracks in
which the garrison was ordinarily lodged. Those
at Teltow were first reached. They comprised ten
immense buildings, each capable of lodging 2500
men with their officers. Of course, the motes could
not enter by the doors or windows, and it is quite
possible that, for this reason, the military authori-
ties hoped to foil their enemy. But if they did,
their mistake was soon evident. A half-dozen dad-
239
His Wisdom the Defender
dies mounted, or rather settled, on the roof of each
building, and, with their sharp and well-practised
claws, proceeded to tear off the tiles and sheathing as
a flock of hens might scratch up a flower-bed. The
rafters followed, leaving the upper story entirely
exposed. The soldiers who occupied it, as soon as
they found the roof doomed to destruction, ran down-
stairs and joined their companions on the floor below.
The tops of the brick walls were then attacked in
like manner, but the well-hardened cement proved
too strong even for the powerful claws of the daddies.
A few of the centipede motes were supplied with
crow-bars for seizing and pulling down walls, and
these speedily reduced the buildings to a mass of
ruins. As the work progressed the unfortunate in-
mates rushed down from floor to floor, and at length
out into the parade-ground, only to find themselves
so completely surrounded by the enemy that nothing
but surrender was possible.
XV
A Captive Emperor
ISTKONGLY suspect that, had Campbell better
understood the spirit in which the German Em-
peror fought his battle, he would have been dis-
posed to deal more gently with him, and condone
his murderous order as something he was right in
executing if he could. But neither of the antago-
nists knew how like was the spirit of their fight. The
one saw that the old regime could not be claimed
to have passed away forever unless it made the most
desperate fight in its power to sustain itself. If it
did not fight to the death ; if it begged for a compro-
mise, or even a truce, and succeeded in obtaining
either, none could foresee how much vitality it might
have left, or how long it might rule the nations
by the right of the strongest. Hence his desire to
carry his work to the end without giving any power
the chance to propose a truce, and without exposing
himself to the temptation to compromise, which a
knowledge of what was going on below might have
held out. If, after all, he could not overcome the
passive resistance of united Europe, then he could
Q 241
His Wisdom the Defender
say to the world, " Behold my power ; what do you
want me to do with it? Make known your wishes
to my headquarters in Elba."
The Emperor, on his side of the contest, viewed
the situation in much the same spirit. The honor of
his house, vigorously upheld through all the gener-
ations from Barbarossa to himself, was dearer to
him than life. That honor was associated with the
old regime; and it required that he should uphold
that regime to the bitter end. He could make no
terms with the low-born person who was now seeking
to establish a new order of things. What he might
be forced to do if finally vanquished, he did not allow
himself even to consider. He would cross that bridge
when he came to it.
On the second morning of the contest he was at
work from daylight discussing the reports of the dis-
aster of the day previous, and trying to invent some
new way of meeting his foe. He sent for Prince
Waldeck, his Minister of Foreign Affairs, with whom
he drew up a despatch to the German ambassador at
Washington, directing him to make a vigorous rep-
resentation of the case to the American government,
and to ask for the immediate enforcement of its neu-
trality laws. The official despatch was accompanied
by private instructions to urge on Secretary Bayne
the immediate seizure of the works at Campbelltown
by such force, military or civil, as could securely
hold them and prevent any help being sent to their
owner. Then he sent personal messages to the
242
A Captive Emperor
heads of the principal European states inviting them
to take concerted measures for the common defence ;
if possible, indeed, to come to Berlin, or send a spe-
cial representative to observe the proceedings and dis-
cuss the situation. On his cousin of England, and
his friend the President of the French Kepublic,
he urged the seizure of the loomotes Hesperus and
Cynthia, which were already making regular trips
between New York, Paris, and London. He asked
the President of the Italian Republic to take im-
mediate military possession of the works at Elba,
and prevent their being used as a base of operations.
Of course no ruler could leave his kingdom at so
critical a juncture^ but the request to send envoys
to Berlin to observe and report on the situation was
gladly complied with. The question of seizing the
motes and the works at Elba and Campbelltown was
a more delicate one. How it was dealt with we shall
see later.
About ten o'clock, just as he had finished his de-
spatches, he received word of the attack on the bar-
racks at Teltow, the destruction of the roofs of the
buildings, and the difficulties which the attacking
party was meeting in trying to tear down the walls.
He immediately arose and expressed his intention
of proceeding at once on a tour of inspection, .going,
indeed, as far as Teltow if necessary. General Miil-
ler was present and heard the announcement.
" Will your Majesty allow me to make a sugges-
tion?"
243
His Wisdom the Defender
"What is it?"
" I suggest the question whether it is prudent, in
so critical a situation, that your Majesty should ex-
pose his person to a possible assault by the enemy."
" But I surveyed all the operations yesterday with-
out any attack on me or my staff. Besides, what
good would it do him to attack my person? What
could he do with me ? Cast not the fashion of un-
certain evils."
" There are occasions when we should act in direct
opposition to this maxim, guarding ourselves most
carefully against uncertain evils, and this is one of
them. If there ever was a juncture at which Ger-
many could not spare the head of her State, this is
one."
" Never shall I allow Germany to feel that, at the
most critical moment in her history, her Emperor
heard counsels of prudence when the interests of his
empire were at stake. Germany can dispense with
her Emperor better than he can say a word or per-
form an act unworthy of his house or of his exalted
position. He cannot stay concealed in his palace
while his soldiers are being carried into captivity.
And, if he should, could not the enemy find him
there as easily as in the field ?"
" If such is your Majesty's view, I shall gladly
accompany him to the field. In that case, as the
body-guard would be of no service for defence, it
might be well that we went alone. We should at-
tract less attention without the guard."
244
A Captive Emperor
" I do not want it said that the German Emperor
escaped the fate of his army by a subterfuge of any
sort, such as going without his usual guard would be.
Telephone Steinitz and such other generals, as are
within reach, to meet me at Schoneberg in three-
quarters of an hour from now."
A ride of half an hour brought the Emperor and
Miiller to the appointed place, where several other
generals joined them, one by one, and made their
reports. From Teltow the news was bad. Most of
the buildings were already razed to the ground, and
the soldiers were being carried off as they were the
day before. If the remainder of the army was to
be saved, it must be concealed in the casemates of
the fortifications, or in houses where their presence
might not be suspected by the enemy.
As these alternatives were being discussed, a fleet
of motes, accompanied by a flock of daddies, were
seen in the air. The latter pounced upon the party
like fish-hawks diving 1 for their prey. The Em-
peror felt himself lifted out of his saddle as if
by a pair of powerful arms. In a moment he was
seated on something, he knew not what, gently
enough, yet held firmly as in a vice. Then he saw
the ground receding below him, and felt the blast as
of a heavy wind from being carried through the air.
The daddie had him seated on its knees while it was
holding him in its hands to keep him from falling,
much like a child going through
"Ride a cock-horse to Banbury Cross."
245
His Wisdom the Defender
The experience would have unnerved an ordinary
man; but he was not such. Dazed at first, he re-
covered his mental equilibrium in a few minutes and
calmly awaited his fate. In less than ten minutes
he saw the Concordia before him. A door opened
in her side, through which he was lifted, he hardly
knew how. Placed upon the deck, he soon recovered
from the bewilderment of his wild flight. He was
received with the greatest deference by an usher clad
in white, who showed him to a room. As he passed
along he glanced with some interest at the motto.
Campbell, suspecting the Emperor's feelings, con-
sidered that there was no occasion for requesting a
personal interview. In fact, it was not at all likely
that such an interview would be productive of any
good result. He therefore directed that the Emperor
be taken by the usher into one of the cabins and ask-
ed to occupy it for the time being. The usher re-
turned and reported his duty performed. Campbell
then dictated the following, which was written in a
plain hand on the most sumptuous kind of paper :
" Should Ms Majesty, the German Emperor, be
graciously pleased to annul and revoke his general
order directing that no quarter be shown to the forces
who are endeavoring to disband his armies, an oppor-
tunity is now afforded him to do so."
The usher was sent back with the paper and with
writing materials. The latter were placed on a table
in front of the Emperor, the former was placed in
his hands. He glanced listlessly at it for a moment,
246
A Captive Emperor
and then laid it on the table without saying a word.
The usher, in doubt whether he had really read it
or not, returned to report to his master.
The Emperor remained in gloomy silence for half
an hour, determined that the first question or the
first proposal should come from the other party, who
was expected to feel that he, as Emperor, was not
going to enter into any arrangements whatever.
At the end of the half-hour, the usher paid the Em-
peror a second visit, doing so by Campbell's direc-
tion in the most courteous and ceremonious manner.
" I am directed to say to your Majesty that if you
have any communication, written or verbal, to make
either to the Owner of the Motes or to your own
army or government, the Owner of the Motes will
be very happy to consider or communicate it."
The Emperor replied not a word, still maintain-
ing a dignified and gloomy silence. He might have
been a blind deaf-mute. The usher returned and
reported no progress.
" How does he look ?" asked the Owner.
" I cannot say that he looks at all. When I first
showed him into the cabin he took his seat by the
table, with one hand resting upon it, and his face
turned towards the door. When I went in again
he was still in the same position. He might be
a statue for all the notice he takes."
An uneasy thought entered the Owner's mind.
" Is he wearing his sword ?"
" Yes that is, he has on what seems a sword."
247
His Wisdom the Defender
Campbell mused. " It would be a terrible thing
if he should kill himself. If he did, would I have
the nerve to go on with my work? I think not.
If he wanted to speak to me he could surely have
said something to the usher. I think I can divine
what he is thinking. Whatever I do he wants to
boast that he never deigned to address me a word
or notice my presence, even when he was my pris-
oner."
This divination was quite correct. The Emperor
was thinking thus : " I have yielded to a brute force
which has taken possession of my person. The man
who wields that force can do with my person what
he pleases. But he shall not have the satisfaction
of knowing that a Hohenzollern proposed terms to
him or even honored him with a word or a look. He
may do his worst."
The question of the sword perplexed Campbell
extremely. He was several times on the point of
sending the usher to ask that it be surrendered. But
what if it was refused? To attempt to take it by
force might precipitate what he wanted to avoid.
He finally hoped that the same pride which led the
Emperor to take the stand he did would prevent his
doing anything so vulgar as killing himself. So he
drew up the following paper :
" MOTE ' CONCORDIA,' May, 1946.
" Whereas, his Majesty, the German Emperor,
has been pleased to issue a general order to his army
248
A Captive Emperor
that no quarter be shown to the forces of the Owner
of the Motes, who are endeavoring to disband that
army, which order is couched in the following terms :
(Here follows the order as we have given it.) Now,
therefore, protesting against this my act being ever
taken as a precedent, or being justified by any law,
but desiring that it shall ever be regarded as called
forth only by the exigency of the present situation,
it is hereby ordered :
" That the said Friedrich Wilhelm, German Em-
peror, be kept in close confinement in such place
as the Owner of the Motes may from time to time
direct, until the said order shall be revoked or an-
nulled by such regency or other authority as may
wield supreme power during the absence of the Em-
peror, and, furthermore, until his Majesty shall have
indicated his concurrence in the said annulment.
" CAMPBELL,
" Owner of the Motes."
The usher carried this order to the Emperor.
The latter refused even to look at it, sitting at the
table unmoved. The usher could do nothing but
return to his chief and report.
" Did he not read the order ?" asked the latter.
" Not while I was there. I offered it to him, but
he took no notice of my movement. So I laid it on
the table by his side."
" I suspect that he looked at it after you left. But
even if he did not, it will make no difference."
249
His Wisdom the Defender
The question now was where to keep the prisoner.
It would be very disturbing to the Owner to have
him on the Concordia. Campbelltown was too
far away, and, even if it had been nearer, to send
him thither would involve complications with the
American government. There was only one spot
in Europe over which Campbell had complete con-
trol, and that was Elba. The principal danger in
sending him thither was that the Italian government
might attempt his release. But plans were all made
to protect the island an easy task, because it could
be invaded only by water, and the motes could com-
mand the sea even better than the land. So Elba
was chosen.
The works at Elba had been placed in charge of
one of the most trusted officers of the Order of the
Seraphim, under the title of " Commander/' with
whom, however, Campbell had had no communica-
tion since he commenced his great movement. The
latter could now be left entirely in Gheen's hands,
and it was imperative that he himself should take
personal charge of affairs at his only base of oper-
ations. Gheen was notified to go on with the work
in hand according to his best judgment, and to detail
fifty daddies and twenty centipedes to accompany
the Owner to Elba. A small mote was also detailed
for the transportation of the Emperor. This was
one of a few motes de luxe which had been fitted up
and brought along for the transportation of distin-
guished personages with whom the Owner might
250
A Captive Emperor
want to confer, or to whom he might tender a com-
pliment. It was placed alongside the Concordia,
and fastened to her in such a way that a person could
step from one into the other with entire security.
Its captain and lieutenant were summoned to the
Owner's room to receive their instructions.
Campbell now began to be uneasy lest he had fail-
ed to treat the Emperor with due courtesy. Under
ordinary circumstances he ought to have received
him in person on his first arrival, as the master of
a house receives a distinguished guest. Perhaps
it was owing to this neglect of the amenities that the
Emperor had demeaned himself so haughtily. So
when everything was ready for the Emperor's de-
parture the usher again presented himself.
" I am directed by the Owner of the Motes to in-
quire whether it will be agreeable to your Majesty
to allow him to pay his respects in person before your
Majesty's departure. If it will be agreeable he will
do so immediately."
During the two hours of the Emperor's enforced
leisure he had enjoyed a better opportunity for re-
flection than had ever before been afforded him.
As a result of this reflection certain facts which,
though he had known them from infancy, had mod-
estly kept themselves in the background, now ob-
truded themselves on his thoughts in a very disagree-
able way. One of these facts was that Nature had
made emperors on the same general plan that she
had made peasants and philosophers, subjecting them
251
His Wisdom the Defender
all alike to the common limitations of humanity.
One of her inexorable laws was that the man who
ate nothing in the morning but a biscuit should get
very hungry before noon. It was now noon. A
principle of international law that he had long ago
been taught also insisted on presenting itself in a new
light. It was that accomplished facts were to be
accepted, how unpleasant soever they might be.
Two accomplished facts stared him in the face. He
was a prisoner and he was hungry. Not being aware
of the excellent culinary arrangements in mote 92,
on which he was soon to embark, he began to reflect
seriously on the possible consequences to his stomach
of a continued policy of absolute silence.
As to receiving Campbell, his feelings were mixed.
He did not want to see him. And yet he was incensed
at the slight shown his royal person by Campbell's
not receiving him. An interview would have been
disagreeable to both parties, and yet it could not be
avoided without discourtesy on one side or the other.
But he must relax a little.
" I am a prisoner," he at length replied, " and have
nothing to say on the subject of my visitors/'
" Will your Majesty allow me to explain the situ-
ation more exactly ?"
" I will listen to anything you may have to say."
" I then beg leave to say, on behalf of the Owner
of the Motes, that he has refrained from trespassing
on your Majesty's privacy from a fear that a person-
al interview might not be agreeable to you, and a
252
A Captive Emperor
feeling that no good result would flow from it. As
you are about to leave the Concordia, he desired me
to make this explanation, and to ascertain whether
he was wrong in this impression. Will your Majesty
be pleased to favor me with a more precise statement
of his wishes on the subject of receiving the Owner
of the Motes ?"
" I have no wishes on the subject. If the gentle-
man presents himself, I shall of course receive him.
That is all I can say."
" I fear the Owner of the Motes will be embar-
rassed by his lack of certain knowledge what course
on his part will be most agreeable to your Majesty.
My duty will end with reporting what you have
said."
A few minutes later the usher returned, accom-
panied by the captain of mote 92.
" I am directed by the Owner of the Motes to say
that, acting on his own judgment, he reaches the con-
clusion that a personal interview will not be agree-
able to your Majesty. He therefore presents his
apologies, accompanied by his earnest hope for your
Majesty's speedy return to his empire. I now have
the honor to present the captain of the mote, who
has been detailed to take you from the Concordia"
" If you would like some lunch, sir I mean, your
Majesty we have it nearly prepared on my mote,
if you your Majesty will come along with me."
The captain stood back, waiting for his distin-
guished prisoner to move. The latter was perplexed.
253
His Wisdom the Defender
He had, of course, read the order for his imprison-
ment, but had no idea how or where it would be
carried out, and could not ask. He suspected that
the present move was to his prison, and so would
rather have stood where he was. But to what new
humiliation might he not subject himself by refus-
ing to stir? Moved by this consideration, he al-
lowed himself to be ushered to the door of the mote.
He winced a little on stepping into the other mote,
half a mile in the air, but soon recovered his bal-
ance. He asked not a question as to where he was
going or what was to be done with him. The mote
cast loose immediately and started for Elba, preceded
by the Concordia, which, being faster, arrived there
first. This gave the Owner time to make arrange-
ments for the reception of his prisoner-guest, and as-
certain whether any hostile attempt had been made
by the Italian government. The Concordia landed
late in the afternoon, and was at once visited by
the commander and his two lieutenants, Johnson and
Miles.
" Well, I am glad to see you and find tilings here
undisturbed. Has anything happened? Have the
Italians shown any sign of hostility ?"
" You cannot be gladder to see us than we are to
see you. Are you not getting us all into a dreadful
scrape ? The Leghorn papers tell us of your attack
on the German army; and only half an hour ago
Benson wired me that you had carried off the Em-
peror, no one knew where."
254
A Captive Emperor
"We'll talk about that later. I want to know
whether we are to be attacked here. Have you any
news as to that ?"
" Only what is in the morning papers. Have you
seen them ?"
" No, what do they say ?"
" The German government has proposed to all the
powers that their Mediterranean fleets combine and
seize this place, bombarding it if necessary. Aus-
tria and England have partly consented ; Italy is so
far non-committal, and France has not yet been heard
from. The Italian police have been very inquisitive,
but I have not heard of any hostile movement on
their part."
" If that's their move, I hope to be ready for them
by this time to-morrow. Meanwhile, we have a
little business to attend to for the Emperor. He will
arrive in No. 92 in about an hour, and I propose to
keep him in my house, under close guard, I remain-
ing here. Let Miles make the arrangements at once.
He is to be treated with all the deference due to his
rank, but not allowed to leave the house. James will
go with you, and assist in receiving his Majesty with
all the honors. Trust him for that. He did it roy-
ally this morning!"
The Emperor had not deigned to speak one word
during the entire journey except to the waiter who
served his lunch. He preserved the same silence
when he was received by the officers and shown to his
lodgings. The limits within which he was to be
255
His Wisdom the Defender
confined, including a parlor, bedroom, and dressing-
room, were shown to him, and he was left to himself.
Then, for the first time, human nature asserted itself,
and he expressed a wish. It was that his valet might
be brought to him.
XVI
The Naval Attack on Elba
IT took three days to prepare for the naval attack
on Elba. Let us take advantage of the lull to
view the storm which was raging over Europe,
and learn how the little island came to be chosen as
the site of Uraniberg the seat of empire.
The latter can be told in a few words. Campbell
wanted an island for his seat, because an island
could be more readily defended against attack or in-
vasion, and would be more easily commanded, than
a region with purely artificial boundaries. He want-
ed to place his seat in Europe rather than his own
country, because the latter with its traditional policy
of peace and good-will would require less of his at-
tention than the war-ridden countries of Europe. He
wanted a seat favored by its climate, and so pre-
ferred the Mediterranean to the Baltic. He would
have preferred a situation farther west one of the
Balearic Islands, for example. But the rugged sur-
face of these mountain ranges, rising above the water,
could not be made the site for a great city^ such as he
contemplated. So Elba was chosen. These reasons
B 257
His Wisdom the Defender
seem good enough to do away with the suspicion
frequently expressed, that it was Tiana who really
fixed the site of Uraniberg. Yet, we must admit that
she made the founder better satisfied with the cir-
cumstances that dictated his choice.
It goes without saying that Campbell had all along
taken every measure that his foresight could suggest
to guard his base of operations against a naval attack.
The commander of the place was, next to Gheen, the
most trusted officer of the Angelic Order; and as
soon as the details of construction of the daddie had
been perfected a number of these instruments were
made expressly for use in dealing with armed ships.
Now that an attack was imminent, it was not prudent
to remain in ignorance of what the world might be
about to do. So the Italian journals were sent for
and eagerly scanned.
If he had not felt himself across the Kubicon, with
his bridges all burned behind him, their contents
might well have appalled him. From every quarter
only one story came that of unbridled denuncia-
tion and fierce resistance. The London Times, ever
mindful of its dignity, approached the nearest to
moderation and reasonableness in its comments. But
even it had no word of apology :
" Never was so great an opportunity placed with-
in the grasp of a human hand, and never did the pos-
sessor of an opportunity waste it as Campbell has
done. Wielding the power he did, all the world
would have listened with respectful attention to any
258
The Naval Attack on Elba
proposals he might have made to insure that his en-
terprise should be productive of nothing but that
good to mankind which he declared to be his supreme
object. The powers were ready to deliberate on
the subject and devise from time to time the meas-
ures best adapted to meet the emergency. They
would naturally have looked to the United States
to take the lead in executing their plans. He would
thus, with the concurrence of the leading nations
of the world, have earned for himself imperishable
fame. All this he has thrown away with a reckless-
ness to which no parallel can be found in history.
He has become not only a criminal, but an outlaw.
Whatever power succeeds in capturing him may deal
with him at its own will. That his forces must soon
be exhausted, no reasonable person can doubt. All
that is to be feared is a general attempt on the part
of some one nation to seize the remnants of his power.
This can easily be guarded against by a concurrent
agreement, which we believe can be reached without
even waiting for the final downfall of the man who
has pitted his strength against that of the world."
These denunciations, universal though they were,
formed only one of the clouds in the horizon. Yet
blacker ones were that men everywhere lost their
heads. At the exchanges and bourses stocks and
bonds of every kind were being sacrificed in so mad
a rush that these institutions were closed through
the voluntary act of the brokers themselves. Uni-
versal bankruptcy seemed to stare the commercial
259
His Wisdom the Defender
world in the face. Laborers were everywhere thrown
out of employment, because all demand had ceased,
and employers did not know what was to come next.
People were going insane with excitement in such
numbers that the asylums would not contain the
crowds that were brought to their doors for treat-
ment. Mobs were everywhere rampant, especially
in Germany. Sometimes the police could control
them and sometimes not. They were destroying life
and property in every direction. The requisition of
the German government on that of the United States
to prosecute Campbell for violation of the laws of
neutrality had been promptly answered with the as-
surance that every measure in the power of the gov-
ernment would be taken to execute the law. War-
rants had accordingly been issued, and whenever
Campbell should return to his own country he would
at once become a prisoner at the bar of justice.
But what was the world to do ? We might almost
say that no two men were agreed except on a single
point. The offender must be resisted to the bitter
end. Every journal declaimed in its own way and
proposed plans from day to day, only to have them
shown impracticable the day following.
One idea was to seize all the motes that could be
found and send them over to fight the insurgent
owner. The proposal of the Emperor that the Sec-
retary of State and the English and French gov-
ernments cause the seizure of the Cynthia and Hes-
perus met with general approval. But what could
260
The Naval Attack on Elba
have been done with them after they were seized?
To look for Gheen, as he was flying from place to
place, would have been useless. He encamped every
night on a different spot, and no one knew before-
hand where that spot would be. No one knew how to
make a centipede or a daddie, or how to construct
any of the apparatus that Campbell was employing.
And if men did learn, weeks of practice would still be
required to use the machines. The British and
French governments had agreed that the neutrality
of the motes should be respected. The terms of this
agreement we have already stated. Campbell had
been extremely cautious that no excuse for violating
it should be offered, and nothing to be used by him
was transported in these vehicles.
The seizure of the German Emperor added new
fuel to the flame. If it did not increase it, it was
only because any increase was impossible. The same
might be said of the suicide of the Czar of Russia,
which occurred the moment it was discovered that
the annihilation of the Russian military power was
to be as complete as that of the German. Messages
looking to a conference of the heads of the European
states were sent to and fro, but none of these heads
felt justified in leaving his kingdom in such an emer-
gency.
The proposed joint attack of the navies upon Elba
looked so feasible that it was received with universal
approval. A new impetus was given the proposal
when it became known that the seat of the Owner of
261
His Wisdom the Defender
the Motes had been chosen for the German Emperor's
prison. It was felt that such an indignity to the
head of the leading State in Europe was not to be
tolerated, and the only question was how to release
him.
As he was imprisoned on Italian territory, the
government of Italy was looked to to take the lead.
But this government showed great lukewarmness in
the premises. The fact was that, under arrange-
ments which Campbell had begun to make with it,
Italy was to be the first European beneficiary of his
enterprise. And when called upon to seize its own
island of Elba by military force, it had a more valid
excuse than this. It was impossible to send an army
over from the mainland without its being speedily
destroyed by the forces which Campbell had placed
there for its defence. It was not for a moment to be
supposed that the position destined to become his
main base of operations had been left in an unde-
fended condition; it was well known that after
having intrusted the disarmament of the Russian
armies to Gheen, he had remained at Elba, making
every preparation for its defence. A cloud of dad-
dies which appeared from time to time over his head-
quarters showed that he was preparing for an emer-
gency.
But a naval attack looked more hopeful. It is
true that Campbell had spoken of hauling the navies
of the world ashore as a part of his programme. But
no way of doing this was apparent, and, in any case,
262
The Naval Attack on Elba
if all the navies together could not fight the Owner
of the Motes, the sooner they were sold for old iron
the better for all concerned. It was agreed that the
combined fleets should be under command of the
ranking officer, who proved to be the British ad-
miral. The port of Bastia, on the east coast of
Corsica, about forty miles from Elba, was chosen
as the rendezvous, where preparations for the attack
should be made. The English, German, Italian, and
Austrian fleets all reached this point four days after
the capture of the Emperor.
The French fleet failed to come. Its non-appear-
ance and the general attitude of the French govern-
ment caused great uneasiness. It began to make
conditions as to the command and the movements
of the combined fleets of so dilatory a character as
led to the suspicion of an arriere-pensee of some
sort. But there was no time for dilly-dallying, and
the other four powers ordered their fleets to proceed
without regard to France.
Campbell's determination and courage rose to the
height of the crisis. He began to suspect that there
was something illogical in the idea of forcibly putting
an end to war without even a battle, and began to feel
like accepting a challenge. Still he felt some con-
cern lest his motives might be misconstrued if he
made an attack on the fleets before they at-
tacked him, especially if, as was inevitable, loss of
life should result. So to satisfy his own conscience, if
for nothing else, he decided to make public his in-
263
His Wisdom the Defender
tention to defend his position at every hazard. The
best medium of communication seemed to be the
London Times, to which he telegraphed the follow-
ing communication as soon as he heard of the pro-
posed movement:
" I understand that the powers contemplate a com-
bined naval attack on my station at Elba. As such
a course will lead to a speedy solution of the im-
portant question whether I possess the power to
destroy the navies of Europe as well as to disband
its armies, and as such a solution may be desirable
in the general interests of humanity, I cannot dis-
approve of the proposed attack. At the same time,
I must express the fear that the conflict which will
thus be precipitated will be attended with loss of life,
as my preparations for dealing with armed ships are
far from being as complete as those for disarming
land forces. I have to add that I shall regard any
entrance of war-ships into the Ligurian Sea as being
made with hostile intent, and shall take such meas-
ures for their destruction as I may have at com-
mand.
" CAMPBELL,
" Owner of the Motes."
In issuing this challenge our hero builded far bet-
ter than he knew. It was characteristic of the system
of fatalism that, when the victim was warned of his
fate, and, in consequence, took every measure he
264
The Naval Attack on Elba
could to guard against it, these very measures proved
to be instruments in executing the decree. It was
so in the present case. The naval authorities, thus
forewarned, determined to elude their adversary by
a change of plan. The post of rendezvous was
changed from Bastia to San Florenza, on the west
shore of Corsica ; and the fleet was to sail from this
point for its destination by night, so as to reach the
harbor of Porto Ferrajo by daybreak, and begin
bombarding the place, or landing sailors, before
their presence was known to the defenders.
As fate would have it, the latter could not have
wished for any better policy than this. Looking
back, it does seem curious that the military powers
should have supposed that their adversary, who had
been planning everything for years, would have fail-
ed to be on his guard against a night attack, and, with
all the contrivances he had at hand, would not be
more at home by night than by day. But perhaps
we should have done no better than our grandfathers
in such an emergency.
The fleets gathered according to orders. A study
of the problem by the admirals and captains in coun-
cil led to a plan by which it might be possible for the
ships to defend themselves mutually against any at-
tack by motes. Machine-guns throwing shot of a
weight sufficient to penetrate either a mote or a dad-
die could without difficulty be mounted in the tops
of the men-of-war. To reach any one of these guns
without encountering its fire, the attacking party
265
His Wisdom the Defender
would have to come towards it from above. The
search-lights could be turned upon the descending
motes; then all the ships around could fire at them
as they were coming down without endangering each
other.
The combined fleet was sixty strong in ships, and
the crews numbered nearly forty thousand. The plan
of attack and defence, of which these were the main
features, was matured on the evening of June 26.
The whole of the next day was spent in mounting
machine-guns so that they could be fired in the air,
and practising the men in handling them. Before
nightfall all was ready, and sunset was awaited with
the greatest anxiety, for then the combined fleets were
to leave their moorings.
But the sun had not set before the officers were
astonished, and the men filled with superstitious fear,
by the appearance of a score of motes " aerial
ships " they were then called at a great height in
the blue sky. Scarcely one, even of the officers, had
yet seen a mote. Half an hour after the aerial fleet
was first sighted, it was in the zenith, and there seem-
ed to come to anchor, so immovable was its position.
This very stillness added to Jack's discomfort. He
was always a superstitious fellow, and the calmness
with which the demoniac power looked down upon
him suggested the placid certainty with which a gi-
gantic vulture might watch its prey. As minutes,
which seemed hours, passed away, and the enemy re-
mained as if nailed to the sky, the feeling extended
266
The Naval Attack on Elba
from sailors to lieutenants, from them to captains,
perhaps even from the captains to the admirals.
" There's somethin' fallin' from one of them
things, sir."
The officer addressed looked up. It was not from
one thing alone that something was falling, but from
all. A few moments later a crash was heard and a
violent shock felt.
" What is that ?" said the captain, as he ran amid-
ship.
" What is it ?" asked all the officers, as they gather-
ed round a hole in the deck large enough for a man
to pass through. " Dynamite ?"
" No, the sound was not that of an explosion."
" See, there's a hole in the main deck, too !"
" Go below and see what's to pay."
Before this last order could be executed a report
as to what was to pay became no longer necessary.
The sound of rushing water in the boiler space was
heard by all. Men ran up from below reporting
that the ship was filling.
" Lower the boats ! Carpenter, take soundings !"
Within the space of five minutes experiences such
as these were suffered on twenty of the sixty ships.
Twenty others had heard or seen something drop in
the water alongside of them, but did not know what it
was. Signals of distress arose from the first twenty,
and boats were lowered from all to aid their sinking
companions or save their own men. Twelve thou-
sand of the latter were landed; the remainder were
267
His Wisdom the Defender
missing or were added to the complement of the
remaining ships. The number of ships afloat was
reduced to forty. The enemy was seen sailing slow-
ly away in the sky, as if satisfied with what had been
done.
The British flag-ship was among the forty left
afloat, and her admiral was the coolest and most reso-
lute of men, a worthy successor of Nelson. The fleet
of boats had not done picking up the men struggling
in the water or clinging to the spars of the sunken
ships when he signalled requesting a conference with
the other admirals. They all gathered in his cabin.
" It is now sunset, the hour for sailing. Were my
own fleet the only one concerned, I should immedi-
ately order it to proceed to the attack, but, in view of
the deplorable accidents to so many of our ships, I
deem it courteous to ask you whether you are ready
before giving sailing orders. If you are, we sail
at once for Ferrajo, as agreed upon."
The Austrian and Italian admirals protested
against so imprudent a course. The German was
silent. He thought of his imprisoned monarch, and
could not lag behind when an Englishman proposed
to rescue him, whatever he might think of the pru-
dence or practicability of the attempt.
" I think we should be encouraged by what has
happened," said Admiral Collins. " The enemy has
spent his force, and will pass the night in fancied se-
curity, feeling sure that he has disabled us. These
268
The Naval Attack on Elba
are the very conditions under which he should be at-
tacked, without an hour's delay."
" We should at least await further orders from
our governments," said the Austrian.
" That will involve a day's delay and give the
enemy so much more time to prepare himself. I
have my orders and mean to act on them."
The result was that the English and German fleets,
numbering twenty-five ships, sailed to the attack,
the other two fleets awaiting orders. While the for-
mer are on their way, let us take a glance at Elba.
We have already intimated that Campbell had not
been able to contrive any quite satisfactory method
of attacking and rendering harmless a fleet of war-
ships. The problem was to sink the ships or haul
them ashore without killing or drowning the sailors,
and without exposing his own men to danger from
their fire. One plan was to drop battering-rams
from a height of several thousand feet, of such size
and weight as to go through a ship from top to bot-
tom. But he foresaw the difiiculty, perhaps impos-
sibility, of adjusting the position of the mote and
the moment of dropping the ram with such precision
that the latter would strike the ship in its fall, espe-
cially if the ship were in motion. Still, he determined
to try the experiment, and had fifty such rams con-
structed. Each .was a steel-pointed cylinder, a foot
or more in diameter, and twelve feet long, filled in
the interior with lead, and weighing some five tons.
We have seen what measure of success was gained
269
His Wisdom the Defender
by this contrivance. If he had foreseen how well it
would work, he might have sunk the whole of the
combined fleets with the greatest ease, as he had act-
ually sunk one-third of their ships.
But there was no time to cry over lost opportuni-
ties. The war-ships were steaming ahead. They
were rounding Cape Cor so when search-lights more
powerful than their own shone on them from above
and around. JSTo doubt could rem,ain that their
movements were as well known at Elba as if they
had been made by day. The fleet reached Porto
Ferrajo at dawn without any other incident. Ad-
miral Collins inwardly felicitated himself on his
foresight. The boats were lowered and men began
to jump into them. Before they could push off, the
admiral began to lose his self-complacence at the
sight of thirty daddies rising up from the town to
the height of a thousand feet. Telescopes showed
that a cord was suspended from each. Tracing
these cords downwards something that looked like an
enormous shell was seen at the end of each. The
way in which the machine-guns were to be evaded
was now plain. If these objects were torpedoes, the
daddies could explode them alongside a ship and yet
remain a thousand feet in the air. At this height
it was very doubtful whether the machine-guns of
the fleet could be pointed at them. They were soon
suspended over the fleet. Then one after another
they slowly descended in such a way that each tor-
pedo should gently dip into the water immediately
270
The Naval Attack on Elba
alongside a ship. The torpedoes were so constructed
that a pressure of ten feet of water upon an air-bag
attached to each would explode the weapon, which
contained two tons of nitrogelatine.
As the daddies descended, the machine-guns from
the ships directed a rather wild fire into the air.
Accurate aim was impossible, because no idea of the
range could be formed ; but a better defence was made
than had been made by any of the armies which had
been attacked. As the torpedoes approached the
water, the daddies from which they were hung had
to move with great deliberation so as to get their
charges into the right position. This gave the gun-
ners their opportunity. As the charges began to
explode here and there among the fleet, several dad-
dies, one after the other, were struck by shot. The
men inside two of them were killed, and three or
four others were so damaged that they dropped into
the water. The remainder reached the shore in
safety after exploding their torpedoes. The result
at this stage of the contest was that four men out
of sixty on Campbell's side were lost, while all but
a half-dozen of the ships were sunk or sinking.
Although the self-complacency of the admiral had
evaporated, his resolution was as firm as ever. It was
to be determined, once for all, whether one of the
most powerful naval forces ever collected could or
could not successfully cope with the new machinery
of war ; and the decision of this question justified the
most heroic measures. If the sinking ships had to
271
His Wisdom the Defender
be abandoned, the men should take to the boats with
their arms in their hands and row to the shore.
Never before had men escaped from drowning
in order to form an attacking force. Whether to
save their lives or to storm the place, there was but
one thing to be done. The boats must land their
men as rapidly as possible and then return to take
off those who might be left. The water where the
ships had come to anchor was so shallow that the
upper works of the sunken ones were mostly above
its surface, and to these clung such of the crews as
could not at first be taken in the boats.
Besides the daddies which had attacked the ships,
there were a number held in reserve. These attack-
ed the boats with their claws. But an annoying
musketry fire was kept up from the boats, which, al-
though it did not penetrate the walls of the aerial
machines, served to distract the men who were in
them. The boats were too heavy to be lifted out of
the water, and when the effort was made to upset
them they were merely pulled to one side through
the yielding fluid in which they floated. Only about
a dozen were successfully upset. The men in these
threw down their arms and swam to the shore. The
other boats succeeded in effecting a landing, and
their crews formed for a march upon the factories,
while the boats returned to the ships. But before
they could even form in marching order, they were
thrown into confusion by an attack of centipedes.
The arms were pulled out of the hands of the sail-
272
The Naval Attack on Elba
or s just as they had been pulled out of those of the
German soldiers, and, being so damaged by the press-
ure of the iron claw as to render them useless, were
thrown away. In this way, not only was the number
of effective men every minute diminished, but those
who kept their arms were so busy defending them-
selves that they became oblivious of their main ob-
ject. Their officers tried to rally them, and actu-
ally succeeded in getting a force about a thousand
strong, half English and half German, to run up
towards the factories. But the centipedes captured
the officers with the greatest ease, depositing them
upon their upper decks, and leaving the men with
no clear idea what to do. At the end of an hour
what was left of the naval force consisted of some
6000 unarmed men scattered along the shore in a
dazed and demoralized condition, and the few ships
still afloat, having on board of them the remnants
of their own crews and of those of the sunken vessels.
What was now feared on the land was a bombard-
ment by these ships. As there were no defen-
sive works, this mode of attack would not have
been in accord with the customs of war; but one
could not feel sure what desperate measures might
not be taken by men in such an emergency. It was
therefore imperative that a truce should be agreed
upon or that the remaining ships should be sunk by
the only mode of attack available the torpedo. No
time was lost in preparing for either course of action.
A daddie bearing a flag of truce carried to the Brit-
s 273
His Wisdom the Defender
ish flag-ship a letter in one of its claws, and deposited
it on the quarter-deck. It was picked up and handed
to the admiral, who w r as sufficiently alive to the situ-
ation to open and read it. It contained a statement
that if the fleet were willing to surrender, no further
attempt would be made to sink the remaining ships.
The alternative was made evident by the sight of
twenty daddies hanging over the shore awaiting
the order to attack. The admiral had to consult
with his German coadjutor, a proceeding which took
some time.
Before reaching a conclusion the situation was
summed up. Of the combined fleet of sixty ships,
perhaps the most powerful, if not the most numerous,
that had ever been assembled, only a half-dozen re-
mained. The approaching fate of the latter was
read in the metallic visages of the curious beings
hanging over the shore, each with a cord much longer
than had been used in the first attack. If a new force
were landed, nothing could save it from the centi-
pedes which, having already disarmed the force on
shore, awaited its arrival. Any attempt to con-
tinue the attack would result only in a useless de-
struction of life and property.
The flag of truce returned with the answer of the
two admirals. They agreed to surrender, but re-
quested facilities for communicating with their re-
spective governments as to the disposal of the ships'
crews, whether on board or on the shore. An inter-
view was requested to arrange details.
274
The Naval Attack on Elba
Campbell replied, acceding to the interview, and
offering every facility for the communication desired.
He would send a messenger mote to Piombino, the
nearest town on the Italian shore, with any despatch-
es which the admirals wished to send. If no further
hostilities were intended, it would be easy to send
the sailors to Piombino or Fonnolica on the remain-
ing ships. Time would be given to transport the
sailors from the shore to the ships. If the latter
did not then sail away, he reserved the right on two
hours' notice to sink them if he could. Next morn-
ing the sailors were all put on board the ships by cen-
tipede motes, and orders from the governments were
awaited. After much telegraphing the powers decided
to give up the attack for the time being and recall
their fleets.
XVII
The French Attempt on the Cynthia
ON" the day that the remnant of the com-
bined fleets sailed away from Elba with
their human freight an event occurred
which filled Campbell with deeper emotion than any
he had experienced since commencing his movement.
We have already alluded to the fact that, through
all his attacks upon the German armies, he had
allowed the two great loomotes, the Hesperus
and the Cynthia, to continue their regular trips
the Hesperus between New York and London,
the Cynthia between New York and Paris. Few
passengers had, however, been carried, because men
were naturally timorous in undertaking a journey
across the ocean by such a method until experience
had demonstrated its safety. Moreover, few were
disposed to choose a period of such universal turmoil
to make a journey. Great surprise was therefore
felt at the continued running of these motes, be-
cause it seemed to be placing within reach of the
British and French governments a means of attack
and defence which might result in their owner's de-
276
The French Attempt on the Cynthia
feat. If they chose to seize these vessels, fill them
with armed men, and send them to Elba, what was
to hinder them from inflicting a crushing defeat
upon their owner ? It was supposed that the latter
disregarded this danger, because he had entire con-
fidence in the British and French governments carry-
ing out their agreement guaranteeing the motes from
seizure.
To understand the event now to be narrated,
we must begin by a brief description of these first
loomotes, of which the construction differed in some
points from that with which we are familiar. The
central portion being cylindrical in form and sixty
feet in diameter, it was sixty feet from the bot-
tom to the top of the motes. They had three decks.
The lower deck was twenty feet above the bottom at
its lowest point. This space formed the main hold.
Owing to the curvature of the bottom, the height of
the hold diminished continually towards each side.
The rear half of it was occupied by the great fur-
naces which were necessary to keep the etherine ther-
malized, and which burned a hundred tons of coal on
each trip. The remainder of the space was taken up
with the mail-rooms and store-rooms for passengers'
baggage.
The space between the next two decks was entirely
filled by the state-rooms. On the deck above them
were immense dining-halls and sitting-rooms. Above
this deck the great arched roof formed by the upper
part of the cylinder rose twenty-four feet at its cen-
277
His Wisdom the Defender
tre. It was built of aluminium arches, the narrow
spaces between which, only about one foot in width,
were filled with thick, strong glass. This glass vault
was in the daytime almost as bright as the sky out-
side, and, being airy, was the general place of resort
for the passengers. At the usual running height of
15,000 feet above the ocean, it was necessary to the
comfort of the passengers that the air pressure around
them should be higher than it was outside. This
was brought about by having the prow of the mote
terminate in a circular opening six feet in diameter.
The rapid motion of 350 feet a second would have
caused a violent rush of air through this opening
had there been one equally large at the other end for
its escape. At the stern, however, the opening was
made comparatively small, so that the air which actu-
ally entered at the front was just sufficient to give
good ventilation and feed the fires below. The re-
sult was that the advancing mote exerted a pressure
upon the air in the front opening, the reaction of
which kept the barometer inside the mote some four
inches higher than it was outside. To prevent the
force thus generated from bursting the roof, the lat-
ter was made strong enough to bear the pressure
of an entire atmosphere.
As we have said, there was a free space of twenty-
four feet between the deck and the roof. This was
partly filled by a promenade deck twelve feet in
breadth, extending through the forward two hundred
feet of the mote, about eight feet above the main deck.
278
The French Attempt on the Cynthia
A strong metallic cylinder, eight feet in diameter,
passed vertically through all the decks, as well as the
vault above, at a distance of fifty feet behind the prow.
The upper part of this cylinder formed the pilot-
house, which projected about three feet above the top
of the mote. Here were stationed the captain and
pilots. From our description it will be seen that
the latter, when in such a position that they could
look around, would stand with their feet some twelve
feet above the promenade deck, but, being enclosed
within the metallic cylinder which we have described,
were entirely invisible.
It was noticed by the passengers that neither
captain nor pilot was ever seen. Walking to the
front of the promenade deck, one could pass round
the cylinder below the pilot-house, and examine it
on all sides. There was nothing about it to excite
notice except what looked like a door with an ordi-
nary handle to open it, and a key-hole. Although it
seemed plain enough that this door was the entrance
to the pilot-house, it was noticed that no one was
ever known to come through it. This was attributed
to prudence, which required that the conductors of
the mote should, during the voyage, not be allowed
to leave their posts or engage in conversation with
the passengers.
The fact was that this supposed door was a sham.
The real entrance to the cylinder was a secret one,
through what looked like a room devoted to rubbish
in the hold of the mote. The whole interior of the
279
His Wisdom the Defender
cylinder was taken up with elevating machinery,
and with the rods and levers which passed from the
pilot-house downward and worked the elevating arms
by which the etherine was made more or less buoy-
ant, as might be required, or impelled in the direc-
tion the mote was to take. There was also an ele-
vator by which the conductors and pilots could be
lifted most of the way through the sixty feet the} 7
had to mount to reach the pilot-house. The secret
door at the bottom, by which an entrance to the cylin-
der was gained, closed perfectly air-tight. About
ten feet below the pilot-house there was a horizontal
floor or diaphragm, with an opening for passage up
or down, which could be made air-tight. In case
of an emergency, the captain and pilots could pass
below this diaphragm and close the opening above
them so as to be enclosed in the air-tight part of
the cylinder. Here they would find a duplicate set
of apparatus for guiding and running the mote, in-
cluding compass and barometer. On the inside
of this part of the cylinder were tanks filled with
oxygen at high pressure. It was thus possible in
an emergency for a mote to be run from this lower
part instead of from the pilot-house, and for the men
to remain there for an hour or more without suffo-
cation. These arrangements were known only to
the captains, who were sworn to the most absolute
secrecy. What other instructions they received
in order that they might meet an emergency
will appear subsequently.
280
The French Attempt on the Cynthia
The pilots reached the pilot-house from the out-
side by a ladder passing over the roof of the mote arid
thence to the ground. The object of this singular
proceeding, when to all appearance there was a door
inside for them to ascend bj, no one suspected, not
even themselves.
In addition to the captain and pilots, some of
whom were always on watch in the pilot-house, a
watchman was kept continually on the roof out-
side the pilot-house while the mote was at its sta-
tion either in Paris or London. The instructions
to these watchmen were to keep a constant lookout
for any attempt by a possible body of men, who were
not passengers, to enter the mote in a threatening way.
In case of such an attempt, an electric alarm was to
be touched, which would set in motion two rows of
gongs. On sounding these gongs the watchman was
instructed to jump into the pilot-house and go below
with the captain and pilots. There was no secrecy
about this danger signal. The printed instructions
for passengers notified them that in case of any ca-
tastrophe being threatened while the mote was in
port a danger signal was to be sounded, on hearing
which all the passengers were to leave as soon as
possible. Similar directions were given to all the
workmen within, who were to abandon their work
and leave whenever the great gongs were sounded.
At noon, on June 15th, the Cynthia gently settled
into her station on the Champs de Mars, as usual.
'No one noticed that on the last two voyages several
281
His Wisdom the Defender
passengers went from Paris to New York and came
back on the return trip. Had this been observed,
suspicion might have been aroused as to the motives
which inspired so rapid a double journey. Equally
unnoticed was the curiosity shown by these passen-
gers in examining every part of the mote to which
they were allowed access, such a sentiment being al-
most universal. Nor did any one observe the pro-
ceedings of one of these Frenchmen who, on the pre-
ceding voyage, had occupied himself in making wax
impressions of the sham key-hole in the door leading
up to the pilot-house. This false door was in front
of the great cylinder we have described, and, being
near the end of the promenade deck, was concealed
from the great body of passengers thereon. It thus
happened that the little space in front of it was fre-
quently empty, and then the locksmith could carry
on his work without being seen.
The Cynthia, as we have said, settled quietly into
her resting-place. The doors were opened on the
side for the exit of passengers, those on the other
side, intended only for entrance, being kept closed
until all the arriving passengers with their baggage
had left the mote. During the two hours required
for the landing it was quite common for departing
passengers to wait outside the entrance gates before
they were opened for admission. Thus the curiosity
shown by certain persons who were peering through
the iron bars excited no remark. Everything went
on as usual until the baggage was nearly all landed.
282
Thie French Attempt on the Cynthia
Then something happened so unexpected that the
lookers-on were for a moment quite dazed.
A crowd of men in citizens' clothes, but armed
with muskets, bayonets, sledge-hammers, and chisels,
came suddenly running to the exit gate of the en-
closure. They knocked down the two watchmen
on guard and rushed through the crowd of panic-
stricken passengers to the mote. The guards could
offer no resistance, and had no time to close the great
aluminium doors. The watchman on top was so
taken by surprise that the head of the column had
nearly reached the mote before he sounded the gong.
The porters and firemen within had not time, after
hearing the alarm, to get out before their exit was
barred by the inrush of men ; so they ran to the en-
trance side, hastily opened a door, and jumped to
the ground.
As soon as the watchman had sounded the alarm,
he jumped into the pilot-house, while the captain and
pilots ran below into the air-tight space we have de-
scribed, the watchman following. The captain was
for a moment in doubt what to do. His orders in
such an emergency were to fly as high as possible
immediately and bring the mote to Uraniburg. He
ventured to hesitate so far as to run up to the pilot-
house himself, in order to be sure of the necessity
of this heroic measure.
There could no longer be any doubt. The armed
men were rushing through the open doors in two
columns. He turned the lever which caused the
283
His Wisdom the Defender
mote to rise, and again jumped into the compartment
below and closed the air-tight trap-door over the
heads of himself and the other two occupants. Now,
as we have said, the mote could be navigated for a
considerable distance without seeing outside the
cylinder. An electric light permitted the reading
of the barometer, which showed the air pressure
both without and within, as well as the compass.
There was no difficulty in going on a voyage so long
as life and activity could be maintained by the
stream of oxygen which could be turned on from the
holders below.
About fifty of the assailants had succeeded in get-
ting into the mote, when she slowly began to rise. The
last dozen who had entered, alarmed at this, retraced
their steps and jumped out. The remainder were
obliged to stay whether they wished to or not. They
lost no time in trying to gain possession. The leader,
followed by his men, climbed as fast as possible, with
the cry " En avant!" to the upper deck, mounted the
narrow promenade, and then ran forward to the
base of the pilot-house. Taking out a key which had
been carefully filed to fit the sham lock of the door,
he inserted it. To his surprise, it turned round loose-
ly without unlocking anything or producing any ef-
fect. He vainly tried to make it catch hold of a
bolt.
By the time he had satisfied himself that he
could not unbolt the door, a roar was heard, both
above and below. Below, it was the rush of the air
284
The French Attempt on the Cynthia
out of the mote through the open doors as that out-
side grew rarer with the ascent. Above, it was the
low roar always produced by the rapid motion of
the mote upwards and onwards.
" Try your bayonets," said the leader, when he
saw that the door could not be unlocked.
The bayonets were inserted in the false crack be-
tween the door and the cylinder, with a view to pry-
ing it open, while the leader took a small dynamite
torpedo from his pocket and put it into the key-
hole to blow the lock to pieces. Of course both at-
tempts were vain. The bayonets simply bent in
the crack, and the torpedo did no damage except to
blow off some of the metal round the lock.
Then they began to beat the supposed door with the
sledge-hammers and the butts of their muskets, crying
to those inside to open. And every moment they felt,
themselves flying higher and the air getting rarer.
Finding that the door resisted every attack, yet
more violent measures were attempted. There was
a narrow, horizontal opening in the cylinder just
below the roof of the mote. This was closed by
glass, forming a sort of window through which an
indistinct view of the now empty interior of the
pilot-house could be obtained.
" Fire through the window!"
The volley of musketry, fired at a venture with
the view of alarming the supposed inmates, produced
no effect except to destroy the window. All within
was as silent as the grave. Every minute the roar
285
His Wisdom the Defender
of the air increased and the situation grew more
desperate.
" Mount and climb into the window !"
Some of the most agile of the men undertook to
obey the order by climbing up to the roof of the
guards round the promenade, in order to enter the
pilot-house through the broken glass. One man-
aged to get his head through the window and was
dumfounded to find the place quite empty. He
had to drop immediately, as he found himself with-
out breath for such exertion.
The programme of the attacking party had been
very simple. By guile or force, with key, chisels,
or hammers, as might be required, they were first
of all to get possession of the pilot-house, while the
mote lay in her bed, and shoot the inmates if they
offered any resistance. If they did not resist they were
to be compelled to show the victors how the mote was
navigated. This, however, was not important, because,
once in possession of the wheels and levers of the
navigating power, it would only take a few hours to
find out how they were worked. The idea that the mote
might run away with them before they could get '
possession had scarcely entered their minds. When
they found it doing so, they were at first so intent
upon executing their plan that they failed to think
of anything else.
Now, frustrated in the attempt to enter the pilot-
house, they had time to think, and soon realized the
terrible situation. The mote was carrying them
286
The French Attempt on the Cynthia
higher and higher, and the continued rarefaction of
the air would soon cause suffocation. Only one
resource was within reach.
" Run below and close the doors of the mote !"
As the men who tried to do so approached the first
door, the outrush blew the three foremost of them out
like feathers. Those behind them on each side were
obliged to grasp the rails of the stairway in order to
avoid meeting the same fate, and made their way
back against the air-storm with the greatest difficulty.
Arriving again at the upper deck, exhausted and out
of breath, they could only report the fate of their
fellows and their inability to do anything.
Every minute the air grew rarer. Every minute
exertion became more difficult. A dozen hammers
and as many muskets beat loudly upon the outside
of the pilot-house, but no sound came back. " Open !
open ! for God's sake, open ! We are your prisoners !
We surrender!"
But there was no response. Were those within
dead, or had they escaped by some secret passage?
Minute snowflakes began to form in the air; the
fingers of the men were soon chilled with the cold
of a winter day.
" We must get into the pilot-house ! Try again I"
A desperate attempt was made to carry out this
order by the men climbing on each other. A dozen
of them got on their knees and let a half-dozen mount
on their shoulders, while several more climbed up
by the guards as before. The first set stood up, lift-
287
His Wisdom the Defender
ing the second with them, while the third stepped
on the shoulders of the latter. But they no sooner
had got so far than the whole body fell to the deck
with weakness and suffocation.
" Load and fire once more !"
The muskets were reloaded, and again a volley was
fired into the pilot-house and against the cylinder,
with no better effect than before. Cries of entreaty
and despair that were intended to be loud and pierc-
ing were sent forth by the doomed men, calling upon
those within for mercy. But the loudest were now
as faint as the wail of an infant a hundred feet away,
and fell like whispers against the deaf, metallic
wall.
Blood began to pour from their noses and run upon
the snow-covered deck. Looking round once more in
their despair for an avenue of escape or a source
of help, each saw in the livid faces of his companions
the reflection of his own. A last desperate cry was
attempted, but it was only a gasp ; the tongue could
no longer make an articulate sound. It protruded
from each mouth and could not be drawn back into
place. They felt the air within their breasts press-
ing to bur-3t them, as if some demoniac power was
pumping it into them. Their bodies swelled. The
increasing stream of blood from their noses was fol-
lowed by one from each of their blinded eyes ; their
livid faces grew cold ; one after another the unhappy
men fell into the pool of their own blood, which was
now running from the promenade to the deck below.
288
The French Attempt on the Cynthia
v
The world faded from their eyes, and they all became
unconscious in the embrace of death.
In a few minutes the report of the attempted seiz-
ure of the mote, and its unexpected escape, had
spread through Paris. An hour later the mangled
remains of three men, apparently fallen from the
sky, were found in the park at Vincennes. All Paris
was impressed with the feeling that some mysterious
calamity had happened, and anxiously awaited fur-
ther intelligence. But none was. forthcoming. The
authorities professed ignorance of the affair, and for
some time it was not even known to the public who
or what the attacking party was.
About five o'clock sentinels at Uraniburg, always
on the lookout, were surprised to see a great loomote
approaching from the west. A telescope was levelled
upon her, and a few minutes sufficed to ascertain
that she was the Cynthia. What could have hap-
pened ? Campbell's first impression was that she had
been captured by the enemy and was sent out, per-
haps filled with armed men and explosives, to attack
his headquarters. His small available force was call-
ed together as rapidly as possible to await events and
make the best defence possible. But the accuracy
of her movements soon relieved his mind. She must
at least be directed by his own captain and pilots, for
it would be impossible for any other set of men to
manage her as she was being managed without weeks
of instruction and patience. True, his own men might
T 289
His Wisdom the Defender
have been forced to conduct her under threat of their
lives. But even in this case they would still, to a cer-
tain extent, have the captors at their mercy. It was
impossible that she should make any successful at-
tack unless her conductors managed her accordingly.
The fears of all were allayed as she approached nearer
and slowly and skilfully was brought to the ground.
The first one to emerge was the wa'tchman, who
gave a hurried account of what had happened. True
to discipline, the captain and pilot remained at their
posts. Campbell and a dozen of his followers ran in
and mounted the stairways. As they reached the
upper main deck, pools of blood met their eyes.
Mounting the promenade, an appalling sight was dis-
closed. The bodies of thirty-five men were heaped
in a pool of gore round the base of the pilot-house.
The captain and pilot looked out from the window
below.
" What has happened to these men ? For God's
sake, how were they so mangled ?"
" They were not mangled at all, sir, so far as we
know. The mote was attacked, and we simply obey-
ed your orders. We mounted .upward until the press-
ure on the outside was reduced to five inches, and
the air within, notwithstanding the supply of oxy-
gen, grew so close that we could scarcely breathe it.
Then, taking our course towards this point, we de-
scended as rapidly as possible. By the time the air
barometer outside rose to twenty inches, we were
ourselves nearly suffocated, and were obliged to open
290
The French Attempt on the Cynthia
the trap. While the mote was rising we heard a
great pounding against the side of the pilot-house.
Of course we took no notice of this. It ceased about
the time we reached the highest level. When we
were able to look out we could see what had happened,
but we were powerless to do any good, so we continued
our journey here, according to orders."
Campbell was almost overcome by the catastro-
phe. With all his philosophy, with all the con-
sciousness that a million of lives were as nothing
compared with the human interests intrusted* to
him, he could not view such a horror without feeling
as if he were himself a murderer. What bore most
heavily upon him was the consciousness that the
tragic result was one that he had himself planned.
He had arranged to defend the motes from capture
by having them, in case of attack, fly many miles
above the earth, carrying their captors with them, if
they remained on board. Intellectually speaking, he
knew that this course would lead to their speedy
destruction. And yet he had never pictured to him-
self the possibilities of his plan being carried out
with such terrible success. He could not help try-
ing to think, now that it was too late, how the safety
of the mote might have been secured by some, pro-
ceeding less destructive to life. Every such thought
only added to his depression. He tried in vain
to sleep that night. Whenever he closed his eyes there
floated before his vision the livid faces of ghastly
cadavers, each lying in a pool of its own blood.
291
His Wisdom the Defender
It is said by the most advanced students of evolu-
tion that our nightly visions are inspired by the
thoughts and sentiments of savage or brute ancestors,
which take advantage of the relaxation of sleep to
assert themselves in us. But in the present case it
was the conscience of the civilized man rather than
that of the brute which dominated.
Next morning his incessant attention was de-
manded by the events which he was to guide. It was
absolutely necessary to cast off the thought of what
he had seen and to devote himself wholly to the work
in hand. The contest he was waging against the
world was not alone a physical one. Had such been
the case there would have been little doubt of his abil-
ity to carry it through, especially if he cast aside his
scruples against taking human life. What made it
trying was its being waged against the feelings and
opinions of the race. The soldier goes to his death
because he is inspired by the feeling that his country-
men are looking upon him and approving his acts.
Ability to defy the good opinion of mankind is the
principal mark of a criminal. To one of sensibili-
ties so highly educated the contest would have been
an unequal one had he not felt that he was backed
against the humanity of the present by the humanity
of the near future. Under these circumstances, a
visitor who could entertain the slightest personal sym-
pathy with him was doubly welcome, even had he
come to be his executioner. Such a visitor he was
soon to receive.
XVIII
Austria Threatens Checkmate
WE left Gheen demolishing the barracks
around Berlin, carrying off generals, and
disarming all the soldiers he could find.
From Feltow he went to the barracks at Zehlendorf
and demolished them in like manner. But the third
barracks which he attacked were nearly empty only
a corporal's guard was in them. From the men he
learned that all the soldiers who were left around
Berlin had taken refuge in the casemates of the
fortifications. It was evident that the task of reach-
ing them in such a retreat would be one of great diffi-
culty and possible danger. He was amply equipped
for tearing down the strongest buildings and captur-
ing any armed force in the field. But the masses
of earth, stone, and iron by which the capital was
defended were practically unattackable by his ma-
chinery. The steel doors of the casemates would
resist, he knew not how long, all the force he could
bring against them. There was no doubt that by
taking time enough, and perhaps bringing new modes
of attack to bear, he could ultimately succeed even
293
His Wisdom the Defender
against this strong defence. But to do this would
take much time, involving something like a regular
siege. Such an undertaking might well be post-
poned in view of the fact that an army driven
into its defences like a flock of sheep would
be too much demoralized to become an im-
portant factor in the affairs of the world. The last
instructions he had received before leaving were not
to spend time on the German armies if they succeed-
ed in making an effective resistance; but, in this
case, to carry out the rest of the programme and
then disband the armies of Russia and Austria, leav-
ing those of Germany to be disposed of in the future.
All the details had been left in his hands, and, un-
less he received orders to the contrary from his chief,
he was to go on doing all the harm he could to the
military power of the leading nations, regardless of
consequences.
He spent the next three days in a general sweep
over all the military posts of northern Germany, cut-
ting the telegraph wires so that the local authorities
could receive no immediate instructions from Ber-
lin. All the soldiers that could be found were
sought out, disarmed, and sent home in the same way
as before. To guard against any attempt at collect-
ing the scattered fragments into a new force, all the
field officers that could be captured were sent in a
body to the island of Riigen, in the Baltic. The rail-
way connecting this island with the mainland was
destroyed.
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Austria Threatens Checkmate
When this was done, the Germans were yet more
surprised by a sudden attack upon the arsenals and
manufactories of arms in the empire. Both the
centipedes and daddies were effectively used for this
purpose. The former, with their powerful claws, tore
off the roofs from the buildings, while the daddies
helped to demolish the walls. The machinery for
the manufacture of arms was torn to pieces, and all
the plans, models, moulds, and drawings that could
be found by the most careful search were broken or
torn up and heaped into a pile. Sulphuric acid was
poured over the mass as it had been on the arms
taken from the soldiers, in order that it might not
be possible, in the near future, even to fit up a new
factory. All the arms that were stored in the arse-
nals were treated in the same way.
The outcome of the week's work may be briefly
stated: The German military power was practically
annihilated, except for the remnants of the army
hidden in casemates and the garrisons of the posts
on the French frontier. Not only had Germany no
army for active operations, but, in order to organize
one, work would have to be begun at the bottom.
There would have been no arms for the infantry,
no guns for the artillery, and no machinery to make
either arms or guns. The whole empire was for
the moment helpless against any attack from its
neighbors, unless it should receive aid from the same
power which had destroyed its means of defence.
The smallness of the loss suffered by the attacking
295
His Wisdom the Defender
force can be accounted for only by reflecting that
two men, one of them a military expert, had spent two
years in elaborating the most careful preparations
for the work, and this without their intention hav-
ing ever been suspected until they were nearly ready
to act. The only mishap had been that arising from
the attention of the world having been temporarily
called to the possibilities of the case by the corre-
spondent of the New York Herald. Fortunately
the preparations were so well advanced that this
did little harm beyond necessitating more prompt
and decisive action.
The result of all this foresight was that out of the
three hundred and fifty motes which made up the at-
tacking fleet, only one had been totally destroyed,
none had been captured until after they had been
made useless, and only a dozen had suffered damage
which could not be speedily repaired. Only three
men had lost their lives one through treachery to
his own cause, and the others through what was al-
most equivalent to an inadvertence. About twenty
had been disabled by injuries more or less serious.
For all practical purposes the attacking force was
therefore as effective as ever. The coal and petroleum
necessary for running the motes, and the provisions
and other supplies necessary for the commissariat,
could be seized wherever they were to be found.
No defence of person or property against an army
flying through the air where it chose, and pouncing
down on any place at any moment, was possible.
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Austria Threatens Checkmate
There was nothing to prevent the military forces
of other nations being dealt with in the same manner
as those of Germany, unless some new mode of de-
fence should be devised. Gheen felt it necessary to
forestall this possibility by disorganizing, without
loss of time, the other great armies. For this pur-
pose it was essential that as little as possible should
be known of the policy by which the Germans
had temporarily evaded the attacking force. So
the telegraph wires were everywhere ruthlessly cut,
and every railway train that attempted to run any-
where in eastern Germany was pulled off the track.
The tracks themselves were torn up and many
bridges destroyed. The result was that the mili-
tary authorities at St. Petersburg and Vienna had,
for the moment, no detailed information as to events
in Berlin. They knew of the capture of the Em-
peror, and had heard rumors of the German troops
being obliged to take shelter wherever they could find
it, but they had not received any authentic announce-
ment of the date at which their own armies might be
attacked, and, indeed, did not know that they were
to be molested at all.
On June 29th, Gheen, with his whole force, ar-
rived at St. Petersburg and proceeded to search out
and disband the Russian armies in the same way
that they had the German. The Russian soldiers,
owing to their inferior intelligence, were even less
able to offer effective resistance than their neighbors
had been. The Czar, like his friend the Emperor,
297
His Wisdom the Defender
had attempted to take command of his forces. Find-
ing resistance in vain, he adopted the course of one
of his ancestors of the nineteenth century, and com-
mitted suicide, though not in the same way. He
swallowed prussic acid. On July 1st the force pro-
ceeded from St. Petersburg to Warsaw without wait-
ing for the complete disarmament of the armies
around St. Petersburg.
The main feature of our hero's policy, from the
beginning, had been to demonstrate his power by
every means that did not involve injury to the
beneficent institutions of civilization. As we have
already seen, he well knew that the old regime would
yield to nothing but force. Physical force alone
might, in the end, have conquered. But in a project
which must, in a not distant future, involve serious
changes in political institutions, he felt it essential
that, if possible, he should also show that he possess-
ed political power. There was one region of Europe
in which such a power could be exerted in entire
conformity to the political principles which he in-
tended should control the relations of nations under
his new regime. This region was that which had
formerly been occupied by the kingdom of Poland.
The history of the re-establishment of this kingdom
under the personal guidance of the Defender is too
well known to find a place here. So we shall fol-
low the operations of his army.
The entire force under Gheen's command, com-
ing from Warsaw, passed one night in a field
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Austria Threatens Checkmate
near Ernstbrunn, a village about twenty miles
north of Vienna, as far from railway and tele-
graph as it was convenient to get. Next morning
the aerial army gathered over Vienna and made the
circuit of the fortifications in search of the Austrian
troops. It was quite an agreeable surprise to see
more than fifty thousand soldiers stationed in front
of a long line of works waiting to receive the attack.
The space occupied by this army extended a mile
along the line, and was from a quarter to half a mile
in depth. The tops of the fortifications were armed
with an extraordinary number of field batteries, evi-
dently stationed there for the occasion. In addition
to this, a number of rapid-fire guns had been taken
from naval vessels and were also mounted on the
fortifications, ready for such use as might be re-
quired.
Heretofore, Gheen had attacked the troops with
confidence under the line of fire of batteries, because
it was impossible for the artillery to open fire upon
him without destruction to its own men. But these
preparations made it look as if, in the present case,
the Austrians were ready to sacrifice their own troops
for the purpose of destroying his forces once and for
all. In order to disarm the troops, the centipedes
must come down among them, and then, if the artil-
lery chose, it could fire upon them with destructive
effect to both sides. A few thousand Austrians
might be killed, but his own force would be perma-
nently disabled.
His Wisdom the Defender
Gheen and his adjutant, also a West Point man,
who kept at his elbow, surveyed the scene.
" What do you suppose they are after ?" said the
chief.
" I think if we attack as we did at Potsdam the
rapid-fire guns will open upon us, regardless of their
own men."
" That would be so contrary to every sentiment
and tradition of civilized warfare, I can hardly be-
lieve it possible."
" But," replied the adjutant, " the men stand as
if they expected death. See how they have been
drilled. Every battalion and every company keeps
its place, and the soldiers stand at attention, their
rifles on the ground, without the slightest movement.
They really seem to await their doom from their own
artillery, in order to bring about our destruction."
" Any way," said Gheen, " the rapid-fire guns can
be aimed at our motes while they are descending, and
several shots might be fired from each before the
motes could get among the soldiers on the ground."
The conclusion was that it would not be prudent to
sweep down like a hawk upon its prey, as had been
done with the Germans and Russians, and a recon-
naissance was decided upon. A line of six plain
motes, each manned only by the three men necessary
to manage it, was ordered to form and approach the
ground, not among the soldiers, but at a distance of
half a mile on the right flank, at a point where the
rapid-fire guns could not play upon them. Then they
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Austria Threatens Checkmate
were to make a dash for the armed troops, keeping
as near the ground as possible, flying directly through
the lines at a rapid rate, and then rising and return-
ing on the other side. If the artillery seriously in-
tended to destroy the attacking party, at all hazards,
regardless of their own men, they might try to fire
upon these swiftly flying motes, but would not be
likely to hit any of them. If fired upon, the motes
were to suddenly change their course and return
without passing through the lines.
Gheen from his eyrie watched the six motes dash
in single file through the Austrian ranks. Not a sol-
dier budged, not a weapon was moved in self-defence.
Such stolid immobility seemed superhuman. Sudden-
ly a deadly fire was opened upon the advancing motes
from hundreds of guns, the Austrians mowing down
their own men without mercy. The state of the case
was seen by the captains of the motes and grasped
by Gheen almost at the same moment. The sup-
posed army which held out so inviting a temptation
to come and disarm it was made up of dummies
men literally of straw in the uniforms of soldiers,
with their arms resting on the ground. It was fort-
unate, indeed, that the whole force had not, in its
enthusiasm, flown to the attack. Two of the motes
were disabled, the others effected their escape. The
former succeeded in rising a short distance and then
fell to the ground. The men on board of them
jumped out and made signs of surrender.
The Austrians were too anxious to secure posses-
301
His Wisdom the Defender
sion of the curious vessels to destroy them by a con-
tinued fire. The real troops ran out, took the six
men prisoners, and eagerly climbed upon the motes.
The latter were of course immovable, and would be
of little real use to their captors except as objects
of curiosity. The only hopeful result in getting
possession of them would be the discovery of the se-
cret by which they were managed. As each weighed
many tons, it would be impossible to remove them
without machinery and appliances which it would
require several days to get into operation. But the
great cylinders running through nearly their whole
length, and containing the etherine which gave them
buoyancy, had been pierced by the shot. The ether-
ine itself was escaping and running like an oily fluid
into the bottom of the mote. As much as possible
of it was collected and carried off for scientific ex-
amination and chemical analysis.
Leaving the fortifications, Gheen proceeded to at-
tack the barracks round the city in which the troops
were supposed to be quartered ; but none were found
except a few soldiers necessary to guard them. The
Austrian authorities had followed the. German ex-
ample of hiding their troops in the casemates of the
fortifications or quartering them in houses through-
out the city. There would be no difficulty in effect-
ing their capture by a thorough search of the city
and by blowing up the casemates, one after another,
with dynamite. But to reduce every fortified city
in Germany and Austria in this way would be a long
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Austria Threatens Checkmate
and tedious job. A messenger was therefore de-
spatched to Elba for instructions as to the course
to pursue. A complete statement of the situation
was sent to Campbell. The despatch arrived the
day after the attempt on the Cynthia, and it elicited
the following instructions :
" Keep your force together and do as much harm
to the military equipment as you can without causing
great destruction of private property. Do not op-
erate on two successive days at the same place unless
some decided advantage will result. So far as pos-
sible move from place to place in the night, and let
your men encamp in the daytime whenever they are
fatigued. If, after attacking the Austrian troops
one day, you should appear at Berlin next morning,
you would probably find that the army had come out
of its hiding-place, so that it could be again reached."
Gheen proceeded to carry out this programme, with
even more success, moral as well as physical, than
he could have anticipated. While he is thus spread-
ing alarm, let us return to headquarters.
XIX
The Dawn
IT was every hour becoming plainer to all but the
most obstinate men that some other policy than
that of defiance of the new power must be adopt-
ed. As a first step towards a change of front, it must
be ascertained what terms of peace Campbell was dis-
posed to demand, or what arrangement could be made
with him. Not only men, but even countries, must
sacrifice their dignity, at least to the extent of trying
to bring some inducement to bear upon him to cease
his mad career. The first step in this direction was
taken by Lord Worcester, the English Premier.
Knowing in what intimate relations Winthrop stood
to Campbell, he addressed him through Secretary
Bayne, asking if he could not immediately visit
London in the Friede, which had been left at his dis-
posal, to confer with representatives of the British
government. After an assurance that no attempt
would be made to interfere with the Friede, the re-
quest was complied with. Winthrop landed in Hyde
Park the next day. It was soon agreed that he
should be one member of a delegation, of which Lord
304
The Dawn
Churchill would be the other, to interview the Owner
of the Motes in the interests of peace.
Before starting Winthrop explained the very deli-
cate position in which he was placed. Not only was
lie the friend and adviser of Campbell, but he entire-
ly sympathized with his objects. All he could do
was to facilitate their being carried out by negoti-
ations. With this understanding he and Churchill
proceeded in the Friede to Elba.
" Let me see him first," said Winthrop, " and ex-
plain our coming to him. Then I will introduce
you, and you can say what you please."
I need not describe the greeting of the two friends
under such circumstances. For a few minutes Camp-
bell was quite overcome. Then Winthrop proceeded
to business.
" I have come to you simply as the bearer of a
message. They want you to stop."
" How can I stop ? What shall I do with my force ?
Surrender it? If so, to whom? The power to
which I surrender it will be master of the world.
Can you name any power which the world is will-
ing to accept as master ? My constant prayer is that
I may look beyond the sea of troubles that now rages
around me to the haven of rest that lies beyond."
" I cannot gainsay a word you utter," was the
reply. " I do not want you to stop until your end
is gained. But now I think the road is open and
that you can make your own terms."
" You save my life when you say that. I am so
u 305
His Wisdom the Defender
worn that I doubt whether I can stand this strain
for another week and live. But reason makes it
plain as day that I must go on and finish my work.
The man who for years had been planning his
ends with infinite resolution, who had driven the
armies of Europe into caves and dens to hide from
his power, was overcome. He sprang to his com-
panion, embraced him, and, laying his head on his
shoulder, burst into tears. Having thus relieved
his mind, he was ready to talk with the other.
Lord Churchill presented the state of Europe in
strong colors. In Germany anarchy reigned trium-
phant. Mobs of half-starved workmen were march-
ing round, and no power could suppress their violence.
Half the city of Giessen had been burned before
the frightened inhabitants could defend themselves
against the attack. Buildings in smaller towns were
almost everywhere in flames. In all the bourses
stocks were practically worthless. Business of ev-
ery kind was at a standstill. " Can you not stop ?"
Campbell felt that this was the real crisis of his
career. The appeal struck what he knew was his
weakest point. He had always been an implacable
fighter as long as his enemy kept up the contest.
But on the first signs of weakening his disposition
had been to go more than half-way and surrender
almost everything. Happily, being conscious of
this weakness, he had gone through a course of self-
reproof and self-discipline, with a view of guarding
against it.
306
The Dawn
" How can I stop ? Is Europe ready to disarm
voluntarily? Is your government ready to abolish
its military establishment and sell its navy to me
for old iron ? If England is ready, are France and
Austria ready? Will all the nations enact a law
that there shall be no more war, and abide by it?
When they do this, then I am ready to stop, and not
before."
To these questions Churchill could give no satis-
factory reply. He was not, in fact, authorized to
offer any terms or propositions whatever. All he
could do was to beg Campbell to stop long enough
to receive such communications as the combined
governments of Europe might choose to make.
" I cannot stop," said Campbell, " until I have
an assurance that not only her Majesty's govern-
ment, but that of France, is willing to acknowledge
my authority as Defender of the peace of the
World."
" I will convey your answer to my government.
While it is considering it, can we not have at least
a truce ?"
" I fail to see how anything that could properly
be called a truce is possible. The very term im-
plies a combat the continuance of which is harmful
to one or both the opposing parties, and the cessation
of which will facilitate peace. No such combat is
going on. You have placed in a very strong light the
deplorable conditions that exist throughout Europe.
Would any truce that I could enter into better those
307
His Wisdom the Defender
conditions? What good would it do if I should
now bring my forces to Elba and cease active oper-
ations ?"
" It would at least help to calm the public mind,"
said Churchill, " prepare it to weigh the situation in
all its aspects, and reach a conclusion as to the best
course to pursue under the circumstances."
" But my force would be as much of a menace then
as now. Allow me to repeat what I have so often
tried to say, but have never seemed to succeed in
impressing on men's minds. What the world really
wants is not merely a cessation of my operations,
but an assurance that motes shall never be used in
warfare under any circumstances. When the world
is ready to accept what I think the only solution of
the difficulty one leading to this assurance I am
ready to confer on the subject."
" Will you kindly tell me more exactly what
course you think will lead to the end you deem so
desirable ?"
" I have already pointed out what I deem the only
available course. I am deliberating on the details
of my plan, and will make them public as soon as
they are matured."
" All Europe will, I am sure, be glad to know
that you have a definite plan. So far as I can see,
nothing remains but to report your attitude to the
authorities at whose request I am here."
The two men shook hands and parted, Churchill
returning to London alone.
308
The Dawn
Winthrop had another commission that of try-
ing to secure the release of the Emperor.
The regency that acted during the absence of the
latter was so far from being animated by his un-
yielding spirit that it was ready to sacrifice a little
dignity to the exigencies of the situation. An ap-
peal had therefore been made to Winthrop to secure
his aid. To accomplish this, the regency had for-
mally annulled the order that no quarter should be
shown to the attacking forces. To fulfil the condi-
tions of release, it only remained that the Emperor
should approve of this action. Campbell was glad
to accede to the desire of the regency, and request-
ed Winthrop to go to the Emperor, inform him of
the action of the regency, and ask him to approve
of it.
The Emperor was notified by his attendant that
a representative of the Owner of the Motes desired
an audience on a matter seriously affecting his Maj-
esty's interests. After some hesitation Winthrop
was admitted.
" I am here on behalf of the Owner of the Motes
to advise your Majesty that the regency, acting in
your Majesty's absence, has annulled the proclama-
tion which you were pleased to issue, ordering your
army to show no quarter to any of the forces of the
Owner of the Motes that might be captured. Should
your Majesty be pleased to acquiesce in this action,
it has been ordered that you be returned to your
capital."
309
His Wisdom the Defender
The Emperor received the announcement in sullen
silence.
" Writing materials are here at your Majesty's
disposal. At what hour shall I return to receive
your reply?"
This question was as unsuccessful as the previous
statement. Imperial dignity maintained itself in
silence.
" If your Majesty has no reply to make, I will
bid you adieu."
The single word " adieu " was uttered in reply.
A calmer and more self-possessed man than Win-
throp never existed, hut he had a hard struggle with
himself as he returned and reported the ill-success
of his mission.
" What would you do with such a man ?" inquired
Campbell.
" I would pour a bucket of cold water over his
head, morning^and night, until he yielded. Mean-
while, he should be kept in solitary confinement and
not allowed to see even his attendant."
" And, just to think, I had intended to send him
home in the finest mote I could spare perhaps the
Cynthia itself with his imperial standard floating
upon it, in order that the German people might see
that I not only bore him no ill-will, but was disposed
to show their monarch every honor. But let us
look at the situation calmly. We have a more seri-
ous problem before us than that of punishing the
most obstinate of men. We expect the Germans to
310
The Dawn
come under our system, and the only question is, how
we can best bring it about. "
" Perhaps it is better that we should be governed
entirely by reason and show no irritation at all, but
it goes very hard on the flesh to do so. It is too late
to act to-night; let us see how we shall feel on the
subject to-morrow morning."
Next morning it was decided to send the Emperor
home, and there release him, but to dispense with the
unnecessary exhibition of the imperial standard over
his mote.
" Is it necessary that either of us should communi-
cate our decision to him '?"
" No," said Winthrop, " I certainly want to have
nothing more to do with him, and I am sure you
agree with me. Just send a messenger mote after
him, and let the messenger inform the attendant what
he has come for. The slowest of your motes can
easily reach Berlin before nightfall."
A messenger was sent for and ordered to get his
mote in readiness for conveying the Emperor to
Berlin. He was then to go to the house where he
was imprisoned, inform the attendant of his mission,
and signify to the Emperor his readiness to execute
the mission with which he had been charged.
The attendant, overjoyed at the news, conveyed
the message to his royal master.
"Was will Majestat?" he inquired, with that
respectful familiarity which marks the intercourse
of a valet with his king.
311
His Wisdom the Defender
The Emperor hesitated long before replying.
When Winthrop had called upon him the night be-
fore, as the representative of the Owner of the Motes,
he felt that it was a slur upon his imperial dignity
that the Owner had not called in person. After his
return he put this forward as the reason of his dis-
courteous reception of Winthrop.
" I should have been glad to call on his Majesty
in person," said Campbell, when, long afterward,
this sentiment of the Emperor was made known to
him, " but, do you suppose he would have treated me
in any way different from what he treated Winthrop ?
I do not believe that he would, and this is the reason
that I did not go in person."
Now the Emperor felt that, partly through his own
proceedings, a yet greater indignity was done him.
Neither his captor nor a representative was sent to
inform him that he would be set at liberty, but, in-
stead of this, he had to receive the information
through an underling. But for the demands of the
situation he would have adhered to his policy of
grim silence and refused to move; but he felt that
this would be almost suicidal. The interests of his
empire imperatively demanded his presence at his
capital, and he had gone as far as was prudent in
his defiance of the power which held him in captiv-
ity. His conscience told him that he had brought
this new humiliation upon himself, and that he
had better make the best of his situation. So he
told the attendant that they would pack up their
312
The Dawn
few belongings and leave in the proffered convey-
ance.
During the rapid passage northward through the
clouds, the first sentiment of the Emperor was natu-
rally that of nervous fear. Then, as their frail con-
veyance seemed as secure as a boat floating on a
river, his curiosity got the better even of his imperial
dignity, and he eagerly questioned the messenger,
not only as to the system on which the motes were
run, but as to what he could tell him of the course
of events during his captivity.
The telegraph had conveyed the news in advance
of the mote, but had given no information as to where
the landing might be effected. It was thought pru-
dent to leave this matter to the judgment of the con-
ductor. Had the place of landing been announced
in advance, there was no telling but that the German
authorities might have availed themselves of the op-
portunity to seize the mote and every one in it. To
guard against this the conductor landed them in the
centre of the Thiergarten, before any one saw them
coming. The Emperor was told that he was at
liberty. His few belongings were rapidly thrown
out, and the mote returned v to its station.
XX
The Proclamation
THE fire which had been raging for more than
a month, threatening to destroy civilization
itself, seemed at last to be burning itself out.
The weak-minded people had all gone crazy, leaving
only those who could keep their heads to look after
the world's affairs. The mobs, exhausted by their
efforts, had begun to take a rest, and were being fed
by a concerted plan to give them work whenever it
could be found. Merchants and brokers were taking
account of stock, and waiting for something to turn
up. The news that the aerial force had encamped,
now here and now there, or had caught some unwary
regiment venturing out for exercise, was almost get-
ting to be monotonous. Statesmen actually began
to think over the situation and consult on plans.
The only men who kept their faculties at the highest
tension were the journalists, who found that their
presses no longer had to run all day and all night
to supply the public demand, and tried to keep this
demand from falling off too rapidly.
Two of the world's great powers stood unchanged
314
The Proclamation
in their attitude because they had never been carried
off their feet by the storm. They were Secretary
Bayne and the London Times. The former took
the ground that he had nothing to do in the case
but perform his duty and execute the laws. So he
had made a formal requisition on the Italian gov-
ernment for the extradition of one Alexander Camp-
bell, a fugitive from justice in the United States,
who had fled to Italian territory, and he now awaited
an answer to this demand. The Times adhered to
its position that the men who were disturbing the
peace should be treated as outlaws, and condemned
the course of the government in allowing Churchill
to hold negotiations with their leader.
But the world began to change its point of view.
In spite of all the Times could say, Churchill's inter-
view and the restoration of the German Emperor to
his throne were both looked upon as auspicious
events. From the former it was learned that a propo-
sition looking to peace might soon be expected from
the great disturber. The past and the present were
almost forgotten in the eager cry, What will it be?
Men had not long to wait.
The question was answered by a proclamation such
as they had never before heard. It appeared in all
the journals of the world; messengers flew with it
to every capital ; all mankind read it, for to them it
was addressed.
His Wisdom the Defender
"THE DEFENDEK OF THE PEACE OF
THE WORLD TO ALL MANKIND
" GREETING:
" The fulness of time being come when war
should cease and all mankind dwell together in
amity;
" And I, being vested by Almighty God with
power to prevent the movements of armies, the sail-
ing of navies, and the prosecution of war by any
agency;
" And believing that this power can best be exer-
cised under an official name and title ;
" Now, THEREFORE, know all men that I have cre-
ated and assumed, and do by these presents create,
and for myself and my successors assume, the office,
title, and functions of
" DEFENDER OF THE PEACE OF THE WORLD.
" And to the end that the office of Defender may
be so executed as to secure the independence of all
nations, the liberty of individuals, and the general
welfare of humanity, I do enact and publish the stat-
utes hereto appended, to be obeyed and enforced by
the Defender as the supreme law of the world until
they shall be amended or repealed in the manner
therein set forth.
" GIVEN UNDER MY HAND AND SEAL this f our-
316
The Proclamation
teenth day of July, 1946, at my seat at Uraniburg,
in the island of Elba.
" CAMPBELL,
" Defender."
The accompanying statutes were promulgated
under five titles. The first consisted of definitions
showing the exact sense in which various expressions
occurring in the statutes should be construed; the
second related to the political functions of the De-
fender; the third to his control over the motes; the
fourth to the administration of his revenues, and the
fifth to miscellaneous matters pertaining to future
conferences among nations, his council, and the
modes of amending the statutes.
In Title I. confederate nations were defined as
those who should, by the act of their highest legisla-
tive bodies, adopt the statutes as their supreme law,
and who should, in pursuance of this act, have abol-
ished their military and naval establishments. An
army was defined as any organized body of men armed
with deadly weapons to be used on the bodies of their
fellow-men. To guard against too wide a construc-
tion of the term " deadly weapon," this again was
defined as a weapon specially designed to inflict mor-
tal wounds, thus excluding all appliances suitable
only for a police force.
We give the statutes of Title II. in full:
" AETICLE I.
" There shall be no more war.
317
His Wisdom the Defender
" There shall hereafter be no armies or navies
except those which the Defender shall adjudge to
be necessary to the protection of life and property.
" ARTICLE III.
" The Defender shall ever recognize and never
abridge those rights which peoples enjoy under the
law of nature and of nations. The basic principle
of this law shall be : The earth belongs to the people
who inhabit it, and every part of the earth belongs
to the people who inhabit that part, subject to such
restrictions as imperfect civilization, the develop-
ment of customs and institutions, and the necessity
of promoting the general welfare may render neces-
sary. In pursuance of this law, the following rights
of nations and peoples shall forever be recognized :
" The right on the part of each independent nation
to continue its ancestral form of government under
its chosen or accepted rulers from generation to gen-
eration forever;
" The right by peaceable measures to change this
form of government from time to time when its peo-
ple, in their wisdom, shall deem such change con-
ducive to their welfare ;
" The right to manage its own internal affairs in
its own way, and to regulate its dealings with the
rest of the world according to its own judgment, sub-
ject to such treaties as it may for good reason and
318
The Proclamation
valuable consideration have voluntarily entered into,
and to such general regulations as may be establish-
ed to promote the general welfare.
" The corresponding rights of dependent peoples
shall be :
" To be humanely governed in accordance with
their laws and traditions;
" To become a sovereign and independent nation
when they shall so desire, and when it shall be shown
to the Defender that their welfare may thus be pro-
moted.
" The Defender shall not take part in enforcing
the laws of any nation or state, nor shall he act as a
ruler of men outside the limits of his seat, unless
temporarily, to arrest or cure a condition of anarchy ;
but notwithstanding these and other restrictions he
may protect life and property against unlawful de-
struction whenever required by the interests of
humanity.
" ARTICLE V.
" The Defender shall, whenever requested by the
parties in dispute, arbitrate any question at issue
between nations or peoples. In pronouncing his
award he shall state the facts and expound the law
on which his conclusions are based ; but he shall never
award exemplary damages nor impose humiliating
conditions.
319
His Wisdom the Defender
" Whenever it shall appear to the constituted au-
thorities of a confederate nation that any policy or
proceeding of the Defender, contemplated or actual,
is injurious to the interests of said nation, or not
in accord with equity ; or if it shall appear that the
Defender can adopt any policy or perform any act
that will promote the interests of such nation without
injury to any other nation, then, in every such case,
the said authorities shall have the right to make to the
Defender such representations on the subject as shall
to them seem meet. To all such representations the
Defender shall give respectful attention, and, if he is
unable to comply with any wishes which may be thus
expressed, he shall set forth the reasons for such non-
compliance.
" The Defender shall have the right to choose
and appropriate to his own use such place, places,
region, or regions, as he shall deem suitable for his
seat ; but not more than two hundred thousand square
miles shall be taken for this purpose from the ter-
ritory of any nation without the consent of said
nation.
" The Defender shall have sovereign and plenary
power to govern his seat, and shall enjoy the right
of eminent domain over its territory.
320
The Proclamation
" The Defender shall not use his power in the
propagation of any form of religious belief, wor-
ship, or observance.
" ARTICLE X.
" The Defender shall not enter into any secret
treaty or arrangement with any nation or power
whatever; nor shall he take any measures which
might injuriously affect the interests of any nation
without giving due notice of his intentions.
" Neither the Defender nor any of his officers of
state shall accept any present or mark of distinction
from any political personage or power."
The mutation of public opinion during the next
week is so well reflected in the comments of the Lon j
don Times that it will be sufficient to give an extract
from its editorial columns for each day of the week
following the issue :
Wednesday, July 15. " If this aspirant for a
more than royal eminence supposes that any official
notice will be taken of his utterance, he has less
sagacity than has been supposed. It is difficult to
see what object he had in view in issuing this paper.
He is and must remain an outlaw. How soon the
guardians of order in Europe and America shall
x 321
His Wisdom the Defender
get possession of his motes and execute their laws
upon his person is merely a question of time."
Thursday, July 16. " Those who read the stat-
utes which the so-called Owner of the Motes issues
with his proclamation will view his mad proceedings
with even greater regret when they notice that the
imagined laws really have some features worthy of
consideration. That a man capable of framing a
law of any sort should have entered upon such a
reckless course is one of the wonders of the situ-
ation."
Friday, July IT. " One cannot study these al-
leged statutes without being surprised at the restric-
tions which their f ramer has thrown around his own
power. Seen by the side of his mad and reckless
proceedings, the contrast is most striking. It seems
quite likely that if referred to an international con-
vention, many features of these laws might be ac-
cepted with advantage."
Saturday, July 18. " The destruction of the mil-
itary power of at least Germany and Russia and
the reduction of that of Austria to bodies of half-
armed soldiers hiding from the enemy wherever they
can get shelter are accomplished facts which we shall
be wise to recognize. The question what we should
do to promote the national interests is one to be
calmly studied with a view to the future rather than
the past."
Monday, July 20. " The interview of Lord Car-
digan with the self-styled Defender must be regarded
322
The Proclamation
as in every way gratifying. Nothing could be more
admirable than the utterance of philanthropic senti-
ments and expressions of regard for law by a man
who, from our point of view, has violated all law.
If Campbell adheres to the construction he puts upon
his proposed statutes, neither the political nor com-
mercial interests of Great Britain in any part of the
world will be endangered. Under the proposed law
the inhabitants of British India are regarded as a
dependent people, and no restriction is placed upon
England's methods of governing them which is not
in strict accord with England's practice. His Maj-
esty's Indian Empire cannot be erected into an in-
dependent government under these laws, except on
the condition of a desire for such independence on
the part of the Indian people, and a demonstration
that their welfare will thus be promoted. It is
difficult to anticipate the time when both of these
conditions will be fulfilled; but, if it should come,
Great Britain will no longer insist on her sway."
Tuesday, July 21. " The policy of his Majesty's
government in meeting the new conditions will meet
with the approval of all sensible men. An un-
equalled opportunity is offered us to assume that
leading position which every loyal British subject
must desire. By promptly accepting the situation
as it is, British commerce will be extended into the
very centre of Asia and Africa, and a new impetus
will be given to the enterprise of our people."
Wednesday, July 22. " The bill introduced by
323
His Wisdom the Defender
the government into Parliament last evening recog-
nizing the functions of the Defender of the Peace
of the World, accepting his statutes, and providing
for the abolition of his Majesty's military and naval
establishments, is one which will commend itself to
general approval.
" The prompt action of the United States govern-
ment in the same direction shows a wise appreciation
of the new conditions. The Defender's propositions
were accepted and embodied into law by the almost
unanimous vote of both Houses of Congress. Among
those in power, the only dissenting voice was that of
Mr. Secretary Bayne, who vigorously adhered to the
position he had taken that the government could
not recognize one of its own citizens, especially a
fugitive from justice, in the position assumed by the
Defender. The wisdom of Congress in refusing to
accept this view is shown by the rumored proceedings
of the Defender in constituting a council, of which
one of America's most eminent citizens, President
Winthrop, is to be the head.
" It is rumored from Berlin that the German gov-
ernment is seriously considering the question of ac-
cepting the new system. The first nation to adopt
this measure will not only set an excellent example
to the rest of the world, but will naturally be the
leading nation for many years to come. Prompt
action by Parliament is therefore of the utmost im-
portance. A multitude of details will have to be
settled, but these can well be left to the future."
324
The Proclamation
The German government was moved in the same
direction by a motive yet more urgent than any that
could be felt in England. It is true that the Em-
peror was still smarting under the indignity of hav-
ing been seized and imprisoned. But a situation
stared him in the face which called for action.
France had never ceased to deplore the loss of Alsace
and Lorraine. The statue of Strasburg in the Place
de la Concorde at Paris still wore the weeds of
mourning in which it had been draped more than
seventy years before. The ineffectual attempt to
recover the provinces which had been made in the
meantime had served to keep alive the national feel-
ing of France on the subject. Now all that was
wanted to gain the object was the consent of a single
man. If Campbell chose, he could in a single day
disarm the German troops in the two provinces and
turn them over to France. He could say to France,
Take them for yourself; I will not interfere. The
armies already being mobilized in the eastern depart-
ments were sufficient to overcome the feeble and
demoralized German garrisons. There was no course
left open but to accept the situation and make the
best of it. A bill to this effect was introduced into
the Keichstag, and was passed by an almost unani-
mous vote.
XXI
Rah! Rah! Rah! the Defender!
THE man for whom there had been erstwhile
nothing but execration was now the hero
who had guaranteed peace and liberty to all
the world by a system of laws that nothing could
subvert.
All nations were hurrying into the fold as fast
as their methods of legislative procedure would ad-
mit. As they did so, each received a formal invi-
tation to send delegates to a world's congress,
which should be charged to revise and amplify the
Defender's statutes as might be necessary. The
council of the Defender met daily to consider the
multifarious questions raised by the new order of
things.
Among the questions under discussion at one of
these meetings was that of the title by which the
Defender should be addressed. The invention of a
suitable one was no easy task. " Your Majesty "
was clearly inappropriate, because it belonged to a
ruler of men a function which the great actor had
from the beginning been entirely sincere in repudi-
326
Rah! Rah! Rah! the Defender!
ating, and of which he had forbidden the exercise
in his statutes. " Highness " and " Excellency "
were too common and would not mean anything, even
if adjectives without end were added. Some one
suggested " Greatness."
" That suggests too strongly the idea of a little
man stuck-up/ 7 said Campbell. " My inclination
would be to dispense with any title whatever. I
have always felt that expressions implying superior-
ity on the one side and inferiority on the other were
not appropriate in the Golden Age which we are now
inaugurating. At the same time, I recognize the
fact that human nature and the habits of thought
and expression which have come down to us from
our ancestors cannot be speedily altered. Assum-
ing, then, that a title must be found, the matter
presents itself to my mind in this way: The most
appropriate title is one expressive of the qualities
which we suppose the person addressed ought to pos-
sess. Why is a king called ' His Majesty ' ? Be-
cause the quality implied by that word is the one
which a monarch should show in the eyes of his peo-
ple. Nothing is more appropriate to the head of a
state than ' Majesty.' Why do we call the Pope
' His Holiness ' ? Because holiness is the quality
which is implied in his position.
"What attribute, then, is the most appropriate
to the position which I have assumed? It seems
to me that there can be but one answer to this ques-
tion. What I need more than anything else, and
327
His Wisdom the Defender
what I pray God to imbue me with, is wisdom.
Why should not the Defender be called ' His Wis-
dom'?"
The suggestion was received with enthusiasm.
The council arose as one man, the members went for-
ward and grasped the hands of their leader.
" We congratulate ' Your Wisdom ' on the position
he has assumed, and on the brilliant prospect which
is before him. May he long adorn his exalted posi-
tion and enjoy unbroken success in the administra-
tion of his office."
As soon as the crowd without heard the news, it
took up the cry of " Long life to His Wisdom the De-
fender !" The cry spread through the length of the
island as fast as sound could carry it. " God bless
his Wisdom the Defender!" As the news flew over
the electric wires by land and sea, every point which
it reached resounded with the cry of " All Hail His
Wisdom the Defender !" The students assembled in
the grounds of Harvard shouted with their clarion
voices, "Rah! Rah! Rah! the Defender!" As the
sun went its round the cry rose from every continent
and from all the islands of the great ocean in every
language spoken by man.
A yet more human interest in the great character
was stirred up when it became known that it had
been responsive to the gentler sentiments of our hu-
manity, and that the world's most beautiful palace
was to be presided over by one of the most lovely
of her sex. How did it come about? This is the
328
Rah! Rah! Rah! the Defender!
one great secret of Uraniburg which has never been
divulged, and which men were too much occupied
with passing events to pry into. Hardly a month
after the cry we have described, another rose with
equal volume " All Hail Her Wisdom the De-
fendress !"
Why should we go on with a history known to
every school-child ? Not an intelligent youth in this
land but can tell something of the great world's
congress and its work; how the principle that every
people the weak as well as the strong should
enjoy liberty and independence was established and
accepted by all; how the strongest nations found
their interests and the welfare of their people pro-
moted by the submission of all disputes to a common
arbitrator; how the fact that a nation could extend
its trade to every land without the use of force was
proved by experience, until men came to wonder
that any other policy had ever been pursued.
And one need not even go to school to learn what
the Def endress did for suffering humanity how,
commanding the great wealth of the Anita Company,
she became such a Sister of Mercy to the afflicted of
the world that as long as she lived, and after her
death, she was called in every language of the world
" Tiana the Blessed."
THE END
BY H. GK WELLS
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" This romance of the twenty-second century," as the London
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London.
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HP* 'Either of the above works will be sent by mail, postage prepaid,
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PS
