Project Gutenberg's The World That Couldn't Be, by Clifford Donald Simak

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Title: The World That Couldn't Be

Author: Clifford Donald Simak

Illustrator: Gaughan

Release Date: April 17, 2010 [EBook #32026]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

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Transcriber's Note:

This etext was produced from Galaxy Science Fiction January 1958.
Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that the U.S.
copyright on this publication was renewed.

The World That Couldn't Be

By CLIFFORD D. SIMAK

Illustrated by GAUGHAN

_Like every farmer on every planet, Duncan had to hunt down
anything that damaged his crops--even though he was aware
this was--_

* * * * *

The tracks went up one row and down another, and in those rows the
_vua_ plants had been sheared off an inch or two above the ground. The
raider had been methodical; it had not wandered about haphazardly, but
had done an efficient job of harvesting the first ten rows on the west
side of the field. Then, having eaten its fill, it had angled off into
the bush--and that had not been long ago, for the soil still trickled
down into the great pug marks, sunk deep into the finely cultivated
loam.

[Illustration]

Somewhere a sawmill bird was whirring through a log, and down in one
of the thorn-choked ravines, a choir of chatterers was clicking
through a ghastly morning song. It was going to be a scorcher of a
day. Already the smell of desiccated dust was rising from the ground
and the glare of the newly risen sun was dancing off the bright leaves
of the hula-trees, making it appear as if the bush were filled with a
million flashing mirrors.

Gavin Duncan hauled a red bandanna from his pocket and mopped his
face.

"No, mister," pleaded Zikkara, the native foreman of the farm. "You
cannot do it, mister. You do not hunt a Cytha."

"