The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1869-12-30
MIR. BAKERS RING.

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MIR. BAKERS RING.
Mr.. Baker himself told us this sto
ry. He said it was. true; nor is thi:
unlikely. lzhave known Mr.. William
Henry Baker personally for number
of years, and Dam inclined to tl1iHl
he has hitherto never in all his lift
told the truth. Now, it is so mani
festly improbable That the most con.
sistent man should protract a long
and useful career Of storytelling te
such extraordinary limits, without Al
some period telling the truth by sheer
misadventure, that it is quite likely
Mr.. Baker may have committed him.
self in this instance. At least, the
time has arrived for human nature te
assert itself, according TO the doctrine
of averages.
+ "Only once, gentlemen" said Mr.
B., have been deceived William
Henry keeps his eyes open in a gcner.
al way; William Henry also takes the
liberty of seeing out of them. He
uses them, as a. rule, for purposes o.
observation, gentlemen Still, I ad.
nit / suas, once, taken in by as dead
a swindle as could be; I am moi
ASHAMED to own it. T made money
t'by it, after all; but sods swindled.
1t was, about asdiamond ring, ]
knew the fellow who had it for man J
years in the way of business. HI
was commercial traveller, and used
always to fash this ring about when
ever he. came round on his Journeys
A jeYeler friend of mine, who hap.
pened toebe in my Office once when
Mr.. Block called, asked, / rem ember
to be allowed to examine it; and pro-
nounced the;stones. tobe diam6nas OF
the pnrest Raterrtelling me a4ftos,-
wards the ring was worth about sew
enty pounds. Mr.. Blocks initials
were engraved inside the hoop of the
ring: r. b.; and besides that, it
was a ring of peculiar and rather old
fashioned make, Indeed, having once
seen the ring, no one would BE likely
to mistake it for another. Well, Mr..
Block got into difficulties, and went
SO entirely to the bad, that meyer
never saw or heard anything more of
him. But about two years afterwards,
whilst walking down a back street,
my eye was taken by a ring exhibited
in a pawnbroker's window. s..Mr,
Blocks ring l exclaimed directly
II, swear to it, 1t was in q, tray
with number Of very seedy5looking
rings, and was as discolored and dirty
as they were. 7 went into the shop
and asked to look. at it. The pawn-
broker, an old Jew, said, Y esh; 1
might see his ringsh; but he didn't
know mosh about ringsh himself
They wosh Funredeemea Pledges
thash what they Wosh-and they Wosh
all marked at the monish adVanshed
upon them, with. a very shmall over
plush for intersh, ,-thasll all he knew.
"There was no mistake about it,
II was Mr.. Blocks ring, and had his
initials inside. But how did the Jew
get it? He would soon tell me. Re
ferring to his book, he found it had
been pawned two years ago in the
name of Smith, - Thasll all he knew.
Would l buy? It wash dirt slreap,-
three pe,.hdsh twelve; and cosht linn
all the monishp.
"'Three pounds twelyep repeat
ed, thinking he had made mistake
for the ring was worth twenty times
that amount! 80 tr .g.l
"' Well, If it wosh too dear, be had
some sheaper ones,-beautiful ringsh,
he dare shay,-but he knew sho little
about ringsh, you shee, exshept that he
| alwaysh adRanshed too mosh monish
on them, One couldn't understand
everything In his bishnish, you shee,
from fat-ironshs to diamonsh.' -
]" thought the ring, after beating
the Jew down half crown, partly to
prevent his suspecting its. value, and
partly-Hell knowing the disposition
of the peculiar people-to oblige him.
"I wore my new purchase about,
with no little inward satisfaction at
having bettered Jew at a bargain
In my. own mind, accounted for its
coming into his possession somewhat
in this wayi Mr. Block must have
sold the ring when in difficulties to
some one else. 1T was quite certain
| Mr.. Block had not pawned it at the
Jews, OF the Jew would have known
| its value. The ring must, then, have
either been lost by, or stolen from, a
| subsequent possessor, and the finder,
or thief (whiehever it happened to be),
being ignorant of its value, had taken
it to the jew, who knew no better.
| "Thcre is a. certain commercial club
in our town, which l occasionally Wis
it. The members are of an easy and
somewhat lively disposition; gencr-
ally given to indulge in that playful
style of banter popularity known as
chaff.' My diamond ring came in
for good share of it. l can stand
ehaff as well as most men; but l put
it to you, If, when you know very
well your brilliants are real, it isn't 0
little annoying for the chaff of a whole
body of people to assume the charac'