Smart man, Bruckner—he knew how to handle natives ... but they knew even better how to deal with smart terrestrials!
chest of the next man to reach him, but they pulled him down then and held him helpless.
The natives had paused when they saw the Earthmen grab Majesky.
Now Bruckner made his voice heard above the noise. "Bring him over here!" he yelled.
Two men pinned Majesky's arms while a third held one kicking leg. They dragged him over to Bruckner.
"You damn, dumb fool!" Bruckner cursed fervently. He raised his voice. "All of you," he ordered, "back to the ship!"
The natives made no attempt to stop them.
Sweets glanced back over his shoulder at Chief Faffin as they went. He was standing and intoning sadly, "Lacigule, lacigule, lacigule."
* * * * *
The following day, Bruckner called Sweets to his quarters.
"That was a rotten piece of business last night," Bruckner said. "But I'm proud of the way you acted. You did some mighty quick thinking there."
Sweets grunted. He knew the flattery was leading to something.
"I've been giving the matte
