282 
THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. [October i, 1889. 
to any person who resides in the tract with written 
permission, and may not exceed one year in 
duration. 
An extraordinary license shall be a license to dig 
for or raise precious stones hy any method, and 
may with the previous sanction of the Chief Com- 
missioner be granted by the Deputy Commissioner 
to any person., (sec. 9) for such period, in such 
form, on such conditions and in consideration of 
such payments as the Chief Commissioner in each 
case directs. 
Following the above there are a number of regula- 
tions regarding the modus operandi of ordinary 
licenses for gemming, which would be of interest 
should the Government of Ceylon think it advis- 
able to regulate the native gemming operations, 
now left to themselves and worked at the option 
of th6 owners or lessees. There is nothing more 
said about extraordinary licenses, which we accord- 
ingly find in this position. Permission may be 
granted by the Chief Commissioner, to any person, 
for any period, and under any condition he chooses, 
to carry on gemming operations by use of machinery 
and explosives, or by any other method they may 
think fit. This effectually disposes of the straw 
at which the drowning monopoly attempted to 
grasp — it has not left to it even this one remaining 
claim ; the exclusive right by the Company to 
employ explosives and machinery, has no more 
existence in reality than any other of the many 
fictitious advantages claimed on its behalf by the 
promoters. 
Beturning now to the Kuby Eegulation (seo. 5, 2) 
" A license to dig for or raise precious stones in a 
stone tract may impose on the holder thereof the 
condition that he shall, at the option of the 
authority granting the license, sell at his own 
valuation to that authority all or any stones which 
he or any person permitted by the license to work 
under him finds or raises, or pay on that valua- 
tion to that authority such duty in respect of the 
stones as the local Government directs." The local 
Government is empowered to " grant by lease, or 
other appropriate instrument, with respect to all 
or any stone-tracts or to any stone-tract, the right 
to exercise this option ; and (sec. 16) if in the opinion 
of the local Government, the acquisition of any land 
on behalf of such grantee is desirable for the pur- 
poses of this regulation, the local Government may 
at the request of the grantee, proceed to acquire the 
land under the provisions of the Upper Burma Land 
Acquisition Eegulation of IX of 1886, and on 
payment by the grantee of the compensation 
awarded under that Eegulation, and of the charges 
incurred by the Government in connection with the 
proceedings, the land shall vest in him subject to 
such conditions, if any, as the local Government may 
prescribe." 
This portion of the enactment would seem to be 
specially framed for the benefit of prospectors. 
Anyone disposed to speculate in gemming may 
travel about and see what is going on. When he 
finds diggers — with licenses — doing well on some 
particular spot, he applies to the local authorities 
for a grant of that land, and under certain regu- 
lations in due time acquires it, with a right to the 
gems found by the license holders, whose claims 
terminate within a twelvemonth of date of their 
licenses, leaving him free to do as he likes. 
Authority is also given to summarily search for 
stones liable to confiscation whenever the authori- 
ties have reason to belipve fmm personal knowledge 
or information given bv any person, including en- 
trance to building, vessel, or place, breaking open 
dooirf and removing obstacles to entry; detention, 
search and arrest of the suspected person and any 
person in his company. 
A police officer, railway servant, carrier of goods 
or anyone in his employ, who is aware of the 
commission of any offence, or the intention to 
commit an offence, shall be legally bound to give 
immediate information, orally or in writing, to a 
Police Magistrate or to a police officer above the 
rank of a constable. 
By way no doubt of showing that the Government 
intend enforcing these regulations and making all 
the profit they can from the natural resources of 
the newly acquired territory, it is enacted, that 
imprisonment for a term of one month for the first 
offence, and for 6 months for any subsequent 
offence, as well as fine, will follow the person who 
" in contravention of this regulation resides within 
a stone tract, or digs for, or raises any precious 
stone, or possesses any precious stone in a stone 
tract, or for the purposes of trade, in any place 
beyond the limits of a stone tract, or buys or sells, 
or is otherwise a party to the transfer of a precious 
stone, or transport any precious stone, or fails or 
refuses to comply with any provision of any rule 
under this regulation." 
It shall be presumed in a prosecution, until the 
contrary is proved, that any stone for which the 
accused person is unable to account satisfactorily, 
is a stone in respect of which he has committed 
an offence, and (sec. 8) liable to confiscation. 
Whether the person charged is convicted or ac- 
quitted — the stone may be confiscated on the 
decision of the magistrate. 
If a stone is seized — and the offender is not 
known or can't be found, the stone may be 
confiscated after a month's notice to give opportunity 
for its being claimed, and '' when a stone not in 
the possession of any person cannot be satis, 
factorily accounted for, it is, under similar condi- 
tions, confiscated. " The magistrate, Deputy Com- 
missioner or other officer may, instead of ordering 
the confiscation of a stone, give the owner an option 
to pay, in lieu of confiscation, such sum as the 
officer thinks fit." 
It would seem from these, and many others of 
the rules and regulations, that, the officials of 
Upper Burma should serve an apprenticeship 
to a jewel-dealer's business to enable them to 
appraise the value of the precious stones with 
which they will have to deal. The want of such 
technical knowledge must without doubt be often 
injurious to the due and just administration of the 
act under reference, and it is no matter for astonish- 
ment that in the absence of such technical know- 
ledge its promulgation has not been received with 
much favour by the inhabitants of the country 
placed under its provisions, a country, it must be 
remembered which we have only recently annexed, 
where our authority is by no means yet firmly 
established, and where all the actions of Govern- 
ment are looked upon with dread oi suspicion. 
The mistakes already made by those in authority 
have been both grave and numerous, and it will 
not be surprising if the terms of the Euby Begu- 
lations in any case —cumbrous and expensive to work 
— were very considerably modified within a short 
period, and in all probablity, all restriction will 
eventually be removed as they have been in this 
island. 
CEYLON TEA IN THE NOETH OF 
SCOTLAND. 
A well-known planter writes to us : — 
" I seud you the circulars of Brebner & Graut, 
the largest wholesale tea dealers in Aberdeen. The 
one in 1886 represents my views written when I came 
last from Europe, and you will see their firm then 
