The Birmingham age-herald., 1905-11-26
DIAMONDS ARE IN
 GREAT DEMAND. Best Stones Don't Always GO
 to the Rich THE VIEWS OF AN EXPERT People of Comparatively Modest Means Insist on Having Best Stones. A Craze for Something
 More Costly.
THE VIEWS OF AN EXPERT

Women who have been contemplating additions to the contents of their jewel cases before the holidays were not pleased to learn the other day that diamonds had gone up again in price. Not that this fact will deter all of them from buying dia- monds, says the Washington Post.
 On the contrary, Washington jewellers say that the higher the price the more determined Is the average American wo- man to wear diamonds. Of course. when prices soar the diamonds she gets for a
 given sum shrink approximately in size and number, but to the limit of her
 spending money she still buys diamonds.
 Importers of precious stones represent ing the London syndicate which controls the output of more than one famous dia- mond mine, announced @ few weeks ago that the price of uncut diamonds nao jumped up per cent. This was the third
 raise of like amount in one year. The last raise includes sizes which had not been advanced in three years. | Notwithstanding the latest government reports show that for the nine months ended last September, the importations or | diamonds to this country were 7,OO,0oo | ahead of those for the corresponding pe- riod of the year before. the total being | S22, ,022, ,193, and that the United States Is 1 now taking more than 50 per cent. of all | the finer grades of the worlds diamonds. l And vet in discussion of the Washing | ton woman and her jewels. jeweler said | that diamonds are only an incidental
 feature of the jewel collections of many | Washington women. Said he:
 'The very wealthy are now after some | Nx.6g t6axr don't spend fabulous sums any more
 making a collection of diamonds. It is
 pearls, emeralds. rubies these women covet.
 Necklace Cost $5o,ooo. | Years ago the top notch of extrava- gance and of fashion was reached when
 s50,O0O, say, was paid for diamond neck lace; that is, for row of large solitaires reaching once around the neck. Today
 we haven't one necklace of that descrip- l ton in stock.
 "No 1t is not altogether a question of change in designs. 1t means rather that | any one ric44 enough to afford 900 for one piece of jewelry Is generally rich
 enough to go higher and combine other jewels with the diamonds.
 | >"Collars and chains of diamonds are l in demand now, but these pieces do not
 represent the most costly or the Jeweled | ornaments which are owned by rich
 American women and which generally create something like a sensation when warn in public either here or abroad.
 But the government reports are cor
 rect The -mand for fine diamonds was never brisKer than now and 1t grows all
 the time, and by fine diamonds mean the
 most perfect only, stones without flaw -. 70 buys them? Principally persons of moderate means, or what is called moder
 ate means nowadays. Fifty years ago
 these people would have been called rich.
 And we have other good diamond custom-
 CTS who are only little more than well | off.
 Clerk Was Fooled. ''rhe other day a very plainly dressed woman came in and asked to see a dia-
 mond corsage ornament, something in the | nature of a breastpin, although we don't 1 call them breastpins now. Judging from | her appearance-she wore no Jewelry, not 1 even chatelaine watch, and carried only | a plain black leather wrist bag-the clerk showed her several ornaments made of ! small diamonds of inferior quality, di3-
 monds a bit off in color and containing | trihing flaws which none but a conpois- seur would notice.
 | But pretty soon that clerk got on to | the fact that his customer was after something high-class and that the best | was not any too good for her. As re-
 
 one-caret diamonds, every one of which 1 was flawless and blue white in color | q do not care for jewels unles they are l the very best" she remarked to the clerk, and walked off with five diamonds which will attract attention from experts any where.
 Ut is women like that who do a lot to | boom the diamond sales in Washington. and in the last few years there has been
 great increase in their number. There wear no large. fashy pieces of jewelry for the reason that such designs l look ridiculous with a plain toilet. Their 1 selections rings and preastplns, and II l is in these comparatively small pieces 1 that frst-class stones are seen to the best
 and poor ones to the worst advantage. For example. take corsage ornament of the size of small tea plate--and now nearly every fashionable woman has one l or more of that sort-and lot of the stones fin 1t may be pretty poor without l the average person detecting the, fact. In
 such dazzling array the poor stones | pass muster for better than they do in a small ornament which the eye can com pass at a. glance.
 Buyers Particular. "That is why, I think, that buyers of modest pieces of 1ewelry get to be more
 particular every year. and the reason why
 our best diamonds don't all go to the very rich.
 Tt is sign of the times, too that the l best in stones Is now eagerly craved by women-and men. too-just as they desire the best in paintings. the finest in brc-a-
 brac. rugs. and tapestries. Even the least ! worldly people, the sort of people who | once were satisfied with a cameo brooch
 and plain gold pins and rings.. want few good diamonds these days.
 Then don't banker after pearls, emer aids, turquoises. and other fancy stones, but they do care for diamonds, solitaires. Yes. the public taste in diamonds becomes more highly. cultivated every year. nPnssihlY Wnllld- be huYers get hooks