"Charles L. Harness-The Araqnid Window" - читать интересную книгу автора (Harness Charles L)

"Do you know what you have just shaken to pieces?" He held up a handful of shards.
"No, sir," gulped Thorin. "What?"
"A pollen box!"
 "A pollen box, sir?"
"Yes, "a pollen box, sir.' Pollen was a delicacy the Araqnids fed their Llanoan mounts, just as we feed
pieces of sugar to a horse. They kept it in little pottery boxes. Such as this used to be."
"Well, sir, I will be happy to restore it. I can glue the pieces back together."
"I'd never trust you with it. And even if you knew how, the pollen is gone, totally blown away. The box
was full of it. When the box broke, the wind completely scattered it. Not a grain left. Nothing to give our
botanists. They could have identified the plants." He studied Thorin glumly, "I am being punished. But
why? What have I don't to deserve this?" He shook his head and stalked away.
***


* * *


4. The Pack
***


At the evening lecture the professor expounded on practical matters. "The competent archeologist
carries a knapsack into the field. This knapsack should contain the necessary working tools, nothing
more. You will need a small folding shovel: the so-called trench shovel. And a mason's pointing trowel. A
small hoe. You can make one by sawing off most of the handle of a small garden hoe. Next, a small
camp ax. A jackknife. And for cleaning the artifact, a small paint brush. If the artifact is fragile, you may
want to strengthen it immediately with celluloid-acetone solution before you even take it from its matrix.
We had a case this afternoon..." He looked over at John Thorin severely.
The instrumentalist squirmed. The pollen box was all over the camp, now. Was the professor going to
bring it up again in front of everybody?
But the professor had other ideas. "Mr. Thorin, do you have a knapsack?"
"Yes, sir. Sort of."
"Sort of?"
"I made my own back-pack, sir."
"It has, of course, the things I just mentioned?"
"Well, perhaps not all of them, sir."
"Could you demonstrate your pack, Mr. Thorin?"
"Well, I guess so. Just a moment, sir, while I get it."
Perhaps this was an opportunity to redeem himself. Actually, he was rather proud of his pack. There
were some pieces of special equipment in it that he had made in the tool shop back at the museum. He
ran all the way to the tent and back.
"Here, sir." He put it on the lecture table. "It zips open here."
"Yes. And what is this?"
"A coverall, sir. Very light. Folds to a very small size, as you can see. There are gloves, and wrappers
for the feet. Covers the body from head to toe."
"Why would one want to cover the body from head to toe, Mr. Thorin?"
"Well, rain, sir?"
"Do you know the last recorded rainfall in this area, Mr. Thorin?"
"No, sir."
"It was before you were born. Well, now. What is this?"