began.
Successful diggers accumulated an increasing number of claims —this was
the origin of the wealth of C.J. Rhodes and others. Successful diamond
buyers and dealers also bought claims. Instances are the Mosenthals, J.
B. Robinson, and the Barnatos; others like the late Sir David Harris
first dug, then dealt, and, being successful, bought claims again.
There was also a movement into Kimberley from overseas for the purpose
of dealing in diamonds and/or buying claims; so came to Kimberley the
great firm of Jules Porges, out of which arose later the celebrated
firm of Wernher, Beit and Company. So also came Charles Roulina (who
founded the diamond-cutting industry in France), who was a very large
claimholder. There were, of course, many others. There was a movement
out of Kimberley of diamond 'capitalists' into the London market—the
Barnatos and the Litkies were examples. So also began the London firm
of Dunkelsbuhler and Company, with which Ernest Oppenheimer and his
family were destined to be connected for many years, and of which firm
he became a partner in 1925.
Some
time in 1872 Anton Dunkelsbuhler arrived at the fields as the
'representative' of Mosenthals. Exactly what the financial relations
between him and the Mosenthals were cannot now be known, but he
evidently soon rose to a position of great personal popularity and did
business on a very large scale. Sir David Harris, who survived into our
own day, described him in his autobiography as 'certainly . . . the
largest and most generous of buyers on the fields'. In 1876, shortly
before his departure on a hohday to England, he was concerned in a
legal dispute with J. B. Robinson, the allegation being that a stone
sold to him through a broker by Anton Dunkelsbuhler was illicitly
obtained. He was triumphantly acquitted, but the case stirred up great
local excitement and in the course of an acrimonious Press discussion
some light was thrown on the position which Dunkelsbuhler had now
attained. 'Mr. Dunkelsbuhler', said the Diamond News on 17
February 1876, 'has resided on these fields upwards of four years and
we venture to say that during the whole of that time his business
transactions have been carried out in a manner worthy of the high
character of the firm whose representative he is. He has invested in
diamonds on these fields during that period certainly more than "a
million of money", and if he is now about to take his first European
holiday after his four years' assiduous toil who shall grudge it him?'
At any rate he went to Europe and the local Press carried
advertisements announcing the fact and inviting business before he
started. Whether he ever returned to the
