It was probably because of this that Hank turned to me, finally, with a pledge.
"Tell you one thing, Jim," he said earnestly. "If we get outa this here now mess, the fust thing I'm gonna do is bust this machine into a million pieces. I done learned a lesson. It ain't right to go messin' around in things like this when you can't control 'em perfect. It just ain't according to Hoyle to do it."
"But if it contributes to science—" I said.
"It don't, Jim. It's all puffectly clear an' logical to me, now. You see, it wouldn't do a man no good to go gallivantin' off into the past, because all he'd do is start a new chain of could-bes. An' it don't do no good for a man to slide sideways through Time, because whut he learns ain't of no consequence to him in his Time, an' just disturbs the folks he meets. So after this, I'm gonna confine myself to tryin' to improve the affairs o' the world we do live in—
"Hey! What was that?"
I had heard it, too. I stared at him wildly. "It sounded like—like somebody calling your name!" I said doubtfully.
"That's whut I thought!" yelled Hank. "Listen—it's a voice, comin' closer!"
We all heard it plainly now. A voice calling curiously, pleadingly, through the gray mists that engulfed us.
"Hank! Oh, Hank Cleaver! Where are you?"
We all yelled. And what I mean, we yelled loud!