VOL. XII.] PHILOSOPHICAL TRANSACTIONS. 409 



There are 15 mines employed in the kingdom of Visiapore, as follow : — In 

 Ramulconeta mines, in red earth, about 15 or id feet deep, they seldom find 

 a diamond of a mangelleen weight, but small ones, to 20 or 30 in a mangel- 

 leen. They are generally of an excellent crystalline water, have a bright clear 

 skin, inclining often to a pale greenish colour, are well shaped, but few of 

 them pointed. There are also found among them several broken pieces of 

 diamonds, by the country people called shemboes. — In Banugunnapellee, Pen- 

 dekull, and Moodawarum, they dig as at Ramulconeta, and in the same kind of 

 earth ; they also afford stones much alike, being neighbouring places. — Cummer- 

 willee, Paulkull, and WorkuU, are not far distant, and produce stones much alike, 

 out of the same coloured earth, but very small ones, even to 100 in a mangelleen. 



Lungepoleur mines are of a yellowish earth, like those of Coleur, its dia- 

 monds are generally well shaped, globular, few pointed, of a very good crys- 

 talline water, and bright skins ; many of them have a thick dark grass-green 

 skin, some spotted also with black, that they seem all foul, yet are not so, 

 but within purely white and clean. Their sizes are from 2 or 3 mangelleens 

 downwards, but few very small. — Pootloor mines are of reddish earth, but 

 afford stones much like those of Lungepoleur, only smaller, under a mangel- 

 leen; the general sizes are of 4-, -l, 4., -^ of a mangelleen. — Punchelingull, 

 Shingarrampent, and Tondarpaar, are also of red earth ; their diamonds not 

 unlike those of Coleur, only rarely or never any large ones are found there. — 

 Gundepellee has the same earth with the former, and produces stones of equal 

 magnitude; but frequently of a pure crystalline water, in which they exceed 

 the former. 



Donee and Gazerpellee dig both in red earth likewise, and afford stones 

 alike, the greatest part whereof are of good shapes and waters. They have 

 also many shemboes, and some of bad waters, some brown, which these people 

 call soft or weak watered, being esteemed of a softer and weaker body than 

 others, by reason they have not so much life when cut, and are subject to flaw 

 in splitting, and on the mill; their general product is in stones of middle sizes: 

 but Gazerpellee has besides many large ones, and is the only mine noted for 

 such in the kingdom of Visiapore. 



The diamonds in all the mines are so scattered and dispersed in the earth, 

 and lie so thin, that in the most plentiful mines it is rare to find one in digging, 

 or not till they have cleared them of the cloddy matter, in which they are en- 

 closed; and some of those of Melwillee have the earth so fixed about them, 

 that till they grind them on a rough stone with sand, they cannot move it 

 sufficiently to discover if they are transparent. Near the place where they dig, 

 they make a cistern of about 2 feet high, and 6 feet over, with a small vent in 



VOL. II. 3 G 



