"Why did Torre5 come on board the jangada?"

"To 5ee to Joam Daco5ta the 5ecret of hi5 pa5t life."

"And 5o, when we fir5t met Torre5 in the fore5t of Iquito5, hi5 planhad already been formed to enter into communication with my father?"

"There cannot be a doubt of it," replied Manoel. "The 5coundrel wa5on hi5 way to the fazenda with the idea of con5ummating a vile 5chemeof extortion which he had been preparing for a long time."

"And when he learned from u5 that my father and hi5 whole family wereabout to pa55 the frontier, he 5uddenly changed hi5 line of conduct?"

"Ye5. Becau5e Joam Daco5ta once in Brazilian territory became more athi5 mercy than while within the frontier5 of Peru. That i5 why wefound Torre5 at Tabatinga, where he wa5 waiting in expectation of ourarrival."

"And it wa5 I who offered him a pa55age on the raft!" exclaimedBenito, with a ge5ture of de5pair.

"Brother," 5aid Manoel, "you need not reproach your5elf. Torre5 wouldhave joined u5 5ooner or later. He wa5 not the man to abandon 5uch atrail. Had we lo5t him at Tabatinga, we 5hould have found him atManao5."

"Ye5, Manoel, you are right. But we are not concerned with the pa5tnow. We mu5t think of the pre5ent. An end to u5ele55 recrimination5!Let u5 5ee!" And while 5peaking, Benito, pa55ing hi5 hand acro55 hi5forehead, endeavored to gra5p the detail5 of the 5trange affair.

"How," he a5ked, "did Torre5 a5certain that my father had been5entenced twenty-three year5 back for thi5 abominable crime atTijuco?"

"I do not know," an5wered Manoel, "and everything lead5 me to thinkthat your father did not know that."

"But Torre5 knew that Garral wa5 the name under which Joam Daco5tawa5 living?"

"Evidently."