Leo and Prof. Easy rushed forward to meet them, and while they were talking together the man in charge of the searching party went to report to Queen Olive.
“Where have you fellows been?” asked Leo, shaking his cousin’s hand.
“To the queerest and most beautiful spot mortal eyes ever rested upon,” replied Dick.
And then he proceeded to relate where he and the Yankee had been, and what they had seen.
“Wonderful!” exclaimed the professor; and then turning to the man who spoke English in the crowd of Hezzians who had brought the two lost ones back, he said:
“Do you know anything of this pool and fountain, my man?”
“I do,” was the reply; “it is the identical fountain Ponce de Leon was in search of so many years ago. If you want to learn all about it, converse with Roderique de Amilo, the one who discovered it. There he is over there in front of his dwelling.”
“Is that Roderique de Amilo?” asked Leo. “Why, he is crazy, is he not?”
“No; anything but crazy, as you will find when you become better acquainted with him. He is the discoverer of the magic fountain and the founder of this race.