Evening star., 1912-09-15
Bobbie Sees Wonderful Jewels
In "Dream1and Of All Countries y

they are made-though they offer long
scientific explanations. or course. Bob
bic, this il only my opinion. but l have
an idea they are made by the same little
fairies that make the leaves on the trees
and all the other things you see growing.
Down under the earth in the rock and
clay they are making these shiny clear
stones that look like little dewdrops.
the earth. Mr.. Dream Man,"
Sometimes, Bobbie, replied the Dream
Man: .often small streams wash them
along and they can De gathered up with
the sea even washes them up on the
beach, and it is then ever SO easy for men
to pick up these little fairy gifts. Quite
q long while ago two little Indian chill
dren were found playing with a large
bright stone down in South Africa. A
white man saw them playing with 1t and
bought it from their father. When this
little shiny pebble was taken to the city
1t was sold for thousands Of dollars.
"Oh, wouldn't it be fun, Mr.. Dream
Man, IL / could find one out in Rock
Creek.
"Well, that isn't very likely, Bobbie.
replied the Dream Man with a smile.
'for, you see, these little nature fairies
don't make diamonds everywhere. There
are three countries where they do most
of their work, and there men get these
little hard dewdrops from what they call
diamond mines. Were you little boy liv-
ing down in South Africa or over in India
or in a country of South America called
Brazil you would most likely learn how
to find diamonds, Bobbie. For there even
the little boys take their picks and SHOW
els and dig holes in the ground to find
these shiny stones: But when they are
dug out of the ground they are not
bright like the one in your sisters ring
YOU Ierhaps wouldn't think they We're
diamonds at all. for they are usually
funny shapes and dent shine To make
them bright men scrape on the foush
places and rub them.
When they are finished they are the
hardest and brightest of all the pretty
jewels you KNOW" continued the Dream
Man. They can be used to cut glass
and ever so many hard things. People
who lived thousands of years ago be-
lieved that little fairies of all sorts lived
in diamonds If a man went on to war
and tied a diamond around his left arm
they thought there was a good fairy In
side who would help him to win the pat
tie. A Judge wore a big diamond in his
belt, and when he had to decide whether
or not man had done something wrong
he always looked at this stone. For he
believed that if the man were wicked the
little fairy inside the diamond would
make 1t dark and dim, but If he were
good man the fairy would light the stone
up until 1t was so bright that 1t hurt
any ones eyes to look at 1t. But see
cut in this pretty pink and red stone
why, they are ladies' faces and there s
a little angel" Robbie cried; did they
grow that way, Mr.. Dream Man.
NO" replied the Dream Man. "the
little nature fairies make things that are
ever so much more wonderful than the
things men can make. but they don't
carve faces in the stones. These little
ladies and the little angel are called
canoes and they are made of a plant
that grows in the bottom Of the sea. Here
are some that look like little red twigs.
But they are not like plants that grow
on the earth, for they are hard like stone
and they do not wither and die. On the
other side of the world In big sea called
the Mediterranean most of 1t Is found
growing to the rocks that lie on the bot
tom under the water Now, perhaps, II
you were little Italian boy and lived
near the Mediterranean you might go out
in the boats with the fishermen; who
find this queer little plant that Is called
coral. All through the summer the fish
ermen are busy In their boats.
"Do they fish with worms?" Bobbie
asked.
mo, indeed They have long nets and
shoveis that go down under the water
and scrape the coral away from the rock
and scoop it up into the boats. Then 1t Is
cleaned and made into canoes and beads
and bracelets. People used to believe
that there were wonderful little fairies
living in coral and many of them still do
over in Italy. Many years ago the faith
ers and mothers over there hung strings
Of coral around the necks Of their little
boys and girls because they believed that