Late that
evening, after the wretched prison quarters had grown quiet, the
three treasure-hunters stole out of their hovel and wound up the
hill. In spite of their excitement they went slowly, for none of
them had the strength to hurry. Fortunately, there were few
prowlers within the lines, hunger having robbed the reconcentrados
of the spirit to venture forth, and in consequence Spanish
vigilance had relaxed; it was now confined to the far-flung girdle
of intrenchments which encircled the city. The trio encountered no
one.
Leaving Jacket on guard at the crest of the hill, O'Reilly
stationed Rosa at the mouth of the well, then lowered himself once
more into it. Lighting his candle, he made a careful examination
of the place, with the result that Esteban's theory of the missing
riches seemed even less improbable than it had earlier in the day.
The masonry-work, he discovered, had been done with a painstaking
thoroughness which spoke of the abundance of slave labor, and time
had barely begun to affect it. Here and there a piece of the
mortar had loosened and come away, but for the most part it stood
as solid as the stones between which it was laid. Shoulder-high to
O'Reilly there appeared to be a section of the curbing less
smoothly fitted than the rest, and through an interstice in this
he detected what seemed to be a damp wooden beam.
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