Wauwatosa news. [volume] (Wauwatosa, Wis.) 1900-1948, 1918-11-08

where he fell to whetting his knife. He
finished putting double edge upon the
blade, fitted handle to 1t, and then
cord with which to suspend it round
his neck. He showed 1t to O'ReilIy,'
and after receiving a worl of praise he
crept outdoors again and tried to for
get how sick he was. Black spots were
dancing before Jackets eyes; he ex-
perienccd spells of dizziness and nau-
sea during which he dared not attempt
to walk. lie knew this must be the re-
suit of starvation, and yet, strangely
enough, the thought of food was dis
tasteful to him. He devoutly wished 1t
j Eere not necessary to climb that hill
again, for he feared he would not have
/ the strength to descend 1t.
Luckily for the sake of the secret,
Evangelina spent most of the day
searching for food, while Asenslo lay
babbling upon his bed, too i'll to notice
the peculiar actions of his companions.
1t was with strange, nightmare
feeling Of unreality that the trio
dragged themselves upward to the
ruined quinto when darkness finally
came, They no longer talked, for con-
verSad ton was drain upon their DOW
ers, and the reaction from the days ex-
element had SET in. O'Reilly lurched
as he walked, his limbs were heavy,
and his liveliest sensation was one of
dread at the hard work 10 store for
him. The forcing Of that door assumed
the proportions Of Herculean task.
But once he was at the bottom of
the well end beheld the handiwork of
Sebastian, the slave, just as he had
left 1t, his sense of reality returned and
with 1t a certain measure of determine
ton. Inasmuch as ne 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 1t was wedged
into the rock at top and bottom. After
desperate struggle he succeeded In
loosening the entire structure so that
he could pry it out far enough to
squeeze his body through.
II have itr he cried'to Rosa. SEEING
tho candle, he thrust 1t into the open
ing. He beheld what he had expected
to find, 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 1t up so as to battle discov-
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
ing more than a hoarse croak; the
candle in his hand described erratic fig
ures.
"What do you see?'' the girl cried in
an agony Of suspense.
"I- It's hereI B-boxes, chests.
casks-everything"
God be praisedl My fathers for
tune at lastI"
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
perilously close to the well and knelt
over it like some priesteSs at her de-
votlons; her eyes were trimming 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.
'Tle intended it for his children"
she sobOed, land providence saved 1t
from our wicked enemies. 1t was the
hand of God that led as here, O'Reilly.
Tell me, what do you see now?"
Johnnie had wormed his way into
the damp chamber and 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; 1t was
perhaps ten feet in length. with roof
high enough to accommodate tall
man. At the farther cod were ranged
several small wooden chests bound
/ WIN iron anu ulLtu WIN AoSRS "NN
staples, along one side was row OF
diminutive casks, the sort used to con-
tain choice wines or liquors; over all
was a thick covering Of slime and
mold. The iron was deeply rusted and
the place itself smelled abominably
stale.
OReilly surveyed this Aladdin's cave
In a daze. He set his candle down, Tor
his fingers were numb and unsteady.
Cautiously, as If fearful of breaking
some spell, be stopped and tried to
move one of the casks, but found that
| IT resisted him as If cemented to the
rock. He noted that its head was
bulged upward, as IL 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. be $1,000
blinking at the sight exposed, Tor me
little barrel was full Of coins-yeliow
coins. large and small. o'Reilly seized
/ ~. safnCz IN the