One day several years ago a Georgia boy went fishing. He started for a
creek that ran not far from his home; but as he knew there were few fish
in it except small cat-fish, he probably did not expect to return with a
very well-filled basket. Most boys, however, know how to get a good deal
of pleasure out of a day's fishing, even if the fish are small and bite
slowly.
Taking his lines and hooks, this Georgia boy went to the creek, and
there sat down to dig for bait with his pocket-knife. In digging, he
turned up a curious and pretty pebble which attracted his attention.
Wiping the earth from it, he found it to be semi-transparent, and about
the color of the flame of a wood fire. As he turned it around, it
reflected the light in a peculiar way which interested the boy, and so,
instead of throwing the pebble away, he put it into his pocket.
As he had never seen a stone of the kind, he showed it to a good many
persons as a curiosity in a small way, and after a while he came to
value it about as a boy values a marble of the kind called real agate.
On one occasion he showed his pretty stone to a visitor from Cincinnati,
who seemed even more interested in it than others had been. This
gentleman examined the pebble again and again, and finally asked
permission to take it to Cincinnati with him to show to some one there.
Not long afterward the gentleman returned, and told the lad that his
"pretty stone" was worth a good many thousands of dollars. It was, in
fact, what is called a fire opal, a very precious stone, specimens of
which are so very scarce and costly that jewellers can not afford to
make use of them. The few that have been found since Humboldt carried
specimens to Europe have been eagerly bought at enormous prices for the
great museums.
When the parents of the Georgia boy learned the nature and value of his
discovery they had the stone sent to Europe, and sold to advantage. The
sum received for it was quite a little fortune.
I have never heard how many fish the boy caught, but I am very sure that
he can not complain of his luck on that day.
Since that time a good many opals have been found in the region in which
the boy dug for bait, and among them one or two small fire opals, but
none equal in value to his. Some efforts have been made to search the
region thoroughly, and to work it as an opal mine. There is a great
difference in opals, but when they are really beautiful their value is
very large. For an opal in the museum at Venice $250,000 was offered
without success. Marc Antony is said to have sent a Roman Senator into
exile because he would not sell him an opal ring for which he had paid
nearly a million of dollars.
"POPSEY."