The Morris County chronicle. [volume] (Morristown, N.J.) 1877-1915, 1898-11-25
ALL ABOUT DIAMONDS
IMPORTATION oFTHEM A BARoMETEf
AS TO BUSINESS PROSPERITY

~ ~ S0OttNA-OO Ah0SA ~-'tt
Much of the Supply of the United States
Comes From Great Britain-The Tre-
mendous Business Done in Precious
Stones of All Kinds.
There is an old saying among dia-
mond dealers that by the volume of the
Importation of precious stones from
abroad the condition of business in this
country may be correctly gagged.
When times are good the demand for
diamonds is large; when times are bad,
diamonds, being luxury, are in less
demand and the importation of them
declines. Just now there is a largely
increased demand for diamonds, and
if there be merit in the claim made
in the saying quoted this should be an
other indication of pervasiye good
times. The Treasury bulletin recently
issued in Washingto corroborates dis
tinctly the claim of enlarged importa-
lions of diamonds. Here are the fig
ures for the two years, the two fiscal
years, ending July 1, of 1897 and 1898,
of diamond importations into the
United States; 1897. $1.9S5,S10; 1893,
sc, 955, 789. The increase of importa-
lions of diamonds is however, not the
only one in the line of decorative
jewelry," SO to speak. The importa-
lions for the two years of other pre-
cious stones, rubies. sapphires, emer-
aids, pearls, opals, &C., are as follows
in amount: 1897, s1,57S.7 1888; 1898, 3d.
440,O76.
The two chief foreign ports from
which diamonds are sent to this coun-
try are Amsterdam and Antwerp.
From Great Britain a considerable
amount of jewelry is exported to the
United States, but much of it comes
from England in transit, particularly
from Switzerland, country having
few direct trade relations with the
United States. In the fiscal year of
1894, following the depression caused
by the financial disturbances of that
year, the exports of jewelry to the
United States fell off one-half in
amount. The expectations of French
jewelry fell off two-thirds and from
Holland four-fifths, but the losses sus-
tanned in the amount of the exports
have been more than covered this year,
as the Treasury figures show. The
American port which practically gets
all the jewelry, diamonds, and precious
stones sent into the United States is
New York, the importations into other
American ports being insignificant in
amount, notwithstanding the fact that
a considerable share of the country S
jewelry business is done in New Eng
land, particularly in the city of Provi-
dence. The explanation of the matter
is that New York is the market of sup
ply for the whole country in jewelry
and precious stones, though New York
has only part of the trade in diamond
and precious stone setting.
The largest country of export of IN
cut diamonds to the United States is
Holland, and England follows through
the development of the diamond inter-
6ol0 III A4l1Cds LII tn0 ILL pOl ldt1OuS VI
jewelry and precious stones other than
diamonds, France leads and Holland
follows. The variances in the amount
of business done in diamonds and
precious stones Ga trade peculiarly sus-
ceptible to trade conditions) is shown
in the case of Belgium. In 1894 its
total expectations to the United States
were to the value of $4,000 in dia-
monds, jewelry, and precious stones.
The year before they were $4,000, or
three times as much. The year after
they were 100000, or seven times
greater.
he same assertion which is made
concerning diamonds and precious
stones as trade barometer has been
made assiduously for champagne, the
importations of which are always larg-
est when business is good and small