said. "That's pretty rough sport, isn't it?

"Extremely rough sport!" Dr. Droon agreed dryly. "In fact, when the
statistics were published, the sporting interest in winning a Baluit
cat trophy appears to have suffered a sudden and sharp decline. On the
other hand, a more scientific interest in these remarkable animals was
coincidingly created, and many permits for their acquisition by the
agents of museums, universities, public and private collections were
issued. Sporting rules, of course, do not apply to that activity."

Telzey nodded absently. "I see! _They_ used aircars, didn't they? A
sort of heavy knockout gun--"

"Aircars, long-range detectors and stunguns are standard equipment in
such work," Dr. Droon acknowledged. "Gas and poison are employed, of
course, as circumstances dictate. The collectors were relatively
successful for a while."

"And then a curious thing happened. Less than two years after their
existence became known, the crest cats of the Baluit range were
extinct! The inroads made on their numbers by man cannot begin to
account for this, so it must be assumed that a sudden plague wiped
them out. At any rate, not another living member of the species has
been seen on Jontarou until you landed here with your pet last night."

Telzey sat silent for some seconds. Not because of what he had said,
but because the other knowledge was still flowing into her mind. On
one very important point _that_ was at variance with what the
zoologist had stated; and from there a coldly logical pattern was
building up. Telzey didn't grasp the pattern in complete detail yet,
but what she saw of it stirred her with a half incredulous dread.

She asked, shaping the words carefully but with only a small part of
her attention on what she was really saying. "Just what does all that
have to do with Tick-Tock, Dr. Droon?"

Dr. Droon glanced at Halet, and returned his gaze to Telzey. Looking
very uncomfortable but quite determined, he told her, "Miss Amberdon,
there is a Federation law which states that when a species is
threatened with extinction, any available survivors must be
transferred to the Life Banks of the University League, to insure
their indefinite preservation. Under the circumstances, this law
applies to, ah, Tick-Tock!"

* * * * *

So that had been Halet's trick. She'd found out about the crest cats,
might have put in as much as a few months arranging to make the
discovery of