"Fuel!" Judy snorted. "I don't know whether it would even be right to let the government ships land here. Those coarse, uncultured crews might contaminate our natives; they're so impressionable, you know."
"But isn't it wonderful," Jane, the peacemaker, put in, "how they've thrived on terrestrial food. I think that must have a lot to do with the remarkable way they've developed."
Harnick's anger was lost in shock. "You mean you've been giving them your rations? But surely there wasn't that much food, even with the emergency stores!"
"Well," said Judy, "they don't eat as much as we do, of course. And you'd be surprised how tasty the native roots are. We've grown quite fond of them; in fact, I doubt whether we'd be able to stomach terrestrial food by now."
The odor from the pot grew stronger and even less appetizing. There was nothing wrong with either the light, Harnick realized, or his eyes. The faces of the four members of the survey team were really quite blue.
THE END