(58) Escape - Conquerors Isle - David Ellis

Summary

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Podcast Summary: Harold's Old Time Radio

Episode 58: Escape - "Conqueror's Isle" (David Ellis)

Original Air Date: August 9, 2026
Podcast Host: Harold's Old Time Radio
Episode Focus:
A classic episode from the Golden Age radio show "Escape," dramatizing Nelson Bond’s sci-fi tale “Conqueror’s Isle.” The story follows Navy Lieutenant Brady’s harrowing, otherworldly adventure after his airplane crashes on a mysterious Pacific island, confronting the possibility of a hidden race of super-evolved humans.

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Episode Overview

This episode features a full-length broadcast of the radio drama “Conqueror’s Isle,” adapted by John Dunkle. It explores themes of human evolution, isolation, and the frailty of ordinary humanity when faced with intellectual and technological superiors. The story unfolds as a former Navy airman undergoes a psychological examination after returning from a four-year disappearance, insisting his surreal tale of evolutionary mutants aiming to take over humanity is true.

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Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. The Framing Device and Setting (00:56 – 04:00)

• Lieutenant Brady’s Testimony:
  The story opens with Lieutenant Brady (David Ellis) being questioned in a military hospital by Dr. Gorham (Ted Von Eltz), after Brady’s unlikely rescue at sea. Brady’s urgency and despair are clear:
  • “You’ve got to believe this. It sounds utterly impossible. I know it sounds crazy, that’s why I’m here, sir. But it’s the truth. And you’ve got to believe it.” (02:04, Brady)
• Brady is described as suffering from possible battle fatigue or psychosis after drifting nearly dead in a life raft years after vanishing during WWII.

2. The Flight and Mysterious Crash (04:01 – 07:10)

• Narration transitions to flashback:
  • The bomber crew completes a mission and, after destroying a Japanese freighter, finds its aircraft damaged and fast running out of fuel.
  • A sudden, inexplicable typhoon sets in, and as it subsides, the crew sights an uncharted island and lands for refuge.

3. Strange Hospitality and Warning Signs (07:39 – 11:44)

• First encounter with Dr. Grove:
  • The crew meets Dr. Grove—a civil, English-speaking white man—who offers hospitality but is vague about his presence.
  • Odd details start to mount: their plane radio is mysteriously destroyed, and Grove leads them not to a village, but to an underground complex, demanding compliance.
• Technological Dominance:
  • Grove disables the crew’s weapons by unknown means, freezing them in place with a beam of light.
  • “Try again, Lieutenant. But your gun will not work either. And now perhaps you’ll be kind enough to step into the shaft.” (11:16, Grove)

4. Imprisonment and Revealed Powers (14:24 – 20:42)

• Paralysis and Underground Prison:
  • Brady narrates his helpless paralysis and being deposited in a high-tech cell, noting its featureless, shadowless lighting and sound-absorbent walls.
• Grove Walks through Walls:
  • Dr. Grove enters by stepping straight through a solid wall, explaining the physics:
    “We simply make a necessary mental adjustment and walk where we will. It is an ability as basic to us as breathing...” (19:43, Grove)
• Revelation of Evolutionary Superiority:
  • Grove describes his kind as “mutants,” a new pinnacle of human evolution:
    “Knowing by instinct right from birth what you must study years to learn... Our studies far beyond your understanding.” (20:54, Grove)

5. The Sinister Mission of the Mutants (20:18 – 24:55)

• Nature of the Mutant Society:
  • An isolated, advanced community continuously expanding via telepathic summons to their kind worldwide.
  • “When we are numerous enough... our superior intelligence must shape a new world.” (21:36, Grove)
• Plan for Humanity:
  • Grove reassures Brady that, like animals, humans will not be exterminated but “kept and protected,” as pets to their new guardians:
    “We will be kind.” (22:39, Grove)

6. The Hidden Captives and the Plan for Escape (24:55 – 27:58)

• Brady’s Life Underground:
  • There are hundreds of other “pets”—notable missing figures from history among them. Over years, they are treated well, but are still prisoners.
• The Mutants’ Infiltration:
  • Grove casually mentions that many have already infiltrated key positions on the mainland:
    “There are many—very many of us there already. In strategic places, of course. An important politician here, an industrial magnate there...” (24:50, Grove)
• Brady’s Desperate Plan:
  • Exploiting the mutants’ gentleness, he fakes emotional suffering to persuade Grove to let him visit his old plane. Brady knocks Grove out, escapes with a life raft, and is eventually rescued.

7. The Aftermath: Disbelief and Dread (27:58 – 30:07)

• No One Believes Him:
  • Dr. Gorham reports that Brady suffers from an elaborate persecution delusion, albeit “the most complete and logical” he’s ever heard.
  • As Gorham prepares to leave, Grove (now revealed to fully fit among ordinary men) quietly walks through the wall, indicating that Brady’s story was true after all.

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Brady’s Desperate Plea:
  “You’ve got to believe this. It sounds utterly impossible. I know it sounds crazy... but it’s the truth. And you've got to believe it!”
  (02:04, Lieutenant Brady)

• First direct evidence of superpowers:
  “Try again, Lieutenant. But your gun will not work either. And now perhaps you'll be kind enough to step into the shaft.”
  (11:16, Dr. Grove)

• Revealing the mutants’ attitude toward humanity:
  “You do not understand how I pass through a wall which to you seems solid... There is no such thing as a solid... We simply make a necessary mental adjustment and walk where we will.”
  (19:43, Dr. Grove)

• Explaining their evolutionary mutancy:
  “Obviously this process can and will continue. To suppose that the evolution of man is complete with you is a mistake of conceit, Human.”
  (20:31, Dr. Grove)

• On the mutants’ plan for the world:
  “Take over the world.”
  (21:47, Lieutenant Brady)
  “Obviously.”
  (21:49, Dr. Grove)

• Chilling promise:
  “But I give you our pledge that we will be kind. We will be kind.”
  (22:39, Dr. Grove)

• Twist ending revelation:
  “So I turned and quietly walked through the wall.”
  (30:07, Dr. Gorham, who, it’s implied, is one of the mutants)

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Important Timestamps

• 00:56: Opening narration, establishing tension and setting
• 04:01 – 07:10: The crash and arrival on the mysterious isle
• 10:11 – 12:17: The encounter with Dr. Grove, demonstration of advanced technology
• 14:24 – 20:42: Imprisonment, Grove’s speech about mutants and evolutionary destiny
• 21:36 – 22:39: The mutants’ scheme to shape humanity’s future
• 24:27 – 27:58: Escape plan, the infiltration of mutants into the outside world
• 28:35 – 30:07: Conclusion, the doctor’s skeptical report, and the real twist

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Tone & Atmosphere

The production maintains the signature “Escape” tone: suspenseful, cerebral, and increasingly chilling. Lt. Brady’s urgency and desperation contrast with Dr. Grove’s polite, patient, and dispassionate logic—a hallmark of the era’s science fiction concerns about humanity’s future.

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For Listeners New and Old

This episode is an archetypal example of postwar radio drama, encapsulating anxiety about hidden powers and the unknown future, still relevant today. "Conqueror’s Isle" balances speculative science with psychological horror, leaving audiences to question what might lurk just beneath the surface of the everyday world—and who, in the end, will believe it.

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Transcript

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[Dr. Grove]

fed up

[Lieutenant Brady]

with the everyday grind? Tired out by the dull routine? Want to get away from it all?

[Narrator]

We offer you. Escape. Escape. Transcribed to free you from the four walls of today for a half hour of high adventure,

[Lieutenant Brady]

you are flying over the lonely wastes of the Pacific. Lost, torn by the fury of a typhoon, your gas running out. And ahead of you is an adventure so strange, so terrifying, that your mind cannot accept it.

[Narrator]

Today we escape from reality with a tale of a Navy flyer who vanished from the face of the earth into a new world of the future. As Nelson Bond told it in his story Conqueror's Isle.

[Lieutenant Brady]

You've got to believe this. It sounds utterly impossible. I know it sounds. It sounds crazy. That's why I'm here, sir. But it's the truth. And you've got to believe it. You've got to, sir.

[Dr. Gorham]

You've got to. That's the way he started. Almost as soon as I'd walked into his hospital room. He wasn't violent, you understand. There was no need for restraint. But his every action, every gesture was evidence of a psychotic condition. To be extremely charitable, battle fatigue. Well, anyway, it was an odd case. I was already acquainted, of course, with the history. Young man, graduate of Annapolis, lieutenant in the Fleet Air Arm. Excellent records, citations for bravery and so forth. Toward the end of the war, he and his bomber crew disappeared over the South China Sea. Search failed to turn them up. They were, of course, presumed to be lost. And then a month ago, almost four years later, Lieutenant Brady was found by a Brazilian freighter, drifting helplessly and nearly dead in a tiny life raft from the airplane. Curiously enough, his position was not far from that last reported by his radio operator four years ago. But when he was asked where he'd been, he gave a story so fantastic, so utterly unbelievable, you've got to believe it.

[Lieutenant Brady]

You've got to. Sir.

[Dr. Gorham]

At ease, Lieutenant.

[Lieutenant Brady]

I'm sorry, sir.

[Dr. Gorham]

I'm here to consult with you as a physician, not order your cure as a superior officer. Now, suppose we ignore the braid while you tell me about it.

[Lieutenant Brady]

Thank you, doctor. Where should I begin?

[Dr. Gorham]

Well, it's your story. You know what it is. You want me to believe the trouble began, I understand, on your last bombing mission.

[Lieutenant Brady]

Yes, that's right. That's when my troubles began. The thing's been going on for much longer than that. Years, certainly. Decades, perhaps. Somebody has got to do something, Doctor. Time is racing by, and with every passing day, they grow stronger. I've got to make people understand, Lieutenant.

[Dr. Gorham]

Now, suppose you start at the beginning with that unfortunate last flight.

[Lieutenant Brady]

Yes, sir. I'm sorry. I got a little. Well, that. Then it was this way. We'd finished our mission and we were starting for home. We were over the South China Sea between the Philippines and Indochina, roughly off Palawan. Everything was peaches and cream. The Arden Alice was purring along like a dream. And I was sitting there chewing up a pack of Lifesavers, thinking how good that can of cold beer was going to taste, when the intercom crackled in my ear. Lieutenant jabbed freight at 10 o'.

[Narrator]

Clock.

[Lieutenant Brady]

Yeah, you're right. Looks like a single tramp beating up the coast. We still got a Bertha?

[Narrator]

Yes, sir.

[Lieutenant Brady]

Okay. Hey, maybe we can have some fun. Red 4 to Mac. Red 4 to Mac. Go ahead, Red 4. Jeb, freighter, 10 o'.

[Narrator]

Clock. Check.

[Lieutenant Brady]

We've still got a Bertha. How about it?

[Dr. Grove]

Why not?

[Lieutenant Brady]

It's your party. Go ahead and good luck. Roger and out. It was as easy as hitting a sitting duck. The long dive, the bomb release, the pullout, the dull concussion. We laid it down a raft stack and that Jap ship went up like a Roman candle.

[Narrator]

Hey.

[Sleep Number / Rakuten Advertiser]

Hey.

[Lieutenant Brady]

Nice going, Lieutenant. Right on the button. That's one Jap we won't have to worry about anymore. Lieutenant, we're hit.

[Dr. Grove]

Huh?

[Lieutenant Brady]

A piece of that Jap must have

[Narrator]

come up and hit us.

[Lieutenant Brady]

We're spraying gas all over the Pacific out of the left wing tank. Yeah, I see it now. Well, guys, get ready for a bath. We'll never make it back. I'm Jack and he's Saturday night.

[Dr. Gorham]

Never mind.

[Lieutenant Brady]

I always did want to take a ride on one of them. Blue, no need to worry. The navy takes Care of its own. I'll be out to get us before we have a chance to get thirsty. Red 4 to Mac. Red 4 to Mac. Nice going, fella. Yeah, only it was a two way deal. We're hit, Mac. Losing gas fast. Think you can make it? Nope. It's a salt bath for us.

[Narrator]

Sorry, fellows.

[Lieutenant Brady]

Keep your radio on. Give you a last position to base before you ditch it. They'll have a rescue party out in an hour. We'll cope.

[Narrator]

See you tonight. Good luck.

[Dr. Grove]

Over.

[Lieutenant Brady]

Roger, out. You see, there was nothing to it. It happened every day with ships all over the Pacific. They'd have a destroyer sitting there when we came down. A half hour later, when our gas was down to a few cupfuls and the rest of the squadron was long out of sight, an amazing thing happened. One minute the sky was clear and cloudless. The next minute we were surrounded by thunderheads and a typhoon burst on us. Holy cow. Lieutenant, where'd this come from? I don't know, but it's a lulu. Fasten your safety belts. There's no telling what this will do to us. Was a granddaddy typhoon, all right, but it lasted only a few minutes. Then we got out of it as miraculously as we come into it. And wonder of wonders, we were directly over a small island. Well, what do you know? Take a look at that sight for sore eyes. Man, oh, man, it looks mighty fine to me. What island is it, Lieutenant?

[Narrator]

I don't know.

[Lieutenant Brady]

I don't remember. Recognize it? After the way we got tossed around back there, I haven't any idea of our position. We could be anywhere from the coast of China to the Philippines. Who knows? Who cares? It's dry land.

[Dr. Grove]

Yeah.

[Lieutenant Brady]

Just in time. We're out of gas. Hey, Jack.

[Dr. Grove]

Yeah?

[Lieutenant Brady]

See if you can get a fix and radio opposition. We're going down. We landed safely on a little strip of sandy beach. And only after we'd climbed out of the plane did we begin to have any misgivings.

[Dr. Gorham]

What do you think, Skipper?

[Lieutenant Brady]

Doesn't look like much, but I don't see anybody. Not a sign of life. I got a good look from top side coming down. There weren't any houses, nothing. Still, you can't tell. It could be Japs or worse, headhunters. Maybe we better stick together. Stay close to the plane. Shouldn't be more than a few hours. Yeah, except.

[Dr. Gorham]

Hey, what the.

[Narrator]

Hello there.

[Lieutenant Brady]

A white man. Hey, what is this? Keep your eyes open. It might be a trap. But he's a white man, he speaks English and he's not armed?

[Dr. Gorham]

No.

[Lieutenant Brady]

I don't see any guns. Just the same. Watch it.

[Dr. Grove]

Welcome, gentlemen.

[Dr. Gorham]

Welcome.

[Dr. Grove]

We saw you land, so I hurried out to see if I could be of any assistance. May I introduce myself? I'm Dr. Grove.

[Lieutenant Brady]

I'm Lieutenant Brady, and these are my men. Radio man Kavanaugh. My gunner, Sergeant Geller.

[Dr. Grove]

It's a pleasure, gentlemen. Pleasure. Are any of you in need of medical assistance?

[Lieutenant Brady]

No, thanks. We're all okay. Just a little surprised to find anyone here.

[Dr. Grove]

Yes, of course, that can be explained to you later. But right now you'll be wanting food and rest.

[Lieutenant Brady]

Hey, now, a little chow wouldn't be bad. But first we. We have to get in touch with our base, give them our position.

[Dr. Grove]

Oh, of course. But such things take some time in these primitive areas.

[Lieutenant Brady]

We have a radio on the plane. Did have, Skipper. Well, I was just starting to tell you. It went out just before we sighted the island. Must have got wanged up in that storm. Well, can you fix it? I suppose so, if it's nothing serious. I'll tell you better after I have

[Dr. Grove]

a chance to look at it, of course. But in the meantime, I hope you'll accept our humble hospitality. We don't have the pleasure of entertaining new guests here often. It'll be good to chat with you all. If you'll follow me, please.

[Lieutenant Brady]

How about it, Skipper? Sure, why not? After the last half hour, we could all use a little relaxation.

[Dr. Grove]

Very good. Right this way, please.

[Lieutenant Brady]

I should have smelled it right then. There was something strange about the whole thing. There were a lot of questions in my mind, but somehow I didn't ask them. Instead, we walked down the jungle path behind Dr. Grove like lambs to the slaughter. Tom Geller must have had the same misgivings because he whispered in my ear. I don't get it, Skipper. Don't get what, Tom? Where do these guys come from? Where do they hang out? When we were coming in, I made sure to take a good look at this island. There were no houses, no nothing. I don't know. I guess we'll find out soon enough.

[Dr. Grove]

Yeah. Hey.

[Lieutenant Brady]

Stop. Holy cow. Will you look at that? Dr. Grove stopped in front of what looked like a big rock. And then we saw it was expertly camouflaged cement with a sliding door.

[Dr. Grove]

Here we are, gentlemen. You'll be good enough to enter in a wood that. Don't be alarmed. It's only an elevator.

[Lieutenant Brady]

An elevator? In this jungle? What kind of monkey business is this anyhow? Do you mean to tell me you live underground?

[Dr. Grove]

My dear lieutenant, I'll be glad to explain everything later. It's all very simple. But first I must insist that you enter the shaft.

[Lieutenant Brady]

So now you're insisting. And suppose we prefer not to step into your elevator? Then what?

[Dr. Grove]

Then I should be compelled, most regretfully, to enforce my request.

[Lieutenant Brady]

Guess again, pal. We happen to be armed. A gun? Three guns. That's one detail you overlooked.

[Dr. Grove]

I overlooked no details. Lieutenant, would you be kind enough to fire your gun?

[Lieutenant Brady]

Watch yourself, Skip. It's a trick he wants you to suit.

[Dr. Gorham]

The sign will bring help.

[Dr. Grove]

Wrong, my friend. I need no help. Very well. If you won't accept my invitation.

[Lieutenant Brady]

Wait a minute. Keep your hand out of your pocket.

[Dr. Grove]

Perhaps you would care to stop me, Lieutenant?

[Lieutenant Brady]

Okay, if you asked for it. What the hey, Lieutenant.

[Dr. Grove]

Try again, Lieutenant. But your gun will not work either. And now perhaps you'll be kind enough to step into the shaft.

[Lieutenant Brady]

Look, I don't know what's going on here, but I don't want any part of it.

[Dr. Gorham]

Neither do I.

[Lieutenant Brady]

Come on, gang, let's get out of here.

[Dr. Grove]

Just a minute. I'm sorry you forced me to use harsh measures. Believe me, I do so reluctantly.

[Lieutenant Brady]

What's that you've got there?

[Dr. Grove]

Just a small tube, but a very potent weapon, I must warn you.

[Lieutenant Brady]

Yeah? Well, then you better use it fast. I made a desperate lunge for him. And suddenly, tiny shaft of light flicked out from the tube and touched me. And I stopped, frozen in my tracks, conscious, my eyes open, seeing him, hearing him. But try as I would, I could not move a muscle. I was as if turned to stone.

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[Lieutenant Brady]

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[Narrator]

In just a moment, we will return to Escape. But first, both Gangbusters and the Adventures of Philip Marlow are regular Saturday night features on most of these same CBS network stations. So be listening tonight when they bring you an exceptional, fast moving, gripping hour of mystery. And now, with our stars, David Ellis, Ted Von Eltz and Bill Johnstone, we return to the second act of Escape and Conqueror's Isle.

[Lieutenant Brady]

I was paralyzed, Dr. Gorham. Completely paralyzed, as if turned to stone. I had all my senses. I could. I could see and hear and feel, but I couldn't move a muscle, not even turn my eyes.

[Dr. Gorham]

And you say this happened because of some kind of light beam?

[Lieutenant Brady]

Well, not exactly a beam, sir. Perhaps not exactly light. Just a kind of. Kind of radiance.

[Dr. Gorham]

A gas, perhaps?

[Lieutenant Brady]

No, because it had no form, no odor, no taste. It was like becoming enmeshed in a web of moonbeams.

[Dr. Gorham]

I see. And its only effect on you was to immobilize you?

[Lieutenant Brady]

Yes, that's right. It didn't burn a sting or cause pain in any way. I simply couldn't move. It was like a hypnotic trance.

[Dr. Gorham]

And then?

[Lieutenant Brady]

Then some of Dr. Grove's companions came out of the elevator. They picked us up and carried us. I could feel their hands very softly, as if they were far away from my body. As if there were layers of rubber between them and me. I could hear Dr. Grove talking.

[Dr. Grove]

Place him in the shaft. Gently, please.

[Lieutenant Brady]

I could see him bending over me into my line of vision.

[Dr. Grove]

I'm sorry, Lieutenant. I sincerely regret having to inconvenience you. But you see, just as we have the means of hampering your primitive mechanical devices, your guns, your radio, so do we have the means to enforce our requests. Requests which are, I assure you, only reasonable and necessary under the circumstances. Very well. Take us down.

[Lieutenant Brady]

My head was reeling and fear was growing in me. Who were these men to talk of radio as a primitive device? What kind of men were they? Where were they taking the three of us? And what were they gonna do with us? As if he'd read my thoughts. Dr. Grove leaned over me again.

[Dr. Grove]

There's no need to be alarmed, Lieutenant. No need at all. All right. Gently. Carry them gently.

[Lieutenant Brady]

Well, Freighter.

[Dr. Grove]

I'm sorry, Freighter. Dordin. It was necessary. They would not come willingly.

[Lieutenant Brady]

I see a few of them do. I'll put them in the sleeping chambers until they recover. And be gentle. They are so frightened.

[Dr. Grove]

Poor things.

[Lieutenant Brady]

Poor things, poor things, he'd said. Not as if we were human beings at all, but animals. Some weak, dumb animals with whom they must be gentle. It was then that I began to know real fear. We were in a great underground city, but I could see little of it. Nothing except what passed in front of my rigid eyes. Then I was carried into a room, deposited upon a soft couch, and left alone. I could not close my eyes. But gradually the light began to fade, to melt away. I was in deep blackness, and I slipped. I don't know whether the return of the light awakened me or whether it came on automatically when I woke up. But the room was bright and I could move again. I jumped up, tried the door, but of course it was locked, and there was no other way of escape. The room was a small cell with metal walls and ceiling, a kind of metal I'd never seen before. There was a cot, a desk and a chair, and nothing else. But the really amazing thing was the light. I searched the entire room carefully, but there were no fixtures, no indirect lighting arrangements. The light came out of the walls, evenly filling the room, casting no shadows. Suddenly, I wanted to see Kavanaugh and Geller. I yelled. I yelled at the top of my lungs. But there was almost no sound, no echo from the walls. They simply absorbed the sound into utter silence. Then, as I stood there with fear cold in my stomach, I heard a faint sound, a footstep behind me. I whirled around just in time to see Dr. Grove stepping through the wall.

[Dr. Gorham]

You were. You said through the wall, Lieutenant? Of course. You mean through the door?

[Lieutenant Brady]

Through the wall? Through the wall, sir. The door was in front of me. Dr. Groves stepped into my cell through the solid metal wall.

[Dr. Gorham]

You realize that what you're saying is impossible.

[Lieutenant Brady]

To us, it is. To them, nothing is impossible. Nothing. That's why we must act, and act now, before it's too late. You must believe me, sir. This is man's last chance.

[Dr. Gorham]

I'll do my best. Perhaps you'd better continue. Now this Dr. Grove stepped through the wall.

[Lieutenant Brady]

Yes, as I'll tell the rest as quickly as I can. I can see that you don't believe me, but someone must Somewhere, Sometime, someone must.

[Dr. Gorham]

Lieutenant.

[Lieutenant Brady]

Well, as I said, Dr. Grove stepped into my cell through the wall. Suddenly, my panic ended. I looked at him now with awe. And we talked not as man to man, but as man to a lesser creature. Me.

[Dr. Grove]

You must not be frightened, Lieutenant. You do not understand how I pass through a wall which to you seems solid. And not understanding you feel. Yet there is nothing supernatural or fearful about what I did. Any of us can do it at will. You see, there is no such thing as a solid. In this world of relativity. We know that there is plenty of room for the molecules of our bodies to pass between the molecules of those walls. We simply make a necessary mental adjustment and walk where we will. It is an ability as basic to us as. As breathing to a person. Like you.

[Lieutenant Brady]

What kind of men are you?

[Dr. Grove]

You have been educated, studied Darwin. You know the facts of evolution. You know how man has progressed through various stages. From the primitive savagery of the Neanderthal man.

[Lieutenant Brady]

Yes.

[Dr. Grove]

Obviously this process can and will continue. To suppose that the evolution of man is complete with you is a mistake of conceit, Human.

[Lieutenant Brady]

You are the next stage.

[Dr. Grove]

Exactly. You have heard of the process of mutation, perhaps. How suddenly a white rose is produced of a family of red roses. And from then on produces only white descendants.

[Lieutenant Brady]

Yes.

[Dr. Grove]

So have we been evolved as mutants. Infinitely superior to our parents and our fellow men. Knowing by instinct right from birth what you must study years to learn your most difficult physics and mathematics. Our ABCs. Our studies far beyond your understanding.

[Lieutenant Brady]

Are there many of you?

[Dr. Grove]

Yes. You see, the process had been going on for many years. Hundreds, thousands more come to us every year from all over the world. Drawn here by telepathic message. Where we have isolation to study, learn, build, prepare ourselves. Prepare?

[Lieutenant Brady]

Prepare for what?

[Dr. Grove]

For the task ahead, obviously. When we are ready. When we are numerous enough to fill all the necessary positions. Our superior intelligence must shape a new world.

[Lieutenant Brady]

Take over the world.

[Dr. Grove]

Obviously.

[Lieutenant Brady]

You will destroy man.

[Dr. Grove]

How little you understand us. Do you destroy the animals of the field because they are not your intellectual peers? Our obligation is to keep and protect you. To act as your friendly guardians in a world which will be strange to you and frightening. As my walking through the wall was frightening to you.

[Lieutenant Brady]

I see. Yes, I see. Then what is your plan?

[Dr. Grove]

Rather say nature's plan. And the answer to that lies in history. What became of the anthropoids? The cavemen?

[Lieutenant Brady]

They died out. Civilization passed them by. They fell before the onrush of higher forms of life.

[Dr. Grove]

Even so. Even so. But I give you our pledge that we Will be kind. We will be kind.

[Lieutenant Brady]

And then he took me out into that great underground city, through its corridors and great halls and laboratories and shops, took me among the thousands of his fellow men. There I saw marvels of which I could talk for hours. There were, but they would be beyond your comprehension, as they were beyond mine. You wouldn't believe me, and so I won't bother to tell you. Then I met others like us, some 200 captive cattle, people who had stumbled onto this island as I had. There were famous names. Among them, a famous author whose ship disappeared in the Pacific years ago. A big game hunter, a famous aviatrix for whom a dozen fleets had sought in vain. All of us prisoners, we were treated with great kindness, made comfortable, relatively happy. We were their pets, you see. Their dumb animal pets. For over three years, I stayed there. After a while, I ceased to struggle. Even in my mind, I was defeated. So I succumbed to the peaceful, bucolic existence. That was my fate. At least. At least that's what I thought. Then came that last day. Dr. Grove had made me his special pet. I was allowed to follow him about it at work, to talk to him at length. And on this day, he confided in me even more than usual.

[Dr. Grove]

Well, Lieutenant, it has been a pleasant day.

[Lieutenant Brady]

Yes, Doctor. Am I to go now?

[Dr. Grove]

Not for a moment. Ah, yes. I shall miss having you with me when I'm gone. Gone?

[Lieutenant Brady]

You're going away, sir?

[Dr. Grove]

Yes, very soon.

[Lieutenant Brady]

But where?

[Dr. Grove]

Out. Out into the world where you once lived.

[Lieutenant Brady]

But why?

[Dr. Grove]

Oh, there are many, very many of us there already. In strategic places, of course. An important politician here, an industrial magnet there. A famous author whose words are gospel to his readers. I will have my place. An important one.

[Lieutenant Brady]

But I didn't know. You didn't tell me that. It's already begun.

[Dr. Grove]

Oh, yes, definitely. The hour is close at hand.

[Lieutenant Brady]

And then all of us, the whole

[Dr. Grove]

world, Lieutenant, you know us now. You know that we will be kind.

[Lieutenant Brady]

Kind? Yes, kind. Suddenly, all the anger that was in me welled up. I didn't want to be a dumb animal, a pet for some superior being to be kind to. I didn't want that for my loved ones, my friends, my fellow men. That night at dinner, when they fed the prisoners in a big communal hall, I got a chance to talk to Kavanaugh, my old radio man. He listened and then shrugged hopelessly. They'll succeed, Joe. You know that. No, not if the world could be warned.

[Dr. Grove]

I don't know.

[Lieutenant Brady]

Maybe it wouldn't make any difference. Besides, how could they be warned? If somebody could get away from here.

[Dr. Grove]

Escape?

[Lieutenant Brady]

That's impossible. I know. That's what I thought. But listen, I've got an idea. There's one chink in their invincibility. What? Their gentleness, their kindness. They can't bear to hurt anyone. None of their weapons kill, but only. Only paralyzed temporarily. And they simply cannot conceive of treachery. What are you driving at? This. I'm going to play on Dr. Grove's liking for me, his kindness. And I'm going to trick him.

[Dr. Grove]

How?

[Lieutenant Brady]

Tomorrow I'll ask him to take me up above, back to the plane to. To get pictures of my father and sister. Tell him I'm lonesome, suffering. He'll do it. I'm sure he. It's very kind of you, Dr. Grove, to do this for me.

[Dr. Grove]

Oh, not at all, Lieutenant. I understand your feeling.

[Lieutenant Brady]

With you leaving, I have no one. No one close. The pictures will make me feel a lot better.

[Dr. Grove]

I only hope they're still here. Plane is partially demolished by the weather, as you can see.

[Lieutenant Brady]

Oh, they'll be there. They were in the map compartment. They'd be out of the weather.

[Dr. Grove]

Well, here we are, Dr. Grove.

[Lieutenant Brady]

Look over there.

[Dr. Grove]

Where?

[Lieutenant Brady]

Sorry, Doctor, but I had to do it. I hope I didn't kill him. He had been kind, but I hit him hard. Then I broke out a life raft from the rotting plane. I was almost afraid to look at it, but it was okay, even complete with supplies. 4 years old. I ripped the valve and threw it into the water. In five minutes, I was out beyond the breakers. I don't know how many days or weeks it was before they picked me up, but it was a long time, and I was more dead than alive.

[Dr. Gorham]

Yes, yes, Lieutenant, you were in bad shape. It was a horrible experience.

[Lieutenant Brady]

But you see, it doesn't matter about me. It's the others that. You don't believe me either, do you?

[Dr. Gorham]

Well, Lieutenant, it's. It's been a pleasure to listen to your story. I. I'll make a report to my superiors. Please be patient and try not to worry.

[Lieutenant Brady]

Try not to worry.

[Dr. Gorham]

Good day, Lieutenant.

[Lieutenant Brady]

Get out. Get out. Sir.

[Dr. Grove]

Oh, there. Commander Gorham. You talked to him. What's the verdict?

[Dr. Gorham]

A clear case of persecution mania. An amazing form. I've never heard a tale more complete and logical, but I.

[Dr. Grove]

Yes, I know what you mean.

[Dr. Gorham]

Well, do what you can for him. I'm afraid he's going to be here for a long time, perhaps for as long as he lives. Turned loose. He might be dangerous.

[Dr. Grove]

That's too bad. Nice boy too. Floating for four weeks on a life raft and heaven knows what before that. It sure does things to a man. Well, Doctor, how about lunch?

[Dr. Gorham]

No, no thanks. I've got to run along. I have to turn in my report and recommendation on this case.

[Dr. Grove]

Oh, of course. Well, I'll see you later.

[Dr. Gorham]

I watched the man disappear down the hall. I stood there for a moment, lost in thought, seeing the face of that boy in there. It was hard to know how best to be kind to a boy like that. But I roused myself. I had much to do, so much. And if I went down through the lobby of the hospital, some fool would surely delay me, get me into a long winded discussion. And I didn't feel a bit like talking. I wanted to get out of this place and forward my report. My report that this Brady case was closed. That there'd be no more trouble from this source. My car was just outside on the street. There was no one in sight in the corridor. So I turned and quietly walked through the wall.

[Narrator]

Escape is produced and directed by Norman MacDonald. Today we have presented transcribed Conqueror's Isle by Nelson Bond adapted for radio by John dunkle. Starred as Lieutenant Brady was David Ellis as Dr. Gorham, Ted Von Eltz as Dr. Grove, Bill Johnstone. Featured players were Sam Edwards and Dick Benedict. The special music was arranged and played by Ivan Ditmars. Be sure and be with us again next week at this same time when we will bring you another great story of mystery and intrigue by one of the world's outstanding authors of high adventure as CBS again presents Escape. Ronnie and Bonita are two names that are as familiar to Jack Benny fans as Mary, Phil, Rochester, Dennis and Don. And since Jack Benny has received thousands of letters asking that the Ronald Coleman's be brought back soon, he's happy to present them as special guests on his program this Sunday. Hear the Jack Benny program on these same CBS stations tomorrow night. This is Roy Rowan speaking for cbs. The Columbia Broadcasting.

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