“Hell, no. I’ve tried everything but tapping his skull with a bungstarter. I don’t believe there’s any brain there to hypnotize.”
“Don’t be pettish. Let’s try again. How do you feel, Ben?”
“All right, but wide awake.” I’m going out of the room this time. Maybe I’m a distracting factor. Now be a good boy and go sleepy-bye.” She left them.
Five minutes later Huxley called out to her, “Come on back in, kid. He’s under.” She came in and looked at Coburn where he lay sprawled in her big easy chair, quiet, eyes half closed.
“Ready for me?” she asked, turning to Huxley.
“Yes. Get ready.” She lay down on the couch. “You know what I want; get in rapport with Ben as soon as you go under. Need any persuasion to get to sleep?”.No.
“Very well, then—Sleep!”
She became quiet, lax.
“Are you under, Joan?”
“Yes, Phil.”
“Can you reach Ben’s mind?”
A short pause: “Yes.”
“What do you find?”
“Nothing. It’s like an empty room, but friendly. Wait a moment—he greeted me.”
“Just a greeting. It wasn’t in words.”
“Can you hear me, Ben?”
“Sure, Phil.”
“You two are together?”
“Yes. Yes, indeed.”
“Listen to me, both of you, I want you to wake up slowly, remaining in rapport. Then Joan is to teach Ben how to perceive that which is not seen. Can you do it?”
“Yes, Phil, we can.” It was as if one voice had spoken.
Chapter Four Holiday
“Frankly, Mr. Huxley, I can’t understand your noncooperative attitude.” The President of Western University let the stare from his slightly bulging eyes rest on the second button of Phil’s vest. “You have been given every facility for sound useful research along lines of proven worth. Your program of instructing has been kept light in order that you might make use of your undoubted ability. You have been acting chairman of your sub-department this past semester.
Yet instead of profiting by your unusual opportunities, you have, by your own admission, been, shall we say, frittering away your time in the childish pursuit of old wives’ tales and silly superstitions. Bless me, man, I don’t understand it!”
Phil answered, with controlled exasperation, “But Doctor Brinckley, if you would permit me to show you—”
The president interposed a palm. “Please, Mr. Huxley. It is not necessary to go over that ground again. One more thing, it has come to my attention that you have been interfering in the affairs of the medical school.”
“The medical school! I haven’t set foot inside it in weeks.”
“It has come to me from unquestioned authority that you have influenced Doctor Coburn to disregard the advice of the staff diagnosticians in performing surgical operations—the best diagnosticians, let me add, on the West Coast.”
Huxley maintained his voice at toneless politeness. “Let us suppose for the moment that I have influenced Doctor Coburn—I do not concede the point—has there been any case in which Coburn’s refusal to follow diagnosis has failed to be justified by the subsequent history of the case?”
‘That is beside the point. The point is—I can’t have my staff from one school interfering in the affairs of another school. You see the justice of that, I am sure.”
“I do not admit that I have interfered. In fact, I deny it.”
“I am afraid I shall have to be the judge of that.” Brinckley rose from his desk and came around to where Huxley stood. “Now Mr. Huxley—may I call you Philip? I like to have my juniors in our institutio n think of me as a friend. I want to give you the same advice that I would give to my son. The semester will be over in a day or two. I think you need a vacation. The Board has made some little difficulty over renewing your contract inasmuch as you have not yet completed your doctorate. I took the liberty of assuring them that you would submit a suitable thesis this coming academic year—and I feel sure that you can if you will only devote your efforts to sound, constructive work. You take your vacatio n, and when you come back you can outline your proposed thesis to me. I am quite sure the Board will make no difficulty about your contract then.”