Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-12-04
AMERICAN DIAMOND FIELDS.
Places in the United States Where
the Gems Are Supposed to Exist.

From the jewelers. Circular Weekly
Reports of diamond discoveries and the
formation of companies to exploit various
fields where these gems are supposed to
exist continue to appear with usual reg
ularity, and they now seem 10 increase i'm
| direct ratio to the strength ct the diamond
market as the price OF diamonds continues
its upward climb. OF the supposed dia-
mond fields. the two which have been re-
ceiving the creates; attention at the pres
ent time are those located in Kentucky
which were mentioned some time ago. and
| new field in the vicinity of Plum City,
Wis. In neither have diamonds OF any
size whatsoever been discovered by the men
backing the pr ojects. though 1t S trde that
some diamonds supposed to be of glacial
origin. were found in Wisconsin before
any thought of developing the fields was
entertained. In both instances the hope
1 ned out to the cxpectant buyer of stock
lies not in what has been found. but what
true blue clay, or kimberlite. exists
| throughout the area being worked. and eX-
perts seem to absolutely base their hope
on the general proposition that where
| there is kimbcr!ite there Will probably he
! diamonds.
| 1t is possible that these experts may not
| take into consideration the fact that even
| though Almonds may exist in the general
| vicinity of their feds, il might take a
\ decade or even a century of painstaking
search before the actual mines are located.
| David Draper. the South African geologtst.
who discovered the new Premier mines in
| the Transvaal. and who is said to have
pronounced both the blue clay Of Ken
lucky and Wisconsin fields to be true kim
berlite. said on his visit to this country
| a year ago that the chance of discover
| Ing diamonds, even when they are Known
to exist within territory. is always re-
mote, and called attention to the fact that
| though diamonds were found in the Trans
Vaal almost simultaneously with the dis
covery CT the gems in Cape Colony, it
was not until twenty-nine years later-in
1S96-that the first diamond mine was dis
covered in the former country. and this
despite the fact that thousands of men
familiar with the conditions surrounding
diamond mines were exploring the coun,
| try at all times In fact. Mr. Draper SAID
| that although the same rock had come ia
the way of many biologists and diam nd
| experts it was not until after he mad lden-
titled the specimen submitted to him from,
the SCHUYLER farm that the first diamond
mine of the Transyaal was located. Then.
within year. four other mines were found
in the same district. 1t is when we consider
how few experts We have in this country
capab,c CT locating a diamond mine that
we realize how remote is the possioiiity OF
There is another factor in the question
of the discovery of diamond mines that
does not seem to have ,, occurred RED to many
diamond fields, viz, that even though a
diamond mine may be discovered there Is
always possibil ty that II h, VIII nor pay
by the fact that though there are a thou
sand or more diamond mines in South At
RIGA at the present day. those which are
more than paying expenses number but
handful There is good reason TO fear
therefore that the customer CT dealer who
counts on any decrease in the price OF
diamonds Of the future as resulting from
the discovery of new diamond mines is
doomed to lasting disappo utment. While
such a discovery is within the lines OF
possibility, IT is hardly in the realm or
Probability, and even If made would stand
little chance of having any particular eff
feet upon the market price of the queen
of gems.