The Project Gutenberg eBook of The deep space scrolls
This ebook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and
most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions
whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms
of the Project Gutenberg License included with this ebook or online
at www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States,
you will have to check the laws of the country where you are located
before using this eBook.
Title: The deep space scrolls
Author: Robert F. Young
Release date: December 4, 2023 [eBook #72311]
Language: English
Original publication: New York, NY: Ziff-Davis Publishing Company, 1963
Credits: Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net
*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE DEEP SPACE SCROLLS ***
The Deep Space Scrolls
By ROBERT F. YOUNG
Illustrated by SCHELLING
_Robert F. Young, who has so felicitously mined
the fields of mythology for sf themes, poses a
question about one of our most basic racial
memories--and about the nature of our concept of God._
[Transcriber's Note: This etext was produced from
Amazing Stories May 1963
Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that
the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.]
_Following is a transcript of the closed hearing conducted June
18, 1969 by the Special Senate Committee to Survey Space Progress.
Committee chairman: Senator Larch. Committee members in attendance:
Senators Kuell, Nicholson, and Hewlett. Witness: Lieutenant Colonel
Willard S. Greaves, companion-pilot of the_ Camaraderie 17.
TRANSCRIPTS:
SEN. LARCH: Before getting down to the business on hand, Colonel
Greaves, I would like to congratulate you on behalf of my colleagues
and myself on your participation in last week's successful orbital
flight of the _Camaraderie 17_. Yours and Commander Perkins'
achievement stands out as a glowing landmark on the perilous path which
this country is blazing into space. Also, I would like to point out
to you that the governing principle behind this committee since its
inception one year and three months ago has not been to bury astronauts
but to praise them, and that the present investigation is not intended
to cast umbrage upon your integrity but to clarify certain aspects
of your experience that both we and the public-at-large have found
confusing. Now, to proceed: You and Commander Perkins lifted out of New
Canaveral in the supercapsule _Camaraderie 17_ at 0659 hours on the
tenth of June, 1969, and began a three-orbit flight the apogee of which
was approximately 1,400 miles, the perigee of which was approximately
1,290 miles, and the purpose of which was to test your reactions to
deep space--that is, space beyond the perimeter of the orbital flights
thus far undertaken--preparatory to the launching of the first manned
moon-vehicle. Is that correct, Colonel Greaves?
LT. COL. GREAVES: That is correct.
SEN. LARCH: Exactly when and where during this three-orbit flight did
you and Commander Perkins first sight the ghost ship, colonel?
SEN. HEWLETT: May I interpose a word at this point, Senator Larch?
SEN. LARCH: Please do so, Senator Hewlett.
SEN. HEWLETT: Thank you. It is my opinion, senator, that in referring
to the ship boarded by Colonel Greaves as a 'ghost ship' we are lending
too large an ear to the somewhat sensational nomenclature with which
the press has discolored the incident, and are peradventure implying
official sanction to irresponsible reporting. Therefore, I recommend
that in the future, or until such time as evidence justifies a more
specific appellation, we allude to the object in question by the
designation first accorded it by the officials at New Canaveral:
'Spaceship X'.
SEN. LARCH: Very well, senator. I will repeat the question: Exactly
when and where during this three-orbit flight, Colonel Greaves, did you
and Commander Perkins first sight Spaceship X?
LT. COL. GREAVES: On the first pass, just after we reported in to
central control via the Australian relay station. In accordance with
instructions, Perk--Commander Perkins, that is--had taken the capsule
off automatic attitude control and begun an experimental series of
rolls, pitches, and yaws on manual control. We had no idea of the--of
Spaceship X's presence till it appeared suddenly upon the periscope
screen. Instantly Perk stabilized the capsule in its present attitude
and began making the minute attitudinal adjustments necessary to keep
the image on the screen.
SEN. LARCH: What was the position of the ship with relation to the
_Camaraderie 17_?
LT. COL. GREAVES: It was about half a mile 'above' and behind us, and
slightly to the north of our trajectory. We saw at once that it was
gradually overtaking us and that we were gradually rising to meet it.
SEN. LARCH: And the implications of these factors were?--
LT. COL. GREAVES: That Spaceship X was traveling at a greater velocity
than the _Camaraderie 17_, and that its orbit considerably exceeded
our own. However, owing to the eccentricity of our orbit, the two
trajectories were approaching, and would parallel each other before,
during, and slightly after apogee, during which time the two spacecraft
would be close enough to each other to permit a boarding attempt.
* * * * *
SEN. LARCH: Will you describe Spaceship X for us, Colonel Greaves?
LT. COL. GREAVES: Yes. It was roughly cylindrical in shape, and
constructed of a dead-black, nonreflective metal. Only one viewport
was visible to us--a small one just aft of the lock--and this viewport
proved to be the only one the ship possessed. Perk and I estimated
the vessel's length at about five hundred feet, its breadth at about
eighty-five feet, and its depth--as I said, it was only roughly
cylindrical--at about fifty feet. In view of later developments,
I think it safe to say that these estimates were close to being
one-hundred percent correct.
SEN. LARCH: Are you positive that they are your original estimates,
colonel? Are you certain that you did not revise them in order to
substantiate the conclusion you arrived at after boarding the vessel?
LT. COL. GREAVES: Those are our original estimates.
SEN. KUELL: Senator, may I have a word?
SEN. LARCH: Please proceed, Senator Kuell.
SEN. KUELL: Colonel Greaves, I'm sure you realize what a grave bearing
yours and Commander Perkins' discovery can have upon religious beliefs
throughout the world should the conclusion you arrived at prove to be
correct. Therefore, I'm sure that you won't take it amiss if I press
this matter of dimensions a bit further. Now a cubit, as all of us
present are well aware of, represents the length of the human arm from
the end of the middle finger to the elbow--a matter of from eighteen to
twenty-two inches. We have, in other words, a variation of five inches.
Hence three hundred cubits, broken down into feet, varies from four
hundred and fifty feet to five hundred and fifty feet; fifty cubits,
broken down into feet, varies from seventy-five feet to ninety-one and
one half feet; and thirty cubits, broken down into feet, varies from
forty-five feet to fifty-five feet. Now, if we calculate the average of
each of these sets of figures, we arrive at the following dimensions:
length--five hundred feet; breadth--eighty-three and one fourth feet;
and depth or height--fifty feet. Does it not strike you as being
highly significant, Colonel Greaves, that yours and Commander Perkins'
estimates should have thus fortuitously approximated--and two cases
actually have coincided with--these figures, and isn't it reasonable to
assume that you revised your true original estimates so that they would
accord with your subsequent theory as to the nature of Spaceship X, and
that the actual dimensions of Spaceship X may be altogether different
from those which you ascribe to it?
LT. COL. GREAVES: Again, I can only say that the estimates I gave you
were our original estimates. We had no need to revise them and we would
not have revised them even if the need had arisen.
SEN. KUELL: Then why weren't they radioed back to central control
coincidentally with your announcement that you had sighted--and I
use your own words--'what appears to be a spaceship of stupendous
proportions'? Why were they withheld until after you had re-boarded the
_Camaraderie 17_?
LT. COL. GREAVES: They were not withheld in the sense that you
imply. Perk and I simply decided that it would be better to wait
until we approached Spaceship X more closely before radioing in a
detailed description, but when the time came, we were so busy making
preparations for boarding that we forgot the matter completely.
SEN. KUELL: Thank you, colonel. Please proceed with your questioning,
Senator Larch.
* * * * *
SEN. LARCH: Tell me, Colonel Greaves--why were you and Commander
Perkins so determined to board Spaceship X?
LT. COL. GREAVES: Because we knew that this would be our only chance.
The difference in the two orbits was such that the forthcoming
juxtaposition of the two craft could not occur again for weeks and
possibly months and consequently could not occur again at all since our
flight was limited to three orbits. In addition, there was the strong
possibility that Spaceship X, owing to the nonreflective nature of the
metal of which it was constructed, might never be relocated. It had,
after all, gone undetected up till now. We felt that the situation had
all of the earmarks of a heaven-sent opportunity, and that it would be
a shame not to take advantage of it.
SEN. LARCH: Did it not occur to you that the vessel might be an
advanced Vostok model of some kind, and that it might be manned?
LT. COL. GREAVES: We knew without even having to discuss the matter
that while the Russians would have been capable of building such a
ship, launching it with their present boosters would have been out of
the question.
SEN. LARCH: But it did occur to you that the vessel might be manned by,
shall we say, extra-terrestrial intelligences?
LT. COL. GREAVES: Yes it did. As a matter of fact, we were convinced
that it must be manned by beings of some sort--until we got close
enough to see the meteor holes in the hull. We knew then that while it
might once have been manned, it was manned no more--save, perhaps, by
dead men. We also knew that in order for it to have suffered that many
meteor penetrations, it must have been in space for millennia.
SEN. LARCH: You assumed this latter contingency--isn't that what you
mean, colonel? You couldn't possibly have known it for a certainty.
LT. COL. GREAVES: Granted. But later developments bore us out.
SEN. LARCH: Let's get down to those later developments, shall we?
Suppose we start from the moment you radioed the news of your discovery
back to central control. What did you do then?
LT. COL. GREAVES: We estimated when juxtaposition would occur and how
long it would endure, then radioed the information back to central
control together with the information that this was the only time
during our flight that it could occur. Finally we requested permission
for one of us to board the other craft.
SEN. LARCH: I understand that you stated that in view of the fact that
the ship was unmanned and that its attitude was relatively stable, the
danger involved would be negligible. Was this entirely true, colonel?
LT. COL. GREAVES: Entirely. As you know, senator, orbital rendezvous
have been achieved many times, both by this country and by the Soviet
Union, and in several instances actual transference has taken place.
The instance in question seems dangerous merely because the rendezvous
was fortuitous rather than planned. Fortuitous or not, however, it
posed no unusual problems, and there were two possible means of entry
virtually staring us in the face.
* * * * *
SEN. LARCH: During your press interview, you referred to one of these
entry points as a 'boat bay'. Will you elaborate further?
LT. COL. GREAVES: Yes. It was a large recessed area in the hull where
the auxiliary craft used by the passengers and the crew when they
disembarked had been moored. A lock gave onto this area, and I was
reasonably certain that I could burn my way into the ship with the
small acetylene torch that was part of the _Camaraderie 17's_ hardware.
This seems a rather naive assumption on my part in the light of the
analysis of the fragment of metal I brought back, but I had no way of
knowing at the time that the hull, however susceptible it might be
to meteors, was utterly impervious in a number of other respects. In
any event, as matters turned out I didn't have to use the torch, for
the boat-bay lock had been improperly sealed by the last person to
disembark.
SEN. NICHOLSON: Senator Larch, I would like to have the floor for a few
moments.
SEN. LARCH: Very well, Senator Nicholson.
SEN. NICHOLSON: To return to this sample piece of metal you brought
back with you, Colonel Greaves: During your press interview you
described it as 'a fragment of gopherwood'. In all honesty, colonel,
don't you think that this was a rather flippant and ill-considered
remark, and that by making it, you lent undue credence to what was--and
is--at best, an exceedingly tenuous theory?
LT. COL. GREAVES: I do not consider the remark to have been either
flippant or ill-considered. I was asked what I thought the metal was,
and I gave an honest answer. Furthermore, my immediate superiors agree
with me. Gopherwood has never been identified, and the term could very
well refer to the alloy that went into the construction of Spaceship X.
SEN. NICHOLSON: I shudder to think of the blow our international
prestige will receive should the scrolls you brought back with you
fail to validate your conclusions. Our space program will become the
laughingstock of the entire world. I simply cannot understand why
greater secrecy was not employed in this matter.
LT. COL. GREAVES: Too much of the story had already been made public
through radio and television coverage to make denying it practicable.
In any event, I'm certain that the scrolls will provide the necessary
proof. According to Dr. Noyes, they contain similarities to one of the
early Mediterranean alphabets, and this certainly suggests that the
descendants of whoever wrote them must have had something to do with
the development of that alphabet.
SEN. LARCH: Do you have any further questions, Senator Nicholson?
SEN. NICHOLSON: Not for the moment--no.
SEN. LARCH: I will proceed then. You and Commander Perkins are of equal
rank, Colonel Greaves. May I ask how you ascertained which of you would
do the boarding after authorization to do so came through?
LT. COL. GREAVES: Flipping a coin was out of the question of course,
and we had no straws or matches. Finally we agreed that since our wives
were of similar build and height, each of us would write down his
wife's weight on a slip of paper, and that the one of us whose wife
weighed the most would do the boarding. We promised to be completely
honest about this. I won by a margin of three pounds.
SEN. LARCH: I see. And have you apprised your wife of this ... ah ...
_modus operandi_?
LT. COL. GREAVES: As a matter of fact, I have not.
SEN. LARCH: A wise decision indeed. And now, colonel, will you tell us
what you did and what you found after boarding Spaceship X?
* * * * *
LT. COL. GREAVES: As I mentioned earlier, the boat-bay lock had
been improperly sealed. Consequently I had no trouble opening it.
The inner boat-bay lock proved to have been improperly sealed also,
and I concluded from this that the action in both cases had been
deliberate--that Spaceship X had not only been abandoned, but that
it had been abandoned in such a way as to make future use of it
impossible. After entering the ship proper, I found myself in a short
passageway. I floated along it, pulling myself forward by means of
this protuberance and that and propelling myself, whenever possible,
by pushing against the bulkheads with my feet. There was no light
save for an occasional ray of starlight seeping through the meteor
perforations, and my only effective means of illumination was the
electric torch I had brought with me from the _Camaraderie 17_. It
left much to be desired. Presently the passageway gave into a large
chamber which, judging from its rows of bolted-down benches and its
centrally located dais, was a meeting hall of some kind. I did not
linger there--Perk and I had estimated that at most I had only fifteen
minutes to carry out my explorations--but turned, and proceeded aft,
entering another passageway, this one much higher and longer than the
first. On either side, compartments were arranged in tiers, and each
of the tiers above deck-level was fronted by a catwalk. I entered
several of the compartments and looked around, but I saw nothing in
each case but a bunk-like bed and a small chest. The beds were bare,
and the chests were empty. Continuing on down the passageway, I came
to another chamber, this one, judging from its bolted-down tables and
benches, and the utensils drifting about, a combination dining room
and galley. Again, I did not linger. My primary interest was the power
source that had once propelled, illuminated and heated the ship, and
had provided it with artificial gravity, and I reasoned that I would
find this source in the stern. I was right, but before I located it I
came to still another chamber. This one was huge, and it was filled
with cages. All of them were empty, but they set me to thinking. For
one thing, there were hundreds of them. For another, they ranged in
size from tiny to titanic. For another, each of them struck me as
having been built to accommodate not one animal, but two or more. I
remembered the innumerable meteor penetrations, and the great age they
implied. I remembered that in the vacuum and in the absolute zero of
space, corrosion and decay are unknown and that under such conditions
objects can be preserved for millennia. I remembered the dimensions of
the ship. It couldn't be, and yet--
SEN. LARCH: Please confine your account to what you saw and what you
did, Colonel Greaves.
LT. COL. GREAVES: Very well. The chamber housing the power source, when
I finally located it, proved to be quite small. The source itself was
an ion motor. It had been thoroughly and deliberately smashed, and both
its condition and its advanced design prevented me from being able to
tell very much about it, but I _could_ tell, nevertheless, that while
it had been capable of powering the ship in space, it could never have
launched the ship from a planet, assuming that said planet's gravity
approximated Earth's. Launching a ship the size of that one took some
doing, and I take off my hat to the technicians who accomplished it.
SEN. LARCH: They just might have built the ship in space, you know.
LT. COL. GREAVES: I have reason to believe otherwise, but if they had,
I'd still take my hat off to them.
* * * * *
SEN. LARCH: All of which indicates, does it not, that we are dealing
with a race of people scientifically superior to our own.
LT. COL. GREAVES: It does.
SEN. LARCH: Then, assuming for the moment that your theory is valid,
doesn't it strike you as highly improbable that the sole survivors of
so scientifically advanced a race would, immediately after landing on
Earth, take up primitive husbandry?
LT. COL. GREAVES: No, it does not. I think that in undertaking the
voyage to Earth, the passengers and the crew of Spaceship X meant to
leave far more behind them than the natural catastrophe--probably a
tectonic revolution--that had occasioned their exodus. I think that
they meant to leave behind them a way of life which they had come to
loathe because it had supplied them with false gods, and I think that
once they landed on Earth and dispersed, they threw this way of life
over their shoulders and deliberately reverted to the thoughtworld and
the religious cosmogony of their remote ancestors. In other words, I
think that they used the natural disaster that forced them to migrate
to another planet as an excuse to begin all over again, and that they
burned their bridges behind them so that they would _have_ to begin all
over again. Probably they blew up the auxiliary craft, or lifeboat,
and every technological gadget it contained the very same day they
landed.... Earth, in those days, must have seemed like a promised land
indeed. Green, fertile, relatively unpeopled.... They had no way of
knowing, probably, that inter-marriage with the natives would soon
decimate their average life-expectancy.
* * * * *
SEN. LARCH: Wouldn't you say that you're indulging in some rather wild
surmises, Colonel Greaves?
LT. COL. GREAVES: Not at all. I think that the find I made shortly
after returning to the forward part of the ship justifies everything
I've said.
SEN. LARCH: You're referring, no doubt, to the 'dove'. Very well--go
on, Colonel Greaves.
LT. COL. GREAVES: I had some five minutes remaining when I got back
to the large hall from which I had begun my explorations, and I knew
that I would have to hurry if I expected to see the rest of the ship.
Crossing the hall, I passed through a wide entrance and found myself
at the base of a spiral companionway. I propelled myself up the metal
stairs, and a few minutes later, found myself on the bridge. The first
object my torch beam picked up was a huge viewscreen. When activated,
it must have provided a splendid view of space, but now of course the
screen was blank. Next to the screen stood a long desk, and on this
desk lay the ship's log--the metallic scrolls which had been left
behind (deliberately, I believe) and which are now being deciphered
by Dr. Noyes and his staff. In addition to the viewscreen and the
desk, the bridge contained a complex sextant, and an instrument panel
so intricate that compared to it, our panel on the _Camaraderie 17_
seemed like a primitive abacus. To the right of the panel, a doorway
opened into another sequence of compartments. As there were only four
of them and as they were obviously much more spacious than the previous
compartments I had found, I concluded that I had blundered into
officers' country. One of the compartments appeared to be considerably
larger than the other three, and believing it to be the captain's,
I looked into it first. I learned nothing beyond the fact that two
people, not one, had occupied it. I found this to be the case with the
three remaining compartments, and concluded that the four officers had
had their wives with them. Finally I returned to the bridge. I had
only two minutes to go now, and I probably would have propelled myself
straight back down the companionway (I had already taken possession of
the scrolls) if the 'dove' hadn't caught my eye. That's exactly what
I thought of when my torch beam picked up the object bracketed to the
bulkhead--a dove. A dove in flight. Investigating, I learned that it
was a streamlined telescopic camera the lens of which were probably
located somewhere in the ventral region of the hull. The 'wings' were
merely a device for centering the image and focusing the lens, while
the 'body' provided the housing for the automatic developing unit
and served as a receptacle for the finished photograph. The final
photograph to have been taken and never been removed, and it stood out
vividly in the beam of my torch. It was a photograph of an olive grove.
By now, my time had just about run out, and I removed the photograph
from the 'dove', returned to the boat-bay area, picking up a fragment
of meteor-dislodged metal on my way, and regained the _Camaraderie 17_.
SEN. KUELL: It is imperative that I interpose a few words at this
point, Senator Larch.
SEN. LARCH: Please go ahead, Senator Kuell.
* * * * *
SEN. KUELL: Colonel Greaves, I am of course familiar with this
photograph you brought back, but, while the general trend of your
reasoning is apparent to me, I cannot comprehend how so insignificant
a discovery could have set so unorthodox a train of thought in motion.
The fact that the photograph depicts an olive grove means absolutely
nothing, even when brought into juxtaposition with the concomitant fact
that the camera used in taking and developing it was shaped like a
dove. How could you possibly have arrived at the conclusion you did?
LT. COL. GREAVES: Because my 'train of thought', as you call it, was
already in motion and had been in motion for some time. The camera
and the photograph were merely the final clues in a whole series of
clues: the ship's dimensions, its obvious age, the cages, the large
compartment in the officers' section, and the three smaller ones....
With the discovery of the camera and the photograph, everything fell
into place.
SEN. KUELL: _Everything_, colonel? I can think of any number of
details that your theory does not explain. What of Xithuthros, Prithu,
and Ut-napishtim? What of Deucalion and Pyrrha? Would you have me
believe that _they_ were aboard this streamlined space-scow of yours?
LT. COL. GREAVES: In a sense they were. All versions of the legend
are based on handed-down memories of the voyage of Spaceship X from
Planet X to Earth, but the concept of space being beyond the scope of
primitive minds, the two planets were made into one, and the survivors
of the disaster were pictured not as fleeing from one planet to
another, but as sweating out the debacle in a craft that never left
Earth. The religious cosmogony which the survivors reverted to after
spreading out among the early civilized sectors of the world was
adapted in various ways, but the most authentic version, I believe,
comes down to us through Genesis, since it was in the region that later
became known as Judea that the captain of Spaceship X and his three
officers settled down.
SEN. KUELL: All of this is pure conjecture, colonel. You haven't so
much as a single fact to go on.
LT. COL. GREAVES: You're forgetting--are you not, senator?--that a
blow-up of the photograph of the olive grove revealed several pieces
of pottery in _good_ condition that the experts agreed dated from the
late Neolithic Period.
SEN. KUELL: You're forgetting--are you not, colonel?--that a vast
difference exists between an olive _grove_ and an olive _leaf_. And how
do you explain why these ancient voyageurs of yours brought animals
with them? More important, how do you explain what became of these
animals? Surely if they had been landed, some evidence of them would
remain, and just as surely, that evidence would have come to light by
now.
LT. COL. GREAVES: Maybe they were brought along out of compassion.
More probably, they were brought along because the survivors were
flesh-eaters. In either case, you can be certain that they were
transported from the mother-ship to Earth. As to why no evidence of
their existence has ever been found, isn't it reasonable to assume that
Planet X paralleled Earth in lower, as well as higher, forms of life?
SEN. KUELL: Only if you're trying to shore up a theory that is about
to collapse. But it will do you no good, Colonel Greaves: the text of
Genesis confutes your entire contention.
LT. COL. GREAVES: On the contrary, the text of Genesis substantiates my
contention. Let me quote one or two passages by way of illustration.
'--the same day were all the fountains of the great deep broken up,
and the windows of heaven were opened.' This is race memory coming
to the fore in the form of an imagery so strong that it survives
translation, and with the aid of a little imagination, the passage can
be interpreted to mean that all is in readiness for the launching.
'And the waters prevailed exceedingly upon the earth: and all the
high hills that were under the whole heaven were covered'. If you
will substitute 'distances' for 'waters' and 'over' for 'upon', you
will obtain a fairly clear mental picture of a planet fading from
sight in the viewscreen of a departing spaceship. And how about the
'stories' referred to in the building specification? '--with lower,
second, and third stories shalt thou make it'? Those weren't 'stories',
senator--they were stages. Rocket stages. The number of rocket stages
that would be required to launch a ship the size of Spaceship X into
space.
* * * * *
SEN. KUELL: I submit, colonel, that your reasoning is defective. I
submit furthermore that it is not the sort of reasoning which normal
well-adjusted Americans indulge in, and I hereby recommend to this
committee that both yours and Commander Perkins' qualifications be
reexamined at the earliest possible opportunity and that both of you be
relieved from duty until such time as it can satisfactorily be proven
that both of you have recovered from your hallucinatory experience.
LT. COL. GREAVES: But the scrolls I brought back aren't hallucinatory,
senator. Neither is the fragment of--of--yes, of gopherwood. And
certainly the photograph is real enough.
SEN. KUELL: Granted. But I have grave doubts about some of the other
items you have called to our attention. I'm afraid you're going to be
in for a rather rude awakening, Colonel Greaves, when Dr. Noyes and his
staff finish deciphering the scrolls. Gopherwood indeed!
SEN. LARCH: Excuse me, senator. I have just been handed a telegram from
Dr. Noyes. It--it would appear that they have deciphered the scrolls
already. I will read the telegram aloud: 'Deep Space Scrolls prove
Spaceship X to be Noah's Ark beyond vestige of a doubt--Noyes'.
_An extended silence._
* * * * *
SEN. NICHOLSON: I hereby resolve that this hearing be adjourned and
that a transcript of the proceedings be made public immediately.
SEN. KUELL: Gentlemen, I implore you not to act hastily in this matter.
Don't you see that if we accept Dr. Noyes' word as final, we will
be obligated to accept as fact that the concept of one God did not
originate on Earth, but somewhere out there in the wastes of space?
We will be obligated to admit that Earth was not the purpose of all
creation, but only a sort of afterthought?
SEN. HEWLETT: Gentlemen, I emphatically disagree. We are now obligated
to do what we should have done before: to really accept God as the
creator of the universe as we have come to know it. I hereby move that
we shed our geocentric cloaks once and for all and start looking upon
space not as a bête noir which circumstance and the Soviet Union have
forced us to come to grips with but as a great star-flowered sea upon
which we should have ventured long ago. That God is far beyond the pale
of our picayune conception of Him is a fact that we have known all
along but which we have refused to live with because we would have had
Him be as small and as petty as we are. Let us resolve from this moment
on that when we say 'Almighty' we mean 'Almighty' beyond peradventure
of a doubt. Gentlemen, we have roots among the stars! Let us lift off
from this dust mote on the doorstep of reality and wing our way into
the majestic hall of universe and go asearching for the planet of our
birth!
SEN. LARCH: Amen.
END OF TRANSCRIPT
*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE DEEP SPACE SCROLLS ***
Updated editions will replace the previous one—the old editions will
be renamed.
Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright
law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works,
so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United
States without permission and without paying copyright
royalties. Special rules, set forth in the General Terms of Use part
of this license, apply to copying and distributing Project
Gutenberg™ electronic works to protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG™
concept and trademark. Project Gutenberg is a registered trademark,
and may not be used if you charge for an eBook, except by following
the terms of the trademark license, including paying royalties for use
of the Project Gutenberg trademark. If you do not charge anything for
copies of this eBook, complying with the trademark license is very
easy. You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose such as creation
of derivative works, reports, performances and research. Project
Gutenberg eBooks may be modified and printed and given away—you may
do practically ANYTHING in the United States with eBooks not protected
by U.S. copyright law. Redistribution is subject to the trademark
license, especially commercial redistribution.
START: FULL LICENSE
THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE
PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK
To protect the Project Gutenberg™ mission of promoting the free
distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work
(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase “Project
Gutenberg”), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full
Project Gutenberg™ License available with this file or online at
www.gutenberg.org/license.
Section 1. General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg™
electronic works
1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg™
electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to
and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property
(trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to abide by all
the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or
destroy all copies of Project Gutenberg™ electronic works in your
possession. If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a
Project Gutenberg™ electronic work and you do not agree to be bound
by the terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person
or entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8.
1.B. “Project Gutenberg” is a registered trademark. It may only be
used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who
agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. There are a few
things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg™ electronic works
even without complying with the full terms of this agreement. See
paragraph 1.C below. There are a lot of things you can do with Project
Gutenberg™ electronic works if you follow the terms of this
agreement and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg™
electronic works. See paragraph 1.E below.
1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation (“the
Foundation” or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection
of Project Gutenberg™ electronic works. Nearly all the individual
works in the collection are in the public domain in the United
States. If an individual work is unprotected by copyright law in the
United States and you are located in the United States, we do not
claim a right to prevent you from copying, distributing, performing,
displaying or creating derivative works based on the work as long as
all references to Project Gutenberg are removed. Of course, we hope
that you will support the Project Gutenberg™ mission of promoting
free access to electronic works by freely sharing Project Gutenberg™
works in compliance with the terms of this agreement for keeping the
Project Gutenberg™ name associated with the work. You can easily
comply with the terms of this agreement by keeping this work in the
same format with its attached full Project Gutenberg™ License when
you share it without charge with others.
1.D. The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern
what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most countries are
in a constant state of change. If you are outside the United States,
check the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this
agreement before downloading, copying, displaying, performing,
distributing or creating derivative works based on this work or any
other Project Gutenberg™ work. The Foundation makes no
representations concerning the copyright status of any work in any
country other than the United States.
1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg:
1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other
immediate access to, the full Project Gutenberg™ License must appear
prominently whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg™ work (any work
on which the phrase “Project Gutenberg” appears, or with which the
phrase “Project Gutenberg” is associated) is accessed, displayed,
performed, viewed, copied or distributed:
This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most
other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions
whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms
of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online
at www.gutenberg.org. If you
are not located in the United States, you will have to check the laws
of the country where you are located before using this eBook.
1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg™ electronic work is
derived from texts not protected by U.S. copyright law (does not
contain a notice indicating that it is posted with permission of the
copyright holder), the work can be copied and distributed to anyone in
the United States without paying any fees or charges. If you are
redistributing or providing access to a work with the phrase “Project
Gutenberg” associated with or appearing on the work, you must comply
either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 or
obtain permission for the use of the work and the Project Gutenberg™
trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or 1.E.9.
1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg™ electronic work is posted
with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution
must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any
additional terms imposed by the copyright holder. Additional terms
will be linked to the Project Gutenberg™ License for all works
posted with the permission of the copyright holder found at the
beginning of this work.
1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg™
License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this
work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg™.
1.E.5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this
electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without
prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with
active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project
Gutenberg™ License.
1.E.6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary,
compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including
any word processing or hypertext form. However, if you provide access
to or distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg™ work in a format
other than “Plain Vanilla ASCII” or other format used in the official
version posted on the official Project Gutenberg™ website
(www.gutenberg.org), you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense
to the user, provide a copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means
of obtaining a copy upon request, of the work in its original “Plain
Vanilla ASCII” or other form. Any alternate format must include the
full Project Gutenberg™ License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1.
1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying,
performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg™ works
unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9.
1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing
access to or distributing Project Gutenberg™ electronic works
provided that:
• You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from
the use of Project Gutenberg™ works calculated using the method
you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is owed
to the owner of the Project Gutenberg™ trademark, but he has
agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the Project
Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty payments must be paid
within 60 days following each date on which you prepare (or are
legally required to prepare) your periodic tax returns. Royalty
payments should be clearly marked as such and sent to the Project
Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the address specified in
Section 4, “Information about donations to the Project Gutenberg
Literary Archive Foundation.”
• You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies
you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he
does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg™
License. You must require such a user to return or destroy all
copies of the works possessed in a physical medium and discontinue
all use of and all access to other copies of Project Gutenberg™
works.
• You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of
any money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the
electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days of
receipt of the work.
• You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free
distribution of Project Gutenberg™ works.
1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project
Gutenberg™ electronic work or group of works on different terms than
are set forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing
from the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the manager of
the Project Gutenberg™ trademark. Contact the Foundation as set
forth in Section 3 below.
1.F.
1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable
effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread
works not protected by U.S. copyright law in creating the Project
Gutenberg™ collection. Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg™
electronic works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may
contain “Defects,” such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate
or corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other
intellectual property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or
other medium, a computer virus, or computer codes that damage or
cannot be read by your equipment.
1.F.2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the “Right
of Replacement or Refund” described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project
Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project
Gutenberg™ trademark, and any other party distributing a Project
Gutenberg™ electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all
liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal
fees. YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT
LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE
PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH 1.F.3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE
TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE
LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR
INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH
DAMAGE.
1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a
defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can
receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a
written explanation to the person you received the work from. If you
received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium
with your written explanation. The person or entity that provided you
with the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in
lieu of a refund. If you received the work electronically, the person
or entity providing it to you may choose to give you a second
opportunity to receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund. If
the second copy is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing
without further opportunities to fix the problem.
1.F.4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth
in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you ‘AS-IS’, WITH NO
OTHER WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT
LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE.
1.F.5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied
warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of
damages. If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement
violates the law of the state applicable to this agreement, the
agreement shall be interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or
limitation permitted by the applicable state law. The invalidity or
unenforceability of any provision of this agreement shall not void the
remaining provisions.
1.F.6. INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the
trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone
providing copies of Project Gutenberg™ electronic works in
accordance with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the
production, promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg™
electronic works, harmless from all liability, costs and expenses,
including legal fees, that arise directly or indirectly from any of
the following which you do or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this
or any Project Gutenberg™ work, (b) alteration, modification, or
additions or deletions to any Project Gutenberg™ work, and (c) any
Defect you cause.
Section 2. Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg™
Project Gutenberg™ is synonymous with the free distribution of
electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of
computers including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers. It
exists because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations
from people in all walks of life.
Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the
assistance they need are critical to reaching Project Gutenberg™’s
goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg™ collection will
remain freely available for generations to come. In 2001, the Project
Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure
and permanent future for Project Gutenberg™ and future
generations. To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary
Archive Foundation and how your efforts and donations can help, see
Sections 3 and 4 and the Foundation information page at www.gutenberg.org.
Section 3. Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation
The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non-profit
501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the
state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal
Revenue Service. The Foundation’s EIN or federal tax identification
number is 64-6221541. Contributions to the Project Gutenberg Literary
Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent permitted by
U.S. federal laws and your state’s laws.
The Foundation’s business office is located at 809 North 1500 West,
Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887. Email contact links and up
to date contact information can be found at the Foundation’s website
and official page at www.gutenberg.org/contact
Section 4. Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg
Literary Archive Foundation
Project Gutenberg™ depends upon and cannot survive without widespread
public support and donations to carry out its mission of
increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be
freely distributed in machine-readable form accessible by the widest
array of equipment including outdated equipment. Many small donations
($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt
status with the IRS.
The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating
charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United
States. Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a
considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up
with these requirements. We do not solicit donations in locations
where we have not received written confirmation of compliance. To SEND
DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any particular state
visit www.gutenberg.org/donate.
While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we
have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition
against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who
approach us with offers to donate.
International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make
any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from
outside the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff.
Please check the Project Gutenberg web pages for current donation
methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a number of other
ways including checks, online payments and credit card donations. To
donate, please visit: www.gutenberg.org/donate.
Section 5. General Information About Project Gutenberg™ electronic works
Professor Michael S. Hart was the originator of the Project
Gutenberg™ concept of a library of electronic works that could be
freely shared with anyone. For forty years, he produced and
distributed Project Gutenberg™ eBooks with only a loose network of
volunteer support.
Project Gutenberg™ eBooks are often created from several printed
editions, all of which are confirmed as not protected by copyright in
the U.S. unless a copyright notice is included. Thus, we do not
necessarily keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper
edition.
Most people start at our website which has the main PG search
facility: www.gutenberg.org.
This website includes information about Project Gutenberg™,
including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary
Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to
subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks.
