The Bamberg herald. [volume] (Bamberg, S.C.) 1891-1972, 1922-10-12
Diamond Mine
In Arkansas
Dearborn Independent.

are mlneQ IN Arkansas. Wnen Cne
American Legion annual convention
was held in Kansas City and the new
ly elected commander, Hanford Mac
Nider was presented with an car
kansas diamond by former Governor
Charles H. Bough, of Arkansas, many
delegates imagined it was joke and
one newspaper ridiculed the idea
that real diamonds were found in Ar
kansas. But the diamond that was
given to Commander MacNlder
equals in color, brilliancy and hard
ness any diamond that comes from
the great mines of South Africa. And
it was mined in Pike County, ,Arkan-
1t is related that the children of
early Dutch settlers in South Africa
played with diamonds as they might
have done with valuless pretty
bright stones before the first diamond
was identified as such in 1895. The
discovery that the ''pfetty stones
really were diamonds was made by
accident. In like manner, the first
diamond found in Arkansas Is years
ago was picked up and kept merely as
a stpretty stone"
John w. Huddlestone, a farmer,
made the find. He picked up a stone
in his field one day but had no idea
of it's worth. He had formed habit
of collecting odd crystals and various
specimens of minerals with which the
neighborhood abounds. But the stone
that he found on this particular &C.
scasion was 80 different from any he
ever had seen end gave such sharp
glints of light that he decided to take
it to Mufreesboro the next time he
went to see if someone there could
identify it. Several days later, rid
ing toward Mufreesboro on a mule,
he noticed another stone alongside
the road which appeared much like
the one he had in his pocket. He dis
mounted and picked it up. With the
toe of his boot, he KICKED at small
pile of pebbles and Uncovered an
other one. He took the three to a
bank in Mufreesboro. None of the
officials knew what the stones were
although one of the men did admire
the larger one enough that he offered
Huddlestone so cents for it. Huddle-
stone declined to part with it; saying
he would rather break it up and see
if he could not identify it. Standing
in the little group of men in the bank
that day was Judge J. G. Pima, cir
cult judge in the district of which
Pike County is a part.
s'Why don't you send them to,
>jeweler and see what he says about
them?' suggested Julge Pnnex.
So Huddlestone proceeded at once
to wrap up the stones and send them
to Charles S. Stiff in Little Rock.
The three stones were Immediate
ly recognized as diamonds by Mr..
Stiff. But to get other opinions, he
forwarded the specimen to firm CT
diamond importers of New York, had
them inspected by DR.. George F.
Kunz, recognized as one Of the au-
thorities in America on precious
stones, vice-president and diamond
expert for Tiffany's and also gem
expert for the United States Geologi-
cal Survey. The stones were pro-
nounced diamonds and the experts
declared that they appeared to be as
hard and as brilliant as the average
African diamond in the rough.
DR.. Kunz was not especially moved
BY the news of the discovery. He
pointed out that diamonds had been
found in several states in America,
by single stones, and these were &C
counted for as STRAY stones," the
theory Being that they had been LETT
after the shifting Of glaciers thous-
.anas Of yes:s ago. He so informed
the i,i,t7o Rock jeweler, discouraging
any e4>~4.a Gant hopes until thor
ough Unrest cation might be made.
On learning however, that the stones
had La2n found in grounds apparent
y Of - aaic origin OR nature, DR..
-. -..aGo a special trip to the
Ark~r>as field and was greatly i'm
pre-. d with the fact that it appeared
to have diamonds Gin place. in their
ra+'yo periGotite.
t was eEplained that diamonds
v,e g. so1rd n two locales, those of
voicanic origin being found only in
a blue earth called peridotite. Carbon
at ir.@nse heat, it is supposed, is
subjec,c1 to tremendous pressure
and Suddenly cooled by the influx