"'Is that possible?'
"'Of course it's possible,' he cried irritably. 'Do you think I should be pursuing my experiments if I didn't think it possible? Only numbskulls think anything impossible!'
“I FELT rather hurt at his retort and a certain coolness sprang up between us. The summer holidays came and I went away without bidding him good-by. But returning for the new semester, my first act was to hurry to the laboratory. He greeted me as if there had never been any difference between us.
"'Come,' he cried; 'you must see what I have accomplished. It is marvelous, marvelous.'
"In his workshop stood a mechanism perhaps three feet square and four feet high. It was made of polished steel and looked not unlike an Edison music box.
"'You are the first I have shown it to,' he said excitedly. 'Here, look into this.'
"Stooping over the top of the box I peered into the eye-piece indicated. It was so fashioned that it fitted the contour of the face snugly.
"'Now hold steady,' warned the Professor. 'This machine makes quite a noise, but it won't harm you at all.'
"I sensed that he was fingering and arranging dials and levers on the side of the contrivance. Suddenly an engine in the box began to throb with a steady rhythm. This gradually increased in tempo until the vibration of it shook the room.
"'Don't move,' shouted the Professor.