t anything, always keeping in mind the peculiarities
and capabilities of your own people."_

It looked as though the time might have come. If Andorra, a clever,
influential critic, should guess at the real background and the sources
of the Forell tales, and if he should misunderstand the motives behind
those tales, he would probably publish his thoughts. And those thoughts
would be widely read. Many would smile as they read and regard the thing
as a hoax. But others might start their own analyses. And some of those
might come to highly undesirable conclusions and cause undesirable,
even disastrous, reactions. It would be many generations before clear
explanations could be made and definite principles outlined without
causing misunderstanding and serious damage. The Forell tales were
evasive and preparatory as well as vaguely instructive.

[Illustration]

He recovered his self-discipline and waved his hand negligently.

"You know, Charo," he said laughingly, "I've been thinking along similar
lines for a long while. Of course, you know I must have built up some
sort of fantasy world to base my yarns on?"

Andorra nodded. "That's obvious. I've been wondering about some of your
basic theory. Like to see your notes some time."

Forell spread his hands. "You're quite welcome to look them over," he
said. "Come on up to my rooms now." He smiled. "As a matter of fact,
I've been doing a little extension on my dream world. Built up a little
sketch a while ago, and I'm not just sure what to do with it."

* * * * *

As they entered the study, Forell walked across to his desk. He fumbled
for a few seconds under the desk, then opened a drawer. For a moment, he
paused, looking inside, then pulled out a thin folder. Again, he
hesitated. At last, he picked a small, metallic object from the drawer
and held it in his left hand.

"Might need this," he told himself. "If I'm wrong, it'll take a sector
patrolman to straighten out the mess. And I could be wrong--two ways."

Casually, he placed his left hand in his pocket, then he turned toward
Andorra, holding out the folder.

"Here," he said. "See what you think of this one."

Andorra opened the folder, taking out a few sheets of paper. He read for
a moment, then looked up quizzically.

"A little different from your usual style, isn't it?"

Forell nodded, watching the man tensely. "I'm trying something new," he
said. "Go ahead and read it, then te