The Bessemer indicator., 1894-06-16
MY DIAMOND.

ardf Well, It's quite story.
l had Just come home from two
years sojourn In the diamond fields OF
Port Natal. You've seen the place ON
the map. perhaps. Well, that gives you
no more idea of 1t than II you were
blind and deaf into the bargain. All
the diamonds that ever glittcred In the
valley of Sinbad the Sailor wouldn't
make such a place as that cndurable.
] hadn't any home to speak of. and yet
/ wus homesick the whole time l was
at Port Natal.
What sent me there? That Is what
] cannot exactly answer-a rowing dis
position, suppose. But once there 1
entered with will into the business of
maldng fortune.
AT first / had no great luck to speak
Of The fields were crowded with seek
crs MS eager and persistent MS myself,
and after four or flve months l began
10 feel almost like despnirlng. But l
resolved to stny on. and 1t was well
that / did. For on Friday, the 18th of
May. 1870 found great stone that
looked like rough, dirt-incrusted peb-
BILE Mt first. but the second glance told
me that 1t was diamond-such Is
found only once In years.
looked mt 1t silently. Silently 1
dropped 1t into my pocket and strobe
Off homeward. slouchins llstlessly along
rs 1 always did.
"Halloa." cried wiry little Cape Cod
man. "Denslcy's played out Why.
Densley. 1t amt noon yet by the best
chronometer In Boston"
II don't care" said l. II am going
home"
"Home,'
"Ycs. To the States"
'rshaw! I thought you had more
pluck. Faint heart never won big din-
mond yet Don't give 1t up. man.
But l went back to tho colony. Won
dering that they did not hear the con-
fused beating OF my heart. which seem
cd to fill the tropical silence with a
noise like a reveille. When 1 was alone
i drew out the great stone and feasted
my eyes on its fair proportions. 1
danced-1 sang-in short, so behaved
that people world have been fully JUS
titled In clapping me into m insane
asylum. My fortune! my fortune I
had been seeking II score of years.
had found 1t at last
Well. ! said nothing of my discovery,
and came back to the States with the
diamond In IL little leather sack, stitch
ed on the waist of the flannel shirt /
wore underneath the linen one 1 saw
myself In the full-length mirror in front
of picture store MS / came up Broad
way-tall, sallow. ragged md unkempt
and smiled to observe how distrust-
fully people eyed me. They would soon
turn their tunes. 1 thought But In the
meantime 1t seemed rather necessary
that should civiliZe myself little, 30
dropped into the first furnishing store
that lay in my way.
The young girl behind the counter
struck my eye pleasantly, as n flower,
or n sunset. or a stnr-sown sky might
have done. She was tall and slight.
very pale. with great almond shaped
eyes, II mouth like scarlet coral and up
abundance of dead black hair that
seemed. rs 1t were. TO weigh her small
head down with their heavy duskness.
Pearl Trillard looked wonderfully fair
IN my eyes. with her sweet voice and
womanly way.
i was clumsy. and did not know quite
what l wanted. Pearl did. She told
me plainly what WAS necessary and
What was not. SO bought my outfit
and pnid for 1t, and went home with n
part under my arm-the rest WAS to be
sent home--with Pearls black almond
1t was January, and fire had tust
been lighted on the hearth of the room
i had engaged. sat down In front II
when supper was over and took ont
my pocketbook, to the inner compnrt-
ment OF which, since my arrival in port.
had transferred the little chamois
leather sack which held my fortune,
to have look at the stone.
There was no snck thnrri
Al first believed that my eya3 must
nave played me some trick ! searched
through and through the faded leather
hags OF the worn poSketbook / shook
out the skirts of my coat; even got
down on my knees to search the floor
beneath; but the diamond and it's re-
ceptacle were gone.
For minute or two 1t seemed MS
II the whole room was in a whiri
NJ ound me. My heart stopped puldng.
my blood grew chill, and deadly sick
ness stole through my whole being.
The diamond! the diamond! for which
l had toiled and striven, and waited,
and suffered-the diamond, It was gone!
1 pressed my hands resolutcly over
my eyes, to exclude all surrounding
chJects, and tried 70 think where
had last seen 1t. l was sure that /
4
ly examined the p0cketbook, and the
pocketbook had not left my possession
since
Had 1t vanished into thin air like a
dream? Was 1t bewitched? Or had
1 been the victim of some of those
skillful robberies of which had often
heard? But In that case the pocket
book Itself would also have been gone.
My hend sank on my hands; bitter
groan burst from between my lips,
Ms l remembered those dreary months
In the diamond fields of Port Natal
the months that were now so utterly
fruitless. Could I live them all over
again? or even II did, was there the
slightest likelihood that my toll would
n second time be repaid by the finding
of such gem ns greets n mans eyes
but once In his lifetime?
believe was for moment insane.
j rose and staggered blindly toward the
pistol which l always carried in the
breast pocket of my outer coat, with
some vague idea OF putting an end to
the life Which had been such all utter
failure.
When there came soft little knock
on the panels of the door, suppose 1
must have answered, Come In" for
the door was pushed open and Pearl
Trillard stood there, with little boy
her brother, as lcarncd-at her side
II found II little paper parcel on the
counter this afternoon, after you had
left. SIR" she said There is only a
little clear stone In 1t, but"
grasped 1t from the small out
stretched hand, with a dellrious cry of
Joy.
MY diamond! my diamond'
And tfen-so Pearl has subsequently
told me Ifell like log to the floor.
She nursed me through the fervor
that follOwed-there was no one else
to do it-and but for her care never
should have been alive to tell this
story. And she fully believed that n
Fart Of my fevered frenzy was the