The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1911-09-13
FAKE DIAMONDS ARE
FLOODING MARKET
Even Experts Often Fooled
Says Lapidary-Tells Why
Condition Exists.
palladium Specially

palladium Specially
BOSTON, Sept a. The majority
OF brides today are wearing fake dia-
monds according to Fred A. Kneip, a
lapidary, to whom successive inspec-
tors of gems at the custom house have
referred.
Most of the stones that are mount
ed are not real" he says, land great
many OF the so-called diamonds worn
today are fictitious. Nor Is 1t alone
the private individual who is some
times imposed upon. Wholesale adul-
iteration is not confined to sugar and
flour. Papers OF gem stones selected
by the importer can be adulterated
with a wide variety of imitation and
similar appearing stones.
Frequently, too, diamonds that have
been handed down through genera
tions are found to be nothing more
than paste. Such case came to my
notice when a drummer for large
New York stone house, in Boston
lawyers office, submitted to me a
brilliant white stone weighing perhaps
2h karats, which had been placed in
his hands to be taken to New York
for examination / found it to be moth
ing but brilliant cut strass, or paste.
This stone, it was understood, was
held in the highest estimation by its
owner, who had inherited 1t from
deceased relative who had always val
ued 1t as an heirloom of great value.
Again an examination of num-
Der of fine rubies sent me by well
known firm to be re-cut disclosed the
fact that while they were all alike in
appearance both in color and in style
of cut, they were only about half real.
Returning them Immediately with this
announcement the firm submitted the
whole paper of rubies for examination,
and half of these also found to be I'M
real. This house had already sold the
major portion of these stones in good
faith, and had purchased them from
a New York importing house of high
standing.
Experts Often Deceived.
zone reason of this deception Of
even experts" he explains, rs that It
is commonly supposed that the dia-
mond ia the only stone that has a
very few dealers In precious 'stones
who are aware that there is another
white stone which, when properly cut,
displays an even greater brilliancy of
color under artificial light than the
diamond. This stone is the zircon,
and IL much softer than the diamond,
being IN in hardness. whereas the
diamond Is 10. the hardest Of all known
substances.
about year ago cut two white
xircons and mounted them in tiffany
rings. They were shown to dia-
mond setter who had grown gray in
his business, examined under electric
light, and declared to be handsome
stones. Then turning to me he ask
ed: Are they pure whites?" That be-
ing the most sought for tint in COM
mercial diamonds.
These same stones were afterward
sold to a man who wished one for his
sweetheart's ring. and one for his
own. AS both were mounted In Ia
dies rings, one had to be remounted.
The jeweler some way overlooked In
structing the diamond settlers that 1t
was q soft stone, and this expert as
sumed that it was real diamond. and
used emery cloth to smooth off the
claws q process which would have
been perfectly safe with diamond
But in this case it proved quite dis
astrous to the polish Of the stone.
But the diamond is not the only
stone that has it's counterparts in ma
ture. The pale blue and green beryls
may with difficulty be distinguished
from Montana sapphires Of the same
color.
Certain pale blue sapphires have
their exact duplicates in spinels Of
the same color. The oriental ruby
which is a puzzle, is very generally
duplicated by softer mineral known
to commerce as the ruby spinel.
Certain shades of amethyst car
scarcely be told from Indian sapphires
The orange colored sapphire Is pre-
cisely matched by the Madeira topaz
which Is merely quartz.
There are a variety of cats-eyes
the precious one being the chrysobery
cat's-eye. Poor specimens of this arr
sometimes duplicated In quartz. ant
the Japanese initiate it in abalon'
shell. Another cat's-eye mistaken TO
the gem variety is the crocodolite, o
tiger.eye, which is nothing but petri
fled asbestos artificially colored."
The Brazilian government has com
mcnced an active destruction cam