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Now, however, many of the diamonds are cut in Kimberley and are all finished there before being shipped to other countries.
Diamonds are made out of the same stuff as coal, and if they were put in the fire would turn to coal. Sometimes people speak of coal as “Black Diamonds.” When a diamond is held to the light it may look pure white or it may be bluish or yellowish. The pure white diamonds are the most valuable.
The biggest diamond ever found was about the size of my fist. It was called the Cullinan diamond. It was toolarge and too valuable to be used as a single jewel, so it was broken into two pieces and each piece was cutand polished. The next largest diamond ever found was called the Great Mogul. But the Great Mogul was stolen. Of course, the thief could not sell such a large diamond, for, as there was only one such diamond in the World, every one would know he was the thief. It was something like stealing the picture of Mona Lisa. But the Great Mogul has never been seen since, so the thief must have broken it up into smaller diamonds and sold the pieces.
The owners of the diamond mines take extraordinary care to prevent the black people who dig the diamonds from stealing at least some of those they find. The mines are closed in with a high fence which is closely guarded, and the laborers are not allowed to go home at night but must live inside of the fence for three or four months. When they do leave, the guards, for they are guarded as if in prison, strip them and search their hair and ears and mouths to see that they have not hidden any diamonds away, for even a single diamond wouldbe worth a fortune to one of the black people. They have found so many diamonds at Kimberley that, if they sold them all, diamonds would be too common and too cheap. In order to keep up the price, therefore, the owners of the diamond mines lock up millions of dollars’ worth and only sell them when people are willing to pay a good price.
