retrieving the lead, too. After all, it would not have been wise to abandon it and let the Ganymedians take the platform apart. If they found that in its building a neat cavity had been left in its center—that it had been covered by a slab doctored to remain in place even under Rickey's weight, but to tilt decidedly when a meteor-repeller beam came on it—!

They might not work it out, but they might. The meteor-repeller beam, of course, had set off the pressure-fuse which made so impressive a mass of smoke, hiding Rickey completely as he slid squirming into the crypt in the platform when the beam came on.

It hadn't been difficult to smuggle Rickey back on board, though. The Ganymedians drifted away. Joe suspected that they intended to go over and watch whatever happened to the Martians with the fuel-exploding device.

They would probably fight, and the Ganymedians would probably be very firm, because they would not want the Earth-weapon used against them.

Dick Harkness came into the control-room, Rickey frisking about his feet.

"Cussed dog!" said Dick fondly, looking down at him. "He hates that space-suit of his, though it protected him perfectly when that smoke bomb went off."

"Mmmm," said Joe.

"Do you think that Martian scout-ship will try for us?" asked Dick hopefully.

"No chance," said Joe. "They want to get back with news of our new weapon. Martian technical brass will go crazy trying to figure it out."

"Huh!" said Dick gloomily. "Nothing ever happens on a space-can! Headquarters will hush-hush the story, too. What a life! And those recruiting posters say 'Deep Space is Calling! Ride a Comet and See the Worlds!' It's a lie! There ought to be a law!"

Rickey sat down, his tongue lolling out. He looked alertly up at Dick.

"Say!" said Dick. "The hands have got their story worked out. They're going to swear that Rickey subdued Ganymede and stopped an alliance with Mars. The high spot in the story is where Rickey saw a tree and in his space-suit he couldn't sniff at it, and he got so mad that steam came out of his ears and the Ganymedians thought he was a dog-god and bowed down to him instead of helping the Martians!"

The Winship drove on through space on the way back to base.

 Prev. P 13/13