Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1909-09-01


here at once" put in hastily, Hold
on, Johnson, until We get this ship.
shape. An axman, with q helper to
haul back the ice out Of the way, is
al we need. Any moro would only
be in the way; besides. some of us
ought to be on deck. It is going to re
quire hours, maybe days, to get that
chest out, and meanwhile We must sail
this vessel and keep her right side up
The thing to do il to arrange relays,
and keep at it steady Johnson, you
and Kelly go to work first The rest
Of us will climb up into the cabin, and
figure 1t out"
They went along with me up the
49," - ''>c-,~h thew were prisoners
casting the last lingering glances DO
] low, where the weird fame OF the
candle fiickered yellow, the blows OF
the cleaver echoing sharply as they
clustered about the stove. welcoming
the warmth of it. It had been frigid
below decks. although we had been
scarcely conscious Of it in our excite
ment. But now we stood shivering
gazing into each others faces and
actually afraid to talk lest the whole
occurrence should prove dream from
which chance word might awaken
us. Three million pesos-here, actu
ally here: almost within reach Of oul
hands; they were digging for them
just below; even then, in the. silence,
we could hear the faint echo Of blows
being struck against the ice. Three
million pesos!-and it was all ours,
our very own-to divide, to spend, to
do with exactly as we pleased. We
had dreamed about all this before, on
the decks of the Inflated Sea Queen,
but now we sought to grasp 1t as an
actual existing fact. and our minds
seemed paralyzed by the knowledge.
even forgot that Doris was present
until she touched me gently on the
shoulder, and looked down into her
questioning eyes.
do you not know what we have
Just discovered below?" l asked, still
tingling to the marvel of 1t. 1.-THE
treasure, the Spanish treasured"
"Oh, yes" but the soft voice seemed
tinged with sadness. yet 1t does not
greatly interest me. Money seems so
little here, so utterly valueless."
| The simple words, the tone of their
utterance brought me to myself as
though I had received an electric
shock. She was still smiling, yet all
at once I noticed how white her face
was, how dark the shadows beneath
her eyes. The lure Of the gold van
ished from my mind, as If some wiz
ards wand had waved it away. I
thought of the treacherous sea with
out, the life and death struggle before
us, those dreary leagues separating us
from hope. My hands clasped hers.
the expression of love in my eyes
Frightening her face instantly.
THAT is so much better, jack" she
said tenderly. 81 knew it was only
the madness Of a moment which
caused you to forget Come out on
deck with me until you lose all men,
DRY Of it-until I bring you back to
real life again"
81 do not need 1t, sweetheart" and
I bent low, looking into her eyes. THE
fever has left my blood. hardly
know how it ever laid such hold upon
me, but the thought Of all that wealth
below drove me as mad as the others
You see how much l need you"
ooh, no; you would have recovered
without my help, although 1t might
have required more time to complete
p,,k T..
for the men,"
II certainly shall not spare you to
minister to them"
She laughed, her happiness of dispo-
sition returning.
'That would be useless; they are Of
different stamp. The fever for sudden
wealth is in the blood of all of u.s.
See how excited Celeste is. Perhaps
II had ever experienced poverty
might be crazed also. But it is so
foolish here-here," and she swept
her hands about in comprehensive ges-
ture, when we know it can be ours
only for a day, or at most a week"
But we have not given up hope"
protested. why should we? The
Donna Isabel seems stanch beneath
U.S."
! Even in case of that miracle want
nothing to do with this treasure" she
said gravely. "It seems to me, Jack,
there must be curse upon that gold
below. 1t will never do good to any
human being. It was stolen by the
sword, won for Spain by the shedding
Of blood, and has since cursed this
ship and all who sailed in her. The
living and the dead guarded 1t, and
now we have come into its evil clutch.
1t is not superstition but faith which