To Hugo Gernsback, scientist, author and publisher, whose constant efforts in behalf of scientific fiction have contributed so largely to its present popularity, this tale is gratefully dedicated.



FOREWORD

_In "Tarrano the Conqueror" is presented a tale of the year 2430 A.D.--a time somewhat farther beyond our present-day era than we are beyond Columbus' discovery of America. My desire has been to create for you the impression that you have suddenly been plunged forward into that time--to give you the feeling Columbus might have had could he have read a novel of our present-day life.

To this end I have conceived myself a writer of that future time, addressing his contemporary public. You are to imagine yourself reading a present day translation of my original text--a translation so free that a thousand little colloquialisms will have crept into it that could not possibly have their counterparts in the year 2430.

Apart from the text, you will occasionally find brief explanatory footnotes. Conceive them as having been put there by the translator.

If you find parts of this tale unusual or bizarre, please remember that we are living now in a comparatively ignorant day. The tale is not intended to be fantastic or full of new and strange ideas. I have used nothing but those developments of our present-day civilization to which we are all looking forward as logical probabilities--woven them into a picture of what life in America very probably will be five hundred years from now. To that extent, the tale itself is intended to be only a love story of adventure and romance--written, not for you, but for that future audience._

RAY CUMMINGS.



CONTENTS

I. The New Murders

II. Warning

III. Spy in the House

IV. To the North Pole

V. Outlawed Flight

VI. Man of Destiny

VII. Prisoners

VIII. Unknown Friend

IX. Paralyzed!

X. Georg Escapes

XI. Recaptured

XII. Tara

XIII. Love--and Hate

XIV. Defying Worlds

XV. Escape

XVI. Playground of Venus

XVII. Violet Beam of Death

XVIII. Passing of a Friend

XIX. Waters of Eternal Peace

XX. Unseen Menace

XXI. Love, Music--and a Warning

XXII. Revolution!

XXIII. First Retreat

XXIV. Attack on the Palace

XXV. Immortal Terror

XXVI. Black Cloud of Death

XXVII. Tarrano The Man

XXVIII. Thing in the Forest

XXIX. A Woman's Scream

XXX. The Monster

XXXI. Industriana

XXXII. Departure

XXXIII. First Assault

XXXIV. Invisible Assailants

XXXV. Attack on the Power House

XXXVI. City of Ice Besieged

XXXVII. Battle



TARRANO THE CONQUEROR



CHAPTER I

_The New Murders_

I was standing fairly close to the President of the Anglo-Saxon Republic when the first of the new murders was committed. The President fell almost at my feet. I was quite certain then that the Venus man at my elbow was the murderer. I don't know why, call it intuition if you will.