XII
THE BASEBALL GOD
"IT was a long, dreary run down to the settlements, and Wogo took French leave at the first hint of civilization. Then Tib and I jumped one of those one-horse river-steamers and ate up the miles to Obidos. We were going right through to Para and catch a boat for somewhere, but at Obidos we found young Santos on his way up the river, and we foolishly stopped to have heap big talk. I was nervous, as the old chap showed an inclination to tarry, and under the petals I softly reminded him how glad we had been to flee to the East.
"‘But we were talking about the gold-fields of Minas Geraes and Bahia,' he explained. 'Do you realize, child, that in addition to the hundreds of thousands of dollars in gold there are forty thousand carats of diamonds annually exported from the Brazilian fields?'
"I observed I didn't care an old-fashioned rap if there were a million. I wanted to go home. But at this point Santos chipped in and quickly dispelled
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