474 GRADIENTS ON INDIAN RAILWAYS. 



gradients are often very slight. On the Indian lines 

 the gradients are generally clearly marked on boards, 

 placed at intervals along the railways, so that the 

 traveller can see for himself what they are. We shall 

 quote a few instances from our own notes to give the 

 reader a more exact idea of this. Then, as regards 

 the levels of lands obviously newly laid out by the 

 sediment of water : it is unnecessary to go further than 

 to the sea shore, where extensive sand or mud flats 

 are exposed at low water. Here we shall find that it 

 is all laid out in flat inclines, exactly in this way, as 

 proved by the water all running off to seawards as the 

 tide recedes. So also on the Indian plains and rail- 

 ways these inclines are clearly shown. On a very 

 level section of the Rajputana-Malwa Railway * we 

 made careful note of some of these, and found gra- 

 dients varying from i in 300 up to i in 750 very 

 common. Near Rawari we observed gradients of i in 

 1000 ; at the 2go th mile post one of i in 1666, and 

 even one of i in 2000 near Rawari Junction: but the 

 bits marked " level " were comparatively rare, and also 

 were always short lengths, wherever they did occur. 

 Now the object of entering into these technicalities 

 is to impress the great improbability of such a country 

 being laid down by any other natural agency, except 

 that of water in a state of rest. Assuming for the 

 sake of argument that these flats were levelled by the 

 deposit of still water, like that of a lake, it is just in the 

 condition in which we might have expected to find it. 

 If it should be so, that the great plain of Northern 

 India was in bygone ages (as we believe to be probable) 



* Or Northern Section of the Bombay, Baroda, and Central Indian 

 Railway. 



