"I know! I know!" said Mr. Kleesman: "you haf been at the Goot Luck mine!"
"Why, who told you about it?" exclaimed Rob.
"Ach!" said Mr. Kleesman, "you tink dat mines be to be hid in dis town? Not von but knows of 'Goot Luck,' dat the little maid-child haf found;" and he looked at Nelly and smiled affectionately. "And not von but iss glad," he added, patting her on the head.
Then he turned to the old man who had come in with the children, and said, politely:—
"Vat can I do for you, sir?"
The man took off his hat and sat down, and pulled out of his pocket a little bag of stones, and threw it on the table.
"Tell me if that's worth any thing," he said.
Mr. Kleesman took a small stone out of the bag, and called:—
"Franz! Franz!"
Franz was Mr. Kleesman's servant. He tended the fires, and pounded up the stones fine in an iron mortar, and did all Mr. Kleesman's errands.