Honner,
late Major of Her Majesty's 19th Regiment of Foot, by Boedoe Swamie,*
King of Kandi. In the year 1803 the Colonial Government of the Island
of Ceylon, through the intrigues of Mr. North, General McDonald,! and
the Adjaarsj: in connection with the pearl fisheries, declared war
against the King of Kandi. An army was marched against his capital,
which was ultimately attacked and taken. The Government then determined
to place on the throne the lawful sovereign, Boedoe Swamie. Colonel
Barbut was sent to Jaffra§ for him. It was reported that the Kandians
would oppose his passage at a river three days march from Kandi, and
that the deposed King had taken up a strong position on the river with
all the forces he could collect. Major Honner, then a captain, was
ordered on March 20th, 1803, to move with 300 men and three fieldpieces
to open a communication with Colonel Barbut, to disperse the enemy, and
escort the Prince to head-quarters to be crowned. Captain Honner
marched according to orders, dispersed the enemy, received the Prince
from the hands of the colonel, and brought him safely through all
dangers to Kandi. They halted about 2 miles from the city to prepare
for the Prince's entrance. The following morning Boedoe Swamie
presented the stone which is the subject of this history to Captain
Honner as an acknowledgment of his services and bravery. At that time
it was set round with ruby spinelles in the Eastern style, and was worn
as a turban pendant. The fate of this Prince was most unfortune. Not
erne of his people would acknowledge him, and on June 25th, when the
small British and Malay garrison left to protect him were hard pressed
and surrounded by S0!000 of the enemy,
representations were made to Major Davie, who commanded the Prince's
guard, that if they surrendered Boedoe Swamie, who would be treated
with great kindness, they would be allowed to march lo Colombo
unmolested. The Major consulted his officers, and explained to the
Prince that they had not sufficient power to protect him any longer, to
which Boedoe Swamie exclaimed—" My God, is it possible, and can the
English triumphant arms be so humiliated at present as to be afraid of
the menaces of such cowards as the Kandians are ?" The Prince and his
seven servants were given up to the Kandians. He was immediately
impaled, two of his servants were beheaded, and the rest were hanged
to a jack-tree. Then followed the massacre of the Europeans. The sick
were tied two together and beaten to death with sticks, ' and the
able-bodied soldiers were hacked and beheaded and thrown down a deep
hole on the hillside, dead and alive. The Major and another officer
were spared for a life of torture and sickness. The assistant surgeon
alone found his way after many days to Colombo to tell the sad tale. In
the course of time Major Honner carried the gem to London and first
showed it to Messrs. Randle and Bridge, jewellers, near St. Paul's, who
bought the gold and the rubies that surrounded the stone. They
introduced Major Honner to Mr. Lowrie, who lived near Finsbury-square,
a professor and lecturer on mineralogy, who informed him that it was a
white spinelle of great value. Mr. Lowrie tested it in various ways,
but what seemed to fix his opinion more than anything else was the fact
that he was unable to scratch it with the hardest topaz in his
possession, though it made an impression on the topaz. In the same year
it was shown to Mr. Hawley, of the Strand, jeweller, who kept it for
two days and offered to purchase it. It was then taken to the British
Museum to obtain the opinion of Dr. Kiineg, the head of the Mineral
Department. It was examined by him in the presence of Dr. Walter, Dr.
Ashburner, Mr. Hawley, and Major Honner, and many others. Another
stone, supposed to be spinelle, was produced by them, and at the advice
of Dr. Koneg, the two were submitted to heat on the bars of the grate.
The stone in question
