Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1902-11-30

IN ina banks. Bumped In and after q
deal sof trouble got them all safely TO
shore But tater he heard the natives
summing up the situation something az
ter this fashion white man very clev-
er: very cleyer.indsea; ne makes cleVes
From this It was clear that Mr.. Rob
inson would never be able to get them
On the raft again So he picked out
the largest OK he possessed and shot hint
Then ne nailed four boards together TO
make q Kind Of frame, and stretched the
raw. OK hide tightly over them, 50 that
he made sort of skin boat The ma
tiyes solen1nly assured him he should
never get them across In "that;" but when
he got In and showed them II one sat
extremely still and padded with great
care there was no danger. they were re-
assured. This makeshift boat had to
serve Mr.. Robinson for many months. Til
he was able to get some boats brought
UP from the coast.
FORTUNES MADE BY NATIVES.
The native diamond hunters soon got
so many oxen that they were able to
retire on lneir means. man would
come to Mr.. Robinson and announce that
he was now so rich that he should go
back to his country and buy twenty-five
wives, and sit and smoke and drink beer
while they worked to keep him. OF course.
fresh natives were soon got to take their
places.
Mr.. Robinson discovered the Dutoit-
span mine in a strange way. He was
camping at place one night. when he
heard that an old Dutch woman had
j picked up some stones at the back OF
| her house.. He rose in haste. seized
! gun. and galloped off to interview her.
He arrived very early in the morning,
| and she soon produced two bottles fun
| of pebbles Mr. Robinson looked them
| over and found SIX or eight small dia-
| monds among them, which he bought
| for so, greatly to her delight. She
showed him the place at the back of
the house where they had been found,
! and on examination he saw that the
! loose soil was full of small diamonds.
| Though they did not know 1t at the
! time, this was the Dutotspan mine.
| She told him that neighbor of hers.
I, living at a farm not far off. had also
| found some stones. Mr.. Robinson pro-
! ceeded there without loss of time. and
| bought them. The old Dutch woman
showed him where she had found them.
| and that spot Is now the Bultfontein
| mine.
DIGGING $1,000 WORTH or DIAMONDS
! After the mine had been opened. so
! rich was the surface soil at that period
| that a man would go out in the morn
| ing with scraper and a bit of board.
| while his son brought up the loose soil
| and pebbles in a bucket. and threw 1t
| on the plank for him to look through.
| and at the close OF an ordinary days
! work he would have $1,000 worth of dia-
monds to sell. When the old farm
! house on the site OF the Dutoltspan
| mine was pulled down. the very mortar
| was found TO be studded with small dia-
| nonds.
Before Kimberley was started, Mr..
! Robinson shot couple Of bucks on
| what is now the De Beers diamond
| mine. On that day Dutchman showed
| him a stone ne had found there. 1t
! was q splint Investigation soon prov
ed that the ground there was full OF dia-
1onds, and it is now the De Beers
rni1e.
The discovery Of the Kimberley mines
,r.rinated in g. curious accident. A young
lady was sitting idly in the shade of
tree, and was ORA wing figures In the sand
With her parasol when she turned up
stone, which proved to be a large dia-
nond of great value. OF course. search
followed, and re result was the discov-
cry OF the Kimberley mines
THOUGHT HE WAS INSANE.
Mr.. Robinson bought claims in KIM
oerley and assisted in opening the mine.
One day man went to him and said he
ould buy half certain claim. and asked
lin to find the other half of the purchase
price. and he would work it and share
he profits with him. In a single month
ur,. Robinson's half of the profits was
$4,000 Mr. Robinson then made him
present of the whole of the claim.