THE MINERALS OF AFRICA.
For many years the knowledge of Africa was so indefinite that it was difficult to determine how rich the continent might be in minerals.
Gold and silver had been found, but the former was believed to be more abundant than the latter, judging from the amounts brought down in the sands of the great rivers which flow through the central portions of the continent. Gold had also been found upon the coast of Guinea and in Southeast Africa.
Precious stones have been found in most of the tropical countries of the globe; but in Africa they were of rare occurrence until the discovery of diamonds in the vicinity of the Cape awakened much interest. The attention of the whole world was then called to the possible resources of the country.
Just as the discovery of gold in California drew to the gold mines many men who were anxious to acquire wealth, so the Kimberley diamond mines attracted hundreds, who, in the pursuit of fortune, forgot fatigue and hardship, lured on by visions of the future.
The largest diamond in the world, the "Excelsior," was found June, 1894, in the mines of Jagersfontein in Cape Colony, by the inspector of the mine.
Experts have pronounced it a gem of the purest water, and its worth to be about a million sterling.
The greatest precautions were taken to have it conveyed from the mine to the coast. A squadron of the Sixteenth Lancers guarded the carriage to Cape Town; from there it was conveyed to London in the gunboat Antelope, and was deposited for safe keeping in one of the vaults of the Bank of England.
The stone is described as fully three inches in height and nearly three inches in breadth. Its weight is estimated at nine hundred and seventy-one carats, or about seven ounces Troy. Its color is white, with a very slightly bluish tint, and its luster is matchless. In the center of the stone is a very small black spot, but experts consider that it can easily be removed in the cutting.
It has been reported that the British Government has offered half a million pounds sterling for this diamond. The owners, however, have refused this offer. It has also been reported that the German Emperor will be the probable purchaser of the gem.