“How do we know he’s not perpetrating a deliberate hoax?”

“But, Leonard, that’s a pretty serious accusation.”

“It’s happened before.  That fellow who carved a Late Upland Martian inscription in that cave in Kenya, for instance.  Or Hellermann’s claim to have cross-bred Terran mice with Thoran tilbras.  Or the Piltdown Man, back in the first century Pre-Atomic?”

Mallin nodded.  “None of us like to think of a thing like that, but, as you say, it’s happened.  You know, this man Rainsford is just the type to do something like that, too.  Fundamentally an individualistic egoist; badly adjusted personality type.  Say he wants to make some sensational discovery which will assure him the position in the scientific world to which he believes himself entitled.  He finds this lonely old prospector, into whose isolated camp some little animals have strayed.  The old man has made pets of them, taught them a few tricks, finally so projected his own personality onto them that he has convinced himself that they are people like himself.  This is Rainsford’s great opportunity; he will present himself as the discoverer of a new sapient race and bring the whole learned world to his feet.”  Mallin smiled again.  “Yes, Leonard, it is altogether possible.”

“Then it’s our plain duty to stop this thing before it develops into another major scientific scandal like Hellermann’s hybrids.”

“First we must go over this tape recording and see what we have on our hands.  Then we must make a thorough, unbiased study of these animals, and show Rainsford and his accomplice that they cannot hope to foist these ridiculous claims on the scientific world with impunity.  If we can’t convince them privately, there’ll be nothing to do but expose them publicly.”

“I’ve heard the tape already, but let’s play if off now.  We want to analyze these tricks this man Holloway has taught these animals, and see what they show.”

“Yes, of course.  We must do that at once,” Mallin said.  “Then we’ll have to consider what sort of statement we must issue, and what sort of evidence we will need to support it.”

* * * * *

After dinner was romptime for Fuzzies on the lawn, but when the dusk came creeping into the ravine, they all went inside and were given one of their new toys from Mallorysport—­a big box of many-colored balls and short sticks of transparent plastic.  They didn’t know that it was a molecule-model kit, but they soon found that the sticks would go into holes in the balls, and that they could be built into three-dimensional designs.

This was much more fun than the colored stones.  They made a few experimental shapes, then dismantled them and began on a single large design.  Several times they tore it down, entirely or in part, and began over again, usually with considerable yeeking and gesticulation.

“They have artistic sense,” Van Riebeek said.  “I’ve seen lots of abstract sculpture that wasn’t half as good as that job they’re doing.”