ceiling
and walls, and in it were many men. They all stared strangely at me and
at my clothes, and talked excitedly so fast that I could not understand.
Rastin began to address them.

"He seemed explaining how he had brought me from my own time to his. He
used many terms and words that I could not understand, incomprehensible
references and phrases, and I could understand but little. I heard again
the names of Einstein and De Sitter that I had heard before, repeated
frequently by these men as they disputed with Rastin and Thicourt. They
seemed disputing about me.

"One big man was saying, 'Impossible! I tell you, Rastin, you have faked
this fellow!'

"Rastin smiled. 'You don't believe that Thicourt and I brought him here
from his own time across five centuries?'

"A chorus of excited negatives answered him. He had me stand up and
speak to them. They asked me many questions, part of which I could not
understand. I told them of my life, and of the city of my own time, and
of king and priest and noble, and of many simple things that they seemed
quite ignorant of. Some appeared to believe me but others did not, and
again their dispute broke out.

"'There is a way to settle the argument, gentlemen,' said Rastin
finally.

"'How?' all cried.

"'Thicourt and I brought Henri across five centuries by rotating the
time-dimensions at this spot,' he said. 'Suppose we reverse that
rotation and send him back before your eyes--would that be proof?'

"They all said that it would. Rastin turned to me. 'Stand on the metal
circle, Henri,' he said. I did so.

"All were watching very closely. Thicourt did something quickly with the
levers and buttons of the mechanisms in the room. They began to hum, and
blue light came from the glass tubes on some. All were quiet, watching
me as I stood there on the circle of metal. I met Rastin's eyes and
something in me made me call goodbye to him. He waved his hand and
smiled. Thicourt pressed more buttons and the hum of the mechanisms grew
louder. Then he reached toward another lever. All in the room were
tense and I was tense.

"Then I saw Thicourt's arm move as he turned one of the many levers.

"A terrific clap of thunder seemed to break around me, and as I closed
my eyes before its shock, I felt myself whirling around and falling at
the same time as though into a maelstrom, just as I had done before. The
awful falling sensation ceased in a moment and the sound subsided. I
opened my ey