g into the corner. "Well, I guess I'd better make a
report to Commander Walters."

Hawks moved to the corner where the pile of chemical feed-line equipment
lay on the floor. "Want to take a look at this stuff? Might be something
important in it."

Strong thought a moment. "We can have the cadets do that. I want to get
this report off to Walters right away, and issue an order to pick up
Wallace and Simms."

"On what charges, Steve?" asked the commissioner. "I mean, what's wrong
with what they've done?" The commissioner's question was based on one of
the cardinal rules among all Solar Guard officers of authority. "Has the
man committed any crime?"

Steve realized this and answered slowly. "They've changed over to
reactor drive without a license or permission. That's a violation of the
space code, section twenty-one, paragraph A. That is punishable by a
suspension of space papers, and if the intention proved to be willful
neglect of the code, a year on a penal asteroid. I think we can get them
on that."

The captain stepped to the door and called the cadets.

"Find anything?" he asked, when they entered the shack.

"Nothing, sir," replied Tom. "Except more evidence that they changed
over to atomic drive."

"That's enough" said Strong. "I'm going to send a report to Commander
Walters. Is the teleceiver on the _Polaris_ hooked up, Roger?"

"Yes, sir," replied Roger. "But Astro will have to start up the
auxiliary generators to give you power."

"Very well, then," said Strong. "Corbett, you give Astro a hand on the
power deck. And while we're gone, Manning, you go through that feed-line
junk there in the corner and see if there's anything important in it!"

"Aye, aye, sir," replied Roger.

Strong and Hawks, followed by Tom and Astro, left the shack and hurried
to the _Polaris_.

On the power deck, Tom and Astro made the necessary connections on the
generator, and in a few minutes, as power surged through the ship,
Strong flipped on the teleceiver.

"Attention! Attention! This is Captain Strong on the _Polaris_ calling
Commander Walters at Space Academy! Earth emergency circuit, priority
B--"

In a few moments the Solar Guard officer's call had been picked up by a
monitor station on Earth and relayed directly to Space Academy.
Commander Walters was roused out of bed, and when he appeared on the
teleceiver screen, Strong saw he was still in sleeping dress.

"Sorry to disturb you, sir," said Strong, "but some