The Edge of the Knife Page 7
elderly man said. "It was not a verysatisfactory discussion."
"President Whitburn's fitness to hold his own position could veryeasily be challenged," the young man added pugnaciously.
"Well, then, you see what my position is. I've consulted my attorney,Mr. Weill and he has advised me to make absolutely no statements ofany sort about the matter."
"I understand," the eldest of the trio said. "But we're not the press,or anything like that. We can assure you that anything you tell uswill be absolutely confidential." He looked inquiringly at themiddle-aged man in tweeds, who nodded silently. "We can understandthat the students in your modern history class are telling what issubstantially the truth?"
"If you're thinking about that hoax statement of Whitburn's, that's alot of idiotic drivel!" he said angrily. "I heard some of those boyson the telecast, last night; except for a few details in which theywere confused, they all stated exactly what they heard me say in classa month ago."
"And we assume,"--again he glanced at the man in tweeds--"that you hadno opportunity of knowing anything, at the time, about any actualplot against Khalid's life?"
The man in tweeds broke silence for the first time. "You can assumethat. I don't even think this fellow Noureed knew anything about it,then."
"Well, we'd like to know, as nearly as you're able to tell us, justhow you became the percipient of this knowledge of the future event ofthe death of Khalid ib'n Hussein," the young man began. "Was itthrough a dream, or a waking experience; did you visualize, or have anauditory impression, or did it simply come into your mind...."
"I'm sorry, gentlemen." He looked at his watch. "I have to be goingsomewhere, at once. In any case, I simply can't discuss the matterwith you. I appreciate your position; I know how I'd feel if data ofhistorical importance were being withheld from me. However, I trustthat you will appreciate my position and spare me any furtherquestioning."
That was all he allowed them to get out of him. They spent another fewminutes being polite to one another; he invited them to lunch at theFaculty Club, and learned that they were lunching there as Fitch'sguests. They went away trying to hide their disappointment.
* * * * *
The Psionics and Parapsychology people weren't the only delegation toreach Blanley that day. Enough of the trustees of the college lived inthe San Francisco area to muster a quorum for a meeting the eveningbefore; a committee, including James Dacre, the father of the boy inModern History IV, was appointed to get the facts at first hand; theyarrived about noon. They talked to some of the students, spent sometime closeted with Whitburn, and were seen crossing the campus withthe Parapsychology people. They didn't talk to Chalmers or Fitch. Inthe afternoon, Marjorie Fenner told Chalmers that his presence at ameeting, to be held that evening in Whitburn's office, was requested.The request, she said, had come from the trustees' committee, not fromWhitburn; she also told him that Fitch would be there. Chalmerspromptly phoned Stanly Weill.
"I'll be there along with you," the lawyer said. "If this trustees'committee is running it, they'll realize that this is a matter inwhich you're entitled to legal advice. I'll stop by your place andpick you up.... You haven't been doing any talking, have you?"
He described the interview with the Psionics and Parapsychologypeople.
"That was all right.... Was there a man with a mustache, in a browntweed suit, with them?"
"Yes. I didn't catch his name...."
"It's Cutler. He's an Army major; Central Intelligence. His crowd'sinterested in whether you had any real advance information on this. Hewas in to see me, just a while ago. I have the impression he'd like tosee this whole thing played down, so he'll be on our side, more orless and for the time being. I'll be around to your place about eight;in the meantime, don't do any more talking than you have to. I hope wecan get this straightened out, this evening. I'll have to go to Renoin a day or so to see a client there...."
* * * * *
The meeting in Whitburn's office had been set for eight-thirty; Weillsaw to it that they arrived exactly on time. As they got out of hiscar at Administration Center and crossed to the steps, Chalmers hadthe feeling of going to a duel, accompanied by his second. Thebriefcase Weill was carrying may have given him the idea; it was flatand square-cornered, the size and shape of an old case of duelingpistols. He commented on it.
"Sound recorder," Weill said. "Loaded with a four-hour spool. Nomatter how long this thing lasts, I'll have a record of it, if I wantto produce one in court."
Another party was arriving at the same time--the two Psionics andParapsychology people and the Intelligence major, who seemed to haveformed a working partnership. They all entered together, after a briefand guardedly polite exchange of greetings. There were voices raisedin argument inside when they came to Whitburn's office. The collegepresident was trying to keep Handley, Tom Smith, and Max Pottgeiterfrom entering his private room in the rear.
"It certainly is!" Handley was saying. "As faculty members, anycontroversy involving establishment of standards of fitness to teachunder a tenure-contract concerns all of us, because any action takenin this case may establish a precedent which could affect the validityof our own contracts."
A big man with iron-gray hair appeared in the doorway of the privateoffice behind Whitburn; James Dacre.
"These gentlemen have a substantial interest in this, DoctorWhitburn," he said. "If they're here as representatives of the collegefaculty, they have every right to be present."
Whitburn stood aside. Handley, Smith and Pottgeiter went through thedoor; the others followed. The other three members of the trustees'committee were already in the room. A few minutes later, Leonard Fitcharrived, also carrying a briefcase.
"Well, everybody seems to be here," Whitburn said, starting toward hischair behind the desk. "We might as well get this started."
"Yes. If you'll excuse me, Doctor." Dacre stepped in front of him andsat down at the desk. "I've been selected as chairman of thiscommittee; I believe I'm presiding here. Start the recorder,somebody."
One of the other trustees went to the sound recorder beside thedesk--a larger but probably not more efficient instrument than the oneWeill had concealed in his briefcase--and flipped a switch. Then heand his companions dragged up chairs to flank Dacre's, and the restseated themselves around the room. Old Pottgeiter took a seat next toChalmers. Weill opened the case on his lap, reached inside, and closedit again.
"What are they trying to do, Ed?" Pottgeiter asked, in a loud whisper."Throw you off the faculty? They can't do that, can they?"
"I don't know, Max. We'll see...."
"This isn't any formal hearing, and nobody's on trial here," Dacre wassaying. "Any action will have to be taken by the board of trustees asa whole, at a regularly scheduled meeting. All we're trying to do isfind out just what's happened here, and who, if anybody, isresponsible...."
"Well, there's the man who's responsible!" Whitburn cried, pointing atChalmers. "This whole thing grew out of his behavior in class a monthago, and I'll remind you that at the time I demanded his resignation!"
"I thought it was Doctor Fitch, here, who gave the story to thenewspapers," one of the trustees, a man with red hair and a thin,eyeglassed face, objected.
"Doctor Fitch acted as any scientist should, in making public what hebelieved to be an important scientific discovery," the elder of thetwo Parapsychology men said. "He believed, and so do we, that he haddiscovered a significant instance of precognition--a case of realprior knowledge of a future event. He made a careful and systematicrecord of Professor Chalmers' statements, at least two weeks beforethe occurrence of the event to which they referred. It is entirely dueto him that we know exactly what Professor Chalmers said and when hesaid it."
"Yes," his younger colleague added, "and in all my experience I'venever heard anything more preposterous than this man Whitburn'sattempt, yesterday, to deny the fact."
"Well, we're convinced that Doctor Chalmers did in fact say w
hat he'salleged to have said, last month," Dacre began.
"Jim, I think we ought to get that established, for the record,"another of the trustees put in. "Doctor Chalmers, is it true that youspoke, in the past tense, about the death of Khalid ib'n Hussein inone of your classes on the sixteenth of last month?"
Chalmers rose. "Yes, it is. And the next day, I was called into thisroom by Doctor Whitburn, who demanded my resignation from