The Sun.
London, England, 1870-12-28 00:00:00

LOOKING FOR DIAMONDS.

The Natal papers by the last mail are filled with letters
from the diamond fields. The following extracts are from
the Natal Mercury :—When we got here (a place called
Hebron) we found about twenty waggons and fifty people.
There are now ahnut 150 here I should think, a good
many from Mooi River, and several from Natal. It took
us three days to make a cradle, pitch our camp, and get
square. We commenced washing on the 18th of August,
and have been at it ever since, but without success, but
that is nothing, as we are going to haul out some soon.
They find on the average about five diamonds a day now ;
no very large ones ; the biggest about eleven carats. About
ten days ago a beauty of ten carats was found. I imme-
diately secured a claim next to where it was found,
the only bit of ground vacant. They' have been finding
diamonds all round us, and I am sure we shall get some-
thing out of it—l dare say about two as big as peas. I
could have sold the claim to-day for £lOO, but I did not.
About 1,000 diggers have gone to Gom-Gom, about nine
miles further down, Bottemley's party is there. About
6,000 diggers are down below altogether. Nine boats
are constantly crossing the river. Regular streets are
laid out. A music-hall and masonic lodge are being built.
It is difficult to get washing places there. The cradles
are only about four feet apart. For four miles there is no
room to dig, and they go down 15ft. So many carts are
going that they are obliged to work at night, or they could
never get to their claims to cart the stuff on to the river,
which is filled up half its breadth with the sand they
have washed. One hill is carted away altogether.
I saw a diamond the other day that a Kor-
anna pibked up ; it weighed sixty-two carats,
was a perfect beauty, nearly square, of a pale
straw colour, and shone like a sun. A Mr. Rose
bought it ; he gave, I think, a waggon and oxen, 50 head
of cattle, £5O worth of goods, £3OO worth of sheep. I
should say the diamond was worth £6,000. It was about
as big as a large walnut with the shell on cut square. I
felt after looking at this monster that I could have pitched
a 10-carat diamond into the river. It was worth paying to
see. We have now dug down about three
feet, and are on a large stony bottom, but shall
go through this and see what is below. I think the big
ones lie deep. A friend of ours came with a Boer and his
wife. He himself had married a young Boer lady. The
ladies agreed that if they found a diamond they would
go halves. About three days after their arrival
the Boer's wife picked up a ten-carat diamond
close to the tent. They wanted to cry off
their agreement. There was a great row about it. L.
claimed half on account of his wife. He watched his
opportunity, and when the Boer was shewing it to a fel-
low who wanted to buy he snatched it out of his hand
and refused to give it out of his hand and refused to give
it up, but sold it for £B5, giving the Boer £42 10s.
and sticking to the rest himself. Cleverly done, this.
We think nothing here of a diamond as big
as a nut ; wouldn't walk a step to see one.
My idea of the diamond-fields is this : a man can make a
living, and may make a fortune. You ought to bring all
you want for several months, have a large tent with table
and chairs, books, &c., and live pretty well. In fact
make up your mind to stay a long time,
and go steadily working on, and the chances
are you make money. One member of
a company ran away with a diamond the other day from
Klfpdrift. Five hundred pounds reward is offered for
him. I pity him if caught. There have been
diamonds picked up there within the last few
days, weighing 77, 68, and 54 carats. Only one
single man is left in Mooi Biver Dorp. We have
plenty of food and everything we want. When we
find a diamond we are going to eat a pot of jam. You
should see my hands ; they are blrck and as rough as
files, and my nails and the tins of my fingers are wearing
away with pulling stones about. I look an awful cut-
throat scoundrel. I sleep with a revolver under my
pillow, in case our sable friends should see fit to co me
down on us.

STREET REFORMS.—We hear that the Chief
Commissioner of Police has effected or is about to effect
two reforms so simple and sensible that it is a wonder
they should not have been carried out before.
The old - fashioned waterposts at the hackney
carriage stands are to be replaced by water
troughs, and omnibus drivers are no longer to be allowed
to impede the traffic and endanger the lives of their
passengers by depositing them in the middle of the road
to find their way to the kerbstone of the pavement through
the mud as best they can, amid a crowd of carriages the
drivers of which vie with each other as to who shall first have
tne privilege of running them down. In future stage car-
riages will only be allowed to take up or set down passen-
gers on the left side of the roadway, or as- near to it as
possible. Old ladies will no longer be turned out of omni-
buses like deer out of a cart to be chased through the streets
by hansom cabdrivers. This will be an immense boon to
the 'bus travelling public, more especially to the infirm and
nervous; it will also prevent many street accidents and much
obstruction of traffic. It is almost the first active step that
has been taken to reduce the disorderly host of public car-
riages in the streets into something like discipline, and it
is to be hoped it will be followed up by other vigorous mea-
sures with the same tendency. In the meantime, we are
thankful for little blessings, and Colonel Henderson, by
diminishing the discomforts of 'bus travelling and esta-
blishing water-troughs at hackney carriage stands, has
gracefully bestowed a Christmas gift on old ladies and
dumb beasts which they will not fail to appreciate. The
old ladies ought, in return for the boon which we have
often -urged on their behalf, shew their gratitude by a little
increased activity in their movements. If they would have
the coin for payment of their fare ready for delivery to
the conductor directly they leave the 'bus, instead of
fumbling in their pockets to find it, they would save much
time and unnecessary stoppages in the streets. Some of
them, we fear, are too apt to presume on the respect due
to their infirmities and on the good nature of their fellow
creatures. Relieved from the necessity of displaying an
unnatural activity on the carriage road, they will be none
the worse for displaying a little more activity on the pa ve-
meat. —Pall Mall Gazette..