tation and had failed to
establish itself in the training area. The intermediate host, it had
turned out, was a small amphibian that was susceptible to commercial
insecticide. It had been no trouble to eradicate. Systemic treatment and
cooking of all food had cleaned up the infective cercaria and individual
infections, and after six months of intensive search, quarantine, and
investigation, Kennon was morally certain that the disease had been
eradicated. The last four reports confirmed his belief.

He sighed as he leaned back in his chair. Blalok was at last convinced
that his ideas were right. The hospital was operating as a hospital
should, with a staff of twelve Lani kept busy checking the full wards.
Actually, it was working better than it should, since stationmasters all
over the island were now shipping in sick animals rather than treating
them or requesting outpatient service.

"Hi, Doc," Blalok said as he pushed the door open and looked into the
office. "You doing anything?"

"Not at the moment," Kennon said. "Something troubling you?"

"No--just thought I'd drop in for a moment and congratulate you."

"For what?"

"For surviving the first year."

"That won't be for two months yet."

Blalok shook his head. "This is Kardon," he said. "There's only three
hundred and two days in our year, ten thirty-day months and two special
days at the year's end."

Kennon shrugged. "My contract is Galactic Standard. I still have two
months to go. But how come the ten-month year? Most other planets have
twelve, regardless of the number of days."

"Old Alexander liked thirty-day months."

"I've wondered about that."

"You'll find a lot more peculiar things about Flora when you get to know
her better. This year has just been a breaking-in period."

Kennon chuckled. "It's damn near broken me," he admitted. "You know, I
thought that the Lani'd be my principal practice when I came here."

"You didn't figure that right. They're the easiest part. They're
intelligent and co-operative."

"Which is more than one can say about the others." Kennon wiped the
sweat from his face. "What with this infernal heat and their eternal
stubbornness, I've nearly been driven crazy."

"You shouldn't have laid out that vaccination program."

"I had to. Your hog business was living mostly on luck, and the sheep
and shrakes were almost as bad. You can't get away from soil saprophytes
no matter how clean you are. Under a pasture setup the