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MICROCOPY RESOLUTION TEST CHART

NATIONAL BUREAU OF STANDARDS

STANDARD REFERENCE MATERIAL 1010a

(ANSI and ISO TEST CHART No. 2)

REFJ

Biamonb t)aIU

V . JEWELERS BY APPOINTMENT A

eOWPILIO AND PUBUSNCD BV

DIAMOND
MERCHANTS,

118, 120, 122, 124 Konae street,

Uoronto^

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Nor 11. T(u \crv ur.ititv ing rc-xptiuti .u.'u\!-jj
Mur '■ T:ilk vin Jewels" last yeai' !ias pi-Mtupt^d us
to continiK it- puMicatior. this sum:ncr .i!so, in
the hope that its perusal ii!a\ pinve of MUeie-i to
\ou ::ni.\ pioHt to "iMsvKes,

KVkil t;R()S.

COMPILED AND PUBLISHED BY

IR^rie Bro0-,

DIAMOND
MERCHANTS,

US, 120, 122, 124 ^ome street,

Toronto*

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COMPILED AND PUBLISHED BY

IR^ric J6ro0-,

DIAMOND
MERCHANTS.

US, 120, 122, 124 lt)onac street,

Toronto.

Entered according to
Act of the Parliament
of Canada in the year
19 01, by Ryrie Bros.,
at the Department of
Agriculture.

APR 7 J372

■' V

NOTE.

♦
'J^HIS little "talk on jewels "
was recently given by special
request before the Rosedale
School Art Leaijue ^ our
Mr. James Ryrie, and was so
favorably received that we have
been prompted to publish it in
this form, believing that its
perusal will be of interest to
all who love jewels.

RYRIE BROS.,

DIAMOND MCRCHANT*.

TORONTO.

•iiaiifr"

'':wjmi

.^^,H>?^„

f^" \-"n5« '*"-"» » **'c i?- -?**'*H,S^'i^^

<E i

Si if

PHOTO OF STORE FRONT.

♦
npHE door through which you
are always welcome to enter
whether as "intending pur-
chaser" or "idle sight=seer."

('HAITER I.

Till'; I.«tVK OK .IKWKhS.

HIi love of jewels Heeius to bo
iiinalo ill tlio huiiiau lireast.
Even the rude f^ava<;e is not
devoid of it. Whilst every jewel
has its ow u ])articular admireis,
all seem to unite in singing; the
praises of the diamond. Al-
though the tiisb known mention made
of it dates baek to an Indian epic one
thousand years l.efcMe Christ, its sway is
still supreme and ever increasinjr.

If at times we are disposed to feel
apolo<;etiG ft)r indulgin<jj in such a weakness,
it may be of some comfort to he reminded
that that masterly man, Henry Ward
Beecher, thought it not beneath his dignity
to carry in his pocket a number of such
choice gems, at which he frequently gazed,
an<l fondled lovingly. Even royalty, that
conditionof life<lescrib(Ml by ITannah Moore
as being "too high for hope," is not too
high to escajje the fascination, and, in their

A TALK ON JEWELS.

quest for larger empire, our sovereigns are
not unmindful of these gaudy toys.

Poets and novelists of old have woven
a tissue of romance and adventure around
tliem even as Stevenson and Conan Doylo
in our own day, l>nt if the story of these
royal jewels eould l)e told in detail it would
l)o found once more that — " truth is stranger
tlian lietion."

As too many statistics are liable to
l)ring ou an atta(;k of nuMital (lyspepsia, I
will refer to hut three of these jewels— the
three that are most likely to he of interest
to you. Befoie doing so, however, as I
will frequently have to refer to the term
"Carat," I Mould like to say that we nuist
not confuse it with the teiin "Karat" as
a[)plied to gold. In the latter case it refers
to quality, whilst as ajjplied to diamonds it
refers to weight only. Puie gold, as you
kuow, is divided into 24 })arts, each of
which is termed a "karat."' As in its
])ure state it is impossible to manufacture
it, its wearing (jualities being too soft, it is
necessary to introduce an alloy of some
other metal, and wlu-n we speak of ISK
gold it means IS ]);irts ])ur(; gold and (»
pai'ts of alloy.

As a[)plie(l to diamonds, liowever, the
term is <lerived from an Indian seed which,

A TALK ON JEWELS.

when dry, is absolutely uniform in weight,
and when we speak of a stone weij^hing
100 carats it simply means that it weighs
exactly the same as 100 such seeds. That
you may have a better idea of the size
re[>rcsent«!d by a carat, I would say that
the end of an oidinary had pencil repre-
sents the suifaco of a stone between one
and one and a half carats. In speaking of
a 100 carat stone, however, it must not be
supposed that it is ecpial in surface to 100
pencil ends as the weight is distributed
over the entire stone, depth included. At
most su(;h a stone would not represent
over 8 or 10 of these.

CHAPTER II.

THK (illKAT JEWELS.

The first of the crown jewels of which I
shall make mention is the " Kohinoor,"
which is the Indian for "Mountain of
Li'dit." The earliest positive knowledge
we have of this stone was in the Treasury
of Delhi in the year bVJG and it then
weighed 703 carats. Through unskilful
cutting it was reduced to 186 carats and
the royal owner was so incensed that he
ordeied tlie arrest and imprisoimient of
the culprit for many years.

A TALK ON JEWELS.

After various vicissitudes, in which
bloodshed and rapine were not unknown,
we next find it at tlie capture of Lahore
when it fell into the possession of the
British soldiers and was by them presented
to Her late Majesty on July 3, 1850.

When exhibited at the great Exposition
of 1851, notwithstanding its iini)erfections,
it 'attracted very great attention, and a
consultation of the leading scientific men
of the day. Sir David Brewster among
them, was held to consider the advisability
of trying to perfect it by recutting. Al-
though their opinion was averse to such an
attempt, a Mr. Coster of Amsterdam, who
was familiar with such matters, was so
sanguine of the results that the gem was
eventually entrusted to him and the result
justified the action, as, whilst it now stands
at only 106 1-16 carats, it has the same
surface as before and instead of being
lustreless is brimful of light and fire.

Crossing the English Channel, we enter
the French Republic, and amongst the
treasures which they once possessed, we
find the Pitt Diamond, now known as the
Regent, which weighs 186=^ carats. This
stone was originally bought by a Hindoo
men^hant and after many interesting ad-
ventures was purchased by the French

A TALK ON JEWELS.

(Joveinnient iu 1717 for the etiuivaleiib of
§073,000. In the rou<jfh it weighed soine
410 carats and it took two years to cut it at
ati a(!tual cost of £2,000 stoilinjr -^10,000.

This stone was avoiii ]>y the great
Napoleon in the poininel of his sword and
fell into the hands of the I'rnssians at
Waterloo, and thus passed into the hands
of the Kint^ of Prussia. It is reinited to be
one of the finest gems, althoutih stjuare in
shape, hut contains one small fiaw.

Crossing the intervening si)ace, we
come to Russia, that country whieh is now
enirasrinj; so much of the attention of the
world's best statesmen, where we find the
OrlofF, so called after the celebrated family
of that name. This stone is larger than
either of the others already mentioned and
weighs 194^ carats. It, however, is "Rose
cut." The meaning of this term I will
explain to you more fully later on.

At one time it is said to have been an
eye of a Brahman idol, but was stolen b}'
a Frenchman and sold in Mahibar for tlio
ecpiivalent of $14,000. In 1774 it was pur
chased })y the Russian CJovernment for the
tHiuivalent of .$.370,000, an annuity of $U5,000
and a i)atent to the title of nobility. It is
now in the imperial seei)ti' and at the
coronation services of tlit present Em[)eror

A TALK ON JEWELS.

Nicholas II. i>laye(l jin iini)OTtiinb purt.
As these stones me not purchasable it
may be with a certain amount of envy
that one hears their beauties extolled, but
I will now make mention of one which
is in the market and which may be
obtained, provided you can come to
satisfactory terms with the owners. This
is known as the Jajj^ersfontein Excelsior
and was found at Jagersfontein, Orange
Free State, that country of which we have
heard so much during recent mouths. On
June 30th, 1893, it was found by a native
whilst shovelling clay into a truck, who
managed to secrete it on his person although
a white overseer was standing near at the
time. It was evident that theft was not
his object, but rather that he might deliver
it in person to the maiuiger. As he re-
ceived a bonus of £150 and the gift of a
horse and saddle, it shows that his judgment
was not far astray.

In its present state uncut it weighs
971. J carats or 7i oz. — nearly half a pound.
It is a blue white and reminds one of a
large broken icicle, being three inches long
and two an a half inches roinid at its
thickest point. Unfortunately it has a
black s[)ot in the middle which will impair
it as a single stone. Cut in two, however,

♦

fit

A TALK ON JEWELS.

it Mill iiKikc ;i lic.'iiitifiiUy in:it<'lH;(l ]);iir.
At tho mine it Mas valued at one inilliun
dollars. If c'<)iitoin[)latiu«^ tho |)iir(;liase of
this stone, however, I Mould ad\ isc you to
add about 5j»10,0(M) for its outtin*^ and
j)olishin^.

A curious eireunistaneo in conne(;tion
M'ith the lindin;^ of this stone is worth nien-
tionin<i^. The firm of Bernheini &; Hiit-
nieyer had made a contract for the puichase
of all diamonds found during the year at a
tixed price per carat, based, of course, upon
the ordinary run of stones. This contract
expired on July 1st or, to be exact, at mid-
night of June 80th, vliereas this stone was
found on the eveninjif of this very date
thus makinj; a dilference of afc least nine
hundred thousand dollars to them in the
residt of their year's contract, provided u
purchaser is found at the estimated vahu;.

Leaving these concrete cases, mo Mill
now speak of diamonds in general.

CHAPTER Til.

THE OlirciV OF TIIK IMAMOND.

The Mord "diamond" is derived from
the(Jreek "adamas," meaning indomitable,
Mhich, in time, became change<l to diamas,
hence our M'ord diamond. Tho NorMOgian

A TALK ON JEWELS.

philosopher, Henrick SU'fftMjs, (letiiu'<l dm-
moiul as quartz liiised to self-consciousness.
Althouf^'h not strictly speakinj,^ u stone, its
nijiterial entitles it to a i)l:ice nearer tlu^
on'-anio Morld than anv other mineral sul.-
stance. It occupies a uni(iuc jiosition in
many resi)ects. Althou»rh tcimed carlton,
it ditlei'S in one res|)ect. Whilst carl ion
conducts electricity, the diamond is a non-
conductor. It is the only stone that is
perfectly transparent to tlu Rontgen ray.
It is self-luminous, that is, after exposure
to sunshine it uill give out in the dark what
it takes in during the day. Its ai)i>earance
ill the rough is like a piece of gum aral.ic
It is the hardest known substance, hut
although so hard it can he hinut with
oxygen at a temperature of about fourteen
hundred degrees Fahrenheit.

The origin of the diamond has until very
recently been a perfect mystery. India
had been the only source of supply until
discovered in Brazil in IT'JS. Although
usually found in beds of rivers and adjacent
places, in both of these countries wherever
found it was always recognized as an immi-
grant and not in its native place. This
was evident from the fact that it was
always nonadherent, none of them having
ilat sides indicating that they had been

A TALK ON JEWELS.

l.i()k«n olFaiiy «»tlicT IkkIv, l.ut \\« re t'.MiiHl
just iis Olio niij^lit i»i«.'k iii> a stray coin in
tho sands of the suaslioro tliat liad been
di'opped l»y ai'cideiib or ('aiiii'd in l»y tlio
action of tho water. It remained, however,
for what is known as tho (hy di^^^n^^s of
Sonth Africa inlerineted in tho li<;ht of tho
laboratory to <iivo tho chsired key. Tlieso
were discovered in ISTO, some three years
after a white jjchhle had hecn picked up
and taken hy an Irish ostrich hunter or
trader to Ca[)e Town.

This i)arb of Africa is what is known as
the Karoo Formation, supposed to liavo
been a great inkmd sea ages before man
appeared upon the earth, when tlio toad and
lizard were the higliest types of animal life.
At this partieuhir pait is centred within
a radius of a few miles : Tho Kimberley,
Debeers, l)utoits[)an, Bulfontein, Weselton,
Leicester, Kailirfontein, Jagersfoutein and
Excelsior mines. One thing to 1>e borne in
mind is that even in this district the gems
a; J not scattered indiscrimiiuitely l)ut in
shoots or pipes extending down into the
bowels of the earth. One other fact worthy
of noti<'e is that these i>ii>es are filled
throughout w ith the same soib of clay and
not A\ ith the various strata <»f tlie earth as
mi'dit be expecte<l ; whilst the exeavations

i:{

A TALK ON JEWELS.

ill .s«»ino iiistaiiocH have rea(;hed two thou-
^sa!l(l feet below tlio siufaeo, tho blue clay
is identical with that turned hy tho i)icka.\o
ou the surface some thirty years aj^'o. Yet
another fact is that these different shoots
have heea supplied from diilerent souices
or under sli«;htly dilTerent conditions inas-
much as an exiKjrt has little dithculty in
detectin<,^ fi'oni uhich particuhir mine the
stone has come because of its color, and
finally it is to ho noted that at the lowest
depth tho supply is greater than at the
smfa(!e, although the great cost of working
makes it less remunerative.

It is at this point that the laboratory
has rendered invaluable assistance. The
diamond is carbon ; charcoal too is carbon
of an ordinary kind. (Iraphito is the same
substance modified by strong heat apart
from extraordinary pressure, whilst the
Diamond is the outcome of high tempera-
ture combined ^vith high pressure. This
fact the lal)oratory has demonstrated for us.
It has also shown us that iion fused ^vill
dissolve carbon at a temperature of 3,000
centigrade, that is, about G3.S0 Fahrenheit,
a temperature beside which our sweltering
"hundred degreis in the shade"' seems quite
refreshing. When so dissolved, if plunged
into water there is formed a thiu layer of

A TALK ON JEWELS.

iron ♦Mu'losiiii,' a sulistanco which ex|MUi<ls as
ifcriystalli/es, as (loos water wlu-n it fn-r/rs,
thus <lisen<;a«,'iiij? the crystal fnun the in.n
sht'll in about a fortni«,'ht. The larjirst
crystal yt'fc produced is hut one tifticth of
an indi in diameter and went to pieces in
ahout three months, hut was ([uito sutficicnt
to exphiin the process as carried on in the
eentre of the earth, Nature's laboratory.

It is, of course, a reeo^nii/ed fact that
our earth has for a«;es been coolin^^ from the
surface and even at i)resent at the centre
it is a molt»'n mass. The orij^nn of the
diamond is attributed to the tilterin<,'
through of the water of these lontr extinct
inland seas, which aeting upon the carbides,
that is, the carbon fused with metal,
formed the crystals which l^v •jases so
generated were expelled through the pipes
or shoots, carrying with them this substance
known as the blue earth of Kimberley.

Although this is the only point at which
diamonds "are now found, scientists agree
that there is no valid reason to suppose that
they may not be found in almost any other
part of the worhl where similar volcanic
action is evident, and it is still a nustery
Avhere the diamonds of P»ra/.il and India had
their birth, but certain it is that down in
the depths of the earth far beyond the

A TALK ON JEWELS.

reuch of nmii they lio in jilunnliUM't5 awuifc-
inj^ some Much volcaniu action tt) semi them
forth.

One stranj^o fact worthy of ineiitioii in
connection Mith these crystals or dianioiuls
in the roujjh is that sometimes even the
M-armth of tlie Imnd will cause them to fly
to splinters after being taken from the clay,
owing, it is supposed, either to their origin-
ally having heen strained or to the })resence
of highly condensed gas within them. For
this reason when so susjjected they are
always shipiMjd enclose«l in a raw potato or
other substance.

As alrcjuly stated, India was the home
j)f the diamond until the year 1728, when
discovered in Brazil, these two countries
dividing the honors until the discovery of
the Kimberley mines in 1870. At the
present time, however, the Kimberley and
other mines in South Africa are really the
oidy sources of supply. Whilst the average
before their discovery in 1870 was about
sixty thousand carats per annum, during
the next twenty years, that is from 1870 to
1800, the entire output of Africa was forty -
three million carats, that is, an average of
over two million carats per annum.

Although there weie at one time quite
a number of mijie claims in South Africa,

A TALK ON JEWELS.

thoKO wero all coiisdlid.itrd in I lit' v«'ar ISSO
into what is kn<»Nvn as tin- Inrnns Cun
Holi«latf(l, ill wliich tin- cclul.iatrd (\ril
Khodi's was tin- moving: si>irit, and Mhi<h
in a lar«;e nuNismu lias jj:ivrii liiin tlu;
strong position lio now holds in tlu- tillUiis
of that country.

In Brazil, when a native found a 17 <'arat
stone he was entitled to his liluMty, from
whieh it may he inf»'ned that the tindinj;
of such sttines was hy no means too com-
mon an event. Of the stones found, how^
evt'v, many of oouiso are of no nso for
cuttin«,^ as tlu-y are so Itadly tlawcd, or so
poor in color, or of such 1> -d shajtc, that
they cannot he nscd for such purposes.
These are called "llort," and are simply
])(mnded in a mortar, the dust hein*,' used
for the euttinj; of better stones, as the
diamond, l»eiii«jf the hardest known suh-
stanee, can he touched with nothing' hut
diamond, hence the ex^iression, "Diamond
cut Diamond.''

Other stones are what are known as
splinters and are nsed for p(»intin«,' drills
for manufactnriii<^ and other ])uri)Oses.
Then we have the very small pieces used
hy jrla/.iers for cutting' ^dass, which,
althou<rh they cut hut 1 -•_'<>'> J'ait of an
inch deeis still dictate with unerring

A TALK ON JEWELS.

precision tlic lines upon Avliicli tlie lucak
must run.

Tlicio is nothiu«r in the condition of life
concerning the diamond mIicii it is inti'o-
duced to the lijj^ht of day that is proplu'tic
of the future that awaits it. No forecast,
however faint, of the part it is to play as a
seal of i)li<^hted love. There is no poetr\'
about diamond mining. Much of the labor
is done bv convicts, African convicts at
that, [)erhaps the lowest form of civiliza-
tion. Such laborers as are employed are
eniraijcd for terms of six or twelve months,
during which time thev aie allowed n(»
diiect conununication with the outside
world, thus removing all inducements to
steal. At one time it Mas fouml that lal>orers
often swallowed stones, but of late years
thev are closelv confined for one week
before the expiration of their term of ser-
vice, their clothes are entirely changed
and a most rigid examination made of their
persons, thus removing all danger of theft.
In the earlier davs illicit dealers, called
I.D.'s, caused a great deal of trouble, as
they were a ^ Mce for the purchase of these
stones from itie natives, and the most rigid
j)enalties have, theicfore, been enacted,
few Climes being looked upon so gravely.

The mines in South Africa number seven

A TALK ON JEWELS.

or ciirlit. That known us (lie Kimhcrlev,
one of the most iniportant, covci's al>out
twiMity acres.

As already explained, tlio stones nvo
found in a soit of l»lne clay, wliieliis spread
upon deposit inix iloois several miles in
extent for " weathe'-inj^" in the sun and
rain. After being' separated the stones
are washed and passed throu«rh several
sortings until they are ready for market.
This market is n«>t in Africa, l»ut \n London.
As already indicated, the entire ontj)ut is
ahvaxs sold to a syndicate at a fixed ti<rnre
per caiat and for a given time. Tins syndi-
cate controls the maiket price. If cut
diamonds an- ruling too high, at the next
sale they put on the market a lai"g;'r
(juantity of rough, and rice n /•<</, if too low,
tiiev reduce the (luantitv, thus raising the
price. This, I think, is a wise action, as if
diamt)nds were too common it would lessen
our admiration for them. In the case
of the necessities of life such comlii nations
are often a curse;, but when it comes to
the luxuiies it is a (question if all parties
concerned are not ])er]iaps the better served.
Most of the rough diamonds find their way
to Amsterdam, where as many as l.'i.OOO
peo[)le have been engaged in this industry.
There is no special reason why this should

A TALK ON JEWELS.

have Itetn made the head centre any more
Mian any other spot, ])ey(>nd tliat po.ssihly
it staited thcK and lias kept on in. leasin^r^
just as is the case with tol>acc(), for which
it is also one of the principal emporiums of
the M'orld.

CHA3TER IV.
thp: crTTiNo of thi: ]>ia:mom».
The process of cutting is purelv a
mechanical one. The stones aie first,
cleaved, that is, trimmed, befctre Ijcinj,'- in-
troduced to the polishing- wheel. This is
simply a wheel of ahoub 18 or 20 inches in
diameter, which revolves with the fhit sur-
face uppermost, the diamondheing fastened
in a steel arm and made to rest on it.
Diamond dust mixed Avith oil is phiced
upon this wheel, and as it revolves at a
very high rate, facet after facet is tliuscnt.
These facets are not cut hy chance, but on
mathematical lines; just as holding a
miiror at a certain angle reflects the sun,
so the facets reflect and refract the ravs of
light. There are 58 such facets on evei-y
regular full cut ])rilliant diamond. What
T have already refeired to as "insc cut"
simply means that the stone is not suffi-
ciently deep to acbnit of reguhir cutting,
and rather tlian sacritice too much, instead

A TALK ON JEWELS.

of lu-ing cut to Ji point uii(lernejitli, it is
flat, with facets on tli • top. This, of course,
rcMthrs the stone of nnuih less viihie than a
hiilliant, i)ossil>ly about one-(juarter of the
vahie of a brilliant of similar ^i/.e and \vei<j;]it.
Thcie is an impression in some minds
that "a (lianiondis a diamond."' I remem-
ber oiKro seeinjjj a hoise of about 1(> liands
hi<;h for which .S.")7,<KI0 had been paid, and
yf!t we have all seen them quite as lari,^e
which would be dear at .s.")7, and so with a
diamond, color, freedom from Haws, and
cuttin<j^ are all determininji; factors in the
value of a stone. It is supposed by many
that white is the only cohu- known to
diamonds, but such is not the ease, althouj^di
it is the prevailin;^ one. There is an aiis-
tocrac^y in diamouvis as in everythinj^ else.
I have here two sam[)les, one of a black
and the other of a coffee color. The black
must not be confounded with the black
diamonds, whicli, during the winter months,
are so much in demand, as, although not
veiy large in size, it is ecpiivalent in value
to over one hundred tons of the other.
Stones such n' his must not be conside!ed
in the same light as the slightly yellow
stones, whi(;h are known as "by water,"
and are of much less value than the white
and are also very much more connnon.

A TALK ON JEWELS.

Hiich is the history of tlio diamoml, this
stone around which 8o much interest
centres. I liave devoted much time to its
history, simply because tlie process of treat-
ment to which all other stones are sul)-
mitted is exactly the same. Tliey diiiei
only as to the place in which they have
their origin.

CHAPTER ^^

OTIIKH JKWKLS.

We Mill devote a few minutes to what
are known as colored stones. Tlie emerald
is found in a sort of slate stratum in South
America, Ural Mountains and Egvpt. It
is never cut round but always scpuire or
oblong with the corners removed as in
sample which I submit. One i)ecidiarity of
this stone is that it is almost an a])solute
impossibility to find one free from flaws so
that the same standard of perfection called
for in the diamond does not apply to it.
It has always been a stone much admired.
Nero it is said wcjre an eyeglass of a con-
caved emerald through which he glanced
at the gladiatorial games in theColiseumat
Home. It is said also that when Lucullus
landed in Egypt and was met by Anthony
he was presented with an emerald upon
which his [)ortrait was engraved.

A TALK ON JEWELS.

The riibv has its liomc in India, tin?
Burmali pigeon ])kK»d bt'injij considei'd the
most valuable. Then tlieSiani rank second.
In larjr sizes the ruby is perha[)S the most
expensive of all the j^enis. The sapphiie
is also found theie and dillers little fi-oni
the ruby other than in color.

0[)als and tur(pu)ise, however, are not
found as tnystals but are really cut from
the quartz. The old su{)erstition reg'ardinj^
the 0[)al being unfortunate has long since
been ex[)loded and it now finds a place
among the coveted gems. Although found
in Mexico, it is not found at its best there,
those from Australia being much more full
of life and fire. Hungarv also furnishes a
limited number.

The tui'cpioise is found in Persia, Egypt,
and also in certain parts of the United
States. It has, however, the unfortunate
faculty of changing color at times. One
may have a ring with five stones i)erfectlv
matched and witliout ai)parent cause

these might chanti'e ini j manv d\:( ent
shades. This, however, being one of the
characteristics of the stones is not looked
u[)on with as much disfavor as nn'ght be
sup{)osed. Certain mines in the U.S., how-
ever, furnish stones that retain their color.

We will now come to tlie hist one to

A TALK ON JEWELS.

wliich our uttentioii is to })e ditiwn— lust
but not least.

The i)ojul,like the diiimond, finds ahnost
uiiiversid iicceptiiiice. It is found in Ceylon,
India, Persia, South Anieric^a, Fiji Islands
and West Indies. It is also found in fresh
water. In our own St. La\vren(;e, for in-
stanee, quite a few speeiniens are found,
)>u'- these fresh water stones are lackiiH"- in
lustre and do not approach the Oriental in
value. Since tlie invention of the divin«'
bell, in certain directions changes have
taken place in the mode of pearl fishint^,
but the system now found nearCeylon holds
true of all pearl lishinjj among the natives
in all countries.

There is an island some ten or twelve
miles from Ceylon which has a frontage of
aliout twenty miles, from which pearls have
been reguhirly taken for 2,000 years. As
you know, they aie found in shells some-
times called oyster shells, but you njust not
confuse them with our dainty "blue jioints"
as they are too coarse and rank for eatin««-.
and average in si/e about 9 inches, some of
tJKjm running as nuuihasone foot in 1< ii«-th,
Tiie season for pearl fishing lasts for three
months, begiiming Feb. 1st. The boats
are ten to lifteen tons and carry a crew of
about thirteen, with ten divers, five of

.'%

A TALK ON JEWELS.

whom are ii[) whilst tlie other tivearo down
at the bottom of the sea. Their visits to
Davie Jones' locker mast not be confused
with the average afternoon call, as it does
not allow of much chtuice of gossip, as an
expert diver can remain only in some HO
seconds, the majority not exceeding 60.
When you deduct from this the time going
and coming it does not leave much time for
actual work. Each diver is supplied with
a ro[)e sufficiently long to reach the bottom
at the end of which a large stone weij^hiny;
about thirty pounds is attached and also a
net work basket in which to bring up the
shells. He simply puts his foot in a noose
and drops overboard, hisdro[) to the Ijottom
hastened by the stone. Upon giving the
signal he is immediately drawn up with
his treasure. As soon as a load of from 20
to 30 thousand shells is secured the boats
return home and shells are simply piled in
heaps around a sort of vat and allowed to
decompose, when, of course, the shells open,
and the pearls are washed out and gatheretl,
the shells being gone over afterwards to
find any that may be adhering to them.
At one time it was supposed that the peail
was a disease of the oyster, but it is now
ncknc^wlcdged that it has its start from a
little speck, some sav an abortive e<r'r

A TALK ON JEWELS.

which is not discharcred from the shell,
which leimiiniiitr there, irritates tlie oyster
to ji certain extent and it deposits a sort of
mucus around it which keeps on increasing,'
and consequently enlarging ; just as in
i-eal life one sometimes finds a tiuly nol)le
and l)eautiful chara(.'ter evolved from some
secret sonow borne in patience, so in the
depth of ocean this seeming evil is gradually
transformed into a priceless gem.

Just now the Chinese are causing con-
sideiiihle anxiety to the statesmen of the
Morld by their Mily ways. There is
evidence to piove, however, that such
cunning is not confined to matters political.
They have disct)vered means of mamifac-
turing pearls by introducing a small shot
into the shell of a molusk or oyster which
gradually becoming covered is also trans-
formed into a pearl. Further than this
they combine their religion with their
commerce by making xery small metal
images of Buddha and inserting them in
like maimer these gradually become covered
in the regular way and are shown to the
ignorant as striking evidence of the trutli
of the religion of Buddha.

l*e\'irls are of many colors, the white or
sligiitly cream white, <>f ('(mu-^c, IxMiig the
most acceptable, but whatever the color it

A TALK ON JEWELS.

must have a bright smooth skin, without
which it is devoid of lustre. Although
found in all manners of shapes, the perfect
sphere is the most valualde, the pear shape,
however, for certain purposes, heinj^ con-
sidered e<jually desirable. The (juestion
of size atFects the value more in pearls
than in any other precious stone. A single
grain peail such as I will show you is Moith,
we will assume, about !?»i.<>0, and another
weighing about 15 gi'ains, instead of
being worth S-to, as ona might sup{)ose,
is worth about .^45 ])er giain or in the
neighborhood of -SOOO. Some verv valu-
able pearls have been discovere<l. One,
as history tells us, that was dissolved and
taken in a glass of wine by that fascinat-
ing Egyptian, Cleopatra, was worth, it
is said, over !iii400,000. A similar extrava-
gance was perpetrated in later days
by our Sir Thos. (Jresham in the days of
Queen Elizabeth, who at a ban<iuet given
to the Spanish Ambassador with a view of
impressing him with England's greatiu-ss
deliberately powdered and dissolved in a
glass of wine a {)earlof i^bljOOO — ."?7~),0(K) -
and rising in his seat gallantly (piatled it
to the health of the good (^)uccn Hess.

I have ahiady appropriated ratlu-r' nmro
of your time than was allotted me, but thank

A TALK ON JEWELS.

you for your njitieut lieaiiucr, and will
simply say in conclusion that, us \vu jni/.c
the inoro hij^^lily the hrilliant jewel of
liherty by recounting the ohstacles cn-
(!ountere(l hy our forefathers in its attain-
ment, so I trust will the naiTatin«r of these
few simple facts concerninj^ jewels lead you
to a hi<,dier and nioie intellijjent apinecia-
tion of their beauty and worth.

WHERE WE KEEP OUR DIAMONDS.

'_".»

HOW TO CLEAN DIAMONDS.

♦
"^{^E are often asked liy our luitrons
" ^Vhut^s the })eHt way to clean
diamonds?"

To all who are thus interested we Mould
say that the most satisfactory way is to
simply wash them in hot water and soaj),
adding a little -pirits of ammonia, and
using a soft brush, after which dry in box-
wood sawdust.

We would advise saving the water
used, lest by chance any loose stones may
have fallen out during the process.

For the convxMiience of our customers
we have in stock for this purpose a verv
complete outfit, nicely cased, at a nominal
cost.

SPECIAL.

You oim i»m<?lmso (Uamouds from uS

iniM'h moio udvantaj^eoiisly than at

an3' other phice on the continent, l»eeause :

I. Diamonds are admitted into Canada
"duty free," whereas all United States
(h'alers are compelled to pay this (Jovern-
ment tax.

II. Wo select every stone personally
fiitm the cutters in Amsterdam this j;i\cs
us the choice of tjuality and saves all
middleman's profit.

III. You incur no risk whatever, as
every stone carries with it the personal
<;uarant3e of our house.

IV. We are recojj^ni/ed as diamond
exi)erts, and our patrons derive the benefit
of our exjjert knowledge.

V. Our house is one of the oldest and
])est established institutions of Toronto,
and encjuiry of anyone familiar with our
City will satisfy you as to our reliability.

RYRIE BROS.,

DIAMOND
MERCHANTS,

118, 120. 122, 124 YONGE STREET.
TORONTO.

JEWELERS BY SPECIAL APPOINTMENT TO MIS EXCELLENCY
THE GOVERNOR-GENERAL OF CANADA

OUR SILVERWARE DEPARTMENT.

♦

TN this department you will
find a very choice assortment
of Sterling Silver Souvenirs of
the City of Toronto and Do-
minion of Canada.
These include Brooches, Pins,
Bracelets, Manicure Pieces,
Spoons, and scores of other
little articles ranging in price
from 50c. to $10.00 each.

/ >.

RYRIE BROS.,

118, 120, 122, 124 VONQE STREET,
TORONTO.

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