Ralph 124C 41+: A Romance of the Year 2660 — John Shaqi
Ralph 124C 41+: A Romance of the Year 2660Gernsback, Hugo
Science
Ralph 124C 41+: A Romance of the Year 2660
Gernsback, Hugo
Science fiction
"Both the Power mast and the Communico mast were blown down the same
day, and I was left without any means of communication whatever.
However, I managed to put the light magnesium power mast into a
temporary position again, and I had just called up the Teleservice
Company, telling them again to direct the power, and getting some other
information when they cut me in on you."
"Yes, I knew something was wrong when I saw the old-fashioned Radialamp
in your room, and I could not quite understand it. You had better try
the power now; they probably have directed it by this time; anyhow, the
Luminor should work."
"You are probably right," and raising her voice, she called out
sharply: "_Lux!_"
The delicate detectophone mechanism of the Luminor responded instantly
to her command; and the room was flooded at once with the beautiful
cold pink-white Luminor-light, emanating from the thin wire running
around the four sides of the room below the white ceiling.
The light, however, seemed too strong, and she sharply cried,
"_Lux-dah!_" The mechanism again responded; the cold light-radiation of
the Luminor wire decreased in intensity at once and the room appeared
in an exquisite pink light.
"That's better now," she laughed. "The heater just begins to get warm,
too. I am frozen stiff; just think, no heat for five days! I really
sometimes envy our ancestors, who, I believe, heated their houses with
stoves, burning strange black rocks or tree-chunks in them!"
"That's too bad! It must be a dreadful predicament to be cut off from
the entire world, in these days of weather control. It must be a novel
experience. I cannot understand, however, what should have brought on a
blizzard in midsummer."
"Unfortunately, our governor had some trouble with the four
weather-engineers of our district, some months ago, and they struck
for better living. They claimed the authorities did not furnish them
with sufficient luxuries, and when their demands were refused, they
simultaneously turned on the high-depression at the four Meteoro-Towers
and then fled, leaving their towers with the high-tension currents
escaping at a tremendous rate.
"This was done in the evening, and by midnight our entire district,
bounded by the four Meteoro-Towers, was covered with two inches of
snow. They had erected especially, additional discharge arms, pointing
downward from the towers, for the purpose of snowing in the Meteoros
completely.
"Their plans were well laid, for it became impossible to approach the
towers for four days; and they finally had to be dismantled by directed
energy from forty other Meteoro-Towers, which directed a tremendous
amount of energy against the four local towers, till the latter were
fused and melted.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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