The ransom money was restored to its proper source. Spawn's treasure of radiumized quicksilver we shipped back to Nareda, where it was checked and divided, and Jetta's share legally awarded to her. De Boer was dead when Hanley found him that night on the rocks. Jetta and I did not go to look at him.... The balloon basket landed safely. Hanley and his men were down there in time to seize it. Hans was caught; and Gutierrez, within the sack, was found to be uninjured. They are incarcerated now in Nareda. They were willing to tell the location of the bandit stronghold. A raid there the following day resulted in the capture of most of De Boer's men. All this is now public news. You have heard it, of course. Yet in my narrative, setting down the events as I lived them, I have tried to give more vivid details than the bare facts as they were blared through the public audiphones. An episode of the strange, romantic, fantastic Lowlands. A very unimportant series of incidents mingled with the news of a busy world--just a few minutes of the newscasters' time to tell how a band of depth smugglers was caught. But it was a very important episode to me. It changed, for me, a clanking, thrumming machine-made world into a shining fairyland of dreams come true. It gave me little Jetta. (_The End_) Vagabonds of Space A COMPLETE NOVELETTE _By Harl Vincent_ [Illustration: _Carr went mad with fury. There it was, looming close in his vision._] [Sidenote: From the depths of the Sargasso Sea of Space came the thought-warning, "Turn back!" But Carr and his Martian friend found it was too late!] CHAPTER I _The Nomad_ Gathered around a long table in a luxuriously furnished director's room, a group of men listened in astonishment to the rapid and forceful speech of one of their number. "I tell you I'm through, gentlemen," averred the speaker. "I'm fed up with the job, that's all. Since 2317 you've had me sitting at the helm of International Airways and I've worked my fool head off for you. Now--get someone else!" "Made plenty of money yourself, didn't you, Carr?" asked one of the directors, a corpulent man with a self-satisfied countenance. "Sure I did. That's not the point. I've done all the work. There's not another executive in the outfit whose job is more than a title, and you know it. I want a change and a rest. Going to take it, too. So, go ahead with your election of officers and leave me out." "Your stock?" Courtney Davis, chairman of the board, sensed that Carr Parker meant what he said. "I'll hold it. The rest of you can vote it as you choose: divide the proxies pro rata, based on your individual holdings. But I reserve the right to dump it all on the market at the first sign of shady dealings. That suit you?" The recalcitrant young President of International Airways had risen from the table. The chairman attempted to restrain him. "Come on now, Carr, let's reason this out. Perhaps if you just took a leave of absence--"