The Washington herald., 1919-12-02
Go On with the story.
CHAPTER XvII-coNTINUED.

Then. too, she dreaded any risk
of discovery bv old Mario de Cas-
tano. who was a hard. vindictive
man. His parting words had shown
her that he would never forgive the
slight she had put upon him; and
she did not wish to put his threats
10 the test. Once Rosa saw him.
on her way to buy a few centavos'
worth of sweet potatoes; he was
huddled in his victoria, a huge
bladder of flesh. and he rode the
streets deaf to the plants of starv-
ing children. blind to the misery of
beseeching mothers. Rosa shrank
into a doorway and drew her latter
ed shawl close over her face for
fear Don Mario might recognize in
this misshapen body and in these
pinched. discolored features the
beauteous blossom he had craved.
Nor did she forget Colonel Cobo.
The pan's memory haunted her,
asleep and awake: of him she was
most desperately afraid. When for
the first time she saw him riding
at the head of his cutthroats she
was like to swoon in her tracks,
and for a whole day thereafter she
SO"eISu III lHe nut, lTtIuDllnB al
every sound.
In these dark hours she recalled
the stories of the old Varona treas
ure and Esteban's interesting
theory of its whereabouts, but she
could not bring herself to put much
faith in either. Al the time OF her
brothers recital she had been
swayed by his conviction. but now
20, hF1
tions Of Dona Isabers possession of
that doublOCn offered themselves.
no one of which seemed less prob
able than Esteban's. OF course it
was barely possible that there was
indeed a treasun. and even that
Esteban's surmise had been correct.
But it was little more than a re-
mote possibility. Distance lends a
rosy color of reality to our most
absurd ina ginings. but, like the
haze that tints a far-off landscape.
lit dissOlves upon approach. Now
that Rosa was here. in sight OF the
ruined Quinta itself. her hopes and
/ half-beliefs faded.
She wanted. oh, so desperately. to
believe in IL, but the grinding
misery of her situation made it
came true only in fairy stories, she
told herself; and certainly she had
no cause to consider herself a favo-
( rite of fortune.
| More than once she was tempted
! to cOntide in Evangeline and Asen-
sio, but she thought better Of It..
Although she put implicit faith in
Evangelina's discretion. she knew
ZF
/ fellow to be trusted with a secret
of great magnitude-he was boast
full. taIkative. excitable; he was
Just the sort to bring destruction
upon all Of them. Rosa had suffi-
cient intelligence to realize that
even if she found her fathers riches
they would only constitute another
and a greater menace to the lives
Of all of them. Nevertheless. she
wished to set her mind at rest once
and for all. Taking Evangelina
with her. she climbed La Cumbre
one day in search of roots and
vegetables.
1t turned ou. to be a sad expert
! ence for both women. The negress
wept noisily At the destruction
wrought by PanchO Cueto, and Rosa
was overcome by painful memories.
Little that was familiar remained: &:
| evidence of Eueto's all-devouring
I greed spoke from the sprouting
, burrows his men had dug. from the
naked trees they had felled and
piled in orderly heaps. from the
stones and mortar of the house it
! self. Tears blinded Rosa. After
I a time she left the black woman
/ mourning among the ruins and stole
away to the Sunken garden. Here
the marks of vandalism were less
noticeable Nevertheless. few signs
: of beauty remained. Neglected
vines dropped spiritlessly from the
ledges; such fruit trees as had been
spared were sickly and INTENDED !;
time and the elements had all but
completed the dishearteEing work.
The well remained. although it
had been planked over. but it was
partially filled up with rubbish. as
Rosa discovered when she peered
into it. Only a tiny pool OF scum
was in the bottom. After a long
scrutiny the girl arose. convinced
at last of her brothers delusion,
and vaguely ashamed of her own
CT edulity. This was about the last
repository that such a man as Don
Esteban. her father, would have
been likely to select; for. after all.
the most valuable part of his for;
tune had consisted of the deeds OF
title to the plantations. No, II ever
there had been a treasure, II was
hidden elsewhere; all of value that
this well contained for Rosa was
here memory of happiness depart
ed Of such memories, the well,
the whole place, was brimful. Here.
as a child. she had romped with
Esteban. Here, as a girl, she had
dreamed her first dreams. and here
OReilly. her smiling knight, had
found her. Yonder was the very
,pot where he had held her in his
arms and begged her to await the
day of his return. Well, she had
waited.
But was that Rosa Varona who
had promised so freely and so con-
fidently this pitiful Rosa whose
bones protruded through her rags?
II could not be. Happiness con-
tentment. hope-these were notions;
only misery. despair. and pain were
real. But it had been glorious
dream. at any rate-a dream which
Rosa vowed to cherish always.
Evangelina found the girl sitting
in the sun. her thin face radiant
her great eyes wet but smiling.
Come, little dove" said the
pegress, "there Is nothing here to
eat; we must get back to ctr weav-
ing"
| XVIII.
SPEAKING OF FOOD.