Subject: Another riddle

From: "David C. Hufford" <[email-masked]>
Date: Mon, 29 Jan 1996 06:57:47 -0500 (EST)

Stumbled across another 19th century riddle which may be of interest to 
ye blacksmiths:

I saw maidens like dust.
Rocks were their beds.
They were black and swarthy in the sunshine,
But the darker it grew, the fairer they appeared.

I'll post the answer later.

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From: [email-masked]
Date: Tue, 30 Jan 1996 13:38:36 -0500

Hey David, I'll take a stab at this one: Is it coal??
--Jim McCarty (If so I will take the 5-pound clinker. Never seen one that
big!)

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From: "David C. Hufford" <[email-masked]>
Date: Wed, 31 Jan 1996 09:23:13 -0500 (EST)

Jim:

You're close enough.  The answer is embers on the hearth (I believe the 
author was referring to a fireplace rather than a forge).  You're welcome 
to one of my many multi-pound clinkers.  Don't know why I get so many of 
these; guess I should clean out my firepot more often than once a month.

David