narrow hall, from either side of
which two doors opened. "This is my room, the adjoining one is Mart's.
Shiro sleeps across the hall. The rest of the rooms are for our guests
on future trips."

Sliding back the door, he switched on the light and revealed a small but
fully-appointed bedroom, completely furnished with everything necessary,
yet everything condensed into the least possible space. The floor, like
the one above, was of cushioned leather supported by springs. The bed
was a modification of the special seats already referred to. Opening
another sliding door, he showed them an equally complete and equally
compact bathroom.

"You see, we have all the comforts of home. This bathroom, however, is
practical only when we have some force downward, either gravitation or
our own acceleration. The same reasoning accounts for the hand-rails you
see everywhere on board. Drifting in space, you know, there is no
weight, and you can't walk; you must pull yourself around. If you tried
to take a step you would bounce up and hit the ceiling, and stay there.
That is why the ceilings are so well padded. And if you tried to wash
your face you would throw water all over the place, and it would float
around in the air instead of falling to the floor. As long as we can
walk we can use the bathroom--if I should want to wash my face while we
are drifting, I just press this button here, and the pilot will put on
enough acceleration to make the correct use of water possible. There are
a lot of surprising things about a trip into space."

"I don't doubt it a bit, and I'm simply wild to go for a ride with you.
When will you take me, Dicky?" asked Dorothy eagerly.

"Very soon, Dottie. As soon as we get her in perfect running condition.
You shall be the first to ride with us, I promise you."

"Where do you cook and eat? How do you see out? How about the air and
water supply? How do you keep warm, or cool, as the case may be?" asked
the girl's father, as though he were cross-examining a witness.

"Shiro has a galley on the main floor, and tables fold up into the wall
of the main compartment. The passengers see out by sliding back steel
panels, which normally cover the windows. The pilot can see in any
direction from his seat at the instrument-board, by means of special
instruments, something like periscopes. The windows are made of optical
glass similar to that used in the largest telescopes. They are nearly as
thick as the hull and have