f hand. I think we'd better get everybody over to the
Administration Building as soon as possible."

"All right," Gallifa said quietly. "Only--"

"Only what?" MacFarland asked sharply.

"What if everybody in camp isn't available," Gallifa said flatly. He
opened the door and stepped into the rain.

The Administration Building was hot. The windows were steamed over, and
the men nearest to them had wiped clear spots with their hands, as if
they could not bear the thought of not being able to peer out into the
night.

The room buzzed with a kind of orderly confusion. The men were scared
and they made no effort to conceal it. Gallifa studied a slip of paper
covered with tally marks, and then quickly stuffed it into his pocket.

Ten men were now missing, not counting the ones already in the hospital.
They couldn't be accounted for, so it had to be assumed they were either
sick--or dead.

It had been decided that Gallifa and Dr. Thorndyke were the best
qualified to take charge of the camp, until normality returned. Gallifa
studied the men carefully.

"We haven't much to go on," he said with grim candor. "We're still in
the dark as to what is happening. We only know that when it takes place,
it happens damn fast--and without discrimination. Men have been affected
both in and out of camp.

"So far, here are the facts. To the best of our knowledge none of the
men have been bitten by animals and we haven't found any poisonous
plants. Dr. Thorndyke is considering the possibility that some unknown
virus which affects the brain may be responsible. He's over in the
laboratory running tests now. If it is a virus, grouping together like
this might be a mistake. We'll load everybody up with antibiotics and
hope for the best. We've got to lick this!"

"Until now," Gallifa continued grimly, "no one has been hurt except the
stricken men. We want to keep it that way. One fact stands out bluntly.
All of the men have been damned anti-social. They want to be left alone,
and will attempt to kill anyone who gets close to them. That should make
them easy to spot. If we are to have a chance to cure them, we have to
catch them first."

"We are going to have to consider the likelihood that more of us will be
affected. We must do everything within our power to isolate those
suspiciously-acting persons. Probably the ship Mac and I discovered
didn't have the warning I am giving to you now. We can lick this thing
if we're determined enough.