ring genius of Agar, had made a
marvelously speedy journey from its original position just outside the
orbit of Mercury to this point nearly four hundred and fifty million
miles away from the little planet. Winford studied the ground below. He
was only partly acquainted with the topography of Callisto and wanted to
be sure to pick a spot where Captain Robers and his men could be certain
of surviving until help arrived. His eye picked out a satisfactory spot
close beside the Gnan River in one of the stunted conifer forests of the
planet. Swiftly he dropped the big freighter until it hovered but a few
yards above the ground.

A freight port-hole was opened, and Captain Robers, accompanied by half
his crew, prepared to descend. They were all bundled in heavy garments,
for the temperature of Callisto, never high, frequently drops to
sub-zero readings. Winford stood at the port and watched the men climb
down the rope ladder to the ground below.

Robers was last to go. He faced Winford bitterly, for this escaped lifer
from Mercury had stolen not only his ship, but half his crew as well,
and the prospect of a liberal share of the rich iridium cargo in the
hold.

"You'll regret this day!" snarled the captain. "I'll be in the front row
of spectators when you sniff the death gas in the glass execution cage
on Mars. Hundreds have tried this sort of thing before you, and every
man of them has come finally to the cage."

"You're only delaying us, Captain Robers," replied Winford coldly. "I am
in a hurry to be on my way. Kindly move down the ladder and join your
men. Your hand weapons and food supplies will be dropped by parachute as
we leave. I might add that in a short time I expect to be in a position
to broadcast an S O S message for you which should bring rescue ships
here to Callisto for you. Good-by."

He turned away, leaving the officer to descend the ladder in baffled
fury to the ground below, where his men huddled together in the
unfamiliar cold, and stared half fearful at the far-away sun glowing
like a yellow arc-light in the depths of space half a billion miles
away.

When the rising ship reached the thousand-foot level, the weapons and
food were dropped by parachute, and the port-hole closed and locked.
Winford hurried forward to the control room where the two navigators,
who had signed with him for a hundred and twentieth share of the iridium
each, were already pointing the nose of the ship up through the purple