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SYSTEMATIC DESCRIPTION OF PRECIOUS STONES 



The climate of Kimberley cannot be considered anything but healthy ; in winter it is 

 mild and pleasant ; in summer, however, from September to March, it is often very hot, in 

 spite of its elevation of 4012 feet above sea level. There is often no rain for months 

 together, and the whole of the rainfall usually takes place in a few heavy downpours. Since 

 the erection of suitable dwellings for the miners and the improvement in their mode of 

 living, the deadly camp-fever has been almost unknown, and the district can no longer be 

 considered an unhealthy one, a consideration which has an important bearing on the output 

 of diamonds. 



In spite of the many and varied difficulties which have been encountered, the develop- 

 ment of mining oper-ations at Kimberley has been so extensive that, although the stones are 

 of relatively sparing occurrence in the " blue ground," an enormous number must have been 

 found. An idea of the extent of the output may be derived from an inspection of the 

 above table, which is copied from Reunert. In this table is given the yearly export of 



