Part 10 (2/2)
Also it is a curious coincidence that she should have that ly to Messrs Hart and Mart, and, to be brief, she is in so wonall, we are surrounded by mysteries; enerally in which it is probable that we all descended from quite a few common ancestors And beyond these are other , thatand secret influences upon us, as perhaps, did we know it, they have done for millions of years in the Infinite whence we cao”
I suppose I spoke sohten h I don't quite understand what you mean” Then we parted
With Miss Holmes my conversation was shorter She rereat pleasure to me to meet you I do not remember anybody hom I have found e to think that e ain I shall be a ain, Miss Holmes Your life is here, mine is in the wildest places of a wild land far away”
”Oh! yes, we shall,” she answered ”I learned this and lots of other things when I held ht”
Then we also parted
Lastly Mr Savage arrived with et everything else I shall never forget you and those villains, Harum and Scarum and their snakes I hope it won't be ain, Mr Quatermain, and yet somehow I don't feel so sure of that”
”Nor do I,” I replied, with a kind of inspiration, after which followed the episode of the rejected tip
CHAPTER VI
THE BONA FIDE GOLD MINE
Fully two years had gone by since I bade farewell to Lord Ragnall and Miss Holain behold ed in reflection and very sad indeed Why I was sad I will explain presently
In that interval of tinall
Thus I received froe with Miss Holmes, which, it appeared, had been a very fine affair indeed, quite one of the events of the London season Two Royalties attended the cere to all accounts were superb and of great value, including a priceless pearl necklace given by the bridegroo froth upon the splendid appearance of the bridegroom and the sweet loveliness of the bride Also it described her dress in language which was Greek to me
One sentence, however, interested me intensely
It ran: ”The bride occasioned sonall faht for many years, are known to be some of the finest in the country It was a necklace of what appeared to be large but rather roughly polished rubies, to which hung a syptian God also fashi+oned froh of an unusual nature on such an occasion this jewel suited her dark beauty well Lady Ragnall's selection of it, however, from the many she possesses was the cause of much speculation When asked by a friend why she had chosen it, she is reported to have said that it was to bring her good fortune”
Nohy did she wear the barbaric ift of Hart and Mart in preference to all the other gee as to be al this pair reached h the medium of an old _Times_ newspaper which I received over a year later It was to the effect that a son and heir had been born to Lord Ragnall and that bothwell
So there's the end to a very curious little story, thought I to s befell me First of all, in company with my old friend Sir Stephen Sooland in search of the wonderful orchid which he desired to add to his collection I have already written of that journey and our extraordinary adventures, and need therefore allude to it nothe course of it I was sorely tempted to travel to the territory north of the lake in which the Pongos dwelt
Much did I desire to see whether Messrs Hart and Mart would in truth appear to conduct me to the land where the wonderful elephant which was supposed to be ani to be killed by my rifle However, I resisted the ied me to do In the end we returned safely to Durban, and here I caain would I riskto circumstances which I have detailed elsewhere I was now in possession of a considerable sum of cash, and this I determined to lay out in such a fashi+on as to ions of Africa As usual when , an opportunity soon presented itself in the shape of a gold mine which had been discovered on the borders of Zululand, one of the first that was ever found in those districts A Jew trader naht it to my notice and offered me a half share if I would put up the capital necessary to work the mine I made a journey of inspection and convinced myself that it was indeed a wonderful proposition I need not enter into the particulars nor, to tell the truth, have I any desire to do so, for the subject is still painful to me, further than to say that this Jew and soold before nificent quartz reef froone ages of the world The news of our discovery spread like wildfire, and as, whatever else I ht be, everyone knew that I was honest, in the end a small company was formed with Allan Quatermain, Esq, as the chairman of the Bona Fide Gold Mine, Limited
Oh! that coestion
Our capital was small, 10,000, of which the Jeas well na of course) as the purchase price of their rights I thought the proportion large and said so, especially after I had ascertained that these rights had cost theon, four cows past the bearing age and 5 in cash However, when it was pointed out to enius they had located and provided the value of a property of enormous potential worth, moreover that this sum was to be paid to them in scrip which would only be realizable when success was assured and not in ave way
Personally, before I consented to accept the chairmanshi+p, which carried with it a salary of 100 a year (which I never got), I bought and paid for in cash, shares to the value of 1,000 sterling I remember that Jacob and his friends seeive”in consideration of the guarantee ofthat I would not ask others to invest in a venture in which I had no actual money stake; whereon they accepted my decision, not without enthusiasm
In the end the balance of 4,000 was subscribed and we got to work Work is a good name for it so far as I was concerned, for never in alla time