productive. Our desert, as you know,
is not sand, like parts of the Sahara; it has
all the ingredients that go to nourish plants,
only their present powdery condition makes
them unavailable. Now, I can, to-day, buy
a hundred square miles of desert for a few
dollars. You see the point, don't you?"

"And all you want is expert opinion as
to the likelihood of finding water?"

"The man who solves that question for
me in the affirmative is welcome to half my
share of the results that would ensue from it."

"Why don't you engage some expert to
investigate?"

"One can't always trust an expert. I
don't mean as to his expertness only, but as
to his good faith. He might prefer to sell
the idea to somebody who could pay cash,
--which I cannot."

"Why, you seem to have given this thing
a good deal of thought, Trednoke."

"Well, yes: it has been my hobby for a
year past; and I have made some investigations
myself. But this is the first time I