told him of
gold buried in a cove of Lower California by the man's grandfather;
that the man had given him a chart showing the location of the
treasure; that he had sewn this chart in the shoulder of his coat,
whence his suspicion of me and his being so loco about getting it back.

"And it's a big thing," said Handy Solomon to me, "for they's not only
gold, but altar jewels and diamonds. It will make us rich, and a dozen
like us, and you can kiss the Book on that."

"That may all be true," said I, "but why do you tell me? Why don't you
get your treasure without the need of dividing it?"

"Why, mate," he answered, "it's just plain gratitude. Didn't you save
my life, and nuss me, and take care of me when I was nigh killed?"

"Look here, Anderson, or Handy Solomon, or whatever you please to call
yourself," I rejoined to this, "if you're going to do business with
me--and I do not understand yet just what it is you want of me--you'll
have to talk straight. It's all very well to say gratitude, but that
don't go with me. You've been around here three months, and barring a
half-dozen civil words and twice as many of the other kind, I've failed
to see any indications of your gratitude before. It's a quality with a
hell of a hang-fire to it."

He looked at me sideways, spat, and looked at me sideways again. Then
he burst into a laugh.

"The devil's a preacher, if you ain't lost your pinfeathers,"' said he.
"Well, it's this then: I got to have a boat to get there; and she must
be stocked. And I got to have help with the treasure, if it's like
this fellow said it was. And the Yaquis and cannibals from Tiburon is
through the country. It's money I got to have, and it's money I
haven't got, and can't get unless I let somebody in as pardner."

"Why me?" I asked.

"Why not?" he retorted. "I ain't see anybody I like better."

We talked the matter over at length. I had to force him to each point,
for suspicion was strong in him. I stood out for a larger party. He
strongly opposed this as depreciating the shares, but I had no
intention of going alone into what was then considered a wild and
dangerous country. Finally we compromised. A third of the treasure
was to go to him, a third to me, and the rest was to be divided among
the men whom I should select. This scheme did not appeal to him.

"How do I know you plays fair?" he complained. "They'll be four of you
to one of me; and I don't like it, and you can kiss