"There's an American anthropologist here I'd like to see. He's
internationally known. Name of J. Walter McGowan. I made a tentative
appointment yesterday. I'm sure he will have some information on the
Ifugaos that will be of interest. Probably Okola has included in his
papers on the subject everything McGowan knows, but I'd like to talk
with him just to get the feel of things, so to speak."

"Then why don't you do that this morning?" Rick suggested. "We'll get
the truck, load the gear, and get ready to take off."

"Wonder where that Filipino Angel is?" Scotty asked. "Wasn't he supposed
to be here this morning?"

"I don't think Okola specified a time," Tony replied. "And the morning
is still pretty young."

That was true enough, Rick thought. Besides, he had the impression that
the Filipinos, although they followed Western customs, had the Far
Easterners' disregard of time.

"If the Angel doesn't arrive, one of us will have to drive the truck to
Baguio," he said. "I had hoped he would take the truck, then we three
could fly."

Scotty asked, with deceptive casualness, "Tony, what do you think of Dr.
Okola?"

Tony answered promptly. "A first-rate scientist and a distinguished
gentleman besides. Why?"

"Do you trust him?"

"Implicitly. We're not dealing with a stranger here, Scotty. Okola's
name has been known to me since I first became interested in
archaeology. We have many mutual friends, and he has been very helpful
and courteous since this project was first proposed. Yes, I trust him."

"That's good," Scotty said, "since we're buying the services of this
Angel purely on his say-so. We'll have to trust Angel. We have no
choice."

"True. I'm prepared to trust him, simply because Okola said we could."

Rick nodded agreement. "I'll take him on faith, too." He had learned not
to be overtrustful in far places among strangers, but he agreed with
Tony's estimate of Okola. The man, he believed, was just what he seemed
to be--a Filipino scientist and gentleman. He had liked Okola.

"All right," Scotty said. "I'll go along. Okola seemed like a real
_compadre_. But how about Lazada? Do you trust him?"

Tony considered. He finished his papaya, then tackled a mango salad, an
unusual but delicious breakfast dish. "I don't _dis_trust him," he said
finally. "That's negative, but the best I can do. He's not the type of
individual who appeals to me very much, but without further evidence I'd
hesitate to mark him untru