People's voice. [volume] (Wellington, Sumner County, Kansas) 1890-1917, 1899-02-24

'aid A. c. Tromridge, who spent
Twelve years in South Africa, going
there in 1864, three years before the
discovery of the diamond field. This
9cy worked as a shepherd for Van
Asweld, a Boer living at Oaktown,
n @riqua land, 500 miles from Cape
Town. 1t was in 1869, two years after
ihe first finding of diamonds, but the
boy knew nothing OF the value Of his
md, and his master but little more.
was freighting to Kimberley. in
'harge of six wagons, and went into
camp one night near Van Asweld's
place. | had known the old fellow
Tor two years, and after | mad seen
that everything was right for the
alght in the camp | went over to his
house to make him a call. Van AS
weld, though friendly enough. re-
selved me in the stolid halfsuspicious
way Characteristic of his people in
meeting an Bnglishman. He gained
confidence as We talked, and at last,
ust as | was about to go, he fetched
from a chest something wrapped up
IN dressed lambslin, which he I'M
rolled and displayed to me.
Vat You teenk OF dot?" he asked.
II was what seemed to be a crys-
bal, the size of walnut. A sort of
crust of earthly material inclosed it,
but through this crust | saw in uhe
iampfght some CLEANS OF color and
brightness.
oh, it may be a pebble, OF it may
oe diamond, said. Where did YOU
pick it up"
Dot boy Pombe, der Kaffr, find
" when he drife der sheep to der
Eraal. He come to me und say he a
mooee clrttee hat found-a beautiful
stone, as you say. And hat it. Vat
you teenk? Is it Something's vurt?'
i looked carefully at the stone
again and fancied its color as I turn.
ID ut IN the lamplight. I'll give YOU
this pipe-it's meerschaum from the
block-and five pounds OF plug to.
bacco for it, l said.
The Boer pondered on my offer.
Then rolled the stone up in a lamb.
skim, put it away and did not return
70 the subject again that night. The
aext morning as was inspanning nv
teams Van Asweld came over to the
camp, bringing THE lambskin and its
lnclosure. Unrolling it again he
asked me:
Vat you teen today? Is it der
pipe und der tobacco vurt?
In the daylight the stone under tn
crust looked as dull as glass. was
BUSY with my men and oxen, all call.
mg for my attention dozen different
ways at once, so | merely glanced at
". Van Asweld had always been
friendly to me. l did not take much
STOCK in the stone, but | saw that he
had taken a fancy to my pipe and I
was willing to please him.
Yes, I'll stick to my Offer I said.
expecting that he would take me I'M.
out not at all desiring that he should.
1t was his Dutch slowness of thinking
only, | believe to this day, that kept
him from doing it. But he had to
ponder the proposition over again be.
fore he could come to a conclusion.
and, as luck would have 1t. he seated
himself in the shade of tree. Now,
there are two things that bring out
the tints OF diamond in perfection;
the lights of a chandelier and the
shade OF tree in a bright day. The
sunbeams, you see, sitting down
through the moving leaves give Just
the play of light that brings out ev.
erything there is in the stone. Van
Asweld's eye caught the depth and
glow OF fame under the stones crust.
Ing that | had seen by the lamplight
the night before.
i dakes my WOOL to Cape Town
next month, he said at last. Il show
der stone to Lillifeldt und find vat he
say to it, He rolled the stone up
once more in the lambskin, and my
chance for getting the 'mooee clittee'
was gone. OF course, did not know
what I was missing, and the whole
thing passed out of my mind. l did
not think OF the stone again until nv
meeting Van Asweld, three months
later, in Cape Town, reminded me OF
1t.
der luster stone, you gift me der
pipe and tobacco for it now? he said,
with perfect gravity.
"Oh, you brought it to Lillifeldt's,
did your l said. He told you, / SUP.
pose, that it was a crystal worth 2
shillings for a curiosity?'
'Yaw, it vas a crystal-a diamond
like a crystal big-und he say he gif
me 10000
"Ten thousand pounds!' re.
peated, thinking that someone had
been playing the old fellow a joke.
OF course, they paid you the money
down.
Nav, / not dakes it, he answered.
ut was the simple truth he told me.
Lillifeldt & Co. had offered him e10,-
600 for the 'mooee chttee' and he had
refused the offer. He took it back
to Oaktown with him, and there he
squared matters with Pombe, who
found the stone. 1t was the custom
airy agreement with Beers with their
Kaffr employees that when a lad had
served out his time with a master he
should receive from him ten sheep,
yoke OF oxen, an AK and some trink-
cts and yards Of calico cloth. With
these he could 60 back to his people,
buy wife or two, and set up as a
man OF consideration in the COM
mnity. Van Asweh gave Pombe 300