, 1926-04-21

anu gallant 10 n FOOLISH maid inc as
cruel as the wildcat the Indians
showed us in the hills up behind Porto
Bello."
st must seem so to you" l an
swered. But the truth is that am
as much the sport of Fate as your
self"
do you tell me so?" she replied
politely.
"Do but let me tell you my story"
I pleaded, and you will think better
of some things
SO l began at the beginning and told
her all from the Darby Nc
Graw had run into the counting-roOm
in Pearl street-and how remote in
time and place that seemed as we
stared out upon the blue-green rollers
of the Caribbean and the tropic sun
warmed toward its noon intensity
She listened with mounting interest.
never interrupting save for an occa-
sional "Glory !" "Oh, blessed saints -
Holy Virgin, can such things be :"
But when | came to the escape from
the Walrus she broke in upon me.
and you did that to be handy by
if l had need of you! oh. sir, forget
the wicked suspicious ] owned IT'S
n true friend you will be-and the
large gentleman, too. What is he
called? Master Corlaer? Alas, am
heavy in your debt, and always shall
be"
She was wholly trustful with Peter
and me from then on and spent most
of her time with us.
On the seventh morning after the
action with he Santissima Trinidad
we raised a slow, sandy islet, densely
choked with low trees and bush
growth, bare of n characteristic
that invited human habitation. Muir
ray approached it with caution, n man
in the chains dipping the lead con
tinually, and we came to anchor under
its lee and a mile or more offshore.
In the meantime Martin and a party
Of some fifty men had been passing
up treasure from the wlne-cellar or
~lazaret the anchor cable ran u and
Murray issued an order to lower all
the small boats.
He took snuff, staring contempla-
lively at the sand-hillocks of the Dead
Mans chest.
"Her is my PLAN" he pursued. 81
will have eight hundred thousand
pounds set ashore in the boats-my
w share of one hundred thousand,
chevalier, as well as the seven hun
dred thousand pounds guaranteed to
your friends. l will then land you
four. with sufficient provisions, and
rear away In the james to the
so'th'ard, returning in five days to
pick you up. In the Intervening pc
rlod you should be able to transport
the treasure to a safe spot and bury
it. In that way, %chevalier, its safety
n be assured until we are able to
return for 1t with the James or some
other craft dispatched by your
friends"
your plan Is maybe the best In the
circumstances" answered O'Donnell.
There vas more talk back and forth,
but the end of it all was that O'Don-
nell accepted by great-uncle's plan.
and MORA was won over likewise by
the argument that so long as the treas-
ure was stolen II had best be assured
to a worthy purpose. Peter and |
agreed for a complex Of reasons-be-
cause Of the little maid for one thing,
and for another, because there was an
excitement In the burial of treasure
which neither Of us had tasted before,
and also, Of curse, because. when
all was said and done. we were prls-
oners and We must. But I'd never
seek TO deny that we had pleasure
from the thrill that came to us late
In the afternoon Of that day as we
stood on the narrow beach Of the
lslet beside a great stuck of kegs and
chests. axes, plckaxes and shoyels. n
burrel OF water and boxes OF food
from Ben Gums larder, watching the
boat hat had landed US pull back to
the james.
The first afternoon and evening we
spent In selecting a hiding place In II
shallow valley protected from the ter
rible storms which sweep those sens.
Colonel O'DOnnell and MORA were de
tailed TO do the digging, as neither
was as capable ns Peter and | Of man.
aging the weighty bulk Of the casks
mud chests. And after that we worked
unrcmittlngly. except for n couple OF
hours at midday n n shor snatch
Of sleep about dawn; for the starlit
nights. with their brncing sea-winds,
were the most comfortable times we
had. Yet the tops'ls OF the james
were within sight before we had dis
posed OF the last spadeful OF sand
from the hiding place and r%eplanted
It's area with the trees and bushes we
had removed with every care TO pre-
serve their roots.