A Dash from Diamond City | Page 5

with the black scoundrel's foot!" he roared, and his assistant seized
the black's ankle, and gave it such a vigorous hoist that the man's
equilibrium was upset, so that, though the foot was planted firmly on
the stool, he fell over backwards, leaving his support upon the stool,
where it was probed by the searchers, who were not at all surprised to
find a large stone hidden between the little and the next toe.
"There's a blackguard!" cried Anson excitedly, turning to his
companions. "He ought to be well flogged, and no mistake. Well, I
never!"
The last words were uttered in disgust at the man's behaviour, for he
burst into a hearty laugh as if thoroughly enjoying the discovery,
professing at the same time to be utterly astonished.
"How come there?" he cried. "'Tick 'tween um toe--so."
He illustrated "so" by stamping his foot down over and over again and
raising it up, the last time cleverly picking an ordinary pebble from the
ground with his toes, and holding it out as easily as if he had used his
fingers and thumb.
But his action had no effect upon those around, who were well used to
the Kaffirs' tricks, and received everything with the grimmest of looks
as they passed their prisoner along for punishment, and finally ordered
forward the last man. This prisoner took West's attention from the first,
for he was a well-built, keenly intelligent-looking fellow, who seemed
quite awake to his position and behaved throughout with a calm air of
conscious innocence.
It struck West, too, that the Kaffir kept on gazing very hard at Anson,
as if attracted by his gently-smiling, innocent-looking face, and as if he
were silently pleading to the most amiable-looking personage of the
party to intercede for him and save him from punishment.
Anson, however, did not appear to notice the man's eager looks, being
too much interested in the search for illicitly-acquired stones, and
eagerly watching every phase of the proceedings, his eyes sparkling

and cheeks flushed with pink at every fresh discovery, while he rubbed
his hands and looked from one to the other with all the pleasure of
some big, fat, stupid child.
"Now then," cried the chief searcher roughly; "come along."
The Kaffir quietly submitted to the rough handling he experienced in
being forced up to the stool, and, anticipating the order, he opened his
mouth; but the under-searcher roughly told him to "shut up," and he
closed his fine white teeth with an audible snap, while the search was
commenced at his feet, the toes being carefully examined without
result.
Then his closely-knotted hair, which looked as if it would have made, if
he were scalped, good trimmings of astrachan wool for the collar and
cuffs of an English gentleman's overcoat, was carefully searched by
well-trained fingers; the ears were probed and inspected; nostrils
searched and given a final wring between thumb and finger as if he
were being insulted in old-fashioned style by pulling his nose; and
lastly, his cheeks were felt outside and in, and the searchers, who
looked puzzled, made the black kneel down and remain for some time
in that position, with his mouth wide open and head thrown back so
that the sun shone right into his great mouth.
"He's all right!" said Anson enthusiastically. "You've got the wrong pig
by the ear this time. I thought this fellow looked honest."
The Kaffir darted a grateful look at the speaker, which told plainly
enough that he comprehended the words, and Anson replied with a
smile.
"Ah, you ought to be on this job, Mr Anson," said the chief searcher
sarcastically. "You'd be invaluable here."
Anson laughed good-humouredly.
"You're bantering," he said; "I know. But I should like it, and I fancy I
could find the diamonds quickly enough if a man had hidden any."

"Find them then now," said the man who had spoken. "Come on."
There was a general laugh here, in which Anson joined.
"Nay," he said good-humouredly; "get another subject who has some
hidden. That chap has none, unless he has swallowed some."
"What would you do then, squire?" said the man. "Shoot him, and
make a post-mortem exam?"
"Ugh! horrid!" cried Anson, with a look of the most intense disgust.
"But I say, I mean it. Fetch another chap, and let me examine him. I
should like to, really."
"Why don't you search this one?" said Ingleborough contemptuously,
and West laughed.
Anson winced and turned upon them half-angrily. But he changed his
manner before he had finished speaking, and his face broke up into a
broad smile.
"Because I don't want to be laughed at by you chaps and called a fool,"
he said. "I'm not stupid enough as it is to believe he has any diamonds
hidden."
"Well,