for enough funds to enable them to go on with their diamond making.

"I hardly knew whether to believe the man or not, but he
offered proof. He had several small, but very perfect diamonds
with him, and he gave them to me, to have tested in any way I
desired.

"I promised to look into the matter, and, as I was quite
wealthy, as, in fact I am now, and if I found that the stones he
gave me were real, I said I might invest some money in the
plant."

"Were the diamonds good?" asked Tom, who was beginning to be
interested.

"They were--stones of the first water, though small. An expert
gem merchant, to whom I took them, said he had never seen any
diamonds like them, and he wanted to know where I got them. Of
course I did not tell him.

"To make a long story short, I saw Folwell again, told him to
communicate with his companions, and to tell them that I would
agree to supply the cash needed, if I could share in the diamond
making. To this they agreed, and, after some weeks spent in
preparation, a party of us set out for Phantom Mountain."

"Phantom Mountain?" interrupted Tom. "Where is it?"

"I don't know, exactly--it's somewhere in the Rockies, but the
exact location is a mystery. That is why I need your help. You