Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1879-07-11

rough diamond generally loses one.half
its weight by cutting. This depends
upon its form of capitalization and its
freedom from flaws, which are common.
The "Mogul" diamond, the largest
ever found, weighed 1877 carats. 1t was
cut down by dishonest workmen to
weigh only $50 csrats, and the stolen
slabs cut of were worth far more than
the stone. The true worth of the stone.
by the rules of trade, was 500, 900 900.
but it was thus reduced to 81 900 200.
1t is only in the flexible sandstone
that the diamond is found in any coun.
try, because tbs earth's temperature,
when that rock receives it's present
form of capitalization, was necessary to
crystalline carbon.
For five thousand years this rock was
found only in Golconda. But in 1927,
when these old mines were re-worked,
after having been idle for seventy.five
years, they yielded from one thousand
to one thousand six hundred ounces
per year. They are now abandoned.
The mines of Baazil have produced in
the last hundred and forty years two
tons of diamonds, besides the;vast num-
Der stolen. Agassiz thus explains the
long mooted question of the origin of
diamonds: This elastic sandstone, which
is the matrix of the diamond, was one
of the first sediments deposited in
quiet, deep-sea bed, long before the ex-
istence of animal or vegetable life on
the globe. This formation, with the
contemporaneous strata, was upheaved
by volcanic force, and changed to its
present highly crystallized condition;
the carbon was liberated, and, by seq
regation and affinity, crystallized into
the diamond, being in greater or less
size, according to the amount of carbon
within reach of its affinities or power
of attraction. Fcur-fifths of all the dia-
monds found in any country are less
than half a carat. Rarely in all the
yield Of Brazil were found more than
three or four very large diamonds, and
never more than ten that weighed more
than thirty carats. It is a vulgar error
to suppose that to be pure the diamond
must be found deep in the ground.
The use of diamond dust for cutting
and polishing was unknown till 1475.
In this way the artists can now polish
the natural facets, and also create new
ones, and thus increase the brilliancy
of the stone. In Persia alone the dia-
mond is held second to the emerald.
The diamond was not known to the
Greeks or Romans until the Augustan
age. The "Admantine Chains" in
Eschylus' pictures of Prometheus
bound and his iron finger ring prove
the adamas of the early Greeks to have
been nothing but hardened steel. The
Romans never obtained any diamonds
above three carats, by reason of strin-
gent law in India against the exporta-
ton of any over that weight. All over
ten carats reverted to the crown. The
diamond can be broken. 1t is crystal
ized in thin layers, which are cleavable
parallel to the planes of the octohedron,
or eight equal facets. The carat original
ed In the seed of a berry used in the East
Indies in the sale of diamonds, and was
used for several thousand years as the
unit of weight. The rule of lapidaries
for determining the value of perfect
diamonds is to square the weight in
carats, and multiply the product by
$50. the price of one carat. This they
follow until the weight reaches thirty
carats. At that point the price is ar
bitrarily raised to $500 per carat. But
if much under three carsts, the price
is rapidly lowered, and only commands
$40 per carat. The uncrystallized dia-
monds used for pencils, for polishing,
in timepieces and for engraving are
but seventy.five cents to one dollar per
carat.
This is the diamond rule {: A carat,
for convenience, is allowed to be four
grains. If you have first-rate dia.
mond of ten carats it will be computed
thus: 1Ox1O=100x50=$5OO0. If a
diamond of 800 carats it will be 100x100
10. OOOx40O=S4, 600, 900. - Washing
TN Post.