Therefore I will not let you touch it--only a priest can touch it
without ruining his soul. Therefore I forbid you---forbid you--' he
shouted this over me, 'to tell any one of what you have seen to-day.
Neither your father nor your mother--no one. Do you understand?' I said
'Yes,' but I did not promise, and he was excited and did not notice.
Then he dragged me away, and I looked about for other rocks that
glittered. But there were none--not anywhere. And then I knew that they
had come out of the hill; but I said nothing, and when we got back to
the Mission and had had dinner and he was himself again and would have
spoken alone with me, I ran and got on my horse, and all the brothers
stood on the corridor to see me go. He came up to me and blessed me, and
whispered: 'Tell no one, my son. If you do'--and he gave me a look that
made my hair crackle at the roots. And to this day I have told no one.
Did I tell my parents the priest would know in six hours. No boy has
stayed here that I like. But now--"

"We will go to the hill and see for ourselves," said Roldan, promptly,
and Adan gasped with horror and delight.

"Ay, I knew you would. I am brave, but I dared not go myself--that padre
is too big. I wake up in the night and see his hands pawing in the air.
But three of us--we need fear no one."

"We will go as soon as the guests are gone. I have heard of this 'gold.'
ln Europe--I have an uncle who has travelled and has told me many
things--bueno, in Europe, they make it into money and give it for
things in big houses they call shops. Even here, in Monterey, and
perhaps the other towns, they have a little--it comes from Mexico. My
uncle said that one reason we were so happy was because we had so little
money--none at all, we might say. That we got what we wanted out of the