of junction being strongly marked; the quartz rock was perfectly amorphous, not a trace of schistose structure was to be observed, the laminæ of the schist were considerably bent or undulated, it contained fragments of the quartz rock, some of which were coloured green, some retained their white colour; no fragments of the schist however could be detected in the quartz rock; this mass which appeared detached was surrounded by several smaller blocks, some of which were found to be quartz rock, some chloritic schist.

139. The route passes round the head of a second valley, which falls into that of the Kumoulada, and crossing the lateral separating ridge descends into the valley of the Bunal, another glen containing a good deal of level ground, though not equal to Ramasera or the Gurogar glen. In the descent above the village of Kande, gneiss was once more found, but down the valley, the mountains, at least their summits, appeared to consist of limestone; this gneiss was talcose, approaching to earthy, and it is again found below this village in the neighbourhood of limestone beds, and containing a bluish semi-transparent mineral in grains similar to that described (Art. 126.) Here the gneiss formation is finally taken leave of, being succeeded by talco-argillaceous schist.

140. We must now proceed to the valley of the Kalee, and trace the southern boundary there also. The former account stopped at Ookemuth on the Kalee. In a glen a mile south of it, is seen a schist full of those flat veins or circular masses of quartz which are so common in micaceous and argillaceous schist; this rock dips 45° NE., and has an inclination of about 30° to 40°. Between the villages Jukh and Oakee again, gneiss is met with; below in the bed of the river is a mass of calcareous tufa with vegetable impressions. light buff yellow colour, is rather porous with a semi-crystalline grain. It is a very pure carbonate of lime, and affords an excellent cement by burning, which was used for the stone temples erected one at Kedarnath, at the foot of the great Soomeeroo Peak,* the other at Ookee Muth where the Raool, or chief priest, resides.

It is of a

This temple is situated at the source of the Mundaknee, a branch of the Dhaolee, in one of those expanded vallies described in Art. 95. The elevation of the place is and it is unnecessary to say that during many months it is deep in snow, and consequently not habitable. There is even no village within 15 miles of the place; it it rather larger than the generality of these structures, and is handsomely built of hewn

stone.

141. Chloritic schist is seen again at Kandara in the Greenduala glen, which furnishes a middling sized stream to the Kalee; beyond the chloritic schist-gneiss is again found near the village of Baroo, Amorphous patches of earthy granite may be observed, so soft and crumbling as to yield easily to the spade. On the summit of the Pass a talco-chloritic schist obtains, and continues to the mines at Pokree, fragments, however, of hornblende schist being scattered about in some numbers; beyond this point no gneiss was observed in proceeding south; we may therefore return to Mumdal below the Toaugnath Pass, where the account of this formation left off. (Art. 103.)

142. This village is situated in the high bed of the Dulalee river, which has its rise in the schist of the Toongnath mountains, and joins the Dhoalee just below Gopisur. The route leads down the glen to turn into the valley of the Dhoalee; very little rock in situ was observed, indeed only one patch, which was of too little extent to say precisely whether it was granite or gneiss, the toughness being such as to set at defiance the hammer, and consequently prevent its effecting a fracture of the rock, so as to judge of its mineralogical composition. It was a roundish amorphous mass with a few irregular seams projecting but little above the surrounding surface, and thus, from its want of sharp corners, increasing the difficulty, occasioned by its toughness, of detaching a specimen. Fragments of hornblende rock, of quartz rock, and of gneiss, are abundantly scattered over all this tract. One block, probably part of a vein, was observed, consisting almost entirely of that variety of hornblende called actynolite; part of the containing rock still adhered, being a fine granular mixture of felspar, quartz, and mica, the first ingredient in greatest quantity. The actynolite has rather a confused structure; apparently large concretions formed of radiating bundles of prisms. The specimens obtained were not remarkable for beauty.

143. A more remarkable phenomenon was the occurrence of a huge mass, composed apparently of very similar ingredients to the secondary sandstones. It was a solitary rock which stood in the bed of the Dulolee, the top being covered with grass and shrubs; strictly it might be called a conglomerate, containing many large boulders or rounded stones. The base was rather fine grained, consisting almost entirely of quartz sand, and apparently held together by the slightest

coherence. The friability and want of consistence of the substance, prevented the retention of any specimens, as they fell to pieces immediately on being detached, though the rock itself, of considerable size, seemed persistent. I am inclined to think it was merely part of a diluvial deposit and not a legitimate sandstone, no specimen of which I have ever observed in such a locality. In reality though the sandstones are often friable, and have little coherence, yet I have never seen any which exactly resembled this rock.

144. At Sikol, in the bed of the Dhaolee, I found large masses of quartz rock stratified, probably with great regularity, but the fissures of the strata so intermixed with cross cleavages, that it was difficult to separate them, and say which really was the plane of the strata. The colour of this rock was greenish, it is also seen near Masooa, rather a large village near the rope bridge by which the Dhaolee is here crossed. The dip was N. E., inclination about 60° to 70°; close by the bridge appears to pass into micaceous schist. Further on in the valley of the Mundaknee, it appears to pass into chloritic schist.

it

145. I must not leave the Dhaolee, however, without saying some thing of those great accumulations of boulder stones, the very sight of which strikes the traveller with astonishment, and forces him to admit the action of some great rush of waters. These diluvian beds are here seen on a scale, which sets at nought any theory that should derive its agent from the body of water at present occupying that channel. These deposits seem always to be found in those parts of the river's course where the valley widens considerably, at least it has been so in all the instances I have yet had to notice. In the immediate bed of the river, the fragments consist of two kinds, the one perfectly rounded, the other subangular. The rounded fragments consist of gneiss, granite and hornblende rock, the other of quartz rock and mica slate, the two latter being the rocks in situ in the immediate neighbourhood of the rounded fragments; these are of all sizes from boulders of four feet in diameter to the small grains of sand. That the river in its greatest floods, and in some particular parts of its course possesses the power of moving these stones, is certain, from the deep hollow noises heard every now and then. That it can do little more than merely move them is equally certain, from the fact of these boulders always occupying the wide parts of the valley. There are tracts here of a mile in length, and

probably 300 feet wide, (the depth is not known), consisting of these huge stones, great part of them now far above the reach of the highest floods. It is not to be understood, if they had been moved by causes still in operation, why none of them should have travelled a little farther. 146. Ascending to Sooralee from the bed of the Mundaknee, chloritic schist is found established, extending for some miles beyond the village to the foot of the Okrooaree Pass, which separates the Purgunnahs of Budhan and Dussolee. It is as usual much intermixed with quartz rock; some specimens of a straight laminar structure have an emerald green colour, and an almost metallic brilliancy. This is a beautiful rock. On the descent from the Pass gneiss is found of a small grain, a very compact rock. The dip is N. 80° E. the angle of elevation 60°, hence passing by the village of Koon to Choptah, quartz rock and chloritic schist prevail irregularly mixed. The dip generally N. E., the inclination 25°. At Chobtah, they are exchanged for an earthy micaceous schist, which however must be of very limited extent.

147. Below this village, on the road to Jak, the rock is of a less definite structure, being an irregular mixture of dolomite and tale; sometimes the grains are small and the mixture intimate, sometimes they are larger, and the aggregation of a granitic character, i. e. each mineral perfectly distinct, though mutually impressing each other. These distinct concretions become so large, that each mineral may be found forming the substance of distinct blocks. This type of rock occupies but a small space, being found only on the right bank of the glen below Chobtah; on ascending the other side, fragments of a granitic rock are met with, but of peculiar mineral character. The ingredients appear to be a dark bluish grey felspar, quartz and talc, the grain is small, the rock exceedingly tough and hard, with an amorphous structure, although some specimens shewed something like a transition into the schistose. This rock was not seen in situ, only in fragments, and has near been observed in any other locality. It is a very beautiful rock, and would be extremely ornamental if cut and polished.

148. Near Jak, beds of hornblende schist occur, apparently graduating into quartz rock; on the quartz rock, which contains felspar, rests a bed of chloritic schist of scaly composition and unctuous feel. These two rocks are perfectly distinct, and the line of separation strongly drawn. The dip is N. 60. E. and the inclination 40. Below them in

the descent to the Pindar much quartz rock occurs, dipping always N. E., but having frequently a second set of cleavage planes equally distinctly marked. The only method of recognising them is the greater or less permanence, the false stratification if it may be so called, often vanishing within short distances. At the foot of a precipice formed by a beautiful natural section of a quartz rock containing felspar, is a patch of grey rock, amorphous, without any trace of schistose structure, and projecting in large round masses, very similar to those which granite is seen to affect. It is probably a mixture of hornblende and felspar. A whitish rock of a small grain, and similarly amorphous, is seen in contact sending veins through it, and reminding one strongly of the description given of granite veins. This white rock is similar in mineralogical character to the stratified rock above noticed, consisting of a mixture of quartz and felspar. The fragments in the bed of the stream are chiefly gneiss and hornblende rock; they are frequently increased by calcareous spar.

149. On descending into the valley of the Pindar a greenish grey schist is met with at the rope bridge. Character intermediate between hornblende and chloritic schist. It probably belongs to the former title, though the fragments and other indications beyond this place point to a formation of talcose schist. Fragments are also met with of gneiss and of hornblende schist. At Zubburkat, the rock is a gneiss, of a fibrous columnar structure, dark grey colour, and earthy aspect. It probably contains, if not hornblende, some magnesia or a mineral, probably talc or chlorite. It also contains grains of the blue semi-transparent mineral noticed (Art. 139.) Beyond this village immense blocks of a well defined gneiss are met with, resting on the mountain side, and some few of hornblende rock, but such is the thickness of the covering of debris and vegetable mould, this being the side of easy slope or quarter of the dip, that no instance of the rock in situ occurs till we approach the village of Chelinga; here may be seen a strata of gneiss, dipping N. 85° E. and at an angle of 40°. This gneiss agrees in character with that constituting the large blocks just noticed, and has an affinity to that seen at Zubburkat. It is a small granular mixture of black mica, greyish white felspar, and quartz, with distinct foliated grains of felspar superadded. The quartz is obscure, and indeed in all these mixtures of small grain, it is not easy to detect the nature of ingredients