At this juncture William remembered that there was a second experiment which Mr. Curtis had asked him to try.
"He said that as soon as I lost my weight I should no longer be able to smash anything. He said that even if I had the most delicate glass vase in the car, I could hit it with my fist, or stamp on it with all my force, and yet I could n't break it, because, of course, neither my hand nor foot would have any weight.
"I thought he was joking at first; but he explained that, on the earth, if we took a body without weight, or even a very light body like a feather, and threw it down with might and main on top of a delicate glass vase, the feather could not possibly break it. So he claimed that when bodies in the car lost their weight they would be lighter than the lightest feather, and said I could take a heavy piece of iron and throw it down with all my force on the most brittle vase, and yet I could n't smash it.
"I promised to try; but the only thing I see to experiment on is the tumbler that is hanging up by the water reservoir, and I don't want to run the risk of breaking that. Besides, I should n't like to have any broken glass flying around loose
