The Boy Who Invented the Bubble Gun Read Online Free PDF Page A

and had him go soft. He went to his wife to comfort her. “ NO, NO, MOTHER, DON ’ T WORRY, HE IS A BRAVE BOY. HE WILL BE ALL RIGHT. HOW I HAVE MISJUDGED HIM !”
    Julian closed off this scene nicely as his father and mother fell sobbing into one another’s arms and he used another dissolve to: “ THE PATENT OFFICE, WASHINGTON ”.
    He was standing there with several important-looking men clad, of course, in morning coats except that they also wore top hats. One of them unrolled a large scroll decorated with seals and ribbons reading, “ PATENT FOR BUBBLE GUN AWARDED TO JULIAN WEST ”, and with an inner thrill, he read his final title, “ THERE YOU ARE, MY BOY. THIS WILL MAKE YOU A FORTUNE !”
    Julian’s technique told him that here was the moment for “ THE END ” and to fade out.
    Indeed they had left the environs of San Diego, which remained only as a glow behind them, and were pushing into the desert country where not a single light was to be seen. The screen of Julian’s window had gone completely dark and the bus driver had switched off the main illumination of the vehicle with only one or two overhead reading lights still in operation. The entertainment with which he had provided himself was over. Julian grew sleepy and with a contented smile on his face in recollection of the final scene he leaned back and went to sleep.
    They were driving dead east and the blinding yellow rays of the morning sun slashing over the horizon caused the bus driver to pull down the movable shade to protect his eyes but, mounting, the sun smote through the centre of the bus and began to wake the passengers who stared and lifted their heads groggily through the stuffy atmosphere not yet cleared of the miasma from people who had been sleeping in their clothes.
    The bus was making time on a straight, uncluttered road and was swaying slightly and Julian awoke to a moment of sheer terror of the unknown. Why wasn’t he in his bed in his room in his home with his ancient teddy bear, from which most of the stuffing had departed, within reach, and all the familiar things in sight of eyes opened in the presence of another morning? He experienced a moment of overwhelming panic and loneliness as though a giant hand had plucked him from his home surroundings and flung him into some new and fearful dream.
    Then he remembered and a little of his fright drained away from him. He was on his way to Washington to patent and market his invention, and show his father. To verify this he did not trouble to take in his surroundings but slapped the pocket of his jacket, which returned a comforting crackle, and then he put his hand inside and withdrew the paper, which he unfolded and studied lovingly for its verification of who he was and where he was and what he was doing.
    There were two drawings. One of the exterior showing what looked like a compact, blunt-nosed, black metal automatic pistol. Indeed it was a replica of one sold in the toy shops and had originally squirted a stream of water when the trigger was pulled. The other drawing was of the internal mechanism, Julian’s adaptation and invention, a gun that when the trigger was activated actually shot forth soap bubbles. Every one of the eight parts had been accurately numbered and labelled.
    THE BUBBLE GUN
1. Soapy solution compartment.
    2. Trigger-actuated soapy solution pump.
    3. Soapy solution hose.
    4. Bubble-making ring.
    5. Soapy solution fill-up plug.
    6. Air rubber bag.
    7. Trigger-actuated air bag compressor.
    8. Air nozzle.
    OPERATION
Compressing the trigger the soapy solution will be drawn to the bubble ring. The air bag will be compressed releasing the air through the nozzle and this air will produce a bubble when going through the perforated bubble-making ring.
    In the lower right-hand corner was printed, “ BUBBLE GUN, INVENTED BY JULIAN WEST, 137 EAST VIEW TERRACE, FLORAL HEIGHTS, SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA, APRIL 25, 1973.”

    He regarded it lovingly, remembering just how he had