The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1922-09-15
The Mardi Gras Mystery
CHAPTER Ix-contlnued.

'sIt can't be possiblel" he muttered.
bending farther over. "Such thing
happens too rarely"
His heart pounded violently; ex-
element sent the blood rushing to his
brain in binding swirls. He was
gripped by the gold fever that comes
upon a man when he makes the as
founding discovery Of untold wealth
lying at his feet, passed over and dis
regarded by other and less-discerning
men for days and years!
It was OIL no question about 1t. An
extremely slight quantity, true; so
slight a quantity that there was no
film on the water, no discernible taste
to the water. Gramont brought 1t to
his mouth and rose. shaking his head.
Where did it come from? 1t had no
connection with the gas bubbles-at
least, 1t did not come from the dome
of water and gas. How long he stood
there staring Gramont did not know.
His brain was afire with the possibili-
ties. At length he stirred into action
and started up the bayou bank, from
time to time hating to search the wa
ter below him, to make sure that he
could still discern the faint rides
cence.
He followed 1t rod by rod. and
found that 1t rapidly Increased In
strength. 1t must come from some very
tiny surface seepage close at hand,
that was lost in the bayou almost as
rapidly as it came from the earth
depths. Only accidentally would a
man see it-not unless he were search
ing the water close to the bank, and
even then only by the grace Of chance.
Suddenly Gramont saw that he had
lost the sign. He halted.
No, not lost, either! Just ahead Of
him was patch Of reeds, and re-
cession Of the shore, He advanced
again. Inside the reeds he found the
oily smear, still so faint that he could
only detect 1t at certain angles. Glanc-
ing up, he could see fence at little
distance, evidently the boundary fence
Of the Ledanois land; the bushes and
trees thinned out here, and on ahead
was cleared ground. He saw, through
the bushes. glimpses of buildings.
Violent disappointment seized him.
Was he to lose this discovery, after
all? Was he to find that the seepage
came from ground belonging to some
one else? No-he stepped back hastily,
barely IN time to avoid stumbling into
q tiny trickle Of water, rivulet that
ran down into the bayou. tributary
SO Insignificant that 1t was invisible
ten feet distant! And on the surface
a faint iridescence.
Excitement rising anew within him,
Gramont turned and followed this riv-
ulet, his eyes afiame with eagerness.
It led him for twenty feet. and ceased
abruptly, in a bubbling spring that
welled from a patch of low tree-in-
closed land. Gramont felt, his feet
sinking in grass, and saw that there
was dip in the ground hereabouts, q
swampy little section all to itself. He
picked dry spot and lay down on his
face. searching the water with his
eyes.
Moment after moment he lay there,
watching. Presently he found the
slight trickle Of oil again-a trickle so
faint and slim that even here, on the
surface of the tiny rivulet, it could be
discerned only with great difficulty. A
very thin seepage, concluded Ora
mont; thin oil, Of course. So faint
a little thing. to mean So much!
It came from the Ledanois land, no
doubt of it. What did that matter,
though? His eyes widened with fam
Ing thoughts as he gazed down at the
slender thread Of water. No matter
at all where this came from-the
main point was proven by it.! There
was oil here for the finding, oil down
In the thousands of feet below, oil so
thick and abundant that it forced it.
self up through the earth assures to
find an outlet!
"Insread of going down five or six
thousand feet" he thought. exultant-
", 1--WE may have to go down only as
many hundred. But first we must get
nm option or lease on all the land
roundabout-all we can securel There
win be a tremendous boom the min
ute this news breaks. If we get those
options, we can sell them over again
Mt a million per cent profit. and even
If we don't strike oil in paying quanti-
ties, we'll regain the cost Of our drill
ing! And to think of the years this
has been here. waiting for some
one"
Suddenly he started violently. An
abrupt crashing Of feet among the
bushes, an outbreak of voices, had
sounded not far away--just the other
side of the boundary fence. He was
Weakened from his. dreams. and started
to rise. Then he relaxed his muscles
and lay quiet, establishment selling
him; for he heard his own name men,
toned in voice that was strange to
him.
CHAPTER X.
The voice WAS strange to Gramout