The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1914-06-26
THE GEN OF ALL GEMS
DIAMONDS ARE BUT SATELLITES
TO THE PERFECT EMERALD.
The Precious Stones Are Found i'm
United States, But Most Valu-
able Come From BOgota.

| NhAOC0 CtNVSSS ASuO ~~OSS
able Come From BOgota.
Where do they come from-those
flashing stones of pure pellucid green
that often form the central setting OF
beauty's choicest gems? Diamonds
form but satellites when that rarest
of jewels, a perfect emerald, flashes
it's fire from the snowy throat of a
woman fair, or lends its sheen to the
! iewel-incrusted crown of royalty. Its
birth is hidden in the mystery of ma
lures alchemy, but its beauty and
charm have been recognized from the
very dawn of history.
Emeralds flashed on the shield of
Aaron; the Ptolemies of Egypt treas
ured them and their labidaries knew
the art of engraving on their hard
surfaces the mystic symbols of their
ancient faith; the Theban tombs re-
vealed choice emeralds among their
long buried treasures, while Hercu-
leaneum and Pompeii have added
their quota to the greed of modern
excavators. Nero, that half mad
monster who once ruled the destinies
of Rome, used an enormous emerald
for a monocle, and in the filmy fabric
of the gowns of Cleopatra emeralds
shone in verdant luster.
Mount Zabarah, in upper Egypt,
is said to have been the source OF
many of these ancient gems, but cen
turtles have passed since these pro-
life mines were exhausted, and mod
ern jewellers must now depend upon
the western hemisphere for their
supply. In the spoils PizarrO sent
to Spain were found the first tlne
specimens of American emeralds and
thus was revealed another source OF
the amnifold wealth of the New
World
Perhaps the most valuable single
emerald found in modern times is
the one in that famous collection OF
gems owned by the Duke of Devon
shire. 1t is said to be perfect hex
agonal crystal, weighing 8 ounces
and IS pennyweights, and 2 inches
in length. 1t came from the mines
of Colombia, and it is this South
American republic that furnishes the
greatest supply of fine emeraIds
known to the world today.
Not that Colombia is the only
country that has emerald mines
Ecuador and Peru have contributed
their share to the worlds supply and
in the former country the city OF
Esmeraldas Spanish for emeralds)
takes it's name from the precious
stones found in it's vicinity. Among
the Aztec treasures of Mexico were
found emeralds as fine as those OF
the Peruvian Incas, and it is reported
that Cortez was offered 10000 ducats
for one of them gems he gathered
from the hoard of Montezuma.
In some areas of the United States
limited quantities of the precious
stones are found, but the gems OF
greatest beauty and value are to be
had from the Muzo and Cosquez de-
posts near Bogota, the capital OF
Colombia.
The Colombian gems exhibit to the
highest degree the qualities OF color,
brilliancy, fawlessness and size
characteristic of the best emeralds
known, and the Muzo district seems
at present to be the most prolific OF
all mining zones. The matriX IN
which they are imbedded overlies
great precipice of black shale or
slate. This black rock contains but
few stones. They are found for the
most part in white calcite running IN
veins through this slate, some being
imbedded in the matrix and others
living in pockets. All the Colombian
mines are situated within radius OF
100 miles of Bogota, at attitudes be-
tween 1000 and 1000 feet above sea
level 1t is estimated that the an
nual production is not far from ST.
100000 in value.