A Dash from Diamond City | Page 7

between parentheses, as he
shook his head.
"Look here," he said, "what's the good of bantering so? Are you going
to search any more men?"
"No," said the official; "that's the lot."
"But are you going to punish them?"
"Oh yes! They'll have to take their dose for it, sir; you may be sure of
that. We're going to be more and more severe over this
illicit-diamond-dealing."
"Are you?" said Anson innocently.
"We just are. It'll be a shooting matter soon if it can't be stopped
otherwise."

"How horrid!" said Anson. "But I say, these men don't deal illicitly, do
they?"
"They wouldn't if a set of scoundrels did not set them on to steal, so
that they could buy of the poor ignorant savages, giving them shillings
for what they sell for pounds."
"How sad it seems!" said Anson thoughtfully.
"And how innocent you seem!" said West, laughing.
"Yes, it's charming," cried Ingleborough. "Why, you know all about it."
"I?" cried Anson. "Oh, of course I know something about it. I've heard
of the illicit-diamond-dealing, and read about it; but it has all gone in at
one ear and out at the other. You see, I devote so much time to music.
That and my work at the office keep me from taking much notice of
other things. Politics, for instance, and the rumours of war. Do you
think it at all likely that there will be any fighting, West?"
"I can't say," was the reply; "but we're going to be perfectly ready for
the Boers in case there is, and it's quite time we were off, Ingleborough,
if we intend to answer at the roll-call."
"Hah! Yes," cried the young man addressed. "Better come with us,
Anson."
The latter shook his head, and his companions separated from him at
the gate.
"Better come," said Ingleborough again. "Join, and then you'll be on the
spot if we do form a band."
"Oh no!" said Anson, smiling. "You make up your minds at
headquarters to form a band, and then, if you like, I'll come and train
it."
"He's a rum fellow," said West, as the two young men fell into step.

"Ah," said Ingleborough roughly, "I am afraid Master Anson's more R.
than F."
"More R. than F?" said West questioningly.
"If you must have it in plain English, more rogue than fool."
"Well, I fancy he isn't quite so simple as he pretends to be."
"Bah! I'm not a quarrelsome fellow, but I always feel as if I must kick
him. He aggravates me."
"Nice soft sort of a fellow to kick," said West, laughing.
"Ugh!" ejaculated Ingleborough, and his foot flew out suddenly as if
aimed at the person of whom they spoke. "Don't know anything about
diamonds! What things people will do for the sake of a bit of glittering
glass! Look here, West, for all his talk I wouldn't trust him with a
consignment of stones any farther than I could see him."
"Don't be prejudiced!" said West. "You don't like him, and so you can
only see his bad side."
"And that's all round," replied Ingleborough laughing. "No; I don't like
him. I never do like a fellow who is an unnatural sort of a prig. He can't
help being fat and pink and smooth, but he can help his smiling, sneaky
manner. I do like a fellow to be manly. Hang him! Put him in petticoats,
with long hair and a bonnet, he'd look like somebody's cook. But if I
had an establishment and he was mine, I should be afraid he'd put
something unpleasant into my soup."
"Never mind about old Anson," said West merrily, "but look here.
What about that illicit-diamond-buying? Do you think that there's much
of it taking place?"
"Much?" cried his companion. "It is tremendous. The company's losing
hundreds of thousands of pounds yearly."
"Nonsense!"

"It's a fact," said Ingleborough earnestly; "and no end of people are
hard at work buying stolen diamonds, in spite of the constant sharp
look-out kept by the police."
"But I should have thought that the licences and the strict supervision
would have checked the greater part of it."
"Then you'd have thought wrong, my boy. I wish it did, for as we are
going on now it makes everyone suspicious and on the look-out. I
declare that for months past I never meet any of our people without
fancying they suspect me of buying and selling diamonds on the sly."
"And that makes you suspicious too," said West quietly.
Ingleborough turned upon him sharply, and looked him through and
through.
"What made you say that?" he said at last.
"Previous conversation," replied West.
"Humph! Well, perhaps so."
CHAPTER FOUR.
RUMOURS OF WAR.
The Diamond-Fields Horse had drilled one evening till they were tired,
and after