ng profusely. Kane made a mental note to have them
ordered into tropical uniforms.

He found Dalon prowling like a wolf among his guards.

"It's inconceivable that these women could ever be a menace," Dalon
said, "but I'm taking no chances."

He saw Graver, the cruiser's Chief Technician; a thin, dry man who
seemed to be as emotionless as the machines and electronic circuits
that were his life.

"They're doing everything with astonishing competence," Graver said.
"My technicians are watching like hawks, though."

Larue was not in his office. His secretary, a brown-eyed woman of
strikingly intelligent appearance, said, "I'm sorry, sir--Dr. Larue
had to go back to town for a few minutes. May I give him your
message?"

"No, thanks," he said. "Father Brenn is probably performing that
unpleasant chore right now."

* * * * *

Since Dalon and Graver seemed to have the situation at the plant well
in hand, Kane decided to make a tour of the outer provinces where the
ores were being mined. An efficient plant would be worthless if it did
not receive sufficient ore.

He spent four days on the inspection tour; much longer than he had
expected to be gone but made necessary by the fact that the small
Elusium mines were widely scattered in rugged, roadless areas and he
had to walk most of the distance. The single helicopter on Sanctuary
was being used to fly the ore out but it was operating on a schedule
that caused him to miss it each time.

Each mine was being worked by full day-and-night crews; in fact, by
more men than necessary. The reason for that, and for the way the men
silently withheld their hostility, was made apparent in a bit of
conversation between two miners that he overheard one day:

_"... So why all of us here when not this many are needed?"_

_"They say Father Brenn wanted to get all the men out of town, away
from the cruiser, so there would be no trouble--and you know there
would have been if we had stayed. He wants to get the cruiser on its
way back to Vogar, they say, so we can get busy producing weapons to
fight the Occupation force...."_

He returned on the fifth evening of the allotted seven days and
stopped by Brenn's cottage before going on to the ship. The old man
was working in his garden, his trembling hands trying to tie up a
red-flowered vine.

Kane tied it for him and he said, "Thank you, sir. Did you find the
mining to be as I had said?"

"I found mor