The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1919-07-01
HEARTS OF THREE
By JACK LONDON.
GuillermO, at Point of Pistol, De.
scends Into Well to Search
For Treasure.
For Treasure.

the RATA" Rafael cautioned.
The RATA may not be 50 strong
as my will. for my will WIN in this
matter is most strong" said Gull
lermo.
"If the RATA should break-'
Rafael began again
II have a resolution said Gutl-
lermo. do you come down. Then
shall Il go up FIRST. Second, te
treasure shall go up IN the bucks
And third and last, shall you 90 up.
Thus will justics be Triumphant
Rafael. with dropped jaw Of dis-
may. did not reply.
Are you coming. RafaelF
NO" he answered. Put all the
silver in your pockets and come ID
together with it"
at could curse the race that bore
me- was the impatient observation
OF the Jefe.
Il have already cursed It." said
Torres.
Haul away shouted Gui1lermo.
Il have every thing in my pockets
save the stencil. and I am suRoeat-
ing. Haul quick, or shall perish.
and thJ three hundred pesos win
perish with me. And there are more
than three hundred. He must have
emptied the bag"
Ahead. on the trail, where the
way grew steep and the horses
without stamina rested and paAtsd,
Francis overlook his party.
A Brilliant idea
Never again shall I travel With
out mintsd coin Of the realm" he
exuIted. as he described what hs
had remained behind to see from
the edge Of the deserted planta-
ton. Henry. when die and 60 b
heaven I shall have q stout bag or
cash along with me. Even there
could it redeem me frem heaven
alone knows what scrapes. Listen.
They fought like cats and dogs
about the mouth OF the wen
Nobody would trust anybody 70
descend into the well unless he a.
posted what he had previously
picked up with those that remained
at the top. They were out OF hand.
The Jefe, at the point OF his gun.
had to force the littlest and leanest
OF them to 90 down. And when BE-
was down he blackmailed them be-
fore he would come up. And when
he came up they broke their prom
Uses and gave him a beating. They
were still beating him when ]
left"
But now your sack Is smDty.-
said Henry.
(which is our present and most
pressing trouble" Francis agrees.
Had sufficient pesos I could
keep the pursit well behind us
forever. I'm afraid I was too gen
II
the poor devils were But I'll tel
you something that will make yorr
hair stand up. Torres, Senior Tor
res, Senior Alvarez Torres. the eIe-
CANT gentleman and oId-time friend
of your Colyanos, Is leading tie
pursit along with the Jafa. He is
furious at the delay. They almost
had a rupture because the Jefe
couldn't keep his men in hand. Yes
sir. and he told the Jefe to 60 10
hell. I distinctly heard him tell the
Jefe to go to hell"
Five miles further on, the horsss
of Leoncia and her father COLLAPSED
where the trail plunged into and
assembled a dark ravine. Francis
urged the other on and dropped
behind. Giving them a few punutes
start, he followed on behind . BsR-
constituted rearguard. Part was
along, in an open space where
grew only a thick sod OF grass, ne
was dismayed 10 find the hoof
prints Of the two horses staring At
him as large as dinner plates from
out OF the sod.
Into the hOof prints had welled a
dark. Shiny fluid that his eve told
him was crude oil. This was but
the beginning. a sort OF seepaEe
from a side stream above of the
main flow. A hundred yards BE-
yond he came upon the flow itself. a
river of oil that on such a slope
would have been a cataract had II
been water. But being crude OF.
as thick as molssses. il oozed slow
" down the hill like so much mo
lasses
And here, preferring to make his
stan drather than to wade through
the sticky mess, Francis sat down
on rock. laid his rifle on one side
OF him. his automatic pistol on the
other side. rolled a cigarette. and
Kept his ears pricked for the hrst
sounds Of the pursuit.
And the beaten peon. threatened
his over-ridden mare. rode across
the top of the ravine above Francis
and. at the oil well itself had his
exhausted animal collapse under
him. With his heels he kicked her
back to her feet, and with a stick
belabored her to staEger away from
him and on and into the jungle.
And the first day Of his adventures.
although he did not kOouv IL uvas
not yet over. He. too, squatted on
stone, his feet in the OIL rolled
a cigarette and, as he smoked il.
contemplated the flowing oil we'll.
The noise OF approaching men
startled him, and he fed into the
Immediately adjacent jungle, from
which he psered forth and saw two
strange men appear. They came
directly to the well and by an iron
wheel turning the valve. choked
down the flow still further.
The PeOn Trapped.
mo more commanded the one
who seemed to be leader. another
turn and the pressure will blow out
the pipes-for so the Gringo engi-
neer has warned me most care
fully"
And a slight flow. beyond the
limited safety. continued to run
from the mouth OF the gusher down
the mountain side. Scarcely had
the two men accomplished this
when body OF horsemen rode up
whom the peOn in hiding recog-
nized as the haciendado who owned
him and his overseers. and hacien-
dados OF neighooring plantations