"Heinlein, Robert A - Magic Inc" - читать интересную книгу автора (Heinlein Robert A)

first, usually by Welker. Dyes and designs were added separately. Jedson had
some very good connexions among the Little People, and could obtain shades and
patterns from the Half World that were exclusive with him. He used both the old
methods and magic in assembling garments, and employed some of the most talented
artists in the business. Several of his dress designers free-lanced their magic
in Hollywood under an arrangement with him. All he asked for was screen credit.
But to get back to the blonde girl- That's what I said,' Jedson answered, whole
garments, with good wearing qualities too. There's no doubt that she is the real
McCoy; she was under contract to a textile factory in Jersey City. But I'd give
a thousand dollars to see her do that whole-garment stunt of hers just once. We
haven't had any luck, though I've tried everything but red-hot pincers.'
The kid looked alarmed at this, and the nurse looked indignant. Feldstein
started to expostulate, but Jedson cut him short. That was just a figure of
speech; you know I don't hold with black magic. Look, darling,' he went on,
turning back to the girl, do you feel like trying again?' She nodded, and he
added, All right - sleepy time now!'
And she tried again, going into her act with a minimum of groaning and spitting.
The ectoplasm came out freely and, sure enough, it formed into a complete dress
instead of yard goods. It was a neat- little dinner frock, about a size sixteen,
sky blue in a watered silk. It had class in a refined way, and I knew that any
jobber who saw it would be good for a sizeable order.
Jedson grabbed it, cut off a swatch of cloth and applied his usual tests,
finishing by taking the swatch out of the microscope and touching a match to it.

He swore. Damn it,' he said, there's no doubt about it. It's not a new
integration at all; she's just reanimated an old rag!'
Come again,' I said. What of it?'
huh? Archie, you really ought to study up a bit. What she just did isn't really
creative magic at all. This dress' - he picked it up and shook it - had a real
existence someplace at some time. She's gotten hold of a piece of it, a scrap or
maybe just a button, and applied the laws of homeopathy and contiguity to
produce a simulacrum of it.'
I understood him, for I had used it in my own business. I had once had a section
of bleachers, suitable for parades and athletic events, built on my own grounds
by old methods, using skilled master mechanics and the best materials - no iron,
of course. Then I cut it to pieces. Under the law of contiguity, each piece
remained part of the structure it had once been in. Under the law of homeopathy,
each piece was potentially the entire structure. I would contract to handle a
Fourth of July crowd, or the spectators for a circus parade, and send out a
couple of magicians armed with as many fragments of the original stands as we
needed sections of bleachers. They .vould bind a spell to last twenty-four hours
around each piece. That way the stands cleared themselves away automatically.
I had had only one mishap with it; an apprentice magician, who had the chore of
being on hand as each section vanished and salvaging the animated fragment for
further use, happened one day to pick up the wrong piece of wood from where one
section had stood. The next time we used it, for the Shrine convention, we found
we had thrown up a brand-new four- room bungalow at the corner of Fourteenth and
Vine instead of a section of bleachers. It could have been embarrassing, but I
stuck a sign on it
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