Badashan is a Province inhabited by people who worship Mahommet, and have
a peculiar language.
It forms a very great kingdom, and the royalty is
hereditary. All those of the royal blood are descended from King Alexander
and the daughter of King Darius, who was Lord of the vast Empire of
Persia. And all these kings call themselves in the Saracen tongue
ZULCARNIAIN, which is as much as to say Alexander; and this out of
regard for Alexander the Great.[NOTE 1]
It is in this province that those fine and valuable gems the Balas Rubies
are found. They are got in certain rocks among the mountains, and in the
search for them the people dig great caves underground, just as is done by
miners for silver. There is but one special mountain that produces them,
and it is called SYGHINAN. The stones are dug on the king's account, and
no one else dares dig in that mountain on pain of forfeiture of life as
well as goods; nor may any one carry the stones out of the kingdom. But
the king amasses them all, and sends them to other kings when he has
tribute to render, or when he desires to offer a friendly present; and
such only as he pleases he causes to be sold. Thus he acts in order to
keep the Balas at a high value; for if he were to allow everybody to dig,
they would extract so many that the world would be glutted with them, and
they would cease to bear any value.
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