A. Bertram Chandler - One Came Back

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ONE CAME BACK

By GEORGE WHITLEY

The freighter's crew was ready to rescue the survivors of the first two-way

rocket trip to the moon, until—

IT WAS one of those distressing meals. Personally, I can sympathize with the Old Man. We all have

our pet aversions (mine is snakes, real ones) and to find such an object in one's food makes one inclined

to take the ship apart with one's bare hands.

In the Old Man's case it was insects.

And he found a cockroach in his soup.

The Mate didn't improve matters. He suggested that it would have been worse, much worse, if he'd

found only half a cockroach.

I thought that Pop was going to be literally, physically sick. A greenish pallor overspread his usually

ruddy features, and he gulped once or twice.

But he regained control.

"Tell the Chief Steward I want him. At once!" he barked at Watson, who was waiting at table.

Just then the News came on.

The speaker on the after-bulkhead had been ladling out music, dreamy, Viennese waltzes that had

formed merely a pleasant background to the conversation. But when the smooth voice of the announcer

informed us that the News would follow in just under half a minute, Watson turned up the volume control

and all of us fell silent. Strange, how these wartime customs still persist. . . .

This time, however, the News was such as to make it well worth our while to belay the chatter and

listen—just like old times, when we were thrilled to hear of the collapse of Italy, the invasion of the

strongholds of the Axis, the flight of the Austrian paper hanger, the fall of Berlin.

The set was tuned to the B.B.C., in some ways rather a pity. The Americans would have made this

news item sound as thrilling as it actually was. Even so, one could sense the intense undercurrent of

excitement just beneath the announcer's calm, too calm, voice.

"It has just been revealed," he said, "by Doctor William Hendry, the Astronomer Royal, that a small

object has been detected which is, undoubtedly, en route from the Moon to Earth. Dr. Hendry refused to

make a definite statement, but admitted it seems probable that the object is one of the seventeen manned

rockets that have made the trip from the Earth to the Moon only to vanish into the unknown.

"It is, of course, too early to hazard an opinion as to whether it is one of the British ships or one of

those launched by the Americans and Russians, but the astronauts, whatever their nationality, can be

assured of a welcome such as no son of this planet has ever before received.

"When interviewed, Dr. Hendry gave it as his opinion that the ship will fall in the Pacific Ocean. All

vessels in this area will be warned to keep a good lookout for the explorers. The Admiralty announces

that British and American naval units and aircraft are standing by to institute a thorough search should the

rocket fall far from shipping lanes.

"Listeners will recall. . . ."

But the rest of the news was drowned by an excited babble of conversation from the officers' table.

"So they've done it at last!" said the Old Man. "Who'd have thought, in the days of the war when we

were all playing around with all kinds of rocket weapons, that it would lead to this in so short a time?

"Think of it, gentlemen, the first men back from the Moon.

"The reception they get will make Lindbergh's look like the Vicar's tea party."

"Oh, do you think that it'll be us that picks them up, sir?" excitedly squeaked little Chadwick, the

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A. Bertram Chandler - One Came Back

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