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diff --git a/42699-8.txt b/42699-8.txt deleted file mode 100644 index b33d248..0000000 --- a/42699-8.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,11166 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Gilded Man, by Clifford Smyth - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with -almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org - - -Title: The Gilded Man - A Romance of the Andes - -Author: Clifford Smyth - -Release Date: May 13, 2013 [EBook #42699] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE GILDED MAN *** - - - - -Produced by eagkw, Charlene Taylor and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This -file was produced from images generously made available -by The Internet Archive/American Libraries.) - - - - - - - - THE GILDED MAN - - - - - THE GILDED MAN - A ROMANCE OF THE ANDES - - BY CLIFFORD SMYTH - - WITH AN INTRODUCTION BY - RICHARD LE GALLIENNE - - - [Illustration] - - - BONI AND LIVERIGHT - NEW YORK 1918 - - - - - Copyright, 1918 - BY BONI & LIVERIGHT, INC. - - - - - TO - BEATRIX - - - - -CONTENTS - - - _Page_ - INTRODUCTION xi - _Chapter_ - I. IN WHICH COMET GOES LAME 1 - - II. IN UNA'S GARDEN 10 - - III. A CHAPTER ON GHOSTS 19 - - IV. THE GHOST OF THE FORGOTTEN 30 - - V. THE SEARCH FOR EL DORADO 41 - - VI. EMBOLADORES ON THE MARCH 55 - - VII. LA REINA DE LOS INDIOS 71 - - VIII. A RIVER INTERLUDE 89 - - IX. ON INDIAN TRAILS 105 - - X. AN OLD MYSTERY 125 - - XI. IN WHICH ANDREW IS FOUND 145 - - XII. A DEAD WALL 157 - - XIII. MRS. QUAYLE TAKES THE LEAD 170 - - XIV. THE BLACK MAGNET 189 - - XV. AT THE SIGN OF THE CONDOR 212 - - XVI. NARVA 230 - - XVII. A SONG AND ITS SEQUEL 251 - - XVIII. SUBTERRANEAN PHOTOGRAPHY 274 - - XIX. A QUEEN'S CONQUEST 293 - - XX. LEGEND AND REALITY 302 - - XXI. DREAMS 312 - - XXII. A PEOPLE'S DESTINY 325 - - XXIII. THE GILDED MAN 344 - - - - -THE GILDED MAN - - - - -FOREWORD - - -Two dreams have persistently haunted the imagination of man since dreams -began. You find them in all mythologies, and, perhaps most dramatically, -in the Arabian Nights: the dream of the Water of Immortality, and the -dream of the Golden City. Within recent times--that is, during the -sixteenth century--both were lifted out of the region of fairy lore, and -men as far from "dreamers," in the ordinary sense, as the "conquistador" -Ponce de Leon and Sir Walter Raleigh raised them into the sphere of -something like Elizabethan practical politics. Whether or not Ponce de -Leon did actually discover the Fountain of Eternal Youth on the Bimini -Islands concerns us but incidentally here. At all events, he seems to -have died without drinking of it; as death on the scaffold was the -penalty for Raleigh's failure to discover El Dorado. So practically had -the courts of Elizabeth and James regarded the dream of the Golden City, -and so firm had been Raleigh's own belief in it. Though Raleigh's name -is most conspicuously and tragically connected with it, of course it -had been Spanish adventurers for several generations before--exploring -that "Spanish Main" which they had already, and in romance forever, made -their own--who had given that dream its local habitation and its name. -Martinez had been the first to tell how, having drifted on the coast of -Guiana, he had been taken inland to a city called Manoa, whose king -was in alliance with the Incas. Manoa, said he, to opened mouths and -wondering eyes, on his return to Spain, was literally built, walls and -roofs, houses big and little, of silver and gold. His tale, garnished -with many other mysterious matters, soon speeded expedition after -expedition, dreaming across those - - "perilous seas - In fairyland forlorn." - -All came back with marvels on their tongues. All had caught glimpses -of the gilded domes of the city, but that was all. Gonzales Ximinez -de Quesada from Santa Fé de Bogotá was "warmest," perhaps; but he too -failed. Many a daring sailor since has vainly gone on a like quest. Even -in our prosaic times--in the true Elizabethan spirit, that, for all -their romance, actually animated those enterprises of old time--when -men sought real gold as now, not "faery-gold"--an enterprise, with -a prospectus, shareholders, and those dreams now known as promised -dividends, has made it its serious "incorporated" business to go in -quest of El Dorado. - -But, elaborate as all previous expeditions and enterprises have been, -and dauntless as the courage of the individual explorer, one and all -have failed--till now. Till now, I say--for at last El Dorado _has_ been -discovered, and it is my proud privilege to announce, for the first -time, the name of its discoverer--Dr. Clifford Smyth. - -Dr. Smyth has chosen the medium of fiction for the publication of -his discovery, like other such eminent discoverers as the authors of -_Erewhon_ and _Utopia_, but that fact, I need hardly say, in nowise -invalidates the authenticity and serious importance of his discovery. -Though truth be stranger than fiction, it has but seldom its charm, and, -to use the by-gone phrase, Dr. Smyth's relation of happenings which we -never doubt for a rapt moment did happen "reads as entertainingly as a -fiction." In fact, the present writer--who confesses to the idleness of -keeping _au courant_ with the good and even merely advertised fiction -of the day, recalls no fiction in some years that has seemed to him -comparable in imaginative quality with _The Gilded Man_, or has given -him, in any like degree, the special kind of delight which Dr. Smyth's -narrative has given him. For any such thrill as the latter part of the -book in particular holds, he finds that his memory must travel back, no -difficult or lengthy journey, to Mr. Rider Haggard's _King Solomon's -Mines_--a book which one sees more and more taking its place as one of -the classics of fantastic romance, the kind of romance which combines -adventure with poetic strangeness; though, at its publication, "superior -persons," with the notable exception of that paradoxical most superior -person, and man of genius, Andrew Lang, disdained it as a passing -"thriller." - -Perhaps it is not indiscreet to say that one circumstance of Dr. -Smyth's life gave him exceptional opportunities for that dreaming on -his special object which is found to be the invariable incubation, so -to say, preceding all great discoveries. For some years Dr. Smyth was -United States consul at Carthagena, that unspoiled haunted city of the -Spanish Main, which, it may be recalled, furnishes a spirited chapter -in the history of Roderick Random, Esquire, of His Majesty's Navy. He -was, therefore, seated by the very door to that land of enchantment, -which, as we have been saying, had drawn so many adventurous spirits -under roaring canvas across the seas, in the spacious days. He was but -a short mule-back journey from that table-land raised high in the upper -Andes where Bogotá, the capital of Colombia, is situated, the region -around which all those "superstitions" retailed by Indians to those -early adventurers centre. Descendants of the same Indians still tell -the same stories, and still the average prosaic mind laughs at them -as "superstitions." El Dorado! as if any one could take it seriously -nowadays! Has not the term long been a picturesque synonym for The City -of Impossible Happiness, the Land of Heart's Desire, the Paradise of -Fools, and all such cities and realms and destinations and states of -being, as the yearning heart of man, finding nowhere on the earth he -knows, imagines in the sun-tipped cloudland of his dreams, and toward -which he pathetically turns his eyes, and stretches out his arms to the -end? - -But what if El Dorado were no such mere figment of man's aching fancy, -after all; what if the El Dorado, so passionately believed in by those -eminently practical Elizabethans, did all the time, as they surmised, -exist upon this solid earth, and should still quite concretely exist -there.... - -Is it not likely that such might be the musings of a man situated as was -Dr. Smyth, in the very heart of the mystery, a man of affairs, touched -with imagination, as all really capable men of affairs are; and, as he -listened to the old Indian tales, and talked with miners, and all manner -of folk acquainted with the _terrain_ of the legend, what could he do -but fall under the same spell that had laid its ghostly hand on the -mighty heart of Raleigh centuries before, and follow its beckoning, as -the other inspired madmen before him? - -But, as we have seen, his doom was to be different. For so long -generations of dead men had come crying, like those three old horsemen -in Morris's _Glittering Plain_: "Is this the Land? Is this the Land?" to -turn broken-hearted away; but from him, of all men born, throughout the -generations, was to be heard at last the joyous, ringing cry: "This _is_ -the Land! This _is_ the Land!" - -Pause for one moment more and think what El Dorado has meant to mankind, -think with all your might; and then think what must have been the -feelings of the man who stood looking upon it, and knew that he--that -_he_--had found it. In such moments of transfiguring realization men -often lose their reason, and, as we say, it is not a little surprising -that Dr. Smyth is alive to tell the tale. The lovely knowledge might -well have struck him as by lightning, and the secret once more have been -buried in oblivion. - -I have all along taken it for granted that Dr. Smyth's _The Gilded -Man_ is a genuine narrative, the true story of a wonderful happening. -If any one should come to me and tell me that I am simple-minded, that -it is no such thing, and that, as the children say, Dr. Smyth "made it -up all out of his own head," I should still need a lot of convincing, -and, were conviction at last forced upon me, I could only answer that -Dr. Smyth must then possess a power of creating illusion such as few -romancers have possessed. For there is a plausibility, a particularity, -a concreteness about all the scenes and personages in _The Gilded Man_ -that make it impossible not to believe them true and actual, however -removed from common experience they may seem. I should like very much -to be more particular, but I cannot very well be so without betraying -the story--or "true and veracious history," whichever it may turn out -to be. Still I can hint at one or two matters without betraying too -much. The mysterious queen, Sajipona, for example, seems not only real, -but she and her love-story make one of the loveliest idylls in what, -for want of a better word, one may call "supernatural" romance that has -ever been written. And all the dream-like happenings in the great cave, -though of the veritable "stuff that dreams are made of," are endowed -with as near and moving a sense of reality as though they were enacted -on Broadway. - -Of the cave itself, which may be said to be the Presiding Personage of -the book, it seems to me impossible to speak with too great admiration. -It is, without exaggeration, an astonishing piece of invention; I -refer not merely to the ingenuity of its mechanical devices, though I -might well do that, for they are not merely devised with an exceeding -cleverness, but the cleverness is of a kind that thrills one with a -romantic dread, the kind of awe-inspiring devices that we shudder -at when we try to picture the mysteries of the temples of Moloch. -Dr. Smyth's invention here is of no machine-made, puzzle-constructed -order. We feel that he has not so much invented these devices, but -dreamed them--seen them himself with a thrill of fear and wonder in -a dream. And the great device of them all, that by which the cave is -lighted so radiantly and yet so mystically, outsoars ingenuity, and -is nothing short of a high poetic inspiration. But all these details, -each in itself of a distinguished originality, gain an added value of -impressiveness from the atmosphere of noble poetic imagination which -enfolds them all, that atmosphere which always distinguishes a work of -creation from one of mere invention. I do not wish to seem to speak in -superlatives, but, in my opinion, Dr. Smyth's cave of The Gilded Man -belongs with the great caves of literature. I thought of _Vathek_ as I -read it, though it is not the least the same, except in that quality of -imaginative atmosphere. - -With the purely "human" interest of the book, the daylight scenes and -doings, he is no less successful. His plot is constructed with great -skill and is full of surprises. The manner in which he "winds" into it -is particularly original. Then, too, his characters are immediately -alive, and there is some good comedy naturally befallen. General Herran -and Doctor Miranda are delightfully drawn South American characters, -and the atmosphere of a little South American republic convincingly -conveyed, evidently from sympathetic experience. Nor must the absurd -Mrs. Quayle be forgotten, and particularly her jewels, which play such -an eccentric part in the story--one of Dr. Smyth's quaintest pieces of -cleverness. - -But it is time I ended my proud rôle of showman, and allowed the show to -begin. So this and no more: If Dr. Smyth has, as I personally believe -from the convincing manner of his book, discovered El Dorado, he is -to be congratulated alike on the discovery and his striking method of -publishing forth the news; but if he has merely dreamed it for our -benefit, then I say that a man whom we have long respected as a wise and -generous critic of other men's books, should lose no time in writing -more books of his own. - - RICHARD LE GALLIENNE. - - - - -THE GILDED MAN - - - - -I - -IN WHICH COMET GOES LAME - - -When, one evening in the late Autumn, David Meudon reached the entrance -to Stoneleigh Garden, where Una Leighton awaited him, it was evident -something unusual had happened. - -"You are late," she said, as he clasped the slender hand extended to him -in welcome. - -"I could ride no faster. Comet is lame." - -The tired bay, belying his name, stood dejectedly, one white foreleg -slightly bent, as if seeking relief from a weight it was weary of -bearing. By the friendly way in which he stretched forth his muzzle to -touch the girl's proffered fingers, Comet was evidently not a stranger -to her endearments. - -"Poor Comet! Why didn't you take better care of him?" - -"I was too impatient at the start, and that got him into trouble. After -that, of course, we had to go slowly. I hated the delay. I hated having -to listen to my own thoughts for so long." - -Her gray eyes fixed questioningly upon the bronzed, sharp-featured -man, she noted his restless gaze, his riding-whip's irritable tattoo on -polished boot-top as he stood at her side. Then, flinging her arms about -his neck, her face, flushed with pleasure and expressive of a mingled -tenderness and anxiety, turned expectantly to his. - -"David, you are here!" she said impulsively. "You are glad, aren't you? -Say that your thoughts aren't gloomy any more." - -"What need to say it--Una!" - -Silently the two lovers threaded the box-bordered path leading to the -great stone mansion beyond, pausing to admire the flowers that still -bloomed in a straggling sort of way, or marking the loss of those whose -gay colors and delicate fragrance had formed a part of their own joyous -companionship a month ago. But this evening, as if reflecting Nature's -autumn mood, there was something of melancholy--restraint, where -restraint had never been before--in David's bearing; while with Una -there was an affectionate solicitude that strove to soothe an unspoken -trouble. - -"You must stay to-night," she said; "it would be cruel to ride Comet -back." - -"But your Uncle--will he care to have me here?" - -"What a question! Of course he will." - -"Are you sure? He was in town the other day to see me. Did he tell you?" - -"No. But then, Uncle Harold seldom tells what he has been doing." - -"He was in one of his grim moods; cordial enough outwardly; but, inside, -I felt a curious sort of malevolence. That's an ugly word--but it seemed -just that." - -"Uncle Harold malevolent! That isn't very nice of you to say." - -"He asked me if I thought our marriage should take place." - -"And you said----?" - -"Nothing." - -"David!" - -"I am unworthy of you, Una--I feel it. There are men, you know, who -have in their past things that make them unworthy the woman they love. -I confess, there are dark shadows, haunting things in my past. I -can't explain them, even to myself. I don't altogether know what they -are--queer as that sounds! But--some day they might come between us. -When I rode over just now, I made up my mind to try to tell you. You -ought to know----" - -"David," she interrupted, "I don't want to know. I love you as you are -to-day. If you were different in the past, before I knew you, I don't -care to hear about it." - -In spite of his self-depreciation, in the eyes of the world David -Meudon would be regarded in every way a worthy suitor for the hand of -Una Leighton. Clean of stock, so far as the gifts of blood and social -station go, he had inherited besides a fortune that would be considered -large even in a nation of millionaires. This inheritance, coming to him -through the death of his father and mother in the middle of his college -course, had not proved a snare to him. After completing his education, -he had traveled extensively, not through an idle curiosity to see the -world, but from a wish to perfect himself in certain studies calling for -a wider knowledge than could be gathered from books or tutors. - -It was during his travels abroad, after he had left his eccentric -schoolmate, Raoul Arthur, in India, that David first met Una Leighton, -who was spending a winter in England with her uncle. The meeting ripened -into an intimacy that survived the distractions of European travel, and -drew David, a constant visitor, to the picturesque old mansion, Una's -home, on the outskirts of the little Connecticut village of Rysdale. - -There followed those memorable experiences of youth--courtship and -betrothal. David loved with all the fervor of a mature passion, a -passion that quite overshadowed all his former interests. Love for him -was an idyl of dreams and delicious fantasies, a paradise where he and -Una delighted in all the harmless exaggerations of poetry and romance. -No cloud dimmed their happiness. The brightest kind of future seemed to -stretch indefinitely before them. - -All the world--the world of Rysdale--knew of their love and discussed -it eagerly. Their daylong wanderings together, their absorption in each -other, appealed to the sensible farmers and their wives, who watched -with tireless interest the development of this romance in their midst. -There was something, besides the rumors of his great wealth, in the -personality of David that would easily account for this interest. -As a result of his long years of solitary travel he had acquired an -indefinable air of reserve that was emphasized by features almost Indian -in their clean-cut sharpness and immobility. His whole appearance, -indeed, was of the kind traditionally suggesting mystery--a mystery that -inevitably arouses curiosity in those who come within its influence. - -Had Una been a stranger, spending a summer, as so many strangers did, -in the little mountain hamlet, her intimacy with David might have -passed unheeded. But she belonged very much to the place. Generations -ago her ancestors had settled here. At that initial epoch in local -history, Stoneleigh was the only building of any importance in or near -Rysdale--and from that period to this Stoneleigh had been the home of -the Leightons. Before they bought the gray-gabled mansion (St. Maur's -House it was then called) it was occupied by a small congregation of -Benedictines, who came from France to establish themselves in this quiet -corner of the new world. When the House passed from the monks into the -hands of that stout Scotch pioneer, John Leighton, it was a desolate -sort of ruin. But its walls were well built, and the thrift of its new -owners gradually added the wings and the square, central tower needed -for the family comfort. - -Leighton was thus one of the oldest names in the neighborhood. The -family bearing it had always prospered. Years ago their income, what -with careful saving and shrewd investment, was sufficient to let them -give up farming. This they did, and settled down to the dignified ease -that, in an English community, belongs to the household of a county -"squire," or to a "lord of the manor." - -Harold Leighton, the present owner of Stoneleigh, was more of a recluse -than any of his predecessors. To the gossips of Rysdale, indeed, who -knew something of the history of the place, it seemed as if the cowl of -the monkish founder of the House had fallen upon the shoulders of this -gray-haired old man. He was looked upon as a student of unprofitable -matters, lacking in the canny enterprise distinguishing the Leightons -before him, and that had built up the family fortunes. By some he was -liked; by others--and these were in the majority--the satirical smile, -the cool reserve, the assumption of superiority with which he met the -social advances of his neighbors, were set down as indications of a -character to be watched with suspicion, and that were certainly not of -the right Rysdale stamp. - -Una, however, was different. The villagers did not regard her with -the hostility that they had for her uncle. Orphaned at an early age, -she had easily captured and held the affection of those who knew her. -The tawny-haired girl, bubbling over with friendly prattle, her gray -eyes--bluer then, as with the sky-tint of a clear dawn--sparkling with -youthful enthusiasms, had a host of comrades and admirers long before -she reached her teens. With equal grace and favor this radiant little -creature accepted the tribute of farmer and farm-hand, and when it -came to playmates was decidedly more at ease with the village maidens -than with the decorous young ladies who were occasionally brought to -Stoneleigh on a visit of state from the city. As Una grew older, this -choice of associates, unchecked and even encouraged by her uncle and -Elizabeth Quayle, the worthy but not over-astute matron who looked after -Leighton's household, had its drawbacks. The girl's beauty, which was of -no ordinary kind, inevitably touched with its flame victims who were not -socially intended for this kind of conflagration. Una sometimes shared -in their subsequent misery; but she was unable to lighten their woes in -the only way they could be lightened. And when she discovered that the -refusal of their offers usually meant the breaking up of a treasured -friendship, she had been known to weep bitterly and form all kinds of -self-denying resolutions for the future. - -The climax to her griefs in this respect, a climax partly responsible -for her flight to Europe, came through the weakness (so his indignant -aunt called it) of the district schoolmaster, Andrew Parmelee. Andrew -was a solitary dreamer, a friendless, inoffensive sort of person, -absorbed in books, oblivious to the world around him. Learning, such -wisps and strays of it as lodged in his mind as a result of his -omnivorous reading, he was quite incapable of imparting. The use of -the ferule, also, was an enigma to him. Hence, there were those unkind -enough to whisper that the Rysdale school, under his management, was -not what it should be. But every one liked him, in a tolerant sort -of way; and with Una he was in particular favor. Andrew didn't know -this, at least for some time. When he did find it out, that is, when, -quite by accident, as it seemed, Una tripped into his school one day -to pay him a visit, it had quite a disastrous effect on him. Before -that, women, in general and in particular, were utterly unknown to him, -creatures to be shunned, to be feared. He was familiar, of course, with -the eccentricities of his aunt, Hepzibah Armitage. She looked after -his wardrobe, fed him, warned him of the various pitfalls of youth, -stopped his spending the money allowed him by the village trustees on -the ancient histories for which he had an insatiable appetite. She -ruled with a rod of iron, and the rod wasn't always pleasant. But for -all that, he felt that life without Aunt Hepzibah, although it might -give him one mad, rapturous day of freedom, was too bewildering, too -dangerous to contemplate as a steady form of existence. Aunt Hepzibah -was an institution; she was not a woman. He had heard of men falling -in love with women. Such an accident, involving his Aunt Hepzibah, -was unthinkable--unless, indeed, something like the conquest of the -Scythians by the Amazons, of which he had read in his Herodotus, should -be repeated in Rysdale. - -As for the girls in Andrew's school, it was impossible to think of them -except as so many varieties of human tyranny. They were more perplexing, -as a rule, certainly more unmanageable, than the boys. This was due -to the languishing friendships which they tried to contract with him, -and which they mirthfully abandoned just so soon as he began to take -them seriously. In fact, there was nothing in Andrew's fancied or -actual experience so terrible--not even Aunt Hepzibah or the Amazons of -Herodotus--as the schoolgirl just old enough to plan and carry out this -kind of campaign against him. Instances are on record, indeed, in which, -convinced that some overgrown girl was in rebellion, he had dismissed -his school on the plea of a hastily imagined holiday, and fled to the -woods. - -Una, however, in the full bloom of her eighteen years had not been one -of Andrew's pupils, and thus had not tormented him in this particular -manner. Hence, when she stood at the schoolhouse door, one fine morning, -asking if she might attend one of his classes, he suspected nothing. -Overcome by her murmured assurance of interest, he made room on his -little platform for her and for her two friends from the city, never -dreaming that these demure young ladies were not really so absorbed in -the joys of learning as they appeared to be. - -Memorable for him was the next half hour, during which he plunged his -pupils through an incoherent lesson in history, vividly conscious all -the while of the three pairs of eyes that were fastened upon him. When -the ordeal was over, and he succeeded in bowing his visitors out of the -schoolhouse, he had the blissful consciousness that he, Andrew Parmelee, -schoolmaster of Rysdale, had been bidden to Stoneleigh whenever he chose -to visit that historic mansion. - -Aunt Hepzibah, as was to be expected from her perverse disposition, -opposed the acceptance of this invitation. But Andrew for once went -his own way. Within a month after Una's visit to the school he called -at Stoneleigh, where he was received with a cordiality that quite -dumbfounded him. There was a brief but miserable period of diffidence -and terror, extending over several subsequent visits; after which Andrew -found that it was really possible to talk to this wonderful, gray-eyed -creature as he had never dared talk to any one before. In fact, Una -listened to him--to his little ambitions, his beliefs, his petty -trials--with a kindly sympathy that was quite the most perfect thing he -had ever imagined. - -Then came the end to his romance. It was inevitable, of course. He -wanted her to do more than simply listen to him--and that was just the -one thing more that she could not do. It was all very tragic to both -of them. Andrew was broken-hearted, full of heroics about fidelity, -eternity, death. And Una--it was her first experience in human sorrow, -and she was genuinely shocked and repentant. - - - - -II - -IN UNA'S GARDEN - - -Until David told her that evening in the garden at Stoneleigh, Una had -not known that her uncle opposed her marriage. No reason was given for -his opposition--and David's attitude was quite as much of a puzzle. -He talked of some shadow in his past, and was on the point of telling -Una what it was. But she stopped him. Their love, she said, had to -do with the present, the future; it had nothing to do with the past. -Nevertheless, she wished David had set himself right with Leighton. - -"Why didn't you answer Uncle Harold?" she asked. - -At first he avoided her glance, snapping his riding-whip nervously among -the withered sunflower stalks. Then he turned to her. - -"I don't know," he said. - -"You knew he was wrong." - -"In a way--yes. And then, I wondered if, after all, he was right. As I -said, I can't explain it to myself. You stopped my speaking to you about -it. And yet, do you know, after talking with your uncle, I convinced -myself--I thought I convinced myself--that I was unworthy of you, that -our marriage would be wrong." - -"Don't say that!" she exclaimed angrily. "Unless your love for me has -changed, it is the one right thing in the world--as mine is for you." - -"Beloved! Let it be so," he said, his dark mood vanishing. "Let the -first day of our new life be the first day of our past. Do you remember -that first day? Coming down the river we spoke hardly a word. You -laughed at me, called me lazy, the boat slipped along so slowly. And -you were right! Watching you I forgot the stupid business of rowing. -Never before were you so beautiful--but now you are a million times -more beautiful! How I wanted to kiss you! If I had dared kiss just a -bit of your dress, anything blessed by touching you! But I didn't--not -then! How it all happened afterward, when we landed at our island, is -the mystery--or, rather, the most natural thing in the world. I was -tongue-tied as ever. Not a word in the language was in reach of me--at -least, I couldn't think of one. Naturally, the dictionary men left -out our words; they didn't know you. And yet, we understood! Did the -birds tell us, I wonder, or was it written on the trees, or whispered -in the golden air? Love talks without words. But now--" he broke off -abruptly--"now I must answer Uncle Harold." - -"Why?" - -"I wish I could talk it over with Raoul," he went on, not heeding the -question. - -"Why with Raoul?" - -"You don't know Raoul." - -"Tell me about him." - -"He understands me, that's all. We have been together a lot. But what's -the use of thinking of him! He's in India, probably--or, maybe, -Bogota--yes, it must be Bogota--and will stay there for years." - -"You are fond of him?" - -"No! I can't imagine any one being fond of him. He fascinates you. He's -queer. He is my age, yet his hair is white--even his eyebrows and his -eyelashes are white. Fancy a young man with white eyelashes! There's not -a hint of color in his face. And his eyes--you can't tell what they are; -neither can you avoid them when they stop twitching and fix themselves -on you. Did you ever see a human being jump out at you from a pair of -eyes? It sounds foolish; but then, you've never seen Raoul! Love leaps -out of your eyes, and all the beauty of trees and rivers. God made your -eyes and put you in them just to help people. It was the devil who made -Raoul's eyes." - -They lingered at the far corner of the terraced garden where a low -hedge of box overlooked a deep, silent grove of balsams. Beyond, at one -side, the gray walls of Stoneleigh, the square tower bearing aloft a -single ray of light, rose indistinctly against a background of firs. -The familiar scene, softened by the twilight, dispelled their first -feeling of uneasiness. Everything had changed. Once more the world was -brightened by their love. The touch of Una's hand, the fragrance of her -hair, the joy of her quivering lips, were, for David, the only things -that mattered. - -Since their first meeting, a year ago on the Derwentwater, in England, -love had grown with these two. On the night before that meeting, David -had reached Keswick, where Una was staying. Skiddaw and Helvellyn, -when first he saw those famous peaks, were dimly outlined behind the -evening mists. Next morning the sky was cloudless, and although David -was familiar with the scenery of Alps, Andes and Himalaya, the charm of -this English landscape touched him deeply. The peaceful lake, surrounded -by steep hills of living green, and holding on its breast thickly wooded -islands, stirred a new longing within him. These hills, it is true, were -not comparable in height or sweeping contour to the majestic altitudes -of Southern Asia or Western South America. Neither was the Derwentwater -equal, in certain scenic effects, to similar bodies of water that had -won his admiration in distant countries. Here, nevertheless, Nature was -revealed in her loveliest mood, and David yielded himself delightedly to -her gracious influence. - -As he floated dreamily in his skiff on the Derwentwater, the dip of his -oars made the only visible ripple on the glassy surface of the lake, -while the rugged outlines of the hills, drenched in sunlight, seemed to -weave a fairy circle into which the world of ordinary experience might -not enter. The scene reacted inevitably on his own emotions. For the -first time in many months a feeling of complete restfulness possessed -him, a mood ripe for dreams and all that hazy kind of speculation lying -on the borderland of dreams. In this mental state he sought one of the -islands whose sylvan shadows lengthened over the water's sunny surface. -The hollow echo from oar and rowlock, the grating of prow on pebbled -beach, broke the silence that had surrounded him ever since he left the -little wharf at Keswick. The lightest of summer breezes stirred the -topmost branches above him. Invitation was in the air, rest beneath -the trees. This was surely the morning of the world, and he was the -discoverer of this nameless island. Strange that it should be here, -unmarred, untouched, unknown, in populous England! - -There was welcome in the crackle of twigs beneath his feet; a responsive -thrill from the green moss upon which he threw himself. As he tried to -catch the blue of the sky beyond the moving canopy of green, he idly -wondered whether he was the first to pierce the island's solitude, -whether its secret had been kept for him. - -Perhaps it was in answer to his unuttered query that the stillness was -suddenly broken by the faintest echo of silvery laughter. He listened -in surprise, for the island was far too small, he imagined, to screen -either house or camp from the view of any one approaching it, and before -he left his boat he had satisfied himself that no other summer idler -was here before him. Nevertheless, there was that tantalizing laughter, -coming from a portion of the island opposite the beach on which he had -landed--and there was the shattering of his daydreams. - -He parted the low-lying branches of some bushes growing between him and -the shore, but could see nothing save the clear expanse of lake upon -which there was neither sail nor rowboat. He perceived, however, judging -by the distance of the water below him, that the shore of the island -must here become a diminutive cliff, in the shelter of which, doubtless, -was the being whose laughter he scarcely knew whether to welcome or -shun. The fairy-like spot obviously had some prosaic owner who was there -to enjoy what was his--or hers. The laughter was unmistakably a woman's. - -David rose hastily from his retreat beneath the trees, uncertain -whether to apologize for his intrusion or to slip away unperceived. -After all, the laughter chimed in pleasantly enough with his roving -fancies. There had been wood-nymphs before, if one can believe the old -romancers, who sang the carefree joys of the glens they inhabited--and -perhaps this was a wood-nymph. His curiosity aroused, David peered again -through the branches. This time he saw her. - -She was not a wood-nymph of old mythology, but an incarnation of the -spirit of youth that all morning had pursued him. She was clad in the -simplest of sailor suits, the blouse of gray silk opening loosely about -her delicately moulded throat and neck, her hair straying in tawny -ringlets over her shoulders and reaching down to the book which she held -in her lap. At her side sat an old man, of stalwart frame, white-haired, -with the strongly lined face and sharpened features typical of the -student. A wide-brimmed quaker hat lying at his feet emphasized his -freedom from the conventionalities of dress and was in strict keeping -with his long black coat and voluminous trousers. - -They were reading a book together, a book that had evidently provoked -the disturbing laughter and brought a grim look of amusement to the old -man's face. The noise made by David, however, broke up their pleasant -occupation. The girl turned her head, gazing curiously at the spot -whence came the sound of rustling leaves. What she saw stirred her as -nothing ever had before. Her glance met David's; and to both of them it -seemed as if all their lives they had been waiting for the revelation of -that moment. Her pulse quickened; her cheek paled, then grew rosy red; -her gray eyes dilated with mingled alarm and pleasure. - -The sudden, deep impression was dashed by a singular interruption. -The girl's companion, his back half turned to David, his face still -expressive of amusement, and looking straight before him at the ripple -of water kissing the pebbles at his feet, spoke in a loud, harsh voice: - -"Una," he said, "remember the schoolmaster! This man's world is not -ours. What does he know of Rysdale?" - -She looked down confusedly, aware that her uncle--for it was Harold -Leighton--without seeing this stranger who had so quickly aroused her -interest, spoke as if he knew who he was and all about him. When she -looked again, David was gone. - -Between that first meeting and this evening, a year after, when they -stood together in Una's garden at Stoneleigh, they had lived through -much of Love's first golden record. Their experiences had not always -been cloudless. Harold Leighton, it is true, did not actively oppose -their marriage; but he had borne himself in a manner that showed, at -times, either a singular indifference, or a covert mistrust of the -man who was so soon to take from him his brother's only daughter. It -might be from jealousy, it might be from a perfectly natural feeling -of caution; at any rate, he never discussed their plans with them, he -never explained his attitude towards them. Never again did he allude to -the schoolmaster, nor account for the strange words he had used on the -little island in Derwentwater. - -For the most part he watched their courtship with a sort of whimsical -curiosity, but always withholding his assent from the marriage to which -they looked forward. Una was indignant at his final attempt to separate -them. His suspicions and David's quixotic manner of meeting them -increased her faith in her lover. Never before had she been so perfectly -happy as she was this evening with him in the garden's autumnal silence. - -"It will soon be forever," she whispered. - -"You are not afraid?" - -"If it were possible for our love to die, if it were as shortlived as -the sunflowers, if some one had the power to take it from us, I would be -afraid. Tell me that no one has the power, David." - -He held her from him for a space, his eyes searching hers. - -"You alone have the power, Una," he said. - -From a slowly moving figure amid the bushes behind them came an -uncompromising question: - -"David, you have told her?" - -The dusky outline, the large quaker hat, the wide-skirted coat catching -occasionally among the dry twigs and branches, revealed Harold Leighton. -He stood in the center of the pathway, his gray eyes fixed upon them, -awaiting an answer. - -"David has told me," said Una firmly. - -"You have told her?" he repeated. - -"I have told her that I love her," he answered. - -"Is that all?" - -"I told her that I am unworthy of her." - -"Why are you unworthy of her?" - -"You speak as if you knew something against me," said David. Then added -fiercely, "Tell it!" - -With an odd smile on his face the old man looked at Una. - -"He says he is unworthy of you--you are free," he said. "Una, how do you -choose?" - -She bowed her head before her lover. - -"David, I love you," she said. - -The old man turned towards the house. - -"David, I see your horse is lame; you have ridden him to death," he said -drily. "You had better spend the night at Stoneleigh." - - - - -III - -A CHAPTER ON GHOSTS - - -A strange thing happened that night at Stoneleigh. - -For the first time in the annals of the younger Rysdale generation, the -great bare room at the top of the house, adjoining Harold Leighton's -laboratory, had a guest. In the days of the St. Maur Brotherhood the -monks used this room as an oratory. The shadowy outline of a crucifix, -which had once risen above an unpretentious altar, could still be traced -in the rough plaster on the narrow east wall. At either side of this -crucifix the blackened marks of bygone sconces were visible, while in -the north and south walls of the apartment there still remained a number -of huge spikes, rusty with age and swathed in cobwebs, from which had -hung the Fourteen Stations of the Cross. - -Since the departure of the monks this oratory had been practically -abandoned by their successors at Stoneleigh. The earlier members of the -Leighton family had shared the dislike of their fellow townsmen for -anything approaching "papistry." To this prejudice, as it affected the -use of the oratory, was afterwards added the belief that the gloomy -chamber was still frequented by certain ghostly members of the ancient -Brotherhood into whose spectral doings it was just as well not to pry -too closely. A live monk was bad enough, according to some of Harold -Leighton's ancestors; but a dead monk who "haunted" was too disreputable -altogether to have anything to do with. Hence, as there was more room at -Stoneleigh than could profitably be used, it was thought best to close -up this ancient oratory, leaving it to such grim visitants from the past -as might choose it for a meeting place. - -There had been seasons, however, when dust and cobwebs were sufficiently -disturbed to bring some semblance of cheer into the desolate apartment. -Thus, the festivities accompanying the marriage of Una's grandparents -had reached their climax here in a ball at which the local worthies -mingled with a number of excellent persons from that outside world of -fashion vaguely known as "the city." No spectral guest, tonsured or -otherwise, appeared on this occasion, and when the revels were ended the -legend that Stoneleigh's oratory was haunted no longer commanded the -respect, or even the interest, of the credulous. - -That was more than half a century ago; and now David Meudon was the -guest of this neglected chamber. He was in a joyous mood. A man more -tenacious of impressions could not have thrown off so easily the -irritation caused by the meeting with Harold Leighton in the garden. -The elder man's suspicions would have poisoned whatever possibility -there might be of immediate enjoyment. The presence of Una, however, her -unqualified acceptance of him, her uncle's suddenly changed attitude, -effectually dulled David's resentment. Leighton had agreed, apparently, -to the plan for an early wedding, and had even proposed that the -married couple should live at Stoneleigh. In spite of David's great -wealth, neither he nor his immediate ancestors had been identified with -a locality peculiarly their own; they had never had a family home. -With Una, on the contrary, the last of the Leightons, the ancestral -tie that roots itself under some particular hearthstone was especially -strong. She was pleased, therefore, with the offer that promised to make -Stoneleigh hers--and so, in the main, was David. - -He liked the old house; its history appealed to his imagination. He -stood somewhat in awe, it is true, of its present owner, and the -prospect of living with him did not promise unalloyed happiness. But -there was something about Harold Leighton, a suggestion of mystery, -that went well with this ancient place, and completely satisfied David. -He laughed at the Stoneleigh traditions; but when Leighton proposed -spending the evening in the oratory he gladly assented. David had never -been in this part of the house, although he had often wanted to explore -its possible mysteries. The opportunity to do this had not come until -now. - -"Yes, there are ghosts here," Harold Leighton replied to the young man's -jesting query as he, David and Una entered the great bare room together. - -"Then you believe in ghosts?" - -"Of course Uncle Harold believes in them," exclaimed Una. "I believe in -them, and so do you." - -"That depends. Show me one and I might." - -"Well," commented Leighton; "this is the ghost room, and here we are. -Perhaps your skepticism will find something to try its teeth on. In -honor of St. Maur we ought to have a demonstration." - -"Splendid!" laughed David. "But you don't mean it. People never mean -what they say when they talk approvingly of ghosts. You are known for a -skeptic yourself, Mr. Leighton. You accept nothing that has not passed -muster with science." - -"There may be a science of ghosts," retorted the savant. "Science is -not limited to any department of human knowledge. A scientific theory -is based on a collection of facts. How do you know I have not made a -collection of ghost-facts?" - -"And so have a new theory of ghosts to offer!" - -"You don't really think those old monks come back, uncle?" objected Una. - -"Oh, I'm not going to tell the secrets of my laboratory so easily--and -to such a pair of tyros," was the evasive answer. - -They stood before the great fireplace which a thrifty ancestor had built -into the east wall, and enjoyed to the full the warmth that had not as -yet reached the remote spaces of the gloomy chamber. It needed a fire -to bring some show of comfort to this wilderness of dust and cobwebs. A -few pieces of colonial furniture stood out in the melancholy wastes--a -faded lounge, a gargantuan dresser, several stiff-backed chairs still -nursing their puritanism. At the far end of the room various objects of -a decidedly modern appearance, suggesting the workshop of a physicist, -aroused David's curiosity. For an explanation of these he turned to -Leighton. - -"Is this your laboratory?" he asked. - -"What do you think of it?" was the reply. "Plenty of space, isn't -there? A man could have a score of ghosts here--ghosts of monks, you -know--nosing about for their comfortable old quarters." - -"Not so very comfortable in their day, Uncle," suggested Una; "nor in -ours, for that matter." - -Leighton chuckled grimly. "Are you interested in ghosts, David?" he -asked, looking keenly at him. - -"What do you mean by ghosts?" - -"Ah, that's it! This old room--are there ghosts in it, I wonder? The -nail marks in the walls, the stains where the lights were hung, the -shadowy remains of the altar--can you shake off the feeling that the -Brotherhood is still at prayers here, that it still has Stoneleigh for -its home?" - -"The Brotherhood no longer exists." - -"There's a family tradition, anyway, that assures us of its ability -to produce some excellent examples of the old-fashioned, conventional -ghost. A very great aunt of mine, for instance, once ventured alone into -this room and was met by a stalwart being who scowled at her from under -his brown hood and waved her majestically out of his presence." - -"That's the kind of ghost one likes to hear about and see," commented -David. - -"It didn't please my aunt particularly. The fright prostrated her for -months. Other imaginative ancestors have heard the monks chanting -together, and seen spectral lights moving about here at midnight." - -"You speak as if you believed it all." - -"I can't be defrauded of my family traditions." - -"How queer it is!" exclaimed Una, who had been wandering about the room -and now rejoined Harold and David before the fireplace. "I like it, -even if it is dirty. Why have you broken your rule and brought us here, -Uncle? And why do you talk as if you believed in the Stoneleigh ghosts? -You know you don't." - -"Ghosts!" he ejaculated. "I have been making some experiments recently. -I thought you might be interested in them." - -"Experiments in ghosts," ruminated David, who believed Leighton capable -of anything. - -"Yes," said the old man, enjoying his bewilderment. "My ghosts may be -different from those you have in mind. If you have followed the recent -developments in psychology you probably know that there are ghosts -attached to the living, whatever the case may be in regard to the dead." - -"No, I never heard that." - -"Not in those words. 'Ghosts' is not a term used by the scientist. -It involves a medieval superstition. But I am interested in things -more than in words, and I am not afraid to say that we have been -rediscovering ghosts." - -"Uncle, don't talk enigmas--or nonsense," remonstrated Una. - -"I confess, sir, I don't follow you," added David. - -"Did you ever feel that you had lost yourself?" asked Leighton abruptly. - -"I don't understand." - -"If you forget a thing, you lose just that much of yourself, don't you? -When you sleep, you enter a world of dreams. In that world you think, -speak, go through a set of vivid experiences. Awake, you are aware that -you have had these vivid experiences--and yet, you can't possibly -remember them. You are dimly conscious that you were in another world -and that while there you thought, suffered, rejoiced, much in the same -way that you do here. At times you have a vague feeling that you have -undergone some important crisis in your dream-existence, or you wake -up with the sensation of having reached some high peak of happiness. -But you cannot recall the details, or even the general outlines, of -what has happened. Not a scene of this dreamland, of which you are an -occasional inhabitant, can you picture to your waking thought; nor does -your waking memory hold the visage, or even the name, of one of your -dream-associates." - -"All this has to do with dreams," objected David. "It is admittedly -unreal." - -"Don't rely too much on old definitions. A part of you that sleeps now -does experience this dream-life and finds it real. The trouble is, -this dream part of you forgets; it is unable to report to the waking -personality what it has seen. - -"But it is not only in sleep that this dream-personality takes the -place of that which we call the real self. The opium-eater inhabits a -world, opened to him by his drug, and closed, even to his memory, when -the effects of that drug wear off. Then, there is that curious phase -of dipsomania in which the victim, apparently possessed of all his -faculties, goes through actual experiences--travels, talks with people, -transacts business--and when he recovers from his fit of intoxication -finds it impossible to remember a single circumstance of the many known -to him while under the sway of alcohol. The phenomena of hypnotism give -instances of similar independent mental divisions in a single human -personality. All this is the familiar material of modern psychology, out -of which the scientists build strange and varied theories. I call these -divided, or lost, personalities 'ghosts.'" - -"Ghosts of the living, not of the dead." - -"More uncanny than the old-fashioned kind," mused Una. "Fancy meeting -one's own ghost!" - -"Cases of such meetings are on record; Shelley's, for instance," said -Leighton drily. - -"The thing is strange and worth investigating. But," added David -laughingly, "I am not an investigator." - -"It is fascinating," declared Una emphatically. "Tell us more about it, -Uncle Harold. You spoke of an experiment----" - -"The experiment, by all means," said David. "Just what is it?" - -"Trapping a ghost," was the laconic answer. - -"And if you succeed in trapping it----?" - -"Ah, then--science generally leaves its ghosts to take care of -themselves. It's a good rule." - -"You say you are going to trap a ghost: you don't really mean that," -protested Una. - -"Remember, there are two kinds of ghosts. As a scientist I am not -interested in the ghosts of the dead. If they exist outside of fairy -tales and theology let some one else hunt them. But I am interested in -the other and more profitable kind--the ghosts of the living." - -"I don't understand," said David. - -"It needs explanation. Remember what I said as to the phenomena -presented by the dreamer, the hypnotic subject, the dipsomaniac, the -narcomaniac. In each of these cases one human mind seems capable of -division into two independent halves. And each half seems to forget, -or to be ignorant of the doings of its mate. Now, I am hunting for this -Ghost of the Forgotten." - -"Sounds romantic," remarked David. "According to your theory, don't -you need a hypnotized subject--or at least a dipsomaniac--for your -experiment?" - -"No. The Ghost of the Forgotten lurks in all of us. The man or woman in -whom this Ghost is not to be found is exceptional. I doubt if such a -being exists--a being whose Book of the Past is as clear, as legible, as -his Book of the Present." - -"But, your experiment, Uncle," demanded Una; "show it to us." - -"I need help for a satisfactory trial. An experiment isn't a picture, -or a book, you know. It needs a victim of some kind. What do you say, -David?" he asked, turning abruptly to him. - -"You want me for the victim?" laughed David. "I'm ready. Feel just like -my namesake before he tackled that husky Philistine. Tell me what I'm to -do." - -They were standing at the fireplace, Una with one arm through her -lover's, the other resting on her uncle's shoulder. A scarcely -perceptible frown clouded Leighton's features before he accepted David's -offer. - -"I merely want you to answer some questions," he said finally. "You -will think them trivial; but I want you to answer them under unusual -conditions. Let me show you my latest prize and explain things." - -Leighton strode to the center of the room and thence down to that end of -it where the tools of his laboratory were kept. David and Una followed, -enjoying the momentary relief from the scrutiny of the old savant, who -was now, apparently, engrossed in his scientific apparatus. There was -not much of the latter in sight, and to the novice unfamiliar with the -interior of a physicist's laboratory, and who carries away a confused -impression of glass and metal jars, tubes, coils of wire, electric -batteries, revolving discs, and all the nameless paraphernalia of such a -place, the appointments of Harold Leighton's workshop would seem simple -enough. Yet, the machine before which Leighton paused comprised one -of the newest discoveries in this branch of science. Its sensational -purpose was to measure and probe the mind through the purely physical -operations of the body. - -What appeared to be, at first glance, an ordinary galvanometer stood -by itself on a table. Its polished brass frame, its flawless glass -cylinder enclosing the coils of wire, recording discs and needle, -suggested nothing more than the instrument, familiar to the physicist, -by which an electric current is measured and tested. Connected with this -galvanometer, however, was a curious contrivance consisting of a mirror, -over the spotless surface of which, when the machine was in operation, -a ray of light, projected from an electrified metal index, or finger, -moved back and forth. The exact course of this ray of light, the twists -and turns made by it in traversing the mirror, was transferred by an -automatic pencil to a sheet of paper carried on a revolving cylinder. -This paper thus became a permanent record of whatever experiment had -been attempted. - -That the subjects investigated by this unique galvanometer were human -and not inanimate was indicated by two electrodes, attached by wires -hanging from the machine, intended to be grasped by the hands of a -person undergoing the test. Its use, also, as a detector of human -thought and emotion, and not of mechanical force, was described by its -name--the Electric Psychometer. - - - - -IV - -THE GHOST OF THE FORGOTTEN - - -"Modern rack and thumbscrew," exclaimed David, eyeing curiously the -machine whose gleaming surface of glass and polished metal was in -striking contrast with the somber oratory. - -Harold Leighton paid no heed to the comment. He was apparently too -busied with some detail in the complicated mechanism before him to -attend to anything else. David and Una, on the other hand, were more -amused than impressed with the odd kind of entertainment chosen for -this memorable evening of their betrothal by the eccentric scientist, -although every now and then some unexpected bit of irony from him came -disconcertingly enough. - -"Why should people, whose lives are blameless, think of racks and -thumbscrews when they see a simple machine like this?" he asked -suddenly, taking up David's apparently unnoted exclamation. Not waiting -for an answer, he went on, as if with a lecture to which they had been -invited to listen. - -"So far as I know this machine is the first of its kind to reach this -country. It is an ingenious development of certain laws psychologists -have been using for some time in their experiments, and is based on a -theory that is, roughly, something like this: - -"A thought is a part of the body that gives it birth. Thinking is not -confined to the brain. Like the assimilation of food, it involves -man's entire physical nature. In cases of exaggerated thought or -emotion--intense grief, fear, joy--the physical effects are obvious. -The scientist, however, claims that the physical result from a mental -cause is not confined to these extreme cases. A thought, the presence of -which is not perceptible in gesture, facial expression, or the slightest -visible emotion, is, nevertheless, communicated physically to every -part of the body. Throw a stone into a pool of water. If the stone is -large, the waves caused by it can be seen until they spend themselves on -the shore; if it is small, the resulting ripples become invisible long -before that. The point is, the ripple exists, whether we see it or not, -just as does the wave, until it has run its course. - -"A thought, in its physical effect, is like the stone thrown into a -pool. If it is a big, exaggerated thought, the agitation produced is -outwardly visible. If it is small, more subtle, less sensational, its -physical effects are invisible, although, theoretically, reaching in -ripples to the extremities of the body. Hence, the psychologist's -problem is: to detect and measure these invisible, intangible ripples of -the mind. - -"This machine, my 'ghost-hunter,' solves the problem. A Russian -scientist discovered that an electric current passing through the -body is affected by any abnormal physical, or nervous, activity there -encountered. Thought is a form of electric impulse and would, therefore, -modify any other electric force crossing its path. Hence, Tarchanoff's -law. Its practical application means, the literal measurement of our -mental ripples. And this is done by the psychometer." - -"How?" asked David. - -"It's very simple. You hold these electrodes in your hands. An electric -current is turned on and passes through you. While you are thus charged -with electricity, I throw the stone, the thought, into your mind. The -degree, or quality, of disturbance caused by this thought modifies the -electric current, the varying agitation of which is made visible by the -movements of an electric finger across this mirror. From there it is -recorded on the sheet of paper in this cylinder." - -"What a horrible contrivance!" exclaimed Una. - -"I see how it works," mused David, "except for one thing. How do you -introduce the thought you want to measure?" - -"If I explain that the experiment wouldn't be possible," said Leighton -with a laugh. "The thought must come through unconscious suggestion, or -our Ghost of the Forgotten will refuse to appear. In a way, it is like -a game--and is more interesting than most games. Did you ever play the -game of twenty questions?" - -"I have," interjected Una. "It's this way. Something--a book, a piece -of furniture, anything at all--is chosen by one set of players to be -guessed by the other set. Then the set who know the secret have to -answer twenty questions about it, asked by the other side. The questions -sound silly, but they usually discover the secret." - -"Is your experiment like Una's game?" asked David. - -"Not exactly. Sit down in this chair and you'll see." - -Seated as directed, the psychometer stood a little back and at one side -of him. - -"Now," said Leighton, giving him the electrodes, "hold these, one in -each hand." - -"It's like an electrocution!" exclaimed Una. "Are you very -uncomfortable?" - -"Oh, quite the contrary! Now, Mr. Leighton----" - -"Ready? Here goes the current. You will scarcely feel it." - -Leighton pulled out a small lever. A faint humming sound was heard. The -electric finger on the mirror in the machine became suddenly illuminated. - -"Do you feel it?" asked Una. - -"Yes; it's rather nice. This hero business is all right, especially when -you preside at the performance, Una." - -"Now for your game of twenty questions, Uncle Harold. Of course, you are -going to let me into the secret?" - -"How can I?" he retorted. "David has the secret." - -"I have it?" repeated the other, perplexed. - -"Certainly. But this isn't exactly a game. You'll find it tedious, Una. -Why not stay with Mrs. Quayle in the library until it's over?" - -"Nonsense! Of course I'll stay here," she replied firmly. - -"What am I to do?" asked David. "Holding these handles is easy -enough--but nothing happens." - -"Let me explain," said Leighton. "I am going to give you, one at a -time, a number of disconnected words. As you hear each word, you must -reply with the first word that suggests itself to your mind. For -instance, suppose I say 'black.' The word gives rise, instantly, to -some answering mental picture, and that picture will suggest a word with -which your experience has associated it. Thus, when I say 'black,' you -may think of 'night'; or, if your thought goes by contraries, the word -'white' may occur to you. In any case, tell me the first word that comes -into your mind upon hearing my word--and remember that the promptness of -your reply is an important factor in the experiment." - -"It sounds easy," remarked David. "Let's begin." - -On a small table at which he was standing, Leighton placed his watch, -a writing-pad and pencil. Seating himself, he commenced the experiment -in the way he had proposed, noting each word as he gave it on the pad -before him, and marking the number of seconds elapsing before each of -David's answers. Una, ensconced in a large armchair, watched the scene -intently. - -"Theater," was Leighton's first word. - -"Music," came the prompt reply. - -"Noise." - -"Sleep." - -"Lion." - -"Teeth." - -"Sound." - -"Desert." - -"Ocean." - -"Blue." - -A long series of similar question and answer-words followed, apparently -chosen at random and not indicating any sequence of ideas. Leighton -spoke with exaggerated monotony, his eyes fixed on David, his hand -moving with mechanical precision as he jotted down the words and the -time taken for each reply. Scarcely any agitation was noticeable in -the finger of light upon the mirror, and this part of the experiment -seemed--at least to Una--a failure. - -"I don't see what the machine has to do with it," she said, somewhat -puzzled. "David could just as well answer your words without holding -those things in his hands." - -"Una," said Leighton, giving this as the next question-word and ignoring -the interruption. - -David smiled, hesitated a moment before replying, while the electric -finger trembled slightly and then moved, slowly and evenly, back and -forth across the mirror. - -"Light," he answered softly. - -More question-words followed, most of them receiving prompt answers and -producing no appreciable effect in the psychometer. It was noticeable, -however, that words having to do with places gave a different result--a -vibration of the electric finger, indicating, according to the theory, -that they awakened a deeper interest than other words in David's mind. - -In experiments of this kind the operator's choice of words is carefully -made, as a rule, and not left to chance. They usually have a certain -continuity of meaning. Theoretically, also, the operator's personality -is kept in the background, so that the subject is freed from any -emotional impulse save that created in him by the question-words. But -there is always the possibility that this personality will unconsciously -influence the subject's mind, which is thus impelled in directions it -might not otherwise take. Hypnotism may thus, unintentionally, play a -part in an experiment of this kind, and the subject made to follow, in -the words uttered and the degree of emotion displayed, his inquisitor's -suggestions. - -It would be hard to tell whether hypnotism gradually came into -Leighton's experiment with David. Certain it is that as the trial went -on a change came over the two men. Their features grew tense, they were -as vigilant to thrust and parry in this game of words as two fencers -fighting on a wager whose loss would mean much to either of them. In -David anxiety was more marked. The electric finger in the psychometer, -unconsciously controlled by him, moved more rapidly and with greater -irregularity over the face of the mirror. At times it remained fixed in -one place; then, with Leighton's utterance of some new word, it would -leap spasmodically forward, in a jagged line of light which would be -recorded automatically on the cylinder at the back of the machine. - -David could not see what was happening in the psychometer. Outwardly he -showed no emotion, except the anxiety to hold his own in this word duel -with Leighton. Nevertheless, the electric current passing through him -registered a series of impressions that grew in variety and intensity. -Theoretically, these impressions were David's thoughts and feelings -acting upon the electric finger; and thus the line of light traced upon -the mirror was really a picture of his own mind. - -For Una the affair had lost its first element of comedy. The meaningless -words, the monotonous seriousness with which they were uttered, seemed, -in the beginning, a delicious bit of fooling improvised for her benefit. -She delighted in the original, the unexpected, and nothing, certainly, -could be more foreign to the customary betrothal night entertainment -than this ponderous pairing of words between her lover and her uncle. -The real purpose of the experiment had not impressed her. The talk -about ghosts gave an amusing background to it; but this was afterwards -spoiled, it is true, by the tedious discussion of psychological -problems. Of course, Una assured herself, this experiment--or this -game--was a psychological problem, and she felt certain David would -solve it, whatever it might be, in the cleverest fashion. - -Had Una understood from the first just what Leighton intended by his -proposed "ghost-hunt" she would have followed more keenly the details -of this novel pastime. As it was, these details appeared to have no -intelligible object in view and failed to arouse her interest until some -little time had elapsed. Then she began speculating on the meaning of -her uncle's disconnected words and wondering why they drew from David -just the replies they did. More to amuse herself than anything else she -compared the images which these words evidently aroused in David's mind -with the images suggested to her. - -For "ship," he gave "sky"; she thought of "water." "Mountain" produced -"tired"; she would have said "view." Her word for "river" was "rowing"; -his "sunshine." He said "mystery" for "Africa"; she, "negroes." -His words were never the same as hers, a fact indicating the wide -differences in their individual experiences. More singular still, -David's words were always remote, in meaning or association, from the -question-words to which they were the answer; hers were quite the -opposite. Why, she asked herself, did he say "anger" in response to -"India"; "misery" to "temple"; "joy" to "ocean"; "lost" to "guide"; -"slave" to "friend"? - -As the experiment progressed most of her uncle's words were bound -together, Una noticed, by a similarity in character. She even fancied -she could detect in them the disjointed bones of a story. Most of these -words had to do with foreign travel, and as David was known to have -visited many countries it was natural that the test should follow this -line, especially as this was a quest for the Ghost of the Forgotten. -In this connection it was noticeable that the series of words chosen -by Leighton reversed the itinerary which Una was certain David had -followed. Thus, the first question-words indicated the English Lake -region, where David had ended his travels. Then came various European -countries, and after these Morocco, Egypt, Arabia, India, China, the -Islands of the Pacific and the western coast of America. Supposing that -Leighton had David's actual itinerary in mind, he was going over it by -a series of backward steps, and had now reached a point at which, as -Una remembered, the long journey began. With each backward step, also, -she noted that the agitation of the electric finger in the psychometer -increased. David could not see what was happening in the machine behind -him, although it was his own emotions that were being recorded there. -Why was he so agitated? Why did he try to hide his feelings? Why did -these simple words from Leighton have such power over him? As Una asked -herself these questions her sympathy for him increased, and she awaited -the end of the experiment with anxiety. - -Leighton paused after David matched his question-word, "California," -with "home." The electric finger threw a tremulous line of light upon -the recording mirror, and in both men the indifference shown when they -began this strange game was lacking. The expectancy in David's face -changed to defiance as "California" was followed by the question-word -"ship." The electric finger gave a swift upward flash, and there was -a longer pause than usual before the answer came--"storm." "Pacific" -was met by "palm trees"; and these were followed by "land," "Indians"; -"hotel," "strangers"; "natives," "lost"; "clew," "wealth." - -With the last pair of words the agitation recorded in the psychometer -reached its highest point. David's face was pale, his features drawn, -his grasp on the electrodes tense. Una could not bear to witness his -struggle. Although ignorant of the cause, his suffering was all too -evident, and she determined to rescue him at once from her uncle's -cruelty. Leighton met her appeal with characteristic coolness, ignoring -her demand to bring the experiment to an end. But he changed the -sequence of words he had been using. - -"Homer" was the next question-word given. - -The effect was immediate. David looked at the old man with astonishment. -The jerky motion of the electric finger ceased, while instead an even -line of light was traced over the mirror. The answer-word came promptly -this time: "Iliad." - -A series of similar words followed, and as the experiment took this -new direction David's nervousness vanished. Then, without warning, the -travel series was taken up again; and this time each word came like the -blow of a hammer upon a nail that is swiftly and surely driven to its -mark. - -There was no mistaking the result. David's limbs stiffened, as if to -ward off a blow. His look of relief gave place to a hopeless sort of -misery; the telltale electric finger jumped forward in exaggerated lines -as if to escape from some merciless pursuer. - -"South America," demanded Leighton. - -"Spaniards," after a pause, was David's answering word. - -"Mountains." - -"Muleback." - -"Lake." - -"Gold." - -The answers were hesitatingly given, almost inaudible. Again Una -protested. - -"Stop!" she commanded. "You have no right----" - -Leighton waved her imperiously aside. - -"Dynamite," he continued, addressing David. - -"Darkness," came the hesitating answer. - -"Raoul Arthur." - -Silence. A weird dance, as of some mocking spirit, seized the electric -finger pointing at the mirror. Una knelt at David's side, her hands upon -his shoulders. His lips quivered as he looked despairingly at her. - -"Guatavita," said Leighton harshly. - -No answer. The electrodes slipped from David's grasp. The finger of -light became suddenly motionless. - -David had fallen, unconscious, in Una's arms. - - - - -V - -THE SEARCH FOR EL DORADO - - -"Leave him with me," said Leighton. "Wait for us with Mrs. Quayle." - -"No! No!" answered the girl passionately, kneeling beside David, who was -lying on the couch. "You have killed him!" - -"Don't talk nonsense," he said coldly, yet with sympathy in his keen -gray eyes. "This had to be, and I took my own way about it. Now, go. He -is all right. He is safe with me." - -David drew a long breath. He looked vacantly at Leighton, then turned to -Una. - -"Do as he says," he whispered. - -"David, I will stay with you." - -"Not now; I must speak to your uncle." - -"David!" - -She looked into his eyes, trying to read there the mystery that was -parting them. - -"It will be better for all of us," said Leighton gruffly. - -Unable to hide her fears, Una rose and moved away from them. The boards -of the well worn floor creaked harshly as she walked to the far end of -the room. Pausing at the door, she looked back. - -"I will wait for you," she said. - -When the sound of her footsteps died away, David turned to the old man, -who was busied with his scientific apparatus. - -"Well, how do you feel?" asked Leighton, gathering up the notes which -were strewn on the little table. - -"Curiously here," replied David, drawing his hand across his forehead. -Then he asked: "How did you know?" - -"That's easily answered. About two years ago I read, in the Journal -of Psychology, a paper by your friend, Raoul Arthur, describing the -strange mental effect produced on a young man by a dynamite explosion in -a South American mine. Arthur is something of an authority in abnormal -psychology, and his report of the accident interested me. The name of -the young man was not given. I made inquiries long before our chance -meeting with you in England. I learned, among other things, who the -young man was. Before we met on the Derwentwater, I had watched you at -the hotel." - -"You wrote to Raoul Arthur?" - -"I did not," he answered drily. "A newspaper account of the accident -gave me the clue I needed. According to this account, you were killed in -the mine explosion, and no trace of your body or clothing was found. It -was long afterwards, in Arthur's report, that your reappearance, under -peculiar circumstances, was described. Since then I have learned of your -travels. But I have noticed that you always avoid any reference to your -South American experiences. So, I appealed to the psychometer." - -Leighton, absorbed in his notes, was apparently unaware of the -eagerness with which David followed his explanation. - -"It's all very simple," mused the young man. "And yet, it seemed like -necromancy." - -"Science is not necromancy." - -"But the report," urged David; "I didn't know Raoul had written a -report." - -"You know he is a psychologist, a hypnotist?" - -"Yes," was the answer, with something of a shudder. "But--why all this -elaborate experiment of yours?" - -"To prove a theory--and to be certain about you." - -"Why?" - -"What a question! You expect to marry Una. Before your marriage takes -place--if it does take place--I wish to clear up whatever mystery there -is hanging over your past." - -"And your experiment has shown you----?" David asked in a low voice. - -"It confirms the theories of Tarchanoff and Jung," he replied -pedantically. "It proves the intimate connection existing between mental -and physical phenomena. The personal result is still incomplete. On that -side I must know more." - -"I will tell you what I can," said David resolutely. "But first--what -has Raoul written about me?" - -"Merely a reference. Read it after you have told me your story. Our -experiment is still unfinished, you know." - -"Unfortunately, I can't tell you the very thing you want to know. The -series of words in your test seemed to revive some forgotten nightmare; -and the horror of it was that this nightmare kept just beyond my -reach--as it always does--its riddle unsolved. This, with your strange -knowledge of what had happened, surprised me into this ridiculous -weakness." - -"So I thought," said Leighton. "Now, what do you remember?" - -"I'll have to go back a little. But--you probably know it all, you know -so much of my history." - -"Never mind. I want you to prove the truth of what I know." - -David looked at Leighton doubtfully. - -"Very well," he said, "I'll do what I can." - -Much of his story, as he told it, was decidedly vague. In the main -outline, however, it was simple enough, although ending in a mystery -that he was unable to clear up. - -Three years ago, it seems, David went to work on a project based on -a legend belonging to prehistoric America. Traditions of the immense -wealth and the civilization found in certain parts of South America -by the Spanish conquerors had always fascinated him. And of all these -traditions the one telling of El Dorado, the Gilded Man, interested him -most. - -From the early South American chronicles he learned that, within a few -years of Pizarro's discovery of Peru, three other explorers, starting -independently from points on the Caribbean and Pacific coasts, after -months of perilous adventure, reached a great tableland in the Upper -Andes, where Bogota, the capital of Colombia, now stands. It was "El -Dorado" who drew these explorers thither. From the Indians on the coast -they had heard stories of the great Man of Gold, who lived among the -mountains of the interior and who possessed treasure so vast that all -the wealth of the rest of the world could not equal it. Arrived in this -mysterious region, they found, not El Dorado, but a superior race of -people, somewhat like the ancient Peruvians, showing, in the barbaric -splendor of their temples and palaces, every evidence of wealth and -culture. These people, however, known as the Chibchas from their worship -of the god Chibchacum, were suspicious of the Spaniards. A war of -conquest followed, in which thousands of the natives were massacred and -their finest temples and monuments destroyed. Sajipa, the Chibcha king, -was subjected to the cruelest torture by his conquerors in their effort -to find out from him where he had hidden his treasure. But he proved -hero enough to suffer martyrdom rather than reveal the secret. For this -he was put to death, and the Spaniards contented themselves with the -trivial amount of gold and emeralds extorted from his subjects. They -then established themselves in colonies on the Plains of Bogota. The -climate was delightful, the land fertile and, as they soon discovered, -rich in minerals. From the few surviving Indians they learned some of -the native legends. In one of these, the legend of El Dorado, they -believed they had the clew to the treasure they had been seeking. This -legend was mixed up with the ancient mythology of the Chibchas, and had -played a leading part in their religious ceremonial for centuries before -the arrival of the Spaniards. It was as follows: - -On the edge of the Bogota tableland, not many miles from the city that -is to-day the capital of Colombia, there is a lake, Guatavita--the -Sacred Lake of the Chibchas. Geologically, it is a pocket formed by a -cluster of spurs near the foot of a conical mountain. It is small, -circular in shape, and reaches a central depth of 214 feet. Beneath this -lake, according to tradition, lived the national god, Chibchacum. To -keep on the right side of this god, to make atonement for the people, a -semi-annual feast was observed--the Feast of El Dorado. - -Twice a year the king of the Chibchas, in celebrating this Feast, was -floated on a raft to the center of the Sacred Lake. He was then stripped -of his royal robes, his body anointed with oil and covered with gold -dust. Glittering in the sunlight this Gilded Man stood at the edge of -the royal raft and was saluted by his subjects, who encircled the shores -of the lake, each one bearing an offering of gold and emeralds. Then, -as if dazzled by the splendor of their monarch, the people reverently -turned their faces away from him and, at a signal from the priests, -threw their treasures over their heads into the lake, while the Gilded -Man, followed by the heaps of precious stones and metals which were -with him on the raft, plunged into its waters. No god ever received -such a shower of wealth at his shrine as was thus lavished twice a -year, for centuries, on the god Chibchacum. All this wealth, except an -insignificant sum that the Spaniards rescued, is to-day, according to -the legend, at the bottom of Guatavita. - -Besides this semi-annual tribute, it was rumored that at the time of -Sajipa's murder the entire remaining treasure of the Chibchas had been -thrown into the lake, not as a votive offering, but as a means of -hiding it from the Spaniards. It took fifty men, so runs tradition, to -carry the gold dust to Guatavita from the king's treasury alone. All -the minor chieftains of the kingdom made a similar sacrifice of their -possessions on this occasion. - -Years afterwards, the Spaniards, stirred by these stories, attempted -to drain the lake. This meant the piercing of earth and rock walls -nearly nine hundred feet thick and proved too great an undertaking -for the engineering machinery that they had in those days. But before -they gave up the work they succeeded in lowering the level of the lake -sufficiently to recover a certain amount of treasure. Since that time -the secret of Guatavita has remained undisturbed. To solve it David went -to Bogota. Raoul Arthur, who had done most of the practical planning for -the expedition, went with him. - -The motives of the two men engaged in the enterprise were not exactly -similar. David, according to what he told Leighton, hoped to solve -an archćological riddle and to study a hitherto lost people whose -prehistoric civilization equaled that of their neighbors, the Incas -of Peru. Arthur, on the contrary, whose fortune was still to be made, -regarded it frankly as a mining scheme that promised fabulous returns -in money, with a comparatively small amount of risk and labor. The -two points of view were not antagonistic, and for a time the friends -worked amicably enough together. In Bogota they easily secured from the -government the necessary permit to drain Guatavita. But the attractions -of the Colombian capital, the hospitality with which they were received, -delayed the actual working out of their plans. Fascinated by the romance -of this picturesque city and charmed by the unique race of mountaineers -inhabiting it, David postponed the prosaic task of mining, while Raoul -became absorbed in studies relating to their proposed venture, meeting -people with whom his companion seldom came in contact. Lake Guatavita -and its secret was thus, for a time, forgotten--at least by David. - -When the social gayeties of the capital were exhausted, he took up in -earnest the work he had planned to do. He bought a full equipment of -the best mining machinery and hired a large number of laborers. But -the enterprise proved more difficult than he expected. The Spaniards, -who had worked at the problem three centuries before, were bound to -fail on account of their lack of engineering machinery. To empty Lake -Guatavita, they tried to cut through the mountain which formed one of -the containing walls of that body of water. Under the circumstances -their partial success was amazing. The V-shaped gash they cut through -the mountain is a proof of their industry, even if it failed of its full -purpose. But it did lower the level of the lake--although this result -was followed by an unforeseen catastrophe. The sudden release of the -water through the channel opened for it left the precipitous shores of -the lake unsupported. These shores then caved in, covering whatever -treasure there might be in the center of the basin with masses of rock -and earth, and thus placing a new obstacle in the way of the future -miner. - -David and Raoul took the problem from a different angle. They abandoned -the old cuttings of the Spaniards and planned a tunnel through the -thinnest part of the mountain to the bottom of the lake. In this -way they hoped to control the outflow of water, after which, they -calculated, the recovery of the treasure would be a mere matter of -placer mining. To do this they had boring machines and dynamite--modern -giants, of whose existence the old Spaniards never dreamed. - -As a first test of the existence of treasure in the lake, native divers -explored some of the shallow places near the shore. A few ancient gold -images were thus secured, enough to corroborate the legend regarding -Guatavita. These images were curiously carved. One represented a small -human figure seated in a sort of sedan chair. Another was a heart-shaped -breastplate upon which were embossed human faces and various emblems. -Others were statuettes, rude likenesses, probably, of those who threw -them into the lake as votive offerings. - -These gold tokens spurred on the miners. Work on the tunnel was rushed, -and a subterranean passage, several hundred feet in length, directed -to a point just below the bottom of the lake, was soon completed. Then -a peculiarly hard rock formation was reached that the boring machines -could not pierce. To overcome it, dynamite was used. - -"Since dynamite was one of the final words in your test," said David, -in telling his story to Leighton, "you know that its use in our venture -brings the climax of my mining experience. How to explain this climax to -you--or to myself--is beyond me. - -"When we decided to use dynamite in our excavations, a long fuse was -laid from the tunnel's entrance to the unyielding wall at the other -end. There this fuse was connected with a dynamite charge placed in the -crevice of the rock to be destroyed. Raoul, waiting to set off the fuse, -remained at the opening of the tunnel. I was at the further end, looking -after the laying of the dynamite. As I started for the entrance, I was -a little behind the others. The latter no sooner gained the outer air -than a muffled roar shook the tunnel. The ground swayed, the terrific -concussion of air seemed to rend my very brain, and I fell unconscious." - -David's story came abruptly to an end. Pale and listless, wearied by -the effort to give a coherent account of his experiences, he looked -hopelessly at Leighton. - -"Well," said the latter, "what then?" - -"If I could only tell you!" - -"Surely, you remember something--there is some clew----" - -"Nothing! Just--darkness." - -"Some faint flashes here and there--glimpses of people, scenes, a house, -a street--the sound of voices, a word----?" - -"Nothing!" - -"Try to remember." - -"No use. I've tried it too often. It's all a blank. I thought, for -an instant, that in your psychometer test the veil would be lifted. -Instead--as you know--I went to pieces." - -"Very well," said Leighton reassuringly, "let us go back to your story. -You were in the tunnel when the dynamite went off. You were thrown to -the ground; you lost consciousness. What is the next step in memory?" - -"Wait," said David slowly. "The explosion was on the ninth of May. The -date was indelibly fixed in my mind; I have verified it since. When I -recovered consciousness----" - -"You mean, your normal consciousness," interjected Leighton. - -"Very well. When I came to myself, then, it was on the morning of the -fifth of August." - -"Nearly three months afterwards," ruminated the old man. "You found -yourself----?" - -"Seated in a chair, in a room in a strange house in Bogota." - -"Alone?" - -"Raoul Arthur was with me. He was bending over me, his eyes fixed on -mine, making passes with his hand before my face." - -"You were in a hypnotic trance." - -"I was coming out of one apparently." - -"It would be hard to define your condition. Of course, after the -explosion you had been picked up and carried to this house in Bogota, -where you had remained, suffering from a severe nervous shock--perhaps -concussion of the brain--for three months." - -"I had been in that house scarcely an hour before my memory was suddenly -revived." - -"How do you know that?" demanded Leighton sharply. - -"The rainy season was on in August in Bogota. I found myself in my -riding dress. My rubber poncho, dripping with rain, was on the floor. My -boots, the spurs still attached to the heels, were caked with mud." - -"And Arthur told you----?" - -"At first, I was bewildered, as one is when suddenly aroused from a long -sleep. With full return of consciousness, I asked Raoul how I came to be -there. He said he didn't know." - -"He must have given some explanation." - -"Very little. What he said mystified me more than ever. He declared that -a short time before a messenger had come saying that I was in the house, -waiting for him." - -"Whose house was it?" - -"Raoul's. He had rented it two months before and was living in it alone -with two servants who were running it for him." - -"And this messenger----?" - -"An Indian, whom neither of us saw or heard of again, although we -inquired high and low." - -"The servants must have had information to give?" - -"On being questioned they said I had arrived that morning on horseback, -with an Indian, who left me there. This Indian was probably the -messenger who informed Raoul of my arrival, and who afterwards -disappeared. My horse was tethered in the courtyard." - -"The clews seem to have been pretty well obliterated," remarked Leighton -sarcastically. "But Arthur must have been able to shed some light on the -affair." - -"He said that when he found me, I did not recognize him and was in -a sort of dazed mental state. Then he tried hypnotism. He had often -hypnotized me before that, and was thus familiar with my condition while -in a trance. Well, as soon as he saw me, after my long disappearance, he -declared that I showed every symptom of hypnotic trance. So, he at once -tried the usual method for bringing me back to a normal condition--and -with complete success." - -"In his report Arthur emphasizes that as the singular feature of the -case. His account, so far as it goes, agrees with yours. It gives the -facts of the explosion, how you were supposed to be killed, how you -disappeared for three months, and how, when you were found, you were in -a trance from which he awakened you." - -"Does he say that, on coming out of the trance, I could remember nothing -that happened during those three months?" - -"Yes." - -"Well, there's the whole case. You know all that I do about it." - -"All that Raoul Arthur knows?" - -"All that he says he knows." - -"Ah, then you have your doubts?" - -"Just a suspicion. I have a feeling that he could tell more about my -disappearance than he chose to tell." - -"Why did you leave him?" - -"I left Bogota the day after I came out of the trance. My distrust -of Raoul and the horror that I felt for everything connected with my -mysterious experience, made my stay there more than I could stand. -But we parted friends, and I've sent him money to go on with the -excavations. How he's getting on I can't tell you. I've lost my interest -in El Dorado. I won't visit Bogota again." - -For some minutes Leighton paced up and down the shadowy room. Then he -stopped, with the air of one who has reached a decision. - -"Our course is plain," he announced. - -"I've tried everything; there's nothing to be done," said the other -hopelessly. - -"David, you've missed the obvious thing," was the emphatic reply. "We -must go to Bogota." - -"Go to Bogota!" - -"You and I will face Arthur together. If he knows anything more -about this matter, he's bound to tell us. If he doesn't know--if your -suspicions are groundless--we'll solve the mystery of those three months -some other way. And perhaps we'll stumble upon your Gilded Man at the -same time," he added with a chuckle. - -"And Una----?" - -"She has a way of deciding things for herself. For all I know she may -want to go with us." - -"Would you consent?" - -"There's no reason against it. In a ghost hunt a woman's wit may help." - -"Very well, then," said David, new energy in his words and manner. - -"You agree?" - -"I am entirely in your hands." - -"Then we'll take up our interesting little experiment again in the land -of El Dorado--and this time we'll run it out to the end." - -"Without a psychometer, I hope," said David. - - - - -VI - -EMBOLADORES ON THE MARCH - - -There is in Bogota a street, the Calle de Las Montanas, that meanders -down from the treeless foothills of the gray mountain ridge overlooking -the city, and broadens out into a respectable thoroughfare before losing -itself in the plaza upon which, facing each other diagonally, stand the -venerable Catedral de Santa Fe and the National Capitol. This street, -resembling the bed of a mountain stream, in the first half mile of -its course runs through a huddle of lowly houses whose thatched roofs -and white adobe walls seldom reach more than one story in height. The -inhabitants of this district are called, in playful irony, by their more -prosperous neighbors, "paisanos," fellow-citizens; or else, scornful of -compliment, "peons," day-laborers. Here dwell the teamsters of the city, -the washerwomen, the tinkers, the runners, the street-sweepers, the -beggars, the proprietors of small tiendas, the bootblacks, the vendors -of sweets--a mixed army of workers and idlers, who gain a livelihood, as -chance favors, by their hands or their wits. - -The peon of Colombia is an interesting possibility. He is more Indian -than Spanish, but he has developed certain novelties of feature that -belong to neither of these parent races. He has something of the -savagery of the one, and the romance of the other; yet he is quite -unlike Spaniard or Indian, and when these have disappeared from the -mountain republic the peon will take their place. To-day he lacks the -energy needed for self-assertion. There have been occasions, however, -when this peasant of the Andes has taken the lead in a popular uprising -and, although he has usually failed to win what he was after, his -reserve of power promises well for the future of his race. - -It was the politically awakened peon who was in evidence on a certain -morning in Bogota, not so very long ago, at the upper end of the Calle -de Las Montanas. The sign of his awakening was to be seen in an unusual -commotion among the good-natured "paisanos" of the street, from which -an onlooker might reach the astonishing conclusion that some sort of -"demonstration" was under way. Revolutionary or otherwise, there are -people, it would seem, who engage in these affairs simply through a -desire for sociability. Their warlike declarations are really not -unamiable. An Andean revolution, indeed, may not be more terrifying -than a "fiesta," and is never so noisy. In either case, these people -make common cause of their joys or their grievances; and it was -unquestionably a sudden burst of neighborliness that brought the -inhabitants of the Calle de Las Montanas together on this particular -morning. - -An army of bootblacks was assembled in the middle of the street. Bogota, -ancient seat of the Muyscas, City of the Mountains, is, for some unknown -reason, rich in bootblacks. Hence, it was not surprising to find a -hundred or more knights of the brush and bottle mustered here. They -were of varying age and size, clad in nondescript rags, over which -protectingly flapped the ruana, or poncho, a garment inherited from the -Indians, and now universally worn in Spanish America. War's ordinary -weapons were lacking in this tattered regiment. Instead of sword and -musket each youngster carried in front of him, hanging from his neck, -a rude box containing the bottles and brushes needed in his calling. -Ordinarily these weapons are harmless enough; but these volunteer -soldiers felt that they were adequately armed for whatever adventure -might be in the wind. Patriotism--and a ruana--can start any revolution. -In expert hands, the vicious twirl of a ruana should bring terror to the -most stalwart of foes--and of patriotism there was a generous supply -this morning in the Calle de Las Montanas. - -Pedro Cavallo, a wiry youth, taller than his fellows, gifted with shrill -eloquence, acrobatic gestures, and hence acclaimed the King of the -Bootblacks, was the leading spirit of the throng surrounding him. - -"Viva Pedro! Por la Patria! Por la Patria! Baja los puercos!" shouted -first one and then another in answer to his orders given with all the -assurance of royalty. - -"Compadres!" he addressed them, switching his cumbersome box of blacking -to one side with oratorical cunning; "we will lead the way! We will -march to the palace! We will offer ourselves to the President! We will -march to the coast, and then we will sweep out the Yankees!" - -"Si! Si!" they shrilled in eager response. "Por la Patria! Por la -Patria! Mata los Yankees puercos!" - -A quizzical spectator, a true Bogotano, robust and red-cheeked, swathed -in an ample ruana, echoed the enthusiasm. - -"It is an army of emboladores!" he shouted sonorously. "Let the Yankee -bull beware!" - -Now, "embolador," although it is a word familiarly used in Bogota to -designate a bootblack, has for its first meaning "one who puts balls on -the tips of a bull's horns," a thing not easy to accomplish, requiring, -as it does, the conquest of a traditionally warlike animal. Applied to -this Falstaffian army of bootblacks, the irony of the term was broad -enough to delight the bystanders, at the same time that it flattered the -vanity of those for whom it was intended. - -Distances meant little to the emboladores. No matter how far they had to -travel, they vowed they would keep going until they met "los Yankees." -And, when they did meet them, they had no doubt of what would happen. -Confident in their own ability to put the "usurpers" to flight, they had -the sympathy of the peons surrounding them. - -At this period, immediately following the proclamation of Panama's -independence, there was widespread indignation throughout Colombia -against the United States. Americans were accused of starting the -"revolution" which robbed the mother country of her richest possession, -and the Colombian government was accordingly expected to avenge the -national honor. The native authorities, lacking money and troops, did -not respond to the popular demand, and it was left to the "patriots" to -denounce the invading Yankees, and to fit out such volunteer expeditions -as the one planned by the emboladores of the Calle de Las Montanas. -Bogota, the largest city of the republic, the center of its official -life, became the rallying place for political malcontents. A "Sociedad -del Integridad Nacional"--a body of agitators at odds with the native -government and bitterly opposed to the United States--had been formed -here. This Sociedad had already organized two expeditions against the -Yankees and the Panamanians. Both expeditions, made up of the dregs of -the city, poorly armed, scantily clad, relying for their food on such -contributions as they might pick up along the way, had left for the -coast where they planned a guerilla warfare that would bring them, they -believed, in triumph to the Isthmus. The third expedition was being -engineered by the emboladores, whose enthusiasm and love of adventure -made them excellent starters of an uprising. Even the elder peons, -skeptical at first of what was going on, soon threw aside their reserve -and fell into line with the bootblacks. Cheers greeted each addition to -the little army, and it was not long before Pedro Cavallo, "Rey de los -Emboladores," headed an eager throng of followers numbering well into -the thousands. - -What to do with so strange a mob of volunteers might have puzzled -a more experienced leader than Pedro. But nothing daunted him. The -bigger and the more unruly his army, the greater seemed to be his -confidence in himself as its commander. And his royal swagger won -unbounded admiration. Grimy children, too young to join the ranks of the -emboladores, scurried hither and thither among the bystanders, shrieking -with delight at this staging of their favorite "Pedro the King." Women, -setting down their bundles under the projecting latticed windows of the -houses, talked wonderingly of this sudden glory that had come to a youth -whom they had thought skilled in nothing mightier than the blacking of -boots. Solemn greybeards, proprietors of dingy little tiendas, stood -in the doorways of their shops, secretly amazed, but still holding -themselves grimly aloof from the noisy demonstrations of their -neighbors. - -"Yankees are pigs," said one of these sellers of sweets, native tobacco -and white rum, quoting gloomily the popular estimate of Americans. - -"Yes," replied another; "and pigs are easily beaten." - -"Truly, that is so," quoth the first philosopher, struck by the turn of -a new idea. "Yes, that is so. Even a woman can beat a pig, if the pig -has eaten too much." - -"Yes, yes, Compadre! And Panama is too much for the hungriest pig." - -Then, out of the surging crowd of volunteers, came a stentorian voice: - -"Donde vamos, Pedro el Rey?" ("Where shall we go, King Pedro?") - -"To the President! To the Palace San Carlos!" shouted Pedro, brandishing -a stick snatched from one of the faithful. - -As the volunteers had agreed to do this in the first place, the -announcement was instantly approved. San Carlos, "the palace," was -not far off--a few short blocks this side the principal plaza of the -city--and word was quickly passed along to march thither. Still shouting -vengeance on all Yankees, the emboladores, followed by a mob of peons, -moved down the street, encouraged by the primitive jests and delighted -cheers of the bystanders. - -Early as it was, San Carlos was ready for this unusual visit. Although -it was popularly known as "the palace"--as all residences of high -officials are in Colombia--this large rambling structure of stone and -plaster was in no way distinguished from the buildings that elbowed it -at each side. Its dilapidated walls ran sheer to the narrow sidewalk, -overlooking which were several balconies of the kind commonly used in -Spanish-American buildings. A large square opening, guarded by rude, -heavily timbered doors, formed the entrance to this simple executive -mansion which was built around a huge courtyard, or patio. From this -patio two broad flights of carpeted stairs led to the living rooms -and offices above. This arrangement of rooms, balconies, patio--the -fountain in the middle of a bed of flowering shrubs and plants, -perpetually spraying a moss-grown cupid; the brick walls; the inner -corridor supported on arches of masonry and forming the boundary of the -four-sided court--all this one finds, with slight variation, in the home -of the average Bogotano, as well as in the official "palace." The unique -feature of San Carlos, growing out of the very heart of this ancient -dwelling, is a huge walnut tree, rising some forty or fifty feet above -the patio, overtopping the adjacent roofs, and marking this, better than -could any national emblem, as the presidential residence. - -Within the gateway of the palace and at the foot of the stone steps -leading to the corridor above, there is always a guard of soldiers. -On the morning of the visit of the emboladores this guard was greatly -increased in numbers and was commanded by a youth whose resplendent -uniform was in striking contrast with the dingy, ill-fitting apparel of -his men. As the tramp of the peons echoed along the street, the soldiers -marched hastily across the patio and drew up outside the entrance to -the palace. Here, waiting groups of idlers shouted with delight as the -bootblacks, King Pedro in the lead, rounded the corner of San Carlos. - -"They will polish the Yankees," declared one admirer. - -"No, they have come for the president's boots." - -"Emboladores! Emboladores! Beware the bull!" - -"Here, King Pedro, give us a shine!" - -"Don Pedro is busy; he's lost his brush." - -"He's keeping it for his Yankee customers." - -"He will take Panama with it." - -The unterrified Pedro, meeting this raillery with serene indifference, -halted his men before the entrance to the palace and addressed the -captain of the guard. - -"We have come to see Don Jose." - -"But, muchacho," replied the captain affably, "that is impossible. His -Excellency is busy. Who are you?" - -"Pedro, El Rey de los Emboladores!" piped up several volunteers. - -"Ah!" said the captain, saluting profoundly. "And what do you want with -his Excellency, Majestad?" - -"To tell him we will fight the Yankees who have stolen Panama." - -"I will tell his Excellency this," was the grave reply. "Of course, he -will be pleased." - -While these two youths were talking--for after all, the magnificent toy -captain was quite as young as the King of Brush and Bottle--the curtains -of the large window above were drawn aside and a tall, spare figure, in -a long frock coat, stepped slowly forth on the balcony. He was an old -man, with a close-clipped beard and moustache, sharp, thin features, -and an owlish way of peering through his large, gold-bowed spectacles -that made one look involuntarily for the ferule of the schoolmaster -held behind his back. This elderly personage had been, indeed, one of -the notable pedagogues of Bogota in his day, a fact which, joined to -his scholarly achievements in his country's literature, seemed to his -neighbors a sufficient reason for voting him in as the proprietor of San -Carlos. To this decision the less powerful and more numerous citizens of -the republic could make no effective protest. - -On this particular morning it was the schoolmaster, wearing his most -indulgent smile, who faced the bootblacks in the street below him. -As soon as they caught sight of the familiar figure they gave him an -enthusiastic greeting, the democratic flavor of which he seemed to -relish. Popular applause had been lacking in Don Jose's career, and -since the troubles over Panama had broken in upon his quiet cultivation -of the muses, it looked very much as if his countrymen's indifference -might turn to open hostility. Thus, the friendly greetings of a rabble -of bootblacks and peons was not to be despised. - -"Don Jose! Don Jose!" they shouted cheerfully, with that peculiar -upward inflection by which the Spanish-American gives a warmth to his -salutation not suggested by the words themselves. "El Presidente de -Colombia! Viva Don Jose! Baja los Yankees!" - -To all of which Don Jose, one long thin hand thrust stiffly between the -breast buttons of his coat, listened in dignified silence, inwardly -gratified by these boisterous visitors. - -"Bueno, bueno," he said in a high querulous voice; "I am very glad to -see you, my friends. This is a great honor. But, what can I do for you?" - -"Send us to Panama!" bawled Pedro, acting as spokesman for his men. - -"Dear me!" exclaimed the old man, enjoying the situation and ignoring -its political consequences. "Panama is far off--and why should I send -such good citizens away from Bogota?" - -"Por la Patria! Por la Patria! To fight the Yankees!" - -"The Yankees? But why----" - -"They have stolen Panama. They are pigs!" - -"What a people!" he exclaimed, nonplussed. "I am sorry for that. Well, -if I send you, what will you do?" - -"Esta bueno! Don Jose will send us to kill the Yankees!" they shouted -enthusiastically. - -"No! No! I didn't say that!" he expostulated; then continued, as if by -rote: "The government will look after Panama. If fighting is needed to -preserve the republic, the army will do its duty"--an assurance which -increased the martial swagger of the gold-braided toy captain, although -unappreciated by his men. - -"We will fight with the army, Don Jose," declared Pedro. "We will drive -out the Yankees and save Panama." - -"Viva Colombia! Baja los Yankees!" shouted the peons. As this voiced -the popular sentiment, and as Don Jose's loyalty in the Panama affair -had been questioned by some of his enemies, no sufficiently discreet -reply occurred to the puzzled schoolmaster, whose intellectual gifts, -moreover, were lacking in the quick give-and-take needed for street -oratory. So, smiling benignly, and somewhat fatuously, upon the -noisy rabble, he thrust his hand deeper into his coat, peered more -owlishly through his gold-rimmed glasses and, forgetting its future -possibilities, got such enjoyment as he could out of the novel -situation. - -The volunteers exploded with joy over the president's apparent approval -of their demand. Had Pedro cared to stop for further talk the impatience -of his comrades would have prevented him. Although these peons had no -definite plan, they were looking for something more exciting than an -exchange of opinions with this old grey-beard of San Carlos. A march -through the city, and then on to Panama, seemed as good a program as any -to men who were indifferent to the dry details of geography. There were -more cries of "Down with the Yankees!" and cheers for Don Jose. Then, -before that bewildered statesman could take himself off, his unwashed -admirers filed past his balcony, leaving the toy captain and his men to -close the gates they had so courageously guarded. - -Under other skies and among a more vindictive people, a roving crowd of -peons, clamorous for war and threatening all who opposed them, might -be regarded with some alarm. But the mildness of the Andean character, -its dislike for actual bloodshed, lessened Bogota's danger. Even the -timid Don Jose was not apprehensive. But there were others who thought -it wiser to keep these peons away from Americans living in Bogota. Not -that anything would really happen--past experiences seemed to prove the -harmlessness of this kind of patriotism. When the second expedition -left for the Isthmus, for instance, an American, looking for novel -impressions, had posed the volunteers before his camera and snapshotted -them to his heart's content while they were denouncing "los Yankees." -But one mob of patriots may be quite unlike another, and it so happened -that when King Pedro's army of emboladores, in its aimless wanderings -after leaving the Palace of San Carlos, stumbled upon a native of the -United States, the encounter became a very lively one indeed. - -As a rule plenty of Americans are in Bogota. Some go there to do -business for the merchant houses which they represent; some have -their own local interests, others are after those tempting government -"concessions" granted to the disinterested person who develops the -natural resources of the country by monopolizing them. When the Panama -"revolution" came, most Americans left Bogota, conscious that it was -not a promising time to seek aid from the national treasury for their -ventures. Those who were unable to leave, stayed within their respective -hotels whenever a popular uprising seemed likely. - -It was down a blank little side street, leading nowhere in particular, -lined with modest one-storied houses, in a quiet district unfrequented -by foreigners, that the roving peons met the one American who had failed -to conceal himself on this particular morning. After leaving San Carlos, -Pedro had turned his men into the Plaza de Catedral, where they had -clattered along the wide concourse, pausing to make a few fiery speeches -before the capitol, whose unroofed courts--the building was unfinished -at that time--and majestic Doric columns seem meant for oratory. From -here they had gone the zigzag length of the principal business street. -Then tiring of their progress through an unresponsive city, they had -started to find their way back to the Calle de Las Montanas, choosing -for this purpose the obscure Calle de Las Flores. - -At their approach the street was practically deserted, all the doors -opening on it carefully barred and, in some instances, even the blinds -of the windows drawn. Thus, it happened that a tall man, muffled in a -ruana, wearing a wide sombrero, and with his back against the entrance -to one of the houses, became unavoidably conspicuous as the throng of -emboladores surged along the roadway abreast of him. - -"Viva Colombia!" shouted Pedro, giving the usual greeting. "Baja los -Yankees!" - -Instead of answering in a like strain of enthusiasm, the man addressed -tossed the loose end of his ruana over one shoulder, showing, as he did -so, a pallid face on which played a contemptuous smile. - -"Soy un Americano," he replied composedly, glancing at Pedro and then -turning his eyes, which were singularly piercing, from one to another of -those crowding about him. - -"Un Yankee! Un Yankee! Baja los Yankees!" - -The cry was followed by a threatening movement of the emboladores toward -the man whose attitude seemed to be a challenge to them. - -"Halt!" yelled Pedro. "I know this senor. Give him a chance. If he -cheers Colombia, we will let him go. If he refuses, he is prisoner. Now, -Senor Yankee--viva Colombia!" - -The emboladores gave a lusty cheer. It was met with scornful silence by -the man who had declared himself a Yankee. - -"Si! Si! Pedro el Rey!" they all shouted. "He is an enemy to Colombia. -He is prisoner!" - -The wily Pedro unwilling to risk his position by denying the demands of -his followers, yet fearing to aid in an act of violence, diplomatically -said nothing. The defiant American, meanwhile, regarded the peons with a -disdain that enraged them, although checking, through its very audacity, -their hostility. - -"I am not a Colombian," he said quietly; "I am not an enemy to Colombia. -But I won't cheer against the Yankees." - -"Un Yankee! Un Yankee!" they retorted. "A Yankee thief come for our -gold!" - -"There is truth in that," he laughed sardonically. "I want gold that you -are too lazy to get for yourselves--just as you were too lazy to keep -Panama." - -"Un loco! He is insane!" cried Pedro in disgust. "Let us go!" - -"No! No!" yelled the angry mob. And amid cries of "Loco! Demonio! -Yankee! Puerco!" those in the front ranks made a lunge at the man whose -exasperating coolness had kept them at bay, while a shower of missiles -came from the peons who hovered in the rear. - -But the attack was skilfully met. Tripping up his first two assailants -and warding off the blows of a third, the Yankee, smiling derisively, -stealthily passed his left hand along the ponderous door against which -he was leaning. This street door, as is usual in Colombian houses, had -a small "postigo," or wicket, large enough to admit one person at a -time, and opening much more readily than the unwieldy mass of timber of -which it formed an insignificant part. Having found the latch of this -wicket, the Yankee gave it a quick backward thrust, stepped lightly over -the threshold and closed and barricaded this scarcely revealed entrance -behind him. - -A storm of oaths followed his escape. Then, not content with this vent -to their anger, the peons, using such stones and weapons as came to -hand, rushed upon the wooden barricade standing between them and their -prey, at the same time calling upon the inhabitants of the house to let -them in. These Colombian doors, however, are built to withstand a stout -siege, and the din might have been indefinitely prolonged had it not -come to an abrupt and unexpected conclusion. - -Three sharp blows upon the door were given from within. Then a clear -feminine voice was heard above the uproar. - -"Stand back, Senores! I will open." - -There was a dead silence. This time it was the great door itself that -swung slowly open. There was no sign of the escaped Yankee in the wide -corridor beyond. In his stead there stood, unattended, unprotected, a -woman. - -She was clad in a long robe of white, her dark hair flowing unconfined -down her shoulders. Her bare arms, exquisitely molded, and of a tint -that vied with her dress in purity, were crossed upon her breast. There -was no fear in her eyes as she faced the abashed men and boys before -her. - -"This is my house, Senores," she said calmly. "What do you want?" - -Involuntarily the leaders of the mob fell back, awed by the girl's -courage and dignity. There was a murmur of voices, ending in a chorus of -admiration and homage. - -"La Reina! La Reina!" they cried. "La Reina de los Indios!" - -Then the sharp-witted Pedro, resuming command over his ragged troops, -stepped forth, waving to the others to keep silence. - -"It is nothing, Senora," he said, bowing with an awkward grace that -played sad pranks with the box of blacking hanging from his neck. "We -are patriots of Colombia marching to Panama. We mean no harm to you." -Then, turning to the emboladores, he shouted, with his old enthusiasm: - -"Por la Patria! Por la Patria! Viva la Reina! Baja los Yankees!" - -The crowd took up the familiar call, and with one of those quick changes -of sentiment that sometimes sweeps over such gatherings, fell into a -march, cheering the motionless "Reina de los Indios" as they filed past -her, and leaving the Calle de los Flores to its accustomed dreams and -quiet. - - - - -VII - -LA REINA DE LOS INDIOS - - -"Felicita, where is this Senor?" - -"Ah, Dios mio! safe enough, in the sala. But for thee--nina Sa'pona, how -scared I've been! And they called thee queen, thou who art our queen -indeed, beautiful, brave one! But thou shouldst not do this--not for so -ugly a senor--my beautiful nina!" - -With the great door closed, and the noise from the peons growing fainter -in the distance, the stern dignity of the Indian girl vanished before -the simple talk of her old nurse. Queen of the Indians, as the peons -called her, this girl might be--although why they called her so they -would find it difficult to tell--but for the faithful creature, with -her eager caresses and affectionate words, royalty, real or imaginary, -scarcely counted. - -"There you are, foolish Felicita, always scared at something! Danger? -What danger? Only a greeting from those who are as fond of me as thou -art. Now, to thy work. I must speak with this troublesome Yankee. Many a -day it is since I have seen him here. And then--Felicita, I am dying of -hunger." - -Shaking her head at her mistress's lack of caution, the old nurse -hobbled down the gloomy corridor and into the sunny patio, fragrant with -jasmine and sweet rose, where two Indian girls, seated upon the flags -surrounding the opening of a central cistern, were crushing corn in the -primitive stone hand mills of their race. - -Resuming something of her stateliness of mien, the youthful "Reina de -los Indios" turned to the right along a passage-way leading off from -the main corridor into the sala, or principal living room of the house. -This was more scantily furnished than such apartments usually are in -Bogota. All that it had was of the plainest--half a dozen cheap rocking -chairs, a straight-backed cane settee, a tall pier-glass, ornamented at -the top and sides with meaningless gilt stucco work, and a dark walnut -cabinet, carved in elaborate hunting design, with massive spiral pillars -supporting the heavily panelled sides and front--the only object in the -room giving evidence either of taste or wealth. Even the tiled floors -were bare, save for a few well worn petates (Indian mats) which failed -to supply that feeling of comfort provided in this chilly climate by the -thick woollen rugs and carpets generally in use. - -Awaiting her entrance stood the Yankee whom she had rescued from the -emboladores. Confronted by his ragged assailants he had shown an -admirable coolness; in the presence of this young girl his manner lacked -that air of confidence he had so readily assumed in the face of danger. -He was ill at ease; his glance shifted from one object to another in -the room, his sombrero was tightly clenched in his hand, he avoided the -steady gaze of his rescuer. Yet there was in his attitude toward her -an indefinable homage, due, perhaps, to the queenly rank that others -accorded her, or else to the rare feminine loveliness, the subtle power -of which few could escape. - -"Senorita, you have done me a great service," he said. "I was on my way -to see you when I had that brush with the peons. That is my excuse for -taking refuge in your house and exposing you to danger. Will you forgive -me? Will you----" - -"Ah, my good Don Raoul!" she interrupted. "What questions! And from you! -Of course, if I was of service to you just now, I am glad." - -"It is good to hear you say that, Senorita," he replied with evident -relief. "I was afraid things might be different between us. You see, you -disappeared so completely. You have not been in Bogota for months, for -years, Senorita. And then, to-day--at last--I heard of your arrival. I -wanted to see you. I have not forgotten you in all this long time, you -may be sure, Sajipona!" - -A faint flush overspread the girl's delicate features; a strange look -kindled within her dark eyes. - -"It is well, Don Raoul," she said in a low voice. - -"And here you are, still the Queen--beautiful, mysterious!" he -exclaimed. - -"You know I am not a queen," she murmured. - -"Why, even now they called you so. Those jackals felt your power--just -as I do, beautiful Sajipona!" - -"Enough, Senor! Titles and flatteries I neither care for nor deserve are -a mockery in my own house." - -"The title is yours by tradition, if not by right. As for -flatteries----" - -"We do not live by traditions," she interrupted. - -"To me, at least, you are La Reina de los Indios." - -"Ah, well, Senor," she said with a low laugh; "every queen, I fancy, -should have at least one subject. And now--supposing that I am this -queen you talk of--what is it you want of me?" - -"We always used to be friends, Sajipona. Can we not be friends still?" - -"There's another strange question! But--surely you did not come here to -ask me that? There is something else, Don Raoul," she added, regarding -him intently. - -"It is that, first of all. And then--I had it in mind to tell you that -my friend is returning to Bogota--David Meudon." - -"David Meudon," she repeated, as if pondering the name, looking steadily -at Raoul the while. - -"But then--what is that to me, Senor?" she asked. - -"You remember him?" - -"Yes, of course I remember him. He has been away a long time, hasn't -he?" Then, after a pause: "Why does he come back?" - -"To solve a mystery--so he writes me." - -"A mystery?" - -"He calls it a mystery," laughed the other. "You see, when we were -living here together he disappeared for three months. We thought he -had been killed by a dynamite explosion. Surely, you have heard of it, -Senorita?" - -"Yes--I think everyone has heard of it. And then, at the time, there -were rumors. For instance, I heard--I heard who exploded the dynamite." - -"Sure enough, there were all kinds of rumors. But, of course, the whole -thing was an accident, a horrible accident, that nearly cost David his -life. He didn't heed the signal in time--or something went wrong--the -signal or the dynamite. Anyway, he wasn't seen or heard of again for -three months. We all thought he must have been blown to bits. Then, a -curious thing happened. One morning I found him in my house, in a sort -of trance." - -"Well?" - -"When he came out of the trance, he declared he could remember nothing -of what he had been through. Those three months were a blank in his -memory." - -"And then----?" - -"He left Bogota, declaring he would never come back. That was just three -years ago." - -"But----" - -"Yes, now he is coming back--with some friends--to solve this mystery, -so he says." - -"What mystery, Senor?" - -"Why," replied Raoul slowly, looking at her intently; "the mystery of -those three months when he was supposed to have been in a trance." - -"What is a trance, Don Raoul?" asked the girl innocently. - -Raoul laughed. - -"Ah, that would be hard to explain to a queen of the Indians," he said. -"A trance is not exactly a sleep, for a man may talk and travel and -do things, just like other men, when he's in a trance. But when he is -himself again, he remembers nothing of all that happened when he was in -the trance." - -"Then you think he was in a trance during those three months when he -disappeared from Bogota?" - -"Yes." - -"And that he has forgotten all that happened to him in that time?" - -"Perhaps." - -"Could he ever remember?" - -"There is only one way in which he could." - -"How is that?" - -"If he could return to the same scenes and conditions through which he -passed during those three months." - -"But for that you would have to know, of course, what those scenes and -conditions were?" - -"Exactly, Senorita." - -"Really, it is all very interesting," she said dreamily. "I have heard -something like it in fairy tales, I think; but not in real life. And -now--why do you tell all this to me, Senor?" she asked, as if struck by -a novel idea. - -"Ah, Sajipona," he replied with a smile; "I have told you merely in -answer to your own questions. You have shown that--for some reason or -other--you are interested." - -"Interested? Why, of course I am interested--if for no other reason, -simply because you are. This David Meudon, you say, left Bogota three -years ago? Strange that he should leave so suddenly--and with his work -in this country unfinished!" - -"I can't tell how much you know of David," he said musingly. "But there -is every reason why you, more than anyone else, should be interested in -the man who attempts to solve the secret of Guatavita--Sajipona." - -There was no mistaking the emphasis placed on the girl's name; nor was -there any disguising the effect its peculiar pronunciation had upon her. -Sajipona looked at Raoul in alarm, then turned from him in manifest -confusion. Presently, she gave a low laugh and her eyes sought his -again. - -"Ah, you Yankees are strange people," she said. "Some say, you are only -money makers. But, it appears, you are more than that; for you listen to -foolish legends, like the rest of us--and you believe them." - -"Yes, I believe this one, Sajipona." - -"Does the man who so strangely lost his memory by your dynamite -explosion believe this one?" she asked laughing. - -"I don't know. Perhaps he never heard it." - -"Well, it's very interesting, anyway--I mean, about the trance and the -dynamite. I want to hear the end of it. You will surely come again, -won't you? And tell me when your friend arrives in Bogota," she added, -giving him her hand. - -"You are ever the queen; you dismiss me from your presence," he -complained, taking her hand, nevertheless, and kissing it. - -"The streets are safe for you now, Senor," she said. - -"Thanks to you, La Reina!" - -"Ah, I would do much more for you than that, as you know, Don Raoul!" -she exclaimed, an arch smile giving to her beautiful features a rare -flash of piquancy. "And now--Adios, Senor!" - -"Surely, not 'Adios,' but--until the next time, Sajipona," he replied, -as he bowed himself from the sala. - -Raoul's belief in the legend involved in Sajipona's name marked a -radical change which he had undergone since he arrived in Bogota. To -his keen, logical mind the proposal to enlist in a quest for the long -lost El Dorado seemed, at first, far too quixotic to be taken seriously. -But he humored the idea, originating in David's fondness for studies -touching the borderlands of romance, in the hope that he would divert -a purely fanciful project into more profitable channels. Later on, -however, he was himself caught by the practical possibilities lurking -in the old Chibcha legend. Hence, it followed that while David was -enjoying the picturesque life of the little mountain capital, Raoul was -delving in musty records, running down old traditions, and studying -the topography of the Bogota tableland with a degree of patience -as to details that the subject had rarely received. For days at a -time he burrowed in the crumbling archives of the Museo Nacional, an -unpretentious little edifice, not far from the palace of San Carlos, in -which were stored, pell-mell, practically every evidence that remained -of Colombia's prehistoric civilization. Here, with only the grey, -shrivelled mummies of two ancient kings of the Chibchas to watch him, -he had reconstructed, as best he could, the past of this vanished race -of people, had convinced himself of their wealth, scarcely any of which -had fallen into the hands of the Spanish, and had laid his plans for -discovering a treasure which had balked every explorer before him. - -Combined with these studies in the National Museum and in the -vicinity of Lake Guatavita, Raoul had busied himself with the peons -of the neighborhood. From these primitive people he learned enough -to corroborate the main features in the Chibcha tradition as handed -down by Castellanos, Pedro Simon, Piedrahita, and other chroniclers -of the Spanish Conquest. In addition, he unearthed the curious legend -that the Sacred Lake would never yield up its treasure except to one -in whose veins flowed the blood of the Chibcha kings. This bit of -prophetic romance had come, it was said, from father to son through -the four centuries following the martyrdom of the last of the zipas. -He was told, also--and it added to the fantastic character of the -prophecy--that a secret, known only to the zipas and their direct -descendants, attached to Lake Guatavita, and that by means of this -secret the treasure hidden beneath its waters would be discovered. - -Raoul at first paid little heed to this part of the legend. It had too -strong a flavor of latter-day romance to go for more than a recent -addition to the main story of the wealth of the Chibcha kings and their -peculiar religious customs. The persistence of the idea, however, the -belief in its truth on the part of those repeating it, gradually excited -his interest and led him into all kinds of theories as to the existence -and recovery of the Guatavita treasure. - -That so fanciful a legend could have won even the partial belief of so -ingrained a skeptic as Raoul seems at first absurd on the face of it. -But most of us can recall instances enough of similar lapses from the -hypercritical to the over-superstitious to make this one not altogether -incredible. As often happens, also, in such cases--as with those -otherwise reasonable persons who believe in fortune-telling, omens, -apparitions, etc.,--this bit of superstition, having once lodged itself -in Raoul's mind, increased in importance, opening up an absorbing field -for his love of psychological novelties, until it finally became a -monomania, an obsession, as the scientists call it. - -These ancient zipas, he argued, were the chieftains of a superior -race of people. In the annual tribute from the royal treasury to the -national god, who was supposed to live at the bottom of Lake Guatavita, -they catered to the credulity of their subjects while, in reality, -laughing in their sleeves at them, so to speak, all the time. Men of -their intelligence were not apt literally to throw away wealth they had -themselves amassed, and which they must consider as belonging to them -and to their descendants. But as they--apparently--did throw it away, -it was more than likely that they used some kind of hocus-pocus, known -only to themselves, by means of which the God Chibchacum--in whose -existence they did not believe--was cheated of his annual tribute. How -they practiced this deception they must surely have told their children. -The coming of the Spaniards, however, and the overthrow of the ancient -dynasty, had made of the whole affair a greater secret than ever. It -would be handed down from one generation to another so long as there -were descendants of the zipas; but these survivors of the royal line -would find it increasingly difficult, owing to the presence of the -Spaniards, to take the steps needed to recover their ancestral treasure. - -There was some plausibility in Raoul's reasoning, enough, perhaps, to -excite the romancer's interest, but scarcely that of the practical -man of affairs to whom are broached the details of a mining venture. -Conviction grew, however, with Raoul, whose investigations were confined -thenceforward less to the archćological aspects of the problem and more -to the task of discovering the whereabouts of the living descendants of -the zipas. - -These speculations and the singular inquiry into which they had drawn -his companion excited only a mild interest in David. The latter, -strangely enough, enchanted with the picturesque novelty of the -cloud-city in which he found himself, felt less of the antiquarian's -zeal than when Bogota was a remote geographical possibility. Perhaps -it was the stimulus of mountain air, a bracing climate, that got him -out of his habitual bookishness. Here, at any rate, there was neither -the warmth nor the color of the tropics to entice him to the indolent -dreaming that one of his temperament might easily yield to in the -lowlands of Colombia. The peculiar lustre of the grey-green Bogota -tableland, the cool crystalline atmosphere, invited him to continual -physical exercise. For days at a time he went on long horseback rides. -Then, tiring of this, and feeling something of the restraint experienced -by the stranger who exerts himself abnormally in the rarefied air of -the higher Andes, he fell into the easy habits of the pleasure-loving -Bogotano. Muffled warmly in a ruana, he strolled comfortably about the -streets of the city, amused by the chaffering of peons in the market -place, enchanted by the quaint and varied architecture of the houses -and public buildings, the grotesque paintings and bas-reliefs in the -churches; or else he would sit by the hour in the open window of some -cafe on the Cathedral Esplanade, watching the gay throng of idlers and -politicians for whom this is a favorite rendezvous. The dust and cobwebs -of the Museo did not attract this former dabbler in antiquities, who -abandoned himself eagerly to the fleeting impressions gathered from an -altogether pleasing environment. And Raoul, naturally secretive, gave -him the vaguest outline only of the course and the result of his -studies. - -The discovery that made the deepest impression on Raoul took place under -circumstances which intensified his superstitious feeling in regard to -everything connected with the buried treasure. He was on one of numerous -trips to Lake Guatavita. Riding alone, he reached the gloomy body -of water toward nightfall. Tethering his horse near the trail at the -edge of the plain over which he had ridden, he approached the lake on -foot, his mind penetrated by the absolute silence of the place. He had -come for no specific purpose except to examine further the old Spanish -cutting that gashes the great hill which originally rose, a solid wall -of rock, above the unknown depths of the waters. Through this narrow -cleft, on the instant that it was completed three centuries ago, a -mighty torrent had hurled itself into the valley beyond. As this torrent -subsided and the lake shrank to its present compass, a wide margin of -precipitous shore was left bare to the scrutiny of treasure seekers. -Even after the lapse of centuries this portion of the lake's basin -still shows the ravages wrought by the Spaniards. It remains a gaunt, -jagged surface of rock and flinty gravel, unclothed by tree or shrub--an -ancient sanctuary whose violation defies the repairs of time. - -Raoul smiled contemptuously at these evidences of the rude labors of the -early Spaniards. With modern science to back him he would not attack the -problem in this way. He would pierce this ancient secret to its heart -by subtlety, not brute force. For the hundredth time he went over the -system of lines and levels by which he and David planned to tunnel their -way to the coveted prize, indicating to himself the various points from -which they proposed to start their work, and noting and comparing the -obstacles they would encounter by each route. - -Thus occupied, Raoul slowly circled the lake, following the precarious -path that still remained along the edge of the old high-water mark--the -path upon which had marched the gaily vestured Chibcha devotees in the -pomp of their semi-annual festival, when the dancing waves radiating -from the heavily laden rafts of the Gilded Man and his court, washed -over their sandalled feet, and all was sunshine and joyous laughter, -glitter of gold and emerald offerings ready poised to be hurled, with -shouts of triumph, to the insatiable God in his crystalline caverns -below. - -Scenes from the old legend flashed across the prosaic details of Raoul's -mining schemes, as he stood in the shadow of the majestic hill that -lifted its huge shoulders behind him. Not a ripple scarred the surface -of the sombre waters. The ancient God, it would seem, waiting in vain -the tribute that once was his, had grown angry and made of his Sacred -Lake a shrunken circle of dark and sinister meaning. - -Into its silent depths, fascinated by the desolation surrounding him, -Raoul gazed intently. He would revive the old ceremony. He would bring -an offering to this hidden God--an offering bearing a menace, a demand -for the treasure that he felt already in his grasp. He seized a stone -from the many that were strewn at his feet. It was smooth, worn by the -streams through which it had chafed its way hither; he paused as he -weighed it thoughtfully in his outstretched hand. Then he threw it high -in air, over the center of the pool. The sound of the falling missile -plunging through the waters echoed sullenly along the towering walls of -granite. The weird effect delighted him, and again and again he cast -stones into the water, dislodging some of the more unwieldy rocks from -their resting-places and watching them bound and ricochet, with a -thunderous noise, down the precipice after the others. - -In the midst of this fantastic play he was arrested by the cry of a -human voice. High, clear and sibilant it came; a word of command, as it -seemed, out of the empty space above: - -"Silence!" - -He thought it might be the rustle of the wind that had just sprung up -and was stirring the gnarled branches of the trees fringing the brow -of the hill upon whose precipitous slope he was standing. Carefully he -scanned the rocky pinnacles rising on either side of him. If it was not -the wind, the invisible being whose voice he had heard might be hidden -in one of the many clefts that furrowed the face of the hill behind him. - -Again he heard the command. Silvery, unmistakably human; the peremptory -voice came from some one near at hand, a few hundred yards, it might be, -from where he stood: - -"Silence!" - -The tall, slim figure of a woman, clad in flowing white robe, with -dazzling arm stretched downward, flashed in sharp outline against the -dark hillside. She stood just above him, on a projecting shelf of rock. -Her eyes, calm and stern, were not turned toward Raoul, but fixed -intently on the lake, as if beholding--or expecting to behold--something -there that was hidden from all others. - -Involuntarily Raoul bent his head to this singular apparition, scarcely -knowing whether it was a creature of his imagination, conjured out of -the strange fancies awakened by the lonely scene, or a real woman, -statuesque, beautiful. - -Why was she here? Whence had she come? How address her? Vague questions -crowded upon him, giving place finally to the conviction that he was -an intruder and had unwittingly offended one whose rights here were -supreme. And then he yielded to a feeling of shame at being caught in -senseless boy's play. - -"Pardon, Senorita," he murmured lamely. - -"Ah," she sighed, a trace of irony in her voice; "it is I, a stranger -here, who must ask pardon for daring to interrupt you." - -"Again--pardon," he said, moved by the seriousness, the bitterness in -her tone. "Surely, you are not a stranger to Guatavita, to Bogota?" he -added, not concealing his astonishment. - -"My home is far from here," she said simply. "Four days ago I left it -for the first time to go to Bogota." - -"And you visit the Sacred Lake on your way to the city!" - -"My fathers sacrificed here," she said proudly. "I am an Indian, the -daughter of those who once poured their treasure into the lake which you -have defiled with stones." - -"Sajipona!" called a harsh guttural voice from the trail that followed -the cutting made by the Spaniards in the mountain's side. - -"Si, padre mio," she answered, slowly descending to the path upon which -Raoul was standing. - -In the gathering darkness Raoul saw, just emerging from the cleft in -the rocks, the huge figure of a man, dressed, as all travelers are in -the mountains, in wide sombrero, capacious ruana, great hair-covered -leggings reaching to the waist, his spurred heels clattering on the -stones as he walked towards them. Two mules followed closely, the bridle -of the foremost held in his hand; behind these came a burro, loaded with -mountainous baggage which swayed from side to side as the patient little -animal picked his way along the treacherous path. - -"Good evening, senor," said the man suavely, as if Raoul were some old -acquaintance whom he expected to meet. "It grows dark quickly. Moreover, -it is far to the city and the beasts are tired. We stop for the night at -La Granja. And you, Senor?" - -"My horse is fresh, I will ride to Bogota." - -"A stranger?" queried the man. - -"An American." - -"Ah!" Then, as if to atone for his surprise: "Bueno, in Bogota my house -is yours." - -Only the sure-footed mules of the Andes could have threaded this -handsbreadth of a path in safety, and only a horsewoman of the lithe -grace and dexterity of this daughter of the mountains could have swung -herself with such slight assistance into the high, clumsy saddle as did -this girl addressed as Sajipona. - -"Watch your burro, Senor," warned Raoul, viewing with some anxiety that -much encumbered animal wavering disconsolately on the brink of the -precipice. "He will slip into the lake." - -"Eh, Senor!" grunted the man, vaulting heavily to the back of his mule, -at the same time spurring and then checking him with the reins. "He -knows his business, the canaille! Besides," he added, chuckling to -himself, "we carry no treasure for Guatavita. Since the days of Sajipa, -men pay no tribute here--they look for it instead." - -"That is true," murmured Raoul. Then, addressing the departing -travelers: "May you have a pleasant ride, Senorita! And you, Senor; I -may see you in Bogota?" - -"In the Calle de Las Flores, Senor," called the other briskly. "Ask for -Rafael Segurra; always--remember!--at your service." - -Sajipa--Sajipona! The two names persisted in Raoul's thoughts as he rode -home that evening. Over and over again he passed in review the details -of his strange encounter with this mysterious girl who, in spite of -the exquisite fairness of her complexion, called herself an Indian and -claimed these old worshipers of the Lake God for her ancestors. Who -was she? Could it be that his search for the descendant of that almost -mythical line of monarchs had been so unexpectedly, completely rewarded? -He could hardly wait for the morning to make the inquiries that he -planned. - -"Ah, yes," he was assured; "this Rafael Segurra is quite a man in -his way--a 'politico,' strong with the government. He lives far from -here--on a hacienda--no one knows where. And his daughter--he brings -her to Bogota? That is strange! The beautiful Sajipona! Who knows if -she really is Don Rafael's daughter! There is a mystery, a tradition -about her. Yes, some say that she has in her veins the blood of that -poor old zipa that the Spaniards roasted alive because he wouldn't tell -where he had hidden his treasure. Still, how can that be if Don Rafael -is her father? Ah, no one can be sure, Senor--their home is so far away. -But--she is very beautiful. And there are many, many lovers--so they -say." - -The information, picked up from various sources, strengthened Raoul's -first impression, and from that time, he became a constant visitor in -the little house on the Calle de Las Flores. - - - - -VIII - -A RIVER INTERLUDE - - -On the deck of the wheezy, palpitating river steamer, "Barcelona," -toiling slowly up the turbid waters of the Magdalena, sat the usual -throng of passengers who are compelled to sacrifice two weeks of their -lives every time they travel from the seacoast to Colombia's mountain -capital. Fortunate such travelers count themselves if their lumbering, -flat-bottomed craft, its huge stern wheel lifted high above the -down-rushing eddies and whirlpools, escapes the treacherous mudbanks -which form and dissolve in this ever-shifting, shallow current, and -which not infrequently elude the vigilance of the navigator. - -On this particular voyage, however, it is pleasant to record that the -"Barcelona," in spite of various temptations to the contrary, had -behaved in a most decorous manner, diplomatically avoiding the aforesaid -mudbanks, submerged treetrunks and the like and giving promise of an -early arrival at her destination in the Upper Magdalena. - -In any part of the world except Colombia the progress of this steamer up -the river on this occasion would have been followed with the liveliest -interest from one end of the country to the other. News bulletins would -have chronicled every detail of her voyage; there would have been -editorial speculation as to the possible delays she might encounter; -predictions of the outcome of her snail-paced journey and, finally, -statements--bogus or otherwise--would have come every now and then -from the important personage who headed the list of the "Barcelona's" -passengers. For there was an unhappily important personage on board--a -personage who, much to his own amazement, had helped in the making of -history, and who was now on his way to report to the President of the -Republic the details of what he had done. - -Some men, according to one familiar with the accidents common to -humanity, have greatness thrust upon them. General Herran was neither -born great, nor had he, of his own free will, achieved greatness. But it -had been thrust upon him. Without thought or act of his own he awoke one -morning to find himself famous. It was an unenviable kind of fame, won -in an opera-bouffe sort of way, and might, in some countries, have cost -the general his head. But in Colombia there was, happily, no danger of -this. Having lost his head once why should he lose it a second time, and -just because he had fallen a victim to the wiles of the Panamanians? - -Here is the brief but important chapter of history in which General -Herran played a leading part. In the performance of his duty to quell -any and every uprising which might occur on the Colombian coast he had -gone with his army to the Isthmus, where, he had been told, something -like a revolution was in progress. At Colon he had been courteously met -on shipboard by representatives of this revolution. On their friendly -invitation, and without disembarking his troops, he and his staff of -officers had then been escorted politely across the Isthmus to Panama -where, much to their astonishment, they were promptly lodged in jail--a -climax which any one but this unsuspecting general might have foreseen. -During his absence his troops were sent back by the revolutionists to -Colombia--and thus, without the firing of a shot, the Republic of Panama -achieved its independence. - -On board the "Barcelona," freed from the problem of keeping the -Isthmians within the Colombian Union, General Herran gave no evidence -of any disastrous effect on his own fortunes following his memorable -experience of Panama diplomacy. The center of a convivial group of -admiring friends, flanked by an inexhaustible supply of "La Cosa -Sabrosa,"--the suggestive title given by one enthusiast to the native -rum which accompanied them in an endless array of demijohns--this -excellent leader of armies appeared to be making a triumphal progress -homeward, rather than a decidedly ignominious retreat. His large -mirthful brown eyes, peering out of a boyish face fringed by a heavy -black beard, were undimmed by regrets and gave no token of the wily, -self-seeking politician their possessor was said, by his enemies, to be. -"El General," as he was usually called, was, in fact, the best of good -fellows; one who, we can well imagine, might easily forget so paltry an -adjunct as his troops, lured by the promise of a lively hour or so in -a gay city with congenial companions. "Bobo" his detractors might call -him, or "tonto"--but never "pendejo" nor "traidor." - -With General Herran on board the "Barcelona," although not exactly of -his party, and certainly not in the least of the military persuasion, -was a round-paunched, bullet-headed little man who, arrayed in the -flimsiest of apparel, a wide-flapping Panama sombrero coming down to -his ears, paced restlessly about the deck, fanning himself vigorously -with a huge palm-leaf fan. Although of pure Spanish lineage, there was -nothing of the traditional polish of his race in this explosive person's -manner or speech. He had rolled about--one can hardly describe his -mode of travel by another phrase--among many people and had recently -settled down in a delightfully fever-ridden section of Colombia to -practice medicine. "Doctor Quinine" he was called--behind his back--and -it is said that he had simplified the methods of his profession by -administering, on all occasions and for all diseases, the one simple, -famous drug, discovered centuries ago by his ancestors in his native -Peru. Quinine and a few drastic purgatives summed up his medical creed. -If these remedies failed to cure--and they sometimes did fail--why, the -unfortunate victim was simply a "canaille," and had, through his own -stupidity, or malice, defeated the otherwise infallible result of the -doctor's treatment. - -The quininizing of the human race, however, was not the mission upon -which Dr. Manuel Valiente Miranda had at present embarked. He had -recently made a journey to the United States, whither he had gone -to take out a patent on some marvelous "pildoras de quinina" of his -own concoction. Having succeeded in the main object of his trip, and -having failed incidentally to sell a single box of these same patented -"pildoras" to any one of the benighted thousands whose faith was pinned -to the ordinary medical practitioner, he had resolved to return to his -old occupation of dosing with quinine the faithful on the Colombian -coast. On his homeward journey, however, he met a party of Americans -who induced him to abandon for a time his original project and to join -them in a trip to Bogota. As he was a man of independent means, a -political exile from his native land, with no family ties whatsoever, -there was nothing to hinder this sudden change in his plans. Hence his -presence on the "Barcelona," where he had assumed guardianship over his -American friends--whom he abused on occasion, as was his wont with those -he liked--and where he engaged in sarcastic tilts with his old ally "El -General." - -In the political upheaval caused by the secession of Panama Doctor -Miranda took especial delight; nor did he hesitate to upbraid those -in authority for what he called their lack of gumption in the present -situation. He predicted, moreover, the coming supremacy of "los Yankees" -in South America. In all of this Doctor Miranda was good naturedly -tolerated by his Colombian friends, who suffered his sarcasm much as -they did his quinine, ignoring the bitterness out of regard for the -curative virtue behind it. - -Harold and Una Leighton, David Meudon, Andrew Parmelee and Mrs. Quayle -were the Americans to whom Doctor Miranda had attached himself on -this pilgrimage to Bogota. It was an oddly assorted party. That the -persons composing it should be voyaging together up the Magdalena, -with an eccentric Peruvian physician as a sort of cicerone, and in -friendly intimacy with a group of discredited army officers accused of -a traitorous abandonment of the national cause, formed one of those -curious situations not unusual in South American travel. - -The reader has already learned of the decision reached by Harold -Leighton and David to visit Bogota in order to solve there the mystery -of the three months following the dynamite explosion in the Guatavita -tunnel. As her uncle had foreseen, Una insisted on going with them, and -had brought Mrs. Quayle along besides. There was no particular reason -why that estimable lady should accompany them. She had rarely ventured -beyond the borders of her native Connecticut, and could certainly be -of no possible use on so long and difficult a journey as this. But -something had to be done with her. She was afraid to be left alone at -Stoneleigh, and as she was anxious about Una it seemed best on the whole -to take her along. She proved an inoffensive traveler and gave amusement -to more than one tourist by her extraordinary costumes, especially the -massive, old-fashioned jewelry, with which her hands and neck were -covered and from which she refused ever to be parted. - -The trip was a hard one for Leighton, who was wedded to his quiet -methodical life in Rysdale, and who had no mind for the distractions -and annoyances of foreign travel. He was spurred to activity, however, -by his interest in the psychological puzzle presented by David, added -to which was a growing curiosity regarding the mysterious Indian lake -and its reputed treasure. An ordinary mining scheme, no matter how -promising, would not have moved the philosophic master of Stoneleigh. -But here was something out of which might come a fine scientific -discovery revealing the secrets of a bygone civilization. Hence, he had -not regretted his resolution to make this quixotic pilgrimage and, as -he had latterly fallen into a sort of dependence on Andrew Parmelee for -much of the detail work connected with his scientific studies, he had -arranged with the village authorities for the schoolmaster to accompany -him to Colombia. - -Andrew was not a little alarmed at the intimate daily association with -Una, the object of his adoration, which such a journey involved. But -the fancied terrors of the situation had their compensations. It might -even happen that in the primitive region to which they were going he -could be of vital service to this stony-hearted fair one--a possibility -that filled him with dreams of deadly peril by land and sea in which -he acted the part of rescuer to helpless innocence. So, this modern -knight errant was miraculously strengthened to ward off the attacks of -his Aunt Hepzibah, and departed on his mission fired with all the zeal -of the hero of La Mancha, his high resolve unclouded by the horrors -that speedily came to him in the rotund nightmare known in the flesh as -Doctor Miranda. - -"Ah, this little Yankee," repeatedly declared that restless follower of -Aesculapius, regarding the bewildered Andrew with professional glee; "he -must take my pills or he will die!" - -Then, Andrew, helplessly declaring that he never felt better in his -life, would be seized by the merciless doctor, his eyelids forced apart -until the whites of the eyes were fully exposed to whoever cared to -inspect them, while a triumphant announcement marked the success of the -dismal exhibit: "See! it is all yellow! This leetle fellow have the -malaria, the calentura. And he refuse to take my pills--the estupido!" - -But if Andrew was disturbed by these alarming outbreaks of the doctor, -his companions enjoyed to the full that mental and physical relaxation -experienced by many only in the tropics. An endless panorama of -primeval forest, broken at intervals by clusters of wattled Indian huts, -known as villages, with high-sounding names, to the Magdalena boatmen, -gave to the long river journey the pleasant surprises of some half -remembered dream. There was the charm of the familiar as well as the -picturesque in the drowsy air, the swift oily flow of turbid waters, the -flashing green, gold and scarlet of the riotous shore. Merely to feel, -if only for a day, the changing moods of this tropical nature, more than -repaid, one felt, all the hardships and weariness of primitive travel. - -For Una and David all this formed a memorable interlude in their -mutual experiences. Even the complex mission upon which the girl had -entered was forgotten in the novelty of the world to which chance had -brought her. The scenic splendor of the river exceeded anything she had -imagined. She was fascinated by the wide sweep of water, the foliage, -the glorious passion-flowers that embroidered, here and there, the thick -mantle of green vines and swaying lianas that bound the treetops to the -river beneath; by the flocks of parrots, glistening like living emeralds -in the sun-bathed air, chattering their language of wild happiness as -they flew from branch to branch on the silent shore. Never had she -beheld such serene, graceful creatures as the swans--she took them -for swans, although Leighton chuckled grimly when appealed to on the -subject--great, long-necked birds, wheeling and soaring far above the -steamer, clouds of shimmering white in a sea of purest sapphire. White, -too with head and neck a brilliant scarlet, was the stately King of the -Vultures, surrounded by a fluttering throng of dusky followers, dining -on a dead alligator. - -"See, Senorita!" exclaimed Miranda, pointing to a bowerlike opening -amid the bushes and trees on the shore. "Ah, he is one bad fellow, that -canaille!" - -"I see nothing. Oh, yes--another dead alligator!" - -"Dead!" laughed the doctor. "He is just one trap. Soon he come -together--so!--and catch his dinner." - -It was a familiar scene on this river of the tropics: an alligator -lying motionless on the shore, his yellow, mottled jaws open, waiting -for his prey. In form and color he seemed a part of the dead branches -and tangle of brushwood he had chosen for his resting place. Once -recognized, however, and the malignant creature became a vivid symbol of -the ruthless death with which he threatened whoever mistook his yawning -mouth for a rift in a fallen tree-trunk. - -"What a monster!" exclaimed David, roused from his daylong dreams. - -"Estupido!" retorted Miranda. "He wait for his dinner--as you and -I--that is all. The so cruel alligator, you know, is good mother for the -young ones. She love them better than some womens." - -"That hideous brute!" - -"Si, Senor!" declared the doctor. "So soon that they hatch themselves, -she carry the young ones in the mouth and teach them to hunt. She fight -for them and die, if it be so." - -Miranda's vague natural history was of the kind derived from -wonder-loving natives. It blended well with the Magdalena's scenic -marvels, the wild animal life, glimpses of which were caught at every -hand, the dark-skinned natives in their rude dugouts--all that set this -apart as a sort of primeval world far removed from any hint of the -modern. But the skepticism of the scientist was proof against idle -tales. - -"I am not sure that your theory of the alligator is correct, Senor -Doctor," remarked Leighton dryly. - -"Ah, carai!" spluttered Miranda, wheeling about, ever ready for the -fray. - -"What you say about the care of the female alligator for her young may -be true enough," said the savant, ignoring the scowl with which he was -regarded; "but that the brute over there in the bushes is holding his -mouth open by the hour in that ridiculous fashion, hoping that something -may walk into it, is unreasonable." - -"Then, what for she do it?" demanded the doctor severely. - -"I can't tell you that," admitted Leighton, adding, with a touch of -humor, "perhaps he finds it comfortable on a hot day like this to get as -much air as he can. Of course, I have no doubt that he would close his -mouth quickly enough if any creature walked into it." - -"I agree with Mr. Leighton," ventured the schoolmaster. - -"Ah!" sniffed the doctor scornfully. "And you, Senorita?" - -"Why," said Una doubtfully, enjoying the doctor's wrath, "he certainly -does look hungry, doesn't he? I wouldn't trust him--although he seems to -be asleep." - -"And you, Senor?" glaring at David. - -"Oh, I'm not a naturalist," he laughed. "But, he looks like a pretty -good sort of trap, just the same." - -"Bueno, General, what sayest thou?" asked the doctor somewhat -mollified. "What is that cayman doing there under the trees?" - -General Herran gazed meditatively at the monster who was unconsciously -causing this pother in natural history, and his eyes had a reminiscent -twinkle as he answered the question: - -"That cayman with his mouth open is like the Yankee waiting for Colombia -to walk in." - -"And you walked in!" shouted Miranda delightedly. - -"Well, I walked out again," said the other complacently. - -"But you left Panama inside the mouth!" - -"Have your joke, Senor Doctor," said Herran, not relishing the broad -allusion to his discomfiture. "But perhaps your American friends here -will find a cayman in the bushes. Why do they go to Bogota just now?" - -"They are friends to you. With you it is all right." - -"I hear that the peons are rising against the Yankees." - -"The canaille! They can do nothing." - -"Besides," pursued the general, "excellent and harmless as this -learned Senor and his family are, I can hardly appear, under all the -circumstances, as protector and champion of a party of Americans." - -General Herran spoke in so rapid an undertone that only one to whom -Spanish is the native tongue could have followed him. But Leighton's -keen intelligence, although he was not well versed in Spanish idioms, -was quick to catch at least an inkling of what was passing between his -two companions. - -"There is danger for Americans traveling in the interior?" he asked. - -"I not say so," replied the doctor stoutly. - -Herran tugged at the tangles of his bushy beard. "I hear that some peons -have left Bogota to fight the Yankees on the coast," he said. "But--it -is nothing." - -"Well, what shall we do?" - -The general shrugged his shoulders. Miranda fanned himself more -vigorously than ever. - -"It is not important, Senor," he said impatiently. "These people are -good peoples; they are not caymans." - -"Perhaps it is better to wait before you go to Bogota," persisted -Herran. - -"Wait in the river?" angrily demanded the doctor. - -"I don't believe there is any danger. I love this country," said Una. -"Let's go to Bogota, Uncle Harold." - -"Heavens, child!" exclaimed Mrs. Quayle tremulously, the heavy gold -rings that adorned her fingers clicking together in dismay. "With -all these savage, half-dressed natives about, threatening the lives -of innocent Americans--and poor Mr. Parmelee down with this terrible -fever----" - -"I am not," feebly protested Andrew. - -"Yes, that is so!" exclaimed the doctor, a joyous grin wrinkling his -face. "The vieja (old lady) speak right. We stay at Honda and give this -little fellow my pills." - -"There is sense in your plan," declared Leighton. "If we can be -comfortable--and safe--at Honda, we will stay until we know what is -happening away from the river, and until Mr. Parmelee regains his health -under your treatment." - -"My dear Mr. Leighton, I assure you,----" began the schoolmaster -piteously. - -"Don't be an estolido!" interrupted Miranda bruskly. "Soon you will be -all right with my pills. This little vieja, she know--she is very wise." - -Mrs. Quayle's gray ringlets bobbed deprecatingly at this generous -tribute to a hitherto unsuspected sagacity on the part of their modest -owner, while Andrew looked more uncomfortable and woebegone than ever. - -"Doctor, you are sure that Mr. Parmelee has this miserable fever?" -inquired Una anxiously. - -"Senorita," declared the little man, drawing himself up impressively, "I -never mistake. I have been doctor when thousand and thousand die of the -calentura----" - -"Good heavens! Poor, dear Mr. Parmelee!" murmured Mrs. Quayle. - -"And I know," continued Miranda, ignoring the interruption. "I say he -have the calentura, the malaria. You will see in the eyes--I will show -to you." - -Andrew, prepared for what was coming, eluded his medical tormentor, -seeking safety behind the chair of the portly Leighton. - -"Caramba! que estupido!" growled the doctor, balked of his prey. -"Bueno," he added, fanning himself resignedly, "we shall see. In Honda -you take my pills. Soon we will be there. And then it is good that -everyone take my pills. I am friend to you. I will take the care, I -charge nothing for the family." - -"I'll not stay in Honda," said David, breaking the silence following -this wholesale offer of assistance. "I must get to Bogota as quickly as -possible. Once there I can let you know if it's safe to travel into the -interior." - -"A good idea," assented Leighton. - -"If it's dangerous for us, it's dangerous for you," objected Una. - -"Oh, I'll take a burro loaded with the doctor's pills along with me," -said David. "I know the country. I have friends in Bogota; there is no -danger. And I leave you in good hands." - -"So, that is settle," remarked Miranda complacently. "Very good! I take -care to your families. But--you will beware, my young fellow." - -"I tell you I'll have a burro load of your pills, doctor!" - -"That is good. You are not estupido, like this leetle fellow with the -malaria! Remember, these people are no friend just now to the Yankee." - -"Everyone knows me here; I have no enemies," was the confident reply. - -Honda, the picturesque little river-port whence the traveler from the -coast sets out on muleback for his three days' journey up the mountains -to Bogota, was reached on the following day, after a twenty-five mile -trip by rail from La Dorada, the terminus of the Magdalena steamers. -Charming as Honda is architecturally, its quaint red-tiled houses -nestling against a background of radiantly green foothills over which -the winding trails leading to the far distant capital are scarcely ever -without their ascending or descending trains of jostling mules and -burros, the place has something of a bad name among foreigners for its -fevers. Whether or not its reputation in this respect is deserved would -be hard to say. For the traveler, certainly, who has been confined for -ten days to the rude quarters provided by a river steamer, the little -town comes as a welcome respite in a long if not uninteresting journey. -Here, for the first time, he tastes the freedom and glamour of the -Andes; and in the movement and bustle incident to setting out on the -arduous pull over the primitive passes that thread their way across -the mountains, there is the stimulus that comes with the promise of -adventure and discovery. Honda, with its radiant sunshine, its tilted -streets, its cool white buildings and low rambling hostelries hidden -under a veil of flashing greenery, its sparkling little mountain stream -tumbling beneath a venerable bridge that savors of the days of Spanish -conquest and romance, is the link of emerald between the mighty river -of the tropics and the vast highlands that stretch upward to the region -of perpetual snow. As an emerald it lives ever after in the traveler's -memory. - -In this village--it is hardly more than that--oriental in its sensuous -beauty, American of a century or two ago in character and outward -aspect, the "Barcelona's" passengers were content to stay for a time. -Una's delight in the picturesque little settlement was marred by the -impending separation from David. It was not merely his absence that -caused her unhappiness; she worried over the dangers that she believed -awaited him in Bogota. Her anxiety was increased by the rumor, reaching -the travelers on their arrival at La Dorado, that war had been declared -between the United States and Colombia. There was no truth in this -rumor; it was without official confirmation, and ridiculed alike by -Doctor Miranda, David and Leighton. But it was credited by most of the -natives, whose belief was stoutly upheld by the principal American -resident of Honda, an amiable patriarch who had once acted as his -government's representative and was known throughout the republic. True -or false, the rumor did not add to the comfort of the travelers, and -intensified Una's desire to keep David with the rest of the party until -they could all set out together for Bogota. - - - - -IX - -ON INDIAN TRAILS - - -Doctor Miranda was right about Andrew. By the time he had finished -moving his party and their luggage from the stifling railroad shed to -the cool courtyard of Honda's principal inn, the schoolmaster had been -beaten in his last feeble fight for liberty and had become the victim -to an unlimited amount of quininizing. No need now to force his eyelids -apart to reveal the telltale yellow within. Even a tyro in such matters -could see from his jaundiced appearance, his quick breathing, his -general inertia, that he was in the first stages of an attack of fever. -This being beyond dispute, the little doctor dropped his fighting humor -for one of bustling activity, beneath which there lurked a rough sort of -tenderness for his unhappy patient. A bed, a pitcher of "lemon squash," -and a box of the famous "pildoras," were quickly provided by dint of -much storming at the indolent hotel servants and angry prodding of the -astonished proprietor. When all his arrangements were perfected, Andrew -completely in his power and stuffed as full as might be with quinine, -the triumphant Miranda rejoined his friends, his rubicund features -beaming with satisfaction. - -"No! No! my lady," he answered Una's anxious inquiries, "there is no -danger. That leetle fellow has my pills and plenty of squash. He cannot -die. Soon he will be well. You will see. I am doctor to him." - -His assurances had their effect, although they failed to convince the -despondent Mrs. Quayle, who shook her head dolefully, rocking herself -back and forth in her chair and bewailing the sad fate that was awaiting -"poor dear Mr. Parmelee in this desolate country." At all of which the -irascible doctor scowled ominously, taking her complaint as a reflection -on his medical skill. Leighton, however, faced the situation in a matter -of fact way, while David set about the necessary preparations for his -journey to Bogota. An excellent opportunity offered that very day to -join General Herran's party in the trip over the mountains. - -A train of twenty mules and burros was needed for the expedition, and -to procure these and load them with the necessary baggage, called for -no small amount of work and skillful management. The stone courtyard -of the inn rang with the shouts of burro drivers, the quarrels of -peons intent on selling their wares to travelers at the best prices, -and the threats and commands of General Herran and his officers. Above -this din, apparently necessary on such occasions, one could hear the -strident voice of Doctor Miranda, browbeating some luckless vendor of -merchandise, or ridiculing the exertions of those who would bestow a -maximum of baggage on a minimum of burro. In spite of the confusion, -however, everything moved along in as orderly and expeditious a manner -as is possible with these ancient methods of travel. By midday the -last load was adjusted, the twenty animals forming the cavalcade stood -strapped and ready for the start. - -Hot, stifling was the air in the courtyard; the cobbled pavement of -the street outside fairly baked beneath the relentless sun. Most of -the shops and tiendas were closed for the noon siesta, and only a -few listless stragglers ventured beyond the cool white portals of -the houses. It was not a happy hour in which to commence a difficult -journey; but General Herran, marvelously energetic for once, had planned -to cover a certain distance before nightfall. So, without more ado, -the "bestias" were marshaled, single file, and driven out, with much -shouting and laying on of goads, into the street, where they stood -patiently waiting for the eight travelers whom they were to carry to -Bogota. - -"We are off at last!" announced David, entering the salon where -Leighton, Una, Mrs. Quayle and Miranda awaited the caravan's departure. -"In less than a week you'll hear from me. By that time, I hope, you'll -be ready for Bogota." - -"I can never go on one of those vicious animals," sighed Mrs. Quayle, -her bejeweled fingers nervously clutching the arms of the chair. - -"Vicious!" exclaimed David. "They are harmless as kittens." - -As if in denial of the comparison, one of the burros standing near the -doorway stiffened out his forefeet and brayed with all the vehemence -of which burro lungs are capable. He was followed by his comrades -in misery--a full chorus of brays from which no discordant note was -missing. Had it been the traditional bellowing of a herd of bulls--it -was noisy enough for that--the timid lady could not have been more -alarmed, nor the doctor more delighted. - -"Bravo!" he shouted. "They want you, my Senora. They wait for you." - -"Good-bye!" said David, clasping Una's hand. - -"Good-bye!" she said, almost inaudibly. - -"Doctor, look out for them," he called to Miranda. - -"Be sure! Be sure!" was the response, a glint of sympathy lighting his -eyes. "Have a care to you. I have that leetle fellow in bed. He is full -of lemona squash and my pills. Soon his calentura is kill." - -"Well, don't kill him too!" - -"Ah, canaille!" - -The members of General Herran's party had already mounted and were -slowly disappearing down the bend of the street, pack-mules and burros -in the lead. The general himself, on a pinched-up, piebald horse that, -like Hamlet's cloud, bore a comical resemblance to a camel, lingered -behind for his guest. David's bay, lacking in zoological vagaries, -pranced spiritedly to begone as soon as it felt its rider in the saddle. - -"That is one good animal," commented Miranda. - -"The other needs your pills," remarked Leighton solemnly. - -With a laugh and a hearty "adios!" the two horsemen saluted the group -in the doorway and galloped off after their companions. Una watched, -motionless, long after David was out of sight. She had done her best to -prevent his going, but all her efforts had been useless. Nor could she -explain, even to herself, why it was that she so dreaded his leaving -their party to travel alone with Herran. There was nothing logical in -the feeling, of course, and she had to confess that for once she was -influenced by an utterly unreasonable fear, a sort of superstition. - -The journey from Honda to Bogota is a scramble over precipitous trails -worn into the living rock by centuries of travel, through wastes of -traffic-beaten mire, along glades of dew-soaked herbage that gleam -refreshingly under cloudless skies in a wilderness of impenetrable -forest. No other city of like size and importance has so rude and -picturesque an approach, nor are there many that keep their commerce -along ways and by methods so unmodern. The stranger, ignorant of the -simplicities of South American life, whether in town or country, is -bewildered by the oddities and hardships in a trip of this kind. But -David had traveled more than once over the Bogota trail, and for him it -had lost its novelty, especially as his sole aim on the present occasion -was to reach his destination as quickly as possible. Herran had a -similar feeling; hence, as the day was not unpleasantly warm, once they -had passed beyond the lowlands of Honda both men urged their horses on -to top speed. In a short time they had left the rest of the party far -behind them, and broke into a race over the rough mountain trail. Tiring -of this, they dropped back to a more sober gait, letting their horses -choose their own way for a time. - -"I telegraphed from Honda that we were coming," said Herran in Spanish. -"They are looking for us now in Bogota." - -"Did you say that I was with you?" asked David. - -"Surely. As an officer it is my duty to give complete information," was -the somewhat pompous reply. "I gave the names of all who are in your -party and told why they stayed in Honda." - -"Why so much detail about us? My friends and I are not connected with -the military movements of the country." - -"That may be true, Senor. But you travel with me and--I am ignorant of -your business, you know." - -"We travel partly for pleasure, partly--I am interested in a Guatavita -mining venture." - -"So! Will they know that when they see your name in the Bogota papers?" - -"My friend that I am going to visit will know, of course. I wrote to him -that I was coming. Why do you ask?" - -"Ah! Just now, it may be, my countrymen will not like American mining -ventures--or Americans." - -"Then, Americans are in danger?" - -"How can I say, Senor?" he answered with a shrug. "I have lost Panama, -they say. I, too, have enemies. Perhaps I am in danger. But you have a -friend in Bogota? He is--?" - -"An American; Raoul Arthur." - -"I have heard of him." - -"He is well liked here." - -"That is good," commented Herran drily. - -For the first time since he had been in Colombia David felt uneasy as -to the possible outcome of his trip. His friends, in reach of the river -steamers, could leave the country at the first sign of real danger. -But every mile placed between himself and the Magdalena lessened his -chances for escape--and that he might need to get out of Colombia in a -hurry was evident from Herran's attitude, his reserve, his ambiguous -answers to David's questions. All this was not exactly through a lack -of friendliness on the general's part. David knew Herran fairly well, -and did not doubt his loyalty. He also knew that he was under suspicion -on account of the Panama affair, and for this reason would have to be -extremely wary in extending protection to an American seeking to enrich -himself in Colombia. Politically, the man who lost Panama could not -afford to let his name be further compromised. - -General Herran, however, was not one to keep up an attitude of restraint -for long. The air was bracing, the mountain trail was in excellent -condition, the horses were fresh and responded readily to whip and -bridle. Under these favoring influences the two travelers soon became -sociable enough, and even joked over some of the sinister circumstances -attending their journey. - -"We are a long way from Panama, Senor--and Miranda's pills!" exclaimed -Herran. - -"Heaven help the schoolmaster!" laughed David. - -"Ah, poor fellow! To be at the doctor's mercy! But he is not a bad -doctor. Only nine out of every ten of his victims die, they say. Perhaps -this schoolmaster---- Have you your pistol, Senor?" he broke off -suddenly. - -"My pistol, General?" - -"For a salute to Panama and our friends," explained the other. "You do -not know the custom of the road to Bogota in times of revolution--that -is, at all times. And you have no pistol," he added with a sigh. "But -this will do for both of us." - -Reining in his horse at a shaded bend in the trail, General Herran, -unconsciously following the Fat Knight's memorable exploit on Shrewsbury -Battlefield, took from his hip pocket a huge case bottle and handed it -to David. - -"Fire the first shot, my friend, and I will come after with a long one -for your Guatavita mine." - -In the act of carrying out this pleasant suggestion, the attention of -David and Herran was suddenly caught by a babel of voices--shouts of -command, the tramp of many feet--coming from the Bogota end of the -trail. Interruptions of this kind are more serious than they may seem to -those unfamiliar with Colombian mountain travel. So rough and narrow is -the road to Bogota, with sometimes a precipice on one hand and a sheer -wall of rock on the other, that the problem of two parties passing each -other is not always an easy one. Although this is the chief thoroughfare -between the national capital and the Magdalena, it remains quite as -primitive and unadapted to modern needs as in the days of the Indians. -To widen and pave it proved more of a task in road-building than the -Spanish conquerors cared to undertake; and their successors in the -government of the country have, until now, attempted little in the way -of improvement. Thus, travelers from the lowlands over this Indian trail -frequently have to fight for a passage through a descending rabble of -men and burros, or else allow themselves to be crowded off into a tangle -of underbrush on one side or thrown down a steep cliff on the other. - -As it happened, the spot chosen by General Herran and David for their -friendly salute was a particularly awkward one in an encounter with a -lot of travelers coming from the opposite direction. In front of them -the trail rose abruptly in a long zigzag of rocks and gullies, down -which the caravan from Bogota, the noise of whose approach grew rapidly -more distinct, was bound to descend upon them. Their only chance to -escape was either through a morass, covered with a dense forest growth, -or else up a hazardous mountain side, strewn with boulders and loose -stones. Of course, they might retrace their steps until they found a -more open space; but this seemed too much like retreating from an enemy -and did not recommend itself to either of the horsemen. - -"It sounds like a regiment of soldiers," said David, taking another long -draught from the Falstaffian "pistol" and returning it to Herran. - -"Perhaps," replied the General, indifferent to outside matters until he -had finished his part of the prescribed ceremony. "And here we are," -he added, with a sigh of contentment, "saluting Panama and an American -company, with an army of volunteers, bent on licking the Yankees, coming -down upon us." - -"Are you sure?" - -"Caramba! In Honda they said these volunteers started from Bogota three -days ago. They are due here now." - -"We must meet them," said David, upon whom the General's "pistol" had -not failed to score. - -"Wait a moment! As Miranda would say, these peons are canaille -and--there is no room for a meeting." - -Both men laughed. Nevertheless, in spite of the humor of the situation, -it had more than the usual peril incident to travel on the Bogota trail -to be comfortable. - -"Two men against a regiment!" chuckled Herran. - -"But they are not after us," argued David. - -"They are after the Yankees--and you are a Yankee. Well, Senor, what -shall we do?" - -"You are in command, Senor General." - -"Caramba! Then, let us march! We can't jump down those rocks, the swamp -is even worse--and we won't retreat before a lot of peons. Forward, -Senor! We can at least use pistols if we need to!" - -With which comforting assurance Herran handed one of his case bottles to -David. This the latter retained, first joining his comrade in a final -"salute," declaring all the while that this kind of exercise had been -unknown to him for years--a statement received by General Herran with -the skepticism it deserved. The two horses were then brought into line -and, with touch of whip and spur, commenced a scramble up the trail, at -the top of which the front ranks of the peons were just visible. - -As Herran had predicted, the travelers with whom they had to contest -the right of way belonged to one of the volunteer regiments of Bogota -peons bound for the Isthmus. At their head rode Pedro, "El Rey," more -dilapidated as to costume but more joyous of mood than on that memorable -morning when he led his forces down the Calle de Las Montanas to be -reviewed by the President of the Republic. He had parted with his -blacking box and in place of it, hanging from his neck, was a rusty -old sword that clanked dismally on the scarred and battered ribs of -the solemn burro upon which he was mounted. Burros, as a rule, are -patient animals, taking whatever comes, whether insult, ridicule, or -cajolery, with unruffled temper, and this particular specimen of the -long-suffering race evinced supreme indifference to the military honors -that sat so weightily upon him. Pedro, however, was not unmindful of -the distinctions he had won. Immediately behind him, borne by two of -his trustiest lieutenants, floated the flag of the republic, its red -and yellow folds somewhat faded and dusty from the three days' march, -and flapping now in anything but defiant fashion. But it formed a good -background to the enthusiasm of leadership that marked the bearing and -illuminated the grimy features of Bogota's ex-bootblack and, doubtless, -helped keep up the courage and patriotism of his followers. The latter -marched, for the most part, on foot and in such straggling lines as best -suited them. When it first set out from Bogota the regiment had kept -some sort of military order, but this had long since been abandoned, and -the host of men and boys, some thousand in number, jostled each other -and choked up the narrow trail in glorious confusion. - -Having reached the top of the hill overlooking the sheltered ledge -chosen by David and Herran for their impromptu celebration, the -volunteers kept right on. Led by Pedro and his two banner-bearers, -they plunged down the steep, winding trail, crowding upon each other, -shouting and laughing, filling the narrow space with most unmilitary -disorder. In the meantime the two horsemen tried their best to reach a -point as near as possible to the top of the trail before the volunteers -began the descent. In this they failed, and the inevitable collision -with the front ranks of the peons took place half way up the hillside. -Here they met Pedro and his immediate followers, behind whom pressed, -with increasing energy, the whole rabble of peons. But the dejected -burro, whose duty it was to carry the leader of these ragged cohorts -to victory, refused to be hurried by those behind him. The more he was -urged the greater was his deliberation in picking his way among the -treacherous stones covering the trail. Thumps and blows failed to arouse -his enthusiasm, and with every fresh difficulty presented by rock or -sudden dip in the pathway, he stopped to take a careful survey of the -surrounding obstacles before proceeding with his journey. Memories -of past disaster had taught him the value of caution that a younger, -less experienced burro might have failed to observe. But the horses -of David and Herran, although ancient enough, were not afflicted with -recollections of former mishaps, and so plunged into the ranks of the -peons without regard for consequences. - -"Hug the side of the road," cautioned Herran in a low voice. "I'll take -the middle and try to distract the attention of these people from you." - -"Salute, Senor!" cried Pedro, attempting as courteous a greeting as his -burro would allow. "What news from Panama?" - -Not to be outdone in courtesy, Herran pulled back his horse from the -folds of the flag into which he was patriotically heading, and offered -his "pistol" to "El Rey." - -"Ah!" exclaimed Pedro, his eyes fairly snapping with astonishment; "it -is General Herran! Bueno, Senor General, we go to bring Panama back to -Colombia." - -"That is well," replied the other, diplomatically ignoring the implied -reproach; "with such brave men you will surely succeed, Senor Capitan." - -"And the Yankees?" queried Pedro, smacking his lips after a long draught -from the General's bottle. - -"Doubtless you will find them in Panama." - -The news that this was General Herran, the man whom Panama had made -famous, spread like wildfire among the volunteers, who crowded together -excitedly, bent on hearing the latest bulletin from the land they were -pledged to recapture. Shouts of amazement, indignation, derision -echoed along the trail--expressions of hostility that might have -appalled one less cool than Herran. But he pretended not to notice these -demonstrations, and devoted himself to Pedro, who, he perceived, was -moved by his flattery. - -"It's a bad business, Senor Capitan," he assured him confidentially. -"But the country is safe with such brave volunteers to defend it." - -"And you, Senor General, you fight with us?" - -"It will be an honor," graciously replied the hero of Panama. "But first -I must see His Excellency, the President, in Bogota. I will tell him how -you are hurrying to the rescue of the Isthmus." - -"Where are your soldiers?" - -"Some of them you will meet on the way to Honda." - -"An officer was with you just now. Where is he?" - -In the throng of volunteers surrounding them it was impossible to -distinguish David, who had doubtless seized the opportunity created by -the sudden recognition of Herran to force his way up the side of the -trail as the General had suggested. - -"Caramba!" exclaimed Herran. "He has gone on ahead. He knows the -President awaits us and the despatches of great importance to the -republic that we bring him. I must hurry. Pardon, Senor Capitan, if I am -forced to leave you so quickly. Perhaps we meet soon again in Panama." - -With a fine show of deference, Herran saluted the King of the -Bootblacks, whose eyes sparkled proudly at this recognition of his -rank from a brother officer, and who signified his appreciation of the -tribute by a wave of the hand to his followers and a command to them -not to delay the General. - -"Senores!" he shouted, "make way for the great Senor General! He comes -for the Republic. After he has seen Don Jose, he will go with us to -bring back Panama." - -The order was given with all the flourish that had won renown for Pedro -as a polisher of boots and was received by the volunteers with their -wonted cheerfulness and enthusiasm. Unfortunately, the burro who had -the honor of carrying "El Rey" was so unappreciative of his rider's -eloquence that he allowed himself to be jostled into too close proximity -with the bearers of the flag. He then became so hopelessly entangled -in his country's colors that, uttering a dismal bray, he was tumbled -headlong down the slippery hill, dragging the amazed and protesting -Pedro with him. - -Profiting by this accident, General Herran spurred his own horse through -the ranks of the volunteers, gaining at last, after much energetic -pushing and shoving, the top of the hill. Here he paused to look back, -with an inward chuckle, at the excited throng of men and boys from whom -he had escaped, and to pick up again his fellow traveler, David. But -David was nowhere to be seen. Herran expected to find him on the level -space at the top of the hill; that he was not there filled him with -anxiety. Reasoning, however, that if the volunteers had attacked David -he would have heard of it, and convinced that the American was not with -the mob he had just left, he set spurs to his horse, expecting to find -him further on. After all, he argued, it was natural that a Yankee, -traveling alone, should put as great a distance as possible between -himself and these volunteers. But, whatever the explanation, David was -not to be found. There were no cross trails from the main Bogota road -into which he might have blundered, and his disappearance, therefore, -became more of a puzzle as Herran traveled mile after mile, at the best -speed of which his horse was capable, without trace of him. - -In a way General Herran felt responsible for the safety of the man -with whom he had been traveling, the more so that this man was a -foreigner, belonging to a nation whose citizens were not welcome -just then in Colombia. Had David been other than an American, Herran -would have taken his disappearance, puzzling though it was, with the -cheerful indifference peculiar to him. But the fact that he was an -American, alone in a hostile country, appealed to a chivalrous strain -in his nature, urging him to do the best he could for his rescue. -Unfortunately, the solving of the simplest of problems was not in the -General's line, and he painfully turned the matter over and over without -result, one way or the other. David, he told himself, had forced his -way through the ranks of the volunteers without attracting attention. -He felt sure of this because he had watched his ascent of the trail -for a good part of the way. Hence, he could not be with the volunteers -now. Only a few of the latter were mounted, and these marched in the -front ranks where they had been carefully noted by Herran. If David -had remained in the rear ranks of the regiment, voluntarily or as a -captive, his horse would have made him conspicuous. Of course, during -the commotion following the accident to Pedro and his burro almost -anything might have happened; David might have been captured, bound and -gagged, his horse taken away and he himself hidden by the peons who -held him prisoner in the hope of future ransom. But this was all too -bewildering, too complex for Herran seriously to consider. Instead, he -convinced himself that David had escaped the volunteers, that he was no -longer behind him on the trail, that he must therefore be in front, and -that to find him there was only one thing to do--push forward as fast as -possible. - -Acting on this, General Herran rode without stopping until nightfall, -reaching just after dusk--dusk comes swiftly enough in the tropics--one -of the primitive little hostelries kept for the accommodation of -travelers to and from Bogota. Here, as is usual in such places, there -was a large number of guests intending to spend the night. This posada, -or inn, was a one-storied, rambling affair consisting of three rooms and -a verandah sheltered by the overhanging eaves of a thatched roof. All -the rooms were filled with people, most of them lying on mats spread on -the floor; the verandah was similarly occupied. In the dim light from -smoky lanterns it was difficult to tell who these people were. Herran, -confident that David was among them, appealed to the proprietor, a -stolid looking peon, for information. - -"You have a Yankee here, Senor?" - -"No, Senor." - -"A Yankee came to-day from Honda?" - -"No, Senor." - -"He was riding alone to Bogota?" - -"No, Senor." - -"A young man on a bay horse?" - -"No, Senor." - -"Is there a foreigner here?" - -"No, Senor." - -"A foreigner passed here to-day on a bay horse?" - -"No, Senor." - -"Caramba, hombre! Have you ever seen a foreigner here?" - -"No--yes, Senor." - -"To-day?" - -"No, Senor." - -Exasperated by what he considered the stupidity of the landlord, Herran -addressed, in a loud voice, the various guests who were preparing to -pass the night on such improvised beds as they could get for themselves. - -"Senores, I am looking for a young man, a foreigner, a Yankee, who is -riding to Bogota on a bay horse. He must be here. Have you seen him?" - -There was a confused murmur. A number of the men sat up on their mats -and repeated energetically the landlord's negative. Others grumblingly -denounced all Yankees as robbers and disturbers of the country's peace. -One young man, dressed in the uniform of an army officer, recognizing -Herran's rank, politely offered to share his mat with him, suggesting, -at the same time, that he could pursue his search to much better -advantage in the morning. As further inquiries brought out nothing new, -Herran accepted this officer's hospitality, wearily resigning himself -to the conclusion that David had been mysteriously spirited away, and -was about to be shot by a lot of insane peons, led on by the ridiculous -Pedro. So it seemed to him as he sank into a nightmare-ridden sleep. - -Morning failed to bring the expected solution of the General's -difficulties. In the bedlam created by burros, horses, travelers--all -trying to make their departure from the inn at the same early -hour, and all finding their plans delayed by some fault in harness, -mislaying of baggage, or other inconvenience peculiar to a four-footed -conveyance--there was no sign of the missing David. A number of native -merchants on their way from Bogota to the coast, who had lodged at the -inn during the night, recognized Herran, and although their greetings -were cordial, the oldtime friendliness was tempered by the uncertainty -with which the average Colombian viewed this unfortunate officer's part -in the so-called Panama revolution. As news of his presence spread among -the departing guests, General Herran felt the restraint as well as the -disagreeable curiosity with which he was regarded. This made his search -for David more difficult. Under the circumstances it was not easy to -explain why he, of all men, was traveling with an American; hence, he -was forced to speak with more reserve than he would have liked of the -young man's disappearance. - -As a result of the little that he learned, he was convinced that David -had neither reached nor passed the inn on the way to Bogota. There -remained two alternatives. Had his companion been carried along by -the volunteers? Or, had he, by mistake, of course, taken a side trail -from the main road and thus lost himself in the labyrinth of mountains -and forests through which they were traveling? No one knew of such -a side trail. As for the other possibility, there was nothing to do -but await the coming of his own party of men and officers whom Herran -and David had left shortly after their departure from Honda, and who -must have met, in their turn, the volunteers somewhere on the road. In -the meantime, nothing could be gained from the landlord of the inn, -whose intelligence was at an even lower ebb in the morning than on the -preceding evening. This good-natured but fatuous boniface found it -difficult to sustain a conversation on the most ordinary topics; and -as a result of his intellectual labors with him, the sociable Herran -was nearing the extremity of misery when his own party arrived, several -hours after the last traveler had left the inn. - -"Ah, yes, Senor General!" groaned Colonel Rodriguez, the bustling little -officer in charge of the men during Herran's absence; "we met the -volunteers. They wanted us to go with them to Panama. They waved their -flag, they shouted, they made speeches, they cheered the fatherland, -they cursed the Yankees, they said you would lead them to the Isthmus. -Their little capitan, who rode on a burro and talked peon very much, -said we belonged to them, and Colombia depended on us. It was very -terrible. We thought they would never leave us." - -"Did you meet the Yankee, Don David, with them?" asked Herran. - -"Don David? But--is he not with you?" they asked in return. - -"I left him when we met those insane volunteers." - -"But, Senor General, they said that a young man--it must be Don -David--went with you." - -"Ah, caramba! Then they know nothing?" - -"That is all, Senor." - -"Then he is lost, that little fellow. He is not with me, he is not with -those canaille--unless they hide him, or kill him. No one has seen him; -he is lost--or dead." - -Having reached this decision, there was nothing further to do -except march to Bogota and telegraph from there the news of David's -disappearance to his friends in Honda. - - - - -X - -AN OLD MYSTERY - - -The vanishing of David Meudon in broad daylight while traveling on one -of the main thoroughfares of the Republic became the sensation of the -hour in Bogota. It excited more interest even than the return of General -Herran and his party from Panama. The tale of David's disappearance -three years before was revived, and gossip found plenty of material from -which to weave wild romance as to what had happened on both occasions. -But you can't build up a durable romance without some solid fact to -base it on, and since this whole affair was wrapped in mystery, lacking -anything tangible, public interest gradually and inevitably died out. -Among government leaders, however, owing to the strained relations -existing between the United States and Colombia, there was some anxiety -over the incident. - -General Herran, who was related to the President of the Republic, and -who was proved to have had nothing to do--consciously, that is--with the -loss of Panama, declared that the government was responsible for David's -disappearance. He argued that, as the country was not in a state of war, -the marching of volunteer regiments on the public roads was a menace -to foreigners having business in Colombia, and that therefore these -regiments should either be disbanded or else ample protection be given -to all travelers who might encounter them. As it was too late to look -after David--so said the General--his friends, who were about to set -out for Bogota, should at least be guarded from a like fate on the way -thither. Accordingly, as this view of the case was approved, a company -of soldiers was sent to Honda--and thus it happened that Doctor Miranda, -Leighton and his niece, Mrs. Quayle and the schoolmaster--recovered -from his fever and the Doctor's pills--made the journey under military -escort, arriving in the capital quite like official personages. - -This novel manner of traveling, although it kept off vagrant militia, -had its sinister features for the timid members of the party. Mrs. -Quayle, whose fear of a burro grew in proportion as she became familiar -with that harmless and necessary animal, believed that she and her -friends had fallen captives, through a skillful bit of strategy, -into the enemy's hands and were being led either to their death or -imprisonment. To this belief she stuck, in spite of the vehemence and -ridicule with which Doctor Miranda seasoned his arguments against -it. Indeed, had she dared express her full opinion her suspicions -would have involved the Doctor himself, whose explosive habits and -other eccentricities kept her in a continual state of alarm that was -increased, every now and then, by his malicious allusions to the jewelry -she wore. Andrew, inclined to attribute his fever to the famous pills -and the heroic treatment to which he had been subjected, secretly shared -her feeling, and was in hourly dread of some new calamity striking him -from the same quarter. Harold Leighton and Una, however, were too -much absorbed in David's mysterious fate to be greatly concerned by -what was going on immediately around them. The old savant, unable to -explain the disaster, was distressed beyond measure by the poignant -grief of his niece. In his own mind he was convinced that the singular -occurrence on the Honda road was related in some way to David's former -disappearance, and this belief stimulated his professional eagerness to -solve the puzzle presented by so strange a coincidence. Una's appeal, -therefore, to go any length in the rescue of David needed no urging. It -was met with a hearty promise of aid from Doctor Miranda, who stormed at -the government, in and out of season, for permitting bands of peons to -endanger the lives of harmless travelers. - -The Doctor was especially indignant with Herran, who called upon the -Americans before they were fairly settled in their hotel in Bogota. -He pitched into this hapless officer with his choicest bits of -vituperation, until Herran began to think that the loss of one man, -under certain circumstances, was as serious an affair as the loss of an -isthmus. Leighton, however, did not share Doctor Miranda's views of the -matter. - -"Miranda is unreasonable," he said to Herran. "There is a mystery in -this case. You have done all you could to save the young man, and you -are now offering to help us." - -"That is right! That is right!" agreed Miranda. "We must find him." - -"Anything I can do----" volunteered Herran. - -"Do you know an American in this town by the name of Raoul Arthur?" -interrupted Leighton. - -"How not! But--I don't like him." - -"Never mind. I must see him. If any one can unravel this thing, he can." - -"Mr. Meudon spoke of him. I will find him for you." - -"Do you know where he lives?" - -"Surely, Senor. In the Calle Mercedes." - -"Take me to him." - -"Very well, Senor," said Herran, apparently overcoming his reluctance; -"that is settled. First, I will be sure he is there. Then, this night, I -take you to his house." - -Una, hearing of this decision, doubted its wisdom. From the few -references David had made to his partner in the Guatavita mining -venture she had felt instinctively that Raoul was his enemy, an opinion -strengthened by the psychometer test used at Stoneleigh. Leighton had -agreed in this opinion, more or less; hence Una's surprise that her -uncle, who was usually overcautious, should now turn to Raoul for help. - -"I believe the man knows where David is," he declared. - -"If he does, he will never tell you," remonstrated Una. - -"I am not so sure of that." - -"You may force him to do something fatal," she urged. - -"On the contrary! By going to him at once I will prevent any foul -play--if there is to be any foul play." - -The possibility alarmed her. The suspense, the mystery surrounding David -seemed more than she could bear. Bitterly she remembered Leighton's -attitude towards him in Rysdale. And now that their trip to Bogota, -insisted on from the first by her uncle, had ended as it had, her faith -in him was sadly shaken. She could not accept his judgment in a case -about which he had already shown so grave a lack of foresight. Leighton, -on his part, realized Una's distrust of him. He did not try to dispel -this feeling; but the knowledge that it was there spurred him on to do -his best and with the least possible delay. - -So, that very evening Leighton, piloted by Herran, sought Raoul Arthur's -abode on the Calle Mercedes. Like most Bogota houses of the humbler -sort, this was a one-storied building, its heavy street door opening -upon a wide brick corridor leading to a central patio from which the -various rooms were reached. Following Colombian custom, the two men -entered without announcement and made their way along the unlighted -passage to the main living room, extending from the patio to the street. -A lamp at the center of a long table heaped with books and papers -distinguished this from the other rooms of the house, all of which were -in darkness and apparently uninhabited. A man, somewhat past thirty, his -hair slightly grizzled, his features pale and sharpened from study, sat -at the table in this main room reading a much-worn leather-bound volume, -the large black type and thick, yellowed paper of which gave ample proof -of age. Aroused by the noise made by Leighton and Herran, he closed his -book with a quick, nervous movement and turned to the doorway where his -two visitors stood. - -"This is Mr. Raoul Arthur?" asked Leighton grimly. - -"Who are you?" demanded the other, his strange, shifting eyes on the -massive figure before him. - -"My name is Leighton. I am looking for David Meudon." - -"He is not here," was the quick reply. - -"I hardly expected to find him here," retorted the savant. - -"Then why ask me for him?" - -"You were once, if you are not now, Meudon's business partner. You -must have heard of his disappearance. On his way from Honda to Bogota -he--well, he simply vanished. That's the only way to describe it. It all -happened, no one knows how, a few days ago. The same thing took place -some years ago when he was living here with you. You know all about the -details of that first disappearance." - -"You are mistaken," interrupted Raoul. "David Meudon left me for a -number of months. On his return he failed--or didn't think it worth -while--to explain his absence." - -"That is all very well. Perhaps he could, perhaps he couldn't explain -it. At any rate, you thought that absence sufficiently peculiar to make -it the subject of an article for the Psychological Journal." - -Raoul flinched perceptibly under this statement. His cool indifference -took on the sort of cordiality that repels one more than open enmity. -Bending over the table before which he was standing, he occupied himself -in elaborately sorting and rearranging some papers at which he had been -working. - -"Of course," he said, "I know you now! Mr. Harold Leighton. I didn't -place the name at first, which was altogether stupid of me. I have often -wanted to meet you. As a matter of fact, I heard of your coming. It's a -rare treat in this out-of-the-way part of the world to run across a man -who has advanced our knowledge of psychology as you have." - -The profuse compliment was not relished by the old savant. "I am not -aware that I have advanced our knowledge of psychology, as you put it, -one iota," he said testily. "But I am here to add to the small stock of -what I have already learned." - -"You must have found David a rare problem!" exclaimed Raoul. - -"You know him, perhaps, better than I do." - -"Yes, I know him. That is, in a way. Engaging sort of chap. Clever, -and all that. Mysterious, too, don't you think? So, he has disappeared -again, you say?" - -"Don't tell me that you have not known of it! The whole town has been -talking about it." - -"Rumors, only rumors," protested Raoul. "I would like to hear the real -facts." - -"This gentleman, General Herran, with whom Mr. Meudon was traveling, can -tell you the facts, such as they are. But I can't see why you should -need them." - -Raoul turned to Leighton's companion, who had been trying to follow -what the two men were saying. As they talked in English, a language -of which he knew scarcely a word, he could make very little of it. -Asked, in Spanish, to give the details of his ride with David, he made -an excellent story of it, relating something of the discussion that -had absorbed them while on the road together, the friendly feeling -that had grown up between them, its touch of conviviality, and their -abrupt separation in the midst of their encounter with the regiment of -volunteers. - -Raoul listened intently to Herran's narrative, his glance roving -restlessly from the narrator to his companion and back again, as if to -compare the effect on both of what was said. - -"It's a strange tale, Senor," he commented when Herran had come to -the end. "These things with a touch of mystery in them are always -fascinating--until you stumble on the clew. Then it's very simple. I -suppose you have no theory to explain our friend's disappearance?" - -"None, Senor." - -"You have just told me, Mr. Leighton," he went on, addressing the -latter, "that you are here to add to your knowledge of psychology." - -"I did." - -"Well, what do you make of it? Here's what you are looking for--a neat -psychological problem right to your hand." - -"I don't see it," said the savant impatiently. - -"That's always the way with you great scientists! But--it's simple," -declared Raoul, a note of triumph in his voice; "absolutely simple--if -you know David as well as I do." - -"I said that you probably know him better. I have not known him as long -or as intimately as you have. But--again I fail to see what psychology -has to do with it." - -"It has everything to do with it. David was not spirited away, as you -seem to imagine. He disappeared of his own accord." - -"There is every reason to think the contrary," said Leighton -contemptuously. - -"Oh, of course I may be wrong in my theory. But, as there is no other -evidence, I see only one solution. It's the clew we are after, you -know--and the clew is right under your nose." - -"Perhaps you are on the wrong scent. Some investigators have a knack of -being cocksure about everything. But--explain your meaning." - -"Very well. Let's talk as one psychologist to another, then. Meudon has -a peculiar temperament. You probably know that. But you may not know -that the dual personality is highly developed in him. Under strong, -sudden excitement this personality becomes greatly exaggerated." - -"He was laboring under no particular excitement at the time of his -disappearance," objected Leighton. - -"What about the mission he was on? I have an idea that it was of -absorbing importance to him. Remember, he was revisiting scenes -connected with an episode that for some years he has been trying to -forget but which he now wants to revive. And then, to cap the climax, -suddenly he comes, slap bang, right into the midst of a rabble of peons -who would be only too glad to kill him, or imprison him, or torture -him--or anything else unpleasant. The same crowd tried to get me once, -so I know what it all means." - -"All this is true; but the excitement was hardly enough to drown David's -normal personality." - -"It all helps, though. It predisposes things. It is, as I look at -it, the final stage setting, with all the characters in their places -awaiting the entrance of the villain to finish up the tragedy. And -in this case the villain entered just at the critical moment. Mr. -Leighton," he asked abruptly, "have you ever known David to drink a -glass of wine?" - -"I can't say that I have," he answered doubtfully. - -"Well, alcoholic stimulus, with certain temperaments--you know what it -does. It starts up an altogether abnormal psychology, doesn't it?" - -"Very apt to." - -"Depends a little on the stage setting, doesn't it? But, even without -that it has its odd effects. On rare occasions, for instance, I have -known Meudon to take a single drink of liquor. The result has been -similar to that brought on by hypnotism." - -"Well?" - -"There's your clew!" Raoul announced triumphantly. "You have heard -General Herran's story. He tells us that just before they parted he -and David drank several toasts together--and the toasts, I fancy, were -stronger than mere wine." - -"You think, then----" - -"Why, it's childishly simple! David was knocked over by a force, an -influence, to which he is unaccustomed. He is not at all a drinking -man, you understand. Quite the reverse. With him the effect of drink -would not be in the least like ordinary intoxication. From two former -experiences I know that it would be far subtler. It would produce what -you would call a pseudo-hypnosis, a condition of abnormal psychology." - -"Well?" - -"Don't you see what happened?" - -"I have not had your experience with David," was the sarcastic reply. - -"It is not a question of mere personal experience," said Raoul -irritably; "it involves what we know--or guess--of the eccentricities of -the human soul." - -"You are an enthusiast. Be more explicit. Don't wander off in your -statements." - -"Very well. I'll put it in the lingo of science as nearly as I can. -It appears to me, then, that David, by this little exchange of pistol -shots, as you call them, with General Herran, brought into activity -a portion of his brain that had not, for a number of years, intruded -itself upon his conscious life. It had literally been sleeping all that -time. On the last occasion when it was awake--when, in other words, he -was under the sway of this subconscious ego--he was here, amid the very -scenes in which he again finds himself. A moment ago you connected his -first disappearance with the one which has just taken place on the road -from Honda. Well, the General's 'pistol,' as he calls it, suddenly threw -David back into the memory of that first subconscious experience." - -"The Ghost of the Forgotten found at last," mused Leighton, more to -himself than to Raoul. - -"Exactly! That's a good way to put it." - -"Suppose your theory correct; what happened after David's subconscious -memory was awakened?" - -"As a psychologist, you are better able to answer that than I." - -"I am not interested in abstruse problems just now. I am here simply to -find David." - -"Difficult, perhaps. I couldn't find him before. But at least I have -given you the clew." - -"Your clew doesn't explain. I don't know what to do with it." - -"A restatement of my theory may clear things up. Through a combination -of certain circumstances, exerting upon him a peculiar influence, David -is living again in an environment and through a set of experiences that -belong to him only when he is in what we call a condition of secondary -personality. Discover that environment--the same, I believe, as the one -in which he was lost three years ago--and you will discover David." - -Leighton made no comment. He regarded Raoul with characteristic -immobility. One gathered from his silence, however, that he was -impressed with what he had just heard. Slowly pacing the length of the -sala, he stopped before General Herran, who, through his ignorance of -English, was in a quite helpless state of bewilderment at the turn the -interview between the two men had taken. - -"This young man will help us find Meudon," said Leighton in his broken -Spanish. - -"He knows where he is?" asked Herran eagerly. - -"He knows--something," replied the savant with significant emphasis. -"For one thing, General, those pistol shots you had with Meudon seem to -have played the devil." - -"Caramba! Does he say so? But that is foolishness!" - -"No, it is theory," said Leighton drily. - -"How will he prove it?" - -"By finding Meudon." - -There was a finality in the tone of Leighton's rejoinder which, more -than the words themselves, indicated the seeker's conviction that the -road to David's discovery was in plain view. Raoul Arthur, however, said -nothing. Standing aloof from his two visitors, apparently not heeding -them, his silence aroused Leighton's curiosity. - -"Naturally, I depend on you, Arthur," said the old man, with an emphasis -that sounded like a threat. - -"I don't know why," he demurred. "David was with your party when this -happened. I failed to find him three years ago, you know." - -"There is no proof that you did anything then to rescue the man who was -your friend and business partner," retorted Leighton. "This time failure -might be fatal--for you." - -The words and Leighton's manner had their effect. Shaking off his real, -or assumed, apathy, Raoul faced his accuser angrily. - -"I have given you the one clew of which I have any knowledge," he said, -meeting Leighton for the first time eye to eye. "I have done what I -could, I will still do what I can. But I won't act at the dictation of a -man of whom I know nothing, whom I never even met until this moment." - -"That's all very well," replied the other imperturbably. "But, as I -said, I depend on you--quite naturally, it seems to me--to help in the -recovery of your friend. My niece and I are in this country for the -express purpose of solving David's former disappearance." - -"Your niece?" - -"Yes; the woman whom David expects to marry." - -Raoul's defiant attitude vanished before this announcement. Irritation -gave place to amazement, distrust turned to friendliness. Nor did he -attempt to conceal his appetite for further news of David's personal -affairs. - -"David wrote me nothing of this," he said. "From his letter I learned -that he was coming with friends. He did not tell me who these friends -were." - -"Well, there's every reason why I should be frank with you--as I expect -you to be frank with me." - -"You are still suspicious. What can I do, or say? I tell you, I don't -know where David is." - -"Do you know where he was when he disappeared from Bogota three years -ago?" - -"No." - -"Strange! A man with all your interests at stake in this puzzle--surely -you must have reached some conclusion?" - -"I tell you, I have not," he replied sharply. "I know nothing, -absolutely nothing." - -"You admit you have a theory--let's call it that--a theory that fits the -facts so far as you know them?" - -"That's your deduction," sneered the other. - -"But, I'm right?" - -"Possibly," Raoul answered, turning again to the papers that littered -his writing table. - -"That's all I want," declared Leighton with satisfaction. "Now, we will -plan our campaign." - -Raoul, engrossed in a large, musty document which he had spread before -him, greeted the proposal with a shrug of his shoulders. General Herran, -impatient at the apparently futile and--to him--incomprehensible -discussion, consumed innumerable cigarettes, while Leighton, with the -air of one for whom waiting is an enjoyment, settled himself comfortably -in a capacious rocking-chair. - -The ensuing silence was rudely broken. There was a vigorous pounding -upon the outer door, followed by the abrupt and noisy entrance into the -house of some one from the street. Whoever it was, this late visitor -stood little upon ceremony. But Leighton and General Herran had no -difficulty in recognizing the nervous shuffle of feet along the stone -corridor, the thump of the heavy walking-stick, accompanied by grunts of -dissatisfaction and suppressed wrath. When Doctor Miranda finally bolted -into the room, fanning himself as usual--although fans were a decidedly -uncomfortable superfluity in the chilly night air of Bogota--they were, -in a way, prepared for him. - -"He is gone! He is lost--that leetle fellow! There is one more lost of -them!" he shouted, repeating his disjointed English in staccato Spanish, -as soon as he caught sight of his two friends. - -Leighton and Herran exchanged amazed glances at this enigmatic bit of -intelligence, while Raoul, preoccupied and restless though he was, could -not restrain a grin at the unconventional being who had rolled his way, -unannounced, into his house. - -"What do you mean?" demanded Leighton. - -"I tell you, he is lost, that leetle schoolmaster!" Miranda exploded. - -"Andrew Parmelee lost? Impossible!" - -"You are an estupido," retorted the Doctor angrily. "I say he is lost. -Before my eyes he disappear. I never lie, I never mistake." - -Not caring to discuss this announcement, Leighton tried to divert the -torrent of words into something like a coherent statement. But in his -present excitable mood Doctor Miranda floundered hopelessly in a morass -of verbal difficulties and ended by telling his story in alternate -layers of Spanish and English. From his account, however, his hearers -were able to put together the main points of an occurrence that, -vehemently vouched for though it was by the narrator, strained their -credulity to the limit. - -Early that morning, it appeared, Doctor Miranda, accompanied by the -reluctant Andrew, had left Bogota for a visit to Lake Guatavita. The -report that David's disappearance three years before had taken place -there was given as the reason for the trip. Arrived at the lake, Andrew -had declined to accompany the Doctor in his search among the cliffs that -guarded the mysterious body of water, and had stationed himself near the -cutting made centuries before by the Spaniards. This was a comparatively -well sheltered spot and sufficiently removed from the precipitous shore -which the cautious schoolmaster was anxious to avoid. His investigations -concluded after the lapse of something like two hours, Miranda returned -to the old Spanish cutting, expecting to rejoin Andrew. But Andrew was -not there. Surprised at not finding him, the doctor at first supposed -that the schoolmaster had grown tired of waiting and had journeyed back -to Bogota alone. A single circumstance proved that in this he was wrong. -There stood Andrew's horse where he had originally left him--and it -seemed altogether unlikely that his rider had deliberately set out to -cover the long and arduous miles to Bogota afoot. - -"Another puzzle in psychology, I suppose," commented Leighton, with a -sarcastic glance at Raoul Arthur. - -The latter, however, in spite of the fact that Andrew was an utter -stranger to him, appeared to be more amazed than the others by -Miranda's story, and for the moment paid no heed to Leighton. - -"When you found his horse you made a thorough search for your friend, of -course, Senor?" he asked Miranda eagerly. - -"Caramba! leetle fellow, what you think?" was the impatient reply. "I -look, and I look, and I call--fifty times I call. If I can swim I jump -into the lake to find him there. But I am too fat. So, I call more -times, and I throw stones, and make the trumpet with the hands. It is no -use. That leetle fellow say nothing. He is not there. So, I come away -after long time." - -"He is drowned, poor fellow," murmured Herran in Spanish. - -"It is not possible," declared Miranda, turning angrily upon the -general. "What make him drown? Of the water he is afraid. If he fall -in--by mistake--he make a noise, he call to me. I am close by, I hear--I -go to him quickly. But I hear nothing." - -"Well, if he didn't drown, as our friend argues, what did become of -him?" demanded Leighton. - -"Ah, Senor," replied Miranda, his mobile features expressing hopeless -bewilderment, "I do not know. It is just so as I tell you; he disappear, -he vanish, he is gone. If I know where, I find him--I would not be -here." - -"So, there are two disappearances to account for," summed up Leighton. -"Foreigners visiting Bogota seem to have the trick of vanishing. What do -you make of it, Mr. Arthur?" - -"I am as much at a loss as you." - -"Hardly that, I should think. You, at least, know all about this -mysterious lake. You know what happened there three years ago, for -instance. And then you know----" - -"You credit me with a great deal more knowledge than I can lay claim -to," interrupted Raoul. "I never heard of this man who has been lost, -as your excitable friend tells us, in such a singular manner--this Mr. -Andrew----" - -"Parmelee," supplied the other. "Andrew Parmelee, schoolmaster, of -Rysdale, Connecticut. He is a very excellent person who, through his -devotion to my niece and myself, has fallen, I fear, a victim to some -strange plot. You will join us, I have no doubt, in his rescue. I am -ignorant of the psychology of Guatavita. However, as I have already told -you, I am here to add to my stock of psychological knowledge, and I -fancy there are few who could teach me more, in cases of this kind, than -you." - -The sarcasm was not lost on Miranda, who shrugged his shoulders, -muttered some unintelligible Spanish imprecation and exchanged a -comprehending glance with General Herran. Raoul Arthur, on the other -hand, ignored the tone Leighton had adopted in addressing him. In his -reply he dropped the irritation and suspicion with which he had first -regarded the old savant, and there was even cordiality in the manner -and look accompanying his somewhat ceremonious acceptance of the task -imposed upon him. - -"If I thought it possible of so profound a scholar, Professor Leighton," -he laughed, "I would say you were chaffing me. As it is, I feel -the honor in your proposal that I should join you in solving these -mysterious disappearances. Perhaps I can be of some help. At any rate, -depend on me for whatever I can do." - -"Two Americans unaccountably disappear in the heart of Colombia," mused -Leighton. "If it were not for certain odd circumstances, I should say -the country's indignation over the loss of Panama had something to do -with it." - -Against this suggestion Miranda impatiently protested. - -"Impossible!" he shouted. "Always these people fight with the gun, the -machete, if they are angry. They make much noise and talk; never they -steal the enemies of their country and say nothing. It is one plot--and -perhaps this senor will know," he concluded, darting an accusing glance -at Raoul. - -But Raoul, now thoroughly composed, smiled disdainfully, although -agreeing in Doctor Miranda's rejection of Leighton's half-formed theory. - -"If it is necessary," he assured them, "I can easily prove that I have -had nothing to do with all this. I have not been out of Bogota for -a month or more. Besides, I have the strongest business reasons for -wanting the safe return of David Meudon to this country. As for Mr. -Parmelee; I repeat--I never heard of him before. But, I agree with our -friend here; the disappearance of these two men has nothing to do with -the Panama trouble. It is something else. There is a mystery about it. I -have no doubt it can be solved." - -"You have the clew?" demanded Leighton. - -"I didn't say that." - -"Well?" - -"Perhaps I know some one here--a woman--who could help us." - -But that evening, after the departure of his visitors, Raoul Arthur -found the little house in the Calle de las Flores tenantless, and -learned that the woman, known to the neighborhood as La Reina de los -Indios, had left Bogota, with all her household effects, a week before. - - - - -XI - -IN WHICH ANDREW IS FOUND - - -Puzzled at not finding Sajipona, uncertain how to take up the promise -he had given in regard to her, an altogether unexpected turn of events -awaited Raoul at Leighton's hotel the next morning. Andrew Parmelee -had been found. In the custody of two delighted police officers the -missing schoolmaster, bewildered, quite speechless from his nocturnal -experience, had made his appearance, scarcely an hour before Raoul's -arrival. When, thanks to Miranda's persistent prodding, backed by the -calm questioning of Leighton and Una's sympathetic ministrations, he -found his tongue, the account Andrew gave of his adventure was so wildly -improbable that his friends were inclined to believe he had been the -victim of some temporary mental delusion. But this did not answer the -threefold question: what had brought on his delusion, how had he escaped -the vigilant Miranda, and how had he fallen into the hands of the -police. - -The two officers gave a simple statement of what, so far as they knew, -had happened. - -Late the night before, they said, Andrew had wandered into the alcalde's -office in a little pueblo a few miles this side of Guatavita. His -appearance, manner and mental condition--they hinted broadly enough -that the luckless Andrew, when first found was in a very irresponsible -condition indeed--called for the protection of the law. But as the poor -gentleman, they said, was apparently suffering from nothing more than -the effects of a too convivial outing in the country, he had been put -in jail, not as a punishment, but rather as an act of humanity. Unable -to express himself in Spanish, Andrew had evidently been something -of a puzzle to the simple-minded officials of the pueblo. Out of his -incoherent jumble of words, however, the name of a hotel in Bogota had -been seized upon. A telephone message was sent to the municipal police, -and the two officers who now had him in charge were detailed to conduct -him in safety to his friends. Beyond this, the clearing up of the -mystery of his temporary disappearance--if mystery it was--rested with -Andrew himself. But he, for a time, was unable to satisfy the curiosity -of his questioners. - -"I don't understand it myself," he said hopelessly, addressing himself, -in the main, to Leighton, whose calm demeanor was less confusing than -the badgering of the excitable Doctor. "All I know is, that when Doctor -Miranda went off to make some explorations on his own account, I felt -a little nervous at finding myself alone in such a dismal place. Not -frightened, you know, but just nervous." - -"Why you not call to me?" demanded Miranda. - -"There was really no reason to call for help, you see, as nothing had -happened. So, just to pass the time until Doctor Miranda came back, I -walked along the edge of the lake, feeling very miserable, I confess, -wondering what had become of Mr. Meudon, and wishing that we were all -out of this terrible country and back in Rysdale. At first, there was -nothing to alarm me particularly; but the more I thought about the -disappearance of Mr. Meudon the more nervous I became. And then, just as -I was wondering if we would ever find him, and feeling more uneasy at -the strange silence of that melancholy lake----" - -"Caramba! You would have the lake to talk?" - -"I--I heard footsteps among the rocks behind me." - -"A sightseer from Bogota, I suppose," suggested Leighton. - -"No, it was not exactly that--at least, I don't think so. But at first I -really didn't turn around to see. I just kept on looking at the lake and -going over some of the terrible stories I had heard about it." - -"You see, this leetle fellow was quite mad with the fright," interjected -Miranda. "He dream. He hear, he see nothing. Nobody was there. I know." - -"I think, Sir, you are mistaken," protested the schoolmaster. "I admit I -was nervous. But I was perfectly sane--and I was not asleep." - -"Of course you were not asleep, Mr. Parmelee," said Una soothingly. "As -for being nervous--any one would have been nervous." - -"Well?" inquired Leighton impatiently. - -"Well, Sir, as I was saying, I heard footsteps. They approached me. I -made up my mind I had better see who it was. I turned around. And then -I saw, a few yards from me, a stranger. How he came there without my -having seen him before, I can't imagine. And then, thinking about this, -I confess I became quite agitated." - -"But what was he like, what did he say?" demanded Leighton. "It was a -man, I suppose?" - -"Oh, yes, I am quite sure he was a man--a very tall man, and singularly -dressed." - -"'Singularly dressed?'" - -"I thought so, at least. But then, I am not familiar with the fashions -of this country. You see, it is very cold on the shores of the lake, -and I should think that any one going there would want at least to be -warmly clad. But this man had nothing on that I could see, except a long -sort of toga, just like the pictures I have studied in Herodotus. It was -looped up on one shoulder through what looked like a golden ring----" - -"He dream! He dream! this leetle fellow!" laughed Miranda. "He is too -good." - -"And this toga fell down to a point just below his knees. It was a -purple and white toga--or perhaps I ought to call it a tunic--with a -fringe of gold tassels. He had sandals on his bare feet and wore no -trousers--at least, I could see none." - -"Caramba!" - -"Really, Mr. Parmelee, you describe a very singular sort of person for -this age and climate," said Leighton coldly. "Are you sure that your -agitated state of mind--you admit you were agitated--did not create a -purely imaginary apparition?" - -"Did I not say he dream?" demanded Miranda triumphantly. "And the police -say he drink. But that is not so--he never drink. I know. I am there." - -"I am very sorry, Sir; I know it sounds ridiculous," protested the -distressed Andrew. "But I am certain that I was not asleep--or anything -else that these well-meaning gentlemen say. I am only telling you what I -really saw." - -"Well, tell us the whole story. Setting aside this person's remarkable -costume, what was he like, what did he say?" - -"I don't think he said anything. He was an Indian. That is, he was not -a white man. I never saw any one just like him, so I may not be right -about the race to which he belongs." - -Andrew's confused statement brought protests from Leighton as well as -Miranda. - -"In this country," remarked Leighton dogmatically, "a man is either an -Indian, a white, or a half-breed. There are no negroes up here, you -know. The negroes all stayed on the coast. As for your inability to -tell us whether he spoke or not--well, the whole thing begins to sound -absurd." - -But the rebuke failed to bring out anything more clear in the way of -explanation from Andrew. - -"Pray, Sir, remember," he expostulated, "that at the time of this -stranger's appearance evening was setting in. The growing darkness -prevented anything like a reliable estimate that I could have made of -his features. In the twilight he seemed dark to me, although not so dark -as the average Indian. And yet, allowing for the twilight, he certainly -was not a white man." - -"But what happened?" urged Leighton. - -"He appeared surprised at seeing me. And then he smiled, approached to -where I was standing, and waved a sort of salutation to me. I think he -may have muttered some words, either of invitation or friendly greeting. -But if he did, it was not in English, nor in Spanish." - -"He, at least, was not agitated, it seems! But as you were afflicted -with more than the usual amount of timidity, I suppose you avoided him." - -"I assure you, Sir, that as soon as I saw this person, I felt no further -fear. There was nothing threatening in his manner. And it flashed -through my mind that he could give me some information about Mr. Meudon. -I observed that he beckoned me to him--and as he did so I followed." - -"Well?" - -"That was the singular part of it. There was every reason why I should -not go with him--at least, not without first notifying Doctor Miranda. -But this strange being smiled so pleasantly and seemed so friendly that -my feeling of nervousness passed away, and I was eager to go with him. -This I did. Apparently he retraced his steps, leading me along the shore -of a little inlet to the lake until we reached a high wall of rock that -I had not particularly noticed before. Here he stopped and looked at me, -still smiling, as if to make sure that I was following him." - -"Do you think you could identify this wall of rock if you were to see it -again?" asked Raoul Arthur, speaking for the first time. - -"I am sure I could," said Andrew, "because we stood in front of it for -some time, this strange person in the toga passing his hand over its -surface, while I wondered what he was going to do next. I noticed that -it was a very high and blank wall indeed." - -"Where was it?" - -"Just next to the cutting that Doctor Miranda had told me was made by -the Spaniards to drain the lake." - -"I did not see this wall," expostulated Miranda. "You are in one dream." - -"Never mind," snapped Leighton; "go on with your story." - -"I am afraid you will believe me less than ever," said Andrew -deprecatingly. "But I am only telling what I am certain I saw." - -"Go on." - -"As he passed his hand over the surface of the wall he gradually turned -to one side until we stood before a narrow cleft in the rocks." - -"It is not there," interrupted Miranda contemptuously. "I examine all -this rock. It has no--what you call?--cleft." - -"I am very sorry, Sir, but I know that there is such a cleft. I think -that is what you would call it. You might easily have overlooked it, -Sir. It was only a narrow opening in the rock, facing away from the lake -and reaching up not more than about three feet from the ground." - -"I remember it," declared Raoul. - -"Pray go on with your story, Mr. Parmelee," Leighton commanded. - -"There is not much more to tell, although the little that remains is -quite the most extraordinary part of it. Pausing an instant before this -opening in the rock, my strange guide crouched down until he was able to -pass within it, beckoned me to follow him, and then disappeared." - -The schoolmaster spoke with difficulty, hesitating every now and then -for the word that would best express what had happened. Having plunged -into his story, however, he went bravely on, gaining courage as he -recalled his singular experiences, and impressing those who heard him -with the sincerity, if not the truth, of the narrative. Of all his -auditors Raoul, apparently, followed him with the closest attention. His -attitude, indeed, seemed to indicate a belief, on his part, in Andrew's -statements. - -"I hesitated about following this unknown man into so strange a -place," continued Andrew; "but his manner was so perfectly courteous -and friendly--and then I thought that behind all this mystery there -might be something to help us find Mr. Meudon--that I made up my mind -to keep with him as long as possible. I crouched down, therefore, as -I had seen him do, forced my way through the narrow opening in the -rock, and presently, after a little difficulty, found myself in a dark -passage that afforded me room to stand upright and move forward. I could -dimly perceive my guide walking at some distance in front of me, and I -hastened as well as I could to reach him. In this I did not succeed, and -so we followed the passage, he leading and I after him, for a hundred -yards or more, until we came to an abrupt angle in the wall where the -uneven path made a sharp dip downward. Here I stopped, having completely -lost sight of my guide, and after waiting a short time I called to him. -No answer came that I could hear, and in the darkness that surrounded me -I began to grow confused and alarmed. It seemed to me I had been lured -into some sort of trap. Repenting of my folly for having ventured so far -into such a dismal hole, I determined to get out of it as quickly as -possible. This, I thought, would be easily done because, to the best of -my knowledge, I had followed along a straight corridor and, if I turned -back, I would soon come within sight of the opening that led to the -lake. But either I had miscalculated the distance I had walked, or else, -in turning to go out I started in the wrong direction. At any rate, I -had not gone very far before I found myself in a labyrinth of passages. -I perceived this by feeling along the wall. And so--there I was, without -any clew to help me in choosing the right passage. - -"I scarcely know what I did when I realized that I was hopelessly lost -in this pitch black cavern. For one thing, I shouted for help, thinking -that possibly Doctor Miranda might hear me. But the echoes from my voice -were more terrifying than the silence. The air was stifling; the ground -appeared to move beneath my feet; the darkness was like a heavy veil -winding closer and closer about me. Then, unable, as it seemed to me, to -move or breathe any longer, everything went from me. I sank to the floor -unconscious. And that's all I remember." - -"But--how you say that? You are here, leetle fellow," blurted Miranda. -"You are all right." - -"Yes, I am here," Andrew assented woefully. "But I don't know how I got -here. When I came to myself again I was lying on the shore of the lake. -It was quite dark. My horse had gone----" - -"That is right; I take him," corroborated Miranda, with satisfaction. - -"I don't know how I succeeded in doing it--I suppose it was -instinct--but I managed to follow the trail on foot, and after a -desperate struggle I reached the village where the people helped me to -get back to Bogota." - -Andrew's story was variously received. No one could doubt his honesty. -With such transparent simplicity as his, it would be difficult to -suppose him capable of drawing--consciously at least--upon his fancy. -Doctor Miranda suggested that he merely dreamed what he afterwards -took to be reality. But the others, discrediting this theory, were -apparently inclined to accept the story, so far as it went, in spite of -its fantastic and well nigh incredible features. Raoul Arthur appeared -particularly impressed and proposed immediate action. - -"I know the cleft in the rock," he said. "I have been over a small -part of the passage to which it gives entrance. It was there, three -years ago, in our attempt to undermine Lake Guatavita, that a charge of -dynamite exploded, after which David Meudon disappeared. I had no idea -that this passage extended back into the mountain as far as it does, -according to Mr. Parmelee's story. But now--it strikes me, Mr. Leighton, -that chance has given us the clew you were seeking last night. If you -are still anxious to trace David's whereabouts, the path lies down the -passage entered by Mr. Parmelee and his togaed, sandaled guide." - -"You want to explore it?" demanded Leighton. - -"I do." - -"But why, if it was already known to you, have you not done this -before?" - -"The natives have always fought shy of going into it further than our -mining operations made necessary. Besides, I never had any reason to -suppose that it was more than a mere natural formation of rock--as -it probably is--extending a short distance into the main body of the -mountain." - -"And now?" - -"I have no theory to advance. But," he added significantly, "it was in -this unexplored tunnel that David disappeared three years ago." - -The reminder had its effect. This linking up of the mysterious tunnel -that had so nearly proved fatal to Andrew, with David's first adventure -suggested the possible solution of a problem that had baffled them until -now. In spite of Miranda's derisive comments on the schoolmaster's -"fairy tale," there seemed to be only one thing to do--explore the -tunnel. It might lead nowhere, and in that case the labor and the -risk--if risk there was--would be of small account. If, however, it was -the entrance to a subterranean dwelling, inhabited by people of whom the -strange being described by Andrew was a specimen, the discovery was well -worth making. - -"We will rescue David!" exclaimed Una, the eagerness of hope in her -voice. - -"But, my young lady," protested Miranda; "he go away many mile from this -tunnel." - -"That is true," assented Leighton. - -"All the same, David was lost there before," Raoul reminded him. "It is -a clew we are bound to follow." - -The question remained, how carry out the proposed exploration? Equipped -with miners' lamps, a number of which, of the best pattern, were -still among the stores David and Raoul had brought to Colombia at the -beginning of their venture, the worst difficulty--darkness--could easily -be overcome. Firearms, a supply of provisions, and oil for the lamps, -were other items obviously needed. But the essential thing was, as -Doctor Miranda tersely put it, "brains"--a cool-headed leader who would -bring them back to the entrance of the tunnel in case of danger. General -Herran, with his military training and experience, was the man for this -rôle. This hero of unfought battles was thereupon chosen captain of the -expedition--not, however, without some modest disclaimers of ability on -his part. - -"There will be five of us then," remarked Leighton. "General Herran, -Doctor Miranda, Arthur, Parmelee and myself." - -"There will be six," amended Una. - -"Six?" - -"I will be one of the party." - -"Preposterous! You might as well make it seven, and include Mrs. -Quayle." - -"I wouldn't think of going," declared that lady quivering with -agitation. - -"It is not for the womens," argued Miranda, in his most conciliatory -manner. "There may be troubles, and we want only the mens." - -Una turned on him fiercely. - -"I don't believe there is any danger," she cried; "but, anyway, I am -going. I am certain David is there. I will go!" - -To all of which Miranda gave an untranslatable exclamation denoting -sympathy, admiration for the pluck of this unexpected volunteer. -Leighton, however, was less easily moved, and it was not until his niece -assured him that she would return if the expedition promised to be a -dangerous one, that he consented to her passionate plea. - - - - -XII - -A DEAD WALL - - -Mrs. Quayle objected to being parted from Una. She objected -vigorously--vigorously, at least, as compared to her usual manner of -taking things. She complained that guarding the baggage in a strange -country, where it was impossible to make even her simplest wants -intelligible, was not the sort of thing she was there for. But she could -not turn Una from her purpose; nor was it any easier, once his consent -was given, to move Leighton to a reconsideration of the matter. Only -one thing was left for her to do. If she wished to keep within reach of -Una she would have to accompany her on the expedition--"the picnic," -as Leighton grimly called it. She hated to do this, but, as solicitude -for Una was stronger than concern for her own safety, she had ended by -tremblingly begging to be of the party. - -"Let her come," said Miranda derisively. "It will not be for long time." - -So Mrs. Quayle, much as she hated adventures, got what she wanted. - -Early next morning, mounted on mules and carrying their supply of -provisions neatly packed in hampers, they reached Lake Guatavita. -Judging by appearances, one would say that they were after nothing -more serious than a day's outing. The air was crisp and sparkling, of -that crystal clearness peculiar to Andean altitudes. The lake laughed -in the sunlight; whatever there was of gloomy legend connected with it -slumbered beneath its silvery surface. Even the timorous felt the joy -of the place and indulged in hopes of high adventure. Miranda was in -the best of humor; Leighton, although maintaining his reserve, relaxed -something of his usual severity; while the rest of the party was in high -spirits, showing scarcely anything of the mental and physical strain to -which they had been subjected during the last twenty-four hours. Only -Una appeared anxious. Raoul Arthur, the more she saw of him, disquieted -her. She disliked him intensely, she could not tell exactly why. He was -assiduous in his regard for her comfort, but, in spite of his outward -friendliness, she was haunted by certain hints that had come to her from -David, hints that made of Raoul, in some inexplicable way, an active -enemy to the man she loved. She was suspicious of him. His presence on -the expedition that had David's rescue for its purpose made her twist -everything he did into something treacherous, of danger to all of them. -Her uncle, apparently, did not share her feeling. On the contrary, -he seemed to rely more and more on Raoul for advice and direction in -carrying out the project upon which he was engaged, and thus there grew -up between the two men a confidence that Una, had she tried, would have -been unable to shake. - -Andrew, of course, still smarting from the experience of two days -before, could not be expected to make so speedy a return to the scene of -his adventure without some trepidation. But whatever sensations thrilled -his susceptible heart, he put on a brave front and did not flinch from -the part he was expected to take in the expedition. There was that -dreadful lake, there the wall of rock he had described, and there the -inconspicuous opening to the tunnel from whose hidden dangers he had -been so mysteriously rescued--he faced it all and braced himself for the -inevitable explanations. But his knowledge of the place was far less -than Raoul's. - -"It was through this opening to Mr. Parmelee's tunnel that we entered -upon the excavation by which we hoped to drain the lake three years -ago," he remarked. - -From an engineering point of view the statement was mystifying because -the opening of the tunnel was almost on a level with the surface of -the lake. Thus, it was difficult to see what would have been gained -had the waters of the latter been diverted into the tunnel. It was -explained, however, that an intersecting tunnel at a very much lower -level furnished the desired outlet, and the miners had planned to -connect with this. As Leighton and the rest were not concerned in these -bygone matters, the abortive attempts of the mining company to use this -subterranean passage in the mountain was not traced out in detail. Time -was urgent; there was no telling how long they might be in the tunnel. -If they wanted to avoid making a night of it they would have to hurry. - -Unloading the mules, therefore, of their provisions, and leaving these -melancholy animals in the care of two peons who had come with them from -Bogota, the picnickers equipped themselves for their adventure--that -is, they fastened the miners' lamps to their hats. In the case of the -men this was not difficult. But Mrs. Quayle's extraordinary headgear, -architecturally deceptive and insecure, proved so hopelessly difficult -that its estimable owner was forced to do without the adornment of tin -and kerosene provided for her. The more stable bit of millinery worn by -Una was tractable enough, and with her lamp attached firmly to her gray -felt hat she looked the part she expected to play. - -The opening to the tunnel was much as Andrew had described it, an -inconspicuous, narrow rift at the base of a great wall of rock. In -nine cases out of ten it would pass unnoticed; so small an aperture, -concealed by bushes and trailing vines, was safe from the most -inquisitive travelers. That so timid a person as the schoolmaster had -discovered (no one took seriously his tale of the togaed and sandaled -stranger) and forced his way through this opening caused no end of -wonder. To accomplish the same feat drew forth many a groan from the -corpulent Leighton and Miranda. As for Mrs. Quayle, what with the -squeezing and tugging needed to gain an entrance into the region of -terrors beyond, and anxiety lest some of her jewelry might be lost in -such strenuous effort, that good lady came dangerously near a condition -of hopeless panic. Undoubtedly she would have abandoned the expedition -then and there had it not been for the jeers of Miranda who assured -her she was developing symptoms that called for a generous dose of his -infallible pills. Such a goad would electrify the stubbornest of mules -and a series of desperate struggles brought Mrs. Quayle victoriously -through the tunnel's entrance. - -This first step in their subterranean travels surmounted, the explorers, -having lighted their lamps, found themselves in a spacious rock -chamber, the walls of which rose above them to a majestic height. -Andrew, especially, was amazed at what he saw, declaring that it was all -quite different from his first experience in the same place. When it was -remembered, however, that on this former occasion the schoolmaster had -only the feeble glimmer of light that found its way through the opening -of the cave to show him where he was, the difference between his two -impressions was not surprising. But it puzzled his companions to choose -the route they were to follow in their explorations. Here Andrew could -not help them. Two passages were discovered leading from the chamber -in which they stood. One went straight ahead, offering a fairly easy, -unobstructed path to the explorer. The other, a branch from the main -tunnel, was narrow, strewn with debris of fallen rock, and altogether -forbidding in the glimpse that could be had of the first few hundred -feet of its course. One feature, however, belonging to this smaller -tunnel gave it the preference. But before discovering this feature and -making their choice the explorers thought it best to inform themselves, -as well as they could, of the character of the cave itself. In this -Leighton naturally took the lead, and from his investigations it was -concluded that, unlike other caves, the origin of the Guatavita cave was -primarily volcanic and due only secondarily to the action of water. - -The implement employed by Nature in fashioning her underground -caverns is usually water. Some mighty spring, deep within the earth's -bosom, seeks an outlet for its accumulating current. It forces its -way through whatever porous layer of rock comes in its path, and by -persistent action, occupying ages of time, disintegrates and destroys -it altogether. There is left, as a result of the subterranean stream's -activity, a series of tunnels, widening out oftentimes into great rock -chambers, and extending, in several well known instances, for many -miles. Wherever water is the sole architect the lines that it carves, -the forms it molds, are smooth, well-rounded; there are no jagged edges, -sharp angles in the fairy palaces and intricate labyrinths that it -leaves as specimens of its artistic method. The walls of the Guatavita -tunnel, however, were eloquent of a totally different force employed in -their making. The marks of an angry Titan were upon them; the Titan of -Fire. They told of an elemental tragedy, swift and cataclysmic in its -action. The deep scars in their surfaces, the rough crags and pinnacles -jutting from them, were the epic characters in which the monster's -struggle for freedom were written down for all posterity to study and -wonder at. - -Thus, Leighton did not hesitate to attribute an igneous origin to -the cave, and it was after a close examination of the earth and -pebble-strewn floor that the smaller tunnel was chosen as the best -for exploration. There were footprints in both tunnels, but in this -one they were more numerous than in the other, where they had been -made, according to Raoul, at the time dynamite had been used in the -excavations. Comparing these footprints, those in the larger tunnel -were evidently from ordinary shoes, while in the smaller they bore the -impress of sandals. - -"Andrew's man in the toga is the one we want," remarked Leighton, a -decision that added to Mrs. Quayle's agitation and did not appear to -increase the schoolmaster's desire for adventure. The discovery of the -imprint of sandaled feet, however, changed Doctor Miranda's attitude -toward Andrew from banter almost to admiration. - -"It is true, what he say, this leetle fellow," he declared in -astonishment. "He follow him here, the sandals--and he is alone. He is -brave man, this Parmelee!" - -Raoul remained silent and Herran shrugged his shoulders skeptically. -After all, it was difficult to believe, on the strength of a mere -footprint, that the singular being described by the schoolmaster -actually existed and had disappeared, like some wraith, in the depths of -the cave. - -"That will be a hard path to follow," said Raoul finally. "I tried -it--once." - -"What did you find?" - -"Nothing--a dead wall." - -"Mercy!" ejaculated Mrs. Quayle, not catching his meaning. - -"There was no danger that I could see," continued Raoul; "but there was -hard traveling, and no result worth the effort." - -"Did you notice these footprints when you were here before?" - -"It was the footprints that led me on." - -"I don't see your footprints here. All these marks are from sandaled -feet," retorted Leighton. - -The discovery did not attract attention. It seemed of slight -significance to the others; but the savant continued his examination -of the ground with redoubled interest. Raoul also showed astonishment -at the fact pointed out to him, and at first offered no explanation. -Obviously, a footprint in a cave, not subject to effacement by wind or -weather, should remain indefinitely, unless destroyed by man or animal. -But, curiously enough, the sandal prints were not sufficiently numerous -to stamp out all vestige of the prints that must have been made by -Raoul in his coming and going through the tunnel--if Raoul had really -ever been in this tunnel. So Leighton argued, and the conclusion that -Raoul had not been there at all seemed logical. Had he deliberately -deceived them--a supposition for which there appeared no motive--or was -he himself mistaken in the course he had pursued in his exploration some -years ago? - -"Well, there it is," laughed Raoul. "Your reasoning is sound. My -footprints ought to be here, but they aren't. I can't explain it." - -"It is not worth while," exclaimed Miranda impatiently, adding not over -lucidly, "they take them away." - -"Perhaps Mr. Arthur wore sandals," suggested Andrew, illuminated by a -brilliant idea. - -"Whatever happened, Uncle Harold," said Una, who had ventured into the -tunnel some distance ahead of the others, "what difference does it make -now? We are losing time from our search--from your picnic, Mrs. Quayle!" - -"Picnic!" she shuddered. "How can we picnic with dead walls and -mysterious footprints all around us?" - -"Good!" exclaimed Miranda in response to Una's appeal. "The womens -always are captains--the mens must follow!" - -There being no objection to this way of putting it, Leighton and Raoul -gave up the puzzle of the footprints and set out seriously to explore -the tunnel. - -They soon found, as Raoul said, that traveling here had its -difficulties. Huge boulders that took some little dexterity and -sureness of foot to get over obstructed the narrow passage. For Una, -who showed surprising agility, such impediments were not disconcerting; -but Mrs. Quayle found them not at all to her liking. Progress with -that bewildered lady was necessarily slow and, in some unusually rough -places, had to be made by a system of shoving from behind and hauling -from above that kept her in a state of breathless agitation. This was -increased by imaginary terrors, chief among which was the constant dread -of meeting the apparition described by Andrew, whose story had made a -deep impression on her mind. - -As a matter of fact Andrew's man in the toga was not in evidence, -except as the occasional imprint of a sandal on the floor of the cave -suggested him. But the explorers were too busy surmounting the obstacles -with which the tunnel was strewn to heed details that otherwise might -have arrested their attention. The sharp edges of the rocky wall played -havoc with their clothing, drawing from Miranda, incensed at his own -rotundity, a choice series of expletives--fortunately in Spanish--and -arousing the wrath even of Mrs. Quayle. After the first five hundred -yards, however, the passage widened sufficiently for them to look about -and take account of the perils--if there were any--facing them. - -The endless vista of rock, hewn in every conceivable shape and lighted -dimly by the rays from their lamps, was dispiriting, to say the least. -With the passing of the tunnel, however, and its alarming sense of -premature entombment, even Mrs. Quayle experienced a faint return of -confidence, while the schoolmaster, her companion in misery, began to -feel a mild curiosity in the outcome of an adventure for the undertaking -of which he had been the unwilling cause. He wondered vaguely to what -further depths of this hole in the mountain the more enterprising -spirits of the party would lead them. - -"I am sure I never came as far as this," he protested. - -"Well, what of that?" demanded Leighton. - -"He say he never come here!" crowed Miranda. "Very well, my leetle -fellow, you are here now." - -"Yes, but--how far will we go?" he persisted. - -"You remember nothing of this?" asked Raoul. - -"I--I rather think I stopped in the beginning of the tunnel." - -"But here are the footprints," said Una eagerly. - -"They are made by sandals. I never wear sandals," said Andrew sadly. - -"Of course. They make by the other fellow." - -"By that man who wears a toga?" asked Mrs. Quayle anxiously. "It would -be awful to meet him in this place." - -"She is afraid, this old lady--she have nerves!" announced Miranda. "She -better go back." - -There being sound sense in the observation, the others stopped to -consider it. - -"I could never find my way alone through that tunnel," declared Mrs. -Quayle. - -As this was quite obvious, something had to be done. No one wished to -desert the unfortunate lady; at the same time all, with the exception -of Andrew, were anxious to press on without delay. Miranda, in terse -Spanish, explained the difficulty to General Herran, who shrugged his -shoulders disgustedly, expressing emphatic disapproval of women as -explorers. - -"We must do something before we go any further," said Raoul. "There may -be a long journey ahead of us." - -"Do you expect it?" asked Leighton. - -"I have no idea where we are." - -"That means----" - -"We have passed the dead wall." - -"Merciful heavens!" exclaimed Mrs. Quayle, "we are lost!" - -"Hardly that," said Una reassuringly. "It will be easy to go back the -way we came. But this cave is too delightful to leave. I never breathed -such air." - -There was ample warrant for Una's enthusiasm. From the stifling -atmosphere of the tunnel the explorers had entered a great rock -chamber that widened as they advanced, opening up vistas of majestic -spaciousness that contrasted strangely with the straitened path they -had first followed. Overhead the outlines of a vast arching roof could -be dimly made out by the flickering light from the lamps. At either -side the dusky walls, with their flanking pinnacles and fantastic -gargoyles, suggested the ornate escarpment of some Gothic cathedral. -More noticeable even than these architectural features, was the -delightful atmosphere, mild, fragrant, invigorating, pervading the great -silent spaces. Usually the air in the famous caves familiar to tourists, -although pure enough, is chilly and damp, so much so that the explorer -is forced to exercise in order to keep warm. Here, on the contrary, -one enjoyed the temperature of a perfect day in early summer--a fact -that had called forth Una's praise, and was silently noted by Harold -Leighton as one of the novel features of the Guatavita cave. - -"Of course we must go on," Leighton decided impatiently. "If Mrs. Quayle -is nervous, she had better wait for us outside." - -"Perhaps I will be only in the way here," said that lady contritely. -"But what will you do without me, Una?" - -"I will take her," interposed Miranda in a chivalric outburst. "Come!" -he added, turning unceremoniously to retrace his steps to the opening of -the tunnel, a point that could not be far away, although not near enough -to be revealed by the light thrown from their lamps. - -In spite of the extended area of the subterranean chamber in which they -were standing, it was easy to return to the tunnel by simply retracing -the path they were on. This path was marked by a depression in the -uneven rocky floor across which it was laid. It was fairly smooth -and overspread by a fine sand that bore the impress of many sandaled -feet. There was no danger of losing one's way, and the energetic -doctor, hurried along so as to spend the least possible time on his -self-appointed mission. He did not notice that the terrified Mrs. -Quayle, convinced that his invitation concealed a plot to rob her of -her jewels, failed to accompany him. The others, amused at his abrupt -departure, patiently awaited his return, watching the speck of light -made by his lamp bobbing about in the distance. Presently the light -disappeared, and they concluded that Miranda had entered the tunnel. But -in this they were mistaken. In a few minutes they were startled by an -explosive "Caramba!" followed shortly by the apparition of the doctor -running towards them, breathless from his exertions, and exploding with -mingled wrath and consternation. - -"It has gone--lost! I cannot find him!" he shouted in an incoherent -torrent of Spanish and English. - -"What has gone?" demanded Leighton. - -"We are lost! We are lost! The tunnel has gone!" - -"Nonsense!" - -"It is true! I go there. I not lie. I find the tunnel where we come--and -it has gone!" - -"Impossible! What did you find?" - -"I not find it. It is true! I find there what this fellow say," he -replied, turning savagely on Raoul. "It is--what you call?--one dead -wall!" - - - - -XIII - -MRS. QUAYLE TAKES THE LEAD - - -Miranda was not dreaming--the tunnel had vanished. That may be a strong -word for it; but anyway, whatever had happened, the tunnel was not to be -found. - -Returning by the path upon which they had entered the subterranean -chamber, they were confronted by a wall of rock where the entrance to -the tunnel should have been. They were perfectly certain that when they -passed out of the tunnel, less than half an hour before, into the main -body of the cave, this wall had not been there. Where it had come from, -why they had not seen it before, were posers too puzzling to waste time -over. No one had seen it, of that they were certain; and they couldn't -have helped seeing it if it had been there. Hence they were forced to -the astonishing conclusion that this wall had moved into its present -position during the last half hour through some invisible, superhuman -agency. The whole thing, in fact, was incomprehensible, ridiculous, -absurd. But there it was, for all that--and it had its depressing -consequences. - -"You know that crocodile on the river," said Miranda impressively; "he -open the mouth--the bird walk in. He shut the mouth--the bird is in one -trap. So it is to us." - -Terrified by this picture of what had happened, Mrs. Quayle -involuntarily clutched the jewels encircling her neck as if to protect -them from some invisible brigand. The schoolmaster, also, seemed to -suffer additional discomfort. Miranda's way of putting it, however, -failed to satisfy the others. Leighton stoutly refused to believe in -magic. Herran, in voluble Spanish, insisted that magic alone could -explain the affair. Miranda repeated his alligator theory. - -"This cave is alive," he added. "You see the mark of the feets?" - -"Where is Mr. Arthur?" suddenly asked Una. - -They had been so absorbed in the mystery of the vanishing tunnel that -the absence of one of their number had not been noticed. Una's startled -query brought them face to face with another puzzle, as baffling and -uncanny, in a way, as the wall of rock that had come from nowhere and -planted itself between them and the entrance to the cave. Raoul had -disappeared; search as they might, call as loudly as they could, no -trace of him was to be found. Had he deliberately deserted them, or -had he suddenly been spirited away by the same invisible agency that -had prevented their leaving the cave? The more credulous of the party -believed he had been spirited away. - -"But it is impossible," insisted Miranda angrily. "I see him now--and -now he is not here. The canaille!" - -"There is only one thing to be done," declared Leighton emphatically. -"We can't get out of here; we must go on." - -"Yes! Yes!" exclaimed Una. - -"Caramba! What for we go on?" remonstrated Miranda. "We are lost, we -starve, if we leave this place." - -"You mean, we are lost if we stay here," reasoned Leighton. "There is -nothing to be gained by staring at this rock. The fact that Arthur has -disappeared, that the entrance to the tunnel has been closed, that there -are fresh footprints besides our own all about us, proves that this cave -is inhabited. Whoever they are, we must find these people." - -Leighton's way of putting things was effective. It at least prevented -a panic. Even Miranda admitted the necessity of the course proposed by -the savant, and as Herran had nothing else to offer in its place, it was -decided to press on with the exploration of the cave without delay. - -Fortunately, they had a fair amount of provisions and enough oil to -keep their lamps going for several days. Before starting on their -expedition--when it promised to be nothing more than a "picnic"--this -supply of food and fuel seemed far beyond any possible need. Now, thanks -to the fussiness of Mrs. Quayle, who had insisted on these abundant -preparations, there was no immediate danger of starvation. Each carried -his or her portion of food in a light, capacious sack. These sacks, -woven by the natives from vegetable fiber, swung easily from the -shoulders. The oil for the lamps was in two cans, one of which Andrew -carried, Raoul the other. Whatever had become of Raoul, his can of oil -had not disappeared with him. It was found near the spot in the large -cave where Miranda had turned back to take Mrs. Quayle to the tunnel. -Here, then, Raoul had left them. Hoping for a clew, they examined the -ground for his footprints, but could discover nothing. The path beyond -showed the impress of sandaled feet only--and Raoul, they agreed, did -not wear sandals. Either he had left the path and chosen the rocky floor -of the cavern in its stead--in which case it would be impossible to -discover his trail--or he had followed them to the tunnel and gone off -on one of the side tracks that they had noticed and partially explored -there. Why he should have done either of these things was quite beyond -them to answer. At any rate, they tried every means to find him, and -their failure left them more despondent than ever. All except Leighton -and Una. - -Failure did not daunt Leighton. He was convinced that by persevering in -their exploration they would solve the mystery of the cave, gain tidings -of David, and run down Raoul. Una shared his optimistic view, and both -chafed at the reluctance of their companions to go ahead with the energy -their plight demanded. The fact is, the feeling that they were caught in -a cavern of unknown extent, connected with certain mysterious happenings -in the immediate past, mixed up in the legendary history of a vanished -race, and inhabited even now by strange beings in outlandish costumes, -had a blighting effect upon them. Mrs. Quayle refused to be comforted -and, as it was out of the question to go on without her, Leighton, like -an astute general, proposed having lunch before doing anything else. -Every one brightened up at the idea; it was one of those masterstrokes -of policy that, when all else fails, saves the day. Miranda declared -emphatically that food was "good for the estomach," and, as no one -thought otherwise, they fell to with an appetite sharpened by their -exertions and made fairly razor-like--although this they did not -realize--by the bracing atmosphere of the cave. - -There were bollos of corn and yucca--yellow, white, brown--variously -flavored, soggy, solid. This was a concentrated food that just hit the -need of a party of marooned picknickers. And there were large flat -disks of cassava, a native bread that Mrs. Quayle declared, with some -reason, resembled chips of wood, more than anything else, in taste and -toughness. This, too, furnished the maximum of nourishment in a small -space. These foods, with such fruits as the almond-like sapoti, the -juicy nispera, the delicate chirimoyo, furnished a meal that aroused -Miranda's enthusiasm, although to the untrained New England palate it -was not quite so satisfying as it might be. The thought, too, that after -this supply of food was exhausted, there would be nothing to eat, and -no way of getting anything to eat, spoiled just that part of the picnic -that should be most enjoyable. And then, worse than all, unthought of -until now, there was the appalling problem of--water. In the lunch bags -of Doctor Miranda and General Herran there were two small bottles of -red wine; but when this was offered to Mrs. Quayle that unhappy lady's -thirst for water reached an acute stage. She declared that all wine was -poison, and that she would die if she couldn't get a drink of water. -Even Leighton was disturbed. Water they must have, but--did it exist in -a cave that was, apparently, caused by fire and not--as all respectable -caves are--by water? - -"Guatavita!" exclaimed Miranda, smacking his lips after a deep draught -of claret. - -"Guatavita!" echoed Leighton irritably. "Why not say the river -Magdalena? How are we to reach Guatavita?" - -"It is near," was the complacent reply. "It come into the cave." - -"How do you know that?" - -"Always there is water in the cave. And here--there is the lake -outside." - -"Yes, outside," said Leighton bitterly. - -"But first it is inside." - -Miranda's confident assertion was worth considering. That there might -be--that there probably was--some subterranean connection between -the cave and the lake--even if the former did come from fire--was a -plausible theory. As he went over the matter in his own mind, Leighton's -respect for Miranda's common sense jumped from zero to a comparatively -high figure. But he was not convinced. - -"You forget; we are above the level of the lake," he argued. - -"That is true," agreed the doctor, who, in the meantime, bottle in -hand, had been nervously walking about, peering into the darkness that -surrounded them. "Yes, that is true. We come in over there; and always -we walk up, up. The lake is always below. This path it never go down. -But here--aha! Caramba!--is one other path--and it go down." - -Miranda's voice shrilled with excitement. He was elated with the -importance of his discovery. And it was important. The spot they had -chosen for their lunch was the furthest point they had reached in their -explorations, the point where Miranda had turned back to take Mrs. -Quayle out of the cave and where they had last seen Raoul Arthur. It was -marked by a huge pyramidal rock rising from the floor of the cave. Along -one side of this rock the path they had followed went on indefinitely, -in a gradual upward incline. It was to the other side that Miranda -eagerly called attention. Placing his bottle of claret down on the rock -beside him, he got on his knees and, with his nose almost touching the -ground, made a minute study of the floor of the cave. - -Even Andrew felt the contagion of the doctor's excitement. Fruits, -bollos, cassavas were abandoned pell mell as one and all scrambled to -their feet eager to find out what new puzzle Miranda had managed to -pick up. The light from their lamps cast huge, uncertain shadows on the -irregular masses of rock that everywhere blocked the view. At first -there was nothing to be seen that differed essentially from what they -had grown accustomed to in this subterranean world. There was the same -chaos of jagged pinnacles and bowlders, the same display of irresistible -energy that had been let loose and played itself out here ages ago. But -in the midst of it all, zigzagging through this maze of dusty forms, -there was the new path announced by Miranda. It led away from the -central rock, or pillar, where they had taken their lunch, and formed -an acute angle with the path they had already traversed. It was not so -plainly marked as the latter, and appeared little more than a rift among -the rocks that strewed the floor of the cave. But it was a path, there -was no mistaking that. Among the evidences that it had been recently -used was one that particularly delighted Miranda and justified his -prolonged microscopic examination of the path itself--the footprints of -a man wearing, not sandals, but shoes. - -"Raoul Arthur!" exclaimed Leighton. - -"Perhaps," agreed Miranda. - -"Where could he have gone?" asked Una. "This path runs in nearly the -same direction as the one we followed." - -"We will see." - -As a matter of fact, the two paths, starting together at the central -rock and going thence in the same general direction, gradually diverged -from each other, much as do the two lines that form the letter V. -Then, another difference was noticeable. The first path followed a -comparatively uniform level; the second dipped steadily downward. -This peculiarity, first noted by Miranda, appealed particularly to -Herran. Gloom had been the dominant mood with the general ever since -he had entered the cave. He had made mental notes of things as they -had happened, but he had not shared in the discussions of the others. -This was partly due to his ignorance of English, partly to a sense of -responsibility that he felt as a citizen of Bogota whose duty it was -to guide a party of foreigners safely through one of the difficult -regions of his native land. But now, at last, he had something to say, -something that was due from him as their leader. Tugging at his beard in -characteristic fashion, he gave the result of his observations in terse -Spanish. - -"At first we go away from the lake. Then we come back to it, just a -little. Then we go away. Now this path take us right there again." - -"That is it," agreed Miranda. - -It sounded rather mixed up, and no one paid much attention to it. But at -least it put General Herran in a better humor. - -"Perhaps this will take us out of the cave," suggested Andrew. "The path -is nearly in the right direction." - -"I hope it means water, anyway," said Una, thinking of Mrs. Quayle. - -They gathered up what was left of their provisions and set off again, -single file, down the new path, General Herran in the lead, Andrew -bringing up the rear. They had not gone many yards before they noticed -the marked difference in the two paths. At first the change in level was -scarcely perceptible; but now the descent became more and more abrupt, -and as there was less sand and gravel for a foothold, they found the -smooth surface of the rocks, tilted often at a sharp angle, anything but -easy going. Another peculiarity that soon caught their attention was the -lessening height of the cave's roof. Until now this roof had been so far -above them that they had to throw their heads way back to see it, and -even then it appeared in only vague outlines. Now it took a downward -curve that brought it nearer and nearer to them. Following the same -descending sweep it was evident that floor and roof would shortly come -together and the confines, at least of that portion of the cave, would -be reached. - -Along with this new architectural feature in the structure of the cave, -there was a noticeable change in the character of the rock forming it. -Walls and floor had, until now, been sharp and jagged in contour, dull, -almost black, in color. But the unevenness of surface was disappearing. -The rocks were smoother, as if worn and rounded by constant rubbing. -Vivid colors gleamed from wall and column with a pristine freshness -suggesting that this part of the cave belonged to a far more distant -period than the great rock chamber in which they had stopped to take -their luncheon. Finally, they were surrounded at every hand by those -spear-like formations, thrust upwards from the floor or depending from -the roof, that give to the interiors of most caves their fantastic -appearance--the stalactites and stalagmites about whose origin in the -workshop of Nature there can be no doubt. - -This change had an invigorating effect upon the explorers. Passing from -the unrelieved gloom of the first cavern into this fairy-built grotto, -with its bright hues and pleasing shapes, they began to forget their -fears and felt instead something like the real enjoyment that belongs to -unexpected adventure. Everything in the way of glorious surprise seemed -possible. For one thing, Miranda's confident prediction was apparently -about to be realized, a probability that the doctor celebrated by -alternate chuckles and grunts of satisfaction. - -"If we don't find water, there is at least no doubt that water has once -been here," declared Leighton. "These stalactites make that certain." - -"You will see--you will see," persisted Miranda. "It is the Lake -Guatavita." - -"How can that be?" argued Leighton. "No opening of the lake into this -cave has ever been discovered." - -"You will see." - -One might almost imagine that the intricacies of the cave were as -familiar to the doctor as the formula for his celebrated pills. But his -confident attitude was only one part genuine to three parts bravado. He -enjoyed opposing a scientist showing such supreme self-possession as -Leighton, and he delighted in startling statements of fact that merely -bewildered his hearers. But he was by no means sure in his own mind -of the truth, or even the probability of the theory he was advancing. -General Herran, however, who had heard as far back as he could remember -the strange tales of mystery regarding Lake Guatavita, and had often -speculated with other Bogotanos on the disappearance beneath its waters -of the fabulous wealth of the ancient Chibchas, was keenly alive to the -possibilities lying before them now that they were on the very spot -haunted by so many fascinating traditions of his race. Like most natives -of Bogota the Spanish blood in his veins was mixed with the blood of the -Chibchas--and it was an infusion he was proud to own. Hence, he readily -believed that at any moment they would stumble upon a perfect mountain -of treasure, all the lost gold and emeralds that Spanish romancers had -dreamed about and travelers of the old heroic times had risked their -lives for. - -They had now reached the end of the precipitous incline down which the -path had led them, thankful to exchange the slipping and sliding, to -which the tilted rocks had treated them, for the firm footing offered by -a comparatively level floor. Here the roof hung only a few feet above -their heads, whence it curved downward, glistening with the delicate -fretwork that the subterranean torrents of bygone ages had carved upon -it, until it became a part of the rock-strewn ground beneath. The -chamber thus formed became a long, spacious corridor, one side of which -was open to the vast amphitheater they had just left, the other side -stoutly hemmed in by a maze of stalactites and stalagmites looming up -as sentinels in front of a wall that could be dimly seen behind them. -Down the middle of this corridor lay the path they had been following, -wider now and showing the imprint of many sandaled feet. Before them, at -the end of the corridor, they could distinguish the outlines of another -wall, apparently marking the limit of this portion of the cave. - -"There is your lake," said Leighton ironically to Miranda, who shrugged -his shoulders in reply. - -"At any rate, Uncle Harold," said Una reproachfully, "there must be an -opening here. And the air is just heavenly! Instead of walking, one -could dance." - -The others appeared to feel the truth of Una's observation, for they -moved along with a briskness, a snap, they had not shown before. This -was particularly noticeable in Mrs. Quayle, who seemed to be propelled -by some inner gayety of spirit that quite changed her usually sedate -manner and appearance. The transformation was not lost on Una, who was -both amused and puzzled by it. - -"Look at Mrs. Quayle's jewelry!" she exclaimed. "It is dancing about as -if it were moved by a breeze from somewhere." - -"What do you mean? I can't feel any breeze," declared Leighton. "The -singular fluttering of Mrs. Quayle's jewelry simply means, I suppose, -that the wearer is, as usual, agitated." - -That Mrs. Quayle was agitated, and not in the joyous frame of mind that -Una at first supposed, began to be painfully evident. Ever since she -had come into the cave agitation had been a chronic condition with her. -But in this instance it hardly explained the eccentric activity that -had suddenly developed among the ancient heirlooms that she guarded so -jealously. The large gold pendants that dangled from her necklace beat -an unaccountable tattoo upon her neck and shoulders, while the massive -brooch fastened to her bodice showed an obstinate tendency to break away -from its moorings. Even the gold rings on her fingers seemed possessed -with a rebellious spirit, a mischievous desire to dance in unison -with brooch and necklace, while two heavy bracelets, made of links -and chains, clicked and snapped like castanets under the prevailing -terpsichorean influence. - -For several minutes before Una drew attention to these strange antics -Mrs. Quayle had been unhappily aware of the insurrection that had -broken out among her treasures and had clutched frantically at them in -an unavailing attempt to quiet their ill-timed frenzy. She dabbed at -them with one hand and caressed them with the other, only to find that -as soon as they were freed from her restraining touch they flapped and -jingled and tugged at her with renewed energy. Finally, with the eyes of -all the party upon her, the terrified lady gave up in despair. - -"I don't know what is the matter with them," she wailed; "they never -acted this way before. I am not agitated," she added irritably, "as -Mr. Leighton says. And I don't think it is a breeze either. It takes -more than a breeze to make bracelets and brooches dance. They are just -possessed, and for no reason at all. Oh, why did I wear these precious -things on this terrible journey!" - -Doctor Miranda, with the steadfast gaze of an exorcist, planting himself -firmly in front of her, his arms crossed on his chest Bonaparte-fashion, -added to Mrs. Quayle's dismay. - -"I think she have the malaria," he announced solemnly. "I give her my -pills----" - -"I won't take your old pills," was the spirited reply. "They nearly did -for poor Mr. Andrew. I think they may kill him yet. There is nothing the -matter with me. I want to get out of this cave--and I'm going to this -very minute." - -Never in the annals of her long career as housekeeper and self-effacing -lady's companion had Mrs. Quayle been known to give way to such open -defiance of any one belonging to the opposite sex. And, as if to show -that she meant every word she said, she brushed past the astonished -doctor and strode ahead of the others along the path leading down the -corridor. To no one was her behavior more astonishing than to Leighton, -in whom the reserve of the scientist was sorely strained by this sudden -show of daring from a creature whose timidity was proverbial. As leader -of the expedition, and obeying also the skeptical bent of his nature, -the savant felt that his own dignity was involved. - -"Mrs. Quayle is perfectly right," he announced coolly; "we must lose no -more time in these trifles. What if her jewelry does show a disposition -to dance? A woman's jewelry is always ridiculous--and Mrs. Quayle's has -always been a puzzle besides." - -But the rest of the party soon found that Mrs. Quayle was not an easy -leader to follow. Where before she kept them back by her ineffectual -efforts to get over the various obstacles encountered in their -explorations, and had needed their help at almost every step, she -now set them a pace that atoned for her former lagging. Whether this -amazing activity was due to a sudden attack of fever, as Doctor Miranda -maintained, or whether it came from a frantic desire to escape from a -region that filled her with superstitious terrors, Mrs. Quayle showed no -sign of giving up what she proposed to do, whatever that might be. On -the contrary, as the far end of the corridor grew more distinct she sped -along faster than ever. Her rebellious jewelry fluttered and twitched -and danced more vigorously, until it fairly stood out before her, -straining and pulling her along, breathless and hysterical, as if drawn -by some irresistible force. - -"I can't stop it! I can't stop it!" she gasped. - -To which Miranda, puffing along in her wake, replied with dramatic -emphasis: "This little woman must be stop!" - -But this was not easy, even for a doctor with unlimited experience in -quinine. The smooth, tapering surfaces of the stalactites, standing on -guard in long rows down one side of the corridor, glinted derisively as -the explorers rushed past them frantically trying to curb the frenzy -that had seized this perfectly harmless woman who was now leading them -on to a goal that might have all kinds of disaster in store for them. -As they drew nearer the end of the corridor, the expected opening that -was to deliver them from their subterranean prison was not visible, -at least to the hasty glance that could be spared from the absorbing -pursuit of Mrs. Quayle. Nevertheless, the awkward rapidity with which -they were hurrying on to their fate was to be rewarded, apparently, -by the discovery of something that was different, at any rate, from -the wilderness of rocks that hitherto had baffled them in this gloomy -underworld--and it was not General Herran's mountain of gold and -emeralds, either. - -Something made by man, and not by nature, was here. This was -unmistakably revealed in an odd sort of structure towards which they -were hurrying. At last they were confronted, they believed, by the -clew to the mysterious beings who inhabited the place, whose presence -had been indicated by the footprints, by the man in the toga, seen, or -imagined, by Andrew, and vaguely suggested by the weird disappearance -of the entrance to the tunnel through which they had hoped to make -their escape. Here all these things that had filled them with alternate -anxiety and curiosity were to be explained. Unfortunately, Mrs. Quayle's -impatience to get on gave them no opportunity to reconnoitre, at a -safe distance, the object they were approaching. Leighton especially, -accustomed to the careful methods of science, would have preferred a -more deliberate and cautious mode of travel to the brainless hurry -into which his housekeeper had plunged them. As it was, the object -looming before them, so far as they could snatch time to make it out, -resembled a huge stone windlass. Even the cylindrical drum and the long -curved handle hanging at the side of one of the tall uprights were of -stone. Certainly, a windlass like this--if it was a windlass--had -never been seen before. It could not be the work of modern times--it -was much too clumsy for that. And of stone! Perhaps it belonged to the -Stone Age. It was conceivable--and the notion stirred the depths of the -savant's soul with delight--that here, in this subterranean chamber of -the Andes, they were about to stumble upon an archćological find that -would revolutionize the current theories as to primitive man and his -development. But--was it a windlass? The two uprights carrying the long -horizontal drum at the top, instead of in the middle, were some ten -or fifteen feet high. With such an abnormal height, and such singular -construction, the THING might be intended to serve as a gallows quite -as reasonably as a windlass. Whoever would have believed that they had -the gallows in the Stone Age! There, sure enough, was the rope dangling -most suggestively from the crosspiece--or drum, whichever it might be. -But then, a rope was the conventional adornment, whether for gallows -or windlass. As they came within fifty yards of it, the THING looked -unquestionably more and more like a gallows, less like a windlass. It -stood within ten feet of the wall, through a long, wide aperture in -which one end of the rope disappeared. The other end, attached to what -appeared to be a great oblong stone, lay coiled upon the ground. - -Not until she had almost reached it did Mrs. Quayle realize the oddity -of the structure towards which she had been racing. Then its resemblance -to a gallows suddenly flashed upon her. With a gurgle of horror she -threw herself upon the ground, unable, apparently, so long as she -remained upon her feet, to contend against the invisible influence -that forced her to run fairly into the arms of this terrifying object. -Prostrate between two rocks lying across the path, her wild flight came -to an end. Here her companions gathered around her--Miranda, puffing and -panting from his exertions, determined to allay the violent attack of -fever that he still believed was the cause of the lady's unaccountable -paroxysms; Leighton, torn between the psychological interest of the case -and the archćological puzzle awaiting solution; Andrew, his huge hands -waving about in helpless dismay, muttering incoherent advice to any one -who would listen, and Una, anxious to soothe an agitation that, she -conceived, was due merely to a case of nerves. - -"She will be all right--soon she will be all right," declared Miranda, -intent on his professional duties as he knelt on the ground beside Mrs. -Quayle. With which comforting assurance he seized one of her hands, and -with his other hand tried to force open her mouth. - -"I am all right," she shrieked, tearing herself out of his clutches. -"There's nothing the matter with me. Something is pulling me to that -terrible thing over there. It seems to be my jewelry. My necklace is -cutting my head off. This brooch!--oh! it's awful! What shall I do? What -is the matter?" - -"It is very simple," declared Leighton sternly. "Take off your jewelry -if it bothers you. I don't see why you should be wearing it, anyway." - -Mrs. Quayle clutched wildly at her necklace and brooch, loath to part -with them and evidently regarding the people gathered around her as -little better than a lot of brigands who had lured her here to rob -her of her treasures. Every one else heartily agreed with Leighton's -proposal. - -"Caramba! That is true!" shouted Miranda delightedly. "This necklace, it -choke her too much. I take him off of her." - -Before Mrs. Quayle could protest further, Miranda seized her by the -throat, hauling at the massive necklace in an effort to find the clasp -that held it in place. The task proved difficult and promised to develop -features that savored more of surgery than anything else. The trouble -was not so much from the defensive tactics employed by Mrs. Quayle--who -contrived to elude Miranda's grasp with surprising agility--as it was -with the necklace itself. Never was a simple piece of jewelry more -rebellious. It slipped through the doctor's fingers and jumped about and -tugged at its victim's neck in the most baffling and erratic manner. But -Miranda, growing more eager and determined, triumphed at last. Holding -the snakelike coil in both hands as in an iron vise, he tore the chain -apart with a masterly jerk. - -And then an odd thing happened. Bounding to his feet, elated with his -success, and holding the necklace towards his companions as if it were a -hard-won trophy, Miranda suddenly spun around like a top, his arms shot -straight out in front of him, and in this posture, before any one knew -what he was about, he fairly raced towards the ominous apparatus at the -end of the corridor and hurled himself on the oblong stone beneath it. - - - - -XIV - -THE BLACK MAGNET - - -For once Doctor Miranda had nothing to say. To the eager queries of -those about him he returned a grimace and a scowl of rage. Then he asked -savagely for Mrs. Quayle. - -"There is her neckalace," he said indignantly, letting go his hold on -that extraordinary piece of jewelry and scrambling to his feet with as -much dignity as was left to him. - -"Will you tell me what all this means?" demanded Leighton sternly. - -"How I know?" retorted Miranda, glaring venomously at him. "I pull the -neckalace from the neck, and it fly from me. When I follow, it fly more -fast--and it get stronger and it fly harder every time until it touch -the rock. Then it stop and not come loose." - -Sure enough, on the greenish-black rock over which they were bending, -the necklace was spread out to its full length. With a quick jerk, -Leighton dislodged one of the ends from its resting place. Letting it -go, it returned to its original position with the sharp snap of a steel -spring. - -"A magnet! The most amazing magnet ever heard of!" exclaimed Leighton. - -"A magnet that pull gold!" scoffed Miranda. "That is the foolishness!" - -But Leighton was right. Each time the necklace was pulled away it was -drawn back to the rock by a strong, invisible force. Repeated trials -brought the same result. Leighton's curiosity was excited as it had -never been before; but his most careful examination of the strange -phenomenon failed to detect anything more than the fact that the -substance exerting this unknown force was not stone but something more -nearly akin to metal. It was neither so heavy nor so hard as iron. To -the touch its surface faintly resembled the adhesive softness of velvet, -although a blow from a stone, causing a clear, ringing sound, left -not the slightest mark upon it. In the main, this block of metal--or -whatever it might be called--was a deep black, tinged with a variegated -shade of green that played over it according to the angle at which -the ray from a light held above it was reflected. Dark lines of green -followed the indentations traversing its surface. Cylindrical in shape, -it weighed, according to Leighton's estimate, at least a ton. Imbedded -in a deep groove around its center was a rope, measuring two inches in -diameter, of pliable fiber, resembling the long lianas that festoon the -trees of a tropical forest. This rope lay in a seamanlike coil on the -ground, with the further end attached to the transverse beam of the -scaffolding overhead. - -"It is a magnet, nothing else," reiterated Leighton; "a magnet of a kind -utterly unknown to science. All we can say is that this black metal has -an affinity for gold--unless it turns out that Mrs. Quayle's jewelry is -merely iron gilded over." - -This doubt as to the genuineness of the housekeeper's treasures was -promptly denied, however, by Una, who guaranteed their sterling quality. - -"Let us test the rest of her jewelry," proposed Leighton. - -To this further demand on her property Mrs. Quayle, wedged in between -two rocks on the path where they had left her, too terrified to move, -offered only a feeble protest. It mattered little to her, in her present -condition, if her bracelets and brooch followed the necklace to their -doom. One by one they were, accordingly, removed by Una, who, probably -because she was less excitable than Miranda--and because, too, she had -profited by his untoward experience in the same undertaking--was able to -handle these pieces of jewelry without mishap. The force with which they -were pulled towards the Black Magnet, however, and the tenacity with -which they stuck to it, gave ample evidence that they answered to the -same influence that still held the necklace. - -"That is enough," said Leighton triumphantly. "The thing is proved. -This is a gold magnet. If we lived in the Middle Ages we would call it -the Philosopher's Stone. The theory that such a substance exists has -attracted scientists who were more given to dreaming than practical -observation. In this age we have neither looked for it nor believed in -the possibility of its existence. And here it is!" - -"What it make here?" demanded Miranda. "Tied by a rope to the -machine--some one use it." - -The inference, logical enough, certainly, increased Leighton's -excitement. That the magnet was known and used by the inhabitants of the -cave--if there were inhabitants--was evident. Under certain conditions -a bar of metal that could attract gold with such force as that displayed -by the Black Magnet would be of untold value. Here, where there were no -evidences of mining operations, and attached to this primitive machine, -it was difficult to explain what it was actually used for. - -Leighton, more and more mystified, determined that the best way to solve -the puzzle was to operate the machine in the manner indicated by its -structure. It was not, as he pointed out--but as they in their first -excitement imagined--a gallows. Instead, it was a winch, built in the -most simple and archaic fashion; and as the Black Magnet was attached -to it, the evident purpose was to hoist that huge body from the ground. -Before testing this theory, Mrs. Quayle, who had recovered from her -collapse sufficiently to join the others, insisted that her jewelry -should be released from the magnet. Suspicious of the intentions of -some of her companions, she was determined to regain possession of her -treasures at once. But, as it was apparently impossible to wear her -jewelry with comfort, or even safety, in the immediate vicinity of the -Black Magnet, necklace, brooch and bracelets were removed to a distant -corner of the corridor and there placed beneath a pile of stones. This -done, the four men started to work the two long handles of the winch. -At first these were turned with difficulty, the resistance proving, at -least to Leighton's satisfaction, that the machine had not been used for -a long time. Gradually, however, the coil of liana was transferred from -the ground to the transverse beam overhead until it pulled taut with the -magnet beneath. - -Then came the real trial of strength. The magnet wouldn't budge. -Miranda puffed and grumbled over the task, declaring it impossible. -The rest stopped and rubbed their arms ruefully. But Leighton was -inexorable. Encouraging the others, and keeping them at it, by dint of -increased exertion--to which Una brought additional assistance--the -great Black Magnet was finally dragged from its moorings and held -suspended just above the ground. It formed a perfect cylinder, about -four feet long by a foot and a half in diameter, and must have weighed, -they estimated, considerably over a ton--ten tons, vowed Miranda. On -a winch of modern design this weight would not have been difficult to -lift. But the hoisting apparatus they were using lacked the ordinary -adjustments for counterbalancing such weights; hence, the muscular force -needed proved no small matter. - -"It take twenty men to lift this magnet," growled Miranda. - -"Twenty men could do it more easily than four men and a woman, -undoubtedly," replied Leighton. "But four can do it." - -And he was right. Inch by inch the magnet rose from the ground--for -what ultimate purpose was not very clear, any more than that it was -thought necessary by Leighton, in order to discover the use to which -this strange bar of metal had been put, first to test the appliance -obviously intended to bring it into action. It reached a height of one -foot from the ground, then two, then three feet; then it stopped. There -were groans and smothered imprecations, and it looked very much as if -the huge bar of metal would come crashing down to the ground again. But -the men, urged on by Leighton, did not give in. And then--there was a -grating noise, as if some hidden mechanism in the scaffolding had been -set free. After which a strange thing happened. The transverse beam -at the top of the windlass detached itself from one of the uprights -supporting it and, using the other upright as a fulcrum, slowly swung -to the wall of the cave, where it rested in a socket, bringing the -magnet that was suspended from it, directly over a shelf-like projection -beneath. - -"Keep on! Keep on!" cried Leighton encouragingly. "Now we will see." - -Thoroughly aroused, the others redoubled their exertions. The magnet -remained stationary for a few seconds, the liana supporting it -tightening with every revolution of the drumhead at which the men were -laboring. Then it slowly disappeared downward, the liana uncoiling -itself, thus reversing the movement that before had carried it upward. -There was a gradual increase in the momentum of its descent, followed -by the splashing sound caused by the impact of a heavy body upon the -surface of a pool of water; after which the liana was paid out until it -reached its full length--when it suddenly slackened and came to a full -stop. - -"There, Mrs. Quayle, is your water," announced Leighton. - -"Water!" sneeringly echoed a voice from the darkness behind them. "Say, -rather, there is the secret of Guatavita!" - -"Raoul Arthur!" exclaimed the others. - -Letting go the handle of the windlass, they rushed to the spot where the -Black Magnet had vanished. There, at one side of the rocky projection, -stood Raoul, pale and haggard, the light in his lamp extinguished. - -"I suspected this," he said, as if his sudden reappearance among them -were the most natural thing in the world. "I knew from the direction -of the path that it led back to the lake. I have been trying to reach -this place for years. Oh, yes! I had heard something about it before--I -don't deny that. But, of course, I expected to stay by you. So, when you -started to leave the cave I came back, expecting to rejoin you. As I was -examining the machine I was attacked by two men, thrown to the ground -and left unconscious. I came to myself a few minutes ago--in time to -congratulate you, it seems, upon solving the mystery of the cave." - -"That is strange," said Leighton coldly. "You left us, without a word, -at a time when you were needed. The attack that you say was made upon -you we should have heard. But--we have heard nothing." - -"Believe me, or not, as you like; it is true," was the sullen reply. - -"Why do you say we have the secret of Guatavita?" - -"Look!" - -Raoul pointed to the projection in the wall behind which the Black -Magnet had disappeared. It was not a shelf, as they had at first -supposed, but the opening of a shaft, or well, that slanted downward -at an angle that in the course of fifty feet, or less, would reach -considerably beyond the vertical line of the cave's wall. In shape this -shaft was oblong, slightly larger in length and in breadth than the -Black Magnet. It was evidently of artificial origin, its four walls -being perfectly smooth and without irregularities of line. Even by one -who had not seen the magnet descend into this shaft, its intended use -as a sort of runway for raising and lowering heavy bodies would be -quickly recognized. But where it led to was another matter. One thing -was easily discovered: where it reached a point some twenty feet below -the level of the cave's floor the shaft was filled with water. Beyond -this, of course, nothing could be made out. It was to the bottom of the -pool thus indicated that the magnet had plunged. - -"It is a well hewn out of the rock by Indians--or perhaps by Spaniards -digging for gold," said Leighton. - -"I believe that we are the first white people who have ever stood in -this place," said Raoul; then added, "unless David Meudon was here three -years ago." - -"But what is it about?" demanded Miranda impatiently. "What for is the -magnet, and this well, and this machine?" - -"Pull up the magnet and see for yourself," was the laconic reply. - -"Caramba! That will be impossible," protested the doctor, not relishing -the prospect of another turn at the machine. - -"It is the logical thing to do," agreed Leighton. - -The rest shared Miranda's aversion to another bout at the winch; but -Leighton, backed by Raoul Arthur, finally persuaded them that their only -hope of escape from the cave depended on keeping at this puzzle until -they had solved it, and that the first step in this direction was to -hoist the Black Magnet from its watery resting place at the bottom of -the shaft. Reluctantly obeying the command, they again seized the long -handle of the windlass. This time it was fortunate they had Raoul to -help them, since the resistance offered by the magnet, which now had to -be hauled up an inclined plane by means of a rope nearly one hundred -feet in length, was considerably greater than before. The windlass -creaked and trembled as revolution after revolution of the drumhead -slowly brought the great black bar of metal nearer to the surface. -They could hear the far off swirl of the water as the ascending liana -vibrated through it. Minutes that seemed to lengthen into hours passed -without appreciable result. Then, at last, they heard the water rising -as the magnet reached the mouth of the shaft. There was an additional -strain on the liana, followed by the noise of a commotion in the -subterranean pool as the liquid streams poured back from the emerging -body. - -But still the end to their work was not in sight. With every turn of -the handle the weight of the body at which they were pulling seemed to -increase. Mrs. Quayle, sole spectator of what was happening, watched -the opening of the well with dismal apprehension, convinced that some -dreadful transformation had taken place in its hidden depths. When the -top of the magnet finally rose into view she shrieked hysterically. To -her notion the great black body had an uncanny look; it had turned into -a devil, for aught she knew, filled with evil designs against them. -Anything that was supernaturally horrible, she believed, could happen in -this cave--and there was enough in her recent experiences, indeed, to -give some color to her belief. - -But, devil or djinn, the water dripped and splashed in sparkling runlets -from the shining body of the Black Magnet that had gained in luster -since its submersion in the well. It seemed more alive than before, more -capable of exerting the mysterious force that had played such pranks -with Mrs. Quayle's jewelry. As it cleared the top of the well the arm of -the windlass to which it was hung, as if obeying some invisible signal, -detached itself from the socket in the wall and slowly swung back into -its original position between the two uprights of the machine. Here, as -before, a reverse motion took place. The Black Magnet was poised for a -moment in the air. It then descended to the ground, resting, finally, in -the same spot where the explorers first discovered it. - -A sigh of relief escaped them. Hoisting heavy weights was not much to -their taste and they were glad the task was over. Then they rubbed -their eyes, half expecting to see something miraculous, some sudden -transformation as a result of their labors. But the Black Magnet, except -for the brilliance due to its bath in the depths of the earth, looked -exactly as it was before. This, it must be confessed, was disappointing -to those who had been promised great rewards for toiling so patiently at -the windlass. Raoul had declared the experiment would solve the secret -of Guatavita. But they failed to see how a wet rock--or bar of metal, -whichever it might be--with mud sticking to it, had any connection with -a secret. Raoul, however, was not disconcerted. Getting to work on the -magnet, he examined minutely every inch of its surface. At first he -found nothing. Then, to the amazement of the others, he extracted from -one of the large fissures in the magnet a thin disc encrusted with -the microscopic growths that form on metals that are long subjected -to the action of water. This disc proved its metallic nature by the -force needed to release it from the magnet. Much of the brown matter -sticking to it was wiped away with a cloth, the more tenacious growth -beneath was rubbed and scraped with a sharp stone. When the scouring -was finished Raoul triumphantly held up the disc. It was a dazzling -plate of gold, thin and flexible, rudely carved to resemble a human -being. In size it was not more than the palm of one's hand, somewhat of -that shape, a trifle longer and narrower, with a projection, intended -to depict a man's head, face and neck, like a pyramid standing on its -apex, upon which were traced in embossed lines three loops to represent -the mouth and eyes, with another line running down the middle, long and -straight, to represent the nose. The body of the figure was similarly -carved--raised lines folded over the stomach for arms, with various -loops and coils around the neck and chest, intended, doubtless, to -indicate the ornaments and insignia of rank worn by the image or, -rather, the human being or god for which it stood. All this was done in -the finest gold tracery, which, if it lacked some of the subtleties of -the goldsmith's art as we know it, was expressed, nevertheless, with -admirable delicacy and firmness. In the head of the figure was a round -hole showing, doubtless, that the disc was worn as a pendant by its -owner, or was hung as a votive offering before his or her household -deity. - -Leighton had seen figures of like character and workmanship in Bogota, -where they were exhibited as ornaments worn by the ancient Chibchas. -Usually they were said to have been brought up by divers from the bottom -of Lake Guatavita. Hence, there was little doubt as to the origin and -antiquity of the disc presented to them by the Black Magnet. But how -this disc came to be at the bottom of a well in this vast subterranean -labyrinth was not so easily answered. If this disc was the much talked -of clew to the lost treasure of the Chibchas, and to all the other -mysteries that seemed to crop up at every step the further they went -into this cave, it was not an easy one to run down. And then, Miranda, -who had insisted all along that by following the direction in which they -had been going they were bound to reach the lake, blundered upon the -answer to the whole question. - -"It is Guatavita!" he said. - -Of course, that was it! Herran and Leighton gasped for a moment as they -took in the idea, and then they agreed that Miranda was right. Raoul -smiled enigmatically as they discussed the problem in detail. - -"Well, do you understand it now?" he asked. "Have you discovered -Guatavita's secret? I wish I had known it three years ago!" he added -bitterly. - -"Ah! I see--I see!" shouted the doctor excitedly. "There is the well -that come out at the bottom of the lake. Here is the magnet that go down -there just when the people throw in all the gold. And then it come back -here--and no one know except the king and his family. So, every year, -they take all the gold of the country. Ah! they are very wise leetle -fellows, those kings!" - -"Then, if this is true," said Leighton meditatively; "if this well has -its outlet at the bottom of the lake, and was made and used secretly -to collect, by means of the Black Magnet, the treasure offered by the -people in the Feast of El Dorado, to-day there is no gold left in -Guatavita." - -"If it were drained of all its waters," remarked Raoul, "I believe that -the emptied basin would be found to contain nothing more than a few -stray gold ornaments--like the one you fished up just now--that failed -to reach the Black Magnet when they were flung into the lake centuries -ago." - -"Your plans to empty the lake, then, are useless?" - -"After what I have learned to-day, added to what I have long suspected, -I should say--quite useless." - -"But the fabulous amount of treasure those deluded people threw into the -lake for centuries----?" - -"Has all come up here, where we are standing now, caught by the Black -Magnet." - -"He fish very well, this leetle stone," said Miranda, caressing it -fondly. "He catch more, better fish than the whole world." - -"Where is all that gold to-day?" demanded Leighton. - -"Ah! Where!" - -"Good heavens! What is that?" - -While Leighton and Raoul were discussing the old problem of what became -of the Chibcha Empire's far-famed treasure, the others had wandered away -from the Black Magnet and were examining some of the strange objects in -its immediate vicinity. The more familiar they became with this portion -of the cave, the more signs they saw in it of human occupation. For one -thing, the place was honeycombed with paths, most of them radiating -from the shaft that sank to the bottom of Lake Guatavita. These paths -led in different directions; but there was no way of telling whether -any or all of them had been recently used. This question was of more -immediate interest than the one connecting the cave with the fate of -the ancient Chibchas. If this cave was inhabited to-day--if it was the -hiding place of a lawless gang of Bogotanos, for example--it was well -for the explorers to be on their guard. Herran was particularly alive -to this possibility, and he was quick to heed, therefore, Mrs. Quayle's -terrified exclamation, which she repeated-- - -"Good heavens! What is that?" - -It was at the head of one of the paths, running behind the close ranks -of stalactites before which they had found their way from the large open -cave beyond, that Mrs. Quayle stood, her eyes round with excitement, -pointing vaguely at something in front of her. But the others could -see nothing. Indeed, it was hard to tell whether she had really seen -anything worth serious investigation, her chronic nervousness had such -an uncomfortable habit of discovering specters--that did not exist--in -every dark corner. Then, too, clusters of stalactites had a way of -taking on odd, fantastic shapes that might easily seem to be alive -even to the cool-headed. But this time there really was substance to -Mrs. Quayle's fancies. She continued to point down the pathway of -stalactites, crying repeatedly-- - -"What is that?" - -"Well, what is it?" demanded Leighton. - -"The man in the toga! The man in the toga!" she cried breathlessly. - -The others crowded about her. - -"It is nothing!" said Miranda incredulously. - -"It is! It is!" whispered Una. "I just caught the flash of white drapery -at the bend in that farthest corridor." - -Raoul laughed. "You are mistaken," he said. "Nothing is there now, -that's certain." - -They stood silently watching the dark green-and-white figures that -stretched away in closely huddled ranks before them. But they could -detect nothing that answered to Mrs. Quayle's description. There was -nothing that moved, nothing human, in all that glittering array of -grotesque forms. Then, there was a sharp, clinking sound, as if the -brittle point of a stalactite had been broken off and had fallen to the -ground. - -"We are watched," said Leighton in a low voice. "Whoever they are, these -people have some reason for following us--and keeping out of the way." - -"Time to be on our guard," said Herran in Spanish to Miranda, who -assented vehemently. - -"Nonsense!" exclaimed Raoul. - -"Ah! You say that?" growled Miranda suspiciously. "This is one trap of -yours, then!" - -The accusation added to the general alarm. Raoul protested scornfully; -but before he had time to clear himself he was covered by two huge -revolvers, drawn simultaneously by Herran and Miranda. - -"It is not so easy!" threatened Miranda, whose excited flourish of -firearms endangered the others quite as much as it did Raoul. - -"Thank heaven, we have guns!" murmured Andrew, who had produced a -harmless looking pocket-knife which he brandished ineffectively. - -"This sort of thing is very annoying," said Leighton, addressing -Raoul, who began to show uneasiness. "There's no denying that your -disappearance was suspicious. Then we find you here in a place that -is evidently known and frequented by others. Your explanation is -unsatisfactory. Then, when the presence of these hitherto invisible -people is quite certain, you try to divert our attention from them." - -"You are talking nonsense," said Raoul disgustedly. "You intimate that I -am in league with the inhabitants of this cave against you. That means, -I must have lured you here deliberately to do you harm. Please remember -that it was you who planned this expedition, and that I had not ventured -in here so far before." - -"Who knows! You seemed familiar enough with the secret of the Black -Magnet." - -"Take us out of here, my fellow, and we believe you are not one scamp," -said Miranda brusquely. - -"I am not bound to do anything of the kind, even if I could," retorted -Raoul. "Look out for yourselves." - -"So! that is good," commented Miranda. "We take the advice. Here we can -do nothing. Into Guatavita we cannot jump through this well. Me--I am -too fat!" - -The bustling doctor's show of energy proved infectious. He and Herran -unceremoniously pocketed their revolvers, leaving Raoul at liberty to do -as he pleased, while they looked about for a way of escape. - -Since he had become suspicious of Raoul, Leighton was inclined to -trust the leadership of the two South Americans. The latter, convinced -that there was no way out from this part of the cave, determined to go -back to the central chamber, hoping to find there the entrance to the -tunnel leading to the outside world. They hit on this plan because they -feared an ambush on any of the labyrinthian trails leading off in other -unexplored directions. The rest agreeing, they set out along the path -flanked by the grove of stalactites, traveling at a quicker pace but -with greater caution than before. Miranda and Herran marched ahead with -revolvers drawn, Andrew in the rear still holding his pocket-knife ready -for action. They had been delayed on Mrs. Quayle's account, for that -lady, in spite of her anxiety to get away, had refused to budge without -her jewelry. But it was not easy to satisfy her demand. For, when the -jewelry was taken from its hiding place beneath a rock, it still showed -the same strong tendency to fly to the Black Magnet. This distressed -Mrs. Quayle, who refused to touch the treasures that she was at the -same time loath to part with. But a compromise was finally effected by -tying all the jewelry securely around Andrew's waist. This arrangement -appeased the owner--but it gave an uncomfortable backward pull to -every step the schoolmaster took, who thus resembled, in walking, a -ship sailing against the wind. This inconvenience, however, steadily -decreased as they came out of the disturbing region of the Black Magnet, -until finally these ancient heirlooms of Mrs. Quayle's regained their -natural composure. - -But there were other things besides the Black Magnet to interrupt -their progress. No sooner had they gotten well under way and were -congratulating themselves on their escape from mishap so far, than they -were startled by a wild and piercing strain of music, seeming to come -from the grove of stalactites before which they were hurrying. Amazed -by so singular an interruption, they stopped short and looked fearfully -about them. A sound of scornful laughter blended with the music. - -"Raoul!" muttered Leighton. - -But there was nothing to be seen of the strange American whose mocking -laughter they were sure, nevertheless, they had heard. Then the music -grew louder and louder, as if the musicians were steadily approaching -in their direction. The music itself was subtly different, in tone -and pitch, from anything played in the outside world. The high notes -evidently came from wind instruments, but of a unique quality and -caliber. Mingling with these notes, and sustaining the bass, were the -heavy beatings of drums of the kind still used, although deeper and -mellower, by the native Indians in their festivals. - -The melody produced--if it could be called a melody--was of an -extraordinary character. Its effect, its charm--for it had unmistakable -charm--was quite impossible to define. In some respects it resembled the -monotonous chantings peculiar to most primitive races, occasionally, -as was customary with the latter, rising and falling, whole octaves -at a time, in a wailing key. In the main, it carried a sort of theme, -emotional and inspiring, that was far too complex to be attributed -to the uncultivated musical taste common to savagery. There was an -exultant swing to the measure, a lilting cadence that betrayed a -fine esthetic sense, a rich imagination coupled with the simplicity -and freedom that has not felt the pressure, except very remotely, -of our western civilization. Such music was good to listen to--and -under ordinary circumstances the explorers would have been content -to listen and nothing more. But curiosity, and some remnant of fear -the lulling influence of the music had not dissipated, kept them on -the alert. Their fate depended, they felt, on these musicians. They -must find out who they were before it was too late to retreat. And -then--presently--through the clustering green and white stems of the -stalactites, they caught sight of them. - -They were over twenty in number, moving, as nearly as the unevenness -of the ground would permit, in time to the choral march they were -playing. At sight of them Mrs. Quayle didn't know whether to be pleased -or terrified. For the music was such an enchanting, soothing sort of -thing, and the players so mild, benignant of aspect, anything like fear -seemed out of place. But, on the other hand, the strange instruments -they carried, their outlandish dress, the whole effect of them, in a -way, was distinctly unearthly, supernatural--and Mrs. Quayle drew the -line at the supernatural. So, she ended by being simply amazed beyond -measure--and her companions shared her feelings in lessening degree. -Miranda and Herran, dumbfounded by the apparition, forgot to handle -their revolvers in the warlike fashion they had intended with the first -approach of a foe; Andrew gaped in an open-mouthed sort of dream, during -which his pocket-knife came imminently near doing fatal execution upon -himself, while Una and Leighton, forgetting their anxiety, were lost in -admiration of the delicious music and of the spectacle before them. - -One and all of this singular band of cavemen were clothed after the -fashion described by Andrew. Each wore a loose white mantle, or toga, -that draped the figure in voluminous folds, adding to the grace and -freedom of movement with which they kept time to the music. Their feet -were shod with sandals, their heads encircled with bands of white cloth -from the flying ends of which hung ornaments of gold and emerald. The -musical instruments upon which they played were long, slender tubes, -curving upward at the extremity, of a metal that glittered and sparkled -like the purest gold. - -Most singular of all was the light that each of these musicians carried. -This light came from neither torch nor lantern, but radiated in sparks -and flashes from oval disks worn, jewel-wise, on the breast. By what -fuel these incandescent fires were fed was not apparent. They burned -with a clear white brilliance, illuminating each flowing figure with -startling vividness, and filling the beholder, ignorant of their -nature, with wonder at their admirable adaptability to the needs of a -subterranean world. - -To Leighton these strange lights were much more mystifying than all -the rest of the apparition--for as yet it was difficult to regard the -approaching throng as being anything more real than an apparition -that one expects to have vanish away almost as soon as it makes its -appearance. But these musicians, weird and unearthly though they first -seemed when seen at a distance, as they drew nearer, proved to be -substantial, flesh-and-blood human beings right enough. Their dark -skins and aquiline features gave evidence, for one thing, that they -were of Indian origin and not inhabitants of the remote, invisible -fairyland that they appeared to the fervid imaginations of some of -Leighton's companions. Doubtless, argued the savant, they were a band -of revelers--or bandits--from the city to whom the secrets of the cave -were familiar. But where they had picked up such extraordinary means for -the illumination of their merry-making was more than he could fathom. -Lights? They were unlike any lights he had ever heard of. All that he -could make of it was that these illuminated disks belonged to the -marvels of a hitherto unknown world of science, marvels among which he -counted the Black Magnet and--possibly--that disappearing wall at the -entrance to the cave. - -As these people showed no sign of hostility, the explorers began to hope -that through them they would win their way out of the cave. Certainly, -they were worth cultivating with this end in view. Hence, Miranda and -Herran looked stealthily at their revolvers and restored them as quickly -as possible to their hip-pockets, while such a burst of confidence -seized Mrs. Quayle that she prepared and was actually seen to exhibit -one of her most ingratiating smiles for the benefit of the approaching -Indians, at the same time expressing in a loud voice to Una her approval -of their music. - -This pleasant feeling, however, that they were about to regain -their liberty did not last long. The Indians, although showing no -unfriendliness, gave unmistakable evidence that they meant to control -the movements of the explorers. Still playing on their trumpets and -beating solemnly on their drums, they marched around them, bowing -courteously enough, but intimating at the same time that they were -acting upon a definite plan that could not be interfered with. Somewhat -dashed by this singular behavior, which was the more difficult to meet -just because it lacked outward menace, the explorers conferred hastily -together, hoping to hit on a safe line of action. The men of the party, -suspicious of the friendly attitude assumed by the Indians, favored -immediate resistance. Their first flush of confidence in them was gone. -Herran and Miranda, especially, were doubtful of the intentions of -these strange people. From whatever motive, it seemed to them that the -latter had deliberately planned their capture, evidently carrying out in -this the orders of some one in authority over them. That these orders -might come from Raoul Arthur was their principal cause for alarm. The -departure of the American miner, under every appearance of treachery, -marked him out as one to be feared. He was not, it is true, among the -Indians who were surrounding them in their glittering line of dancers, -but his absence was not proof that he had nothing to do with this odd -demonstration. But--how resist a party so superior to their own in -number, one that had already gained an obvious advantage of position -over them. Leighton was doubtful what to do; Andrew was helpless; Mrs. -Quayle was temporarily lost in admiration of the picturesque circle -of dancing figures, all regarding her with gratifying amiability. Una -alone insisted that the friendliness of the Indians was genuine, and -that their own safety depended on obeying them. As a compromise it was -decided to talk to these people--to find out what they were after. For -this diplomatic duty Miranda and Herran were chosen. - -Although the energetic little doctor was certainly not gifted with an -unusual amount of tact, he had at least the merit of directness, and -lost no time in calling the attention of the dancers to his desire to -come to an understanding with them. - -"Do you talk Spanish?" he shouted brusquely in that language. - -"Surely, Senor Doctor," gravely replied a tall personage whose dignity -of bearing and the fact that the border of his flowing toga was -distinguished by a decorative design in embroidered gold indicated his -superiority in rank over his comrades. "Surely, some of us talk -Spanish." - -Having given this assurance, the speaker checked the music and dancing -of the others and stood, with the air of one accustomed to ceremonious -usage, waiting to hear further from Miranda. - -"Yes, I am doctor, famous doctor," said the latter, bustling up to -the speaker and looking him over as if he were about to claim him for -medical purposes. "I cure thousands and thousands with my pills. But how -you know I am doctor?" - -The Indian smiled, inclining his head graciously before answering. - -"Doctor Miranda is so famous every one knows him." - -Ordinarily the vanity of Miranda was easily touched, but just now he was -too suspicious to be beguiled by the compliment. - -"Caramba!" he snorted; "and who are you?" - -"I am Anitoo." - -"That is not Spanish," said Miranda sharply. - -"I am not Spanish," replied Anitoo stiffly. "I come from an ancient race -that ruled here long before there were any Spaniards." - -"Well, Senor Anitoo--you say it is Anitoo?--that may be. You are -Indian--Chibcha Indian, perhaps--and not Spanish, not Colombian. But -what do you make in this cave?" - -Anitoo smiled broadly. - -"This is the home of my people for many centuries," he said. "And now, -suppose I ask you a question. What do you make in this cave?" - - - - -XV - -AT THE SIGN OF THE CONDOR - - -There is no doubt about it; Miranda had much the worst of it in his tilt -with Anitoo. The Indian's point blank question as to why the explorers -were in the cave was not easily answered. The more Miranda thought it -over the less able was he to discover--or at least explain--just that -very thing: why he and his companions were there. To say they were -looking in a cave on the Bogota plateau for a man who had disappeared -many miles away on the Honda road sounded rather unreasonable, now that -he looked at it from the standpoint of a stranger; while to recall the -story of foul play that linked this place with David's disappearance -years ago seemed, under the circumstances, dangerous even to the -impetuous Miranda. So, he shrugged his shoulders and resorted to a more -evasive reply than was his custom. - -"We come for a picnic, and we want to get out--that is all." - -Anitoo again smiled broadly, yet with the subtle suggestion of holding -in reserve an unuttered fund of wisdom that comes so naturally with the -people of his race. - -"That is all?" - -"We look for one friend who is lost. Then, we come with another who has -gone. He is one canaille! You have seen him?" - -"Ah!" murmured Anitoo, half to himself. "What is his name? What is he -like?" - -"He is one Yankee. He is called Senor Don Raoul Arthur. He look--well, -he look like this----" and Miranda gave an exaggerated example of -Raoul's rolling and twitching eyes. - -"So, he is here!" said Anitoo, startled, apparently, by the information -and amused by the grotesque lesson in optics given by the doctor. -Miranda, on the other hand, gathered that Anitoo disliked Raoul--and -this pleased him immensely. But he could get nothing more from the -Indian who, although still friendly, began to show signs of impatience, -talking earnestly to his followers in a language unintelligible to -Miranda and Herran. - -On both sides there was evident uneasiness; and when Anitoo, in a tone -that sounded disagreeably like a command, told the explorers that they -could not continue their tour of the cave unattended by them, things -seemed to come to a climax. Miranda expostulated, the others grumbled -and talked of resistance. But Anitoo was inflexible, insisting, all the -while, that there was nothing unfriendly in his attitude. He reminded -them that they could not possibly find their way out of the cave without -his guidance. Miranda jumped at this hint of a rescue, but was again -unable to extract a definite promise from Anitoo. - -"We will first show the Senores some of the wonders of the Guatavita -kingdom," said the smiling Indian. - -"We don't want to see any more," said Miranda emphatically. "We have -seen enough." - -"No! No!" continued Anitoo. "Whoever comes so far as this must see our -queen before he goes away." - -"A queen! A kingdom in a cave! But that is impossible!" - -"I like his offer," interposed Leighton, who understood enough to catch -the meaning of this strange proposal. "Anitoo seems honest. We have lost -our way. If he has a queen and a kingdom to show us, they may be worth -seeing. We can be no worse off, certainly, for seeing them." - -"Once in the land of goblins and fairies," remarked Una, "queens and -kingdoms are a matter of course." - -"It is some idle mummery, I suppose," added Leighton; "we are too -near civilization for anything else. All the same, these lanterns--or -whatever you call them--that they carry, are worth knowing more about." - -"What are they?" - -"I would give a good deal to know." - -"Well, Senor," said Anitoo impatiently, "you will come with us?" - -Without waiting for Miranda, who seemed reluctant to place himself in -the Indian's power more than he could help, Leighton bowed assent. - -"And this Senor Arthur?" inquired Anitoo. - -"He has gone," replied Miranda promptly. "He will not come again." - -"Perhaps," said Anitoo vaguely. - -At his signal the Indians lifted the curved trumpets to their lips, -the drums were beaten and, to the same curious spirited music that -had heralded their approach--half march, half dance--they moved off, -the explorers in their midst, down the path flanked by the forest of -stalactites, to the great entrance chamber whence, after finishing their -hasty meal, the "picknickers" had first started on their journey of -discovery. - -The friendly bearing of Anitoo and the other cavemen did not fail -to impress the explorers favorably, dispelling whatever suspicions -they might have had in the beginning, and giving them a taste of real -enjoyment in their adventure. All had this feeling of security except -Miranda and Herran. The two South Americans, however, were less easily -moved. Instead of sharing Una's and Mrs. Quayle's admiration of the -picturesque appearance of their guides, they grumbled something to -the effect that it was a lot of meaningless foolery. This skeptical -attitude grew to open disapproval when, having reached the central -rock where they had taken their meal in the main cavern, the Indians, -instead of proceeding toward the entrance to the tunnel that had been -so mysteriously lost, kept on in the opposite direction. This meant -that they were now to explore an entirely new, unknown region; and the -possibilities that awaited them, with such uncommunicative guides, in -the gloomy depths that stretched before them, stirred up something of -a mutinous spirit in the two South Americans. But their protests were -futile. Without halting his rhythmic march, Anitoo smiled courteously -at their objections, merely repeating his intention of taking them to -"the queen." As this was all he would say, they were compelled to make -the best of the vague indication of the course they were following. The -others continued to enjoy the oddity of the adventure. The enlivening -strains of music, the gala costumes of the Indians--all seemed part of a -curious carnival the purpose of which was unknown to them. The novelty -was kept up by the strange scenes through which they were passing; it -reached its climax at the further wall of the great central chamber. - -So far, the natural features of the cave had absorbed their attention; -now they were confronted with a series of Titanic specimens of human -architecture as amazing in design as they were unexpected. It is -misleading, perhaps, to describe this architecture as the product of -human genius, because in line, material, and general plan it followed -closely the pattern and the workmanship of the cave itself. Man had -here adopted the half finished designs of nature and completed them in -a way that carried out his own ends. Thus, the gradually widening trail -followed by Anitoo and his band of musicians made toward a great archway -that swept upward in a glistening half circle of white stone. In the -center of this rounded arch, twenty-five feet from the ground, gleamed a -huge round tablet upon whose smooth white surface could be distinguished -a series of engraved characters. These characters, outlined in gold, -were immediately recognized by General Herran as similar in design -to the picture-writing, presumably of Chibcha origin, that covered a -rocky promontory rising above one of the foothills skirting the Bogota -tableland. - -The mighty portal to which this tablet formed the keystone, was only -partially the work of man. Here the elemental forces that originally -hollowed out the great central chamber through which the explorers had -passed, had encountered a granitic rock effectually resisting their -ravages. Hence, the narrowing of the passage-way to the diameter of the -half-circle described by the white arch, and hence the opportunity that -had been seized by an aboriginal race of men to complete and embellish -what nature had so nobly planned. The sides of the arch rose in majestic -columns, shaped and smoothed to the semblance of such pillars as those -used in the massive temples of ancient Egypt; and, still bearing out -this similarity, each of these pillars stood at the head of a long row -that stretched away indefinitely in the darkness beyond. The curve of -the arch overhead had also followed the simplest of lines, but with so -glowing a symmetry that the beholder yielded to the conviction that -here, whether of Nature's design or Man's, he stood on the threshold -of a realm wherein were garnered treasures of art and science unique -in the world's history. Besides the golden characters engraved on the -keystone of this gigantic portal there was but one attempt at sculptural -adornment. This was the rudely carved head of a condor, made to curve -downward from the central tablet of the arch, as if the sleepless duty -had been given to this winged monarch of the Andes of inspecting all who -passed beneath its lofty eyrie. - -Before this imposing structure the explorers paused in astonishment. -Anitoo smiled, somewhat disdainfully, and signed to them to enter. This -they were loath to do until they could learn more definitely whither the -cavemen were leading them. - -"Senores," remonstrated Anitoo, "when you were lost in this cave, I came -to your rescue. Now, you must follow me." - -"That is very good," said Miranda irritably. "We have enough of this -cave. We want to go out." - -"Follow me," persisted Anitoo. - -"You take us out?" - -"I take you to the queen," he retorted. - -"Why we go to your queen? We make nothing with your queen." - -"Ah, but perhaps she make something with you." - -"Caramba! What she make with me?" - -"You will see." - -The explorers looked at each other helplessly. One thing was -evident--the Indians had no intention of parting with them. But they -could not tell whether they were hostile or friendly. They were not -treated as captives; but they felt that any attempt to escape would be -quickly frustrated. They were too far outnumbered by the cavemen to -make resistance possible. Leighton therefore decided that there was -nothing for it but submission. Upon this the Indians gave a grunt of -satisfaction, and Anitoo signaled to advance, pointing upward to the -Sign of the Condor. - -But the signal came too late. - -Out of the darkness, from the portion of the cave they had just left, -rose a yell of defiance, followed by a flight of arrows and a volley -of pistol shots. Running towards them, but still a good distance off, -they could see a huddle of figures, dimly lighted by a few torches -of wood, interspersed with lanterns similar to those used by the -explorers. There was no time to make out who the enemy was. Evidently -they planned to carry things before them by the swiftness of their -attack, hoping to catch the cavemen off their guard. They went at it -pell-mell, discharging their missiles as they ran--but with deadly -enough aim nevertheless. One Indian of Anitoo's party fell, struck -down by an arrow. His comrades, enraged by this, formed a close line -of battle around him, taking, as they did so, from the folds of -their togas certain innocent looking objects, apparently long metal -tubes, which they pointed at their assailants. The explorers failed to -recognize these implements at first; then, as the Indians put them to -their mouths, they realized that they were nothing more nor less than -blowpipes, weapons used to-day only by the most primitive races. But -the cavemen handled these weapons skillfully, pouring a goodly shower -of darts into the turbulent throng advancing to meet them. As the hail -of arrows and shooting of pistols continued, however, it was evident -that the damage inflicted by the blowpipes was not enough to check -the approach of the enemy, who exceeded the cavemen in numbers and -were anxious to engage them at close quarters. This Anitoo determined -to prevent. Shouting to his men, he urged them to retreat within the -archway before which they were fighting, a command they refused to obey, -infuriated as they were by the loss of several of their number. Their -assailants, steadily pressing on, were soon near enough to give the -cavemen the desired opportunity. Blowguns, bows and arrows were cast -aside, and they jumped into a hand-to-hand fight, with short pikes and -such weapons as chance provided. - -It was then that the explorers seemed to reach the utmost limit of -their misfortunes. Except for Andrew's pocket-knife and the revolvers -of Herran and Miranda, they were without weapons, and thus practically -defenseless in the thick of a combat that at every moment gained in -intensity. They were bewildered by the flashing lights of the torches, -and kept getting in the way of Anitoo's men at the most inopportune -times. Naturally, General Herran, as the only one among them who had -been in actual military service, did his best to keep the others in some -sort of order; but his protests and commands, unintelligible to all but -Miranda, went for very little. In vain he looked for some sheltered -corner into which he could withdraw his little party; but the fierce -fighting all around them shut off any such easy way of escape. There -seemed to be nothing to do but stay where they were--and be shot, as -Mrs. Quayle hysterically put it. And the shooting certainly increased -enough in volume every moment to warrant that lady's dismal view of the -matter. - -But Herran, although fighting in caves was quite out of his line, was -not the kind of soldier to give up in despair--even with two women on -his hands and three men who were quite as inexperienced and helpless in -warfare as the women. The fiasco of Panama still rankled in his soul, -and he resolved this time to let as few of the enemy escape him as -possible. It was a serious business, but--at least he had a revolver, -and he intended to use it. - -Plunging ahead of the others into the thick of the mob that faced him, -he shot right and left, and--according to Miranda, who watched the -affair delightedly--every shot found its mark. This was all very well, -and cheering enough to the explorers. It looked, indeed, for the moment, -as if the tide of battle was about to be turned in their favor by the -Hero of Panama. But then, all of a sudden, as was bound to happen, the -General's cartridges gave out, leaving him an animated sort of target -in the midst of the men he had been attacking with such ferocity. There -were cries of dismay from those who had been watching his brave exploit, -a roar of rage from Miranda, who rushed forward, revolver in hand, to -defend his old comrade. But Miranda was too late. A burly caveman, -one of those who had borne the brunt of Herran's onslaught, seeing the -latter's plight, whirled aloft a huge club that he carried and brought -it down with fatal effect upon the General's head. It was a Homeric -blow, and the fall of the hero under it, sung in epic verse, would be -described as the crashing to earth of a monarch of the forest, a bull, a -lion, or something equally majestic and thunderous. - -But the victor in this deadly encounter had no time to enjoy his -triumph. Miranda, not able to ward off the terrible blow that he saw -descending upon his friend, at least succeeded in inflicting mortal -punishment upon the offending caveman who, before he could raise his -club to his shoulder again, received the full contents of the Doctor's -revolver. - -It was the first--and probably the last--time that Miranda could count -himself a conqueror on the field of battle. His exultation, however, was -short-lived. Not only had he to bewail the loss of Herran, a good friend -and a brave leader, but the odds in the combat before him were going -so unmistakably against Anitoo and his men, the fighting had become so -widespread and desperate, that the safety of the explorers seemed, every -moment, more and more a matter for miracles. As nothing further could -be done with an empty revolver, Miranda shrugged his shoulders, threw -away his now harmless weapon and, turning hastily to his companions, -ordered them to put out their torches, fall flat upon their faces where -they stood, and to stay motionless in that position until the fortunes -of the battle were decided. This they all did, some with an almost -inconceivable promptness--and to any one who might be looking on it -must have appeared that the enemy had over-thrown this little group of -people before them with one well directed discharge of their weapons. - -In the kind of warfare that now was raging, Anitoo's cavemen, on account -of their lack of numbers and deficient training, were unquestionably -getting the worst of it. Their white togas, and the flashing lights -that they wore, made their escape difficult; obviously it would have -fared badly for them if they had been left to fight their battle out -alone. But Anitoo was taking no unnecessary chances. Fearing for his -own men from the very first, he had dispatched a messenger into that -unknown region of the cave lying beyond the Condor Gate. There was -more, indeed, than the fate of his own men at stake. He knew that the -majority of the enemy were of his own race, and that with them were -associated two or three men from the outside world whose presence -there, under such circumstances, proved the existence of a formidable -conspiracy against that subterranean realm, of which he had spoken -vaguely to the explorers, and to which he belonged. The cavemen he had -with him, although brave enough, were undisciplined and without military -experience. They could make but a poor defense against an attack -directed by leaders trained in the rough school of the guerilla. All -this Anitoo knew, and the reinforcements for which he had sent arrived -barely in time to save his little party from being completely wiped out. -But, fortunately for him, they did arrive in time. With a confused din -of war cries and trumpetings, a flash of mysterious torches, waving of -banners, brandishing of pipes and blowguns, a body of men, suddenly -appearing out of the dim recesses of the cave, rushed, several hundred -strong, upon the encircling throng of invaders. The result was decisive. -The rebels, with victory almost in their grasp, were quickly surrounded, -many of them killed, while the few who failed to make their escape were -taken prisoners. - -Among the latter was one who had played a leading part in the attack. -He was unarmed, his clothes were torn, an ugly thrust from a pike had -slashed across his face. But his bearing was undaunted; the dejection -of the vanquished was lacking in the composure with which he regarded -Anitoo, before whom his captors led him. - -"Well?" he asked scornfully. - -"I expected you, Don Raoul," said Anitoo. - -The other laughed contemptuously. - -"Why are you here?" demanded Anitoo. - -"That is a long story. For one thing, your people are tired of living -like bats in the dark. With the help of Rafael Segurra, your one great -man, I promised to free them." - -"Instead, Segurra is killed and you are a prisoner." - -"Ah! your muddle-headed rabble have killed him, have they? But, where -are my American friends?" he asked abruptly. - -"They are here. One of them, I think, was killed. But he was a -Bogotano." - -"I don't see them." - -For the first time Anitoo showed amazement. He called to his men, he -looked in every possible and impossible place. The explorers were -nowhere to be seen. Their disappearance, moreover, was complicated by -the fact that after the retreat of Anitoo's men, the great portal -under the Sign of the Condor had been closed. By this means the outer -region of the cave had been shut off, thus preventing the escape of -any of the combatants in that direction. As the Americans were not now -in sight, it seemed probable that they were on the other side of the -stone gateway--although there was a faint possibility that they had -sought safety in the unexplored portion of the cave whither Anitoo -had been leading them. Either way, their disappearance was certain, -nor could Anitoo find out anything definite about them from his men. -A few, indeed, remembered seeing them during the fight, and recalled -Herran's charge, his subsequent fall, and the swift vengeance brought -upon his assailant by Miranda. One man declared that they had all -been killed; but as this was quite improbable, and as the statement -was uncorroborated, it was promptly put aside as unworthy of belief. -The whole thing was very vague. As a matter of fact, every one had -been too absorbed in the defeat of Segurra and his men to look after -the explorers. Doubtless the latter, it was said, had succeeded in -retreating into the darkness of the outer cave. In doing this, it is -true, they ran the chance of falling into the hands of Segurra's men--in -which case they would have been recaptured by Anitoo. - -One strange feature of their disappearance was that the body of -Herran had apparently vanished with them. Anitoo remembered the exact -spot where the explorers had been stationed during the battle and, -consequently, where Herran had fallen. But now, neither living nor dead -explorers could be found. It seemed incredible that these people, two of -them women, would have hampered themselves in their flight with the body -of a dead man. And yet, there was the evidence of eyewitnesses to the -killing of Herran; there was the spot where he had fallen--and as the -body was not there now, it was practically certain that the explorers -had carried it away with them. In this case they could not have gone -very far. As Anitoo was particularly anxious for their capture, and -believing that they had returned to the outer cave, where they were in -danger of being attacked by what was left of Segurra's men, he sent most -of his troops after them, remaining behind with Raoul and a few others -until their return. - -"It was to get those strangers and bring them to our queen," he said, -"that I came out here." - -"Well, you have lost them," sneered Raoul. "But you have me. Why not -take me to your queen?" - -The two men looked at each other in silence. A faint smile lighted -Anitoo's usually immobile features. - -"Yes," he said; "at last you will reach the place you have plotted -against for so many months. But it will do you no good." - -"Don't be too sure of that," growled Raoul. "I want to see your -queen----" - -"You shall see her. But what can you do? Your friend, Segurra, the first -traitor to the Land of the Condor, is dead. Your men are defeated----" - -"Not all!" shouted Raoul. "Look around you!" - -With those who knew him Anitoo enjoyed a reputation for astuteness that -had led to his being chosen for the command of the diminutive army -considered necessary for the defense of the Land of the Condor. He was -valiant, absolutely trustworthy. But he was accustomed to deal only -with simple problems, with people of comparatively guileless natures. -Treachery was out of the domain of his experience. And now he was to pay -dearly for the lack of prudence that had allowed him to send away, on an -indefinite mission, the troops he should have kept to guard his -prisoner. - -Startled by Raoul's exultant cry Anitoo seized a pike from one of the -two men who had stayed with him. If he had fallen into an ambush he -would at least make a brave fight to free himself. But resistance from -the first was hopeless. The slight eminence on which he stood with Raoul -was surrounded by a score or more men who had crept up on him, their -lights extinguished, and protected by the impenetrable darkness of the -cave. As Anitoo and his two followers still carried the mysterious -torches that had excited the wonder of the explorers, they offered an -excellent mark to their concealed antagonists. And now the latter, dimly -visible on the outer edge of the circle of light cast by these torches, -jumped to their feet and, with weapons poised, made a rush for their -victims. - -"So! Now for your queen!" yelled Raoul. - -Anitoo made a desperate lunge with his pike at the man beside him. But -the latter was too quick for him. Dodging the blow, Raoul managed to -wrest the pike from his grasp. There was a tigerish struggle between -the two men, shouts of fury and triumph from those looking on. Then, -overpowered by the number of his assailants, and mortally wounded, -Anitoo fell to the ground. He had been so certain of the defeat of his -antagonists that this sudden turn in his fortunes filled him, even at -the approach of death, with the gloomiest forebodings. - -"Ah! my poor queen--lost!" he gasped with his last breath. - -Raoul snatched the torch from the dead man's tunic and waved it above -his head. - -"You will be free men now," he cried, "not miserable bats in a cave!" - -Those of his hearers who understood his words, spoken in Spanish, -repeated them to the others in their own language. There was wild -cheering, in which the two followers of Anitoo joined--amazed at their -leader's fate--and then a rush for the great gateway. But this impulsive -movement of his men did not agree with Raoul's hastily conceived plan of -conquest. Delighted by his easily won victory, coming to him in the very -hour of defeat, he had no mind to leave Anitoo's hostile troops in his -rear--especially as he heard them approaching from the outer cave, and -could even catch the first glimmer of their torches. - -"Stop!" he commanded. "We need these men. Better to have them friends -than enemies. They will come with us. Some of you warn them--tell them -what has happened." - -His followers, halted in their eager flight, looked at Raoul in -amazement. Then, hurriedly repeating to each other what he had said, -they suddenly broke into another cheer, while two of their number, in -obedience to Raoul's orders, ran towards the approaching troops. - -At first the two rebels were met with a flourish of pikes and angry -cries that boded ill for their safety. When they succeeded in making -themselves heard, however, explaining what had happened and pointing to -the dead body of Anitoo in confirmation of Raoul's victory, the cavemen -checked their hostile demonstrations, looking from one to the other of -the men before them, and then to the little group surrounding Raoul, in -astonishment. They had the most exaggerated trust in Anitoo's wisdom and -prowess; that he could be vanquished by any one impressed them mightily. -The death of their leader was, indeed, a potent argument in favor of the -man who had killed him. What did this victorious stranger intend to do -now? they asked each other. Then the foremost of them put the question -to the two rebels, who answered with contagious enthusiasm: - -"He will free us! The wealth of the Condor will be ours! We will have -the world--not a cave--to live in!" - -The instant effect of this assurance was all that could be desired. One -by one took up the words they had just heard with a shout of triumph, -waving their weapons in air and declaring that they would follow this -new-found leader to the death. Then they all broke into a run, saluting -Raoul, when they reached him, with the submissive gesture they were wont -to accord their superiors. - -Elated by the complete success of his strategy, Raoul looked exultantly -at the men prostrate before him. Then he spoke to them sternly. - -"Where are the Americans?" he demanded. - -"Gone," some of them murmured. "We could not find them." - -"Where have they gone? They must be near--somewhere." - -"To the queen--they have gone to the queen!" - -"Ah, yes! to the queen! Follow quickly! We go to the queen!" - -Raoul's words were greeted with a cheer. The men rose to their feet and -all, at a signal from their leader, swept forward to the great gateway, -shouting as they ran-- - -"To the queen! To the queen!" - - - - -XVI - -NARVA - - -To return to the explorers, left prostrate on the field of battle, it -must be recorded that, for once in his career, Miranda, after his first -taste of active fighting, and seeing how the fortunes of the day were -going against them, repressed his natural impulsiveness and developed -a prudence and caution that would have become a general seasoned in -strategy. - -"For me it is not good to be here," he whispered sepulchrally to his -companions as they lay face downward about him. "We cannot fight. We -have no guns. We will be kill. We must go!" - -It was a good summary of the situation. Every one agreed to it, so far -as their constrained positions would permit an exchange of opinions; -but how to act on Miranda's obviously excellent plan was not clear. If -they got on their feet again, they would probably be shot--and even if -the enemy failed to bring them down right away, they could not make -up their minds in which direction to make their escape. To retrace -their steps into the depths of the outer cave would bring them between -two fires and, aside from other tragic possibilities, would certainly -arouse the suspicions of Anitoo and his cavemen. To seek safety in the -other direction, to pass within the section of the cave guarded by the -Condor Gate, was to court unknown dangers in a region that loomed dark -and mysterious enough. It was this latter course, however, that Miranda -chose. - -"This Anitoo take us to his queen," he argued. "Perhaps she is good -woman. It is better we go alone. Senor Anitoo, he come after." - -So they made up their minds to set out at once in search of this unknown -queen. She might, or might not, be friendly. But anyway, she would be -better than lying on one's stomach between two opposing rows of fighting -men. Luckily for the carrying out of their plan, they had extinguished -their torches. They were thus in comparative darkness, hidden alike -from friend and foe. Indeed, if any one had been able to see them in -their present prostrate position they would have been taken for dead, -and escaped further notice. This view of the situation becoming clear -to Miranda, he cautiously raised his head and peered into the darkness -before him. A few feet farther on he could dimly make out the body -of the huge caveman who had fallen before his revolver a few moments -ago--and at the side of the caveman lay his victim, General Herran. The -sight stirred Miranda's grief for the loss of his friend to a fresh -outburst, leading him to abandon, with one of those impulsive changes -characteristic of him, his plans for escape. - -"Ah, Caramba!" he wailed, with the nearest approach to tears he had ever -been guilty of; "he was one great hero! He was a man! I not leave him! -He die for me!" - -And then he fell to stroking his friend's face--wet from the blood -pouring from his wounds, as he supposed--caressing him somewhat roughly, -indeed, in the vehemence of his grief, and absent-mindedly tugging at -his great beard, as he had so often seen the General do himself. The -more he pondered his loss, the more doleful it appeared to him; and this -feeling grew until he reached such a pitch of pathos that he resolved -never to leave Herran, dead or alive. Better to die right there with -him, he said, than to abandon his mortal remains to the canaille who had -killed him. - -These lamentations and melancholy vows, however, aroused some feeble -objections among Miranda's companions, who were growing restless in -their uncomfortable positions, and saw no relief in the idea of staying -indefinitely where they were. But Miranda paid no heed to what they -said, except to growl out an expletive or two between his wails of -grief, and to stroke his fallen hero's face with an increased vigor of -affection. And then, in the midst of this lugubrious occupation, he -suddenly jumped to his feet, regardless of whatever lurking enemy there -might be near him, and started capering around Herran's body. - -"This hero, he is not dead!" he cried in a sort of whispered ecstasy. -"When I rub the nose of him--Caramba!--he try to breathe! And he cough -and say some words in Spanish!" - -It was fortunate that the darkness was deep enough to hide Miranda from -observation, else his dancing figure and the gestures of delight with -which he accompanied this announcement would have brought upon him more -attention from the enemy than might have been to his liking. Another -fact in his favor, besides the darkness, was that the fighting had -drifted away from this corner of the cave, leaving the explorers quite -alone, in an obscurity that shrouded them from danger, but that still -revealed to them enough of the outlines of the cave in the distance to -show them where they were and how they might best steer their way in -safety through the Condor Gate, as Miranda had at first proposed. And -now all were eager to corroborate the extraordinary news that Herran was -still alive. - -True to his professional instincts, Miranda plumped down on his knees at -the General's side, and commenced a series of probings, pummelings and -rubbings in his search for wounds, mortal or otherwise. He worked with -his usual feverish haste, and it was not long before his activities drew -from Herran protests that became more and more distinct and emphatic. -Then Miranda remembered that he had seen the caveman's club descend upon -the General's head, so that if there were any wounds to be attended to -they would be in that part of his anatomy and nowhere else. And there, -sure enough, under Herran's battered hat and his smashed miner's lamp, -was a massive lump that testified to the magnitude of the blow that -had crumpled him up. Indeed, had it not been for the hat and the lamp, -serving in this case as a buffer, even Herran's iron skull must have -yielded under the weight of the caveman's attack. - -At first Miranda thought that the skull surely was fractured, and -thereupon investigated the lump on top of it. This he did with so much -earnestness and nicety of detail that he was soon rewarded by a series -of such vigorous oaths and threats as to leave no doubt in his mind of -his victim's ability to look out for himself. - -"He's all right, this General of Panama!" he exclaimed gleefully. "His -brains is not smashed. But perhaps he have a headache. Soon he fight -again. And now we go to the queen." - -The subject of these optimistic assurances sat up with a groan, blinking -his eyes savagely at his companions, who were now crowded around him, -and wiping disgustedly from his face some of the kerosene oil that had -trickled down from the mangled miner's lamp, and that Miranda had first -taken for Herran's blood. - -"Now, we go--we fly!" urged Miranda, his mind completely absorbed -again in the problem of extricating himself and his companions from -the dangers of the battlefield. "They not see us. We save our life and -go to this queen. You are all right, General--is it not so?" he added -impatiently. - -The other looked at him venomously and groaned. Then, shaking himself, -like a dog who has been temporarily worsted in a rough-and-tumble fight, -he got to his feet and staggered along for a few paces. - -"Yes, Caramba! I am all right," he said in Spanish, with painful -sarcasm. "It is a headache, as you say, that is all! Let us go!" - -"That is good! Come!" grunted Miranda approvingly. - -At first Herran was somewhat uncertain of his footing. But Miranda -helped him until he got over his dazed feeling sufficiently to walk -alone. Then they all followed along, single file, skirting the edge of -the darkness, beyond which they could dimly see the cavemen fighting, -but without being able to tell how the fortunes of the battle were -going, and making for the Condor Gate as quickly as they could. Once -beyond that point they would be relieved, they thought, at least -temporarily, from the inconveniences of a battle in which most of -them had been forced to play the part of target only. Having passed -this danger zone, they would set about placing as generous a distance -as possible between themselves and their warlike companions. Further -retreat, it is true, meant the abandonment of the outer cave for a -venture into realms whither Anitoo had been conducting them, practically -as captives, to an unknown fate. But the situation left them no -alternative. Everything depended on their finding the queen--and then, -having found her, their fate depended on the kind of woman she might be. - -"A great thing this," muttered Leighton to himself; "at my age to be in -the power of the queen of a race of cavemen!" - -"They are good peoples," remarked Miranda dubiously. - -"I trust Anitoo," declared Una. "His queen will protect us." - -"She will behead us!" exclaimed Mrs. Quayle, whose spirits were -hopelessly flustered by the uproar of battle that resounded through -the cave. "Queens always behead people. Why did we ever come into this -frightful place? We can never escape." - -"Do be quiet, woman!" commanded Leighton, who did not care to hear his -own thoughts voiced in this manner. - -"Hold the tongue!" growled Miranda savagely. - -"We have escaped already," said Una soothingly. "I believe this path -will take us out of the cave." - -"Caramba! that is so," agreed Miranda delightedly. "It is change--and -there is some light." - -"Yes, there actually is some light," said Leighton. "But--where does it -come from?" - -Having passed through the great portal that separated them from Anitoo -and his men, they were soon following a narrow path that ran between two -high walls of rock. This path was at first scarcely discernible. As they -turned a sharp corner, however, the darkness gradually lifted and they -found it possible, for the first time, to distinguish certain objects -a considerable distance ahead of them--and judging by the direction -in which the shadows from these objects were thrown, it was evident -that the light was not a reflection cast by torches carried by warring -cavemen. - -This discovery was hailed as a momentous one, open to two -interpretations. Since, as every one knows, caves are never lighted from -sources contained in themselves, they must now be nearing another party -of cavemen, who were carrying lanterns, or else, through some twist in -subterranean topography, they had stumbled upon an unexpected passageway -to the outer world. No sooner was the latter possibility suggested, -however, than its improbability was recognized. No rays from sun or -moon were ever like these--blue, flickering, ghostly--illuminating the -grotesque forms around them. This light had a tingling quality, as of -sparks that snap and glitter when they are thrown off from an electric -battery. It was certainly not sunlight, or moonlight either, as the -explorers quickly realized. There remained the idea that it came from -lights carried by an approaching band of cavemen. - -"It is like the torches of Anitoo's musicians!" exclaimed Una; "it's not -from the sun." - -"It begins to be too bright, and at the same time too far off, for -that," objected Leighton. - -"It is one big fire----" said Miranda. - -"A bonfire," interjected Andrew. - -"----and when we come there we will see." - -Pressing on along this path, the light steadily increased, although -revealing to the explorers nothing of its origin. They could walk now -at a fairly round pace, and as their range of vision extended their -attention was completely taken up in a study of the strange objects to -be seen in the unknown world about them. - -Great walls of white basalt, veined with broad bands of glistening -emerald, towered on either side, reaching up to a crystalline roof -that spread forth, far as eye could reach, at an altitude scorning the -limitations of human architecture. The irregularities of the outer cave, -with its rough bowlders and piles of fallen débris, its dark masses of -shapeless sandstone, was exchanged here for forms of marvelous symmetry, -fashioned, one could but imagine, for the enjoyment of a race of beings -to whom the majesty of beauty must be an ever-living reality. Seen by -the explorers, in the wavering half light that filled the cave, the -bold outlines of cliff and battlement were softened and blended in a -vague witchery of design suggesting meanings and distances varying with -the fancy of the beholder. It was a vale of enchantments, an Aladdin's -cave, from which anything might be expected with the mere rubbing of a -ring--or a lamp. - -As the path broadened the walls became less precipitous; on their sides -objects could be distinguished that, anywhere else, would have been -taken for man's handiwork. Tiny dwellings appeared to be carved out -of solid rock that jutted forth from dizzying heights, while feathery -forms of dwarf trees and plants, whose leaves were of a spectral -transparency, whose branches were twisted in thread-like traceries of -lines and figures, found sustenance where not a foothold of earth was -discernible. That such evidences of botanical life should appear in a -cavern remote from the sun's heat and light was surprising enough to all -the explorers; to Leighton it savored of the miraculous. Ever since the -adventure with the Black Magnet the savant, indeed, had drifted into -such a state of bewilderment that he was more helpless in grasping and -overcoming the difficulties confronting them than those of the party who -had little of his learning or experience. Ordinarily he was accustomed -to treat with contempt phenomena that to others appeared inexplicable. -But here he was as a mariner adrift in midocean, in a rudderless ship, -without sails or compass. Everything seemed at odds with the settled -beliefs and theories of science as he knew them. Nothing was as it -should be. He was thus less capable as a leader than the volatile -Miranda who, although fairly well trained in the modern way of looking -at things, did not trouble himself to explain the marvels that met them -at every turn in their wanderings. - -"They live in the walls, these people!" exclaimed the doctor, "and they -have trees and plants without the sun and rain." - -That was all that need be said. The fact was a fact, delightful -beyond most facts just because it was so outlandish, so opposed to -all experience, and it gained nothing in interest or anything else by -trying to explain it--although Miranda did, on occasion, take a hand at -explaining these puzzling matters. - -Entertaining as these discoveries and discussions might be, however, -the feeling that they had stumbled into a region inhabited by a race -of men who lived in a manner unknown to them--and who, moreover, had -already given evidence of unfriendliness towards strangers--was not -reassuring to Miranda or any of the rest of them. The end of their -adventure grew every moment more puzzling. Since their escape from -Anitoo they had not actually met any one. Perhaps this part of the cave -was not inhabited after all. Perhaps Anitoo's talk of a queen was not to -be taken too seriously. The curious objects projecting from the walls -far above them might not be the human dwellings that at first sight -they appeared. Even the signs of an unearthly vegetation might prove a -sort of mirage, or they might turn out to be mere specimens of basaltic -formation--fantastic enough, certainly--wrought by the subterranean -convulsions that had given birth to this cave measureless ages ago. -But the air had become so strangely invigorating, the mysterious light -so pervasive and even brilliant, that anything seemed possible. This -atmospheric vitality, a certain bracing quality in the air, had been -noted, indeed, among their first experiences in the outer cave. But, -compared with this that now tingled and coursed in their veins like some -conquering elixir, the air of the outer cave was chill, dead. Here life -might germinate and be sustained--although there lacked, as Miranda had -pointed out, "the sun and rain" to aid in these daily miracles of -nature. - -But it was idle to theorize, useless to harbor doubts that led nowhere. -So, they wandered on, marveling at the strangeness and the magnitude of -this underground world, and yielding themselves, as familiarity disarmed -their fears, to the charm of it all. For there was beauty of a rare and -thrilling quality in these majestic cliffs whose perfectly proportioned -sides gleamed in all the variegations of color belonging to certain -kinds of basalt. Displaying in structure the columnar forms peculiar to -this rock, the admirable symmetry produced easily suggested the work -of a human architect gifted in all the cunning of his art. And now the -widening space before them disclosed unmistakable signs of the human -agency they had suspected. - -They stood at the verge of a precipice. Below them stretched a wide -and comparatively level plain, vaulted over by a crystalline canopy -supported by innumerable clusters of slender columns, and sheltering -low-storied houses, or huts, collected together in the close -companionship of a thriving little village. The familiar accompaniments -of such a scene, supposing that it formed a part of some straggling, -hospitable highway in the outer world, were there. At the doorways of -the houses men and women stopped to talk; children played in the vacant -spaces that served for yards and streets; even diminutive animals, that -appeared in the distance to be near of kin to the patient, ubiquitous -burro, jogged along under their burdens of merchandise. The villagers -were evidently of the same race as Anitoo and his companions, dressed -like them in white flowing togas, but lacking their indefinable charm -and lordliness of bearing. Anywhere else they would have been taken for -peasants, attired somewhat fantastically, engaged in the most primitive -occupations. Here, remote from everything that lives under the sun, -their very simplicity was cause for wonder, if not for fear. - -So far the explorers had not attracted the attention of the villagers. -Where the former stood they could watch the scene below without being -observed themselves. But they knew that this security could not last. -Either they had to go on and make themselves known, or return to Anitoo, -who by this time, possibly, was at the mercy of Raoul and his party. -They hesitated. The problem was a knotty one--but it was not left -for them to decide. From an unexpected quarter came an interruption, -startling in some respects, that solved their difficulties--temporarily -at least--and seemed a promising augury that whatever dangers confronted -them they might rely on backing, of a sort. A heavily veiled figure, -bent with age and toiling down a precipitous path from the rocky height -beneath which they were sheltered, silently approached them. At sight -of this singular being, Mrs. Quayle, not yet accustomed to this land -of uncomfortable surprises, started to run away. Her frantic efforts -at speed restored the confidence of the others and, after she had been -unceremoniously brought to order by Leighton, the little party managed -to face the newcomer with some show of composure. - -Leaning on a long staff, the descending figure, ignoring the others, -advanced towards Una, who stood by herself beneath a low shelf of rock. -Pausing within a few feet of the wondering girl, the veil was slowly -lifted, revealing the seamed and wrinkled face and long flowing white -hair of a woman whose great age was visible in every feature. In bygone -times she would have been proclaimed a witch, although in her aspect -there was nothing of the malevolence tradition attributes to witches. -But there was the solemnity, the dramatic gesture of the sibyl--a being -who is supposed to rank several grades higher than the witch--when, -with uplifted hand, she commanded the attention of those to whom she -deigned to speak. Drawn by something of benignity in her glance, and -undaunted by her otherwise fantastic appearance, Una came forward to -meet her--a movement that at once elicited a sign of approval. - -"She is one loca, one crazy woman," growled Miranda. - -"Of course she is dangerous!" exclaimed Mrs. Quayle. - -General Herran shrugged his shoulders and muttered vigorous profanities -in Spanish. - -"Nonsense! The woman is probably slightly demented," was Leighton's -judgment in the matter. Una, apparently, was without opinion as to -the character or the intentions of the singular being whose gaze was -fastened upon her, and whose outstretched arm singled her out from the -rest. - -"Oh! if she would only speak in a language we could understand," she -exclaimed. To the amazement of every one, the wish was gratified -as soon as uttered. For the old woman--whether witch, sibyl, or -lunatic--answered in plain English, an English somewhat defective in -pronunciation, it is true, but correct enough in form to give evidence -of an unusual amount of study on the part of the speaker. - -"I expected you. Come with me," she commanded. - -Astonishment silenced further comment. For the moment even Miranda had -nothing to say. Then, recovering his usual assurance, he expressed -himself with emphasis. - -"Caramba! She is one witch," he declared. - -The old woman shook her head impatiently. It was with Una alone she -wanted to speak; she resented as interference any word from the others. -Una, on her part, was strangely drawn to her. The odd dress, the air -of mystery that repelled the others, increased her interest. She was -impressed by her calm assumption of authority, convinced that she was -there to help them. And then, a novel idea flashed through her mind. - -"Are you the queen?" she asked abruptly. - -The stern Indian features relaxed into the ghost of a smile, accompanied -by a feeble chuckle from a lean and wrinkled throat. - -"I am Narva," she announced quietly--but whether "Narva" was the queen -she did not deign to say. - -"Very well, my lady," argued Miranda, "but we want the queen." - -"Silence!" commanded Narva, turning for the first time from Una to the -others. "Come with me," she repeated. - -"But why?" persisted the doctor; "what for we go with you, my senora, -unless you are queen?" - -"Perhaps she is the queen," suggested Andrew; "only she doesn't want -to say so. She didn't deny it!" a view of the matter that met with no -response. - -But, queen or not, Una was ready to pin her faith to this strange being -who had accosted them in so unexpected a manner. It was useless even -to attempt an explanation of how an aged Indian woman, answering to -the name of Narva, inhabiting a cave in the remote Andes, could talk -English, and how it happened that she appeared to know them--a party -of distressed foreigners--whom she had certainly never met before. -So long as she refused to explain--and refuse she certainly did--all -this would have to remain the puzzle that it was. But, logical or not, -dangerous or not, Narva seemed to be something very like their last -hope. Her bearing, although decidedly reserved, was not unkindly--was -even friendly--and so Una determined to follow her without further -discussion. The others scarcely shared her confidence. Mrs. Quayle stuck -to it that Narva was dangerous, probably a witch; Leighton was still in -doubt as to her sanity. Finally, Miranda put the point blank question-- - -"Why we go with her?" - -"Simply because we have no one else to go with, no other plan," was -Una's prompt reply. - -There was no gainsaying this. They were wandering, without guide or clew -of any kind, through a cave filled with mysteries and dangers. On the -trail behind them were two bands of natives, absorbed in the occupation -of cutting each other's throats. From one of these bands it was certain -they had much to fear. In front of them was a considerable body of -cavemen, not at present engaged in war, it is true, but who might, for -all they knew, prove unfriendly. Witch or queen, Narva volunteered to -guide them--somewhere. - -"At least we must know where she intends to take us," declared Leighton. - -"I take you from these," said Narva, pointing in the direction of the -villagers. - -"Why should we go from them?" asked Leighton. - -"They kill you," was the laconic reply. - -"What bloodthirsty people they all are!" exclaimed Andrew. - -But Narva's calm statement of what was to be expected proved decisive. -There remained the doubt as to her sincerity. The timorous Mrs. Quayle -scented a diabolical plot in the whole affair, and her fears were -shared by some of the others. Only Una would brook no delay. - -"We want to get out of the cave," she said, addressing Narva. "We have -lost the way--you will guide us?" - -"Something you do first," retorted Narva; "then you go free." - -The suggestion that they were still, in a sense, prisoners, and that -some kind of service was expected of them before they could regain -their freedom, was not pleasant. What was it that they could do for so -singular a person as this, who gave the impression of having planned to -meet them in this very spot? Narva took a witch's privilege to speak -in riddles. No amount of questioning could get her to explain what she -meant. The answer to everything was always "follow me"--and as she -pointed to the valley whenever she said this, they gathered that the -direction they were expected to take was practically that which they -had been pursuing ever since they left the Condor Gate. As this would -inevitably bring them among the villagers--who, they had just been told, -were prepared to "kill them"--they could not understand Narva's plan at -all. There being no choice left them, however, they yielded and went -with her. - -The path leading into the valley was abrupt and dangerous. Narva, -striding ahead, was unimpeded by obstacles that left the others -breathless and panic-stricken. They wanted to turn back before they had -gone very far--but this would have been quite as difficult to accomplish -as to go on. - -At this point, apparently, the geological construction of the cave had -undergone some radical changes. Convulsions, undoubtedly of volcanic -origin, had rent the solid walls of granite in two, leaving irregular -chasms, of uncertain depth, to be traversed before the smooth floor of -the valley could be reached. These chasms, where their width demanded -it, were spanned by swaying bridges of rope--or liana--and wood that -proved a sore trial to the weaker members of the party, delaying their -progress to an extent that seriously strained Narva's patience. The old -Indian was especially put out by Mrs. Quayle, whom she contemptuously -called "baby," and whose pathetic helplessness astride a plank over a -yawning cavern aroused in her the nearest approach to laughter she had -shown. - -Under Narva's guidance, however, the difficulties of this downward -trail were overcome without mishap. The perilous abysses, once crossed, -appeared not more than miniature dangers in retrospect; but immediately -facing them, on this plain that, at a distance, had seemed so charming -and pastoral in character, there was menace enough for the most daring. -At first sight of the invaders, for so they were deemed, the villagers -showed unmistakable hostility. Dropping their various occupations with -one accord, they confronted the explorers in so threatening a manner -that the latter had either to defend themselves as best they might, or -retreat. But the thought of those villainous chasms, spanned by flimsy -bridges of rope, was too appalling to offer the remotest hope of safety -in flight. Anything would be better than a return--if return were even -possible--over so hazardous a path. - -"We fight!" announced Miranda through clenched teeth--and, regretting -his lost revolver, he threw himself into as warlike an attitude as his -rotund figure would permit. - -This had anything but a quieting effect on the villagers. From every -direction volunteers hastened to strengthen their line of battle, and -it might have fared badly with the enterprising doctor, upon whom a -concentrated attack resembling a football rush was about to be launched, -had it not been for the interference of Narva. The old Indian woman, -scornful at first of the excited demonstration of the villagers, now -took an active part in what was going on. Brushing Miranda aside, she -checked the advancing mob with a torrent of angry words that sounded -like the scolding lecture of an outraged school teacher bringing her -refractory pupils to order. As she spoke in the native language of the -Indians, what she said was totally unintelligible to those whom she was -defending. But on the cavemen the effect of her words was immediate. -The shouts ceased; the hastily formed line of battle was broken. -The angry villagers acknowledged Narva's authority by every sign of -submission--sullenly given, it is true--and the way was clear and free -for the "invaders" to go on. - -The singular episode impressed them deeply. They realized that they -were surrounded by people who did not want them in this underworld of -theirs, and that they were, at the same time, under the protection of a -being who, mad or inspired, was powerful enough to stand between them -and danger. Who she was, or why she befriended them remained a mystery. -On this point Narva was as uncommunicative as ever. On occasion, as they -had just witnessed, she was capable of the volubility of a fishwife; -with them her reserve was impregnable. - -"Follow me!" she commanded--and there was nothing for it but obey. -Miranda, who was the immediate cause of the trouble, muttered -maledictions on the fate that left him at the mercy of an eccentric -beldame who might be leading them to some unthinkable witch's dance--and -the rest exhorted him to curb his warlike propensities in the future. - -Gliding ahead at a quicker pace than before, Narva led the way along -the narrow path on each side of which stood the huts of the villagers. -These huts were not more than thirty in number, built of the rough-hewn -stone of the cave. Each, apparently, contained two, or in some cases, -three rooms on the ground floor. Roofs they had none, a deficiency in -architecture evidently without inconvenience, since the great vaulted -dome of the cave furnished them with whatever protection overhead was -necessary. The whole series of little houses composing the village -resembled one huge, hospitable communal dwelling, not unlike the ancient -pueblo ruins of Arizona, in which there was the privacy desired by -separate families, together with a close union of household interests -that is scarcely possible in settlements where each group of individuals -lives under its own rooftree. As if further to preserve this communal -manner of living, the openings into the huts were without doors, -although, in a few instances, curtains of a heavy red material served -as doors. These curtains were adorned with thin plates of gold, cut -in primitive designs depicting various forms of animal life. The huts -so marked the explorers took to be the dwellings either of village -dignitaries, or buildings devoted to public uses. - -There was scant opportunity to observe more than the barest outlines -of this singular underground settlement, as the pace set by Narva left -no time for loitering. But the explorers felt little desire to prolong -their stay here, although they soon forgot their fears as they noted -the sullen deference with which their mysterious guide was everywhere -greeted. The villagers retired before them into their various dwellings, -and as the little company passed along the unobstructed street it was -welcomed with demonstrations of respect resembling the homage accorded -some eastern potentate who deigns to visit his subjects. The change -was grateful to those who a moment ago had been the objects of popular -disfavor, at the same time that it stimulated their curiosity regarding -Narva. The latter paid no heed to her surroundings, but her progress was -timed to the needs of those who followed her. An occasional backward -glance gave proof that her interest in them, whether for good or ill, -had not abated. Talk with her, however, was impossible; and thus the -straggling little village, with its groups of obsequious Indians, was -traversed in silence. - -When the last hut had disappeared in the distance Narva turned abruptly. -The path was again becoming precipitous, and although the mysterious -light with which the cave was illumined revealed whatever obstacles -were in the way, there were dark chasms in the overhanging cliffs that -filled the timid with grim forebodings. Where they stood the ground was -level, making a little platform, or square, three sides of which were -unprotected by walls. On the fourth side an arched opening in the smooth -face of a lofty tower of granite, glittering with countless facets of -crystal, served as entrance to a spacious interior. Emblazoned on the -keystone of this arch was the same emblem that marked the cyclopean -gateway to the inhabited portion of the cave--the rudely carved figure -of a condor. Beneath this sculptured symbol Narva stood for a moment -regarding the others with stern composure. Then she pointed to the -shadowy depths within. - -"Enter!" she commanded. - - - - -XVII - -A SONG AND ITS SEQUEL - - -Narva's forbidding presence promised little in the way of cheer or -warmth of welcome to her wearied companions. The singular dwelling into -which the latter were ushered recalled, at first glance, the gloomy -abode of some medieval anchorite to whose theory of existence anything -approaching luxury was to be shunned, rooted out, as an obstruction to -the soul's growth. Whether or not Narva's mode of living was actually -based on these mystical considerations, her home, at least, in its -lack of visible comforts, seemed the typical hermit's cell. Here was -neither superfluous ornament nor evidence of the slightest touch of -feminine grace or care. The blackened walls of granite rose with -uncompromising abruptness, unbroken by niche or shelf, to a ceiling -whose vague outlines were lost in darkness. A truss of straw was thrown -in one corner of the apartment, and upon it was spread a rough woolen -counterpane. Three flattened blocks of stone, placed at intervals along -the walls, served as benches; in the center a rock-table, carefully -smoothed and large enough for a banquet fairly regal in its dimensions, -rose four feet from the floor. Upon this table, with its suggested -possibilities of entertainment, stood a large jug, curiously fashioned -of a single crystal, within which faintly gleamed an opalescent liquid. -There were also two stone platters, one containing heaped-up cubes -of a white substance resembling bread, and the other certain broiled -fish--they looked like fish--whose globular bodies and reddish-blue -flesh aroused misgivings, if not a more decided feeling of repugnance, -among those unfamiliar with subterranean bills of fare. - -But the explorers were famished enough to attack anything. The dangers -they had escaped, the fatigue arising from prolonged exposure and -unwonted exercise, the bracing air of the cave, would have corrected -the most fastidious taste and made even boot-leather palatable. But -Narva's fish, notwithstanding their sickly hue, were not to be classed, -by any means, with boot-leather. After the first wave of disgust, even -the suspicious Miranda scented a welcome repast in the dishes spread -before him, while the others were in this only too eager to follow his -lead. Their hostess, aware of their hunger, gave a reassuring gesture of -invitation. - -"Eat!" she said solemnly; "it is for you." - -They needed no second bidding. Scorning the absence of chairs and -the ordinary dishes and utensils that go with a meal, they fell to -and, with the first mouthful, expressed approval by varying grunts -and exclamations. Even the fish was voted a delicacy of superlative -excellence. In flavor it recalled the sweet succulence of rare tropical -fruit, like the cirimoya, with a soupçon of spice that gave it the -fillip of a genuine culinary masterpiece. As for the bread, it was not -bread at all, but some mysterious compound of flesh and vegetable, the -nutritive qualities of which were eagerly explained and extolled by the -ravenous doctor. - -Una, however, was denied participation in this unexpected and singular -feast. From the first Narva had shown a special interest in the girl; -caused, doubtless, by the latter's early expression of confidence in her -offer to protect them. This interest, it now appeared, had a distinct -purpose in view, which Narva lost no time in carrying out. Satisfied -that the others were provided with the entertainment they desired, she -took Una by the hand and led her to a distant corner of the apartment. - -"Will you go with me?" she asked her in a whisper. - -Una hesitated. To leave her uncle and the others, trusting herself -entirely to this mysterious being, was more than she had bargained for. -Divining the cause of her irresolution, Narva spoke reassuringly. - -"They are safe," she said. "We will come back to them." - -Something in the older woman's manner won Una's confidence. She felt -that a way out of their difficulties was being offered her. Hope of a -still greater result silenced her fears. - -"Yes," she said. - -Then, behind one of the stone benches, yielding to Narva's touch, a door -slowly opened, revealing a narrow passage upon which they entered. - -Glancing hastily back, Una noticed that the door, a great block of stone -revolving with the utmost nicety in grooves made for the purpose, had -closed behind them. She was thus separated from her companions and alone -with a singular being whose purpose in all this she was at a loss to -fathom. Narva's trustworthiness had appealed to her, it is true, and she -had followed her leading when the others held back. But there was an air -about Narva, suggesting the occasional freaks of one whose wits are not -of the steadiest, that might well cause anxiety among those temporarily -in her power. Just now, however, there was no sign of trouble, and Una -repressed any outward evidence of alarm she might feel. Narva, indeed, -seemed to have lost the solemn dignity she had assumed hitherto, and -became every moment more ingratiating, reassuring. Gently stroking Una's -hand, she stopped in her hurried walk down the corridor and, throwing -back the heavy veil obscuring her features, showed a face marked by the -nobility and calm of age. Its serenity and kindliness strengthened Una's -confidence. - -"We will go back to them," said Narva; "but first we must see," she -added enigmatically. - -"Why have you brought me here?" asked Una. - -"Something you will see. You will help us, and then I will help you. I -knew you were coming." - -The explanation, if it could be called one, increased Una's -mystification. - -"You could know nothing of me. How could you know?" she persisted. "How -can I help you?" - -"Ah, Narva is very old," she replied, her long bony fingers passing -through the masses of snow-white hair that fell to her shoulders, "and -with the old there is knowledge. Long time I lived with your people, -far from here. All the years I keep the secret of this Kingdom of the -Condor. No one knows--if they know they do not dare to come. Only -one--he knows, he has come. And now, you have come. Why?" - -The abrupt question was confusing. Una wondered how much she knew, how -much she dared tell her. The inscrutable eyes fixed upon her revealed -nothing. Was it to learn her secret Narva had lured her away from the -others? The narrow gloomy passage where they stood was remote from the -inhabited portion of the cave; the door to Narva's dwelling, now that -it was closed, was not distinguishable from the rest of the wall into -which it fitted so admirably. Had Una tried, she could not have found -her way back. She was completely at Narva's mercy--but the old Indian -had shown only friendliness hitherto, it was reasonable to suppose that -her proffer of assistance was genuine, since motive for treachery was -lacking. Impulsively reaching this conclusion, Una answered Narva's -question without reserve. - -"I have come," she said, "because I am looking for one who is dear to -me. I think he is lost in this cave." - -"Why?" asked Narva, showing neither surprise nor incredulity. - -"Once before he disappeared, and then he was lost here." - -"When?" - -"Three years ago. A man who was with him told me. But--he is not his -friend. Perhaps it is not true." - -"It is true." - -"How do you know that?" asked Una eagerly. - -"I know," she replied quietly, but with convincing emphasis. - -"Then he is here! I am right. You know where he is. You will take me to -him!" - -"Ah! Perhaps you will not go. You are a white woman; you will be afraid -to leave your friends and go with me." - -"I am not afraid." - -"Perhaps this man you look for has changed. Perhaps he will not know -you. And this other, his enemy, perhaps he is here. There will be -trouble, danger." - -"Take me to him!" demanded Una passionately. "If there is danger, I -should be with him. I am not afraid. I trust you." - -"That is good," said Narva. "Come!" - -Una now became aware that the corridor down which they were slowly -walking widened out into a respectable thoroughfare at its further -end, whence it abruptly turned and was merged in the main trail that -had brought them to Narva's dwelling. Thus, the latter, through -some labyrinthine arrangement of passages, was entered at one place -and offered an exit in an entirely opposite direction, whence, -by devious twists and turns, it came back to the first point of -approach. To Una, at least, bewildered by the intricacies of cave -topography, this seemed the explanation of the course they were -pursuing, although the mysterious doubling of their tracks brought -little consolation--especially when she realized that her uncle and -his companions were lost in the center of a maze the clew to which -completely eluded her. Anxiety for their safety overrode, for the -moment, every other consideration; she grasped Narva's arm with a -detaining gesture, a half uttered question on her lips. Her appeal, -however, was not answered. Like some ancient oracle, from which has -proceeded the final Pythian message, no further revelation was to be -granted. In true sibylline fashion, with finger on lip and eyes set on -some object in the distance hidden from Una, Narva indicated that the -time for speech had passed and now it remained for them to carry out -as expeditiously as possible, the design upon which they were setting -forth. From her gesture and the stealthy caution with which she -advanced, Una gathered that there were urgent reasons for maintaining -a strict silence. They might be surrounded by hostile forces, their -destination might be a secret one, or at least a knowledge of it might -involve danger to the man for whose preservation she firmly believed -they were engaged. Narva, in warning her of this danger, hinted that -whatever they had to fear was in some way due to the presence of Raoul -Arthur in the cave. The enmity of the latter to David, moreover, was -full of sinister possibilities, and the conviction that they were about -to foil the evil thus threatened nerved Una to face anything. - -Una would have felt a stronger confidence in their mission, a keener -enthusiasm, had Narva been more definite as to the identity of the man -to whose rescue she believed they were hastening, or had she given -some hint of the kind of danger to which he was actually exposed. But -it was all so vague, she feared that some mistake had been made, a -mistake easily growing out of the fervid imagination that, any one -could see, quite controlled Narva's mind. While there was no shaking -the old sibyl's reticence, however, the calm determination with which -she set about her task proved, in a measure, inspiring. Una might feel -an occasional doubt as to the outcome of their venture, but this doubt -finally disappeared altogether before the faith, growing stronger with -the changing aspect of the scene through which they were passing, that -in some unlooked-for way she was about to attain the main object that -had brought them into this ancient home of a vanished race. - -They had now entered a portion of the cave where the dim half-light to -which Una was accustomed turned, by comparison, almost to the light of -day. This light appeared to come from a fixed point directly in front of -them. No central globe, or body of fire, to which this appearance might -be traced was visible; but, in the far distance, where the light reached -its greatest intensity, over the top of a dark ridge of rock rising -before them like the summit of a mountain, thin streamers of white -radiance shot upward, rising and falling in the unequal flashes and -subsidences generated by an electric battery. This luminous appearance, -however, was too stupendous in its effects to be attributable to a -mere electric battery. To Una's dazzled vision it rather resembled the -first onrush of the morning sun, when the presence of that luminary -just below the horizon is proclaimed by advancing rays of light. Here, -however, an effect of greater motion was produced than in the steady and -gradual illumination of the heavens heralding the coming of the sun. -The sparkles and flashes neither grew nor shrank in intensity. If they -were produced by a central body corresponding to the sun that shone upon -the outside world, it was a stationary sun, fixed in some mysterious, -invisible recess of the cave. - -And now the outlines of the distant mountain top began to assume a -greater definiteness than before. Objects just below this furthest -summit loomed up spectrally out of the shadows that had enveloped them; -for the first time Una realized that they were facing, not a wall of -unbroken rock, such as had overwhelmed her at every side since leaving -her companions in Narva's dwelling, but an assemblage of majestic -forms suggesting, in their coherence and symmetrical arrangement, the -towers, arches, and ramparts of some ancient citadel. This building, -or collection of buildings, from their position and commanding aspect, -might well be taken as the center of the region it so fitly dominated. -Upon it converged all the lines, furrows and intricate masses of walls -composing, so far as they could be included in one comprehensive view, -the architecture of the cave. Immediately above it, crowning the very -summit, arose a single tower, broad at the base, and tapering until it -reached a sharp point just below the cave's jagged, overhanging roof. -Behind this tower the light flashed and glowed so brilliantly the shaft -of stone itself seemed to sparkle and transmit a radiance as if it were -composed of some crystalline substance. - -Moved by this fairy-like spectacle Una again implored Narva to tell -her something of where they were going. What was this cave of wonders, -that no man had ever heard of before, and into which they had stumbled -by chance? What bygone secret of the earth was it connected with, what -people were these who lived in it as in a world apart from all other -worlds? Who was she, buried out of sight of all men, and yet talking -to Una in her native tongue, and seemingly so familiar with all that -concerned her? Why had she been waiting for them, where was she taking -them? But to all Una's questions Narva vouchsafed no word of reply. -Smiling to herself, she pointed in the direction of the light-crowned -summit before them and hastened on, descending now into a valley where -they soon lost sight of the vision that had offered so delightful a -goal to their wanderings. Narva's gesture, however, and the tendency -of the path they were taking assured Una that the distant palace--its -situation and noble architecture suggested nothing less than a palace, -the regal abode of the ruler of all this realm of marvels--was their -real destination, and it was left to her to imagine why Narva was -guiding her thither. But the physical difficulties of the path they -followed gave her scant opportunity for speculation. Chasms they had -to cross whose depths Una would have shunned had it not been for the -promise of some great achievement that would free them all from the -dangers by which they were surrounded. In other places the path narrowed -to a mere fissure between great walls of rock, and again it skirted the -edge of a precipice that, in normal times, would have filled Una with -horror. Moreover, there were moments when she fancied she heard, from -the darkness beneath them, the shouts of a hurrying throng of people--an -impression that might well be true since she had abundant evidence -already that the cave was inhabited by a race whose number she had no -means of knowing. - -But this reminder of the presence of others in the cave besides her own -party was more disturbing to Una than the physical obstacles and dangers -immediately facing her. These could at least be met and overcome--but -about an invisible multitude, their attitude toward them, their purpose -in apparently following them, there was an indefiniteness that was -altogether disheartening. As a matter of fact, she had no doubt these -hidden cavemen were hostile; her previous experiences had filled her -with a vague dread in that respect. This dread, also, was sharpened -by the reflection that, in all probability, Raoul was among them; -of his active enmity, linked in some mysterious manner with David's -disappearance, she now felt certain. Una tried to gain some light on -the subject from Narva; but the latter either failed to hear the ominous -sounds to which her attention was called, or she was too intent on -her present mission to admit the consideration of other matters. This -indifference, whether real or feigned, had a reassuring effect on Una. -She perceived that if these invisible people, friendly or unfriendly, -were connected with them, they would attract Narva's attention, while, -if there was no connection--a conclusion suggested by the sibyl's -unruffled bearing--there was nothing to fear from them. - -Having reached the end of the abrupt downward slope of the path they -were following, Una rejoiced to find herself on the level floor of a -valley that, in the upper world, would be admired for its charm and -restfulness. There were neither flower-decked meadows, it is true, nor -brook-fed woodland to diversify the scene. Subterranean botany, however, -has its compensations for losses due to the perpetual absence of sun -and rain. Evidently the light from the luminous mountain had in it -some life-giving, sustaining quality, for on every hand in this valley -there were luxuriant growths of delicately tinted flowers--or so they -appeared--whose scent, one imagined, filled the motionless atmosphere. -Tall, graceful forms, resembling willows, clustered along the banks -of a little stream flowing with the gentlest of murmurs through their -midst. The flinty ground was carpeted with a pale lancet-leaved herbage -that might have been taken for grass were it not for the profusion of -sparkling crystals with which it was sprinkled. These crystals glowed in -varying and sometimes iridescent colors, showing a depth and solidity of -substance decidedly out of keeping with a purely vegetable origin. - -It was this gem-like appearance of what might have been taken elsewhere -for richly flowering grasses that led Una to suspect the reality--judged -by the standards of the world with which she was familiar--of this -subterranean garden. A white flower, heavily streaked with crimson, -from the heart of which long golden stamens were thrust in a drooping -cluster, hung on its stalk conveniently near. Except for its coloring, -and a square rather than spherical modeling of the calyx, it might -easily pass for one of the lily family. To make sure Una plucked it. -From the broken stem a tiny stream of water bubbled out, and the flower -in Una's hands seemed to lose at once the soft shimmer of light that -had played upon its petals only a moment before. Most extraordinary of -all was the weight of the flower. Suspended from its stalk, it seemed -the frailest, daintiest of objects; a blossom that the merest breeze -could have tossed about at will. But Una found it as heavy as so much -metal, or stone; and this, with the clinking together of its leaves -as they were moved by her touch, revealed the startling character -of subterranean botany. She was disappointed at first to find that -this was not, in the ordinary sense of the word, a flower at all; but -regret was quickly followed by curiosity as to the actual nature of -the strange growth she held in her hands. Its unusual weight belied -the delicacy of its outward appearance; the fires that had clothed -its leaves with living tints, in dying seemed to have left behind the -pallor of ashes. Nevertheless, it retained a strange, subtle beauty, -odorless, undefinable. It might be a rare kind of stalactite--except -that a stalactite had not its soft brilliancy--or a sheaf of gems, one -of the many that strewed this subterranean valley. Whatever it was, it -reminded Una, however faintly, of the glories of the outer world--and -she cherished it for this more than for its own beauty. Narva, roused -for the first time from the spell of her own thoughts, shook her head in -disapproval of what Una had done. Evidently she questioned her right to -pluck the flower, for she motioned to her to throw it away. - -"The Queen's garden!" she exclaimed in tones of rebuke. - -As this was the first definite intimation of their whereabouts, Una was -quick to seize upon it. This mysterious queen, then, of whom Narva had -vaguely spoken before, was really mixed up in their present expedition. -She recalled Narva's hint that, in some way, Una was to be of assistance -to her, and she wondered whether this meant that they were bringing -rescue of some sort to the queen, a possibility of high adventure she -was far too young not to relish. A queen, moreover, who cultivated -jewels--or something very like them--in her garden was worthy the best -flowers of romance. At any rate, Una felt a new zest in the enterprise -she was on and began to chafe at Narva's leisurely dignity. - -"It is plenty of time," said the old Indian sternly, noting her -impatience. "Have care." - -As she spoke she pointed straight ahead where the first direct rays -from the mountain peaks flashed downward illuminating the massive -building, just below the tower-crowned summit that, at a distance, had -so completely won Una's admiration. Seen close at hand, this building -gained in beauty. Most of the cave dwellings, like the one inhabited -by Narva, were hollowed out of the walls composing this underground -world. The palace, however, stood alone, surrounding a spacious court -in the center of which played a fountain whose jets of water reflected, -in a sheaf of myriad diamonds, the light glancing athwart it. The -dazzling effect emphasized the architectural majesty of the building -thus illuminated. This building was, for the most part, two stories in -height, ornamented by innumerable turrets, with a square central tower -rising above an arched entrance, the iron-bound doors of which seemed -stout enough to withstand a siege. It was built throughout of stone, -of a deep yellow tint, vivid, glistening, unlike anything Una had seen -in the cave. So radiant it seemed, so full of light, adorned with such -delicate tracery wherever the design of the architect admitted the play -of ornament, it might have been a fairy palace, each stone of which had -come into place over night with the waving of a wand. Narva pointed to -a heart-shaped tablet just above the arched entrance, upon which was -carved, in dark red stone, the figure of a condor, similar in design to -the one that graced the main gateway to the inhabited portion of the -cave. - -"It is very old," she said. "It is the palace of my people many hundred -years--ah! perhaps thousands--before the Spaniards drove them off the -earth. Long ago, in those days, our kingdom was not in a cave. But here, -always, was the secret palace of the zipa. Yes, we lived among the -mountains then, and this was our place of refuge when other Indians from -far off came to plunder us. It was here that our first zipa was brought -for safety. He was only a few weeks old then. Hunters, lost on a high -mountain, had found him in the nest of a condor. How he came there no -one has ever known. But his skin was perfectly white, not like ours; so -that he could not have been born from one of our race. Perhaps a god had -left him for the condors to take care of--or perhaps it was a condor, -flying far out of sight of the earth, who found him in some hidden place -in the sky, and brought him down here to be the ruler of the earth. But -here he was guarded, here he grew up. And when he became a man, and -conquered the people who used to fight with us and destroy our cities, -and rob us of our wealth, and make slaves of us, he founded this Empire -of the Chibchas. And it was after that, when he was old and had not much -longer to live, that he built this great palace, to be the secret home -of his children whenever their enemies became too strong for them. And -over the gate of the palace, where you see, he placed his birth-sign, -the Sign of the Condor--the secret sign of this under-world and of all -his kingdom. But all of this was hundreds--ah! thousands--of years ago. -And all those years this palace has stood and given protection to the -children of that first zipa, he who was carried from the skies to be -reared in the nest of a condor." - -The fanciful story, the fabulous antiquity claimed for the palace before -her, increased the sense of unreality and mystery filling Una's mind -as she listened to Narva. The story itself was not unlike others of -the kind, handed down from one generation to another, explaining the -origin of some ancient South American race. In the telling of it Narva, -for the first time, forgot her reserve, and her simple eloquence, her -apparent belief in the quaint old fable she was telling, added greatly -to its impressiveness. And there stood the great palace before her, -with its flying condor guarding forever the descendants of that mythical -old zipa! Una was unable to go back in imagination to that primeval -past, especially as it had to do with a country and a people of which -she knew nothing. But the tale itself, and the grace and beauty of the -palace about which it had been woven, reminded her of much that she had -heard and read in other than Indian mythology and literature. Pageants -from medieval legend, with their phantom castles in haunted forests, -engaged her fancy as she listened. For the moment she half expected to -see a troop of Arthurian knights, intent upon some mystic quest, issue -forth from the stately portal, bringing with them a flash of vivid -light and movement that as yet the picture lacked. A zipa she had never -seen, had never heard of before--and even a condor filled a place in -her imagination that was not much more real than that occupied by the -roc, the giant bird of the Arabian tales. But neither Christian knight -nor pagan zipa was here. The silence, now that Narva had finished her -tale, was profound. The murmur of voices, distinctly heard a short -time before, was lost in the distance. The apparent isolation of a -building so rich in possibilities of usefulness, so well preserved -architecturally, was its most inexplicable feature. Una was almost -persuaded that the palace before her was uninhabited, abandoned. If it -belonged, as Narva said, to the dim past of a vanished race, it stood -now merely as a monument to forgotten greatness. Or--did it still serve -as a refuge, a protection, to the descendants of that condor-born zipa -of Narva's legend? - -Then, suddenly, as Una was thinking of these ancient, far-off things, -from one of the wings of the palace there rose the clear, high notes -of a woman's voice in a melody not unlike the one Anitoo and his band -had used for a marching song. But Anitoo's song had something of -martial swing and vigor in it; this, although wild in spirit, permeated -by the chanting, wailing quality characteristic of primitive music, -thrilled with strains of passionate tenderness unlike anything Una had -heard. The words of the song were not distinguishable, nor were they -needed to convey the theme inspiring the invisible singer. The latter -seemed to pass from joy to despair, rising again to a solemn pitch of -intensity that partook of the dignity and earnestness of religious -rhapsody. A pagan priest, presiding over ancient rites from which the -faithful expect a miracle, might thus have modulated the notes of his -incantation. As in all music of the kind, the emotion portrayed was -simple, unmixed with the shadings and intellectual complexities that -play so important a part in modern song. The voice interpreting this -emotion showed no great degree of cultivation. Unskilled in the nicer -subtleties of the vocal art, it depended upon a natural, unrestrained -sincerity, enriched by a birdlike clearness and resonance, for its -effects. Its plaintiveness, from the very first strains of the ringing -melody, appealed deeply to Una. - -Narva, alive to the sympathetic response aroused in her companion by the -song, laid her hand gently upon Una's arm and drew her in the direction -of the distant portion of the palace from whence, apparently, the notes -came. - -"Have care, say nothing!" she repeated impressively. - -Una, still absorbed by the weird beauty of the scene and the strange -legends with which it was connected, scarcely noted the reiterated -warning. Her own spirit kindled with friendly warmth for the singer -whose mingled joys and sorrows were so eloquently expressed. She -followed Narva almost unconsciously, eager, and yet half afraid to reach -the climax of their adventure; fearful, likewise, lest by some misstep -or imprudence of theirs the spell of music should be broken. - -No sign of life was visible in the great rambling palace that loomed -high above them. The rows of lanceolated openings, that in the distance -appeared to be ordinary windows, upon a nearer view proved to be -unglazed--or, if they were fitted with glass it was too thick to -reveal to an outsider the interior of the palace. That some kind of -vitreous substance filled these openings was evident from the flashes -of light reflected on their surface. Considering the antiquity of the -building, however, and the unknown methods and materials employed by -its architect, it was more likely that the substance used for windows -was a crystal gathered, perhaps, from the queen's garden--the flower -from those alluring bushes that had first caught Una's attention--rather -than manufactured glass that must have been unknown to these Andean -cavemen. Even though the first zipa was the reputed offspring of stars -or condors, it was not likely that in building his palace thousands of -years ago--to quote Narva's estimate--he had been able to fit it with -modern improvements. - -Owing to the thickness of these windows, therefore, it was impossible -to make out anything of the interior of the apartments of the palace -for which they were, apparently, intended to serve for light. A close -approach, right under the palace walls, revealed nothing more than -could be seen at a distance; and as Narva avoided the great central -entrance, it appeared to Una that the mystery which so fascinated her -was to remain unsolved. An abrupt angle in the building, however, -brought them suddenly within a little portico, extending between two -massive towers jutting out from the main structure, the existence of -which came as a complete surprise. On the side of this portico away from -the palace clung a vine of pale green foliage, starred with white and -crimson flowers similar to those in the Queen's Garden, forming with -its delicate festoons a cloistered way that had a subtle attractiveness -amidst the imposing lines and columns of the huge edifice rising above -it. - -Here Narva and her companion paused, listening to the wild melody coming -to them in a clear rush of sound. At the other end of the portico, -leaning against the side of a long latticed window standing partly open, -they could see the singer, her face turned to the apartment within, -one arm encircling a lyre-shaped instrument the strings of which were -lightly touched by the fingers of her right hand. The long white drapery -in which she was clothed scarcely stirred with the movement from her -playing, while the upward poise of her head, with its masses of dark -hair flowing downward over her shoulders, indicated the rapt intensity -with which she voiced the passion of her song. Apparently she was alone. -The semi-obscurity of the apartment, however, at the entrance to which -she stood, might have screened effectively from an outsider any one who -was within. - -For the first few moments the appearance of Una and Narva at the far -end of the portico was unnoticed. Then, as the music died away, the -singer turned and slowly approached them, her manner showing neither -surprise nor displeasure at their presence. As her glance fell upon them -Narva made a low obeisance with a gesture evincing the most profound -self-abasement. In grace and majesty of bearing the being whom she thus -saluted was worthy her homage. Tall and nobly proportioned, serene of -countenance and of a faultless beauty, the deference of those about her -seemed a natural tribute to her queenliness. That high rank belonged to -her by right was suggested by a gold coronet encircling her head. In -the center of this coronet gleamed an emerald of a size and purity rare -even to Bogota, the land of emeralds. An engaging womanliness, however, -softened the dignity of her carriage, the luster of this emblem of her -royalty. To Narva, prostrate before her, she stretched out a hand with -affectionate eagerness, speaking to her, at the same time, in a tongue -unintelligible to Una. - -Saluting her again with the utmost reverence, the aged sibyl apparently -answered her questions. She then continued a voluble relation, the -main purpose of which, as Una surmised, had to do with the finding -of strangers in the cave. During this recital the being whom Narva -addressed regarded Una intently, her gaze manifesting an interest she -was at no pains to conceal. Having heard Narva to the end she slowly -approached Una and, to the latter's amazement, spoke to her in English. - -"I am Sajipona," she said. "Some call me Queen of the Indians; I am a -queen; but, of my kingdom, this last home of my fathers is all that your -people have left me. Deep underground, hidden from all men, few there -are who know of its existence--and we guard the secret, if need be, with -our lives. Against our law you have ventured here. Why have you come?" - -To the abrupt inquiry Una had no answer ready. She hesitated; then, -recalling her mission, she returned the gaze of her questioner with an -awakened courage that went well with her maidenly beauty. - -"I seek one who is dear to me," she replied. - -"Why do you think he is here?" demanded Sajipona. - -"Once, years ago, he was lost. It is said he was in this cave. Now he -has disappeared again--and we look for him here. I know nothing of your -law. You are good--I am sure of it--I beg of you to help me." - -The appeal was impulsively made. A smile of sympathy lighted the -features of the queen, followed by a look of pain. Her cheeks paled, the -hand, still clasping the lyre upon which she had been playing, trembled. -Averting her gaze, she turned towards the window where she had first -been standing. - -"Why should I help you?" she said. "You have broken our law." - -"We didn't know of your law. All we want is to find him." - -"If the man you seek is here of his own will, why should I help you find -him? He may wish to remain unknown." - -"You do not know," said Una eagerly. "A strange thing happened before. -It may be--how can I explain? It all sounds so improbable!--it may be he -is not himself." - -Sajipona laughed ironically. - -"Strange indeed! And it will be hard for you to explain. How can he be -not himself?" - -"If he has forgotten--if he has lost his memory--" - -"His memory? What riddles you talk! How does one lose one's memory? And -if he has lost his memory, can you bring it back to him then?" asked -Sajipona impatiently. - -"I think he would remember me," said Una simply. - -Sajipona's face showed her skepticism. "We shall see," she said. - -"Then you know where he is? He is here?" cried Una. - -But her question brought no direct response. Instead, Sajipona turned -to the old Indian who, during this brief colloquy, had shown signs of -uneasiness. She now placed her fingers to her lips and pointed with her -other hand to the apartment in the palace whence Sajipona had just made -her appearance. - -"Yes," repeated the queen, "we shall see." - -The three women turned to the open lattice window at the other end of -the portico. Objects in the room beyond were at first indistinct, but -as the eye became accustomed to the darkness the whole interior took on -more definite outlines. Una could see that the apartment was furnished -in barbaric luxury. Golden shields gleamed on the walls; hangings, rich -in color and material, were draped from the ceiling; massive cabinets, -ornately carved and encrusted with gold, stood in distant alcoves of the -room. But all these curious evidences of a bygone art were barely noted, -the attention being drawn to the one living occupant within. Lying on -a sort of divan, at some distance from the window, was the figure, -apparently, of a man. He was moving restlessly, as if awaking from -sleep. While Una looked, he rose and stood irresolutely in the center -of the room, one arm flung across his face to shield his eyes from the -light. Then, slowly walking to the window, as if looking for some one, -his arm dropped to his side and, leaning across the lattice, he called: - -"Sajipona!" - -It was David. - - - - -XVIII - -SUBTERRANEAN PHOTOGRAPHY - - -At first he did not see Una. His glance wandered dreamily off in the -distance and then, recalled, as if by the sudden disappearance of some -idle fancy, fixed itself upon Sajipona. A smile of satisfaction passed -over his features as he came out to meet her. - -"Why did you stop singing?" he asked, in a voice that was almost -inaudible. "I missed you." - -"Some one is here to see you," she said, ignoring the question. - -David turned to Una. One would have said that he had not seen her -before, although in her presence he betrayed a strange sort of -agitation. Their eyes met. He took the hand she eagerly stretched out to -him, then slowly relinquished it, perplexed, vaguely conscious of the -other's emotion. - -"I'm certain I've seen her before," he said, half jokingly, half in -irritation, addressing Sajipona, "but I can't remember when or where. -For the life of me I can't tell who she is. As for her name, I ought to -know that----" - -"Una! Una! Surely you remember, David?" - -"David! But of course you told her my name, Sajipona. Did you tell her -your pretty fancy, about the El Dorado, the Gilded Man?" - -"Surely, you remember my name--Una?" - -"Una--Una," he repeated uneasily. "It sounds familiar--I'm sure I've -heard it--but I can't exactly place it. Strange! How perfectly familiar -it is; yet, I can't place it, I can't place it! It's a beautiful -name--I'm sure I used to think so--and you are beautiful, too, Una!" - -Her name, pronounced in the accents she loved so well, brought a flood -of memories that, she felt, must thrill him too. And yet--there he stood -before her, the David she had always known, but now subtly changed, -troubled, unseeing. Amazement robbed her of words. He had forgotten -her. To Sajipona, however, more keenly observant even than Una, it was -evident that an undercurrent of recognition on the part of David was -hopelessly held in check by sheer inability to remember. His manner, -moreover, indicated a mental uneasiness, pain, that could not fail to -excite sympathy. - -"When you left us at Honda," began Una, "we expected to follow right -after. Then we heard you had disappeared----" - -Laughing mirthlessly, David placed both hands to his head in hopeless -bewilderment. - -"It sounds like some dream I might have had years ago. I can't make it -real," he said deprecatingly. "It's no use--I can't remember. Indeed, I -almost believe you are chaffing me. But--it's really too serious a thing -to joke about. You will tell--Una," he added, addressing Sajipona, "how -long I've been here, how kind you've been to me ever since I came back, -so ill I could scarcely look out for myself." - -"Ever since you came back?" repeated Una, seizing upon the clew. "Then -you have not always been here? You know the world outside of this cave? -You were here once before, and then went away? Where were you? Try to -remember." - -"Why, yes," said David, mystified more than ever; "of course I've been -away. I remember moving about a great deal, visiting many countries, -seeing many people. But I don't remember who any of them were--I can't -recall a single thing plainly, not a name, not a face. Sajipona has -tried to help me. She's very patient about it. But, so far, it has been -no use--and it's painful, I can tell you, trying to remember these -things. I feel comfortable, entirely at peace, only when Sajipona -sings. There's nothing like her singing. I could listen to her forever, -forgetting even to try to remember--if you know what that means." - -"But I want you to remember," interrupted Sajipona. "You must try--never -mind how painful it is. You know how much depends on that for both of -us." - -"Yes, I know. That's why I try. I believe that when I am entirely well -again it will all come right. All those dark dreams and things that -bother me now will be cleared away and I will be completely myself. Then -it will be as you say. We will be perfectly happy together." - -Involuntarily the two women looked at each other. David, standing -between them, calmer than before, remained silent, unconscious of the -effect of his words. - -"You must explain what you mean," Sajipona said to him firmly, after a -moment of irresolution. - -Aroused from his revery, he looked in perplexity from one to the other. -Then his brow cleared and he laughed softly. - -"Oh, yes! You see--Una--Sajipona is very beautiful; and she is just as -good as she is beautiful. I owe her everything. When I am completely -myself again, as I said, she has promised---- You see, I have told her -that I----" - -The words died away as he looked at Una. Her face showed neither -anxiety nor surprise, but a deep tenderness and melancholy. At the -sight of her he seemed to lose the thread of what he had to say. He was -mystified, pitiably torn between the struggles of a memory that remained -tongueless, and the realities of a situation that seemed, somehow, -peculiarly unreal. Wistfully he held out his hand to the girl whose -beauty thus moved him, then hastily withdrew it, turning as he did so to -Sajipona. - -"Your song was very soothing, my queen," he said ruefully. "I fear I -am not quite myself as yet. Something is wrong--something new. This -lady--Una--you will forgive me?" - -"Try to remember," she said earnestly; "there's nothing to forgive." - -"There's nothing to remember," he said disconsolately. "I have -tried--but I begin to think it's all a mistake." - -He turned abruptly, leaving them to go to the room whence he had come a -moment before. As he reached the open window he paused irresolutely. - -"You will not go?" he said, his eyes meeting Una's. - -"David!" was all her answer. - -He shook his head mournfully, hesitated, then slowly passed into the -darkened chamber beyond. - -The two women regarded each other in silence. In Sajipona's glance there -was proud defiance; with Una anxiety had changed to determination. The -wordless duel of emotions was interrupted by Narva, who, until now, had -remained in the background. Upon David's withdrawal the old sibyl shook -off her reserve and addressed herself reverently to Sajipona. - -"His old enemy is here," she announced; "there is danger." - -Narva's news did not bring the alarm that any one would have supposed it -would bring. Instead, Sajipona's look of anxiety vanished. A flash of -anger gleamed in her eyes. Then she smiled with an eager air of triumph, -grasping the old Indian's arm as if urging her to say more. - -"You mean the American, Raoul Arthur?" she asked. "Is he here? I want -him. I have waited for him. But, I didn't see him. Are you sure that he -is here?" - -Narva shrugged her shoulders. "He comes for no good," she said. "At -last he finds the way from Guatavita. He seeks treasure. With him are -traitors to the Land of the Condor. He fought Anitoo. He conquered him. -He is on his way to the palace. I heard him with his men on the iron -path. They are many. Defend yourself, Sajipona! We have very little -time." - -The appeal was received exultantly. From Una, however, there came a cry -of dismay. - -"If there is danger," she exclaimed, "what will become of my uncle and -the others?" - -Narva chuckled to herself. "There is no danger to them," she said. "The -fat man will have trouble to run, and the old woman will die because she -is always afraid." - -Her grim humor fell on unappreciative ears. At Sajipona's rebuke she -lapsed again into silence, first giving a grudging explanation of what -she had done with the party of explorers. The latter, it appeared, -were practically prisoners where Narva and Una left them. There they -must remain, unless they were discovered by the hostile band that was -believed to have invaded the cave, in which case their release would -mean capture by Raoul and his men. The possible consequences of this -increased Una's alarm, and at Sajipona's command Narva grumblingly set -forth to effect their rescue. As success depended on her speed, Una -was prevented from returning with her. She was thus left alone with -Sajipona, whose plans regarding David now absorbed her attention. Here, -however, she encountered a reserve which she could not break. Every -attempt to gain information was repelled, and in a manner intimating -that Una's interest in David was unwarranted by any previous friendship -between them. - -"He does not know you," exclaimed Sajipona exultantly, but with a note -of uneasiness that was not lost on the other. - -Una, concerned for David's safety, ignored the unspoken challenge. - -"What is to become of him? Why is he here?" she demanded. - -"What is that to you?" was the fierce retort. "He doesn't know even your -name. He is happy. He depends on me." - -"That may be. But there is a mystery. Tell me what it all means. If -he is happy, if there is nothing more to be said or done, I will go. -Only--tell me." - -"You will not go--not until there is no longer a mystery, as you call -it." - -The announcement sounded like the sentence of a judge, from which -there is no appeal. It reminded Una that she was in the power of one -who had shown towards her an inflexible will. At the same time she was -conscious of a softening in Sajipona's attitude that was both mystifying -and reassuring. This beautiful Indian girl had at first resented Una's -presence. She had regarded the other with queenly scorn, and had not -disguised the jealous impatience kindled by the brief and futile -interview with David. Now this impatience had given place to a deeper -emotion that was less easily understood. It might be of kindlier import, -an unexpected relenting from the harsh mood that apparently weighed -Una's every word and act with suspicion. Still, it was possible that -beneath this newly awakened generosity there lurked something sinister, -a deliberate purpose to lead the other to a confession that would be her -own undoing. Of this, however, Una had little fear. By nature trustful -of those about her, she did not look for harm to herself from one so -young, so beautiful, and who now, at any rate, appeared anxious to atone -for her former enmity by a graciousness equally marked. - -"There is nothing to fear," said Sajipona, as if reading her thoughts. -"Narva will protect your people. There is danger only from your friend, -this Raoul Arthur----" - -"He is not my friend!" exclaimed Una. - -Sajipona smiled. "We will soon see," she said. "This is the Land of the -Condor, all that is left to an ancient race that once ruled over many -nations. For centuries the poor remaining handful of my people have -managed to live unknown in this little corner of the earth. You are the -first--except one other--from the outside world to find your way into -this forgotten kingdom. When you will be free to return to the outer -world is not for me to say. But, you are here--my guest. Let us have it -that way. This is my kingdom. Enter!" - -They did not pass into the palace through the entrance used by David. -Back of where they stood, at a word of command from Sajipona, a large -door swung open, revealing a spacious court within flooded with a clear -white light that left not a corner or angle in shadow. This light -radiated from a central shaft overhead, at first indistinguishable in -the dazzling intricacies of the ceiling that stretched away in tier -upon tier of crystalline columns above them. Advancing to the middle -of this court, under the queen's guidance, Una beheld, at the apex of -the vast dome curving upward to a seemingly immeasurable distance, -a large opening beyond which blazed a great ball of fire suspended, -apparently, from the topmost pinnacle of the outer cave. The rays from -this underground sun--for it is only as a sun that it can be adequately -described--shone with an intensity that was fairly blinding. These rays -flashed and sparkled in long, waving streamers of flame, disappearing -and suddenly renewing their radiance with a ceaseless energy similar to -that displayed by some gigantic dynamo whose emanations are produced by -a concentration of power as yet unattempted by man. Fascinated by this -splendor, Una realized that she was standing beneath the great luminous -body whose magical effects she had first witnessed while approaching the -palace with Narva. Shielding her eyes from a spectacle that wearied by -its vehemence, she turned to Sajipona. But Sajipona was not with her. -Una stood alone in the center of the great court. - -At another time this sudden isolation would have been alarming. But -the many strange adventures experienced during the last few hours had -accustomed Una to danger, so that the disappearance of Sajipona served -merely to arouse her to a keener sense of her surroundings. Her faith -in this beautiful Indian, moreover, was not easily shaken, in spite of -the repellant attitude she had first assumed towards her. Treachery from -such a source, it seemed to her, was inconceivable. - -Stepping back from the direct rays of the great ball of fire, the -manifestations of whose mysterious power had until then absorbed her -attention, Una found herself in the midst of a throng of people, all of -them, apparently, watching her. By their dress, simple and flowing as -that worn by the followers of Anitoo, she perceived these were cave men -and women, some forty or fifty in number, each one standing motionless -along the wall farthest from her. With heads bent forward and arms -outstretched towards the center of the court, where Una stood, they -appeared to be engaged in some sort of devotional exercise, the visible -object of which was a great round disk of gold set in the tessellated -pavement that flashed beneath the light pouring upon it from above. -Inlaid within this disk, at the outer rim of which she had been standing -a moment before, Una could now discern cabalistic figures wrought in -emeralds whose deep effulgence was in striking contrast with the haze -of golden light surrounding them. The intricate design formed by these -figures was difficult to trace, but that each figure, and the pattern -into which it was woven, bore a mystical meaning was suggested by the -reverence with which this whole glittering pool of light was regarded by -the silent throng. - -Eagerly Una scanned the white-robed worshipers before her, hoping -that among them she might discover David. Not finding him, she sought -Sajipona, with the same disappointing result at first. Then her gaze, -wandering away from these strange faces, rested upon a slightly -elevated platform at one end of the court. There, beneath a gold and -gem-encrusted canopy, seated upon a massive throne of pure crystal, she -beheld the Indian queen. - -From the first Una had felt the spell of her beauty, but its force -had been tempered by the flashes of anger, the suspicion, the disdain -that had alternately marked their intercourse. Now, although arrayed -and staged, as it were, in all the splendor belonging to her high -station--with crown and scepter and glittering robe of state--this proud -beauty had softened to an almost girlish loveliness, wistful, touched -with a melancholy as hopeless as it was appealing. That she was a queen, -aloof from those about her, seemed strangely pathetic. Nor did this -expression of sheer womanliness change as her eyes met Una's. Across the -width of the great presence chamber a mysterious wave of sympathy seemed -to bind these two together. Completing its wordless message, Sajipona -arose and stood expectantly while Una approached, the throng before her -silently falling back until she reached the foot of the throne. Then, -with hands clasped in greeting, the two women faced each other, the -enmity that first had sundered them apparently forgotten, or, at the -least, held in check by some subtler, purer feeling. Again Una wondered -if this could be genuine--if the suspicion with which she had been -regarded at first might not still lurk behind this outward graciousness. -Little versed in the arts of dissimulation, however, and apt to take -for current coin whatever offered of friendliness, she accepted this -unlooked-for warmth of welcome with undisguised gratitude. Sajipona drew -her gently forward until the two stood side by side on the platform -facing the great court, the silent groups of attendants below them. The -dazzling light, the flashing splendor of columned walls and vaulted -ceiling, the white-robed figures, the jeweled throne, furnished forth a -faery spectacle not easily forgotten. - -"These are my people," said Sajipona proudly. "They will protect you as -they protect me." - -As if in answer to her assurance the waiting courtiers, absorbed until -now in the contemplation of the mystical figures within the circle of -light at their feet, slowly turned and made grave obeisance before -the two women standing in front of the throne. Following this sign of -submission, they came forward as if expectant of some further command. -Sajipona smilingly watched the effect of this ceremony on her companion. - -"Ah! it is not here as in Bogota," she said, "or in the world where you -come from, far from Bogota. You think all this that you see is unreal--a -dream, perhaps. My people are so different from yours--and all these -many years they live forgotten, unknown. I have lived in Bogota. There -they do not know of this great cave that belonged to the ancient rulers -of the mountains. They don't know that I am queen here, or of this -palace that is mine--and the light that burns like the sun. Ah! I wonder -what your wise uncle will say when he sees our sun!" - -Sajipona laughed noiselessly, with the half-concealed delight that a -child hugs to itself when it hides some simple secret from the eyes of -its elders. Una, more bewildered than ever at this allusion to Leighton, -sought vainly for a reasonable explanation of the marvels surrounding -her. - -"My uncle!" she exclaimed. "How do you know that he is wise--and he -is!--and that he is here? Yes, this sun of yours--what is it, where does -it come from?" - -Again Sajipona laughed. - -"Remember," she said, "this is not Bogota. Out there it is all very -wonderful, very great. You have the sky, the sun, the stars. The -mountains stretch away as far as the eye can see; there are plains, -cities; and there are buildings greater than any we have here. This is -a toy world, you will say, even when you think some things in it very -wonderful. But you do not guess the half of what is here. In this world -my people have lived in secret for centuries. They have discovered -things that even the wisest of your people know nothing of. We have eyes -that see everything that happens in our world of stone, eyes that pierce -through the stones themselves. I knew when you came into our kingdom; -I watched you when you passed through the great gate where the others -were fighting. But--you don't believe me. Come, I will show you." - -Sajipona gave her hand to the astonished girl and the two stepped -down from the platform where they were standing and made their way to -the center of the court. Here the great circle of light cast by the -ball of fire overhead gleamed at their feet like an unruffled pool of -sun-kissed water. At the rim of this circle they halted, Sajipona gently -restraining her companion, who, in her eagerness, would have passed on. - -"Look there on the floor," she said. "Your eyes may not be as ours; -perhaps you will have to wait before you can see. But it will come--you -will see." - -Una remembered how she had heard--and laughed--of magicians who -pretended to read the future by gazing into a crystal globe. The -experiment to which she was now invited seemed like that, only here it -was apparently a huge mirror of reflected light that she was told to -watch, while no word had been said of finding therein a revelation of -things to come. Nor could she see anything in this mirror at first. -Waves of light, tongues of leaping flame, passed over the polished -surface of the metal, here darting off in long zigzag streaks, there -forming a sort of pool of molten, quivering fluorescence, as the -physicists call it, varying in size and color, then vanishing utterly. -Much the same appearance Una remembered having seen on the surface -of a copper kettle when subjected to intense heat. But in this case -there was no perceptible heat to account for the phenomenon, which -was rather electric in its fantastic weavings--a reduplication, on a -gigantic scale, of the wavering finger of light that she had watched -play, with such fatal results, on her uncle's electric psychometer. The -resemblance, recognized with a shudder, intensified her interest. The -succession of marvels through which she had been passing prepared her -for anything. In her present mood, nothing would have surprised her. - -"What is it? What is it?" she asked eagerly. - -Sajipona followed the twisting maze of figures before them with unwonted -anxiety. Her usual calm demeanor was gone. She appeared to be reading -something the purport of which was not at all to her liking. - -"Look!" she exclaimed. "There he is. They have let him pass through the -gate. He is coming here. Anitoo's men are with him." - -To Una the words were meaningless. Yet she knew that her companion was -reading, or, rather, witnessing something that was passing before her -own eyes, and that hence should have been quite as visible to her--if -only she had the clew. But this she did not have. She recognized the -hint of danger. She knew that in some way Sajipona had caught a glimpse -of some one whom she counted an enemy. She felt that this person was in -some way connected with her own party; and then the thought of Raoul -Arthur flashed across her mind, at the same time that his veritable -image--so it seemed--stood forth in wavering lines of light at her feet. - -"Save David from him!" she cried involuntarily. - -"You see him--you know him!" - -"He came in with us. He is there--look! I don't know by what invisible -power you have conjured up this apparition, but it is real. He is the -one man I have feared--and he is coming here!" - -Sajipona laughed softly to herself. - -"Ah!" she cried, "now you have our secret. Here in this ancient hall, -under this sun we have worshiped for countless ages, nothing is hidden. -But the man you fear, that you see there, will bring freedom to us -both." - -Whatever Sajipona meant by her enigmatical words, the fact was there, -the living, moving likeness of Raoul Arthur, in the light-woven tapestry -at Una's feet. Eagerly she watched him. It was certainly Raoul, Raoul -hurrying towards her, growing more distinct, more threatening with -every moment. Behind him streamed a shadowy line of men--swiftly, -confidently--following a trail amid the jagged rocks and precipices -of the cave that might well have daunted the boldest spirits, but -which seemed powerless to retard their progress. As Una's eyes became -accustomed to the shifting panorama before her, sundry details came into -view that at first had been unnoticed. She was familiar with the curious -phenomena wrought by the camera obscura, and this singular portrayal on -the gleaming floor of Sajipona's palace seemed at first not unlike that -simple method of reproducing objects invisible to the spectator. But as -the present picture grew and then faded away, to be followed by others -in this magic pool of light, she knew that what she now beheld was -quite beyond the power of the cunningly placed lens used in experiments -with the camera obscura to portray. The latter, she remembered, could -reproduce objects only when they came within a certain definite -distance from the lens itself. But here Raoul Arthur and his companions -moved across a constantly changing, lengthening space. Moreover, she -recognized the path they were following as the one over which she had -traveled at a point far away from the palace. They had reached, indeed, -the very spot where she and Narva had first caught sight of that topmost -pinnacle of the cave, behind and above which flamed the great ball of -fire, the sun of this subterranean world. As Sajipona's palace stood at -the base of this pinnacle, she calculated, from her own experience of -the journey, that Raoul and his followers were coming directly towards -them. - -"There is nothing to fear," resumed Sajipona, as if in answer to her -thoughts. "Be glad of their coming. But--for your own people I am -afraid." - -"Ah, my poor uncle! I have brought him into all this danger," exclaimed -Una. "Where is he? How can I save him?" - -"Look!" - -Eagerly studying the portion of the picture indicated, Una suddenly -found, to her horror, that Raoul, with that vague, shadowy rabble at his -heels, was approaching another group of people, just ahead, among whom -she recognized the gaunt figure of Narva, evidently exasperated by the -inability of the others to keep pace with her. Even in the uncertain -lines of the picture the scorn darkening the features of the old sibyl -was easily discernible. Behind her tottered Mrs. Quayle, waving her -arms in helpless protest, supported by the faithful Andrew, whose face -showed an even greater degree of woe and alarm than usual. They were -closely followed by Leighton, imperturbable as ever, and Miranda, whose -irascible rocketing from one side to the other of the narrow trail, and -whose violent gesticulations manifested all too plainly his indignation. -Had it not been for her companions Narva could easily have outstripped -her pursuers; but with so timorous a person as Mrs. Quayle this seemed -impossible. The hopelessness of it, in spite of all his scolding and -prodding, had evidently convinced Miranda of the necessity for a change -of tactics. Further flight being a mere waste of energy, there was left -the alternative of parleying with the enemy. Hence, without stopping to -consult with General Herran, who still suffered, apparently, from his -wound, and who plodded patiently along immediately behind Leighton, the -doctor suddenly came to a standstill. This unexpected halt very nearly -toppled over the others, who were pressing on as hard as they could go -and found it difficult to stop on the instant. But Miranda did not heed -the ludicrous disorder into which he had thrown them. Facing quickly -about, and with arms impressively folded, he bestrode the narrow path -as if defying any one who might be foolhardy enough to challenge him. -At a distance, and without hearing the torrent of abuse with which he -evidently greeted his pursuers, the fiery doctor resembled a small -terrier disputing the right of way with a pack of hounds hot on their -quarry. What he lacked in physical presence, however, Miranda made up in -energy. Undaunted he stood his ground, the men whom he addressed halting -with astonishment depicted on their faces. Then, most amazing of all, he -wheeled about, placed himself at their head and, waving them forward, -strutted along as if he had been their chosen leader. - -Amused and impressed by his boldness, the men were apparently willing -at first to accept Miranda for their commander. He furnished them with -a new kind of entertainment, and for the moment, and just because -they did not understand him, it seemed as if they recognized in him -a superiority they were not loath to follow. But Raoul's leadership -was not to be so easily superseded. Quickly thrusting Miranda aside, -breathless and triumphant from his exertions, the wiry American angrily -harangued his troops. He threatened the foremost of them with a pike -that he held in his hand, and by their downcast looks and passive -demeanor, it was evident that his words and gestures had brought them -back to a recognition of his authority. Miranda, still shouting and -gesticulating, was ignominiously left to shift for himself, while the -cavemen, obeying Raoul's command, swept onward until they reached the -stupefied group of explorers ahead of them. Here another halt was -ordered, and Raoul pointed out Mrs. Quayle to his men. Four of the -latter promptly left the ranks of their comrades, went forward at -a round trot, seized the horrified lady, and swung her up to their -shoulders before she knew what was happening, or had time to defend -herself. Thus carried by two of the men and held in place by the other -two, she was speedily brought into line not far behind Raoul. Leighton -evidently protested against the sudden capture of Mrs. Quayle, for -whose safety he felt peculiarly responsible. But his appeal was waved -scornfully aside. The rest of the explorers, Miranda included, seeing -that further resistance was futile, and that they were virtually Raoul's -prisoners, hopelessly resigned themselves to their fate and followed -along with the others. A signal was then given, and the entire throng -marched rapidly down the trail to the palace. Narva, however, was not -among them. In the commotion that took place during the altercation with -Miranda, and the subsequent seizure of Mrs. Quayle, she had disappeared. - -As the last figures in this strange picture faded from view, Sajipona -seized Una's arm. The waving streams of light reflected on the floor -had again become meaningless. It was as if a dream had suddenly passed -before them, leaving them, as sleepers awakening, uncertain of the -reality of what they had witnessed. - -"Who is he?" asked Sajipona--"the stout man who so nearly captured these -traitors?" - -"A friend, a doctor, who came with us." - -"He is brave! But it is strange that this Raoul Arthur could free -himself so easily from Anitoo. He must have killed my poor Anitoo to -do that. But your friend was nearly too much for him! Never mind if he -failed. They will soon be here. Let us be ready!" - -Then, turning to her attendants who stood in a circle at a distance from -them, she cried: - -"Open the door!" - -Obeying her command, two of the cavemen hurried to the farther end of -the hall. There was a muffled sound of grating stone, and then the two -leaves of the great portal swung slowly open, revealing the glittering, -silent garden of the palace beyond. - - - - -XIX - -A QUEEN'S CONQUEST - - -Surrounded by her people, the ancient diadem of the Chibchas, with its -great, smouldering emerald, on her head, Sajipona waited at the entrance -to the court. Without, the motionless flowers and shrubbery of the -garden were steeped in a pale, quivering light outlining every object -with a weird intensity sharper, yet more indefinable than gleams from -moon-drenched skies. In this spectral scene the cavemen stood in rows, -like carven statues; even Sajipona, mobile, versatile of mood, seemed a -woman of marble. - -But Una, stirred profoundly by the picture she had seen, doubtful of its -reality, not altogether sure of her own ground, aware of the dangers -that threatened, but ignorant of their exact character, could not hide -her anxiety. Seizing Sajipona's hand, her eyes were eloquent of unspoken -questioning. Her mute appeal was answered by a wistful smile, a glance -at once gracious and sorrowful. - -"For you there is no danger," said the queen. "For me--yes, for me there -is, perhaps, danger." - -"How can that be?" - -"You fear this Raoul Arthur. It is not for you, it is for me he has -come. For three years he has plotted to do this thing. My own kinsman, -Rafael Segurra, was in league with him. Before now he has attempted to -force his way here. The two together found their opportunity in your -coming. And now--Arthur has escaped from his captors and again seems to -have found traitors among my people." - -"What is it he wants?" - -"You ask that--you who know David!" - -For a moment the anger and suspicion with which she had first regarded -Una kindled in Sajipona's eyes. But the mood vanished as quickly as it -came. - -"Surely, you remember what Narva said," she went on. "He seeks treasure. -He sought it with David three years ago, the poor treasure belonging to -what is left of my people. Segurra told him where it was, how to get -it." - -"Ah, yes!" exclaimed Una. "Now I know! The treasure of Guatavita, of El -Dorado, it is here." - -"It is here--it is mine!" said Sajipona sternly. "It will never be -his. Always your people have fought for it, have sinned and died to -make it theirs. They have driven us off the face of the earth, to hide -for centuries in this cave and in that other land that as yet you know -nothing of. Here we have made our world--and we will keep what is ours, -unless David----" - -The words died on Sajipona's lips. At the far end of the garden the -heavy branches of spectral shrubbery swayed and parted, revealing a -majestic figure hastening toward them. It was Narva. Gliding along -the pathway, she showed an agitation contrasting strangely with -her accustomed reserve. Reaching the entrance to the palace, she -pointed behind her, at the same time addressing the queen in words -unintelligible to Una. - -"Yes, they are coming," said Sajipona, smiling composedly. "It is well. -There is nothing to fear." - -Narva had arrived none too soon. As she spoke to the queen, shouts were -heard in the distance, and then the tramp of approaching footsteps. -Sajipona advanced to the threshold of the palace, where, signing to the -others to remain behind, she stood alone, awaiting the noisy intruders. -Her defenseless position brought bitter protest from Narva that was -supported by a movement among the others to protect their queen. This -was quickly rebuked; and when Raoul, his followers and the explorers -poured into the garden they were confronted by a group of men and women -who gave no sign of uneasiness at their arrival. - -It should be noted here that, in spite of his defeat, pictured in -the pool of light, Miranda had by no means relinquished his efforts -to gain control of Raoul's men. He had followed along at their side, -irrepressible in his attempts to hold their attention--a sort of -gadfly whose persistent teasing nothing can stop. Raoul would have put -an end to him, once and for all; but in this he found that his men, -pacific by nature and training, would not uphold him. Miranda's rotund -figure, vehemence, spasmodic energy, the unmitigated scorn with which -he regarded all who differed from him, delighted them. He enjoyed the -sort of immunity from punishment granted the old-time court jester. The -cavemen liked him because they could never tell what he was going to do -next. The novelty of so dynamic a personality appealed to their sense -of humor. Thus, when they were all assembled in the garden, the little -doctor's next move was awaited with eagerness. To their astonishment, -the flourish expected of him was not forthcoming. Instead, he stood -stock still, folded his arms across his chest with all the Napoleonic -dignity he could muster, and glared at Raoul. - -This extreme composure, however, was not shared by the rest of the -explorers. At the first glimpse of Una, standing immediately behind -Sajipona, Mrs. Quayle gave a shriek of joy and collapsed into the arms -of the schoolmaster, whose own emotions made him a sorry support at -the best. Leighton, on the contrary, accompanied by Herran, strode -quickly forward and would have reached the threshold of the palace, -had he not been waved imperiously aside by Raoul, who now summoned his -followers about him, formed them into a close phalanx and advanced -rapidly across the garden. When they were within a hundred yards of -the palace, they were suddenly met by two men of gigantic stature, -who calmly ordered them to halt. Raoul was less intimidated than his -followers, who recognized in this unexpected challenge an authority they -were accustomed to obey. The two men confronting them evidently belonged -to the priesthood. They were distinguished from the rest of Sajipona's -courtiers by their dress, adorned by various symbolical figures -embroidered in red and gold, and by two wands, each surmounted by an -emerald, which they carried in their hands. Although without military -backing, weaponless except for these wands, Raoul saw with dismay that -the mere presence of these men excited the respect, and even the homage, -of those about him. Many bowed before them; a few showed an unmistakable -disposition to abandon their enterprise altogether and take refuge in -flight. Before this movement could become general, however, they were -arrested by the appearance of Sajipona in their midst. - -Descending the steps of the palace, the queen, attended only by Una and -Narva, came swiftly forward to meet them. Her bearing, the proud majesty -of her beauty, caused a murmur of admiration throughout the ranks of -the cavemen that was punctuated by a hearty shout from Miranda, who -watched the troubles of Raoul with unrestrained delight. It was not -often, indeed, that the rank and file of the Land of the Condor came -face to face with their queen. When they did so, the meeting aroused a -profound feeling of pride and loyalty. Raoul, seeing the effect Sajipona -had upon his men, and already disconcerted by the reception accorded the -two priests, had no mind for further encounters that might cost him his -entire following. In the outside world, faced by a similar danger, he -would have retreated. But here, in the midst of a subterranean labyrinth -of unknown extent, retreat was impossible. The alternative was a bold -rallying of his forces, a sudden rush for the prize he had ventured so -far to win. Turning upon his men, he denounced them savagely for their -apparent change of purpose, their cowardice. - -"You will remain slaves!" he cried tauntingly. "We have your tyrants in -our power. All you need do for your freedom is to follow me and take -what belongs to you." - -There were enough who understood his words to translate them to those -ignorant of Spanish, and the immediate effect produced on these people, -vacillating by nature, ever ready to yield to the strongest personality -that appealed to them, was not far from that intended. Spears, knives, -blowguns were brandished, a score or more men leaped forward uttering -cries of triumph--and again the attack planned by Raoul seemed fairly -under way and with a reasonable prospect of success. It was checked--but -only for an instant--by a clamorous protest from Miranda. The latter, -blazing with indignation, bounded to the front, gesticulating and -menacing all who were within his reach. - -"He is one canaille, this fellow!" he shouted. "He fight with the -womens. He take from you all you have. Do not be estupid. He lie! He -lie!" - -This outburst astonished more than it convinced those to whom it was -addressed. As Miranda spoke in a mixture of English and Spanish, -scarcely any one understood what he said. In another moment he would -have been swept derisively aside, had not Sajipona quietly interposed. -Pointing at Raoul, she spoke a few words to the cavemen in their native -tongue. Then she turned to the man whose armed presence at the doors of -her palace, threatened her authority, if not her life. - -"So! This is the man who, a short time ago, I saved from death at the -hands of an angry mob!" she said scornfully. "You did not come to my -house then, Don Raoul, as you come now. And yet--if I order these men, -whom you think are your followers, to treat you as that other mob would -have treated you, they would obey me. Be sure of that! And now, tell me: -what have you done with Anitoo?" - -Raoul hesitated a moment, then answered sullenly: - -"He attacked me. I killed him in self-defense." - -The reply was only half understood by the cavemen; but the attitude of -Raoul, contrasted with the majestic bearing and composure of Sajipona, -had already aroused their indignation. - -"It may have been, as you say, in self-defense--I have only your word -for it. But, for the treachery, the rebellion you have brought here," -the queen went on, "by all the laws of our kingdom you should die. But I -have something I wish you to do. If you do it, your life will be spared -and you will be taken in safety from this cave never to enter it again." - -Sajipona checked the tumult that she saw rising among the cavemen, and -spoke a few words to them. - -"I have told them," she explained, turning to Raoul, "that I knew of -your coming--as I did. I have told them I have something for you to do -before you are expelled from our kingdom. And I have pledged my word for -your safety--although none of the men you have led here against me seem -to care what happens to you. And now you will come with me." - -There was a murmur of approval. Raoul looked fearfully at his followers. -Their submission to the commands of the woman they were accustomed -to obey was sufficiently evident to destroy his last hope for even a -divided authority. Neither--for he was ignorant of their language--could -he tell just what had passed between them and Sajipona. He was glad to -accept, however, the queen's promise of safety; and this, coupled with a -desire to get to the bottom of the mystery that had tantalized him since -he first met this strange and fascinating being, reconciled him to the -enforced abandonment of his schemes for the conquest of a subterranean -stronghold into which he had ventured too far to retreat. He therefore -bowed his head to Sajipona's commands and prepared to do as she -directed. His submission was greeted with ironical approval by Miranda, -who how waddled forward impatiently, dragging Leighton with him, to -enter the palace. But in this he was prevented by Sajipona. - -"Senor, Doctor," she said, pleasing his vanity by her knowledge of his -professional title, "you must wait. There is much to be done. You are a -fine general. You have helped save this palace, my kingdom and all of -us from ruin. I am very grateful. Soon you will have everything that -you want. And you and your friends will return to your own country in -safety." - -This unexpected check, although expressed in terms that were highly -pleasing to Miranda's vanity, was received with a grumbling protest. - -"But, Senorita," he expostulated; "this young lady is here. I look for -her everywhere in this cave. I am her family. She must come back to us." - -"Not yet," was the calm reply. "Very soon, yes. But now she will stay -with me." - -There was a finality about this way of putting things that dashed -even Miranda's impetuosity. Leighton, silently watching the brief -altercation, and perceiving that Una, who still remained where Sajipona -had left her, was perfectly calm and in no need of their assistance, -exerted himself to restrain her headstrong champion. This was no easy -matter, and the struggle between the two was watched with a covert smile -by Sajipona. With the help of Herran and Andrew, however, Miranda's -opposition was finally overcome. After which, without waiting to hear -the tirade that, she could see, the doctor was ready to launch, the -queen, followed by Raoul, turned to the palace. Regaining the entrance, -she faced them once more and waved a farewell to the silent throng in -the garden. Then, giving her hand to Una, she passed within, the great -doors clanging behind her. - - - - -XX - -LEGEND AND REALITY - - -As soon as she reëntered the palace, Sajipona dismissed her courtiers, -the cavemen who acted as guards, and even the few female attendants she -was accustomed to have near her. Of her own people, Narva alone -remained. - -Facing Raoul and Una in the deserted hall, flooded with light from the -magic sun that a short while since had traced in moving characters -of fire the approach of her enemies, Sajipona told of her purpose in -bringing them there. She spoke as if she had long foreseen and even -planned this interview, and amazed them by her intimate knowledge of -various matters that seemed quite beyond the reach of her sources of -information. It was as if she had been thoroughly familiar for some -years past with Raoul's schemes, and had even shared in the hopes and -fears that brought Una to Colombia. - -"I knew of your coming; I planned for it," she said to Raoul. "For -months I have known that you were using every art your cunning could -suggest--aided by the treachery of one of my own people--to find your -way here. Until now you have been unable to do anything. I was always -able to keep you out of here--and I could still have kept you out, had -it not served my purpose better to let you come. You are here now--you -are looking for what you have always looked. You guessed, long since, -of the existence of a great treasure house, built here centuries ago -by the rulers of our mountain kingdom who disappeared before the white -invaders of this country. Idle stories and legends of those far off -times, repeated to you by the peons whom you questioned, vague hints -and romances picked up from ancient books, led you to this cave and to -the belief that I was, in some way, mixed up with its secret. I will -not say that you were right or wrong in all of this. Here you look for -a mountain of treasure; as yet you have found none. But you have seen -marvels enough since you entered this unknown region to make you eager -to solve a mystery that every moment has grown deeper. I will help -you--but it must be in my own way, and just so far as it suits my own -plans. - -"Once, we who live here now shut out from all the rest of the world, -were free. We overran all the plains and mountains of Bogota, our rule -extended to the warmer countries on every side of us. We practiced -arts, cultivated sciences, were familiar with secrets of nature that -our conquerors were too rude, too ignorant to understand. But these -conquerors excelled us in warfare; and so we were driven either into -slavery or hiding. It is in memory of that former age of freedom and -empire that my people have called this the Land of the Condor--that, -and a strange old legend that you may have heard of. Here we are hidden -far, as you know, from the light of the upper earth. A miracle of nature -carved this land out of the rock; the science and art of a race older -than yours have furnished it and made it what you see. It is guarded, -as you know to your cost, by many a labyrinth, strongholds that have -baffled you every time you have tried to pierce them. Its people live by -means and methods that are forgotten--if they were ever known--to the -outer world. Here we have been free to follow the customs and beliefs of -our fathers. Here we could still continue a peaceful mode of life you -know nothing of. But something has happened that has changed all this. -Because of it I have at last permitted, even aided your coming to us. -I know all you have sacrificed for this treasure you hope to win from -the depths of the earth--treasure that belongs to us. I will not say -that your search will be rewarded. Had you succeeded in your plan years -ago you would have paid dearly for it. The knowledge of this hidden -land would have been forever lost to you. Good fortune--or ill--has -brought you here at last. Your fate lies now in the hands of the man -you once tried to injure. But there is one thing you must do before his -decision can be given. You must free him from a tyranny that, with all -our knowledge of mankind's perils and weaknesses, we are powerless to -overcome." - -The demand, vague though it was, did not surprise Raoul. Upon learning -of David's disappearance on the road from Honda to Bogota, he guessed -that the missing man had found his way, by some inexplicable method, to -this subterranean world, thus repeating his almost fatal adventure of -three years ago. This surmise, based on the past, and on indications -of similar abnormal mental symptoms that he believed David had again -experienced, was corroborated by the cavemen who accompanied him to the -palace. From these cavemen he learned that David had been followed by -Sajipona's emissaries ever since his arrival in Honda. These people -intended neither his capture, nor to interfere with whatever plans he -might have. Instead, they had formed a sort of secret guard, instructed -to watch him and report, so soon as they could ascertain it, his purpose -in revisiting Bogota. When he was separated from Herran by the regiment -of volunteers on the Honda road, he was found in a state of mental -bewilderment, not conscious, apparently, that he had lost his traveling -companions, but anxious to find his way to some place, which he vaguely -described. While in this condition he seemed to recognize the cavemen -with whom he was talking. Aided by their hints and suggestions, his -recollection of the cave, and especially of Sajipona, grew in vividness. -He appeared to remember nothing of Herran, nor of his immediate object -in visiting Bogota. But he spoke with increasing clearness of the Land -of the Condor. He recalled what had befallen him there three years ago -as if it had happened quite recently, and declared he was looking for -Sajipona, of whom he spoke with the greatest admiration and gratitude. -As he was uncertain of his way, he asked the cavemen to guide him. -This, of course, they were ready to do, although they were completely -mystified by the sudden oblivion into which, apparently, all his -present friends and purposes had fallen in his mind. Sajipona alone he -remembered. Three years had passed since he last saw her--but the events -crowded into those three years seemed to have left not the slightest -trace on his memory. He described his first visit to the cave; but the -time between that period and this remained a blank in his mind. - -All this Raoul had gathered from the cavemen who, reverting to the -Indian belief in such matters, declared that David was bewitched. In a -sense, Raoul knew this to be true. He knew also that the spells wrought -by modern witchcraft were easily broken by any scientist holding the -clew to them. That the cavemen, who possessed secrets in physics unknown -to the outer world, should be ignorant of the simplest phenomena of -hypnotism was not extraordinary. Even Sajipona shared, to a certain -extent, the superstitions of those around her regarding David. She -expected Raoul to break the "enchantment" under which David suffered. -Una, familiar with Leighton's experiments and speculations in this -field, was quite as confident as the queen that the case was within -Raoul's power. Raoul alone realized the possible consequences following -David's return to normal consciousness. - -"Even if I could do as you say," he asked, "why would you have David -changed?" - -"As he is now, he is not himself." - -"No, he is not himself," repeated Una eagerly. - -Sajipona's cheek paled; her lips tightened as if to prevent an angry -rejoinder. - -"Are you not content with him as he is?" persisted Raoul. - -"What is that to you?" she asked coldly. Then, no longer disguising her -emotion, she went on: - -"You don't understand what is between us. He comes from a world that -I have never seen. In the legends of our kings there is one telling -of a stranger who suddenly appears from a land of clouds--a land no -man knows--who brings with him the power to make my people, as they -once were, rulers of their own land. It is an old tale. Believe it or -not--who can be sure of these things? Certainly, the stranger has never -come--unless it is David." - -"There have been many strangers since that time," said Raoul cynically. -"Your people have disappeared before the Spaniard. They live unknown, -forgotten, in a cave in the mountains. Why do you think David is the -stranger in the legend?" - -She drew herself up scornfully. Her dark beauty, flashing eye, quivering -nostril, needed not the emerald diadem of the ancient Chibchas -encircling her brow to proclaim her royal lineage. - -"We are not so poor, so abandoned, as you seem to think," she said. -"This is all that is left of a mighty kingdom, it is true--a cave -unknown to the rest of the world. But here we are, at least, free. We -live the life of our fathers. Our old men have taught us wisdom that -is unknown to you. We have wealth--not only the wealth that you are -seeking--but secrets of earth and air you have never dreamed of." - -"This may be--I believe it is--all true. But--what is David to do here?" -murmured Una. - -"If he is the Stranger of the old legend, the Gilded Man we have -awaited, this Land of the Condor is his." - -"You are its queen." - -"He will be its king." - -"You have told him?" asked Raoul. - -"Years ago. We were happy. I loved him. It was not as the women of your -world love. Life was less than his least wish. And he loved me. Plans -for the great rejoicing--the Feast of the Gilded Man--were made. Not -since the Spaniards came--perhaps never before--has there been such -preparation. Then, a change came over him. He talked of an outside -world he had seen in his dreams. He was bewitched then, as he is now. -He had forgotten you, his false friend, and all the life he had lived -before. To cure him, I sent him out with some of our people. He scarcely -understood, but he accepted anything I did as if it came from his own -will. Then he disappeared. Without a word he left me. There came long -years of uncertainty. The few months he passed with me here seemed like -some bright dream that vanishes. I began to think it was a dream--when -suddenly I heard of him again. Some of my people found him wandering -aimlessly in the forest near the Bogota road. He was looking for me, he -said--he had forgotten the rest of the world." - -There was an artless simplicity in Sajipona's confession of her love -and disappointment that was more than eloquence. Narva stood apart, her -face shrouded in her mantle, motionless, as if the remembrance of these -bygone matters carried with it something of a religious experience. Upon -Una the effect was startlingly different. She listened in amazement, -indignation, at this revelation of a passion in which her lover had -shared--of which she had known nothing--and that seemed to place -him utterly apart from her. If Sajipona's tale was true--the manner -of its telling, her own engaging personality, carried irresistible -conviction--David's love for Una had been shadowed all along by an -earlier, deeper sentiment that gave it the color of something that was -not altogether real. Why had he never told her of this Indian romance? -Hypnotism indeed! What man could help kneeling in passionate adoration -before this queenly woman, whose beauty was of that glorious warmth -and fragrance belonging to the purple and scarlet flowers of one's -dreams, whose love combined the unreasoning devotion of a child with -the proud loyalty that inspires martyrdom? They had loved--David and -Sajipona--there could be no doubt of that. Before he met Una on the -shores of that far-off English lake, David had stood soul to soul in a -heaven created by this radiant being. He was with her again. The past -was completely blotted out; the tender idyl of Derwentwater, of Rysdale, -forgotten. Even the sight of Una herself stirred but the vaguest ripple -of memory. There was mystery, certainly, in these strange moods of -forgetfulness from which David was suffering. Her uncle could give them -a learned name and account for them as belonging to something quite -outside the man's will, outside his control. But what did Leighton -really know of all this? Such matters were beyond the reach of the mere -scientist. With a flash of scorn she doubted Leighton's knowledge; his -wisdom seemed curiously limited. David's malady--if it was to be called -a malady--was nothing less than the delirium caused by love itself, -and as such beyond the reach of clinic or laboratory. The spell, the -witchcraft, that had transformed him was wrought by Sajipona. - -At first Una had not believed this; now the sudden conviction that the -man she loved was faithless to her, had always been faithless to her, -brought an overwhelming sense of bitterness. Her former anxiety to save -him--from peril as she thought--gave place to a feeling that was almost -vindictive. She did not view him with the anger of the jealous woman -merely; she wanted to have done with him, to forget him altogether. His -name was linked by this beautiful Indian to one of the legends of her -race; let it remain there! - -"Why disturb him now?" she demanded passionately of Sajipona. "He loves -you, he is content." - -The revulsion of feeling in her voice was unmistakable. Her cheeks -flushed, her eyes, eloquent hitherto of womanly tenderness, dilated in -anger. Sajipona smiled enigmatically. - -"If you had not come," she said, "there would have been no question. But -you are here. He seems to have forgotten you. I am not sure, I want to -be certain, now that he has forgotten you, that he is still himself." - -"Why do you doubt? Yes, he has forgotten me. And he is in your power, he -is yours! Why hazard anything further?" - -Sajipona ignored the scornful meaning conveyed in the words, regarding -Una with a detachment indicating her absorption in a new train of -thought. - -"A moment ago you were anxious for his safety," she murmured. "You came -here to look for him, to rescue him. Perhaps I have been unjust--perhaps -you have a claim----" - -"I have no claim," retorted Una proudly. "Once you saved his life. He -has come to you again. He loves you. What man could help loving you!" -she added bitterly. - -Still Sajipona smiled. - -"I must be sure of all this--and so must you," she said. "If the -witchcraft is mine, its power will soon be broken. If there is something -else, you, Senor, will discover it." - -She turned impatiently to Raoul, desiring him to go with her to -David. Una refused to accompany them. The conviction that she had been -mistaken, deluded, filled her with an unconquerable aversion to meeting -the man for whom she had been willing to sacrifice so much. Aware of the -unreasonableness of this feeling, she yet had no wish to conquer it. To -escape from this land of mysteries and terrors, to return to the simple -familiar environment of Rysdale--to forget, if that were possible--was -now her one desire. She did not attempt to explain or justify herself to -Sajipona. Nor was this necessary. To Sajipona, Una's anger and its cause -were alike evident. - -"Stay here, if you will, with Narva," said the queen, with real or -feigned indifference. "But remember, you have refused to save the man -whom you think is in danger." - -Una did not reply. For the moment the old Indian sibyl, to whose -protection she had been assigned, seemed a welcome refuge. Narva's -reserve, her silence, brought a negative sort of relief to her own moods -of anguish and indignation. Thus, without regret or misgiving, she -watched Raoul and Sajipona disappear through the portal that had first -admitted her to the great hall of the palace. - - - - -XXI - -DREAMS - - -David welcomed Sajipona with genuine pleasure, with an eagerness -suggesting that he had been awaiting her coming impatiently. Heedless -of his greeting, however, and regarding him earnestly, she asked if he -remembered the visitor who had been with him a short time before. - -"Yes! Yes!" he exclaimed. Then he went on, betraying a certain degree -of anxiety in tone and manner, explaining how this visitor's face had -haunted him as if it belonged to one he had seen in his dreams, one -upon whom he had unwittingly inflicted pain. Of course, that could not -be, he said, since there was no reality in dreams. After all, a fancied -wrong was nothing--and yet, this dim memory of the woman who had been -with them a moment before was confusing. Where was she now? he asked. -Was she offended because he failed to recognize her? He should have -known better--but dreams are troublesome things! He would like to see -her again--although it might be painful in a way--and then, perhaps, he -would recall more distinctly what now was merely a dim sort of shadow in -the back of his brain. - -They talked together in the darkened chamber overlooking the portico. -The couch from which he rose to greet Sajipona screened, with its regal -hangings, Raoul from him. When the queen pointed out this new visitor to -him, the result was similar to that following his encounter with Una. - -"More dream-people," muttered David, passing his hand slowly across his -eyes. "I know this man, but I can't exactly place him. It will come back -to me in a minute." - -Raoul watched him with the intent, impersonal interest a scientist gives -an experiment that is nearing the climax for which everything has been -prepared beforehand. - -"I think I can help you," he assured him. - -Then, turning to Sajipona; "I must warn you," he said in a low voice. -"There will be a complete change. Why not leave things as they are?" - -The queen held her head up proudly. - -"What do you mean?" she asked. - -Raoul shrugged his shoulders, regarding her, and then David, with a -gleam of malice in his restless eyes. - -"I mean just this: David will remember vividly what is now only a vague -dream, and he may forget everything else. Therefore, I say, if you are -satisfied with him as he is, don't disturb his present mood." - -"I am not satisfied." - -"Ah! you are not satisfied. You want to try one more experiment. But, -just think!" he went on, a hint of mockery in his voice; "all that -legend of your people, about a stranger who would appear from a far-off -land and restore the Chibcha Empire--why spoil so pretty a picture? And -the chances are, you will spoil it. I warn you----" - -A flash of anger checked his words. - -"I have pledged myself for your safety," she reminded him; "keep out of -danger! I don't care for your warnings. Help this man in the way that I -have asked, and as you say you can. You've tried often enough to injure -him. The consequences to me from what you do now--leave all that for me -to choose. Oh, never fear! I will repay your service." - -David understood little of what was said, although he strove to piece -out a meaning. He perceived he was the subject of their talk. From -Sajipona's angry tone, moreover, he knew that she was offended. The -consequent resentment that he felt in her behalf was strengthened by an -instinctive feeling of suspicion and dislike toward Raoul. Checking a -movement of repulsion, he appealed to Sajipona. - -"Let me throw him out of here," he demanded abruptly. - -"Oh, on the contrary!" smiled the queen, not unpleased at his attitude. -"He is here because I have asked him to come--and you will help me if -you do what he tells you." - -"Do what he tells me? No! Why, Sajipona, what new whim have you got in -that beautiful head of yours? Something's wrong. It must be that I've -offended you." - -He took her hand, stroking it caressingly, while his eyes sought hers in -unrestrained admiration. - -"This is hard," he went on, in a low tone, half laughter, half reproach. -"You are always so good, gracious as a queen should be. Now you tell me -to do what an enemy of yours commands. As your enemy means mine, that is -unreasonable. I fear," he added playfully, touching her hands with his -lips, "I will have to disobey you, just this once, even if you are a -great queen. When I am king, and we rule our jolly cave together, as you -said we would, it won't be so bad, I suppose. Men like this, certainly, -won't be around to bother us. How did he get here? I thought one law of -this kingdom--and a very good law it is, too--was to keep people out." - -"But you got in." - -"I suppose I did," he assented dreamily. "But I'm not sure how it -happened." - -"That's just it. This man will tell you. His name is Raoul Arthur." - -David looked at him blankly, repeating the name. Raoul moved out of the -shadow of the bed hangings, his eyes fixed on David's. His lips parted -as if to speak, but the words were checked by an imperative gesture from -the man before him. - -"I'm not sure that I want to listen," said David. "I know this man, I'm -certain that I do--but I can't tell you when it was that I first met -him. It's all very vague, like the haze that sometimes covers the living -pictures in the great pool of light in there. This memory comes like -something evil, something that brings ruin. Surely, you don't want to -bring ruin upon us, Sajipona! Why not blot it out altogether?" - -She shook her head sadly, looking wistfully into his face. They clasped -each other's hands, oblivious, for the moment, of Raoul's presence. - -"If you are king there must be no forgetting, no dread of a memory that -has been lost. You must know! The Land of the Condor is a land of dreams -compared with the rest of the world. You have been out there, David, but -you have forgotten. Now you must remember." - -"No, not exactly forgotten," he said uneasily. "It's all in my head, a -lot of things jumbled together--like the haze in there. I have no wish -to straighten it out, either. There is such a thing as knowing too much -sometimes. We are happier this way--don't let's run any risks changing -what we already have. Soon there will be that feast, you said--and then, -if you are queen, perhaps you will want me to be king. How proud I shall -be! You are very beautiful, Sajipona; noble and great, like the daughter -of real kings of the earth. You are my dream-queen, you know, the first -love to touch my soul with a knowledge of beauty. Such a woman men die -for! Sometimes, when you sing to me, or tease old Narva; or when I would -hold you and you kind of ripple away laughing, like the little brook at -the bottom of the garden--yes, that is the woman men die loving." - -"I wonder if you will always think that!" - -"You mean, I may forget?" - -"No, you will remember." - -"'Remember!' You mean, those other things wrapped in the haze--the -things that we wait to see come out in the pool of light. That's just -it! No, I don't want them; they spoil the first picture. To worship -beauty like yours, to live forever in the spell of your eyes, the -fragrance of your whole perfect being--that is happiness. I want nothing -else. Why lose our dream-loves; why snatch from us, even before it is -ours, the first pure flower that touches the lips of youth? Don't rob me -of mine, my queen!" - -His appeal thrilled with a dreamy earnestness that would have moved -a sterner woman than Sajipona. Nor could there be doubt that the joy -he thus kindled in her revived a hope that Una's coming had almost -destroyed. Nevertheless, in spite of this response of her own deep -passion to his, her purpose remained unaltered. The very eagerness with -which she drank in David's words--feeling the temptation to let things -keep the happy course they had already taken--strengthened her resolve -to lose no time, to risk everything now. That such a change as she had -feared could be wrought in David after all this, seemed inconceivable. -The witchcraft, if witchcraft it was, that drew him to her was something -real, real as life, that exorcism could not dissolve. Sure of her -triumph, she sought to put him to the test herself. - -"David, before you came to me, was there no other woman that you knew?" - -"Oh, yes, I think so, surely!" he laughed. "There might have been any -number of them. But--why bother about them? Just who they were, or where -I knew them, I have forgotten. I hope you don't think it necessary to -remember every woman I have known! Anyway, I can't. Why, I don't even -remember their names." - -"I mean, one woman only. Perhaps there was one you loved, you know, -among all those you have forgotten. Some one who was beautiful--is still -beautiful--and who loves you. It might be the woman you saw here a short -time ago. She is called Una. Surely, you remember." - -He wrung her hands, kissed them, listened eagerly to what she was -saying, at the same time that he longed to seal his ears from hearing. -Under his breath he muttered Una's name, its iteration, apparently, -increasing his agitation. Distressed by Sajipona's questions, he tried -to parry them, without revealing too much of his own mental confusion. -He did remember Una, he said, but the memory was vague. She might be -one of those dream-women, for all he knew, who get mixed up with one's -ideas of reality. He would like to have it straightened out, to know -who she was and why the thought of her troubled him. But, after all, it -was not particularly important--not important, that is, compared with -his love for Sajipona, his certainty that in their union lay a future -happiness, not for them only, but for all this wonderful kingdom she -ruled over. - -"Keep in this mind, if you will," said Sajipona, the hope that she -secretly cherished greatly strengthened by the sincerity and fervor of -his protestations; "but first be sure you know dreams from waking." - -Again she expressed her desire to have Raoul brought into the matter, -promising David that, through his knowledge and experience, the puzzles -and contradictions of the past would be set right. Yielding reluctantly, -he turned to Raoul. - -The latter had withdrawn to the far side of David's couch, whence he -had watched, with alternate amusement and contempt, all that took place -between these two. He now advanced, with the air of one who has the -mastery of a difficult situation, and again proffered his services. -There was mockery in his voice; before he addressed himself to his -task he repeated his warning to Sajipona, reminding her that it might -be better not to revive too suddenly a past filled, possibly, with -disagreeable surprises. His warning waved impatiently aside, Raoul -turned swiftly upon David, his restless, irritating eyes fixed in a -steady glare that, bit by bit, broke down the latter's opposition. -Forcing his victim to be seated upon the side of the couch, he stood -over him, for a short space, in silence. There was nothing in all -this of the gesture and mummery traditionally accompanying certain -spectacular manifestations of hypnotism; neither were the two men -at any time in physical contact with each other. An onlooker would -say that the younger man was unconsciously brought into a passive -condition by the exertion upon him of a stronger will, intensified by -facial peculiarities that were well calculated to hold the attention. -Eyes like Raoul's, although exciting repugnance, at the same time -arouse curiosity. Once absorbed in probing their baffling depths, the -object of their regard yields to a sort of baleful fascination hard -to shake off. In former years David had been used by Raoul in various -psychological experiments, and was thus accustomed, on such occasions, -to surrender himself to the other's compelling influence. This habit was -now unconsciously revived. The old grooves of thought and conduct were -reopened, as it were, by the resumption of a parallel outward condition. -As a result, David fell into a state of complete mental inertia. - -To this influence Raoul now added the force of direct suggestion, or, -rather, verbal command. The subtle arts of apparent submission, or, -at the least, mild expostulation which he usually employed in gaining -his ends with an intractable opponent, were cast aside. His attack was -concentrated, he spoke scornfully, without compromise in utterance or -meaning, so that his hypnotized subject was forced either to resist or -to be carried along by him. Through this direct, positive method, he -took David back, step by step, over events in the immediate past that -had become obscured in his memory. - -"On the road from Honda," he told him, "you were traveling with another -man. You were both going to Bogota. You stopped on the road, and at this -man's suggestion you drank several toasts. The liquor confused you. -You began to lose track of things. Suddenly, you and your companion -met a ragged army of volunteers marching, as they said, to avenge -their country on the Americans at Panama. This encounter, bringing -you into direct contact with Colombian hostility to your countrymen, -intensified your abnormal condition. In the confusion caused by meeting -the volunteers, you were separated from your companion. His name--don't -forget!--was General Herran. He also had been mixed up in the Panama -troubles. By this time--that is, after you had lost Herran--owing -to these various causes, you had fallen into one of those states of -forgetfulness that you had experienced before. In this state you forgot -what had just happened and remembered instead your experience here three -years ago, when your brain had been stunned by an explosion of dynamite. -Living again in this memory, you met two cavemen. They spoke to you. -You knew them. Immediately, it seemed to you that you were on your way -with them to meet Sajipona in this cave where you had been three years -before. All that had passed between then and now faded from your mind. -But, of course you know that is preposterous! Nothing fades from the -mind. The memory of that period that you think you have forgotten is -really in your brain, waiting for you to call it to life. And now, you -will call it to life." - -The emphasis, the force in what Raoul was saying was due more to his -manner, the intensity with which he regarded David, than in the actual -words themselves. It was, in a measure, a contest of wills; but, -either through long habit of yielding to Raoul in these experiments, or -else through a desire to carry out what was evidently Sajipona's wish, -there was no doubt from the first of the result. And when this result -came, it was decisive. After the first sentence David's instinctive -opposition was weakened. The desire to allay the anxiety obscurely -felt in his own mind helped to bring him under Raoul's influence. The -unexpected sight of Una had disturbed him. Ever since their meeting -he had been aware that something in him was lacking, some clew lost -between his past and his present. Sajipona, deeply conscious though -he was of her majestic beauty, began to take on the vagueness of -outline belonging to those persons whose relationship to ourselves is -so doubtfully circumstanced that we momentarily expect to lose sight -of them altogether. She was literally becoming the dream-woman, the -intangible, lovely ideal of youth that he had playfully called her, -while Una was becoming correspondingly more real, less elusive. For -this very reason, this fear that fate was about to take from him one -so desirable as Sajipona, he had felt an excess of joy upon seeing her -now. His greeting had been more than usually demonstrative because her -coming had reassured him, silenced doubts that were disquieting. Then, -on the heels of this, he was aware of Raoul, with all that he meant of -uncertainty and restlessness. And yet, in spite of his distaste for -anything that threatened the peaceful course his life seemed to be -taking, a secret feeling of relief tempered the repulsion aroused by the -sudden appearance of his long forgotten friend. Raoul's words and manner -completely possessed him. The scene that he recalled of his meeting -with the cavemen on the Honda road was etched on his mind as vividly -as if it had just been experienced. And now, with this starting point -fixed, Raoul took him backward, step by step. - -Again he saw himself with General Herran, stopping on the Honda road to -exchange those fatal civilities, and immediately after, the noise and -confusion of the marching volunteers, with their threats of vengeance -against the Yankees. Back of this came the quiet march with Herran. He -recalled their talk, something of their friendly disputes. The effort to -do this bewildered him. It seemed as if he were stepping from one world -into another. Everything was merged into one gigantic figure of Raoul, a -Raoul towering above him, concentrating himself upon him, dominating him -until all else faded away and he was lost in a dreamless sleep, filled -only with that word of command--"remember!" - -How long he remained in this state of unconsciousness--for it was that -rather than sleep--he did not know. It might have been years, it might -have been a mere moment of time. When the spell was finally broken by -Raoul the scene that met his awakened senses puzzled him. He was in -Sajipona's palace, in the room where Raoul had confronted and subdued -him. But it was all unfamiliar. His mind was filled with his mission -to Bogota. His parting with Una in the sunny courtyard of the inn came -back to him, irradiating a dreamy happiness. He had been through some -strange experiences since then, he knew. The sight of the bed hangings -under which he was reclining, the great spaces of the room, the softened -light of the cave, kept alive the memory of many a novel, fantastic -adventure. Shaking off his drowsiness, he sprang to his feet. Sajipona -and Raoul advanced to meet him. Sajipona! Yes, he remembered her. She -was the beautiful Indian queen he was to marry in his dream--it must -have been a dream, because Una was not there; except that, at the very -last, he remembered, Una had stepped in for just a moment--and he had -not known her! How amazed, angry, she must have been! And then--what -else could have been expected?--she had gone away. He was anxious now -for her safety, although how she could possibly be in this cave, how she -could have found her way here, was a hopeless puzzle. The first word he -uttered was a cry to Sajipona: - -"Where is Una?" - -Raoul would have answered, but Sajipona checked him. She realized the -full significance of David's question, although outwardly she showed -nothing of her emotion. - -"You are yourself again--I am glad," she said. - -"But Una----?" - -"She is safe. She reached Bogota after you left Honda." - -David's relief was evident, although his eyes showed the perplexity -arising from his strange awakening. - -"I thought she had found her way here," he said. Then he turned again to -Sajipona, this time with an impulsive gesture of gratitude. "I remember -everything now. You saved my life. Every moment with you has been filled -with happiness. How can I ever be grateful enough for the kindness you -have shown me?" - -He knelt before her, kissing her hand. She smiled; her other hand rested -upon his shoulder. - -"Grateful!" she exclaimed playfully. "Have we not a lifetime together -before us? You have forgotten the festival that awaits us on the top of -the mountain." - -"No, I have not forgotten." - -"Do you want it to take place?" - -He arose to his feet, clasping his hands over his eyes as if to fix an -uncertain impression. When he bared his face before her again, there -was quiet determination in his glance. Again he took her hand in his, -pressing it to his lips. Then, with eyes fixed full upon hers, he -answered her question: - -"Yes." - - - - -XXII - -A PEOPLE'S DESTINY - - -Miranda and, in a lesser degree, those who were with him in the -palace garden, were indignant at their enforced separation from Una -and Sajipona. The doctor, priding himself especially on Raoul's -discomfiture, considered the queen guilty of the basest ingratitude, -and even suspected that she might be, at that moment, plotting their -destruction. Leighton and Herran scoffed at this, but it appealed to -Mrs. Quayle, and that lady, clinging nervously to Andrew, followed -Miranda's explosive talk with appreciative horror. This proving a -profitless diversion, however, Leighton proposed the adoption of a -plan for immediate action. An attack on the palace, or a retreat -that would bring them to the entrance of the cave, were alternately -considered. But as both plans seemed to leave Una out of their reach, -they were discarded as impossible, and it looked as if they would have -to settle down to an indefinite stay in the garden. In the midst of the -discussion the doors of the palace were thrown open and Narva and Una -hurried out to meet them. Still fearing ambuscades and other undefinable -treacheries, Miranda was by no means ready to throw aside his caution at -their approach. But the aged sibyl's lofty disdain was disconcerting, -nor was there any resisting the whole-hearted joy with which Una -greeted them. - -To their eager inquiries she gave the briefest replies. For one thing, -she assured them that they had Sajipona's promise that their escape from -the cave would be easy and not too long delayed. Of the queen's friendly -disposition towards them, she said, there was not the slightest doubt. -They could count on the carrying out of her promise if, on their side, -the conditions she proposed were observed. These conditions were: never, -once they were out of it, to enter the cave again; to reveal as little -as possible to the outside world of their experiences during their -present adventure; and to keep an absolute silence regarding Sajipona's -relationship to this mysterious race of people. - -Beyond this Una would say little. The conditions were joyfully accepted. -Nothing, certainly, could ever induce them to enter the cave again. -But then--there was David. Yes, Una admitted, David was in the palace. -She had seen him. He was free, so far as she knew, to come or go as -he chose. But he had not said he would return with them. It might be, -indeed, that he would choose to live permanently with the cavemen--an -amazing possibility that started an avalanche of questions to which only -the vaguest answers were given. Doubtless they would see David before -they left, Una assured them, and learn for themselves all they wished to -know. As for Raoul, she could tell nothing. He was, apparently, in favor -with the queen, and engaged in some undertaking for her. - -Una betrayed none of her suspicions regarding David in her discussion -of these matters. She had not seen him since that first meeting in -the little portico adjoining his quarters in the palace, hence she was -ignorant of the result of Raoul's experiment. Sajipona had come to her -immediately after its conclusion and, judging by the quiet cheerfulness -of her manner, she fancied everything had gone to her satisfaction. This -was confirmed by the announcement of the festival that was shortly to -take place. This festival, Una had been told, was to be the occasion -for great rejoicing among the cave people. It was a sort of national -day, a celebration that had not been held in many a long generation. It -was intended to recall, she heard, the ancient feast of El Dorado, the -Gilded Man, about which, of course, as it existed among the Chibchas -before the period of the Spanish invasion, Una was familiar through the -traditions as told by David and Leighton. What form this revival of the -old ceremonies would take had not been explained. But it piqued her -curiosity and, in spite of resentment and wounded pride, she cherished a -secret hope that it would bring about a final understanding of David's -position in regard to Sajipona and herself. She felt sure David would -be at the festival, and she had an intuitive feeling as well that his -presence would dispel the mystery that sundered them. She did not look -for, nor did she consciously want a reconciliation. Bitterly she denied -herself the possibility of one. But she wished to know definitely, and -to its full extent, David's faithlessness to her. After she had learned -this, they could not start on their homeward journey too quickly. - -Still absorbed in these reflections, Una and her companions, under -Narva's lead, entered the great court of the palace. Una, of course, -had grown familiar with the strange features to be found in this hall -of marvels; but the others, entering it for the first time, were amazed -at what they saw there. In Leighton this feeling of wonder reached its -highest pitch. The shattering of one scientific belief after another -that he had experienced ever since entering the cave left him, it is -true, somewhat callous to new impressions. But this apathy, if it can be -called that, melted away as he stood beneath the great white dome that -soared in flashing lines above them. Looking up at the huge ball of fire -suspended just beyond the apex of this dome, for a moment he remained -speechless. Then, turning to his companions, he voiced the ecstasy that -comes with some unexpected, epoch-making discovery. - -"Do you know what that is?" he demanded. - -No one did. Miranda shrugged his shoulders and turned his attention -ostentatiously elsewhere, as if floating balls of crackling white -flames, used to illuminate caves, were matters of ordinary experience -with him. Andrew's mouth was opened quite as wide as his eyes as he -stood staring upward at the curious illumination. It would be a splendid -saving of candle power, he thought, more than enough for the whole -village, if they could only manage to take it back with them to Rysdale. -But, even if it were small enough, it wouldn't be possible to carry in -one of their trunks, since it would be sure to set things on fire. This -objection was made by Mrs. Quayle, and seemed reasonable enough. - -"That is the most remarkable thing on earth," went on Leighton, -heedless, in his excitement, of the frivolous comments of his -companions. "I have often thought that sooner or later something like -this would be discovered. It is impossible to estimate its value. Why, -all the billions of dollars that there are in the world to-day could not -pay for it at the present market prices." - -The calm assurance with which this estimate was given shattered -Miranda's pose of studied indifference. - -"What is it?" he asked sharply. - -"Radium!" - -The silence that followed was eloquent of the mingled incredulity and -delight with which so staggering an announcement was received. Leighton, -fascinated with his subject, proceeded to explain things, much as if he -were at home again in his laboratory, working out a particularly novel -experiment, and expounding his various theories of physics. Of course, -he had nothing but theory to go on, since he had never seen, heard of, -or believed possible such a huge mass of radium as this that hung above -them. And because it was so unbelievably huge, the others refused at -first to take it for what he said it was. But he insisted that it could -be nothing else. Radium it was--and with this as his basis of fact, he -quickly built up an imposing theory that he used to explain more than -one matter that before had puzzled them. - -This immense globe of radium, he believed, in the first place, was -the parent-body of all the infinitesimal particles of this remarkable -substance that had recently been found in different parts of the world. -The mysterious properties of radium, he said, were only dimly understood -as yet by physicists who had experimented with it. Apparently it was a -mineral; but as it revealed a constant and amazing activity, throwing -out a force that so far had baffled analysis, there were those who -held that it was a living, or, better yet, a life-giving substance. -The existence of this immense body of radium here, in the center of -the cave, explained, to the satisfaction of Leighton, much of the -strange phenomena they had seen. Here, obviously, was the source of -the soft, diffused light that had puzzled them ever since they passed -through the Condor Gate; and it was to this center of energy that -they must attribute the increase in buoyancy and physical well-being -experienced the further they penetrated into this subterranean world. -The peculiar growths, also, half vegetable, half mineral, that had given -the appearance of groves and gardens to certain portions of the cave -through which they traveled, were undoubtedly due to this marvelous -force, occupying the same relative position towards subterranean life -that the sun did to the outside world of nature. Moreover, Leighton -firmly believed that the supremacy of radium as the life-giver in this -cave, involved the existence, as they would discover, of other phenomena -having still more subtle, even psychic, qualities. Narva grunted -significantly at this observation, and Una confirmed the truth of it by -relating how the floor of the court where they were standing had, only a -short time before, reflected a series of pictures of events taking place -in the outside cave, by means of which they had been able to follow -Leighton's approach to the palace and watched the collision of his party -with that of Raoul. It was through this peculiar photographic power of -radium, indeed, that Sajipona could discover whatever was taking place -in the remotest regions of her domain. This information did not surprise -Leighton in the least. On the contrary, he appeared to take it as a -matter of course, one of many marvels that might be expected in a land -run, so to speak, by radium. - -Absorbed in the discussion of these matters, no one noticed the entrance -of Sajipona. The queen, coming from the apartment where she had left -David and Raoul, was not in a hurry to make her presence known, and -lingered long enough behind the others to enjoy the curiosity and wonder -with which they were regarding the globe of light above them. She now -advanced smilingly, addressing herself particularly to Leighton, whom -she complimented for his shrewd guess as to the nature of the force -pervading and governing the cave. Indian though she was, inheritor of a -realm that, in all its customs and beliefs, was primitive, distant from -the civilizations found elsewhere in the world to-day, she had heard and -studied enough of Europe and America to be familiar with some of the -momentous discoveries of modern science. Hence, she had been quick to -grasp the fact that this subterranean sun, worshiped by her ancestors -ages ago as the Life Giver--the God that, according to Indian legend, -resided under Lake Guatavita--was nothing more nor less than an immense -body of radium, the most precious substance known to man, the scarcity -of which had led scientists to ransack the uttermost parts of the earth -in the hope of adding to their store of it. Here it had always been, the -one priceless possession of her people, enabling them to live apart, -independent of the world that threatened at one time to exterminate -them. How this radium had come there originally she could not tell. It -was the result, doubtless, of hidden forces about which philosopher and -scientist are as yet ignorant. Or, it might itself be the architect of -the subterranean world whose extent and manifold marvels had amazed the -explorers. By means of this radium force, as Una had told them, she was -able to see what was happening in any part of the cave, even throughout -that dark region lying beyond the Condor Gate--an incredible statement, -as it appeared to Leighton. For they had been in this outer cave and -discovered in it neither the light nor the warmth they had enjoyed on -this side the Condor Gate. Hence, argued the savant, this outer cave -appeared to lie entirely beyond the zone of radium influence. Sajipona -smiled at Leighton's objection and asked him if nothing had occurred in -the outer cave, while he was there, that he had been unable to explain. -They had been through so many marvels in so short a time that the -explorers looked at each other doubtfully. Mrs. Quayle answered for -them. - -"Yes, the terrible stone that pulled off my jewelry, and then dragged -gold up from the lake outside--how was that done?" she asked, still -smarting, apparently, from the indignities she had suffered. - -"Oh, that was merely a powerful magnet that attracts gold instead of -iron," explained Sajipona, as if such trifling matters were scarcely -worthy to be ranked with the other marvels of the cave. "This magnet -played a great part, centuries ago, in gathering together all the wealth -of my ancestors from the Sacred Lake where it had been cast during the -Feast of the Gilded Man. To-day it is never used because all the gold -has been taken out of the lake. But--was there nothing else mysterious?" - -"Caramba!" ejaculated Miranda, "I know! When we come in from the -outside, all is open; we can come in and we can come out. And then, this -little old woman is frighten, and I take her out. That is, I think I -take her out. But the wall is shut, and we cannot see where it is. We -are in prison. Who did that? There is no one there." - -Sajipona laughed. - -"Yes, that is it! No one was there--except Radium, the influence from -the great globe hanging above us. Here, you see, it does many more -things than it does in your outside world. It is really the eye of -the cave--and sometimes the arm. Although its light does not, as you -know, extend into the outer cave, it reflects here, within this circle, -whatever is lighted up beyond there. When you came in with your torches -I was able to follow you by this means--very obscurely, of course, -because torches throw only a small circle of light. I could hardly make -you out, but I felt sure who you were. I was expecting you. And then, -because I needed you here and feared you might grow tired of so long a -journey, I shut the entrance to the cave so you could not escape. That -is where radium works like an arm. It can carry an electric force, an -irresistible current, without using wire. For our own safety we have -this force connected with the entrance to the cave. When that entrance -is open and we want to close it, this force is released and moves a -great rock that glides into place across the passageway, where it seems -to be a part of the wall on either side." - -This dissertation from Sajipona on the uses to which radium had been -put in her kingdom was amazing enough to Leighton's trained, careful -mind. In his own studies of radium activity he had failed to find -any indication of the possibility even for the development of the -sensational features that were now given to him as accomplished, -familiar fact. For one thing, science was restricted in its experiments -by the small quantity of radium within its reach. Here the amount, -estimating the size of the fiery globe above him, was measured by the -hundreds of tons--a fact, of course, that must greatly increase the -field over which radium might be made to operate. Nevertheless, except -for this vague theory that an unknown power could be developed from a -great mass of this marvelous substance, suspended in a great chamber, -or series of chambers, not subject to the ordinary outside influences -of heat and light and air, it was difficult to find a reasonable -explanation for the things that Sajipona told him and that he himself -had seen. Most astounding it was, also, to a modern scientist, brought -up in the methods and limited by the views of his age, to discover -here a development in physics, beyond the dreams of the most daring -investigator, that actually belonged to a primitive race, and was first -practiced by them in a period and country without scientific culture. -The whole affair, indeed, furnished an instance where science seemed to -overstep the borderland of the miraculous. It was as marvelous, after -all, as the familiar achievements of wireless or the cinema would have -been if suddenly presented to the world of half a century ago. - -Enjoying the savant's bewilderment, Sajipona described more of the -cave's wonders. Her forefathers, she said, had discovered a way to -imitate the changes from day to night by a simple process of veiling -and unveiling the ball of radium. This was found necessary in order -to create the right variations between growth and a state of rest in -vegetation. When circumstances made it desirable to use the cave as a -permanent habitation, it was found that this variation from light to -darkness was indispensable to human welfare. Without it there could -be little of the happiness that comes from the storing up and the -subsequent expenditure of human energy. Discovering this, certain wise -Indians among the cavemen of the past made further experiments in -the regulation of light and heat. Among other things, these pioneers -in a new science found that the color rays emanating from radium had -different properties--some being more life-giving than others--and -that by controlling these rays it was possible to create and develop -various kinds of subterranean plants. They firmly believed, also, that -by working along these lines it would be possible to arrive at new -animal forms. Some remarkable experiments were made in this direction, -but the results were too indefinite for practical purposes. The whole -problem was therefore abandoned years ago, its unpopularity having been -increased by the religious prejudice excited against it. This intrusion -of what he regarded as blind superstition upon the profitable labors of -science incensed Leighton, who muttered imprecations on the idolatries -of barbarians. But in this he was checked by Sajipona, who declared that -the religious beliefs of her people were in no sense more idolatrous -than many of the beliefs current in the outside world. They had their -fantastic legends, it is true--like the story of the god who, through -the ascendancy of an evil rival, had been imprisoned for ages at the -bottom of the Sacred Lake, whence he had been released by the prayers -and sacrifices of his followers. Such legends the more enlightened -regarded purely as fables, within which were conveyed certain truths -that were of lasting value to mankind. The ignorant probably failed to -recognize these truths underneath their coverings of legend. But it was -not merely the ignorant, it was those who possessed a higher religious -sense who were revolted by the effort to create animal life through -artificial means. This feeling of antagonism arose simply because in the -last of the experiments attempted by the Indian wise men, certain forms -were developed, giving feeble signs of life, and indicating unmistakably -that if they were ever endowed with a complete, independent existence, -they would become a race of malevolent beings, a menace to all existing -institutions and peoples. Hence, these wise men were counseled by the -more practical and simple-minded of their contemporaries to abandon the -rôle of creator, leaving the production of life to the rude and bungling -methods to which Nature was accustomed. They were loath to yield in -this, but public opinion became too strong for them; the religious -element conquered--and these savants of old turned their attention to a -new problem that had already been suggested by their partial experiments -in the creation of life, and that promised something really worth while. -This new problem involved the regulation of man's moral and intellectual -natures, not through the teaching of ideas, but by the employment of -physical and chemical forces. - -It had been discovered long before that the Radium Sun controlled the -subterranean life coming within its influence. But as this sun was -itself capable of regulation, many novel--and safe--departures in human -development were made possible by an intelligent practice of the new -solar science. Here again, as in the experiments with plants, it was -the variation of colors, of light and darkness, that furnished the -key to what the Indian savants were after. Thus, it was learned that -certain radium colors had an affinity for certain moral attributes. -These moral attributes could, for this reason, be greatly increased by -placing the man or woman to be operated on in a properly regulated color -bath. Unfortunately, these wise men had not continued their experiments -with this Theory of Colors after reaching the first few crude results. -They lost interest in the subject when its intensely practical nature -became apparent. Hence, a complete classification of all the colors and -combinations of colors, with their moral and intellectual affinities, -was still lacking. But enough was discovered to be of real, positive -benefit in the education of the cavemen and in keeping order among -them. People who were harassed by domestic troubles, for instance, -were put through a course of color treatment; wives who were tempted -to leave their husbands, or husbands who got tired of their wives (as, -it seems, they sometimes did in the Land of the Condor) were plunged -into color-baths, varied according to the exact nature of the complaint -from which they were suffering, and kept in these baths until they were -brought back to a reasonable frame of mind. And then, in matters that -affected the well-being of the whole community--matters that in the -outside world would give rise to various political panaceas--it was a -simple application of the Color Theory that would straighten things -out. It was found, for instance, that yellow rays from the Radium -Sun stimulated generosity. Thus, in the case of a man whose intense -acquisitiveness threatened to monopolize the wealth of the community, a -steady application of yellow rays was sure to be beneficial, if not to -him, at least to those about him. - -A case of this kind, indeed, had been recently operated on in this way. -The patient had accumulated such vast wealth that he had grown to be a -public inconvenience. As his business dealings, however, did not come -within reach of the criminal law, and as his wealth was thus due to -his natural bent for finance, the courts could not touch him. He was, -therefore, placed--not by way of punishment, but as a mark of public -esteem--in a bath of yellow light. The effect was extraordinary and -bore out all the claims of the originators of the Color Theory. He had -not been in this yellow bath more than a few hours before he began to -part with his wealth. On the second day he became more reckless in his -benefactions, and this frenzy for giving away what he had before so -jealously guarded from his neighbors, increased at so rapid a rate that -by the end of a week his entire fortune had passed, through his own -voluntary act, into the hands of the government and various benevolent -institutions. When he had nothing more to give, it was decided that he -had had enough of the yellow treatment. He was then released from the -honors the State had showered upon him, and passed the rest of his life -rejoicing in his penniless condition. - -Then, there was the case of a man who had grown tired of his wife, and -who had outraged the sense of the community by leaving her. He was -captured and placed in a bath of green light. In a very short time -he got over his roving propensities and became so persistent in his -attentions to his wife that, in order to give her some peace, he was put -into another bath having a slightly neutralizing effect on the first, or -green, bath. Thus, the marital troubles of this couple were completely -and finally straightened out and they lived amicably together without -the tiresome intervention of mutual friends, or of the law courts. - -The interesting possibilities of this Color Theory in penology and -in the regulation of domestic affairs, did not escape Leighton. He -had himself believed that in the latest discoveries in physics there -might be found a connecting link between the science of matter and the -science of mind. His natural skepticism, however, did not allow him to -accept too readily all of Sajipona's amazing statements. He doubted -her real knowledge of these abstruse subjects. She spoke of these -matters, indeed, crudely, not with the familiarity as to detail of a -trained scientist. What she said had all the simplicity, and much of -the fantastic absurdity, of a fairy tale. But beneath its extravagance -there was enough substance to her story, and the theory upon which -it was based, to make it worthy a scientist's consideration. For one -thing, it changed completely the notion Leighton had already formed -of this subterranean world. The story, for instance, of the chastened -millionaire took into account a complex social system that was utterly -unthinkable in a region so confined territorially, so limited, by -reason of its peculiar situation, as regards human activity, as this -so-called Land of the Condor. The inhabitants of the cave, from what -he had seen of them--in the straggling village they had passed through -with Narva, and among the followers of Raoul--gave no indication of a -culture superior to that shown by people just emerging from savagery. -These cavemen, certainly, had not reached that stage of enlightenment -from which is developed the millionaire capitalist of whose interesting -ventures in monopoly Sajipona had told them. In the ill-fated Anitoo, -however, and his men, and in the people surrounding Sajipona, there was -evidence of social and mental superiority. The two men who served as -the queen's ambassadors in the garden, and who were distinguished from -the rest by their red robes, belonged either to a priesthood, or to -some order that placed them intellectually above the common rank. They -were undoubtedly learned far beyond the Indian average. One of them, -indeed, was with Sajipona in the court, and prompted her more than once -during her explanation of the Radium Sun and its uses. He spoke in a -low voice, and in a language unintelligible to the Americans. From his -bearing and fluency of speech, Leighton concluded that he was one of the -commonwealth's so-called "wise men," an investigator, possibly, in those -physical and psychological phenomena that held out such tantalizing -promise of new conquests in the domain of human knowledge. - -Sajipona was quick to perceive the difficulties arising in Leighton's -mind in regard to her narrative, but she referred to another occasion -a description of the science, religious beliefs, social institutions -and customs of the subterranean people. In attempting such a task, she -declared that the priest at her side, whom she addressed with befitting -reverence as Omono, Teacher of Mankind, would be far more capable than -she. For it was Omono, with his companion, Saenzias, who received and -carried out the laws and traditions of their race--always subject, of -course, to her own authority--and it was by them that these laws were -further perfected before being passed on to the two priests who would -succeed them in administering the affairs of the kingdom. - -"You are puzzled, naturally," she said, "to hear of the existence of -wealth and poverty, charitable institutions and governments, science -and religion, in a kingdom whose boundaries are within the walls of a -cave. But you have seen only a small part of this Land of the Condor. -On every side it extends many miles further underground. And in the -South from here, not a great distance, there is a vast region--unknown -to the rest of the world--filled with mountains, fertile valleys, -rivers, and bodies of water strewn like jewels over plains that yield -an abundance sufficient for all mankind. This land is at the mouth of -our subterranean world. It lies in the heart of that region marked -'unexplored' by your mapmakers. We have no fear that it will ever pass -from our hands, that it will ever be more than a blank patch on your -maps, for on every side it is defended by unscalable cliffs of snow and -ice. It can be reached only through this ancient cave. Perhaps, in the -ages to come, when the people of the outside world and of this race that -has lived here in an unbroken line as far back as the memory of man can -go, have been perfected, these barriers will be thrown down. Such has -been the prophecy of some of our wise men; and to-day Omono and Saenzias -tell us that this final period of perfection is rapidly approaching. It -may be that before you go out again into your own world, you will see -more of the wonders of this Land of the Condor, and of the unknown Land -of the Sun that lies at its door. There are cities out there, built -with an art that is only rudely possible in our underground home. Here, -you are amazed at the cunning of some of our work. You wonder that a -race of moles could conjure wealth and beauty out of a cavern that is -never opened to the airs of heaven. But in our Land of the Sun there are -marvels far greater than these. In both regions you will see the work -of the same people; but here where you stand is the center of our race, -or--as you would call it--our seat of government. It is here, because of -the Radium Sun above us, that we find our strength. But it is outside, -in the Land of the Sun, that the millions who call me their queen, are -working out the destinies of future generations. Before these last -years your people and our people have kept apart. You were ignorant of -our existence, and we held aloof from you, remembering the cruelty and -injustice of which you were guilty centuries ago. But the time has come, -so Omono and Saenzias declare, when our two worlds must venture the -first step in the knowledge of each other. Through me this experiment -will take place. You are instruments in it. To-day decides the success -or failure of our plan. The wealth of our kingdom we have guarded all -these centuries, not for ourselves only. To increase it we must share -it with the outside world. But if the outside world is not ready, if it -still exists merely to plunder the wealth others have gathered, we will -wait, if need be, for another flight of centuries." - -Sajipona's announcement aroused an immense curiosity among the -explorers. What did she mean? they asked each other. How was this -working out of their mutual destinies to be accomplished at this -particular time and through them? From Narva they had heard vaguely -of a festival that was to be celebrated--and now they learned that the -hour for it was at hand. Sajipona told them this, and as the information -followed immediately upon what she had let them know of her aspirations -regarding the future of her people, they concluded that in some -mysterious way, the festival and the fate of this subterranean kingdom -were bound together. They waited to hear more but, apparently, Sajipona -had finished all she had to say to them. Turning to Una, she led her -apart from the others. The two talked earnestly together, the one -protesting, the other entreating. Finally, Sajipona appeared to succeed -in her request, whatever it was, and taking Una's hand walked with her -to a distant part of the hall. Here a door was thrown open. Una entered -the apartment beyond, the door closing behind her. It was all so quickly -done, the others barely realized that Una had left them before they were -rejoined by Sajipona, who spoke to them as if nothing had happened. - -"Let us go," she said. "The festival is ready. There is no time to -lose." - - - - -XXIII - -THE GILDED MAN - - -After leaving Sajipona, Una found herself in an apartment small compared -with the spacious courts and chambers she had seen elsewhere in the -palace. This apartment differed, also, in its furnishings--a few -uncompromising stone benches along the walls and nothing more--while -the dim light gave to everything a gloomy, uninviting character. But -Una was in no mood to linger; the queen's words had filled her with -an anxiety that must be appeased at once. Hurrying down the middle of -the long room, she reached, at the further end, a sort of staircase, -or ramp, leading upward in long, sweeping spirals to a height that was -lost in intervening walls and clustered columns. Mounting this ramp, -she noted with pleasure that as the ground floor receded everything -lightened. Judging by the splendid upward curve of the walls, she -concluded that she must be ascending a gallery winding around the great -central dome of the court where, a moment before, she had listened with -the others to Sajipona's account of the mysteries of the cave. On the -inner side of the gallery, the side overhanging the court, the wall was -semi-transparent, and through it sparkled flashes of the radium light -flooding the great chamber within. Light came, also, from the opposite -side, filtering downward, apparently through another medium, from the -central luminary above. The air grew warmer; there were faint perfumes, -as if of essences distilled from tropical flowers, that thrilled with -a delightful drowsiness. Soft echoes from distant music increased this -feeling of restfulness. Sound and fragrance were so subtly united, they -seemed so completely an irradiation from the inner spirit brooding over -the place, that one accepted them as being utterly natural, utterly free -from the startling or the marvelous. - -Una could not guess the source of the liquid, musical notes. They might -have come from the quaint instruments she had seen so deftly played -upon by the cavemen marching with Anitoo, or from the lyre that, at -Sajipona's touch, gave forth such plaintive melodies. But the music she -listened to now was not continuous; its lack of formal melody, unity of -theme, gave it a quality different from anything she had ever heard. -In the outer world it might have been taken for the windsong sweeping -through tossed branches of forest trees. But here there was neither -wind nor forest. The air was motionless, and had ever been so; the vast -spaces seemed filled with the unruffled sleep of centuries. Down below, -in the great court, and even in the palace garden, saturated with light -and beauty though both were, one felt something of the chill mystery -that penetrates all underground places. Here there was mystery, but it -was a kind that soothed rather than terrified. Tier by tier, as Una -passed along the slender white columns enclosing the gallery up which -she was ascending, the sense of gloom, foreboding, that had weighed -upon her until now, was weakened. She felt the magic of a new world of -romance and adventure. She was at the very heart of its secret. Flashes -of color in paneled niches along the walls piqued her curiosity. Robes -of vivid scarlet, hiding limbs of sparkling whiteness, it might be, -hung just beyond her reach. Further on these niches were filled with -glittering masses of gold, heaped high in barbaric scorn of art or -fitness. Rudely fashioned crowns, massive enough to have burdened their -wearers with more than the traditional care that goes with royalty; -armlets, breastplates, tiaras heavy with emeralds--in deep recesses, row -on row, from story to story, these witnesses of the pomp and pride of -fallen nations, were thrown together in a careless profusion possible -only in an Aladdin's palace of marvels. - -As Una hurried past she realized with a thrill that she was in the -ancient treasure-house of a once mighty empire. The fruit of the earth's -richest mines, brought here by the labor and cunning of centuries, lay -at her hand. It seemed impossible that all this jeweled splendor could -have escaped the fires of war and crime that had kindled within the -breasts of millions who had sacrificed their lives merely to grasp some -small portion of it. Fascinating baubles now were these relics of past -greatness, dainty or rude, meaningless, or eloquent of forgotten faiths -and legends. Innocent of harm they seemed, a passing feast for the eye, -trophies to celebrate and adorn feminine loveliness, but no longer a -madness in the bones of men. - -Thus, vaguely, did this vision of ancient riches appear to Una. Gold -and jewels, robes and ornaments wrought by an art that had been lost -long since--the rich color, the glitter of all these things delighted -her. They seemed a part--the visible part--of the music and fragrance -with which the winding gallery of marvels was filled. It appeared to -her that she was on the threshold of some great awakening experience. -She knew that it was David whom she would see; and this knowledge -started a strange conflict of emotions. The memory of his lack of faith, -the incomprehensible manner in which he had turned from her, brought -humiliation, anger. But the first bitterness that went with all this -had lost its corrosive power. The spell of the ancient Indian race -whose secrets she was exploring was upon her. Her senses were soothed -by the mysterious beauty of these enchanted corridors. Here she would -see David--and the thought was indefinitely satisfying. She did not know -whether she could forgive him, whether she could become reconciled to a -disloyalty that had so easily swerved him from the most sacred of vows. -But after all it was witchcraft--only witchcraft could work such things -as these--that had estranged him from her. This she knew because the -inner heart of her own love remained as it had ever been. He was still -David. He needed her, he was unhappy. Outwardly he might seem faithless -as the most shameless Proteus of romance. Nevertheless, there was -something else, something that even Sajipona could not know, but that -she knew and that bound him to her. It was for this she had followed him -through inconceivable adventures--for this, one danger after another had -been faced and overcome. And now all this misery had reached a happy -ending. He was here, awaiting her like some prince in a fairy palace. -Sajipona had promised it, had brought them together at last. She felt -his presence before she heard his voice. And then he spoke to her: - -"Una, what new witchcraft has brought you here!" - -He stood at a turn in the gallery up which she was ascending. As their -eyes met, the distant, wind-blown music, the subtle fragrance of -flowers, seemed to bring into this palace of mystery and enchantment -the fields and meadows of Rysdale. There she and David were again -together, vowing their first love. The harmonies of brooks, birds, the -ripples that sped their canoe past woodland and down shaded valleys, -the thousand intimate details of the springtide loved of lovers, were -about them once more. For the David who stood beside her in the queen's -treasure-house was the David of that far-off, peaceful countryside, -not the strange being she had met for that brief dark moment in front -of Sajipona's palace. At the first glance she could see he had passed -through some vital change since then. He was no longer as a man walking -in dreams. There was no troubled uncertainty in his face, no faltering -in his step. He came to her now, all his soul in his eyes, but with -perplexed look for all that, as if the destiny that had parted them had -not yet consented to their reunion. - -"I have been dreaming," he said simply. "It was an old dream, I find. -Now that I am awake, some lights and shadows from my dream-world remain -to haunt me." - -His brief explanation of the strange mental experience he had just been -through was scarcely needed. Una told him how they had searched for him, -how they had finally heard of this cave and of his first adventure in -it. And then, how, tracking him to this place, they had met Sajipona -and learned of the wonders of her underground kingdom. - -"We are awaiting the festival now," she said wistfully. "She told me of -it, and sent me here to meet you. I think it must have begun already. -The music--it must be the music for the Gilded Man--has grown louder and -louder as I have climbed this wonderful gallery. Sajipona and the rest -will meet us--it must be just there, beyond." - -They had clasped each other's hands, their eyes looked their fill. But -now they stood apart, their faces averted, words of passionate avowal -unuttered on David's lips. - -"The festival! I know!" David exclaimed. - -Then he turned again to Una, taking her hand and trying to disguise -the grief that was all too plain in words and manner. He told her of -Sajipona's kindness, of his gratitude to her. He described something -of her plans to redeem her people from the ill fortune that had shut -them out from the rest of the world. All this, he said, could not be -accomplished right away; but the first step would be taken now. David -had a part to play in the working out of the queen's plan. But just what -he was to do, what this part was, he guessed only vaguely. The bringing -together of the ancient people with the new, the Indian race with their -white conquerors--something of the kind was in her mind. The vast store -of wealth, also, that they saw about them was to be distributed among -those who needed it. Sajipona and her people had long since ceased -to care for this treasure that had brought such untold suffering and -misfortune to their race. But they would not part with it until they -were certain of their recompense. And perhaps they wouldn't part with -it at all--there seemed to be a curse attached to these blood-stained -emeralds and gold. - -In all this, perhaps symbolically, the festival, the first strains -of which they could hear, would have much to do--and Sajipona and -he were to be the leading figures in that festival. He had consented -to this--freely. The declaration was made with melancholy emphasis. -It seemed to Una the death-knell to their happiness. It placed David -suddenly in a world quite outside her own, as if all along his life had -been, must be, apart from hers. There could be only one reason for this, -of course--Sajipona! Una seized upon it bitterly. - -"You have always loved her!" she cried. - -David did not answer. The fates that had brought them to this pass were -much too intricate to be lightly disentangled. Sajipona was to him a -being exquisitely beautiful--beautiful in every way--the most perfect -woman he had known. But there was a strength and glory in her loveliness -that placed her above the reach of mere human affection. She was a being -separate and distinct from all others--and yet necessary to the very -existence of the thousands who seemed to be dependent on her. It might -be love that he felt for her--but it was more like the adoration with -which one regards something sacred, infinitely distant and beyond our -own likings and frailties. This feeling of adoration might, indeed, have -been transformed into the passion called love. This surely would have -happened had it not been for one thing---- - -"Una, I love you!" - -She started, looking wonderingly at him. How could he say that to her -now, after all that had passed? Could it be possible that he was -still in that strange dream-state from which, he declared, he had been -so happily awakened? Ah, but it was in that dream-state that he did -not love her, did not even know her! And now--her own exclamation was -eloquent of the doubt, the amazement with which she heard him-- - -"David!" - -"But, it is perfectly true," he protested. "Why don't you believe -me? You always have believed me! What is before us I cannot tell for -certain. Sajipona has my word, and whatever she commands I will do. -I owe her my life. More than that--the faith that a man gives to one -whose beauty has opened to him the depths of his own soul. But this has -nothing to do with us. This is not love. Come what will, I love you, -Una. I love you--I love you!" - -They looked at each other fearfully. There might be logic, of a -sort--logic born of a kind of poetic exaltation--in the distinction -that David tried to draw between the two women and his own feeling for -them. Circumstances, however, were stronger than argument. They felt -the approach of disaster. By David's own confession, if Sajipona willed -it, their love was lost. For the first time Una realized that it was -not David, not anything really tangible, but a power outside of him -that kept them apart. Against the apparent evidence of her senses, her -faith in David was restored. She knew him now, she felt, as she had -never known him before. And they loved--that was enough. It was all very -difficult to unravel, the maze they were in. There might be endless -tragedy at the next turn of the gallery. But at least there was love -here, if only for the briefest of moments. Their reawakened passion -tingled in their veins. Reason or unreason, they knew they belonged to -each other--although they might be separated forever before this day of -miracles was over. Una's jealousy, doubt, bitterness were all forgotten. -Her cheek flushed with joy, her eyes sparkled with the sweet madness -that belongs only to youth, youth at the highest pinnacle of its desire. -Neither spoke. Speech would have silenced the wordless eloquence with -which their love revealed itself. They drew closer to each other. Again -their hands met. Their lips touched. Love swept away all doubts and -denials in one passionate embrace. - -Ever since the world began lovers have solved their difficulties thus, -and they will doubtless choose this dumb method long after an aging -civilization has pointed out a better one. Whether they are wise or not, -a college of philosophers would fail to convince us. In this particular -instance Love put forth his plea at the very instant when these, his -youthful votaries, were wanted of another, alien destiny. As they stood -together, oblivious of all else save their own passion, the music grew -louder, more joyous, throbbing now in statelier, more intelligible -cadence than before. At the end of the gallery a new light began to -break. The intervening wall disappeared, disclosing an inner chamber -filled with a throng of gaily dressed people, some of whom played upon -musical instruments, while others swung golden censers from which -floated forth in amber clouds the fragrance of many gardens. - -A living corridor of color, formed of courtiers, musicians, priests, -extended from this inner chamber in a spreading half circle, the broad -portion of which reached the gallery where David and Una were standing. -At the center of all this light and motion and color was Sajipona, every -inch of her a queen, although the pallor of her cheek, the unwonted -tenseness of eye and lip, told of emotions that needed all a queen's -strength to restrain. Immediately about her were grouped the explorers; -Miranda, silenced for once by the splendor of the scene in which he -suddenly found himself in a leading part; Leighton, still absorbed in -the problems of science revealed at every turn in this wonderland. -Just above and behind them rose a human figure of heroic proportions, -concealed from head to foot in flowing white draperies. Against the -rounded pedestal of green stone sustaining this figure leaned Sajipona, -one arm resting along the base of the statue, the other lost in the -silken folds of her robe. - -As David and Una, startled by the sudden clash of the music, raised -their heads, her eye caught theirs. Like a queen of marble she looked -at them, unrecognizing, motionless, save for the slightest tremor of -her faultlessly chiseled mouth--the one sign that she saw and knew. -With a gesture she checked the music. Silence followed, unbroken by -the faintest murmur of voices or rustle of garments from the waiting -throng of cavemen. Unabashed by this strange reception, moved only by -the steady gaze of the majestic woman standing before him, David, still -clasping Una's hand, came swiftly forward and would have thrown himself -impetuously at Sajipona's feet. The faintest hint of a smile gleamed in -her eyes as she prevented this show of homage. Her greeting came clear -and low from quivering lips: - -"This is our festival, David!" - -Again the music sounded, not, as before, in a joyous burst of melody, -but in a slow chant, barbaric in feeling, wailing, unearthly. The -listening throng moved uneasily, filled with vague premonitions of -what was to come. Sajipona lifted her hands to the statue, then smiled -serenely at the two lovers before her. The spell was broken. - -"This is the ancient festival of my people," she said. "It should be a -time for rejoicing. The Gilded Man awaits us." - -As she spoke the veils covering the statue dropped one by one to the -ground. Before them stood, dazzling, glorious, the figure of a man -carved in gold. His head was uplifted, as if intent on something -beyond the ordinary ken of mortal. Only the face was clearly and -sharply chiseled; the rest of the figure--limbs, body, and flowing -drapery--blended together in one massive pillar of flaming gold. - -The effect on the beholder of this exquisitely molded shaft of -metal, upon which the radium light from above sparkled and flashed, -was indescribable. The brilliance, the lavishness of it, savored of -barbarism; but the delicacy of detail, the simple pathos and exaltation -portrayed in the face, had in it an art that was Nature's own. And the -wonder of it, the miracle that caught all men's eyes as they looked, was -the likeness that lived in every feature. For this Gilded Man, newly -wrought to preside over the last festival of this forgotten race; this -one final splendid piece of work that summed up all that was best and -noblest in an ancient art, was a deathless portrait in gold of the man -who stood before Sajipona, of the man upon whom she had built her hopes, -and for whom she would sacrifice everything. It was David--a queen's -tribute of immortal love. - -Touched at heart, the living David knelt at Sajipona's feet, pressing -her robe to his lips. A moment she stooped caressingly above him, -whispering words that none--not even he--could hear. Then proudly she -stood before them, regarding those about her with an eye that did not -falter in its imperious glance. - -"It is the last festival," she said. "With this the Land of the Condor -will pass away. The outside world of men has tracked us here before the -dream that we had of a golden age could be fulfilled. Not with us can -these be allied. They love not as we love; their faith, the beauty that -they prize, is not as ours. In another time it might have been--perhaps -it still will be. But, if it is to be, that dream will come true ages -after this Feast, this Sacrifice, of the Golden Man is over." - -As she finished speaking, Sajipona looked again at David, unspoken -grief in her eyes. He stretched his hands to her, murmuring her name, -appealing to her, terror-stricken by the stern look that slowly -overspread her features, telling of some great and tragic purpose she -was bent on carrying out. But she was unmoved by his entreaties. Slowly -she turned away. Then, beckoning to the priests, Saenzias and Omono, -she disappeared with them behind the golden statue. Those who remained, -breathlessly awaited her return--the explorers restless and anxious, -the cavemen rapt in a sort of religious ecstasy. It was thus that their -ancestors had awaited the plunge of the Indian monarch into the dark -silent waters of the Sacred Lake. - -And now high above them the thin wall of the palace roof was opened. -Without, the great sun of this underworld poured down its radiance. -Almost blinded, they could still dimly see, standing just on a level -with this sun, Sajipona arrayed as became the last descendant of the -zipas. At her side were the two priests; but these retreated as the -scorching heat pierced them. For an instant she stood where they -left her, a vision of majestic beauty that fascinated and held them -spellbound. Then, chanting an Indian song of triumph, the pćan with -which the ancient kings heralded their descent to the god beneath the -waters of the Sacred Lake, she cast herself into the globe of fire. - -A wave of light flamed across the upturned face of the golden statue, a -wail of mingled exultation and despair arose from the throng below. - -The Festival of the Gilded Man was ended. - - - - -Transcriber's note - - -Words in italics have been surrounded by _underscores_. - -The following corrections have been made, on page - - 6 , changed to . (had for her uncle.) - 80 "Sapniards" changed to "Spaniards" (owing to the presence of the - Spaniards) - 95 "posssibility" changed to "possibility" (a possibility that filled - him with dreams) - 108 "ligting" changed to "lighting" (a glint of sympathy lighting his - eyes) - 122 "passsed" changed to "passed" (David had neither reached nor - passed the inn) - 143 "Roaul" changed to "Raoul" (darting an accusing glance at Raoul) - 161 "betweeen" changed to "between" (the difference between his two - impressions) - 191 "jewerly" changed to "jewelry" (handle these pieces of jewelry - without mishap) - 296 "graden" changed to "garden" (advanced rapidly across the garden) - 313 ' changed to " (do you mean?" she asked). - -Otherwise the original has been preserved, including inconsistencies -in spelling, hyphenation and accentuation. - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Gilded Man, by Clifford Smyth - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE GILDED MAN *** - -***** This file should be named 42699-8.txt or 42699-8.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/4/2/6/9/42699/ - -Produced by eagkw, Charlene Taylor and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This -file was produced from images generously made available -by The Internet Archive/American Libraries.) - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions -will be renamed. - -Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no -one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation -(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without -permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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