d
him with my hand upon his arm, that he should stand where he was at the
bed's edge, while I stepped on and got the stone.

My feet sank in the soft earth as I passed through the fringe of poppies
circling the outside of the bed, and so I stood beside the tall rushy
flower. The scarlet of its bells was almost black, but there was no
mistaking it, and I stooped to pick the diamond up. Was it possible? was
there nothing for my outstretched hand to finger, except the soft rich
loam, and on the darkness of the ground no guiding sparkle? I knelt down
to make more sure, and looked all round the plant, and still found
nothing, though it was light enough to see a pebble, much more to catch
the gleam and flash of the great diamond I knew so well.

It was not there, and yet I knew that I had seen it fall beyond all room
for doubt. 'It is gone, Elzevir; it is gone!' I cried out in my
anguish, but only heard a 'Hush!' from him to bid me not to speak so
loud. Then I fell on my knees again, and sifted the mould through my
fingers, to make sure the stone had not sunk in and been overlooked.

But it was all to no purpose, and at last I stepped back to where Elzevir
was, and begged him to light a piece of match in the shelter of the
hollyhocks; and I would screen it with my hands, so that the light should
fall upon the ground, and not be seen from the house, and so search round
the flower. He did as I asked, not because he thought that I should find
anything, but rather to humour me; and, as he put the lighted match into
my hands, said, speaking low, 'Let the stone be, lad, let it be; for
either thou didst fail to mark the place right, or others have been here
before thee. 'Tis ruled we should not touch the stone again, and so 'tis
best; let be, let be; let us get home.'

He put his hand upon my shoulder gently, and spoke with such an
earnestness and pleading in his voice that one would have thought it was
a woman rather than a great rough giant; and yet I would not hear, and
broke away, sheltering the match in my hollowed hands, and making back to
the red flower. But this time, just as I stepped upon the mould, coming
to the bed from the house side, the light fell on the ground, and there I
saw something that brought me up short.

It was but a dint or impress on the soft brown loam, and yet, before my
eyes were well upon it, I knew it for the print of a sharp heel--a sharp
deep heel, having just in front of it the outline of a lit