d8u peentific Proceedings, Ruyul Dublin Society. 
The early accounts by Franklin and Jacquemont have been 
perhaps to some extent supplanted by that by M. Rousselet. 
Captain Burton in his already mentioned paper gives the 
following abstract with some remarks of his own. While 
quoting from Captain Burton, I cannot omit to say that it is to 
be regretted that he should not have referred to the Official 
Geological Publications on the subject. Had he done so he would 
have seen that very much more has been accomplished with 
regard to fixing the horizon of the matrix and its distribution 
than he was led to suppose, and moreover, he would not have 
then rehabilitated several old theories which have been shown 
to be erroneous. 
““M. Louis Rousselet (‘L’Inde des Rajahs, Paris, Hachette, 1875), 
in his splendid volume pp. 440, 443, gives an illustration, and an 
account of the world-famous mines of Panna (the Panasca of Ptolomey 2), 
a little kingdom of Eastern Bandelkhand erected in 1809. The Rajah 
sent a Jemadar to show him the diggings which are about twenty 
minutes’ walk from the town. ‘The site is a small plateau covered with 
pebble heaps, and at the foot of a rise somewhat higher than usual 
yawns the pit about 12 or 15 metres in diameter by 20 deep. 
“Tt is found in alluvial grounds, divided into horizontal strata, 
debris of gneiss and carbonates,* averaging 30 metres; at the bottom 
is the diamond rock, a mixture of silex and quartz in a gangue of red 
earth (clay ?). The naked miners descend by an inclined plane, and work 
knee deep in water, which the noria or Persian wheel, turned by four 
bullocks, is insufficient to drain ; they heap the muddy mixture into small 
baskets which are drawn up by ropes, whilst a few are carried by 
Coolies. The dirt is placed upon stone slabs sheltered by a shed ; the 
produce is carefully washed, and the silicious residuum is transferred 
to a marble table for examination. The workmen, each with his over- 
seer, examine the stones one by one, throwing back the refuse into a 
basket ; it is a work of skill on the part of both men, as it must be 
done with a certain rapidity and the rough diamond is not easily 
distinguished from the silex, quartz, jasper, limestone, corundum, &e. 
‘“‘Tradition reports that the first diamonds of fabulous size were thus 
found, and the system of pits was perpetuated ; when one is exhausted 
it is filled up and another is opened up hard by—a deplorable system, 
as 100 cubic metres must be displaced to examine one—and around 
each well a surface of twenty times the area is rendered useless. 
Moreover, much time is lost by the imperfect way of sinking the shaft, 
which sometimes does not strike the stone. 
* What is intended to be conveyed by the term “‘ carbonates” I cannot say since other 
than diamonds there are no traces of carbon in these rocks. 
