When the diamonds arrive in London, they are again re-assorted for sale, i.e. in the manner that will best suit the customs and requirements of the trade. The London importers sell (a) to merchants of rough diamonds, who again resell the goods in their rough state, (b) to merchants of brilliants who get their purchases cut and polished for sale, (c) to
actual manufacturers who, buying for their own account, cut and polish
the goods and then resell with profit as compared to the manufacturer
who works for a fixed cutting charge.
It
is of interest to compare the present elaborate method of assorting and
valuing with that obtaining in the eighteenth cenÂtury and previously
in the European market. It was the custom then to forward diamonds from
India in " bulces " or parcels neatly wrapped in muslin and sealed by
the sellers. The largest stones were never offered for sale, but
reserved by the native owners, as David Jeffries observes, to
aggrandize their families. He states further that "the head of the
family has a small shal-
