The National tribune., 1882-02-11
My Diamonds.

the aggregate value OF which was 1uIly SIOO,Ouo.
They had been sent to certain party IN New
York who had agreed to carry them to San An
tonic, Texas, where the purchaser, wealthy
merchant and the owner of several ranches, lived.
They were intended as present to his only
daughter on her birthday, the 10th of May.
Every probable provision had been made to get
them to the Lone Star State several days in ad-
vance of the "auspicious occasion" which was
meant to be such a memorable one in the life of
the dark-eyed beauty of the romantic old town
in which she was born and reared. The first
hitch occurred IN New York. Immediately after
the diamonds came into the hands Of Fred Bar
rett the cousin Of Miss Barrett and who 1t was
arranged was to deliver them in person to the
father On the very day Fred Barrett opened the
wonderful gems to feast his eyes on their beauty
he was taken violently Ill. AS he was an athlet-
ic vigorous man, with no bad habits, he and his
friends supposed he would be himself in brief
while but he showed no improvement for several
days and finally sent for me.
"The doctors say have begun to mend, but
that it will be impossible for me to leave my room
under ten days. According to the original plan,
/ would have had ample time to reach uncles
before the 10th, but if those diamonds do not
start tomorrow they will be too late for the in
teresting ceremony, and uncle would rather lose
a fortune than miss such pleasure, on which his
heart is set"
"Why not send them by express? 1t is quite
safe-that is, as safe as anything can be In this
world"
"I have thought of all that, but the imperative
order from uncle was that under no circumstan-
ces should the diamonds 60 by public conveyance.
You know there have been many train and stage
robberies in the West and Southwest lately, and
these Jewels would be too tempting morsel for
some of these gentry. The long and short OF 1t
is, want you to take charge Of and deliver them
TO uncle himself You have been over the route
several times, and know the country more thor
oughly than / do" To be brief, accepted the
proposal, and as stated at the beginning reach
ed the capital of Texas On the afternoon of the
9th of May, in the Centennial year.
1 am naturally cool and free from nervousness,
but there was excuse for considerable worriment
on nv part Mr.. Barrett had been notified by
telegraph that visitor would reach his house on
the night of the 10th, which would be in time
for the party, but when the preceding evening
found the messenger in Austin, that messenger
felt it was cutting things altogether too fine for
his comfort 1t is full fifty miles from the Texan
capital to San Antonio, and the stage which left
the former city early in the morning required
the entire day to make the journey. The line
had been established many years and there were
three changes of teams on the route, four horses
always being hitched to the heavy but powerful
coach which very rarely indeed failed to rattle
~,
late completion Of the railroad the stage company
has found its occupation gone.
1t would have been more pleasant for me had
another twenty-four hours been at my command
but it was not that which caused so much uneas-
iness as the conviction that amounted to an abso-
lutte certainty that two men were following me-
How in the name of the seven wonders they
learned or even suspected that had such valu-
able property in my custody passes my compre-
henson. The utmost secrecy was used in New
York and the fiery carbon points were carefully
wrapped up in a piece of chamois skin, which
was as securely fastened to a small belt passing
around my waist, beneath nay clothing, and
which was not to be removed until the end of
nv tourney was reached. A person in my situa-
ton is naturally suspicious, but l am sure con-
0ucteU myself Ike tHc VI my I6llOW
passengers who were not supposed to be in pos
session of as much wealth as myself | kept a
close watch on them, but observed nothing to
cause alarm until after leaving ST. Louis over the
Iron Mountain Road. / then became so well
satisfied that two sinister looking and we'll
dressed men were shadowing me that 1 declined
to retire to my berth and sat up smoking most
of the time and wide awake all the way to Tex
arkana At that dilapidated town l made the
best effort | could originate to throw the hounds
off my trail. | thought | had succeeded for a
time, but they turned up at Dallas, and when l
registered at the Commercial Hotel their names
appeared under mine.
Long before this l had fully concluded that
they had fixed on the road between Austin and
San Antonio as the one where should part COM
pany with my diamonds and most probably with
my life. The chances were so favorable on that
lonely route that they merely kept on my trail
or rather In my company from st. Louis to the
capital. The situation then was that | was due
at certain point fifty miles away and within
twenty-four hours, and that two men were deter
mined that my property should never reach there.
After strongly securing the door of my room