76 Mines of Precious Stones in Ava. [Fus. 
You* may ask me, to what distance the miners carry their excavations ? 
I reply, that ordinarily they continue perforating laterally, until the 
workmen from different mines meet one another. Iasked the man who 
gave me this information, whether this did not endanger the falling in 
of the vaults, and consequent destruction of the workmen? but he re- 
plied, that there were very few instances of such accidents. Sometimes 
the miners are forced to abandon a level before working to day-light, by 
the oozing in of water, which floods the lower parts of the works. 
The precious stones found in the mines of Kyat-pyen, generally speak- 
ing, are rubies, sapphires, topazes, and other crystals of the same family, 
(the precious corundum.) Emeralds are very rare, and of an inferior sort 
and value. They sometimes find, I am told, a species of diamond, but 
of bad qualityt. 
The Chinese and Tartar merchants come yearly to Kyat-pyen, to pur- 
chase precious stones and other minerals, They generally barter for 
them carpets, coloured cloths, cloves, nutmegs and other drugs. The 
natives of the country also pay yearly visits to the royal city of Ava, to 
sell the rough stones. I have avoided repeating any of the fabulous 
stories told by the Bnrmans of the origin of the jewels at Kyat-pyen. 
There is another locality, a little to the north of this place, called Moo- 
kop, in which also abundant mines of the same precious gems occur. 
Note.—While I am writing this brief notice, an anecdote is related to 
me by a person of the highest credit, regarding the discovery of two 
stones, or, to express myself better, of two masses (amas) of rubies of an 
extraordinary size, at Kyat-pyen. One weighed 80 biches{, Burmese 
weight, equivalent to more than 80 lbs.! the second was of the same 
size as that given to Colonel Symes. When the people were about to 
convey them to the capital to present them to the king, a party of ban- 
dits attacked Kyat-pyen for the second time, and set the whole town on 
fire. Of the two jewels, the brigands only succeeded in carrying off 
the smaller one ; but the larger one was injured by the flames : the cen- 
tre of the stone, still in good order, was brought to the king. I learned 
this from a Christian soldier of my village of Mon-/hd, who was on guard 
at the palace when the bearer of the gem arrived there. 
* The letter seems to have been intended for some scientific friend in Italy. 
t+ Probably the ¢urmali or transparent zircon, which is sold as an inferior dia- 
mond in Ceylon. [Vide vol. i. page 357.] 
~ The Pere d’Amato’s Biche is the bisse of Mendez Pinto, and the old travellers, 
and the diswa or vis of Natives of India. The Burmese word is Peik-tha, which 
is equivalent to 33 lbs., and to a weight on the Coast of Coromandel called vis. B. 
