While at Bouk, I obtained information of some iron stone similar to that at Seebeing being found on the east side of the same mountain whose west foot shows the oxide at Seebeing. From Seebeing to that spot is four miles, from it to the foot of the mountains two miles, from the foot of the mountain, carts can come to a ferry on the Ongbringlè, and all difficulty ceases. From Seebeing itself the villagers can come to Mandaley and return half way the same day, by a rugged pathway through a pass in the mountains. If the ore be, as I see no reason to doubt, in immense quantity, the reduction of it on the spot where wood and charcoal are to hand ad libitum, or the transit of the ore to the river, would be both feasible and immensely profitable. I assayed the ore and obtained 68 per cent. of pure iron. I smelted some with limestone, and made it into steel, by the Wootz process.

It was pronounced by the French mechanic in charge of the Prince's foundry equal to the best steel purchased from Calcutta, as English steel, and made into chisel, &c., that cut the said English steel. The mechanic told the Prince, that if he could get this steel, he should require no more foreign steel for the purposes of the workshop. The price of the "English steel" mentioned is seventy-six rupees a hundred viss.

Mandaley, May 2nd, 1862.

If you know from other accounts the real state of Yunan, you will not be surprised that I am still in Mandaley. Nothing could be done, beyond getting one's throat cut in vain, in the Chinese territories bordering on Burmah. The rebellion is over, the suspicious calm I spoke of in my last to you, has broken up into general lawlessness, rapine, and anarchy. Village plunders village, every man's hand is against his neighbours. Famine and distress have swelled the numbers of robbers and pillagers. If a Chinaman comes through the passes it is in flying from his enemies without goods or property and often leaving his children or his wife in the hands of the successful insurrectionists.

The Kakoos or Kakhyens have been drawn into the strife, or ra ther the universal scrimmage. They are plundered and forced to join their plunderers in the next expedition of rapine.

Again I think it would have been useless to attempt the journey

because the present state of things here must change. The country cannot exist much longer under the present policy.

That policy is so much disapproved of by some of the chief men of the country that it must change,

P. S. The most reliable accounts I can get about the cotton produce, are that the average produce was five million viss a year. This dropped on the commencement of the Yunan troubles six years ago, and consequent ceasing of the cotton exportation to China, and cultivators gave up cultivating cotton, because there was no market for it. Within the last two years only has it been cultivated with a view to exportation down the river. The whole produce last year was estimated positively as the most correct amount by the Yo Atween Woon (I can get no more reliable authority) at one million and a half.

Got another ore to-day from a hill twelve miles distant sent me by the prince, a magnetic oxide in quartz, said to be plentiful.

Mandaley, June 11th, 1862.

I have learnt within the last few days something of the reason how it was I could not get up the river. The Bamo At. Woon who showed himself to me most willing to assist me, told the king about my wishes to go to Bamo, and about the proposed expedition, mentioning the desire of the English to open up the commerce with China by that route and to have Merchants' Agents at Bamo. His Majesty did not see any reason against these measures, but the Bamo At. Woon himself did, and advised the king that I should not go, and that if English Merchants get up there, complications and difficulties would arise, that would become serious. Another Atween Woon, the frequent listener to little discourses of mine, was of opinion that the revenue and advantages to be derived from English mercantile transsactions through Bamo would be a great good, and that if the English wished to try, they should be encouraged.

This Atween Woon it was who more recently told me he would manage to get me to go to the gold districts of Mogoung. He was sincere; but I suspect, from his telling me a few days ago what is really the fact, that in this season, it would be impossible for me to reach the spots from the overflowed state of the country, that higher authority than his does not see that it would be prudent to allow me to go.

As to the China side of Bamo, my former letters to you will have shown you that nothing is to be expected from there either commer cially, or as welcome for a scientific expedition for a long time to Yunan is in short yet in anarchy.

come.

The Chinese, themselves in constant communication with Bamo, inform me that no commerce of any kind is to be hoped for a long time. The country is still in the hands of the Moslem Chinese who, like their brethren all over the world, have imbibed with their faith a love of the sword and its work. They are but a handful among their countrymen but play sad havoc with its tranquillity.

I am just at present in great popularity here. The great people profess for me the most cordial feelings and the heir-apparent, the renowned "War Prince" after the many times he has expressed himself so graciously towards me, sent for me the other day to spend the day in conversation with him. His royal Highness reiterated his request for me to teach one of his Secretaries chemistry, saying the king had promised him the post of Atween Woon (Minister of the Lower Council of four) as soon as he had acquired the science. We got on the subject of stones and a little museum grew up before me, containing several mineral ores, that the Prince said he had obtained by sending his men over the country to seek for them.

These ores he sent to me for analysis and now while I write several of his people are in my garden working a forge and bellows, reducing some iron ore under my directions in order to my analysing it. It is a rich magnetic iron ore, similar to that which produces the best Swedish iron and steel. It was brought in about a year ago, but its virtues have hitherto been disbelieved in, and it has never been reduced. There are immense quantities of it two days from this. Another I have found to be almost pure BISMUTH.

having a specific gravity of 8.1

The ore

A third was an iron pyrites also abundant, but of no use except for sulphur and sulphuric acid, both of which, the prince assured me, they make from it.

The bismuth ore I do not yet know from where it comes or whether it is in plenty : I am afraid not. If it is, this ore, the steel producing magnetic iron, and cinnamon, and tea that will be produced from Burmah, will amply reward me for my series of annoyances and vexations suffered here. There ought to be found some tin ore

somewhere in this range; gold, I look on as only waiting for an opportunity to be worked up into a new little "El dorado." The rapacity of the local and distant officials took so much of the profit away from the native diggers that it has long ceased to become lucrative, but the geological formation of the rocks, the abundance of gneiss, quartz and mica hills, the almost universal presence of gold in the river sands proclaim that new "diggings" will be opened somewhere in this range of mountains, which after all are but the parts of the chain that in the Ural and Australia are so rich in the yellow god.

When I was before His Majesty a day or two ago, they discussed the advisability of making acquaintance of some branch of knowledge a necessary part of fitness for office. The Prince, said I had promised to teach chemistry, to the Secretary to whom His Majesty had promised the Atween Woonship, and they came to the conclusion that every high official should learn some branch of science!

We have just finished the reduction of the magnetic ore. Got fifty grains of bright pure metal from seventy-five of the ore, and I have no doubt that this is not the most to be obtained.

In

Your informant makes a mistake about the gin for cleaning cotton. Nothing of the kind has been received here, cotton is cleaned with the little hand-roller and nothing else. The French workman made a whitney gin but it did not answer, neither have they Presses. the event of a treaty being got, these will be obtained in plenty, however, by the merchants who will then come to this splendid field. Splendid it is in every way, vegetable, animal and mineral products in unbounded quantity. I shall regret leaving it before seeing it opened to the English shovel and spade.

The following is from Capt. L. Pelly, since last year, on the east coast of Africa.

Zanzibar, 28th July, 1862.

I have just received news from Captain Speke; he was writing in September last year, in 3° 28′ South, about forty days S. W. of the Victoria Lake, and about eight days W. N. W. of the Tanjanika Lake; at a place called Babweb. He has been sick-had met with many delays owing to the disturbed state of the "Umainesi” territory. Grant had been looted. I am securing a caravan of fifty men with goods after them.

Baron Deekan leaves this for Momlass in a few days. He will return to the Jagga territory, thence turn the Kilimagari snowpeak, and push on North for Kenia; coming back again to the coast of the Masai haunts.

Some months ago I proposed a tour to this Kenia. My idea was and is, that it is the highest peak of all; and the centre of a group whose eastern streams run down to the Formosa Bay south of Sanoo, under the names of the Ozi, the Dana (probably the main stream) the Pamumla, &c. I cannot help also conjecturing that streams run N. W. from Kenia. Government properly considered that I should not leave my post at Zanzibar for any length of time; hence I could not undertake the trip in person. But I feel pretty sure that if prosecuted across Kenia and to the north point of the Victoria Lake, it would be one of the most interesting tours possible.

You say some gentlemen wish to come to Zambezi on a shooting expedition. Allow me to mention that some time ago Baron Deekan entered at Wanga, south of Wasseenpar: of latitude north point of Pemla Islands, and passed ten days in land W. and E. South to the Lake Zijse, through which passes the river Paugani debouching nearly opposite to Zanzibar. The Baron's route was good, practicable for donkeys, tribes not hostile, passed after leaving the coast, the Wadigo country, keeping the Umba river always on the right, in four days reach Baramu belonging to the Usumbarah king. Pass villages of Tassini, Tesa, Mikueni, Tesam kuba, of the Wadigos, then three days through the wilderness (game, antelopes, gazelles, pig, rhinoceros, fowl, zebras, giraffes, buffaloes, &c.,) then from Baramu to Pare, two days' sport the same, then from Pare over Kiswani in two days to the Lake Zijse, the lake is some thirty miles long and two to three broad, its western point only three hours from Daffeta where you can buy supplies. This sporting-ground is magnificent: elephants, hippopotamus, rhinoceros, lion and all game down to the smallest.

There is only one day's march during which no water is procurable. A party leaving Bombay during the north-east Monsoon, by Buggalow could reach Zanzibar in eighteen or twenty days; and be on their shooting ground in a month from date of quitting India..

Mr. Cooke just now left me to put up some specimens for you.