We were speedily getting nearer to earth and of course, during these two days we continually had very important conferences with Sun-Rank Banard.
He prepared a friendly message of greeting from the Martians, to be delivered to our President.
Forty-eight hours after a last friendly parting with the Martians we embarked in our own plane and were cut loose from their ship. A few of our veterans were experienced air pilots, who operated it.
Since some of them had to return to their hospitals on the west coast for medical attention, Sun-Rank Banard agreed to let our plane out over the stratosphere so that we could land on the west coast of the United States.
It took us a little time to land at Hamilton Air Field. In the meantime the Congressman wired our President of our safe arrival, and requested an appointment so as to report to him all what happened to us, as well as to deliver to him the Martian message.
The President then called for a full secret cabinet meeting, and invited certain congressional leaders, as well as a few of the most prominent scientists. He wired us to report and also to bring along with us all of those who came back from the Martian trip.
We landed on our own planet and after our veterans were given their medical treatments at the hospital, we all again re-embarked on a flight to Washington for the President's engagement.
Finally the great day arrived. Foreign diplomats, United Nations delegates, Supreme Court judges, party leaders, many others and senators, congressmen, labor union presidents, industrialists—all were cooling their heels in the lobby of the President's office, impatiently waiting to see him. The appointments with some had been delayed for more than three hours, and with others postponed, an unheard-of occurrence.
It was a most important conference the President was having with a few scientists, congressmen, and those of us who had returned from Mars. Even the Washington columnists couldn't fathom what was going on. Except to those who were attending the meeting it has been kept a complete secret.