The people's journal. (Pickens, S.C.) 1891-1903, 1899-10-12
GOLD IN SOUTH AFRICA,
Enormous Production in tho Last
Ten Hears--Thc Diamond Mines
and Other IMMORAL Deposits.

Ten Years---Thc Diamond Minor
and Other IMMORAL Deposits.
The mining Interests of Africa
especially tho wonderful gold and
diamond mines which have attracted
so much attention, are the subject OF
a chapter In tho monograph just pre-
pared by the treasury bureau OF statis-
tics on commercial Africa in 1899
Much Of tho rccant rapid development
OF Africa, especially In tho southern
part, whore tho greatest rapidity Of
development has occurred, Is due to
tho discovery and development of OK
,b,rremely valuable mineral deposits
| Inc most valuable of these arc gold
and diamonds, though incidentally it
may DC mentioned that tho iron, coal
anu other mineral deposits Of South
ihd southeast Africa give promise Of
great value when wcalth-seeking man
ns's time to turn his attention from
Inc gold mines to those which promise
less rapid, but perhaps equally cor
tain profits.
That tho gold and diamond mines of
south AlricW havc buen, and still arc,
wonderfully proiitablr however, is be.
yond question. The Kimberley dia-
mona mNncs, says The ST. Louis Re-
pubic, which AFRO located in British
territory, just outside tho boundaries
OF tho Orange l'rcC State and about
600 mites from Cape Town, now supply
Us per cent. OF the diamonds Of com
mcrcc, although their existence was
unknown prior to 1867, and tho mines
nave thus bccn in operation but about
thirty years.
1t Is estimated that $3.50, OO0, 900
worth OF rough diamonds, worth double |
thhC SUM alter cutting, have been pro-
uuced from the Klnhorlcy mines since |
lhcr opening in 1869, and this cuOr- |
nous production would have boon |
greatly Increased but for tho fact that |
the owners Of the various minus in |
TINS city formed an aErCnmunt Dy |
which the annual output was 50 |
ilmltcd MS TO meet but not materially |
exceed, tho annual consumption Of the |
worlds diamond markets. So plcnti- |
ul Is the supply, and 50 comparatively |
inexpensive the work OF production, |
th"t diamond digging in other parts OF |
Inc world has almost ceased since tho |
South African mines entered tho field, |
ana the result is, IS stated above, that |
they now supply over IS per cent. OF
inc diamonds Oi commerce.
Equally wonderful and equally prom
lslng are the great Witwitcrsrand |
Goid hciu5 OF South Africa, located In !
the south African rupubic, better |
known ns the Johannesburg mines |
Tho Dutch word " WiLwutcr5rand " |
means literally "Whjtc Water Range"
aud the strip OF territory u few huu
urcd miles long and in width to which |
It in applied was but 4 few wears auc |
considered = nuAriy worthless ridge, |
uaclui only for LAo pn8turHgu OF uAttln
and "ii@cr and for even This COMPARE
lively Va ualc55. Ia 1888, hUwrvur,
| goI, W~S discovered, ANA in 1854 Ln"
valuo OF The gold production was about
500, 600. 1t incrt ascd with startling
rupidity. the production il lSSS being
ahout Nd, OOO, 600 that Of 1880, 81 900,
600 1882, over $50, 900, 900 1893, over
$50, 900 OCO, and 1897 and 1898, nb)ut
f33, 0OO, ,OD0 la each year.
This wonderful development has al.
trHct@d great attention to South Africa
ana drawn thiLhcr thousands OF por
sons IN the hope Oi realizing quick for
tunes. DeVc!opmcnt, hOwcvod, showed
that the mines could be successfully
worked only by tho use of costly
machinery, and while they have boon
cXtrcma!y productive where mnchi-
merry has been used, they were not OF
such character as to make hand or
placer mining profitable as was tho
case in California. The gold prod lc-
tion in the ''I&aud" since 1891 has been
over $500, 900, 900, and careful surveys
Oi t!lc HHlu Dy inc use o. drills ana
other processes OF experts show beyond
question that the I" in sight" probably
amounts to $500, ,O0O, 900, while the
large II mbcr Of mines which have
| been located In ad djaccnt territory,
particularly in parts OF lthodcsia, give
promise OF additional supplies, so that
IT seems probable that South Africa
viii for many years continue to be, as
IL no" Is, the largest gold-producing
section OF the world.
Recent discoveries led TO the bclioi
that these wonderfully rich mines arc
the long lost "gold of Ophir," from
which Solomon obtained his supplies
making "a navy OF ships in Ezion- G
Der, which Is opposite Eloth on the
shore Of the Red sea in tho land OF
Edom, and Hiram sont In the navy his
servants, shipmcn that had knowledge
Of tho sea, with the servants OF Solo.
mon, and they cnmo to Ophir and fetch
cd thence gold and brought it to King
! Solomon"
| 30
| Tho Vanderbilt m6usOcum at New