STEVENSON— INTERRELATIONS OF FOSSIL FUELS. 417 



in each, but there is a greater proportion of good coal than in the 

 Aurunga field. The ash in analyzed specimens is from 7.8 to 18.2 

 per cent., whereas in the Aurunga field it is 15 to«34 per cent. The 

 rocks of the Hutar are as irregular as in the other field. The Rani- 

 ganj consists chiefly of soft yellow false-bedded sandstone and con- 

 tains a coal seam, one foot thick. Its coal has 2.5 per cent, of ash. 



The Ramkola and Tatapani coal fields, west from the Hutar 

 field, are part of a strip extending westwardly about 200 miles to 

 Jabalpur on the Narbudda River and thence southeastwardly about 

 300 miles to near Sarbalpur on border of the Talchir field in Orissa. 

 Griesbach^* states that Talchir, very irregular in occurrence and fill- 

 ing hollows in the metamorphic rocks, consists of clays and sand- 

 stones with conglomerate at top. The extreme thickness is not 

 far from 900 feet. 



The Barakar, consisting largely of micaceous sandstone, often 

 flaggy, often crossbedded, contains some variable coal seams, which 

 occur in three zones, two midway in the formation and the other 

 directly under the Raniganj. In one of the middle zones, he saw 

 a seam, 7 feet thick, but within a short distance it is but 3 feet 6 

 inches, while farther west the horizon is represented by 17 feet of 

 black shale with streaks of coal. This kind of variation seems to 

 be characteristic of the Barakar coals. The formation is not more 

 than 900 feet thick; its coal is practically worthless and much of it 

 is lignitic. The Raniganj, about 1,200 feet thick, is made up of 

 white feldspathic gritty sandstone and white shale. No coal has 

 been discovered. The Barakar in this area is characterized by 

 Glossopteris communis, G. hrowniana, G. damndica and Vertehraria 

 jndica; but the Raniganj has G. communis, G. angustifolia and G. 

 retifera. 



The Wardha Valley field is about 175 miles southwest from the 

 last. It was examined by Hughes,^^^ who found the Talchir and 

 Barakar clearly defined but the ironstone shales and the Raniganj 

 are indefinite; the term, Kamti, is applied to the rocks occupying 



1* C. L. Griesbach, " Geology of the Ramkola and Tatapani Coal-Fields," 

 Memoirs, Vol. XV., 1880, pp. 129-192. 



15 T. W. H. Hughes, " The Wardha Valley Coal-Field," Memoirs, Vol. 

 XIIL, 1877, pp. 1-154. 



