Nebraska advertiser. [volume] (Brownville, Nemaha County, N.T. [Neb.]) 1856-1882, 1870-01-06

It seems, says the n. Y. Sun as
thOngh after a lapse of three centu-
ries, Sir Walter Raleigh's dreams of
an FL Dorado were about to be real
lied.
The other day we published an ac-
count of marvellous discoveries of
diamonds i'm South Africa. They had
been found for miles along the banks
of the Orange and the Vaal rivers.
They were not only abundant, but
they were many Of them of great size.
Some were found of the pandaloque
shape and of the first water, weighing
upward of eighty carats; others of the
octahedrOn, or four-pOinted, that
weighed thirty carats; and of the
smaller varieties immense numbers
had been picked up on surface of the
ground. Naturally, South Africa was
in feIment. Elephants tusks were
forgotten, and every one was hunting
for precious stones. The infection
had even extended to this city, and
DR.. Hail was organizing a colony to
90 diamOnd-gathering. But now
come reports from Australia of discov-
cries there which far eclipse those in
South Africa.t kilograms have come
flying from the Australian mines to
England big enough to make the dia-
mond merchants hold their breath
with astOnishment. The glitteTing
stones have been picked up in such
quantities that, says the London
Times i'm a leading article on the sub
iect, "the colOnists are all dreaming
of precious stones. At every table
and in every railway carriage the talk
is of diamonds and rubies' Opals and
emeralds, pearls and topazes, and peO-
pie of all ranks are rushing to the
mines. Genuine diamonds are on
sale by women and children at every
cottage, and there can hardly be a
mistake, we should think, about the
nature of the stones"
This is marvellous enough in all
concience, but this is not half the
story the rest of it smacks of the
Arabian Nights Entertainments, and
Sindbad the Sailors adventures in
the great diamond valley to which he
flew on the back of a mighty bird.
And this latter and wonderful half we
must preface with the statement, IA
miliar doubtless to many of our read
ers, that the increase in value of the
diamond is vastly greater in proper
ton than its increase in weight. A
stone weighing one carat, for instance,
might be worth fifty dollars; but one
weighing five carats would be worth
two thousand. Imagine, then, the
value of one as big as a lemon, and
weighing three-quaters of a pound.
Such a one is said to have been found
in Australia. Its discovery has been
telegraphed to England. 1t was
placed in the hands of a trustworthy
man. He was surrounded by strong
Gordon military, and was marched in
this way from the mines to Sydney,
where the magnificent gem was de-
posted in the mint. The stone has
not vet been thoroughly tested. Ge-
OlOgists are at work upon it now but
if really proves to be what is sup
posed, its value will be almost fabu-
ious. Its weight is 500 carats. The
great English diamond, that pride OF
the British Empire, the Koh-i-nOor,
weighs but 1876 carats, and its cOmpu-
ted value is ten millions in gold. The
value of the stone just found if COM
puted by the tables in use, would be a
hundred millions in gold. But oi
course, this valne would in any event
be imaginary, since no purchaser
could be found with a hundred mil
lions to spare for a diamond, even ifit
was as big as q lemon.