Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1892-08-13

produced, hollow like bottle, With . twisted
leaf stuck in the end for q cork, out Of which
the master Of the house ratified . number of
small diamonds into the palm Of his hand.
Sometimes the stones were not diamonds at all,
only pretty bits Of quartz, and always the
owners wanted more for each tiny gem than
would be asked for much larger and better cut
diamonds in Paris, London or New York.
Though Of purest water Brazilian diamonds are
uniformly small % compared with those Of
India.
Anew LARGE DIAMONDS FOUND.
To be sure, few very large ones
have been found, notably the Estfells
do Sui, Star Of the South" which
figured at the Paris exposition in 1856 as
rival to the celebrated Koh-i-nOor e Mountain
Of Light, which had produced such a sensa-
ton at the first London exhibition few years
before, and the three immense stones which
now blaze in the crown of Portugal, one weigh
ing 251 carats, another an ounce troy and the
third 40 carats; but these are rare exceptions.
I went to visit the principal mine, if such it
can be called. from which the greatest number
Of stones in this locality has been taken. 1t il
about three miles from the village and looks
like a common gravel pit dug out Of the side Of
hill Presently, however, when the eye had
time to take in the details and surroundings,
one recognized that it had been and was still
something more. Here and there on the level
bottom Of the pit we're little heaps Of un-
washed gravel, and outside were larger mounds
of white, washed-out-loOking dirt. the refuse Of
the washings. On one side was a rude con-
duit. made out of split and followed palms,
which brought q little stream from the river
down to dilapidated trough at the entrance Of
the pit. The diggings were backed by wooded
hill and glance showed why the workings did
not pan ont any longer as of yore.
1t seems that the diamond-bearing strata,
lying in various thin beds of gravel, run nearly
on level, straight into the sloping hillside;
consequently with every yard that has been
worked the strata lay deeper and deeper below
the surface. Therefore if. as it appears, the
diamonds exist in thin. horizontal layers of
gravel, one above another-to what depth no
body knows-separated by other LAYERS of
gravel of different composition. ii is reasonable
to believe that proper machinery in intelligent
hands would unearth a greater quantity OF
precious stones than has ever yet Teen seen in
Brazil.
WHAT SWISS MINER SAYS.
From Swiss miner who lately returned to
BON Jesus from a diamond-h hunting expedition
along the distant southwestern branches Of the
Rio Sac Francisco, I have gained much i'm
pOrtant information. He brought over the re-
suit of his eighteen months labor to show us
small sack of diamonds, perhaps two quarts
in all, which he estimates to be worth some
where in the neighborhood of goo. 900. quite
sufficient. he says, to set him up for life in
fatherisnd This successful gentleman tells us
in Bahia province, the provinces of Matte
Crosse and Minas Geraes have subsequently
yielded much greater and richer returns In all
the diamond districts the geological formation
IL about the same. 'formacao dimante" being
the name given i'll Brazil to the various minerals
thatare found accompanying diamonds, whether
they exist in the beds or shores of rivers or
desert plains, or high up among the hills.
There are few places. such the Sierra da
Sac Antonio and the Mato do Corda. where
diamonds have been found Imbedded in rocks,
away up In the mountains, and the very richest
formation Vet known-a hard eonglomerate-
often lies upon beds Of marble. The names
which the natives give to the different sub
stances do not always SYNDICATE similar materials.
For example. what is known as ismiril is always
found at the bottom of the gold washers pan.
mixed with the grains of gold; it is also seen in
auriferous and diamondiferous sand banks, in
the form of variously shaped black crystallized
grains, and may be either small pieces of tour
maline or pure iron, or strips Of iron stone,
tantalate or iron pyrites, or platfna, paladiam
or iridium. The various other constituents of
the formation are known as cascalho, meaning
ferrnginous clay, quartz pebbles: sand and
fragments OF oxide Of iron, mixed with par
ticles OF topaz, garnets. jasper, felspar,
gold, &c.
SOME CELEBRATED WORKINGS.
In the adjacent province of Minas Geraes the
most celebrated workings are along the rivers
Abaete and Parafora and few smaller streams,
such as the Somno, Bsrraehudo and Indaia.
In San Paulo province they occur at intervals
all the way from Franco to Parana, especially
along the Rio Tibagy. Other regions are
known to be diamOndiferous which have never
been extensively worked, and there are vast
territories wholly unexplored wherein the
geological formation is certainly favorable to
the existence of those gems. On the Rio
Adaete-where in 1871 that celebrated diamond
which is the pride Of the Portuguese crown WAS
found by three exiled criminals who gave il to
the government and received therefor pardon
for their crimes and restitution to the right of
citizenship the present workings are con-
timed in the same old way. A few laborers,
called garimperos. are hired now and then to
dive in the deep water of the river. There il
not sich thing o. a diving suit in all the
country. They carry down small scoops, with
which they hastily pitch gravel from the river
bed into pals and buckets, which are lowered
be expected from such a crude system, the
prizes are few and rare, vet it must pay or il
would not be continued in q country where
cent Per cent is considered hardlya satisfactory
profit
STORIES OF FLUSH TINES.
Stories are told hereabouts Of hush times
when the diamond mines were new which
eclipse those Of the palmiest days Of gold dig
ging in California 1t is said that Donna
Maria Machado. wife OF the original owner Of
the Bonn Jesus fields, received present from o
friend IN Bahia Of a certain slave whom she had
long coveted. and in return the grateful dame
sent a half-pint cup full Of diamonds As the
market then stood the slave was worth perhaps
$50. and as for the value of the diamonds
quien sabe? An old woman, working on her
own account in some gravel which the miners
had abandoned. found stone Of pursst water
weighing an ottawa and a half. which she ex-
changed fora house worth about $500. An
ottawa 10 equal to q little more than seventeen
carsts. and the diamond was afterward sold for
81, 900
There is tradition of priest who came to
BON Jesus IN the first great rush and did no
digging himself, but never ceased to exhort his
/ flock that caruel treasures are porilous to the
souls welfare, and who therefore magnani-
mously offered TO relieve them of all suchd angkr
by assuming the burden himself. There was
no near market for the diamonds. and 20 for
| the good OF their souls he bought them all him
self. at the rate Of sl0 per. quarter OTTAWA for
| stones great and small By ordinary rules Of
/ calculating the value of such gems a stone OF
| pure water weighing in the rough one-quarter
OTTAWA would be worth not lees than e250 and
often good deal more. In few months the
good friar grew 50 rich, just about the tine il
began to dawn upon his paris hioners that they
were being victimizsd, THAI he skipped" one
night from the scene Of his labors, Forgetting
his priestly stole.
| THE LARGEST COLLECTION.
/ The largest collection of diamonds that I