About the Adventures of the English Dresden Diamond

THE ENGLISH DRESDEN.

A Faultless Stone--Remarkable Success of Cutting--A Fortune made in Cotton and spent on a Diamond--Crafty Agents--Singular Coincidence of Ill--Luck--A Ruined Merchant and a Deposed Prince.

Through the courtesey of Mr. E. Dresden, from whom it takes its name, we are enabled for the first time to give the true history of this most remarkable gem. Many of the subjoined particulars are contained in a letter, dated June 14th, 1881, which Mr. Dresden kindly forwarded to us in reply to an application for an authentic account of a diamond, concerning which so many false reports are still current. This notable stone was found about the year 1857, in the Bagagem district, Brazil, the same place which also yielded the "Star of the South," and which has been identified in our description of that gem. Soon after its discovery, the "English Dresden" was brought to Rio de Janeiro, where the owner's agents bought and forwarded it to him in London, in the same year, 1857. A model was then taken of the rough stone, which weighed 119 1/2 carats, although evidently forming a part only of the original crystal. What became of the corresponding portion has remained a profound secret, though, as Mr. Dresden suggests, it may have either been destroyed in detaching it from the rock, or else may possibly have remained behind in its original itacolumite matrix.

However this may be, the owner submitted the fractured crystal to "a marvellously clever polisher," in Amsterdam, who converted it into a very fine drop-shape diamond. In the process of cutting it lost exactly 43 carats, and now consequently, weighs only 76 1/2 carats. But, as Mr. Dresden well remarks, experts alone can fully appreciate the extraordinary skill of a workman "who produced such a well-proportioned drop out of half a rough diamond, and with such little loss in weight-not even one-third."

The result was an absolutely faultless gem, if at least there be anything in this world which can be pronounced quite free from blemish. No imperfections of any sort have ever been detected in this unrivalled brilliant, so that Mr. Dresden does not hesitate to assert that "there is no diamond known in the world to come up to it." Such, indeed, is its astonishing purity and lustre that the writer adds: "I matched my drop with the 'Koh-i-Nur' at Garrard's one day, and to the surprise of all present, the latter's colour turned yellowish, a proof how perfectly white my diamond must be." A competent judge, also wrote at the time: "It is perfectly pure, free from defects, and has extraordinary play and brilliancy. Indeed the quality of the stone is superior to the 'Koh-i-Nur.' Yet when half a share in this magnificent jewel was offered to a noted West-end jeweller for the relatively small sum of 12,000 pounds, he declined it."

This refusal probably led to the further migrations of the stone, which ultimately found its way to the "Far East" under somewhat remarkable circumstances. After having been offered to nearly all the crowned princes of Europe, and successively declined by them, it was seen and greatly admired by an Indian rajah, who is said to have visited London in 1863, chiefly for the purpose of adding this diamond to his collection. But the price, fixed at that time at pound 40,000, was more than he could afford, and he was reluctantly compelled to decline the purchase.

The rajah was accompanied on this occasion by an English merchant from Bombay, who, dazzled by the lustre of this peerless gem, expressed a great desire to possess it. "I should like to buy this diamond myself," he remarked, "but have not the means to do so at present. Whenever I am rich enough I shall certainly not fail to secure it." No attention was paid at the time to these words, which, however, were afterwards remembered, when the speaker found himself unexpectedly in a position to prove their sincerity. Within a year of his desire to possess the English "Dresden," the great war of Secession broke out in the United States, which led to an almost fabulous rise in the price of cotton, of which commodity the Bombay merchant happened to be a large holder. By selling off his stock at enormous profits he suddenly found himself in possession of ample means to gratify "the dearest wish of his heart." He at once wrote to Mr. Dresden, and his letter was followed by a special agent commissioned to effect the purchase. In executing the task entrusted to him this agent contrived to do a stroke of business of which neither Mr. Dresden nor the purchaser was aware at the time. Making a show of extreme caution, he betrayed an apparently praiseworthy zeal in the interest of his employer. His first objection was to the stone itself. "I am no expert," he remarked. "How can I be certain that it is a genuine diamond?" The seller thereupon had it submitted to a competent and disinterested judge; and when his verdict had been obtained, the agent thought the price (pound 40,000) rather high, adding: "I have not full instructions, and do not think he would give so much. However, I do not mind taking the responsibility on myself of offering you pound 32,000. In fact, as it is evidently a very fine stone, I am prepared to do this on my own account, and if my employer does not ratify the transaction, you may still regard it as a bargain, for in that case I will keep the stone for myself." The expert, to whom it had been submitted, persuaded Mr. Dresden to accept this offer, and on receipt of pound 32,000 from a person probably not worth as many shillings, the diamond passed into the "middleman's" hands. By him it was conveyed to Bombay, and handed over to the English merchant, who was given to understand that no abatement had been made, and that consequently his pound 40,000 had been sunk in the purchase. The agent, and it is said one other, had thus a round sum of pound 8,000 to divide between them, an arrangement which, however, would not have "held water" in a court of law.

The usual ill-luck, apparently inseparable from the possession of all these great diamonds, now overtook the Bombay trader. Continuing to do business in cotton, he found himself again a large holder, when "Secession," and with it the price of cotton, suddenly collapsed. This, with the withdrawal of the pound 40,000 not only involved his affairs in pecuniary embarrassment, but threw him on a bed of sickness, from which he soon sank into the grave. His estate had now to to be wound up, and the executors considered themselves fortunate in being able to recover the pound 40,000 by disposing of the already famous "Dresden Drop" to the late notorious Gaikwar of Baroda, in whose family it still remains.