Fort Mill times. [volume] (Fort Mill, S.C.) 1892-current, 1922-09-07
MINING OF DIAMONDS.
Story Of How Precious Stones
Are Ianen krQlu EarLh.

"a rush such as. this country
kIew III lls Tree land days, Dut III
lIils Case 10 peg out claims IN
Newly discovered diamond tleld,
WAS mentioned i'll recent dis
pa.ches from South Africa. Inns
new diamond country opens up
pusslbliItIes OF rival to the
great Kimberly diamond field.
The method of mining diamonds
at AlmDerly, which may be fol-
lowe III the new fields II the
formation proves the same, are
outlined III bulletin OF the Ma
t:onal Geographic society.
THE miles at kimberly, says
the bulletin, '.are in very ancient
.voicanoes which ages ago lost all
sembiance OF activity. But dur
ing their youth the great heat
and pressure of the volcanoes
created gigantic laboratories in
their depths III which thousands
of the hard white carbon crystals
which are diamonds were created.
The precious little Jumps are en-
bedded in a great volume OF
worthless rock known as blue
ground and under old condi-
lions were as hard to find as the
proverbial needle in a haystack.
But just as u clever searcher
could probably locate his needle
with powerful magnate, despite
the straw, so engineers have
evolved mechanical means clever
ly to separate the few tiny dia
monds from the many tons of
dirt in which they are hidden.
The effectiveness with which
nature has concealed the crystals
IS evidenced by the fact that the
'Glue ground brought up from
the depths OF the mines and car
rying its priceless gems is spread
cht III the open for. four months
to year To the weather. The
diamonds are perfectly safe, for
officials who have walked over
the weathering floors for many
years assert that they have never
found diamond in this way. As
tho blue ground weathers it
crumbles and great harrows like
those used on the bonanza farms
of the West are dragged over it
TO facilitate the process.
Eventually the material is
broken down into relatively fine
PARTICLES. 1t is then taken III
truck loads TO the mechanical
plant of the mine for treatment.
Ihe ground. is mixed with water
III great mixing machines and
passed over screens of fine wire
r1eshing.
When as much as possible of
tie fofeign material has been re-
moved III this way the coarse resi-
due, containing the diamonds, is
passed over sioping, vibrating ta-
bles covered with thick grease.
Because OF some little understood
physical property, diamonds stick
to the grease while the worthless
material flows over the edge of
the tables. The grease with it's
load Of crystals is then scraped
into a perforated container and
heated by steam. The grease
melts away and leaves the small
but highly valuable objects of
these months Of work.
Zone of the most striking feat
nres of the mining of diamonds
by the large companies in Kim
berly is the existence of the
unique labor compounds. Since
diamonds are so easily stolen,
only those native laborers are
employed who will agree to 'en-
list for at least three months and
remain for that period (when not
II, the mines or on the floors )
within walled inclosure. In the
largest compound, covering more
than four acres, 5000 men live.
Not only are these compounds,
surrounded by high walls. bat.
they are also covered overhead
by fine wire netting. so that dia-
monds cannot be thrown outside
TO c0nfederates.
t0uJv oa.+o:,, .4:.l