* *

In the Main, after a long and fruitless discussion, Garlock called
Governor Atterlin, who did not know anything about a faster-than-light
drive, either. There was one, of course, since it took only a few days
or a few weeks to go from one system to another; but Hodell didn't have
any such ships. No ordinary planet did. They were owned and operated by
people who called themselves "Engineers." He had no idea where the
Engineers came from; they didn't say.

Garlock then tried to get in touch with the Arpalone Inspector who had
checked the _Pleiades_ in, and could not find out even who it had been.
The Inspector then on duty neither knew or cared anything about either
faster-than-light drives or Engineers. Such things were none of his
business.

"What difference would it make, anyway?" James asked. "No drive that
takes 'a few weeks' for an intra-galaxy hop is ever going to get us back
to Tellus."

"True enough; but if there is such a thing I want to know how it works.
How are you coming with your calculations?"

"I'll finish up tomorrow easily enough."

Tomorrow came, and James finished up, but he did not find any familiar
pattern of Galactic arrangement. The other three watched James set up
for another try for Earth.

"You don't think we'll ever get back, do you, Clee?" Belle asked.

"Right away, no. Some day, yes. I've got the germ of an idea. Maybe
three or four more hops will give me something to work on."

"I hope so," James said, "because here goes nothing," and he snapped the
red switch.

* * *

It was not nothing. Number Two was another guardian Inspector and
another planet very much like Hodell. It proved to be so far from both
Earth and Hodell, however, that no useful similarities were found in any
two of the three sets of charts.

Number Three was equally unproductive of helpful results. James did,
however, improve his technique of making galactic charts; and he and
Garlock designed and built a high-speed comparator. Thus the time
required per stop was reduced from days to hours.

Number Four produced a surprise. When Garlock touched the knob of the
testing-box he yanked his hand away before it had really made contact.
It was like touching a high-voltage wire.

"You are incompatible with our humanity and must not land," the
Inspector ruled.

"Suppose we blast you and your jets out of the air and land anyway?"
Garlock asked.

"That is perhaps