SON PLATEAU. 227 



the rocks from the same cause becomes intensely comphcated. The 

 succession is the same, but the " purple sandstone '^ is much less seen, 

 except in the cliffs nearest to the main escarpment, where it still retains 

 its thickness of about 350 or 300 feet. Even here there is occasionally 

 a thiuj greenish, shaly, micaceous band, between it and the " speckled 

 sandstoue,^^ the thickness of which last appears much to exceed that of 

 the former groups. Along the foot of the hills the '' red marl '^ and the 

 " purple sandstone" are frequently but not well exposed underneath the 

 debris. 



In the Choya gorge many singular complications occur, the lower 



rocks of the overlying series having slipped down- 

 Choya gorge. 



wards over the salt-marl^ sometimes producing 



the appearance of alternation, whilst sometimes nearly isolated masses 



from above have reached the bottom of the glen. The " red-salt marl " is 



much exposed, and crops out on the shoulder of the 



Salt-marl, 



spur between the gorge and the village of Choya, 

 at a considerable elevation above the latter. The water is all salt with 

 the exception of a small driblet, issuing at the left side of the mouth 

 of the gorge from the gypseous red marl ; a hollow which might hold 

 a pint having been formed to receive the supply around this, a cluster 

 of the village children stood waiting their turn to obtain a tardy lotah- 

 ful, warm and not particularly good when gained. The " red marl" 

 has a more stratified appearance than usual owing to the prevalence of 

 gypsum, the layers dipping at high angles on account of much dis- 

 turbance of the rocks (see fig. 40, PL XXIII) . 



At some distance within this glen, bands of the grey cherty-looking 

 Dolomitic flags and dolomite and grey (weathering greenish) clays or 

 shaly layers in marl. shales with ferruginous strings, occur quite ver- 



tically bedded in the salt-marl, the flaggy dolomite bands alternating 

 frequently with dark brownish grey thin shales. At one place these beds 

 measure 50 feet, and present in their regular stratification a strong 

 contrast to the adjacent marl. 



( 111 ) 



