“Now,” he continued, “I know the country where this took place, and
can not only point out the very river, but the identical spot in the
river where that treasure still lies hidden. Have you the perseverance,
vigour, and endurance to bring that vast hoard to the light of day
again? If so it shall be yours!”
Hardly knowing what I was saying I replied in the affirmative, and
after further conversation we retired for the night.
We stayed a day or two longer at the inn to procure mules and other
necessaries, and then rode off upon our distant quest.
After weeks of wandering through mountains and valleys we came to a
river which flowed through a beautifully diversified country; hilly,
rocky, and well clothed with trees and luxurious foliage.
Riding along the river’s bank we came to a very lonely spot,--a long
glen--through which the river peacefully flowed in meandering curves
and foaming falls. The end of the valley broadened out into a level
plain of considerable extent, and in the midst of this plain stood the
crumbling remains of two ancient towers, of which little more than the
foundations remained.
“Here,” said my guide, “we halt; there lies our treasure,” saying
which he pointed to the deep, silent stream flowing between the two
massive towers.
“Now,” he continued, “you must follow out the plan I have devised for
regaining the wealth which lies hidden there, and carry out everything
just as I desire you.
“At the small town of Y---- hard by lives the owner of this land. You
will assume the character of a wealthy but eccentric (or partly mad)
Englishman. You are enchanted with the beautiful views in the glen
yonder, and wish to stay here for a long period, to paint pictures and
to generally enjoy yourself. You would like a two-roomed cottage built
near one of the towers, that you may live and sleep amid the scenery
you so love to depict. You will pay liberally.
“That is all I ask you to do. We will proceed at once to the town and
make these very necessary arrangements. I am your mentor, your tutor,
should prying people desire to know why an old man accompanies you.
“At Alexandria I have a friend, to whom I must write for certain
necessary implements to be sent to us, without which it will be in vain
to attempt our quest. To procure these implements shall be _my_ task.
They must be sent to the nearest port, and thence may easily be brought
here on the backs of mules.
“D---- is the nearest port, and there my friend Isaac Susha is
harbour-master; on my bidding he will send the goods here, free from
all observation or suspicion. In the mean time our little house will
be building, and you can amuse yourself with your painting, while I
elaborate my plans and ply my angling rod, for there is much fish in
this river. I shall make an ideal fisherman, for a flowing beard points
to the contemplative man, and your true angler is certainly of a
contemplative mind; such a man was your English Izaak Walton.”
In due course the little house was built, and the implements or goods,
supposed to be furniture, etc., arrived in six heavy cases borne on the
backs of mules. The muleteers were paid and dismissed, and in a short
time people ceased to regard us as a kind of show, and we were left in
peace and quietness, except for an occasional couple who would stroll
along in the evening to look at the mad Englishman and his keeper! Now
and again an old shepherd, whose flocks nibbled the juicy pasture of
the plain, would come and pay his respects to us, and watch the picture
growing on my canvas; but after nightfall we were never disturbed, for
the people of the district were very superstitious; and as the towers
had the reputation of being haunted, we were free from all interruption
after dark.
I unscrewed the packing-cases, and found they contained sundry
articles of furniture, such as folding-chairs, folding iron bedsteads,
cutlery, culinary ware, etc.; but in one of the cases was a complete
diving suit, helmet, overalls, tubing, lead weight, heavy boots, and
everything that a diver requires, even to a submarine lantern. Another
case contained an air pump, extra tubing, crowbars, and sundry gear.
My old friend chuckled with delight at my surprise, and his eyes
sparkled as we commenced putting the apparatus together.
“Now,” said he, “the inhabitants of this country are, as you know from
the legend of the haunted towers which you have heard, very suspicious,
and probably we shall have some official or other, making it his
business to call upon us occasionally, to see what is going on, and
it will never do to let him see the pump and diving apparatus, or we
should at once be haled before some dignitary, and charged with having
dealings with the Evil One. Now I have a proposition to make, which is
this--our bedroom lies next the river, and I suggest that beneath the
floor we hollow out a small chamber, about seven feet square, in which
we can keep both the pump and diving suit from observation, so that at
whatever time during the day any one chooses to call, nothing will be
in view to betray us.”
“Agreed!” I exclaimed; “a capital proposal; we will set to work this
very night. We will excavate, and as we dig up the earth I will carry
it in a basket to the river’s brink and throw it in.”
“Very well,” said the ancient Jew, “I will delve, and you shall be the
beast of burden, as you suggest, for you are the stronger man.”
“But,” I queried, “as you delve beneath the surface you will find it
very wet, you will catch your death from cold, and have your limbs set
fast with rheumatism.”
The old Jew laughed and replied, “Death--pah! You forget, my friend,
who I am. Come, let us commence.”