ngenious plan in my mind,
as the result of our little raid on Nu-yok, that would make this
sufficient, since the reserves of inertron blocks were larger than I
expected to find them. The Resources Division, by packing its supply
cases a bit tight, or by slipping in extra blocks of inertron, was able
to reduce each to a weight of a few ounces. These easily could be
floated and towed by the swoopers in any quantity. Hitched to ultron
lines, it would be a virtual impossibility for them to break loose.

The entire personnel, of course, was supplied with jumpers, and if each
man and girl was careful to adjust balances properly, the entire number
could also be towed along through the air, grasping wires of ultron,
swinging below the swoopers, or stringing out behind them.

There would be nothing tiring about this, because the strain would be no
greater than that of carrying a one or two pound weight in the hand,
except for air friction at high speeds. But to make doubly sure that we
should lose none of our personnel, I gave strict orders that the belts
and tow lines should be equipped with rings and hooks.

So great was the efficiency of the fundamental organization and
discipline of the Gang, that we got under way at nightfall.

One by one the swoopers eased into the air, each followed by its long
train or "kite-tail" of humanity and supply cases hanging lightly from
its tow line. For convenience, the tow lines were made of an alloy of
ultron which, unlike the metal itself, is visible.

At first these "tails" hung downward, but as the ships swung into
formation and headed eastward toward the Bad Blood territory, gathering
speed, they began to string out behind. And swinging low from each ship
on heavily weighted lines, ultroscope, ultrophone, and straight-vision
observers keenly scanned the countryside, while intelligence men in the
swoopers above bent over their instrument boards and viewplates.

Leaving Control Boss Ned Garlin temporarily in charge of affairs, Wilma
and I dropped a weighted line from our ship, and slid down about half
way to the under lookouts, that is to say, about a thousand feet. The
sensation of floating swiftly through the air like this, in the absolute
security of one's confidence in the inertron belt, was one of
never-ending delight to me.

We reascended into the swooper as the expedition approached the
territory of the Bad Bloods, and directed the preparations for the
bombardment. It was par