.
. . 'Marquises' . . . Fine silver cape de 0.35—1 ct. 713 in Klein Bldg.
Taille emeraude de 1—3 cts. extra. 8/8—60 a 100 p.c. (Single cuts.)
Alle-soorten goederen."
"A
mixture of languages, as you see," said Mr. Goldmuntz, "but everybody
understands it. It means this man Barsamian is waiting in Room 713, the
Klein Building—that's this one— and is interested in buying stones of
such and such description and weight. We will now go and look at the
strong room. No, first you might like to look at the wall." He paused
before a bulletin board on which hung three forms, each with a man's
photograph affixed to it. The spaces were filled in with such
information as was requested; the man's name, nationality, age, and
experience, as well as his proposers and seconders, for these were
candidates who wished to join the club. The notices hang there a
stipulated length of time during which anyone who might know something
to the detriment of the candidate is expected to hand in his
information to the club committee. If during that time nothing of the
sort transpires, the aspirant is accepted.
Then
we inspected the strong room, which looked like a safe-deposit vault in
a bank. We went back upstairs and talked to some of the dealers. I
gathered that Antwerp, though it is refreshingly unconfined in the
matter of international business and might fairly be described as the
Tangier of the Continent, is far from being unadulterated heaven for a
diamond cutter. Belgium is a welfare state with strong unions, and the
cutters have succeeded in jacking up their wages and welfare services,
and scaling down their hours of work, until the managers declare
sorrowfully that any other country can compete dangerously. It was
only recently that the cutters ended a strike that
