The new North-west. [volume] (Deer Lodge, Mont.) 1869-1897, 1880-03-12
Diamonds Made at Last,

| The annonpcement ontained in a recent
! cable dispatchae aet the successful manufac.
rpre ofnd,anepds BY q Scotch chemist, de-
riyes its grAag Significance from the fact
that MfttMaskely yns, ! whou makes the an
nouncenent, disputed and disapproyed 4
/ simlla n claim made by snother. Scotch chem-
list scarcely more than month ago. Mr..
Mactear, Of Glasgow, decsaredythat be had
succeeded IN making what he called pure
IfcYystalline forms or carbon" which had
lAtke appearance Of diamonds and withstood
mum Der of tests and were believed by
several scientific men to be actual dia-
m0nds. ua7 nv
Curiously enough, about the same time.
bsfal another Scotchman, Mr.. Rbbert Bax-
ter, of Dundee, made subs tanti;llly the
| same claim, but his statement does not APP
pear to have attracted public attention.
MIR. Maskelene, who is MiDeraloeist Of the
British Museum and distinguished ex.
pert, swept away Mr., Mactear's claims by
showing that his I. diamonds - when RIB
bed between two surfaces of sapphire did not
abrade the stones, and could not be ianited
upon foil Of platinum, as would have
Deen the case with real gems. ~ Mr., Mas
kelyne pronounced Mr.. Mactear's produc-
tiou to De o crystallized siiicate. and the
latter, though az first protesting, finally ac-
cepted the conclusion az correct. IL 10 Mr..
Maskelyne who now says there is NO doubl
whatever that Mr.. Hannay, of Glasgow, the
third in this line of Scottish alchemists, has
succeeded in discovering the modern phi
losopher's stone. .s s-..rgF - =
There is possibility which is scare ely a
possibility that the British Museum expert
may have been deceived in some particular,
but it ID not likely that a man OF sci en- tifc
rank would commit himself so thorout rhly
without having been thoroughly conyin eed.
He distinctly states that the two final ests
noted above, which destroyed Mr.. Mactr ars
claim, have established that Of Mr.. n ani ,ay.
The new diamonds score deep qrot ,ves
in the polished surfaces OF sapphres and
ignite on foil Of platinum. The pro cess
OF their manufecture is shortly TO be re-
vealed TO the Isoyal Society, when doubt less
the whole world will know 1t. The dis .ov-
erer is plairiy compelled co take this
course, in order to prove his truthfup ess,
and he Is thus shut off from the pros pect
of pecnniary profit, If he desired it. l { is
needless to say that the disclosure will be
awaited with intense interest everywh ere.
The utmost effort Of science has ne yer
succeeded in revealing or even indicating
the process by which Nature manufactures
thtsV otObCbs duu lDT Cucmtb
70 anticipate Nature, as IL were, will b.
marvellous episode In the history of scien ce
Those who are inclined to be wholly incr,d
ulous should remember the scientific mira.
cles that have been performed in recent
years-the liquofaction of hydrogen aiad I
oxygen. the transmission OF sound by the
telephone, the reproduction of sound by the
photograph, etc. Ii may still be found \
tEat success IN diamond making has not
been reached, but 1t Is ly no means impos-
sible and it has long bcen sought, Ir is
nearly two centuries since the academicians
OF Florence reduced the diamond to car
bon, and mems minds have been busy
much of that time with attempts TO reverse
the process and bring back the diamond
from the carbon. 4H 70 ftR "a sTy ~
But artificial diamonds are not likely to |
be anything more than scientific curiositIes. 4
The owners OF jewels may comfort them
selves with that hope. Nothing is said III |
the dispatches of the size of the artificial |
stones, but 1t IL not probable that they i
were large enough 20 have any commercial |
value The Mactsar diamcndS we're only one |
thirtysecond part b 40 inch lin diameter
Dr. Percy, k1earned man, writing to the 7
London papers during the excitement
caused by the supposed discoveries Of Mac
tear, expressed his belief that diamonds
would be one day made by the chemists,
but at the same time showed strong doubts
whether they would ever find place among
he sapphire and ruby, was long ago crys-
allied, but sapphires are not mauufactur-
ID. Tho ballas ruby, as DR.. Percy showed. /
was artifcially made by German chemist
iorty years ago, but rubies are not manu-
actured. The Hannay diamonds may be
,f use In the arts, but that they will ever
yhtter on the brow Of beauty may safely
10 considered as doubtful indeed - Y. 4
ffi bnne.. " af 49, II