The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1879-08-07
A Black Pearl.

About year ago an ill-clothed and
needy-looking Jew went into jewel
er's shop in the Herrengasse, at Pesth,
drew small paper parcel from his
pocket, unfolded it carefully, and took
from it little black object Holding it
up before the jeweler, he asked:
"What is that Worth?"
Aftet scrutinizing it very closely for
some time, the jeweler replied:
! That is worth great deal. 1t is a
black pearl, one of the greatest rarities.
| have seen many gray one, but never
before black one. 1t has one fault, a
small breach, which shows that it was
formerly in a setting; but its value is
very great. Where did you buy itP''
The Jew answered: @~.szs -
ga gentleman wishes to leave it with
me in pawn, and l want to know what
it is WORTH Esv E
The jeweler said he could not exactly
tell, the thing being such rarity.
g May lend two hundred gulden up
on itp" asked the Jew.
Three times as much, at the very
least" replied the other.
"Will you not buy the pearlp''
"No, indeed" said the shop-keeper.
There is but one firm in the mon
archy which would have an opportunity
of selling it again; that is the court jew
eler, Biedermann, at Vienna"
The Jew left with the pearl. Next
day he appeared at Biedermann's shor.
Biedermann, however, made shQr
process with his would d-be-customer
He had no sooner seen the black pearl
than he sent for the police, and had the
jew arrested on the spot. At the hear
ing OF his case the Jew said his name
was Isaac Roth, and that he was the
owner of pawn-shop in Grosswardein.
One day he saw a great stir going on
outside the house of neighbor aud CO.
religionist, Herr Gyuri. Upon inquiry,
he found that poor Gvuri was in trouble
for non-payment of taxes, and that the
local officer was seizing his furniture.
Roth paid the needed sum, twenty gull
den, out of his own pocket, and Gyuri,
out Of gratitude, presented him with the
pearl, of whose immense value he had
no conception.
The story was confirmed by witness
es from Grosswardein. Gyuri, as it
seems, had been the confidential servant
of renowned. man, Count Louis Bat
thyani, and when Batthyani died, he
presented his servant with his breastpin
as a memorial. Gyuri, under the pres
sure of want, had already sold the gold
in which the pearl was set, but he would
not part with the jewel, partly out of
esteem for his late master, and partly
from notion that it was of no great
worth. @W
The pearl, as the court jeweler Bied-
ermann at once perceived, must have
been stolen property at some period in
its adventures. Being an authority in
the history of famous jewels, he recol-
lected three black pearls had formerly
adorned the English crown, and that
they were stolen from that important
symbol about two centuries ago. They
were renowned as the only black pearls
in the world, according to the belief of
that time. a -a
The English Government, as Herr
Biedermann stated, advertised for them
in vain. How Count Batthyani got
hold of the pearl nobody knows, but it
is njectured that he must have bought
it at one of the old curiosity shops
places in which he delighted to rum
mage; while it is certain that he was ig-
norant of its value, or he would scarce
ly have bequeathed it to a servant, with
out any hint of the greatness of the be-
quest. The Jew of Grosswardein, ac-
cording to the story current in Vienna,
is now thanking the black pearl for the
foundation of his fortune, since the En-
glish Government, hearing of its discov-
cry, have bought it from him for the
sum Of twenty thousand gulden.