"Well, that's part of your answer. Automatic shipping risks have become negligible. The rest of the answer is that we've avoided too obviously elaborate safeguards for Ym-400. If we put it on a battleship each time it was moved, the technological espionage brethren would hear about it. Which means that everybody who might be interested would hear about it. And once the word got out, we'd start losing the stuff regardless of safeguards to people who'd be willing to work out for themselves just what made it so valuable to the Overgovernment. As it is, this is the first sample of Ym-400 to go astray in the thirty-two years we've had it." "Two thirty-four kilogram cases," Fry said. "Is that a significant amount?" "I'm afraid it's an extremely significant amount," Camhorn said wryly. Fry hesitated, said, "There's something very odd about this, Howard...." "What's that?" "I had the definite impression a few hours ago that you were almost relieved to hear about the transport." * * * * * Camhorn studied him for a few seconds. "As a matter of fact," he said, "I was. Because of one thing. If this hadn't been obviously a criminal act, humanly engineered--if the transport, say, had simply blown up en route or vanished without giving an alarm...." "Vanished without giving an alarm?" Fry repeated slowly. "Without human intervention?" "If," said Camhorn, "any least part of the Ym-400 it was carrying had been radioactive, I wouldn't have been surprised to learn something like that had happened. But, of course, the shipment was stable. And stable Ym-400 has shown no more disturbing potentialities to date than the equivalent amount of pig iron. If it ever develops them, the research programs connected with the substance will be indefinitely delayed. They may have to be abandoned." He gave Fry his lazy smile. "Does that explain my apparent relief, Gus?" "More or less," Gus Fry said. "Would it be a calamity if those particular programs had to be abandoned?" "The Overgovernment would consider it a calamity, yes." "Why?" "If and when," said Camhorn, "the bugs get worked out of Ym-400, it may ensure our future control of space against any foreseeable opposition." Fry kept his face carefully expressionless. "So, naturally," Camhorn went on, "we'd prefer to keep dissident groups from playing around with the substance, or becoming aware of its possibilities." Fry said, "There seems to be at least one dissident group which has much more complete information about Ym-400 than, for example, the Interstellar Police Authority." Camhorn shook his head. "We can't say how much they really knew, Gus. The theft might have been arranged as a speculative operation. There's enough loose money in large quantities around to make that quite possible." Fry grunted. "Do you have any definite suspects?"