# Old Diamond explained — At the Back of the North Wind

> Chapter companion for At the Back of the North Wind by George MacDonald.

## What happens

Diamond's father, having saved some money and finding no suitable situation, decides to set up as a cabman. He visits a friend who shows him a horse for sale, which turns out to be his beloved old horse Diamond, now thin and bony. Overcome with emotion, he buys back the horse along with a four-wheeled cab, and takes rooms over the stable, writing for his wife to come home.

## Themes in this chapter

### Home and Belonging

The reunion of Diamond's father with his old horse and the establishment of a new home over the stable emphasize the theme of finding a place of belonging.

### Compassion and Service

The cab-master's kindness in reducing the price for old friends and the father's emotional care for the horse highlight compassion and service.

## Character check-ins

### Father

Diamond's father, a former coachman, buys back his old horse Diamond and sets up as a cabman.

### Diamond

The horse Diamond, now thin and bony, is joyfully reunited with his former master.

## Key lines

> The end of it was that Diamond’s father bought old Diamond again, along with a four-wheeled cab. And as there were some rooms to be had over the stable, he took them, wrote to his wife to come home, and set up as a cabman.

In the end, Diamond's father repurchased old Diamond and a four-wheeled cab, rented rooms above the stable, and wrote to his wife to return so he could start working as a cabman.

_This passage describes the resolution of the chapter's main plot._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/at_the_back_of_the_north_wind_se/chapters/xiv-old-diamond
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/at_the_back_of_the_north_wind_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/at_the_back_of_the_north_wind_se/chapters