Kingman's voice raced across Terra to Hawaii, went on the communications beams of the sky-pointing reflectors, and rammed through the Heaviside Layer to Luna. At the Lunar Station, his voice was mingled in multiplex with a thousand others and placed on the sub-ether beams to Venus Equilateral.
Don Channing answered the 'phone. "Yes?"
"Kingman, Dr. Channing."
Don grunted. He did not like to be addressed by title when someone who disliked him did it. His friends did not; Kingman's use of the title made it an insult.
"Look," said Kingman, "what do you want to use those blocks for?"
"We've got a job of checking dimensions."
"Nothing more? Do you need the metal for electrical reasons?"
"No," said Don, "what have you in mind?"
"Our tool shop is nicely equipped to grind glass gauges. We can do that better than grinding Jo-blocks. Can you use glass ones?"
"Hang on a minute." Channing turned to Walt. "Kingman says his outfit uses glass gauges. Any reason why we can't?"