ld doubtless have ignominiously slipped off and broken our rash necks but for th

is thing never would hold our direct weight, but I think if we sort of slide down on i

pe again-and can't comfortably stay

unics behind, and made this scramble quite successfully, though I got a pretty heavy fall just at the end, and was only kept on the second ledge by main force.

le behind us; so we waded, jumped, and clambered down that rocky riverbed, in the flic

e, satisfying, soft-shelled nuts we alre

n all their garments, and the middle one in particular was shingled with them. So we stocked up with nuts

it was well veiled with foliage and dry. After our exhaustive three- or four-hour scramble and the good breakfast food,

entative foot a

ou, Van? A

old him. And Jeff w

nd; but we could very carefully roll over,

ountry, but enough to know that we were now at the beginning of the cult

narrow little rim of rock. He dilated on the discomfiture

to the place where we'd left our machine, and no probability of

never said 'twould be a picnic. But I'd run away in

dozed of

istance, keeping always in the rough forested belt of land which we knew bordered the whole country

id. "Nice time we'll have getting down if they have confiscated o

we did not wish to kill the old ladies-even if we could; and short of that they were perfectly competent to pick us up b

" and swam whatever water was too deep to wade and could not be got around; but that was only necessary twice. By day, sleep, soun

foresters or nut-gatherers at any minute. Careful we were, feeling pretty sure that if we did not make good this time we were not likely to have anothe

at it. "Now, if we can't find the 'plane, we know where

o be a far-off marshy tangle of rank vegetation. We did not have to risk our necks to that extent, however, for at last, stealing along among the rocks

ould you think they had th

ely to have more," I warned him, so

the growing dawn showed us the familiar shape, shrouded in some heavy cloth like canvas, and no slightest sign

d. "We can run her to the edge, get aboard, and just plane

r, lying like a gray cocoon on

forward and began to tug at

rate impatience. "They've got it sewed up

rd a sound that made Terry lift his head like a war hors

y had when we first saw them, standing a little way off f

I warned. "That's too ea

," Jeff urged. "I think they will h

as absolutely holding on to Terry. "We

ley among ourselves, we all advanced slowly toward

drew. So we stopped at the distance specified. Then we used their language, as far as we were able, to explain our plight, telling how we were imprisoned, how we had es

ourselves. But they seemed somewhat impressed; and after a murmured consultation they produced from t

skill. While we ate the excellent biscuits they had thrown us, and while Ellador kept a watchful eye on our movements, Celis ran off to some d

ber of failures, at which those elvish damsels laughed delightedly, that Jeff succeeded in bringing the

knocking it down, pointing at it, and shaking her short curls seve

d took turns throwing little stones at that thing, while one stayed by as a setter-up; and they just popped that nut off,

off while we could, and then we begged for knives. It was easy to show what we wanted

guage, you see. And we just begged for those knives, but they would not give them to

e on-let's get a sharp stone or som

ments we could, and hacked away, but it was

Boys, we're in pretty good condition-let's make a life a

rprise; also, as Terry said, our recent training had strengthened us in wind and lim

had got their pace apparently, and then, though we ran at our utmost speed,

ss, at last, at my

rged. "They are doing it on purp

wer than we came, and

ear loose its covering, there rose up from all around the

"The Colonels! It's all

ultitude actuated by a common impulse. They showed no sign of fear, and since we had no weapons whatever a

y confinement maybe-but nothing of the kind happened. They treate

tric motors enough like ours to be quite recognizable, each of us in a sep

powers. And though Terry was keenly mortified, and at first we all rather dreaded harsh t

be, seeming to have no worse feeling than a mild triumph as of

lose observation, but I could appreciate perfect roads, as dustless as a swept floor; the shade of endless lines of trees; the

ft high-sweeping view from the 'plane had been most attractive, but lacked detail; and in that first day of struggle and capture, w

ere upon us. And everywhere, open country, village, or city-only women. Old women and young women and a great majority who seemed neither young nor old, but just women; young girls, also, though these, and the children, seeming to be in groups by themselves generally, were less in evidence. We caught many glimpses o

ew clothing and towels supplied. The only thing those women did was to illuminate the gardens at night, and to set an extra watch. But they called us to

ne; all they did was to call the inhabitants to keep an eye on our movements all along the edge of the forest between the two points. It

ives, hiding and prowling like outlaws, living on nuts and fruit, getting wet and cold at night, and

s guests of the country-sort of public wards. Our first violence had made it necessary to keep us safeguarded for a

was ashamed of himself, and that he would now conform. As to the language-we all fell upon it with

in the privacy of our own room. "Of course one expects to begin

ked. Nothing irritated Terry more than to have us assume that there were no m

al nonsense you talk! I'm going to

ter the language, and were able to read fluently a

table, no guards about. We had been made to understand some time earlier that if we would agree

s theirs, only our beards to distinguish us. We did not want those beards,

a clear sky, as it were, "are

l answered.

s beard, and threw back his br

o men in this country. There has not bee

t advance this astonishing statement as if it

protested, not believing her in th

us-but there are no fathers. We thought you would ask about that long ago-wh

ently used to the language, making rather a

it that we find it hard to believe? There is

life where it is po

me low forms

r how high

insect life in which it occurs. Parthenoge

d not fo

of course; but

quite calmly. "Among mating animals, the term VIRGIN i

y to the male also? Or is th

edly, saying that the same term

Is not each then-virgin-before mating? And, tell me, have you

he answered, and I

housand years there have been only wo

ers; and we see that you are fathers, that you come from a people who are of both kinds. We have been waiting, you see, for you to be able t

w sketches, maps, to make a globe, even, out of a spherical fruit, and show the size and relation of the countri

om being ignorant, they were deeply wise-that we realized more and more; and for clear reasoning,

the things most impressive about them all was the absence of irritability. So

f friends, and very capable ones at that-but we couldn't

quiet eyes meeting ours frankly. "And we want to teach you what we have that is novel and useful. You can well imagine t

lifted his head that it pleased him. But when she spoke of our women-someway I had a queer li

ff pursued. "You said 'for two thousand

answere

ll quiet fo

t has been made clear and short. It took us a long time to le

eager eyes, looking fro

us, who are only mothers, and you, who are mothers and fathers, too. Of course we see, with our birds, that the father is as

Terry said, "but not among

said. "The father

" I drew some rough outlines of t

wift sure touches a sort of sheep or llama, "and these"-dogs, of two o

e of them?"

o much room-we need all our land to feed our

ithout milk?" Terry d

milk in abund

people," Terry blundered, while they

for their meat," he explained. "Cow's milk is a staple article of

id, and sketched a milk pail, the stool, and in pantomime showed the man milking. "Then it is

child?" asked

course, a c

for the calf

w of her calf, and the calf of its true food; and the talk led us into a further discussion of