ly life."

"I hadn't thought much about that, but it can't be too bad, I suppose. I
presume my choice would be quite severely limited to a fellow colonist?"

"Correct."

"There is a story about my third or fourth grandfather who was given a
girl to marry the night before he sailed from his homeland to settle in
a new country. They had seventeen children and were said to be
extraordinarily happy. My family still owns the homestead they cleared.
I was born there."

"It can be done, but it doesn't conform closely with our currently
accepted social mores," said Ashby hopefully.

"I'm sure that won't stand in my way. If there's a woman who's willing
to take a chance, I certainly will be."

"There's one more thing we have to know," said Ashby. "What are you
running away from? Who or what are your enemies?"

Jorden laughed uncertainly. "I'm sorry, but I'm not running away from
anything. As far as I know I have no enemies."

"_All_ colonists are running from something," said Ashby. "Otherwise
they would stay where they are."

Jorden regarded him a moment in silence, then smiled slowly. "I think
you are going to have occasion to revise that thesis," he said.

"A great deal of history would also have to be revised if we did," said
Ashby. "At any rate, let's go down to the test pits. I'll show you
what's in store for you there, and you can further decide if you insist
on going through with it."

* * * * *

The laboratories of the Institute of Social Science were spread over a
forty acre area, consisting mostly of the test pits where experimental
examination of proposed colonists was being conducted. Ashby led his
visitor to the ground floor where they took a pair of the electric
cycles used for transportation along the vast corridors of the
laboratory.

A quarter of a mile away they stopped and entered a glassed-in control
room fitted with a number of desks and extensive banks of electronic
equipment.

"This almost looks like a good sized computer setup," said Jorden
admiringly.

"We use computers extensively, but this equipment is merely the
recording and control apparatus for the synthetic environment
established in the test pit. Please step this way."

The control room was empty now, but during a test it was occupied by a
dozen technicians. It was a highly unorthodox procedure to show a
prospective colonist the test pit setup before examination, but Ashby
still had hopes of s