med whiter
than white.

"Out!" said that man savagely. "We're taking over your stock of food.
You'll get your share of it, like everybody else, but--out!"

Maril spoke over Calhoun's shoulder. She uttered a cryptic sentence or
two. It should have amounted to identification, but there was skepticism
in the the armed party.

"Oh, you're one of us, eh?" said the guard-leader sardonically. "You'll
have a chance to prove that! Come out of there!"

Calhoun spoke abruptly;

"This is a Med Ship," he said. "There are medicines and bacterial
cultures, inside it. They shouldn't be meddled with. Here on Dara you've
had enough of plagues!"

The man with the blue hand said as sardonically as before;

"I said the government was taking over your ship! It won't be looted.
But you're not taking a full cargo of food away! In fact, it's not
likely you're leaving!"

"I want to speak to someone in authority," snapped Calhoun. "We've just
come from Weald." He felt bristling hatred all about him as he named
Weald. "There's tumult there. They're talking about dropping fusion
bombs here. It's important that I talk to somebody with the authority to
take a few sensible precautions!"

He descended to the ground. There was a panicky "_Chee! Chee!_" from
behind him, and Murgatroyd came dashing to swarm up his body and cling
apprehensively to his neck.

"What's that?"

"A _tormal,_" said Calhoun. "He's not a pet. Your medical men will know
something about him. This is a Med Ship and I'm a Med Ship man, and he's
an important member of the crew. He's a Med Ship _tormal_ and he stays
with me!"

The man with the blue hand said harshly;

"There's somebody waiting to ask you questions. Here!"

A ground-car came rolling out from the side of the landing-grid
enclosure. The ground-car ran on wheels, and wheels were not much used
on modern worlds. Dara was behind the times in more ways than one.

"This car will take you to Defense and you can tell them anything you
want. But don't try to sneak back in this ship! It'll be guarded!"

The ground-car was enclosed, with room for a driver and the three from
the Med Ship. But armed men festooned themselves about its exterior and
it went bumping and rolling to the massive ground-layer girders of the
grid. It rolled out under them and there was paved highway. It picked up
speed.

There were buildings on either side of the road, but few showed lights.
This was night-time, and the men at the landing