“I noticed that.  Thank you.  And you’ll loan him to me to beat that old scoundrel I told you about?”

“You’ll have to arrange that matter with your daughter, sir.  I have raced my first and my last race for anything save the sport of a horse-race, and I am now about to present Panchito to Miss Kay.”

“Present him?  Why, you star-spangled idiot, I offered you fifteen thousand dollars for him and you knew then I would have gone to fifty thousand.”

Don Mike laid a patronizing hand on John Parker’s shoulder.  “Old settler, you’re buying Panchito and you’re paying a heavier price than you realize, only, like the overcoat in the traveling salesman’s expense account, the item isn’t apparent.  I’m going to sell you a dam, the entire Agua Caliente Basin and watershed riparian rights, a site for a power station and a right of way for power transmission lines over my ranch.  In return, you’re going to agree to furnish me with sufficient water from your dam, in perpetuity, to irrigate every acre of the San Gregorio Valley.”

John Parker could only stare, amazed.  “On one condition, Miguel,” he replied presently.  “Not an acre of the farm lands of the San Gregorio shall ever be sold, without a proviso in the deed that it shall never be sold or leased to any alien ineligible to citizenship.”

“Oh, ho!  So you’ve got religion, eh?”

“I have.  Pablo dragged it into the yard last spring at the end of his riata, and it lies buried in the San Gregorio.  That makes the San Gregorio consecrated ground.  I always had an idea I was a pretty fair American, but I dare say there’s room for improvement.  What do you want for that power property?”

“I haven’t the least idea.  We’ll get together with experts some day and arrive at an equitable price.

“Thank you son.  I’ll not argue with you.  You’ve given me a first-class thrashing and the man who can do that is quite a fellow.  Nevertheless, I cannot see now where I erred in playing the game.  Mind telling me, boy?”

“Not at all.  It occurred to me—­assistance by Bill Conway—­that this property must be of vital interest to two power companies, the Central California Power Company and the South Coast Power Corporation.  Two hypotheses presented themselves for consideration.  First, if you were developing the property personally, you had no intention of operating it yourself.  You intended to sell it.  Second, you were not developing it personally, but as the agent of one of the two power companies I mentioned.  I decided that the latter was the best hypothesis upon which to proceed.  You are a multi-millionaire trained in the fine art of juggling corporations.  In all probability you approached my father with an offer to buy the ranch and he declined.  He was old and he was sentimental, and he loved me and would not sell me out of my birthright.  You had to have that ranch, and since you couldn’t buy it you decided to acquire it by foreclosure.  To do that, however, you had to acquire the mortgage, and in order to acquire the mortgage you had to acquire a controlling interest in the capital stock of the First National Bank of El Toro.  You didn’t seem to fit into the small town banking business; a bank with a million dollars capital is small change to you.”