the Chemist.

"Taking the other viewpoint," said the Doctor. "Just where do you figure
this Oroid universe is located in the ring?"

"It is contained within one of the atoms of gold," the Chemist answered.
"And that golden atom, I estimate, is located probably within one
one-hundredth of an inch, possibly even one one-thousandth of an inch
away from the circular indentation I made in the bottom of the scratch.
In actual distance I suppose Arite is possibly one-sixteenth of an inch
below the surface of the ring."

"Certainly makes a difference how you look at it," murmured the Very
Young Man in awe.

The Chemist went on. "It is obvious then, that although when coming down
the distance must be covered to some extent by physical movement--by
traveling geographically, so to speak--going back, that is not
altogether the case. Most of the distance may be covered by bodily
growth, rather than by a movement of the body from place to place."

"We might get lost," objected the Very Young Man. "Suppose we got
started in the wrong direction?"

"Coming in, that is a grave danger," answered the Chemist, "because then
distances are opening up and a single false step means many miles of
error later on. But going out, just the reverse is true; distances are
shortening. A mile in the wrong direction is corrected in an instant
later on. Not coming to a realization of that when I made the trip
before, led me to undertake many unnecessary hours of most arduous
climbing. There is only one condition imperative; the body growing must
have free space for its growth, or it will be crushed to death."

"Have you planned exactly how we are to get out?" asked the Big Business
Man.

"Yes, I have," the Chemist answered. "In the size we are now, which you
must remember is several thousand times Oroid height, it will be only a
short distance to a point where as we grow we can move gradually to the
centre of the circular pit. That huge inclined plane slides down out of
it, you remember. Once in the pit, with its walls closing in upon us, we
can at the proper moment get out of it about as I did before."

"Then we'll be in the valley of the scratch," exclaimed the Very Young
Man eagerly. "I'll certainly be glad to get back there again."

"Getting out of the valley we'll use the same methods," the Chemist
continued. "There we shall have to do some climbing, but not nearly so
much as I did."

The Very Young Man was thrilled at the prospect of so