382 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY, Vol. XII, 



of local origin or of Tertiary derivation, and no travelled fragments have 

 been anywhere seen by me. The history, in fact, of these portions must be 

 somewhat exceptional and instructive. 



The alluvium comes into relation with the Jurassic rocks (except in the 

 lateritic and a few other, possibly marine, patches of similar age, which have 

 contributed no recognizable elements to it ) in the broad flat area which joins 

 the mainland of Cutch, north of Bhachau, to Wagir, continues round the 

 western and northern sides of that district and unites it to Bela, skirts the 

 south-western sides of the islands of Kharir and Patcham, and forms patches 

 here and there along the northern coast of Cutch proper. "With the deposits 

 of this area must be classed about 650 square miles of lower-lying land, still 

 occasionally flooded, known as the Bani, which lies in the middle of the area 

 between the mainland and Patcham., and the deposits on the floor of the Ran, 

 which may be divided into the inner Ean, south of the islands, and the outer 

 or Great Ran, north of them. All these areas pass insensibly into each other, 

 being merely distinguished by the relative heights of an undulating surface 

 above the general level of the sea. 



In the area mapped as alluvium there are parts which become muddy in the 

 rains, and these pass gradually into Ran ; but a larger portion is sandy soil, 

 which soon becomes dry, including vast tracts where the sand is all loose and 

 where no amount of rain can remain for an hour on the surface. 



The characteristic deposit of the Bani is a very fine micaceous silt, and the 

 surface is dotted over with groups of trees which stand round the margins of 

 artificial tanks, or near the wells which are known to be abundant here. The 

 surface of the Ran, in the wet season, is everywhere covered with the slimes 

 of muds, on which the camels can scarce maintain a foothold ; but this is 

 probably underlain by a firmer, perhaps sandier deposit, as below the first two 

 or three inches the ground is firm and may be easily traversed while covered 

 with water. 



Before attempting the history of this strange area, attention must be drawn 

 to the further features which may help to elucidate it. One of the most 

 important of these is the aspect of the Ran where the alluvial deposits are, 

 absent. It has been shown long ago by Dr. Blanford i that both the Ran and 

 the sandy desert on the north of it may be reasonably concluded to have been 

 formerly occupied by the sea, and the latter to have been since more or less 

 choked by blown sand. Mr, Wynne^ quotes the numerous statements that 

 have been made that the Ran was navigable and provided with various ports 

 within the period covered by native traditions, though in describing the 

 Kharir clifl"s ( p. 106) he appears to be doubtful of the geological evidences. 

 In one place in Patcham ( op. at. p. 27 ) he quotes a deposit with " marine 

 shells nearly 20 feet above the Runn'' as " traces of this old sea" ; but elsewhere 



1 Jonrn. Asiat. Soc. Bengal, vol. xlv, pt. ii { 1S7G ), p. 86. 



2 Mem, Geol. Surv, India, vol. ix., pt. i ( 1 872 ), p. 2(J 



