power to draw on;
outside I must depend solely on sunlight. We'll circle the Earth,
forming an orbit just within the atmosphere, at five miles a second.
We'll gradually increase the speed to about ten miles a second, at which
point the ship would normally fly off into space under its own
centrifugal force. With the power units we'll prevent its release until
the proper moment. When we release it, it will be entirely free of
Earth, and no more work will be needed to overcome Earth's pull."

The planning continued with exasperating slowness. The details of the
work were complex, for all the machines were totally new. Several weeks
passed before even the power units could be ordered and the first work
on the ship started. After that orders for materials left the office
daily. Still, it was late in November before the last order was sent
out.

Now they must begin work on other phases of the expedition--food
supplies and the standard parts of the equipment.

In the interval Arcot had decided to make a special ventilated suit for
use on Venus. This was to make use of a small molecular motion director
apparatus to cool the air, and blow it through the suit. The apparatus
consisted of a small compressed air-driven generator and a power tube
bank that could be carried on the back.

"Arcot," Wade said when he saw the apparatus completed and the testing
machine ready, "I've just noticed how similar this is to the portable
invisibility apparatus I developed as the Pirate. I wonder if it might
not be handy at times to be invisible--we could incorporate that with a
slight change. It wouldn't add more than five pounds, and those tubes
you are using I'm sure are easily strong enough to carry the extra
load."

"Great idea, Wade," said Arcot. "It might be very useful if we met
hostile natives. The disappearance stunt might make us gods or something
to primitive beings. And now that you mention it, I think we can install
the apparatus in the ship. It will require almost no power, and might
save our lives some time."

The work went forward steadily at the great Transcontinental Shops where
the space ship was being built. Its construction was being kept as much
of a secret as possible, for Arcot feared the interference of the crowds
that would be sure to collect if the facts were known, and since the
shops directly joined the airfield, it meant that there would be
helicopters buzzing about the Transatlantic and Transcontinental plane