Astounding British Edition, Vol. 9, No. 10 — page 68: what you’re looking at

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

aa mA) Se pr: TN Norte: : “Answer a question for me, Pete; _ answer it honestly! Would you have been _ different if the mathematics teacher had - found a different kind of book? Some- thing by Clausewitz, for instance?” “Conceivably, but the book wasn’t everything. It’s men that made our world, Diane, not words.” “We're something worse than a book, Pete. We’re a virus, a contagion.” She gestured toward her gun. “Like this; a weapon is the symbol of our ways.” “You can learn ours, Diane. Do you think we’re unarmed because we don’t know the techniques? We use all sorts of weapons when we vacation in the hunting preserves; most of us are expert marks- men. And if your virus could change us, why am I unarmed now? I knew you had a gun. Why didn’t I bring one of my own, to defend myself? We simply don’t live on that emotional level of action, Diane! Can’t you see it? We solve our problems differently.” For a moment she hesitated; her pistol wavered. Then her shoulders stiffened and she plunged into the rocket. Before he could follow her, the port slid shut and he was forced to leap back to avoid the backwash of flame from the rocket tubes. He looked up a moment later and watched the thin line of black dart across the face of the rising sun. To the end, she had retained her own internal integrity, true to the ancient confusion of emotion and logic which had once wrecked the world. He knew that if he acted quickly enough, he could use the spacefield monitors to trace the rocket and locate her destination among the stars. Instead, he turned away deliberately. Diane had sacrificed herself to an idea that seemed entirely valid to her; he had no moral right to intervene by force, if the per- suasion of his argument had failed. And he realized, suddenly, that the future could survive only when the past was dead. Hallen’s world and Diane’s were mutual contradictions; neither could compromise or communicate with the other. He waved toward the morning sky in solemn salute, feeling somehow proud "ASTOUNDING SCIENCE FICTION — 3 —; of Dianeé’s transparent childishness, her foolish and unnecessary courage. But chiefly he was proud of her consistency of self. His world had no reason to be ashamed of hers, which had germinated it. PUOEUERUUDENEENOOOONEUADEEUANEUOEEORUOODORUOOUERDONERETSOEOEREOEOODEOLUEOO SEO EOEUTEOT MISSION OF GRAVITY (Continued from page 47) The chief brought up against the outer rafts at the point where the radio had been loaded, and immediately dis- embarked. _Barlennan had given his orders as soon as the canoe had left the bank, and now another set of slings went about the bow and stern of the little vessel. It was hauled aboard and dragged to the space reserved for it, still with every evidence of respect. The chief did not wait for this operation to be finished; he embarked on the other canoe and re- turned to shore, looking back from time to time. Darkness swallowed up the scene as he climbed the bank. “You win, Barl. I wish I had some of your ability; I’d be a good deal richer than I am now, if I were still alive by some Odd chance. Are you going to wait around to get more out of them to- morrow?” — | “We are leaving now!” the captain replied without hesitation. “I want to get where I can learn about this little ship without having to play-act all the time I’m about it. We’ll be out in the current in two minutes.” Sounds of scraping wood as the Bree was poled from her cage confirmed his statement; and moments later the sound was replaced with utter silence as the ship slipped free into the slow stream. There was a little wind, and some sails were hoisted until they reached a point . well out in the river; then they were dropped once more, and the banks began to slip silently westward as the current took over. Lackland left his dark screen and went to his quarters for his first sleep in many hours. Sixty-five minutes—rather less than four of Mesklin’s days—had passed since the village was sighted. (To be continued) EOMIGEDOOKS. co