Authentic Science Fiction Monthly No. 71 — page 154: what you’re looking at

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

YOU DO TAKE quite pleased with the interest he had aroused. “But why?’ I said ex- 3 plosively. ‘“‘He must have been a devil in human form——” “Two devils in human form,” amended George. ““The engineer had shoved. him off the ship, way beyond its tiny gravity pull. As Graves said, that looked like murder, too. What I’d like to know is more about the reason for their feud. If I’d been in on _ that enquiry, I’d have pulled - Harry through a wire sieve trying to find out.” “Oh, but they did! Tom admitted, under questioning, he didn’t like either of the - men at all, and Harry freely admitted he and the engineer loathed each other, but that it. was simply a question of complete incompatibility in space. As for the unlucky incident outside the ship, he insisted it was an accident. And as they couldn’t shift him on his story, and couldn’t _ prove a thing, that was the - end of that. The inquest said accidental death, the report was filed and faded out six months later when the whole 153 IT WITH YOU place mushroomed into space.” **A very unsatisfactory mur- der,” opined George. He fixed Graves with a shrewd eye. “That is, if you think » it was murder ?”’ “I’ve given you all the direct evidence.”’ Graves’ blue orb rested on him with a faint reserve. ‘I’ve no doubt there were a few private theories about it, but you don’t hang, or ground, a man on a theory.” “Yes, but why?” I said again exasperatedly. ‘Surely, even in space, men don’t kill each other just because they get on each others’ nerves ?”” **N-no.”’ Graves hesitated. “But they can get pretty spiteful unless they’re hand- picked, cooped up in those tin cages. It couldn’t happen nowadays, of course. They are hand-picked. And they don’t travel less than ten to a crew.” | “Alright, if they don’t kill for dislike, what else do they © kill for?’ George was warm- — ing up to it. “Jealousy. Money. Blackmail. Lunacy.” cComiclsooks.com .