id that you'll never be able to bring these people back to life
again, sir. I can't detect any heart action even with the amplifier.
Ordinary heart action sounds like a cataract through this instrument. I
can see nothing wrong with the blood; it has not coagulated as I
expected, nor is there any pronounced hydrolysis as yet. But I'm afraid
I'll have to write out the death warrants for all these men and women.
One of the people on that ship was coming to see me. That's how I
happened to be on the field. For her, at least, it may be better so. The
poor woman was suffering from an incurable cancer."

"In this case, Doctor, I hope and believe you are wrong. Read this
note!"

* * * * *

It was two hours before the work of reviving the passengers could be
started. Despite all the laws of physics, their body temperature had
remained constant after it had reached seventy-four, showing that some
form of very slow metabolism was going on. One by one they were put into
large electric blankets, and each was given the correct dose of the
salt. The men waited anxiously for results--and within ten minutes of
the injection the first had regained consciousness!

The work went forward steadily and successfully. Every one of the
passengers and crew was revived. And the Pirate had spoken the truth.
The woman who had been suffering from cancer was free from pain for the
first time in many months. Later, careful examination proved she was
cured!

The papers were issuing extras within five minutes of the time the great
plane had landed, and the radio news service was broadcasting the first
"break" in a particularly dead month. During all of June the news had
been dead, and now July had begun with a bang!

With time to think and investigate, the airport officials went over the
ship with the Air Guard, using a fine-tooth comb. It was soon evident
that the job had been done from the outside, as the Pirate had said. The
emergency pilot testified that when he entered the ship, he found a
small piece of wire securing the air lock from the outside. This had
certainly been put on while the ship was in flight, and that meant that
whoever had done this, had landed on the great ship with a small plane,
had somehow anchored it, then had entered the plane through the air lock
at the ten mile height. He had probably flown across the path of the
plane, leaving a trail of gas in its way to be drawn in through the
ventila