The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1892-10-02
IN THE PARIS GEM MARKET.

Connoisseurs Whose Memory for Jewels
Almost Passes Relief.
On the second floor OF n cafe in the Boule-
yard Montmartre, in Paris, the market or
bourse of precious stones is held. always in
broad daylight. Very few strangers to tho
trade oan penetrate this sanctuary. not be-
cause the access to it is difficult. for tho
door is always open, but because the port
folios close and the stars disappear the
moment an unknown face appears at the
threshold. Instead of animated tradera tho
stranger finds only n faw men carelessly
playing a game of bezique. All, but there
is a Turk there. too; the Turk who looks so
much like Couderc of the Opera Comique.
except that he ia yellow and wears very
loose trousers. Bnt these trousers are full
of diamonds. Don't believe for a moment
that these dealers in precious stones are
afraid of robbers. That ia the smallest
thing that bothers them. What they dread
is to let the small jewelers. know the real
value of their goods.
AS soon as the stranger departs the arms
stretch out and the portfolios reappear.
The greater number of these portfolios are
made of tin and are closed with q look and
key. In a moment the tables are covered
with little bundles of white paper formed
like those in which the druggists put rhu-
barb or gulphate of magneaia. These pack
ages are opened, and in less time than il
takes to tell it the tables, including the
billiard table, are covered with precious
stones which miRht atartle the shah of
Persia. A strange spectacle is presented by
those sordid old men quietly taking from
their pockets many Thousand dollars worth
of gems. Each one OF perhaps 10000 pack
ages contains a large number of br%ilIiants.
After they are disposed of the rare stones
are introduced. Here, then, are sapphires
as big az nuts. There lies a black diamond
almost as large as the twelve pearls that
surround it. Here, again, ia a necklace
made of fifteen emeralds that would make
az many snuff boxes.
Here is a rare bargain" shouts one of
the merchants. lone of the finest pieces of
ancient jewelry known IL is a necklace
that belonged to Madame la Princess Cue
menes. Mounting. diamonds ami all are an,
Gent. Prince Proisetoiloff refused 5000
frs. for it twenty years ago" The necklace
is passed from hand to hand. The mer-
chants gaze at it with attention. The eve
glasses come into play. Indecision and
doubt are painted upon some faces. At last
the necklace is passed to Michel. He ia the
great judge. He takes 1t. weighs it in his
hand. looks at it with an Indifferent air.
and says:
"The two briliiants are ancient. They
come, with their mounting, from the Count
ess de Prejean. The two others, still finer,
once formed part of a necklace which was
stolen In Venice in 1904 from Mime. Moro
SIM. This necklace belonged later to Lady
Temple, whose husband purchased it at
Candahar of Isaac Lieven. Lady Temple
gave it to her daughter, who sold it three
days after her marriage. As for the sap
phire in the center, that comes from the
sale of Mile. Schneider. The rest is new
and comes direct from Hamburg. But,
after all, it is well preserved, and 1000 frs.
does not seem to be TOO much for it,"
As extraordinary as it may appear, there
are now living five or ak individuals who
know most of the costly diamonds and rich
jewels in the world, and they are able to
recognize them after q lapse of thirty years,
even when shey had first seen them only a
moment, as certainly as a tailor would re-
cognize at thirty PAGES the customer who
forgot to pay him. When a burglary is
committed in the house of q we'll known
jeweler, which often happens in Paris, LON
don, Vienna and st. Petersburg, if there is
among the objects stolen q stone of mora
than ordinary value it is almost sure to be
found and returned to the owner.