last Wednesday ... and
perhaps a different set of ... poor kid never makes any sense in ...
trees and leaves all sunny with the ... electronic components of the
reducing stage might be ... not as predictable when others are around
but ... to go with Sally some night in the...."

It was a childish, alto voice, gabbling in a monotone. A phrase would be
spoken, the voice would hesitate for just an instant, and then another,
totally disconnected phrase would come. The enunciation and
pronunciation would vary from phrase to phrase, but the tone remained
essentially the same, drained of all emotional content.

"... in receiving psychocerebral impulses there isn't any ... nonsense
and nothing but nonsense all the ... tomorrow or maybe Saturday with the
girl ... tube might be replaceable only if ... something ought to be
done for the ... Saturday would be a good time for ... work on the
schematics tonight if...."

There was a click as the tape was turned off, and Dr. O'Connor looked
up.

"It doesn't make much sense," Malone said. "But the kid sure has a hell
of a vocabulary for an imbecile."

"Vocabulary?" Dr. O'Connor said softly.

"That's right," Malone said. "Where'd an imbecile get words like
'psychocerebral'? I don't think I know what that means, myself."

"Ah," Dr. O'Connor said. "But that's not _his_ vocabulary, you see. What
Charlie is doing is simply repeating the thoughts of those around him.
He jumps from mind to mind, simply repeating whatever he receives." His
face assumed the expression of a man remembering a bad taste in his
mouth. "That's how we found him out, Mr. Malone," he said. "It's rather
startling to look at a blithering idiot and have him suddenly repeat the
very thought that's in your mind."

Malone nodded unhappily. It didn't seem as if O'Connor's information was
going to be a lot of help as far as catching a telepath was concerned.
An imbecile, apparently, would give himself away if he were a telepath.
But nobody else seemed to be likely to do that. And imbeciles didn't
look like very good material for catching spies with.

Then he brightened. "Is it possible that the spy we're looking for
really isn't a spy?"

"Eh?"

"I mean, suppose he's an imbecile, too? I doubt whether an imbecile
would really be a spy, if you see what I mean."

Dr. O'Connor appeared to consider the notion. After a little while he
said: "It is, I suppose, possible. But the readings on the machine don't
give us the