Spontaneous Human Combustion

In 1971, in Washington, D. C., a very high-ranking official of the United States government was sitting in the oval office reading a Harold Robbins' novel when it suddenly burst into flames! The official dropped the paperback and began stomping vigorously in order to put it out (an act that later caused him severe problems with his leg) while ringing for his secretary. The secretary came in the office and succeeded in extinguishing the flames.

Investigators were called in, fearing a breach of security, but no cause for the fire could be found. Amazingly enough, the floor and carpet where the burning novel had been dropped were not even singed. Even more amazingly, eighteen of the novel's pages were rescued from the fire by the secretary who reported that they were the eighteen juiciest pages in the novel and her boss's favorites. Some investigators speculate that these pages were so saturated by sweat and other body fluids that they were too wet to burn.

Investigation continues into this case, but, until the day he died, this official could not read anything but the National Enquirer and Ann Landers' syndicated column without the reading matter bursting into flame.

POSTSCRIPT "One fire burns out another's burning, One pain is lessen'd by another's anguish." WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE, from ROMEO AND JULIET

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