The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1903-03-08
in THE LAND
0FDI|.AM'ONI.DI|+:|S';''
!, Richmonder Writes Of Visit to-
De Beers Mines.
GEMS BY BUCKET FULL
Gold Export We're More Valuable Than
the Diamond Industry Graphic De-
scrIptlon Of South African
Country. IA
GEMS BY BUCKET FULL
BY T.W,oENrRY

iAoSSSL 4 AoN 4uu III OppOi Iu!IlSy W oGC'
Ing pretty much all Of tho country COM
prislng Capo Colony, Orange River Colo
ny, tho 1'ransvaal, Natal and Rhodesa,
us we'll as parts OF tho native possessions
In Griqualnnd.9 Swaziland zululand, Basu-
itolnnd and tho middle South African
"Karoo' as we'll as portions OF the Por-
tuguoso East African Territory, and q
wonderful country It Isl Vast in extent.
great In lis opportunities, grand in it's
scenery, and interesting In the extreme
TO tho traveller.
Leaving Cape Town by the railway for
Bulawayo. the northern extremity OF the
"Cape OF Cairo road and 1880 miles dis
tant, one passes through almost every
condition OF country and rises from the
sea level to great plain over 5000 feet
above the sea and crosse several ranges
OF mountains-the general aspect OF the
country Is not unlike a trip over the
Donver and Rio Grnnde and Union Pa
cho through Humboldt Valley and por-
lions OF Nevada and Arizona.
At Do AR tho railway DIVORCES, ono
section going via Naauwpoort to Bloom
fontein. Orange River Colony, the Trans
vaal, and down into Lorcnco, Marquez
and Natal via Pretoria, the other con-
hnuing on to Kimberley, Mafeltng and
Bulawayo in the north. Kimberley Is
the largest and most interesting town
en- route, and is the modern qolconda,"
tor hero are tho great De Beers diamond
m1aos, tho like Of which has never yot
Uoen discovered, and 1t is doubtful II its
equal will ever DO unearthed. 1t Is gem
hi .,nl S,1pt M nrSt nr1yr
and. In fact, fairly conceded by the best
authorities that this wonderful deposit
was the source OF the wealth OF tho fam
ed Queen Of Sheba, and oven OF King Sol
ONION himself; d visit such as had the
pleasure OF making TO these depths OF
hidden riches reminds ono. Of the most
exravngnnt tales Of tho Arabian
1 Knights.
Starting at tho top whore for years the
"dazzling shiners'' were picked up from
surface diggfngs, and where now vast
crater nearly bali a mile across and
thousand feet deep occupies tho site Of
down and changed from q small noun
tain into great hole in tho ground,
you descended by vertical shaft 1000
fest into the bowels of the enrth-fromf
this shaft runs tunnels at various levels
through solid rock until they penetrate
the wonderful pocket OF "blue dirt" or
diamond bearing ma tr1x-this blue dirt Is
quite soft and thickly mixed with small
dark stones or gravel about the size OF
pea, and also accompanied by quanti-
Ties OF garnets OF little value; It is carried
70 the surface and undergoos a treatment
by several processes. mostly OF wash
Ing ana altering nature and afterwards
passes over inclined surfaces pmeared
with thick grease-a certain prepared
compound to which strange as It may
SEEM the diamonds adhere, while value
Jess stones pass right along to recepta-
rles, the contents Of which are. how
enced "pickers" who never fall to find
thousands OF dollars daily in this mass,
Diamonds by Backet Full.
In the show-rooms I saw diamonds by
Tho buc4xet-full ranging from hRf to
twenty, and even more. carats, and valued
At millions OF dollars. Stones weighing
over eighty-three carats and valued at
SIPS 900 each have been found here, and
natives and Dutch settlers now occa-
sionally come into Ktm6erley with stones tones
Hanging from $4,000 to $4,000 EACH while
from the beds Of creeks and rivers the
prospectors yet mako a fortune A most
rigid law controls the trade In these
stones, and any person Offering one for
sale without first proving ownership. and
having It officially weighed, registered and
recorded Is liable to heavy fines. lmpris-
ptll1!SiIs -. :,
plon on release. NO rougn olAnloha Gun
pc bought from any but q LICENSED uealer.
under heavy penalty. inc nrst a'a ~ }osn
were found at Colespurg hopJe ~ ~ low
ut which time Kimberley was unKhoWn'9
It was about three years pelor o.,, nov Nv
s s0ined FRO from an ignorant Dutchman a
stone weighing a IA carnts. for which he
received Ave hundred pounds sterling.
Two years later the same Dutchman OBJ
tained from q Hottentot q stone which
was proved at So IL carats O. Reilly mar
keted this for eleven thousand. two hun-B
nred pounds. The stone, now In the pos
session OF the Countess OF Dudley, is
valued at twenty-five thousand pounds.
or about s125. 900. This is the celebrated
"star OF South Africa The Kimberley
proper" or original Colesburg Kopje. is
BY far the greatest producer, but the
DO Beers, Bufontaine Du Toits Pan and
Wesselton are all Immensely rich. paying
deposits. and all controlled by the great
De Beers Company, The richest river
diggings' are Klipdam, Itopan, schlotz
R'Wldeck. Wlndsorton. Warrenton, Gong
Gong and 14onglands. The river diamonds
arc far more valuable than the mine
stones tho largest river find on record