The dates and the similarity between the model time machine and the message capsule are subliminal parallels between the two works. My advice to anyone who wants to know what science fiction is about is: read Wells, then Anderson.
Everard had contacted the London office about an indication of time travel in a famous literary work. His message had arrived before similar ones from 1923 and 1960 and Patrolman Mainwethering expects to receive many more. It is curious to think that Patrol offices must communicate by letters or notes in message capsules. They have no inter-temporal equivalent of telephone or radio.
The last Time Patrol story was published in 1995.
5 comments:
Or send some super advanced equivalent of a flash drive in those message capsules.
An example of how technology has advanced since "Time Patrol" was written.
Kaor, Jim and Paul!
Or it might be a rule in the Time Patrol for agents not to communicate with each other with technology so advanced in a particular milieu that that it looks suspicious if any of the locals of that period stumbles across it.
Ad astra! Sean
Something unreadable by the locals would probably be best, so the content of the message doesn't give the locals some clues about the existence of time travel or something equally bizarre.
Writing on paper, but in a language totally different from the local language would probably be best from that POV, though in some societies anything 'foreign' would arouse suspicion.
Kaor, Jim!
I agree. So, it made sense for Agents Everard and Mainwethering to communicate with each other by letters. But maybe they should have used Temporal instead of English?
Ad astra! Sean
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