THE MALDIVE AND LACCADIVE ARCHIPELAGOES, 149 
4 miles long covers the eastern side of the reef, a kind of boat-channel, the Incipient or 
the possibly former lagoon, separating it from the western reef. 
Two of the submerged banks have land on their edges, Androth island resting on the 
south of a bank 113 miles long east and west by 6 broad, while Ameni and Pitti are at 
opposite ends of a bank 26 miles long, extending north-north-east and south-south-west. 
Both banks have traces of the atoll-shape, Androth having 16 fathoms in the centre and 
7, 10 and 15 on the edge, and Pitti 26 fathoms in the centre, 9, 6, 8, 20 and 9 on the 
rim. Elikalpeni, north-west of Androth, is nearly round, 4 miles in diameter, depth irregular, 
average 8 fathoms, least 6 fathoms. The remaining banks lie all to the north of the group, 
and are much larger, Munyal being 71 miles long by 7—14 broad, Sesostris 15 by 8 miles, 
and Coradive 20 by 5} miles. Sesostris has numerous soundings, indicating patches growing 
up, and some trace of a rim in soundings of 11, 15, 17 and 12 fathoms on the circumference, 
the general depth being about 23 fathoms. Coradive averages 26 fathoms in depth and 
Munyal 28 fathoms; both are somewhat irregular but a less depth than 20 fathoms is not 
found on either. All three are charted as covered with sand, decayed coral and broken shells. 
A few pomts are of particular interest as bearing on the general question of the 
formation. In the first place practically all land lies on the eastern or leeward side of the 
reefs, the group bemg completely exposed to the gales of the south-west monsoon, while 
it must be largely protected by India from those of the north-east. The present contour 
of the land throughout the group would hence seem to be really due, as at Minikoi, to 
elevation and subsequent erosion, the latter having completely removed all save traces of 
the land from the western reefs. A few of the smaller islands are mere sand-cays, but 
the larger are to seaward covered with loose coral-blocks on a substratum of coral limestone ; 
the seaward beach is usually steep, with pinnacles and masses of the same rock extending 
out on to the reef, wherever it forms a reef-flat. Against the lagoon the islands have been 
very considerably broadened by sand blown up from the beach, and some probably owe the 
greater part of their breadth to this source. 
The larger islands of the Laccadives have a steep slope close along their eastern faces, 
in effect have no definite reef-flat, indeed not as much reef as is found at Minikoi between 
Mou-Rambu and Kodi points (fig. 6). In contour all the surface reefs have the usual gradual 
slope outwards for a certain distance, passing into a steep commencing at 20 to 30 fathoms, 
a considerably less depth than is customary off exposed reefs. All have a greater distance 
to the commencement of the steep off their western than their eastern faces, and this is 
the more especially marked where long stretches of land occur. Off the west side the steep 
seldom commences within 250 or 300 yards of the edge of the reef, more often averaging 
400—500 yards, while to the east it is seldom off islands more than a cable (100 fathoms) 
from the actual shore. Off Chetlat, Kalpeni and Kardamat the 100 fathom line is in places 
within 150 yards of the land, and the shelf may be little marked, the slope commencing 
from the reef itself. I shall have further occasion to discuss the meaning of this diversity, 
but, considering the presence of definite windward and leeward reefs in the Laccadives, I 
may here pomt out that it seems to indicate a real relationship between the slope and 
the wave, current, and tidal actions, in effect to suggest a connection between the line of 
the steep and the mud-line off continental lands. 
There are no dredgings over the submerged banks which show their formation. The 
bottom on Ehkalpeni can be clearly seen, and is covered with sharp coral rocks. On Androth 
