Lawri said, "Jeffer, let me show you something." She eased up next to him and tapped at the controls, whispering. Her shoulder blocked Clave's view. Clave's mind still raced, seeking flaws ... he was looking for holes in a harebrain net! There was no way to make mutiny smell sweet.

"Are we bringing the spitgun? No, of course not." The weapon Mark had been carrying when he was captured was now in custody of the Chairman. "Gavving, it's in the older part of my hut, what used to be the common room. If you don't have the spitgun, you're not the Chairman. Get it before anyone notices."

Rather scrambled back through the airlock. Gavving, Ryllin, and Lawri left. Jeffer let them get well clear before he pulled away on the little jets.

The tree receded. Three tiny citizens fluttered toward the elevator dock, A cage had nearly reached the dock. One of the occupants was shrieking and waving its fists.

"Somebody must have found Mark," Debby said. "Relax, Clave, we only tied him up."

"Yeah. But if I'd known a rescue party was coming . . . skip it. You'd have closed the airlock in their faces. 1 hope you treefeeders can find something worthwhile in the Clump. It's my reputation on the line now."

Section Two

THE LOGGERS

Chapter Seven

The Honey Hornets

from the Citizens Tree cassettes:

YEAR 384, DAY 1590. JEFFER, SCIENTIST. WE HAVE DEPARTED CITIZENS TREE TO EXPLORE THE FOURTH LAGRANGE POINT, WITH ATTENTION TO RESOURCES AND POPULATION. THE MISSION AS OUTLINED IS REVISED AS FOLLOWS: CHAIRMAN CLAVE NOW LEADS. THIS EXPEDITION HAS BECOME AN APPROVED ACTIVITY OF CITIZENS TREE. I NOW TURN THE LOG OVER TO CHAIRMAN CLAVE.

CLAVE, CHAIRMAN. CREW CONSISTS OF JEFFER AS SCIENTIST AND CAPTAIN, CITIZENS DEBBY AND RATHER, BOOCE AND CARLOT SERJENT AS GUIDES, AND MYSELF. PRIORITY AT ALL TIMES WILL GO TO PROTECTING THE CARM AND OTHER VITAL PROPERTY OF CITIZENS TREE. NO KNOWLEDGE IS WORTH GAINING UNLESS IT CAN BE REPORTED TO CITIZENS TREE.

CARLOT WAS WATCHING OVER THEIR SHOULDERS.

"You use-"

"Prikazyvat End log," said Jeffer.

"-the same dates we do?"

"Why not?"

"Well, how do you know?" Carlot demanded. "Years, you just watch for the sun to go behind Voy, but what about days? We sleep a couple of days out of five, right? But maybe you lose count-"

"Who cares?" Clave said. "Who knows how many days there are in a year? It depends on where you are."

Jeffer summoned up numbers on the panel. "The CARM logs a standard day, about four and a half per sleep. We used to keep marks on sticks in the Scientist's hut. How do you keep time?"

Carlot said, "The Admiralty posts the time."

Booce laughed. "They must get it the same way! The Library looks a lot like this panel, Jeffer. Like somebody ripped out this part of the CARM."

"Keys like this too?"