e
dwindled to almost nothing. Columnists were fighting for the privilege
of pouring out free copy on both plays. Some of their speculations as to
Hardy's real identity were pretty fabulous--Winston Churchill, Noel
Coward and even a certain, witty ex-presidential candidate for the
Democratic party--but no one found him out, and the advance sellout
began gaining a week every day.

Now, I have made and lost my share of theater fortunes, and I have
learned a certain caution. At the moment I was quite content to ride
with my two smash-hits and leave Hardy to his experiments. Strangely, it
was he who called upon me for action.

A month after launching _Parodisiac_ he showed up at my office, looking
leaner and more intense than ever. His crew-cut was growing out, but it
was from neglect rather than a sudden artistic temperament, I was sure.

After locking the doors and cancelling my morning appointments, I said,
"Well, golden boy, what brings you to civilization?"

His smile was still strong and warm, but it was no longer youthful.
There was a look of deep wisdom in his blue eyes that finally justified
the magnificent play he had written.

"Money," he answered briefly.

"Haven't my checks been reaching you?" I asked in amazement.

"Oh, yes. Very gratifying," he said pacing a groove in the deep carpet
pile. "But I'm moving into prenatal memory now, and I accomplished it by
administrations of a new B vitamin derivative. I have a staff of
biochemists working for me producing this substance, but it's fearfully
expensive. I need more of it, larger lab facilities to produce it
secretly. I want to buy the sanitarium."

"Buy the--"

"Lock, stock and personnel," he nodded. "I'm three months before birth,
already. My goal is conception."

A big, brassy gong chimed in my brain. "That sounds like this
_dianetics_ business that was going the rounds awhile back."

Hardy nodded. "In some respects, yes. But I have a single goal, total
recall, and I'm taking a more comprehensive approach. Psycho-therapy
helped a great deal, but I have traced-out every angle of mnemonics,
improved on most and invented some new ones. The final problem is one of
improving synaptic potentials and actual tissue tone in the brain.
Biochemistry is giving me the answers. With enough of the new B vitamin
derivative I'm confident I can reach conception--and a totality of
recall."

"But Hardy, what have you got when you get there? I still say, what's
the