The Wellington enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 1867-188?, 1885-06-03
NO. D..

lies practically beneath the reel Inc
consequence is that round these quarries
regular mining shafts are being sunk,a1d
the blue" Is to be attacked by under
ground work. Good mining judges main
tain that this is the wrong system, mas
much us when the shaft Is sunk no meth
cd of underground mining can secure anC
bring to grass any large proportion OF tho
blue which Is not in veins but bulk. A
truer system would be TO terrace the rec.
sides and always work them rs open mines
or quarries. Thus, as years go by TIT
cost Of getting out these diamonds In
creases steadily; but 1t also 30 happens thai
the price of diamonds has steadily and
greatly fallen The all-round price pei
carat has fallen from e3 to 15s. per carat
At this one cannot be surprised. or old
the world was content to receive each
year an accession OF new dug diamonds Of
about 10000 in value on the average
But suddenly from South Africa comesa
new supply, exceeding R4,000,0 900 worth
each year for 10 years IL is true that re-
Gently In Australia, North America, and
other eXtra-European centres OF European
civilization, new population has come In
being, numbering over 100000, the up
per ten thousand of which are specially
prone TO diamond ornaments, and no doubt
at the first there was q great void TO be
supplied. But now 1t would seem that
the limit had been reached, and the mar
ket is overstocked, and the world as Ii
stands thus supplied seems hardly likely
| to take more than 92000,000 per annum.
The fall In price has, however, already
checked the output as several Of the
smaller mining bodies and also those
working the less profitable mines have
ceased work. IL seems probable also that
| even the larger mines will reduce opera
| tions In the face OF the low prices, and
then as the supply falls off so may prices
again be expected to rise. A diamond Is
pure and unmitigated luxury, and there
| fore there could be no complaint, IL those
who hold monopoly Of the supply chose
to restrict output In order to keep up
prices. IL seems not improbable that a
policy Of this type will shortly animate all
the diamond diggers OF this district.
But this fall In prices Is not only due to
oyerproduction. IL is estimated that 10
per cent. TO 10 per cent. OF the fall is due to
| the sale Of stolen diamonds. These, OF
course, can be and are sold at a very low
price. as their cost Of production usually
means some triting sum paid to q native
laborer for what he can secrete on his per-
| son or by other means smuggle out Of the
| mine. In the early days, when each man
worked for himself, there was no diamond
| stealing, but as 1t grew to be necessary to
work on larger scale and by the aid Of
| hired labor, and as at the same time the
1
tunities for stealing, this crime grew to
be one OF the great curses OF the industry.
| At present at every stage OF the process
| labOrers or employees come across dia-
monds. The men down In the mine,
blasting and picking out the blue, fire.
quently come upon the valued stones: and
as the stuff" Is handled Mt every stage
diamonds show themselves. The natives
posted TO empty the buckets coming up
from the mine watch keenly for what
may CLEAN In the process, and 80 does the
engine driver or mule man who runs the
laden trucks out 10 the floors. And on
these floors the regular gangs, who tin-
load and break 1t up, find many and large
Stones" and SO, right through the pro-
cess, there is ample opportunity at every
turn TO pick up stone which Is sure to be
worth pounds, and may be worth thous-
| ands.
How TO prevent or even TO check this
thleving has taxed the best energies OF
proprietors and police for many years past.
Success has not yet appeared, for with
every new appliance, some new form OF
theft seems TO come into being. There
are endless means actually adopted.
Swallowing the stones Is quite common,
and at one time the thief threw them
wrapped in dough TO dogs, which were
killed and cut open by his confederates
outside. Hiding them about the dress and
pitching them away to be picked up at
night are among the other means From
the commencement the method OF col
lectlng the stones has been rough and
ready rather than careful and complete,
| and TO the stranger there appears TO be
not only every chance but every tempta-
tion for employees TO steal perpetually.
The evils Of this diamond stealing are
far.reachinR. Foremost among them
stands an unnatural lowering Of prices.
The possessor Of the stolen stone has paid
but little for 1t, and although he will nat
urally endeavor to realize as high price
as he can, he nevertheless greatly under
sells the possessor OF stones that have hon.
estly paid alIthe expenses Of production.
II Is estimated that every year from one
fifth to one-sixth Of the stones exported are
stolen, or, In other words, something like
R5OO, 900 worth Of stolen diamonds leaves
the colony annually. At the diggings at
first there was not unnatural laxity in
dealing with this new and prolific wealth,
and the social soil was at the least con-
genial 10 the development of this laxity
Into customs little less than criminal
Nowadays there Is danger that this steal
Ing, with Its necessary complement, the
"illicit diamond buying" rel. ID. B.
trade" as 1t is euphemistically known,
may sap the morality OF the community.
and against this vigorous protest Is now
being made. The mine owners are will
ing to pay large sums 10 stop this Illicit
trade. One mine calculates 10 loses each
year at present 100000 In unnecessarily
deprecated price, and 100000 in value OF
diamonds stolen, or total loss Of G200, 600
In an output Of II ,0O0,0 900, but there seems
ground for hope that this great evil may
be successfully put an end TO.