THE DUCHESS AND THE MISSING DIAMOND.

Otago Witness, Issue 1248, 30 October 1875, Page 2

THE DUCHESS AND THE MISSING DIAMOND.

On Monday evening, at about six o'clock, a tall broad-ahouldered fel'ow went into a shop in Elizabeth street, kept by a barber and photographer named Evans, and had a shave. He then said that there was au old man, a friend of his, whose portrait he would like to have taken, and ho wtnt out and brought in an tld f «llow who was calculated to make a very striking picture, inasmuch aa his nose was" very much on one side, and his face was much wrinkled. Mr Evans took his portrait, and tho old man so much admired it, that his tail friend said, " What a thing it would be to get the old Duchess taken too !" The old man winked round the lee side of his crooked proboscis, and replied, •• My word ! that would be a go !" After looking at each other in silent contemplation of the greatness of. tho idea, one of them vanished, but shortly reappeared, with one of thoße straight up and down women, garbed in a drab dress and a Bailor hat, who flourish in the back alk-vs of the city, and may be of any age from 20 to 60, but who are, as a rule, endowed by their JJialo aoonoiatao, -oo tbio ouo yras, with the appellation of the "Ducheßs," or tha "gay old peacb." The photographer having taken with his eye the measure of tho " Duchess,-' ran upßtairs to get a suitable frame for the picture of so distinguished a customer, and immediately ran down again, but he found that ia his short nboence, his thrte customers had disappeared, and that with them had vanished a cash box, which was screwed to the counter, and which contained about a pound's worth of Bilver, including a 5s piece, dated 1844. and a glazier's diamond, valued at 30s. The box had been torn off tho counter, and the bottom had come "out. A young man who was assistant to Mr Evans, and had been outside, saw the trio leaving the shop, and noticed that the "Duchess" was carrying a square box. When the loss was discovered, this was mentioned, and Coußtable Blade was called. He went with Evans and his assistant to a house in a right-of-way, where they found the two men and the titled lady dividing the spoil, including the 1844 crown piece. All the money was recovered, and the Duchess pointed out wht-re the box was concealed in tho bed, but the diamond could not be found. The three, who were at once taken prisoners, declared that they had never seen the diamond, which was probably true, as a glazier's diamond is but a small point in an instrument like a pencil, and the prhioneia very likely expected a diamond to be a large shining object, like the cry-Btal peudants of a chandelier. The three, who gave the names Henry Denhain, Henry Steven*, and Eliza Morrison, were taken to the watch-house, or as Evans, being a "new chum" from London, termed it, " the Bridewell," and were locked up. At the City Police Court yesterday the. lady proved her nobility by taking all the blame on herself, and saying the men knew nothing of the robbery. The men pleaded not guilty, but elected to be dealt with by the Bench ; and they and their Ducbosß were sent to muse on the vicissitudes of life, and study the peerage, in the intervals of hard labour during six months' inoarceration in the Melbourne Gaol. — Argus.