The Project Gutenberg EBook of PRoblem, by Alan Edward Nourse

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Title: PRoblem

Author: Alan Edward Nourse

Release Date: January 15, 2008 [EBook #24290]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

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PRoblem

by Alan E. Nourse

The letter came down the slot too early that morning to be the regular
mail run. Pete Greenwood eyed the New Philly photocancel with a dreadful
premonition. The letter said:

PETER:
Can you come East chop-chop, urgent?
Grdznth problem getting to be a PRoblem, need expert
icebox salesman to get gators out of hair fast.
Yes? Math boys hot on this, citizens not so hot.
Please come.
TOMMY

Pete tossed the letter down the gulper with a sigh. He had lost a bet to
himself because it had come three days later than he expected, but it
had come all the same, just as it always did when Tommy Heinz got
himself into a hole.

Not that he didn't like Tommy. Tommy was a good PR-man, as PR-men go. He
just didn't know his own depth. PRoblem in a beady Grdznth eye! What
Tommy needed right now was a Bazooka Battalion, not a PR-man. Pete
settled back in the Eastbound Rocketjet with a sigh of resignation.

He was just dozing off when the fat lady up the aisle let out a scream.
A huge reptilian head had materialized out of nowhere and was hanging in
air, peering about uncertainly. A scaly green body followed, four feet
away, complete with long razor talons, heavy hind legs, and a whiplash
tail with a needle at the end. For a moment the creature floated upside
down, legs thrashing. Then the head and body joined, executed a
horizontal pirouette, and settled gently to the floor like an eight-foot
circus balloon.

Two rows down a small boy let out a muffled howl and tried to bury
himself in his mother's coat collar. An indignant wail arose from the
fat lady. Someone behind Pete groaned aloud and quickly retired behind a
newspaper.

The creature coughed apologetically. "Terribly sorry," he sa