The citizen. (Frederick City, Md.) 1895-1923, 1901-08-02
IMITATION JEWELS.
,eNEERED DIAMONDS AND GEMS OF
FINE cOLOREO GLASS.

poqus stones-The Halo Around
genuine Pearl.
Although the imitation of jewels has
,.on practccd for a century or more
there are comparatively new develop
vents in the industry every few wears
nd the business has of late attained
,rormous proportions. The majority of
hose stones are made abroad, and hence
,bsr are imported. But while they are
ovcselingly cheap and the duty is low
,be attempt is occasionally made to SNUG
10 Them into the country. and seizure
r.snts. Again, the imitation is some.
fines SO good that even the customs otfi
GERS are puzzled for time However. il
i always possible for an expert to tell
che difference if Ire has sufficient oppor.
unity 70 apply the proper tests.
limitations Of the diamond, topaz. emer-
ol5 amethyst and turquoise are USUALLY
made OF paste or strass, which is nothing
more than a particularly fine grade of
class. to which. if the stone is eoloreJ
the nrorer hue has been impaired hv tho
addition 10 some mineral substance
There is at least one European house
though which processes to add carbon to
is diamond composition. thus securing
ereatsg hardness than would otherwise
be possible.
In London still another plan is pursued
10 improve the paste diamond. Genuine
diamond dust, produced by the cutting
Of fc,gels is treated with acid. reduced
10 a plastic state and then rolled out in
qyceela- thin sheets. This veneer
is cut into the proper shape and cement.
ID on tlo faces of the strass. Glass dia-
moHls can be bought for a few cents
whe unset, but a venccrcd diamond is
worth nearly 81. A high degree Of skill
is required in its preparation.
There are several methods of distin-
gushing between 4 true diamond and
paste. llydroiiuoric acid will eat glass,
but viii not affect the genuine stone. 4
file ses no impression on the latter
either Finally Il real diamond contin-
ues to glitter when immersed in water.
S0ue artificial rubics are of paste; 9th
ers have the same composition as the
genuine stone, which consists of corun-
duo The latter variety Of imitation
ruby as the proper hardness and spe-
cdc gravity, and the color is fautpsS.
1t cM DE- distinguished from the true
ruby only by Il powerful maguifyins
glass. Siugularly enough. the genuine
article is Identified by its defects. There
are natural flaws in it not found in tie
imitation, although the imitation also
possesses other characteristics miuutp
bubaes for instance which are readily
rec6mZpd. On some stones, like the
topaz and emerald, it is not wise to use
a tie Ihey are not hard enough to re-
sist it, The magnifying glass is the sur.
est maau~ Of ascertairing the character
Of those Jewels
OWN, NO doubt to the fact that pearls
are often Worn in strings instead of sin
gy or in pairs. like diamonds. the bust.
ness Of manufacturing limitations Of them
is far more extensive than any kindred
branch of the industry, except perhaps
the making of bogus turquoiscs and en-
eralds and rubies for belt buckles And
inasm1ch as most of these imitation
pearls are exceedingly cheap it is posi-
BE for anybody to buy them. Thus one
may get card bearing dozen stickpins
With imitation pearl heads for from 10
tc ID cents If the stones were genuine,
they would be worth from 500 to 5000.
There are several kinds of imitation
pearls One is a glass bead filled with
composition. The glass is often not over
slXty-fourth of an inch thick. There
are several different compositions used.
One books very much like parathn. A
bead filed with that material would
crush easily. In other globular pearls,
pierced for stEihging, harder substance
is employed. There is an imported imita-
ton pearl whose shell is said to be made
Of hshskin and whose filling Is COM
pound in which there is ground mother OF
pearl the lHstrous lining Of the oyster
Shell, wherein the real pearl is produced.
This sort of jewel costs dollar or two,
and string of GO would sell for $3.50
keal pearls Of the same size and beauty
would bring fully a hundred times that
price
Although the manufacture of imitation
pearls was long confined to Europe, it is
now conducted in this country also. Al
New York house, the first to engage in
the business introduced a novelty to the
trade few years ago. 1t made solid
pearls IN addition to the filed ones. The
composition employed is as hard as rock.
II Is almost impossible to break these
Jewels and their luster, color and ingen-
lous lfregularity of form will deceive any
one Who does notVuse a magnifying glass
On them. The head of this House tells
many amusing stories abouttthe mistakes
mace 10y expert jewelers. and pawn bro
Eers when these stones first made their
appearance. OF course it is not easy to
1ooI aa experienced person; still the ex-
peFt must use a powerful lens in order to
ascertain the real character of pearl.
ne VIII not trust the naked eye. Occa-
Soaai.y jeweler will say: mo. | cannot
ueteci an imitation pearl eight or ten
leet away but if hold it in my hand !
San see the difference between that and
lle real thing. There's sort of halo
around the genuine article which is I'M
mlsta6able." But other men in the
uade frankly admit that only by means
VI microscope can they discriminate.
a fashion has sprung up Of late years
WHICH enhances the deception produced
" imitation jewels. II paste diamond
y SCI 70 brass ring or an imitation pearl
y mounted on a German silver pin,
slatp eyed observer might suspect the
vAaFaeter Of the jewel. but when the set
uus Is of II. carat or Is carat gold and
Tue manufacturer has lavished more or
'tss artistic skill on the design Of ring
VI stud OF clasp different impression Is
Created
"hau one first gets an idea of the
euormous extent to which imitation jew
Us Sfe sold and worn, he naturally won
uvfS whether the trade in genuine stones
JUS been affected. But little inquiry in