Free Tom Swift and His G-Force Inverter by Victor Appleton II Page B

together to form Chow’s weight—that is, his anti-weight! "
    "That’s just—"
    "Aw now, jest hang on," groused Chow. "What’re yew two talkin’ about?"
    Tom was grinning excitedly. "Pardner, that little ball is made of ingravitized lead! It’s the world’s first sample of solid matter that falls upward!"
    "With the precise same degree of upward push that Tom’s conformist bit of lead has in the customary downward direction," added Rafe. "The two are identical lead weights—but for one small detail, eh?"
    "H-here. Take it back," Chow said nervously. "Don’t seem right natural."
    "It’s the first sample I made," continued Franzenberg, "but not the only one. I now have a small collection of ingravitized weights inside the observatory dome."
    "Why there?" Tom asked.
    "Because of the high roof. I’ve been running tests on their upward acceleration. So far the results are exactly as predicted—1-G, vertically. No deviation. For these wondrous little slugs, Earth’s force of gravitation has been perfectly inverted. The tyranny of G has been overturned!"
    With these rringing words Chow returned to his duties suffused by a sense of wonder and a twinge of worried awe. Dr. Franzenberg showed Tom the modified G-force inverter, demonstrating his method of using a microrepelatron to "spray" minute metal globules through the crux of the rotation field, capturing them as they exited. "Of course the actual rotation is more or less instantaneous. Like turning your shirt inside-out as you whip it off."
    "Good night, what a fantastic step forward!" Tom exulted with gratitude. "We’ll have to announce this result to the public immediately—and to the world scientific community, of course. And it also means we can move forward on formally submitting the Monoswift demonstration project to the Department of the Interior."
    Rafe nodded. "Mmm yes, your ‘flying locomotive.’ Rather a banal use for the reversal of a fundamental force of nature, one of the Top Four. But these are banal times, I suppose."
    Under George Dilling, the company’s office of Communications and Public Interest performed with its usual efficiency. A brief media release was flung before an astounded world, and a technical account appeared on ForeSite .
    For a time the affairs of Asa Pike and a Mexican crook named Rampo were forgotten.
    The project proposal by Tom Swift Enterprises was quickly lodged among several others on the list of government grantees. Mr. Swift told Tom: "They’ve given the green light to several first-phase demonstration projects—small-scale, low-commitment projects to make an initial determination of feasibility. It’ll all play out over several years, of course."
    "They call it ‘beta-testing’ these days," observed Tom happily. "Enterprises is probably the only proposor ready to head for the Grand Canyon."
    "Well, son, there is one other," said Damon Swift. "Background chatter tells me that Technautics, that engineering firm over in Indianapolis, has something ready to go."
    "That’s the outfit run by Cosmo Kincaid," Tom noted with disgust. "Why would anyone want to deal with that snake?"
    His father shrugged wryly. "In the world of technology and invention he’s—well—you might call him the anti-Swift! " The man was well known for ruthless, barely ethical business practices, and had often been charged with patent piracy and shady business dealings. "But remember, son, nothing has ever been proven against him."
    Tom acknowledged the fact reluctantly. "He has the right to compete with us, I guess. But I’ll sure be amazed if Technautics comes up with an approach that beats the Monoswift!"
    "Agreed. Cosmo may be the anti-Swift, but we have the original!"
    The Original continued his planning and testing as the prototype Monoswift took shape in the big assembly hangar, the Barn. As they worked late one evening, an outside telephone call was routed to the two Swifts’ shared executive office. "Dan Perkins here," said the