man's thumb and index finger, each of them was capable of firing a thousand shots without reloading. The tiny needle-like bullets were made of toxite, a metal which was harder than glass, tougher than steel and more poisonous than aconite. Projected by minute charges of a super-explosive called radatomite, one of these minute bullets could stop the charge of an elephant at a range of fifty meters or more.
THE five creatures that Captain Hawkins led to the corner of the barrack-room a few minutes later were a disreputable looking gang. Tattered and dirty, shivering with cold, their eyes still heavy with fatigue, they hardly looked capable of leading a revolt against the ruthlessly formidable forces of the Martain slave-drivers. But Sullivan, expert as he was in evaluating human character, was able to penetrate the superficial disguises with which their abjectness and haggardness had clothed them, and he quickly perceived that Hawkins had selected wisely and well.
Speaking softly but clearly in Espevolapuk, the language which all Earthmen understood, Lieutenant Sullivan said: "I take it for granted that if you thought you had a good chance to escape alive from this miserable hole, you would much rather run the risk of being killed in the act of fighting your way out than remain here where you are cerain to die horrible deaths anyway. What do you say, fellows—am I right?"
Unanimous murmurs of assent assured him that he was.
"A. Z., Earthmen. Here's the plot. To each of you I'm going to give three of these poison needle guns. Whether you are familiar with them or not, you can easily use them. All you do is point in the direction you want to shoot and squeeze the trigger. One of these guns is more than a match for a Martian electrolysis gun—providing of course that you shoot first.
"The time set for a revolt is sundown this evening. That will give you the advantage of escaping under the cover of darkness. Captain Hawkins will give the signal by whistling through his fingers. When you hear this whistle each of you, with as many assistants as you can recruit in the meantime, will turn on the nearest Martian guard and tie him up. Try to avoid unnecessary bloodshed, but if any one of the guards makes a move to use his gun or to signal for help, shoot him instantly.
"Between now and sundown, we depend on you to pass the word around among your fellow slaves. Each of you is to keep one of the guns yourself and give the others to two of your companions on whom you know you can rely. It is hardly necessary for me to tell you that you must be extremely cautious so that none of the guards will suspect the plot. Is that all clear?"
One of the slaves, a huge, bearded brute of a man with a horribly disteded abdomen—obviously the result of an encounter with a Martian electrolysis gun—growled: "Suppose we do kill or tie up the guards, how are we going to get away from this Hell-on-Mars?"
"It will be up to you five men to figure that out," Sullivan told him. "You know more about this planet and the habits of the inhabitants than I do. I'll be absolutely frank with you and tell you that we have a spaceship hidden near here but it is a small one—only large enough for the particular ones we came here to rescue. Perhaps that sounds a bit selfish, but
