THE STORY OF

DIAMONDS
BY

A. C. AUSTI
Schoolqf Min,s)
(Geol. E., The Col<irado

A D

MARION MERCER
(E. M., The C<1toradq
School of Mines)

Digitized by the Internet Archive

PREPARED FOR TIIE
in 2022 with funding from
CENTURY OF PROGRESS COMMITTEE
Kahle/ Austin Foundation
OF THE

CfIICAGO JEWELERS ASSOCIA1TON

vVith I 2. s I tiustrations
Art W ork by Perey ll~le Lund

Copyright l935, by che

CHICAGO J EWELERs' AssocrATION

Ali Rightr Rrn:rt•ed

https://archive.org/details/storyofdiamonds0000unse
 P:reface
Here is the story of the story:
IVE members of che Chicago Jewelers' Association

F ca ncei ve t he idea t ha t "A Cea tury of Pro gress" Ex pos i-

tí o n sbould concain a colorful, educatíonal account
of rhac most fascinating, but liccle undcrst0od gem-
che diamond.
1932.. The Museum of Science and Indusrry inJackson Park, Chicago,
lNTRODUCTION .
Contents
5
len<ls che services of a staff member. In Europe, be succeeds in I. THE NATURE OF D1A 10NDS 7
securing rhe financia! and material assiscance of che diamond
mterescs.
II. ÜCCURRE CE

1933 The Diamond Exh1bic is opeoed at che Expositíon. Ir presencs III. GEOLOGY
che complete story oí che diamond from che rime ic is fash10ned
by Nature uncil ic gliccers in che jeweler's window, or performs IV. M1NTNG
sorne useful cask in industry.
Spring, 1934 Anocher trip co Europe. The Exhibir is revised and improved.
V. CuTTING

A11ht1JZ1l, 1934 The grear Exposition is drawing to a close. The Diamond Ex- VI. GREAT DrAMONDs PAsT AND PRESB T
1
hibic has been visiced by a chrong of peopJe equal in oumber co
rhc population of Chicago, coming from eYery scace in the Union VII. TnE D1AMO :rn IN lNDUSTRY
and from many foreign lands. Many of chese visicors are engaged
in educaüonal pursuits; many ochers are fascinaced by che dia- V III. T JT A 1'S o F THE p AST A D PRESENT

moncl as a commodicy and a thing of beaucy. Al! are incerested B1BLlOGRAPHY 91

in securing Jiterature pertaining coche life hiscory of che diamond.
Literarnre which is concise, tMdable, aurhentic and up-co-dace. l"-TDEX .
1 935 This licde book is published in answer co chese requescs, and
to a host of similar requests from chose who were unabk co visi e
thc exhibir. The book is aot a sciencífic treatise, a commercial
discussion, or a hiscorical romance. Ic aims co combine che fea-
cures of all chree chíngs, so thac the reader may sense someching
of the solid worch of diamonds, and che colorful story of their
life.
Chicago,IUinois
February, 19JJ.
 Introduction
HE liceracure on che subjecc of diamonds has been

T vast. Men have studied diamonds, treasured chem, col-

lected chem, srolen rhem, foughr wars over cbem and
invenced legends abouc them, ever since the dawn of
recorded history. Why? The answer is found in che rnind of Man
himself. He has righrly decided that any inanimace objecc, in
order ro be valuable, muse firsc be beauciful so chat his eye shall
noc tire of it. Second, ic must be durable so thac it shall not
crumble away or lose ics beaucy in his Jifecime, or the lifecime
of his son 's son. And third, it muse be rare-so thac his neighbor
and his grandson 's neighbor shall envy che possession of it. As
man srudied che diamond, he became more and more aware that
ic fulfi.lled all rhree of chese condicions, to a degree unsurpassed
by any ocher subscance in che world. The light of modero science
has served to screngchen tbis conviccion. What can compare with
the diamond? Gold, che most precious of mecals known to our
forefachers, is not as beautiful, not as rare, and it is bulky and
soft. Sil ver tarnishes and is less rare. Radium is extremely valuable
and rare, bue ir deals death to rhose who do nor underscand ir.
Orher precious scones carrnoc approach che diamond in beauty and
durabili cy. So, in studying che diamond, we study che substance
mosc higbly prized by the human race, for reasons which will be
shown in decail.
Ac the outset, rhen, the authors' problem was not in finding
books on diamonds, but in seleccing che best books from which to
cull che mosc ínceresting facts ancl stories. To the digesced findings
of others, has been added much original marerial. We hope thac
the scieorific studenr wíll find here a few facts which are oew to
him, and chac the reader who seeks romance will find ic in che
tales of che winning of d iamonds, anc.l of the jealous fury wirh
which men have sought chem.
 Introduction
HE liceracure on che subjecc of diamonds has been

T vast. Men have studied diamonds, treasured chem, col-

lected chem, srolen rhem, foughr wars over cbem and
invenced legends abouc them, ever since the dawn of
recorded history. Why? The answer is found in che rnind of Man
himself. He has righrly decided that any inanimace objecc, in
order ro be valuable, muse firsc be beauciful so chat his eye shall
noc tire of it. Second, ic must be durable so thac it shall not
crumble away or lose ics beaucy in his Jifecime, or the lifecime
of his son 's son. And third, it muse be rare-so thac his neighbor
and his grandson 's neighbor shall envy che possession of it. As
man srudied che diamond, he became more and more aware that
ic fulfi.lled all rhree of chese condicions, to a degree unsurpassed
by any ocher subscance in che world. The light of modero science
has served to screngchen tbis conviccion. What can compare with
the diamond? Gold, che most precious of mecals known to our
forefachers, is not as beautiful, not as rare, and it is bulky and
soft. Sil ver tarnishes and is less rare. Radium is extremely valuable
and rare, bue ir deals death to rhose who do nor underscand ir.
Orher precious scones carrnoc approach che diamond in beauty and
durabili cy. So, in studying che diamond, we study che substance
mosc higbly prized by the human race, for reasons which will be
shown in decail.
Ac the outset, rhen, the authors' problem was not in finding
books on diamonds, but in seleccing che best books from which to
cull che mosc ínceresting facts ancl stories. To the digesced findings
of others, has been added much original marerial. We hope thac
the scieorific studenr wíll find here a few facts which are oew to
him, and chac the reader who seeks romance will find ic in che
tales of che winning of d iamonds, anc.l of the jealous fury wirh
which men have sought chem.
 CHAPTER I

• The Nature of Diamonds

HEMICALLY, a diamond is pure carbon. In other

C words, ic is composed of che same material as lamp-

black, soot or graphice. How can this be? Nature her-
self wichholds che answer. We know only that che
diamood is crystalline carbon, formed under such rerrific hear and

• • prcssure char man, for all bis cleverness, has never been abJe t0
make diamonds in che laboratory.
Lec us consider carbon for a momenc. Of che ninecy-cwo ele- Carbon
menes which compase che earch's crusc, carbon is one of che com-
monesc and mosc familiar co us all. le is everywhere in nacure. It
occurs 10 all livrng rnatter. The human body is one-eighch carbon.
Wood is abouc half car bon. The food we eac, che elo ches we

• • wear, rhe houses we live in-che very air we breathe-all

rain carbon. Locomocives thundering pase on the railroad; ships
chac pass in che night; cbousands of aucomobiles on a busy
boulevard whac makes chem go? Coal, fuel oil, and gasoline
all conta1n a very high percentage of carbon. Truly ic is a
con-

wonderful subscance ! The most versacile of elemencs, it com-

bines w1ch other macerials in more than a miltion ways, while

• • •
of che ocher nrn_ecy-one elements, only abouc 2.5,ooo compounds
are known.
If carbon 1s so acnve and busy on this earch, thcn, why does Formation
it occur so spariogly in the diamond form? We have said rbac
man has mee with lictle or no success in making diamonds. Na-
cure muse find che cask equally difficult. The carbon muse be
trapped in molten lava; che lava muse be of a cercain chemical

• • •
composicion; che heat and pressure muse be tremendous, before a
diamond can be born. The carbon, unwilling to undergo chese
conditions, too often escapes Nature's efforts and reappears rn one
of its commonplace forms.
Whac are the distinguishing feacures of che diamond? Firsc of I-Iardness
all, ic is che hardesc substance in che world. Nor only that, bue
it is by far che hardest. Lec us compare ir brieíly to other hard
 THE NATURE OF DIAMONDS 9

~~
- oz
o - scones. Next co che diamond, corundum is the hardesc nacural
subsrance. Familiar forms of corundum are che sapphire and rhe
ruby. But the diamon<l is esrimaced to be eighty-JivetimeJ as hard
as corundum. Diamond-poinced coo1s are used co shape grindiog-
o w heels made of emery, another form of corundum. If che dia-
~ mond is properly set, such a coo1 can be used (on alache) co wear

o-
<(
away cwo big emery wheels, a fooc-and-a-half in diamecer and
a □ ioch thick, before che diamond itself shows any wear, eveo
ro the keenesr eye! Ocher subscances, harder chao corundum,
have been made arrificially-in electric furnaces ar terrilic heat.
The besc-known of rhese is cungsten carbide, made ar greac ex-
pense for use in cutcing-cools. Corundum cannor scrarch tungscen
carbide. Ooly diamood-poinced cools can be used to dress and cut
ic-and rhe process is done wich ease.
This qualicy of hardness is due, probably, to che cooditioos Alig111nent
un<ler which che diamond is formed. So grear was che pressure at
che time of forrnacion, char che carbon acoms bave been crowdeJ
cogerher in a very compact mass, and have been aligned in definice
paccerns wh1ch add strengch to rhe strucrure of the stone. The
<I)
diamond, however, is briccle, if ic is struck a strong blow in a
<I)
tQ cercain direcrion i e will shaccer. For chis reason, makers of dia-
z
~ rnond-pointcd rools muse scudy each stone and ser ic in the proper
<
.... posinon; chen che diamond will scand years of hard use.
...
We have sa1d thac che carbon acoms are Jined up in che srone Crysttillization
in defin1ce patterns. Mosc of tbe rninerals in na cure-assume a defi-
nice crysral shape because of such an aJignmenc. The cryscal shapes
of che c11amond ali helong co che .. isometric" or "cubic' • system,
which has rhe mosr perfecr symmetry known. The mosc common
shape in diamonds is thar of che occahedron, an eighc-si<led figure
having che outline of che familiar "dtarnond" seen on playing
cards. Orher, more complex cryscals are somerimes fou11d, which Octahedron
may have as many as 48 sides. Perfecdy sbape<l crystals, however,
are che excepcion racher rhan che rule, bue aJI diamonds have a
definite cleavage or gram, much hke a p1ece of wood. These planes
of weakness are not visible in fine gem <liamon<ls, except under
rhe microscope; but they pass through che scone parallel to che
cryscal faces; and along these planes the Jiamond can be split.
If cleavage is too well developed, the planes may appear as flaws. Cleav,tge
 ro THE STOR Y OF DIAMONDS
Prqusr Putei:led by FrrJnklleit:kr, Jamaica Plain, Man
PERFECT FLAWED
MlCROPHOTOGRAPHS OF DlAMONDS
Ocher types of flaws are ofcen seen in rough diamonds, such as
.. knocs," inclusions of ocher minera1s, ciny spocs of black carboo,
or bubbles of gas or liquid.
Structttre The arraogemenr of che carbon aroms in a diamond was firsr
decermined by an English sciencist abouc twency years ago. He
photographed diamonds with ao X-ray apparatus (roo compli-
caced to describe here) and found chat, basically, che scructure of
che diamond is due t0 an arrangemenc of the aroms rn groups; one
acom in che cen ter of a four-sided pyramid or ••tecrahedroa, •• w i ch
four ocher aroms reguJarly spaced around ir co form the CT.Q,r□ers.
The acom in che cencer of one _pyrarnid is, in curn, ac che "peak"
Tetrahedron of che nexc one, and chis arrangemenc is repeaced councless bi 1-
lions of times in che smallesr diamood. When chis was discovere<l,
the reason for crysralline shapes and cleavage became much clearer
ro all students of the diamond.
Specific The diamond is a fairly heavy srone. Ics specific gravicy is abouc
Gravity 3½, which means that a cubic incb (for instance) of diamond
weighs chree and a. half times as much as a cubic inch of pure
water. This 1s nor a remarkable weight wben compared to an
equal amounr of metal (such as iron), which is much heavier,
bue che comparison becomes more inrerescrng when we consider
chat sorne of che common forms of carbon have a specific gravity
of only r½, Those carbon acoms were certainly crowded into a
smal l space when che <liamond was born ! Diamonds are measured
THE N ATURE OF DIAMONDS II
by a tioy uníc of weight called a carac. There are 2.268 rnetric
carats in a pound, or about 142 carats to che ounce. The name is
derived from the carat seed, used in ancienc India to counterbal-
ance diamonds long before our presenc weight-systems were de-
vised.
The color of diamonds is due co small amouncs of impurity in Color
che carbon. In chis qualicy (as well as crystallizacion) the jeweler
is mosc concerned. Let us considera number of <liamonds, say roo
carats, coming from che mine. Of chis amount, 50 carats are
"bort" chey have defeccs in rheir cryscal structure which make
them unfit for jewelry. Of che ocher 50 caracs, well crystallized,
2.5 carats vvill be unsuicable because of poor color. The usual
shades in such stones are pale yellow, pale brown, grey or black
-colors which detraer from the beaucy of the scone. Ofcen, roo,
the color is spotted and srreaky. A fine gem diamond is clear and
limpid, like a drop of pure spring water, and usually has a deli-
cate shade of color whjch delighcs che eye. Jewelers, with thejr
trained eyes, classify chese peerless gems (on the basis of color)
as fol lows:
River.r-Absolucely clear, withouc color.
Jagers-Pale sceel-blue.
Wes.reltons-Pale blue.
CrystalJ and Capes-Very pale yelJow.
Very l1-ghtbrown.r
aod Premzers-Stones which have a faintly ''oily" appear-
ance, and have rhe unusual prnperryof appearing
bl ue in sunlighc, yellow in artificial light.
Occasiooally, a <liamon<lis found with pronounced color, and
is known as a ''fancy." Included in these are such colors as canary-
yeJJow, goiden brown, deep blue, green, pink, or even red.
The beauty of che Jiamond, aside from its color, is due co cJ1e Optics
optical properties of che s cone in o ther words, che "cricks" ic
plays with lighc. Let us consider, first, che propercies of "refrac-
tioo," "incernal reflection," an<l ••<lispcrsion." Fearsome words,
perhaps, bue easily enough explained.
Refracrion, in gem scudy, .tneans che bending of a ltght ray Refraction
when it passes from che air into a dense substance such as water,
glass, or diamond. Enterjng the subscance from the cop, ac an
 12. THE STOR Y OF DIAMONDS
aogle, che light is always benr do"vnward. A commoo example
of this is seen when you rhrusc a scraighc scick inco a pooJ of
water. The scick appears to be bent ac the surface of che water.
Every rraosparenr subscance bends lighc a differenc amount, and
chis propercy is mcasured by a number called rhe •'index of re-
fraction." Of all gem scones, che diamond has che h ighesc index.
Here is a comparison:
Diaroond . 2..42
Zircon . • 1.95
Sapphire or Ruhy • 1·77
Topaz . i.62.
Emerald · 1.59
Flint Glass . 1.5
Quanz · 1.55
lee . . 1.31
How does chis affecc che brjlliance of a gem? Any scone which
is highly refracrive has the power of gathering light, thar is,
1igb t coming from all directions is benc inco che cencer of rhe
scone. Thus che diamond, \Vlth its high index of refraccion, accs
as a veri cable magnet for ligh r.
What becomes of these rays which che scone garhers' If che
<liamond is properly cuc, che lighc will be complerely reElecred
from che under side of che srone. This is caUed "in cemal reflec-
rion. •• Lcr us explain chis by rcferring again coa homely example.
D1d you ever lifr upa glass of water and look at rhe surface from
Rejlection beJow? Sometimcs you can see objeccs abo\·e che water, some-
rimes only a silvery sheen of reflecrion. Th1s happens because che
1mdersi.de of che wacer's surface has rhe power of reflecting light
-prov1ded you look at ic from a sharp enough angle. The same
is crue of a light ray trapped inside a d1amond. If ír strikes che
other side coo scraighc, ic will pass rhrough bue if ir scrikes ar
an angle of more rhan rwenry-five degrees off che perpendicular
(che· :crirical angle' '), ic will be rcflccred back. Of alJ gem scones,
rhe d1amond has che greatesc power of 10ternal reflecrion-che
sharpcsc cricical angle. Diamond cuccers, chrough che cencuries,
have _figured out che exacr shape which takes the best advancage
of chis properry. Theirs is che science of diamond design. You can-
THE NATURE OF DIAMONDS
not see chrough a well-cut diamood, except from the side. Whac
you do see is a brillianc glow of light, garhered by the srone and
cransmicced direcdy co your eye.
Bue che diamond has anocher powcr which adds to irs beauty, Dispersion
and chis is the power of dispersion. Ordinary whire Jigh e is com-
posed of che six ma¡or colors of che rainbow: red, orange, yellow,
green, blue, and violet. Each of chese colors is a distinct ray, bue
they all vibrate so unthinkably fast that they are blended inco a
single wh ite ray Now, when sud, a ray enters a dense subscaoce
from the air, we find thac each color is refracred a slighdy differ-
ent amounc-rhe red ray being bent che leasc, and the violec one
che rnost. Thus rhe 1ighr is separated inco its compooenr colors,
and again we find thar che diamond, of all gems, separates chese
colors che widesr. Turning a diamond s1ightly under che light,
you can see fiery Iicrle spots of rainbow color ílash ing from the
scone. What a blaze of beaucy has been created from a mite of
ca.rbonl
Tbese are che rricks which che diamond plays wich ordinary
11gbr. Now lec us see whar ocher qualuies scientiscs haYe found
1n che laboratory.
About rhirty years ago Sir William Crookes, a noted English Fluorescence
scientisr, found chac cercatn diamonds, if exposed co scrong sun-
lighc and rhen raken in a dark room, would glow in rhe dark.
This had been noriced before, huc Sir Wi1Jiam, wtth his keen
mind, decermined ro find out why. After a series of experimencs,
H was found rhar rhe effecr was caused by ultra v10lec rays (in-
visible shorc-wave rays wh,ch are found in sun1ight, and, inci-
dentally, are heneFiciaJ to 1he skfo). These rays can he generaced
arcificia!Jy hy varíous types of clecrric are, and che eílecc creaced
is ca.JleJ .. fluorescence." \' ery few diamonds are fluorescenc r nine-
cenchs of rhem, in facr, are nor), hur when we exrose such scones
roan ulcrav10lec 1amp, we can creare a fairyland of glowrng color.
Freakish effecrs are also seen, such as pink <l1:1rnondslluorcscrng
hJue and yellow oncs mrning green.
1
The X-ray has also been applied ro the diamond experimencally. X-Re1ys
We have said chac rhe arrangemenc of arorns was <lecermined by
chis means. An ordinar) X-ray phocograph of a d1arnond shows
rhat che rays pass through rhe srone rarher easd) srncc 1t Je; pure
 THE NATURE OF DIAMONDS 15
TH ESTOR Y OF DIAMONDS

Ge11m¡l F.kctric X-Ray Corp., CMcago

X-RAY PHOTO OT A DIAMOND AND flVE lMITA110NS, SET JN RTNGS
Left to rtght: DI AMONO, ZIRCON, WHITE SAPPHIRE (sYNTHETIC), WHITE
TOPAZ, GLA~, QUARTZ

car bon and offers Iircle resistance. Ocher srones used to imi rate
or substitute for the diamon<l (such as glass or whice sapphire;
are aU metall,c compounds or mixtures of sorne sorc; che metal in
chem resises ehe X-rays, and they wíll phocograph as black shad-
ows. This is one means of distinguishmg che diamond from imi-
cations, although many easier ceses are known, of course. (Hard-
ness and refraction teses in particular.)
Radittm Diamo □ds have been creaced wich radíum, with some very in-
reresring resul ts. Sorne pale yeJlow scones, for instance, when
left in contacr wich ra<lioactive maccer for sorne monrhs, will
change color-firsr co whice, then to deep green. Orhers show no
ROUG H DIAMONDS
effect, and ochers srill are marred by che formarion of black spocs
on rheir surface. Ic was noticed, in che case of sorne of che dia-
In concluding chis chaptcr, we sha11 try to describe rough dia• Ro11ghs
mon<ls curne<l green, chac che color was only "skin dee'p" and
monds as chey come from che mine. They are noc parcicularly
could be removed by recurcing-alchough ir \vas ocherwise a
beaurifuJ before they have gone through the cutter's hands. At
"fase" color, unaffeccec:lby heac or acid. Th1s process may be
bese, a rough diamond Iooks Iike a "bright pebhle." Sorne are
useful sorne day in improving che value of off-color diamonds,
clear, perfecdy shaped cryscals-bur as a rule, rhe surface of t~e
chough ic is only in che experimental scage at presenc.
stooe has a "glazed" or "frostecl" appearance, and che cryscal 1s
Strain \!fany diamonds show signs of srrain; that is, cheir scructure
a bit "lopsided,'' wich rounded edges. To che couch, the diamond
has yielded to pressure and has fatled to accarn perfeccion ar che
feels "greasy" and racher cold 1 since ic is a good conductor of
rime ir was formed. This is bese seen cbrough a complex micro-
heat. Thus che diarnond, hardcsr and mosc beaucifol of all natural
scope which ''polarizes" light (breaks it clown in a special way).
ohjeccs, requires the touch of skilled hands in order to bring out
Under such a light, che scone will show rings of color, which
its dazzJing splendor.
usually ce11teraboui: a ciny bubble or ílav\·, and indicare defecrive
workmanship from Nature's shop. Indeed, stories are told thac a
diamond has been known to "bursc" soon after ir was mined, so
greac was rhe interna! stress afrer che scone was relcase<l from ics
prison of rock. Many anrhoriries, howcver, discount such stories.

CHAPTER II
The Occurrence of Diamonds
AMO DS have curned up in many scaccered pares
D of che world, bur only a few fieJds of ma1or commer-
c1al imporrance have ever been fonnd: one in Asia,
one in South America, and severa] in Africa, wh1ch
is by far che greatesc source in modero times.
Bihle The diamond was known and recognized, apparently, in very
ancicnt rimes. The firsc menc10n of ir in earlr liceracure 1s in che
Old Testament of the HoJy Bible. In che Book of Exodus, wbich
is said to date back to 1700 B.C., we :find a descnption of che
breast-place to be worn by Aaron as high priest of che people of
Istael:
(2.8:17) •"And cho u shal e sec it in setrings of srones, even four
rows of srones: che _fi_rsc row shall be a sardius, a topaz and a
carbuncJe: this shaJI be che first row.
(r8) ••And che second row shall be an emerald, a sarphire, and
a dtnmond. ''
Begimungs Ir is cboughc char djamoad mining as an indusrry originared
in India, somerime becween 800 a□ d 6oo I3.C. The oJdesc defini ce
evidence of the use of che diamond as an ornamenr is a Greek
statuette (now in che British Museum) which has rwo small dia-
monds for eyes, and is dated hy experrs at che 5th Century B.C.
Sorne scholars chink chat rhe campaigns of Alexander che Grear
in rbe 4th Century B.C. may have quickened commerce wich the
Orienc, and a few <liamonds found their way co Europe in rbe
nexc four hundred years. Bue at che time of Chnsc, che diamond
was srill a rarity. Pliny tbe Elder, the grear Roman philosopher
of rbe firsc Centuty A.D., describes six kinds of diamonds, com-
menring on cheir unspeakable har<lness, and saying chac rhey
were so rare as ro be owned ••only by kings. •• He goes on to say
that che diamond would wichscand che tese of being pounded
wi rh a hammer on an anvil, withom breaking; and rhat che only
way ro soften one was co soak ic in goac·s bloo<l. Tbese rwo
quaint, incorrecr ideas persisred for many years afrerward.
THE OCCURRI:NCE OF DIAMONDS 17
Peninsular India was the only known source of diamonds for India
,1hour rwelve hundred Ycars Ahout ~oo A.D., diamond$ wcrc- dis-
,overed tn 11or11cn. o new fields wcrc found, rhcn, u1111I 1lic
Brazd ian d iscovcncs lll ebe c1,rb
l:'
reenth lCll rurv.
,
Thus we can sa v
thar the Orienc was che only source of diamonds for over two
✓
rhousanc.l years.
The custom of wearing che diamond as a 11ersonaJ adornment
(c:xcepr in che rrappings of kings) was not incroduced in Europe
uncil abouc che year 1430. A lady of che French courc, one Agnes
Sorel, is usu,llJy given credic for che i<lea. FolJowit1g her leader-
sh i p, foshionable women throughout che conrínent create<l a de-
man<l for dtaroo □ ds, and thc fifceenth century marked che begin-
ning of a "boom" in che Indian diamond mines which Jasced over Mme. Sorel
three hundred years.
All che Ind1an and Borneo diamonds were found in alluvial
fields; that is, in beds of river-gravel, eicher modero or ancienr.
The deposics along che Kiscna and Goc.lavan Rjvers were rbemosc
productive sources in che pase, and from rherc have come mos.t of
che famou.s large d1amonds of hiscory, such as che Great Mogul,
Kohrnoor and Orloff.
íV1osr of our knowle<lge of rhe Indian mines comes from che
writrngs of rhe celebrateJ French traveJler Tavernier, a wealrhy
gentleman of che sevenceenth century wbo made a hobby of
colleCLing, c.lescribing and crading ia diamonds. Visrring che Indian
fields in rhe ycar r 665, he found che Parreal and Kollur discriccs
(bocb locaced on che banks of che Kisrna) ro be beehivcs of ac-
t i vi ry. Ar rhc Kollur mines he foun<l sixcy chousand people men,
women and chi!Jren Jaboring in che blazing sun, an<l rcceiying T,1venner
wages so low that their loe was litcle berter chan slaYery. The
men dug pirs m che graYel ro a depth of a dozen feet, while che
women and ch11dren carned che loose material away in baskcrs
j_nd wasl,ed it to recover rhe gems. The sellrng of che scones vvas
done by smalJ boys, who, w1th their sharp eyes anJ nimble v.rits,
could drive as shrew<l a ba.rgain as any of cheir elders.
Tavernier also visfred the orher mines of India, and bis ac-
counts are vivid anc.laccurare. But he was deterred from gojng to
Borneo beca.use the islan<l, accorJing to custom, was ruled by a
wo111;1n Hearing that rhis Queen was oppnsed to visirs of d1a-
 THE STORY OF DlAMONDS
mond traders, and accouncing himself (apparencJy) ooc much of
a ladies' man, he feared ro incur her wrach.
Mosc of che Indian mines, at char cime, were locaced in che
kingdom of Gokonda, which has since ceased to exisc. Rough
diamonds were sene to che capital ci ty of Gokonda (now in ruins)
to be cut. The king kepc che finese stones for his own creasury,
and mosc of che res e were sene to Europe. The Porcuguese porr of
Goa, on che wesr coast, was che chief exporc cencer.
Indian diamonds, as we said, are alJ found rn the ríver-beds.
Geologiscs have crie<lto trace che source of these gravels in hopes
of finding diamonds in their original matrix of lava, but have mee
wich small success. Since che middle of che lasc cencury, the
lndian mines have been pracrically exhausred. Only a hundred
ca raes ayear now come from chis ancienc source, whichconcribuced
cwelve million carats co che world during 1ts rwency ceoturies of
life. Gone are che coiling thousands on che banks of che Kistna.
Bue che ghost of Ta vernier, could he walk coday, would find gl1t-
tering, priceless co1Ject10ns of diamonds locked in the vaulcs of
modern Hiodu princes. Handed dowo from father to son rhrough
the centuries, guarded ar che cose of chousands of li ves, the for-
tunes in diamonds held by the ancienc royal families of India are
jnconceivably vasc.
Brazil The sceoe shifcs co tbe ocber side of che world-co che 1ungles
of Brazil. le is che year 172.6. In chis rough, undeveloped P-orrn-
guese province, men are panning for goJd in rhe swifc srreams of
che interior uplands. Ac n1ghc che miners, gathered around cheir
campfires, play ac cards, and for councers they use bright pebbles
gleaoed from cheir pans during che day's work. A cercain pros-
peccor, Bernardo da Fonseca Lobo by name, has recencly arrived
from Goa, where he has seen che gleaming harvescs from che
lndian diamond fields being shi pped o verseas ro Euro pean marts.
The .. brighc pebbles" in che miners' hands are diamonds!
Ilorne across che sea in s]ow sailing ships, che news bursc like
a bombshell in Lisbon. It was celebraced by high mass, parades
and feasting. The Porcuguese crown took imtnediace steps co as-
sume control of the fieJds.
The original discovery was made oear the cown of Tejuco, in
Province Minas Geraes, and che cown was immediately renamed
THE OCCURRENCE OF DlAMONDS
Dr. R. T. Chamberli11, Unfrersilv II Chicafn
DIAMANTlNA TODAY
Diamannna. The governmenc's first move was rn order che entire
gold-mining populacion to move out of che area, and mining righcs
were placed in che hands of a few favored pJancers, using slave
labor. This lasced abour cen years, during which rime it is sai<l
rhat man y a diamond was taken from che region, unknown to the
governmenc, by ex-gold miners who resenced their high-handed
treatment. In 1740, a oew syscem of mioing was starced, whereby
a contraccor, cmploying about six hundred slaves, was allowed
the sole miaing rights for a period of chree to five years He paid
the government so much per slave, and sold mosc of his díamonds
ro the crown Tbis muse have been a paying proposicion, for we
hear tales of che contractors building magnificenr estares anc.l
maintaining large staífs of personal slaves and concubines.
Brazilian diamonds were noc well received in Europe ar firsc.
Owners of Indian srones, fearfol chac cheir value would suffer,
spread srories chac che Brazilian produce was sofc, and of inferior
grade. Tbis che Porcuguese craders cleverJ y el uded by sen<ling che
sconcs firsc co Goa, rcshii,ping chcm to Euro pe as ludían d ia-
monds, and breaking che news gradually ro European buyers.
Brazil1an gem d1amonds are coday highly prized among ¡ewelers
for the1r excellence of crystaJl1zacion and punry oí color.
In che lacter halI of che eighreenth cenrury, new discoverits
extended rhe Brazilian fields gradually from Diamantrna nonh-
ward ioco che"province of Bahía 1 westward inro Goyaz and finally
inco the jungle province of Maceo Grosso, aJmosc co che Boljvian
frontier. In all rhese fields rhe diamonds, as in India, are found in
che beds of present srreams, or in soli<l rocks formeJ by che com-
2.0 THE STORY OF DIAMONDS THE OCCURRE CE OF DIAMONDS u
a large diamond and sutrendering ir prompcly ro che landowner.
For a stone of 8 co ro carats, rhe prize coosisted of a new sui r of
clorhes, a hac and a knife. If che diamond weighed more tban
17 ½ carats, che lucky s1ave was awarded his frcedom. An Ameri-
can auchor, wncing of rhe Braúlian fields in J856, said rhac rhe
unhealchful cl1mace had raken tell of a hundred chousand lives
smce che discovery of che mines. Food and supplies were broughr
inJand by rraders and sold at a -profi.rof 500 to 800 percenc, ovcr
the prices prevaihng in Rio deJaneiro. "Rackeceering,'' it seems,
is by no means a modero idea.
Today, afcer producing sixceen million carats, the Brazilian
mines have declined, being eclipsed by che great African fields
an<.l by natural exhauscion. ProJuccion is abouc 2.0,000 caracs a
year, mosc of which comes from Bah ia. Tb is srace is che only
Pan,.I mtric,w Unfon, li'a.sl•i11tlut1
A CONVOY 01' DTAMONDS FROM DIAMANTINA TO RTO spoc in rhe world where che carbonado, or bJack diamond, is
(FROM AN ETCHING PCJBLISRED IN r835) found. True carbonado is a duJl, luscreless, porous scone composed
of ciny incerlocking d1amond crystals. Having no scrnigb e clea,r-
prcssion of ,·ery ancienc ri, er-sands. Here, again, geologiscs have age, i e is cremendously wugh, hence is highJy prized by industrial
haJ Ii cele success in crac.ing che stones co cheir so urce. users. Great quantities of chis valuabk material were thrown
The conrracr system was abandoned in T772., aod for more than away by early miners, who did noc real ize ics worth; bur in recent
fifry years che go,·ernment irself operaced che mines, \'Cf\' inetfi- years, 1t has broughc a pricc comparable co t:hat of gem d1amonds.
cien cly and at high cose. The diamonds were sene in co Diaman-
tina once a monch, chence ro R10 de Janeiro once a year. The
Latter shipmems were always sene under military escore, ih a box
wirh chree lot:ks, che keys for which were sene by chree separare
messengers.
Mcanwhile, che Porruguese crown 1ewels had grown ro be a
fabulously rich collecrion. No aet:urare estimare could be placed
on 1rs tremendous value, for rhe secrer was ¡ealously guarded.
nuc this was nor to last. In 1822., amo □ g che wave of revoJucions
sweeping South America, Brazil was reborn an independenc em-
pire; anda republic was escablished in 1889. Now mining is done
by anyooe who can atford co pay che caxes ser hy che rcpuhlican
governmenc.
ln the 185o's, the BrnziJian mines -vere ac rheir heighc. Slavery
was still in, ogue; men ~rn<lwomen alike, black and white, workc:d
under cheir masters' Iash. It 1s inreresting to note rhat rewards
Ri,Íktrds,m a11,/ //111111111, C/ih1l~11
were occasiona!Jy g-iven out to rhese wretched people for finding MINERS AT WOR K IN BAU!A, llRA7IL
 THE STORY OF DIAMONDS
South AJ rica India and I3razil are incerescing only as historical fields. The
capital of che diamond empire is on rhe "dark continenc." In che
lasr sixty-five years, che Union of South A/rica has produced a
hundre<l and eighcy-five million carats three-quarcers of all che
diamonds owned hy the human race.
Ir was in 1866 c.hat che children of a poot Boer farmer oamed
Jacobs, playing near rheir hove! ac Hope Town OLl che banks of
rhe Orange River, picked upa brighc pebble, carried ic home and
dropped it on rhe farmhouse floor. Schal k van Niekerk, a neigh-
bor, asked Vrouw .Jacobs next day jf he m1ghc buy che srone, and
she laughingly gJ.ve ic co him. So van Niekerk gave ir, in r.urn, co
rrader John O'ReilJy, asking h1m to find our if ic had any value.
O'Reilly showed ir to many of his fnends on his way up-nYer, bue
none could tell him whac ic was. Finally he sene it ro a noced
Van Niekerk geologisr, Dr. W. G. Acherstone of Grahamscown, and ic was pro-
nounced a diamond of 1.1 caracs' weighc, worth $2.,500.
Therc was an excired scarch, chen, among che usually stolid
Boers and rheir bJack servancs, but ren months passed before
another one was found-rh1s nme, rhirty miles downsrream from
Hope Town 1 near rhe ¡uncrion of rhe Orange and Vaal Rivers.
DcBf!ersC,msolidaled lUnu, lid
DIGGINGS ON THE VAAL RlVER AT DELPORTS FIOPE
THE OCCURRENCE OF DIAMONDS
The search went on for about rwo years wichour any remar ka ble
reward, until, in March of 1869, a diamond of 83,½' caracs was
picked up by a dusky wirch-doctor on che banks of the Orange.
The same Schalk van Niekerk boughr this stone for 500 sheep,
10 oxen and a hotse; he sold ir again for $55,000, and ir became
che famous "Star of Souch Africa."
Now the rush was on in earnesc. Diggers of all ages and nacion- Booi the
alities flocked ro che fields in a frenzied, feverish search for che Witch-Doctor
precious gems. le was found rhat tbe grave1s in che bed of che
Vaal were che richest, and the accivity of che diggers centered, The Vaal
for a while, near rhe cowo of Barkly Wesc, where many greac
flawless, shining diamonds were dug from the river's crcasure-
crove.
While che diggers were busy ar Barkly West, someone unearched
a diamond ar Jagersfoncein, far ro the souch, in a peculiar green-
ish-yellow dry clay, miles from rhe nearesc river-bed. A month
1ater, at a spoc near Barkly West, good farmer DuToir finished
bmlding a new house out of the same sorc of clay, aod noticed a
diamond sticki11g ouc of tbe walll Apparencly, you dido't have
to go oear che river to find the stonesl DuToit found that che clay
lay in a great circular area, a quarcer of a mile across, cJose to a
pond or ·'pan'' on bis farro. Wichin a space of ayear rhree more
such clay-patches, known as Bulcfoncein 1 DeBeers and Kimberley,
were found-all wichin a few miles of DuToir's pan. Here, in rhe
center of these "dry Jiggings'' was boro the village of Kimberley,
descined to be the hub of a greac diamond empire.
Now it was che year r87-1, and che diggers began to pour inco
South Africa by rhe thousands, drawn by che adventurous, Juring
visíon of vasr riches. Kimberley sprang up as a shanty-to,vn of
ten thousand souJs, all busily engaged in digging in che earch
hke a swarm of ants.
le was found rhat the "yel low ground" in the grear circular Kimberley
deposics couJd be worked to unheard-of depcbs. Fifcy, oae hun- Open
dred, two hundred feer rhey went down-each digger working
in a little claim th1rty-one feer square and washing fortunes from
che dirr. Acriviry ceotered on the KimherJey mine, which was ro
become che grearesr of them alJ. Roadways of clay were Iefr stand-
ing across che area, so that the diggers could hoisr rheir ground
THE STORY OF DfAMONDS THE OCCURRENCE OF DfAMONDS

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DeBeers C,,,uoli,J<lfe,t 1/ines, úd, DeBccrs C,mwliduted Mine~, Ud.

THI:: DtSCO\'ERERS: JULY, 1870 1872: INDIVIDUAL CLAlMS. ROADW.AYS OF CLA.Y

,., t:f_,
...
/Jt'lfr,:r, l ',,m,,/i./,1/n/ 1/ ¡,,,,,, /,/,/.
_.tt.t
Di:Recr~Cu1u,utid<1/1•tl
M i111~, Ud
1871: 'rlfE E\ RLIEST DIGGlNGS
1873: .. A SPIDLR-WED 01 IJAULAGE ROPLS ...
PICTORIAL IITSTORY or TIIE KI.MDERLEY PIT
PICTORIAL HTSTOll y or TITE KL\1BERLl3Y PIT
 THE OCCURRENCE OF DIAMONDS
and haul it away. Bur soon chey were so deep chac che roads
caved in, and the hoisting wiodlasses had co be mounced around
the rim of che pie. As che surface layers were removed, ic was
found chac che yelJow ground graded into a hard rock and cook
... u,
on a greenish-blue color-bue scill it bore diamonds, and stiU che
....
... (/)
... ,....
c:c: a::
diggers toiled away. ow the fastest diggers were working jo
" <
~ the botcoms of litcle pies, che sJowest ooes on top of square col-
o
z
..., umns of rock-and when che precious blue rock slid from a high
z claim co a low one, rhere was always a light. Criss-crossing chis
~
< greac honeycomb was a vasc spider-web of haulage ropes, with
>-
.-<: the buckecs crawling up coche rim of che pie like trained íleas on
¡:...
.. $: a t1ght rope, drawn by horse-wiodlasses or sceam engines.
V'"'I
f"""I }- Sceam engines were used only by che wealchy, for there was Boom
...
O\ ~
,-l
~ no wood, and coal ha.d co be hauled a hw1dred and sixty miles
:::¡
~ across che veldt in ox-carts-bringing a price of $65 a ton at the
::E
.....
~ mine, wich $150 haulage charge added on! Bue Kimberley, one of
=l
.... the greacesr boom mining camps of all cime, was peopled wirh
H rough, boisterous, free-spem.bng men, who made fortunes and
"blew them in" again wi rhour bacring an eye. A few canny souls
rherewere, whoused rhe1r money co buy up rheir neighbor's claims,
and gradually the Kímberley mine was brougbt under the control
of a group of English pioneers who wenc to work in a more sys-
temanc manner.
In che year 1889, che KimberJey pie had grown to be a yawoing Pipes
abyss, a quarter of a mile across ac che rim and chirreen hundre<l
feec deep. Working in che botcom of rhjs pie was excremely dan-
gerous, slides of rock ha<l alrea<ly cose seores of Jives. Bue sciU
che bluc "ground" lay within a 500-fooc circle at che bottom,
and stiJJ ic bore diamonds. There was, apparendy, no end co 1c!
Geologiscs had decided tha.t rhis deposit was the neck, or root,
of an old volcano-a mounrain srripped away ages ago by che
.. relenrless hand of Time, and lea ving no vescige of irs ptesence
\O
<X)
00
.....
except chis "pi pe" of bl ue rock underneath.
Before che KimherJey ric had reached suc..ha great depth, che Shaft
owners decided thac che open scyJe of mining was doomed. So
they scarced a shafc, a chousan<.Ifeec from che rim, wherc che rock
was hard anJ woul<l not ca ve. Straigh r dowo ebey blasted, <lriving
che opening a few feec farcher each day. Fúteen hundred feet-
2.8 TH.E STORY or DlAMONDS THE OCCURRENCE OF DlAMONDS

franch
~haft:

KJ-\fDE.RLEY IS 1HE HUB OI IHE DlAMO 'D EMPlRu

men, burrowing like moles in che eanh, sent chousands of to11s

? z ::r of hlue ground up rht shafr. ToJay tJ1e Kimberley tnine e>,.tends
1" T -Z rhree thousan<l six hundrecl feeL below che surface, che pipe is
~ z
fl. LE.VEL
,¡" honeycomhe<l with gaJleries bc.low thc pit, stiJI tbc blue rock
bears d1amonds, an<l still has no boccom. Deepesr c.liamond mine
Chirngo ft·welers' A s.,11ria/Ít111
in the world, it stands as a monumcnt to mao·s zca.l for che King
CROSS-SECTJON or THE KJMBCRLEY MINE, SHOWING RELATIVE POSI- of Gems.
TíONS 01' THE PIPE, PIT, SHAFT ANO HAlJL~\G8 Tt NNELS Each of the orher pipe mines has had a similar history. Rule- Pipe Mines
fonrein, Dc::Reers,Jagt:rsfonrejn and DuToicspan enth 1s a gaping
l wo rhousand-cwcnrv-6\:e hundre<l month after monch che hok in tbe ground, with miks of dark tunnelc; htlow. AnJ ne,.,,
work wenr on, lengthening into years. At inceryaJs tunnels were ones have been a<lded-Wessclron rnine, also ncar Kimberlcy,
hored to che ¡,j re, below che bottom of che pit; and patient black found in t891; ami the greac Premier mine (near che northerlv CJty
 THE STORY OF DIAMONDS
of Pretoria) which was starced soon afcer che turn of che century.
In alJ, chese seven mines have produced weJJ overa hundred mil-
lion caracs-and fi.veof chem are wirhin a few miles of che ílour-
1shing, modern cicy of Kimberley. Orher pipes have been found
in fact, more chan cwo hundred of chem are known in Sourh
Africa-but nine-tenchs of them are barren of diamonds, and most
of the restare so "lean" chac they cannot be profitably worked.
Bloemhof,· But what of che river diggers throughouc the years? They have
Luderit,:__
not been idle. Picking up chefr scory where we Jefr off (at BarkJy
Wesr), they moved up rhe Vaal Ríver, finding rich new grave!-
■PPETORIA
, che hindmost ! To che fleer of foor wenr the bese claims. As for
THE OCCURRENCE OF DIAMONDS
beds ar Bloemhof. Then in 1,908 a new, unusual find was made ar
Luderirz Bay, on the wesr coast-in whac was then German Soutb-
west Africa. In this barren, bleak desert region which faces che
broad Atlanric, diamonds were picked up in the beachsands-small
stones, ir is true, but numerous and of fine gem quality.
The richesr finds of aUuviaJ diamonds, however, have been Lichtenburg
made in che last ceo years. In 192.6 geologiscs, working in che
headwaters of che Vaal above BJoemhof, found diamonds in che
dry, abandoned channels of streams which had fou□d new courses
ages ago. Here were great "potholes," sorne of them a hundred
and fifty feec deep, filled with rich diamond-bearing gravel and
waiting to be dug. In tbis field, named after the town of Lichten-
burg, che goyeromenr assumed control, and mining rights were
parcelled out in an uousual manner. Each would-be prospector
boughc a Jicense and was given four scakes. On an appointed day,
ali were lined up near the new fie]d on foot, and scarted to tace
ar che fuing of a gun. Firsr come, firsr served, and che devil cak(>
che Jame, rhe halt and che blind, each was allowed ro have a
proxy run for htm. As many as 15,ooo people ran ia chese· 'rushes, ••

•
BL0C.Mf'ON'TE.1

1lfter A. F. Willia,m, "Tlie Gm,•sis of tlie Diamo11d," 1932 A. P. Willio.111~."Tl,e Ge1mis of tlir Dfrwwnd," ro ;2
MAP OF THE EASTERN RIVER FIELDS lN SOU fil AFRICA, SHOWING MOD- RUIGTc LAAC.-iTE POTHOLE, l,ICHTENBURG AREA, WHERE 'fHl::
ER AND ANClENT DRAINAGE SYSTEMS GRAVEL WAS 150 FEET T1UCK
 THE STOR y OF or A MONDS
DeBren C111 olidlltcd Jli11,
LlCltTENBURG. Trrn LINE-our" WAITING FOR nn: STA.RTER 's GU.N
by means of which rbe íield was opened upa Iicde ar a rime.
Lich cenhnrg field has yieJded many fine diamonds, bue is now
rractical ly exhausted.
In 192..7geologiscs v1sited the wesc coast and examjned che area
around the mourh of the Orange Ri\·er, in the Pro,·ince of Liule
Namaqualand (south of Luderirz Bay). Here, in anocher wdd,
desolace desert, they found ooe of the richest diamond fields of
recent years. In che parched, creeJess cliffs vvhich face che Arlanr1c
are ancient beach-rerraces, once w:ished by rhc waves> bue nmv
lifced high above che strand by a slow, sceac.l~·buckling of che
earrh •s crusc. In rhese roundeJ, warerworn gra veJs chey found
greac shining gems, given up by rhe sea ages ago. And so, sixcy
years after rheJacobs children plareJ w1rl1 their firsr brighc peb-
THE OCCURRENCE OF DTAMONDS 33
ble on che banks of che Orange, is found one of the richesc fields
of modern times, near the mouch of the same swirling, turgid
scream. South Africa, che land of diamonds, holds a record for
aH-rime production which will probably never be equalled.
Other alluvial fi.elds have come tO light in recenc years, in the Congo-
sceaming depchs of rhe jungle, far to che norrh of Kimberley. Angola
The largest of rhese is in che Belgian Congo, near che equacor.
This field was discovered by a parcy headed by American geolo-
giscs and is operaced by a Belgian Cotnpany, the Société Inter-
l/.1
naciona1e Forestiere et Miniere du Congo, popularly called che
.. Forminiere." Developmenc in rhe Congo rypifies che way in
which che search for diamonds has brough e civilizacion to che
darkesc corners of rhe earth. Diamonds were known co exist in
rhis unhealchy, fever-ridden jungle Jand as early as 1906, but de-
velopmenr was undertaken slowly and carefully. At firsc, tbe only
access to che area was by means of steam-Jaunches puffing up che
Congo River and ics branch, the Kasai. All supplies had to be
broughc in by this means. Today, after cwency years of actual
mining, scheduled airplane service links che camps wich che

l'lwlll: unz
Dr. H Rl'Ct~. P'mm ( F. JVilli,1m~,"Tltt Gnui$i~ nf thf' Din.m11111!," S. l. F,Jr~stitretl Mitiitre Jii ro11go,Bmssels
Ll1TL1l NAMAQUA.LAND. THE CLIITS Nl3.AR PORf .r.-.:OLLOTH NATlVIl QUARTEllS IN A CONGO DIAMOND CAMP
 ]"' THE OCCURRENCE OF DIAMONDS 35
~

...
::
~ coasral cities; railroads and gooJ roads have beeo builc; che land
é
""
~ has been cleared; che native workers Iive in neat, sanitary bunga-
~
~ lows and are supplied wirh good food aod medica! care. The
..
....
..
souch end of che field excends inco che Portuguese province of
:g
~ Angola, where che Companhia de Diamantes de Angola (' 'Dia-
.; !:tl
... ,-J
..
~
mang") carries 0L1 che work. Due to market condirions, che
~
~
._
z
o Congo-Angola fieJd now produces over half che diamonds mined
ti: --. yearly, and has led che world in carats mined during che lasr three
..... o
:,; ó years. Congo d1amonds, rhough plentiful, are of low grade. They
:z
e
u consisc largely of brown or grey bort, suicable ooly for índustrial
ti:¡
;i: use. Gem diamonds are found, in quanricy, only in che Angola
f-
o end of the fiel<l.
f-
A similar field was <liscovered in che Gold Coast Colony, in J,iflest Africti
z
o
.... Wesc Africa, in 1919. Operated by an English firm, and dominared
~ by American engrneers, che fieJJ has had a mereoric rise as a
N
.....
~

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o
o
o
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~Olamond•b~nring altuv,dl 9ro11els

Cl1iragoJ rwrlrrs' Assoc,a/lon

ALLUVIAL DTAMOND HELDS 1N Al RICA
 THE STORY OF DIAMONDS THE OCCURRENCE OF DIAMONDS 37
source of industrial diamonds. Here, again, tbe operacors have
had tO overcome problems of healch and sanicacion which were
never so serious co the1r Bricish cousins in the temperace South.
Recencly, geologiscs have pushecl farther west aJong the coast,
into che province of Sierra Leone, and have found new deposits
which give promise of large production in a few years if actively
developed. In contrasc to che Gold Coasc deposics, Sierra Leone
gravels show a high percenrage of fioe gem diamonds.
There are smaJJer fields in Africa, which need only a passing Others
mencion. One is in Tanganyika Terricory, near the souchern end
of Lake Victoria; anorher in Rhodesia, farcher soucb; and a chird
in che French Congo, north of che Forrniniere holdings. Together,
chese three fields have produced an amount of diamonds, in che
last cen years, equal ro that mined by the Forminierc and Diamang
diggers in cwo weeks.
We have described all che world's lcading diamond .fields. A
few small fields, interesting for other reasons, remain to be
Co,isol,dated African. Selectibll T11,sl, Lo1ultJn skecched.
EXCAVt\TING GRAVEL, AKWATIA, GOLD COAST There is a diamond mine in che United States. lt is located in Arkanstt.r
che southwescern pare of che scace of Arkansas, and was discovered
m r906. Geologiscs, examrning the rocks, found a pipe of blue
ground surprisingly like tbat of Souch Africa. lt was worked by
surface merhods for a number of years, aod has yielded a fajr
quancicy of small gem diamonds. The Jargesc one recovered (in
t92.4) weighed over 40 carats; bue on the average, it takes three
or four Arkansas scones ro weigh a cara t. The mine has now been
i<lle for a nutnber of years, as it lacks adequatc financia! backing
and could not possibly compere with Afr1can production.
Drnmon<ls have beco picke<l up, occasionaUy, in other pares of
rhe Uoiced Sea.ces. Abouc twency small ones have been found in
the central states of Wisconsin, M1chigan, Indiana and Ohio, in
che debris Jefe by glaciers ages ago. A few have turned up in Cali-
fornia in che sluice-boxes of gold miners, and a few mote in the
easrern monncains from Virginia to Georgia. Bur such finds a.re so
Cotm>lidated Afric1m Selectio,; 1'ru~I. Lo111/1111 rnre tha.r they can be classed as "curiosities" only.
PROSPECTI tG RlVER POTHOLES IN SIERRA LEONE
The colony of British Guiana, on rhe north coast of South Gttiana
America, has been a small bue steady producer of diamonds since
SCliN ES lN THE GOLD COAST AND SIERRA LEO NE
che 188o's. The gravel deposirs are similar to those of Brazil, oc-
 THE OCCURRENCE OF DIAMONDS 39
curringin cheheadwacers of the rivers on rhe Venezuelan froncier;
and che tnechod of working chem is much che same as in Brazil.
We spoke of che fields in Borneo; chese ancient mines are scill Borneo
being worked, and produce about 1500 carats ayear. The labor is
done by che nacives of the island, or by Malays ot Chinese. The
wages received by chese men are pitifully small-four to cwency
dollars per year-and che nacive princes have never encouragecl
rhe industry to any ex ten t. In fact, it was che custom forman y years
for che local rajahs to conliscate all good stones of over 5 carats
for their own creasuries, paying rhe finder whatever they saw fic.
Ir is interesting ro note sorne of the customs among che Borneo
miners. Excremely superscitious, chey never sean a new pir with-
our offering proper prayers aod sacrifices to cheir idols. No loud
talking is allowed in che pies, for fear of arousing che wrath of che
evil spidcs. Such customs probably prevailed in India also, in the
1< Middle Ages. Borneo diamonds are naced for cheir greac hardness,
~~~1 and the large proporcion of ''faocy" colors among them.
~
,/!',~~
~;7";:,.r7J
In the r85o's, diamonds were discovered in tbe southeastern Attstralia
pare of Australia, which has been a smaU producer ever since.
Auscralian diamonds have a repuration among cutrers for being
che hardest in che world. It is said that chey can be successfolJy
cut, only with their own dust. Australia now ptoduces Jess rhan
a chousand caracs ayear, most of which· is obcained as a by-prod-
uce of che alluviaJ ria mines.

\
 THE STOR Y OF DIAMONDS
Diggers "Richness" in the alluvial fields is, again, hut relative. The
story is rold of an aged digger, working on che Vaal, who was
asked whac luck he was having. He answered quiccly thar he
hadn'c found a diamond for chree weeks! le is no job for an impa-
cient man. The same digger may have turned upa stone the next
Jay, worth thousands of <lcllars; or again he may have barely
scrarched out a living for years to foJlow. Ic is the age-oJd gam-
bling inscínct wh ich Jures roen ro such a trade. Consider the case
of Jacobus Jonker, sixcy-odd years of age, who bad been working
in che river-beds al! his life for small returns. InJanuary of r934,
not far from Premier Mine, he uncovered a 72.6-carac beaucy (the
largest in recent years) which brought him over $300,000. A
"bright pebble," indeed, co bring sunshine ínro hís latter years !
CHAPTER IV
The Mining of Diamonds
E have skecched elsewhere che developmenc of
Kimberley mine. le is an exam.ple of che success
of modero engineering skill, appljed to a difficulc
problem. And che orhers-DuToicspan, Bulc-
fontein, Premier, Jagersfonteio, DeBeers and Wesselton-have ali
had a similar hisrory.
A visic ro one of chese great pipe mines is a chrilling experience. Protection
Barbed-wire entanglemencs, charged wich eJecrricity, surround
che eatire mining area. Arrned guards pacrol this barrier nighc and
day. Yo u are admitted to che company' s propercy only after a
careful quescionnaire. Affable Englishmen talk to you at the o.ffice,
sacisfying chemselves that you have come ~san interested visitar
only.
\1
ELECTRU11ED .BARDED·WI'RE ENT ANGLEMENTS
 THE STORY OF DlAMONDS THE MlNING OF DIAMONDS 49
downward motion slows up; there is a glare of electric lights,
more clanging of gates and ringiog of bells, and you scep out inco
che mine, cwo rhousand feec down.
Here is a beehive of accivicy. A long line of litde steel cars, each Hoisting
loaded with blocks of blue rock, stretches away on a Jittle crack
in a rocky tunnel. Alongside of it is anocher train, of "empties."
Grinning black mea wheeJ up the loaded cars, one ata time, aod
dump chem down a broad iron chute with a rhunderous roar of
falling rock, adding che empcy "crucks" to rhe scring on the
ocher side. At intervals a new craín arrives, rolhng clown the
gentle incline of che tunnel and being broughc t0 a stop by its ac-
tendant; similarly the empties are drawn away by being hitched
coa rope which moves, mysteriousJy, along che side of the tunneJ
on pulleys. From che chute, we are rold, the rock is dumped into
"skips": big sceel buckecs about che size of che cage we jusc rode
down in, Bue only che rock rides in the skips, for chey are hauled
up the shafc so fase chaca man couldn't stand che speed.
Walking back in rhe tunnel, and dodging che occasional black Ha11,lage
DeBc-ersConsolidottd }dfoes, Lid,
mea wirh thejr trai os of cars, we note that the solid rock in the
rmAD-T 1RASíll; \\'ESSELTON MJNil

Shrtft Once inside, you are taken w the shafr, where a great sceel
hcaJ-fr,une scanJs over a dark, unin, 1ung hole in the ground.
From a. nearby bu íld tng comes rhe chugging of a huge sceam en-
gi ne. Thick, trcmblrng stcel c.ahles, ,·anishing inco the chtrkness
nf rhc sluft, hcgin to roll smoothly over che hig wheels on top of
thc framc h igh .tbove your head. One cable goes up; che other
crnc, down. They 1tre hoisting "io haLtnce." Soon a square steel
(age is drnwn out of rhe darkness and comes tO rest at che ground
kvd. You ,ttc ushcre<l inro ir, tbere is a danging of safety gares
;1 nd a nnging of hdls, and the descenr hegins. The men conduccing

you \\'Car littlc hrass lamps on thcir hars, aad their tiny yellow
lla mts c.tst a ghnsrly glcam in rhe Jarkness. Abo ve che gace you
can scc rhc brown, dnpring rirnbers wh1zzing by in a blur. Over
your hc.:adis a strong roof of stecl, che sted framework around
you, che quier confidcncc of rhc men behind their headlights, set
your fc.trs ar n.:st Ac in Lcn·:.ds, a lighc ílashes bridly abo ve che
gare, anJ you .ire told that you have passed another "level" of DrRrcr~ ComoliJatcd Mines, Lf,l
this gre:H underground city. FinaJly che sickening, swishing LANDJNG TIJE CAGE, ON TH.8 r6oo-rr. LLVHL _,\'f WESSBLTON
 THE STOR Y OF DIAMONDS THE MINING OF DIAMONDS
tunnel walls is not the same as that in che loaded cars. This is a
haulage tunnel; we are noc in the blue ground yet. Since the shaft
is--about a chousand feet from che pipe, we muse walk chis dis-
tance through hard, worthless rock in order to reach the workings.
Soon the tunnel divides; che "empcy" crack winds off in one
direcrion, and we head che ocher way, coward che source of che
loaded cars. Now we are in che pipe. The narrow, single-crack
tunnel is lined with massive timbers, for che blue ground is treach-
erous; je softeos and caves easily if exposed to air or water for any
length of time. Sorne of che timbers are dripping wet, festooned
with fungus. The air, blowiog in a breeze past our faces, is heavy
and dank; it is dríven by greac whirling fans, located on che dis-
tant (co us!) surface of the earth. 'Round about us is che silence
of ch.e comb, brokeo only by che hollow echo of our footsteps.
Nexr is a wide spoc in che cunnel, where sorne negrees are Ore Pass
~
DeBcers Comolidaltd Jfines, Lid. loading •'blue' • from a chute. We are relieved to hear che bus de
DUMPING TO TITE SKIPS, ON THE
0

• 16oo'' .AT WESSELTON of their work-to see che light gleaming on their shiny-black,
>nuscular bodies. This is an ·•ore-pass," into which che rock has
been dumped from ''sub-levels'' above. Every forty fcet, above
our heads, is a "drift," or blue-ground cunnel) exactJy like che
one we are in. Bue only che centh one) four hundred feer up, js

DeBeers Consolíd,1/cdMfoes, lt,J.

MAIN BAULAGE TUNNEL, O~ TITE "16oo" AT WESSELTON DtBcer.1C111isolidal.ed
Mi1te.i. Lid
TIMBERED TUNNEL IN THE • 'nLua" AT KlMBERLEY
 THE STORY OF DTAYIONDS THE MTNING OF DIAMONDS 53
51·
connecred to che shafc by a hauJage-tunnel. So che rock from che
other nine must come down che ore-pass before ir can reach the
skips.
Beyond, the eleccric lights are gone, and we approach the work- Drifting
ing faces guided only by che ghosdy yellow lights on che hats of
our English friends. Here are numerous cross-tunnels; in one of
them, two duskymioers are boring into the solidrockwith a thun-
dering compressed-air drill. They will 1oad che holes, later, with
dynamice cartridges, and bJast the precious blue blocks away
-patiencJy advancing che cunnel a few feec ata time.
Here is che end of a finished drift. Under a proceccing canopy of Sto pin¡,
cirnbers beside a greac pile of broken •'blue, ·' is che inevitable
1

black tnan wich bis lictle steel car. Where does his rock-pile come
from? Nearby is a "pole-roa.d": a hole in che wall, Jeading up-
ward, wich poles hirched in che rock for steps. We climb this
strange l.adder-cwenty feec scraight up-gasping for breach in
DcBeers ConsolidatedMi~s, Lta. che hot, heavy air. The flickering lictle flames finally pierce che
LOADlNG AT AN ORE-PASS, KIM13ERLEY
darkness of a gloo.tny cavern, cwenty feec wide, .fifcyfeet long,
andas high as a call man. Here is the top of tbac rock-pile. Stand-
ing on it are two miners. One is drilling inco che roof of salid
rock, and his air-drill is hammering awaywich a chattering roar.

Chica~oJrwrl,n' A ssodation D,Bari C111m1/i1lutr,tM Ílle~, ltd

DRILLING AT Tf:JE FACE OF A DRIPT POLE-ROAD, ON TJII "940" A'T V.I:SSFr TON
 THE STORY OF DIAMONDS THE MINING OF DlAMONDS
are blasted ouc; and finally che rock over the drift is "slice<l back"
in such a way thac no caving takes place between che miners aod
cheir avenue of escape-che shafc. And day after <lay che loaded
cars stream to the sbaft, and rhe skips race up and clown like .tnad.
The life of che black miners is not easy. In che earJy days, seores rlaz.ards
of these pacient darkies lose their lives. Water, seeping down from
che greac pit up above, would eat away ac che rock until it curned
inco a fluid mass-and a rushing wall of mud would sweep through
che drifts to smother che men. Crude rock drills, notyet perfecced,
would scir up great clouds of poisonous blue dust, and send the
men co a coughing, lingering death from miner's consumpcion.
Bue now, che hazards are few. Humming electric pumps force che
water out before ir can do any damage. Dust is dampened with
litcle screams of water running through hollow drill-bits. Timber
DiBurs Ctmsolidaúd .\fities, LM. -chat greacesc savior of miners' lives-is experdy placed aod re-
STOPlNG ON TFIE "I 12.o" AT WESSEL1 ON placed wherever necessary. Each main leve! has an underground
hospital, and safety is che wa cchword.
You cannor make out his fea tu.res; he is jusc a dark bulk behind We have visited a diamond mine withouc seeing any diamonds. Scarcity
a shining spot of Jighc -fixedto his hat. o,v he is ñnished. There Bue do noc be discouraged. Many of che mioers, coiling under-
are a dozen smaU, cJean holes ia che roof. Each is carefully packed
wich che little carcridges of dynamire, wrapped in their neat wax-
paper 1ackecs. The dril! is dismounced and caken clown che pole-
road. Wires are connecced, and we consider 1cwise to retire to che
drift below. The !ase to come clown the ladder are our cwo dusky
friends. They coru:iect cheir wires tO a strange-looking box wich
a handle o □ ic. A sharp twist of che handle, a muflled chud from
above, and a streatn of acrid smoke coming dm,,,o che pole-road.
ow che black man with his car will have more work to do.
This is the operacion of ''stoping, •• and che stope is che dark
cavern which che miners are hewing from che blue rock. Day
afcer day they will repeac their work, until one day chey will go
up the pole-road afcer a blasc and find rhac che roof has caved in,
and the wasce rock from che leve! above has filled up cheir scope.
Then, alJ thac remains is co load up che resc of the blue from be-
Iow; rhe miners are sene co a new place, and scarr all over again.
System Everything is worked out systemacically. The drifts are driven,
a cercain discance apare, to the far side of che pipe; che stopes are neBeus Co11sfllid11,ud
Mitit$, ltd
regularly spaced, leaving pillars of rock becween. Then the pillars UNDERGROUND HOSPITAL, ON THH "980'' AT W.ESSELTON
 THE STOR Y OF DIA MONDS THE MINING OF DlAMONDS 57
interescing part of ic all. In a long toom, under a maze of beles,
girders and pulleys, are eighty or ninety strange-looking, oblong,
inclined tables. Each is shaking from side co side, and has a coat-
ing of rhick yellow vaseline on ics surface. Here are the con-
centrares-che little black parcicles of rock-mixed wich water,
washing down the cable-top, aod falling off the Jower end inco a
trough. Over the upper en<l of each cable is a ílac glass hood,
hinged and padlocked. Here, ar lasc, is che end of rhe crail.
Through che glass we see the shining liccle spocs thac are dia-
monds, scicking co the grease, unmoved by che water or che in-
cessanc mocion of che cable. Strangesc of scones, the diamoad
sheds water líke a duck's back, and sticks fase to che greasewhile
the last of che wasce rock washes off.
Twice a day che tables are stopped, the hoods are lifced, and F inale
the grease and diamonds scraped off. The yellow mass is puc inco
perforaced iron pots, which are rhen immersed in boiling water.
Away goes the grease, to be cookd and used over again. And so,
at che end of che day, a handful of che brighc little mices of carbon
DeBurs Conrnlid,11tJ,rfors, Ltd.
ROT.i\RY PANS AT DULTFONTEIN MlLL

ground for thirty years, have never seen one, either! Sharp-eyed as
hawks, they occasionally see a bright scone sriclcing ouc of a
cbunk of che blue; bue how many, many rimes have chey v,·alked
withio a few feet of a fortune, and never have known ir!
Crushing; Now we muse follow a skip ouc inco che brighc sunshine, and
Washing see what becomes of its contents. Taken ro the mill, che rock
passes rhrough a maze of machinery. Massive, .tlured crushing
rolls reduce it ro che size of apples, rhen walnucs, chen beans. Ir
is shaken chrough flat screens and round screens, of all kinds aod
sizes. It passes ioro great circular pans, where ic is mixed with
mud and revolving, cooched arms sweep away rhe lighcer parci-
cles. Ic goes into "jigs": vars of water sloshed up and down by
pluogers, ·where the light "ground .. washes over the rim, and che
heavy material is drawn off the boccom. And from tbese severaJ
machines, nimty-nine percent of chis blue rock is sent to a moun-
taioous "tailing" dump and thrown away. Ir is worrbless!
GreaseTables The part which is saved is called che •'concencrace," and con- DeRetrs ContolidntedMines, Lltl.
sists of only rhe heaviesc parricJes. And now we see the mosc OREASE TA BLES
 58 THE STOR Y OF DIAMONDS THE MINING OF DIAMONDS 59

DeBeer~CmMolidate4M i11rs,Lttl.
XOSA BOYS

SORTING

is spread on a table, in a quier room, co be sorted. This is che

harvesc from cwo thousaod tons of the queer blue rock, fetched
from the depths of che earch by che raciog skips.
Ka/Jirs The natiYe workers, emerging from che mine and mil1 by che
DeBeers Con.solidmedJI i nes, Lid
hundreds, throng to rheir quarters ac che end of rhe "sbift." Sorne
WESSELTON COMPOUND, FROM A WATCH-TOWER
are small men, wich light brown skin; ochers, ta11, splendidly
builc and black as ebony; and between chese cwo extremes are ali
manner and shapes of darkies. To our English fnends, each kinky
black poll, surmouncing a flash of white teerh and rolling eye-
balls, is just another .. Kaffir boy." But sorne chatter in one dia-
lect, others in anoche.r. Abouc a dozen cribes are represenced here.
The taJl, fine-lookiug black menare Zulus; che litde brown ones
"Cape boys"; and ochers go by such srrange names as "Xosa"
and "M'Pondo."
Compound All the boys must Jive together in a' 'compound," which Jooks, J_ •.
--
!~"
~◄..,L
we confess, somethtng like a prison. It is a walled enclosure of
severa! acres' excent, wich long sheet-iron bunkhouses facing io-
. ...-
ward on a greac courcyard. Here they cook their simple meals of De/Jeers Cumolidafl'd Mines. Dtd.
COOKING 1N TITE CO:¼POUND
 6o THE STOR Y OF DlA:vfONDS -..;
,:¡

J
~
].,
] f-;
o
<>
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fl:i
u"'
... ti}

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CI)

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DeBurs Co1isolidakd J.li-nes, LtJ. ~
::ti
(/J
WAR D•\'JCE
o
~
...:i
cornmeal and mucton, in iron pots on outdoor stoves. Here, on u
~ ~
fesca1days, you can see che tribal dances, with a great flourishing -4 ....
u
;.f z¡.::¡
of spears, bright blankecs, shields and ostrich-plumes. And here, ...
~

~
on less happy days, tribal jealousy flares up, and there may be ].,
i:i::i
::ti
¡-,
savage fighting-especially if liquor (striccly forbidden by che ~ ..
o... CI)

white masters) is smuggled in. The gates are barred and locked, ;: o¡-,
u"' ~ o
and guards ovedook the scene from rall watch-cowers. z
... ....
t ¡...; :i::
CI;
The Kaffirs are ch ild-like in many ways, and their Jife is very ~ 12 >,
" ¡-,
e:) <
simple. Each boy agrees ro work for the company for a set period z
..., P::
1
of time-usually six monchs. During thac time he works eight -
(/J ><
hours a clay, six days a week; he is paid ac the rate of about a ~...,
¡...
dallar a day, and muse spend all of his leisure time in cbe com-
pound (reached by an underground passage from che shafr). Tbere z<
<
che company provides every comforr necessary ro clean, healthy z....
1iving.
Stealing Bue the boys m1tst be guar<led, for chey have been known to
steal diamonds in every way under the sun. Swallouiint:,was a
favorite trick. One hoy, many years ago, wenc to his •'baas' •
complaiuing of a stomach-ache, and an operation broughc forth
six diamonds weighing, in all, over chirty caracs! Ochers have
 THE STOR Y OF DIAMONDS
cut rhemselves in the leg or arm, rhrust a diamond in rhe wound
and bound it up. (Usually, of course, ic festered.) Wirh <liamonds
in their ha.ir, in their ears, berween their roes or under the tongue,
seores of boys were caughc, io che early days, trying co smuggle
rhem out for sale ro illicic diamond buyers (known in Sourh
Africa as "l. D. B. ·s ").
Ac rhe end of his cerm, each boy is kept in· 'deteurion quarrers' •
for a week, before being reJeased. His effeccsare carefulJy searched,
and he is subjected co a chorough physical examinarion. The
X-ray has been used, in recenc years, to derecc srones concealed
in a man's body. (The diamond, though "cransparenr'' ro rhe
rays when compared t0 ocher scones, shows up well in the body
cissue.) Stealing, however, is no longer common The company
pays a bonus to each boy who turns in a diamond of subsranc1al
size; and chose who are caught scealing muse work as convicts
for severaJ months wichout pay.
CtJStOtJZS A Kaffir boy ending his term usually has mosr of bis earnings
inract, for the opportnnicies ro spend have been small. The com-
pany "banks'' money for maoy of the roen, being careful always
to recura che same bills in che same pared on demand; aoy ocher
forro of payment is viewed with suspicion! Wich the sum saved
in six monchs, small as it may seem ro us, a boy can buy crunk-
loads of trinkecs-brass baubles, beads and colorful doth-ro
take back to his nacive village and crade for cwo hundred head of
livescock, a suitable hut, and fi.veor six wives. Then he can lead
alife of ease-letting the wives do all che work, according roan
old jungle cusrom. Ochers, noc so smart or so easily pJeased, bave
learned sorne of che white man's bad habics, such as drinking and
gambling; their little stake is soon spent, and rhey come back co
the mine for another term. And ochers scill, faithful for years,
stay because they derive genuine pleasure from rhe comforcs which
tbe whice man's civilization can bring.
CHAPTER V
The Cutting of Diamonds
AN'S skill is needed to bring out the diamond's
beauty. The cutcer's crade, a very difficnlc one,
is nevercheless very old. ludian cutters of che ,__,,..--r--~
Middle Ages knew noching of optics; they sim-
ply cook off che rough corners of che stone and tried to polish
che glazed surface to make it presentable. With abrasives softer
chan che diamond itself, or by rubbing one diamood against Rose
another, this was a slow, laborious process. le did not occur to
che anc1ents chac the diamond conld be reduced co dusc , and that
che same dust could be used co ene orher diamonds ata reasonably
fast race of speed, and wich greac precision. The idea originated,
ir is sa1d, with a BeJgian lapidist by che name of Ludwig van
Berquem, in abouc the year 1475. Van Berquem also had good
itleas abo u e diatnond des ign; how to gi ve the s tone .. depth" and
"body" by cuccing it "facer-wise" underneach, so chac che eye
could carch che bright flashes of light coming chrough a broad Emeraid
face, or "cable," on cop. And so che •'rose cuc" carne inro being.
But scill, one of che main objeccs in cutcing was ro preserve as
much of che original weight as possible.
About che middle of che seventeenth century, che science of
opcics became beccer koown, and che •'brilliant' • cut was in-
vented. This is the familiar round shape seen in engagement
rings. This rype of cut has now been developed ro a poinc of scien-
cific exacrness. Each facer muse be cuc ac a cercain angle, in order Pende/oque
co cake ad van ta.ge of che laws of refraccion and refleccion whicb
apply to the d1amo11<l.There are variacions of shape, of course,
depencling on che "fad" of che momear, or upon che shape of che
rough scone. The "emerald" and "baguecce" cuts are reccanguJar
in oudine; che "pendeloque'' is pear-shaped; and che "marquise"
looks like a little boac, pointed at boch ends. Bue io all of chese,
the artisan has srriven co cut rhe myriad facecs ac che exacc slope
which he knows will briog out che flashing poincs of light and
color. Mctrquise
 THE STOR Y OF D1 A MONDS THE CUTTI G OF Dli\ 1ONDS
Lec us examine a <liamond cut in standard brilliant scyle. le
{,..-~,.¿_~:r-....}.' has fifcy-eighc facets. On cop is che "table," and around ic, slop-
ing away ac an angle of abour 35 degrees, are thirty-cwo •'top
facecs." The angle is measured on che eight large kite-shaped
1
facecs; che ochers, of course, vary a liccle according co che cutcer's
choice. The sharp edge, or rim of the scone is called che •'girdle."
Top Underneath are rwency-four ··pavilion facets" eight of which are
Jarge ones, angling away from the girdle ar 41 degrees and coming
, together in a point below. The point has beeo ground away
slightly (co prevent ics chipping off), making a ciny facer calied
the "culee.'· Consider, now, rhac diamonds smaller cban a pin-
head-weighing one-hundredth of acarar-are cut in rhis shape,
with fifry-eight perfecc facecs! The cuner's crade is noc for ama- CLRAVL"-"G An-rlzer'.sDiamrm,1 Work,, Amsú:rd<J.111
Bottom teurs.
Ler us watch the evolution of a brillianr. A rough diamond Another method of dl\ i<li.ng a rough djamond 1s rn sptit or Clei1u1ng
coming from che mine is firsc carefully examined, w1ch a magni- cleaveit. A groove is cut 111 che scone in the proper ¡-,lace, parallel
~~~,.......:,>f-4~ fying glass, to Iocace ics cJeavage and ílaws. Then it is eicher co che cleavage; a sceel hlade is p.laced in rhe gro0\'e and scruck a
sawed or splic. Sawing is done with a paper-thin clise made of sharp blow, the scone divides, and ali fragments are caL1ghcin a
phosphor-bronze, spun around at high speed. Diamond dusc, hox below. Splicting can be done rmly paralJel ro che cleavage,
mixed in olive oil, is applied ro the edge, and will slowly cuc inco and hcrcin lies the advantage of che sa.w, as it will cut across che
Side the stone uncil it is sawed in two. The object of rhis is ro divide grain in anyd1reccion. Dividing d,e <liamond, byeither method,is
che rough scone (usually ao ocrahedron) inro rwo pyramids, so ofcen clone to expose inreriorílaws, so chac rhcycan be polished off.
thac che sawed face on each can become che cable of a gem. Next, thc::<l1v1<ledscone is ready for che "roughing" pro<.:ess. Ro1Jghi11g
lt is mounreJ on the end of a revo1Ying sprnd]e; the cutret· holds
anorher diamond against ir, mounted in che end of a long stick
held under his arm; and gradually rhe corners of the spinnin~ stone
a.re rounded off.

Sazvn

Roughed
A.sscher'sDia111011d
Works, Ams/trdam
DIAMONO S.AW

llOtíf,HINCi Assdtcr's Di,im11111JWorkf, ,lm~tr.r,/(1,n

 66 THE STOR Y OF DIAMONDS
WheeL Then ie is ready for che wheeJ. This is a flat, heavy iron clise,
abour a foor in diameter, which spins around 2.500 times a minute.
The iron is porous; diamond dust, shaken up in olive oil, is ap-
plied to ics surface, and sinks ioco the pores. Now rhe srone ro be
cut is mouoted 1n a "dop"-a ball of solder in a lirde metal cup,
mounre<l on a holder. Somecimes a "mechanical'' dop is used, in
which metal prongs take che place of the solder; bue this can be
used only for Jarge diamonds. The srone, rurnecl so cbat che face
¡:,::
ro be ground 1s ar the correct angle, is pressed on che wheel by J.ll
A
hand or with lead weighrs, uncil che facer is flac, smoorh and per- ..l
o
V)
fect. Forty to fifry times the solder muse be tnelred, or che prongs
loosened, and che srone reset at a new angle. And each time the
Finished whining, shrill noise of che wheel muse starr agaio, before rhe
brilliant is finished. Cucriog a one-carac scone cakes from three
days to a week; Jarger stones, proporcionately longer. The cuccer
muse always cake care chat his wheel is running u.·iththe grain of
che diamond, not againsr ic. lt is impossible ro cuc a diamond ;;
across its grain. When che stone 1s fin1shed, ir weighs about hall "
1!
~
....
what it did as a sawn or srlir "rough"; bue ir is perfecc in every ~

deta1l. '.;...
-"<
"'
~
}.,,
i:!
-~
Q
"'
< ,_

~
,,,
"'
"'
~ ~
i:il
~
tI:
~
~
~

Jolm Jfa-we, ''A Treatise 1111 Dia11ui1td1" 18,zñ

DIAMOND CUTTlNG, A HUNDRED YEARS AGO
 THE STORY OF DIAMONDS

CHAPTER VT

Great Dian1onds Past

and Present
UT gem diamonds of o ver a hundred cara es· weigh t·,

C known ro exist in rhe world roda.y, can be countcd un

the fi~1gersof both hands_. As a macccr of facr, aU rh<::
cuc d1amonds of over clurcy carats, which have ever
been seen or reported, probably number less chan four hun<lred.
Diamonds of such weighr are among che most cberished treasures
of ma~Jdnd; over mosc of chem hang a shroud of myscery and a

L A sscl1er'sDia111Q11d
R' orks, A msterdam
cale of bloodshed, creachery aad lawless cleeds in che far-llung
corners of tbe earch.
,\SSCffER'S FACTOR.Y IN AMSTERDA:'.'-•tTODA Y We shall select cwenty-odd of che most inreresting of these
greac stones, and record che faces and f;rncies which history at-
The cuccing industry centers in che cities of Anrwerp, Belgíum caches to them.
and Amscerdam, Holland. Nine-tenchs of che world's diamond The Kohinoor is che Methuselah of famous diamonds. Its his-
cutters are at work chere. Ther learn cheir crade in their early tory is said co date back four or five thousand years, co che rime
•teens; it 1s their life work, and che technique has beeo handed when ir was found on the Godavari
clown from facher to son through che cenruries. In years gone by, River in India. lt was in che posses-
it was a home indnstry; each bonse concained ics lictle shop. Bue sion of one of rhe ancient royal
in the lasc century, che crade has gradually heen absorbed into families, the RaJahs of Malwar,
greac faccories, whm,e na mes ha ve beco me by,11,•ordsin jewelrv uncil che year 1304 A.D., when ic
firms tbrougbour rhe world. Scolid and phlegmaric, bue witi1 was raken as part of che spoi1s of
war by anochcr ancienc house; since
Kohinoor
skilled bands, keen eyes and che pacience of Job, chese Ducch an<l The11*
Flemish folk find the trade co cheir liking. lhac date, ics srory is betcer known.
In Antwer¡ coJay, it is che cusrom for diamond brokers ro huy Sulran 13aber, who conquered India
and selJ cheir wares OYer che luncheon cable, in rhe1r clubs. If you in che ear]y parr of che 16cb cen-
are pnvilege<l ro be inviced there, you can see chem, with cheir tury and founded the Mogul dy-
lirtle balaocing scales on che cable, soJemnly weighing out the nascy, was che next owner, an<l tbe
gems. Many a hard barga.in has beeo dnven by these scouc burgh- geru remained in che Mogul treasury
ers over their fragran t cheese and foaming steins of beer. unti1 1739. Then che Persian co□ queror Nadir Shah dethroned the
Mogul, and obtained the dü1mond by a cunning ruse. He heard
chat che ex-Mogul, whosc life had been spare<l, carried the stone
• 11!1 p/¡¡¡fr¡s o/ tl,e gr,11/ di111110,1rls
arr w ntll-um/ 1izr, n111/""' s1tf,p/i,•1/111•
lité ( lti11,~11./ ,·wl'/1•,.,'hrn-
riitlit111 unleH rit/ierwise11,t1ted. •
 70 THE STOR Y OF DIAMONDS GREAT DIAMONDS 71
conceaJed in his turban. Wich a great display of friendship, Nadir stead of paying him. The stone
otfered to resrore che Mogul ·s domain ro bim, and to exchange seen by che portly Frenchman ac
rurbans as a coken of good faich an offer which, according ro chis audience weighed 279916
Indian trad1tion, could noc be refused. Recurning to his cent, he caracs. le was rose-cut, round
unfolded cbe turban and che gem rolled out on che floor. •'Kohi- and very high on oae side, wich
noor" ! (mound of light) w::i.sche delighced phrase chat burst from a lictle nocch and a slight flaw Great Mogul
his exciced lips; and so che scoae was named. The diamond was in che lower edge-ocherwise,
chen taken ro Persia, and Shah Ruhk, grandson of Nadir, eventu- che mammoch gem was of the
ally inherite<l it. He was captured by a riYaJ king aod corcured by "finesc water." The Mogu1,
having boiling oíl pollred on his shaven head, in an accempt to Aurungzeb, had caken ic from
make him tell where che srone was hidden; but he survived this his farher, ShahJehan. Noc only
horrible agony withouc giving up the secret. Sooo afterward, he that, bue he had clapped his aged
gave che Kohiooor co Ahmed Shah, king of che Afghans, as pay- parenc inro jail, and murdered bis chree brothers as well. (Nice
mcnt for milicary aid. Shah Zaman, grandson of Abmed, was peoplel) From Tavernier's accouat, chis diamond has gone clown
blinded by his own brother, who sougbc chus ro ger che scone; 10 hiscory as che ''Greac MoguJ"; bue ic has noc been seen or
bue Zamao hid ir in che plascer of his cell-wall, where ir was heard of, since chac time. Sorne think chat ic was recur, and
found a number of years later. From pare became che Kohinoor; ochers, that ic reappeared as tbe
these devoced Afghan brochers, che Russian OrJoff diamood. Bue these conrenrions are rather fancas-
gem was exrorred (by starvation and tic, and very hard co prove.Screeter 1 thenoced English auchoricy,
imprisonmeoc) by Ranjic-Singh, the rhioks thac the Great Mogul was stolen when Nadir Shah sacked
"Lion of che Punjab," whose do- che cicy of Delhi in 1737, and was eicher cut inro smaJl scones
Kohlnoor maios wcre finally annexed by che or lose alcogether. At any race, ali n-ac.eof ir has vanished.
Now Enghsh in 1849. Taken to England, The Orlolf c.liamond is so named
che Kohinoor was found co beadeep, because te once belonged ro Pnnce
rather greyish diamond-cut atrrac- OrJoff, in che courr of Cacherine che
tively (bue somewhac unsymmecri- Greac of Russia. Legend says chat,
cally) in •'old Indian ·' style, and early in che e1ghteench century, che Orlof!
weighing 190 carats. le was recuc in scone was one of che eycs of a Brah-
London in an actempr to improve ics brilliance, but the result mín idol in an Indian temple. A
was a chio srone of only 108.8 carats, flac and devoid of beaucy. French soldier, adopcing che narive
Ir was placed in che Queen's crown. One of ics many rraditions religion, became guardian of che
is rhe saying cha e i c has never brought bad luck to a woman. shnne, and cook a<lvancage of bis
Ta vernier statcs, in the accounc of his cravels ro India, chac he posic1on one nighc co stea1 che diamond an<lflee w i ch ir co t-.-'1adras.
was gran ted an audience by che Greac Mogul in 1665, and, as a There he sold ic ro an Engl1sh sea-ca pea in. le found i ts way to
special favor, was aliowed co examine the biggesr diamond in che London, chen co Amsccnlam, where Orloff boughc 1c 10 1774- He
world. Tt had been mined at Kollur (he says) in 1650, and weighed hoped co regain che favor of his ex-mistress, che empress, by pre-
78t½ caracs in che rough, bur rhe cutter had done sucb a poor job, senttng her wich chis great gem; che gift was accepted, but 1t is
and had lose so much of che weight, thar che king fined him in- not recorded wherher he regained grace or noc. The Orloff was
 TIIE STORY or DíAMONDS GREAT DIAMONDS

mountec.l in che Russi.an scepcre, and is nO'w in che Diam.ond Treas- he saw a <liamon<l of 80 or 90 carats hung by a sil ver thread in
ure of rhc Sovicr Governmenr. Tr wcighs 19';) f.. cara te;, Í!- rosc- fronr of the MoguJ's rhrone, where the occupant could always
l u1, h.1~C'\lc1~11nr1al punt , .inJ ··,111 .,grcL,thlc, p,dc hlu,sh green see íc; and ir is rhoughr thar rhis was the same srone we describe.
t111gc Ac any race, che Shah is encircled by a groove near one end, ap-
Tlic: r,Lssak di,u11011J, lile tbc Orlo!I, origi11arcJ in lndu. Ir parencly cut for jusr such a purpose. Nadir Shah, the conqlleror,
was a von ve offering to rhe goddess Si\ a, in a temple near Bom- rook che diamond to Persia in r739, and ir remained rhere for
ba y. When che English cook over rhac ninery years. The chird inscripcion is thar of one of Nac.lir·s <le-
pare of India i □ I 18, rhe stone passed scendancs, and the date, 182.4. ln 182..9che Russian ambassador ro
inro che hands of che Marqu1s of Has- Persia was murdereJ rhere, and co a,yoid a war che Shah senr che
nngs, Jeader oí che army. It was raken gem ro che Czar as recompense for che deed. Teis now one of the
Nt1.1.l't1k t0 Lon<lon as a ••ru<leJy facerced, Jll- prized possessions of che People's Co1nmissariac of Financc in
screless, cnangular mass" of abouc 85 vfoscow. le is said co have a yellowish
carats' weight. European cutrers skil- tinge, bue co beof r,erfect transparency.
fully remade ir inro a c.uamond of per- The Florenrine is anorher of tbe
fect brilliancy weighrng 78:5 carars. great !odian diamonds of odd shape
les peculiar triangular shape is unique among che world's great and unusual curcing. Pale yellow in ••a;¡¡ f lorentiue
diamoods. In 1837 ic was boughc by the Marquis of Wescminsrer. color, ic is double-rose-cuc, has 12.6
an<l mounced in che hil t of his sword. His famil)· retained ir for facets, and has the form of a scar wich
many years. Recendy it has been acquired by iVlauboussin, rhe nine rays. les weigh t is 137¾ cara cs.
ceJebrated Parisian jewelry firtn. Taveroier saw Hin 1657, J.O che collcc-
Tbe Shah of Persia is anocher Indian diamond of great antiqllity tion of che Grand Duke of Tuscany,
and peculiar shape. Ir is rectangular in oudine, is imperfeccly cut and ic bears che name of 111scapital ciry, Florencc Later H was
wich very few- facecs, and weighs sene co Austria, afrer a bar ter of land and weaJ rh, and hecame
88.77 caracs. I3uc che surface, on part of che Auscrian crown ¡ewels.
rhree sides, is ,vonderfolly en- les history is nor as excinng as 1cs
Shi1h* grave<l in Sanskric wich che names rad ianc beau ty.
and dates of three of its owners, The Regent diamond, foun<l in che
and h isrorians are guided by this Panea.1 mines, India, 1n 1701, could
script in del ving inca the records tell an 111ceresting scory. lts 6.nder, a R.egent
of che srone. 1591 A.D. is che dare of che first inscriprion, and s!ave 1 slasheJ h1s leg witb a kntfe
the namc: "Burhan-Nizam-Shah TI," ruler of one of the lesser and h1d che -+ro-carar monster under
pro, inces of India. About four years after thac dace, Burhan 's the bandage. Esca¡-ung ro rhe coasrf

l pro, incc was 1ooce<lby che Greac I\'Iogul, Akbar, who carríed che
gem away with him Akbar's son was the celebrated Shah Jdiao,
whom we know already as che owner of the Kohinoor and
•'Great Moglll' ·--and che second inscripcion bears his name aod
date, t65J. When Ta vernier visiced Jehan's loving son, i\urungzeh.
+Plw/11 rmtrlt!S,\' l'r,1¡,lc's Ctw,mi
rnriul oj Fi11•m1t, 1ll11\fnW.
he cr.1.dcd che gcm to an En~I ish
skip¡"cr far passag<: to hcalrh1cr
rl1mcs, .t1h.l ,,..1.s rc:wardcd hv hcing rhrnwn O\t:rhoard as sonn ;1,
the ship was our of sight of !ami. Pulting in at che next l"ºrt, the
ga.JJanc ca ptain sold che stune for $5000, d issi ¡1.aed che money ami
hanged himself. Soon H was boughr by Sir Thomas Pire, gover-
 74 THE STOR Y OF DIAMONDS
nor of che Engl ish fon ac Madras. Rumors were scarced that Sir
Thomas had obtained ic by fouJ play, and che unfortunate gov-
ernor, ínnocent though he was, went abouc for a time in fear of
his life. Ir was probably a happy day for him when che scone was
sene off to London co be cut. There ic was reduced to a perfect
brillianr of 143.2. carats one of rhe Enesc in the world. Ir was
sold by che Pitt family to che Regent of France in 1717. Ar the
rime of che French Revolurion, ir was srolen from che Garde
Meuble in Paris; subsequently the Republican officials recovered
ic in an astonishing way. Ir had been hidden in a dicch on the
Avenue des Champs-Elysées, and an unknown benefaccor sene
them a Jeccer celling where co find it! Lacer, apoleon wore
the Regent on bis sword-hilt, and
roday ic can be seen on exhibition ac
che Louvre in Pans.
The Pigocr d1amond was a rather
flat brillianr of 85.8 caracs, brought
Pzgott
to England by che Irish Lord Pigott,
Governor of Madras, in 1775. Afcer
changing hands seYeral rimes, ic
became che properry of Ali Pasha,
Khedive of Egypt, in 1818. Ali re-
garded che diamond and his wife, Vasilic.a, as his two greacesr
rreasures. When he was assassinaced in 1882., rhe aged ruler, in
his lasr moments, ordered his men ro scrangle YasiJica and crush
che srone to a powder-so that his assassin
should not benefit by the possession of
either. The lady escaped, bue che diamond
did not-so che Pigoec is a chingof chepasr.
The smallest, yer one of che mosr inter-
Sancy
esting of famous oriental diamonds is the
Sancy, a double-rose-cur stone of 55 caracs'
weighc. le was broughc to France from
Turkey in 1570 by che Seigneur de Sancy,
French ambassador to che Otcoman court.
Henry III of France wore ir for a rime in his cap. Larer, M. de
Sancy acquired it again. When the new king, Henry IV ascended
che rhrone, he made de Sancy minisrer of finance, and asked him
GREAT DIAMONDS 75
to send the diamond to use as security for a loan. The messenger,
a trustworchy man, never arrived, for he was beset by robbers and
slain. De Sancy, thinking of what sceps che messenger could have
caken co guard che stone, ordered his body dug up and the stom-
ach opened. There was the diamond; tbe fairhful fellow had
swallowed ic! Laeer, de Sancy sold ir to Queen Elizabeth of Eng-
land. Charles I and James II also owned ic; then it wenc back to
France, to be held by rbree Kings Louis: XIV, XV and XVI.
The Sancy, like che Regent, was scolen from the Garde Meuble in
1792., bue curned up again in París in 182.8, to be purchased by a
prince of Russia. In 1865 it went eo Bombay; then back to Paris;
then co Bombay again, in 1-875, as che pro-
perty of the Maharajah of Patiala. Sorne say
chac it is still in che possession of chis family;
ochers, thac it belongs co Lady Astor.
Of rare colored diamonds, one of che bese Dresden
Green
known is che Dresden Green. le is cboughc
that chis is also an !odian stone> but no proof
has ever been found. le is _a beautiful pende-
loque of 49.8 carats, flawless and perfect, with
a clear apple-greeo cint. King August the
Scrong of Saxony purchase<l it for his ereasury in 1743, and ir
has been in Germany ever since. It is now on exhibicion ac che
"Green Vaults" in che cicy of Dresden.
The Hope Blue is another famous colored srone, which ap-
peared in London in r8rL le is a square-
cur brilliant of 45.¾ caracs, and has a pro-
nounced blue color-a rarity in diamonds.
It 1s, however, somewbat dark and lacking
[-Jope
in reflective brilliance. Sorne time in the
183o's, ir was acquired by Henry T. Hope,
a London banker, whose name it bears. It
1eft the hands of che Hope family in 1906
and was bought, 1ivc years later, by Mr. .
Edward B. McLean of Washington, D.C., for a reputed pnce of
$300,000. Mrs. McLean scill owns ir. les reputarion as_a harbinger
of bad luck seems to be grossly exaggerated. Sorne th1nk that the
Hope is part of a blue diamond weighing 112.¾' carats (rough),
 THE STORY OF DlAMONDS GREAT DIAMONDS 77
whkh Tavernier sold co che French It was mined oear Bagagem some rime rn
crown in r668 This was cur to a thc 18fu's. íts first famous owner was a
67 ½ carar gem which also figured 10 1oy;d \ustn;in, Perdin;111d Maximilia11, hº111¡,eror
Sti1r of the the Garde \tl.euble robbery of 1792. who was sent by Napokon JU of Francc Maxúnilian
So1tth an<l was never recovered. The con- ro be Empcror of Mexico in 1864. His pa-
necrion becween chis stone and the thecic reign as a "puppec" king lasted
Uope is quite possible, bu r difficult only rhree years, and was ended by a firing
ro prove. squad. Around che neckof chefallen monarch was a lude chamois
OurstanJing among Braúliao dia- bag concarning che great flashing gem, which he had incended
monds is the Srar of che South, found by a slaYe wornan at Baga- to have set in bis crown. It was sene ro lus wife, rhe Belgian-born
gem (in western Minas Geraes) in 1853. The forcunare woman Empress Carlotca, wbo had fled co .Brussels the previous year.
received her freedorn and a pension for life. The rough scone was Carlotta went mad afrer chac, and the diamondfoundics way inro
cuc by che Coscers of Amscerdam, to an OYal bríllianc of L2.8½ the collecrion of Czar Nicholas 11of Russia. Afcer che Russian Rev-
carats which has che remarkable propercy of appearing colorless olu rion, it recuroed co crade channels via Amsccrdam. les presenc
from the cop, bu t rose-rin ted when viewed from che side. Bough t owncr is Mr. Fcrdinand Hotz, a weU-knowa jcweler of Chicago.
by rhe Gaikwar of Baroda, India, chis scnking gem 1s srill in rhe Largesc of al! known diamonds was che mighty Cullinan, a Cu!Linan
possession of chac ancient fine of Hindu princes. mammoch scone of 3106 caracs (r.½' pounds)-aboL1t che size of
English Four years after che finding of the Star of che Souch, che Baga- a man 's fist! lt was discovered in rhe Premier mrne, Sourh Africa,
Drest!en gem mines yielded another greac scone, of u9,½ carats' weight.
le was boughc by t--.fr.E. Dresden of London, and cut coa blu□ c­
poinced pendeloque of handsome proportio□s,
weighing 76,½ caracs. From irs ow □er che
sco □e derived 1ts □ ame, che •'Englisb Dres-
den. •• Bought by a Bomba y merchant jn the
Empress
'6o's, it also found ics war, evenrually, inro
Eugenie
che rreasury of I3aroda.
A third big diamond, of uakoown ongin,
is also owned bv thissameGaikwarofBaroda
1t is che ••Etnpress Eugenie," a perfect oval
hrílliant of 51 carats, hlunt ar one end and very beautifully
cut. les k.nown hiscory starcs in che court of Cacherine che Greac
of Russia (r762.-96), who wore ir in a hair ornarnent. Later ir
passc<l, through che hanJs of one of her favorires, rn Napoleon
TTIof France, who presentetl ir ro his wife, rhe Empress Eugenie.
Thc: Housc oí l'.1rnda hou~h r ir aírer t he f-ranu)-Prussian war of
1~70.

A Bra~iliat1 diamonJ of remarkable puriry is the Emperor

M<iximilian, a perfect blue wftir&brillia□ t weighing 41. caracs.
CULLINAN: ROUGH
 THE STOR Y OF DIAMONDS
Asscl:e,'s Diamcnd Works, Amsierdam
CLE.AVJNG THE ROUGH CULLINAN
inJanuary of 1905. Mine Captain Frederick Wells, recurning from
che day's work in the pie with a crowd of his "boys," noticed a
bright object gleaming in the secring sun, partly embedded io a
wall of che· 'blue." Rushing coche spoc, he quickly dug che scone
out with his pockec-knife, and ran wich ic coche office. Next day,
word wenr out that che biggesc diamond in che wodd had been
found-and no ocher has ever
approached ic far size. Mr.
Wells received a bonus of
$10,000 for che fi.od. Ir was
named in honor of Sir
Thomas Cullinan, president
of the Premier Diamond
1v1iniog Company. Then i e
Cttllinan I
J 30 Carats was sold to the government
of Transvaal Colony, who
sent it to England as a pres-
ene co che crown-by ordi-
nary regisrered post, in a cin
box, wich a dollar's worch
of scamps affixed ! The idea-
that the safesrmodeofcrans-
GREA T DIAMONDS 79
porc was the least conspicuous one-proved crue. The work of
cutting was eocrusted to che House of Asstber in Amsterdam.
After monchs of study_, making of wax models and a specia1 set
of oversized tools, the task was undertaken in 1908. The mam-
moch scone was first split into chree pieces, then expercly cut inco
over _ª hundre? gems, che cwo largesc of which are nowthe biggest
cut d1amonds in che world. One is a pendeloque of 530 carats, aad
adorns che English scepcre; che ocher, a square briUiaoc of 309
caracs, is mounced in che fronc of che Imperial State Crown.
Among the •'lesser' • scones cu e from the Cullinan are a pendeloque
of 92.caracs anda square brillian eof 62..AH are flawless and of fine
blue-whi re color, and can be
seen among che Bricisb crown
¡ewels exhibiced in che Tower
of London.
The third largesc of known
finished diamonds is the Ju- ]ubiiee
bilee, cur from a 650-carac
rough found ar Jagersfontein
in 1896. It is a perfect brillianc
weighing 2.45 carats, and de-
riYes ics name from che facr
thac ic was cut during che
year of Queen Victoria's "JubiJee" celebracion in London.
The "Scar of South Africa" we have earlier menúoned as che
stooe bought by Schalk van Niekerk from a nacive wicch-<loctor
1 □ 1869. The London purchasers cut ic co a
fine oval, three-sjded bnllianc of 46]4 caracs
and sold ic to the Councess of Dudley, who
had ic mounced in a tiara. The significant
point of its history was well expressed by a Star of
Bricish colonial otlicial sixty-five years ago: South Africa
•'This d1amond, gendemen, is che rock
upon which che fu rute success of Sou ch
Africa w11l be built. ''
Of colored diamonds mined in South
Africa, the greatest is che Tiffany. le has a gorgeous, orange-
tinted, ca.nary-yellow color, weighs 12.8½ carnes, and is beauc1-
 THE STORY OF DlAMONDS
fully cuc wich 86 facers (an unusually large number). Thi~ rrpe
nf cu1 w;ic;; originnrcd hv rbe late Dr. George Kun7, ro gr\e ;111 CHAPTER VII
dÍel l of ma-xi11w m rcíll.·u irn1 The , nugli
Jiamond, wcighing 1.87...¡. carats, ,,as
<lug u p a t DcBeers mme rn 1877. Ir was
The Diamond in Industry
cut in Pans, and has been cbe- pri,ed pos-
HE greac mass of ··ouccasc" diamonds which go co

T
Ti f{rll/)1 &ession of Tiífany and Cornpany, the fa-
che industries present an incerescing story, which,
rnous New York Jewelers, forman y years.
however, is racher coo rechnical co be folly pre-
The Stewarc is perbaps cbe mosr fa-
senced in a book of chis kind. We shalJ do little
mous river scone conung from Souch
more chan list these uses, and let che piccures cell something of
Afnca. The rough diamond, weighrng che tasks which rhese hard stones are performiog in all corners
2 96 carats, was found ar ..WaJdeck's Plant on rhe \'aaJ River in
of che gJobe.
i8y2... The .finder wenc our of his min<l for chree days, and could
Fifcy percenc of ali diarnonds are used industrially, and two- Grinding
do norhing but laugh an<l cry,
fifrhs of chese are applied co the truing of grinding wheels. To iVheels
tossing rhe srone up in che a1r
shape che hard surface of emery, of carborundum, and of cungsccn
and cacching it again like a chi!J.
carbide, only che diamon<l can be economicaJly used.
le was reduced co a beaucifuJ bnJ- To mrn machine pares of all kinds is anocher of che diamond's Machine
1raoc of 123 carats, and is now ducies. The Ford Motor Company, for insrance, uses abour 1000 Shop
Ste u•t1rt owned in England.
diamoods for chis purpose. Aluminum alloy piscons, and other
We could go on ar greac lengch,
such pares, cao be traed on a lathe with a diamond-poinred rool,
describrng sorne of che goharhs
to measuremenrs varying less than one ten-tho1uandth o/ tm inch
which have come out of Souch
from standard, and che diamond takes years ro weat out! .
Africa: the E.xcelsior (969 ½ caraLs Anorher importanc use is in drawing wire Here che metal 1s Wtre
rough), che Porter-Rhodt!~ (16o),
drawn rhrougb a round hole drilled in a diamond die. A series of
che Viccoria (45 7 ½), che Are. (381 ), rhe recen e Jonker (7~6),
and a host of ochers. Sorne of chese ha ve been cuc inco lar ge
gems, ochers inro a number of smalJ ones. Bur all are reallr roo
··vouna"
, b ro ha,e acquircd rhe wealth of hisrory an<l legend
vvhich is attached co the diamo.n<ls of ancienr Golcon<la.

Sumútrim4 }./o.rliine To11lCo , Rorkf1Jrd, llt.

DIAJ."1OND SHAPING A 'fORD V-8 PlSTON
 THE DlAMO ID I I DUSTR Y

•
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.

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•
.

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Vaughn lfad1i11t1ryCn, C11yoli11ga
Falls, Ohin.
/
/ DRAWlNC. WIRE. EACH BRASS DlSC CONTAJNS A DIAMOND orn
/

•
.t:
/
e such d1es, wich differenc-sized boles, w1Jl reduce che wire ro the
°'
E
o /
e desired diamecer. So hard is che dia.mond chat 300 to 400 tons of

•
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.,. I
o
11
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.
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copper ca□ be drawn chrough such a die before any enlargemenc
of the hole takes place. Thar makes a wire, of the size used io

0/~ •
>,, "'
-o
~::,
1 ,;;
o
radio sers, long enough co go aro1mdthe world twenty timeJ.' Gold,
A
15,_
o
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o ~-lÍ/ silver, platinum, iron and rungsceo are also made into wire by

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:'5 o chis means. Tungscen is one of the hardesc metals known. A billec
C1l
o, of chis me cal, ebree inches long and rhree-eigbths of an inch in
o §

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::5
.g
;::,
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➔ -e
O'
e

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8.
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diamecer, is drawn inco a fine wire (for eleccnc lighc-bulb fila-
mencs) fifty-etght miles long! Other wires are drawn, so fine tbat
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you cannot sec them, except with a magnifytng glass l And all of
these wires have the exaccness of size which 1s so importanr in
eleccrical work.
\ ;/
Diamonds wich holes in rhem are aJso fitted inco oil nozzles, Noz.z.les
to be used in the furnaces of our homes and faccories. This is a
rapidly growing use. By passing the oil through a t.!iamond, a
constant, correcrly-shaped spray of oí I is deli vered and che et1i-
~
ciency of che nozzle is nor impaired by che acrion of grir or acid
V in che otJ, or by che bigh beat.
ft.
Boring the hole in a diamond for a die or a nozzle is an incer-
escing process. A needle, impregnated wich diamond dust, ham-
mers away on rhe stone fot about a week before che hole is bored.
And chis drilling operation coses seven ti mes as much as the
diamond itselfl
90 THE STOR Y OF DIAMONDS
cucthroat, wide-open market such as has demorahzed so many
industries in rhe last five years. And without che cooperacion of
the Souch African Governmenc, in formulating proper laws ro
prevent such wasre, even che corporacion would have been hard-
puc to srem che ride. Whac is che reason for rhese efforts? Because
che price of d1amonds mttst be maíntained. Again, why? Let rhe
cbam.pions of an open markec reflecc again on the fact thac all che
gem diamonds held by mankind roday have a value of ftfteen
hiltions of dollars, an<l chac cheir value has been decermined, not
by Cecil Rhodes or che House of Rochschild, but by cbe human
race icself, in the dim reaches oí che pase in che days of Taver-
nier, of Agnes Sorel, and oí Pliny the Elder.
There have been times when che vaJue of diamonds has gone
clown ro lower levels-especially 1n che 175o's, when BraziJ was
'· booming, .. and in che r87o's, when che Souch African fields were
young . .But they have always recovered. Today, under the guid-
ing hand of London, che value of diamonds is sound and .firm as
che Rock of Gibraltar. There are countless chousands of people in
che world, in ali walks of ]ife, who cherish these gleaming gems
as mementos of their happiesc hours, oras an expression of arciscic
beauty and sol id wotth. To chese people we say: chere need be no
fea.r thac che value of your diamonds will sag to a fraccion of cheir
true worch. Through depressions and panics, che fac years and
che Jean, rhcy are backed by a monument of financia! strengch and
the exacting teses of three thousand years-by a program iosci-
tuced by men whose vision excends beyond che lean years, inco
che cenruries to come.
And so our scory comes to an end-a scory packed ·wich educa-
c-ionaJappea1 and che romance of the ages. The diamond is ever-
Jastingly the King of Gems. It is che perfection of ature's handi-
work, and Tune caonoc mar its eternal magnificeoce.
••And who can say chac chis wealch is unproducci ve, for does it
not briog unfailingly, every day, dividends of joy, of happiocss,
aod of beaucy?"
BIBLIOGRAPHY
We recommend the following books on che subjecr of diamonds:
r. A good general story (now racher old):
.. The Diamond," by WaJlace R. Caccellc, New York, 1911.
2.. The bese scory of che Souch African fields:
''Thc Diamond Mines of South Africa," by Gardner F. Williams, London, 1902..
3. Two interestiog old-cimers, rarher hatd to gec·
Extraer from "Voyages co India," by Jean-Baprisre Ta vernier. Translated and
reprinced in Vol. VIII ofJoho Pinkerton's "Voyages," London, 18n.
"A Treatise on D1amoods aod Precious $tones, including tbeir Natural and
Commercial Hisr.ory," by John Mawe (who cravelled in Brazil overa huo-
dred years ago). London, 182.6.
4 For scudeots of Geology:
"The Genesis of che Diamood,'' by Alpheus F. Williams (2. vol.), Loodon,
l 932..
·'The Geology of South Africa, •• by Alex. L. DuToic, Edinburgh, 192.6.
Also the works of P. A Wagner and Haos Merensky, appea.ring in che ··Pro-
ceedings and Traosactions of che Geological Sociecy of Souch Africa" (avail-
able ac maoy large librarles).
5. Oo rbe opncs of che diamond as appl ied co cu ccing:
··niamond Des1gn," by Marce! Tolkowsky, London, 1919.
6. A good descnpuon of diamond cutring:
"The Art of che Lapidary," by Herbert P. Wbiclock. Guide Lcaflet No. 65 of
che American Museum of Natural History, New York, 192.6.
7 The bese rwo on famous h1storical diamonds:
"The Greac Diamonds of the World," by E<lwin W. Screeter, London, 1882..
"Famous Diamonds," by Oliver C. Farrington. Geology Leaflec No. 10 of the
Field Museum of Natural Hiscory, Chicago, 192..9.
8. Oo che English Crown Jewcls:
·'ThcJewel House,' by Sir George Youogbusband, London, 192.1.
9 On rndnscrial diamonds, pamphlers issued by:
L. M. Van Moppes and Sons, Ltd., 10, 11. and 14 Chartcrhouse Str., Loa<loo,
represcnced in America by the U. S Industrial Dia.mond Corp., Ncw York.
10. for che Jeweler:
"The Science of Gem Scones," by Roberc M. Shipley. [ssued by che Gemo-
logical Ioscituce of Amenca, Los Angeles, Cal.
c1. On che strucrure aod propercies of tbe cüamond.
"Concerning che Nature of Things," by Wm. H lkagg, London, 192.5.
·•oiamoods," by Wilham Crookes, London, 1909.
 INDEX 93
Cornpanhia de Diamantes de Angola 35 DuToit, Alex. L. ................. 91
Compound..... .. . ...... 58 61.
INDEX Compressed a1r. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Ducoicspan mine···-·····
Dynamire ..................
1.3, 1.9, 47
• • • .53-54
Conceotraces.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5647
Aaron, H1gh Priesl ol Israel.. r6 Bloemhoí 30, 3 r Cooduccivicy ·········-··· ..... 15 Easrcrn Scaces... . ...... 37
Abaodone<l srrcam channels . 30 p Illue ground... 2.7, 37, -to 42. Congo, 13elgian. . .......... 33 35, 89 EJ1zabeth, Queeo (England) ..... 75
Ac1d 1gneous rocks 40 B~~ ll Freoch.... . .. 37 Emerald.. . .. 12., 16
A~hms ~ Boise, C. W 89 River. . . 33 Cut. , .. .. .. . . . 63
A frica ...... .. .. ... 16 Dombay, Indi<i 72., 74, 75, 76 Consolidated African Selecrion Emery . . .. . . .. .. 9, 81
Ahmcd, Sbah. 70 Bonuses, ro mmers 61. Trust 36, 89 Emperor Max1mrlian diamond. 76, 77
Air-drills. 51.-s5 8001, che W1rch-doctor 2.3 Consumpcion, 111ú1cr:. • 55 Empress Eugenic diamood . . . 76
Airplanes, fklgian Congo H "Boom," Jod,a 17 Concract minmg, Brazil l9""lO Engineers, American . 35, 88, 89
Akbar, MoguJ 72.. Kimberley q Con\'lcrs ......... 62. EngJish crown ¡ewels 70, 79
Alcxander rhe Grca t 16 13onng d1amonds ~,, S4 Copper w1re . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83 Dresden d iamond . . . . . . . 76
Alrgnment, of atoms 9 Borneo 17 , 8, 37 39 Core-drills . .. . . . .. . . .. .. 8..¡,85 Inceresrs .. . 1.7, 35, 87-90
Al1 P.tsha, Khedive (Egypt 74 Borr 11, 35 Corundum. 9 Engraving, Sanskr-it 71.
Alloys 81 Bragg, Wm. H.. ... . .... 91 Cosrer's cutting factory ......... 76 Erchiog t0ols . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
AJluvial depos1ts . 17, 30-39, 41. 46 Bra:úl . . r7, 1S-1.2., 3-7,76, 90, 9r Craf es, A. A. Co . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86 hxcelsior diamond . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
Alumínum... . . 81 Brilliaoce . ri 13 Cncical aogle .. ... ... .. 12.. .bxodus, Book of ............. 16
Amcricaos . . . . H, 35, SR, 89 BriJlianc cur 63 64, €-6 Crookes, \\'dliam ........... 13, 91
Amstcrdam, Holland 68, 71, 76, 77, 78 British crown jewds ;-o, 79 Crushing rolls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56 Facecs .............. , ... 63-64, 66
Angles, of facers 64 Gu1aoa.. 37 Crvsral diamonds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Fancy colors .................. . 11, 39
Angola. . . . . . . B 35 Brictleness 9, 16 Crysrall1zanon ............ 9, 19 Fans, veotilacíng . . . .......... , 51
Antwcrp, Be-lgium 68 Brooze, phosphor 64 Cub1c syscem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Farrington, Oliver C ............. 91
Are dtamond, . . . . 80 Bubbles, in diamond . . .. 10, 14 Culee. . . . . . . . . . , ........... 64 filamenrs, lighc-buJb .... , ...... 83
E lec rric. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 Bulrfoncein mine .. 2.3, 2.9, 47 Cullioan diamoncl . . . . .... 77, 78, 79 Flaws . . . . . . .9, to, 14, 64 65, 71
Arkaosas.. . . 37 Burhan-Nizam, Shah 72. Cusroms, nací ve . . . . . . . . . . . 39, 62. Flemish diamond curcers 68
Asscher's Diamond Works. 68, 78, 79 "Burstmg," of diamond q Cuccers . . ........ 12., 63 68 Flinc gfass. . .... , . . 12.
Asia. . . . . . . . 16
Cuccing 63 68 Floreudne diamond ......... 73
Ascor, Lady . . . .. .. . 75 Cage. mine. . . . . . . . . 48 FI uorescence ... .. .. 13
Acherstone, W. G 2.1. California . . . r, se;;: Dancing, nac,ve 6o Fonseca Lobo, Dernardo da . . . . . . 18
Arlancic Ocean . . . . . . . . . . . . ,1 32. Canary-ydlo\\ . . .. u, 79 Dangers, m1ning 1.7, 55 I ormacion of diamonds. 7
Aroms . . . . . 9, 10 Cape Bo.s_ . 58 DeBeers Consolidated Mrnes, Lcd.87, 89 Formmiere Company 33, 37, 89
Augus-c the Strong (Saxonv, -5 Cape diamonds 11
DeBeers mine 2.3, 2.9, 47, 80, 88, 89 Fossrl oysrer shells 45
Aurungzeb, Mogul .... 71, 71. Ca.raes 1J
Debris, d1amond-beanng 44 Frosted diamonds .... ..... . r5
Australia. . • ... • • 39 Carboo . . ............ 7. o, •P, ~7 Dtlb1, India 7l
Austrian crown jewels 73 Carbonado. .. .. :u, ~:5
Caroorundum , r Dental dnlls 86 Garde Meuble robbery. . . . . 74-75
Baber, Sulcan. . . . . . . . 69 Deprb, Kimberley mine 2.9 Garnec ....... . ..p
Carlotca, Empress ~Mexico '\ 77 Geolog1scs. .. . . . . . . . . . 40
Bagagem, Braztl . , . . . . . . , . 76 Deserrs, Soutb African ... 31 32.
Cars, mine . . 49, 50 A.menean .................. •. 33
Baguette cut ..... , . . . . . . . . . . . 63 Cacherine the Greac, Empress (Rus- Desigo, diamon<l ... 11. i3
Babia, Brazil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19, 2.1 Derentioo quarcers . . . 61. C,eology.... . . . . . . . . . . . . .40 46
sia) ... . 71,76
Bakelite, ruroing of , . 86 Catrelle, \ValJace R . 91
Diamang Company . . . . , . , . 35, 37 Georgiá. . . . . • 37
Barbed-wíre encanglements.. . . -f7 Caving, of rock . . . •H 5) Diamantina, Brazíl . . t9 Germao Souchwc:sc Africa ,o 31
Barkly West . . . . . . l3, 30 Diamond CorporJcion, the ...... 89 G1rdlc . _ . . 64
Central Scares ....... 37
Barnaco, Barney. . . . . . . . . . 87, 88 Charles I (Englaod'I 7~ Oickinson, H T . 89 Glass .... ,11, 11., 14

Baroda, Gaikwar of ........ 76 Chern1stry of diamonds 7 Dies, dia111ond 81, 83, 84, 86 Cuuiug . . . ...... 86
Barren pipes . . . . .. . . . . . 30 of minera Is. . . . . . . 40-4 r Oiggers. , 2.3, .¡5 ..¡6, 87 C,la.r.cdc.lian1011Js ............. J5
Basic igneous rocks . . . . . . . . . . . . 40 Chinese labor. ............. . 39 Disper!>rOnof Jtgh e 1 1, 1 , Goa, Jnc.lta ......... 18, 19
Beach saod deposits 31 Cla1ms, mming . . ......... . 1.3, 87 Dops . 66 67 Goac·s blood . . . 16
Terraces. . ... • ... , :p., ➔ 5 Classifícac1on, color . . . . . . . . 11 Dresden Green dinmond 75 God,Lvari River .. , .......... r7, 69
Beaccy, A. Chescer . . . . . . . . 89 Rocks. 40 Drifts . . . 51 B Golcom]a, lndia . . . . . ..... 18, 80
Belgian Congo . . .. . . 33-35, 89 Clea\'age ............ 9, 2.1, 64 65, 78 Drilling, underground... .. 52. 55 Gold ... 5, 18, 19, 83
Cumng mduscry.. 63, 68 Clea\"ing . . . . . 64-65 Dnlls, diamond . ... 84, 85 Gold Coasc Colonv 35-37
Bible.. . . . . .. 16 Climace, mining drsmcts .. 2.1, 33, 35 Dudley, Countcss o{ 79 Governmcnc m101ñg, Bratil .... , 18-2.0
Black diamonds ... .... .. Dust, diamood. . 39, 63 6..¡, 66 C,oyaz, Braz11 . 19
2.1 Coal..... . . . . . . . . 7, 2.7, 85
Blascing..... . . ... • --53-54 Color .................... u, 14, 19 Poisonous 55 Grain, in diamonds....... . .. 9, 65, 66
Ducch cumn_g in<luscry ........... 68 Granice . . ............. - . 85
94 THE STORY OF DIAMONDS INDEX 95
Grease tables...... 56-57 Ki~berley Central Company . . . 88 N<Ltivc Puojab, India .................... 70
Great diamonds of history . . . 6~80 Cicy of ... . ... 2.3, 2.s,-30 workmeo. 17, 18, 1.0-1.1, 39, 58 62. Pyramid shape_ ............ , ... 10, 64
Great Mogul.. . . . . . . . . . . 6~71. Mrne ... , .... • •,. 2.3--2.9,47 Nicbolas TI, Czar (Russia) ...... , . , 77
Díamond. . . . . . . . . . 17, 70, 72. Kiscna River. . . . . . . . . . . . . 17, 18 Nozz!es, oil.... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83 Quarcz........ . . . . . . ...... 12., 14, 40
Grinding wheels, cruing of 9, 81 Koocs, io di amood ro Queen (Borneo)..... . . . . . . . . ... 18
Guardiog, mines . . 58, 62. Kobmoor diamond 17, 69-71 Queeo (England) ............... 70
Guiana, Bririsb 37 Kollur mines, Jnd1a r7, 70 Oceans . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . 40-45
Kuoz, George .. &o Octahedron . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9, 64 Racketc:enng, Brazil . . . . . . . . . . .. u
Hardness ............... 7, 8, 9, 16, 39 Oh10.. . ...................... 37
Oil nozzles. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ... 83 Radium. .. . .. ........... 5, 14
Tescing . . .. ... .... 86 Lamps, mioers' . . . ... 48 Railroads, Belgian Congo . . . 33
Hardwood, rruiag oí . . . . . . . . . 86 Lava.. . .. 7, 18, 40-42. Olí ve oil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64, 66
Lead peocils, dies for . . . . . . . . 86 Rao1ic-Siogh ... 70
Hasdngs, Marquis of 72. Olivioe ........ ,. 41
Rc:flc:cclonof ligb e ...... , . e1, 12.
Haulage tunncls 2.8, 49-50, 5r Lean pipes ..... .. .. 30 Open-pie mechods ......... 2..3-i.7
Refraction of light. . .......... n, 12.
Hazards, miníng 2.7, 55 Levels, mme . . . . .... • .48-49, 55 Oppenheimer, Eroesc. . . . . . . . . 89
Regenr diamond . . . . .. 73-75
Headframe .. ,. 48 Lichcenburg . . .4, 31-Jl., 45, S9 Oprical dri1Js. . .... , . . . . . . . . . 86 Rewards, co miners .. 2.0-u
Hear ....... 7, 40 4-i.,83 Light, scic:occ of u-13, 63 6.¡ Opúcs . . .. . .. .. 11-13 Rhodes, Cecil . . . .
Llsboo, Portugal ..... . 1S 87, 88, 89, 90
Heitz1er, Frank 10 Oran ge: Ri ver 2.2. 2.3, p., 42.-44
Rhodesi a . . . . . . 37
Henry III and IV (France) ..... , . 74 L1tcle Namagualand .. p. 33, 42. -15, 8~ Organizac.ioo, industrial .87-90
London, England 70--9, 89, 90 O'Reilly, John .. 2.1. Ricbness, oí deposírs . . 42.-43, 45-46
Hindu princes.. 18 Rio de Janeiro, I3razd 1.0, 1.1
Hoiscing. . . . . . ... 2.7, 48 ·49 Lon8shore currencs. 45 Ore-pass 5 1-y1.. R1ver deposJts.
Louts XI\", XV and XVI ~France,1.. 75 . r8, 2.0, 30-39, 42.-45
Hol land cutdng industry... . . . 68 Orieoc .. 16, r7 Rj ver d.iamoads . . 11
Hope Blue diamond . ... . . 75 Luden tz l3ay 30, 32. Orig10, of di.amoods . . . . . . . .41 42.
RiYers. . . . . . . 40- -15
Hope Town. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.2.. Odoff d1amood 17, 71, 72. Roads. Belg1ao Congo. ..... 35
Horse-wiodlasses. . . . . . . . . 2.7 Machioe pares, cruing oí . . S1 Oysters, fossil .... .. 45 Rocks
Madras, India.. 71, 73, 7-1 ......... 40
Hospitals, underground .. .... 55 Rope haulage .. 49
Hocz, Ferdinan<l . . ........ 77 Mal ay labor. . ........ 39
Malwar, RaJahs of . . 69 Pao, DuToa·s .......... 2.3 Rose cut 63, 70, 73, 74
Marble . . . ......... 85 Parreal mfoes, India . 17, 73 Rotary wash10g pans 56
Ice, refraction of. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12. Pauala, Mabara¡ah of . . . . . . . . . 75 Rotbschild, House of . 89, 90
Marquisc: cut..... . ............. - 63
Igneous rocks . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40 Pavilion facers ........ 64 Rough cliamonds ....... 1 s, 64, 68
Iflicir diamond buyers. . . . . 62. Macrix. 18, 40
Macro Grosso, Brazil r9 Pencil Ieads, d.Jes for ....... 86 Roughing. .. ....... 65 66
ltt1periaJ State Crown (Englaod) . 79 Pcndeloque c.uc . 63, 75 Ruby. . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . 9, 12.
Inclusions. . . . 10 Mauboussin, ¡ewelers 72.
Mawe, John..... .. .. .. ... 91 People's Commissariac of Finaoce 72--73 Ruhk, Shah 69
Iodex of Refraccion... . . . . u. Persia 69, 73 Rushes. . . . . . . . . . ........ 4, 32.
Maximilian, Ferdinand....... 76, 77
I□ dia . . TI, 16- 18, 19, 1.2.,39, 72. Phonograph oeedles 86
Ind,iaoa. .. 37 Mcleao, Edward B . . . . . . 75
Mechaoical dops .... .., 66-67 Phosphor-bron.ze . 64 Safcty-gaces. . . . . . . 48-49
Industrial diamonds 35, 81-86 Phys1eal examinarion, of Precauc1ons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 55
Merensky, Hans .......... 91
lmermirreor streams. . ... 44 workmen 6r-61.. Sancy diamoucl...... . . . . . . . .. 74-75
IncernaJ rdlecrion . . . . . . u, u Metal-eccbing . . . . . . . . . . 86
Mecamorphic roe ks . . . . . . . . .¡o Pigocc diamond .. .. 74 Sanicarion......... .... 33, 35, 37
lroo minerals. . . , . . . . . . . . ,p P1llars, oí rock . . . 54-55 Sapphire. .. .. .. .. 9, J2., 14, ,6
Specific grav1cy of . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Mica. . .p
Micbigan . . . . . . . . . . 37 Pipes .2.7-30, 37, ,p., 51, 54 Sawing diamonds ......... 64-65, 68
\Vire ........................ 83 P1t, Kimber!ey. 2.3 2.7 Stonc:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
lsaacs, Barnett .. .. . .. .. . .. 87 Microscope . . . . .... 10, 14, 40
Millmg, of blue ground. 56 57 Pirc, Thomas. . . . . . . . . .. 74 Scarc1cy, of d1amo0Js ... ... 55
Isometric svstem. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Scepcre, l::oglisb . . . . . . . . 79
Minas Geraes, Brazil. . . . . . . 19, 76 Plancc:rs, Brazil. . . . . . . . . . . 19
I vory, curning of. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86 Russian.
Mi oerals . . .... .... 40 Placioum wire . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83 71

Mining methods .......... 17, +r58 Pliny che Elder . . . . . . . . . . . •6, 90 Sl.rcenrng of rock )6
Jacobs, farm~r ................. u, 32.. MoguJ dyoasty . 69 Polarized l1gbc . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Sedimeocary rocks 40
.Jager diamonds..... 11
Mouotains, volcanic . . . . . . . ..p-.+5 Polc road 53 54 Serpeo eme 41
Jagersfontein mine .. , .2.3, 2.9, 47, 79 M'Poado natives. ... ... . .. . 58 Porccr-Rbodes diamoocl So Shaf c. . . 2.7 2.9, 48-49
James rr (Eoglaod) . 75 Mud rushes .... ., . . . . . . . . .. . . 55 Porcuguese intereses . 18 1.0, 33 35 Shah of Persia diamond . . 72., 73
Jehao, Shah . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71, 72. Porboles. JI p., 45 Shaler, M. K . . . . .,.. . . 89
Jigs ............................. 56 Nadir, Sbab . . 69, 7r, 73 Premier Mine 2.9, 46-47, 77 Shipley, Robert 91
Jonker diamond .............. 46. 80 Namaqualand, Lictle . p., 42., 45, 89 Premier diamonds r J, 46 Sierra Leooe.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36, 37
Jubilee diamood . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79 Napoleon I (France)... . 74 Pressure ... , . 7, 9, 14, 40-42. Silvcr ....... ... .5, 83
Napolc:on III (France).. . . 76, 77 Pretoria. , . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.9 Siva, Goddc:ss.......... ... 72.
Kaffirs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58-62. Nassak diamond . . . . . ... 72. Prospectors. . . . . . .. 4, p., 45 Skips ... . .... .49 ·50
Kasai River.. . . . . . . . .. . . . .. . . . 33 Nacive cuscoms . . . . . . . . . 39, 6o-61. Proceccion o{ mining are,1.s 47 Slavery .17, 19, 2.0, 73
Pumps, mfoe 55 Sl1cing of rock 55
 THE STORY OF DfAMONDS
Soc1été Iocernatt0nale Forestiere et Tungsren . . . . . . . . . . 83
Mjniere du Congo. H Carbl<le . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9, 81
Sofdcr dops. . . . . . 66 67 Tunnels. . . . 49'°Sº
Sorel, Agnes .. 17, 90 Tuscany, Grand Duke of 73
Soniog of <liamonds · 57 58
Sourh America . 16, 2.0, 37 Ultrav1olec rays
Sourh Africa, Underground miaing .
Umon of .n >3, 40, 79, 87, 89, 90 Unrred Sures of America.
Souchwesr Africa 31, 35, 38
Vaal River. 1.1.1.3, 30 32-.42.-44, -f6, 80
Soviet governmenr 72. Value, of diamonds .. 6, q, 2.1, 81., 90
Specific gra vtcy. . . . ....... 10
Van Berqucm, Ludwig 63
Speed of cumng 66
Vao Moppes, L. M. and Soos . 91
Spl i tting diamonds 64-65, 68 Vao Niekerk, Schalk .. 2.2., 79
Star of Souch Africa diamon<l... 2.3, 79 Vaseline . . ...... • S7
o( che Souch diamond. 76
VeJdc, South African .17, 41.,07
Scealing diamonds. . . . . . . . .6er61.
Venezuela. . . . . 39
Sceam engines. . . . . . 2.7, 48 Vicroria diamond . . So
Launches, Belgian Congo }3
Scewart diamond . . . 80 Queen 79
,. 1rgioia . . . . .. . . . . .. . . . . • . • • 37
Scone saws. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85 Volcaorc acuon ............. 1.7, .p-.p.
Stopcs .. .. . . . . . . .. .. 53-54
Strain. . . .. . . . . . . . 14 Waste rock.. . ....... . 54, 56, 57
Srreecer, Ed wio. . . . . . ..... 71, 9r Wages, miners'. . ...... . .39, 60
Structure of che diamood . ro, c4 Wagner, P. A. 91.
Sub-levels. . )t \Vash ing paos . . . . . . . . 56
Supersticion, nao ve ..... , . . . . 39, 62. WeUs, Frederick .77, 78
Surfacc mining.,.. 1.3-2.7,37 Wcsselcon <liamonds. 11.
Swallowing <liamonds. 60-61, 75 Mrne . . . :1.9,47
System, in mioing . . . 2.7, 54-5 5 \Vese Coast, Soutb Africa 30-:n, 44-45
Wést Africa ... 35-37, 89
Table, of a <liamood 63-64 Wescmioster, Marqms of • 71.
Tailing <lump . . . . . . 56 Wheel, curcing 66-68
Tanganyika Tcrricory .. • • • • • • • • 37 Whirlock, Herbert P .. 91
Tavernier, W11liams, Alpheus F . S9, 91
Jean-Bapriscc .1¡-18, 70-75, 90, ~1 Gardner F 88, 91
Tejuco, Brazil . r8 Wiodlasses, hoisriog ..... . .. 1.7
Terraces, beach . . . . . . • ... • 31., 4 5 \V1re-drawing. 81, 83
Tescing for hardncss . . . . . . . . . . . 86 Wiscoosin ........ . • • • • • • • • • 37
Tet:rahedron. . . . 10 \Vicch-doccor. . . . . . . . . . . ...... 2-3,79
Tiffaoy diamon<l ............. 79, 80
Timber, mine. . . . ..... •. •. •51, 55 Xosa narives.. . . . . . . . . 58 59
Time, of cutting . .... .. ... . 66 X-rays. . ...... 10, 13-q, 6r-61.
Tolkowskr, Marce!. . . . . . . . . 91
Topaz .. • ....... u., q, 16 Yellow ground ...... .
Top facets 64 Younghusband, George.
Trading . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17, 68
Transrarency, in X-ray 13 14, 61-61. Zamao, Shah, ............... 70
Triba dances . ... 60 Zircon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . , n, 14
T111cks,mine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49 Zulu nacives .................... 58

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