The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-02-26
A LAND OF PRECIOUS STONES
Jewel DrummerS Pursue East Indian
Travellers ReIcntIcssIy at COIombO.

Jewel Drummers Pursue East Indian
Travellers ReIcntIessIy at Colombo.
The ship has barely rounded the Hgat-
house on the mole at the entrance TO Co
lombo, Ceylon. harbor. before small fleet
of catamarans have made fast TO the side.
and number of men attired in shirts
reaching 10 their ankles. and with their
long black hair tastefuily done up on the
top of the mead with tortoise she'll combs
have clambered up on deck
These feminine locking boardcrs turn
out to be agents of the numerous jewel
ry firms in Colombo, and they al once
proceed TO display and offer for sale with
much Oriental shrewdncss and persiz-
tency, small parcels of their glittering
wares. Rubies, blue. white, and yellow
sapphires, moonstones, pearls OF odd
shapes and rare shades of co.or. catsevas.
aleXandrites green by day and red az \ ght.
and other precious stones are placed b,e-i
fore You al what would seem 10 he MAJ
Jority OF Americans, very tempting PR ees
These first prices are always nowev r.
far in advance of what would eventual
be accepted; but having once betrayed
The least disposition 10 purchase. You VIII
be shadowed even into the very dining
room Of The Oriental hotel and The last
offer made to you as the quartermas or
kicks the Literally precious agent into ire
catamarar, as the ship steams out Of ID
harbor.
SO numerous are the iewelry firms in
Colombo that a whole street is pracdca. lv
occupied by the trade. In few Of tho
better stores in which some really magnin-
cent gems are dispayed-a famous catsevet
the size of pigeons egg and valued a
$4,000, in PARTICULAR having teen await
ing a purchaser now for some years.
1t is necessary of course to exercise
the greatest caution in making purchases
above a few rupees in value, for not only
is il affirmed on good authority that stones
Of inferior grade are reshipped from Eu-
rope TO hnd their market among the
gull.ble tourists az Colombo. but the
Cinghalese dealers themselves know a
thing or two" about cutting a Jewel in,
half and with limitations making two
stones out of one, While they are expert
sleight-cf-hand performers in Offering YOU
what appears to be q rare bargain at the
last moment, and then quickly changing
the stone TO one Of inferior quality. trust
ing that You will be many hundreds Of
miles away before the fraud is discovered.
and that you may never return to Co
lombo.
Yet there Is no doubt that a good Judge
OF stones can some lines pick up a bar
gain. and in any case. two or three dol
lars invested in a sapphire that IN the
United States would cost ten times the
amount. or a small parcel of dszen
moonstones for 50 cents are inexpensive
and pretty souvenirs
Strange as II may seem, in a country
so long under British control as Ceylon.
the exact situation of the richest mines
Ia yet secret in the breasts Of the native
miners-the dealers purchasing the gems
in the rough from the latter at Handy.
There is q story told in Ceyon that far
back in the painless jungles, somewhere
near the east coast, still so little known
TO Europeans, and guarded by savagee.
wild beasts, deadly serpents and the still
more fatal miamis, there are the ruins
of a former splendid city through which
a crystal stream ripples over sand COM
posed In greater part of jewels.
How far this story is pure legend il is