TRICKS OF DIAMOND RUNNERS.

Oamaru Mail, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 10586, 15 October 1910, Page 3 (Supplement)

TRICKS OF DIAMOND RUNNERS.

The nucleus of many a fortune acquired in South Africa was obtained by illicit diamond buying. From the year 1876 to 18S1, before the famous X)e Beers mines had thoroughly inaugurated a system to cope with the illicit diamond trade, illicit diamond buying was 'extensively practised in Kimberley. The penalty of a conviction under this; Act has always been-most severe, eyeri from the'earliest days of the diamondl', fields,: but a number of years elapsed before a.police and private detectivp system was able to check illicit trading in diamonds. When the first rush to the diamond fields, occurred in J. 896 Kimberley conuisted of; a few tin huts and Kaffir kraals, situated on the north-west of Cape Colony; bordering on the Orange Free State on the west, the nearest railway being over three hundred miles away, and transport being at excessively high rates. Only those persons who possessed a capital of not less than £IOO could reach Kimberley in any degree of comfort. Real hardships were endured on the road. Ox wagons and mule.wagons were the' general means of locomotion, and the pioneers carried small tents or "bug walks," as they wore called, to afford, them protection, tho thermometer in summer registering as much as 115 in the shade. Tho town grew to such an extent after the "rush" that a largo settlement soon sprang up. Claims were pegged out and washing for'di.imonds was carried on vigorously by all sorts and conditions of men. A Cap? police garrison- was established and law under the British Government scon began to assert itself. Cecil John Rhodes then arrived on the scene and large companies were- at once formed. Tho Des Toits Pan claims came to tho fore and after a few years a huge excavation 150 feet.deep and an acre -v extent could be seen, with Kaffirs in thousands . working with feverish energy, who from the top of tho pit ief.embled ants. Saloons and gambling dens sprang up and illicit diamond buying soon became rife. The Orange River,' only three miles away, formed the border between Cape Colony and the Orange River Colony. No extradition law between the Boor and British Governments existed >n

.hose days and onco over the border )oth diamonds and runner wore safe rom molestation. The penalty for a ionviction was heavy and sentences of Tom eight to fifteen years' hard labor in the breakwater at Capo Town were lsual. Most common among the meJiods used by the illicit diamond buyerf vas to employ a Kaffir who could speak Snglish, furnish him with a little noney and set him to work on one of ;ho claims where washing for diamond;; vas in progress. Either by stealing ;hcm, buying or finding and not renoring them this Kaffir was able, if boras clever, to obtain a parcel of stoncr.. riieso would be delivered in due course ,o tho illicit diamond buyers, on wherf ihoulders then rested the responsibility if getting them I: acrcss the border." One of the first big parcels of dianonds to be safely taken across 'the >order and out of roach of the. Diamond *Lct was carried unwittingly across oy :he then Chief of Police of Kiinborlcy, Captain Brenchley. At the time of ;he latter's tenure of office as Chief of ?olice lie had grave suspicions that Ike Solomon was dealing illicitly in diamonds. Solomon posed as a real estate lealer and occasionally, to keep up aplearances, he would buy or soil a tin ihanty and take more pains than was lecessary to advertise the fact. One !vening*he Happened to meet Captain irenchley at the Grand Hotel in Kimjerley, owned by aMr Paterson. j-le nade himself exceedingly affable to'tho >olico captain, who thought Solomon vas trying to get into his good books jy being polite and affable. 'After ordering champagne for all in ,he bar Ikey Sol., a.s he was termed, jegan to speak about shooting. He ;old Brenchley that he had recently purchased a farm in tho Free State vhich abounded in game of all description and lamented the fact that'- not jeing a sportsman himself he was unrble to keep down the game on his ilace. Captain Brenchely, being an arJent.sportsman, replied that ho would much enjoy a day on the farm in question. Finally it was arranged that Ike should take Captain Brenchley and his friends, who included the Chief Magistrate of Kimberley, for a day's shooting on his farm. The day was arranged, but at tho last moment it was discovered, that shot cartridges were too scarce. Ike Solomon undertook, however, to supply 100 which he said ho could borrow from a friend. Eventually the party, consisting of six, started in three. | Cape carts, from Kimberley. Ikey was : in great spirits, as was also Captain Brenchley, "who felt certain that Ike.v was only entertaining him so royaliy so as to bring off a coup in tho near future. ■_'_•.

They crossed the border into the Free State and breakfasted at a coach stag;-.

They then proceeded to Ikey's farm, but not a trace of game was to be seen. The party, then returned to Kiniberlev, Ikey apologising profusely all the way home and insisting on providing a champagne supper on arrival. Two months later he left Kimberloy for good, and soon after his departure Captain Breiichley received the following letter:

My: Dear -Friend: I must call you friend because you have to me been a good one. I know all tho time, you think I buy diamonds and carry them over.the border. 1 now inform-you I do buy the diamonds, but you, dear friend, you carry them over the border for ;me'in. your cartridges which I borrow from my friend Nathan, and I fill nearly all with diamonds after I take Out the'bullets. "These I change at the breakfast for "real cartridges and you think nothing. Over you 1 make; much money and now go home. My friend, I say good-bye, but watch for Light Nancy, because she too is too clever for you ever to catch. Your friend always, Ike Solomon.

i The temptation, however, of making another coup was too great for Ikey and he returned again to Kiraberley after"a-'few years in Europe and was convicted in 1885 of illicit diamond buying in Kimb.erley, and sentenced to 12 years' hard labor. Ho died while serving his sentence. The most notorious character the diamond fields have produced, however, was Seotty Smith. His relationship to Scotland, however, was most remote; Seotty having a distinct touch of the tar brash. ..

Snotty's chief oacupations were cattle lifting, "highway robberies, gun running and illicit diamond trading. His first; fo.it was particularly simple and daring. Hearing that a large parcel of diamonds awaited the coach at a certain hotel Scotty held up the manager in. his office and obtained, the- diamonds. He was masked at the time and was not suspected of the robbery. A week later he calmly handed them over to tho authorities and obtained a reward. On another occasion a dealer in diamonds at Christiana on the Vaal River had purchased from the diggers a large number of diamonds and insured them tor .-CLO.OOO. He then arranged with Scotty that tho latter should" hold up the roach on the agreement that he , should receive a half share of the insurance money on delivering the diamonds back again to tho man who had.insured them. This suited the adventurous nature ol Scotty and ho promptly agreed. Singlo handed (Scotty seldom worked with another) he held up the Kimbcrlcy coach at the top of th» rise. He recognised the driver as a man he had formerly been friendly with, and not wishing to kill him ho stampeded the mulo team by shooting tho leader through tho tar. The" team stampeded down the hill and tho coach overturned. Scotty obtained the mail bags, but search as -lie would he could find no trace of the registered parcel of diamonds. He then rode across country; to Limberley and appeared' that evening in his usual haunts. He mot the coach next day, and when charged with the hold-up proved an alibi. After a while he returned to Chirstiana and saw the man he" was -in collusion with. Each accused the other of bad faith. To settle their quarrel they proceeded to the post office, producing tho receipt for the delivery of the diamonds to the postmaster. The latter denied having seen the parcel, but on searching his office discovered the bag safe and sound in a small closet, much to the disgust of the confederates.

Scotty?' greatest haul was made in a most original manner. He became so closely w»-*~ u -«d, by the • police uven-

tually that although lio was in possession of a laYgo number of largo ;and vnluablo diamonds scheme as ho could ho saw no chauco of running them across tho border. At last ho, put the diamonds in lumps of dough and.forced them down his horse's throat. Although searched over and over again, tlio polico feeling even the hide of his horso and accompanying him to tho bordeiy again searching him, ho eventually arrived in tho Free State, which was sanctuary.