d us.

"Let's test this stuff out and see if it's X, Mart, while DuQuesne's out
of the way. If it is X, it's SOME find!"

Seaton cut off a bit of metal with his knife, hammered it into a small
piece of copper, and threw the copper into the power-chamber, out of
contact with the plating. As the metal received the current the vessel
started slightly.

"It _is_ X! Mart, we've got enough of this stuff to supply three
worlds!"

"Better put it away somewhere," suggested Crane, and after the metal had
been removed to Seaton's cabin, the two men again sought a
landing-place. Almost in their line of flight they saw a close cluster
of stars, each emitting a peculiar greenish light which, in the
spectroscope, revealed a blaze of copper lines.

"That's our meat, Martin. We ought to be able to grab some copper in
that system, where there's so much of it that it colors their sunlight."

"The copper is undoubtedly there, but it might be too dangerous to get
so close to so many suns. We may have trouble getting away."

"Well, our copper's getting horribly low. We've got to find some pretty
quick, somewhere, or else walk back home, and there's our best chance.
We'll feel our way along. If it gets too strong, we'll beat it."

When they had approached so close that the suns were great stars widely
spaced in the heavens, Crane relinquished the controls to Seaton.

"If you will take the lever awhile, Dick, Margaret and I will go
downstairs and see if we can locate a planet."

After a glance through the telescope, Crane knew that they were still
too far from the group of suns to place any planet with certainty, and
began taking notes. His mind was not upon his work, however, but was
completely filled with thoughts of the girl at his side. The intervals
between his comments became longer and longer until they were standing
in silence, both staring with unseeing eyes out into the trackless void.
But it was in no sense their usual companionable silence. Crane was
fighting back the words he longed to say. This lovely girl was not here
of her own accord--she had been torn forcibly from her home and from her
friends, and he would not, could not, make her already difficult
position even more unpleasant by forcing his attentions upon her.
Margaret sensed something unusual and significant in his attitude and
held herself tense, her heart beating wildly.

At that moment an asteroid came within range of the Skylark's watchful
repeller, and