us. I don't like it, Phil. They're just human enough to have a bad
influence on the colony. They're dissolute and entirely without
ambition. In fact they seem to have damned little race survival instinct
at all."

I had pondered this many times, but it hadn't struck me as especially
dangerous to the colony. Benson went on, "We have a glorious planet
here, rich in minerals and other natural resources. By comparison, Earth
is so worn-out and depleted and over-crowded that the contrast is almost
too great."

"What are you driving at?" I demanded.

"Just this. From the first the biggest problem here has been to prod
everyone to work. We have a civilization to build here, and that means
clearing more land, breaking the soil, mining, construction,
manufacturing."

"Look," I said somewhat impatiently, "you don't expect 80 people to
accomplish all this in four years, surely?"

"I expect progress," he said firmly. "Do you realize that when we
finished the last of the forty houses that virtually ended the building
program? Work on the two warehouses, the water system, sewage disposal
plant and the commissary we planned is almost at a standstill."

"The people want time to finish up their homes and make them
comfortable," I objected.

"That's what they say," he told me, "but they're fooling away their
time."

"Phil, we've only been here a month, and--"

"And if I hadn't pulled a blue alert," he interrupted, "we wouldn't even
have the residentials built yet. Now they've got their precious privacy,
and the pressure is off. They'd rather go chasing off into the woods to
hunt exotic fruit and peek at the natives than get on with the project."

I hadn't realized things were this serious. "Don't they obey orders any
more? What about your work schedules?"

"I've pushed them as hard as I can without forcing a test of my
authority," he said. "They claim they deserve time to get adjusted and
relax a little before buckling down."

"I agree with them," I said. "They're all serious, industrious people,
and this is still an adventure with them. It will wear off pretty soon,
and they'll be yearning for comforts of Earth. They'll buckle down when
the rainy season hits," I predicted.

"I wonder. Here's one good example. Look over there. Donnegan's food
detail is just now returning with its first load. They left three hours
ago." He yelled over to the foreman.

Donnegan, a large, pleasant-faced biologist sauntered over to us. Bens