Beryl, Emerald.—There
appears to be no record of the green variety of the beryl, which is
known as the emerald, ever having been found in India. This gem, so
highly esteemed by the natives of India, especially by the Mahomedans,
is imported from the European markets. The pale-coloured beryl or
aquamarine, is, however, obtainable in several ports of the country.
Garnet or Carbuncle.—The cutting of precious garnels which are found in many parts of India, en cabochon, appears
to have been practised since early times, and there is, at present, a
small export trade in these so-called carbuncles.
Lapis Lazuli.—The
most famous mines of this stone are situated in Badak-shan. It is not
known to occur, though it is much esteemed in India.
Turquoise.—This
stone, which is much worn by some of the Himalayan tribes, is of very
doubtful occurrence in India. The supply, it is believed, comes from
certain famous mines in Persia.
Many
ornamental stones may be mentioned, as, for example, cornelian, jasper,
agate, jade or serpentine. The first three are found in great abundance
in parts of Western and Southern India. Their cutting and polishing
constitutes a famed industry of great antiquity, and which still
exists in certain regions. Jade is found, but not worked, in several
parts of the peninsula. In native Burma and in Karakash, to the north
of the Himalayas, there are famous mines of it. Serpentine is found at
many localities', both in peninsula and extra-peninsular India. A very
superior class of steatite, much used for carvings, is found in
Rajputana, but upon it heavy royalties and other dues are levied.
METALS.
Omitting
from consideration on the present occasion, the less important metals,
of the presence of which more or less abundant indications exist in
India, I shall limit my observations to a few brief remarks on the
following— gold, silver, copper, lead, zinc, iron, and tin.
Gold.—Regarding
gold, especially in reference to the position it at present occupies in
the eyes of British capitalists, I regret that I am obliged to write
very much as an outsider, as, although when lait in India, I was most
anxious to visit Kolar and the Wynaad, I was unable to do so. My
opinion of these southern regions is founded upon what I have read and
what I have heard; I am, therefore, not unnaturally reluctant to press
it upon my present hearers. All who have any interest in the matter are
aware that the testimony as to the extent of the auriferous character
of the quartz reefs is of a most conflicting character. The value of
this testimony is now about to be put, at great cost, to a test which
must decide it one way or the other, and such large sums of money
having been embarked in the enterprise, the time for giving opinions or
making useful predictions has, in one sense, at least, passed away. Any
attempt at generalisation from all the available facts would be of
little avail, and specific information regarding particular properties
is not at my disposal. In my " Economic Geology" I have given an
account, based on all the information available to me when it was
written, of the many and widely separated tracts in India where the
presence of gold has indisputably been proved. In some of these tracts
the mode of occurrence precludes the possibility of a plentiful supply,
while, in others, the abundance can only be ascertained from operations
which, from the nature of the case, must be costly.
That
a vast quantity of gold has been raised from the soil of India has, * I
consider, been fully demonstrated by the amplest testimony; but when we
attempt, by facts at our disposal, to estimate the time and labour
which have been expended to produce that quantity, we may feel doubt as
to the profitable character of the industry. I know of numerous regions
in India, where tne indigenous gold washers eke out a
precarious existence by the practice of th . profession. All
experience, however warns us against attaching too much vaelr to the bare fact of the existence of gold in alluvial depoits. It may in somee
