260 MIDNAPOREj ORISSA, &C. 



valleys between them. It is not easy to find a steady section of the 



roclcs in any given direction for any great distance — and the general 



succession as given above, has been obtained from several points. The 



thickness seems to be very considerable, although 

 Thickness, . . 



it is diiScult to form any accurate estimate of it. 



Before it can be ascertained, the country to the north and west of the 



Midnapore district must be carefully examined.* 



All over these hills, but principally in the northern parts, are scattered 



masses of iron-slags, the refuse of former iron 

 Iron slags abundant. 



smeltings. And, at the present time, iron is 



smelted to a considerable extent by the natives. The system adopted 



differs in nothing material from that so often described, and which was 



noticed in the report on Cuttack {ante, page 12). 



Commencing from the north of Orissa, the range of the Nilgiri or 



Balasore Hills, runs just outside the boundary of 

 Nilgiri HiUs, . 



the province for about 50 or 60 miles. These 



hills have their northern limit on the banks of the Booraballung River, 



about 13 miles W. N. W. from Balasore. From this point they run 



in a broken range, formed by 3 short detached hills, (in a pass between 



two of which the village of Nilgiri is situated) for about 16 miles, nearly 



due south. Thence their escarpment runs for 8 or 10 miles to the west, 



and then continues for 30 miles in a general 

 Nature of the rocks, 



W. S. W. direction, the hills terminating at the 



valley of the Byturnee. On the northern part of the range, these hills 



* Mr, WiUson, whose long experience on the Geological Survey of Ireland entitles 

 his statement to every attention, justly remarks — " I would notice here the close resem- 

 " blance there is, lithologically, between the rocks forming this small group of hills, and 

 " those which occur on the flanks of the granite in the south' east of Ireland, particularly 

 " the purple, and yellowish clay slates with their associated quartzites, which are very 

 " similar to those " Cambrian" beds in Ireland, in which fossUs have been found ; 

 " namely, Oldhamia and Annelide tracks," 



