New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1890-07-07
ARTIFICIAL PRECIOUS STONES.
TO BE WORN By WHOLE POPULATIONS.
Erom Tic London Spectator

TO BE WORN Bl WHOLE POPULATIONS.
From Tic London Spectator.
We wonder if Mr. Charles Bryant. whom we
assume 70 hc the wcl-knOwn mineralogist and
jcwellcr Is quite confident as in his letter, pub
hshcd in Mondays Standard, lie prOclalns him
SELF so be. However sincere he may wish TO be,
should doubt IL a little IL vas recently an
nOunccd, as most Of our readers VIII nave seen,
that Mr.. Grcvl,c Williams had actually made real
cmeralds out Of the refuse of gas Ietort, ana
could, IL he thought il worth while. make OtheI
gCmS-not limitations be it understood but the real
Mticlc-with all the qualities by when cApeie
usually test the genuincncss OF precious stones
That was rather shock 10 the buyers OF emeTalds,
and accordingly Mr.. DIyant steps forward I" say
that the process costs a great deal more thah d
stone purchased from lewcler would, ana that
experiments of the kind have during t!c 3lcalci
mart of This century been occasionally successful
A. long ago as S37. Gaudln, the chemist produce"
artificial rubes; sapphlTcs have been made re-
pcacdly; the spinel rloI mas pe'u rNo.Ncm ~
SUCH perfection - TO deceive TIC most experience
BUYERS: while even diamonds Lave bcch lnal"i''~
uicd-if that u the rehi wOrd-thongh IN sizes 100
small t. he of any practical value In commerce NV
erthclcss the market FOL precious stones has never
hccn affected. and II viii not BE- MI. brN'ib
thinks. by Mr.. Grevile Nilliams's very interest," I
inc experiments. That is true. and VIII dou1'-
less be comforting 70 lcwco"ncrS: DHt rs MI
Bryant is much too clever q man not 10 perceive
il does not quite cover the whoF cas-. ,
Mr.. Williams may not hive splNel Inc Eieu prop-
lem which is Of course To produce precious stones
hv artificial means nt a profitable rate but surely
every successful cNpcrnnent IS s'eP do' ""iJ
toward the realization of the IDEAL Inc "Sual
course of invention is for the man OF science 10
discover q method, FOR the practical chemist or
mechancian 10 apply il. and for me frazer ~
Gradual pressure 10 secure any necdful reductions
in the cost and we do not Know any Ici S,
why precious stones should escape the Jaw WIFI
is at this moment. II We may WileNc pipsPcc'u -
onerotnq i'm the case of the rarer metals. such a.
osmium With all respect for w Bryant. we
should say, Judging merely as ontslue opseI w.
that the danger to ievcl-owners, though n0' press
ing was both real and considerable ana Una,
bad quarter of an hour was for them quite Wi,hlh
the limits of possibility Ihfy may Suig make
more fuss. They have rather a serious s,akc
in the matter too No one, not even VII. bIH "n W.
would venture to offer a serious estlm2te OF IIl1
yalue of all the precious stones in Europe ana
Amcrica-we purposcN exclude the enormous
quantities scattered over ASA the pucke's 81
Jewels for instance. known TO be IN tIe possv>SIi
Of the Shah-but guessing ny the Nm u , .,,o
diamond statistics, hundred millions SFI-
ling would be 100 low nG"re ro w
assume That is large mass OF prop
ertv and great chemist who happenfH 10
understand minealogy. and devoted nllsrll lo'
n few wears to the manufacture of precious stones
might some fine morning run It's Naide GOWN 70
quite unexpected degree lie would IVY, we u'iG
say 10 keep his processes secret, ana Woulu MN
himself of the patent laws; but TINS Is the hlLe-
teenth century. nothing remains seciC! Ion4' p't
cnts do not last forever, ana the cost even VI
premature panic in the level narkeo W .2d tiot
Icprcscntcd by millions We may nc to'G i"nu
such discovery is impossible even by an tiison
of mincralogy, bat we should ike 10 kho" IoIc
precisely why. The constituents Of every PlGSlohS
are and the Syriter in The standard, who
points to the difficulty of asoertaininG the e34c.
proportions in which such constituents ShoNiu ~
used. undertakes the patience OF scientlhc anas,S
II ,bav were al work on the subject with great
object and with Tie sort OF passion VIZ Mhn,m
electricians and mechanicians are no" WORSHIP
70 overcome the last difficulties IN the way OF IN"
electric motor, they would find the night
formulas soon enough. Mr. r., M'ie3 l-1.r h'S
found them, according 70 The Ht"hderH,
for making emcradS. and there Is no'hlng
10 make the manufacture o. emeTnIHs NOR us
than that of other stones he 9nIy aG,dre .s'1oA
wanted is transccndent heat. ana the chenns's ana
c,cctricoris between them are now, we fancy IN
fun possession OF the means OF producing 'ha''
we bow 10 experts at all times on their own SUD
;ac,s but II is not clear to the lay mind why. as
Ycwels are already made. they should not e maoc
in quantities. or why the processes snould nc ~
enormously costly as they are lnVariablY. ana 10
our minds rather too eagerly. represented 10 DC;
Wherein lies this element OF lno1dlnale cVs' II
the process is once so we'll known that ordlhaIA
manufacturing chemists can venture 10 a''emPv
II We are inclined to think that the great
obstacle is not that but the idea mat the MANU-
fncture of any precious stone must ne useeSS, ne
cause if il could bc manufactured readily, us
yalue would disappear. Nobody, II IS supposed
would want made cmcralds. any more than 'heE
would want those often really wonderful lmlta,
lions which sometimes preplcX even EXPERIENCED
Jewellers Now is that fancy quite well founded
No possible of manufacture can make an
eternal dew'lrop Other than heaHtiinl or t axe
fbe strange flash Of the opal so utterly unlike
ANYTHING else that Nature has produced. lBy the
the reference 10 the opal may pc 4St''H',
for the beauty of that Jewel, being the result OF
Natures failure. and not of her snccess-for she
can hardly have intended those hlatuses wmch
,,ield the iridescence-may he wholly beyond even
Tho ahest CHEMISTS art The taste for Jewels
would be universal, if only the people ever
tLought Of them as possibly procurablc: and II
they sank heavily in price. they would he UNI,
versally worn, as, indeed, the cheaper lcwes ana
tie limitations are already. What would happen
believe h, sAFf S rich w S%f Ss s3S
Them in their present form. which tends
more and more 70 q costly simplicity-the
stones being as il were. barred Of all other
ornament-and that whole populations would
toLe them M thus constituting them once more
a Great article Of commerce Every woman above
The poorcst would use the stones for ornament III
Is birmingham icwelry that would die; not th
real article The rich, moreover, would DEFEND
tTcmselves by calling art to their aid, and We
should see not only a wonderful improvement III
goldsn,itbs' work. now often dcYold OF even q
nretence of art feeling. but a sudden and splendid
roN-;val Of the art of the gem cngraver, now so
nearly dead The ruby collar Of the marchioness
would be almost as costly as ever, as a trluinp9
of design and workmanshp-cNen SOCIALISTS couln
bordlv make the first designer in Europe use his
,;t, Y,itb n willing heart for pound week-while
diamonds would become with the women OF uic
neople what pearls used 10 be IN some paris OF
ItoIr ornaments with which it was almost in
dec6rous certainly quite bad form, on mgh 0c-
oasinnS 70 disppnSc The Jewel trade would he
daetrn,ed os il is and all iewel-owncrs would
tecI ms if tbcv had bought Irish land or the bonds
~ repudiatinQ State; but there would pc a ne"
;evel trade embracing entire populatonso tIaIn
y;oonio wouId he too wise for such folly? That
is not quite so certain