DIAMOND MINES OF BRAZIL 185
Morro
do Chapeo to Chique-Chique and the Rio Paramirim in the west. The most
productive district so far lies between Sincora in the south and about
25 miles beyond the village of Morro do Chapeo in the north. There may
be other districts as rich, but this has a reliable water supply and
has therefore been very thoroughly explored. In some sections the
streams are dry in the dry seasons and short-lived torrents in the wet
seasons, making it difficult to gather the cascalho in the one and to
wash it in the other. The fields here also are very compact, extending
about 150 miles north and south with an east to west width of about 15
to 30 miles. All the Bahia fields of this section lie within a strip of
country about 225 miles north and south by 140 miles east and west.
Diamonds are found, however, in the rivers having their rise in the
diamond hills, far beyond the diamondiferous region. In 1898 diamonds
were found with gold in the Rio Itapicuri, 250 miles below the town of
Queimadas.
The
diamonds are sold to buyers on the fields. These men assort the stones
into five grades. " Bons" are crystals of good shape and color; "
fazenda fina " are small and tinted, but fine; " melee " are imperfect
and off color; " vitrie " or vidrilhos are very small bright stones of
various colors; " fundos " are broken or defective crystals mixed with
second quality carbons. The stones are usually small. Of a thousand
carats taken as they were found several years ago, the largest stone
weighed 3-1/2 carats. That would produce a cut diamond of less than
1-1/2 carats. About thirty per cent, of the production are fundos. It
was reported in 1903 that prices paid at the fields averaged, $11.50 for
