Clinch Valley news. [volume] (Jeffersonville, Va.) 18??-2019, 1894-06-29
AMERICAN GEMS.
MANY PRECIOUs STONES FOUND
IN THIS COUNTRY.
Mines Recently Opencd-Diggingf for
Encralds and Turquofses in Va
rious Localities-Ken-
lucky Garnets.
! EARLY all tho known varic.

ing Tor precious stones was carried on
i'll two States. In 1893 the industry
had widened to embrace the mining of
tourmaline in Maine, emernlds in
North Carolina, turquoises in New
Mexico, sapphires in Montana and
opnls i'll Washington, Idaho and Ore
gon. Otherwise gems are found acci-
dentally i'll connection with other sub
stances TINT nre being mined. They
hrc often gathered on the surface, MS is
the case with garnet and Divine in
Arizona and New Mexico; or in sluic-
ing for gold, as with the sapphires of
Montana; or in connection with mica
mining, M the beryl of Connecticut
md North Carolina.
Diamonds, whenever found in the
United Suites, have always been come
upon by accident. All the gems of
this variety thus far discovered here
would not fill the bottom of n coffee
cup, and their aggregate value would
not he more than $4,000. Two of the
largest diamonds found in the United
States are i'll this city, one from Ore
gon, Wis, which weighs 81 carats, tho
other from North Carolina.
Some of tho American precious
stones are of fine quality, the tourma-
line of Maine, for instance.
Many diamonds have been found in
cldcntnlly to the search for gold in
California. They occur there not I'M
commonly IN the aurifcrous gravels.
Doubtless many thousands of them
have been destroyed unintcntionally
Ill the stamp mills. These gems have
often been picked from the sluces
md fumes. The first discovery of
diamonds i'll that State goes back to
the early gold seeking days of 1850.
AS far back MS 1854 attention was
called to the similarity of the Cnlifor-
MIA grnvcls to tho diamond. bearing
grnvcls of Brazil. A few small stones
have been picked up in Idaho, in
placcr diggings, but the excitement
awakened by them hns been followed
by no substantial results. A small
diamond field has lately been found in
Pierce County, Wis. 1t has yielded
one gem weighing threc-fourths of
carat, as well rs many little ones.
Mining for sapphires was begun in
1870 Mt Franklin, n. G. Quitea num-
Der OF line stones weighing over one
carat each, true blue and violet blue.
were taken out, MS well MS several ex-
cellcnt rubics. The work was STONED
by the panic of 1873, but has been
resumed recently. In Montana these
stones are found along the Missouri
River on several bars, the richness of
which has given them the names of
Emerald bar, French bar, Eldorado
bar and Ruby bar. These bars were
worked for gold many yeas ago, but
the gem material was not sought TO
any extent, because of the cost of cut
ting chiefly. Two years ago these
bars were bought up by M English
company calling itself the Ruby and
sapphire Mining Company, which has
since obtained large number of
stones. Some of them have been cut
and exhibited in London.
The turquoise mines of Mexico,
worked ancicntly by the Indians of
that region, are now operated scien
tliically by two companies and are
Welding material equal to the finest
Persian turquoise. 1t retains its color
quite MS well, not changing within n
short time, us does tho Egyptian tur
quoise. Stones have been found
weighing mp to sixty carats each, one
OF which was sold for $1,000. Tt is
now possible for the first time in the
last fifty years to match perfect tur-
quoise necklace
Topaz occurs in many of the
States. The most brilliant and bennti-
inl crystals are from Thomas Noun
tain, Utnh-nn isolntcd and arid e,e-
walton about six miles long. These
nre always white, nil color having
been removed from them by exposure
to sunlight They are also very
brilliant. AT Devils Head Mountain,
thirty miles north of Pixies Peak.
topaz is found in loose crystals among
smoky quartz. 1t is mostly cherry
color, though some of the crystals are
wine yellow and milky blue. From
this locality about $4,000 worth of this
kind of precious stone has been OBJ
tanned and sold. Among the CRYSTALS
secured were two cherry-colored gems
weighing 1875 and 1913 carats.
Many beautiful crystals of emerald
nave peen found mt Stony Point, n. c.
They are dug ont of pockets in the
rock Mt considerable distance be-
meath the surface of the ground. The
output of that locality up to date has
amounted to about SIS, 600. No gem
obtained has been sold for over 500,
but some of the crystals secured have
measured as much rs eight inches in
length and have weighed ten ounces
The emerald, of course, is n kind of
beryl Crystals of beryl weighing up
to 1900 pounds have been dug up in
New Hampshire. They were value
less as gems. AT a mica mine near
Litchfield. Conn, about SIT, 900 worth
beryls have been obtained and sold
during the last seven years, being cut
into green, white and yellow gems.
The last are termed ''golden beryls. -
Precious garnets are found in New
Mexico, Arizona, Southern Colorado
md Utah. They are often miscalled
''rubies." On the Navajo Reserva-