"Um-m-m!" commented Dick. "Well, this is the land of marvels, and no
mistake! I thought I had grown accustomed to the wonders of it, and
that I had no capacity for further astonishment, but I confess that you
have contrived to give me one more spasm of surprise. Ask your friend
who he is, and where he hails from: I dare swear that he is not a native
of this village."

Stukely turned to the old man, who was by this time sitting up and
gently chafing his wrists and ankles, and attempted to put to him the
question which Dick had suggested. But he found that the words would
not come to him; he felt that he knew but could not remember them; and
after two or three bungling attempts he was obliged to give it up.

"Now, that is very extraordinary," said he, attempting to explain his
failure to Dick; "almost as extraordinary as the fact that I understood
the old chap's words, and was able to answer them. But I know his
language--I am certain I do--and after I have practised with him a
little, it will all come back to me. Meanwhile we must do the best we
can. Are you feeling better, `gramfer'? And what were the Indians
going to do to you?" This in English.

The Indian looked up in Stukely's face and spoke for nearly a minute;
and when he had finished Stukely was again, to his own and Dick's
amazement, able to reply.

"We are getting on," Phil explained. "The old gentleman asked me why I
did not address him in his own tongue, since I evidently understand it;
and then went on to say that we arrived here just in the nick of time,
as the villagers were about to torture him to death, to secure the
favour of some god or devil of whom they appear to be particularly
afraid. And I said that he might depend upon us to protect him so long
as we have the power to do so."

Then he turned again to the old man, and, with a good deal of stammering
and hesitation, and many long pauses for consideration, said something
else, to which the ancient again replied; whereupon Phil made a further
attempt, with the result that ultimately the two had quite a long
conversation together, although it must be confessed that the elder man
did most of the talking. At length the conversation came to an end, for
the moment, and Stukely seized the opportunity to transmit to Dick the
information which he had acquired.

"Our friend's story is a very remarkable one," he said. "He tells me
that his name is Vilcamapata; that he is a Peruvian; and