Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1894-11-14
LAMBKIN'S DIAMOND.

Fam or hayo been general all around
crook. l have been concerned in every
kind Of lob" from bank burglary md
akin game poker on the Transatlantic
ttcamshlps-whlchis really rcntlcmnnly
business-to everyday New York hunko
and grocn goods Il seems rather hard,
doesn't it. that l should hodriven 10 liter
airy work for livelihood IN my old ngo
because the presidents and cashiers rob tho
banks themselves now, aud the thrice nc.
cursed, intormcddling newspapers hnyo
posted Tho public 50 thoroughly that The
rawest lumbonmcn from the farthost back.
woods ltrlnl when you produce thruo cards
I'm railroad train, and the Rrccncst farm.
or from Wayhnck COrncm comes ON and
tries TO whipsaw you when he gcts n gr'on
goods circular
Imagine N you can, what tho come
down u Tor accustomed over since, un
reaching my majority, l loit the Eiuirn
roformatory, 90 spending tho season in
London, the winter IN Cairo tho spring
on the Riviera, Tho carly summer In Paris,
the hot weather no Homburg or Saratoga
always with several trips Cneh ycnr on The
fastest steamers between New York ana
london or liayrc--imaginc, I say what %
como down Tor rnc 60 Do writing stories Tor
pnltry few dollars nplcogl
However ] started IN to tell the story
Of how I, clever ua / nm, was once fooled
i,y q hotel clerk. Yes, aud ono Of the vory
heat men IN my business was fooled o.
badly ~ was My pal In this Job was O
Russian " go1d family. who mnto most
OF HE money out Of young EnFllshmcn on
"tho continent" ~ they call tho rcst OF
Europe In England. nnccarnt was hit
speciality. and he had htcD hiackiis,sd nt
oven club In Paris and warned out OF uy.
cry casino IN France from noulorno Co
Monaco selected him 90 do the Job with
mo because 10 was 10 be done IN America,
and ho had On accent that hocuuldn't con.
troll himself There was no danger that 10
he got drunk whilo playing tho part OF a
foreigner who could scarcely speak the
language. no would give himself away by
failing into good English. Two known
morr than ono Job spoiled that way.
hut nm getting ahead Of my story.
Ono summer 10 or 10 year ago happened
20 b. In one of our most fashionable wa.
toring places There Il no necessity fu
specifying it Tho day Of my arrival
dropped into a swell hotel, hAl thcfo D..
hind the desk was n clurk who worn the
most magnificent diamond I had ever seen.
And had seen the crown Jewels 81 oycry
monarchy In Europcl ! gave one glance
at the Iowol and went hack 20 my own
hotel, got my luggage, started for New
York and took tho neat steamer Tor flayw,
cabling 10 Bllkski, which was my Rus.
alan frlond'a name, TO inoct mo nt the
landing stage
We werc back again inside Of three
weeks, two OF tho loudost bowling swulla
you ever saw. Bllkfkl was travelling ~
Prince Skinof Of Russia and was a
swnggcr Englishman. Ia have put my.
self down ~ lord n thcro had boon tower
copies Of Burke and Dcbrctt In America.
Bllkski was all right, because they don't
keep Russian siudbook that holds all the
princes. A Russian prince does NOT noe
cssnrlly rank much higher socially In bis
own country than % policeman does In
New York anyway, but everybody doesn't
know that herr. We had trunks enough
with Us 20 Ne out q country clothing ftore
and hatboxcs rs big ~ beer kegs, all Of
them pasted over with foruinn hotel and
steamship labels Ike n dead wall with
circus postorn,
We went directly 20 tho hotel whcro
hal sccn,ths diamond. To my grcat Joy
thcci,sI was sull ticrn. and ho attn worc
the beautiful jewel. When Bilkski laid
his eyes ON IL, he took mo out on tho We
randa and silently wrung my hand, great
tears standing IN his eyes, His emotions
were 40 profound that no could not speak.
Well, wo played tho heavy swolls for .Wo
weeks. We wore English clothes, with
plaids 20 big that you had 20 SEQ two suits
Go find out what tho pattern was. We
drank champagne all day, which has n
asHI.s a.
much Of tho world. We played billiards
for fabulous amounts and throw money
about-in tho proper dircctions-ns " II
were drosx. OF course, when u waalcarnct
IN tho place that a Russinn prince, will
mn intimate English friend, wns stoppini
ut tho hotel there wcrn grcnt many over
lures made 10 form our acquaintance. W
took palms 20 Insult mon uf tho hlglus
standing publicly, which convinced Uvory
body that we wcr1 what wo pretended (
be. AZ this tiino wo wcro gradually PLAY
ing up to tho clerk with tho big diamond
His nnmo was liortiO i.nmbkin.
We wcrc harDly civil 60 him ~ frs
then wo became friendly aud finally q
milinr Wc-Bilkski and l--trcntUd hii
a. another literary man sayHwO all do vi,
first pltlod, then endured and thon on
brnccd. Wencycr mentioned his diamond
except that remarked onco that &c was
rather pretty stone but you may bulicy
that wo looked at II some whom no wa
not aware OF H. As for Bcrtic, ho wa
positively sick with hlla NJ tho attcntio
wo showed him. lilo became 30 nrruuAu
and naughty that tho proprietor Of IA
hotel would hNyo discharged him, I ~
sure, n no hadn't been afraid OF oiundln
his two nristoorhtic guests.
Finally tho night came for tho gran
coup. We lott all our trunks nt the hotel
which We considered that We could wei
afford TO do, ~ We estimated that tho diu
inond, even cut mp, which was tho onl
way we could dispose oi fD largo q gum
would bring us ia % smAll fortune nn
made preparations 90 tnkcouly % couple q
Valifes, containing enough clean linen G
last until We VnchCi Liverpool. m
schcme- YVES that nls,kl should smuErl