The Owosso times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1897-1926, 1907-08-16
and it held crystalline graphite in the

anu lt nelu crystalline graphite In the
bright as well as the dark form. But,
again, the distribution was well diff
fused and of slight commercial value.
Sir William Crookes or any eminent
chemist will bear me out in the as
sumption that the diamonds now be-
fore your eyes are absolutely match-5
less by the product OF any recorded
metsoric source"
Isaacstein, having delivered his little
lecture, looked and felt important. 4
The magistrate bent forward, with a
pleasant smile.
II am very much obliged to you for
the highly interesting information you
have given" he said. Zone more
question. The inevitably corollary OF
your evidence is that the boy now in
the dock has either found a meteor or
a meteoric deposit. Can you say If it
Is a matter of recent occurrence?
Judging by the appearance of the
accompanying scraps of iron ore. I
should say that they have been quite
recently in state of flux from heat
The silicates seem to be almost eIimi-
uated"
The magistrate was unquestionably
puzzled. Queer incidents happen in
police courts daily, and the most I'M
expected scientific and technical points
are eucidated IN the effort to secure
an accurate comprehension of matters
in dispute But never during his long
tenancy of the court had he been called
on to deal with case Of this nature.
He smiled in his perplexity.
1--WE all remember the copybook
maxim, Let justice be done though
the heavens fall" he said, "but here
it is clearly shown that the ideal is not
easily reached"
OF course every one laughed and the
reporters piled pen and pencil with re-
newed activity. Here was sensation
with vengeance-wOrth all the dis
play it demanded in the evening pa
pers. Headlines would whoop through
quarter of column, and Philips
meteor again run through space.
The boy himself was apparently the
most disinterested person present.
While listening to Isaacstein, he again
experienced, the odd sensation of aloof-
ness, Of lofty domination, amid a COM
monplace and insignificant environ
ment. The man was clever, Of course,
but his cleverness was that of the text
book, q dry record Of fact which need
ed genius to illuminate the printed
page. And these lawyers, reporters, po-
licemen, with the vacuous background
of loungers, the friends and bottle hold
ers of thieves and drunkards-the mag
istrate even, remote In his dignity and
sense of power-what were they to
him ?-of no greater import than the
paving stones Of the streets to the pull
sating life of London as it passed.
The magistrate glanced at Isaacstein
and stroked his chin. Isaacstein gazed
intently at the packet of diamonds and
rubbed his sinuous nose. There was
deep silence in court, broken only by
the occasional shuttle Of feet among the
audience at the back-a shuttle which
stopped instantly when the steely
glance of a policeman darted in that
direction.
At last the magistrate seemed to
make up his mind to a definite course
of action.
steadieu by his stumpy hands on the
rail of the witness box. He was really
the greatest living authority on the
subject, and he knew it.
at is q common delusion among dia-
mond miners that diamonds fall from
the skies in meteoric showers" he said.
"There is some sort Of foundation for
this mistaken view, as the stones are
In, 81 nj yNf,N
of diamantiferous material, and the
crude idea is that gigantic meteors fell
and plowed these deep holes, distribut-
ing diamonds In all directions as they
passed. But the so called pipes are
really the vents of extinct volcanoes.
Ignorant people do not realize that the
chemical composition of the earth does
not differ greatly from that of the
bodies which surround it in space, so
that the same process of manufacture
under high temperature and at great
pressure which creates diamond in
meteor has equal powers here. In
word, what has happened in the outer
universe has also happened at Kimber- y
ley. Iron acts as the solvent during
the period of creation, so to speak.
Then in the lapse of ages 1t oxidizes
by the action of air or water and the
diamonds remain"
The magistrate nodded. Il
''There are particles Of a mineral
that looks like iron among these
stones?' he said.
The question gave Isaacstein time to
draw fresh. supply of breath. Sure
of his audience now, he proceeded
more slowly.
THAT Is certain proof Of meteoric
source. A striking confirmation of the
fact is supplied by a district In Ari-
zona. Here, on a plain five miles in
diameter, are scattered thousands Of
masses of metallic iron varying In
weight from half ton to fraction of
one ounce. An enormous meteorfc
shower fell there at some period, and
near the center is crater-like hole
which suggests the impact of some
very large body which buried itself'fn-
the earth. All mineralogists know the
place as the Canyon Diabolo, or Dew
lis gulch, and specimens of its ore are