"You'll be knowing what a Forenzi jar is, no doubt?" said Garrity
caustically. "'Tis a lead container for battery solution. Yesterday
there were thirty of them in the storeroom. Today there are only a half
dozen left!"
Hanson said pettishly, "Now, Chief, be kind enough to conduct your own
search for the jars. I don't know anything about them. If you can't
watch your own equipment, don't complain to _me_ about it!"
"I'm complaining to you, sir," said the Chief, "for the verra simple
reason that 'twas one of your men who removed them from the locker.
Your third mate, Mister Biggs!"
"Biggs!" said Hanson. "Biggs!" His face reddened. He walked to the
intercommunication unit, jabbed the button that connected with Biggs'
quarters. "Mr. Biggs?" he yelped, "Chief Garrity is up here in the
turret asking about twenty-four lead containers that disappeared
strangely from his equipment locker. Do you know anything about--"
The diaphragm clacked an answer. Hanson started. His eyes bulged. He
yelled, "What?"
Again some metallic buzzing. This time Hanson didn't try to answer. He
tottered away from the 'phone.
"G-Garrity," he faltered, "will you be needin' the Forenzis before we
make port?"
"Well, 'tis not exactly _vital_--" admitted Garrity.
"But--why?"
Hanson made a weak gesture.
"Because they're--out there!"
"What?" I said. "Outside the ship? How come? Why?"
Hanson's eyes were haunted.
"Biggs," he said in a hollow voice, "thought they were garbage cans! He
used them to dispose of the rotten cargo!"
* * * * *
Well, there wasn't any danger of the Forenzis getting lost, anyway.
But do you know I even had to point _that_ out to Mr. Biggs? Yes. That
night I got a personal message for him, and I took it down to his
cabin. Being confined to quarters, he was lonely. He looked so abject
that I felt sorry for him, and lingered to talk for a while.
"I guess you think I'm a frightful dummy, Sparks," he said ruefully.
"And I know Captain Hanson thinks so. But--this is my first flight, you
know. And nobody ever told me what to use for garbage pails--"
"Look, Biggs," I told him, "there's no _need_ for garbage pails in
space. You can't just dump things out the airlock and expect to get rid
of them."
"But Captain Hanson said to junk the spoiled vegetables."
"Junk. Not dump! They should have been thrown into the incinerator.
You see, anything tossed out of the _Saturn_ in free space just
follows along with the ship." I grinned. "I'd hate to be one of the
spaceport attendants on Earth when the _Saturn_ comes in surrounded by
twenty-four lead satellites full of garbage."
He picked me up on that one quick as a flash.
"But--but they won't be with us when we land, Sparks. As soon as we hit
Earth's atmosphere, the friction will destroy the Forenzis and their
contents."