The Old Goat

The story opens in a bustling laboratory at Ivy College, where the irascible Dr. Angstrom—dubbed “The Old Goat” by his students—has been perfecting a daring matter‑transmitter. He gathers a handful of leading scientists to witness the first attempt to move a living creature, using his own stubborn goat as the test subject. The narrator, a loyal assistant who has tended Angstrom’s chaotic experiments for years, watches with a mix of admiration and apprehension.

As the professor demonstrates the device by instantly sending chunks of lead and glass across the room, the atmosphere crackles with both scientific excitement and uneasy speculation about whether a “soul” can survive such a process. When the goat is finally coaxed into the transmitter, Angstrom himself lunges in after it, and the door slams shut, prompting gasps from the assembled observers. Calmly, the assistant opens the receiver, ready to see whether the animal—or perhaps more—emerges unscathed, hinting at the profound consequences that may follow.