SUPERFICIAL DEPOSITS IN CUTCH. 181 



this "what was the direction of the wind at other times, for, if the direction 

 has changed, the time of the change is not recorded ; but, by assuming that 

 the direction at 8 a.m. is the same as that for 12 hours before and 12 hours 

 after, we may arrive at a rough estimate of average direction and speed. 

 Taking the year 1895, and treating the records in this way, it appears that 

 the air travels at Bhuj, in the various directions, at an average rate of 10^ 

 miles per hour for the whole year. But at the end of this time the air is not 

 found to have returned upon itself. According to the records, a particle of 

 air which travelled constantly with the wind would find itself at the end of 

 the year 06,000 miles to the east and 9,600 miles to the north of its initial 

 position. These figures of course are merely indicative of general results, 

 the meaning being that there is, on the whole, a constant passage of air in 

 one direction, from a little to the south of west, at a rate of 7| miles per 

 hour. 



We shall form, however, a better idea of the action and power of the wind 

 by examining the records in detail. There were, in the first place, only 40 

 occasions in the year when there was any east in the wind at all, and the 

 total velocity of such winds was only 12 i per cent, of that of the westerly 

 winds. Again, for the greater part of the year the winds are not excessive, 

 but, out of the 140 days between April 25th and September 11th, no less than 

 90 days'' gales are recorded, seven of which are specially recorded as dust- 

 storms. If now we confine ourselves to these dates of gale, we find that the 

 average velocity was 20 miles per hour, and the average direction about 20" 

 south of west. The velocity exceeded in six cases ?A) miles per hour. This is an 

 average for 24 hours, and as gales do not continue to have a constant velocity 

 for so long, there must have been not infrequent times when the wind was 

 moving at 40 miles per hour. The complete records for other years I have 

 not been able to consult; but there is no reason to believe that 1895 had a 

 maximum of wind, nor are we sure that the present winds as a whole are 

 equal in intensity to those of some period of the past. We have, therefore, 

 good reason to believe that there is adequate force available to do the work 

 required. 



Moreover, similar work is now being done, as witness the dust-storms for 

 which Cutch is famous. As, however, the gales blow from the west, it is 

 important to know what happens in that direction, and on consulting the 

 meteorological reports above quoted, we find that there were no fewer than 

 55 dust-storms recorded at Karachi during 1895, mostly under westerly 

 winds, and in the other stations next north and north-east of Cutch 53 dust- 

 storms and 53 dust-hazes, which latter may be taken to mean the transport 

 of the finer particles of dust. It is obvious, therefore, that the passage of 

 fine sand, etc., across the country is a widespread phenomenon. 



We have evidence also that the sand thus carried travels with great 

 velocity, for, as shown on p. 456 of the 2nd edition ^_1893) of Blanford and 



