^\ Ixxxii ) 



selves may be about 5 miles wide on their western face and 

 less on the eastern looking down on Tinnevelly, which is very 

 steep, and I don't think my men ever went to the eastern 

 face. The top of the ridge is about 5000 ft., of which the 

 upper half is grass with a few woods scattered about. At 

 the northern end, however, there is a big block of forest on 

 a plateau 4500 to 5000 ft., where I fancy Papilio tamilana 

 and buddha, which were unknown to H. S. Ferguson (ibid.), 

 were found. But my men did not often go there, as it was 

 far away with no inhabitants but bear, bison, and elephant, 

 which they feared. The lower slope was tall heavy forest 

 (trees 100 to 150 ft. high), with dense bamboo jungle at the 

 foot. This bamboo jungle (Bamboo mixed with trees such 

 as Blackwood, Iny and other trees about the height and 

 habit of English trees) extends some 6 miles from the foot 

 of the hill and is succeeded by rounded hills of laterite, 200 

 to 300 ft. high, with rice-fields in tlie hollows and grass-fields 

 on the higher land. These grass-fields have cactus hedges and 

 hedge-row trees of Palmyra, Jack, Banyan and Mango and also 

 leguminous trees grown for leaf manure for the paddy-fields. 

 Further out in drier country are Tamarind and Neem or 

 Murgossa trees. On the last belt, next to Tinnevelly and about 

 7 miles wide, comes a very dry area (similar to Tinnevelly 

 country) ; where only Palmyra, Tamarind, Neem, and Babul 

 trees grow with Cactus hedges round grass-fields. These fields 

 are sometimes planted with peas in the moonsoon, and horse- 

 grain in October to December in all but the very dry belt. 

 In the wetter part nearer the hills low scrub jungle grew up 

 wherever there was no cultivation, and this was felled and 

 planted with tapioca for two years, then left to grow scrub 

 again for two or three years. Sometimes hill rice or other 

 grain was sown for one year on the cleared land, or it was 

 put permanently under Plantain or Banana trees. 



" Annual rainfall 150 to 200 inches, over 2000 ft. ; 90 inches 

 at foot of hills and 6 miles out, falUng to 30 inches in middle 

 of cultivated tract, and 15 inches in very dry belt. In Tinne- 

 velly town, 40 miles E. of Travancore boundary, it is 13 

 inches. This appUes only to the 20 miles at the S. end of 

 the Ashamboo Hills where I collected. 



