Peter Biddulph | Page 3

and was scarcely aware of the amount of wealth I was receiving.
On seeing Mr Wells give me money, the other gentlemen did the same,
and some even gave me as much as five shillings; so that I felt as if

coin was raining down on me from the skies. My tears dried up, and,
for a minute, I felt supremely happy; but on a sudden the thought
occurred to me, that if my mother had been alive how happy it would
have made her, and I burst forth into tears again.
Mr Wells on this asked me why I cried; so I told him the truth, and he
believed me; though I believe, from the expression of some of the other
gentlemen's faces, that they fancied I was crying to gain their
compassion: at all events, they gave me no more money, and their
companions returning to the boat, they shoved off and continued their
course down the river.
As soon as they were gone I began to collect my thoughts, and to
consider my best chance of finding the lost ring. As I heard Mr Wells
say that he would not have lost it for a hundred pounds, I believed that
was its value, and though I had no just conception of how much a
hundred pounds was, I knew that it must be a great deal of money. I
was therefore very anxious to restore it to the kind gentleman.
Here I benefited by my good mother's instruction; and I believed her
spirit watched over me to keep me from evil; for it never occurred to
me, as I am sorry to say it did to some of the other boys who overheard
the gentleman's observation, that it would be easier if the ring was
found to sell it and secure its value, than to trust to the chance of
obtaining a small reward by returning it to its proper owner.
I fortunately overheard them plotting to secure the ring for themselves,
and I determined to counteract their plan. Though the water was deep
where the ring had fallen there was no current, as it was in a little bay
in the bank of the river, and what was more, I remembered that the
ground was rather harder than that surrounding it, and that it rose
slightly outside.
These circumstances gave me hopes of finding the ring; so I sat down
at some little distance on the bank, pretending to be counting the
money I had received, but in reality watching narrowly the spot where I
thought it had fallen.

I do not mean to say that I was indifferent to my good fortune, but I
honestly believe I thought much more of the pleasure it would give the
poor people who had charitably taken care of me in my destitution,
than of the benefit I should myself derive from it.
The tide had only run off a very little when the ring was thrown in, so
that I had a considerable time to wait; but though I grew very hungry,
and felt that I might enjoy a plentiful meal, I would not quit my post;
indeed, I was accustomed to starve, so that did not incommode me
much.
Slowly the tide receded, and one after one the other boys went away. At
last the bank appeared, and the intervening space was left with very
little water over it. I was in hopes that none of the other boys would
return to interrupt me in my search; but, to my annoyance, just as the
mud was left quite clear, two of them came back, and immediately
tucking up their trousers, hurried into the mud.
CHAPTER TWO.
NEW FRIENDS.
Now it so happened that I had carefully noted where the penny had
fallen, and if I had been alone, I could have gone straight to the place.
But, wishing to mislead my rivals in the search, I waded into the water
at a considerable distance from the spot. Glad of a clue, the other
mud-larks came over to me in a hurry, and began hunting about.
Leaving them there, I went to another place, and so on till I gradually
approached the spot where I thought the ring had fallen. They again
followed me, and as I was stooping down I heard one of them cry out,
and I thought he had found the treasure, but it was only the penny Mr
Wells had thrown me. "Ho! ho!" I thought, "the ring will not have
reached as far as that, but I must make haste and find it, or it will be too
dark to see anything." The other boys thought the ring must be close to
the penny, and kept turning up the mud in every direction round it,