ours of his vigils at the board--Margaret took it upon herself to do
the same thing for Crane. But often they assembled in the engine-room,
and there was much fun and laughter, as well as serious talk, among the
four. Margaret was quickly accepted as a friend, and proved a delightful
companion. Her wavy, jet-black hair, the only color in the world that
could hold its own with Dorothy's auburn glory, framed features
self-reliant and strong, yet of womanly softness; and in this genial
atmosphere her quick tongue had a delicate wit and a facility of
expression that delighted all three. Dorothy, after the manner of
Southern women, became the hostess of this odd "party," as she styled
it, and unconsciously adopted the attitude of a lady in her own home.

Early in their flight, Crane suggested that they should take notes upon
the systems of stars through which were passing.

"I know very little of astronomy," he said to Seaton, "but with our
telescope, spectroscope, and other instruments, we should be able to
take some data that will be of interest to astronomers. Possibly Miss
Spencer would be willing to help us?"

"Sure," Seaton returned readily. "We'd be idiots to let a chance like
this slide. Go to it!"

Margaret was delighted at the opportunity to help.

"Taking notes is the best thing I do!" she cried, and called for a pad
and pencil.

Stationed at the window, they fell to work in earnest. For several hours
Crane took observations, calculated distances, and dictated notes to
Margaret.

"The stars are wonderfully different!" she exclaimed to him once. "That
planet, I'm sure, has strange and lovely life upon it. See how its color
differs from most of the others we have seen so near? It is rosy and
soft like a home fire. I'm sure its people are happy."

They fell into a long discussion, laughing a little at their fancies.
Were these multitudes of worlds peopled as the Earth? Could it be that
only upon Earth had occurred the right combination for the generation of
life, so that the rest of the Universe was unpeopled?

"It is unthinkable that they are all uninhabited," mused Crane. "There
must be life. The beings may not exist in any form with which we are
familiar--they may well be fulfilling some purpose in ways so different
from ours that we should be unable to understand them at all."

Margaret's eyes widened in startled apprehension, but in a moment she
shook herself and laughed.

"But there's no reason to