Chap. II.] the Himalayan series. 23 



designate a sandstone in which the granular character is considerably 

 obliterated. 



Although I can bring some strong evidence to show that members 

 Relative position of °^ ^e series spoken of as unmetamorphic appear 

 sometimes as schists, and that therefore the sepa- 

 ration of the two" series, solely on the basis of alteration, is not strictly 

 geological, on the whole, the distinction will, I think, be found to be 

 permanent, and more than simply lithological. The fact that the two 

 classes of rocks are found in close juxtaposition admits of our giving 

 some weight to the generally received opinion, that the least altered 

 is, in the normal order, the uppermost, and therefore younger. Their 

 relative position in the range bears out this conjecture ; the slaty rocks 

 form, without exception, a fringe to the greater area of the metamor- 

 phic rocks, and in several places projections from this fringe are deeply 

 inserted into that area. In such positions, however, as well as in the 

 fringing band, the apparent relation of the less altered rock is that of 

 underlying the more altered. I will describe the detailed relations of 

 these two series in several detached sections or areas, generally chosen 

 with reference to the semi-isolated patches or projections of the sup- 

 posed upper or younger series. 



By far the best sections that I have seen of the upper or unaltered series are in the neigh- 

 bourhood of Solun, where there is a traveller's bungalow on the new road, midway between 

 Kalka and Simla. This bungalow stands on the low watershed which joins two remarkable 



hills, the Krol and the Boj ; on the south-east, the hill of Kanoge, 

 Section of the Krol and Boj . 



of similar features to the other two, joins the watershed as 



about its middle point. To the north-west lies the open valley of the Blini. Along this 

 watershed there is an excellent section, well exposed in the small road-cuttings, in 

 which thin-bedded grits and slates alone are to be seen. The crumpling exhibited by 

 these rocks is excessive, but towards either end the dip becomes more steady, and in- 

 clines into the base of the mountain. Fig. 3 represents the section through the Krol 

 and the Boj, taken a short distance to the west of Solun. There are on the line of 

 section two outliers of the Subathu group, which do not extend so far as the 

 watershed ; at present, however, we are only concerned with the older rocks. 



Immediately overlying the shaly slates there is found at all points round the base of these 

 hills a coarse, quartzose sandstone ; it has here a pale yellow colour, owing to a very small 

 intermixture of fine ochreous clay. In many spots along the road-side it is seen decomposing 



