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A SOLEMN FOREWORD 
M R. George Putnam has asked me to write 
      a solemn foreword to David's book. 
An ideal foreword cannot be too brief, should 
never be in the nature of an apology or a 
panegyric,--and in fact any direct reference 
to the subject of the volume in which it is 
printed is in the nature of redundancy. Its 
only use, as far as I can see, is a chalice to ex- 
ploit some idea of the foreword's author 
which he can find no opportunity to print 
elsewhere. 
  Pragmatism alone was the stimulus of my 
suggestion that eleven-year-old David Put- 
nam go on one leg of the Arcturus expedition 
-a Squeersian acid test of sorts. Also a 
selfish desire to see how my blas6 enthusiasms 
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