34 KING: KADAPAH AND KARNÜL FORMATIONS. [PART I. 
most plainly. “From November to February the country is smiling 
with crops in many stages of cultivation, but from that time all the 
beauty of the garden fades away, until in April and May the valley 
is nothing but a wide desert, of black and occasionally brown and red 
soils, over which parching winds and, later on, frequent dust storms 
career until the rains begin to set in by partial showers in the month 
of June, at which time also the great rivers are partially in flood from 
western rain-falls. 
Many of the disadvantages in the way of climate and poorness of 
RC RED oak of course due to the physieal structure 
PUEROS gumy UA. of the country and constitution of the rocks; but 
many of these may also be obviated or improved by taking advantage of 
a knowledge of these points in the structure of the country. For 
instance, hitherto, though there is such a fine river system, most of, if not 
all, the water has been allowed to run out by the pass in the Yellacondas 
and by the Kistnah channel; while no account has been taken of 
particular areas of the rocks over which forests might be better pre- 
served. Small attempts have, however, been made from the ancient up to 
ME d most recent times in the way of trying to preserve 
water, or to retain 16 for purposes of irrieation : and 
for such works the physieal structure of the country is often very well 
adapted. The parallel arrangement of the ridges of most of the hill 
ranges is peculiarly convenient for such purposes, and the narrow gorges 
by whieh they are often broken at the passage of the streams can be 
very often built up by bunds or dams without any very great expense or 
difficulty. Many such bunds were constructed in the time of the old 
Mogul dynasty ; and the country below them, though now deserted and 
covered with jungle, seems to have derived great benefit from them if we 
may judge by the present existence of ruins of large villages and 
extensive overgrown areas of once wet cultivation. The Cummum tank 
is the most famous example of backing up water behind one of the 
yee) 
