"Hell, no!" the consul said decidedly. "Venus, Mr. Vanning, is _not_
Earth. We've got about two hundred settlements scattered here and
there; the rest is swamp and mountains. When a man gets lost, we wait
a few days and then write out a death certificate. Because once an
Earthman leaves a settlement, his number's up."
"So?"
"So Callahan isn't here. Nobody comes here," Goodenow said bitterly.
"Settlers do," Vanning remarked.
"Bloody fools. They raise herbs and _mola_. If they didn't come,
Venus would be uninhabited except by natives in a few years. The
North-Fever ... You'd better watch out for that, by the way. If you
start feeling rocky, see a doctor. Not that it'll help. But you can be
put under restraint till the fever passes."