Produced by Juliet Sutherland Charles Franksand the Online Distributed Proofreading TeamTHE EMANCIPATRIXbyHOMER EON FLINTNew YorkIllustrated title The Emancipatrix in script over abackground of a bee silhouetted against a full moon on thehorizonITHE MENTAL EXPEDITIONThe doctor closed the door behind him crossed to the table silentlyoffered the geologist a cigar and waited until smoke was issuing fromit Then he saidWell bluntly whats come between you and your wife VanThe geologist showed no surprise Instead he frowned severely at theend of his cigar and carefully seated himself on the corner of thetable When he spoke there was a certain rigor in his voice which toldthe doctor that his friend was holding himself tightly in reinIt really began when the four of us got together to investigateCapellette two months ago Van Emmon was a thorough man in importantmatters Maybe I ought to say that both Billie and I were as muchinterested as either you or Smith she often says that even the tour ofMercury and Venus was less wonderfulWhat is more we are both just as eager to continue the investigationsWe still have all kinds of faith in the Venusian formula we want tovisit as many more worlds as the science of telepathy will permit Itisnt that either of us has lost interestThe doctor rather liked the geologists scientific way of stating thecase even though it meant hearing things he already knew Kinneywatched and waited and listened intentlyYou remember of course what sort of a man I got in touch with Powartwas easily the greatest Capellan of them all a magnificent intellectwhich I still think was intended to have ruled the rest I haventbacked down from my original positionVan You still believe incredulously in a government of the sort hecontemplatedVan Emmon nodded aggressively All that we learned merely strengthensmy conviction Remember what sort of people the working classes ofCapellette were Smiths agent was typicala helpless nincompoop notfit to govern himself The geologist strove to keep his patienceHowever remarked Kinney the chap whose mind I used was no foolNor was Billies agent the woman surgeon agreed Van Emmon even ifshe did prefer the Devolutionist to Powart But youll have to admitdoc that the vast majority of the Capellans were incompetents the restwere exceptionsThe doctor spoke after a brief pause Andthats what is wrong VanYes grimly Billie cant help but rejoice that things turned out theway they did She is sure that the workers now that theyve beenseparated from the ruling class will proceed to make a perfect paradiseout of their land He could not repress a certain amount of sarcasmAs well expect a bunch of monkeys to build a steam engineWell after a little hesitation as I said before doc Ive noreason to change my mind You may talk all you like about itI cantagree to such ideas The only way to get results on that planet is forthe upper classes to continue to governAnd this is what you two havequarreled aboutVan Emmon nodded sorrowfully He lit another cigar absentmindedly andcleared his throat twice before going on My fault I guess Ive beenso darned positive about everything Ive said Ive probably causedBillie to sympathize with her friends more solidly than she wouldotherwiseBut just because youve championed the autocrats so heartilyIm afraid so The geologist was plainly relieved to have stated thecase in full He leaned forward in his eagerness to be understood Hetold the doctor things that were altogether too personal to be includedin this accountMeanwhile out in the doctors study Smith had made no move whatever tointerrogate the geologists young wife Instead the engineer simplyremained standing after Billie had sat down and gave her only anoccasional hurried glance Shortly the silence got on her nerves andsuch was her nature as contrasted with Van Emmonswhereas he hadstated causes first she went straight to effectsWell explosively Van and I have splitSmith was seldom surprised at anything This time was no exception Hemerely murmured Sorry under his breath and Billie rushed on herpentup feelings eager to escapeWe havent mentioned Capellette for weeks Smith We dont dare If wedid thered be such a rumpus that wewed separate Something came upinto her throat which had to be choked back before she could go onThenI dont know why it is but every time the subject is brought up Vanmakes me so WILD She controlled herself with a tremendous effort Heblames me of course because of what I did to help the DevolutionistBut I cant be blamed for sympathizing with the under dog can I Ivealways preferred justice to policy any time Justice first I say AndI think weve seenthere on Capellettehow utterly impossible it isfor any such system as theirs to last indefinitelyBut before she could follow up her point the door opened and the doctorreturned with her husband Kinney did not allow any tension to developinstead he said brisklyTheres only a couple of hours remaining between now and dinner time Imove we get busy He glanced about the room to see if all was inplace The four chairs each with its legs tipped with glass the fourfootstools similarly insulated from the floor the electrical circuitrunning from the odd group of machinery in the corner and connectingfour pair of brass braceletsall were ready for use He motioned theothers to the chairs in which they had already accomplished marvels inthe way of mental travelingNow he remarked as he began to fit the bracelets to his wrists anexample which the rest straightway followed now we want to make surethat we all have the same purpose in mind Last time we were simplylooking for four people such as had viewpoints similar to our own Today our object is to locate somewhere among the planets attached toone of the innumerable sunstars of the universe one on which theconditions are decidedly different from anything we have known beforeBillie and Van Emmon their affair temporarily forgotten listenedeagerlyAs I recall it Smith calmly observed we agreed that this attemptwould be to locate a new kind ofwell nearhuman Isnt that rightThe doctor nodded Nothing more or lessspeaking