"And the Great Leveller Had Met and Conquered Them All."

WHOEVER Ben Smith was, he remained in the world of speculative fiction (Westerns seem to have been his specialty) only long enough to produce a couple of diverting stories, the first of which is entitled . . .

(1) "Sequel."

By Ben Smith (?-?; ISFDb HERE).

First appearance: Rocket Stories, July 1953.

Illustrated by Berwin (?-?; ISFDb HERE).

Short short story (5 pages).

Online at SFFAudio (HERE).

   

   "But you'll drift to it and cling like a snail on a stone for as long as time itself."

SOME men regard honor above life itself; Jubil is one such man . . .

Principal characters:

~ Jubil, Radik, Olgan, Kane (deceased), and Schoenbirk (also deceased).

Typo: "discharred".

References:

- "ten parsecs" (Wikipedia HERE)

- "the atomic drive" (Wikipedia HERE and Atomic Rockets HERE and HERE)

- "the great leveller" (New Generation Dictionary HERE)

- "fissionable pile" (Wikipedia HERE)

- "astronavigation" (Atomic Rockets HERE)

- "super-ships that made the week-end excursion flights that spanned from galaxy to galaxy" (Atomic Rockets HERE and HERE).

(2) "I'll See You Tomorrow."

By Ben Smith (?-?; ISFDb HERE).

First appearance: Cosmos Science Fiction and Fantasy (or just Cosmos), July 1954.

Short short short story (4 pages).

Online at SFFAudio (HERE).

   "When I push the release, something happens!"

"The smallest worm will turn being trodden on," affirms the Bard. The "worm" in our story is a person who's been oppressed by their own ineffectuality but chooses instead to blame others for it. For this individual, in order to put things right, all it'll take is a special "piece of machinery" and the will to use it . . .

Principal characters:

~ Henry Bitts, Duane Morton, Dorothy, Halley, and the Mayor.

Reference:

- "Think of the killing you could make at the races . . ." (See Resources below, fourth link.)

Resources:

- Ben Smith did stray into hardboiled detecfic with this story: "One of a Kind" in Manhunt, October 1954, online at The Luminist Archives (HERE; go to text page 90).

- Cameras have figured largely in the plots of detective and science fiction/fantasy stories a few times: (HERE), (HERE), (HERE), (HERE), and (HERE).

The bottom line:

Unless otherwise noted, all bibliographical data are derived from The FictionMags Index created by William G. Contento & edited by Phil Stephensen-Payne.

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