drainage; rivers. ' 



The chief water-sheds are the Chota-Nagpur table-land, the Hazari- 

 high. table-land, and the hills of Panchet rocks in the middle of the 

 field. All the northern tributaries of the Damuda are thrown off by the 

 two latter water-sheds, and they contribute the greatest body of water. 

 The river Damuda"^ rises in the Chota-Nagpur table-land. 



The western range of hills that borders the Karanpura area, and 

 in which the gradual ascent of the plains of the Damuda valley culmi- 

 nates, is important as forming the water-shed between some of the 

 tributaries of the Koel and those of the Damuda river. 



From the configuration of the country surrounding the Karanpura 

 field, a student of physical geography would at once surmise that the 

 number of streams traversing the coal-measures was very great. This 

 is the case, and there is no field in the whole of the Damuda valley 

 that contains so many rain channels as the Karanpura. A rough 

 estimate gives, for an area of 500 square miles, a river drainage of 

 more than 2^000 miles in length. All the streams are extremely 

 shallow, and soon after the cessation of the rains contain only a small 

 quantity of water, which usually dries up in the early part of the year. 

 After a rain-fall, a considerable volume of water is conveyed to the 

 Damuda, sufiicient indeed to render the river navigable for short 

 periods. As a highway of communication, however, it is useless. 



The most important tributaries of the Damuda on the north or 



left bank, are the Hoharu, the Chundru or 

 Tributaries of Damuda. „ i ^ i ;i tv/t' ^ • -vt i ,-. , , 



Tendwa, and the Murpa river. JNI early the whole 



of the eastern part of the field is drained by the Hoharu and its feeders. 



* The river Damuda takes its origin in the country of the Mundas, and its name has by 

 some been considered to signify "the waters of the Munda," dah, in the Mdnda language, 

 meaning water. Damuda may, however, be translated " waters of the snake," damun, beino- 

 the term employed for a water snake. The most important caste amongst the Miindas is the 

 Nagbansi, and as Nag implies a snake, there may be some connection between damun dah 

 (Damuda) and Ndghansi. 



( 391 ) 



