en two steel poles on the roof of the store. The
sack of groceries--it was a special strong canvas sack--were on the
cable and needed only to be reeled into the plane.

It worked fine. The only trouble was that Rick had never collected eggs
intact. The shock of the pickup was a little too much. When he solved
that problem, he would make arrangements with the electronic supply
house in Newark to let him put up the same kind of rig. Eventually, he
hoped, he would get so efficient that he never would have to land on the
mainland except to deliver a passenger or to pay a personal visit.

Rick and Scotty checked the plane over with the greatest of care, and
then Rick got in and started the engine. He let it warm up, watching his
instruments. Everything was fine. He motioned to Scotty, who was
watching and listening from outside.

Scotty got in, and Rick taxied to the end of a runway. While he revved
up the engine, Scotty obtained take-off permission from the control
tower, and in a few moments they were air-borne, enjoying the sudden
drop in temperature.

"First time I've stopped sweating in a week," Scotty said.

Rick nodded and motioned to pump up the landing gear. The hydraulic
system worked on a hand pump between the two front seats. It was not as
satisfactory as a motor-driven pump, but it took no electric power and
used up no valuable weight. Besides, a few strokes on the pump did the
job. He leveled off at five thousand feet above the city.

Below, the Pasig River cut the city in half. They traced the line of the
great wall around Intramuros, the ancient walled city, and they found
the white mass of the American Embassy across Dewey Boulevard from some
very modern apartments. They passed over the Manila Hotel, then saw the
ruins of infamous Fort Santiago.

Inland, the land was lush green with high mountains rising in the
distance. To the north lay Mountain Province, and behind the screen of
mountains was their destination.

There was still work to be done, so Rick reluctantly took the Sky Wagon
down again. It was in perfect condition; no need for further flight.

They lunched at a modern drive-in on Dewey Boulevard, the split-lane
highway that runs along the edge of Manila Bay, then picked up their
crates of supplies at customs. This was a light expedition, so there
were only three crates. One held their camp gear and trail clothing.
Another crate held Tony Briotti's special tools and reference books. The
th