'Collections of travels through Turky into Persia, and the East Indies. Giving an account of the present state of those countries, as also a full relation of the five years wars, between Aureng-Zebe and his brothers in their father's life time, about the succession. And a voyage made by the Great Mogul (Aureng-Zebe) with his Army from Dehli to Lahor, from Lahor to Bember, and from thence to the Kingdom of Kachemire, by the Mogols, call'd, the Paradise of the Indies. Together with a relation of the Kingdom of Japan and Tunkin, and of their particular manners and trade. To which is added a new description of the Grand Seignior's Seraglio, and also of all the Kingdoms that encompass the Euxine and Caspian Seas, being the travels of Monsieur TavernierBernier, and other great men.' [‎135] (454/1024)

Book II.
Travels in India.
again fo as to run To flat as it did. Had they the; invention of Iron-mills, upon
which they never ufe Emeril, but only the File, becaufe tWix is no necefFjty to
take off the Tree to file the Mill, they might polifh their Stones better than they
do. I have told you they muft eithe rub the Mill with Emeril, or file it every
four and twenty hours. For when the Stone has run for fome time,that part of
the Mill becomes as fmooth and bright as glafs •• fo that if you do not rough it
again either With Emeril or the File, the powder will not flay ; whereas if the
powder flay,there is more work done in an hour than otherwife in two.
Though a Diamond be naturally very hard, having a kind of a knot,as you fee
in wood, the Mian Lapidaries will cut the Stone,which our European Lapidaries
find great difficulty to do,and ufuaily will not undertake to perform; which makes
the Indians require fomething more for the falhion.
As for the Government of the Mines, they trade very freely, and very faith
fully. They pay two per cent, to the King for all thatjthey buy: befides that he
has alfo a duty from the Merchants for leave to dig. The Merchant after he has
made fearch with the Miners, who know all the places where the Diamonds grow
choofes out a place about two-hunder’d paces in compafs,where they fet at work
fometimes fifty, fometimes an hunder’d Miners,as they are in haft of work. And
from the day that they begin to work, to the day that they end, the Merchants
pay to the King two Pagpds a-day ^ and four when they employ an hunder’d
men.
Thefe poor people never get above three Pagods all the year long though they
underftand their bufinefs extremely well} fo that their wages being fo fmall they
make no fcruple, when they can handfomely, to hide a Stone for their own pro
fit ; and in regard they are quite naked, only for a rag about their privities,fome-
tiraes they are fo dextrous, as to fwallow the Stone. The chief of the Merchants
who employ thefe Miners ffiew’d me one of them, that had cozen’d him of a
Stone, and had put it into the corner of his eye, but he took it from the fellow
fofoon as he had difeovefd the cheat. To prevent this cozenage,there are twelve
or fifteen in fifty, who are engag’d to the Merchant, that he lhall have no injury
done him, nor any thefts committed. If by accident they meet with a Stone
that weighs 14 or id Carats, they prefently carry it to the Mafter of the work
who gives him in recompence the fiarpo, which is a piece of Calicut to make
luma Bonnet, to the value of 25 Sous, together with half a Pagod in Silver or
e]fe a whole Pagod, when he gives him neither Rice nor Sugar.
The Mefcliants that come to trade at the Mines keep their Lodgings; and every
morning about ten or eleven a clock, after they have din’d, the Maftersofthe
Miners bring their Diamonds to {hew them. If the Stones are large,or that there
be io many as amount from twp-thoufand to fixteen-thoufand Crowns, they will
leave them with the ftrange Merchant feven or eight days, fpr the Merchants to
conuder. ^ When the Merchant has feen the Stones,it becomes him to agree upon
the price in a {hart time. Otherwife the party that owes the Stones, takes them
away again, and you {hall never lee the fame Stones again, unlefs mix’d with
others. When the bargain is concluded, the Purchafer givesaBill of Exchange
hpon the Banker. If you have agreed to pay him in four dayes,and make him ftay
onger, you.muft pay him down one and an half in the hunder’d for a months in-
tereit M 0 ft commonly when they know the Merchant to be fufficient, they
will choofe to take a Bijl of Exchange for for Golconda, or rifapour.bnt
moieelpecially for Surat, 3$ being the moft frequented Port in all Mia, where
y may mpiffi themfelyes with all Commodities which they want,
i ls ^ery pleafant tp fee the young children of the Merchants and other people
r, 6 ountrey, from the age often to fifteen or fixteen years, who feat them-
hacV T n a j ee ’ • t ^ at . s t ^ le vo ^ place of the Town: Every one of them
w ii-H g “d-wejghts in a little Bag hanging at one fide,on the other hisPurfe,
an ' v ^ or fix-hunder d Pagods in Gold in it. There they fit expe&ing when
Stnnfti ° U W1 ? c ? me t0 t l leni fo rae Diamonds. If any pprftm brings them a '
their i nc ? t ^ ie h an ds of the eldeft Boy among them, who is as it were
bv wWtf ’ w • 00 ^ s u P Dn an d after that gives it to him that is next him ;
reft iw means 11 g0e i S fr° m hand to hand,till it return to him again,none of the
P * mg one word.* After that he demands the price, to buy it if poffible;
but