"Then I know what I shall do."

Neither Mr. Selden nor Mr. Gunther could sleep that night. Those little golden curls over the blue eyes floated in a hazy mist and music in tantalizing recurrence until dawn.

"Did you make a satisfactory bargain?" George asked Clarence next morning, when the ladies had gone to church.

"Yes, as far as we can see at present. I am to send an expert to look at the mines to-morrow, and on his report will decide what to do. But I am in a quandary now about one thing. Have you positively decided to leave to-morrow at seven A.M.?"

"If we don't oversleep ourselves," was George's reply. "But that depends. Why do you ask? If by waiting a few days we can have your company further on, we will wait, of course. The girls are enjoying themselves very much, and will be glad to wait for you."

"Thanks, thanks," said Clarence, warmly. "Yes, I would like to go as far as the Yosemite with you; but as I would like to have one final talk with the miners to-morrow before I pay them any money, I would be much obliged if you could wait until Tuesday morning."

"Most willingly, my dear fellow, particularly as these senoritas are not in a hurry to leave fascinating San Francisco."

"We have not driven anywhere around the city, and Miss Mercedes wishes to see more of San Francisco," said Clarence, "as she has not seen it since she was _twelve months old_."

"Poor Selden; those fellows will never cease laughing at his mistake,"

George said.

After mass, our travelers went immediately to luncheon. At their table were already seated the six New Yorkers, but four chairs were carefully turned, in token of being reserved. Clarence sat next to Mercedes, but Selden was opposite, and anxiously expected the moment when she would lift her veil. He dreaded to be disenchanted by finding her to be less beautiful in daylight, but such was not the case. She appeared to him even prettier, seeing better the lovely dark blue of her eyes. He looked at her in silence, saying to himself mentally: "She is exquisite; am I going to love her hopelessly!" And he looked at Clarence with a pang of jealousy, for he could not deny to himself that he was handsome, yes, beautiful as an Apollo, and very manly.

Next to Selden sat Robert Gunther, making almost the same mental observations, and resolving to try and win her in spite of all obstacles.

Luncheon was much enjoyed by all excepting Mr. Selden, who seemed to get more and more nervous as he sat there trying not to look at Mercedes as much as he wished.

The Gunther brothers were very brilliant conversationalists, and so was George, who was in his element in the company of such polished gentlemen as were now before him. On leaving the table, Mr. Charles Gunther begged Elvira's permission to pay their respects, asking if it would suit her convenience for them to call that evening after dinner, to which she gracefully assented, and all walked towards the parlor.

"Shall we go to the Cliff House this afternoon?" George asked his wife.

"You may, but Mercedes and I are going to vespers," she replied, and soon after the two sisters retired to their rooms.

As all of the gentlemen walked down to the reading room, Selden said: "And how in thunder are we going to kill time this afternoon until dinner? It will be intensely stupid here."

"I thought we all were going to drive to the Cliff," Bob Gunther said, maliciously. "Perhaps you would rather go to church."

"You judge others by yourself," Selden retorted.

"I believe I do. But our sudden access of religion, I fear, would not be appreciated. My dear fellow, our piety, like that of his satanic majesty, would be distrusted. It would edify no one, only make us ridiculous. Let us go to the Cliff."

And to the Cliff all went, but the drive was not much enjoyed. Bob and Selden were quarrelsome, and all the others laughed at them, which ended by making them surly. Selden ridiculed the San Franciscans for their stupid Cliff House, while all sat in arm-chairs on the broad veranda and looked at the Pacific Ocean, and Pacific sea lions, and Pacific rocks, and thought them all equally monotonous. To watch the ugly sea beasts awkwardly dragging their unwieldly hulks up the rocks, there to spread themselves in the sun, was not a very exhilarating spectacle for young gentlemen who desired to see other kinds of lions. Sunday not being the fashionable day for San Franciscans to drive to the Cliff, the New Yorkers concluded that the elite would not be seen that afternoon and returned to the hotel.

After dinner several lady friends, who had received Elvira's wedding cards and had seen her and Mercedes at church that morning, called.

The cards of the New Yorkers, also, were brought, and they followed immediately. Elvira presented them very gracefully, while George watched with delighted attention the perfect ease and natural elegance with which she did the honors as hostess.

Robert Gunther and Arthur Selden seated themselves in a corner, on the right of Mercedes' chair, but Clarence held his place on the end of the sofa, very near her.

About ten o'clock, Mr. Charles Gunther said to them:

"Much as it pains me to tear myself away, young men, it must be done, for we have made _a first call_ of nearly two hours' duration."

"It has not seemed to us nearly so long," Mercedes said.

"It was no more than two minutes," Bob Gunther added.

"How you exaggerate," Mr. Selden exclaimed.

"Ask him how long it has seemed to him," Bob suggested.

"I would not dare. He thinks you exaggerate, that is enough," replied Mercedes.

Selden gave her a look of tender reproach, and a savage one at Bob, as he bowed, leaving the room.

By nine o'clock Monday morning Clarence had received the certificates of assay he had ordered on Saturday afternoon. It seemed to him that there must be a mistake somewhere about the rock, for these assays gave even a higher percentage than those shown him by the miners. He went to Hubert's office and found Fred already there waiting for him.

"Look here, Hubert, are you sure that these men did not bring us this rich rock from some other mine? The assays are very high. One goes as high as $2000 per ton."

"They might have selected the specimens, but I can vouch for their being from the same ledge, for I know the rock. I can also vouch for the honesty of the men, for I know them well; besides, what would be the good of telling a falsehood that would be found out the minute the expert got there? Their reputation is worth more to them than the five hundred dollars that you will pay now," was Hubert's reply.

"They are good men. I have known them for years, and have had them working with me," Fred added.

"Then let us finish this business now, for I go out of town to-morrow morning," Clarence said, and in half an hour he had explained his views and wishes and made his contract with Fred Haverly, the terms of which had been already mentioned on Saturday night and Sunday morning. The miners now came and the contract with them, also, was made and acknowledged in due form.

By twelve o'clock that day Clarence had dispatched his business with the miners and with Fred Haverly, reserving until he returned instructions regarding his Alameda farm.

In the afternoon all drove to the Cliff House. The ugly sea lions did not seem so clumsy to Mr. Selden, as Mercedes laughed, amused to see their ungainly efforts at locomotion, and as she pronounced the Pacific Ocean to be grand and the wild surf dashing madly against the impassive rocks very impressive, Mr. Selden was of the same way of thinking, and found the sea lions rather graceful and dignified, the black rocks more interesting than they had been the day before.

The gayeties of San Francisco made time slip away magically, and a week passed in receptions, drives and yacht sailing, in honor of Elvira, seemed very short indeed. But now another week had begun, and the journey eastward must be resumed.

Our travelers took an early breakfast on Tuesday morning, and by seven o'clock they left the hotel. Half an hour later, they were on the Oakland boat, crossing San Francisco Bay on their way to New York.

"There is plenty of room here for all the navies of the world," George observed, looking at the harbor.

"Yes, I believe the bay is forty miles across," replied Clarence. "For all intents and purposes at present, however, San Diego Bay is as good as this."

"Yes, I only wish we had commerce enough for ships to be crowded there."

"If Colonel Scott succeeds in constructing his railroad, there is no doubt that San Diego will be a large city in a few years."

"I believe that, but the question is, will Colonel Scott succeed?"

"I think he will, but he has a hard crowd to fight."

Clarence mused a little, then, changing his position so as to face George, said:

"I have had an idea in my head, a sort of project, I want to talk to you about. Of course, its practicability, I fear, will entirely depend upon the building of the Texas Pacific Railroad; for if San Diego is not to have population, my plan will be impracticable. It is this: The two banks in San Diego, I don't think, have a paid-up capital of more than a hundred thousand dollars. I think we could establish a bank of two or three hundred thousand dollars that would be a paying institution. I heard you say that you thought you would like to come to California, so as to be near your family. That gave me the idea of starting a bank. You could be the president and manager, and I would furnish as much of the capital as suited you."