The Mena weekly star., 1918-10-17
1he uaIIAv of nelInht.


 there that the cocheros drive you. There you overlook the fairest sight in all Christendom-"the loveliest valley in the world" as Humboldt called It. for the Yumuri nestles wight at your feet. a val of pure delight, a glimpse of paradi, lat bewllders the eye and i~A he sl4. nth ecstasy.
 Standing beside the shrine of Our Lady of Montserrate. you will see be- yond the cleft through which the river emerges another hiif, La Cumbre, from which the view is wonderful, and your driver may tell you about the splendid homes that used to grace it's slopes in the golden days when Cuba iiad an aristocracy. Your cochero may point out a certain grove of orange trees, now little more than a rank tangle, and tell you about the quinta of Don Esteban Varona, and its hidden treas ure: about little Esteban and Rosa. the twins; and about Sebastian. the giant slave, who died in fury. taking with him the secret of the we'll.
 The Spanish Main is rich in tales of treasure-trove, for when the Antilles were most affiuent they were least se- cure. and men were put to strange shifts to protect their fortunes. Ger tain hoards, like jewels of tragic his. tory, in time assumed a sort of evil personality, not infrequently exercising a dire influence over the lives of those who chanced to fall under their spells. It was as if the money were accursed, for certainly the seekers often came to evil. Of such Il character wes the VarOna treasure Don Esteban himself was neither better nor worse than other men of his time. and although part of the money he hid was wrung from the toll of slaves and the traffic in their bodies, muci of it was clean enough, and in time the earth purified 1t all. Since his acts made so deep an impress, and since the treasure he left played so big part in the destinies of those who came after him, 1t is well that some account of these matters should be given.
 The story, please remember, is an old one it has been often told, and in the telling and reteliing it Is but natural that certain glamour, a certain tropical extrayaeance, should attach to 1t, therefore you should make allow ance for some exaggeration. some ac cretions due to the lapse of time. Tn the main, however, 1t is we'll authenti- cated and runs parallel to fact.
 Donna Rosa Varona lived barely long enough to learn that she had given birth to twins. Don Esteban. whom people knew as . grim man, took the blow of his sudden bereavement as be- came one of his ktrong fiber Leaving the priest upon hs kpees and the doc tor busied with the babies. he strode through the hotse and out into the sunset, followed by the walls of the slave women.
 Don Esteban Eas at heart selfish man, and now, therefore. he felt sul- len, fierce reseHtment mingled with his grief. What trick was this? he asked himself. What had he done to merit such misfortune? Had he not made rich gifts x the church? Had he not knelt and prayed for his wife's safe delivery and then hung his gifts upon the sacred image, as Loyola had hung up his weapons before that other counterpart of Our Lady? Don Este ban scowied at the memory, for those gems were of the finest.
 He looked up from his unhappy musings to find gigantic bare footed negro standing before him. The slave was nliidie-aged; his kinky hair Was growing gray; but he was of superb proportions, and the muscles which showed through the rents in his cotton garments were as smooth and supple as those of strin'ing H'e black face was puckereu ~ as he began:
 Master, Is 1t true that Donna Rosa - The fellow choked.
 Yes Esteban nodded, wearily. ''she is dead, Sebastian."
 Tears came to sebastian's eyes and overflowed his checks; he stood mo- uonless, striving to voice his sympathy. At length he said:
 "She was too good for this world. God was jealous and took here to Para disc"
 The widowed man cried out angrily:
 "Paradisel What is this but Para diseT He star@ with resentful eyes at the beauty round about him. "See | The Yumurip Don Esteban flung a long arm outward sDo you think there IS a sight like that fin heaven? Para aise indeed gave her everything. She gained nothiHk by dying"
 With a grave thoughtfulness which proved him superior to the ordinary slave, Sebastian xeplied:
 Truel She had all that any wom- ans heart could desire, but in return Tor your goodness she gave you chill dren. You have lost her, but you have gained an heir, and beautiful girl oapy who will grow to be another Donna Rosa. grieved as you grieve. once upon time. for my woman died ID childbirth, too. You remember7 But my daughter lives, and she nas brought sunshine into my old age. That is the purpose of children" He paused and shifted his weight uncertainty, digging ms stiff black toes Into the dirt. After . time he said. slowly: "ExcelIency | NOW, about the--well--7n
 Yes. What about itY'
 Did the Donna Rosa confide her