   "and the children shall lead" is a third-season episode of the original science fiction television series star trek, and was broadcast october 11, 1968. it is episode #59, production #60, written by edward j. lakso and directed by marvin chomsky. in this episode, on a distant planet, kirk, spock and mccoy find a scientific team dead, and their children who, unknown to the crew, have great powers at their disposal. ==plot==  the uss enterprise intercepts a distress call from the planet triacus, where a scientific expedition is located. arriving at the planet, captain kirk, dr. mccoy, and first officer spock beam down to investigate. they find the expedition leader, professor starnes, has gone insane; he almost immediately dies. the other adult members of the team have apparently committed suicide. however, the expedition's five children remain alive and well, continuing to play as if nothing has happened. recordings made by starnes explain that the team were driven to suicide to escape "the enemy from within". as the landing team buries the dead adults, the children appear emotionless toward the loss of their families. after the funeral, the children and dr. mccoy beam to the enterprise while kirk and spock investigate a nearby cave. once inside, kirk finds himself in the throes of an anxiety attack which abates the instant he leaves the cave. he wonders if the anxiety might be caused by the same phenomenon that is causing unusual tricorder readings. aboard the enterprise, mccoy speculates that the children are now suffering temporary lacunar amnesia; they are unaware of what has happened 
1968_television_episodes Star_Trek:_The_Original_Series_episodes