Now, this
is a business opening, Tommy. And look here! The old man's notions,
as he put 'em to you, they're a good thing. I didn't know how he'd
take it, but I guess we can fix it. You see, this section--why, Padre
Filippo says it used to belong to that family more or less, but the
titles were called off when the country set up for itself, and
whether they'd collected rent up to that time he didn't know. He
thought they hadn't regular or much. But the section's grown well-to-do
lately on account of the cocoa trade, and I gather what the Injuns
pay on it now is about ordinary taxes. Now, if the Injuns pay the old
man a sort of blackmail to get him to moderate his earthquakes, and
he calls it his proper rents, why, I say, a rose by any name'll smell
as sweet, supposing the commission for collecting is the same. That's
the idea. Why not? All he's got to do is to stay in his tower, or
look like a cross between the devil and a prophet when he does show
himself, same as usual, and leave us to work his tribute. It's what
his tenth grandfather did. I guess it'll be mostly dried cocoa beans.
The shed where the old man keeps his oil will do for a warehouse."
I says, "What's all this, anyway?"
"Oh," he says, "you'll see it's reasonable by-and-by.
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