388 
DIAMOND. 
ended, he marks the forehead of every one with a 
kind of glue, made of saffron and gum, and is care- 
ful that the spot is large enough to hold seven or 
eight grains of rice, which he sticks upon it. Their 
bodies are then washed with the water which every 
one brings in his pot, after which they arrange 
themselves in order to partake of the repast which 
the work-master has prepared for them ; this is 
merely a plate of rice to each person, with the ad- 
dition of a quarter of a pound of butter, melted in a 
small copper pot with some sugar. 
After the feast is finished every person proceeds 
to his business, the men digging the earth in the 
place first discovered, and the women and children 
carrying it off into the other, or walled enclosure. 
When they find water they cease to dig, and the 
water thus found washes the earth two or three 
times, after which it is let out at an aperture re- 
served for that purpose. When the earth has been 
washed again, and well dried, they sift it in a kind 
of open sieve ; which operation is repeated before 
they begin to look for the diamonds. 
Another mine which Tavernier speaks of as fa- 
mous for its diamonds is the bed of the river Goual, 
near Soume/pour , a large town built entirely of earth, 
and covered with branches of cocoa trees. 'I he 
river Goual runs within a mile of the town, in its 
way from the mountains towards the Ganges. All 
our fine diamond points or sparks, called natural 
sparks, are brought from this river, where they are 
collected as soon as the great rains are over, which 
