Free The Menace From Earth ssc by Robert A. Heinlein Page A

even though he did not understand that esoteric mathematics himself.
    The other man was not helpful. He seemed more interested in nursing the gin than he did in following 'Wilson's implausible protestations.
    "Why?" he interrupted pugnaciously.
    "Dammit," Wilson answered, "if you'd just step through once, explanations wouldn't be necessary. However —" He continued with a synopsis of Diktor's proposition. He realized with irritation that Diktor had been exceedingly sketchy with   his   explanations. He was forced to hit only the high spots in the logical parts of his argument, and bear down on the emotional appeal. He was on safe ground there — no one knew better than he did himself how fed up the earlier Bob Wilson had been with the petty drudgery and stuffy atmosphere of an academic career. "You don't want to slave your life away teaching numskulls in some freshwater college," he concluded. "This is your chance. Grab it!"
    Wilson watched his companion narrowly and thought he detected a favorable response. He definitely seemed interested. But the other set his glass down carefully, stared at the gin bottle and at last replied:
    "My dear fellow, I am not going to climb on your merry-go-round. You know why?"
    "Why?"
    "Because I'm drunk, that's why. You're not there at all.   That   ain't there." He gestured widely at the Gate, nearly fell and recovered himself with effort. "There ain't anybody here but me, and I'm drunk. Been working too hard," he mumbled, "'m goin' to bed."
    "You're not drunk," Wilson protested unhopefully. "Damnation," he thought, "a man who can't hold his liquor shouldn't drink."
    "I   am   drunk. Peter Piper pepped a pick of pippered peckles." He lumbered over toward the bed.
    Wilson grabbed his arm. "You can't do that."
    "Let him alone!"
    Wilson swung around, saw a third man standing in front of the Gate — recognized him with a sudden shock. His own recollection of the sequence of events was none too clear in his memory, since he had been somewhat intoxicated — damned near boiled, he admitted — the first time he had experienced this particular busy afternoon. He realized that he should have anticipated the arrival of a third party. But his memory had not prepared him for who the third party would turn out to be.
    He recognized himself — another carbon copy.
    He stood silent for a minute, trying to assimilate this new fact and force it into some reasonable integration. He closed his eyes helplessly. This was just a little too much. He felt that he wanted to have a few plain words with Diktor.
    "Who the hell are you?" He opened his eyes to find that his other self, the drunk one, was addressing the latest edition. The newcomer turned away from his interrogator and looked sharply at Wilson.
    "He   knows me."
    Wilson took his time about replying. This thing was getting out of hand. "Yes," he admitted, "yes, I suppose I do. But what the deuce are you here for? And why are you trying to bust up the plan?"
    His facsimile cut him short. "No time for long-winded explanations. I know more about it than you do — you'll concede that — and my judgment is bound to be better than yours. He doesn't go through the Gate."
    The offhand arrogance of the other antagonized Wilson. "I don't concede anything of the sort —" he began.
    He was interrupted by the telephone bell. "Answer it!" snapped Number Three.
    -
    The tipsy Number One looked belligerent but picked up the handset. "Hello ... Yes. Who is this? ... Hello ... Hello!" He tapped the bar of the instrument, then slammed the receiver back into its cradle.
    "Who was that?" Wilson asked, somewhat annoyed that he had not had a chance to answer it himself.
    "Nothing. Some nut with a misplaced sense of humor." At that instant the telephone rang again. "There he is again!" Wilson tried to answer it, but his alcoholic counterpart beat him to it, brushed him aside. "Listen, you butterfly-brained ape! I'm a busy man and this is   not   a public telephone