Monday, August 23, 2010

Mark Twain, Diamonds in Africa and a Fantastic Insider Trading Story

I have recently finished reading Mark Twain's "Following the Equator." The writing is of course wonderful - what a joy. Twain writes about his journey around the equator around 1896, and provides very insightful observations about the locals and western attitudes to the locals. There are a number of stories I particularly liked and which he told with great humor: the discovery of diamonds in South Africa and a fantastic insider trading story associated with Cecil Rhodes.