The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1885-07-29
DIAMOND FIELDS.
THE PROCESS OF MINING AS CON-
QUOTED IN SOUTH AFRICA.
The result Of BOer Girls Discovery
Steady Fall In the Price Of
Diamonds-From @15
Down to 63.75.
fChica1o Tines.1


A letter in The London Times from the
diamond fields gives us some interesting
particulars of the business The discovery
OF these shining gems reminds one OF the
Indian in Brazil who first found one OF
them in the roots of a shrub he had pulled
up and took it home as plaything for bis
children. A Boer girl in 1857 found the
first diamond, also in the roots of tree,
and human nature having its weak side IN
that rude section of the world as well as
in London, Paris. and New York, she
adorned herself with it and made sensa-
ton among the kraals of Boer society. 1t
did not take long for the news to spread.
The great grassy plain where the gem was
found was soon covered with prospectors,
armed with picks and spades, every man
for himself
After the yellow surface soil had been
exhausted q blue soil was found which
was still richer in diamonds. This blue
soil was observed to exist in large circu-
lar deposits which geology soon defined as
the remnants of mud volcanoes A regu-
lar community began to center about the
locality, and the land owners, private in
dividuals, corporations, and even govern
ments commenced squabbling over the
claims, which at last necessitated the Or
ganiZation of companies for mutual de-
tense, and now the whole diamond area
Is worked by these companies with elab-
crate machinery. The manner Of the
working is thus described:
Round each great basin or quarry is a
circle of steam engines working wire-rope
lifts up and down to the bottom of the
quarry; and round the brink run locomo-
tives and trains of trucks whisking the
blue so brought up away to be spread
out like so much manure over the veldt,
and to be taken thence, when duly disin-
tegrated by the weather, broken up by
hand, and narrowed and rolled, to the
washing places where it is all sent by
hydraulic. action through series of
rotatory sieves and pulsators on the prin-
ciple of, in successive mechanical opera
tons, washing away all dirt that is lighter
than diamonds.
"The washers are so arranged that the
outfa1 of each portion is graduated in
size, and falls on series of sorting tables
At these stand five or six of the principal
men-owners and directors of companies
among them spreading out the
the size of pebbles to that of
sand; and the visitor may stand by in
wonder to see the searcher at the one end
pick out his eight or ten big stones per
hour, or assist the searcher at the other
busily sorting out of the sand innumera-
BILE white specks of diamonds. The days
work, tumbled into small snuff boxes.
Wu1lo frequently reach local VaAue OF
1000 pounds sterling.
"NOne can fail to be struck on looking
into one of these great mines or quarries
that the whole of that great mass of earth
and rock has been dug out pulveriZed,
and searched for the diamonds 1t contains
One can look into a quarry of slate or
stone and see the rocks themselves cut
down and carted away for use; but in
these quarries the soil and the rock are
cut out and dug out-and what for?
Simply that out of every 100 tons raised
out of the quarry an ounce weight of dia-
monds may be secured.
The figures attending these operations
are interesting. To dig out these quarries
the labor alone has cost $75, 900, 600 and
the machinery $5,000,O00 and all this
work has been expended in order that
lovely woman shall be made still lovelier
by personal adornment And what has
been the result? The price of diamonds
has steadily fallen until the "all round
price" per carat has dropped from SO to
So Prior to the African discovery
the world had to be contented with an
annual harvest of diamonds worth about
$3.50, 900. Only royalty and the wealthy
aristocracy could afford them. Then
came this wonderful discovery which sup
piled the world for ten years with gems
to the value of $50, 000,0 600 per annum.
The market was soon overstocked and
there was naturally fall in price.