INTO THE RING
The cigars were lighted and dinner over before the Doctor broached the
subject uppermost in the minds of every member of the party.
"A toast, gentlemen," he said, raising his glass. "To the greatest
research chemist in the world. May he be successful in his adventure
to-night."
The Chemist bowed his acknowledgment.
"You have not heard me yet," he said smiling.
"But we want to," said the Very Young Man impulsively.
"And you shall." He settled himself more comfortably in his chair.
"Gentlemen, I am going to tell you, first, as simply as possible, just
what I have done in the past two years. You must draw your own
conclusions from the evidence I give you.
"You will remember that I told you last week of my dilemma after the
destruction of the microscope. Its loss and the impossibility of
replacing it, led me into still bolder plans than merely the visual
examination of this minute world. I reasoned, as I have told you, that
because of its physical proximity, its similar environment, so to speak,
this outer world should be capable of supporting life identical with our
own.
"By no process of reasoning can I find adequate refutation of this
theory. Then, again, I had the evidence of my own eyes to prove that a
being I could not tell from one of my own kind was living there. That
this girl, other than in size, differs radically from those of our race,
I cannot believe.
"I saw then but one obstacle standing between me and this other
world--the discrepancy of size. The distance separating our world from
this other is infinitely great or infinitely small, according to the
viewpoint. In my present size it is only a few feet from here to the
ring on that plate. But to an inhabitant of that other world, we are as
remote as the faintest stars of the heavens, diminished a thousand
times."
He paused a moment, signing the waiter to leave the room.
"This reduction of bodily size, great as it is, involves no deeper
principle than does a light contraction of tissue, except that it must
be carried further. The problem, then, was to find a chemical,
sufficiently unharmful to life, that would so act upon the body cells as
to cause a reduction in bulk, without changing their shape. I had to
secure a uniform and also a proportionate rate of contraction of each
cell, in order not to have the body shape altered.
"After a comparatively small amount of research work, I encountered an
apparently insurmountable obstacle. As you know, gentlemen, our living
human bodies are held together by the power of the central intelligence
we call the mind. Every instant during your lifetime your subconscious
mind is commanding and directing the individual life of each cell that
makes up your body. At death this power is withdrawn; each cell is
thrown under its own individual command, and dissolution of the body
takes place.
"I found, therefore, that I could not act upon the cells separately, so
long as they were under control of the mind. On the other hand, I could
not withdraw this power of the subconscious mind without causing death.
"I progressed no further than this for several months. Then came the
solution. I reasoned that after death the body does not immediately
disintegrate; far more time elapses than I expected to need for the
cell-contraction. I devoted my time, then to finding a chemical that
would temporarily withhold, during the period of cell-contraction, the
power of the subconscious mind, just as the power of the conscious mind
is withheld by hypnotism.
"I am not going to weary you by trying to lead you through the maze of
chemical experiments into which I plunged. Only one of you," he
indicated the Doctor, "has the technical basis of knowledge to follow
me. No one had been before me along the path I traversed. I pursued the
method of pure theoretical deduction, drawing my conclusions from the
practical results obtained.
"I worked on rabbits almost exclusively. After a few weeks I succeeded
in completely suspending animation in one of them for several hours.
There was no life apparently existing during that period. It was not a
trance or coma, but the complete simulation of death. No harmful results
followed the revivifying of the animal. The contraction of the cells was
far more difficult to accomplish; I finished my last experiment less
than six months ago."
"Then you really have been able to make an animal infinitely small?"
asked the Big Business Man.
The Chemist smiled. "I sent four rabbits into the unknown last week," he
said.
"What did they look like going?" asked the Very Young Man. The Chemist
signed him to be patient.
"The quantity of diminution to be obtained bothered me considerably.
Exactly how small that other universe is, I had no means of knowing,
except by the computations I made of the magnifying power of my lens.
These figures, I know, must necessarily be very inaccurate. Then, again,
I have no means of judging by the visual rate of diminution of these
rabbits, whether this contraction is at a uniform rate or accelerated.
Nor can I tell how long it is prolonged, for the quantity of drug
administered, as only a fraction of the diminution has taken place when
the animal passes beyond the range of any microscope I now possess.
"These questions were overshadowed, however, by a far more serious
problem that encompassed them all.
"As I was planning to project myself into this unknown universe and to
reach the exact size proportionate to it, I soon realized such a result
could not be obtained were I in an unconscious state. Only by successive
doses of the drug, or its retardent about which I will tell you later,
could I hope to reach the proper size. Another necessity is that I place
myself on the exact spot on that ring where I wish to enter and to climb
down among its atoms when I have become sufficiently small to do so.
Obviously, this would be impossible to one not possessing all his
faculties and physical strength."
"And did you solve that problem, too?" asked the Banker.
"I'd like to see it done," he added, reading his answer in the other's
confident smile.
The Chemist produced two small paper packages from his wallet. "These
drugs are the result of my research," he said. "One of them causes
contraction, and the other expansion, by an exact reversal of the
process. Taken together, they produce no effect, and a lesser amount of
one retards the action of the other." He opened the papers, showing two
small vials. "I have made them as you see, in the form of tiny pills,
each containing a minute quantity of the drug. It is by taking them
successively in unequal amounts that I expect to reach the desired
size."
"There's one point that you do not mention," said the Doctor. "Those
vials and their contents will have to change size as you do. How are you
going to manage that?"
"By experimentation I have found," answered the Chemist, "that any
object held in close physical contact with the living body being
contracted is contracted itself at an equal rate. I believe that my
clothes will be affected also. These vials I will carry strapped under
my armpits."
"Suppose you should die, or be killed, would the contraction cease?"
asked the Doctor.
"Yes, almost immediately," replied the Chemist. "Apparently, though I am
acting through the subconscious mind while its power is held in
abeyance, when this power is permanently withdrawn by death, the drug no
longer affects the individual cells. The contraction or expansion ceases
almost at once."
The Chemist cleared a space before him on the table. "In a well-managed
club like this," he said, "there should be no flies, but I see several
around. Do you suppose we can catch one of them?"
"I can," said the Very Young Man, and forthwith he did.
The Chemist moistened a lump of sugar and laid it on the table before
him. Then, selecting one of the smallest of the pills, he ground it to
powder with the back of a spoon and sprinkled this powder on the sugar.
"Will you give me the fly, please?"
The Very Young Man gingerly did so. The Chemist held the insect by its
wings over the sugar. "Will someone lend me one of his shoes?"
The Very Young Man hastily slipped off a dancing pump.
"Thank you," said the Chemist, placing it on the table with a quizzical
smile.
The rest of the company rose from their chairs and gathered around,
watching with interested faces what was about to happen.
"I hope he is hungry," remarked the Chemist, and placed the fly gently
down on the sugar, still holding it by the wings. The insect, after a
moment, ate a little.
Silence fell upon the group as each watched intently. For a few moments
nothing happened. Then, almost imperceptibly at first, the fly became
larger. In another minute it was the size of a large horse-fly,
struggling to release its wings from the Chemist's grasp. A minute more
and it was the size of a beetle. No one spoke. The Banker moistened his
lips, drained his glass hurriedly and moved slightly farther away. Still
the insect grew; now it was the size of a small chicken, the multiple
lens of its eyes presenting a most terrifying aspect, while its
ferocious droning reverberated through the room. Then suddenly the
Chemist threw it upon the table, covered it with a napkin, and beat it
violently with the slipper. When all movement had ceased he tossed its
quivering body into a corner of the room.
"Good God!" ejaculated the Banker, as the white-faced men stared at each
other. The quiet voice of the Chemist brought them back to themselves.
"That, gentlemen, you must understand, was only a fraction of the very
first stage of growth. As you may have noticed, it was constantly
accelerated. This acceleration attains a speed of possibly fifty
thousand times that you observed. Beyond that, it is my theory, the
change is at a uniform rate." He looked at the body of the fly, lying
inert on the floor. "You can appreciate now, gentlemen, the importance
of having this growth cease after death."
"Good Lord, I should say so!" murmured the Big Business Man, mopping his
forehead. The Chemist took the lump of sugar and threw it into the open
fire.
"Gosh!" said the Very Young Man, "suppose when we were not looking,
another fly had----"
"Shut up!" growled the Banker.
"Not so skeptical now, eh, George?" said the Big Business Man.
"Can you catch me another fly?" asked the Chemist. The Very Young Man
hastened to do so. "The second demonstration, gentlemen," said the
Chemist, "is less spectacular, but far more pertinent than the one you
have just witnessed." He took the fly by the wings, and prepared another
lump of sugar, sprinkling a crushed pill from the other vial upon it.
"When he is small enough I am going to try to put him on the ring, if he
will stay still," said the Chemist.
The Doctor pulled the plate containing the ring forward until it was
directly under the light, and every one crowded closer to watch; already
the fly was almost too small to be held. The Chemist tried to set it on
the ring, but could not; so with his other hand he brushed it lightly
into the plate, where it lay, a tiny black speck against the gleaming
whiteness of the china.
"Watch it carefully, gentlemen," he said, as they bent closer.
"It's gone," said the Big Business Man.
"No, I can still see it," said the Doctor. Then he raised the plate
closer to his face. "Now it's gone," he said.
The Chemist sat down in his chair. "It's probably still there, only too
small for you to see. In a few minutes, if it took a sufficient amount
of the drug, it will be small enough to fall between the molecules of
the plate."
"Do you suppose it will find another inhabited universe down there?"
asked the Very Young Man.
"Who knows," smiled the Chemist. "Very possibly it will. But the one we
are interested in is here," he added, touching the ring.
"Is it your intention to take this stuff yourself to-night?" asked the
Big Business Man.
"If you will give me your help, I think so, yes. I have made all
arrangements. The club has given us this room in absolute privacy for
forty-eight hours. Your meals will be served here when you want them,
and I am going to ask you, gentlemen, to take turns watching and
guarding the ring during that time. Will you do it?"
"I should say we would," cried the Doctor, and the others nodded assent.
"It is because I wanted you to be convinced of my entire sincerity that
I have taken you so thoroughly into my confidence. Are those doors
locked?" The Very Young Man locked them.
"Thank you," said the Chemist, starting to disrobe. In a moment he stood
before them attired in a woolen bathing-suit of pure white. Over his
shoulders was strapped tightly a narrow leather harness, supporting two
silken pockets, one under each armpit. Into each of these he placed one
of the vials, first laying four pills from one of them upon the table.
At this point the Banker rose from his chair and selected another in the
further corner of the room. He sank into it a crumpled heap and wiped
the beads of perspiration from his face with a shaking hand.
"I have every expectation," said the Chemist, "that this suit and
harness will contract in size uniformly with me. If the harness should
not, then I shall have to hold the vials in my hand."
On the table, directly under the light, he spread a large silk
handkerchief, upon which he placed the ring. He then produced a
teaspoon, which he handed to the Doctor.
"Please listen carefully," he said, "for perhaps the whole success of my
adventure, and my life itself, may depend upon your actions during the
next few minutes. You will realize, of course, that when I am still
large enough to be visible to you I shall be so small that my voice may
be inaudible. Therefore, I want you to know, now, just what to expect.
"When I am something under a foot high, I shall step upon that
handkerchief, where you will see my white suit plainly against its black
surface. When I become less than an inch high, I shall run over to the
ring and stand beside it. When I have diminished to about a quarter of
an inch, I shall climb upon it, and, as I get smaller, will follow its
surface until I come to the scratch.
"I want you to watch me very closely. I may miscalculate the time and
wait until I am too small to climb upon the ring. Or I may fall off. In
either case, you will place that spoon beside me and I will climb into
it. You will then do your best to help me get on the ring. Is all this
quite clear?"
The Doctor nodded assent.
"Very well, watch me as long as I remain visible. If I have an accident,
I shall take the other drug and endeavor to return to you at once. This
you must expect at any moment during the next forty-eight hours. Under
all circumstances, if I am alive, I shall return at the expiration of
that time.
"And, gentlemen, let me caution you most solemnly, do not allow that
ring to be touched until that length of time has expired. Can I depend
on you?"
"Yes," they answered breathlessly.
"After I have taken the pills," the Chemist continued, "I shall not
speak unless it is absolutely necessary. I do not know what my
sensations will be, and I want to follow them as closely as possible."
He then turned out all the lights in the room with the exception of the
center electrolier, that shone down directly on the handkerchief and
ring.
The Chemist looked about him. "Good-by, gentlemen," he said, shaking
hands all round. "Wish me luck," and without hesitation he placed the
four pills in his mouth and washed them down with a swallow of water.
Silence fell on the group as the Chemist seated himself and covered his
face with his hands. For perhaps two minutes the tenseness of the
silence was unbroken, save by the heavy breathing of the Banker as he
lay huddled in his chair.
"Oh, my God! He _is_ growing smaller!" whispered the Big Business Man in
a horrified tone to the Doctor. The Chemist raised his head and smiled
at them. Then he stood up, steadying himself against a chair. He was
less than four feet high. Steadily he grew smaller before their
horrified eyes. Once he made, as if to speak, and the Doctor knelt down
beside him. "It's all right, good-by," he said in a tiny voice.
Then he stepped upon the handkerchief. The Doctor knelt on the floor
beside it, the wooden spoon ready in his hand, while the others, except
the Banker, stood behind him. The figure of the Chemist, standing
motionless near the edge of the handkerchief, seemed now like a little
white wooden toy, hardly more than an inch in height.
Waving his hand and smiling, he suddenly started to walk and then ran
swiftly over to the ring. By the time he reached it, somewhat out of
breath, he was little more than twice as high as the width of its band.
Without pausing, he leaped up, and sat astraddle, leaning over and
holding to it tightly with his hands. In another moment he was on his
feet, on the upper edge of the ring, walking carefully along its
circumference towards the scratch.
The Big Business Man touched the Doctor on the shoulder and tried to
smile. "He's making it," he whispered. As if in answer the little figure
turned and waved its arms. They could just distinguish its white outline
against the gold surface underneath.
"I don't see him," said the Very Young Man in a scared voice.
"He's right near the scratch," answered the Doctor, bending closer.
Then, after a moment, "He's gone." He rose to his feet. "Good Lord! Why
haven't we a microscope!"
"I never thought of that," said the Big Business Man, "we could have
watched him for a long time yet."
"Well, he's gone now," returned the Doctor, "and there is nothing for us
to do but wait."
"I hope he finds that girl," sighed the Very Young Man, as he sat chin
in hand beside the handkerchief.