ren, the younger ones
almost completely naked.

"Sarge," the old man told one of the youths, "post a guard over this
flying machine; don't let anybody meddle with it. And have all the
noncoms and techs report here, on the double." He turned and shouted
up at the truncated steeple: "Atherton, sound 'All Clear!'"

A horn, up in the belfry, began blowing, to advise the people who had
run from the fields into the woods that there was no danger.

They went through the open doorway of the old stone church, and
entered the big room inside. The building had evidently been gutted by
fire, two centuries before, and portions of the wall had been
restored. Now there was a rough plank floor, and a plank ceiling at
about twelve feet; the room was apparently used as a community center.
There were a number of benches and chairs, all very neatly made, and
along one wall, out of the way, ten or fifteen long tables had been
stacked, the tops in a pile and the trestles on them. The walls were
decorated with trophies of weapons--a number of old M-12 rifles and
M-16 submachine guns, all in good clean condition, a light machine
rifle, two bazookas. Among them were stone and metal-tipped spears and
crude hatchets and knives and clubs, the work of the wild men of the
woods. A stairway led to the second floor, and it was up this that the
man who bore the title of Toon Leader conducted them, to a small room
furnished with a long table, a number of chairs, and several big
wooden chests bound with iron.

"Sit down, gentlemen," the Toon Leader invited, going to a cupboard
and producing a large bottle stopped with a corncob and a number of
small cups. "It's a little early in the day," he said, "but this is a
very special occasion. You smoke a pipe, I take it?" he asked
Altamont. "Then try some of this; of our own growth and curing." He
extended a doeskin moccasin, which seemed to be the tobacco-container.

Altamont looked at the thing dubiously, then filled his pipe from it.
The oldster drew his pistol, pushed a little wooden plug into the
vent, added some tow to the priming, and, aiming at the wall, snapped
it. Evidently, at times the formality of plugging the vent had been
overlooked; there were a number of holes in the wall there. This time,
however, the pistol didn't go off. He shook out the smoldering tow,
blew it into flame, and lit a candle from it, offering the light to
Altamont. Loudons got out a cigar and lit it from the candle; the
o