Chapter VIII:
Oliver Meets the African Miner

Thus the time passed for the voluntary exiles very pleasantly. After about eight months of their residence Oliver was out in the piassava yard inspecting the boys at work one afternoon, when he was approached by a tall, black, native African, wearing a striped native shirt of coarse cloth and of native manufacture and reaching to his knees. Over this hung down the right side a large leather bag suspended from the left shoulder. His hair was in a checkered pattern of four inch small plaits and separated by cleanly shaven inch wide lines, sometimes varying from square divisions, triangles and circles, just as his tonsorial artist had fancied.

Extracting a red bandana parcel from his bag he squatted upon the ground in front of Oliver and unloaded the package. "You wanna buyee dis silver daddee," he added as he held up two bars of platinum of about three or four ounces respectively.

Oliver examined them and said, "This is no silver, where did you get them from?"

"Dat be for silber, true it get some brass dere, but true, true, I tell you, me no put him dere; so me got him from dem mountain."

The poor fellow had been unable to use the hard substance and decided it was amalgamated with brass or copper, therefore he had hesitated to take the metal into the store for fear of being detected.

Oliver paid him £2 ($9.60), twice as much as he had asked, and thus won the confidence of the man. He told Oliver of the Karnee Mountain, or gold mountain, at a short distance in the interior. Oliver made notes and obtained his promise to return shortly with more and to act as a guide.

After supper Oliver sat in his favorite armchair as he watched Eva embroidering the dainty little articles over which she smiled so dreamily. "Eva, here are two pieces of platinum weighing nearly half a pound. I paid £2 for them to a fellow from the interior who asked only one," Oliver remarked as he walked over to Eva's chair and held the bars for her inspection.

"He promised to take me to the mountain where he says gold and other metals are also plentiful."

A cloud passed over Eva's face. "Oh, Oliver," she exclaimed, "you are not going to leave me."

"Silly, what are you talking about?" Oliver replied as he kissed her. "Do you think I would leave my little girl at this time? Not for all the diamonds in Africa. But I refer to some time in the near future, when I shall try prospecting so as to make enough money to take you back home and support you in the manner our social standing demands."

"But we are happy here, and I am satisfied. Why don't you wait until we can save enough from your salary?" Eva replied.

"Because, dear, I never cared for the mercantile life. If you will recall it was prospecting we both decided upon at first. I don't want our child to grow up in Africa, and I could not accept my brother's bounty. He has a daughter of his own and my sister-in-law has never had very much love for me. Let us say that for dress and incidental, the commission will suffice, and I can place £500 to my credit. How many years it will take to accumulate a sufficient sum to retire and live in England. It will require at least £1000 per annum to live through, so you see if I can locate the gold mountain I can sell the mine and soon return to our native heath."

"Yes, darling, I understand, especially since you are trying to assist father recover a part of our ruined fortunes. Oh, you naughty boy, you tried to hide it from me. Never mind who told me. I know and must kiss you for it.

"But Oliver," she continued in a more serious tone, "promise me upon your honor that you will never attempt to make the trip without me."

"But that would be impossible, Eva, I could not take you into the interior; the risk would be too great."

Eva smiled but continued to urge her plea very insistingly until Oliver made her the promise. Would that some fairy had tipped her to urge the abandonment of his project, for then their lives might have remained one of unbroken happiness.

The advent of Miss Lucretia Montcrief soon occupied their time, so that the mining proposition was for a time forgotten.