ected to such tortures as only the subtle
brains of the hellish inquisitors could devise. On receipt of a
message from him, delivered in his supernatural body, we attended
his execution, and can readily testify that he suffered no pain,
although the torments endured by those around him were pitiable to
behold.

"(Signed) GEORGE RICHARD POOL, Physician; and ROBERT JAMES FOX,
Merchant.

"Citizens of Boston, Massachusetts; August 1, 1693.'"

"Rot!" Hamar said savagely; "don't waste time reading such bunkum."

"It may be bunkum, but if it takes away his mind from his stomach let
him go on," Curtis interposed. "It's very obvious you haven't arrived
at our pitch of starvation yet, Leon, or you would welcome anything
that would make you forget it even for a moment. Let's hear some more,
Matt! Go on, tell us something. How to make coyottes out of paraffin
paint, or convert a Sunday pair of pants into a glistening harem
skirt! Anything that won't remind us of food."

Thus encouraged Kelson slowly turned over the pages of the book. "I
see it was printed and published for--I presume that means by--A.
Bettesworth and J. Batley in Pater-noster-Row, London, England, in
1690. Basle, London, Boston, Madrid! The author seems to have had
wandering on the brain. By the bye, Leon, with your features you could
easily work off a fake as 'the Wandering Jew.' There's money in
it--people will swallow anything in that line now."

"I don't see how it would profit you anyhow," Hamar snarled. "Leave my
features alone and go on with your reading."

Kelson chuckled--here was one way at least in which he could
occasionally get even with Hamar. Hamar's features were Yiddish, and
the Yids were none too popular in California.

"Oh, all right!" he said; "if the subject is so painful I'll try and
avoid it in future; but it's odd how some things--for instance, murder
and noses--will out. Let me see, what have we here? 'Discovery of
ancient books, manuscripts, etc., relating to Atlantis.' Apparently,
Thomas Maitland, when shipwrecked on an island, called Inisturk, off
Mayo, in Ireland, found a wooden chest of rare workmanship--he had
seen, he says, similar ones in Egypt and Yucatan--containing some very
ancient books--curiously bound, and some vellum manuscripts, which,
after an infinite amount of labour, he managed to translate. The
books, he says, were standard histories, biographies, and scientific
works on occult