Martinsburg W Va evening journal. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1913-1920, 1918-08-17
urngged- thsmsewas upward 70 the

ruined quinto when darkness finally
came. They no longer talked, for con-
versation was drain upon their pow
ers, and the reaction from the days ex-
element had set In. O'Reilly lurched
as he walked, his limbs were heavy,
and his iiveliest sensation was one of
dread at the hard work in store for
BIN. The forcing of that door assumed
the proportions of Herculean task.
But once he was at the bottom Of
the well and beheId the handiwork of
Sebastian, the slave, just as he had
left it, his sense of reality returned and
With 1t certain measure of determine
ton. lnasmuch as he had made no
visible impression upon the bulkhead
by his direct attack. he changed his
tactics now and undertook to loosen
one of the jambs where it was wedged
into the rock ut top and bottom. After
desperate struggle he succeeded in
loosening the entire structure so that
NE could pry it out far enough to
squeeze his body through.
81 have It'll" he cried to Rosa. Selling
the candle, he thrust it into the open
ing. He beheld what he had expected
TO find, a small cavern or grotto which
had evidently been pierced during the
digging of the well. He could appreci-
ate now how simple had been the task
of sealing it up so as to battle diseov-
cry. Rosa, poised above him. scarcely
breathed until he Strengthened himself
and turned his face upward once more.
He tried TO speak, but voiced moth
lag more than hoarse croak; the
candle in his hand described erratic fig
nres. Wy
What do you see?' the girl cried in
an agony of suspense.
e It's herel B-boxes, chests,
casks-everythingW
"God be praised! My fathers for
tune at lastl'
Rose forgot her surroundings; she
bent her hands together, calling upon
OReilly to make haste and determine
beyond all question that the missing
hoard was indeed theirs. She drew
perilousiy close to the well and knelt
over it like some priestess at her de-
votions; her eyes were Drumming with
tears and there was roaring in her
ears. 1t was not strange that she failed
to see or to hear the approach of a
great blurred figure which material
lied out of the night and took station
scarcely an arms length behind her.
HE intended it for his Children"
she sobbed, "and providence saved it
from our wicked enemies. 1t was the
hand of God that led us here, O'Reilly.
Tell me, what do you see now?"
Johnnie had wormed his way into
the damp chamber and a slim rectangle
of light was projected against the OPP
posite side of the well. Rosa could
hear him talking and moving about.
Don Esteban Varona's subterranean
hiding-place was large enough to store
a treasure far greater than his; it was
perhaps ten feet in length, with a roof
high enough to accommodate tall
man. At the farther end were ranged
several small wooden chests bound
with iron and fitted with hasps and
staples, along one side was row Of
diminutive casks, the sort used to con-
tain choice wines or liquors; over all
was thick covering of slime and
mold. The iron was deeply rusted and
the place itself smelled abominably
stale. 81
O'Reilly surveyed this Aladdin's cave
in daze. He set his candle down, for
his fingers were numb and unsteady.
some spell, he stopped and tried to
move one of the casks, but found that
it resisted him as if cemented to the
rock. He noted that it's head was
bulged upward, as If by the dampness,
so he. took his iron bar and aimed a
sharp blow at the chine. A hoop gave
way; another blow enabled him to pry
out the head of the cask. He stood
blinking at the sight exposed, for the
little barrel was full of coins-yellow
coins, large and small. O'Reilly seized
a handful and held them close TO the
candle flame; among the number he
noted Spanish doubloon, such as
young Esteban had found.
He tested the weight of the other
casks and found them equally heavy.
Knowing little about gold, he did not
attempt to estimate the value of theiI
contents, but he judged they must rep
resent a fortune. With throbbing
pulses he next lifted the lid of the
nearest chest. Within, he discovered
several compartments, each stored with
neatly wrapped and labeled packages
of varying shapes and sizes. The writ
ing upon the tags was almost illegible.
but the first article which O'Reilly I'M
wrapped proved to be goblet of most
beautiful workmanship. Time had long
since blackened it to the appearance Of
pewter or some base metal, but he saw
that it was Of solid silver. Evidently
he had uncovered store Of old Span
ish plate.
In one corner of the chest he saw a
metal box of the sort in which valuable
papers are kept, and after some effort
he managed to break it open. Turning
back the lid, he found first a bundle of
documents bearing imposing scrolls
and heavy seals. Despite the damp