The Forrest City times., 1892-05-27
THEDIAMOND EARRINGS.
4 BROADWAY JEWELER'S PE-
 CULIAR CUSTOMER.
What s Fashionable Woman Is Wearing = A Gamblers Anchor to windward An Ingenious Way oe
 Negotiating . Loan.

Negotiating Loan.
 'I have had somo peculiar GUS toners. !" said an old Broadway jeweler but there was one case which be. iieve no one can duplicate. have a large patronage from the men about gamblers and the racing people. They are very liberal buyers of jewelry when fortune favors them. and they select frst-clas goods and in most instances appear 10 De excel lent judges of quality.
 The individual of whom was about to tell you. was man who first came to my store about four years ago. He was very shabby-looking young fellow whom l watched cautiously when 1 passed him a pair of cheap solitaire earrings in compliance with his request He hardly glanced at them and asked for something better and took the first pair and brought out pair that were shade higher in price. These he pushed aside also and asked for finer goods until had shown him everything in my stock ex- oept pair of earrings worth 800. which l did not care to permit him to handle
 Il was little out of patience with the fellow. and pointing to the ear rings in the showcase told him the price. and he immediately asked to see them. Thinking that he might make an effort to grab them and run away. lifted them from their velvet case and walked around the counter. holding them up to the light as if my change of position was actuated by a desire to show the stones to the best advantage.
 He examined both stones very closely. and almost took away my breath when he said he would take them. and at the same time pulled out a large roll of bank notes from his pocket He counted out $9cO, and after I had wrapped the earrings he bade me good night and hurried away. l was nonplussed. The man was . mystery to me, and often thought of him, until one night about a month later when he came again.
 He wore a shiny silk hat and Lis shabby clothing had been replaced by neat but very expensive garments. He saw that l recognized him. and after few words about the weather drew from his pocket tho earrings had sold him. and said that his wife disliked the settings and that he de- sired new ones. l showed him sev : eral other styles and he soon selected one.
 Then he told me that he had ex- pected large amount of money. but had been disappointed. and finally. in a very frank business like manner, asked me if would lend him &500 until the earrings would be reset It looked little like pawnbroker but believed that the man was in close quarters financially. and after criti- cally examining the stones to see that they had not been changed. I gave him the money.
 At the time when had told him the earrings would be ready he came, paid me the amount borrowed and $20 for the settings, but insi ted that no allowance be made for the old set tings He thanked me for the favor, and went away.
 A week later he came again for new settings and $500 loan, and he continued having those stones reset at irregular intervals nearly four years each time asking for the money. and always paying it at the time appointed for the delivery of the earrings.
 During our long acquaintance l learned that he was an inveterate gambler who played high stakes. and that the diamond earrings had origin ally been bought as nest.egg for days when luck was against him. He feared that pawnbroker might change the stones. so in tead of rais- ing money on the earrings in the us- ual way he adopted the novel scheme in which he involved me.
 Who wore tke earrings? No body He carried them around in a chamois bag. Did lnot find it trouble some to have him borrowing and re- turning money so frequently? No; I liked the fellow. and aside from that it paid me too handsomely. His last visit here was couple Of months ago when he left the earrings after pick ing out their twenty y-second setting, and took away with him $500.
 ..The night they were to be finished l received a request from tho man to call at his rooms I found him alone in cheerless little hall bedroom. dy- ing of pneumonia. He was very grateful to me for having been his banker. as he put it and asked me to see that he was decently buried after telling me to keep the earrings for the money advanced and for the funer- al expenses.
 T complied with his request. Have I the diamonds yet? No; sold them last Christmas for q. 200. and they are now worn by one of the most fashionable women in the city. Jew elers' Review.