h to the people themselves, and be eagerly adopted by
them; which delectable plan certainly met with some measure of success.

But as he lay tossing sleeplessly upon his bed he realised that he had
that evening been both foolish and precipitate: he had seriously
mistaken the nature of the views held by the two priests, and had
betrayed himself and his friends in their presence. How would the
Villac Vmu and his deputy act, or would they act at all, was the
question which he now repeatedly asked himself? Could he by any means
ascertain their intentions? He must, by fair means or foul: it would
never do for him to remain in ignorance upon such a vital point after
the reckless manner in which he and his friends had spoken. Ay, and
more than that, he must make quite sure that they maintained silence
upon the subject of that most imprudent conversation, otherwise--!

He flung himself over restlessly upon his bed: the longer he thought
upon the matter the more glaring did his folly appear. He must guard
himself and his friends from the consequences of that folly at all
costs. But how? Who was there to advise him? Suddenly he bethought
himself of Xaxaguana, the priest who ranked next below Motahuana. Of
course, he was the very man of all others; for, first of all, he was
Huanacocha's very particular friend, and a man, moreover, who was deeply
indebted to him for many past favours of a somewhat exceptional kind;
also he was young, comparatively speaking, very ambitious, and not over
scrupulous. Yes, Xaxaguana was undoubtedly the man for his purpose, and
Huanacocha told himself, with a smile of relief, that he had been a fool
for not thinking of the priest before.

But although Huanacocha believed that he saw in Xaxaguana the "friend in
need" for whom he had been so anxiously casting about, he was still much
too uneasy to sleep, and he was up and about with the appearance of the
first faint suggestion of dawn, too anxious to remain inactive any
longer, yet fully conscious of the fact that the hour was altogether too
early for him to seek his friend without running a very grave risk of
attracting unwelcome attention by so unusual a proceeding. He therefore
decided to take a long walk, and think the whole affair over again while
his brain and his pulses were being steadied by the cool, fresh air of
the morning.

Was it fate or was it mere chance that caused him to select a route
which led him past that part of the tem