The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1892-04-30
THE DIAMOND CROSS.

| LIE DlHWIUND OI1OOO.
Why Arthur Hisluck went to the
bar was mystery. Probably if he
had tried he could not have chosen
profession for which he was less
fitted, or which was less TO his taste.
A gentle, retiring, morbidly sensitive
young fellow, who bushes when he
is spoken to. and who shrinks with
horror from the very thought of
appearing in public, is not exactly
the SOFT OF person calculated to sue
ceed as barrister, nor is he likely
to enjoy the boisterous, noisy, strug
CLING life which barristers are COM
PEELED to lead.
! Why, having gone to the bar,
Arthur Hisluck joined the Doltshire
circuit was a further and still deeper
mystery In the first place, he had
not a single friend among the barris
ters on the circuit; in the second
place, he had not single acquaint-
ance among the solicitors on the
circuit, and in the third place, he
had not single connection among
the public on The circuit. Perhaps
he knew few people out of London,
but 1t was next to impossible that
there was not some part of provin
cial England where he was not quite
so utterly friendless as he was in the
shires which formed the Doltshire
circuit.
1t cannot be said that the members
Of the DoItshire circuit mess took
kindly to Arthur Hisluck. They
considered themselves rather smart
set; they were all sons of the country
gentry. or Of the attorneys, brewers
or wealthy paHnbrokers of the dis
trict; at any rate, they all had local
connections of one sort or another,
and the intrusion of one utterly
triendless was distasteful to them.
Moreover. the circumstance made
them suspicious of him. Why did
he come where he was absolutely
unknown Was it because he was
equally unknown elsewhere, or was
it because he did not want to go
where he was known2 These were
questions which were discussed
privately a good deal, and not few
OF the bar agreed with the view
enter tanned and expressed by Mr..
Herman Potts-the bully of the
mess-that the whole thing looked
deuced shady.
1t must be admitted that Arthur
Hlsluck's own conduct did not tend
to dissipate the suspicious of his fel-
low barristers. The young man
was, as has already been said, OF a
shy and retiring temperament. He
kept himself very much to himself.
He vouchsafed no information to the
mess as to his parentage or position.
Neither did he join in the somewhat
rough joviality which prevailed in
the evening. After dining with the
circuit he quietly withdrew, and
going to his room spent there the
hours which the other members
were devoting to cards, port and
nilarity. This behavior was so un-
precedented, and seemed to the
mess so unnatural, that it raised a
cloud OF prejudice against him and
did much to confirm the suspicious
which his trlendlessness had aroused.
Hisluck joined the circuit at Mud
ford; there he was not liked. He
went on with it to Rottenboro; there
he was more or less cut. When he
reached Snobton the feeling against
him was so pronounced that Herman
Potts felt safe in insulting him at the
dinner table. This was too much
for Tom Brightley. Tom was a
kindly fellow, and though he knew
nothing about Hisluck and was
more or less under the general pre-
iudice against him, still he resented
Herman Potts behavior toward the
friendless junior. He took Hisluck S
part, and told the bully that his con-
duct was not creditable to himself or
the mess, who tolerated it. Herman
Potts, who like most bullies was a
coward, mumbled some excuse and
inwardly vowed to take it out o
Hisluck and Brightly yet.
The very next day strange thing
happened Herman Potts was a
very snowy dresser, and like most
showy dressers was also fond o.
iewelry. On his hands were severa
diamond and emerald rings, and
over his waistcoat hung a heavy
watch chain, from the end of which
dangled beautiful diamond cross O
Roman workmanship. Potts was
very proud of this cross, which, as
he said, besides being of grea
intrinsic value, was a curiosity or
account OF its construction. Well
it happened on the day in Qngc1i1o