eding the flames with the oil. The
burning area sank neatly through the snow, exposing the grass beneath:
dry, yellow and brittle. The stiff, interwoven stolons caught; oil was
applied unstintedly; the crackling and roaring and snapping could be
heard by those well beyond the perimeter of the Grass and the terrific
heat forced the temporary abandonment of the work.

The spotbroadcasters in emotional voices gave the news to those whose
radios still functioned. Reporters flashed their editors, BURNING
SUCCESSFUL. WILL STOP GRASS IF MULTIPLIED. All over the country
volunteer crews were instantly formed to repeat the experiment.

When the flames died down the men crept closer to inspect the results.
The heat had melted the snow for many yards outside the orbit of fire,
revealing a border of dull and sodden grass. Beyond this border a
blackened crater had eaten its way straight down to the reclaimed earth
below. Shouting and rejoicing greeted this evidence of triumph. What if
the Grass could advance at will in summer? It could be subdued in winter
and thus kept in check till the ingenuity which devised this one victory
could win another.

Working furiously, the oil was again sprayed, this time over a still
larger piece and again the flames lit the sky. The President issued a
Proclamation of Thanksgiving; the American dollar rose to $175 to the
pound, and several prominent expatriates began to think seriously of
returning home.

The second fire burned through the night and aided by a slight change in
the weather thawed the snow over a great area. Eagerly the expedition,
now swollen into a small army, returned to continue their triumphant
labors. The bright sun shone upon the dirtied snow, upon naked muddy
earth in the center of the crater, upon the network of burnt and
blackened stems and upon the wide band of grayishgreen grass the
retreating snow had laid open to its rays. Grayishgreen, but changing in
color at every moment as the work of spraying began again.

Changing color, becoming more verdant, thrusting blades into the air,
moving its long runners upward and sideways and downward toward the
destroyed part. Revived by the heat, relieved of the snow, the Grass,
fighting for its life with the same intensity which animated its
attackers, burst into a fury of growth. It covered the evidences of
destruction in less time than the burning had taken. It tore the
pipeline from its tormentors' hands and drove them away with