King 



tion and appearance warranted me in 

 thinking that, as I walked by their 

 huts, they were making a fairly cor- 

 rect estimate of my money-value to 

 King, and of his to me, by way of 

 ransom. They had every means of 

 reaching the best sources of informa- 

 tion while King was practising the 

 danza under their instruction ; and 

 there were among them a certain num- 

 ber of gentlemen on whose heads the 

 Spaniards had set a price. I thought 

 the situation mixed, especially when 

 connected with the exploits of a very 

 celebrated bandit named Daniele 

 who owned the whole country, except 

 where the Spanish patrol rode. King 

 himself was a little at a loss to know 

 how he stood in relation to this neigh- 

 bor. Senor Portuondo invited him 

 to ride one day some thirty miles into 

 the interior to examine a coal-seam, 

 and King was somewhat surprised 

 when their party was joined on the 

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