Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1911-08-16

from the mine into the valley and for
getting the silver out OF it. Pedro had
seen his fortune loom up almost in
night; now he saw it sinking rapidly
away. Then to crown his loss water
appeared IN his mine.
Water is the great danger. the great
trouble when It comes, In mining. Tun-
nels must be built, expensive pumps
must be put IN, either one or both.
Pedro had but one business idea in
his head. That was to hold on TO his
property. But now even that idea had
ceased to be practicable. His mine
was no longer valuable unless worked
on business principles, and Pedro was
not a business man.
Since there had been nothing put
away, so there was nothing when the
end came. The man who had given
away and wasted millions now found
himself unable to give OF waste any
longer. 1t was the old story Of the
fairy who had raised palaces and 9th
er luxuries for the pauper, by mutter-
ing another incarnation caused them
to vanish.
Then Sonora Alvarado, who had
been tucking away thousand dollar
bills very Conveniently, died In dis
tributing her effects q maid who had
been q long while in her service was
asked If there was anything that had
belonged to her mistress she would
like to have. She said there was an
old Quilt the sonora had always used
which It would crafty her to possess.
The beloved woman had slept under
it for many years and would never let
it go out OF her own keeping. Surely
this would be a treasured souvenir.
But Pedro demonstrated against the
faithful servitor having nothing but
an old quilt much worn and not over
clean. He urged the maid to name
something of greater value. She, how
ever, chung to the quilt and would not
be comforted without this article so
intimately associated with her mis-
tress.
Now, Pedro was aware that his wife
had not sympathized with him in his
extravaganza; indeed, she had repeat
eddy warned him that he would come
to grief by it, Knowing this he won
dered if the good woman had not put
something away for a rainy day. The
eagerness Of the maid TO possess the
quilt caused him to suspect that some
thing might be hidden in IT. Instead
of giving it he began TO rip 1t. Out
came Il thousand dollar bill. Ripping
on he found another, and so, as Pedro
had grown fabulously rich overnight in
finding silver under a rock, he now
gained fortune in an old quilt. He
] ~. all ~
quite enough to soothe him for the
running out Of his mine and to enable
/ him to live handsomely for the rest of
/ his days.
Pedro Alyarado yielding to the inev-
| liable turned over his mine to others.
! Some Americans are the new owners
and are working it on modern princl-
pies. Meanwhile the owner lives on
the income of the 500 one-thousand-
dollar bills that were successfully saw
ed up by his more farseeing wife in
the old quilt through Il long term OF
years.
! There is an unexplained feature In
this story that. appealing as It does to
the curiosity, is the most important
part OF it. Why did the senior Alva-
rado put all the little money he had
/ in the rock that covered the mine,
and why did he pledge his son under
oath not to sell it? The only possible
solution seems TO be that SOME Span
iards years ago prospected In the re-
/ gion and from the trend OF veins of
silver found suspected that the top
Of the hill in question contained the
same metal This may have been
known to the Indians and been hand
cd down from one generation TO an
other. That the hill contained the i'm
mense treasure that Pedro junior dis
covered no one could have known. This
must Of necessity be one OF the re-
markable freaks of fate.