The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1888-08-25
KIMBERLY DIAMOND MINE.
Curious History of q Deposit of
Wealth.

1t has a curious history, this mine,
the pioneer OF the dry diggings," first
called New Rush apd now Kimberly.
says w. P. Pond in brakes Magaajn inc,
A little child playing at ''jackstones,
or some other child's game, drew the
attention of Trader O'Reilly to one OF
the stones. He offered to buy it and
he was offered it for nothing; but be
was conscientious, and, believing it to
be valuable, be finally proposed half
profits if the surmise of value should
prove to be correct. O'Reilly took the
stone to Colesberg and was laughed at
for saying that it was diamond. He
took meIical and spiritual advice from
a doctor and bishop in Grahamstown;
they declared it to be diamond. 1t
was then sent to the colonial secretary,
and was sold to Messrs. Hunt 81 Roskell
for so 500. The tatf er of the boy, Mr..
Nieukerk, then hl nte up a native
witch doctor who l ad famous white
stone, ana gave all p 'ssessed for it,
afterwards selling il to Messrs. Lillien-
ii Id, of HopetoIn, tor $4,000. 1t was
| chriStened the IS r of Africa" and
was sold by them to the Countess of
Dudley.
Then began mad rush to the rivers
where these stones had been found.
Then diamonds were found at Du Toit's
Pan and Bulfontein and finally the
cream Of the diamond region, New
Bush, was struck and the Giggers-at
first pooh pooling the Idea of cry
diggirgs, came with c rush, and
! ri 10 -ll III
only sta 7ed off by the English govern
ment paying down $4,000 to tie rival
! claimants.
When the Kimberly mine was first
started the claims were Jumped in
the majority of cases, but numbers
brought witt them order and eventu-
ally the mine OF dIggeTs-Iocally called
"KCpje s'-Were divided into claims
whish originally were Thirty feet wide
and ten feet long, or thirty feet square,
according TO location. Learning wis
dom from the experience Of other dig
! gingS, & law was passed that 6 strip
seven fact six inches wide should be
! taken from one side OF each claim fer q
road, and the Kimberly mine was the
| first one TO enforce this most necessary
regulation. These roads were twelve
in number, and should have been main
tanned al q mean breadth of fifteen feet,
! but IN q short space of time most OF
them ceased to be two-thirds of that
width. When rich piece Of soil was
struck, the diggerS, careless Of the
future, undermined them, and frequent
landslips took place.
Natives were employed to work in the
claims, and the rudest machinery
imaginable was used to remove the soil
e., ~ ho oil
simply shallow pits, hich had q LARGE
stake driven into the ground at the up
per edge of the pit TO which was at
tached a pulley with rope to draw up
the buckets or bags containing the
diamondifer0us soil for sorting.
AS the mines grew deeper huge cap
STAINS were introduced, which were
worked by horse power and were called
"Whims." AS the work of mining pro-
crossed and capital came to the front, !
steam engines took the place of the old !
"whims," and soon the edge OF the pit |
was one mass of machinery.
Any description of the mine itself |
falls short OF the reality. You peered
over the edge and saw g semi-circie |
hole, crossed and recrossed by banks of |
greater or less height, some appearing |
in the likeness of battlements and tur-
rets, some like cluster of pillars orl
spreading terraces or steps; others gap
ing like great black pits that mightbe
full of stagnant water, while 300 feet
below, almost out of sight, looking like
ants, labored 10000 men in six acres of
ground; a gigantic hive filled with
human bees. the hive resonant with the
claug Of the iron pick on rock or loose
stones, the thud of falling earth, the
splash of water from the pumps, buck
cts rising and falling, pulleys. creak1ng,
ropes strainiDg and groaning, wires
humming, ana through the gigantic |
cobweb of the wires foated the nray
acrid dust rising from thousands OF |
slaves, slowly settliug and filtering back |
into the depths of the mine; while over
head the scorchihgsun beats down with !
burning ,pitiless, vertical rays.