"Sure, ain't you ever heard of the Lost Mine?"
Stiffy blew beer in amazement.
Oliver Meek shook his head, feeling that probably he was the victim of tales reserved for the greenest of the tenderfeet, not knowing what he could do about it if he were.
Stiffy settled more solidly in his chair.
"The Lost Mine story," he declared, "has been going around for years. Seems a couple of fellows found it a few years after the first dome was built. They came in and told about it, stocked up with grub and went out. They never did come back."
He leaned across the table.
"You know what I think?" he demanded gustily.
"No," said Meek. "What do you think?"
"The Prowler got 'em," Stiffy said, triumphantly.
"But how could there be a lost mine?" asked Meek. "Asteroid City was one of the first mining domes built out here. There was no prospecting done until about that time."