743 
search, the authors examined both flanks of the chain simultane- 
ously, their force being brought together at the chief establishments 
by mutual converging traverses; and thus, in less than three months, 
they acquired a general knowledge of the chain from Bogoslofsk on 
the north to Orsk and Orenburg on the south, a distance of about 
550 miles. It is not pretended that this knowledge is precise in re- 
lation to the mineral structure of the mining tracts; as such details 
either have been or wil] be worked out by Russian engineers. The 
authors merely hope to have succeeded in giving an unity of geolo- 
gical composition to the chain, so that the age of the chief masses 
may be effectively compared with the unaltered deposits of the 
plains of Russia, and by this means with the geological succession of 
sedimentary deposits already established in Europe. 
Physical Features.— Referring to Capt. Strajefski for his account 
of the northernmost and uncolonized part of the chain, which he ex- 
plored amid great privations to 65° N. lat., the physical geography 
of the civilized portion is briefly sketched, and the chief altitudes, as 
determined by Colonel Helmersen, are given. The general bearing of 
the chain, as well known, trends from north to south. Ekaterinburg, 
the chief town, is situated on the eastern side of the only very low 
depression in the range, from which point this dividing crest between 
Europe and Asia rises both to the north and south, and attains al- 
titudes occasionally of 2500 feet. The northern Ural, formerly 
occupied by Voguls, who still live in the wildernesses north of 61 
degrees, is inhospitable in climate, and is chiefly occupied by dense 
forests, through which the rocks of the central water-shed are per- 
ceptible only at intervals. This monotony, however, is enlivened by 
knots of mountains which rise up on the sides of the parting ridge, - 
and overtop it. Such are the Katch Kanar, the Pawdinskoi Kamen, 
near Bogoslofsk, 2784 English feet, and the Konjakofski Kamen, 
to the north of the same places, about 5700 feet above the sea*. 
Whilst the North Ural (or that north of Ekaterinburg) has one per- 
sistent direction with some lower flanking ridges parallel to the chier 
one, the whole not occupying a breadth of more than from 45 to 70 
miles, the South Ural, z. e. to the south of the mountain Jurma+, 
expands to much greater width, branching off into fan-shaped 
ridges, which trend to the south and to the east and west of that 
point. In this region, however, as in the north, the water crest or 
Ural-tau preserves a north and south direction, varying in height 
from 1800 to 2500 feet, whilst the broken ridges on its western 
flanks, such as the Taganai near Zlataoust, rise to 3800 English 
feet, and the Iremel to about 5136 English feet above the sea. _ 
From its configuration, and also from its latitude, the South Ural, 
_-* This mountain was once estimated tohave an altitude of 8000 or 9000 feet, 
but by the trigonometrical observations of Fedoroff and the barometrical cal- 
culations of Kupffer, it has been ascertained that it cannot exceed 5280 Paris 
feet above the sea. It was upon this point of the range that the authors saw 
much snow in the month of July. 
+ About 3000 English feet above the sea. All these heights are taken 
from Colonel Helmersen and M. Hoffmann. 
