THE DIAMOND MINES OF SOUTH AFRICA

First edition

Gardner Frederick Williams (1842–1922) was an American mining engineer and author, and the first properly trained mining engineer to be appointed in South Africa for De Beers and Co.

Published by: Macmillan and Co. in New York in 1902. 

Condition: Very good. A well-preserved copy. No foxing, text clean and clear. Front flyleaf has been torn out. Faint pencil marks on the title page. Water marks to the front cover. Bumped edges. 

681 pp., frontispiece, illustrations, plates (some colour), portraits, maps (1 double) 2 double plans. Plates accompanied by guard sheets with descriptive letterpress. Includes bibliographical references and index. 

Binding: Beige cloth boards with gilt lettering and decoration. Deckle edged pages. Gilt-blocked title to spine and cover. 

Please note this is a weighty book (approximately 1kg) so if shipping abroad a separate quote will be provided. 

According to Wikipedia: Williams and Cecil John Rhodes (who was then 32 years old) met in Kimberley and subsequently travelled to England on the same ship and spent many hours discussing the gold and diamond enterprises in South Africa. Rhodes was most impressed by his companion's knowledge and enthusiasm.

In the US, two Americans had formed a company, The Exploration Company, in conjunction with Rothschild's in London. Their objective was to explore for gold. They persuaded Williams to return to South Africa as their consulting engineer. When Rhodes heard about this, he lost no time in getting in touch with Williams and persuaded him to cancel his agreement with The Exploration Company and to join De Beers Diamond Company. Under pressure from Rhodes, he agreed to forget about gold and move into the field of diamonds, and finally accepted an appointment as manager of De Beers in Kimberley in May 1887. This was during Rhode's legal struggle against the Barnato Mining Company. The result was the formation on 13 March 1888 of the De Beers Consolidated Mines Co., with Rhodes, Barney Barnato and Alfred Beit on the board.