When the small boat carrying Johnson and the Gregory party was run down by an oil tanker, things looked bad for our friends. Covered with magnetic paint which had been sprayed on them from a Euclidean plain, all were powerless to help themselves in any way, and the little boat was badly smashed, throwing them into the water. However, they were all prepared as to what to do. As the boat broke up, each member of the party managed to get some part of their bodies across or on a piece of the boat, and the tanker put about it once and picked them up. Jerry, Captain Bradford, and Johnson are in the ship's radio cabin, while we find Mrs. Gregory and Joan wrapped in dry blankets in the captain's cabin. Well, Joan, my dear, it seems to be a little hard for your mother to land in her own country. Our progress has been rather erratic, mother, but I feel we have done well to accomplish so much against the opposition of G-47 and his Euclidean. I agree with you. Escape certainly wasn't easy, but at last we're home, or nearly so. This oil boat we are now on, is it taking us into the harbor? Yes, Joan. The tax explained to the captain that there were a number of reasons why we didn't want to send in for a water taxi or a harbor patrol boat to come out after us. There are many things I cannot understand about your world and the great secrecy with which you surround the most commonplace things, but one thing I like very much. And what is that, dear? Everyone seems so kind, so willing to aid everyone else. Your personal comfort means a great deal. Here we are on a strange boat. We did not know the captain, he did not know us, and he was out of the harbor on the beginning of a long cruise, yet he is returning us safely to the landing. Why, of course, dear. His boat ran into us, didn't it? Which was entirely our fault. Well, granted, but common courtesy on the high seas would demand that he take us to a place of safety. And the captain allows us to use his own cabin. We are given his warm blankets to keep us dry and comfortable. You have lived in a hard, cruel atmosphere, Joan. I did not know that until you came and told me of another manner of life. You are showing me many nice things, Mother. And you are showing us some nice things, Joan. Just the everyday commonplace things that we have so many of in our world and which are really very precious privileges, of which we forget to appreciate. You are teaching me a new respect for the comforts in my world. And Mr. Johnson, he is so obviously a gentleman, and yet he guards your interest as closely as if he were in your employ. Well, Johnson is, in a sense, an employee, but he was Captain Bradford's first sergeant in the war, and he's been with me for 14 years. Johnson is almost one of my family. Mother, what does rich mean? Rich? Well, don't you know that simple word, Joan? I know what it means to the scientists. They often speak of some mineral or metal being rich in certain properties, but I think there must be another meaning. Well, what are you trying to figure out there? Well, I am not sure, but Jerry once told me that you were a very rich woman. Does that mean you are rich in mineral properties or rich in food value? Oh, well, not exactly, Joan. In our world, we frequently refer to people who have a great deal of money and may enjoy most of the world's pleasures as rich or wealthy people. Then you are rich, are you not, Mother? Why, yes, Joan, I suppose I am, though I've never given it much thought. You see, money doesn't mean a great deal when you've always had it, but it means life itself to those who are not so fortunate. I would not like to make you less rich, Mother, yet I would enjoy seeing something of those large stores Jerry tells me of, and I would like some dresses such as you wear. Jerry tells me your garments are very expensive. Would your riches suffer badly if I were to have some dresses like yours? Oh, well, of course not, you dear silly little girl. You'll have lots of dresses and anything else you want when we get settled at home. Jerry has a bicycle. He told me about it. May I have a bicycle? Why, of course you may. Anything within reason. What is a bicycle, Mother? You will see when the time comes. When does the time come? Joan, you act as if you were about five years old or even younger than that, but of course you can't understand all the things Jerry talks about, such as bicycles and picture stars. I will be very ignorant in your world, Mother. Why, Joan dear, you won't be anything of the kind. Oh yes, I will. You were very ignorant when you came to the island. Oh, well, I... Yes, I suppose we were from your point of view. You, Lydia, was no more strange to you than your world will be to me. And we'll try to remember that, Joan, and be very patient with you in making all our explanations. Come in. It is Jerry. You bet it's Jerry. Jerry on the job. Well, come in and close the door and tell us what Tex and Johnson are doing. Oh, they're doing swell. Well, are we nearly to the pier? About ten minutes now and we'll step off on dry land. Oh, Joan, we're almost home. I will be very glad to see your home, our home. Boy, I'll sure be glad to see mine too, and Dad will be some surprise to see me. He must have been very lonesome without you, Jerry. Oh, he'll get over that fast enough. When I start asking him a million questions why he's trying to work... I should think your father would become very tired of you, Jerry. You what? Why, Joan, that's a strange thing to say to Jerry. It sure is. I mean that if Jerry speaks as much and says as little as he does when talking to me, it would not be deeply interesting to his father. Well, I like her. Oh, now, Jerry, remember that Joan hasn't learned what our family relationships mean to us, and she can't possibly realize that your father would be interested in every word you said, whether it was about this trip or one of your hobbies or anything else. I do not know many of your customs, Mother. You learn very fast, Joan. Now, suppose we put aside our exchange of educations for a few moments and talk about our present situation. Jerry, just what is the captain doing? Captain Bradford, I mean. Oh, he and Johnson are with the skipper of this oil tanker. Boy, oh boy, and they're sure making that radio work overtime. They are calling to stations on land? Well, I'll say they are calling everything that will answer. But isn't that dangerous, Jerry? Dangerous? In what way, Joan dear? To the captain's plans. He wanted to preserve an air of absolute secrecy about our landing, and I agreed with him that it was advisable. Now Jerry says the news is being thrown open to all radio stations. Hey, I didn't say that. Oh, that's the impression you gave, Jerry. Well, I didn't get a chance to finish what I started to say. Tex is sending plenty of messages all right, and some of the land stations are getting them. But he's not telling them the right story. You mean Tex isn't telling them we've been rescued? Not by a long ways he isn't. He's telling them that we're on a tramp steamer 300 miles out and that we won't be in here for a couple of days yet. That would be a very clever story if it were not for the fact that your land stations will be able to localize those messages and know exactly where they are coming from. Mm-mm, I don't believe we need to fear that, John. You see, there aren't a dozen stations in the country with equipment to do that, well, even possibly well. And Tex is staying away from those stations. You can be very, very sure of that. I should think that would be advisable. Mm-hmm, and that's just what he's doing. The only stations they're talking to and the only wavelengths they're using are a lot of hams, the Captain knows. They'll pass the story out just as they get it and nobody will be any wiser. Mm-hmm, and if that story is generally circulated, we should have a good many hours of privacy before any of the Euclidean agents discover that we're in town. That's an idea, and those hams will be excited over the story enough that they won't be worrying about where it came from. What is a ham, Jerry? Huh, a ham? Yes, what do you mean by a ham? A ham is an amateur radio operator. A fellow has a radio station of his own and works it just because he likes to. That is interesting. Are there many hams? Oh, thousands of them. Oh, yes, Jerry is a ham, aren't you? You bet I am. You see, my dad and I have got one of the best sets in Southern California. Come in. Oh, come on in, Tex, and join the powwow. I'll do that. It looks like a powwow at that with you two all wrapped up in blankets. Well, now, Captain Bradford, we're warm and dry and comfortable, and our Indian appearance isn't bothering us one little bit. I say, as far as I'm concerned, you look fine. Sure do to me. Well, what did you find out? I think my story got over all right. Hmm, no one suspects we're landing from this boat? Not a soul. How will we go ashore without being observed, Captain? Well, the captain's taking care of that. He's really got more supplies on board than he needs, and the men who help load the stores, they'll remember that. So there won't be any suspicion aroused when the captain says he picked up some stuff by mistake. And as it looks like large cases in which most anything might be contained, he's just going to drop a few cases back on the pier, and we'll be in them. You don't mean we'll be in the cases. Right, and we won't get hurt. That should not be difficult. Well, I wasn't thinking of the difficulty of landing in those cases. But, Tex, what about the rescue? Well, surely someone in the harbor must have heard that crash and knows about this boat running us down. Yeah. Say, I forgot about that. What are they going to say to the captain when he comes in without any survivors from that wreck? And after all, Tex, the packing case thing isn't much of an excuse for turning an ocean-going tanker around when he's out in the open channel. That's all taken care of. Johnson will be the survivor, in fact, the only survivor. And as Johnson went out alone on that boat, it's going to look perfectly all right, friend. We'll be rescued alone, isn't it? Gee, that's smart. It certainly is. Johnson is a survivor. Just as he should be. That is a very clever plan, Captain Bradford. You are indeed the most resourceful man I have ever known. Ah-ha. Flowers for you, Tex. And thank you, Joel. But I can't take the credit for that. Johnson thought that one up. He sure did a good job. Now, Jerry, look, I want you to run along up and see what you can do to help Johnson the skipper. I'll join you in a minute and give Pat and Joel a chance at dress. OK, Tex. I'll see what goes on. Hey, don't be long. Don't be long. You know, we're mining near the pier. Right, Jerry. You'd better get out of here too, Tex. If we're that near the pier, Joan and I had better be dressing. Yes, I know that. But I wanted to get Jerry out of here long enough to tell you something I didn't want him to hear. Oh, yes, Tex. Is there any trouble, Captain? No, Joel, just something to smooth out. Oh, what is it, Tex? Well, one of the amateur radio operators I talked to, and thank heavens it was after Jerry came back here, was Jerry's dad. Jerry's father? Oh, how wonderful, Tex. Then he knows Jerry's safe. Yes, on the contrary, he thinks Jerry's on the high seas, still in danger. Oh, of course, your message. But what a shame to worry him like that. I didn't dare tell him the truth. Anyone could have heard it. But that should be a simple matter. We will be in Los Angeles soon, will we not? In about an hour. Then Jerry's father will know he is safe in an hour. That won't be so bad, Tex. After waiting all this time. Oh, I know that part of it. But I just wanted to ask you if you'd phone Jerry's dad as soon as we land and sort of break it to him gently. Might be quite a shock if he runs in on his father and, well, I can't do those things. Don't worry, Tex. I'll break it gently. Hey, hurry up. We're there right now. Don't, Tex. We're home safe and sound.
