(')() GEOLOGY OF TRICIIINOPOI.Y^ &C. [ClIAP. IV. 1. 



lip it^ gradually increasing in elevation from west to east till it reaches 

 the summit at the eastern extremity of the ridge^ marked by a cairn 

 erected by the Trigonometrical Sm-veyors. On the northern side of the 

 Great precipices of summit there is a splendid precipice, several hun- 

 ironbeds. dred feet high^ overhanging in several places. (See 



Plate 1.) The bed is here shown in great magnitude, forming the whole 

 summit. At the western part of the ridge, just below the high crest, the 

 quality of the magnetic iron is very rich, and much iron sand is collected 

 from the southern talus to supply the Ollays, or small native furnaces in 

 several of the neighbouring, villages. At the eastern end of the Godu- 

 muUay, on the contrary, the bed is very much poorer in iron.^ 



It is at the western end of the ridge that the normal position of the 

 main beds may best be studied by ascending the saddle which cuts deeply 

 into the ridge to the north-east of Maituputty. The bed there strikes 

 east by north with a high dip to the north by west, and is much broken 

 up by strong north and south and west-north-west joints. The bed here 

 consists of nothing but magnetic iron interlaminated with quartz rocks,t 

 the former predominating greatly and forming 

 ana 1 1 y o ore. between three-fourths and five-sixths of the mass. 



The same degree of richness appears to continue pretty constantly for a 

 mile to the west, and as far as the summit of the hill to the east, after 

 which there is a gradual diminution in the proportion of magnetic iron 



* This iron bed may possibly be a continuation of the northern bed, which is lost sight 

 of on the flanks of the western end of the ridge, about 1| mile from Natamungalum (Sircar 

 Nauta of map), in which case the great summit bed must be regarded as completely hidden 

 iinder the debris covering the eastern slope of the Godumullay, or to have died out suddenly. 

 The break apparent between the summit and the re- appearance of the magnetic iron at the 

 north-east foot of the hill is probably the result of denudation at the apex of a small 

 sharp bend, similar to one clearly shown on the low outlying ridge, a little to the north of 

 the high road, and about 3 miles west of Walapaudy. 



t An imperfect crystalhzation of the magnetic iron has, in many parts, both in these 

 and other iron beds, resulted in giving the iron laminse a granular and stringy appearance, 



( 283 ) 



