III.

Ugijar is distant from Aldeire some four leagues, and the road between the
two towns is a very bad one. Before nine o'clock on the following morning,
however, Uncle Juan Gomez, wearing his blue stockinet knee-breeches and
his embroidered white Sunday boots, was in the office of Don Matias de
Quesada, a vigorous old man, a doctor in civil and criminal jurisprudence,
the most noted criminal lawyer in that part of the country. He had always
been a promoter of lawsuits, and was very wealthy, and had a large circle
of influential acquaintances in Granada and Madrid.

When he had heard his worthy gossip's story and had carefully examined the
paper, he gave it as his opinion that the document had nothing whatever to
do with the treasure; that the hole in which the tube had been found was a
sort of closet, and the writing one of the prayers which the Moors read
every Friday morning. But notwithstanding this, as he was not thoroughly
versed in the Arabic language, he added that he would send the document to
a college companion of his who was employed in the Commission of the Holy
Places, in Madrid, in order that he might send it to Jerusalem, where it
could be translated into Spanish, for which purpose it would be well to
inclose to his friend in Madrid a draft for a couple of ounces in gold,
for a cup of chocolate.

Uncle Juan Gomez considered seriously before he made up his mind to pay so
high a price for a cup of chocolate (which would be paying for the article
at the rate of 10,240 reals a pound), but he was so certain in regard to
the treasure (and in truth he was not mistaken, as we shall see later on),
that he took from his belt eight gold pieces of four dollars each and
delivered them to Don Matias, who weighed them one by one before putting