Macon beacon. [volume] (Macon, Miss.) 1859-1995, 1896-01-25
ARKANSAS DIAMONDS.
Worthless Bits of Quarts and the
Duel They Caused.

In NO book ON modern dueling have l
been able to find even a suggestion of
one of the best stories on this subject
that ever heard. Accountable for this
are two facts-the incident had it's oc-
currence many years ago and the scene
Of it was in place that, even in this
day of railroads, is not overly accessi-
bic.
Twas waiting for stage in one of the
back settlements in one of the noun
tain counties of Arkansas one day last
summer, when one of the old settlers of
the community addressed me:
II see in Leetle Rock paper thuther
day." he said, shat there's bin some
di'mauds found over in Africy."
''Snere's nothing now in that re-
piled. "But the field has been broad
ened, in speculation at least, until the
excitement has grown tremendously"
"Wall, don't keer none," the old fell
low remarked. 81 amt goin'-I only
had. an idee tibet it might be all hoax
like a di'mand find we oncet he'd was a
hoax"
did you think there were diamonds
in this part of the mountaius" l in
quired.
"Think! We knowed it fer awhile,
but after scientific Teller come here,
and after dooel of some size we learned
diffrunt."
The old man climbed to the top of a
barrel in the one store of the town in
which the conversation was ticking
place, and as he mentioned the duel
half dozen of the loungers who were
more interested in me than they
were in the old mans talk, craned their
necks and almost in a chorus exclaimed
"Tell erbout tibet dooel."
Then one of them said: Eyer allus
talxin' about it, but it amt often we say
much more'n it jest happened"
The old man appeared to be flattered.
He looked at me with the air of one who
had an undisputed position in the COM
munity and was proud of it. ] took up
the cause of the native mountaineer
boys who were lounging about the
place.
go ahead with the story" I said.
swell have drop from the proprietor
to wet your whistle properly and then
we'll listen.'
II never talk about tibet dooel," the
old man said. "These young ,o Hers hev
all hcered their daddies tall, about it,
anyhow"
There was long silence. In the
meantime the lank, slip-shod back
woodsman who was running the store
had brought out a bottle of white liquor,
better known as moonshinc whisky,
with rusty tin cup, out of which every
one took a drink. One hears much talk
of bad whisky sold over bars in large
cities, but one never knows what liquid
fire and birthstone are until he has had
swallow of the whisky that is to be
had at the backwood's stills of the
mountain districts of this country.
Revenue officials have cleared out many
an illicit distillery, but they exist even
now in some parts OF The south in a
thriving way.
"Thcm things looked like diamonds,
anyway" the old man remarked, as he
thoughtfully smacked lis lips and
passed the cup to the next one. "Thet
was in the '40's, / reckon, and the few
of us as was here didn't know much
about the country. Our folks had come
TO the uplands after the sinking of the
land over at New Madrid 30 years be-
fore, and here they stuck, just as l hev
stuck seence tibet time. There was TO
newspapers and no railroads Onct an
awhile there was a steamboat and
thet's the only way we ever got much
word from the outside world. The
Pearsoll boys was the liveliest fellers
in the settlement, and onct year one Of
them would go to Moo Orleans and sell
some of the hides that we got together.
When he was down there he'd get idees
Of things tibet we didn't know nothin'
about. One of the boys would go one
time and one another, and each time
tibet they went there was a big time
around, I'll tell you. Onct, jest after
Ollie Pearsoll he'd come back from Moo
Orleans, he got to tellin' about seeing
a man who had paid fortune for a
shirt stud. That was the fust time
most of us had ever heerd about
di'monds. OF Pearsoll described the
things keerfully an told us thet they
was found only in few parts of the
world. When he he'd got done there
wasn't Teller in the crowd that wasn't
MS worked up as eff he'd heerd ghost
story. While Ollie Pearsoll was stard-
| ing at one side kinder restin' after his
talk-reely playin' the bero-another
of our fellers, Bill Sims by name,
slipped around to him and took him
TO one side. heerd afterward ihet be
took a leetle stone outen his pocket an
asked Ollie cf it looked like emmy OF
them diamonds he'd been tellin' about.
/ seen ollie put his hand to his mouth
and tell Bill to be quiet, and then they
strolled off together.
II didn't think no more Of IL until
the next evenin', when Ollie come to me
all excitement and scd: See here, Tom,
I'm in trouble
"'What's up?' / asked, seem tibet it
was somethin' big.
"'You remember what Eaid about the
dimond last nIghtT he went on.
We'll, Bill Sims has whole lot cfthcm
OUT In the new timber, an ne won't tell
me where
Mebbe he wants them ltisselfY ]
said, thinkin' 1t all joke.
"'In course he does Ollie exclaimed,
AN claims my rights fer havin' told
him what they was. IF hadn't been
to Moo Orleans he'd neve, hev Lnowcd
anything about di'monds.'
Gle ought to give you somethin','
! said.
Eyes, and he will--hell give me ha'f
or by Ill know why
"Then he went away. l saw thet thar
was trouble up, an thought Id stop
II, but somethin' happened to keep me
busy an the next heerd about II wac
that Ollie Pears0ll and his brother
Pete he'd gone over to BIZ Sims house
and took something tibet he bed. No.
body knowed what II was, but es
heerd ] lnowed thet II was some Of
them diamonds, hustled over to Sims