THE HISTORY OF PAT MALLOY'S DIAMOND.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 1120, 19 September 1871, Page 3

THE HISTORY OF PAT MALLOY'S DIAMOND.

*. (From Chambers 1 Journal.') (Continued.) From the inside came a succession of jerky, screeching utterances, in no language known to me ; and, mingled with them, I heard at intervals a basso-profundo blasphemy from Don Fernando, the whole to a babbling accompaniment of incoherent bystanders. At first I thought the incomprehensible noise proceeded from some animal of the monkey species, and then from a mad • man. I was so far right, that the screecher seemed to possess some of the characteristics of both. He was a little Irishman, with fiery red hair, and that ape-like type of face j occasionally to be met with in Tipperary ; and he was temporarily insane from extreme and fruitless rage, which, indeed, did not surprise me, seeing that his arms were bound tightly behind him, and that he was in charge of two soldiers, who, not understanding one word he said, seemed to regard him as a curious and diverting study. After a time he became a little more coherent, and I asked him what he had done to get into that fix. At the sound of a Saxon voice, he broke out afresh. I could make out that he accused the storekeeper of bting a rogue, which I thought too obvious a proposition to cause so much excitement ; that he, Pat Molloy, had been cheated— also a very probable circumstance. Here he expressed a pleasant desire to " rip the sowl out of yez ;" and this induced his captors, who were getting tired of it, to drag him to the guard-house. He implored me, as he went, to pay him a visit there, and hear his story. Don Fernando explained the matter in a few simple words. "He is dam Irish, mister. You English gentlemen know them. No ? They have no religion, you see. Ah ! well, he come here; want drink, which I not give him. He say I cheat him about diamond. I have not seen him never before. He make noise, Igo for to shoot, when soldier come and take him away. Bah ! it is not noting. — Have glass of brandy. No ? What 3 you going away ?" Now, if ever I saw a man in earnest, the Irishman was that man. If his rage had been feigned, I Bhould never be certain that any one but myself was genuinely angry in future. I noticed also that the Jew, although he made light of the matter, was extremely nervous, as the tremor of the claw-like hand, with which he kept stroking his beard, testified. Looking into his treacherous eyes, of indescribable brown and green tints, and

perceiving an anxiety on his part to prevent my inquiring further into the affair, I came to the conclusion that I ought, at least, to hear the Irishman's explanation of the cause of his unmusical lament, and to protect him, if possible, from suffering wrong at the hands of the storekeeper, or of his tool and debtor, the magistrate. Accordingly, I took a glass of brandy, and saying " Good night," went straight to the guard-house, where a judicious bribe to the sentry got me an immediate interview with the prisoner. He was lying on the earth in a wretched mud-room, his arms still tied ; but he was calm, enough, by this time, to tell me his tale, every word of which I became firmly persuaded was true. He said that he had left San Isidro some months previously, with a party of explorers, who were in search of a suitable place for the settlement of several families arriving j from Ireland. Whilst a long distance up the country, he had the misfortune to fall ill of ! a fever, which made him unable to travel. His companions waited two days for him, but, finding that he grew worse instead of better, they proposed, and he agreed to it, to leave him with a party of Indians, who happened to be camped in the neighbourhood, and with whom they had become very friendly. He remained with the Indians some weeks, regained his strength, and struck up an intimacy with the chief, whom he managed to teach a little English, receiving, in return, a few lessons in the patois of the tribe. One day the chief's son, a lad of ."even, playing about in a canoe, accidentally, or otherwise, let slip the moorings. The stream wa9 carrying the child away, and, getting frightened, he made a clutch at the bank as he glided past, missed his aim, fell into the water, and was being swept out into midstream. Thelrishman,whowaanot far off.swam out to and saved the boy, thereby earning the father's eternal gratitude. When he left the Indians the chief was greatly distressed, and pulling out a beautiful shining stone, | about the size of a filbert — so Pat described it — told him that it would be worth a great j deal in the white man's country, and begged him to accept it, which he, more to please his host — who had a strong belief in the ] stone's mysterious power to avert evil from its possessor — than because he thought it of any value, did. Pat found his way again, after many vicissitudes, to San Isidro ; and craving, as he said, most of all for a " drop to dhrink," it occurred to him that the chief's gift might be the means of obtaining that drop. The Jew's store was the likeliest place for a barter, and there he went, and found Don Fernando alone. The latter took the stone, examined it, and pronounced it of no value | except to amuse children with. The Irishman was going disconsolately out, when the Jew again took it from him, and carelessly tossing it into a drawer, and pouring him out a glass of liquor, told him to drink that and be off. He complied with both these directions. Whilst wandering aimlessly about the village, he encountered, to his great delight, a countryman— one of the same party in whose company he had quitted San Isidro before. His acquaintance was in high feather, for he had managed to pick up or steal a small diamond, and was on his way to a coast town, for the treble purpose of waiting for his emigrant friends, selling his luck, and drinking off the proceeds with all possible speed. Pat never having seen a " rale dimon," as he said, before, begged for a look. On his friend's producing it, however, he discovered that he had not only seen, but actually possessed, one of great value — and that but a few hours previously, for he instantly perceived that his " shining stone " was of the very same kind as the diamond he now saw, with the advantage of being infinitely larger, and therefore worth incalculably more. With profound Milesian canning, Pat resolved to keep his discovery from the other, who, impatient for his drinking-bout, passed on from fan Isidro that same day. Of course, on presenting himself again to Don Fernando, that astute individual bade him begone for a drunken villain. Equally, of course, he lost his temper, and thus playing into the storekeeper's hands, was lodged by the soldiers, who could not understand one word he said, in his present position More than all, of course, the diamond, if diamond it was, was finally lost to him. (To be continued.)