The Yale expositor., 1912-08-29


IA the world-'he old Central
Il A mine-with space measure.
ment at the surface of IA
acres, and a depth of some 400 feet
There are, in addition to several small
err ones, four other enormous eXcava-
| lions, all Witnessing to the tireless en-
ergy OF men in hurry 70 be rich.
The diamonds are found in ii grey
rock called blue ground which fills
pipe" or natural shaft Of unknown
depth. widening towards the surface
into funnel shape. Below the few
feet Of red sand on the surface comes
the yellow ground, "-lime-lor fifty
or sixty feet.
Underneath that is the blue
ground" which, although the yellow
ground" Is not without diamonds, Is
the true diamondbe caring rock. Sclen-
lists believe that these pipes" are
the craters Of extinct volcanoes. and
that at some time when the surround
ing country was under water, this dia'
mondiferous rock was forced up in the
form of volcanic mud How and when
and where the diamonds were formed
remains a mystery, but they are un-
doubtedly of earlier date than the
rock which encloses them.
Early Diamond Digging.
The first mining operations were re-
stricted TO digging and scooping out
the earth. But, by degrees, as the
hole got wider and deeper, troubles
came In the shape of accumulation Of
water and falls of reef" In gold
mining the reef Is the gold.bearing
rocks, but the reef" of the diamond
mines is the surface shale and basalt
surrounding the pipes"
This was the cause Of great tribu-
lation to the early miners, as it caved
IN again and again. and overwhelmed
those working below. After various ex-
pedients had been tried withiut per-
manent success, 1t became impossible
TO work the mine any longer in the
old way. and many thought the in
dustry was absolutely ruined.
Here was the opening for the cap
italist. who soon superseded the dig
ger"
The larger claim-ho.ders bauded to
gether, and sank shafts outside the
area already operated upon, with gal
leries running towards the center, un.
til the blue" was tapped In 1888
Messrs. Rhodes, Barnato, and Belt,
having bought out the smaller hold
ers, formed the De Beers Consolidated
Mines. Limited, that great corporation
which has ever since controlled the
diamond mining industry.
The main shaft al the Central"
connects with the pipe o. blue
ground by means Of several CALLER
les, the distance from shaft to pipe"
being 1.l34 feet At the time Of the
writer's descent the lowest gallery
was 1900 feet from the surface.
Armed with the necessary permit.
we stripped and re-clothed ourselves
In a sort OF dressing-room.
The outfit includes flannel shirt. and
coat and trousers of duck" or some
such material, the articles being dec,d-
eddy the worse for wear. Instead of
braces or belt. looped leather thong
does duty. An ancient sou'.wester
with ear-flaps. and tied under the
chin, a pair OF socks that have seen
service. and rubber Wellington boots
complete the costume
Accompanied by the manager. we
get into the cage at the top OF the
shaft. and after q few seconds Of swift
motion, step out at the l 900 foot lev.
ell. Each supplied with u composite
candle--but no candlestick!--we pro.
coed TO explore the workings on that
level. We pass stalwart natives at
work, with here and there white
overseer. Some drill holes In the
rock ready for blasting: others gath
er up the fragments into snail steel
trucks, which are pushed along on
rails to the shoot" which conveys the
blue" down to the 1000 foot level
These boys" handle many u lump
with a fortune hidden In Il. Some
times their quick eyes detect the
stone" and not being without the de-
sire for pelf they covet. like Acban,
and, like Achan, take--if they can do
30 unnoticed. They will make an IN.
clsion In their flesh 90 secure hiding
lace for their md" and even pwsl.