Free Danny Dunn and the Anti-Gravity Paint by Jay Williams Page B

thing?” the Professor finished, holding up a flat piece of plastic.
    Danny scratched his head. “I don’t remember what it is,” he said, “but it must be good for something, or I’d have thrown it away.”
    â€œThat is quite a collection,” the Professor said. “Please don’t turn out any other pockets if you can help it.”
    Danny grinned. “I know. Sometimes I’m afraid to put my hands in my pockets, because I never know what I’ll find.”
    Dr. Grimes, who had been bending over the pilot’s table paying no attention to what was going on, now turned around.
    â€œBullfinch,” he said, “I’ve got our course worked out.”
    â€œAh! Where are we heading?”
    Dr. Grimes passed a weary hand over his eyes. When he spoke, it was to say only one word: “Mars.”

CHAPTER FIFTEEN
    Bounced!
    Danny finished checking over the cases of food and straightened up with a long sigh. It was some weeks since they had gone flying off the earth, and he had found that you could get used to living in a spaceship—even one heading for the mystery of another planet.
    As they drew closer and closer to Mars, each took turns watching the planet through the ship’s telescope. The rest of each day was given over to the chores of keeping house, and the two boys spent a certain amount of time in instruction on operating the different instruments and in classes given by both the Professor and Dr. Grimes in mathematics, astronomy, chemistry, and physics. The two men also spent a good deal of time trying to get the relay working again, but without success.
    One of Danny’s jobs was the daily check of the supplies so that they could plan which foods to ration. The problem of food had been made a little easier by the existence of the air-supply garden, where they raised Dr. Grimes’s roses as well as green vegetables and some fruits.
    Danny closed the door of the storeroom behind him. In the garden there was a steamy green smell. Professor Bullfinch was bending over some plants in a tank, looking very curious indeed because he now had quite a full beard.
    â€œOuch!” he exclaimed as Danny flew in. “I wish we could grow thornless roses.”
    â€œWhy don’t you wear gloves?” Danny suggested.
    â€œIt’s not my hands but my beard I’m talking about. It gets tangled in the thorns.” He straightened up. “I wish we’d brought a razor along. But then, I didn’t plan so long a stay in the ship.”
    Danny smiled wanly. “It sure is different from what I used to daydream. I used to make up stories about rocket flight and fighting enemies on other planets—and here we are, fighting roses and doing mathematics.”
    The Professor looked shrewdly at him. “Something’s troubling you, my boy,” he said. “What is it?”
    Danny caught hold of a loop of rope; they had tied a number of them in various places to serve as handholds.
    â€œWell, you know,” he said, stumbling a little over the words, “it’s—it’s my fault. The whole thing, I mean. Whenever I look at Joe, I can’t help thinking—he never wanted to take a trip into space. I got him into this. And I can’t get him out again.”
    The Professor stroked his beard. “Hm. Yes, you did get him into this. And he’s lucky to have you for a friend. So am I, as a matter of fact.”
    Danny raised his head. “What? Why do you say that?”
    â€œIf it weren’t for you, my boy, we might not have discovered the anti-gravity paint in the first place. Your hasty action which knocked over the beaker led to this.”
    â€œOh,” said Danny. “I never thought of that.”
    â€œWell, it’s so. I think you’ve learned your lesson. You must think ahead and plan carefully if you want to be a scientist. But on the other hand, there are times when a scientist must be