On Preeious Stones. 99 



for relaxation from my serious duties, it occurred to me that 

 I might find a source of reasonable recreation, without much 

 demand on my time, if I took up once more this branch of 

 my early education, whilst at the same time I might hope to 

 contribute my mifee towards opening up a probable source of 

 profit to others, by pointing attention to this neglected 

 element of wealth, by eliciting valuable information from 

 others, and by throwing out such practical hints as might 

 occur to me for easily and speedily accomplishing its realisa- 

 tion To judge from the display of j ewels and j ewellery in the 

 windows of this city one can have no doubt of the great demand 

 for them ; while one regrets that so much of that which is 

 manufactured here should be stuffed with cheap, trumpery 

 stones, and more frequently only paste and imitation stones, 

 notwithstanding that we have both an abundance of fine stones 

 in the country and the requisite means of imparting to them 

 their highest finish in cutting and polishing. In the case 

 before me, I have brought together a somewhat extensive 

 collection of colonial precious stones, some my own, the 

 greater portion kindly lent me by my friends for the purpose 

 of being exhibited this evening. To assist me in the history 

 of some of them, I have invited — and he is here — Mr, Spink, 

 the able lapidary, who cut many of them, and who knows 

 them well ; and Mr. Murray, the jeweller of Bourke-street, 

 who has brought the gem of the evening with him. Here 

 they are in goodly array, and for the sake of enabling you 

 to form a juster idea of them, they are placed, as far as may 

 be, side by side with the best specimens I could obtain of 

 stones of the same kind from Ceylon, the East and West 

 Indies, Brazil, and Peru. Here are three diamonds, two 

 from Beechworth and the third from Collingwood Flat. I 

 am enabled, by the kindness of Mr. Crisp, of Queen-street, 

 to exhibit the latter to-night. It was found in the gravel 

 spread on a small garden walk in the lower part of Colling- 

 wood, the gravel having been obtained either from Northcote 

 or just above Johnston-street bridge. It is small, but even 

 a small diamond is a great fact. The diamond which Mr. 

 Murray has brought is the largest yet found ; it weighed in 

 the rough about three carats ; it now weighs a little less 

 than two, and is, as you can all see, a magnificent gem. It 

 was sent to Amsterdam to be cut, and has quite recently 

 been returned to its owner here. Its fair value I take to be 

 from £35 to £40. I may remark that all the Beechworth 

 diamonds that I have seen — about a dozen — were beautifully 



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