Luck at the Diamond Fields

by Dalrymple J. Belgrave

The little man put the stone down on a piece of white paper on the table. “Hands off, gov’ner,” he said, emphasising his words with a motion with the knife; “put down the pieces alongside, and we will say if it’s a deal.”

Moss got out a bag containing a hundred sovereigns, and opening it he put it down on the table.

“It ain’t a deal, gov’ner, it wants a lot more than that lot to buy my diamond. Bless yer, Ike Hart told me what it was worth. It’s worth twenty times that to me, and a lot more to a gent like you,” the little man said, but Moss noticed that his eyes glistened at the sight of the gold, and he looked at it hungrily. However, when Moss declared he had no more money, the man put the diamond back in his pocket and made as if he intended to go away. Moss determined that he would get hold of the diamond. What did a hundred pounds more or less matter? that stone was worth a fortune. He determined he would not miss it. If he could only summon up courage to snatch up a revolver that was on the top of his safe, he might get hold of the diamond without paying for it.

The little man’s eyes followed his. “Look ’ere, gov’ner, don’t yer try that game on. If yer was to reach, I shall have to stick this into yer, and may be we would be both sorry when it was too late,” he said.

Moss knew that he daren’t carry out the little idea that had come into his mind. If he got the diamond he would have to pay for it, so he took down another bag; then he shut up the safe to show that no more money was forthcoming. But it was no good.

“Four thousand sovereigns Ike said any of the big illicit buyers would give me for it,” the little man said.

Moss began to think that they probably would, and he began to feel afraid that the prize was going to slip away from him. Then he took down another bag, and after that another, and another, until he had offered all the money he had. Then at last the man seemed to be unable to stand the sight of so much money.

“Well, it’s cruel to let a stone like this go for that lot; but there, if you’ve no more pieces, and ’olds to your claim to the diamond, anythink for a quiet life. It’s a bargain—lend me something to put the stuff in.” There was a black travelling-bag in the room, and into this the contents of the canvas bags were poured. The cheerful clinking of the sovereigns was anything but grateful music to Mr Moss; it seemed like giving away the money, for if he had only chanced to find the diamond first it would have been his for nothing. His visitor, however, listened as if the sound was a pleasing novelty to him. For all that, as he slouched out with the bag in his hand, he grumbled out something about having thrown away a fortune, and it was enough to make Ike Hart turn in his grave for him to have let the stone go so cheap.

When he was left alone Mr Moss thought that under the circumstances he might indulge in the luxury of another cigar, and another glass of Hollands. As he smoked he thought of the wonderful diamond he had bought, and what he could do with it. It was a wonderful stone indeed, he had never seen a bigger, and the colour seemed good enough. A thousand pounds was a good lot of money to venture in a business a man knew so little about as Mess did about diamonds; still he felt very confident that there was a good deal more to be made out of it. The worst of it was that the law would prove a terrible stumbling-block to him. He began to feel quite nervous when he thought that if the police only knew of his having the diamond in his possession, they could seize it, and haul him off to the jail. For the first time he had gone wrong about a diamond, and laid himself open to the very stringent penalties which are imposed upon the unlawful possession of diamonds. He knew that by the ordinance he would be bound to give up to the police the diamond that had been found in his garden. However, he thought he knew a trick worth two of that. After he had smoked for some time a plan came into his head, which, as he thought over it, seemed to be excellent. He invented a history for the diamond that had come into his possession, which would enable him to deal with it boldly and openly. It should make him famous as the man who found the great Moss Diamond. The newspapers should all write about him, and he would show his wonderful gem at Windsor Castle.

Then the money that he would sell it for—that was the pleasantest thought of all, and Mr Moss wove all sorts of blissful visions of the future as he looked into the smoke of his cigar.