Mexican woman and two scantily dressed, barefooted children appeared in the doorway.

The next moment the woman’s face lit at sight of Florence. “Florencita!” she cried, then went on in a rapid flow of Spanish to ask her numerous questions about her family.

As soon as Florence had answered these questions she inquired if they still owned the cow.

The woman nodded assent and urged her and Jo Ann to sit down and rest till Pablito brought the cow and she could milk.

Florence shook her head and handing her the bucket asked if it would be possible for her to send the milk up later by one of the children.

“Sí, Florencita. Muy bien,” she agreed, smiling.

As the girls turned to go, the woman reached down and picked a fragrant, waxy-white flower from the jasmine growing in a pot by the door. “For your mama,” she explained, handing it to Florence.

With a word of thanks and an “Adios” to her and the children, the girls started back down the trail.

“Let’s go home the long way through the valley,” suggested Florence when they reached the ravine. “There’s a cave down this way that I want to show you.”

“Fine! The longer the way, the better. That cave sounds interesting, too.”

Slipping and sliding down the rocky mountain side, they soon reached the broad valley; then they followed the path around the base of the cliff, stopping now and then to gather ferns and flowers.

When they came to a sparkling, crystal-clear spring bubbling out from under the rocks, Jo Ann dropped to her knees and drank thirstily of the icy cold water.

While Florence was drinking, Jo Ann heard a snapping of twigs near by. She wheeled about and, peering through the bushes, saw two small boys gathering wood. One of them was bent over by the weight of a large bundle of the wood, held in place on his back by a rope passed across his forehead; the other was chopping sticks with a machete, a long heavy knife. At first glance Jo Ann thought they must be twins, as they were dressed alike in the loose white trousers and blouse worn by the peon.

A few minutes later the boys stepped back into the narrow trail, but on seeing the girls they quickly moved to one side to let them pass.

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