The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1895-12-20
HEART OF THE WORLD.
by H. RIDER HAGGARD.
Strange Story From Manuscript Bequeahed BY OLD
Mexican Indian His Comrade
Englishman
Old
,yrishted. "a. by H. Rider Haggard.

| 10 grow up, tnaJ thel G has never depart
ed from our family the desire to win
back the crown that Guatemoc lost, or,
| at least. to drive out the accursed
Spaniards and their spawn, and to es-
tabliSh an Indian republic. To this
end we have heaped up wealth for gen.
erations, that it might serve us
when the hour was ripe, and because
of this wealth, by which the secret
! could not altogether be hid in land
which is full of spies, some of us have
come to cruel deaths, as | am about to
| do tonight
Nevertheless, say to him that i lay
no commands upon him as to these mat
tiers, seeing that he must follow his
own will about them, for | cannot for
get that from generation to generation
those who went before him have reaped
nothing but disaster in their struggle
against the white devils, whom, because
of the sins of our fOrefathers, it has
pleased God to set over us
"Those were your fathers words, my
son, which he spoke to me in the hour
before his murder. And now you will
understand why l said you must wait
before you determined to be priest. If
that is still your wish it can be fulfilled,
for your father left it with you to fol-
low the life yOu might desire"
When he had finished speaking l
thought for awhile and answered.:
''While my fathers blood is unavenged
l cannot become priest"
sit is as thought" said the old man,
with sigh. THAT cursed talisman
which lies about your neck has begun
its work with you, Ignatio, and you
will tread the path that the others trod.
| ho fn 10 in hnr
| Indians came to Tiapa disguised as
porters. whose mission it was to lead
me to the mountains among which my
father had lived. and where his treas
ures still lay hidden.
On the third day of my journey we
reached a narrow pass in the noun
tains, beyond which lay an Indian viii
lage. Here my guides took me to the
house of one Antonio, to whom the
padre Ignatio had given me letters. an
old man of venerable aspect, who
greeted me warmly and introduced me
to several caciques who were staying
with him, did not know why.
So soon as we were alone in the house
one of these caciques, after addressing
me in words that | could not under
stand, asked me if l had heart. To
this | replied that | hoped so, whereat
they all laughed. Then the man An
tonic, coming to me, unbuttoned my
shirt, revealing the talisman that had
belonged to my father, and at the sight
of it all the company bowed.
Next the doors were locked, and, SEN
tries having been posted before them,
ceremony began which even now il is
not lawful that should describe in de-
tail, wherein l was first initiated into
the mysteries of the Order of the Heart,
and afterwards installed as it's heredi-
tary chief. thus becoming while vet
boy the absolute lord of many thousand
men, brethren of our order, who were
scattered far and wide about the land.
On the day after | had taken the
final oaths Antonio handed over to me
the treasure that my ancestors boarded
in secret place, which my father had
left in his keeping. and it was great
treasure, amounting to more than a
million dollars in value.
Now | was rich, both in men and
money, still, following the counsel of
Antonio, l abode for awhile in the viii
lage, receiving those who came to visit
me from every part of Mexico as Holder
of the Heart, and as first in rank among
the fallen peoples of the Indians.
Some three miles from the village
where dwelt lived two sisters, Indians
of noble blood, though poor, one of
them a widow and the other a very
beautiful girl, younger than myself.
1t CHANGED that | was riding past their
house upon certain Sunday evening
when most of the inhabitants of the
valley were away at fiesta, and heard
screams coming from it.
Dismounting from my horse l ran in
at the door, which was open. and saw
one of the sisters, the widow, living
dead upon the ground, while two ban
dts. MexicaDs, were attacking the
younger woman. Drawing my ma
chete, l cut them down.
Now after this the girl whose life 1
had saved came to dwell in my village,
where | saw much of her. So lovely
was she and so clever that soon she won
my heart, and the end of it was 1 mar
ried her, against the advice of Antonio
and others of my brethren of the order.
The more | thought on them the
more the wrongs of my countrymen,
the real owners of the land, took hold
of my mind. till at length they pos
sessed it utterly, and | became an en-
thusiast and a visionary, making it the
object of my life to form great con-
spiracy and bring about rising of the
Indians in every province of Mexico
upon a given day, and then when the
SpaniardS and their baStarls. the Span
ish MeXicans, had been stamped out to
reestabliSh the empire of the Aztecs.
For year or more was the greatest
power in Mexico. and yet, though hun
dreds were privy to my secret, it was so
well kept that no whisper of it came to
the ears of the government. At length
all was ready, and % carefully were my
plans laid that success seemed certain.
Just before the time fixed for the rising,
it was agreed that my wife should be
placed, as one of whom we could be
sure, as a servant in the house of man
who ruled Mexico in those days, that
she might spy upon him.
Instead of that. she. my wife, fell in
love with him. 1t is easy to guess the
rest. One n ght. but week before the
appointed time. | and some five or six
others, the leaders of our party, were
seized. My companions were made away
with secretly. but | was brought before
the great man, who received me alone,
holding pistol in his hand.
Il know all your plans. friend" he
said. Il know also that you have a
great treasure in gold hidden away
Now, friend, i!.s; &c you fair offer
hand over this treasure to me, and
Won shall 90 free. -r,.ft1Sf tn do 81 and |