The catman's steps faltered. This alien, that had come from some distant star, was definitely primate in evolution. He knew primates -- they had primates on Sscantoo, here -- and primates were nasty animals. They were filled with curiosity -- mass curiosity -- that had been the basis for a platitude on Sscantoo: "Curiosity saved a mansee. " When you killed or wounded a primate, the woods would fill up with curious, chattering hordes of his fellow-primates. It made life rather dangerous unless you were prepared to fight your way out.
And this curious fellow was none the less a primate in spite of the fact that his face bore the stamp of civilization and he wore clothing. He was curious -- even more curious than one of the Sscantovian apes. He walked forward boldly in spite of the fact that he was a prisoner and must know that fact. The catman wondered how bold the primate would have been if his ship had landed of its own free will -- or had landed despite the objections of his six ships.
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