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“I see,” said Bending slowly. He didn’t like the picture at all; it was more frightening than he cared to admit, even to himself. He looked at his business manager. “What do you think, Jim?” he asked softly. He knew he could depend on Luckman.

Jim Luckman looked worried. “They’re right, Sam. Clean, dead right. I know the investment pattern in this country, and I have an idea of what it must be abroad. This country would be in the middle of the worst depression in its history. At least we had Federal help during the Thirties–but there won’t even be a United States Government if this hits. Nor, I think, will there be a Soviet government, in spite of what Dr. Artomonov’s personal beliefs may be.”

Significantly, the Russian economist said nothing.

Sam Bending closed his eyes. “I’ve worked on this thing for years,” he said tensely. “It was … it means something to me. I invented it. I perfected it.” His voice began to quaver just a little. “But if it’s going to do … to do all that–” He paused and took a deep breath. “All right. I’ll smash my apparatus and destroy my plans and forget about it.”

Jim Luckman looked at Secretary Condley. “I don’t think that would be fair. Sam’s worked hard on this thing. He deserves recognition. And the people of Earth deserve to get this machine somehow. Can’t something be worked out?”

“Certainly,” said Condley. “In some countries, and in some eras, dangerous inventions were suppressed by the simplest method. If it was discovered in time, the inventor was executed summarily, along with anyone else who knew the secret, and the invention was destroyed. The United States isn’t that kind of country.” He looked down at his hands and the gold pen again before he went on.

“Please don’t misunderstand, Mr. Bending; we are not trying to keep the Converter under wraps forever. In the first place, I don’t think it would be possible. What do you think, Dr. Vanderlin?”

The Bureau of Standards man said: “I doubt it. Granted, the Converter is not something one would accidentally stumble across, nor automatically deduce from the ‘previous state of the art’. I’ll admit frankly that I doubt if I would ever have thought of it. But I doubt gravely that it is so unique that it will never be rediscovered independently.”

“So,” said Condley, “we have no intent to hold it back on that score. And, in the second place, such an invention is too valuable to allow it to be lost.

“So here is our proposition. You will sell your rights to the Converter to Power Utilities. It won’t even be patented in the usual sense; we can’t allow the Converter to become public property at this time. We can’t make it possible for just anyone to send in a quarter to the Patent Office to find out how it works. That’s why we stopped the patent application.

“But the Government will see that a contract is written up which admits that you are the inventor of the Converter, and which will give you royalties on every unit built. High royalties.

“Under strict Government supervision, Power Utilities will proceed to liquidate their holdings–slowly, so that there will be no repercussions on an economic level. The danger lies, not in the Converter’s replacing existing power equipment, but in the danger of its replacing them too quickly. But with care and control, the adjustment can be made slowly. The process will take about ten years, but you will receive a lump sum, plus a monthly payment, as an advance against future royalties.”

“I see,” said Bending slowly. “That sounds all right to me. What about you, Jim? What do you think?”

Jim Luckman was smiling again. “Sounds fine to me, Sam. We’ll have to work out the terms of the contract, of course, but I think Mr. Olcott and I can see eye to eye.”

Olcott seemed to wince a little. He knew he was over a barrel.