But
apart from lack of sentiment, there is often a sheer lack of knowledge
among dealers about the goods they sell. That the diamond, for
instance, is essentially pure crystallised carbon is a fact very well
known to most people, and yet I have actually come across diamond
merchants to whom this was news, and news to be taken with a grain of
salt at that! Nor do many dealers in sapphires and rubies know that the
blue stone and the red are full brothers. And as for the dealers who
know nothing about any of the precious or semi-precious stones except
those in which they themselves happen to deal, their name is legion.
This
does not speak well for a large proportion of the merchants who trade
habitually in articles which are a perennial source of wonder and
romantic interest to the general public. But fortunately there are
others and their number is not inconsiderable. They are well informed,
keenly appreciative of the distinguishing features of the many gem
stones which go to make up the long list of the precious minerals.
Amongst these men there are not a few all-round connoisseurs, and being
known as such far and wide, they receive rare specimens from all parts
of the world to enrich their collections. While no trader's pocket is
deep enough to permit him to acquire every fine gem which is offered
him, these experts do not lightly pass by a stone which appeals to
their imagination; and having acquired it, they defer the date of
parting from it until the commercial instinct within them gains the
upper hand. This is the reason why the connoisseur, who knows all there
is to know about gems, frequently has a much less
