"That's the only possible explanation, Harl," Kir-Um was speaking again. "This Earthling has discovered a way to assemble words in such a formation as to cause a violent agitation in whatever they are directed upon. I suspect, Harl, if this genius had received the full force of that _Joke_, it would have shaken him apart, utterly and completely. In other words, it would have decomposed his atoms and spread them from here to Dibble-Ibble knows where. Now, we must learn how to form these word patterns, thus to use them against our foe in the coming invasion. Creature, have you a treatise on _Jokes_?" Joe ceased his giggling and thought a moment. Yes, he did have a treatise on jokes and they would find it in his desk upstairs. Be sure and not touch his perpetual-motion machine, though, for it was delicately balanced. Kir-Um immediately dispatched Harl to procure the valuable document and waited impatiently till his companion returned. He accepted the book reverently and placed it safely in an inside pocket. "Good," he muttered. "Now, creature, you will forget all that took place here." Joe nodded dully. "I understand. You guys are strictly from dreams. I won't remember a thing about you when I come out of my coma." * * * * * The Martians walked to the door and turned to stare triumphantly at their strange companion of the evening. There was a slight twinge of pity in Harl's heart, as he thought of this boy as nothing but a bunch of jumbled atoms flying helter-skelter through the universe, all because he had made a _Joke_. "You will awaken an hour after we leave," Kir-Um directed. "Sixty minutes to the dot," Joe affirmed. Harl and Kir-Um stepped through the door and breathed deeply of the night air. It all seemed like a nightmare now, but the significant bulge in Kir-Um's coat pocket confirmed their brief interlude with the amazing genius, Joe Carson. Kir-Um withdrew the book and painfully deciphered the title, by the light streaming from a window. It read: _Joe Miller's Joke Book_. The printer must have made a mistake, he reflected. It should read: _Joe Carson's Joke Book_. But no matter.