It Happened In Church - October 19, 1962
Chapter Ninety Seven - Write the history
January 1, 2017
John celebrated the New Year by presenting Marie with a blank mentat book. It had a silly cover on it. A childish pictograph of their life’s journey. But she got the Gestalt. They started immediately to recapture all the events since Church Day.
The very next day, John had a crew of folks ensconced in the main house living room. Two court reporters, a video team, and two audio recording teams. They didn’t actually start working but were testing to get the bugs out.
It was to be a prodigious project. It would be made easier by the aid of two budding geniuses. They were able to put pictures in it. Of course, that was to be done outside of the eyes and ears of the ‘non-believers’. It was going to raise a lot of questions how the pictures got into the book. But since it wouldn’t ever be published, the family would know.
Of course, despite all the NDA, secrecy oaths, promises of great wealth, and terrible consequences, there were leaks. The heads of the three major publishing houses — Saint Mary Magdalen Press, Scientific Vermont, and The Project Gutenberg Collection — all jointly came to call on them that afternoon. The thrust of the argument was that they were a state treasure and owed it to the People of Vermont to give them their story. Marie and John were very moved by that appeal. Then, it got crass. Forty million ounces was offered. At that point, John threw them out. The offer of fifty was made from the lawn. The bidding ended when Marie came out with Unk’s shotgun and said: “I am aggrieved …” The varmints vamoosed.
The leaks opened their eyes.
Due to the leaks, the support people were dismissed. The project was allegedly abandoned due to “creative differences”. Marie and John realized it would leak like a sieve with all these people involved.
Marie and John still finished the work. Gee3 and Bee3 committed all the sessions to memory. Then they filled four mentat books which were vaulted. Solely for the family. It was a complete record of everything that had happened.
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Vermont Telephone Telegraph and Telenet Company is proud to announce it’s new device the TeleProSet. This pocket sized device allows you to access all your usual services regardless of your location. From the beach at to the top of Mount Mansfield, you can make or receive phone calls, take pics, listen to music, recall photos or documents, compute, or connect. Just as if you were home. All at very modest cost. The device is available on a two year lease for 2 ounces per month and a small month service charge for your actual usage of the network. To ensure network stability, only approved devices are allowed to connect to the VTT&T network. Offer subject to change without notice.
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An obscure vitaminologist (i.e., someone who studied vitamins) filed a claim with the Saint Peregrine Laziosi Trust for the Cancer cure prize. The current prize was one dot seven million ounces. Since this was a monumental sum, a Grand Jury was empanelled in Pownal, Bennington county. (A grand jury is 100 citizens chosen at random for a day’s service to hear claims.) The evidence was presented. The Grand Jury confirmed the man’s claim, subject to scientific confirmation. The old man’s theory that massive doses of Vitamin C in conjunction with several other vitamins — some very obscure vitamins, Phytoalexin, Jasmonic acid, and sunshine destroyed cancer in a multipronged approach.
The VTMS was called upon by the Grand Jury to design a trial. When word got out, there was wide spread interest. Cancer patients started lining up. Ethicists complained. How could one have a trial that by definition had to kill people for proof? Eventually, it was the common consensus that folks could volunteer for this experiment. Statisticians would have to come up with a guess as to what the findings meant.
After about six months, it was obvious to everyone that they had a cure for cancer. The trick was early detection. If the treatment was started before the disease got too big a foothold, it was easily cured by a 90 day regimen of pills and sun. Luckily, the RTF had portable sunshine by adapting its power generator to a very low setting.
The ‘early detection’ problem was quickly solved. For decades, medical folk were aware dogs could be trained to detect cancer in patients. Following that lead, scientists at the Saint Doubting Thomas Research Center invented an artificial dog’s nose. It was able to detect early cancer in patients quickly and easily. Medical locations deployed these quickly. Eventually, they were like thermometers and bp cuffs.
Linus Pauling was awarded the prize and an endowed chair at UVT. The Saint Peregrine Laziosi Trust closed its doors with its mission completed. He continued his research in the role of vitamins in disease. He never made another discovery.
But one was enough.
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The Good Samaritan Cancer Clinics closed, reorganized, and repurposed. The largest killer loose in Vermont was now stroke. The Clinics took on a new enemy. With renewed vigor and purpose. People were really motivated with a victory under their belts. The Good Samaritan Storke Clinics reopened!
The RTF announced the creation of the Saint Andrew Avellino Stroke Cure Trust. A million ounces were placed in the trust. Across the state, doctors, researchers, inventors, and scientists began to focus on strokes. Prevention, cure, or advancement.
Money is a motivator.
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Death took its toll from the Classmates. Strokes, heart attacks, old age, and various other maladies, but no more cancers. Each time there was a death, Marie and John would go to the Memorial and topple that Classmate’s marker. There were the ones laid flat representing those that never made it to the shelter. There were those pushed over. Off their stubby base. Laying, but not flat. There were those still upright. Very few of those. Each time the weight of all those stones weighed heavily on them.
Kayla Benedict died. Heart attack. At her desk in Montpelier. Funeral in the State Capital. Burial at the Farm. After the burial, Marie toppled Kayla’s marker. Today, but three remained upright!
Marie confided to John: “Would you, brave sir, grant me a boon?” Sensing bad tidings, “Of course, my fair lady, have I ever denied you anything? … Subject to the usual caveats.” “Seriously, John, would you mind if I went first? Could you tip my stone for me? I can not imagine being without you. I’m weak; you’re strong. Have I told you just how much I’ve admired you over the years? On the long hard pull through life, I’ve always felt you pulling more than your share. Can you pull this load too?”
Tears formed.
“My love, were it in my power, I would grant thee this boon. But, we have to continue to follow His plan for us. Let’s go forth and speak no more of this. Who ever is last will be last. It will be His choice; not ours. We’re but humble custodians of His temple on earth. It’s not our place to trump His plan. Whatever that plan be, know that I will be with you to my last breath.”
They walked arm in arm sadly back to the Farm house.
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June Junior Alban was subsequently elected by unanimous vote of the 14 State Senators and 255 State Representatives from the 237 towns, 9 cities, 5 unincorporated areas, and 4 gores.
In her acceptance address, she pledge to continue her aunt’s drive to make Vermont more of a paradise on earth.
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TomT reinvented the airplane by crossing it with a blimp. The advantage of airships over airplanes is that static lift sufficient for flight is generated by the lifting gas and requires no engine power. The disadvantages are that the drag on an airship rises as the square of its speed, while the power required to propel it increases as the cube of the speed. With the new power plant, the power budget changed dramatically. Prior to the new power plan, airships had to descend to frequently refuel with expensive gasoline and to use much of that to get up and down. TomT’s power plant generated hydrogen which was somewhat useful in the gas makeup of the balloon part. Despite the Hindenburg, TomT made use of it in selected isolated bladders. There were several designs — commuter, passenger, cruise, cargo, and mixed use. All slightly different with respect to the passenger load and the cargo loads. John incorporated the creating entity as Saint Vincent Ferrer Airship Manufacturing and the operating entity as Saint Joseph of Cupertino Airship Operations with TomT as the majority stock holder of both.
John had the factory’s order book filled before the first production model rolled off the line. In a matter of weeks, John had an airline up and running. Using the Trucking line model, they had an overwhelming human resource problem. They were besieged by wiling workers. It actually made the Trucking company better. Strangely! Competition is always good for the consumer. That, in turn, is good for the competitors. Everybody wins!
Later in the year, TomT, after consultation with several veteran pilots and airframe designers, demonstrated a new an different frame design. The Airship morphed at altitude into a more bullet shape and used jet engines to push the craft forward. It was called the Saint Christopher’s Sopwith Camel Jet Balloon. Also called the S C Squared J B Coffin by it’s critics. The nickname ‘coffin’ stuck because of its morph into a slender box like shape for jet travel. It recorded a top speed of a shade over 500 mphs. While possibly capable of much higher speeds, it had a tendency to break apart near the sound barrier. To demonstrate it’s safety, the First Couple took an around the globe flight that lasted about 80 hours. They did make a stop at Iwo Jima, where Marie laid a wreath commemorating the many American soldiers who never left that island. As well as a stop in Paris, where they were greeted as Lindberg was.
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June Junior approach her parents with trepidation. She hated to invade their privacy. As Governor, they were a state treasure. There was good they could still do.
“Mommy, Daddy, I have a favor to ask. Say yes.” Marie said: “Yes”, with confidence that her daughter was a good person. “Subject to the usual caveats, yes”, replied John.
“I would like your permission to publish your book. If you want me to wait until after you pass, that’s fine. I think your story is inspiring. I’ll abide by whatever you decide, but I urge you to consider your legacy and it’s impact on your family.”
Marie was concerned that they’d be seen as bragging. John considered the implication on all their businesses and the questions it would bring up about their plans. Marie spoke first quietly: “I don’t want to be seen as profiting on the dead.” John agreed: “But we can’t control what people think. Would it be good for everyone?” June Junior did a little selling: “Inspiring stories are always motivating. And, you can direct the money to charities. I think that waiting until after death makes it appear as if the family is trying to cash in on your story.”
Marie made her decision; she would follow her husband’s lead. John was concerned about the tontine. He didn’t want to expose his plan about returning the 51% to society. So he was a little hung up. “How do we handle the 51% issue? June Junior, you don’t know but the Classmates have agreed that the 51% will just be forgotten about. And, return it to the entity. That is in the book. But, we’re not looking for applause.”
June Junior was caught off-guard by that one.
She hadn’t thought much about financial matters. Guess she would have to? “Mommy, Daddy, we haven’t talked about your passing and what happens to all of us. Maybe we should have that conversation?” John grabbed that opening: “Child, you have nothing to worry about. It’s complicated, but each of you has trusts to keep you for all your days. We’ve been blessed with many profit making opportunities. We’ve been very careful to keep our personal accounts separate from the RTF. Plus, all TomT’s inventions have been funded from our personal accounts, you and TomT have vast wealth in his share. You all will inherit our shares equally. So, put that from your mind. I’m most concerned about the Farm and the Ford.”
June Junior was trying to digest all that.
They agreed to table the discussion.
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TomT had a new theory. He showed the math to Marie. And, to Bee3 and Gee3. And to some at the UVT Math Department. No one saw any errors.
But, no one saw ALL the equations. No one suspected where he was going.
He would either create the hyperdrive of science fiction legend, or the biggest baddest imaginary number ever known to man. It translated into a huge amount of power. Three power plants in parallel across one wired backwards. Thrown together, compressed by a core of solid palladium as the hammer and a lead container as the anvil. The math either gave him a new compound of a pure energy substance or a black hole. He would either be creating the Mirror of God or the Angel of Death. That Mirror would be like Alice through the looking glass; that Angel would be a black hole absorbing all energy until it ’shorted’ out against the foil. He’d lined the lab with solid sheets of what he called ‘royal foil’. Silver, gold, rhenium, ruthenium, rhodium, palladium, osmium, iridium, and platinum. Two layers with carbon paper to keep them separate. Polarity for layer one was reversed for layer two. Layer one was the catalyst; layer two was the barrier.
Then he wrote his notes. To his wife, his children, his … he couldn’t describe what Marie and John meant to him in a few words. His, .. the … First Classmates.
He rose from his bed that fateful morning. Kissed the wife and kids. Placed the envelopes on the mantle. He walked slowly to the lab, enjoying the dawn, sent all the workers home, locked the lab from the inside, and said an Act of Contrition. He held a deadman’s switch in one hand and an activation switch in the other. The deadman’s would send a VTT&T transmission to John. The activation switch would slam the hammer into the anvil.
He took a deep breath and activated.
The effect was instantaneous. A blue energy haze formed and drew all the electrical energy to it until it reached the foil. TomT was dead before he realized it. The message was sent.
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John PDA went off. He was awake in a flash. Only a very few people knew the code to it. He opened it and read: “Master John: My apologies for waking you. If you’re reading this my experiment has gone wrong. Please distribute the envelopes on the mantle. Tell JJ that I always will love her and that I am sorry. I had to try it. With all my respect and admiration, your devoted Classmate, TomT”
Marie asked: “what’s wrong?” He passed her the PDA and went to knock on June Junior’s door. She answered, saw his face, and cried: “Mommy?” John shook his head and said: “No, TomT.”
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That day, only two stones were left standing.
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