The hills were composed of a rich, dark mould. Small trees, of weird
shapes, all differing from each other, but all purple-coloured,
covered the slopes and top. Maskull and Joiwind climbed up and
through. Some hard fruit, bright blue in colour, of the size of a
large apple, and shaped like an egg, was lying in profusion
underneath the trees.

"Is the fruit here poisonous, or why don't you eat it?" asked
Maskull.

She looked at him tranquilly. "We don't eat living things. The
thought is horrible to us."

"I have nothing to say against that, theoretically. But do you
really sustain your bodies on water?"

"Supposing you could find nothing else to live on, Maskull--would
you eat other men?"

"I would not."

"Neither will we eat plants and animals, which are our fellow
creatures. So nothing is left to us but water, and as one can really
live on anything, water does very well."

Maskull picked up one of the fruits and handled it curiously. As he
did so another of his newly acquired sense organs came into action.
He found that the fleshy knobs beneath his ears were in some novel
fashion acquainting him with the inward properties of the fruit. He
could not only see, feel, and smell it, but could detect its