18 MALLET, VINDHYAN SERIES. 



the shales re-appear, and each alternation of the strata is defined 

 by a separate escarpment. In the neighbourhood of Sipri are four 

 such, all facing eastwards, while from the edge of each the country slopes 

 gently to the west. Towards Gwalior they trend somewhat east of north, 

 until lost beneath the alluvium. Along the northern bank of the Chum- 

 bul, west of Dholpur, a fifth escarpment runs nearly parallel to the ridge 

 which passes by Futtipur-Sikri and Hindoim. Northward and east- 

 ward stretch the alluvium plains, except near Gwalior, where the for- 

 mation to which the name of this place has been given manifests itself in 

 a series of east and west escarpments, whose form is very much the same 

 as that of the Vindhyans. 



The trappean area is one which presents much diversity in aspect. 

 Plains, more or less level as a whole, in some 

 parts are covered with broad spreads of 'cotton 

 soil,' where wheat is grown in immense quantities. Elsewhere the ground 

 is broken and irregular, and the trappean rocks, without a covering' of 

 soil, prevent any but the scantiest vegetation. Innumerable hiUs, dis- 

 posed singly, or in groups, and ranges, and plateaux of limited extent, 

 diversify the prospect, some of them covered with jungle, others stony 

 and barren. The form of the trap hills distinguishes them at once from 

 inljong hills of sandstone, and the vegetation of each is also sufficiently 

 distinct ; one of the most characteristic differences being the abundant 

 supply of teak saplings on the trappean hills, which are quite uncom- 

 mon on the sandstone. 



Without exception the most prominent features of the Vindhyan 



area are the numerous escarpments, which stamp 



it with a geographic character peculiarly its own. 



Their form depends on the conditions, the nature, and the inclination, of the 



strata composing them. The commonest form where the lower portion of 



( 18 ) 



