The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1870-11-08
SOUTH AFRICAN DIAMONDS.
TWO EXTRAORDINARY GEMs-THE LUCKY WEEK
FIFTY DIAMONDS IN ONE DAY.


FIFTY DIAMONDS IN ONE DAY.
The mails from Cape Colony bring infor-
nation respecting an unusually fortunate
week in the diamond diggings, The stone
discovered by MIR. Parkes, referred to in the
following article from The Cape Argus, is
valued at from $40, 600 to sos, 900. He had
offered the night before to sell his claim for
fifteen sbillings. The other large diamond
is estimated as of nearly equal value with
that Of MIR. Parkes:-
There are two ways by which Cape people
Judge of the success of the now established
diamond industry. The first and most i'm
portant is the actual yield of diamonds, aud
the second the successful and paying occu-
patton found for diggers. AS far as the first
is satisfactory, the news of the fortnight is
most concerned We should say that both
the number and value of diamonds found have
been greater than in any previous fortnight
since the diggings commenced, while several
diamonds exceptionally large have been
turned up. When the last mail summary
was forwarded to England, a rumor had
reached Cape Town of two enormous dia-
monds having been discovered.
Two diamonds, weighing respectively 56
and "a carats, have, without doubt, been
found. One, we believe, is a very fine gem,
of good shape; the other, somewhat flawed
The discoverers were as startled as any one
cases the ''claims" had promised SO lit
tie that the majority of those working them
had left in despair, and had gone elsewhere
to try their fortunes. Two or three remained
as a sort of forlorn hope to make one more
attempt; and were rewarded by turning out
these large and brilliant gems.
The editor of the Journal thus graphically
refers to the report of an eyewitness of
Parkes' discovery:-'M King" he SAYS.
Chad and haDalo1 hic nd
went into raptures over its splendid qualities.
AT the time of the find Parkes was in q de-
spending mood, and was about to offer his
claim for sale or to abandon it. He had been
at work for two months, and had found
nothing worth mentioning However, he
resolved upon taking a last dig or two. A
most fortunate resolve In went the pick,
and out tumbled the diamond. You should
have seen MIR. Kings dramatic representation
of Parkes' excitement on finding fortune
at stroke! The stagger, the shine, the
smile on the forehead, and the scream
of Joy were admirably initiated by
the jolly farmer of Bedford. Be-
sides these two monsters, several fine large
diamonds have been found, two or three of
them noted as especially beautiful, one
weighing 40 carats, another 291, and third
q grain or two short of 20. We hear, also,
on what appears good authority, of a stone
weighing 60 carats, of somewhat inferior de-
scription, having been purchased from
native woman for a wagon and span of
oxen. The week ending the 9th of August
went by the name of the ''lucky week" from
the number and quality of the stones picked
up. This was said TO have been the most
prolific week the Fields had seen. The dig
gers had found as much in that one week as
they had done in any previous month. The
proceeds were valued by some at ESQ, 600, by
Others at much larger figure. But these
amounts are little more than guesses.
There is, of course, no general register
kept of the diamonds found, and we are told
that no concern is shown to make public
small, or even ordinary finds. We only hear
of the large stones. A register is, it is true,
kept on the mining grounds at Pniel, but
except an exceptional entry, such as the
lucky Wednesday (the 24th), when fifty dia-
monds were found, we hear little of its con-
tents. In our last number we alluded to the
large diamond export by the mail steamers
as satisfactory evidence of the substantial
success of the diggngs. We have not the
exact figures before us, but we believe that
both the Good Hope, which sailed on the
18th, and the Roman, which conveys this
summary have parcels of great value on
board. The Good Hope carries to the value
of e1S, 600, and the Roman to still larger
amount. To our knowledge, considerable
number have not yet been sent home, while
others are carried by their owners, and never
figure in the Customs report.
AS to the other way of estimating the sue
cess of the Fields-namely, the luck which
attends individual diggers, or the digging
community as a whole, in less than two
months the digging population has been in
creased from 500 to 6000, and the cry is, Still
| they come-some on foot; some in spring
carts, well equipped, with food and imple-
ments; others in scrubby vehicles without a
coyer-all making for the new mine of South
| African wealth. A few of the travellers go
alone, with one or two native servants, others
in family parties, and some in small Joint
stock companies. They are of all sorts
and sizes, and all descriptions; some are
clerks some laborers, some tradesmen. Our
readers can judge how many are likely to
be successful among motley, heterogeneous
crowd, pursuing an industry peculiarly un-
certain and involving very hard work. We
believe that companies, properly organized
! with good staff of workmen, are likely to be
| ultimately fortunate, and such are already
being formed with every prospect Of success
The correspondent before alluded to says
cat Daggerboer's Mex l heard good dea
about the great party which started from tina
place some time ago under Captain Frisby
The venture-a joint stock affair-absorbeC
a capital of $4,000. This is business as wei
as a digging party, and good accounts hav
been received of the prospects of the specu
/ Ia