A novelette which, in slightly revised form, now makes up the opening chapters of the novel The Stainless Steel Rat - see The Stainless Steel Rat.

HH: "I was practising narrative hooks and wrote one that hooked me so much (the first three prargraphs...) that I had to keep going to find out what happened next." (Bibliographia (1951-1965))

PUBLICATION HISTORY

  • Astounding Science Fiction, August 1957, p.41-59. Illustrated by Frank Kelly Freas.

  • Astounding Science Fiction, December 1957 (British edition).

  • Science Fiction Stories, edited by Tom Boardman. London: Octopus, 1979, hbk.

    Read this story here.