Astounding Science Fiction, British Edition, December 1955 — page 37: what you’re looking at

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

THE WAITABITS 35 shiploads of men, uniforms and guns. That’s too much for the locals to stomach. In Remitan psychology the number represents critical mass. Result: the Remy war which—if you remember your history—was long, costly and bitter.”’ “I remember history well enough to recall that in those primitive days they used blockheaded space-troopers and had no specially trained contact- men,’ Walterson retorted. ““Nevertheless, what has happened before can happen again.” “That’s my problem right now,” Leigh interjected. “Will the sight of a battleship a mile in length cause them to start something that can’t be finished without considerable slaughter? Had I better risk the crew of a lifeboat in effort to smooth the introduction? I wish Boydell had been a little more informative.’’ He chewed his bottom lip with vexation, picked up the intercom phone, flipped the signals-room switch. “Any word from Boydell yet?” ““No, commodore,’ responded a voice. “Sector Nine doesn’t think there will be any, either. They’ve just been through saying he doesn’t answer their calls. They believe he’s now out of range. Last trace they got of him showed him to be running beyond effective communication limits.” “All right.” He dumped the phone, gazed through the port. “Seven hours we’ve waited. Nothing has come up to take a look at us. We can detect no signs of excitement down there. Therefore it’s a safe bet that they have no ships, perhaps not even rudimentary aircraft. Neither do they keep organized watch on the sky. They’re not advanced in our sense of the term.” ‘But they may be in some other sense,” Pascoe observed. “That is what I implied.” Leigh made an impatient gesture. ““We’ve hung within telescopic view long enough. If they are capable of formidable reaction, we should be grimly aware of it by now. I don’t feel inclined to test the Waitabits at the expense of a few men in an unarmed lifeboat. We’ll take the Thunderer itself down and hope they’re sane enough not to go nuts.” Hastening forward to the main control-cabin he issued the necessary orders. The landing place was atop a treeless bluff nine miles south of a large town. It was as good a site as any that could have been chosen. The settling of great tonnage over a mile-long area damaged nobody’s property or crops, the ground was solid enough not to furrow under the ship’s weight, the slight elevation gave a strategic advantage to the Thunderer’s guns. Despite its nearness the town was out of sight, being hidden by inter- vening hills. A narrow road ran through the valley but nothing moved thereon. Between the road and the base of the bluff lay double railroad tracks of about twenty-inch gauge with flat-topped rails of silvery metal. The rails had no spikes or ties and appeared to be held firmly in position by being sunk into long, unbroken ridges of concrete or some similar rock- like substance. The Thunderer reposed, a long, black, ominous shape with all locks Closed and gun-turrets open, while Leigh stared speculatively at the railroad and waited for the usual call from the metering lab. It came within short time. The phone rang, he answered it, heard Shallom speaki Be CONNIE IOOKS.COM