of hunger
to make one appreciate the grain. In fact, I was on the point of
closing the old scribble book through sheer weariness, when my eye lit
on something which, as I read it further, made me fairly sweat.

Weems droned on with his sermon, and I chucked in question and retort
from time to time, just to keep him at it. I was wanting to gain time
for a little argument of my own. It was a case of should I keep what I
had found to myself, or should I share it with Weems? Common sense
said, "Don't be a fool. If Providence has chucked a good thing in your
way, stick it in your own pocket. That self-sufficient idiot will be
none the wiser." But the plague one calls Honour kept shoving in all
manner of objections. By Jove, how a rational-minded cad would have
scored there!

In the long run Honour, confound it, got a bit of a balancer which
helped it to win. I'd a light purse; Weems seemed better off; he must
supply the trifle of shot necessary for the pair of us; and together we
should split the proceeds. Yes, that would be the idea. And besides, on
second thoughts, there'd be lashings and lavings of plunder for both.
No need for a bit of sharp practice on my part after all. So up I
spoke:--

"See here, signor, you've had the carpet for long enough, so give me a
turn. This twaddling old screed which you were going to sell without
ever skimming it through holds what means nothing more or less than a
thumping great fortune for each of us. You've heard of Raymond Lully?
No? Well, he was an old swell who flourished in the twelve hundreds,
and who was by trade rake, philosopher, quack, fanatic, organizer, and
martyr. He hailed from Mallorca--or Majorca, as you English persist in
calling it--and he wrote books on Apologetic Theology, Dogmatic
Divinity, and Practical Alchemy. Also he penned this diary, which has
evidently been kept pretty snug so far, and thanks to its general
dreary tone, no one has read the memorandum on page the last but one."

"Let me see," interrupted Weems, stretching out his hand for the
volume.

"It's of no use to you, as you can't read Spanish. However, I'll tell
you what's here; only let me gently remind you first that if it hadn't
been for my knowing the language and conning some of this stuff
through, the book would have passed out of your hands without your ever
having learnt a word about it. Shall I go on now? It's a bit
important."

"Yes, we are practically alone here. That person with the b