About the Porter-Rhodes Diamond From the Kimberley Mines

THE PORTER-RHODES.

The Kimberley Mine--A Surprise--" Test Diamonds"--Mr. Porter--Rhodes at Osborne--Presented to the Queen--Her Majesty's Opinion of the Famous Cape Stone--At Osborne Cottage--The Empress Eugenie an Authority on Gems--Handling the "Koh-i-Nur" at Windsor.

The recent exhibition of the "Porter-Rhodes" in Bond Street, London, has made this remarkable stone a familiar object to connoisseurs. During the winter of 1881, many ladies and gentlemen inspected it, and heard from the lips of the owner, some of the details of its discovery. Notes upon the question of its value have been published in the leading journals, wherein it has been stated that while a syndicate of English diamond merchants had offered him pound 60,000 for his treasure, he estimates its value at more than pound 200,000. The history of the stone (which is as yet uncut), and the opinions of Her Majesty the Queen, and Her Imperial Majesty the Empress Eugenie, are set forth in the following letter, written to Mr. Streeter by Mr. Porter-Rhodes.

"In giving an account of the Blue-White Diamond, weighing 150 carats, which is known as the 'Porter-Rhodes Diamond,' I am, since my visit to you, more assured of the great worth of the stone, and from information derived from reliable sources, I have every confidence in saying, I firmly believe it has no rival. The diamond was found on the 12th of February, 1880, in one of my claims, (or diggings), situated in what is known as the Kimberley Mine, Diamond Fields, South Africa. Here, at mid-day, the workmen are allowed to leave the mine, and are away somewhat over an hour for dinner. I was in the habit of meeting my overseers at this time every day, for the purpose of ascertaining whether anything good had been found, or other news in connection with the mine, and I had always impressed upon them, in case of a good stone being unearthed, they were not to mention the fact before the diamond had been handed to me. The reason for this, no doubt, you will quite understand. At that time, and even now, the dealers in rough diamonds like to be in the position of knowing that the diamond or parcel of diamonds, purchased from the claimholder, had not been offered for sale to any of their neighbours in opposition establishments, and I believe I have at times, obtained higher prices, through being able to shew that no other dealer had seen the stones. Why this should make any difference I am unable to tell. On the 12th of February, 1880, I had been busily engaged at the Magistrate's Court, in connection with a case I had against a native, who had been misbehaving himself, and was not released until a few minutes after the time, 12 o'clock, when I should have been at the edge of the mine, to hear the news. However, I went in the direction where I was most likely to meet my chief overseer, and fortunately saw him in the street, and at a glance saw something unusual had happened. In reply to my question 'Anything good to-day?' 'Yes, a white one this time,' he replied, and at the same moment proceeded to hand the stone to me, which I partially hesitated in taking. I saw it was so uncommonly white, that I thought some one had been playing a practical joke upon the man, but once in my hand, I realised its genuineness. I had had the diamond about four months before the fact was made publicly known. Besieged by gentlemen anxious for a sight of it, I made arrangements with a friend, who kindly consented to allow me to exhibit the diamond in his office. We had some difficulty in restraining the crowd, as each person expected to be allowed to handle it, which I considered reasonable enough. There was great excitement amongst those who understood the matter, each willingly paying a sovereign, and within an hour I had taken 100 pound. This, with further amounts, arrived at something like 500 pound, and was handed to the managing committee of our hospital on the diamond fields. I must mention that most of the dealers keep what you will better know as 'test stones,' for the purpose of trying the color of parcels of diamonds offered them for sale, as according to the light of the day, or the tint of the particular kind of paper the stones may be wrapped in, the buyers are apt to be deceived, and to guard against this, the 'test stones' are placed with the others, by which means, they better assure themselves of the quality of the stones offered. Many gentlemen produced their 'test diamonds,' and I am happy to say, when placed next to mine, even to the smallest, there was not one so white, and I felt on this account, all the more gratified to hear each gentleman in his turn, add to the compliments they had already paid me upon the purity of what is now known as the 'Porter-Rhodes Diamond.'

"When leaving Kimberley, I was fortunate enough to receive a letter from Mr. Orpen, then our Surveyor-General, introducing me to Colonel Gawler, who has charge of the Crown Jewels. In him I found a thorough English gentleman, who, shewing me every possible kindness, ready to assist me, so far as his position allowed, in furthering the object of my visit to England. Through Colonel Gawler's influence, it was arranged that I should pay a visit to Osborne, where our Queen was then living, and there exhibit the stone to Her Majesty. I left London on the 18th of January, 1881, which you will no doubt remember as the day of the very heavy snow-storm. The line was so blocked by the drifting of the snow, that the train arrived at its destination too late for my appointment. I communicated with Sir John Cowell, who is Master of the Queen's Household, mentioning the unfortunate position I was in. He replied that Her Majesty understood the case, and would allow me to present myself the next day. I took good care not to be late on this occasion, and found myself at Osborne at the right time. The attendants shewed me into the apartments of the Master of the Household, and after spending some time with Sir John and Lady Cowell, it was announced that the Queen was prepared to receive me. On being presented to Her Majesty and His Royal Highness Prince Leopold, I broke the seal of the envelope covering the diamond, and handed it to the Queen, Her Majesty being the first to see it out of South Africa. At a glance I think, she saw its great beauty, and I was more assured when the question followed 'Is it really from the Cape?' I think you will agree with me that people in England know but very little of the Cape, and under-estimate its worth. I explained to Her Majesty how we are robbed by a low class of men known to the diggers as 'Illicit Diamond Dealers,' and how closely we are obliged to watch the natives in consequence, necessarily entailing very heavy cost. Her Majesty after examining the stone thoroughly, and evidently understanding the subject, congratulated me upon its great purity, as well as upon my good fortune in having secured it from the hands of the illicit diamond buyers. The Queen then withdrew, and Prince Leopold, accompanied by Princess Beatrice entered, and on their inspection of the stone, I was equally pleased with the interest displayed, and the kind expressions used. After exhibiting the stone to a number of ladies and gentlemen of the Court, I was taken by Captain Bigge to what is known as Osborne Cottage, then the temporary residence of the Empress Eugenie, where we were received very kindly, and had not waited many minutes when the Empress entered. This audience was most entertaining, as I found the Empress to be quite an authority on the subject, and in possession of the history of all diamonds of note. The Empress said everything good possible of the stone, and remarked that it was 'simply perfection,' not knowing what to compare it with. Here, too, I was asked, 'are you sure the diamond is from South Africa, and have you not had it polished a little?' I was some-what amused when the Empress remarked, 'I have always been under the impression that diamonds from the Cape were very yellow, and worth but little.' I believe I convinced Her Majesty of the fact that good stones are exported from the Cape, and I am sure, Mr. Streeter, in referring to you, I have no better authority to bear me out on the subject.