Volcanoes in the Bay of Bmtjal. Sij^i 



The rocks around the hot ^rings of Peer Mugger, ten 

 miles east of Kurrachee, consist of nummulitic limestone, in 

 some cases highly crystallised, and where the fossils, according 

 to Captain Ficary, occasionally are entirely altered. Two 

 miles further to the westward, occurs the group of Minora 

 Hills, about 800 feet above the sea, and 500 above the plain 

 around. On the eastern side a crater has been blown out ; 

 the ruins are scattered around. It is oval in form, about 

 150 feet in length, and 50 across. The explosion has burst 

 away one of the sides, and blown through the strata adjoin- 

 ing. It seems as if a vast deluge of water had for a short 

 time been discharged from it. There is no tradition* in exist- 

 ence regarding it, nor is anything known of the date when 

 it was last in commotion. It has clearly been subject to the 

 great changes which have taken place around, and it is pro- 

 bable it preceded the deposit of post-pleocene clays found 

 at its base,t as these bear no appearance of disturbance, and 

 have most likely been deposited by the sea, subsequent to 

 the explosion. There are several other craters of lesser size, 

 and more imperfect structure round Minora. The rocks at 

 the Lukkee Pass hot springs appear to be of exactly the 

 same description as those at Peer Muggun — their position 

 in all likelihood due to volcanic influence of comparatively 

 recent existence. The hot springs of Peer Muggun attain a 

 temperature of from 100 to 150, and yield a very copious 

 discharge— the -wxiter i& perfectly pure, and fertilizes the 



* Captain Carless, who gives (1838) by far the best account of this district 

 yet published, speaks of " a celebrated hili called Jibel Pubb, 20 miles north- 

 west of the hot springs, of which wonderful stories are related all over the 

 country ;"' but he does not tell us what these stories are. Bombay Geographi- 

 cal Transactions. 



t Captain Ficary describes the clays as post-pleocene. He makes no mention 

 of the crater. I visited it, and took careful drawings and measurements of it 

 in March 1850. The highly-crystalline state of the rock is conspicuous. I 

 confess I could discover no evidence of any diminution of its fossils around the 

 springs or near the crater. The rocks which every where around are cue maSs 

 of shell and zoophytes, the corals being often in the most beautifully perfect state 

 that can be imagined, have been in some places highly crystallised, the organic 

 remains being in part obliterated. The crystals are occasionally arranged in 

 beautiful star-like forms, like many members of the xoolite family. 



