m is indeed the invention
created by the labor and study of the parents of James Holden, and as
such it is a valuable property retained by James Holden as his own by the
right of inheritance. The patent laws of the United States are clear, it
is the many conflicting rulings that have weakened the system. The law
itself is contained in the Constitution of the United States, which
provides for the establishment of a Patent Office as a means to encourage
inventors by granting them the exclusive right to the benefits of their
labor for a reasonable period of time--namely seventeen years with
provision for a second period under renewal."

"Then why doesn't he make use of it?" demanded Manison.

"Because the process, like so many another process, can be copied and
used by individuals without payment, and because there hasn't been a
patent suit upheld for about forty years, with the possible exception
of Major Armstrong's suit against the Radio Corporation of America,
settled in Armstrong's favor after about twenty-five years of expensive
litigation. A secret is no longer a secret these days, once it has been
written on a piece of paper and called to the attention of a few million
people across the country."

"You realize that anything that will give an extensive education at an
early age is vital to the security of the country."

"We recognize that responsibility, sir," said Waterman quietly. "We also
recognize that in the hands of unscrupulous men, the system could be
misused. We also realize its dangers, and we are trying to avoid them
before we make the announcement. We are very much aware of the important,
although unfortunate, fact that James Holden, as a minor, can have his
rights abridged. Normally honest men, interested in the protection of
youth, could easily prevent him from using his own methods, thus
depriving him of the benefits that are legally his. This could be
done under the guise of protection, and the result would be the
super-education of the protectors--whose improving intellectual
competence would only teach them more and better reasons for depriving
the young man of his rights. James Holden has a secret, and he has a
right to keep that secret, and his only protection is for him to continue
to keep that secret inviolate. It was his parents' determination not to
release this process upon the world until they were certain of the
results. James is a living example of their effort; they conceived him
for