"The guinea pigs sleep for only a half-hour? Always a half-hour?"
"Yes. It never varies much. A minute or so each way."
"If you--uh--shoot one, then shoot it again, does that prolong its
sleep any?"
"Not at all! Still only a half-hour, no matter how many times you shoot
them while they sleep."
"Ummm. That could indicate sleep is the brain's defense mechanism
against the effects of your ray. A successful defense, it would seem.
They show _no_ after-effects of this?"
"None whatever. They've begun to associate it with the pistol, though.
Each time I point the pistol at them, they get mad--"
"You mean angry? They aren't _afraid_ of it?"
"Certainly not afraid! One in my pocket here tries burrowing into
corners, making furious grunting sounds. The other one usually just
stands and glares at me."
"How about when they wake up?"
"Well, generally, their first reaction is to keep a sharp eye out for
me--and the pistol."
"Wary, eh? Damned inconvenient, I suppose, getting knocked asleep all
the time. But it certainly doesn't seem to hurt them. What about mental
disturbance?"
"No obvious aberrations. But I don't know--"
"Yes, they're only guinea pigs. Hardly be satisfactory to the American
Medical Association, among others. Take years of research to determine
its absolute safety--"
"But it should be released to the public now!"
"Why?"
"Because its harmful effects, if any, are very likely to be
insignificant--or we'd have no doubts about their existence."
"That assumption _could_ be dangerous."
"Yes. But there's something else, too. This new weapon will replace
firearms--which certainly _do_ inflict injury, even death."
"Ah, society's application of it--" And Dr. Whitney took several
minutes to digest that aspect.