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 She's about eleven. I never saw such a kid."

When they rose from the table later, Steve lifted Garth into his arms.

"I'll bet I know what you want to do," he said. "You're pining to go out and see what those ships are saying to each other. Come along, let's look." He stole a furtive glance at Elspeth. "Your mother's going to say you ought to go to bed—I see it in the corner of her starboard eye—but you're not going, are you?"

"What a dreadfully demoralizing creature you are!" cried Elspeth. "Implanting all these revolutionary ideas in my son's mind! But this seems to be a special night, and he might as well keep on with the gay pace. He wouldn't sleep, if I did put him to bed, so out with you!"

They all went outside and sat on the bench and on the rock. Steve sat at Jim's feet, with Garth on his lap, and they looked toward the ships. Although it was not yet fully dark, and the sky still held the deep emerald of late twilight, the destroyers had begun their evening signaling. From the masthead of the Billington two white lights, close together, flashed with bewildering rapidity.

"Don't you really find this much harder than