"Martin H. Greenberg & Mark Tier - Visions of Liberty" - читать интересную книгу автора (Greenberg Martin H)

through tubes built to protect their tracks from the swirling sands. When they reached the steep slopes of
the surrounding mountains, they emerged to become cog railways.

At one of the railheads, swinging down from the single passenger car that was attached to an
interminable string of empty ore cars, Birk Dantler encountered a sign that announced Laughingstock
Mines. A short distance beyond it, he found a tiny town nestled amidst the clutter of the mining operation.
There were machines to load ore into the railway cars. Farther up the slope, there were machines
extracting ore from the mountain. Other machines were bringing ore to the railhead. The town was little
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more than a spread of small worker's cottages except for a neat, prefab building that housed the mining
offices, and, standing next to it, another prefab building that was, unmistakably, a school.

All of this represented a substantial capital outlay for a mining claim on a remote world, which meant that
the mines collectively known as Laughingstock were productive enough to provide that capital.

Dantler went directly to the mining office and asked a clerk for information. The clerk looked at him
narrowly. "You got a reason for being here, fellow?"

Dantler presented his credentials. The clerk glanced at them and winced. "GBI? You're a Galactic
Bureau of Investigation Officer? What's the Inter-World Council want with us?" When Dantler did not
answer, he shrugged and grinned. "Your credentials say anyone who doesn't cooperate with you will be
deported instantly, and that's reason enough to cooperate. You must know personally all of the many
skeletons in the Llayless Mining Corporation's closets to be able to pry a document like that out of it." He
returned the credentials. "What is it you want to know?"

"Nothing complicated, I'm sure. Where is the mine called Last Hope?"

"That's fairly complicated until you get through the Laughingstock diggings. After that there's a path. I'd
better draw you a map." He went over it with Dantler, and when he was satisfied that his directions were
clear, he leaned back and scrutinized Dantler's energy-charged form, taut face—no one had ever called
him handsome—and neat, conservative dress. "You prepared for a long walk?" he asked.

"Isn't there any transportation?"

"There are a couple of pack mules, but they're kept on the other side of the mountain. Figure on a long
walk."

"How do they bring the ore out?"

"Slowly and with great difficulty. When they've accumulated enough, they load the two pack mules and
fill two or three handcarts. All the men they have take the day off and haul ore. The Llayless Mining
Corporation built them a short siding off our railway line, and it keeps an ore car parked there. When
they get it filled, the Corporation hauls it away and leaves an empty for them. That's as much as it's willing
to do for a marginal operation. The men at Last Hope confidently expect the vein they are working to get
richer instead of playing out as most marginal mines do. All miners are optimists."