There is one fact no sane man can quarrel
with ... everything has a beginning and an end.
But some men aren't sane; thus it isn't always so!

No, you're wrong. I'm not your father's ghost, even if I do look a bitlike him. But it's a longish story, and you might as well let me in.You will, you know, so why quibble about it? At least, you alwayshave ... or do ... or will. I don't know, verbs get all mixed up. Wedon't have the right attitude toward tenses for a situation like this.

Anyhow, you'll let me in. I did, so you will.

Thanks. You think you're crazy, of course, but you'll find out youaren't. It's just that things are a bit confused. And don't look at themachine out there too long—until you get used to it, you'll find it'shard on the eyes, trying to follow where the vanes go. You'll get usedto it, of course, but it will take about thirty years.

You're wondering whether to give me a drink, as I remember it. Why not?And naturally, since we have the same tastes, you can make the same forme as you're having. Of course we have the same tastes—we're the sameperson. I'm you thirty years from now, or you're me. I remember justhow you feel; I felt the same way when he—that is, of course, I orwe—came back to tell me about it, thirty years ago.

Here, have one of these. You'll get to like them in a couple moreyears. And you can look at the revenue stamp date, if you still doubtmy story. You'll believe it eventually, though, so it doesn't matter.

Right now, you're shocked. It's a real wrench when a man meets himselffor the first time. Some kind of telepathy seems to work between twoof the same people. You sense things. So I'll simply go ahead talkingfor half an hour or so, until you get over it. After that you'll comealong with me. You know, I could try to change things around by tellingwhat happened to me; but he—I—told me what I was going to do, so Imight as well do the same. I probably couldn't help telling you thesame thing in the same words, even if I tried—and I don't intend totry. I've gotten past that stage in worrying about all this.

So let's begin when you get up in half an hour and come out with me.You'll take a closer look at the machine, then. Yes, it'll be prettyobvious it must be a time machine. You'll sense that, too. You've seenit, just a small little cage with two seats, a luggage compartment, anda few buttons on a dash. You'll be puzzling over what I'll tell you,and you'll be getting used to the idea that you are the man who makesatomic power practical. Jerome Boell, just a plain engineer, the manwho put atomic power in every home. You won't exactly believe it, butyou'll want to go along.

I'll be tired of talking by then, and in a hurry to get going. So Icut off your questions, and get you inside. I snap on a green button,and everything seems to cut off around us. You can see a sort offoggy nothing surrounding the cockpit; it is probably the field thatprevents passage through time from affecting us. The luggage sectionisn't protected, though.