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"Well, there was one thing which very soon struck me, and that was that the soldiers used always to lose and the civilians to win Mind, I don't say that there was anything unfair, but so it was These prison-chaps had done little else than play cards ever since they had been at the Andaame to a point, while the others just played to pass the tiht the soldiers got up poorer ot the more keen they were to play Major Sholto was the hardest hit He used to pay in notes and gold at first, but soon it ca suive hiainst him worse than ever All day he would wander about as black as thunder, and he took to drinking a deal ht he lost eveninon the way to their quarters They were bosom friends, those two, and never far apart Theabout his losses

"'It's all up, Morstan,' he was saying, as they passed my hut 'I shall have to send in my papers I am a ruinedhim upon the shoulder 'I've had a nasty facer h to set

"A couple of days later Major Sholto was strolling on the beach: so I took the chance of speaking to him

"'I wish to have your advice,his cheroot from his lips

"'I wanted to ask you, sir,' said I, 'who is the proper person to whom hidden treasure should be handed over I knohere half a ht perhaps the best thing that I could do would be to hand it over to the proper authorities, and then perhaps they would get my sentence shortened forhard at me to see if I was in earnest

"'Quite that, sir,--in jewels and pearls It lies there ready for any one And the queer thing about it is that the real owner is outlawed and cannot hold property, so that it belongs to the first comer'