Authentic Science Fiction Monthly, No. 67 — page 56: what you’re looking at

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

A WOMAN'S WORK about me, Margaret. No woman not hopelessly in love with a man could do what you did for me. I want to repay you for what you did. We can be married. I know you’d like that, and...” He said more but she didn’t bother to listen. He, sorry for her, and offering his concept of full repayment for what he considered he owed her, making what he, in his conceit, thought was the su- preme gesture. But why? Why? Looking at him, Margaret found her answer. John was, and always had been, a coward. Adversity had driven him into an attempt to escape, and space service, with its high pay and total welfare, had offered him a refuge against the world. There was more to it than that, of course. Pioneers are always men who are running away from some- thing, and how much further could a man run than into space? Alone, he might have 35 made it. Alone, driven by fate, he would have been forced to sink or swim, but Margaret had found him and . helped him. And by helping him she had ruined him. She had given him comfort, love, warmth and happiness. She had given him everything she possessed, and by so giving had taken away his need for escape. Now there was no force driving him towards the stars. Now he was willing to sell his op- portunity for a comfortable marriage and a snug home. Basically, he was afraid of space, and’ in an attempt at self-justification, was making what he thought was a noble gesture in blaming his coward- ice onto his regard for her, robbing her of the vicarious success for which she had dreamed. And it was all her own fault. “You fool!’ she said bit- terly. “You utter fool!” _ But she was not talking to John. comicbooks.com