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.As if further confirm-ation were needed! The evidence is overwhelming, thevisits of those ancient space travelers to the awestruckaborigines of this planet Pure fiction, I said. Not even entertaining fiction.Heinlein and Ray Bradbury do it much better. Frieda banged on the table.Every dish on it jumpedand rattled. The legends of fiery chariots, carrying godlike be-ings Meteors, volcanic eruptions, thunder and lightning, I said. Plus the creative imagination of human beingsaching for reassurance about death.If you can imaginespaceships, why couldn t they imagine fiery chariots? The ancient paintings and rock drawings showingmen wearing space helmets Masks.Hank has a couple of them in the libraryright now.We ve found the masks.Why haven t anyof your space helmets survived? Summer of the Dragon / 127We had attracted a crowd.I had kept my voicedown well, fairly much down but Frieda boomedlike a bittern, and I suppose it was obvious that wewere arguing.I wondered if she and the other nuts hadheld a meeting and elected her their spokesman.Theywere all standing around, listening avidly.Jesse hadgiven up his pretense of detachment and was followingthe conversation, his head swinging back and forthlike that of a tennis fan watching a hot match.Tomwas clearly enjoying himself. Thirty love, he chanted. You can t win, Abbott,but go on talking; it s good exercise for the vocalcords. Then I lost the last vestige of my cool. Your theories are so stupid, only a moron couldfall for them, I said. You set up straw men so youcan knock them down.I read your book.You claimEgyptian and Sumerian civilizations sprang up out ofnothing, full blown.That s a lie.There s solid evidenceof centuries of prehistoric development, consistent anddocumented.You claim we can t duplicate ancientbuildings or technical processes.Lies again.Any jackasscan build a pyramid, the same way the Egyptians did,if he can afford to hire the laborers.There are no lostsciences. I had to stop for breath at that point.Frieda s facehad turned an alarming puce.Now she said softly. And the scientific achievements of the an 128 / Elizabeth Peterscients? The fact that the height of the Great Pyramid,multiplied by a thousand million, corresponds to thedistance between the sun and the earth Why pick a thousand million? Multiplied by ahundred it corresponds to the distance betweenSchenectady and Boston.That s a mystically significantfigure, because I was born in Schenectady and It is, of course, good scholarly technique to sneer, Frieda said, with a pretty good sneer of her own. Noneof you can explain what moved the ancients to erectgreat buildings that had no useful function Like cathedrals and fancy tombs, I interrupted. Ordo you claim that the towers of Chartres are alsobeacons for space travelers? Frieda s lips drew back.(My, what big teeth youhave, Grandma!) I braced myself for a bellow of rage.Instead, after a momentary, almost unnoticeable side-ways glance, she bowed her head and said gently, You cannot admit the truth.The young are the truereactionaries.I pity you. Forewarned by that quick flicker of her eyes, I rolledmy own eyes to the side.Sure enough, there hewas Gary Cooper trying to calm the mob, HankHunnicutt afraid his friends were going to be rude toone another.Frieda was no dummy, she knew hewouldn t like it if she roared at me.I decided to trysome rhetoric myself. Summer of the Dragon / 129 Why do you deny man? I cried in my most ringingsoprano.Tom did a beautiful doubletake and Jesse s eyesopened wide
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