The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1900-01-10

table, and made, first, copy OF the
writing in Spanish and, afterward, an
English translation of the same.
To do this had been difficult and
tedious task, and more than once, as
the parchment cooled and the ink
faded, he had been obliged to leave
off, to recover the writing by the magic
of heat; but at last it was completed,
and the well-hidden secret, translated
into English, read as follows:
1.-The spot is twelve PAGES from
sycamore-tree, out Of whose roots grow
twelve separate arms Tor trunks, per-
haps). On the arm Tor one of the
trunks) is cut the rude outline of an
Indian woman, the much-wronged an
cestress of the American Mendozas.
There the treasure was buried on the
night of October IL, 1892, by a de-
scendant of the Indian princess and
her treacherous husband. 1t is be-
lieved that her spirit guards the spot.
The treasure can only be found by
true descendants of the Mendozas. 1t
can only be rightfully possessed by
true heirs, male and female, mutually
beloved and joined together in lawful
wedlock. This secret can only be
read by Mendoza. To all others
this parchment is blank. Every true
Mendoza inherits in some form the
birthmark of our Spanish ancestry,
and in some degree the mystic, spirit
ual gifts of our Indian ancestry. 10
that heir who discovers this treasure,
and whose heart is honest and his soul
pure. be blessing and honor and all
happiness in its possession; but to
that heir who wrongfully acquires this
treasure, and whose heart is deceitful
and his soul impure, may it bring sor-
row aud loss and all the train of evils
cast abroad by the wrong done to the
Indian woman from whom we are de-
scended."
The drawing of q little flower, whose
star-like blossom seemed to tremble
on its slender stem, completed the
hidden message of the parchment, and
under it was written the word can
acaona," through which was drawn an
Indian arrow.
"Well," exclaimed Stanley, as he
leaned back in his chair, call the in
dications point me out as the true
heir! I have deciphered the cryptic
graphl I have discovered the mystic
riously hidden message! I bear on
my brow the birthmark of the Men
dozas, and apparently I possess some
mystic gift, or I couldn't 30 readily
have thrown the learned professor into
trance-though of all my claims to
be true descendant of the Mendozas,
this last one pleases me least; unless,
indeed, it proves valuable in giving
me control over that beautiful Spanish
girl"
This reflection drew his attention
again to. the still unconscious Pro-
fessor Van Tassel; but he failed to see
that the mans face showed even paler,
more worn and pinched than it had
yet looked, while his eyes were so
deeply sunken and turned upward un-
der their closed lids that they seemed
almost lost in the sockets.
"Ihave made out the whole story"
said Stanley gayly. as he placed his
hand on the parchment, from which
the appearance of the writing had
again faded quite away, and here I
have the whole secret of the Mendoza
treasure at the tips of my fingers"
"I know it. I hav, followed you
through it ALL" answered Van Tassel.
His voice was very faint and sounded
further away than when he had last
spoken, but Stanley's own senses were
80 sharpened by excitement, that he
failed to notice the change; "but are
you the heir who is likely to obtain
happiness in the possession of the
TREASURED"
"Am I the heir?" exclaimed the
other, "of course I am the heir!
What do I care for the curse Of
that dusky princess? I believe in
nore of that rubbish! Let me but
get these hands of mine on the treas
ure, and the curse may take wings to
itself"
"But you will not be the only heir;
in your character of the Honorable
Clarence Stanley, and making. your
claim through the Countess Winder-
mere, will not your elder brother and
his family claim an equal share of the
treasurer
A look of perplexity for moment
came into the face of the listener.
II certainly did not consider that"
he said, sharply, "but no matter In
the first place they are not immortal
both may die; and, besides, the treas
ure belongs to him who unearths it.
I will share it with no one except the
fair senorita, and she is sanity enough
to avert all possible evil. Tell me,
my wise friend, now that you are in
what you call superior condition.
shall l ever gain the love Of Dolores
Mendoza?"
"She will never love you, but there
is some strong bond between you. L
cannot tell what it is. She is too far
away from me and from you. It may
be the mysterious tie of blood and in
herited tendencies. You may gain q
power over her, through that you
may perplex and influence her, but I
can see no more"
"No need to, old fellow That's
enough" interrupted Stanley. "Let
me gain an influence over any woman,
and I will take care of the rest. They
are but weak creatures at the best,
and already I noticed difference in
that girl. She no longer shrank from
me to-day as she did on the occasion