The Project Gutenberg eBook of Eau de morgue This ebook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this ebook or online at www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this eBook. Title: Eau de morgue Author: Arthur T. Harris Illustrator: Ed Emshwiller Release date: February 5, 2026 [eBook #77869] Language: English Original publication: New York: King-Size Publications, Inc, 1956 Credits: Tom Trussel (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive) *** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK EAU DE MORGUE *** Eau de Morgue by Arthur T. Harris _Edgar Allan Poe was both a master of the detective story in its pioneering aspects and a superb science fiction writer. Witness_ THE NARRATIVE OF A. GORDON PYM. _Arthur T. Harris seems to have taken a leaf from the late genius of the high, pale brow and raven locks and presented us here with a science fantasy so chillingly unique that he has even dared to call it_ EAU DE MORGUE, _in obvious tribute to Poe’s_ THE MURDERS IN THE RUE MORGUE. _Need we say more?_ =Vengeance can be very complete when it ends with a refrain to the tender lyric: “All of me!”= Now then, where were we? Oh--we weren’t; you didn’t introduce yourself. To clear that up--I’m Jan Mystel. You are Detective Sergeant Kurt Milbach. And you’re right. I _was_ in a brawl last night! Huh? You don’t know anything about it? That isn’t what you’re here for? Just possibly I won’t have to call a lawyer, Sarge. My conscience is reasonably clear, but heaven only knows what my subconscious has been up to! You’re asking me, did I know the Duchess of Dunscombe? I sure did, Pops, and the pleasure was all hers, if any. She was the rich, decrepit old biddy who dug up the loot for Madame Outre’s store. I _had_ to be polite. You say _she’s_ disappeared too? I hope it was prolonged and painful! No, I don’t read the tabloids. It happened last night, eh? She just vanished--_pouf_! You checked her medicine chest at the Hotel Coq D’Or--nembutal, seconal, veronal, even a vial of methedrine. The ol’ gal liked her kicks up and down, eh? And also a four-ounce bottle of Madame Outre’s Shangri-la Bath Salts. Cap off, empty, on the side of the bath tub. You made a chemical analysis of the residue--no dice. Still, it was the only link between Madame and the Duchess, if indeed it’s any clue at all. Sure, Sarge--I understand. You have got to milk every shred of evidence till the cow dries up. Okay. Pardon me while I shave and shower. I’ve got to catch an afternoon class today. Meanwhile I’ll tell you what little I know.... About eight months ago, I finished a four-year hitch in the Air Force. I took my discharge pay, found this cold-water cubicle in the Village and moved in. Relaxed--and got to know half a dozen barkeeps. To give myself an objective I drifted into a little theater outfit, and signed up for a college course in radio-TV writing. And ran out of dough. One warm night I was coddling a beer at the Cote d’Azur. That’s just off Sheridan Square, you know. The fellow who runs it, Mack Carr, used to fly with me in Korea. Well, I’m sour and disgusted with myself, see ... and this group of five old biddies comes trooping in. They’re dressed and they talk and they act like Ladies’ Day at the Vienna Opera, year eighteen ninety-three. All but one. She just smiles quietly, as though nursing happier memories. But it turns out she’s the object of the gabfest. After the initial cackling died down, I made out, from snatches of personal history, that the girls were interested in the damnedest things: the Russian philosopher Ouspenski, Yoga and yogurt, occult seances, strange gypsy herbs and potions. I bought another beer and moved over to the next table. * * * * * It seems that the Duchess and Madame Outre had been friends in Budapest, before the war. Then Hitler upset the apple cart and the Duchess hurriedly married a British Embassy chap, name of Dunscombe. That gave her diplomatic immunity and when war came, she got out on a sealed train and wound up in London. Not so the Madame. In Budapest she’d apparently presided over her own private seance, which was subsidized by the Hungarian elite. It was she who’d advised the future Duchess to wed the English diplomat. Anyway, Madame Outre eventually went to a concentration camp, and was down to eighty-five pounds at war’s end. Somehow she outwitted the Russians and got to Paris. There she fell in again with the Duchess, whose husband had taken a postwar Foreign Office job. The Duchess became her “sponsor,” helped round up a new set of clients, and the old Budapest seance was revived. Well, there’s probably more to it than that. But about a year ago the Duke was shifted to a U.N. post here in New York, and the Duchess’s entourage came along for the ride. And that brings us up to date, to the Cote d’Azur, me with my warm beer and the old biddies gabbling away like mad and collecting a larger audience by the minute. It seems that back in Budapest, Madame Outre had dabbled in perfumes, scented bath salts, and stuff like that for special friends. Now the girls, the Duchess in particular, were urging her to open a little shop in the Village. The Duchess up and proclaimed she’d be the bankroll. You get the drift, Sarge. Here am I, half in the bag, in a boite full of characters, with impressionistic paintings on the walls, a “bulletin board” tacked up with personal notes, apartment-swap deals, little theater announcements, abused-car ads, old stove and refrigerator deals. Add to that Madison Avenue publicity boys in crewcuts and charcoal suits; blonde nymphs in pony hair-dos and tight, oh very tight, suntan slacks; stevedores just off the docks; long-haired ex-G.I. art students--the whole gang, and the Budapest biddies to boot! My ears must have been wagging like red flags at a rifle range when Madame Outre spoke up. “_C’est fini_,” she said. “We shall have a shop, _oui. Parfums_ from my own formulas, _oui_. And even, mayhap, a young man to assist during busy hours.” She lifted her martini toward me in an amiable toast. I must have blushed like a kid. “Me and my big ears,” I mumbled. “We are a bunch of magpies,” Madame Outre replied. “You could not help overhearing. Be so good as to join us, _s’il vous plait_!” So-o-o ... that’s about it, Sarge. Just as casual as that. She offered me a part-time job, I accepted, and a week or so later we finished hammering up shelves, cleaning the fixtures, and setting out the stock. We were in business. At first, and of necessity, Madame had to buy from wholesale cosmetic and perfume houses. But after a month or so European chemicals, Bulgarian perfume oils et cetera began to come in. Madame had outfitted a little laboratory for herself, in the back, which was strictly “off limits.” I typed out business correspondence, I banked checks and cash, and I waited on customers. But only Madame had the key to the little back room. Suspicious, Sarge? Hell’s bells, man, I’ve _told_ you the Madame trusted me. If she wished to dispense secret scents, and withhold certain trade formulas that was _her_ business! Okay, you’re just trying to do your duty. We’ll leave it at that. Pour me another coffee, huh? I’ll be right out of the shower. Thanks. So it goes along that way for about six months, Sarge. Until the Duchess of Dunscombe starts getting big ideas. It seems the Duchess started to drag some of her hoitiest-toitiest Continental friends down to the Village. They didn’t _shop_ at Madame Outre’s. They _patronized_ her, and her customers. You know, the Village kids who work for ad agencies, weekly magazines, research organizations. In the office, they’re cute. In the Village, they slip on dungarees and become part of the crowd. * * * * * Well, things began to get pretty sticky between the Duchess and Madame Outre. They came to a head--oh, about two weeks ago. I was in the storeroom, a little alcove in the rear adjoining Madame’s laboratory. Around five o’clock the Duchess came flouncing in. “My dear,” she boomed, like a brass cannon, “my friends and I have decided you must--but you simply must--move uptown. To waste your time down here among silly little secretaries--ridiculous! Fantastic! I won’t hear of it another moment!” Madame kept calm. “You forget,” she said, “that it was you who urged me to open up shop here. Since then I have found many new friends. I have become established. The Village is now part of my life.” “Nonsense!” the Duchess flared. “This is no ‘life.’ It is a humiliation to me and my friends! What began as a lark has turned into a travesty! You will move uptown, to the East Sixties, and next week. I have already chosen the store!” Well, Sarge, the old gasbag was making so much noise that people outside began to hang around for the fun. I dropped my work, picked up some bottles and went up front, ostensibly to fill in stock on the shelves. The Duchess glared at me, knowing perfectly well what I was up to. But she did lower her voice. “Very well, then, my dear,” she said--and so help me, Sarge, she didn’t speak. She hissed! “You choose to abandon me, my aid, my patronage, my friends. _But if certain people were to learn about your background--!_” And like a witch’s broom, she swept toward the door. “A moment, please,” Madame Outre said, so coolly the temperature seemed to drop. The Duchess halted, and half turned. Quietly, her shoulders held stiff and proud, Madame Outre came out from behind the counter. “We have known each other for years,” she said. “Our long association makes it fitting that we part, if not as friends, then assuredly not as enemies. As the final act in our relationship I must beg you to accept from me a small but adequate gift. It will be mailed to you tonight.” Challenged to keep her temper, the Duchess smiled back. But her wide gray eyes were cold with hate. “As you wish, my dear,” she said. “As you wish.” Satisfied, Sarge? Now look, I’m telling you. As soon as the Duchess took a powder, Madame Outre went to her laboratory, and was busy for about half an hour. Then she handed me a four-ounce jar of greenish bath salts--probably the same bottle you found by the Duchess’s bath tub. So I wrapped it carefully, weighed it, stamped it and on my way home deposited it in the package mailbox on the corner. Next morning--that was Saturday, about ten days ago--I found Madame’s check for two weeks’ pay in the mail. It didn’t sound kosher, so I rushed over to the store--which she’s failed to open, then or since. Monday I cashed the check. You traced me through her bank, eh? No, of course I didn’t go to the police! Madame wanted to do a quiet fadeout, and that’s her business. The trouble with this country is--too many amateur snoops are on the warpath. So that’s all there is, Sarge. And until you mentioned it, I never made any mental connection between Madame’s disappearance and the Duchess’s vanishing act. How could I, when you only told me a half hour ago? Come again. You say there’s dirty work at the crossroads? Sure, I’ll buy. I’m morally certain nobody did Madame Outre in. She simply up and took off. As for the Duchess, anything that old battleax got she deserved--provided there’s a _corpus delicti_, a body. But there isn’t. You said so yourself. So how in hell-- _What?_ You _did_ find something? A three-carat diamond wedding ring, which the Duke insists she never removed from her finger--not even when she bathed? You found it in the bathroom, eh? Okay. So maybe, just this once, she took it off before she toweled herself, or whatever rich dames do when they want to rub clean. So she left it on the washstand. Oh--she didn’t? You mean, there was evidence she’d taken a bath, had finished, pulled the plug, let out the water, and then stood up to dry herself? Let’s get this straight. The Duchess disappeared last night. The story is in today’s papers. Okay. She was probably taking a bath--check. She used the soap in the soap dish, and there was a damp towel lying by the side of the tub. Plug drawn. The cops are called in, and go snooping for clues. They find her big diamond ring--huh? Not on the washstand, but wedged sideways against the metal stopper inside the open drain? Okay! So she got too much soap on her hands. The ring worked loose and got lost, and she failed to notice it was missing. Then she dried herself, got dressed and slipped out to visit some of her rich oddball pals.... _Huh?_ You say the Duke had to call hotel help to break down the bathroom door? You say that he was in their living-room when he heard a half scream, and came running? Then a funny gurgle, as of water leaving the tub. And then ... _nothing?_ And when the bellhops broke in, no Duchess? Only the ring, which you people found later? And the open, empty bottle of Madame Outre’s bath salts, which your chemists couldn’t analyze? You mean--Sarge, you mean you think there’s a possibility she soaked herself in those bath salts, pulled the plug, stood up to towel herself and then began to dissolve --and went down the drain? _Oh, my God!_ Transcriber’s note: This etext was produced from Fantastic Universe, June 1956 (Vol. 5, No. 5.). Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed. Obvious errors in punctuation have been silently corrected in this version. *** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK EAU DE MORGUE *** Updated editions will replace the previous one—the old editions will be renamed. Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without permission and without paying copyright royalties. Special rules, set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to copying and distributing Project Gutenberg™ electronic works to protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG™ concept and trademark. Project Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you charge for an eBook, except by following the terms of the trademark license, including paying royalties for use of the Project Gutenberg trademark. If you do not charge anything for copies of this eBook, complying with the trademark license is very easy. You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose such as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and research. Project Gutenberg eBooks may be modified and printed and given away—you may do practically ANYTHING in the United States with eBooks not protected by U.S. copyright law. Redistribution is subject to the trademark license, especially commercial redistribution. START: FULL LICENSE THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK To protect the Project Gutenberg™ mission of promoting the free distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work (or any other work associated in any way with the phrase “Project Gutenberg”), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full Project Gutenberg™ License available with this file or online at www.gutenberg.org/license. Section 1. General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg™ electronic works 1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg™ electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property (trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to abide by all the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or destroy all copies of Project Gutenberg™ electronic works in your possession. If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a Project Gutenberg™ electronic work and you do not agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person or entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8. 1.B. “Project Gutenberg” is a registered trademark. It may only be used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. There are a few things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg™ electronic works even without complying with the full terms of this agreement. See paragraph 1.C below. There are a lot of things you can do with Project Gutenberg™ electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg™ electronic works. See paragraph 1.E below. 1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation (“the Foundation” or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection of Project Gutenberg™ electronic works. Nearly all the individual works in the collection are in the public domain in the United States. If an individual work is unprotected by copyright law in the United States and you are located in the United States, we do not claim a right to prevent you from copying, distributing, performing, displaying or creating derivative works based on the work as long as all references to Project Gutenberg are removed. Of course, we hope that you will support the Project Gutenberg™ mission of promoting free access to electronic works by freely sharing Project Gutenberg™ works in compliance with the terms of this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg™ name associated with the work. You can easily comply with the terms of this agreement by keeping this work in the same format with its attached full Project Gutenberg™ License when you share it without charge with others. 1.D. The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most countries are in a constant state of change. If you are outside the United States, check the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this agreement before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, distributing or creating derivative works based on this work or any other Project Gutenberg™ work. The Foundation makes no representations concerning the copyright status of any work in any country other than the United States. 1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg: 1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other immediate access to, the full Project Gutenberg™ License must appear prominently whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg™ work (any work on which the phrase “Project Gutenberg” appears, or with which the phrase “Project Gutenberg” is associated) is accessed, displayed, performed, viewed, copied or distributed: This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this eBook. 1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg™ electronic work is derived from texts not protected by U.S. copyright law (does not contain a notice indicating that it is posted with permission of the copyright holder), the work can be copied and distributed to anyone in the United States without paying any fees or charges. If you are redistributing or providing access to a work with the phrase “Project Gutenberg” associated with or appearing on the work, you must comply either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 or obtain permission for the use of the work and the Project Gutenberg™ trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or 1.E.9. 1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg™ electronic work is posted with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any additional terms imposed by the copyright holder. Additional terms will be linked to the Project Gutenberg™ License for all works posted with the permission of the copyright holder found at the beginning of this work. 1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg™ License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg™. 1.E.5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project Gutenberg™ License. 1.E.6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary, compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including any word processing or hypertext form. However, if you provide access to or distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg™ work in a format other than “Plain Vanilla ASCII” or other format used in the official version posted on the official Project Gutenberg™ website (www.gutenberg.org), you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense to the user, provide a copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means of obtaining a copy upon request, of the work in its original “Plain Vanilla ASCII” or other form. Any alternate format must include the full Project Gutenberg™ License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1. 1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying, performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg™ works unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9. 1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing access to or distributing Project Gutenberg™ electronic works provided that: • You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from the use of Project Gutenberg™ works calculated using the method you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg™ trademark, but he has agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty payments must be paid within 60 days following each date on which you prepare (or are legally required to prepare) your periodic tax returns. Royalty payments should be clearly marked as such and sent to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the address specified in Section 4, “Information about donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation.” • You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg™ License. You must require such a user to return or destroy all copies of the works possessed in a physical medium and discontinue all use of and all access to other copies of Project Gutenberg™ works. • You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of any money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days of receipt of the work. • You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free distribution of Project Gutenberg™ works. 1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project Gutenberg™ electronic work or group of works on different terms than are set forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing from the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the manager of the Project Gutenberg™ trademark. Contact the Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below. 1.F. 1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread works not protected by U.S. copyright law in creating the Project Gutenberg™ collection. Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg™ electronic works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may contain “Defects,” such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate or corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other intellectual property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or other medium, a computer virus, or computer codes that damage or cannot be read by your equipment. 1.F.2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the “Right of Replacement or Refund” described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project Gutenberg™ trademark, and any other party distributing a Project Gutenberg™ electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal fees. YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH 1.F.3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE. 1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a written explanation to the person you received the work from. If you received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium with your written explanation. The person or entity that provided you with the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu of a refund. If you received the work electronically, the person or entity providing it to you may choose to give you a second opportunity to receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund. If the second copy is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing without further opportunities to fix the problem. 1.F.4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you ‘AS-IS’, WITH NO OTHER WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE. 1.F.5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of damages. If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement violates the law of the state applicable to this agreement, the agreement shall be interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted by the applicable state law. The invalidity or unenforceability of any provision of this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions. 1.F.6. INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone providing copies of Project Gutenberg™ electronic works in accordance with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the production, promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg™ electronic works, harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, including legal fees, that arise directly or indirectly from any of the following which you do or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this or any Project Gutenberg™ work, (b) alteration, modification, or additions or deletions to any Project Gutenberg™ work, and (c) any Defect you cause. Section 2. Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg™ Project Gutenberg™ is synonymous with the free distribution of electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of computers including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers. It exists because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations from people in all walks of life. Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the assistance they need are critical to reaching Project Gutenberg™’s goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg™ collection will remain freely available for generations to come. In 2001, the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure and permanent future for Project Gutenberg™ and future generations. To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and how your efforts and donations can help, see Sections 3 and 4 and the Foundation information page at www.gutenberg.org. Section 3. Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non-profit 501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal Revenue Service. The Foundation’s EIN or federal tax identification number is 64-6221541. Contributions to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent permitted by U.S. federal laws and your state’s laws. The Foundation’s business office is located at 809 North 1500 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887. Email contact links and up to date contact information can be found at the Foundation’s website and official page at www.gutenberg.org/contact Section 4. Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation Project Gutenberg™ depends upon and cannot survive without widespread public support and donations to carry out its mission of increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be freely distributed in machine-readable form accessible by the widest array of equipment including outdated equipment. Many small donations ($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt status with the IRS. The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United States. Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up with these requirements. We do not solicit donations in locations where we have not received written confirmation of compliance. To SEND DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any particular state visit www.gutenberg.org/donate. While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who approach us with offers to donate. International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from outside the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff. Please check the Project Gutenberg web pages for current donation methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a number of other ways including checks, online payments and credit card donations. To donate, please visit: www.gutenberg.org/donate. Section 5. General Information About Project Gutenberg™ electronic works Professor Michael S. Hart was the originator of the Project Gutenberg™ concept of a library of electronic works that could be freely shared with anyone. For forty years, he produced and distributed Project Gutenberg™ eBooks with only a loose network of volunteer support. Project Gutenberg™ eBooks are often created from several printed editions, all of which are confirmed as not protected by copyright in the U.S. unless a copyright notice is included. Thus, we do not necessarily keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition. Most people start at our website which has the main PG search facility: www.gutenberg.org. This website includes information about Project Gutenberg™, including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks.