It was slavish work, but
O'Reilly kept them at it until they were ready to drop. Daylight
overtook them at their task.
They were weak, sick, deadly tired; they could barely shuffle a
few yards at a time when they finally reached Asensio's hut;
nevertheless there was hope in their hearts, for O'Reilly's ragged
clothes sagged with the weight of gold pieces and the little metal
box he carried was heavy. Nor were they greatly concerned about
the safety of the treasure they had left behind, for the entrance
to the cavern lay deeply buried, and Cobo, the guerrilla, stood
guard over the chests of plate and the casks of coin.
Evangelina, vastly bewildered at the sight of the coin which was
forced into her palm, went for food and spent most of the day in
cooking it. The treasure-hunters alternately slept and ate. It was
not until well along toward evening that Rosa and O'Reilly felt
any desire to take stock of the contents of that jewel-box, but
finally, with heads together and with backs to the door of the
bohio, they made a furtive examination. It was a task that held
them spellbound, for there were loose gems of many varieties, some
well, some badly cut; there were pieces of antique Spanish
jewelry, valuable mainly by virtue of their antiquity, clumsy
settings of silver and gold containing dead, uninteresting stones;
others of the finest and most delicate workmanship.
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