of the people who live in the
Golden City. They hate the people of the Golden City. I think that
they are bandits; renegades, perhaps. They live in the tree-fern
forests and scream curses at the airships which fly overhead. And they
are afraid of those airships."

"How long did Denham use this thing to look through, before he built
his globe?"

Von Holtz considered.

"Immediately it worked," he said at last, "he began work on a small
catapult. It took him one week to devise exactly how to make that. He
experimented with it for some days and began to make the large globe.
That took nearly two months--the globe and the large catapult
together. And also the dimensoscope was at hand. His daughter looked
through it more than he did, or myself."

"He should have known what he was up against," said Tommy, frowning.
"He ought to have taken guns, at least. Is he armed?"

Von Holtz shook his head.

"He expected to return at once," he said desperately. "Do you see,
Herr Reames, the position it puts me in? I may be suspected of murder!
I am the Herr Professor's assistant. He disappears. Will I not be
accused of having put him out of the way?"

"No," said Tommy thoughtfully. "You won't." He glanced through the
brass tube and paced up and down the room. "You telephone for someone
to repair my car," he said suddenly and abruptly. "I am going to stay
here and work this thing out. I've got just the glimmering of an idea.
But I'll need my car in running order, in case we have to go out and
get materials in a hurry."

* * * * *

Von Holtz bowed stiffly and went out of the laboratory. Tommy looked
after him. Even moved to make sure he was gone. And then Tommy Reames
went quickly to the work bench on which were the littered notes and
calculations Von Holtz had been using and which were now at his
disposal. But Tommy did not leaf through them. He reached under the
blotter beneath the whole pile. He had seen Von Holtz furtively push
something out of sight, and he had disliked and distrusted Von Holtz
from the beginning. Moreover, it was pretty thoroughly clear that
Denham had not trusted him too much. A trusted assistant should be
able to understand, at least, any experiment performed in a
laboratory.

A folded sheet of paper came out. Tommy glanced at it.

"You messed things up right! Denham marooned and you got
nothing. No plans or figures either. When you get them, you
get your mon