"Well, I'll be jiggered!" gasped Will.
"Diamonds!" cried Allen. "Betty, you've discovered a fortune in diamonds!"
"Diamonds?" ejaculated Amy, and her voice was a questioning one.
Then there came a silence while they all looked at the flashing heap of stones—there really was a little heap of them.
"Can they really be diamonds?" asked Betty, finding her voice at last.
Allen reached over her shoulder and picked up one of the larger stones. He held it to the light, touched it to the tip of his tongue, rubbed it with his fingers and laid it back. He did the same thing with two others.
"Well?" asked Will, at length. "What's the verdict?"
"I'm no expert, of course," Allen said, slowly, and he seemed to have difficulty in breathing, "but I really think they are diamonds."
"Diamonds? All those?" cried Mollie. "Why, they must be worth—millions!"
They all laughed at that. It seemed a relief from the strain, and to break the spell that hung over them all.