An Ingenious Speculation.

Manawatu Herald, 4 August 1904, Page 2

An Ingenious Speculation.

About the opening of the last century, two brothers, blacksmiths, named Knowles, went to seek their fortune in Jamaica. On their arrival, however, they found that without some small capital they would be in a worse condition in the colony than they were in the Old Country. How raise it? They raised it thus. The finer looking of the two brothers was by the other closely shaved to the skull, stripped stark naked, and painted black as ebony. Thus disguised he was taken by his brother to one of the negro dealers, who Were struck by the pseudo slave’s appearance since every muscle had been developed to perfection, in the forge. Indeed, a» there Was not a slave on the island to compare with him in size and strength, the dealer eagerly paid the brother £BO for the “negro.” The very evening of the day of sale the pseudo-negro managed to make .hie escape, when his brother washed the Ethiopian white again. As a white man he was, of course, unrecognisable by the dealer who was (at nis wits’ end to understand how his newly-purchased slave had vanished like smoke. Nevertheless, the brothers took the precaution of removing to another part of the island, where they prospered exceedingly; and, indeed, in a few years they had multiplied their little capital of into £20,000. It must be saidflp their credit that before returning; England to enjoy there this fortuhe, they sought out the slave dealer, recalled and explained to him the circumstances of the sale and of the disappearance of his bargain, and repaid him the £BO with compound interest.