CHAPTER III.

It was Olga Obosky who discovered and exposed the plot. A young Spaniard
had fallen hopelessly, madly in love with her. He was a good-looking,
hard-eyed boy from the pampas,--a herder who was on his way to visit his
mother in from Rio. He was a "gun-slinger" bearing close relationship to
the type of cowboy that existed in the old days of the Far West but who
is now extinct save for pictorial perpetuation on the moving-picture
screens.

Down in his wild young heart smouldered a furious jealousy of Percival.
Crust played upon this jealousy to fine effect. He did not hesitate
to feed the flame with sly speculations, innuendos and even tales
concerning Percival and Olga.

One day the Spaniard, in the midst of his violent protestations and
pleadings, became reckless with promises to Olga. He swore that if she
would have him he would make her the first lady of the land in place of
the stupid American girl who now held the honour. Then, having loosed
his tongue, he poured out the whole of the ugly scheme which was to
alter every existing condition on the island. The wiping out of the
dictator and his swell-headed gang of "intellectuals"; the seizure of
all firearms, ammunition and stores; the complete subjugation of the
people, even to the point of slavery; the elevation of Manuel Crust
and his followers to a state of absolute power; the confiscation of all
property,--including women! He naively advised her to jump at the chance
offered her,--the chance to avoid the most unpleasant feature of the new
regime.

"As my woman," he said, "you will be safe. It is understood. It is all
arranged. If you belong to me, nothing can happen to you. We shall be
of the elect. I am to be of the council. I am to be one of the masters,
the--"

"But," she cried, scarcely able to believe her ears, "how is all this to
be accomplished? How will the few overcome the many? You say there are
scarcely more than a dozen of you, my friend. What can a dozen men do
to--"

"It will be simple," cried he, his eyes flaming. "How is it that
Percival and his little gang hold all of us in bondage? It is because
they have the guns, the revolvers, the bullets. Well, we shall have the
guns, and everything. When the time comes, when the people have voted
in the election and a new party is in control, then we will have our
chance. We will have the upper hand. To hell with the people, Olga. They
will count for nothing once we have charge