One Hundred and Forty Genuine
A
Diamonds Found in Pike County
Field Visited Recently by Dr. George Fred
erick Kunz, Mineralogist of Inter
national Fame
STONES PRONOUNCED TO BE REAL GEMS
Company Will be Formed to Develop and
Work the Mines
(From The Ark. Gazette, Sunday Aug. 4, 1907.)
Diamonds have been found in Pike
county, Arkansas, and that most valu
able of earth’s minerals must be added
to the products of the state.
They have been declared genuine
diamonds by the highest authority in
America—Dr. George F. Kunz, vice
president and one of the trustees of
Tiffany & Co., of New York, for many
years a member and now an honorary
member of the United States Geologi
cal Survey, and recently decorated
with the Legion of Honor by France
In recognition of his valuable services
in the fields of geology and mineral
ogy. Dr. Kunz contributes the encylo
pedia articles on gems, has written
several books on the subject and is
recognized as the greatest diamond
expert in the United States, besides
being of international fame. He saw
the first three diamonds found, they
having been submitted to him in New
York, and afterward visited the Pike
county diamond field.
The mere fact that diamonds have
been found, would not of itself be of
importance because they have been
found in 29 other places in the United
States at various times.
But the vast importance which
attaches to this find as compared with
all others in America lies in the fact
that all the other finds have been of
one or two stones at a place, and in
each case they have been glacial. In
other words, they have been individual
diamonds deposited by retreating gla
ciers and brought down from some
where near the North Pole.
140 Diamonds Found.
The Arkansas diamonds have been
found to the number of 140 on one
tract in a volcanic formation, and
with the geological strata similar to
that of the famous Kimberly mines in
South Africa.
Not the least singular feature of the
find is the fact that Branner’s reports
as state geologist, on file in the secre
tary of state's office, called attention
years ago to this similarity, and
expressed the opinion that the pres
ence of diamonds was indicated in
that portion of Pike county, and yet
this valuable tip was absolutely
Ignored. The most plausible explana
tion is that official reports are usual
ly dry statistical reading and that no
one interested ever read it. Anyway,
the fact remains that while prospectors
have searched that region for every
thing from gold to asphaltum none
looked for diamonds, and as in all oth
er diamond field discoveries the first
one was found by accident.
The First Arkansas Diamond.
.lolin Wesley Huddleston owned a
farm in the barren hills of Pike county
near the town bf Murfreesboro. He
was an enthusiast about minerals and
always carried around specimens of ore
bearing rock. He is not in robust
health, lives much outdoors and bought
the farm more for Us mineral possibil
ities than for its fertility. Mr. Huddle
ston had an idea that gold might be
found and at no time suspected the
existence of diamonds on his rocky
estate. But in his explorations he
picked up many of the crystals and
other interesting-looking stones on his
place.
The diamond in the rough bears lit
tle resemblance to the symmetrically
cut end highly polished gem which
goes to enhance the beauty of fair
woman at a fashionable function and
it is not to be wondered at that the
children of the South African Boers
used diamonds for marbles or that the
Pike county farmer should regard
them as the pretty Hut commercially
worthless crystals which are found
throughout the state.
But one day Mr. Huddleston picked
r up a crystal which glinted brightly
in the sunshine and seemed to hold
and reflect the light more than any
he had noticed. He took it home to
add to his collection. Rubbing it
against another crystal he noticed
that it cut it. He then decided to
take the stone to Murfreesboro, 2 1-2
miles distant, and get some one else’s
opinion on it. This first stone is No.
3 on the accompanying illustration.
Marketing First Stone He Finds
Second.
Mr. Huddleston rode muleback
toward Murfreesboro. Possessed now
with the idea that the bright crystals
on his land were valuable he kept his
eyes on the ground as he rode slowly
along. Passing through one of his
fields bis keen eye caught a luminous
glint of reflected sunshine from a peb
ble lying in the dirt. Dismounting
he picked it up and proceeded on his
way to Murfreesboro. The second
stone was a diamond and is No. 1 on
the accompanying chart.
One of the first persons he approach
ed was the cashier of a local bank,
whose name, Riley, was closely akin
to the South African O’Reilly who fig
ured in the sale of the first diamond
found there. Mr. Riley said he did not
know what it was, but offered to risk
50 cents on it. Mr. Huddleston didn’t
know what it was either, but rather
than take 50 cents for it he would pul
verize it. Eventually he shovred it
to Judge J. C. Pinnix of Murfreesboro,
Ma3
mm
Chart showing first 21 diamonds found in Pike county diamond field.
t
!
who on finding that it cut a watch
crystal like a glass cutter, advised him
to send it to Charles S. St iff t, a Little
Rock jeweler recognized as an expert
on diamonds throughout the South
west.
Pronounced Real Diamonds.
The specimens were sent to Mr.
Stifft at Little Rock, to whom Mr
Huddleston subsequently offered his
land for sale. Mr. Stifft associated
with him, among others, Albert I>.
Cohn of the M. M. Cohn Company and
Sam W. Reyburn, president of the
Union Trust Company, both of Little
Rock, and they and their associates
have assembled the lands on which all
of the diamonds have been found.
The stones were sent to the firm
of Arnstein Bros. Co., G5 Nassau
street, New York, well known dia
mond importers and experts, with the
request that they wire as to the prob
able source of their origin. It should
be explained here that diamonds from
different localities have certain charac
teristics by which experts can recog
nize their origin—thus the Brazilian
diamond can be told at a glance from
a Kimberly mine stone, and a Kim
berly can be differentiated from a Pre
mier mine.
It is therefore significant and
important to note the reply of Arn
stein Bros. & Co. They wired that the
stones resembled those from Vaal riv
er or Weesolton—both South African
mines. Attention has already been
called to the fact that the geological
quantities, mostly single stones, but
in each case they were of glacial
deposit, as explained heretofore. He
was not therefore deeply impressed
I at that time with the finding of three
! diamonds unless further investigation
should show that they were found in
the blue diamond-bearing clay, depos
j ited by volcanic action—which later
proved to be the case.
Dr. Washington visited the Huddle
ston place, but in the meantime 18
other diamonds had been found, mak
ing 21 in all. After a careful investi
gation covering several weeks. Dr.
Washington gave it as his opinion
that the company had included all
of the diamond-bearing area in their
purchases, and whatever was found
outside of that area might be called
parasitical, and there could not be
enough in sight to pay to develop.
His report was exhaustive and suffi
ciently encouraging to induce the
purchasers fo continue the work.
Dr. George F. Kunz Visits Pike County.
Not half a dozen people in the state
knew that an unassuming gentleman,
who in company with Messrs. Itey
burn, Stifft and Cohn, visited the Hud
dleston place last 'January was the
celebrated scientist Dr. George P. Kunz.
The few who did know did not mention
the fact. But the continued finding
of surface diamonds disposed of the
theory that they were glacial, and Dr.
Kunz was induced to make the jour
I ney from New York to Pike county.
] After a personal investigation he wired
strata was similar to the South Afri
can mines formation and it is import
ant that the output of the Pike county
field should so strongly resemble the
South African product as to be classed
with it by an expert.
The stones were also submitted to
the diamond experts of the w'ell-known
firms of Mermod, Jaccard & King Com
pany and Bolland & Sons of St. Louis
and were promptly pronounced to be
genuine diamonds without the experts
being told anything of their origin
or history.
Third Diamond Found.
While Mr. Reyburn was on the
ground closing up contracts for the
purchase of the land, the third dia
mond was picked up. It is illustrated
as No. 12 in the chart and is a very
beautiful canary diamond.
Having now invested considerable
money in the enterprise and being
fully committed to a full investiga
tion it wras decided to secure the
ablest mineralogist and geologist
obtainable, to which purpose Messrs.
Stifft and Reyburn went to New York,
where they consulted Dr. George Fred
erick Kunz, and on his recommenda
tion the services of Dr. Henry S
Washington of New York were
secured. He was familiar with that
section, having visited Magnet Cove
in 1900 and written two books on the
remarkable geological strata found
there, which is all paleozoic.
Dr. Kunz Pronounces Them Genuine.
Dr. Kunz was very much interested
in the find and pronounced the three
stones submitted to him to be unques
tionably genuine diamonds of fine
quality, but he showed his visitors a
map locating 29 other places where
diamonds had been found in small
Dr. Washington at New York to join
him, and while the visitors were there
diamonds were found by members of
the party, which was a further source
of encouragement.
Meantime surface diamonds contin
ued to be found on the Huddleston
place. Earnest search .yeas made on
the adjoining lands by Others, but with
out success, no diamonds being dis
covered.
The “Pipe” Discovered.
From that time systematic effort -was
made to locate the crater, pipe, chimney
or tube as it is variously called. It
is necessary here to describe how dia
monds are formed by nature. Not to
enter into a technical description dia
color, are still marketable, It is |
alleged.
The diamonds found include all
sizes, shapes and colors, ranging In
weight from 1-64 carat to 6 1-4 carats,
and in color from dark brown to the
finest canary and the highly prized
blue white.
Only Known Diamond-Bearing Earth
. in America.
That this is the most important dis
covery of diamonds ever made in
America is emphasized by the fact that
nowhere else in America, at any time
have diamonds been found in diamond
bearing earth, so faf as is known.
Hardly of secondary importance, and
directly bearing upon it, is the
SECTION of KIMBERLEY MIME
LOOKINO t**T
monds are formed by the crystalliza
tion of carbon and they are brought
from far below the surface of the earth
by volcanic action. By this explosion
or upheaval a tube or chimney is
forced through the solid rock and the
diamonds are found in the blue clay
which is then deposited. The illus
tration showing a sketch of the Kim
berly mine gives an idea of the tube
or crater in which the diamonds are
found. It will be noticed that at the
surface the crater shores outward in
all directions.
In the original upheaval a number
of diamonds were forced to or nearly
to the surface of the pipe, and it was
these surface stones which were first
found by Mr. Huddleston and others
in Pike county. They were freed from
the mother earth by the erosion of the
blue clay by exposure to the elements
for hundreds or thousands of years.
A core drill was put in and by its
use was verified the existence of the
crater and its dimensions. Diamonds
to the number of 140 have been
already found even with the inade
quate machinery. Most of these have
been found on or near the surface,
and three or four have been found by
pan-washing. Though as yet only the
crudest method of working has been
pursued.
Manager's Big Find.
When work was systematically
begun Col. Theodore Hartman of Lit
tle Rock was selected as manager, and
he W'ent down to devise an economical
means of preliminary mining and
developing. He personally made the
best find up to that date. He picked
up a stone (see illustration marked No.
45) which weighed 4 1-4 plus 1-32
carats, an absolutely flawless blue
white gem.
John Peay of Little Rock had simi
lar good luck. While overseeing his
men he picked up at his feet a superb
canary diamond weighing 1 1-2 carats,
absolutely flawdess and so perfect in
shape that little cutting will be
required to make of it a marketable
gem.
A workman, working with a pick
tearing up the ground a foot below the
surface, caught a glint of light and
brought to light a diamond, weight
unknown, but between three and four
carats, which was allowed to remain
in its native matrix, the diamond
bearing rock, where it still is as con
vincing proof of its place of origin.
It was photographed, and a small sec
tion of the original negative is here
reproduced.
further fact that nowhere else in
America, at any time have diamonds
been found in quantities in any one
given area, according to books on the
subject.
It is because no diamonds have pre
viously been found in America in dia
mond-bearing earth that what few
have been found have been “vagrants,”
single stones, or possibly two near
together, that have been washed down
hundreds or thousands of miles, per
haps, from their original sites.
In the years following the gold
excitement of 1S49 in California a total
of approximately 200 diamonds were
found throughout the state. It must
be remembered, however, that pros
pectors by the thousands were picking
the state and these 200 or so were scat
tered over the state where
thousands of claims were being
worked. In no case was more
than one or two unearthed in any one
locality, and all the further picking,
digging and shaft sinking from that
day to this uncovered no more, so
that what were found were clearly
vagrants far away from home.
Perfect blue diamond picked up by Pol.
Theodore Hartman of Little Itock, and weigh
lug 4 1-4x1-3 2 carats.
The distinguishing characteristics of
the South African mines' geological
strata are the peridolites and breccia
or blue clay—both of volcanic origin
—and only in such strata are diamonds
found—the breccia having been called
“the birthplace of the diamond.” The
important feature of the Huddleston
place is that the strata is volcanic
and has the self-same peridolites and
breccia—according to Branner’s
reports—the true diamond-bearing
earth or clay, the like of which has
not been discovered elsewhere in
America.
The volcanic action has already been
described and by a mighty convulsion
of nature, a way having been forced
through solid rock from a vast depth
and the pressure thus relieved no
other vent in the immediate neigh
borhood is required, nor, it is said,
are two such “pipes” in very close
proximity known to exist.
Nevertheless the overflow' of this
volcano lava has the same general
appearance as the diamond-bearing
strata. The overflow is alw'ays in evi
dence. It is expected to appear in
proximity to the crater, but outside of
the very immediate proximity it is
lii. v
Diamond in native rock, which has not been removed from the matrix.
Percentages Rival Kimberly.
It has been said that if you want to
find diamonds you must look for them.
This is exemplified in the Kimberly
mines from which the average out
put is less than 3-8 of a carat of dia
mond to a ton of earth. The remark
able feature of the Pike county finds
up to date, however, as compared with
the South African mines is in the
larger percentages of marketable gems.
In the DeBeers and Premier mines,
it is stated only 15 per cent of all dia
monds mined are marketable as gems,
the remaining 85 per cent being used
as melee and for mechanical purposes,
including diamond cutting and polish
ing. Of the 140 diamonds or more
found in Pike county, it is claimed that
65 per cent' are above the average of
marketable gems, and the remaining
35 per cent, although small aud off
never known to bear diamonds in pay
ing quanities if any. In the Pike county
diamond field this overflow strata has
been found outside of the company's
holdings, and it has been very thor
oughly searched and even shafts have
been sunk, but no diamonds have
been found to reward or encourage
the searchers.
Wonderful Richness of the Find.
Gardner F. Williams, general mana
ger of the DeBeers Consolidated
Mines, who wrote "The Diamond
Mines of South Africa,’’ probably the
most exhaustive and accurate work on
the subject ever published, says in
that book that, in the process of min- j
ing, the blue earth was brought out
and scattered over the fields a foot \
deep, to be exposed to the action of [
[the sun for the pifrpose of dislnte-j
[ grating the hard clay, that being the [
easiest method of arriving «i
verlzation process for rtf, Pu^'
washing in the search for diam^V®
He states, and certainly the??**
better authority than the general ! D°
ager of the great DeBeers synd&
mining properties, controlling a!te*
does 95 per cent of the worlk
mond output he says that no ^
walking over that deposit ha* *
yet found a diamond on the Ter
in the Pike county diaXd
there has been no spreading om 7,
the blue diamond-bearing clay foAj
integration-there has been Dr
cally no pan-washing-no machine*
beyond the core drills referred to-?
scientific mining whatever, but merei°
surface work, and yet 140 diamonds
have been picked up fro® the
without any mining of the crater 1
pipe. ur
Takes Trouble to Find Diamond ’
It has been stated that less than
3-8 of a carat of diamond is found to a
ton of earth in the South African
mines. The annual report of the
Jagersfontein Mining Company w
published, states that for the fiscal
year ending March, 1907 the output of
diamonds amounted to 219,275 1-4 car
ats out of 2,405,581 loads of earth
washed. This is less than mo ot a
carat to the load, yet with the immense
labor excavating, hauling and washing
10 loads of earth to get an average of
one carat of diamonds, the net profits
for the year were 429,373 pounds
equivalent to over $2,000,000 for this
one mine, one of the group operated by
the DeBeers syndicate.
The South African Discoveries.
Where the great diamond mines of
South Africa now are the children of
the Dutch settlers had diamonds for
playthings for many years before their
value wa3 discovered. They were wont
to pick from the river gravel bright
and beautifully colored pebbles which
abounded there. One day a child of
a family named Jacobs found one
brighter than usual, and its mother
remarked about it casually to a neigh
bor, Schalk Van Nelldrk, who asked to
see it. It could trot be found, but finally
it was picked up in the yard, where
it had been thrown with others.
Schalk Van Niekirk proposed to boy
it, but the honest old woman laughed
at the idea of taking pay for a pebble
and told him to take it along. He
entrusted it to John O’Reilly, a trader,
who offered it to many merchants, but
none believed it to be of any value,
until finally Mr. Reilly would probably
have thrown it away, but Lorenzo
Boyes, civil commissioner at Coles
berg chanced to see it, and by his
advice it was sent to Dr. W. Guybon
Atherston, a noted mineralogist, who
pronounced it a diamond, placed a
valuation of $2,500 on it tat which price
Sir Phillip Wodehou e, governor of the
Cape, bought it), and said there were
more where that came from. His opin
ion was openly derided, even by men
with pretensions to scientific attain
ments, who proved to their own satis
faction that it was impossible for dia
monds in paying quantities to be found
in such a geological formation. Nev
ertheless, he persisted, and although
no finds of consequence were made
for years afterward, he recommended
that the home government of England
make an appropriation for a thorough
investigation.
This was tendered superfluous, how
ever, by tlie finding by a shepherd bay
of a stone which he sold to Schalk tan
Niekirk for what to him was a for
tune. consisting of 500 sheep, 10 oxen
and a horse. The nc-w owner, how
ever, sold it forthwith for $55,000, and
it was finally bought by Earl Dudley
for $125,000.
This great find .brought prospecton
from Europe, Asia. Africa and America |
by thousands and the great era “
prospecting and d velopment set
without governmental aid. The Arkan*
sas find followed, in a measure, that
of South Africa.
British Racial Efficacy.
After you have complained that tbs
Englishman grabs the earth, >ou r
member that he holds it, and »
watching his portentious swallow 1
remember his wonderful pot'ei
gestion. If he takes more than n
share of the world, he has the
to keep more than his share,
talent may not be an ethical mei1 ’
it is a proof of racial efficacy.— 1
(Australia) Book Fellow.
Owns Perfect Diamond.
been made and refused.
came here and took a big ® crj$l
went away without pay mg
tors,” was the reply.
India’s Great Problem
To make India absolutely f ^
famine, at least 35 per ce.h ° ^
.. . t.„nrier i>ns ..