DIAMONDS FOUND IN OTHER PARTS OF THE WORLD
gray corundum which is regarded by the natives as a sure indication of the presence of diamonds.
Very
little is known regarding the diamond regions of Borneo. Those of
Landak mines where the Maton was found in 1787 are amongst the oldest
and most productive and have been worked, though not very
systematically, ever since establishment of Malay settlement on the
coast. Here diamonds are found not only in the river beds when dry, but
also in their original sites at the foot of the mountains. The diggings
are usually carried to a depth of from ten to thirty feet, and constant
experience has shown that the deeper they are dug the gems are both
more plentiful, and of larger size and finer quality.
As
far back as 1738 the Dutch annually exported from this district
diamonds to the value from 200,000 to 300,000 dollars. The mines in
this part of the island have been worked for over a century chiefly by
the Chinese. But in 1842 the "Celestials" were set upon, and either
massacred or driven out of the country by the Dyaks, as the
aborigines. The cause of this outbreak was the intolerable tyranny of
the Chinese, who appear to have treated the Dyak laborers employed by
them with the most atrocious cruelty and oppression. It was one of
these Dyaks who found the Maton diamond.
The
Malays of Landak are firmly persuaded that the water in which the Maton
has been dipped is a specific for all disorders; and, no doubt, this
very belief has occasionally produced good results, especially in
cases of nervous complaints.
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