 How did Martians get aboard the ship?
Illustrated by WOOD My agent was the one who got me the job of going along to write up the first trip to Mars. A you-are-there type of report? So I went on the first trip to Mars. Trip time is supposed to take 260 days (that's one way), so we're aimed toward where Mars will be (had better be, or else). A pilot, co-pilot, navigator and biochemist. I've met all but the pilot (he's very busy today), and they seem friendly enough. The inertial gravities didn't bother me so much as the gyroscopic spin they put on the ship so we have a sort of artificial gravity to hold us against the curved floor. He passed my room on the way to the galley (the kitchen) for a cup of dark brown coffee (they like it thick) and told me that we were almost past the Moon. I asked to look, but he said not yet; the instrument panel is Top Secret. Also, I am one of the first five men in the history of the world to see the opposite side of the Moon, with a bluish blurred crescent beyond it that Pat said was the Earth. Actually, he explained to me, the screen is supposed to keep the image of space locked into place no matter how much we spin. I told him I hoped it didn't mean we'd land on Mars upside down. With Martian rime, Venusian slime, And a radioactive hoe. June 18, 1961 Mars has the whole screen filled. No sign of canals, but Pat says that's because of the dust storm down below. We're going to land, so I have to go to my bunk. Kroger says the air is breathable, but thin, and it has too much dust in it to be any fun to inhale. He's all for going out and looking for lichen, but Pat says he's got to set up camp, then get instructions from Earth. Walked for maybe an hour; then the oxygen gauge got past the halfway mark, so I started back toward the rocket. Kroger said to try and walk toward where the ship seemed to be, even when it wasn't in view, and meantime they'd come out after me in the jeep, following my footprints. Finally saw the real ship, and Lloyd and Jones waving their arms at me.
 Jones brought two sugar crystals aboard.
 Kroger brought two sugar crystals aboard.  Lloyd brought two sugar crystals aboard.  Pat brought two sugar crystals aboard.  Jones brought two sugar crystals aboard.