“No, of course I have not,” answered Douglas, somewhat impatiently. “If I knew the contents I should not be under the necessity to ask you to translate them, should I?”
“Pardon me, señor; I spoke foolishly,” replied José.
“Let the señor, however, listen to me while I recount a few facts to him. He will then see, perhaps, why I have been so utterly astonished at the sight of this document. Long ages ago—ay, long before the conquistadores appeared in Peru—we Indians worked the silver and gold mines, which, as you know, abound in this country; and we also gathered enormous quantities of precious stones from the river-beds for the purpose of adorning the person of the Inca, our lord, and those of his nobles whom he deigned to favour, as well as for the adornment of the temple and of the royal palace. By the time, then, that Pizarro and his horde of robbers overran the land, there were millions upon millions of dollars-worth of precious metals and precious stones in the possession of the Inca and his nobles. You have heard of the ransom which Pizarro exacted from Atahualpa; how a large room was twice filled with gold, to the value of fifteen millions of your pounds? Well, the Spaniards themselves knew that that ransom was but a small fraction of the enormous wealth which we Peruvians possessed; but they did not know, as we did, how very small a fraction it was. We had not time enough to secrete all our treasure, for the arrival of the Spaniards was unexpected; but we hid away an enormous quantity of gold, silver, and jewels. Some of it has been lost; irretrievably, I fear, through the sudden death of the men to whom the secret of its hiding-place had been entrusted. But we Peruvians still know the whereabout of a good deal of that vast hoard which is being kept for the time when a new Inca shall arise who shall set himself at the head of our armies and sweep the invaders of our land into the sea. All our preparations are made; we only await the arrival of the man. And this document, into possession of which you have so strangely come, relates to the burial of one of these hoards, and tells the secret of its hiding-place, as also the means whereby that hiding-place may be found.
“That is why I was so greatly overcome with amazement when you showed me the paper, señor. I am one of the descendants of the ancient Peruvian race; and, since this document is written in the secret character used by the Incas, I can read it, and I can say, now, where this treasure is located!”
“Phew!” whistled Jim, “that’s a strange story, and no mistake. I did not think when I brought that document away that it would prove of quite so much importance and value; although, to be sure, there were several small gold and silver images buried with it.”
“Images!” ejaculated José excitedly; “where are they, where are they, oh, my preserver? If you really have the signs in your possession, then I— Show me them, señor, show me them, I pray you.”
Thus exhorted, Jim dived into the chest which he had brought with him to accommodate his belongings, and produced the little images which he had found in the tunnel at Sorata. José fell upon his knees before them in a perfect ecstasy of mingled reverence and delight, turning them over and over in his hands, and speaking to them as though they were, in very truth, alive. Then presently he recovered himself and, placing Jim’s hand upon his head in token of submission, he said in a trembling voice:
“Oh, my deliverer, it was prophesied of old that the man who possessed those figures should also possess the treasure; for that man would be destined to do great things for the benefit of our race. But in addition to this, you have found the document; there can be no doubt, therefore, that you, my master, are the man who is destined to receive this great treasure, for all the signs point that way. I am willing, therefore, to translate this writing to you, señor, and to show you the way to the place where the treasure is hidden, so that you may obtain possession of it.”
“By Jove!” exclaimed Douglas, leaning back in his chair and wiping his forehead, “this is the most extraordinary affair that I have ever come across; and—let me think! what was it that old Inca witch-woman told me about treasure being in store for me? Ah yes! I remember. She said that one day I should come into possession of great wealth; that it was still hidden in the ground, but that the secret of its hiding-place should one day be revealed to me. Caramba! It really seems as though the Inca’s prophecy is about to come true. Now, José,” he went on, aloud; “this is a very curious tale indeed. I hope you are not playing any tricks with me.
“Señor, you saved my life, only a few days ago,” replied the Indian; “is it likely that I should deceive the man who rescued me from a horrible death? Besides, the treasure is situated only a very short distance from here—about a day’s journey—so your Excellency can easily prove whether I am telling the truth or not by accompanying me to the place, and seeing the treasure with your own eyes.”