Ninety-five per cent

of all the diamonds produced in the past 20 years came from South Africa, Most of the great diamonds distinguished for beauty and size have very interesting histories. One of the most famous is the Koh-i-Nur, or} Koohinoor, “ Mountain of Light.” The! legend is that it was carried 5,000 years ago by the hero Karna, whose deeds are celebrated in the “ Mahabharata.” It made its first appearance in history in the 14th century, when Ala-ed-din brought it to Delhi. At that time it was supposed to weigh 798 carats. When in 1673 the Grand Mogul sold it to Tavernier, it weighed only 279 carats, having been injured by the lack of skill of a Venetian lapidary. It was brought in 1789 at the sack of Delhi to Afghanistan. Thence it came into the po e ion of the Kast India Company, which presented it in 1850 to the English Crown. It was re-cut in 1852 and now weighs 106 1-16 carats. What was then said to be the largest stone in the world was sent to London from the Jagers fon tein mines in South Africa in 1893. It weighed 971 carats and was three inches in length. The largest known diamond in the world was discovered in the Premier mines in the Transvaal in January, 1905, and named the Cull in an. In its original state it weighed 3,253%; English carats, or over 144 pounds avoirdupois, It was insured for $1,- 250,000, presented to King Edward VII. by the Transvaal Government, and sent to Amsterdam, where it was divided into 11 stones, two of which are the largest in existence, besides numerous ends. Another important diamond fs the one at the point of the scepter of the Ru ian empire, known as the Orloff, which weighs 194% carats. At one time it formed the eye of an idol - in the temple of Sering ham in Mysore, whence it was stolen, It was in the throne of Nadir Shah, and after his murder it was bought by an Armenian merchant in 1772 at the price of 450.000 silver rubles and the title of nobility. By the gift of Prince Orloff, a favorite of Catherine’ II., from whom it derived its name, it came into her po e ion. Some writers believe that this and the Kob-i- Nur are the two parts of the “ great a ” diamond. | he Regent or Pitt diamond was, till the recent opening of the South African mines, for over a century, one of the most perfect and beautiful diamonds in existence. It weighs 136.75 carats, and is of the purest water ond most perfect shape. It came from the Hast Indies and was sold by a sailor to Pitt, governor of Fort St. George. From him it came into the hands of the Duke of Orleans at the time of the French Revolution. It was in pawn at the hands of a merchant by the name of Trescow. Afterward it decorated the sword hilt of Napoleon I., and is now in the Galerie d’A poll on in the Louvre. One of the finest of diamonds is the Saney diamond, 53% carats, of exquisite shape and perfect water. It has been traced back to Charles the Bold, who lost it in 1477 at the battle of Nancy. It is now owned by a collector, who paid $70,000 for it. One of the most superb diamonds known is the sapphire-blue brilliant Hope diamond, valued at about $100,- 000. It is believed to have been cut from a blue diamond weighing in the rough 11214 carats, sold by Tavernier to Louis XTV., and which disappeared in the troubles of 1792. The largest diamond ever found in Brazil weighed 25414 carats, and was discovered in 1853 by a negre in the river Bogaee: it is known as the “Star of the South.” It was sold to the Gaekwar of Baroda for $450,000. From 1750 to 1870 the value of a diamond was fixed on a basis of the square of its weight; that is, a one car at stone was worth $100, a 10- carat stone was worth—10x10x 100 — $10.000. This was due to the fact that large stones were rare. But in the African mines, large stones are found, and the increase in value from one carat up is worth only a fraction more per carat than the carat weight would show. When brilliants are exceedingly small the value per carat may be double that of stones weighing one-sixteenth to one-fourth carat each. owing to the difficulty of cutting. Slight imperfections lower their value.