Page:A treatise on diamonds and precious stones including their history Natural and commercial.djvu/84

 SECT. VII.

Commercial History of Rough Diamonds.

the circumstances that led to the discovery of Diamonds in India, we are totally unacquainted; but in regard to the discovery of this gem in Brazil, the following account, which I have heard related by individuals in the country, to whom it had descended by tradition from the first adventurers, will be found generally correct.

a century ago, that part of Brazil, called Serro do Frio, (meaning a lofty ridge where the climate is cold), was explored for gold; and in searching for this precious metal some singular substances, resembling pebbles, were occasionally met with, in rerular geometric forms. The peculiar hue and lustre of some