somewhat
in the early sixties. From 1850 to the discovery of diamonds in
Africa, the Brazil output amounted in round figures probably to
3,000,000 carats. After that it became an unimportant factor in the
diamond market, though impetus has been given to the industry of late
years by the high prices which the London Syndicate established for
diamond rough, and the demand for carbon, which is found in connection
with the diamonds suitable for cutting, in Bahia only. From 1870 to the
present it is doubtful if the entire Brazilian diamond and carbon
output much exceeded a yearly average of 100,000 carats.
The
impetus given to the industry by the general prosperity of the opening
decade of the twentieth century is indicated by the Consular reports,
which give the production of the State of Bahia as 154,307 carats in
1906; 189,949 carats in 1907 and 298,046 in 1908. It is estimated that
the entire output of the Bahia fields to the end of 1908 amounts to
12,351,576 carats.
When
the market was first flooded with African diamonds, the Brazilian
output dwindled rapidly. Not only could the African mines fully supply
the world's rapidly increasing demand, but the Syndicate in London
controlled the channels of trade. The unhampered sale of African rough
in the beginning, rendered the Brazilian industry, if conducted on a
large scale, unprofitable, and it is possible that one reason for the
caution of the Syndicate in making their first advances in price, was
to avoid encouraging a resumption of mining in Brazil. Not until late
in the nineties, when the price of rough had been doubled, was there a
revival of interest in the Brazilian fields. Since then, the good price
obtainable
