THE 
Vol. IX.] 
COLOMBO, MAY ist, 1890. 
NO. 
1 1. 
GEM MINING PROSPECTS IN BURMA: 
SIR LEPEL GRIFFIN'S VISIT. 
THE BUEMA RHBY COMrANY — BIB LEPEL MUFFIN 
on festina lente — the progress made — sib lepel 
obiffin's visit to the MINES — THE CLIMATE, &c. 
(Communicated.) 
OW that the formation of 
Gemming Companies for 
working the rich deposits 
of precious stones in Ceylon 
has excited such interest in 
the subject amongst your 
readers, some further inform- 
ation respecting me operations of the Ruby Mines 
Company in Burma may prove acceptable. There 
can be little doubt that the series of articles in the 
Observer referring to Streeter's Company and the 
arguments so plainly put forward through them, 
along with the persistent campaign kept up in 
your columns ever since " All about Gems" was 
published, drew attention to the facilities which 
were offered by Ceylon for the prosecution of 
profitable endeavours in such cnteipriss. It is 
curiously enough in Rangoon that one of the 
employees of the Burma Company, casually mentioned 
to the writer that one of his relatives had been in- 
duced to take a share in a Ceylon Gemming Com- 
pany principally, from having perused the letters 
in a Ceylon paper under heading of " A Ruby 
Mining Company for Burma : Why not a London 
Gemming Company for Ceylon ?" 
It is now something more than a twelvemonth 
sinoo Mr. Streeter managed to float the Burma 
Ruby Mining Company with a considerable amount 
of 6olat in London. There was a perfect rush 
for the shareB not only by capitalists in England, 
but all over the Continent as well. Engineers 
were ongaged and sent up post-haste to the site 
of the concession in Upper Burma. Machinery 
had been already purchased and forwarded 
to the nearest point on the river Irrawaddy, 
and matters wero to be rushed through with all 
possible speed. There was an abundance of money 
at their command as well as the services of 
xperienoed and competent men. The Indian Gov- 
nrment were eager to push the matter on, and 
there was no lack of encouragement by the local 
authorities. Expectation had been worked up to 
such an extreme pitch that at the first meeting of 
the shareholders — 6 months afler the formation of 
the Company — the Chairman, Sir Lepel Griffin, 
felt it absolutely necessary to tell them in a straight- 
forward way that they were in too great a hurry. 
They must consider that the country was not yet 
pacifioated, the climate was by no means favorablo 
for either Europeans or natives, that the lines of 
communication had still to be completed, — in fact 
there was but little chance of anything tangible 
being done for some considerable period in the future. 
Another six months have now elapsed and still 
no apparent results have accrued. More machinery 
has been purchased and sent forward, more men 
engaged and sent out, largo sums of money 
expended, medical men provided, and finally a 
body of about one hundred Goorkha police en 
rolled and despatched to the scene of operation?, 
but so far as oould be seen no progress had been 
made towards the realizaiion of profits and de- 
claration of a dividend. It was absolutely necessary 
that inquiry at the approaching meeting of the 
shareholders should be met with some other reply 
than the stereotyped "Have patience, wait a little, 
don't be a hurry, it will all be right by-and-by." Tho 
directors no doubt fully realized that those whose 
money was invested in this venture mainly on account 
of the liberal promises of large profits eo confidently 
advanced by the promoters would not rest content 
any longer with appeals to their confidence that 
everything was in order and they might feel assured 
their interests were being attended to in the most 
advantageous way. It was then determined that 
the Chairman himself, Sir Lcpol Griffin, should go 
out to Burma and report on the progress that had 
been made, and the prospects of the future. It 
appears that at the same time he was fully em- 
powered to make arrangements as he might judge 
to be advisable in the interests of the Company, 
and he has made use of his authority with no sparing 
hand as will be seen farther on. Sir Lepel Griliin 
landed in Bangoon on the loth February accom- 
panied by Lady Griffin and Mr. Kirby, one of tho 
directors of the Company— an engineer of some noto 
— in oonneotion with the construction of Docks at 
Bombay. The party remained a few days in tho 
chief port of Burma and proceeded by rail to 
Mandalay, from whence they were to proceed by one 
of the boats of the Irrawaddy Flotilla Company to 
Thabeityu, where the road to Mogok commenced. 
The consent of the Chief Commissioner had been 
obtained, as also the permission of Sir Lepel Griffin, 
to a representative of tho Bangoon Times accom- 
panying the party to the ruby mines. It seems, 
however, that every difficulty was placed in his way 
