, 1888-01-27
FIRST WATER" DIAMONDS.

What the Term in
Quality and Value.
The term "first water is varied in
meaning according to the class of goods
carried by thed dealer using it. 1t is now.
however, intended to refer to a diamond
hat is absolutely FREQ from all trace of
color, blemish, flaws OF other imper-
fections, and whose brilliancy is perfect.
1t Is almost impossible to value n diamond
by its weight. Color, brilliancy, cutting
Ii the general character and perfection
OF the stone are all to be taken into ac-
count. Of two stones, both nawless and
OF the same weight, one may be worth
5000 n the other S12, 900. E~xceptional
stones often bring fancy prices, whereas
oil colored stones sell for from $50 to
S1OO a carat, regardless of size. The
poorer qualities have deprecated SO much
that some are worth only one-tenth to
one-quarter of what they were twenty
years ago. This is especially true of LARGE
stone of the second or third quality. AS
an instance of the depreciation of colored
tones we remember the famous Dewey
diamond, found near Manchester. Va. in
1856, on which the late John Morrissey
loancd SO, 000. This stone weighed eleven
carats after cutting, but it would scarcely
bring as many hundreds today, except
for associations.
To be really fine, a diamond should be
cut neither too deep nor too shallow
(spread, as it is termed), but should be
automatically perfect in its proportions.
a dealer usually buys either a deep or a
spread stone for as much less than the
price of the perfect stone which can be
cut from it as will pay the expenses and
the risk of recruiting. Fol example, a
three carat spread or deep stone may furn-
lsh only a two and q quarter carat stone
OF perfect shape, and is, therefore, worth
the price of the latter, less the risk and
cost CT recutting, and not as much. or
more than q three carat, simply because
1t spreads over more surface. Very often
Brazilian gems, the very finest as re-
CARDS purity, and brilliancy and perfec-
ton of cutting, yet containing some al
most microscopic carbonaceous fragment
or some slight flaw, may be rejected by a
person who wishes absolute perfection:
but this same person may select a stone
that, though perfect in every way, lacks
that essential feature of q fine diamond.
brilliancy, and is almost lustreless when
compared with the stone that he had re-
jected.
There are as many different qualities in
diamonds as in horses. Diamonds NAV
be round, o~val-oblong, rounded squares
or square; the cuttings may be mathe-
matlcally correct, fine, fair or Door. A
diamond may be of the proper depth or
it may be too deep; it may be shallow or
spread; it may be perfect; it may be
slightly flawed, contain black spots, be
brilliant or medium brilliant. Its color
may be pure white, milky, steel blue or
it may be off color, tinted or bye-water;
in fact, there can be many hundreds of
differences in q n carat stone.
AS Jefferies, the diamond dealer and
authority, said in 1870, the fine diamond
should be as clear as pure rock water,
perfect in shape, and no only pure white,
but lively, showing fire, as it is called.
Any undecided tint Of brown, yellow,
gray or other color is a positive blemish.
But when the tint is decided, as blue,
pink or green, in which case the colorJ
are called fancy" they are held in high
estimation.-New York Mail and Elk
DrpSS.