The clarion. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1883-1888, 1885-06-10
DIAMOND FIELDS.
THE PROCESS OF MINING AS con-
QUOTED IN SOUTH AFRICA.
The Result Of a Boer Girls Discovery
Steady Fall in the Price OF
Diamond Prom SIS
Down TO $50.


Chicago Times
\ letter IN he London Times from The
1 diamond fields gives US some interesting
I particulars OF the business The iiscoverY
/ OF these shining gems reminds one of The
InGian IN Brazil who first found one of
thehl the roots OF shrub BE had pulled
2 up and took II home as a playthinr Tor his
+ children \ Boer grl ia 1867 found the
hrsi diamond. also IN the roots of a tree.
and human nature having It's weak side ia
{ that rude section OF the world as Well as
/ IN London, Paris, and New York. She
I adorned herself with it aud made a sensa.
/ ton among the kraals of Boer society. II
( did not take long for the news to spread
{ he great grassy plain where the gem was
( found was soon covered with prospectors.
armed viii picks and spades, every man
for himself
After the yellow surface soil had been
exhausted blue soil was found which
was still richer in diamonds This blue
soil was observed 10 exist in large circn.
lar deposits which geology soon defined as
the remnants OF mud volcanoes. 4 rccu-
lar community began to center about the
/ locality, and the landowners. private in
dividualS corporations and even govern
meniS commenced squahbling over the
CLAIMS. which az last neCessitated the or
gam allon OF companies for mutual de-
tense and now the whole diamond area
Is worked by these companies with eab-
orate machinery. The manner of the
working IS thus described
Round each great basin or quarry is a
circle of steam engines working wire rope
Tits up aud down ta the bottom of the
quarry, and round the brink run locomo.
yves and trains Of trucks whiskinr the
'oiue So brought up away to he spread
out Ike so much manure over the veldt
and TO be taken thence when duly disiu-
tegTated by the weather. broken up by
hand and narrowed and rolled. TO the
Washing places where II is all sent by
hydraulic action through a series of
rotatory siegeS and pulsators on the prin-
cip.e OF, IN successive mechanical opera
tions, washing away ali dirt that is lighter
than diamonds.
90 he washers are so arranged that tn
outtau of each portion IS graduated in
size, and falls on q series of sorting tables
NJ these stand five or six of the principal
men-owner> and directors of companies
among them spreading out the
clean washed stud graduated from
the size of pebbles 10 that of
sand, aud the visitor may stand by in
wonder 10 see the searcher at the one end
pick out his eight or ten big stones per
hour. or ASST the searchcr at the other
ousliy sorting out OF the sand innumera
Die white spcCks of diamonds The DAYS
work, tum0led into small snuff boxes.
while frequently reach local value OF
LOCO pounds sterling
D." None can fail to be struck on looking
INTO one of these great mines or Quarries
That iiIe whole of that great mass of earth
and rock has been dug out. pulverizcd.
and searched for the diamonds il 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 arc
cut out and dug out-and what forr
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 S75 000. 600 and
the machiUery $1,000 600, aud all this
work has been expended in order that
lovely woman shall be made still lovelier
by personal adornment And what has
been the resultr The price of diamonds
has steadily fallen until the "all round
price per carat has dropped from $15 to
81. % Prior TO the African discovery
the world had to be contented with an
annual harvest of diamonds worth about
$3.50, 600 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 $50 600 GOO per annum.
he market was soon oversjocked and
there was naturally a fall in uriCp