davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Birmingham age-herald., 1908-10-18
All About The Cullinan Diamond
 Which Is Now Being Cut


is so large that all the De Beers mines could be put inside it and have room for several big diamond mines in addition. The Premier pipe is now well outlined. It is half mile long and a quarter of a mile wide Within it there is nothing but this blue ground sprinkled with dia monds Every yard of it contains pre- cious stones. In 1906 more than 90,000 car ats were taken from 1t, and during the first six months of 1907 the output wss more than a million carats.
 It is now only four years since tho mines began to be worked and since then it has been producing diamonds at the rate of a carat and quarter per minute for every minute of every day and night, year in and year out. A cdrat-and-a quarter diamond makes a mighty pretty engagement ring. Cut and set it would be worth at least s100. This mine has been turning out such ring every min ute. That gives you some idea of its value. The total output in money has been over s25. GOO, GOO, and within the past year or so it has been paying several mil lions a year in dividends
 The Premier vs. the DeBeers.
 This Premier mine Is comparatively new. The great pipes at Kimberley, which belong to the De Beers company. | ration, and until this mine was discov- cred it was believed that they would al- ways form the chief source of the world s supply of precious stones. For the past thirty years almost all of our diamonds l have come from them; and they still have values worth hundreds of millions i of dollars in sight They have produced 1 more precious stones than all the other mines of the world put together; and al- most all the diamonds now worn by man came from Kimberley or whereabouts. The product has sold for something like $G0o, GOO eco.
 The Premier mine was discovered in 1902 As I have said, it has already pro- duced over s25, ,Oo0,00O; and it's size is so enormous that it is bound to seriously affect the diamond market of the future. So far the mine has scarcely been touched. It is being worked almost OH the surface and it is estimated that at the present rate it will take twenty years to get out the blue ground down to q
The Birmingham age-herald., 1908-10-18
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weighs 1000 carats. This will be made into pear-shaped brilliant and it will be by far the largest diamond of the world.
 It will take more than q year to cut and polish the stone and it is not yet known just how many diamonds will be made from 1t. The diamond is kept at night in a special safe in the vaults of the factory and is guarded by the Dutch police. The vaults have walls of cement and iron three-fourths of a yard thick and the door is an eight-inch plate of steel with nine concealed locks. The diamond Is taken from the safe every morning by the head of the firm. He is armed with re- volver and accompanied by ten members of his staff, who leave him while he se- cretly unlocks the door The stone isl then carried to the workroom, which was especially built for the purpose and ls given over to a specialist Henri Roe. who does the cutting and polishing. He isl locked in the room with the diamond and is not allowed to go out, even for his meals. The polishing is being done on al plate of sixteen inches in diameter, which is four inches wider than that used for ordinary stones. The plate runs at rate of 2,40e revolutions per minute, and the polishing Is performed by a p3ste of crushed diamonds and oil
The Birmingham age-herald., 1908-10-18

depth of $50 feet. When it is remem- bered that the Kimberley pipe has been mined to a depth of more than 2,50O feet and that the De Beers is now more than 2,0OO feet deep, and that neither shows any diminution of the output of diamonds to the carload of blue earth mined, the enormous possibilities of this mighty eighty-acre diamond pipe can be appreciated. . l understand that the De Beers com pany rather sneered at the Premier mine, until lately, and that they claimed it's diamonds did not compare with those or Kimberley in their brilliancy. NeVerthe- less within the past two months the two companies have entered into working agreement by which the diamond output is so restricted as to not flood the world with precious stones and thereby bring down the prices.
 Chat With the Diamond King.
 During my stay here l have met MT. T. M Cullinan, the man who discovered this mighty diamond pipe and from whom the Cullinan diamond is named Five years ago he had only few thousand dollars but he is now worth ten or fifteen millions and he might be called the worlds diamond king. He is the chair man of the company which owns the
 
 time at the works. MT. Culinan looks more like a miner than a millionaire. He is a wel-built man of 50 years of age and is the picture of health. He has a dark complexion and dark hair and eyes. His forehead is broad, his nose straight, ana his lower jaw heavy. showing deter imitation and grit understand that he started life poor and that some of bis first money was made as a briekiayer.
 As he got a little ahead he became a contractor; and as such had series of 1 ups and downs which left him at the age of fifty worth perhaps s6o,o0o. I asked him how he had made his great strike. He replied:
 Diamonds have been long known to exist in this region. They were discov- cred here years ago, and one alluvial claim had been begged out and fioated at a capitalization of s150,00O only short distance from where the Premier Is. About four years ago I was looking up ] this valley, prospecting for diamonds.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1908-10-18
Back to the Land.

From Charities and the Commoas
 A real start in putting immigrants or the land has been made with a volony of Russian Jews near Hawkins, Wis 15 miles from St. Paul, Mfnn., which is tn, work of one man, John Raffleson, wht was compelled to give up factory worl by an accident. He took to peddling ana while going about into the country de cided to make himself a missionary fol drawing his co-religionists out of tn cities and back to the soil The new col ony Is small. but it owns 920 acres sol on longtime payments at s10 an acr, It is cooperative in its plan and wi have a cooperative store. It's officers, president, vice president, secretary an treasurer, and all the heads of familie sit as a court in case of any dispu arising. Raffleson goes into Milwauki and Sheboygan and persuades people
 go out to the new colony. He has thi far succeeded In getting a nucleus
 ten families and says he wants only fol more as beginning These people al working as tho old pioneers worked, clea ing sne ,azid of timber and slowly b ginning thsir 2lanting. They will U doutted'y be equally successful.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1908-10-18

..................s....s found several le ads with good indications and they all seemed to go toward this point.
 The property then belonged to Dutch man who had something like 15o0 acres of land He was using it for stock rais- ing and was renting out small patches to the natives about. He knew of the possi- bilties of diamonds being found in the land and he made his price accordingly.
 He refused to sell except as a whole and that for a lump sum of R50,00O, or about s2eO,OOO in American money. I had pros pected enough to know that tho ground contained diamonds and I had no doubt but that the mine could be noated to pay a good profit on the above Irice. therefore put in my own money and in- duced others to join me. We then bought the farm and the result is tha Premier
 Had you any idea of ths enormous ross Utilities of the propertv?" I asked,
 NO My widest dream did not reach the conceptions of this biggest diamond mine of the world and of the discovery of the largest diamond ever known. l thought there might be diamond pipe somewhere upon the farm, and I was pretty sure that the land contained enough alluvial diamonds to give us our money back even if no pipe was dis covered"
 What was your original capitalT Tt was just the same that 1t is today; namely R80,0O0 Of this we paid f52000 to Prnstoo, the Dutchman who owned the land, and used the balance as a working capital"
 And what became of the DutohmanY' He is still living in little mud hut not far from here" replied MT. Cullinan. ''He made good bargain in selling his
The Birmingham age-herald., 1908-10-18
culIinan. The Transvaal. South Africa.

Cullinan, The Transvaal, South Africa XZOU have all heard of the Cullinan
 diamond, the mighty stone which
 A was recently presented by the gov ernment of the Transvaal to King Ed ward VII and is now being cut in Ans terdam. It is by several times the largest diamond ever fo,ind, and its value is ever a million. I an writing these notes on the edge of the mine rom winch II was taken. From where ' stand I can look right down into it, or rather over it, for it covers eighty acres, the area of Q ecod sized farm. It is known as the Premier diamond mine, and 1t is by far the largest diamond mine in the world. On that hill at the left I can see the great gear, with its crushing, washing ana pulsating ma chimes. They are fed by the caravan of cars which are now flying up to it over that inclined roadway.
 The mine itself is black with workmen. There are 5000 of natives at worK digging out the ore and loading it on cars. Here men are blasting, there they are laying railroads, and farther over digging tun- nels down into the blue ground. There at one end of the mine are the offices. They consist of an iron-roofed building worth uneer s2,OG, and seem strange headquarters for a business which em- ploys thousands of men and has an Gu,- Iut of millions year. Farther lack are the compounds in which the native work eys are kept dn i.- guard. and just back of me is tho railr)Ad station with Its ho- tol and few stores, forming the town Of Cullinan.
 The World's Biggest Diamond Mine.
 I have already described the mighty diamond pipes of Kimberley from whi2h, until lately, 95 per cent of the world s diamonds came. I have told you how each of them was made by volcano which bored its way up out of the bowels of the earth through the hardest of rock, and left there a deposit of blue ground sprinKled with diamonds. Some of the Kimberley pipes have been tested half a mile downward, and they find that the diamonds are as thick at the bottom as they were at the top. This mine here is of the same formation. save that the pipe
The labor argus. [volume] (Charleston, W. Va.) 1906-1915, 1908-11-12
SLAVERY MUST CEASE.

Whenever the orgauiz at work
erS i'll Vest Virginia endeayor Il
lm prove their working conditions
~ any way whatever it has ilr> very
( many Instances been denied BY the
employers. thereby compelling
labor to resort to its only weapon,
! the strike. This action on the
part of the workers is invariably
It by the employers securing in
functions and furnishing through
private detective agencies a class
OF undesirable men, who are used
as 'sguards' and strike breakers,
and who will resort to the most
lawless methods. even to taking
life.
Organized labor and all law
abiding citizens of the State pro-
test against the further contiuu-
ancc Of such slawlcss methods on
the part OF the ''SyStemn to sub
due the workers and make of them
'
the state. The West Virginia
state Federation of Labor and all
its atiiliatcuu mons. will make a
determined effort at the coming
session Of the legislature to secure
the enactment OF law abolishinv
the lawlcSs "guarl' system and
make 1t impossible for ''uge1cies''
to import thugs from the slums Of
the large cities for the purpose of
breaking strikes and acting as
guards and creating constcln;,.
ton and havoc among the women
and children in the communities
where they perform their nctarious
work.
The days Of slavery must cease
in the Little Mountain State.
The labor argus. [volume] (Charleston, W. Va.) 1906-1915, 1908-11-12
DEMAND THE UNION LABEL

In these days of iniunctiouS and
misrepresentation. when the
courts seek to enjoiu the rights Of
uninn labor to truthtully bring to
pnbiic attention. the products of
union and non union concerns. it
would be well tor all union men
and sympathiZels to bear in mind
that this stand of the judiciary
can be met to u great degree of
success by boosting only union
label goods. Under all conditions
and circumstances sdcInanl the
union LABEL. 1t is the emblem Of
honest union labor for whose
recognition men and women are
struggling night and day. 1t
means goods that have been pro
duceu under the best working con
dltOnS organizations of labor
could obtain under the plescnt
capitalistic system. Union label
goods are free from the stigma of
the unsanitary foul sweatshops.
BY boosting the label of evcly
trade you aid hundreds of. thou
sands to maintain decent con.
ditions and You arc safe from
supreme court I'M unctiOnS.
The labor argus. [volume] (Charleston, W. Va.) 1906-1915, 1908-11-12
EFFORTS OF LABOR.

Through the efforts Of organ
lied labor for the past score OF
years can be seen the good that
has been accomplished in the
different states by the laws which
have been passed. In the early
history OF labur'S efforts to Oh.
tain this cud it Was met by the
most relentless oppo;;itioll. Its
motives were questioned and the
demands which organized labor
made upon society in its claim for
the present and for the immediate
future were ridiculcd.
Today there Is not il labor union
III this country that does not aid
IN the enforcement Of the Child
Labor laws of the different states
Of the union. and have brought to
their support nearly all of the in.
stitutious Of our country. political,
commercial, financial or religious.
But better still. it is now the
universal Judgment Of all of our
people that the facts about child
labor shall be investigated and
such Legislation enacted as shall
take young children out Of the
factory, mine, mill, workshop and
store: give them the opportunitic S
Of the home. the school and the
play ground so that they may
develop into intelligent woman
hood and manhood
The labor argus. [volume] (Charleston, W. Va.) 1906-1915, 1908-11-12

John Mitchell and President
Thomas l.. Lewis of the United
Mine W orkerS, and several promi-
nent coal operators of the stat.
will meet with Congressman John
{. NcHenry in'Shamokin Pa. No.
vember 25 to consult on the framing
of a bill to proviee for q State tax
to be used for the aid of injured
miners and families of men killed
in the mines.
Congressman Mcllcnr, wants to
have the bill presented to the
Pennsylvania State Assembly.
He introduced d like bill in the
last Congress. but it was Killed
The labor argus. [volume] (Charleston, W. Va.) 1906-1915, 1908-11-12
LABOR MUST AROUSE.

There was never Il time. in the
history OF l'nlonism in West Wiz
ginia-eSpccially among the miners
Urganilation.=-whcu there was
more need for united, determined
effort on the part Of organized
workers than at this very time. as
many employers have determined
to return their employees to the
conditions that prevailed before
organized labor become Il factor in
formulating wage ag! ccmcnt>.
The union leaders everywhere
realize that we are now in Il death
Srapple with capitalism. They
also know that our efforts to retain
wages and conditions we now have
would be an easy victory il we
could get the rank and file Of the
workers to fully understand the
gravity Of the situation. 1t is no
time for internal pickering. for
uisscntlon>, but it i the time OF
all times iOl the workers To pre-.
Sent solid front to the assaults Of
organized capital
We cai,not expect too much
from the unorganizrd for in this
age OF universal organization the
class that Is not united under some
sort Of combination amounts to
little more than mob as to ct1ec-
tivenesS. They must needs be
buitrted about Ivy every class
whose interest l. to prev upon
them. These unorganizcd work
lnEmcn not "ulN suffer themselves.
bnt they stand in the way of sue
cess OF the union workers: for
II Is PLAIN to I've seen that if all or
nearly all workingmcn were in the
unions We could dictate reasonable
terms to the employers. Hence
the ifcnzed struggle OF capital to
keep the workers out oithe unions.
In view Of these facts. it is the
plain duty Of I'LL union men and
women to arise to a perfect tor
hauo at enthusiasm for the cause.
Not only should we attend. to a
man, the meetings Of the locals and
central councils and every man
and woman become an active can
EaS>er for the union paper. but W.
should do everything possible to
get every wage Garner into the
union OF his craft and to get every
union OF the state to affiliate with
the State Federation ofIabor.
Men. brethren and dcvou,
women. let Us awake. arise. tlo and
clare tor the calI>" that means com
tort and freedom on the one hand
or poverty and ahi"ct slavery TO,
" est Virginia workers on tn.
other
ihlN Is Nd mere rhetoric. no falls.
cry OF "wolt, for We stand face tt
lace with conditions that demand
non hearted nHcu. Let oul. men b,
al that men should be. and W.
may rest assured That our wives
sisters and daughters Will not tal
below tn" noble standard .
American womanhood.
80 lNr,uer wage reduction" i
The labor argus. [volume] (Charleston, W. Va.) 1906-1915, 1908-11-12

If the man who steals a loaf of
bread for his starving family is
sent to prison for Il term OF wears,
1t IS about time that the men who
operate mines in violation of the
law which resulted in the death OF
scores OF miners. and who destroy
the happiness not only of one but
of hundreds OF families. ought to
receive due consideration at the
bar OF Justice.
The labor argus. [volume] (Charleston, W. Va.) 1906-1915, 1908-11-12

II the Workiu2meu had 10
unions, there is no limit TO the
wrongs they would suffer at the
hands of ucspotic capitalists. The
misery OF the victim would he as
llmitle>S as the greed of tn. OPP
prt>>or. The competition in
luxury no" being waged by mil
lionaire> aud their wives would
cause a reductioni to follow an
other in quick succession.
The labor argus. [volume] (Charleston, W. Va.) 1906-1915, 1908-11-12

1t The miners Of the INanaw ha
Valley wish to retain the present
wages and conditions every one of
them should get into the urgani-
cation. otherwise il will oulv be a
question Of a short time until they
will return to the old wages aud
deplorablc conditions that pre-
vailed prior to the advent Of the
United Mine Workers of America
III this state aud not only that but
will be Gomiucered over by a gang
of guards" and cut Threats like
those who traverse Scah coal fields
IN our state. Arouse men for the
sake of your wives and babies. and
do Your duty in protecting them
from starvation and Siberian
slavery.
The labor argus. [volume] (Charleston, W. Va.) 1906-1915, 1908-11-12

Officials OF the Indiana miners
have gone into court and secured
an injunction against President
Lewis and the national executive
board lcstraing the latter from
outing the Indiana officers from
their positions. The Huosicrs
claim they have been treated uu-
fairly and illegally by the national
officers. who called of the Indiana
strike when the operators were
violating AL agreement.
The labor argus. [volume] (Charleston, W. Va.) 1906-1915, 1908-11-12

Labor doesn't want charity: il
wants work to support itself hon
e>tlH and dccently. II labor is
denied the right to work. then
those responsible for that condition
can only blame themselves il there
is a revolt against the system that
has conferred privileges upon them
aud their tarorS are abolished
The labor argus. [volume] (Charleston, W. Va.) 1906-1915, 1908-11-12
Jo-Uncle Cannon's Opponent.

| sing Boss Cannon'S uutucratic
rule as an excuse, Congressman
Charles y. Fowler. OF New Jersey.
chairman of the Com nlittec on
Banking and Currency Of tie
House OF Representatives. has an
nounced that he will be a c4,ndi-
dote for Speaker of The House in
opposition to Cannon who will be
i candidate for re election. Unless
Fowler can STOW that he will
serve capitalist Interests better.
than Cannon the New Jersey man
will make losing ficht-which
mad bc Il sham ono anyway.
Communications from all unions
and men ;91r-inyitpd Ivy tho \ ,..,-
The labor argus. [volume] (Charleston, W. Va.) 1906-1915, 1908-11-12

The Little lilkinSes- Dixous.
Van tleaveS' are wearing SIN lies
galore these days because Of their
ing the people once more. but its
a long lane that has no turn and
some day the people will arise in
their might and sweep the no
torious Cossack guard SYSTEM
from the state and the Servilc tools
, than long faces.
The labor argus. [volume] (Charleston, W. Va.) 1906-1915, 1908-11-12

Every union man knows his
duty to The label The thing TO
Il" is t" quicken his conscience to
the point where he will perform
that duty
The labor argus. [volume] (Charleston, W. Va.) 1906-1915, 1908-11-12

The decision Of the courts has
made it illegal for the unions to
say ''Nc Don't patronizc'' unfair
firms, but our main weapon, our
privilege to buy where we please.
they can never take from us: and
now, as never before, the Union
Label will assume the prom inenc..
which it has always deserved. No
court or legal enactment can die.
tate to the Union or individual
what he shall buy or from whom
We shall buy it: hence it would
seem that Organized Labor can
still evidence their displeasure
toward unfair firms by leaving
them alone and patronizing fair
firms
The labor argus. [volume] (Charleston, W. Va.) 1906-1915, 1908-11-12

The American Federation u1 La
hor convened i'll annual session III
Denver. this week. ana Is on" OF
the largest in its history of the
Order. Gornper@ Is at the hciin
The labor argus. [volume] (Charleston, W. Va.) 1906-1915, 1908-11-12

The Non Union to- the Core
guard" organ continues to Willy
organized labor. but every knock
from that rag is Il boost.
The labor argus. [volume] (Charleston, W. Va.) 1906-1915, 1908-11-12

No man is safe in Il community
where the machinery Of justice can
be put to such usages as it is in
New River and Cabin Creel; coal
fields.
The labor argus. [volume] (Charleston, W. Va.) 1906-1915, 1908-11-12

The happiness OF. no household
is secure, ITO matter how pure and
innocent they may be, if they are
needed by an INSCRIPTIONS band
OF ''ring rulers and guards
who are bent on crushing out or
Sanlzed labor.
The labor argus. [volume] (Charleston, W. Va.) 1906-1915, 1908-11-12

Now that the late unpleasant
re>S is over every union man
should put his shoulder to the
wheel and prepare to continue. the
onward march foIfsbetter condi.
tiOnS for the toilels. -
The labor argus. [volume] (Charleston, W. Va.) 1906-1915, 1908-11-12
GUARD" SYSTEM MUST GO.

In the year 1904, Just l2S years
after the old Liberty bell pe;,leu
forth the joyous tiding, of the
birth of a new nation Of frecmen,
a squad Of ''privatr detectives
guards and blood hounds march
ed up Cabin Creek and elected
scores of miners and their families
from the company houses and threw
them upon the public highways
in thcSnow tosut1er from the pangs
OF cold and hunger, simply because
the miners asserted their american
manhood and demanded fair wages
and working conditions. Today
''guardS' still patrol that Creek
and deny a union man the right to
traverse the public highways.
And still they tell us this is Il
land OF liberty. Will the officers
of the law do their sworn duty or
will they continue to be controlled
by the 'intcrcSts': The union
men OF the Kanawha Valley and
all liberty. loving people demand
that the 1awlcsS ''guarl' system
DC abolished.
The labor argus. [volume] (Charleston, W. Va.) 1906-1915, 1908-11-12

Trades unions cheer the home
and tircsidc and make the world
better for those Twin" today.
The labor argus. [volume] (Charleston, W. Va.) 1906-1915, 1908-11-12

TO insure the securing of labol
Legislation every union i'll the
State should Join the State FEEDER.
alton Of Labor and make a united
demand for it.