INTRODUCTORY. 29 



the south of that river. Scientific research among the minor 

 forms of animal and vegetable life (for which I have had 

 neither the time nor the knowledge), may possibly elicit many 

 confirmations of the law of distribution I have thus roughly 

 stated from observations that have presented themselves to me 

 as a forester and a sportsman. 



I need here only indicate another matter in connection 

 with this subject. It has already been stated (p. 22) that 

 a tribe called Korkus, closely connected with what is called 

 the Kolarian stock, which is represented by the Kols and 

 Santals of Bengal, is found embedded among the Gonds of 

 these central hills. Now the commencement of the range of 

 this tribe precisely agrees with the isolated patch of the Sal 

 forest in the Denwa valley ; and their nearest relatives of the 

 same stock are the Kols of the country to the north of Mandla, 

 where the Sal forest again commences. Thus we have an 

 outlier of the human tribes of Eastern India existing along 

 with an outlier of its vegetable and animal forms, and the 

 country between the whole three and their nearest con- 

 geners occupied by other forms. It is a most singular 

 coincidence ; and such must be my excuse for devoting 

 so much of my space to what must be to many an un- 

 interesting discussion. It is worthy, I think, of further 

 investigation. 



I have said that at the time the Central Provinces were 

 constituted little was accurately known regarding the forest 

 resources of their vast waste regions. It had, indeed, been 

 suspected that the projectors of the railways had over-Calcu- 

 lated the possible supply ; but it was little guessed that the 

 exhaustion had gone so far as really proved to be the case. 

 In another place (p. 96) will be found an account of the 

 system of cultivation of the hill-tribes, who had for centu- 



