12 mallet: coal-fields of the nXga hills. 



to a depth of 102 feet. In addition to several other hand-boring-s, a 

 Mather and Piatt's steam-boring machine was set working in the latter 

 end of December, and a hole was carried down 195 feet; but, with the 

 exception of a few signs of gas, there were no good results/' 



" While the borings at Nahor Pung were proceeding, others were 

 begun at Makum. Oil was struck in one hole on the 26th March 1867 

 at 118 feet, and it immediately rose 74 feet in the bore, being 44 feet 

 below the surface. About 300 gallons were drawn, after which it was 

 found not to flow continuously, a circumstance which it was hoped 

 would be remedied by sinking deeper/' 



" As many as eight holes seem to have been put down in the Makum 

 area, and they were nearly all successful in tapping oil. The yield varied 

 in each. In January 1868, 100 to 125 gallons a day were collected from 

 No. 4, while 550 to 650 gallons were collected from No. 5. The action 

 of No. 5 bore was intermittent. Pure water was spouted for 3 or 4 

 hours, then almost pure oil for 15 to 30 minutes, after which all action 

 ceased for an hour, or sometimes longer ; and then activity set in again.''' 



In the paper from which these details a^e derived'^ Mr. T. W. 

 H. Hughes gives a table shewing the time when the blows of oil com- 

 menced, how long it continued running, and the quantity yielded, from 

 which it appears that at times No. 5 bore gave as much as 100, and even 

 150 gallons per hour, for many hours consecutively. 



Notwithstanding these results, however, Mr. Goodenough was not 

 successful in estabhshing a petroleum industry. Difficulty of transport 

 seems to have been the main cause of failure, raising the cost, I believe, 

 in Calcutta, to a figure at which the oil could not compete with that 

 from Rangoon and America. 



During recent years coal has been raised to some little extent in a 

 Mr. Hailey. desultory Way, more especially in the Makum field 



Assam Tea Company. ^^ j^^ Hailey, and in the Dikhu Valley by the 



* Records, Geological Survey of India, Vol. VII, pt. 2, p. 55. 

 ( 280 ) 



