HOW HE SCOOPED THE POOL.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume V, Issue 1460, 19 January 1887, Page 3

HOW HE SCOOPED THE POOL.

--■■ J .^.- A pleftßant faced, genUemanly }oung stranger walked into one < f the most swell and magnificent dr'nklng palaces and oalled for a punch When the oHio<v»n- )n wm completed he nl^ \' t to hia 1!p * B *' at the ■»»"* ljine t na t he koEßed a ornwn on tho bar m payment. The coin, {ell like the hank of lead, that 14 vrae, and the sound prodaced by its contaot with the bar was a» flat as the kerohug of a frog m striking the water. The sound attrao'ed the attention of two or three of the young man's neighbors, and they eyed him with come ourlosity, as if wondering what lorfc of a verdant £9 wa.s to attempt to pass suoh a eoia. The barkeeper simply glanced »t it and imiled, and waited for the stranger to produce a tubatitute. The orovrn piece did look disreputable, end no mistake. It was b.attcred and bruised^ bad a plug iv one , corner, and the milling about the edges was m a state of (tad deoay, irhller added to all thla was a oolor that betokened it

to be lead from Leudville, and no tn'.e- --" What ia the matte:?" .saked tho patron of h<* house *nd proprietor of (ho queer piecn of bof'W. T"fl crowd laughed atd tha barkeeper Biioyerttd that another coin be substituted " Oh, tbci'B it, is it V responded the genil'MMsnly y«-ung rosn. pr&tendinß to ox.«mi: c >hf fl\ta on hie uns V ry proffjr. " '•* c , don't you knmr th»t I am wlad y v v». fined v ; that crown m w-'srih five times ?.fs f.«ce value io anybody that has go' cr.vrmon sense " IV r. . r threa of the party cast w look nt t-l.e date urid tlioa laughed a^ain. '•Why, yr v a-e !o- l'ah, you a* tn»:i," a.ii cne r.f them pitying y. "Aa money, a bushel oaaket full of those things would not be worth oue half penny I thought a' first that it might have an old d*te, but if it was coined, whiln Noah was cfl at m the ark it would not ba worth more than it Is, ' which ia simply noth'ng." Wih th : a the barkeeper fell; impelled t> givo 'he young man some kind advioe to the effect that he hud bettor not make any more attempts to p&es the dfraj thine, or he would be liable to arrest. " That'B all right, gentlemen ; I'll bet any of yon £6 tVat that coin is worth fire times its faoe valne, juat to show you that I know what lam about." " Oh, we don't want rnnr monoy," pot m the barkeeper ; " just pay fn<that drink nnd s*y nothing moro about it " " Very well, eir, I'll pay you on for the drink with any sort of money you like, but when you grow wisor yon wi 1 be sorry that you did not t*ke your payment oufc of that worthy, bot miioeed coin," and wi'h 'hia the orner of the violation of tho law agaicat counterfeits produced % wallet faiciy buretiog with its hoard of bills and gold, and pveed over a half Boverei^n for the juoch. The sight of hia wealth caught the crowd at one, and tivo of them iinmediutely offered to acoept the hut he had proposed a few seoonde before. Tr.e young Mlow irritended ta heaitate ; and then ln^inaated that they should give htm odda on the wager. "Very well, since >ou aro bo clever a numlamitist, I will give you a chance foyour m-.iney. I will bet £6 to £2 that tbat ooin fa not wor'h £1 to any one, excepl yourself. Of course, you cannot be t{ c j idi?e of Us worth, aq ym are betHng on it " " Well, that ib fair, although I would prefer t"> apprise th^ value of my own goods. I will take your wager and leave it to any cannon eeuse man that you may select." "Done." " r?efc me, too, on the i»me terniß ? " asked anothe? of the party, and another and Biil anoihe-, The young man accepted all the offer*, and thea offered to wager the barkeeper drinks for the p»rty on the result. The drink mixer accepted, and piled up £2 on the tr-p of the liquids A respectable old gentlom m was called from the other end of the har to hotd tho stakes nnd act as referee The mot ey once 3eprsited and the terms of tho bet explained, t^a half tipsy air that the youDg fellow had oirmd Bod U'nly disd'-ppoarex?, and with his penknifb he t a -e fully p ised tio o >m apart. The t<vo halves split like the oaae of a watch, and m tha centre vrsn a little exoav-fciou oonuiloing a splcudiJly gonuit a sovereign. The referee p«sed over the stakes without a word. The ba^kseptr made a bluff nt a araile, lut it seemed more of a counterfeit than the old prown pieoe The thre§ younc; m»n who b?t fj d m te^'Oh of fr^sh air, The yoni>g m.^n qu'etiy folded up his ooin, took hit drink, recniukod that it was a pleasant day and ■ walked out, having a trail of th ( ck blaok gtocm behind him