Astounding British Edition, Vol. 9, No. 10 — page 25: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

MISSION OF GRAVITY ~ to affect. As Lackland’s final agreement their details too well because of their small size. Both appeared to be domesti- cated; each stayed crouched at the side of the sailor who had purchased it, and evinced no desire to move away. Lack- land guessed—correctly, as it turned out —that these were creatures of the sort the sailors had been hoping to raise in order to test possible plant foods. “Ts that all the trading you’re going to do?” he called, as the last of the local inhabitants drifted away from the neigh- borhood of the tank. “It’s all we can do,” replied Barlennan. “We have nothing more to trade. Have you any suggestions, or do you want to continue our journey now?” “I'd like very much to find out what the interiors of those houses are like; but I couldn’t possibly get through the doors, even if I could discard my armor. Would you or any of your people be willing to try to get a look inside?” Barlennan was a trifle hesitant. “I’m not sure whether it would be wise. These people traded peacefully enough, but there’s something about them that bothers me, though I can’t exactly put a nipper on it. Maybe it’s because they didn’t argue enough over prices.” “You mean you don’t trust them—you think they’ll try to get back what they’ve given, now you're out of trade goods?” “I wouldn’t say precisely that; as I said, I don’t have actual reason for my feeling. I'll put it this way; if the tank gets back to the valley rim and hooked up to the ship so that we’re all ready to go, and we’ve had no trouble from these things in the meantime, I'll come back down and take that look myself.” Neither Barlennan nor Lackland had paid any attention to the natives during this conversation; but for the first time, the city dwellers did not share this indif- ’ ference. The nearer giants turned and eyed, with every indication of curiosity, the small box from which Lackland’s voice was coming. As the talk went on, more and more of them drew near and listened; the spectacle of someone talking to a box too small to contain any intelli- gent creature they knew seemed, for the first time, to break down a wall of re- serve that not even the tank had been able 23 to Barlennan’s suggestion came booming from the tiny speaker, and it became evident that the conversation was over, several of the listeners disappeared hastily into their homes and emerged almost at once with more objects. These they pre- sented, with gestures which the sailors now understood quite well. The giants wanted the radio, and were willing to pay handsomely for it. Barlennan’s refusal seemed to puzzle them. Each in turn offered a higher price than his predecessor. At last, Barlennan made an ultimate refusal in the only way he could; he tossed the set onto the roof of the tank, leaped after it, and ordered his men to begin throwing the newly ac- quired property up to him. For several seconds the giants seemed nonplussed; then, as though by signal, they turned away and disappeared into their narrow doorways. Barlennan felt more uneasy than ever, and kept watch on as many portals as his eyes could cover while he stowed the newly bought goods; but it was not from the dwellings that the danger came. It was the great Hars who saw it, as he half reared himself over his fellows in imita- tion of the natives to toss a particularly bulky package up to his captain. His eye chanced to rove back up the channel they had descended; and as it did so he gave one of the incredibly loud hoots which never failed to amaze—and startle —Lackland. He followed the shriek with a burst of speech which meant nothing — to the Earthman; but Barlennan under- stood, looked, and said enough in English to get the important part across. “Charles! Look back uphill! Move!” Lackland looked, and in the instant of looking understood completely the reason for the weitd layout of the city. One of the giant boulders, fully half the size of the tank, had become dislodged from its position on the valley rim. It had been located just above the wide mouth of the channel down which the tank had come; the slowly rising walls were guiding it squarely along the path the vehicle had followed. It was still half a mile away and far above; but its downward speed was building up each instant as its tons of COPMIC OOOKS; EO) m—