Note: Project Gutenberg also has an HTML version of this file which includes the original illustrations. See 60944-h.htm or 60944-h.zip: (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/60944/60944-h/60944-h.htm) or (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/60944/60944-h.zip) Images of the original pages are available through HathiTrust Digital Library. See https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015003928853&view=1up&seq=5 RALPH 124C 41+ [Illustration] A ROMANCE OF THE YEAR 2660 RALPH 124C 41+ by HUGO GERNSBACK Forewords by Dr. Lee de Forest and Fletcher Pratt New York: Frederick Fell, Inc. Copyright 1925 by the Stratford Company Second Edition Copyright 1950 by Hugo Gernsback All rights in this book are reserved. It may not be used for dramatic or motion- or talking-picture purposes without written authorization from the holder of these rights. Nor may the book or part thereof be reproduced in any manner whatsoever without permission in writing, except for brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. For information, address: Frederick Fell, Inc., 386 Fourth Avenue, New York 16, N.Y. Manufactured in the United States of America by H. Wolff, New York. Designed by Sidney Solomon. Published simultaneously in Canada by George J. McLeod, Ltd., Toronto. CONTENTS PREFACE TO THE SECOND EDITION _7_ PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION _11_ FOREWORD BY DR. LEE DE FOREST _15_ FOREWORD BY FLETCHER PRATT _19_ 1 _The Avalanche_ _25_ 2 _Two Faces_ _40_ 3 _Dead or Alive?_ _52_ 4 _Fernand_ _66_ 5 _New York A.D. 2660_ _79_ 6 "_Give Us Food_" _97_ 7 _The End of Money_ _110_ 8 _The Menace of the Invisible Cloak_ _118_ 9 _The Conquest of Gravitation_ _127_ 10 _Two Letters_ _140_ 11 _The Flight Into Space_ _147_ 12 _Llysanorh' Strikes_ _164_ 13 _Alice Objects_ _172_ 14 _The Terror of the Comet_ _176_ 15 _Llysanorh' Throws Off the Mask_ _188_ 16 _The Supreme Victory_ _195_ PREFACE TO THE SECOND EDITION Since the first edition of _Ralph 124C 41+_ in 1925, an eventful quarter century has passed. Since I first wrote the story, 39 amazing years have been swallowed into the Einstein space-time-continuum--years pregnant with scientific progress. Since 1925, the 5,000-edition volume has had a rather remarkable career. It has been quoted by hundreds of authorities both great and small, in hundreds of publications--not only in the United States but also in many other countries. Whenever a history of science-fiction was written, _Ralph_ nearly always was included routinely, much to my surprise.