himself to throw off
the mantle of terror descending upon him but the feeling grew and grew.
With a rush of unreasoning anger he flung up his gun and fired at the
swaying bell.

A shrill, human-like cry rang out, the bell ceased tolling, and a heavy
body crashed down at the terrified lad's feet.

Throwing out his arms Walter sank to the floor in a dead faint.

He opened his eyes again to see Charley bending over, examining him by
the light of a flaring torch.

"What, what was it?" he whispered.

Charley shifted the torch and held it close to a dark figure stretched
out on the stone floor.

Its glare lit up a face strangely human, and bearing the apparent mark
of centuries in its furrowed features and wrinkled skin.

"A big monkey," gasped Walter in astonishment.

"Yes," said Charley gently, "an old man monkey, old, old, very, very
old."

CHAPTER XXIX.

THE ENEMY.

Walter broke into a weak, hysterical laugh, "and I took that for a
spirit," he exclaimed. "Well, our mystery is solved now."

"Yes," his chum admitted, looking down at the dead bell-ringer with a
kind of regret, "still there are some points about it which still
remain a mystery, and always will. There is no record of there ever
being monkeys found in this state. It must have been brought here by
one of the Spanish gentlemen as a pet and taught the trick of ringing
the bell, and yet, that theory is unbelieveable. Consider, Walter, if
such is the case, this creature has reached an incredible age."

Walter bent down and flashed the torch in the monkey's face. "He looks
as though he had lived for centuries," he exclaimed, "his face is like
that of a shriveled mummy, and see, that look of cunning and
aged-wisdom in his features. Charley," continued the tender-hearted
boy with a break in his voice, "I feel as badly about it as I would if
I had shot a man. Think of the poor, harmless creature, remaining true
year after year to the one task he knew how to perform, and then to be
shot down at last while doing it."

"Nonsense, this is no time for sentiment. We must get back to our
post, we have left it altogether too long. You will have to help me
back, I guess, Walt," Charley said.

"How did you get here?" demanded his chum, the current of his thoughts
suddenly changed. "Why, your trousers' leg is wet with blood and you
are as pale as a ghost."

"I couldn't have walked a hundred feet under ordinary circumstances,
but that scream b