The citizen-Republican. (Scotland, Bon Homme County, S.D.) 1???-19??, 1919-11-06
Bruce nodded.
The two young men turned to-

Bruce nodded.
The two young men turned to-
wards the door in pleasant com
~radeship. The northerner's mind
teemed with questions which he
desired to put, concerning the man
who had taken him from the pris-
on OF Rio Nabucco and brought
INN here. But it was wiser to wait,
his discretion warned him, and he
meant to obey the inner voice. But
one query he did advance, as the
cool interior of the villa received
them.
The man who brought me here
-Benlto, said this was called the
House of the Little Shoes" Is
that right, | wondered"
Milo Valdez laughed and
shrugged.
Yes, and no! Dom David's
house is known by that name all
over the republic among the ma
tive and lower classes it never is
called anything else. But Of course
it is really the Villa Noel, and so
called by people who know bet
ter. There is nothing surprising
about the matter. You saw the
gate pillars at the entrance?"
Yes"
"TNhose aiabaster shoes were
made in Italy by a very great art
list. 1t was a caprice of Dom
David's to have them there, no
doubt. Perhaps they are the luck
of his house, like the Vase of Eden
hall. Who knows? At least, they
are original, which is always some
thing! You will wait for me, then?
l shall not be long"
Bruce watched the other spring
up the broad white stairs and
pause at the foot Of the exquisite
blue Chinese rug that hung from
the upper balustrade, to waive an
airy adieu to the man below.
When Valdez was gone, he turned
aside into the library. He meant
to pass the hour of waiting by
getting out some Of the detail
maps from their cases and locat-
ing the Noel mines. Of course he
had heard of them vaguely, but
he had not realized their import
ance any more definitely than the
average North American realizes
the vast extent and wealth OF
South America and it's people.
The maps showed him other
things thar the mines. He could
trace railroads, for instance, OF
which Valdez had spoken, the
steamboat lines that climbed the
rivers of that district and the
highways built across them, There
were notes here and there upon the
margin Of the maps, some in a fine
metieulously perfect writing thai
he learned was Noel's some in a
wide open scrawl of authorizations
and references which proved to b,
Milo Valdez conception Of writ
ing. At the time, Bruce exactly
reversed in his mind the author
ship of these notes; attributing the
delicately exact work to the score
tary.
The notes gave him a new view
of David Noel's action in return
ing the diamond mines to TIL
state. Whether the gift was mad,
in generosity or foresight, Ger
tainly Noel must gain as large al
income from the related enter
-prises ii which he had d share d.
the full ownership of the mines
could hayev yielded him J,ldginf
from the memoranda on the maps
scarcely any undertaking was cal
ried on in that part of the countr,
lin which Noel had not some share.
And yet he had turned aside.
to pick insignificant Corey Bruce
out Of an obscure prison. How
had he ever noticed the ruined Ell
gineer.'s existence, amod all til
varied affairs which engaged him
The explanation given on the bal
cony that first night did not sal
isfy him. Bruce absently twiste5
his fingers in his hair, as he stare,
unseeingly at the maps, tangling
his docks as his thoughts were
tangled.
So much pity for an. utter
stranger seemed unreasonable. He
did not believe that Noel had act
ed from self interest. He re
preached himself for his first
doubts as for a meanness. Freed
from clogging suspicion, his graft
tude expanded unhamnered. also