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diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..d7b82bc --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,4 @@ +*.txt text eol=lf +*.htm text eol=lf +*.html text eol=lf +*.md text eol=lf diff --git a/LICENSE.txt b/LICENSE.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6312041 --- /dev/null +++ b/LICENSE.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements, +metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be +in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES. + +Procedures for determining public domain status are described in +the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org. + +No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in +jurisdictions other than the United States. Anyone seeking to utilize +this eBook outside of the United States should confirm copyright +status under the laws that apply to them. diff --git a/README.md b/README.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..8f52567 --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #62255 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/62255) diff --git a/old/62255-h.zip b/old/62255-h.zip Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index 649451d..0000000 --- a/old/62255-h.zip +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/62255-h/62255-h.htm b/old/62255-h/62255-h.htm deleted file mode 100644 index 15f50b6..0000000 --- a/old/62255-h/62255-h.htm +++ /dev/null @@ -1,1633 +0,0 @@ -<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Strict//EN" - "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-strict.dtd"> -<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en"> - <head> - <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html;charset=us-ascii" /> - <meta http-equiv="Content-Style-Type" content="text/css" /> - <title> - The Project Gutenberg eBook of Stellar Showboat, by Malcolm Jameson. - </title> - <link rel="coverpage" href="images/cover.jpg" /> - - <style type="text/css"> - -body { - margin-left: 10%; - margin-right: 10%; -} - - h1,h2 { - text-align: center; /* all headings centered */ - clear: both; -} - -p { - margin-top: .51em; - text-align: justify; - margin-bottom: .49em; -} - -hr { - width: 33%; - margin-top: 2em; - margin-bottom: 2em; - margin-left: 33.5%; - margin-right: 33.5%; - clear: both; -} - -hr.chap {width: 65%; margin-left: 17.5%; margin-right: 17.5%;} -hr.tb {width: 45%; margin-left: 27.5%; margin-right: 27.5%;} - -.center {text-align: center;} - -.right {text-align: right;} - -.caption {font-weight: bold;} - -/* Images */ -.figcenter { - margin: auto; - text-align: center; -} - -div.titlepage { - text-align: center; - page-break-before: always; - page-break-after: always; -} - -div.titlepage p { - text-align: center; - text-indent: 0em; - font-weight: bold; - line-height: 1.5; - margin-top: 3em; -} - -.poetry .stanza -{ - margin: 1em auto; -} - -.poetry .verse -{ - padding-left: 3em; -} - -.poetry .indent2 -{ - text-indent: 2em; -} - - - </style> - </head> -<body> - - -<pre> - -The Project Gutenberg EBook of Stellar Showboat, by Malcolm Jameson - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with -almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org/license - - -Title: Stellar Showboat - -Author: Malcolm Jameson - -Release Date: May 28, 2020 [EBook #62255] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ASCII - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK STELLAR SHOWBOAT *** - - - - -Produced by Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - - - - - - -</pre> - - -<div class="figcenter"> - <img src="images/cover.jpg" width="347" height="500" alt=""/> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<div class="titlepage"> - -<h1>STELLAR SHOWBOAT</h1> - -<h2>By MALCOLM JAMESON</h2> - -<p>A drama more fantastic than any the stage<br /> -had ever produced was being plotted behind<br /> -the curtains of the Showboat of Space. And<br /> -between its presentation and inter-world<br /> -disaster, waiting for his cue, stood only<br /> -the lone figure of Investigator Neville.</p> - -<p>[Transcriber's Note: This etext was produced from<br /> -Planet Stories Fall 1942.<br /> -Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that<br /> -the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.]</p> - -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p>Special Investigator Billy Neville was annoyed, and for more reasons -than one. He had just done a tedious year in the jungles of Venus -stamping out the gooroo racket and then, on his way home to a -well-deserved leave and rest, had been diverted to Mars for a swift -clean-up of the diamond-mine robbery ring. And now, when he again -thought he would be free for a while, he found himself shunted to -little Pallas, capital of the Asteroid Confederation. But clever, -patient Colonel Frawley, commandant of all the Interplanetary Police in -the belt, merely smiled indulgently while Neville blew off his steam.</p> - -<p>"You say," said Neville, still ruffled, "that there has been a growing -wave of blackmail and extortion all over the System, coupled with a -dozen or so instances of well-to-do, respectable persons disappearing -without a trace. And you say that that has been going on for a couple -of years and several hundred of our crack operatives have been working -on it, directed by the best brains of the force, and yet haven't got -anywhere. And that up to now there have been no such cases develop in -the asteroids. Well, what do you want <i>me</i> for? What's the emergency?"</p> - -<p>The colonel laughed and dropped the ash from his cigar, preparatory to -lying back in his chair and taking another long, soothing drag. The -office of the Chief Inspector of the A.C. division of the I.P. was not -only well equipped for the work it had to do, but for comfort.</p> - -<p>"I am astonished," he remarked, "to hear an experienced policeman -indulge in such loose talk. Who said anything about having had the -<i>best</i> brains on the job? Or that no progress had been made? Or that -there was no emergency? Any bad crime situation is always an emergency, -no matter how long it lasts. Which is all the more reason why we have -to break it up, and quickly. I tell you, things are becoming very -serious. Lifelong partners in business are becoming suspicious and -secretive toward each other; husbands and wives are getting jittery and -jealous. Nobody knows whom to trust. The most sacred confidences have a -way of leaking out. Then they are in the market for the highest bidder. -No boy, this thing is a headache. I never had a worse."</p> - -<p>"All right, all right," growled Neville, resignedly. "I'm stuck. Shoot! -How did it begin, and what do you know?"</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>The colonel reached into a drawer and pulled out a fat jacket bulging -with papers, photostats, and interdepartmental reports.</p> - -<p>"It began," he said, "about two years ago, on Io and Callisto. It -spread all over the Jovian System and soured Ganymede and Europa. -The symptoms were first the disappearances of several prominent -citizens, followed by a wave of bankruptcies and suicides on both -planetoids. Nobody complained to the police. Then a squad of our -New York men picked up a petty chiseler who was trying to gouge the -Jovian Corporation's Tellurian office out of a large sum of money on -the strength of some damaging documents he possessed relating to a -hidden scandal in the life of the New York manager. From that lead, -they picked up a half-dozen other small fry extortionists and even -managed to grab their higher-up—a sort of middleman who specialized -in exploiting secret commercial information and scandalous material -about individuals. There the trail stopped. They put him through the -mill, but all he would say is that a man approached him with the -portfolio, sold him on its value for extortion purposes, and collected -in advance. There could be no follow up for the reason that after the -first transaction what profits the local gang could make out of the -dirty work would be their own."</p> - -<p>"Yes," said Neville, "I know the racket. When they handle it that way -it's hard to beat. You get any amount of minnows, but the whales get -away."</p> - -<p>"Right. The disturbing thing about the contents of the portfolio was -the immense variety of secrets it contained and that it was evidently -prepared by one man. There were, for example, secret industrial -formulas evidently stolen for sale to a competitor. The bulk of it was -other commercial items, such as secret credit reports, business volume, -and the like. But there was a good deal of rather nasty personal stuff, -too. It was a gold mine of information for an unscrupulous blackmailer, -and every bit of it originated on Callisto. Now, whom do you think, -could have been in a position to compile it?"</p> - -<p>"The biggest corporation lawyer there, I should guess," said Neville. -"Priests and doctors know a lot of personal secrets, but a good lawyer -manages to learn most everything."</p> - -<p>"Right. Very right. We sent men to Callisto and learned that some -months earlier the most prominent lawyer of the place had announced one -day he must go over to Io to arrange some contracts. He went to Io, -all right, but was never seen again after he stepped out of the ship. -It was shortly after, that the wave of Callistan suicides and business -failures took place."</p> - -<p>"All right," agreed Neville, "so what? It has happened before. Even the -big ones go wrong now and then."</p> - -<p>"Yes, but wait. That fellow had nothing to go wrong about. He was -tremendously successful, rich, happily married, and highly respected -for his outstanding integrity. Yet he could hardly have been kidnaped, -as there has never been a ransom demand. Nor has there ever been such a -demand in any of the other cases similar to it.</p> - -<p>"The next case to be partially explained was that of the disappearance -of the president of the Jupiter Trust Company at Ionopolis. All the -most vital secrets of that bank turned up later in all parts of the -civilized system. We nabbed some peddlers, but it was the same story -as with the first gang. The facts are all here in this jacket. After a -little you can read the whole thing in detail."</p> - -<p>"Uh, huh," grunted Neville, "I'm beginning to see. But why <i>me</i>, and -why at Pallas?"</p> - -<p>"Because you've never worked in the asteroids and are not known here -to any but the higher officers. Among other secrets this ring has, are -a number of police secrets. That is why setting traps for them is so -difficult. I haven't told you that one of their victims seems to have -been one of us. That was Jack Sarkins, who was district commander at -Patroclus. He received an apparently genuine ethergram one day—and it -was in our most secret code—telling him to report to Mars at once. -He went off, alone, in his police rocket. He never got there. As to -Pallas, the reason you are here is because the place so far is clean. -Their system is to work a place just once and never come back. They -milk it dry the first time and there is no need to. Since we have no -luck tracing them after the crime, we are going to try a plant and wait -for the crime to come to it. You are the plant."</p> - -<p>"I see," said Neville slowly. He was interested, but not enthusiastic. -"Some day, somehow, someone is coming here and in some manner -force someone to yield up all the local dirt and then arrange his -disappearance. My role is to break it up before it happens. Sweet!"</p> - -<p>"You have such a way of putting things, Neville," chuckled the colonel, -"but you do get the point."</p> - -<p>He rose and pushed the heavy folder toward his new aide.</p> - -<p>"Bone this the rest of the afternoon. I'll be back."</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>It was quite late when Colonel Frawley returned and asked Neville -cheerily how he was getting on.</p> - -<p>"I have the history," Neville answered, slamming the folder shut, "and -a glimmering of what you are shooting at. This guy Simeon Carstairs, I -take it, is the local man you have picked as the most likely prospect -for your Master Mind crook to work on?"</p> - -<p>"He is. He is perfect bait. He is the sole owner of the Radiation -Extraction Company which has a secret process that Tellurian Radiant -Corporation has made a standing offer of five millions for. He controls -the local bank and often sits as magistrate. In addition, he has -substantial interests in Vesta and Juno industries. He probably knows -more about the asteroids and the people on them than any other living -man. Moreover, his present wife is a woman with an unhappy past and who -happens also to be related to an extremely wealthy Argentine family. -Any ring of extortionists who could worm old Simeon's secrets out of -him could write their own ticket."</p> - -<p>"So I am to be a sort of private shadow."</p> - -<p>"Not a bit of it. <i>I</i> am his bodyguard. We are close friends and lately -I have made it a rule to be with him part of the time every day. No, -your role is that of observer from the sidelines. I shall introduce -you as the traveling representative of the London uniform house that -has the police contract. That will explain your presence here and your -occasional calls at headquarters. You might sell a few suits of clothes -on the side, or at least solicit them. Work that out for yourself."</p> - -<p>Neville grimaced. He was not fond of plainclothes work.</p> - -<p>"But come, fellow. You've worked hard enough for one day. Go up to -my room and get into cits. Then I'll take you over to the town and -introduce you around. After that we'll go to a show. The showboat -landed about an hour ago."</p> - -<p>"Showboat? What the hell is a showboat?"</p> - -<p>"I forget," said the colonel, "that your work has been mostly on the -heavy planets where they have plenty of good playhouses in the cities. -Out here among these little rocks the diversions are brought around -periodically and peddled for the night. The showboat, my boy, is a -floating theater—a space ship with a stage and an auditorium in it, a -troupe of good actors and a cracking fine chorus. This one has been -making the rounds quite a while, though it never stopped here before -until last year. They say the show this year is even better. It is the -"Lunar Follies of 2326," featuring a chorus of two hundred androids -and with Lilly Fitzpatrick and Lionel Dustan in the lead. Tonight, for -a change, you can relax and enjoy yourself. We can get down to brass -tacks tomorrow."</p> - -<p>"Thanks, chief," said Neville, grinning from ear to ear. The -description of the showboat was music to his ears, for it had been -a long time since he had seen a good comedy and he felt the need of -relief from his sordid workaday life.</p> - -<p>"When you're in your makeup," the colonel added, "come on down and I'll -take you over in my copter."</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>It did not take Billy Neville long to make his transformation to the -personality of a clothing drummer. Every special cop had to be an -expert at the art of quick shifts of disguise and Neville was rather -better than most. Nor did it take long for the little blue copter to -whisk them halfway around the knobby little planetoid of Pallas. It -eased itself through an airlock into a doomed town, and there the -colonel left it with his orderly.</p> - -<p>The town itself possessed little interest for Neville though his -trained photographic eye missed few of its details. It was much like -the smaller doomed settlements on the Moon. He was more interested -in meeting the local magnate, whom they found in his office in the -Carstairs Building. The colonel made the introductions, during which -Neville sized up the man. He was of fair height, stockily built, and -had remarkably frank and friendly eyes for a self-made man of the -asteroids. Not that there was not a certain hardness about him and a -considerable degree of shrewdness, but he lacked the cynical cunning -so often displayed by the pioneers of the outer system. Neville noted -other details as well—the beginning of a set of triple chins, a little -brown mole with three hairs on it alongside his nose, and the way a -stray lock of hair kept falling over his left eye.</p> - -<p>"Let's go," said the colonel, as soon as the formalities were over.</p> - -<p>Neville had to borrow a breathing helmet from Mr. Carstairs, for he had -not one of his own and they had to walk from the far portal of the dome -across the field to where the showboat lay parked. He thought wryly, -as he put it on, that he went from one extreme to another—from Venus, -where the air was over-moist, heavy and oppressive from its stagnation, -to windy, blustery Mars, and then here, where there was no air at all.</p> - -<p>As they approached the grounded ship they saw it was all lit up and -throngs of people were approaching from all sides. Flood lamps threw -great letters on the side of the silvery hull reading, "Greatest Show -of the Void—Come One, Come All—Your Money Back if Not Absolutely -Satisfied." They went ahead of the queue, thanks to the prestige of -the colonel and the local tycoon, and were instantly admitted. It took -but a moment to check their breathers at the helmet room and then the -ushers had them in tow.</p> - -<p>"See you after the show, Mr. Allington," said the colonel to Neville, -"I will be in Mr. Carstairs box."</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Neville sank into a seat and watched them go. Then he began to take -stock of the playhouse. The seats were comfortable and commodious, -evidently having been designed to hold patrons clad in heavy-dust -space-suits. The auditorium was almost circular, one semi-circle being -taken up by the stage, the other by the tiers of seats. Overhead ranged -a row of boxes jutting out above the spectators below. Neville puzzled -for a long time over the curtain that shut off the stage. It seemed -very unreal, like the shimmer of the aurora, but it affected vision to -the extent that the beholder could not say with any certainty <i>what</i> -was behind it. It was like looking through a waterfall. Then there was -eerie music, too, from an unseen source, flooding the air with queer -melodies. People continued to pour in. The house gradually darkened and -as it did the volume and wildness of the music rose. Then there was a -deep bong, and lights went completely out for a full second. The show -was on.</p> - -<p>Neville sat back and enjoyed it. He could not have done otherwise, -for the sign on the hull had not been an empty plug. It was the best -show in the void—or anywhere else, for that matter. A spectral voice -that seemed to come from everywhere in the house announced the first -number—The Dance of the Wood-sprites of Venus. Instantly little -flickers of light appeared throughout the house—a mass of vari-colored -fireflies blinking off and on and swirling in dizzy spirals. They -steadied and grew, coalesced into blobs of living fire—ruby, dazzling -green, ethereal blue and yellow. They swelled and shrank, took on -human forms only to abandon them; purple serpentine figures writhed -among them, paling to silvery smoke and then expiring as a shower of -violet sparks. And throughout was the steady, maddening rhythm of the -dance tune, unutterably savage and haunting—a folk dance of the hill -tribes of Venus. At last, when the sheer beauty of it began to lull -the viewers into a hypnotic trance, there came the shrill blare of -massed trumpets and the throb of mighty tom-toms culminating in an -ear-shattering discord that broke the spell.</p> - -<p>The lights were on. The stage was bare. Neville sat up straighter and -looked, blinking. It was as if he were in an abandoned warehouse. And -then the scenery began to grow. Yes, grow. Almost imperceptible it was, -at first, then more distinct. Nebulous bodies appeared, wisps of smoke. -They wavered, took on shape, took on color, took on the appearance of -solidity. The scent began to have meaning. Part of the background was a -gray cliff undercut with a yawning cave. It was a scene from the Moon, -a hangout of the cliffdwellers, those refugees from civilization who -chose to live the wild life of the undomed Moon rather than submit to -the demands of a more ordered life.</p> - -<p>Characters came on. There was a little drama, well conceived and well -acted. When it was over, the scene vanished as it had come. A comedy -team came out next and this time the appropriate scenery materialized -at once as one of them stumbled over an imaginary log and fell on his -face. The log was not there when he tripped, but it was there by the -time his nose hit the stage, neatly turning the joke on his companion -who had started to laugh at his unreasonable fall.</p> - -<p>On the show went, one scene swiftly succeeding the next. A song that -took the fancy of the crowd was a plaintive ballad. It ran:</p> - -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse"><i>They tell me you did not treat me right,</i></div> - <div class="verse"><i>Nor are grateful for all I've done.</i></div> - <div class="verse"><i>I fear you're fickle as a meteorite</i></div> - <div class="verse"><i>Though my love's constant as the Sun.</i></div> - </div> -</div> - -<p>There was a ballet in which a witch rode a comet up into the sky, only -to turn suddenly into a housewife and sweep all the cobwebs away. The -featured stars came on with the chorus, and Lilly Fitzpatrick sang -the big hit song, "You're a Big, Bad Nova to Burn Me Up This Way!" -Then a novelty quartet appeared, to play on the curious Callistan -<i>bourdelangs</i>, those reeds of that planet that grow in bundles. When -dried and cut properly, they make multiple-barreled flutes with a tonal -quality that makes the senses quiver. The show closed with a grand -finale and flooded the house with the Nova song.</p> - -<p>It was over. The stage was bare and the shimmering curtain that was not -a curtain was back in place. People began to rise and stream into the -aisles.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>"La-deez and gen-tul-men!"</p> - -<p>The voice boomed out and people stopped where they stood. A man in -evening clothes had stepped through the curtain and was calling for -attention.</p> - -<p>"You have seen our regular performance. We hope it has pleased you and -you will come again next year. But if you will kindly remain in your -seats, the ushers will pass around with tickets for the after-show. We -have prepared for your especial delectation a little farce entitled, -'It Happens on Pallas.' Now, ladeez and gen'men, I assure you that this -sketch was prepared solely for your entertainment and any resemblance -of any character in it to any real person is purely coincidental. It is -all in fun, and no offense intended. I thank you."</p> - -<p>Billy Neville was bolt upright in his seat by then and his eyes glinted -hard through narrow slits. Something had rung the bell in his memory, -but he did not know what. He would have sworn he had never seen that -announcer before, and yet....</p> - -<p>The man stepped backward into the curtain and appeared to vanish. The -audience were grinning widely and resuming their seats.</p> - -<p>"This is going to be good," said the man next to him as he dug for the -required fee. "It is their specialty. It beats the regular show, I -think."</p> - -<p>Neville paid the usher, too, and sat where he was. He shot a glance -upward at the box and saw Mr. Carstairs and the colonel in animated -conversation and apparently having a grand time. Presently the ushers -had done their work. The hall began to darken and the scenery come up. -The scene was the main street of New Athens, as some called Pallas' -principal town. Neville relaxed and forgot his recent sudden tension -for a moment.</p> - -<p>But it was only for a moment. For an instant later he was sitting -up straight again, watching the development of the act with cold -intentness. For the two main characters were comedy parodies of -Mr. Carstairs and Colonel Frawley. At first glance they <i>were</i> Mr. -Carstairs and the colonel, but a second look showed it was only an -impression. The police inspector's strutting walk was overdone, as were -his other mannerisms, and the same was true of the magnate's character. -Their makeup was also exaggerated, Mr. Carstair's mole being much -enlarged and a great deal made of his plumpness. Yet the takeoff was -deliriously funny and the audience rolled with laughter. Neville stole -another look upward and could make out that both the subjects of the -sketch were grinning broadly.</p> - -<p>It was a silly, frothy skit about a dog, a lost dog. It seems that -Mr. Carstairs had a dog and it strayed. He asked the police to help -him find it and they helped. The inspector brought out the whole -force. It was excruciatingly funny, and Neville roared at times along -with the rest, though there were many local references that he did -not understand, nor did he know some of the minor characters were so -splittingly entertaining. The man next to him writhed in spasms of -delight and almost strangled at one episode.</p> - -<p>"Oh, dear," he managed to gasp, "what a scream ... ho, ho, ho, ho, ... -gup! It happened ... just like that ... he <i>did</i> lose a dog and all -the cops on Pallas couldn't find it ... oh me, oh my...." Peals of -laughter drowned out the rest.</p> - -<p>The postlude came to its merry end. This time, the show was over for -keeps and the audience began trooping out. Neville got up and looked -around for his friend, but the box was empty. So he strolled down the -aisle and had a closer look at the illusion of a curtain. He understood -some of the effects achieved that night, but the curtain was a new one -to him. After standing there a moment he discovered that he could hear -voices through it. One was Colonel Frawley's. He was saying:</p> - -<p>"Certainly I am not offended. I enjoyed it. I would like to meet the -man and congratulate him on the takeoff."</p> - -<p>Neville climbed up onto the stage and walked boldly through the -curtain. There was a brief tingly feeling, and then he was backstage. -Most of the actors had gone to their dressing rooms, but several stood -about chatting with the colonel and Mr. Carstairs.</p> - -<p>At that moment the man who had made the announcement came on the stage -and spoke to Colonel Frawley.</p> - -<p>"I dislike interrupting you, Inspector," he said obsequiously, "but -one of our patrons is making trouble in the wash-room. She claims her -pocket was picked. Would you come?"</p> - -<p>"Nonsense!" exclaimed the colonel. "I stationed an operative there to -prevent that very thing. No doubt it is a mistake. However, I'll do -what I can."</p> - -<p>He excused himself and hurried off. Then the man in black turned to -Neville and said in an icy voice, "And you, sir—what is it you wish?"</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Neville's mind worked instantly. He did not want to express interest -in Mr. Carstairs, nor did he care to reveal to the showman his -acquaintance with the colonel. So he said quickly:</p> - -<p>"The curtain ... I was curious as to how it worked ... you see, once -I...."</p> - -<p>"Joe," called the man, wheeling, "explain the curtain to the gentleman."</p> - -<p>Joe came. He led the way to the switchboard and began a spiel about -its intricacies. Neville looked on, understanding it only in the high -spots, for the board was a jumble of gadgets and doodads, and it was -not long before he began to suspect that the long-winded explanation -was a unique variety of double-talk.</p> - -<p>"See?" finished the man, "it's as simple as that. Clever, eh?"</p> - -<p>"Yes, indeed. Thanks."</p> - -<p>Neville started back to the stage, but the announcer barred his way.</p> - -<p>"The exit is right behind you, sir," he said in a chilly voice. -The words and intonation were polite, but the voice had that -iron-hand-in-velvet-glove quality used by tough bouncers in night -clubs when handling obstreperous members of the idle rich. They -were accompanied as well by a glance so uncanny and so charged with -malignancy that Neville was hard put to keep on looking him in the eye -and murmur another "Thank you."</p> - -<p>But before Neville reached the exit, Colonel Frawley came through.</p> - -<p>"Oh, hello. Where is Carstairs?"</p> - -<p>Neville shook his head.</p> - -<p>"A moment ago he was talking with his impersonator," offered the -announcer, seeming to lose all interest in Neville's departure. "I'll -see if he is still here. He may have gone into the actor's dressing -room."</p> - -<p>But as he spoke a dressing room door opened and Carstairs came out of -it, smiling contentedly. He turned and called back to the actor inside:</p> - -<p>"Thanks again for an enjoyable evening. You bet I'll see you next -year." Then he came straight over to Frawley and hooked his arm in his. -"All right, Colonel, shall we go? And Mr. Allington, too?"</p> - -<p>Neville nodded, luckily recognizing his latest assumed name. Out of the -corner of his eye he saw the dressing-room door slammed shut by the -actor inside of it.</p> - -<p>"I hate to hurry you, gentlemen," said the announcer, "but we blast out -at once."</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<div class="figcenter"> - <img src="images/illus.jpg" width="312" height="500" alt=""/> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p>The trio retrieved their helmets and strode off into the night. By -then, the skyport was deserted and the floodlights taken in. When they -reached the copter they saw the flash and heard the woosh as the big -ship roared away on her rockets.</p> - -<p>"Back to the old routine and bedroom," sighed Mr. Carstairs as he heard -it leave. "It was good while it lasted, though."</p> - -<p>"Yep," chuckled the colonel. "Hop in and we'll drop you at home."</p> - -<p>Three minutes later they were before the Carstairs' truly-palatial -mansion.</p> - -<p>"Come in a second and speak to Mariquita," invited the magnate.</p> - -<p>"No, thanks. It's late...."</p> - -<p>Neville's elbow dug into his superior's ribs with a vicious nudge.</p> - -<p>"... but if you insist...."</p> - -<p>Mrs. Carstairs met them in the ante-room, greeted the inspector -cordially and kissed her husband affectionately. They stood for the -rest of the brief visit with their arms circled about one another. Her -Spanish blood heritage was evident in her warm dark eyes and proud -carriage. Equally evident, were the lines of past suffering in her -face. It did not take a detective to see that here was a pair who had -at last found mutual consolation.</p> - -<p>On the way back to headquarters nothing was said. But later, while they -were undressing, the colonel remarked:</p> - -<p>"Good show. Did it throw your mind off your troubles?"</p> - -<p>"No," said Neville curtly.</p> - -<p>"Well," said the inspector, "a good night's sleep will. G'night."</p> - -<p>There was no sleep that night for Billy Neville, though. He spent it -mentally digesting all the stuff he had read that afternoon, and all -that he had seen and heard that night. He devoted many weary hours to a -review of his own mind's copy of the famous rogue's gallery at the Luna -Central Base. The picture he wanted wasn't there. He wished fervently -he had taken that refresher course on hypnotism when they had offered -it to him two years ago. He wished he had not been such a softy as to -let himself be shunted off to look at that dizzy switchboard. He should -have taken a closer look at the showboat people. He wished ... but -hell, what was the use? Pallas' half-sized sun was up and today was -another day.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>The meanest of all trails to follow is a cold trail. Or almost. Perhaps -the worst is no trail. It is hard to keep interest up. Then, too, -Pallas was a dull place—orderly as a church, where people simply -worked and behaved themselves. The days dragged by, and nothing out of -the way happened. Neville went through the motions of trying to sell -clothing in majestic lots of hundreds, but no one was interested. He -even talked vaguely of looking for a site for an outer warehouse for -his company. He saw Mr. Carstairs often and became a welcome guest at -the house.</p> - -<p>Yet with this lack of incident, Neville was at all times alert in -his study of the man he was watching. He could not help remembering -that little while after the showboat performance that Carstairs had -been absent from them. He particularly kept his mind open for any -slow change in him, such as could be the result of a mysterious -delayed-action drug or from post-hypnotic effect. But there was none -that he could detect, nor did the colonel notice anything of the sort, -though Neville spoke to him on the subject several times.</p> - -<p>The first indication that all was not well came from Mariquita -Carstairs herself. Neville happened in one day for lunch and found her -red-eyed and weeping. Then she added that she had worried a great deal -the last few days about her husband's health.</p> - -<p>"When I watch him when he doesn't know it," she said anxiously, "he -looks <i>different</i>—so wily, crafty and wicked. And he is not like that. -He is the dearest man in the world. He <i>must</i> be sick."</p> - -<p>Neville left as early as possible, and at once consulted Frawley.</p> - -<p>"Yes," said the inspector thoughtfully, "she's right. In the last day -or so I've noticed a subtle change myself. I blundered into his office -the other day and he had his safe open and mountains of files all over -the floor. He was actually rude to me. Wanted to know what I meant by -barging in on him like that. Imagine!"</p> - -<p>The communicator on the wall buzzed. The signal light showed it was -the skyport calling. Neville could overhear what the rasping voice was -saying.</p> - -<p>"Peters at airport reporting. Mr. Carstairs has made reservation on -ship <i>Fanfare</i> for passage to Vesta. Ship arrives in half an hour; -departs immediately."</p> - -<p>By the time Frawley had acknowledged and cut the connection, Neville -had already ordered the copter.</p> - -<p>"I'm on my way," he cried. "This is <i>it</i>! Give me a complete travel-kit -quick and an Extra-Special transformation outfit."</p> - -<p>Two minutes later Neville was on his way to the landing field, the -two valuable bags between his knees. He was there when the spaceship -landed, and was inside it before Simeon Carstairs showed up. The copter -soared away the moment he had left it. Carstairs would not know he had -a shadow.</p> - -<p>Neville went straight to the captain, whom he found resting momentarily -in his cabin. He flashed his badge.</p> - -<p>"I am your steward from here to Vesta," he told him. "Send for your -regular one at once and give him his instructions."</p> - -<p>"But my dear sir," objected the captain, rising from his bunk, "as -much as I would like to cooperate, I cannot do that. You must know -that under the new regulations all members of a ship's crew must be -photographed and the pictures posted in prominent parts of the ship. It -is your own police rule and is for the protection of passengers from -imposters."</p> - -<p>"Never mind that," snapped Neville, "get him in here."</p> - -<p>The steward came and Neville studied him carefully. He was a swarthy -man with heavy shoulders and thick features. His eyes were jet -black. But his height was little different from that of the special -investigator.</p> - -<p>"Say something," directed Neville, "I want to hear your voice. Recite -the twelve primary duties of a steward."</p> - -<p>The man obeyed.</p> - -<p>"It's okay," announced Neville when he had finished. "I can do it."</p> - -<p>He gave the captain a word of warning, then went with the steward to -his room. There he handed the astonished man a hundred-sol credit note -and told him to hit the bunk.</p> - -<p>"Here's your chance to catch up on your rest and reading," said Neville -grimly. "You don't leave that bunk until I tell you to, y'understand? -If you do, it will cost you five years in the mines of Oberon."</p> - -<p>The steward gasped and lay back on the pillow. He gasped some more when -Neville yanked his box of transformations open and spread its contents -on the table. His eyes fairly bulged as he watched Neville shoot -injections of wax into his deltoids and biceps until the policeman's -shoulders were the twins of his own. He saw him puff up his face, -thicken the nose and load the jowls, and after that paint himself with -dye, not omitting the hair. Then, marvel of marvels, he saw him drop -something in his eyes and sit shuddering for a few seconds while the -stuff worked. When the eyes were opened again they were as black as his -own!</p> - -<p>"How's dis, faller?" asked Neville in the same flat, sullen tone the -steward had used in the cabin. "Lanch is sarved, sor ... zhip gang land -in one hour, marm ... hokay?"</p> - -<p>"Gard!" was the steward's last gasp. Then he lapsed into complete -speechlessness.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Neville darted out into the passage. The baggage of the sole passenger -to get on at Pallas lay in the gangway, and its owner, Mr. Carstairs, -stood impatiently beside it. He growled something about the rotten -service on the Callisto-Earth run, but let the steward pick up the -bags. Then he followed close behind.</p> - -<p>"Lay out your t'ings, sor?" queried Neville, once inside the room.</p> - -<p>"No," said Carstairs savagely. "When I want anything I will ask for it. -Otherwise, stay out of my room."</p> - -<p>"Yas, sor," was what Neville said in return, but to himself "Phew! The -old boy <i>has</i> changed. I don't know where I'm going, but I'm on my way."</p> - -<p>He had no intention of obeying Carstairs' injunction to stay out of his -room. That night he served the evening meal, and with it was a glass of -water. He had taken the precaution to drop a single minim of somnolene -in it—that efficacious sleep-producer permitted to only seven -members of the I.P., tasteless, colorless and odorless, and without -after-effect.</p> - -<p>In the second hour of the sleep period, the false steward stole down -the passage and with a pass key unfastened the door lock. There was -an inside bolt to deal with as well, but an ingenious tool that came -with the travel-kit took care of that. A moment later Neville was in -the slumbering man's room. Five minutes later he was back in his own, -and stacked on the deck beside him was all the baggage the magnate of -Pallas had brought with him.</p> - -<p>One piece opened readily enough, and its contents seemed innocuous. -But the methodical police officer was not content with superficial -appearances. He examined the articles of clothing in it, and the more -he looked the more his amazement grew. There were no less than four -sets of costumes in it. Moreover, they were for men of different -build. One stout, two medium, one spare. In the bottom was a set of -gray canvas bags—slip-covers with handles. Neville puzzled over them -a moment, then recognized their function. They were covers for the -very baggage he was examining. He had to use special tools to open the -second bag and found it contained a makeup kit quite the equal of his -own.</p> - -<p>"Ouch," he muttered. "This guy is as good as I am."</p> - -<p>The third and heaviest bag was a tougher job. It was double-locked and -strapped, and heavy seals had been put on the straps. The Extra-Special -travel-kit equipment took care of the locks and seals, but the -contents of the bag were beyond anything a travel-kit could handle. -They were documents—damning documents—neatly bundled up, each bound -with its own ribbon and seal. Had Neville had twenty-four hours in a -well-equipped laboratory with a sufficient number of assistants, he -might have forged passable but less incriminating substitutes for them. -As it was, he was helpless to do a very artistic job of switching. One -package dealt with certain long-forgotten passages in Mrs. Carstairs' -life, while others dealt with certain business transactions.</p> - -<p>From that case, Neville chose to abstract all of them except the one -which formed the outer wrapper. To make up the bulk he filled the -bundle with blank paper, tied it up again and resealed it. He dealt -likewise with the packet that contained the formulae for the radiation -extraction process. And, for the good of the Service, he pursued the -same course with regard to a rather detailed report on the foibles and -weaknesses of a certain police colonel stationed in Pallas. There was -not a hint of scandal or corruption in that, but often ridicule is as -potent a weapon as vilification. After that came the tedious business -of censoring the rest, repacking the bag as it had been, and restoring -the locks and seals. The gently snoring Carstairs never knew when his -bags were returned to him, nor heard the faint scuffling as his door -was rebolted and relocked.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>"Vasta, sor, in one hour," announced his steward to him eight hours -later. "Bags out, sor?"</p> - -<p>"When we get there," growled the magnate, yawning heavily, glancing -suspiciously about the room. He locked the door behind the steward, -didn't leave until the ship was cradled.</p> - -<p>Neville watched him go ashore. Then he hurried in to see the skipper -again.</p> - -<p>"You will be compensated for this," he said hurriedly. "You can have -your steward back on the job again. How long do you stay here?"</p> - -<p>"Three hours, curse the luck. We usually touch and go, but this time I -have an ethergram ordering me to wait here for a special passenger. Why -in hell can't these hicks in the gravel belt learn to catch a ship on -time?"</p> - -<p>"Ah," breathed Neville. "That makes a difference. I think I'll stay -with you. Have you a vacant room where I can hang out for the remainder -of the voyage?"</p> - -<p>"Yes."</p> - -<p>Neville did another lightning change—back to Special Investigator -Billy Neville of the I.P.—uniform and all. He was standing near the -spacelock when the expected passenger came aboard.</p> - -<p>Neville could not suppress a murmur of approval as he saw his quarry -approaching. As an artist in his own right, he appreciated artistry -when he saw it. The man coming down the field was Carstairs, but -what a different Carstairs! He was more slender, he had altogether -different clothes on, he had a different gait. His complexion was -not the same. But the height was the same, and the bags he carried -were the same shape and size, except for their gray canvas coverings. -There was a little notch in the right ear that he had not troubled to -rectify in the brief time he had had for his transformation in what was -undoubtedly his pre-arranged hideaway on Vesta.</p> - -<p>"What is the next stop, skipper?" Neville whispered to the captain.</p> - -<p>"New York."</p> - -<p>"I'll stay out of sight until then."</p> - -<p>Any passenger on that voyage of the <i>Fanfare</i> will tell you that her -captain should have been retired years before. He made three bad tries -before he succeeded in lowering his ship into the dock at the skyport. -The passengers did not know, of course, that he had to stall to permit -a certain member of the I.P. to make a parachute landing from the -stratosphere.</p> - -<p>Billy Neville hit the ground not four miles from the designated -skyport. A commandeered copter took him to it just in time to see the -squat passenger vessel jetting down into her berth. He looked anxiously -about the station. There was not a uniformed man in sight except a -couple of traffic men of the local detachment. He needed help and lots -of it.</p> - -<p>Neville had no choice but to play his trump card. It was a thing -reserved only for grave emergencies. But he considered the present one -grave. He took his police whistle out of his vest pocket and shrilled -it three times. It was a supersonic whistle—its tone only audible -to first-class detectives having tuned vibrators strapped over their -hearts. To sound a triple supersonic call was the police equivalent of -sending out an eighth alarm fire-call. But Neville blew the blast. Then -waited.</p> - -<p>A man strolled up and asked the way to Newark.</p> - -<p>"Wait," said Neville, only he did not use words but merely lifted his -right eye-brow slightly. It was not long before four others came up and -craved directions as to how to get to Newark. He lit a cigarette as -they gathered around.</p> - -<p>"The ship <i>Fanfare</i> has just landed—out of Callisto with wayside stops -in the Belt. There is a passenger carrying three bags covered by gray -canvas. Tail him. Tail everybody he contacts. If you need help, ask -local HQ. If they can't give enough, ask Luna. But whatever you do, -don't make a pinch. This guy is small fry. My code number is...."</p> - -<p>Neville knew better than to flash a badge on these men, even if he was -in uniform. Both badges and uniforms could be counterfeited. But he -knew that they knew from his procedure that he was a department agent.</p> - -<p>"There he comes," he warned, and promptly ducked behind a fruit stall -and walked away.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Headquarters readily gave him a rocket and a driver to take him to -Lunar Base. He had no trouble breaking down the barriers between him -and the second most important man in the I.P.—the first being the -General-General in Charge of Operations. The man he wanted to see was -the Colonel-General, Head of the Bureau of Identification.</p> - -<p>Neville allowed himself to be ushered into the office, but it was not -without trepidation, for old Col.-General O'Hara had a vile reputation -as a junior-baiter. He was not at all reassured when he heard the door -click to behind him with the click which meant to his trained ears that -the door would never be opened again without the pressure of a foot on -a certain secret pedal concealed somewhere in the room. Nor did the -appearance of the man behind the desk do anything to relieve his own -lack of ease.</p> - -<p>O'Hara was a gnome, scarcely five feet tall, with bulging eyes and wild -hair that stood helter-skelter above his wrinkled face. He was staring -at his desk blotter with a venomous expression, and his lower lip hung -out a full half-inch. Neville stood rigidly at attention before him for -a full three minutes before the old man spoke. Then he looked up and -barked a caustic, "Well?"</p> - -<p>"I am Special Investigator Neville, sir," he said, "and I want the -pedigree of a certain notorious criminal whose picture is lacking in -the gallery."</p> - -<p>"Stuff and nonsense!" snorted the Colonel-General. "There is no such -criminal. Man and boy, I have run this bureau since they moved it to -the Moon. Why—oh, why—do they let you rookies in here to bother me?"</p> - -<p>"Sir," said Neville stiffly, "I am no rookie. I am a...."</p> - -<p>"Bah! We have—or had, at last night's report—eight hundred and -ninety-three of your 'specials' half of them on probation. When you've -spent, as I have spent, sixty-two years...."</p> - -<p>"I'm sorry, sir," urged Neville, "we can't go into that now. Do what -you want to with me afterwards, but I assure you this is urgent. I am -on the trail of a higher-up in the Callisto-Trojan extortion racket. Do -I get the information I am after, or do I turn in my agent badge?"</p> - -<p>"Huh?" said the old general, sitting up and looking him straight in the -face. "What's that?"</p> - -<p>"I mean it, sir. I have trailed one of the higher-up stooges to Earth -and set shadows on him. I <i>think</i> I have seen the king-pin of the -mob, and I want to know who he is," Neville went on to describe the -presentation of the showboat entertainment, with special emphasis on -his hunches and suspicions. To the civilian mind, the things he told -might seem silly, but to a policeman they were fraught with meaning. -His description of the suspect was not one of appearance; it was a -psychological description—a description based wholly on intuition and -not at all on tangibles. He had not proceeded far before the wrinkled -old man thumped the desk with a gnarled fist.</p> - -<p>"Hold it," he said, "I think I know the man you mean. But give me -time—my memory is not what it used to be."</p> - -<p>Neville waited patiently at the rigid attitude of attention while -the shriveled old veteran before him rocked back and forth in his -chair with the lids closed over his bulging eyes, cracking his bony -knuckles like castanets. O'Hara seemed to have gone into something like -a trance. Suddenly, after a quiver of the eyelids, he stared up at -Neville.</p> - -<p>"It all comes back now. You were a member of the class of '14 and I was -instructor—a major then. I took all of you to see a certain show on -Broadway, as they call it, in order...."</p> - -<p>"Yes, sir," cried Neville, eagerly, "that was it! You told us the -principal character in the play was the most dangerous potential -criminal of our generation and that we should mark him well and -remember. It was a very hard assignment, for we only saw him from -before the foot-lights and he was acting the part of a Viking chieftain -and most of his face was covered with false white whiskers."</p> - -<p>Old O'Hara smiled.</p> - -<p>"You seem to have been an apt pupil. At any rate, that man was Milo -Lunko, a thoroughly unprincipled and remarkably clever blackmailer. -He was so clever, in fact, that we were never able to make an arrest -stick, let alone bring him to trial. That accounts for the absence of -his picture from the gallery. He was also clever enough to fake his -own death. The evidence we have as to that was so convincing we closed -the file on him."</p> - -<p>"It's open again," said Neville grimly. "How did he work?"</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>"Lunko was not only an actor, but a producer and clever playwright as -well. He might have achieved fame and fortune legitimately, but he -became greedy. He teamed up with a shady character named Krascbik who -ran a private investigating agency, specializing in social scandals. -Krascbik's men would study the private life of influential individuals -and dig out their scandals. They would provide Lunko with slow-motion -camera studies of them so he could learn the peculiarities of their -carriage, mannerisms, voice, and all their other idiosyncracies.</p> - -<p>"Lunko's next step would be to write a scurrilous play based on the -confidential information provided by Krascbik, and put it in rehearsal, -using characters that resemble the actual principals...."</p> - -<p>"But that's libel," objected Neville, "why couldn't you haul him in?"</p> - -<p>"Blackmail, young man, is a delicate matter to handle. The injured -party shrinks from publicity and usually prefers to pay rather than -have his scandal aired. Lunko never actually publicly produced -any of those nauseous plays. His trick was to invite the victim -to a preview—a dress rehearsal, then let Nature take its course. -Invariably, the victim was frightened and tried to induce him to call -off the presentation. Lunko would protest that the play had been -written in good faith and had already cost him a great deal of money. -The pay-off, of course, was always big. Lunko drove many people to the -brink of ruin.</p> - -<p>"One man did refuse to play with him, and turned the case over to us. -Lunko carried out his threat and produced the show, much to the delight -of the scandal-mongers. It was outrageously libelous and we promptly -closed the joint and took him in...."</p> - -<p>"And then...."</p> - -<p>"And then," croaked O'Hara, rolling his pop-eyes toward the ceiling and -pursing his lips, "and then we let him go. He had a trunkful of data -on many, many important people. Some of them, I hate to tell you, were -my seniors in this very Service. We could do nothing about it, for, -unfortunately, all the stuff he had on them was true. We might have -sent him to the mines for a short term, but he would have retaliated -by standing our entire civilization on its head with his exposures. We -compromised by letting him escape and go into exile. The understanding -was that he was never to come inside the orbit of Mars. A while after -that, he was reported killed in a landslide on Europa. We shut the book -and proceeded to forget him."</p> - -<p>"He mimicked the character exactly?"</p> - -<p>"Not exactly. Just enough to clearly indicate them. Although, I am -convinced that, if he chose, he could have taken off any person he had -studied, with enough fidelity to fool anybody except perhaps a man's -own wife."</p> - -<p>Neville gave a little start. That was the item that had slowed him the -most. Had Lunko improved his technique to the extent that he could even -fool a wife? Was the Carstairs he was trailing really Carstairs, or an -understudy? He had deceived both his old friend and his own wife for a -time, but even they had admitted noting a subtle change. Who was this -phoney Carstairs? Where was the real Carstairs? Or, Neville wondered, -was his original theory of drugs or hypnotism correct?</p> - -<p>"Thank you, General," he said. "You have been a big help. I have to go -over to Operations now and get the past and future itineraries of the -showboat. In another hour, I may begin to know something about this -case."</p> - -<p>"It's nothing," said O'Hara, promptly closing his eyes and folding his -knotty fingers on his breast. "It's all in the day's work. Luck to you."</p> - -<p>Neville heard the click as the secret door lock was released and he -knew the interview was terminated. He backed away, stepped through the -door and out into the corridor.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Neville went straight to the great library where the I.P. records are -kept. An attendant brought him the bulky folder on the old Lunko gang. -Neville found it engrossing reading, and the day waned and night came -before he had committed all its contents to memory.</p> - -<p>Billy Neville obtained a televise connection with Tellurian -headquarters.</p> - -<p>"How are your shadows doing?"</p> - -<p>He had already learned the real identity of the man he had trailed from -Pallas; he was an actor belonging to the original ring and went by the -name of Hallam.</p> - -<p>"Our shadows are doing fine," replied the officer at the other end, -"but your friend Hallam seems unhappy. He made two calls on a high -officer of the Radiation Corporation and after the second one he came -very angry and ruffled looking. He has also called on several other -persons, known to us as extortioners, and at least two of those are on -his trail with blood in their eye."</p> - -<p>"I know," chuckled Neville. "He sold 'em a bill of goods—rolls of -blank paper. They think they've been double-crossed. And they have, -only I'm the guy that did it. But say, we can't have him killed—not -yet. Better round up all his contacts and put 'em away, incommunicado. -I'm hopping a rocket right now and will be with you in a jiffy."</p> - -<p>It did not take the police long to make the little jump from Luna to -Tellus, and a couple of hours later Neville was confronting Hallam in -a special cell. In his hands he held a first-class ticket to Titan in -the Saturn group, which had come out of Hallam's pocket, as well as a -handbill of the showboat announcing an appearance there in the near -future.</p> - -<p>"I just wanted to study your current rig, Hallam," explained Neville, -opening up his makeup kit. "Impersonation is a game that more than one -can play at. I'm going in your place to Titan. I'm a <i>teeny-weeny</i> bit -curious as to what happens to your victims. Extortion carries good -stiff sentences, but they lack the finality of that for murder."</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>The Neville that left the cell was the exact duplicate of Hallam, and -by dint of exacting search of the actor's trick garments and the use -of adroit questioning under pressure, the Special Investigator knew -exactly what he had to do. And he knew ever better, after the spaceship -he was riding settled down into the receiving berth on Titan. An -actor of Lunko's—a skinny, gaunt fellow—was on hand to meet him, and -a little later they conferred in a well-screened spot with three of -Lunko's jackals.</p> - -<p>"The layout here is a cinch," explained the skinny actor. "The two -biggest shots are the president of the Inter-satellite Transportation -Company and the fellow who owns the bulk of shares in the <i>phlagis</i> -plantations. A year or so ago they were mixed up in a most ludicrous -near-scandal that people are still tittering over. A situation like -that is a natural for us. Lunko has already sent the script on ahead. -It's funny enough to tickle the town, but not so raw it will make the -principals sore. We will deal with them in the usual way, when they -come backstage after the show."</p> - -<p>"Uh, huh," said Neville, and asked to see the descriptions. They lit -up the projector and began running three-dimensional views of their -intended victims. The preliminary studies had been most comprehensive -and Neville knew before the hour was up that not a mannerism or -intonation of voice had been overlooked. To persons skilled in disguise -the problem was not so much one of imitation, but of introducing a -telling imperfection that would allay suspicion of a possible more -perfect imitation later.</p> - -<p>The remainder of their time until the showboat came, they spent in -gruelling rehearsals.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Neville watched the show from the wings and was gratified to note -the considerable sprinkling of plainclothes-men in the audience. The -show was good, as it had been before, and the audience was highly -enthusiastic. Then came the curtain call and the announcement of the -special performance. When the lights were down and his cue came, -Neville walked on and performed his silly role. Then there was a hubbub -of applause and wild calls for an encore. A few minutes later the -two men they had lampooned came backstage, grinning sheepishly, yet -apparently resolved to show themselves good sports.</p> - -<p>"You would have more privacy in the dressing rooms," suggested Lunko -suavely, and ushered each into the private closet of the man who -had just mimicked him. Neville found himself face to face with a -near-double.</p> - -<p>"Step on it," said Lunko harshly, who had followed. He flicked on a -peculiarly brilliant overhead light, and the startled victim looked -up at it with the helpless, hopeless gaze of a lamb being led to the -slaughter. "Change your makeup while I drag the dope out of him. I've -got another one to do after this, you know."</p> - -<p>Neville grunted and began plucking away the comedy elements of his -burlesque get-up. Then, with the deftness of long experience he made -his appearance match the poor dupe's to the chair. Meanwhile Lunko had -forced his victim into the depths of hypnotic trance and was extracting -all the secret knowledge that the snooping jackals had been unable to -obtain indirectly.</p> - -<p>"You've got it all, now?" asked Lunko, impatiently, "The combination of -his safe, his office and home habits? I've drained him dry, I believe."</p> - -<p>Neville nodded.</p> - -<p>"Stand back, you fool!" screamed Lunko, as Neville awkwardly stepped -against him just as he was about to swing the bludgeon that would -finish the now valueless victim, "we've just time to get this one into -the incinerator...."</p> - -<p>He never finished, for at that instant Neville sprang from the balls -of his feet and a heavy fist smashed into the blackmailer's jaw with a -crash that told of a shattered jawbone. Another battering ram of a fist -smashed him to the floor.</p> - -<p>Neville's high-frequency whistle was out and the shrill, inaudible -alarm tingling on the breasts of the key men waiting outside. Then he -was dashing for the adjoining dressing room where a similar little -drama was just being brought to its close. A swift jab of fire from -the blaster that appeared magically in Neville's hand sent the actor -to his death. Other policemen were dashing up and the second hypnotist -suddenly lost interest in his surroundings, going down onto his knees, -a mass of battered pulp.</p> - -<p>Then Neville sat down and began thoughtfully removing the makeup he so -detested.</p> - -<p>"I wonder," he complained to himself, "whether I'm ever going to get -that leave."</p> - - - - - - - - -<pre> - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Stellar Showboat, by Malcolm Jameson - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK STELLAR SHOWBOAT *** - -***** This file should be named 62255-h.htm or 62255-h.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/6/2/2/5/62255/ - -Produced by Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions -will be renamed. - -Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no -one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation -(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without -permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org/license - - -Title: Stellar Showboat - -Author: Malcolm Jameson - -Release Date: May 28, 2020 [EBook #62255] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ASCII - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK STELLAR SHOWBOAT *** - - - - -Produced by Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - - - - - - - - - - STELLAR SHOWBOAT - - By MALCOLM JAMESON - - A drama more fantastic than any the stage - had ever produced was being plotted behind - the curtains of the Showboat of Space. And - between its presentation and inter-world - disaster, waiting for his cue, stood only - the lone figure of Investigator Neville. - - [Transcriber's Note: This etext was produced from - Planet Stories Fall 1942. - Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that - the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.] - - -Special Investigator Billy Neville was annoyed, and for more reasons -than one. He had just done a tedious year in the jungles of Venus -stamping out the gooroo racket and then, on his way home to a -well-deserved leave and rest, had been diverted to Mars for a swift -clean-up of the diamond-mine robbery ring. And now, when he again -thought he would be free for a while, he found himself shunted to -little Pallas, capital of the Asteroid Confederation. But clever, -patient Colonel Frawley, commandant of all the Interplanetary Police in -the belt, merely smiled indulgently while Neville blew off his steam. - -"You say," said Neville, still ruffled, "that there has been a growing -wave of blackmail and extortion all over the System, coupled with a -dozen or so instances of well-to-do, respectable persons disappearing -without a trace. And you say that that has been going on for a couple -of years and several hundred of our crack operatives have been working -on it, directed by the best brains of the force, and yet haven't got -anywhere. And that up to now there have been no such cases develop in -the asteroids. Well, what do you want _me_ for? What's the emergency?" - -The colonel laughed and dropped the ash from his cigar, preparatory to -lying back in his chair and taking another long, soothing drag. The -office of the Chief Inspector of the A.C. division of the I.P. was not -only well equipped for the work it had to do, but for comfort. - -"I am astonished," he remarked, "to hear an experienced policeman -indulge in such loose talk. Who said anything about having had the -_best_ brains on the job? Or that no progress had been made? Or that -there was no emergency? Any bad crime situation is always an emergency, -no matter how long it lasts. Which is all the more reason why we have -to break it up, and quickly. I tell you, things are becoming very -serious. Lifelong partners in business are becoming suspicious and -secretive toward each other; husbands and wives are getting jittery and -jealous. Nobody knows whom to trust. The most sacred confidences have a -way of leaking out. Then they are in the market for the highest bidder. -No boy, this thing is a headache. I never had a worse." - -"All right, all right," growled Neville, resignedly. "I'm stuck. Shoot! -How did it begin, and what do you know?" - - * * * * * - -The colonel reached into a drawer and pulled out a fat jacket bulging -with papers, photostats, and interdepartmental reports. - -"It began," he said, "about two years ago, on Io and Callisto. It -spread all over the Jovian System and soured Ganymede and Europa. -The symptoms were first the disappearances of several prominent -citizens, followed by a wave of bankruptcies and suicides on both -planetoids. Nobody complained to the police. Then a squad of our -New York men picked up a petty chiseler who was trying to gouge the -Jovian Corporation's Tellurian office out of a large sum of money on -the strength of some damaging documents he possessed relating to a -hidden scandal in the life of the New York manager. From that lead, -they picked up a half-dozen other small fry extortionists and even -managed to grab their higher-up--a sort of middleman who specialized -in exploiting secret commercial information and scandalous material -about individuals. There the trail stopped. They put him through the -mill, but all he would say is that a man approached him with the -portfolio, sold him on its value for extortion purposes, and collected -in advance. There could be no follow up for the reason that after the -first transaction what profits the local gang could make out of the -dirty work would be their own." - -"Yes," said Neville, "I know the racket. When they handle it that way -it's hard to beat. You get any amount of minnows, but the whales get -away." - -"Right. The disturbing thing about the contents of the portfolio was -the immense variety of secrets it contained and that it was evidently -prepared by one man. There were, for example, secret industrial -formulas evidently stolen for sale to a competitor. The bulk of it was -other commercial items, such as secret credit reports, business volume, -and the like. But there was a good deal of rather nasty personal stuff, -too. It was a gold mine of information for an unscrupulous blackmailer, -and every bit of it originated on Callisto. Now, whom do you think, -could have been in a position to compile it?" - -"The biggest corporation lawyer there, I should guess," said Neville. -"Priests and doctors know a lot of personal secrets, but a good lawyer -manages to learn most everything." - -"Right. Very right. We sent men to Callisto and learned that some -months earlier the most prominent lawyer of the place had announced one -day he must go over to Io to arrange some contracts. He went to Io, -all right, but was never seen again after he stepped out of the ship. -It was shortly after, that the wave of Callistan suicides and business -failures took place." - -"All right," agreed Neville, "so what? It has happened before. Even the -big ones go wrong now and then." - -"Yes, but wait. That fellow had nothing to go wrong about. He was -tremendously successful, rich, happily married, and highly respected -for his outstanding integrity. Yet he could hardly have been kidnaped, -as there has never been a ransom demand. Nor has there ever been such a -demand in any of the other cases similar to it. - -"The next case to be partially explained was that of the disappearance -of the president of the Jupiter Trust Company at Ionopolis. All the -most vital secrets of that bank turned up later in all parts of the -civilized system. We nabbed some peddlers, but it was the same story -as with the first gang. The facts are all here in this jacket. After a -little you can read the whole thing in detail." - -"Uh, huh," grunted Neville, "I'm beginning to see. But why _me_, and -why at Pallas?" - -"Because you've never worked in the asteroids and are not known here -to any but the higher officers. Among other secrets this ring has, are -a number of police secrets. That is why setting traps for them is so -difficult. I haven't told you that one of their victims seems to have -been one of us. That was Jack Sarkins, who was district commander at -Patroclus. He received an apparently genuine ethergram one day--and it -was in our most secret code--telling him to report to Mars at once. -He went off, alone, in his police rocket. He never got there. As to -Pallas, the reason you are here is because the place so far is clean. -Their system is to work a place just once and never come back. They -milk it dry the first time and there is no need to. Since we have no -luck tracing them after the crime, we are going to try a plant and wait -for the crime to come to it. You are the plant." - -"I see," said Neville slowly. He was interested, but not enthusiastic. -"Some day, somehow, someone is coming here and in some manner -force someone to yield up all the local dirt and then arrange his -disappearance. My role is to break it up before it happens. Sweet!" - -"You have such a way of putting things, Neville," chuckled the colonel, -"but you do get the point." - -He rose and pushed the heavy folder toward his new aide. - -"Bone this the rest of the afternoon. I'll be back." - - * * * * * - -It was quite late when Colonel Frawley returned and asked Neville -cheerily how he was getting on. - -"I have the history," Neville answered, slamming the folder shut, "and -a glimmering of what you are shooting at. This guy Simeon Carstairs, I -take it, is the local man you have picked as the most likely prospect -for your Master Mind crook to work on?" - -"He is. He is perfect bait. He is the sole owner of the Radiation -Extraction Company which has a secret process that Tellurian Radiant -Corporation has made a standing offer of five millions for. He controls -the local bank and often sits as magistrate. In addition, he has -substantial interests in Vesta and Juno industries. He probably knows -more about the asteroids and the people on them than any other living -man. Moreover, his present wife is a woman with an unhappy past and who -happens also to be related to an extremely wealthy Argentine family. -Any ring of extortionists who could worm old Simeon's secrets out of -him could write their own ticket." - -"So I am to be a sort of private shadow." - -"Not a bit of it. _I_ am his bodyguard. We are close friends and lately -I have made it a rule to be with him part of the time every day. No, -your role is that of observer from the sidelines. I shall introduce -you as the traveling representative of the London uniform house that -has the police contract. That will explain your presence here and your -occasional calls at headquarters. You might sell a few suits of clothes -on the side, or at least solicit them. Work that out for yourself." - -Neville grimaced. He was not fond of plainclothes work. - -"But come, fellow. You've worked hard enough for one day. Go up to -my room and get into cits. Then I'll take you over to the town and -introduce you around. After that we'll go to a show. The showboat -landed about an hour ago." - -"Showboat? What the hell is a showboat?" - -"I forget," said the colonel, "that your work has been mostly on the -heavy planets where they have plenty of good playhouses in the cities. -Out here among these little rocks the diversions are brought around -periodically and peddled for the night. The showboat, my boy, is a -floating theater--a space ship with a stage and an auditorium in it, a -troupe of good actors and a cracking fine chorus. This one has been -making the rounds quite a while, though it never stopped here before -until last year. They say the show this year is even better. It is the -"Lunar Follies of 2326," featuring a chorus of two hundred androids -and with Lilly Fitzpatrick and Lionel Dustan in the lead. Tonight, for -a change, you can relax and enjoy yourself. We can get down to brass -tacks tomorrow." - -"Thanks, chief," said Neville, grinning from ear to ear. The -description of the showboat was music to his ears, for it had been -a long time since he had seen a good comedy and he felt the need of -relief from his sordid workaday life. - -"When you're in your makeup," the colonel added, "come on down and I'll -take you over in my copter." - - * * * * * - -It did not take Billy Neville long to make his transformation to the -personality of a clothing drummer. Every special cop had to be an -expert at the art of quick shifts of disguise and Neville was rather -better than most. Nor did it take long for the little blue copter to -whisk them halfway around the knobby little planetoid of Pallas. It -eased itself through an airlock into a doomed town, and there the -colonel left it with his orderly. - -The town itself possessed little interest for Neville though his -trained photographic eye missed few of its details. It was much like -the smaller doomed settlements on the Moon. He was more interested -in meeting the local magnate, whom they found in his office in the -Carstairs Building. The colonel made the introductions, during which -Neville sized up the man. He was of fair height, stockily built, and -had remarkably frank and friendly eyes for a self-made man of the -asteroids. Not that there was not a certain hardness about him and a -considerable degree of shrewdness, but he lacked the cynical cunning -so often displayed by the pioneers of the outer system. Neville noted -other details as well--the beginning of a set of triple chins, a little -brown mole with three hairs on it alongside his nose, and the way a -stray lock of hair kept falling over his left eye. - -"Let's go," said the colonel, as soon as the formalities were over. - -Neville had to borrow a breathing helmet from Mr. Carstairs, for he had -not one of his own and they had to walk from the far portal of the dome -across the field to where the showboat lay parked. He thought wryly, -as he put it on, that he went from one extreme to another--from Venus, -where the air was over-moist, heavy and oppressive from its stagnation, -to windy, blustery Mars, and then here, where there was no air at all. - -As they approached the grounded ship they saw it was all lit up and -throngs of people were approaching from all sides. Flood lamps threw -great letters on the side of the silvery hull reading, "Greatest Show -of the Void--Come One, Come All--Your Money Back if Not Absolutely -Satisfied." They went ahead of the queue, thanks to the prestige of -the colonel and the local tycoon, and were instantly admitted. It took -but a moment to check their breathers at the helmet room and then the -ushers had them in tow. - -"See you after the show, Mr. Allington," said the colonel to Neville, -"I will be in Mr. Carstairs box." - - * * * * * - -Neville sank into a seat and watched them go. Then he began to take -stock of the playhouse. The seats were comfortable and commodious, -evidently having been designed to hold patrons clad in heavy-dust -space-suits. The auditorium was almost circular, one semi-circle being -taken up by the stage, the other by the tiers of seats. Overhead ranged -a row of boxes jutting out above the spectators below. Neville puzzled -for a long time over the curtain that shut off the stage. It seemed -very unreal, like the shimmer of the aurora, but it affected vision to -the extent that the beholder could not say with any certainty _what_ -was behind it. It was like looking through a waterfall. Then there was -eerie music, too, from an unseen source, flooding the air with queer -melodies. People continued to pour in. The house gradually darkened and -as it did the volume and wildness of the music rose. Then there was a -deep bong, and lights went completely out for a full second. The show -was on. - -Neville sat back and enjoyed it. He could not have done otherwise, -for the sign on the hull had not been an empty plug. It was the best -show in the void--or anywhere else, for that matter. A spectral voice -that seemed to come from everywhere in the house announced the first -number--The Dance of the Wood-sprites of Venus. Instantly little -flickers of light appeared throughout the house--a mass of vari-colored -fireflies blinking off and on and swirling in dizzy spirals. They -steadied and grew, coalesced into blobs of living fire--ruby, dazzling -green, ethereal blue and yellow. They swelled and shrank, took on -human forms only to abandon them; purple serpentine figures writhed -among them, paling to silvery smoke and then expiring as a shower of -violet sparks. And throughout was the steady, maddening rhythm of the -dance tune, unutterably savage and haunting--a folk dance of the hill -tribes of Venus. At last, when the sheer beauty of it began to lull -the viewers into a hypnotic trance, there came the shrill blare of -massed trumpets and the throb of mighty tom-toms culminating in an -ear-shattering discord that broke the spell. - -The lights were on. The stage was bare. Neville sat up straighter and -looked, blinking. It was as if he were in an abandoned warehouse. And -then the scenery began to grow. Yes, grow. Almost imperceptible it was, -at first, then more distinct. Nebulous bodies appeared, wisps of smoke. -They wavered, took on shape, took on color, took on the appearance of -solidity. The scent began to have meaning. Part of the background was a -gray cliff undercut with a yawning cave. It was a scene from the Moon, -a hangout of the cliffdwellers, those refugees from civilization who -chose to live the wild life of the undomed Moon rather than submit to -the demands of a more ordered life. - -Characters came on. There was a little drama, well conceived and well -acted. When it was over, the scene vanished as it had come. A comedy -team came out next and this time the appropriate scenery materialized -at once as one of them stumbled over an imaginary log and fell on his -face. The log was not there when he tripped, but it was there by the -time his nose hit the stage, neatly turning the joke on his companion -who had started to laugh at his unreasonable fall. - -On the show went, one scene swiftly succeeding the next. A song that -took the fancy of the crowd was a plaintive ballad. It ran: - - _They tell me you did not treat me right,_ - _Nor are grateful for all I've done._ - _I fear you're fickle as a meteorite_ - _Though my love's constant as the Sun._ - -There was a ballet in which a witch rode a comet up into the sky, only -to turn suddenly into a housewife and sweep all the cobwebs away. The -featured stars came on with the chorus, and Lilly Fitzpatrick sang -the big hit song, "You're a Big, Bad Nova to Burn Me Up This Way!" -Then a novelty quartet appeared, to play on the curious Callistan -_bourdelangs_, those reeds of that planet that grow in bundles. When -dried and cut properly, they make multiple-barreled flutes with a tonal -quality that makes the senses quiver. The show closed with a grand -finale and flooded the house with the Nova song. - -It was over. The stage was bare and the shimmering curtain that was not -a curtain was back in place. People began to rise and stream into the -aisles. - - * * * * * - -"La-deez and gen-tul-men!" - -The voice boomed out and people stopped where they stood. A man in -evening clothes had stepped through the curtain and was calling for -attention. - -"You have seen our regular performance. We hope it has pleased you and -you will come again next year. But if you will kindly remain in your -seats, the ushers will pass around with tickets for the after-show. We -have prepared for your especial delectation a little farce entitled, -'It Happens on Pallas.' Now, ladeez and gen'men, I assure you that this -sketch was prepared solely for your entertainment and any resemblance -of any character in it to any real person is purely coincidental. It is -all in fun, and no offense intended. I thank you." - -Billy Neville was bolt upright in his seat by then and his eyes glinted -hard through narrow slits. Something had rung the bell in his memory, -but he did not know what. He would have sworn he had never seen that -announcer before, and yet.... - -The man stepped backward into the curtain and appeared to vanish. The -audience were grinning widely and resuming their seats. - -"This is going to be good," said the man next to him as he dug for the -required fee. "It is their specialty. It beats the regular show, I -think." - -Neville paid the usher, too, and sat where he was. He shot a glance -upward at the box and saw Mr. Carstairs and the colonel in animated -conversation and apparently having a grand time. Presently the ushers -had done their work. The hall began to darken and the scenery come up. -The scene was the main street of New Athens, as some called Pallas' -principal town. Neville relaxed and forgot his recent sudden tension -for a moment. - -But it was only for a moment. For an instant later he was sitting -up straight again, watching the development of the act with cold -intentness. For the two main characters were comedy parodies of -Mr. Carstairs and Colonel Frawley. At first glance they _were_ Mr. -Carstairs and the colonel, but a second look showed it was only an -impression. The police inspector's strutting walk was overdone, as were -his other mannerisms, and the same was true of the magnate's character. -Their makeup was also exaggerated, Mr. Carstair's mole being much -enlarged and a great deal made of his plumpness. Yet the takeoff was -deliriously funny and the audience rolled with laughter. Neville stole -another look upward and could make out that both the subjects of the -sketch were grinning broadly. - -It was a silly, frothy skit about a dog, a lost dog. It seems that -Mr. Carstairs had a dog and it strayed. He asked the police to help -him find it and they helped. The inspector brought out the whole -force. It was excruciatingly funny, and Neville roared at times along -with the rest, though there were many local references that he did -not understand, nor did he know some of the minor characters were so -splittingly entertaining. The man next to him writhed in spasms of -delight and almost strangled at one episode. - -"Oh, dear," he managed to gasp, "what a scream ... ho, ho, ho, ho, ... -gup! It happened ... just like that ... he _did_ lose a dog and all -the cops on Pallas couldn't find it ... oh me, oh my...." Peals of -laughter drowned out the rest. - -The postlude came to its merry end. This time, the show was over for -keeps and the audience began trooping out. Neville got up and looked -around for his friend, but the box was empty. So he strolled down the -aisle and had a closer look at the illusion of a curtain. He understood -some of the effects achieved that night, but the curtain was a new one -to him. After standing there a moment he discovered that he could hear -voices through it. One was Colonel Frawley's. He was saying: - -"Certainly I am not offended. I enjoyed it. I would like to meet the -man and congratulate him on the takeoff." - -Neville climbed up onto the stage and walked boldly through the -curtain. There was a brief tingly feeling, and then he was backstage. -Most of the actors had gone to their dressing rooms, but several stood -about chatting with the colonel and Mr. Carstairs. - -At that moment the man who had made the announcement came on the stage -and spoke to Colonel Frawley. - -"I dislike interrupting you, Inspector," he said obsequiously, "but -one of our patrons is making trouble in the wash-room. She claims her -pocket was picked. Would you come?" - -"Nonsense!" exclaimed the colonel. "I stationed an operative there to -prevent that very thing. No doubt it is a mistake. However, I'll do -what I can." - -He excused himself and hurried off. Then the man in black turned to -Neville and said in an icy voice, "And you, sir--what is it you wish?" - - * * * * * - -Neville's mind worked instantly. He did not want to express interest -in Mr. Carstairs, nor did he care to reveal to the showman his -acquaintance with the colonel. So he said quickly: - -"The curtain ... I was curious as to how it worked ... you see, once -I...." - -"Joe," called the man, wheeling, "explain the curtain to the gentleman." - -Joe came. He led the way to the switchboard and began a spiel about -its intricacies. Neville looked on, understanding it only in the high -spots, for the board was a jumble of gadgets and doodads, and it was -not long before he began to suspect that the long-winded explanation -was a unique variety of double-talk. - -"See?" finished the man, "it's as simple as that. Clever, eh?" - -"Yes, indeed. Thanks." - -Neville started back to the stage, but the announcer barred his way. - -"The exit is right behind you, sir," he said in a chilly voice. -The words and intonation were polite, but the voice had that -iron-hand-in-velvet-glove quality used by tough bouncers in night -clubs when handling obstreperous members of the idle rich. They -were accompanied as well by a glance so uncanny and so charged with -malignancy that Neville was hard put to keep on looking him in the eye -and murmur another "Thank you." - -But before Neville reached the exit, Colonel Frawley came through. - -"Oh, hello. Where is Carstairs?" - -Neville shook his head. - -"A moment ago he was talking with his impersonator," offered the -announcer, seeming to lose all interest in Neville's departure. "I'll -see if he is still here. He may have gone into the actor's dressing -room." - -But as he spoke a dressing room door opened and Carstairs came out of -it, smiling contentedly. He turned and called back to the actor inside: - -"Thanks again for an enjoyable evening. You bet I'll see you next -year." Then he came straight over to Frawley and hooked his arm in his. -"All right, Colonel, shall we go? And Mr. Allington, too?" - -Neville nodded, luckily recognizing his latest assumed name. Out of the -corner of his eye he saw the dressing-room door slammed shut by the -actor inside of it. - -"I hate to hurry you, gentlemen," said the announcer, "but we blast out -at once." - -The trio retrieved their helmets and strode off into the night. By -then, the skyport was deserted and the floodlights taken in. When they -reached the copter they saw the flash and heard the woosh as the big -ship roared away on her rockets. - -"Back to the old routine and bedroom," sighed Mr. Carstairs as he heard -it leave. "It was good while it lasted, though." - -"Yep," chuckled the colonel. "Hop in and we'll drop you at home." - -Three minutes later they were before the Carstairs' truly-palatial -mansion. - -"Come in a second and speak to Mariquita," invited the magnate. - -"No, thanks. It's late...." - -Neville's elbow dug into his superior's ribs with a vicious nudge. - -"... but if you insist...." - -Mrs. Carstairs met them in the ante-room, greeted the inspector -cordially and kissed her husband affectionately. They stood for the -rest of the brief visit with their arms circled about one another. Her -Spanish blood heritage was evident in her warm dark eyes and proud -carriage. Equally evident, were the lines of past suffering in her -face. It did not take a detective to see that here was a pair who had -at last found mutual consolation. - -On the way back to headquarters nothing was said. But later, while they -were undressing, the colonel remarked: - -"Good show. Did it throw your mind off your troubles?" - -"No," said Neville curtly. - -"Well," said the inspector, "a good night's sleep will. G'night." - -There was no sleep that night for Billy Neville, though. He spent it -mentally digesting all the stuff he had read that afternoon, and all -that he had seen and heard that night. He devoted many weary hours to a -review of his own mind's copy of the famous rogue's gallery at the Luna -Central Base. The picture he wanted wasn't there. He wished fervently -he had taken that refresher course on hypnotism when they had offered -it to him two years ago. He wished he had not been such a softy as to -let himself be shunted off to look at that dizzy switchboard. He should -have taken a closer look at the showboat people. He wished ... but -hell, what was the use? Pallas' half-sized sun was up and today was -another day. - - * * * * * - -The meanest of all trails to follow is a cold trail. Or almost. Perhaps -the worst is no trail. It is hard to keep interest up. Then, too, -Pallas was a dull place--orderly as a church, where people simply -worked and behaved themselves. The days dragged by, and nothing out of -the way happened. Neville went through the motions of trying to sell -clothing in majestic lots of hundreds, but no one was interested. He -even talked vaguely of looking for a site for an outer warehouse for -his company. He saw Mr. Carstairs often and became a welcome guest at -the house. - -Yet with this lack of incident, Neville was at all times alert in -his study of the man he was watching. He could not help remembering -that little while after the showboat performance that Carstairs had -been absent from them. He particularly kept his mind open for any -slow change in him, such as could be the result of a mysterious -delayed-action drug or from post-hypnotic effect. But there was none -that he could detect, nor did the colonel notice anything of the sort, -though Neville spoke to him on the subject several times. - -The first indication that all was not well came from Mariquita -Carstairs herself. Neville happened in one day for lunch and found her -red-eyed and weeping. Then she added that she had worried a great deal -the last few days about her husband's health. - -"When I watch him when he doesn't know it," she said anxiously, "he -looks _different_--so wily, crafty and wicked. And he is not like that. -He is the dearest man in the world. He _must_ be sick." - -Neville left as early as possible, and at once consulted Frawley. - -"Yes," said the inspector thoughtfully, "she's right. In the last day -or so I've noticed a subtle change myself. I blundered into his office -the other day and he had his safe open and mountains of files all over -the floor. He was actually rude to me. Wanted to know what I meant by -barging in on him like that. Imagine!" - -The communicator on the wall buzzed. The signal light showed it was -the skyport calling. Neville could overhear what the rasping voice was -saying. - -"Peters at airport reporting. Mr. Carstairs has made reservation on -ship _Fanfare_ for passage to Vesta. Ship arrives in half an hour; -departs immediately." - -By the time Frawley had acknowledged and cut the connection, Neville -had already ordered the copter. - -"I'm on my way," he cried. "This is _it_! Give me a complete travel-kit -quick and an Extra-Special transformation outfit." - -Two minutes later Neville was on his way to the landing field, the -two valuable bags between his knees. He was there when the spaceship -landed, and was inside it before Simeon Carstairs showed up. The copter -soared away the moment he had left it. Carstairs would not know he had -a shadow. - -Neville went straight to the captain, whom he found resting momentarily -in his cabin. He flashed his badge. - -"I am your steward from here to Vesta," he told him. "Send for your -regular one at once and give him his instructions." - -"But my dear sir," objected the captain, rising from his bunk, "as -much as I would like to cooperate, I cannot do that. You must know -that under the new regulations all members of a ship's crew must be -photographed and the pictures posted in prominent parts of the ship. It -is your own police rule and is for the protection of passengers from -imposters." - -"Never mind that," snapped Neville, "get him in here." - -The steward came and Neville studied him carefully. He was a swarthy -man with heavy shoulders and thick features. His eyes were jet -black. But his height was little different from that of the special -investigator. - -"Say something," directed Neville, "I want to hear your voice. Recite -the twelve primary duties of a steward." - -The man obeyed. - -"It's okay," announced Neville when he had finished. "I can do it." - -He gave the captain a word of warning, then went with the steward to -his room. There he handed the astonished man a hundred-sol credit note -and told him to hit the bunk. - -"Here's your chance to catch up on your rest and reading," said Neville -grimly. "You don't leave that bunk until I tell you to, y'understand? -If you do, it will cost you five years in the mines of Oberon." - -The steward gasped and lay back on the pillow. He gasped some more when -Neville yanked his box of transformations open and spread its contents -on the table. His eyes fairly bulged as he watched Neville shoot -injections of wax into his deltoids and biceps until the policeman's -shoulders were the twins of his own. He saw him puff up his face, -thicken the nose and load the jowls, and after that paint himself with -dye, not omitting the hair. Then, marvel of marvels, he saw him drop -something in his eyes and sit shuddering for a few seconds while the -stuff worked. When the eyes were opened again they were as black as his -own! - -"How's dis, faller?" asked Neville in the same flat, sullen tone the -steward had used in the cabin. "Lanch is sarved, sor ... zhip gang land -in one hour, marm ... hokay?" - -"Gard!" was the steward's last gasp. Then he lapsed into complete -speechlessness. - - * * * * * - -Neville darted out into the passage. The baggage of the sole passenger -to get on at Pallas lay in the gangway, and its owner, Mr. Carstairs, -stood impatiently beside it. He growled something about the rotten -service on the Callisto-Earth run, but let the steward pick up the -bags. Then he followed close behind. - -"Lay out your t'ings, sor?" queried Neville, once inside the room. - -"No," said Carstairs savagely. "When I want anything I will ask for it. -Otherwise, stay out of my room." - -"Yas, sor," was what Neville said in return, but to himself "Phew! The -old boy _has_ changed. I don't know where I'm going, but I'm on my way." - -He had no intention of obeying Carstairs' injunction to stay out of his -room. That night he served the evening meal, and with it was a glass of -water. He had taken the precaution to drop a single minim of somnolene -in it--that efficacious sleep-producer permitted to only seven -members of the I.P., tasteless, colorless and odorless, and without -after-effect. - -In the second hour of the sleep period, the false steward stole down -the passage and with a pass key unfastened the door lock. There was -an inside bolt to deal with as well, but an ingenious tool that came -with the travel-kit took care of that. A moment later Neville was in -the slumbering man's room. Five minutes later he was back in his own, -and stacked on the deck beside him was all the baggage the magnate of -Pallas had brought with him. - -One piece opened readily enough, and its contents seemed innocuous. -But the methodical police officer was not content with superficial -appearances. He examined the articles of clothing in it, and the more -he looked the more his amazement grew. There were no less than four -sets of costumes in it. Moreover, they were for men of different -build. One stout, two medium, one spare. In the bottom was a set of -gray canvas bags--slip-covers with handles. Neville puzzled over them -a moment, then recognized their function. They were covers for the -very baggage he was examining. He had to use special tools to open the -second bag and found it contained a makeup kit quite the equal of his -own. - -"Ouch," he muttered. "This guy is as good as I am." - -The third and heaviest bag was a tougher job. It was double-locked and -strapped, and heavy seals had been put on the straps. The Extra-Special -travel-kit equipment took care of the locks and seals, but the -contents of the bag were beyond anything a travel-kit could handle. -They were documents--damning documents--neatly bundled up, each bound -with its own ribbon and seal. Had Neville had twenty-four hours in a -well-equipped laboratory with a sufficient number of assistants, he -might have forged passable but less incriminating substitutes for them. -As it was, he was helpless to do a very artistic job of switching. One -package dealt with certain long-forgotten passages in Mrs. Carstairs' -life, while others dealt with certain business transactions. - -From that case, Neville chose to abstract all of them except the one -which formed the outer wrapper. To make up the bulk he filled the -bundle with blank paper, tied it up again and resealed it. He dealt -likewise with the packet that contained the formulae for the radiation -extraction process. And, for the good of the Service, he pursued the -same course with regard to a rather detailed report on the foibles and -weaknesses of a certain police colonel stationed in Pallas. There was -not a hint of scandal or corruption in that, but often ridicule is as -potent a weapon as vilification. After that came the tedious business -of censoring the rest, repacking the bag as it had been, and restoring -the locks and seals. The gently snoring Carstairs never knew when his -bags were returned to him, nor heard the faint scuffling as his door -was rebolted and relocked. - - * * * * * - -"Vasta, sor, in one hour," announced his steward to him eight hours -later. "Bags out, sor?" - -"When we get there," growled the magnate, yawning heavily, glancing -suspiciously about the room. He locked the door behind the steward, -didn't leave until the ship was cradled. - -Neville watched him go ashore. Then he hurried in to see the skipper -again. - -"You will be compensated for this," he said hurriedly. "You can have -your steward back on the job again. How long do you stay here?" - -"Three hours, curse the luck. We usually touch and go, but this time I -have an ethergram ordering me to wait here for a special passenger. Why -in hell can't these hicks in the gravel belt learn to catch a ship on -time?" - -"Ah," breathed Neville. "That makes a difference. I think I'll stay -with you. Have you a vacant room where I can hang out for the remainder -of the voyage?" - -"Yes." - -Neville did another lightning change--back to Special Investigator -Billy Neville of the I.P.--uniform and all. He was standing near the -spacelock when the expected passenger came aboard. - -Neville could not suppress a murmur of approval as he saw his quarry -approaching. As an artist in his own right, he appreciated artistry -when he saw it. The man coming down the field was Carstairs, but -what a different Carstairs! He was more slender, he had altogether -different clothes on, he had a different gait. His complexion was -not the same. But the height was the same, and the bags he carried -were the same shape and size, except for their gray canvas coverings. -There was a little notch in the right ear that he had not troubled to -rectify in the brief time he had had for his transformation in what was -undoubtedly his pre-arranged hideaway on Vesta. - -"What is the next stop, skipper?" Neville whispered to the captain. - -"New York." - -"I'll stay out of sight until then." - -Any passenger on that voyage of the _Fanfare_ will tell you that her -captain should have been retired years before. He made three bad tries -before he succeeded in lowering his ship into the dock at the skyport. -The passengers did not know, of course, that he had to stall to permit -a certain member of the I.P. to make a parachute landing from the -stratosphere. - -Billy Neville hit the ground not four miles from the designated -skyport. A commandeered copter took him to it just in time to see the -squat passenger vessel jetting down into her berth. He looked anxiously -about the station. There was not a uniformed man in sight except a -couple of traffic men of the local detachment. He needed help and lots -of it. - -Neville had no choice but to play his trump card. It was a thing -reserved only for grave emergencies. But he considered the present one -grave. He took his police whistle out of his vest pocket and shrilled -it three times. It was a supersonic whistle--its tone only audible -to first-class detectives having tuned vibrators strapped over their -hearts. To sound a triple supersonic call was the police equivalent of -sending out an eighth alarm fire-call. But Neville blew the blast. Then -waited. - -A man strolled up and asked the way to Newark. - -"Wait," said Neville, only he did not use words but merely lifted his -right eye-brow slightly. It was not long before four others came up and -craved directions as to how to get to Newark. He lit a cigarette as -they gathered around. - -"The ship _Fanfare_ has just landed--out of Callisto with wayside stops -in the Belt. There is a passenger carrying three bags covered by gray -canvas. Tail him. Tail everybody he contacts. If you need help, ask -local HQ. If they can't give enough, ask Luna. But whatever you do, -don't make a pinch. This guy is small fry. My code number is...." - -Neville knew better than to flash a badge on these men, even if he was -in uniform. Both badges and uniforms could be counterfeited. But he -knew that they knew from his procedure that he was a department agent. - -"There he comes," he warned, and promptly ducked behind a fruit stall -and walked away. - - * * * * * - -Headquarters readily gave him a rocket and a driver to take him to -Lunar Base. He had no trouble breaking down the barriers between him -and the second most important man in the I.P.--the first being the -General-General in Charge of Operations. The man he wanted to see was -the Colonel-General, Head of the Bureau of Identification. - -Neville allowed himself to be ushered into the office, but it was not -without trepidation, for old Col.-General O'Hara had a vile reputation -as a junior-baiter. He was not at all reassured when he heard the door -click to behind him with the click which meant to his trained ears that -the door would never be opened again without the pressure of a foot on -a certain secret pedal concealed somewhere in the room. Nor did the -appearance of the man behind the desk do anything to relieve his own -lack of ease. - -O'Hara was a gnome, scarcely five feet tall, with bulging eyes and wild -hair that stood helter-skelter above his wrinkled face. He was staring -at his desk blotter with a venomous expression, and his lower lip hung -out a full half-inch. Neville stood rigidly at attention before him for -a full three minutes before the old man spoke. Then he looked up and -barked a caustic, "Well?" - -"I am Special Investigator Neville, sir," he said, "and I want the -pedigree of a certain notorious criminal whose picture is lacking in -the gallery." - -"Stuff and nonsense!" snorted the Colonel-General. "There is no such -criminal. Man and boy, I have run this bureau since they moved it to -the Moon. Why--oh, why--do they let you rookies in here to bother me?" - -"Sir," said Neville stiffly, "I am no rookie. I am a...." - -"Bah! We have--or had, at last night's report--eight hundred and -ninety-three of your 'specials' half of them on probation. When you've -spent, as I have spent, sixty-two years...." - -"I'm sorry, sir," urged Neville, "we can't go into that now. Do what -you want to with me afterwards, but I assure you this is urgent. I am -on the trail of a higher-up in the Callisto-Trojan extortion racket. Do -I get the information I am after, or do I turn in my agent badge?" - -"Huh?" said the old general, sitting up and looking him straight in the -face. "What's that?" - -"I mean it, sir. I have trailed one of the higher-up stooges to Earth -and set shadows on him. I _think_ I have seen the king-pin of the -mob, and I want to know who he is," Neville went on to describe the -presentation of the showboat entertainment, with special emphasis on -his hunches and suspicions. To the civilian mind, the things he told -might seem silly, but to a policeman they were fraught with meaning. -His description of the suspect was not one of appearance; it was a -psychological description--a description based wholly on intuition and -not at all on tangibles. He had not proceeded far before the wrinkled -old man thumped the desk with a gnarled fist. - -"Hold it," he said, "I think I know the man you mean. But give me -time--my memory is not what it used to be." - -Neville waited patiently at the rigid attitude of attention while -the shriveled old veteran before him rocked back and forth in his -chair with the lids closed over his bulging eyes, cracking his bony -knuckles like castanets. O'Hara seemed to have gone into something like -a trance. Suddenly, after a quiver of the eyelids, he stared up at -Neville. - -"It all comes back now. You were a member of the class of '14 and I was -instructor--a major then. I took all of you to see a certain show on -Broadway, as they call it, in order...." - -"Yes, sir," cried Neville, eagerly, "that was it! You told us the -principal character in the play was the most dangerous potential -criminal of our generation and that we should mark him well and -remember. It was a very hard assignment, for we only saw him from -before the foot-lights and he was acting the part of a Viking chieftain -and most of his face was covered with false white whiskers." - -Old O'Hara smiled. - -"You seem to have been an apt pupil. At any rate, that man was Milo -Lunko, a thoroughly unprincipled and remarkably clever blackmailer. -He was so clever, in fact, that we were never able to make an arrest -stick, let alone bring him to trial. That accounts for the absence of -his picture from the gallery. He was also clever enough to fake his -own death. The evidence we have as to that was so convincing we closed -the file on him." - -"It's open again," said Neville grimly. "How did he work?" - - * * * * * - -"Lunko was not only an actor, but a producer and clever playwright as -well. He might have achieved fame and fortune legitimately, but he -became greedy. He teamed up with a shady character named Krascbik who -ran a private investigating agency, specializing in social scandals. -Krascbik's men would study the private life of influential individuals -and dig out their scandals. They would provide Lunko with slow-motion -camera studies of them so he could learn the peculiarities of their -carriage, mannerisms, voice, and all their other idiosyncracies. - -"Lunko's next step would be to write a scurrilous play based on the -confidential information provided by Krascbik, and put it in rehearsal, -using characters that resemble the actual principals...." - -"But that's libel," objected Neville, "why couldn't you haul him in?" - -"Blackmail, young man, is a delicate matter to handle. The injured -party shrinks from publicity and usually prefers to pay rather than -have his scandal aired. Lunko never actually publicly produced -any of those nauseous plays. His trick was to invite the victim -to a preview--a dress rehearsal, then let Nature take its course. -Invariably, the victim was frightened and tried to induce him to call -off the presentation. Lunko would protest that the play had been -written in good faith and had already cost him a great deal of money. -The pay-off, of course, was always big. Lunko drove many people to the -brink of ruin. - -"One man did refuse to play with him, and turned the case over to us. -Lunko carried out his threat and produced the show, much to the delight -of the scandal-mongers. It was outrageously libelous and we promptly -closed the joint and took him in...." - -"And then...." - -"And then," croaked O'Hara, rolling his pop-eyes toward the ceiling and -pursing his lips, "and then we let him go. He had a trunkful of data -on many, many important people. Some of them, I hate to tell you, were -my seniors in this very Service. We could do nothing about it, for, -unfortunately, all the stuff he had on them was true. We might have -sent him to the mines for a short term, but he would have retaliated -by standing our entire civilization on its head with his exposures. We -compromised by letting him escape and go into exile. The understanding -was that he was never to come inside the orbit of Mars. A while after -that, he was reported killed in a landslide on Europa. We shut the book -and proceeded to forget him." - -"He mimicked the character exactly?" - -"Not exactly. Just enough to clearly indicate them. Although, I am -convinced that, if he chose, he could have taken off any person he had -studied, with enough fidelity to fool anybody except perhaps a man's -own wife." - -Neville gave a little start. That was the item that had slowed him the -most. Had Lunko improved his technique to the extent that he could even -fool a wife? Was the Carstairs he was trailing really Carstairs, or an -understudy? He had deceived both his old friend and his own wife for a -time, but even they had admitted noting a subtle change. Who was this -phoney Carstairs? Where was the real Carstairs? Or, Neville wondered, -was his original theory of drugs or hypnotism correct? - -"Thank you, General," he said. "You have been a big help. I have to go -over to Operations now and get the past and future itineraries of the -showboat. In another hour, I may begin to know something about this -case." - -"It's nothing," said O'Hara, promptly closing his eyes and folding his -knotty fingers on his breast. "It's all in the day's work. Luck to you." - -Neville heard the click as the secret door lock was released and he -knew the interview was terminated. He backed away, stepped through the -door and out into the corridor. - - * * * * * - -Neville went straight to the great library where the I.P. records are -kept. An attendant brought him the bulky folder on the old Lunko gang. -Neville found it engrossing reading, and the day waned and night came -before he had committed all its contents to memory. - -Billy Neville obtained a televise connection with Tellurian -headquarters. - -"How are your shadows doing?" - -He had already learned the real identity of the man he had trailed from -Pallas; he was an actor belonging to the original ring and went by the -name of Hallam. - -"Our shadows are doing fine," replied the officer at the other end, -"but your friend Hallam seems unhappy. He made two calls on a high -officer of the Radiation Corporation and after the second one he came -very angry and ruffled looking. He has also called on several other -persons, known to us as extortioners, and at least two of those are on -his trail with blood in their eye." - -"I know," chuckled Neville. "He sold 'em a bill of goods--rolls of -blank paper. They think they've been double-crossed. And they have, -only I'm the guy that did it. But say, we can't have him killed--not -yet. Better round up all his contacts and put 'em away, incommunicado. -I'm hopping a rocket right now and will be with you in a jiffy." - -It did not take the police long to make the little jump from Luna to -Tellus, and a couple of hours later Neville was confronting Hallam in -a special cell. In his hands he held a first-class ticket to Titan in -the Saturn group, which had come out of Hallam's pocket, as well as a -handbill of the showboat announcing an appearance there in the near -future. - -"I just wanted to study your current rig, Hallam," explained Neville, -opening up his makeup kit. "Impersonation is a game that more than one -can play at. I'm going in your place to Titan. I'm a _teeny-weeny_ bit -curious as to what happens to your victims. Extortion carries good -stiff sentences, but they lack the finality of that for murder." - - * * * * * - -The Neville that left the cell was the exact duplicate of Hallam, and -by dint of exacting search of the actor's trick garments and the use -of adroit questioning under pressure, the Special Investigator knew -exactly what he had to do. And he knew ever better, after the spaceship -he was riding settled down into the receiving berth on Titan. An -actor of Lunko's--a skinny, gaunt fellow--was on hand to meet him, and -a little later they conferred in a well-screened spot with three of -Lunko's jackals. - -"The layout here is a cinch," explained the skinny actor. "The two -biggest shots are the president of the Inter-satellite Transportation -Company and the fellow who owns the bulk of shares in the _phlagis_ -plantations. A year or so ago they were mixed up in a most ludicrous -near-scandal that people are still tittering over. A situation like -that is a natural for us. Lunko has already sent the script on ahead. -It's funny enough to tickle the town, but not so raw it will make the -principals sore. We will deal with them in the usual way, when they -come backstage after the show." - -"Uh, huh," said Neville, and asked to see the descriptions. They lit -up the projector and began running three-dimensional views of their -intended victims. The preliminary studies had been most comprehensive -and Neville knew before the hour was up that not a mannerism or -intonation of voice had been overlooked. To persons skilled in disguise -the problem was not so much one of imitation, but of introducing a -telling imperfection that would allay suspicion of a possible more -perfect imitation later. - -The remainder of their time until the showboat came, they spent in -gruelling rehearsals. - - * * * * * - -Neville watched the show from the wings and was gratified to note -the considerable sprinkling of plainclothes-men in the audience. The -show was good, as it had been before, and the audience was highly -enthusiastic. Then came the curtain call and the announcement of the -special performance. When the lights were down and his cue came, -Neville walked on and performed his silly role. Then there was a hubbub -of applause and wild calls for an encore. A few minutes later the -two men they had lampooned came backstage, grinning sheepishly, yet -apparently resolved to show themselves good sports. - -"You would have more privacy in the dressing rooms," suggested Lunko -suavely, and ushered each into the private closet of the man who -had just mimicked him. Neville found himself face to face with a -near-double. - -"Step on it," said Lunko harshly, who had followed. He flicked on a -peculiarly brilliant overhead light, and the startled victim looked -up at it with the helpless, hopeless gaze of a lamb being led to the -slaughter. "Change your makeup while I drag the dope out of him. I've -got another one to do after this, you know." - -Neville grunted and began plucking away the comedy elements of his -burlesque get-up. Then, with the deftness of long experience he made -his appearance match the poor dupe's to the chair. Meanwhile Lunko had -forced his victim into the depths of hypnotic trance and was extracting -all the secret knowledge that the snooping jackals had been unable to -obtain indirectly. - -"You've got it all, now?" asked Lunko, impatiently, "The combination of -his safe, his office and home habits? I've drained him dry, I believe." - -Neville nodded. - -"Stand back, you fool!" screamed Lunko, as Neville awkwardly stepped -against him just as he was about to swing the bludgeon that would -finish the now valueless victim, "we've just time to get this one into -the incinerator...." - -He never finished, for at that instant Neville sprang from the balls -of his feet and a heavy fist smashed into the blackmailer's jaw with a -crash that told of a shattered jawbone. Another battering ram of a fist -smashed him to the floor. - -Neville's high-frequency whistle was out and the shrill, inaudible -alarm tingling on the breasts of the key men waiting outside. Then he -was dashing for the adjoining dressing room where a similar little -drama was just being brought to its close. A swift jab of fire from -the blaster that appeared magically in Neville's hand sent the actor -to his death. Other policemen were dashing up and the second hypnotist -suddenly lost interest in his surroundings, going down onto his knees, -a mass of battered pulp. - -Then Neville sat down and began thoughtfully removing the makeup he so -detested. - -"I wonder," he complained to himself, "whether I'm ever going to get -that leave." - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Stellar Showboat, by Malcolm Jameson - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK STELLAR SHOWBOAT *** - -***** This file should be named 62255.txt or 62255.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/6/2/2/5/62255/ - -Produced by Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions -will be renamed. - -Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no -one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation -(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without -permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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