An American science fiction and fantasy author. This volume includes 25 science fictions in one.

Contents

Unwise Child (1962)

Instant of Decision (1953)

Anchorite (1962)

With No Strings Attached (1963)

Nor Iron Bars a Cage.... (1962)

The Asses of Balaam (1961)

Anything You Can Do ... (1963)

Psichopath (1960)

Quest of the Golden Ape (1957)

Belly Laugh (1953)

Cum Grano Salis (1959)

Occasion for Disaster (1960)

The Penal Cluster (1957)

The Eyes Have It (1964)

Time Fuze (1954)

...After a Few Words... (1962)

The Highest Treason (1961)

A Spaceship Named McGuire (1961)

The Impossibles (1963)

Despoilers of the Golden Empire (1959)

Pagan Passions (1959)

Supermind (1963)

The Destroyers (1959)

Brain Twister (1961)

The Judas Valley (1956)

Unwise Child-

When a super-robot named Snookums discovers how to build his own superbombs, it becomes obvious that Earth is by no means the safest place for him to be. And so Dr. Fitzhugh, his designer, and Leda Crannon, a child psychologist acting as Snookums’ nursemaid, agree to set up Operation Brainchild, a plan to transport the robot to a far distant planet. Mike the Angel--M. R. Gabriel, Power Design--has devised the power plant that is to propel the space ship Branchell to its secret destination, complete with its unusual cargo. And, as a reserve officer in the Space Patrol, Mike is a logical replacement for the craft’s unavoidably detained engineering officer.But once into space, the Branchell becomes the scene of some frightening events--the medical officer is murdered, and Snookums appears to be the culprit. Mike the Angel indulges himself in a bit of sleuthing, and the facts he turns up lead to a most unusual climax.

Instant of Decision-

How could a man tell the difference if all the reality of Earth turned out to be a cosmic hoax? Suppose it turned out that this was just a stage set for students of history?

Anchorite-

There are two basic kinds of fools--the ones who know they are fools, and the kind that, because they do not know that, are utterly deadly menaces!

With No Strings Attached-

A man will always be willing to buy something he wants, and believes in, even if it is impossible, rather than something he believes is impossible. So... sell him what he thinks he wants!

The Asses of Balaam-

The remarkable characteristic of Balaam's ass was that it was more perceptive than its master. Sometimes a child is more perceptive—because more straightforward and logical—than an adult....

Anything You Can Do ...-

One shipwrecked alien against the power of an entire planet means a losing battle... until Earth builds superman!

Psichopath-

Given psi powers like clairvoyance and telepathy, solving problems of sabotage would be easy, of course. That is, it seems that way at first thought!

Belly Laugh-

You hear a lot of talk these days about secret weapons. If it's not a new wrinkle in nuclear fission, it's a gun to shoot around corners and down winding staircases. Or maybe a nice new strain of bacteria guaranteed to give you radio-active dandruff. Our own suggestion is to pipe a few of our television commercials into Russia and bore the enemy to death.Well, it seems that Ivar Jorgensen has hit on the ultimate engine of destruction: a weapon designed to exploit man's greatest weakness. The blueprint can be found in the next few pages; and as the soldier in the story says, our only hope is to keep a sense of humor!

Cum Grano Salis-

Just because a man can do something others can’t does not, unfortunately, mean he knows how to do it. One man could eat the native fruit and live ... but how?

Occasion for Disaster-

A very small slip, at just the wrong place, can devastate any enterprise. One tiny transistor can go wrong ... and ruin a multi-million dollar missile. Which would be one way to stop the missiles..

The Penal Cluster-

Tomorrow's technocracy will produce more and more things for better living. It will produce other things, also; among them, criminals too despicable to live on this earth. Too abominable to breathe our free air.

The Eyes Have It-

This is a story of here-and-now. This Earth, this year ... but on a history-line slipped slightly sidewise. A history in which a great man acted differently, and Magic, rather than physical science, was developed....

Time Fuze-

The ultradrive had just one slight drawback: it set up a shock wave that made suns explode. Which made the problem of getting back home a delicate one indeed.

After a Few Words-

This is a science-fiction story. History is a science; the other part is, as all Americans know, the most fictional field we have today.

The Highest Treason-

The highest treason of all is not so easy to define--and be it noted carefully that the true traitor in this case was not singular, but very plural.

A Spaceship Named McGuire-

The basic trouble with McGuire was that, though "he" was a robot spaceship, nevertheless "he" had a definite weakness that a man might understand.

The Impossibles-

CRIME WAVE 1972 -- the strange powers of the minds of tomorrow.

Despoilers of the Golden Empire-

A handful of men, and an incredible adventure--a few super-men, led by a fanatic, seeking to conquer a new world!

Supermind-

F.B.I. space agent Ken Malone in a world that didn't exist.

The Destroyers-

Any war is made up of a horde of personal tragedies--but the greater picture is the tragedy of the death of a way of life.