The Project Gutenberg EBook of Weak on Square Roots, by Russell Burton
This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere 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
Title: Weak on Square Roots
Author: Russell Burton
Illustrator: Tom Beecham
Release Date: September 13, 2009 [EBook #29976]
Language: English
*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK WEAK ON SQUARE ROOTS ***
Produced by Greg Weeks, Stephen Blundell and the Online
Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net
_Does your wife call you Pumpkinhead? Well, maybe
it's _not_ an insult; it might be a pet name.
Ah--but _whose_ pet name?_
_WEAK_ ON SQUARE ROOTS
_By Russell Burton_
Illustrated by TOM BEECHAM
As his coach sped through dusk-darkened Jersey meadows, Ronald Lovegear,
fourteen years with Allied Electronix, embraced his burden with both
arms, silently cursing the engineer who was deliberately rocking the
train. In his thin chest he nursed the conviction that someday there
would be an intelligent robot at the throttle of the 5:10 to
Philadelphia.
He carefully moved one hand and took a notebook from his pocket. That
would be a good thing to mention at the office next Monday.
Again he congratulated himself for having induced his superiors to let
him take home the company's most highly developed mechanism to date. He
had already forgiven himself for the little white lie that morning.
"Pascal," he had told them, "is a little weak on square roots." That had
done it!
Old Hardwick would never permit an Allied computer to hit the market
that was not the absolute master of square roots. If Lovegear wanted to
work on Pascal on his own time it was fine with the boss.
Ronald Lovegear consulted his watch. He wondered if his wife would be on
time. He had told Corinne twice over the phone to bring the station
wagon to meet him. But she had been so forgetful lately. It was probably
the new house; six rooms to keep up without a maid was quite a chore.
His pale eyes blinked. He had a few ideas along that line too. He smiled
and gave the crate a gentle pat.
* * * * *
Corinne was at the station, and she had brought the station wagon.
Lovegear managed to get the crate to the stairs of the coach where he
consented to the assistance of a porter.
[Illustration]
"It's not really heavy," he told Corinne as he and the porter waddled
through the crowd. "Actually only 57 pounds, four ounces. Aluminum
casing, you know ..."
"No, I didn't ..." began Corinne.
"But it's delicate," he continued. "If I should drop this ..." He
shuddered.
After the crate had been placed lengthwise in the rear of the station
wagon, Corinne watched Ronald tuck a blanket around it.
"It's not very cold, Ronald."
"I don't want it to get bounced around," he said. "Now, please, Corinne,
do drive carefully." Not until she had driven half a block did he kiss
her on the cheek. Then he glanced anxiously over his shoulder at the
rear seat. Once he thought Corinne hit a rut that could have been
avoided.
Long after Corinne had retired that night she heard Ronald pounding with
a brass hammer down in his den. At first she had insisted he take the
crate out to his workshop. He looked at her with scientific aloofness
and asked if she had the slightest conception of what "this is worth?"
She hadn't, and she went to bed. It was only another one of his gestures
which was responsible for these weird dreams. That night she dreamed
Ronald brought home a giant octopus which insisted on doing the dishes
for her. In the morning she woke up feeling unwanted.
Downstairs Ronald had already put on the coffee. He was wearing his robe
and the pinched greyness of his face told Corinne he had been up half
the night. He poured coffee for her, smiling wanly. "If I have any
commitments today, Corinne, will you please see that they are taken care
of?"
"But you were supposed to get the wallpaper for the guest room...."
"I know, I know, dear. But time is so short. They might want Pascal
back any day. For the next week or two I shall want to devote most of
my time ..."
"_Pascal?_"
"Yes. The machine--the computer." He smiled at her ignorance. "We
usually name the expensive jobs. You see, a computer of this nature is
really the heart and soul of the mechanical man we will construct."
Corinne didn't see, but in a few minutes she strolled toward the den,
balancing her coffee in both hands. With one elbow she eased the door
open. There it was: an innocent polished cabinet reaching up to her
shoulders. Ronald had removed one of the plates from its side and she
peeped into the section where the heart and soul might be located. She
saw only an unanatomical array of vacuum tubes and electrical relays.
She felt Ronald at her back. "It looks like the inside of a juke box,"
she said.
He beamed. "The same relay systems used in the simple juke box are
incorporated in a computer." He placed one hand lovingly on the top of
the cabinet.
"But, Ronald--it doesn't even resemble a--a mechanical man?"
"That's because it doesn't have any appendages as yet. You know, arms
and legs. That's a relatively simple adjustment." He winked at Corinne
with a great air of complicity. "And I have some excellent ideas along
that line. Now, run along, because I'll be busy most of the day."
* * * * *
Corinne ran along. She spent most of the day shopping for week-end
necessities. On an irrational last-minute impulse--perhaps an
unconscious surrender to the machine age--she dug in the grocery deep
freeze and brought out a couple of purple steaks.
That evening she had to call Ronald three times for dinner, and when he
came out of the den she noticed that he closed the door the way one does
upon a small child. He chattered about inconsequential matters all
through dinner. Corinne knew that his work was going smoothly. A few
minutes later she was to know how smoothly.
It started when she began to put on her apron to do the dishes. "Let
that go for now, dear," Ronald said, taking the apron from her. He went
into the den, returning with a small black box covered with push
buttons. "Now observe carefully," he said, his voice pitched high.
He pushed one of the buttons, waited a second with his ear cocked toward
the den, then pushed another.
Corinne heard the turning of metal against metal, and she slowly turned
her head.
"Oh!" She suppressed a shriek, clutching Ronald's arm so tightly he
almost dropped the control box.
Pascal was walking under his own effort, considerably taller now with
the round, aluminum legs Ronald had given him. Two metal arms also hung
at the sides of the cabinet. One of these rose stiffly, as though for
balance. Corinne's mouth opened as she watched the creature jerk
awkwardly across the living room.
"Oh, Ronald! The fishbowl!"
Ronald stabbed knowingly at several buttons.
Pascal pivoted toward them, but not before his right arm swung out and,
almost contemptuously, brushed the fishbowl to the floor.
Corinne closed her eyes at the crash. Then she scooped up several little
golden bodies and rushed for the kitchen. When she returned Ronald was
picking up pieces of glass and dabbing at the pool of water with one of
her bathroom towels. Pascal, magnificently aloof, was standing in the
center of the mess.
"I'm sorry." Ronald looked up. "It was my fault. I got confused on the
buttons."
But Corinne's glances toward the rigid Pascal held no indictment. She
was only mystified. There was something wrong here.
"But Ronald, he's so ugly without a head. I thought that all robots--"
"Oh, no," he explained, "we would put heads on them for display purposes
only. Admittedly that captures the imagination of the public. That
little adapter shaft at the top could be the neck, of course...."
He waved Corinne aside and continued his experiments with the home-made
robot. Pascal moved in controlled spasms around the living room. Once,
he walked just a little too close to the floor-length window--and
Corinne stood up nervously. But Ronald apparently had mastered the
little black box.
With complete confidence Corinne went into the kitchen to do the dishes.
Not until she was elbow deep in suds did she recall her dreams about the
octopus. She looked over her shoulder, and the curious, unwanted feeling
came again.
* * * * *
The following afternoon--after Ronald had cancelled their Sunday drive
into the country--Pascal, with constant exhortations by Ronald at the
black box, succeeded in vacuum cleaning the entire living room. Ronald
was ecstatic.
"Now do you understand?" he asked Corinne. "A mechanical servant! Think
of it! Of course mass production may be years away, but ..."
"Everyone will have Thursday nights off," said Corinne--but Ronald was
already jabbing at buttons as Pascal dragged the vacuum cleaner back to
its niche in the closet.
Later, Corinne persuaded Ronald to take her to a movie, but not until
the last moment was she certain that Pascal wasn't going to drag along.
Every afternoon of the following week Ronald Lovegear called from the
laboratory in New York to ask how Pascal was getting along.
"Just fine," Corinne told him on Thursday afternoon. "But he certainly
ruined some of the tomato plants in the garden. He just doesn't seem to
hoe in a straight line. Are you certain it's the green button I push?"
"It's probably one of the pressure regulators," interrupted Ronald.
"I'll check it when I get home." Corinne suspected by his lowered voice
that Mr. Hardwick had walked into the lab.
That night Pascal successfully washed and dried the dishes, cracking
only one cup in the process. Corinne spent the rest of the evening
sitting in the far corner of the living room, thumbing the pages of a
magazine.
On the following afternoon--prompted perhaps by that perverse female
trait which demands completion of all projects once started--Corinne
lingered for several minutes in the vegetable department at the grocery.
She finally picked out a fresh, round and blushing pumpkin.
Later in her kitchen, humming a little tune under her breath, Corinne
deftly maneuvered a paring knife to transform the pumpkin into a very
reasonable facsimile of a man's head. She placed the pumpkin over the
tiny shaft between Pascal's box-shaped shoulders and stepped back.
She smiled at the moon-faced idiot grinning back at her. He was
complete, and not bad-looking! But just before she touched the red
button once and the blue button twice--which sent Pascal stumbling out
to the backyard to finish weeding the circle of pansies before
dinner--she wondered about the gash that was his mouth. She distinctly
remembered carving it so that the ends curved upward into a frozen and
quite harmless smile. But one end of the toothless grin seemed to sag a
little, like the cynical smile of one who knows his powers have been
underestimated.
Corinne would not have had to worry about her husband's reaction to the
new vegetable-topped Pascal. Ronald accepted the transformation
good-naturedly, thinking that a little levity, once in a while, was a
good thing.
"And after all," said Corinne later that evening, "I'm the one who has
to spend all day in the house with ..." She lowered her voice: "With
Pascal."
But Ronald wasn't listening. He retired to his den to finish the plans
for the mass production of competent mechanical men. One for every home
in America.... He fell asleep with the thought.
* * * * *
Corinne and Pascal spent the next two weeks going through pretty much
the same routine. He, methodically jolting through the household chores;
she, walking aimlessly from room to room, smoking too many cigarettes.
She began to think of Pascal as a boarder. Strange--at first he had been
responsible for that unwanted feeling. But now his helpfulness around
the house had lightened her burden. And he was so cheerful all the time!
After living with Ronald's preoccupied frown for seven years ...
After luncheon one day, when Pascal neglected to shut off the garden
hose, she caught herself scolding him as if he were human. Was that a
shadow from the curtain waving in the breeze, or did she see a hurt look
flit across the mouth of the pumpkin? Corinne put out her hand and
patted Pascal's cylindrical wrist.
It was warm--_flesh_ warm.
She hurried upstairs and stood breathing heavily with her back to the
door. A little later she thought she heard someone--someone with a heavy
step--moving around downstairs.
"I left the control box down there," she thought. "Of course, it's
absurd...."
At four o'clock she went slowly down the stairs to start Ronald's
dinner. Pascal was standing by the refrigerator, exactly where she had
left him. Not until she had started to peel the potatoes did she notice
the little bouquet of pansies in the center of the table.
Corinne felt she needed a strong cup of tea. She put the water on and
placed a cup on the kitchen table. Not until she was going to sit down
did she decide that perhaps Pascal should be in the other room.
She pressed the red button, the one which should turn him around, and
the blue button, which should make him walk into the living room. She
heard the little buzz of mechanical life as Pascal began to move. But he
did not go into the other room! He was holding a chair for her, and she
sat down rather heavily. A sudden rush of pleasure reddened her cheeks.
_Not since sorority days ..._
Before Pascal's arms moved away she touched his wrist again, softly,
only this time her hand lingered. And his wrist _was_ warm!
* * * * *
"When do they want Pascal back at the lab?" she asked Ronald at dinner
that evening, trying to keep her voice casual.
Ronald smiled. "I think I might have him indefinitely, dear. I've got
Hardwick convinced I'm working on something revolutionary." He stopped.
"Oh, Corinne! You've spilled coffee all over yourself."
The following night Ronald was late in getting home from work. It was
raining outside the Newark station and the cabs deliberately evaded him.
He finally caught a bus, which deposited him one block from his house.
He cut through the back alley, hurrying through the rain. Just before he
started up the stairs he glanced through the lighted kitchen window. He
stopped, gripping the railing for support.
In the living room were Pascal and Corinne. Pascal was reclining
leisurely in the fireside chair; Corinne was standing in front of him.
It was the expression on her face which stopped Ronald Lovegear. The
look was a compound of restraint and compulsion, the reflection of some
deep struggle in Corinne's soul. Then she suddenly leaned forward and
pressed her lips to Pascal's full, fleshy pumpkin mouth. Slowly, one of
Pascal's aluminum arms moved up and encircled her waist.
Mr. Lovegear stepped back into the rain. He stood there for several
minutes. The rain curled around the brim of his hat, dropped to his
face, and rolled down his cheeks with the slow agitation of tears.
When, finally, he walked around to the front and stamped heavily up the
stairs, Corinne greeted him with a flush in her cheeks. Ronald told her
that he didn't feel "quite up to dinner. Just coffee, please." When it
was ready he sipped slowly, watching Corinne's figure as she moved
around the room. She avoided looking at the aluminum figure in the
chair.
Ronald put his coffee down, walked over to Pascal, and, gripping him
behind the shoulders, dragged him into the den.
Corinne stood looking at the closed door and listened to the furious
pounding.
* * * * *
Ten minutes later Ronald came out and went straight to the phone.
"Yes! Immediately!" he told the man at the freight office. While he sat
there waiting Corinne walked upstairs.
Ronald did not offer to help the freight men drag the box outside. When
they had gone he went into the den and came back with the pumpkin. He
opened the back door and hurled it out into the rain. It cleared the
back fence and rolled down the alley stopping in a small puddle in the
cinders.
After a while the water level reached the mouth and there was a soft
choking sound. The boy who found it the next morning looked at the mouth
and wondered why anyone would carve such a sad Jack-O'-Lantern.
THE END
Transcriber's Note:
This etext was produced from _If Worlds of Science Fiction_ July
1953. Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that the U.S.
copyright on this publication was renewed. Minor spelling and
typographical errors have been corrected without note.
End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Weak on Square Roots, by Russell Burton
*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK WEAK ON SQUARE ROOTS ***
***** This file should be named 29976.txt or 29976.zip *****
This and all associated files of various formats will be found in:
https://www.gutenberg.org/2/9/9/7/29976/
Produced by Greg Weeks, Stephen Blundell and the Online
Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net
Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions
will be renamed.
Creating the works from public domain print editions 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-tm electronic works to
protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm concept and trademark. Project
Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you
charge for the eBooks, unless you receive specific permission. If you
do not charge anything for copies of this eBook, complying with the
rules is very easy. You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose
such as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and
research. They may be modified and printed and given away--you may do
practically ANYTHING with public domain eBooks. 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-tm 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-tm License (available with this file or online at
https://gutenberg.org/license).
Section 1. General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg-tm
electronic works
1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm
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-tm electronic works in your possession.
If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a Project
Gutenberg-tm 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-tm 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-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement
and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm 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-tm electronic works. Nearly all the individual works in the
collection are in the public domain in the United States. If an
individual work is in the public domain 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-tm mission of promoting free access to electronic works by
freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm works in compliance with the terms of
this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg-tm 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-tm 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-tm work. The Foundation makes no representations concerning
the copyright status of any work in any country outside 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-tm License must appear prominently
whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm 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 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
1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is derived
from the public domain (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-tm trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or
1.E.9.
1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm 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-tm 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-tm
License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this
work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm.
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-tm 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-tm work in a format other than
"Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official version
posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site (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-tm
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-tm 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-tm electronic works provided
that
- You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from
the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method
you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is
owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm 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-tm
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-tm 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-tm works.
1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project Gutenberg-tm
electronic work or group of works on different terms than are set
forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing from
both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and Michael
Hart, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm 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
public domain works in creating the Project Gutenberg-tm
collection. Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm 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-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project
Gutenberg-tm 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 F3. 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 MERCHANTIBILITY 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-tm electronic works in accordance
with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the production,
promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm 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-tm
work, (b) alteration, modification, or additions or deletions to any
Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any Defect you cause.
Section 2. Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm
Project Gutenberg-tm 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-tm's
goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm 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-tm 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 web page at https://www.pglaf.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. Its 501(c)(3) letter is posted at
https://pglaf.org/fundraising. 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 principal office is located at 4557 Melan Dr. S.
Fairbanks, AK, 99712., but its volunteers and employees are scattered
throughout numerous locations. Its business office is located at
809 North 1500 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887, email
[email protected]. Email contact links and up to date contact
information can be found at the Foundation's web site and official
page at https://pglaf.org
For additional contact information:
Dr. Gregory B. Newby
Chief Executive and Director
[email protected]
Section 4. Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg
Literary Archive Foundation
Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide
spread 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 https://pglaf.org
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 including checks, online payments and credit card
donations. To donate, please visit: https://pglaf.org/donate
Section 5. General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
works.
Professor Michael S. Hart was the originator of the Project Gutenberg-tm
concept of a library of electronic works that could be freely shared
with anyone. For thirty years, he produced and distributed Project
Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of volunteer support.
Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed
editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain 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 Web site which has the main PG search facility:
https://www.gutenberg.org
This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm,
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.
