The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1890-04-19
PAWNiNG A JEWEL.
A Smart Young WomaR's INGENIOUS
Scheme for Beating Money-Lq hder

a Smart Young WomaR's INGENIOUS
Scheme for Beating Money! hder
II feel awfully ashamed CT i4now,"
said demure little brown-eyed Woman,
because the pawn man was reaIgood to
me. 1t was this way: My friJ ind Ada
showed me pendant, circle 81 beauti-
full small, white diamonds aboht ruby
that glowed like faming-red heart; it
had fire enough to melt rock. Ada
said it was a shame that the ruby was
not genuine, because it made the pend
ant of no value to her.
81 don't care said L; 1T l5oks'so much
like a real stone that do not believe
any one could tell it was bogus. Why,
see, there is even little flaw in it, just
as you often find in rubies.' But Ada
said as long as it was not genuine the
pendant was of no value to her, unless
she had the diamonds set over.
"'Why not pawn it?' said 1.
81 couldn't said she. I'D be fright
ened to death. Besides, how do you doit?'
so, just go in and ask him how much
he'll give on it, said l, though I had
never been near pawn-shop. was in
too deep to expose my ignorance now.
Would you dare do it? said she.
"Certainlyn replied, bravely.
"'Will you do it for me, dear?'
'Now, that took my breath away. To
put my friend up to mischief was one
thing, but to be up to it myself was an
other. However, l could not admit |
was afraid now.
"'Ye-es, ] said, half-heartedly.
''She made me start at once. We
went down town, and while she waited
in store | climbed the stairs to the
@ dee of swell broker with my heart
h ,ating until was nearly suffocated.
/ sat down in the private Office and,
with a face as long as the statue OF
misery, handed out that pendant.
GLOW much" said the man.
"'I don't know l replied. He disap-
peared and came back and said $3.50.
Then l knew he thought the ruby
real, as had expected him to do, and
the pendant therefore worth about 5000,
but the sum offered was about double
the real value of the pendant; so |
looked sorrowfully at the gem for mo-
ment and then said:
=" Can you do no better for me?'
Nope said he. One more long
look at that memento of better days,
and then said in voice sulfused with
tears: a-
III take it.
The broker had been watching me
closely, and think he was moved by
my apparent distress, which my fright
helped me to assume, for when he
brought me the ticket and money he
said in the gentlest way:
My dear lady, if you wish to redeem
this at any time send us word and we
will send it to you and spare you the
pains of coming here. He was so kind
that I'm sorry cheated him, even if he
did want 5000 pendant for $3.50"
The reporter related this story to a
reputable Maiden lane jewelry manu-
facturer. He said that the secret of the
girls success lay partly in the fact that
the bogus jewel had flaw in it and that
it was set with superior, if small, dia-
monds, but chiefly in the bearing of the
girl. She showed to his eye that she
was not accustomed to the air of a
pawn-shop, and so he was more easily
deceived. 1t is regular though small
branch of the jewelry business to make
jewels like this pendant, which are
worked off on pawn-brokers through
just such means as were employed in
this case.-N. Y, Evening Sun.