Some minutes later, young Barnes spoke apologetically:
"Beg pardon, sir," he said diffidently. "I must be stupid, sir, but I can't imagine any reason why vibrations or noise should make any difference on a planet. How could it do harm?"
"This is an ocean-planet," said Hardwick. "It might make people drown."
The young officer flushed. He turned his head away. And Hardwick reflected ruefully that the young were always sensitive. But he did not speak again. When they landed in the vast, spidery landing-grid—a vast metal grid-work a full half-mile high—Barnes would find out whether he was right or not.
He did. And Hardwick was right. The people on Canna III were anxious to avoid vibrations because they were afraid of drowning.
Their fears seemed to be rather well-founded.
II
Three hours after landing, Hardwick moved gingerly over grayish muddy rock, with a four-thousand-foot sheer drop some twenty yards away. The ragged edge of a cliff fell straight down for the better part of a mile. Far below, the sea rippled gently. Hardwick saw a long, long line of boats moving slowly out to sea. They towed something between them which reached from boat to boat in exaggerated catenary curves. The boats moved in line abreast straight out from the cliffs, towing this floating, curved thing between them.