fell
through, and the stone was returned to Messrs. Halphen, who acted
throughout in the name of the Syndicate, and not on their own account
as is usually supposed.
During
the exhibition of the gem in India, glowing accounts of its rare size
and beauty had reached the late ex-Gaikwar of Baroda, next to the
eccentric Charles, Duke of Brunswick, the greatest diamond fancier of
modern times. This prince gave a commission, which was ultimately
entrusted to Mr. E. Dresden, of London and Paris, to buy the Star of
the South for eight lakhs of rupees, or ,£80,000, Mr.
Dresden,thereupon, applied through Mr. Halphen, to the Syndicate, who,
although they had already declined £110,000, after some pourparlers were
induced to accept the Gaikwar's offer. On this subject we were
favoured on June 14, 1881, with a communication from Mr. Dresden, the
subjoined extract from which will be found peculiarly interesting :
"
A few years after the death of the late Emperor Napoleon, his Empress
sold through Smith, Fleming and Co., her famous collection of diamonds
(amongst which were a pair of splendid drops), to that same ruler of
Baroda, so that he now possesses a matchless quantity of diamonds,
including the Star of the South, which I had the commission to buy, and
for which I paid Halphen in Paris two million francs (,£80,000),
inclusive, of course, of the mountings, &c, which were very
costly."
It
may be added that the ill-luck which often seems to follow the
possessors of great diamonds swiftly overtook the new owner of the Star
of the
