nd
strong for the corn--whose brother would your god tell you to be at
that time?" asked the governor of Kah-po, a tall shrewd faced old man
who had not spoken heretofore. Chico showed his teeth in a quickly
suppressed smile.

"Our god would tell us," said Padre Vicente with slowness and duly
impressive speech--"that our brothers must be the men who are friends
with us."

"That is good," agreed the man from Kah-po, and the others said also
it was good. Brothers who wore iron coats would be good brothers to
have in the time of a war.

"It is as Tahn-te told us of the priests of the white god--they are
wise in their thoughts," said the old man who had insisted there was
no king in Povi-whah, or any Te-hua village--"all Tahn-te has told us
were true words."

"He told us also," said the man from Kah-po--"that the men of iron
were not friends to trust."

"They were other men of iron, not these. These men Tahn-te has not yet
seen."

The Padre gave no hint that he knew enough of Te-hua words to catch
the meaning of their discourse. So long as might be, he would keep
that secret,--much might depend upon it.

The name Tahn-te met him at every turn--this was the mysterious
Ruler--the hidden Cacique or Po-Ahtun-ho--the one chief who gave them
no greeting.

"Ask for me what the name means--the name Tahn-te," he said.

Jose pointed to a ray of sunlight streaming through the shelter of the
vine trellis.

"It means that."

"And for what cause is a man called Light of the Sun?"

Jose did not know, but when asked, the ancient man spoke.

"For many reasons, Those Above put the thought of the Sun in the heart
of the mother of Tahn-te. Sunlight he was to Povi-whah--you shall
see!"

A little boy was carrying on his head a flat basket or tray of reeds,
and on it were rolls of bread, and small melons for the feast; at a
few words he set down the tray, and darted around a corner--it was a
day big in history for him. He was doing the work of his sister who
had been sent to the hills--but for this day the work of a girl was
great work--it took him so close to the men of iron that his hand
could have touched one of them--if his courage had not failed!

He came back with a jar of shining black pottery, and placed it beside
the old man, who thrust his hand within and drew out a handful of
peaches, dried in the summer sun of a year before.

"This fruit is gathered with prayer each year from the first tree
planted by the Summe