re had been reservoirs, built in an earlier day, but
these were ruined, and water had to be carried in earthern jars. The
cacique died, and another named Taxmar succeeded him. Year after year
passed. The soul of one worn-out white man slipped away, followed by
another, and another, until only Aguilar and Guerrero were left alive.

Taxmar sent the sailor as a present to a friend, cacique of Chatemal,
but kept Aguilar for himself, watching his ways.

The cacique was a sagacious heathen of considerable experience, but he
had never seen a man like this one. Jeronimo was now almost as dark as
an Indian and had not a scrap of civilized clothing, yet he was unlike
the other white men, unlike any other slave. He had a string of dried
berries with a cross made of reeds hung from it, which he sometimes
appeared to be counting, talking to himself in his own language. Taxmar
had once seen a slave from the north who had been a priest in his own
country and knew how to remember things by string-talk, knotting a
string in a peculiar fashion; but he was not like this man. When the
white slave saw the crosses carved on their old walls he had eagerly
asked how they came there, and Taxmar gathered that the cross had some
meaning in the captive's own religion. He never lied, never stole, never
got angry, never tattled of the other slaves, never disobeyed orders,
never lost his temper. Taxmar could not remember when he himself had
ever been restrained by anything but policy from taking whatever he
wanted. Here was a man who could deny himself even food at times, when
he was not compelled to. Taxmar could not understand.

What he did not know was, that when he had escaped from the cannibals
Aguilar had made a fresh vow to keep with all strictness every vow of
his priesthood, and to bear his lot with patience and meekness until it
should be the will of God to free him from the savages. He had begun to
think that this freedom would never be his in his lifetime, but a vow
was a vow. He no more suspected that Taxmar was taking note of his
behavior, than a man standing in front of the lion's cage at the
menagerie can translate the thoughts behind the great cat's intent eyes.

Taxmar began to try experiments. He invented temptations to put in the
way of his slave, but Aguilar generally did not seem to see them. One
day the Indians were shooting at a mark. One came up to Aguilar and
seized him by the arm.

"How would you like to be shot at?" he