40 V. Ball — On the Diamond Mines [No. 1, 



were discussed in a paper by the late Mr. Blochmann* who states that the 

 Generals of Akbar and Jahangiri were led to invade Kokrah and attack the 

 Raja on account of the diamonds which it was believed they would find 

 there. Mr. Blochmann believed the river to have been the Sunk and I 

 mention in my paper that a spot is still shown in that river where 

 diamonds are said to have been found. 



Tavernier's list of stages from Agra to this mine as in the other cases 

 presents some perplexing items. It is as follows with the real distances in 

 miles added for comparison. 



Actual distance 

 Gostes. in miles. 



Agra to Hulabas (Allahabad) , 130 276 



Hulabas to Benarous (Benares), 33 95 



Benarous to Saseron (Sasseram), 4 



70 

 Saseron to Great Town, 21 I 



Great Town to Rodas (lihotas), 4 24 



Total 192 465 



Rodas to Soumelpour, 30 



There are several manifest inaccuracies in the above. The distance 

 between Allahabad and Benares is in reality about one-third of that between 

 Agra and Allahabad yet Tavernier makes it only one -fourth. The ' Great 

 Town' mentioned, probably lay between Benares and Sasseram not between 

 Sasseram and Rhotas. The items 4 and 21 should be transposed. 



If Sasseram were 8 costes from Rhotas then since the distance is 24 

 miles, the cost would equal 3 miles and the same result would be obtained, 

 nearly, from the distance between Allahabad and Benares, but by dividing 

 the above totals of the table, i. e., 465 by 192 we only get 2*4 as the value of 

 the cost. If again we strike the average between these, 2*4 and 3, we get 

 2'7 as a final approximate value. Now multiplying the 30 costes which are 

 stated to intervene between Rhotas and Soumelpour by this we obtain 81 

 miles as the distance between these places. The next question to deter- 

 mine is what locality at this distance from Rhotas answers to the following 

 description of Soumelpour, " The Raja lives half a league from the town 

 in tents set upon a rising ground at the foot whereof runs the Gouel de- 

 scending from the southern mountains and falling into the Ganges." Just 

 80 miles from Rhotas at the foot of the Neturhat plateau there are the 

 remains of an ancient town called Simah Lat. 23° 35' Long. 84° 21' rather 

 more than a mile from the left bank of the Koel where it enters the 

 Palamow subdivision from the highlands of Lohardagga. 

 * J. A. S. B. Vol. XL. pt. 1, p. 11. 



