The Project Gutenberg eBook of Translator's error

This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this eBook.

Title: Translator's error

Author: Charles Dye

Illustrator: H. W. Kiemle

Leslie Ross

Release date: May 18, 2026 [eBook #78703]

Language: English

Original publication: Holyoke, Mass.: Columbia Publications, Inc., 1952

Other information and formats: www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/78703

Credits: Tom Trussel (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive)

*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK TRANSLATOR'S ERROR ***

Transcribed from Dynamic Science Fiction, December 1952 (Vol. 1, No. 1.).

Translator’s Error

by Charles Dye

It was a perfectly natural mistake for men to make....

The mural extended the full length of the hall, depicting scenes of the old Martian civilization....

Richard Potterboy was a beefy man with a big red face like an old-time politican’s; he looked like an elephant beside the little man with the telescopic spectacles sitting next to him. They both arose as Grisby walked in.

Potterboy’s face grew a shade redder as he glanced menacingly at his watch. “Good Lord, Grisby, where do you think you’re at? Vacationing back on earth? We’ve been waiting here nearly an hour for you!” He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. His uppers didn’t fit well and he was inclined to sputter.

Before Grisby could reply, Potterboy was introducing him to the little man with the powerful glasses. “Philip Grisby, Mr. Theodore McGinnis, newly-appointed historian of the Martian Rehabilitation Project.”

Grisby gravely shook McGinnis’ limp hand, still saying nothing.

“Well, shall we go to your office?” Potterboy suggested impatiently. “You might also have coffee sent in. This was McGinnis’ first trip into space; and after two weeks, I’m sure he’ll enjoy drinking out of a plain, old-fashioned cup again!” The Administrator, slapping McGinnis on the back, chuckled at his own hearty humor.

“Coffee, Halstead,” Grisby shouted as they walked from reception into office.

Potterboy lighted a huge cigar, while they all sat around in strained silence until the secretary entered and left the coffee.

“Now,” Potterboy said, puffing furiously on his cigar—but he didn’t finish. For the first time, he noticed how ill and dejected Grisby looked.

In spite of being a back-slapping extrovert, he was completely disconcerted. After years of setbacks, things had seemed to be going so well the last time he was here.

Grisby, who was known as an optimist, moistened his lips and ran a shaky hand through his thinning hair. “For a historian, Mr. McGinnis, you have come at a most historic moment. The Martian Project has just failed!”

Except for McGinnis taking notes, there was dead silence. Potterboy felt suddenly ill. His cigar tasted like old rope. He wondered what he was going to tell the government in order to justify the billions sunk into this, as well as other planetary rehabilitation projects. To build the solar-system into one of the finest in the galaxy, had originally been his idea; and, for any failures, he would certainly be to blame.

“Let’s have the details,” Potterboy said in a weak voice.

“There’s nothing much to tell,” said Grisby, smiling wanly. “Just before you landed, both polar furnaces melted through the ice and sank into God knows where.”

Potterboy looked aghast. “But how? I thought they were designed to float, once the polar caps began to melt?”

“So did I, but they didn’t. I can’t offer any explanation. They just didn’t!”

For the first time, McGinnis opened his mouth and said in a dry voice, “I take it, then, that this was the last try to get water into the canals?”

“The last try,” Grisby and Potterboy both said, staring down into their cups of coffee.

For awhile, no one said anything. Then, Grisby, more to himself than to the others, “If only something could have been done about those damned Blotting Pads! They, alone, have apparently ruined Mars; and caused the only intelligent life-form to atrophy into the cone-shaped things you see occasionally writhing in the sand.”

McGinnis cleared his throat. “Is it true that no one has been able to capture and analyze a Blotting Pad?”

“They’ve been captured, but the minute they are, they crumble to dust; and any liquid or moisture absorbed, remains in the form of a gooey tar—of which you see traces all over the planet.

“The only way to keep liquids is to store them in containers lined with deuterium—heavy hydrogen, that being the one material through which they cannot absorb. Of course, at more than ten feet distance, they can’t absorb through anything. When we first arrived, every one thought they would have to walk around in deuterium lined armour; but, for some peculiar reason nobody has been able to figure out, they won’t absorb from men. The Blotting Pads, which resemble lichens only in the vaguest way, average two feet in diameter and can absorb up to a gallon of water, which, almost instantly, is excreted in the form of tar. That’s all that’s known about them. If you look out the window, McGinnis, you’ll see them floating and crawling all over the sand.”

McGinnis crossed over to the window and stood watching the green, rubbery disks lying on the sand and hovering a few feet in the thin morning air. He and Potterboy had arrived before dawn and this was his first glimpse of them. “There must be millions of them,” he said.

“Yes. How they breed we don’t know. To electrocute them is the only way to kill them. Radiation, poison, or shooting won’t work; and we can’t run around using atomics.”

“Oh, well,” said Potterboy, breaking a long silence, “if the project to completely melt the polar ice had been successful, in probably no time, the Blotting Pads would have absorbed all the water in the canals, in spite of the electrocution angle.”

Grisby sighed bitterly. “No, it would have worked. The Pads can’t absorb while floating, and the moment they came to rest within the ten foot area bordering either side of the canals, the high tension cables would have done the rest!”

McGinnis was peering far to his left. “I take it those are the generating plants?”

“They were the generators—I gave orders this morning to start dismantling operations.”

“As I understand it,” McGinnis said, “the cables and plants are bordering only two of the canals?”

“Yes, all subsidiary branches were blocked off from the two main arteries. Once the arteries became filled, and the Pads—we hoped—electrocuted, the other branches would have been opened; including the minor ones connecting directly with the polar caps.”

“What do you say to taking McGinnis over to the ruins?” Potterboy asked. “Since I’m leaving tonight, and probably never visiting Mars again, I would like to gaze, cynically, on the business that started this whole damned white elephant project rolling!”

“Since you’re going to be here for a year or two, McGinnis,” Grisby said, “you can wait and go out later, when you have more chronological data concerning the project?”

“No, I might as well go out now. I’m feeling rather restless and depressed—I always do, at the end of some big dream like the Martian Project.”

The administration buildings towered like mountains against the flat, two-dimensional sandiness of Syrtis Major. The three men in sun goggles and chemically cooled clothing looked like insects as they trudged across the reddish, iron-oxide nightmare. Heat waves rolled up into the pale sky like breakers from some gigantic ocean. Blottings Pads, resembling shiny, green fish, darted swiftly as they moved out of the pathway of the men.

“We could have taken a jet out,” Grisby was saying, “but I wanted McGinnis to see the desert, Cones, and Pads first hand. Incidentally, there’s approximately one Pad to every twenty square feet of Mars. They slowly, but constantly, rotate counter-clockwise around the planet. That way, they all get a crack at what little water forms around the polar cap edges.”

In spite of the intense heat, Potterboy had another cigar going, on which he would puff heavily before speaking. “Sabotage, of one sort or another, seems to be the only answer to these polar furnaces. The first two explode, and the second two sink! I can’t help feeling that someone doesn’t want Mars resurrected from its sandy grave.”

“Yes,” Grisby said, with a sarcastic laugh, “the Blotting Pads don’t! But, then, I doubt if they know that they don’t. They’re completely unintelligent—just a couple of instincts in a rubbery bag, absorbing water and transmuting it into tar. And, as you know, Potterboy, all men and technicians were given a six month psycho before being allowed to work on the project; then carefully watched for any sign of dangerous neuroses.”

For awhile, they walked along listening to the crunch of their feet on the sand, saying nothing. The ruins loomed steadily larger through the rippling heat waves.

Finally, Grisby said, “There is one puzzling thing—not a single man in the eighteen years we’ve been here, has lost his life or met with an accident.”

“How do you account for that?” McGinnis asked.

“I don’t. Nor can anyone else. Our equipment seems to have been the only thing meeting with disasters.”

“Well,” interrupted Potterboy, thinking of what he was going to have to say back on earth, “we’ll just have to put it down to not understanding the alien laws of chance, or the undetected forces working on Mars—if there are any? But, outside of the ruins, the sand, and the ice caps, the only two remaining things are the Pads and the Cones. The Pads run around absorbing water, and the Cones bake in the sand, occasionally sending up head-splitting telepathic squawks that no linguist can decipher or begin to comprehend. Establishing communication has proved impossible, in spite of their telepathic powers. And the only motion they appear capable of is sluggishly burrowing up and down in the sand.”

“Yes, gentlemen,” Grisby said, gravely, “we’ve failed in resurrecting the one seemingly-intelligent life-form on Mars.”

“How do you know they’re any more intelligent than the Pads?” questioned McGinnis.

“Oh, well,” said Potterboy, “the ruins show, as you shall presently see, that they’ve developed telepathy. And they have tried communicating with us.”

“Also,” Grisby added, “when the first party landed to establish a base, and started bringing water from the ships, the Cones set up shrill mental vibrations, attempting to warn us before the Blotting Pads could come within range and start absorbing.”

As they came within a hundred yards of the ruins, McGinnis halted. “Are these the ruins? Just two metal walls?”

“The only bit of Martian culture left on the whole planet,” Potterboy said, lighting another cigar. How he stood them in the heat, was beyond both Grisby and McGinnis. But, then, the government official was eccentric in many ways.

In another five minutes, McGinnis was touching the strange, glassy surface of one of the walls; both of which, ran parallel to one another and towered twenty-five feet into the air.

Grisby, noticing, said, “Another indication of how advanced the Martians were. We’ve tried everything, including atomics, on these walls in order to get a piece for analysis—no luck. We drilled down five thousand feet and couldn’t even find the bottom of either wall.

“Step around to the inside here. This is where the chronological line drawings begin, as well as the hieroglyphics, which, I’m told, the archeologists have pretty well deciphered.”

“We’ll have to skim rather rapidly,” Grisby continued, “in order to get back before our helmet and suit chemicals give out.”

McGinnis peered myopically at the huge scene pictured on the wall. It showed several large cone-shaped creatures with long legs and arms, similar to those of a human. In place of heads, they had stalks on which a single eye rested, while, underneath, gaped what appeared to be a mouth. The Cones were standing near a wall which was in front of a city of fantastically complex architecture—yet, breath-takingly beautiful! The surrounding landscape was a jungle of weird, luxuriant foliage; trees and plants alike, towering hundreds of feet into the air—almost as high as the city itself. In, and around the picture’s foreground, several Blotting Pads were shown lying on, and hovering over the tall grass. The wall in the drawing had the same picture on it as the actual one McGinnis and the others were staring at. Underneath the scene, were several rows of complex hen-scratchings.

“From the hieroglyphics and picture,” Grisby said, “one must conclude that this was the height of Martian culture. Hereafter, as we walk along, you’ll notice, not only the physical and cultural characteristics changing, but the sharp delineation of the murals themselves becoming vague and incomprehensible.”

They walked down the long expanse of the first wall in silence; McGinnis with his note book, Potterboy, his cigar, and Grisby, his shattered dreams of turning the sandy grave of Mars into the once fertile paradise depicted in the first mural.

Each scene showed an increasing number of Blotting Pads, and a decreasing amount of foliage. Whole gardens were shown withering away; and huge cities being deserted, as the Pads increased, and the greenery and water disappeared. The last scene on the wall showed the fantastically beautiful city of the first mural, crumbling to dust with Blotting Pads resting on the sandy waste they had created around it.

The second wall showed the elongated legs and arms of the Cones, shrivelling and withering. Later, the stalk with eye and mouth vanished. Then the Cones began to shrink until they were only an eighth their original size. The final, comprehensible scene showed the Cones buried in sand with Blotting Pads all around them. Strange dotted and wavering lines—telepathic symbols—connected the apex of each Cone with that of its neighbor. After that, the remaining scenes fell sharply off into incomprehensibility, leaving the later portion of the wall completely blank.

As the three men reached the second wall’s end, several Cones came into view, being grouped more closely than the thousands of others scattered willy-nilly over the planet.

McGinnis stopped short. “So these are what they atrophied into from lack of water,” he said, sadly. Shifting his gaze, he glared bitterly at the Blotting Pads, covering most of the desert as far as the eye could see.

Potterboy and Grisby followed suit, staring off into the approaching dusk at the one big stumbling block which had prevented them from resurrecting Mars.

The humans had left.

All traces of their coming had been obliterated by the sea of restless sand, except one thing—a spherical deuterium water-container; which, during the windy season, would be buffeted about the planet this way and that, the law of averages occasionally causing it to crack into the timeless Martian wall. At such times, the Cones would philosophically contemplate it and the peculiar, yet likeable, creatures that had brought it.

One Cone, who was considered a little strange by his brothers because he lacked the philosophic intensity for complete introverted contemplation, one day, broke the telepathic silence; a thing considered still stranger by his brothers, since it was thought very rude to disturb one another, except in times of extreme importance.

“A shame we could not communicate ... strain incurred destroying furnaces ... thousands of years to erase ...”

Weakened by many buffetings, the water sphere hit the wall for the last time. With a crack it split in half, splashing gallons of water far up the wall. The nearest Cones shrieked in telepathic unison as the Life-Destroyer splashed nearby! Almost immediately, directed by the urgency of their commands, their organic-robots—the Blotting Pads—were hurling themselves upon the death giving liquid!

The Cones, at the height of their evolutionary ascent, one by one, returned to the contemplation of eternity. Once and for all time, the danger was past.

Transcriber’s note:

This etext was produced from Dynamic Science Fiction, December 1952 (Vol. 1, No. 1.). Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.

Obvious errors have been silently corrected in this version, but minor inconsistencies have been retained as printed.

*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK TRANSLATOR'S ERROR ***

Updated editions will replace the previous one—the old editions will be renamed.

Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without permission and without paying copyright royalties. Special rules, set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to copying and distributing Project Gutenberg™ electronic works to protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG™ concept and trademark. Project Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you charge for an eBook, except by following the terms of the trademark license, including paying royalties for use of the Project Gutenberg trademark. If you do not charge anything for copies of this eBook, complying with the trademark license is very easy. You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose such as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and research. Project Gutenberg eBooks may be modified and printed and given away—you may do practically ANYTHING in the United States with eBooks not protected by U.S. copyright law. Redistribution is subject to the trademark license, especially commercial redistribution.

START: FULL LICENSE

THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG™ LICENSE

PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK

To protect the Project Gutenberg™ mission of promoting the free distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work (or any other work associated in any way with the phrase “Project Gutenberg”), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full Project Gutenberg License available with this file or online at www.gutenberg.org/license.

Section 1. General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg electronic works

1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property (trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to abide by all the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or destroy all copies of Project Gutenberg electronic works in your possession. If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a Project Gutenberg electronic work and you do not agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person or entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8.

1.B. “Project Gutenberg” is a registered trademark. It may only be used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. There are a few things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg electronic works even without complying with the full terms of this agreement. See paragraph 1.C below. There are a lot of things you can do with Project Gutenberg electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg electronic works. See paragraph 1.E below.

1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation (“the Foundation” or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection of Project Gutenberg electronic works. Nearly all the individual works in the collection are in the public domain in the United States. If an individual work is unprotected by copyright law in the United States and you are located in the United States, we do not claim a right to prevent you from copying, distributing, performing, displaying or creating derivative works based on the work as long as all references to Project Gutenberg are removed. Of course, we hope that you will support the Project Gutenberg mission of promoting free access to electronic works by freely sharing Project Gutenberg works in compliance with the terms of this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg name associated with the work. You can easily comply with the terms of this agreement by keeping this work in the same format with its attached full Project Gutenberg License when you share it without charge with others.

1.D. The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most countries are in a constant state of change. If you are outside the United States, check the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this agreement before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, distributing or creating derivative works based on this work or any other Project Gutenberg work. The Foundation makes no representations concerning the copyright status of any work in any country other than the United States.

1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg:

1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other immediate access to, the full Project Gutenberg License must appear prominently whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg work (any work on which the phrase “Project Gutenberg” appears, or with which the phrase “Project Gutenberg” is associated) is accessed, displayed, performed, viewed, copied or distributed:

This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg™ License included with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this eBook.

1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg electronic work is derived from texts not protected by U.S. copyright law (does not contain a notice indicating that it is posted with permission of the copyright holder), the work can be copied and distributed to anyone in the United States without paying any fees or charges. If you are redistributing or providing access to a work with the phrase “Project Gutenberg” associated with or appearing on the work, you must comply either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 or obtain permission for the use of the work and the Project Gutenberg trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or 1.E.9.

1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg electronic work is posted with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any additional terms imposed by the copyright holder. Additional terms will be linked to the Project Gutenberg License for all works posted with the permission of the copyright holder found at the beginning of this work.

1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg.

1.E.5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project Gutenberg License.

1.E.6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary, compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including any word processing or hypertext form. However, if you provide access to or distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg work in a format other than “Plain Vanilla ASCII” or other format used in the official version posted on the official Project Gutenberg website (www.gutenberg.org), you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense to the user, provide a copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means of obtaining a copy upon request, of the work in its original “Plain Vanilla ASCII” or other form. Any alternate format must include the full Project Gutenberg License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1.

1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying, performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg works unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9.

1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing access to or distributing Project Gutenberg electronic works provided that:

- • You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from the use of Project Gutenberg works calculated using the method you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg trademark, but he has agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty payments must be paid within 60 days following each date on which you prepare (or are legally required to prepare) your periodic tax returns. Royalty payments should be clearly marked as such and sent to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the address specified in Section 4, “Information about donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation.”

- • You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg™ License. You must require such a user to return or destroy all copies of the works possessed in a physical medium and discontinue all use of and all access to other copies of Project Gutenberg™ works.

- • You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of any money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days of receipt of the work.

- • You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free distribution of Project Gutenberg™ works.

1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project Gutenberg™ electronic work or group of works on different terms than are set forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing from the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the manager of the Project Gutenberg™ trademark. Contact the Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below.

1.F.

1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread works not protected by U.S. copyright law in creating the Project Gutenberg™ collection. Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg™ electronic works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may contain “Defects,” such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate or corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other intellectual property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or other medium, a computer virus, or computer codes that damage or cannot be read by your equipment.

1.F.2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the “Right of Replacement or Refund” described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project Gutenberg™ trademark, and any other party distributing a Project Gutenberg™ electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal fees. YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH 1.F.3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE.

1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a written explanation to the person you received the work from. If you received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium with your written explanation. The person or entity that provided you with the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu of a refund. If you received the work electronically, the person or entity providing it to you may choose to give you a second opportunity to receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund. If the second copy is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing without further opportunities to fix the problem.

1.F.4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you ‘AS-IS’, WITH NO OTHER WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE.

1.F.5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of damages. If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement violates the law of the state applicable to this agreement, the agreement shall be interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted by the applicable state law. The invalidity or unenforceability of any provision of this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions.

1.F.6. INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone providing copies of Project Gutenberg™ electronic works in accordance with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the production, promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg™ electronic works, harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, including legal fees, that arise directly or indirectly from any of the following which you do or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this or any Project Gutenberg work, (b) alteration, modification, or additions or deletions to any Project Gutenberg work, and (c) any Defect you cause.

Section 2. Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg

Project Gutenberg is synonymous with the free distribution of electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of computers including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers. It exists because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations from people in all walks of life.

Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the assistance they need are critical to reaching Project Gutenberg’s goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg collection will remain freely available for generations to come. In 2001, the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure and permanent future for Project Gutenberg and future generations. To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and how your efforts and donations can help, see Sections 3 and 4 and the Foundation information page at www.gutenberg.org.

Section 3. Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation

The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non-profit 501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal Revenue Service. The Foundation’s EIN or federal tax identification number is 64-6221541. Contributions to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent permitted by U.S. federal laws and your state’s laws.

The Foundation’s business office is located at 41 Watchung Plaza #516, Montclair NJ 07042, USA, +1 (862) 621-9288. Email contact links and up to date contact information can be found at the Foundation’s website and official page at www.gutenberg.org/contact

Section 4. Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation

Project Gutenberg™ depends upon and cannot survive without widespread public support and donations to carry out its mission of increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be freely distributed in machine-readable form accessible by the widest array of equipment including outdated equipment. Many small donations ($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt status with the IRS.

The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United States. Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up with these requirements. We do not solicit donations in locations where we have not received written confirmation of compliance. To SEND DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any particular state visit www.gutenberg.org/donate.

While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who approach us with offers to donate.

International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from outside the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff.

Please check the Project Gutenberg web pages for current donation methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a number of other ways including checks, online payments and credit card donations. To donate, please visit: www.gutenberg.org/donate.

Section 5. General Information About Project Gutenberg electronic works

Professor Michael S. Hart was the originator of the Project Gutenberg concept of a library of electronic works that could be freely shared with anyone. For forty years, he produced and distributed Project Gutenberg eBooks with only a loose network of volunteer support.

Project Gutenberg eBooks are often created from several printed editions, all of which are confirmed as not protected by copyright in the U.S. unless a copyright notice is included. Thus, we do not necessarily keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition.

Most people start at our website which has the main PG search facility: www.gutenberg.org.

This website includes information about Project Gutenberg, including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks.

Table of Contents

Translator’s Error

Transcriber’s note:

THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG™ LICENSE